Seun Kuti & Fela’s Egypt 80 Seun Kuti & Fela’s Egypt 80

Carrying the torch of Afrobeat into a new generation, Seun Kuti has truly picked up where his father left off–on his exceptional debut, he even uses his father’s last band. Yet that does not quiet the originality and dexterity of his jazz- and funk-based music. Like the inimitable Fela, Seun excels on stage and on record, although he is not without his own trademark. His voice is deeper than his father’s, and his allegiance to the sociology of Nigeria–“Think Africa,” “African Problems,” and “Don’t Give That Shit to Me”–is a welcome return to an important genre born and bred with a universal message of upliftment and prosperity.

Martina Topley-Bird “Baby Blue”

We have been listening to Martina since Tricky’s Maxinquaye album, and she always surprises us with her songs–she’s always experimenting. The Blue God is quite different from her debut LP, Quixotic. With a quick listen and a peek at the artwork you sense a Japanese influence and some big pop flavor. “Baby Blue” has a ’60s feel–beautiful melody with some great Danger Mouse production. He is always ahead in a way-back kind of way.

The Death Set Joins Girl Talk Tour

The Death Set really enjoys life on the road, it seems. In 2008 alone, the band has done dates with Bonde Do Role, joined the F Yeah Tour, and played several shows with The Mae Shi this past July. Are they ready to return to their Baltimore homebase? Hardly. The self-proclaimed makers of “spazzy lo-fi cross-genre punk” are currently making the rounds in Europe, including a couple performances at Oslo’s acclaimed Oya Festival, and will travel the U.S. once more in October, joining the gigantic Girl Talk tour. Whew.

08/07 Oslo, Norway: Oya Festival
08/09 Oslo, Norway: Oya Festival
08/13 Exeter, U.K. Cavern Club
08/14 Cardiff, Wales: Iforbach
08/15 Dublin, Ireland: Crawdaddy
08/16 Manchester, U.K.: Chips*
08/17 Hereford, U.K: Jailhouse
08/18 Brighton, U.K.: Prince Albert
08/19 London, U.K.: Kerrang Awards Show
08/20 Wrexham, U.K.: Central Station
08/21 Leicester, U.K.: Charlotte
08/22 Reading, U.K.: Reading & Leeds Festival
08/23 Lancaster, U.K. Lancaster Library
08/24 Reading, U.K.: Reading & Leeds Festival
09/13 Bellevue, PA: The Key Room**
10/23 Phoenix, AZ: Modified Arts
10/25 Los Angeles, CA: Henry Fonda Theater#
10/28 San Francisco, CA: The Fillmore#
10/30 Salt Lake City, UT: In the Venue#
10/31 Denver, CO: Ogden Theater#
11/01 Lawrence, CA: The Granada Theatre#
11/03 Minneapolis, MN: First Avenue#
11/04 Milwaukee, WI: Turner Hall Ballroom#
11/05 Urbana, IL: Canopy Club#
11/06 Nashville, TN: Cannery Ballroom#
11/07 Louisville, KY: Headliners Music Hall#
11/09 Cincinnati, OH: Bogarts#
11/10 Cleveland, OH: Beachland Ballroom#
11/11 Pontiac, MI: Eagle Theatre#
11/12 Toronto, ON: Koolhaus#
11/13 Montreal, QC: Club Soda#
11/14 Foxborough, MA: Showcase Live#

* = w/ Everything
** = w/ Lismore, The Hood Gang
# = w/ Girl Talk, CX Kidtronik

Photo by Tod Seelie.

Crystal Stilts “Crystal Stilts”

One could apply many labels to the music of Crystal Stilts. A few that come to mind are ’60s-era pysch, garage rock, surf rock, and avant-pop, but really, all of these contribute equally to the music on the Brooklyn-based band’s debut full-length, Alight of Night. A collection of jangling guitars, bouncing basslines, horns, bells, and echoing vocals, the album is as much a nostalgic look at music’s past as it is a nod towards what the future holds in store for these four artists. For the immediate future, the band is hitting the road with fellow Brooklynites the Vivian Girls. They’ll tour North America before the release of the album on October 28. Photo by Maryanne Ventrice.

Crystal Stilts – Crystal Stilts

Crystal Stilts Tour with Vivian Girls

The moody psych-rockers in Crystal Stilts will join lo-fi melody makers the Vivian Girls on the road for a handful of dates that kicks off today and will keep the two New York-based bands occupied for the rest of the month.

Meanwhile, Crystal Stilts’ debut album, Alight of Night, is set for an October 28 release on Oakland, CA-based Slumberland Records. Prepare for an avant-garage assault.

08/05 Montreal, QC: Zoobizarre
08/06 Toronto, ON: Sneaky Dees
08/07 Lafayette, IN: Zooleggers
08/08 Chicago, IL: Subterranean
08/10 Bloomington, IN: Bears Place
08/11 Columbus, OH: Cafe Bourbon Street
08/12 Pittsburgh, PA: Rickety House
08/13 Washington, DC: DC9
08/14 Chapel Hill, NC: The Cave
08/15 Baltimore, MD: Nerve Center
08/16 Philadelphia, PA: Pi Lam
08/22 Brooklyn, NY: Death by Audio

MP3: Crystal Stilts “Crystal Stilts”
MP3: Vivian Girls “Where Do You Run To”

Thou Shalt Always Kill

They ripped off an Edward Lear poem to come up with part of their name, and it’s clear that Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip like riffing off contemporary culture on this song. Here, vocalist Pip wanders around London while rapping through a laundry list of things we “shalt not do” (like take the name Johnny Cash in vain or judge Lethal Weapon by Danny Glover) while Le Sac punches out glassy electro beats in the background. Britain endorsed this track as the “thinking man’s anthem,” and it’s garnered other titles like “track of the year” and “hottest track in the world.” But then, Pip tells us, “thou shalt not put musicians and recording artists on ridiculous pedestals,” so try not to get too excited.

Shepard Fairey Hosts Obama Art Contest

In between crafting his own limited-edition prints and teaming up with Z-Trip for a fundraising event, graphic-design mogul Shepard Fairey has certainly shown his support for Team Obama, but he’s far from slowing down. Next up for Fairey is the Pro-Obama Art Contest he’s hosting with MoveOn.org and S.F.-based gallery Upper Playground.

Contestants are to submit artwork in support of Senator Obama, which will then be judged by a panel that includes April Gornick, Moby, Thurston Moore, DJ Spooky, Fairey himself, and more. Five finalists will be chosen to show their work in the Manifest Hope Gallery, an exhibition planned for this year’s Democratic National Convention. The top 30 submissions will be hosted in an online gallery and be open for bidding via eBay, with all funds going towards MoveOn.

Rules and submission guidelines can be found here. The deadline for entries is August 18 at 11:59 p.m.

The Dead Science “Monster Island Czars”

A Wu-Tang and comic book inspired album? Such is the case for Seattle, WA-based outfit The Dead Science, whose Villainaire release also marks the avant-pop band’s debut for Montreal’s Constellation Records. In much the vein of Xiu Xiu, songs on the album have a chaotic feel to them, with fractured guitar riffs, random bouts of frantic drumming, and vocals that truly sound pained as they discuss topics of fantasy, reality, drunken blackouts, and moral pragmatism. The contrabass on “Monster Island Czars” adds an extra layer of disorientation to the music. Listen closely for the aforementioned Wu-Tang and comic book elements.

The Dead Science – Monster Island Czars

Diplo, Abe Vigoda on Mad Decent Tour

Always a man with a busy schedule, Diplo has announced another round of performance dates, this time with Abe Vigoda, Boy 8-Bit, and Telepathe. The Mad Decent tour will circle the U.S. and Canada from mid-October through mid-December, ending just in time for the Christmas holiday.

10/16 New York, NY – Webster Hall
10/17 Cambridge, MA – Middle East (Downstairs)
10/18 Montreal, Quebec: Cabaret Musée Juste Pour Rire
10/20 Ottawa, Ontario: Babylon
10/21 Toronto, Ontario: Circa Nightclub
10/22 Detroit, MI: Magic Stick
10/23 Chicago, IL: The Abbey
10/24 Minneapolis, MN: First Avenue
10/25 Lawrence, KS: The Granada Theatre
10/27 Denver, CO: Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom
10/28 Salt Lake City, UT: Kilby Court
10/30 Vancouver, British Columbia: Richard’s on Richards
10/31 Seattle, WA: Nectar Lounge
11/01 Portland, OR: Hawthorne Theater
11/03 San Francisco, CA: Great American Music Hall
11/04 Los Angeles, CA: Echoplex
11/05 Phoenix, AZ: The Brickhouse
11/07 Austin, TX: Emo’s
11/08 Dallas, TX: Palladium Ballroom
11/10 Atlanta, GA: Masquerade
11/11 Carrboro, NC: Cat’s Cradle
11/12 Washington, DC: Black Cat
11/13 Baltimore, MD: Sonar
11/14 Philadelphia, PA: Starlight Ballroom
12/20 San Francisco, CA: Foreign Cinema Restaurant

Page 2882 of 3781
1 … 2,880 2,881 2,882 2,883 2,884 … 3,781