Institute and Billion

We have now entered what is called the dead zone of the live music scene here in Austin, Texas; it's actually starting to get a little chilly and all of the major bands are taking a quick break from banging hot young groupies on the road. They instead have decided to get their annual STD tests in before heading home to kiss their little cousins hello because nothing says Happy Holidays like seeing your 6 year old nephew all of a sudden sporting a herpes sore on the second of Hanukkah! So naturally the month of December brings tough times for us music lovers who still want to get a quality show or two in from time to time; we find ourselves convincing ourselves that some local acts are better than they actually are, or we are eagerly running off to go see Spoon or the Toadies for the 20th time this year.

Well one of the local acts I'll hopefully see soon is starting to get a little buzz on the national level and their name is Institute. This band is comprised of members from The Wiccans, Glue, and Recide and they bring a lazy post punk sound to the Austin music scene. Their lead singer Moses Brown sounds like he's just some drunk guy who stumbled upon a mic at a live band karaoke bar and all of a sudden started slurring barely discernible lyrics on stage while everyone else in the venue ran outside to grab a smoke and escape the horror. Honestly there's nothing really new that they bring to the table but I think they're worth checking out if you're looking for a cheap show while out on the town. They do at times remind of the band Protomartyr out of Detroit and because of that they get a rating of barely WEAK as opposed to straight up weak.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZySVeZgTSo

Next up is the UK duo Billion, they are producers who make the kind of music that would not normally qualify as my cup of tea as it sounds like something you'd hear playing over a Devil Wears Prada style show scene. But no matter how much I tried  to stop, I found myself dancing to it; I can see their music playing in some upscale lounge in Upper West Side Manhattan with guys who are just a little too old to be wearing hipster glasses (cough cough) dancing to it. Special is a pumping jam that sounds like it has Crystal Waters singing "100% pure looooooove!" on it, and yes  Ijust said pumping jam. I rate these guys kind of FRESH!
 https://soundcloud.com/search?q=Billon%2C%20Special%20feat.%20Maxine%20Ashley

Brrd and Go Dreamer

Guys have this awful go to statement whenever they are talking about a moderately attractive girl to another guy “Eh. I mean, I’d hit it if I came home at 2 am and it was lying in my bed naked but that’s about it”. When in reality, we all know that unless we are rock, movie, sports, or even porn stars; that this scenario will in all likelihood never actually happen. Well this past Saturday night, I came about as close as I ever will to joining that awesome club which I’m sure includes Robert Downey Jr and quite possibly Bill Cosby . Long story short, I am walking back to my apartment and there is this drunk girl standing in the hallway waiting on her hookup for the night to come out so they can go late night swimming. She sees me and literally starts undressing me with her eyes while we are talking about her night up until this point.  I wont type here exactly what she said but let’s just say that she was looking to upgrade once she met me. Granted this girl was only 2 a.m. hot but lucky for the dude she was waiting on, he happened to walk out right when things were about to get real. And he came out dressed like he was trying everything he could within his power to NOT get laid; sporting bright red shorts and a straw sun hat. “Hey, you ready to go?” She sighed rather loudly and walked off with him.

Thankfully due to my need for sleep, my desire to not become any more self loathing than I already am, and for my overall health, she chose this clown; but I do have to admit that the entire time I kept thinking to myself “Why don’t I have Rza’s My Lovin is Digi on my hookup mix anymore?” Well, here are a few artists that might help you get a girl to go late night swimming with you.

First up is the beat dropper Brrd. He makes short, soulful, and jazzy beats which sound similar to what you’d expect to hear playing in a chic New York restaurant or lounge opening. I know that sounds a bit cheesy but I always picture Erykah Badu listening to this kind of music in her studio while getting inspiration for her amazing albums. Check out his song Freezetag as it is the perfect example of what I’m describing. He also has a lot of religious undertones in his music which adds to his diversity; check out his trippy The Anointing. I haven’t quite heard enough of his stuff for him to deserve this rating but for now he gets a rating of FRESH.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jXSJX5bdqE

Next up is Go Dreamer, he’s a rapper/producer out of Atlanta, who I have to give credit to for not being lazy and getting stuck creatively like most of his counterparts do. Most artists today, especially those in the South, don’t build upon the foundation that’s already been laid for them by the pioneers of the game. They’ll simply spend their time trying to recreate the sound and style that typically comes from that region. Dreamer for example, worked with Big Boi on his latest album, but he didn’t leave the studio jacking his style. He keeps things a bit off kilter with his self proclaimed spaced out weirdo style, which he describes on the bass heavy club jam Outta Here. His song She Wanna Be You reminds you of a 90’s hip hop song that you’d hear playing at a house party. All I can see in my head is  KidnPlay doing their stupid dance to this! Electro Phonk is the first I think he tries a little too hard to be different but the song still jams. I will also give him a hesitant rating of FRESH for now!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DO85qDjYSU

Speedy Ortiz and MGUN

I have an angry buddy who I swear is a 65 year old man stuck in the body of a 30 year old. He absolutely hates any music that’s been made in the past 15 years and swears that 80’s cock rock is the only real music that has ever existed! When his wife asked him if he wanted to go see the Lumineers, he asked her if she wanted a divorce.  I think he was exaggerating for effect…I think. I tried to tell him about the !!! show I am going to this weekend and he absolutely lost it. “Look at these guys! They look like nerds! And who is this walking mop with his gyrating hips?” It was at this point that he turned to his friend who also likes !!! and said “You like this crap? This is why you’re single and a douchebag!” I swear he’s actually a like able guy but just stay away from any discussions about music with him. Oh, and he also is a Taylor Swift fan, belongs to her fan club, and has floor seats to her show tonight that he could sell for $1000 a piece, but refuses to do so. Confused? So am I.

I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised by this because all kinds of weirdness abounds these days. For some reason the 90’s are actually making a come back with ball players rocking the Kid n Play flattops, kids wearing snap on bracelets again, and even the onesie jumper is becoming popular in certain parts of the world. Along with this we are seeing the rise of a few 90’s grunge bands in the way of Speedy Ortiz and Bass Drum of Death.  Bass Drum of Death I don’t really get because they barely resemble grunge rock from that era, but hipster kids are starting to feel fake nostalgia for that time period so I can see them reaching for a band that would have been the opener for an Everclear show.  

http://onlyfreshness.blogspot.com/2012/07/bass-drum-of-deathdz-deathrays.html

Speedy Ortiz however is the real deal. Their music is full of distorted guitars complimented with bratty lyrics being moaned into the mic by lead singer Sarah Dupius. Her songs range anywhere from having too many boyfriends to violence involving guns, knives, or whatever other dangerous objects come to mind. They are already drawing comparisons to The Breeders and Polvo, which would be fine if those bands weren’t terrible themselves. But the good news for Ortiz is, unlike those bands; when they rock out, they bring the noise with numbers like Ka-Prow, Tiger Tank, and Indoor Soccer. I’ve come across too many slow songs of theirs that just simply put you to sleep, so they still seem to be figuring out what their exact style is going to be. But I have to say that I like what I hear so far, especially from a band that's only been around for a year. I am going to give them a reluctant rating of FRESH because I have real nostalgia for that time period as I was actually there (can you tell how much I miss LCD Soundsystem?). What makes me so cautious is, the reason why the grunge genre didn’t last that long is because after a while it all starts to sound the same. In spite of that, give these guys a listen as I’m sure they’ll be opening for Sonic Youth soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4-X-KlJiUk

Next up is MGUN for all you dancing heads out there. He hails from Detroit and brings acid dripped techno with some 808 beats thrown in. This is especially evident in his most popular song The Race. I really like his Near Future EP which includes The Race because it shows him actually progressing his music from the traditional techno you hear in his earlier work Don’t Be Afraid. It’s full of weird bleeps and random samples and is good for both rocking your glow sticks to and rolling around with a few 40 ounces. I prefer the latter. Let The Conversation Take Place is another highlight, if you’re looking for songs of his to check out. Eventhough he isn’t reinventing the wheel or anything, I rate him as FRESH!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrfNyOVQi34

Danny Brown and Baauer

Back in the day when I used to dabble in porn, and by dabble I mean watch not star in,  I used to tell my co worker that I was bored and it was about time to pop in and see what old Jenna Jamison wass up to. Well that was years ago and I no longer watch porn or keep up with their stars, but luckily my friend hit me up the other day to let me know that good old Jenna got arrested for punching out her assistant with a brass knuckles Iphone case. Jenna…still entertaining. I try and avoid old female porn stars for the simple fact that just because they look like beef jerky, doesn’t mean they are as tasty.

What’s the point of that story? Well, back then I was also feeling old and called myself the Kurt Loader of Sixth St. You remember him don’t you? The super old VJ on MTV who was still trying prove himself as relevant by anchoring their news segment. Isn’t he dead? I truly think that MTV is like that movie Moon where they just replace dead VJ’s with their clones.  

Well I’ve graduated a bit and now I’m the Kurt Loader of concerts (see I said concert instead of show). And tonight I will attempt to stay relevant by attending the Danny Brown and Baauer show. You may know Baauer from all of those awful Harlem Shake videos that pop up on Youtube. It’s just a matter of time before you see your parents on one doing what has become the new Macarena! It’s sad really because I actually like that song, along with his other music. Baauer is a West Philly native who makes trap and bass music. If your only experience of it is the Harlem Shake, it’s basically dance music with elements of hip hop, traditional dance, and even some dubstep depending on the producer. It relies heavily on the 808 drum machine and sampling and takes more skill than I have at this point, so I would give these guys a listen when they come to town.  I rate Baauer as FRESH.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WR2d9EhuDA&list=PL2B60CE71CC7A86C9

I’ve already previewed Danny Brown here a few times but here is the original post.

http://onlyfreshness.blogspot.com/2012/04/whats-in-name.html

I was worried that I would look back and regret my FRESH rating of him but the more I listen, the more I like him. He is definitely an acquired taste but once you get used to his voice, you realize that there is skill behind his craziness. And yes, any dude who comes on stage rocking a mumu with half of his hair pressed and the other half shaved better come correct with the rhymes.  “I put my d!ck on your nose now you look like Scottie Pippen” Haha need I say more? FRESH

Drop It Like It's Hot!

So I just realized that I haven't dropped any knowledge on any new hip hop acts or really anything that you can dance to outside of New Build. Well today that stops. But first the reason I am reluctant to check out a lot of hip hop acts at SXSW is because as it usually goes with hip hop, they NEVER get on stage on time. Which is ok if it's just a one off show, but not cool at a festival when you have a different band to check out every hour and they are sometimes on the other side of downtown. Plus they should consider banning weed at least in the pre show for all hip hop artists. Black people are just naturally late to everything! You add weed and groupies to the mix, and it's amazing that they ever actually get on stage. I'm black, so it's ok for me to say this, but anyway...

Mr Muthafukin Exquire. The name alone should grab your attention. And if that doesn't then his video Huzzah which has a chick booty dancing and I mean BOOTY dancing with a gun in her g string should. I was watching this for the first time at work and couldn't take my eyes off of it. It's amazing I'm still employed. But Huzzah reminds you of old school hip hop. A fun party song that isn't all about the watches and cars that he has.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bzoyVKZaL4&ob=av2e
But he can also drop some twisted and ghetto intelligent rhymes. Kind of refreshing. Outside of Goodie MOB, Outkast, and Jay Electronica it's kind of rare these days. As far as his shows go, as I was walking to see The Good and The Bad I passed by this hip hop show that seemed hype! Of course there were 20 of them on stage but I felt so stupid for passing it up. Well as it usually goes at SX I walked into another venue 2 hours later and on stage was the same hype act performing the same song I heard earlier and it was Esquire! Yes!!! I knew I made the right choice and he was actually on time!!! Too good to be true. You can tell that he's hungry, and that's not a snap about his weight, but rather a comment on how much energy he brings and how happy he felt to be a part of the festival. No sense of entitlement here. The crowd was definitely feeling him, especially after he explained to us how he drove 36 hours to party down here with us. When he's done dropping mix tapes and actually does an album, scoop it up. And make sure you see him perform live; if for nothing else, to see a chubby black man stage dive in the crowd. Esquire is definitely FRESH!

Next up is Flux Pavillion. I must say that I am not on the dub stage train. I just dont get it. Some of it I like but after a while it just seems like I could learn to make this music in 5 minutes. So when I saw that Flux was playing right after Santigold, I wasn't that excited. I mean, I knew that Kanye and Jay Z sampled his song I Can't Stop (def check out both Kanye's and Flux's version) and his song Bass Cannon had me reluctantly bobbing my head but I figured after a while I'd get bored. Haa! Was I ever wrong! This was easily one of the best shows I've ever seen at SXSW. And it's not like Girl Talk where he just presses a button from song to song, he is actually up there spinning and mixing! This felt like the biggest house party ever! I was completely caught off guard because he walks on stage as this normal British kid who looks like he lives in parents basement! And I think our enthusiasm caught him off guard because he kept repeating "this is so magical, you guys are awesome". His music is definitely dub step but he before he got into this style he was a hip hop and jazz musician so you can feel some of those elements mixed in his music. There is definitely a hip hop feeling to some of his songs and he knows how to mix his songs to keep the party going. Also check out Got 2 Know and Hold Me Close. I definitely rate Flux as FRESH!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9wBwDWe0Yk