Linkage Wednesday: Surfer Blood, Yeasayer

Time to revive an old FOA feature: Linkage Wednesday!


1. Surfer Blood - "Take It Easy"

Take It Easy - Surfer Blood

I know everybody's tired of stuff that sounds like the '80s...or calypso...or the Beach Boys...but this song sounds like all of that and it's awesome. Surfer Blood will be visiting the Drunken Unicorn Feb. 19 with Turbo Fruits, Carnivores and Holiday Shores.

2. Being that I spent all of last week trying to say what I think about the forthcoming Yeasayer album Odd Blood (difficult because I'm still not quite sure what I think), stumbling across Stereogum's Premature Evaluation of the record today was kind of illuminating:

The toe-tapping "Rome" rattles forward, but in a less interesting way than the earlier tracks: It has rhythm and propulsion, but feels a bit empty. Yeasayer got folks hooked early on with "2080," a song that started floating around long before we even knew what the band looked like, so when those sort of harmonies disappear in favor of pure texture, a bit of the appeal drops-out, too.

Whew! I thought I was the only one that kept picturing this emoticon when I listened to certain parts of Odd Blood: :/



I mean, other parts of it completely rule. I'm sorta obsessed with "Madder Red." But there are bits that, to me, sound like a letdown. I feel like they're capable of more than that record. Dunno.

3. The A.V. Club posted a blurb about Vampire Weekend's Contra topping the Billboard 200 this week. Sure, we could actually discuss the ramifications of their popularity. But I'd rather point out that the article's writer Kyle Ryan captioned some scary video game illustration (which I should probably know about) with the line, "No, THIS guy would look psychotic in a balaclava." Hahahahaha, cheers Kyle.

FOA Linkage Wednesday, er, Monday

Whelp, seems fitting that the first time reviving an old FOA feature I'd do it kinda wrong. No worries!

Wasn't going to bother, but I was messing around on McSweeney's (which is awesome, if you never go) and I found this in the "Lists" section:

Radiohead at the
Culinary Institute.

BY JIMMY CHEN

- - - -

"Everything in Its Mise en Place"

"Fritter, Happier"

"All I Knead"

"Bones"

"My Waffle-Iron Lung"

"High and Dry Rub"

"Knives Out"

"Caramel Police"

"Black Star Anise"

"Weird Fishes"

"Crepe"

- - - -

Oh, come on, it's funny. 'Specially "Crepe" ("Creep") and "Weird Fishes" ("Weird Fishes"). I occasionally kill time with these lists, my other favorites of which are this one or this one. I couldn't really tell you why...


Also on McSweeney's today is a piece called "A Literary Critic Reviews My Résumé." by Ken Woodyard which, if you (like your favorite struggling freelancers) have recently made a résumé or enjoy literary analysis at all, is a riot. Here's the best paragraph:

Those of you familiar with Woodyard's earlier work will recognize the same cumbersome language, creative punctuation, and limited vocabulary that defined the first decade of his career. But there is a new, almost desperate tone to this piece that makes it not only unpalatable but borderline irresponsible. I could be mistaken, but it appears Mr. Woodyard is entreating the reader to not only read his work but to also provide him with a steady flow of cash for the foreseeable future. If this is truly his intent, then Résumé is nothing more than an undignified abuse of authorial power, and I, for one, take personal offense to it.



Finished my review of the Bon Iver Blood Bank EP this morning for PasteMagazine.com.

Look for it to show up on the site in a couple days. The EP releases tomorrow, but the whole thing is currently streaming on the band's MySpace. I'd be particularly interested to hear everyone's opinion on the EP's final track, "Woods," and their use of a vocoder (or Auto-tune?) on it.

Listen to "Blood Bank," courtesy of Jagjaguwar.

Linkage Wednesday, re: Tom Waits, DCFC, The National, etc.

FOA Linkage Wednesday returns! Get excited, 'cause here we go....

First, I have have have to point you towards this NPR piece: Tom Waits Interviews Tom Waits

It begins with this utterly fantastic introduction (by Tom Waits about Tom Waits):
"I must admit, before meeting Tom, I had heard so many rumors and so much gossip that I was afraid. Frankly, his gambling debts, his animal magnetism, coupled with his disregard for the feelings of others... His elaborate gun collection, his mad shopping sprees, the face lifts, the ski trips, the drug busts and the hundreds of rooms in his home. The tax shelters, the public urination...I was nervous to meet the real man himself. Baggage and all. But I found him to be gentle, intelligent, open, bright, helpful, humorous, brave, audacious, loquacious, clean, and reverent. A Boy Scout, really (and a giant of a man). Join me now for a rare glimpse into the heart of Tom Waits. Remove your shoes and no smoking, please."


I also particularly enjoyed this question and answer:
"Q: What's hard for you?
A: Mostly I straddle reality and the imagination. My reality needs imagination like a bulb needs a socket. My imagination needs reality like a blind man needs a cane. Math is hard. Reading a map. Following orders. Carpentry. Electronics. Plumbing. Remembering things correctly. Straight lines. Sheet rock. Finding a safety pin. Patience with others. Ordering in Chinese. Stereo instructions in German."

Oh, and this one :
"Q: What is a gentleman?
A: A man who can play the accordion, but doesn't."
What's he mean by that?! I like the accordion...

There's also a lot of really self-indulgent discussion about record collections, his ears and squid. Recommended reading, for sure.

Next up, we've got this post from the very talented Nikki. She points us toward this Stereogum thing, in which Chris Walla from Death Cab for Cutie summarizes his feelings on Gossip Girl and one of his band's songs appearing on it the previous evening. Sheer brilliance.

Excerpt:
"I keep hearing about this Gossip Girl. There's this one picture of her with her and her hot friends, spread out like margarine all over a Lincoln Town Car. Are they going to dinner? What's on the stereo while they drive? Is it our band? What world could I possibly be living in?"

The post is part of yesterday's "all Death Cab all the time," feature at Stereogum. The regular bloggers relinquished control and let members of DCFC do all the content all day. Risky? Yeah. Hilarious? Also yeah. Other good ones to read are:
New Hold Steady - Sequestered In Memphis by Chris Walla
The Roger Walters Quandary Or, Will The Last One Leaving Battersea Please Turn Out The Lights? by Ben Gibbard

Having dealt with blogging and online news posting extensively myself, I think it's great the way their content's still tailored to the usual Stereogum formatting...


Caren at Paste has created indie e-cards. For serious. They're incredible.


Grumpy Pitchfork says this about The National's A Skin, A Night and The Virginia EP. Incidentally, I disagree wholeheartedly with almost every sentence in this review. Mr. Klein misses the point entirely. Anyone who finds A Skin, A Night underwhelming and unnecessary is un-fascinated with songwriting and most likely has no soul. But I don't have any feelings about it.

In contrast, here's how I feel about The National.

Linkage Wednesday

True to my word (and little else, I imagine).

Linkage Wednesday:

A little bit of Gandalf Love.

Anticipation!

Guess which of these parties I generally enjoy more? Dr. Pepper promises a free can of its soda to everyone in America if Guns n' Roses release Chinese Democracy before the end of year. Read this.
(Kudos to Paul Thompson for saying both are prune-like. Ha.)

I Guess I'm Floating give us Radiohead for Dummies (Part 1). Pretty great.

Do you live within driving distance of Athens, Ga.? Do you like the New Pornographers? How 'bout Okkervil River? Cable and Tweed's givin' away tickets.

This is funny because I was about 30 feet away interviewing Aaron Dessner, also from The National as this interview was taking place. Go Grooveshark!

Here is a blurry picture of The National that I took at Langerado:



And finally, I very much recommend that you check out Have You Heard. They've really been kickin' ass lately

Show Docket/Linkage Wednesday

Show Docket: (All are welcome!)

Tonght: Lenny's Bar, 9 p.m., $5
Gravel Undertone
When Rocky Beat the Russian
Lazer/Wulf (yay!!!!!)
Holy Liars

Thursday, March 20: 40 Watt Club, Athens, GA., 10 p.m. $7
Dark Meat
Monotonix
Quiet Hooves

Friday, March 28: 40 Watt Club, Athens, GA, 9:30 p.m., FREE

Black Lips (who have a hotline in their tour van now, apparently)
Pride Parade
The Selmanaires
Pretty damn excited about this one.


Linkage Wednesday:
Maybe it is a real thing!

Ho belt. I bet you'll click, even if I offer no additional explanation. I have site stats. I'll be able to see if you do. Thanks, Pecanne Log.

Of Montreal/MGMT side project? No way....but so says Pitchfork. ("Blikk Fang"? Really?)

New Death Cab, reports Cable and Tweed. I actually kind of like the jam at the beginning, but the lyrics are toward the more obvious in Gibbard's arsenal. I don't know. I know I won't hate it. But I have a feeling my Death Cab phase really might have ended.

Recent Pasteings:

The Beatles might go Guitar Hero as well

Radiohead to judge In Rainbows animated video contest

Bon Iver releases video, gets robbed, extends tour

Lou Reed tours, is funny

Art Brut and EMI part ways

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to be split in two

Enough? Enough.
Hope to see you all at these shows....

I just had 4 shots of espresso

More fun things to enjoy while I put off all those record reviews (next week, I swear it!):

Yeasayer filmed two videos for Vincent Moon's Take-Away Shows, which are always brilliant. This is super exciting because Yeasayer's definitely a top-tier live act. Here's the best one; in my opinion, it's right up there with the Arcade Fire, Beirut and The National Take-Away Shows. Really, truly astonishing. (Moon even branches out a bit at the end with some scene cutting and backwards film reels.) My favorite part is when the neighbor complains....

#87.2 - YEASAYER - 2080
by lablogotheque

I'm so infatuated with this band.


Also, Paste posted an hour-by-hour guide to SXSW. This is, for obvious reasons, my favorite part:

11 p.m. - Bon Iver (Mohawk Patio) - According to the world's #1 all-star Bon Iver fanatic, Paste intern Julia Reidy: "For Emma, Forever Ago is hands-down the best album of the year. It's only March, I know, but I challenge anyone to make me change my mind come December. If he can fill your car the way he does, imagine what he can do with the performance space in a bar."

Linkage Wednesday

I like naming things as if they're part of an ongoing feature. Who knows, maybe I'll make "FOA Linkage Wednesday" a real thing.

Living up to the name:

Tiny Mix Tapes: Pitchfork Media lends its name, discriminating taste to video game soundtrack; TMT maybe gets Back to the Future pinball game for office
Really brutal. I get annoyed with TMT occasionally because they're pretty far over the top, but this one's spot on.

If you are ever bored, go here:
Dress Up Devendra Banhart
No seriously. The king of "freak folk" and weird clothes has provided his loyal fans with a virtual dress-up doll. It's bizarrely addictive. And as Nikki tried to point out, he goes so far as to be wearing white undies on one of his images. I'm speechless.

Recent Paste-ings:

Tapes 'n Tapes reveals 24-hour album stream, tour dates

Eisley kicks of North American tour April 1

The Onion Movie coming to DVD at last

Animal Collective preps Water Curses EP, tours

Patterson Hood schedules solo dates in between Truck stops

Beatles pirate prosecuted, still no sign of digi-releases


Also, Bon Iver posted his first video today (thanks, Jeff), which isn't so much a music video. Just pretty:




Stay tuned for reviews of Eux Autres's Cold City and Ball of Flame Shoot Fire's Grumpy Little Bird EP next week. I leave in the morning for Langerado, so I'll be out of touch for a few days (after one last post...). But please feel free to continue commenting, emailing, grumbling, gesticulating, and most importantly, reading (and thanks for doing it!)