Black Box 4/3/09

Black Box 4/3/09

Friday's Black Box


Friday is a day to crash. Crash meaning "to kick back and relax." And also, for me, meaning to violently burn to the ground in a heap of broken pieces because of all of the things that I have neglected to write about during the week. Since this happens pretty much every friday, I've resolved to go the way of the airplane and record everything in a tiny black box. Also, for your convenience I have decided to forgo the inevitable casualties usually associated with plane crashes. Cheers.

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New Joanna Newsom!

Ok, so here is what happened. On monday, I post about how I am frustrated that Joanna Newsom hasn't made any music for a long time. Then on tuesday, she plays a secret show debuting two and a half hours of music. So obviously, the only thing I can conclude from that is Joanna Newsom reads this blog! Right? Please...? Ok fine. But still, this is awesome news. Via Naturalismo Newsom, playing under the pseudonym "The Beatles's" played through her forthcoming 3rd LP which "combines the strong melodic presence of songs on The Milk-Eyed Mender with her continued instrumentational prowess and maturation beyond Ys." Apparently there are some "Only Skin"-esque songs over the 12 minute mark and a bit more of a focus on piano. Be sure I will keep you updated on everything I know about this.
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Phoenix on SNL

French popsters, Phoenix, will grace the Seth Rogen hosted SNL on the morrow promoting their forthcoming album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, which is out on May 26. Definitely sound promising.

Phoenix "1901" - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix [2009]
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Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Maps" Covered A Cappella

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New Bob Dylan Track, Lp

Bobby D has made a track from his forthcoming 46th LP, Together Through Life, via this website. The track is entitled "Beyond Here Lies Nothin" and is free. Album's out 4/28 on Columbia.

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Cryptacize Have Video for "Blue Tears"

Sufjan loves this band. We love this band. Maybe you love this band? Check the vid.

If you do love this band, then buy their forthcoming (how many times can I say forthcoming in this post?) album Mythomania on April 21st via Asthmatic Kitty.

Cryptacize "Blue Tears" - Mythomania [2009]
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Bat For Lashes Album on Myspace

You can now Stream her forth-------- album for free. I am still on the fence about this one. Let me know what you think. It seems like it is trying to be really big and grand but I'm just not sure that it has enough content to fill all that space. Not to mention it employs the now ubiquitous synths.

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Yeasayer Video from Dark Was the Night

In addition to writing their follow album to the excellent All Hour Cymbals, Brooklyn's Yeasayer made this video of their also excellent contribution to the charitable Dark Was the Night compilation. It's a lot more intimate than the recorded version, which offers a new angle to the song that I think is really interesting.

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Stuart Murdoch Offers Song from his Musical

Belle and Sebastianite, Stuart Murdoch has written a musical. He calls this musical God Help the Girl. The music itself is mostly new material with a few old B&S songs. The album is due June 23 on Matador and the first single "Come Monday Night" is out May 11, but you can hear it right now on the God Help the Girl MySpace.
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Sigur Rós performed an acoustic version of the title track to last years beautiful 'Með suð í eyrum' for the French blog La Blogotheque. They bang on a bucket, which I think is rad.

Cryptacize: Mythomania [2009]

Cryptacize: Mythomania [2009]

Cryptacize: Mythomania (2009)

8.3/10

Much of Cryptacize's new album, Mythomania, sounds like it should the soundtrack to a Clint Eastwood western. For example, "I'll Take The Long Way", one of the album's stand out tracks, begins with a great tack-piano line and a cowboy electric guitar riff. Its one of those songs that makes you feel real badass. I honestly fantasize tumbleweed blowing about me when I walk around listening to this album, and thats a good thing. This may also explain the cowboy on the album cover being strangled by a cloud (?)

Fans of Deerhoof will certainly find much to love here. Former Deerhoofian guitarist Chris Cohen drives each song with his incredible rhythmic riffs, and the resulting sound is very similar to his prior band. Like Deerhoof, Cryptacize doesn't take themselves too seriously, allowing for cute theatrics to dominate several songs. The most notable difference between the two bands, which may at first seem like a similarity, is the vocals. On a few songs Nedelle Torrisi's voice bounces and chirps like Deerhoof, but when she slows down and drags her singing embodies a beautifully full aesthetic. And the melodies, oh the melodies! They are all over the place, dropping and lifting where you'd least expect it. Cohen and company certainly aren't pushing boundaries here, but they have crafted a light and intricate album that is full of imagination.

Cryptacize releases Mythomania April 21 on Asthmatic Kitty Records.

Cryptacize:: I'll Take the Long Way (from Mythomania [2009])

meow!

meow!

New Tunes!

From Sufjan's ever-wonderful Asthmatic Kitty Records comes two new artists,
DM Stith and Cryptacize.
DM Stith has released his debut LP, Heavy Ghosts, and its getting quite a bit of attention from the critics. As far as sound, think the chaos of Sufjan/melodies of Radiohead/voice of Department of Eagles. Eerie and wonderful.
DM Stith :: Pity Dance (from Heavy Ghosts [2009])

Cryptacize is the new project of former Deerhoof guitarist, Chris Cohen. I guess you could describe the sound as lo-fi Deerhoof with tolerable (almost beautiful!) vocals. The melodies are really what catches you here. They release their new LP Mythomania on April 21. According to Asthmatic Kitty, they recorded the album "in a cabin near Yosemite National Park over the summer of 2008". Awesome.
Cryptacize :: Blue Tears (from Mythomania [2009])