Jetcomx.com - Indie Rock & Hip-Hop, Street Fashion & Art, and Hipster Culture

Two tracks from MGMT’s Second Album Congratulations Surface

Courtney Allessio — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:03:52 +0000

Look what the cat dragged in.

I was delighted to see an unfamiliar track by MGMT on the front page of The Hype Machine today only to find out it was one of TWO leaked tracks from MGMT’s newest creation Congratulations.

Congratulations drops April 8th, but these tracks make for a satisfactory preview. Now that everyone in their mothers know the first nine or ten do-do-dos of ‘Kids,’ it’s time to hear a new sound from these boys. And I have to say I like what I hear.

‘Flash Delirium’ has a nice, matured sound that is reminiscent of Of Montreal and Hot Chip. It seems they’ve taken more driving elements from Oracular Spectacular (i.e. ‘4th Dimension Transition’ and ‘Of Moons, Birds & Monsters’) and refined them a bit with this breezy, mystical feel.

‘Congratulations’ is a little slower, a ballad if you will, but there’s something simultaneously soothing and psychedelic about it.

I dig, how about you?

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Kid Cudi Feat. MGMT & Ratatat – Pursuit of Happiness

Andrew Boni — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:08:44 +0000

Just came across the video for “Pursuit of Happiness” by Kid Cudi feat. MGMT & Ratatat. This is off of Cudi’s Man on the Moon, which dropped last year. If you notice, that’s Drake standing next to Cudi. Why he’s in the video and MGMT/Ratatat aren’t I have no idea. I guess since Drake owned 2009, he gets to to whatever he wants.

Anyway, it’s a decent video, even though I’m not a big fan of the song. Check it out.

Image via Flickr user Keith

Couples Photography by Reclarkgable

Andrew Boni — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:04:34 +0000

Seems like ever since I bought my Nikon DSLR, I’ve been able to appreciate photography much, much more. I think it has something to do with the fact that I’m now cognizant of how difficult taking good pictures actually is. Case in point: this couples photo shoot / photo set by Madrid-based photographer Reclarkgable. It’s the same couple in every photo. Hard to believe at first, isn’t it?

See more from Reclarkgable on Flickr.

30+ of the Best Examples of Vinyl Sleeveface

Mystery Solved – Finding André Obin and Feeding My Techno Binge

Courtney Allessio — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 20:43:40 +0000

André Obin performs at the Middle East Upstairs

A few months ago, I did a concert review of Stars and Track of Field when they played at Middle East Upstairs in Cambridge, MA. I really dug the opening act, who I referred to as “mystery noise man.” Well, good news, we tracked him down to see what he’s all about.

His real name is André Obin, and after a somewhat lengthy conversation, it’s altogether too ironic that a true-to-life enigma was already a mystery from the start.

It’s hard to pin down a person like Obin, an out-and-out music genius hailing from Cambridge, MA whose year abroad at Oxford birthed a passion for electronic music. Obin describes his experiences in London during the lat 90s:

On the weekends I was basically going to London and checking out DJs and live bands, and I just realized electronic music does something different for me because of the way it’s gridded, how sequencing can be attractive. I like robot sounds, is what I’m trying to say.

Twelve years ago, Obin and his best friend Thomas Gallagher started Matters and Dunaway, but in late 2008 they took a break to work independently. His new collaboration Endless Wave just debuted at the start of the new year, and it has already merited a spot on Boston Herald’s list of 10 Boston bands to look out for in 2010.

Colorwheel, Obin's two-track release

But despite his involvement in multiple projects, a big focus for Obin is his solo music. His agenda seems clear:

I love techno. The predominate amount of music I listen to is electronic music. I love shoegaze bands and indie rock, but around the turn of the decade when I was living in England, I was really into drum ‘n’ bass. At the time, it was the first straight, electronic form of music that I was crazy about. But over the past few years, it’s become more and more floor-to-the-floor techno affinity.

I also love pop music, and that’s what I’m trying to bring to my solo stuff. I feel like the voice makes an extremely strong instrument.

The more I picked at Obin’s brain, the more I realized that he was a musician with unique perspectives. It was a well-blended combo of fearless sincerity and downright dedication.

I asked about Obin about his experiences on stage and what he strives for while performing. While some musicians necessitate an energy feed from their audiences, Obin implements his own methods. He claims that in Boston, the people seem to be more intelligent. So if the crowd isn’t dancing, the listeners still perceive the performance as a “cerebral experience.” Admitting that it may be a bit egocentric, in the grand scheme of things, Obin doesn’t need even need an audience at all.

I perform the best if I can give it my all when I’m up there. On stage, there’s a fine line between operating my gear and losing myself.

He’s into music, undoubtedly, but you won’t find Obin behind any remixes. With popular puzzle-masters like Girl Talk surfacing on the mainstream airwaves, it seems like an area of interest for those well-versed in mixing. For Obin, he comments:

I’ve done just a couple of remixes, and I’ve found that I much rather create something; I much rather be the genesis of music, not part of editing. Mixing and DJ-ing are two things I try to keep separate only because I don’t want to spread myself too thin. I’d rather play an instrument or sing or produce something of my own than spend time on other people’s music. It’s very self-centered that way.

Obin has just released a video for his track “Cinnamon,” a noire visual of sensuality that mixes stop-and-go with fluidity just as well as the song does.

This over-the-phone interview with Obin quickly coursed into a conversation about music rather than a rigid serious of questions and answers. Obin is a walking contradiction in the best sense – pointed and narrow with his personal ambition as both an artist and performer yet also dynamic in his interests and talents.

He’s not all serious, either. At the end of our conversation, Obin talked about where his future is taking him:

Music is my whole life; there’s a fine line between a starving artist and a homeless artist.

Be sure to keep an eye on what André Obin is up to – he will be playing at Great Scott on February 9th. And if you have the chance, also make the effort to see Endless Wave play at TT the Bear’s Place on February 17th.

Photo credit: grahamrb8

M.I.A. Gets Back in the Game, Releases “There’s Space for Ol Dat I See”

Andrew Boni — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 06:49:19 +0000

After what seems to have been a year’s long hiatus, English producer/singer/rapper/artist M.I.A. came out of the woodwork on Tuesday and posted a new song from her hotly anticipated third album on her Twitter account. Entitled “Theres (sic) Space for Ol Dat I See,” the song is definitely a throwback to the era of “Galang” and “Sunshowers.”

Up until as recently as a few weeks ago, there had been much speculation as to whether or not M.I.A. was even going to make a third album. In Monday’s interview with NME, Maya told reporters that she had indeed completed work on her follow-up to 2007’s smash hit Kala.

“I wanted it to be like, no gimmicks,” she declared. “It’s my third album and I have to kind of confront whether I am a musician or not… I wanted to make something that you could play that isn’t like trendy just for three months, or the length of a DJ’s attention span.”

[See post to watch Flash video]

Vampire Weekend Performs “Cousins” on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien

Andrew Boni — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 07:58:03 +0000

Last night, the guys of Vampire Weekend performed “Cousins” on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien. I’m posting this video clip for two reasons. 1. “Cousins” is a really fun & upbeat song and 2. It very well could be the last time that they ever perform on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien.

Now I’m not too crazy about the weird effects on Ezra’s mic (when I first heard it, I thought there was a technical problem) but it’s still a good performance nonetheless. Conan seems to get a kick out of it.

[See post to watch Flash video]

Graffiti Research Lab Develops Eye-tracking Technology to Help the Disabled [video]

Andrew Boni — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 07:09:59 +0000

Tony Quan has been stricken with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, for the past 7 years. ALS is a devastating neurological disease that slowly causes paralysis; those who have ALS essentially become prisoners within their own bodies. Tony is no different – the only parts of his body that he can move are his eyes.

That hasn’t stopped Tony from doing what he loves to do though – you see, Tony’s a graffiti artist who goes by the nickname Tempt One. When the people over at Graffiti Research Lab heard about Tony’s plight, they knew they had to do something. And they did. What they came up with was an ingenious solution – eye-tracking hardware and software that allowed Tony to draw with his eyes.

Watch the incredible video and see him tag an entire building.

By the way, the song in the video is “Man on the Moon” by Kid Cudi, which samples “Aquarium” by Nosaj Thing.

The Knife Release “Colouring of Pigeons” from Upcoming Opera Album

Andrew Boni — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 06:01:04 +0000

Swedish brother and sister duo The Knife has just released an epic 11-minute long track from their upcoming album Tomorrow, In A Year. Not due to be released until March 1st, Tomorrow, In A Year is the studio recorded version of an opera that brother Olof and sister Karin created based on Charles Darwin. The opera premiered back in September 2009 at Copenhagen’s Royal Danish Theatre to mainly positive reviews. They continue to perform shows all across Europe.

The Knife gained legions of fans back in 2006 while going on tour to promote their album Silent Shout. Pitchfork went on to proclaim Silent Shout as the best album of 2006 and the song “Silent Shout” as the #2 best song of the year.

This new song “Colouring of Pigeons” is a major departure from the classic Knife that we’ve come to know and adore. For one thing, there aren’t electronic instruments of any kind; just what sounds like to be drums, bongos, cymbals, violins and/or cellos, and vocals. After a few listens though it starts to become quite catchy. Take a listen.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

The Top 10 Overlooked Albums of 2009

Luke Andrews — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 05:16:14 +0000

Now that 2010 has arrived, most of the major music publications have finished putting out their picks for the top albums of 2009. Each newspaper, magazine, and blog uses their own criteria to determine their rankings, leading to an infinite amount of subjectivity. In the words of my boy Alex, these lists are more or less “an exercise in futility.” 2009 did have its share of great, universally acclaimed albums (you’d be hard-pressed to find an indie outfit that didn’t list Grizzly Bear, Animal Collective, Phoenix, or Dirty Projectors in their top ten), but there were more than a handful of albums that flew below the radar. Here are the top ten LPs that fell through the cracks in ‘09:

10. The Slew — 100%

What do you get when you combine legendary turntablist Kid Koala with the former rhythm section of Wolfmother? Add DJ Dynomite D to the mix and you have The Slew. This project was berthed with the goal of producing a soundtrack for a Jay Rowlands documentary, but when production on the documentary was halted in 2005, The Slew kept going. Their debut, 100%, showcases the talent of each member in this unlikely collaboration. Kid Koala distributed this album at no cost during the entirety of September. If you weren’t able to get a copy then, grab one now and give it a spin.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

9. Amanda Blank — I Love You

2009 saw the full length debut of Amanda Blank. The Philly-bred, foul-mouthed female MC had already created a name for herself in the Mid-Atlantic region from her frequent collaborations with fellow Illadelphians, namely Diplo and Spank Rock. She paid her dues on the show circuit and dropped raunchy verses on a healthy batch of remixes, further establishing herself in the Bmore club/electro/booty bass scene. After seeing this chick live, I couldn’t wait for her debut album to drop. While this album is far from perfect, it is a solid debut and has more than a few tracks that will end up on at least one of your playlists. Her flow is unreal, and her tracks are littered with catchy hooks. I am certain that one of the reasons this album failed to make a lot of noise was due to the fact that I Love You did not satisfy the taste-engineers over at Pitchfork Media. I think they panned Blank’s debut because she did not fit nicely into Pitchfork’s album review formula (as understood by Carles, author of the famous weblog HIPSTER RUNOFF):

[(LABEL x Hometown)² ± previous album's standards + Obscurity Factor x Perceived Authenticity] = Pitchfork Rating

Alright, enough ranting about Pitchfork. This album has collaborations from Spank Rock and Chuck Inglish of The Cool Kids. Pick it up. It’s well worth a Hamilton.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

8. Kasabian — West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum

Falling prey to a similar curse, Kasabian’s third album West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum did not end up on many “best of” lists despite topping the charts in the UK and going Platinum. Tom Meighan’s haunting vocals are the backbone of the album, and the boys continue to develop their modern psychedelia sound with this release. Actress Rosario Dawson contributes impressive vocals on “West Ryder Silver Bullet,” not to mention that this LP was produced by industry vet Dan “the Automator” Nakamura whose résumé should be reason enough for you to give this album a listen.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

7. Tiga — Ciao!

Tiga’s second full length album dropped in 2009. Once again, Tiga employed the production expertise of the Deweale brothers (Soulwax, 2 Many DJ’s) and included guest contributions by James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem) and Jason ‘Gonzales’ Beck. This album showcases a (slightly) more mature Tiga, but still reminds us of what he has been doing to keep Montreal dance floors rocking for years. His hypersexualized, glamorous vocals overlay the bumping, bass-driven grooves on Ciao!. Due to the electro-banger recession of 2009, this album was less relevant to the blogosphere than it would have been in years past. If electro is more than a passing fad for you, I wholeheartedly recommend picking this one up.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

6. Men Without Pants — Naturally

Originally slated for a 2008 release, I don’t know anyone outside of the industry that was able to get a hold of Men Without Pants’ debut album Naturally until April of 2009. Men Without Pants is the lovechild of Dan the Automator and Russell Simins. No, not Russell Simmons, co-founder of Def Jam. Russell Simins, one third of The John Spencer Blues Explosion. Simins’ well-known precision on drums and Automator’s programming genius make this album one brisk dive into a pool of what Spin Magazine has labeled “sex-dappled blues-rocktronica.” These veterans didn’t go it alone, though. They enlisted help from Sean Lennon, Nick Zinner (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), half of The Mooney Suzuki, Yuka Honda (Cibo Matto), Gillian Riberts (string arranger for Yeah Yeah Yeahs), and a gaggle of others. All in all, it’s a trashy good time.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

5. Little Boots — Hands

Victoria “Little Boots” Hekseth seems to be a polarizing force in certain music writing circles. Her self-styled, poppy sound fared well on the UK charts this past year and received generally positive reviews, but it was notably absent from most year-end lists. The album is chock-full of electropop goodies and shows a lot promise from the young Brit. Hands includes a duet with Philip Oakley (The Human League), as well as composition and production credits from Joe Goddard (Hot Chip), Greg Kutstin (The Bird and the Bee), Jas Shaw (Simian Mobile Disco), and famed UK bootlegger Roy Kerr. Little Boots is often mentioned in the same sentence as Lady GaGa and La Roux front woman Elly Jackson, but do not be mistaken. While she is similarly unapologetic for her pop sound, she has a carefully crafted style of her own that shines through on Hands.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

4. Dan Auerbach — Keep It Hid

Dan Auerbach, best known as the singing, guitar-playing half of The Black Keys, ventures out on his own for the first time with Keep It Hid. Although his solo debut shows remnants of his stint with The Black Keys, this album features much more melodious compositions, each recorded in his custom-built studio which he has named “Akron Analog.” Akron because it’s in the singer’s hometown of Akron, Ohio, and Analog because he uses mostly vintage, analog equipment. His decision to branch out and pursue his interests in old-time blues, r&b, bluegrass, and 70’s rock proved to be a good one, as each track on Keep It Hid offers something new and captivating.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

3. YACHT — See Mystery Lights

Formerly Jona Bechtolt’s solo project, YACHT has officially become a duo with the release of See Mystery Lights. Claire L. Evans has been permanently added and provides vocals on this upbeat electronic LP. Bechtolt is no stranger to this boy/girl formula, as he used to be the beat man behind Khaela Maricich as part of The Blow. He split from The Blow in 2007 to focus his energies on YACHT, but it appears he has gone back to his blueprint for success by adding a new front woman. The cheery, energetic tracks on See Mystery Lights seem almost like a 21st century Tom Tom Club. Check it out.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

2. Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse — Dark Night of the Soul

Albums can be overlooked for any number of reasons. In the case of Dark Night of the Soul, it may have been passed by due to the fact that it was never actually released. In fact, as it stands, this album may never be released. A dispute with the EMI group landed the LP in legal purgatory, where it still remains. This is more than unfortunate, because this album truly is one of the best of 2009. The list of contributors is ridiculous: James Mercer (The Shins), The Flaming Lips, Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals), Julian Casablancas (The Strokes), Frank Black (The Pixies), Iggy Pop, Nina Persson (The Cardigans), Scott Spillane (Neutral Milk Hotel), and many more. Legendary filmmaker and artist David Lynch constructed a book of photos (over 100) to coincide with the music as a “visual narrative.” If you know anything about Danger Mouse, you know he found a way to get this album to the people. He “released” the album in the form of the photo book (limited edition) or an album poster. Both versions come complete with a blank CD-R and a note: “For Legal Reasons, enclosed CD-R contains no music. Use it as you will.” Somehow, this album is scattered all over the internets. Google is your friend.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

1. jj — jj n° 2

Newcomers jj generated quite the buzz when their tracks began circulating the net, yet they maintained an enigmatic quality by revealing very little. Signed to The Tough Alliance’s label Sincerely Yours, the Gothenburg-based jj first drew attention by releasing their own interpretation of Lil Wayne’s smash hit “Lollipop,” titled “Ecstasy.” jj n° 2 features melodic pop enveloped by a dreamy, echoey Balearic aura that seems in line with other Sincerely Yours releases, but maintains a sound that is decidedly unique. While this album was not totally overlooked, it did not get the universal acclaim and attention that it deserved. In late December, jj signed to the Secretly Canadian record label and announced plans for their second LP to be released in March 2010. jj n° 2 may, in fact, be my top album of 2009, not just the top album that was overlooked.

[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]

Vampire Weekend Perform “Cousins” and “White Sky” in Juan’s Basement

Andrew Boni — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 21:51:19 +0000

Vampire Weekend has been on a promotional blitz as of late, and with good reason: the release of Contra is just 7 days away. In these two videos, Ezra, Rostam, Chris, and Chris perform two songs from their upcoming album, “Cousins” and “White Sky,” for PitchforkTV’s “Juan’s Basement” segment. The strings section in both of these songs really take them to the next level. Watch and enjoy.

By the way, you can listen to Contra in it’s entirety on the band’s MySpace page.