Archive for November, 2006
Pandora Reviewed: Rod Stewart = Hip Dysplasia.
3 Comments Published by oz November 30th, 2006 in Music Technology, Music Musings.Continued from my last post about the Pandora Town Hall Meeting at Stanford University…
So Pandora’s purpose in life is to answer the question, “Can you help me find more music I will like?” After using Pandora off and on for over a year, I’ve found that the answer is “Yes…sort of.”
Let’s first consider a few […]
How many genes make up a song’s DNA?
1 Comment Published by oz November 28th, 2006 in Music Technology.
That’s a question that can only be asked in a discussion about music at Stanford University. Well, Stanford or anywhere else Pandora’s founder, Tim Westergren, travels to hold one of his Town Hall Meetings. Last night I visited Stanford to listen to his story, his product and his thoughts on the music industry.
You really have to respect the […]
I’m finally recovered from my Kansas City Thanksgiving and just found one more thing to be thankful for. Sub Pop has offered up an MP3 from the upcoming Shins Album, Wincing the Night Away. It should be just enough to get you excited for the January 23rd album release.
Take a listen…
Phantom Limb
After hearing The Antiques for the first time, I was shocked to hear that they hailed from the same city that gave us The Crue and GnR. There’s nothing LA about this band. Feels like they should be from Austin or Kentucky.
Nicknames and Natives feels like a nice slice of Americana. You can hear the influences of yesteryear such as Neil Young, The Band and bands of today such as Wilco and moe. As it says on their website, “Barro’s intentions as a songwriter are not to replicate the original sound of Rock music, but to acknowledge it and update it.”
To his credit, Barro has done a nice job. These guys obviously grew up listening to the same music I did. They could have taken the easy way out and just rewrote classics, but instead, they put their own spin on their influences and produced a great album.
Highlights include the rootsy sounding “Pigless” and “Gun Shy.” “Dawn” has some nice steel guitar on it as does a good portion of the disc by Josh Hertz. If you dig this, I would also check out At The X, a 5 song acoustic EP that features Tim Blum of The Mother Hips.
Last month I wrote about Amie Street, a new site where indie musicians can upload music and consumers can download music for free and then for a fee as each song gains popularity. As a user, you can prepay for a small amount (I added $10) and they actually show your account funds in […]
Is Pete Dougherty serious? I’m waiting for the celebrity version of A&E’s Intervention. We could count on a bi-monthly appearance by Libertines ex-frontman, Pete Doherty. I just read this article in Aversion about his latest adventures.
So much for making progress: Pete Doherty was arrested yet again for drug possession.
The Babyshambles front man was arrested Saturday […]
This Lucero album review from Spin.com was sent to me today. Could it really be just chance that the review is a spitting image of Woody’s October 23rd post or is there some foul play at work here? You be the judge.
I had read some buzz about Golden Bear’s live performances and decided to give their debut a spin. Immediately this disc draws you in with “A Reason To Be Proud” with its dueling guitars which will quickly remind you of Built To Spill. The second song, “Ten Thousand Orchestras” has a nice full sound, kind of orchestral in nature. Damn, if I wasn’t singing this all day long after first hearing it.
Each song sound so full with multiple layers of sound. I find myself hearing new sounds in different nuances upon each listen. Add to that easy-going lyrics and delivery, not to mention that you can understand every word lead-singer Chris Gregory utters.
Other strong songs include “Golden Bear Revival Stomp” which, besides being a cool name, has you tapping your feet right from the get-go. Later on, they get nice and twangy on us with “The Saddest Songs,” the steel guitar being handled by Lloyd Maines, father of one Dixie Chick.
Apparently their live show is the buzz of Austin these days and I for one can’t wait till they make their way up to Chicago.
The Dead Schembechlers: F- Michigan, Go Buckeyes!
4 Comments Published by oz November 16th, 2006 in Music Video, Music Musings.The biggest game in college football is almost upon us and I can hardly sleep. I’m doing my best to focus at work, but this game is bigger than ever. I had trouble finding a song for the occassion.
This song and video is “Chad Henne is a Joke” and includes highlights and music by […]
The Interface: Noel Gallagher and The Decemberists
0 Comments Published by oz November 15th, 2006 in MP3's.Remember when Oasis was on MTV Unplugged? Liam had a sore throat that kept him off stage, but he felt well enough to sit in the crowd, chug booze and heckle his brother. Since that time, I’ve come to love Noel Gallagher. He stepped out of Liam’s shadow that night and although […]
