October 20th, 2009

The Roots’ “How I Got Over” Delayed Until 2010

As you can see from the above tweet yesterday from Roots drummer ?uestlove, the group’s highly anticipated new album, How I Got Over — initially set to come out earlier this year, then slated for a release date of today — has now been pushed back to sometime next year.

Said Sir Questo about the delay in an Okayplayer post:

i *could* bs you w/ good bad news but we too old to get into that after 11 years together so in short.

would you RATHER me just “turn it in already!!!!!” (and again–despite that “worst song the roots ever done poast…there is NO song that i dont sweat prep/execute/mix/focusgroup/re do/argue over/mix for 19 hours until i feel goosebumps…..EVER. (well actually one song. a piece of trash called “the seed” rotf)

or do you want me to turn it in when its perfecto?

im SUPPOSED to turn it in tomorrow.

however.

i do not like these mixes all that much.

studios have shut down in new york and basically there are 5 left (back in the TFA days there were 40something)—the studio i REALLY wanna kick ass in wont be available til late oct.–there i can mix this baby with the analog ish im dying to use (we made this album pretty much organix style in front of each other)–im not doing the polling.

i guess im asking what does the majority think?

part of me doesn’t wanna release this album in a crowded lane of november.

but shit has to be right (we mixed it in pro tools and i cant help wonder what ish would sound like mixed on a neve.

so in short.

imma hold this baby til its right yall.

i cant cheat myself.

sorry.

August 5th, 2009

Review: Gang Gang Dance

Noise music. It’s an acquired taste. Sometimes, it seems, it takes the most esoteric and cerebral of folks to enjoy it—those who can disassociate all their senses of what makes a song a good song because they’re artists themselves, they relish in chaos or seek something totally weird. Tuesday night at Kung Fu Necktie was a presentation of the whole range; from weirdo noise to totally crowd-pleasing groove-heavy dance jams, an audience was exposed to a night of arty music. It was a stinky, sweaty, hot August night avant-guard music and the payoff was worth it.

June 3rd, 2009

Review: Grizzly Bear At The Troc

It seems as though the four boys from Brooklyn are stepping into their moment in the sun. They sold out the Trocadero last night, most likely behind the booming success of their new LP Veckatemist. Even more so, the single “Two Weeks” is getting some serious airplay. And why shouldn’t it? It’s so catchy that those who hum find themselves singing along to the rise-fall-rise higher repetitions. And tonight Philly got a surprise little treat when Grizzly Bear played their big single—a guest appearance from the rather adorable Victoria Legrand, vocalist for Beach House. Her high-waisted mom slacks and bowtie were louder than her hushed contribution; a barely audible background vocal to Ed Droste’s crystal clear lead.

Their set included a welcome mix of 2006’s Yellow House standards but electrified and energized. “Knife” and “Little Brother” sound almost like countrified folk jams on disc. But after some trouble tuning Droste’s guitar, lead guitarist Dan Rossen came to the rescue so both guitars could chime in at the right moment for “Little Brother”’s many crescendos. Rossen shares lead vocal duties on some songs and his “My God That’s Not the Way” was one of the highlights of the set, as was the unforgettable galloping drum and haunting reprise of “I want you to know” and “I think it’s alright” from “Knife.”

Veckatemist highlights included the set and album opener “Southern Point.” Its slow and soft start with a buildup to a climactic guitar and drum explosion is characteristic of several strong Grizzly Bear songs, and Rossen can really shred when he gets hyped up, throwing in extra notes and strums as the moment requires. “Cheerleader” and “While You Wait for the Others” were other new standouts. Rossen’s slightly higher vocal fits very nicely over the rest of the bands howling, including drummer Chris Bear and bassist Chris Taylor. It’s on “While You Wait” where you can really appreciate that all four band members contribute to the vocal delivery while Rossen reaches over the top with “And what was there / The perfect cleft / We all fall through.”

It’s nice to love a new record, but even better to be assured that the guys making it aren’t just studio nerds. It would’ve been a boring show if they’d only thrown in one or two Yellow House jams, but Grizzly Bear are shaping up to be one of the best indie rock bands of the 2000s. (Bill Chenevert)

May 14th, 2009

Review: Lez Zeppelin

Can ladies shred like dudes? This is the eternal question the four members of Lez Zeppelin look to eliminate with each white-hot guitar lick, and each thundering drum thud as long as they tour their Zeppelin tribute act to macho white men who’re looking for sexy girls to not only melt their face, but also maybe make out with one another.

The answer, of course, is “fucking duh.” Lead guitarist Steph Paynes has a double-neck guitar and wields it better than most humans with testicles. Lead singer Kris Bradley’s sexy sways, stumbles and shimmies were entrancing whether she was singing the Zep hits or a couple original tunes—the Led Zeppelin inspired “On the Rocks” and “Winter Sun”—off their 2007 debut that was recorded by Zep II engineer Eddie Kramer. Bradley’s tight jeans, feather-trimmed tank and dirty, sexy rock hair were employed perfectly to conjure a suitable, even preferable Plant representation.

A tribute to Zeppelin is no easy feat, of course—the band has a catalog as deep as Alister Crowley’s penchant for the satanic—and Zeppelin fans are as die-hard as they come. No one really ever says, “Yeah, I liked I & II but Presence just kind of ruins them for me.” Zep enthusiasm is usually all-encompassing.

As such, the crowd was treated to a wide array of Zep rockness, including many of the hits—”Dazed and Confused,” “No Quarter,” “Friends,” “Rock and Roll,”—interpreted in a modern, thrashy way that was much-appreciated. Lez were loud and distorted, it was a set with many moments of balls out, nay tits-out, blistering rock moments. “Whole Lotta Love”—in which Bradley poured on the sex charm getting on her knees to worship Paynes’ guitar work at crotch level—and “Communication Breakdown” leveled the crowd with its initial burst of guitar and drum energy for a fitting ending during Lez’s encore.

And, no, they didn’t kiss each other. (Bill Chenevert)

April 23rd, 2009

Photos: Asher Roth At World Cafe Live

Last night “Philly’s own” Asher Roth bowled over an excited crowd of mostly-females at World Cafe Live, playing close to every song on his iTunes topping, Pitchfork-hated album Sleeping With Loaves Of Other Things That Happen To Be White. DJ Drama opened, and Asher peppered his set with a couple songs the two collaborated on for the Greenhouse Effect mixtape released last summer that served as an appetizer for the full-on media blitz we’re all currently dining on.

Speaking of dining: the oddest part of the show last night was Asher dropping an a Capella rap about the benefits of eating organic produce—a long, word-twisting condemnation of the chemicals in the everyday foods we consume—all the while two jealous mooks in the back by the soundboard kept yelling “Fuck you!”—then to one another—”What the fuck is he talking about?”

What he was talking about mattered little. The crowd was BUYING IT regardless; hopping up and down when commanded, finishing the ends of couplets when Asher held his microphone to the crowd. During his song “She Don’t Want A Man” the stage was flooded with college girls in halter tops, all thrusting their asses toward Asher, who at times looked genuinely frightened by the hoard on stage.

Cue guys in back, “He don’t want him to feel he’s got a tiny pecker!”

More pics below. (One and two of DJ Drama and Chio from Wired 96.5 respectively. Click twice for full size. All photos by Brian McManus.

Now, just cuz, here’s the song he performed off the mixtape. “CANNON!!!” “CANNON”

April 23rd, 2009

20 Things I Saw Last Night At The OMG Visual Shit Show By Of Montreal

By Bill Chenevert, Make Major Moves intern

1. Lead Of Montreal madman Kevin Barnes wore dramatic silver eye makeup.
2. And tighter than skin-tight black pants.
3. And a blousey teal silk leisure shirt.
4. With purple blazer.
5. And matching neck scarf/tie.
6. The girl on keys wore a miniature black prom dress.
7. With aqua leggings.
8. A 12-string guitar.
9. Angel wings.
10. “Rapture Rapes the Muses,” the band’s third song, was accompanied by a trio of dancers in nude suits.
11. And a guy in a hot pink leotard.
12. A new song called “Coquette, Coquette” was accompanied by the same dancing trio dressed as blond men/women who posed, angry and howling, with arms outstretched.
13. Crowd surfing.
14. Dry ice.
15. More Dry ice.
16. Barnes in a suit that looked like a pine tree. It was smoking. Looked like Christmas. On fire.
17. Sexy George Washington Santas, in crushed red velvet and embellished lace collars.
18. In gas masks on.
19. A tall kitten-headed man became an applause meter during the encore.
20. “She’s a Rejector” from Hissing Fauna closed out the night before Barnes took it upon himself to face-plant into the drum set.

Show was fantastic.

April 13th, 2009

Review: Neko Case At Keswick

A good song pops into your head at unexpected moments. A line, a verse, a chorus that you suddenly realize is brilliant when you’re not listening to it. Neko Case has dozens of phrases that are so striking, and when you listen to her records as much as I have, titles are insignificant. Many will cite her opening track to “Middle Cyclone,” “This Tornado Loves You,” where Case embodies a tornado’s destructive capacity but in a loving way. “Carved your name across three counties” is an act of devotion. She closed her 16-song set at the Keswick on Friday night with this one but that was by no means the end of her show. A standing ovation brought her and her band back onstage for a five song encore. Her crystal clear voice and the power in which she controls it had the North Philly audience begging for more.

She played primarily songs from her latest album Middle Cyclone, some of them to great effect with her full, loud band that filled every corner of 91 year old theatre. She opened with Fox Confessor Brings the Flood gem “Maybe Sparrow” while cartoon imagery filled a canvas behind her and her stellar team of co-conspirators. With a wicked slide guitar, stand-up bass, electric bass, drums and a backup vocalist to support her, “I’m an Animal” achieved the apex of the set’s energy.

Animal imagery is rampant on Middle Cyclone, a continuing trend from previous records. For her second song she sang of killer whales and elephants on “People Got a Lotta Nerve,” singing the convincing chorus “I’m a man man man maneater.” As if she really does eat men but not out of vengence, just necessity; nature. She revisited an old classic, “Favorite,” halfway through her encore which has my favorite animal line in her catalogue: “Last night I dreamt that I hit a deer with my car/ Blood from his heart spilled out on my dress, it was warm.” After that she gave us the gracefully gorgeous “Magpie To The Morning” before closing out the night with “Star Witness” and “Knock Loud.”

Though titles don’t always match up to the lyrics and the chorus, it’s pretty easy to note key lyrics, like “You said I was your blue, blue baby” and “I love girls in white leather jackets” on “The Pharaohs.” Or “I love your long shadows and your gunpowder eyes” on “Prison Girls.” Or on the sad cover song by Harry Nilsson, “Don’t Forget Me,” the words “when we’re older and full of cancer” and “You know I think about you, let me know you think about me too” have haunted me for days.

She played every song brilliantly, sometimes donning a guitar and other times just standing with her hands clasped behind her tilting head to sing into the microphone. She put her gorgeous hair up and down, riffed with her backup singer, and gave some much-needed humor to break up the near silence between songs. It’s not a new thing to say, but Neko Case, like the Mother Earth she is so fond of singing about, is a force to be reckoned with. (Bill Chenevert)