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Articles from Berkeley Place-A lil' bit of BK from VA

VETERANS DAY SPECIAL! 2007-11-12 03:55:50 If you’re a regular reader, you’ve probably figured out that I don’t support the war. But I do admire those who fight it, and those who die or are injured doing their job and civic duty. So, here’s a few songs in tribute from artists who have released some of the best records this year. Talking Old Soldiers-Bettye LaVette Blunts and Army-Jay-Z Navy Wives-White Rabbits Why Do Men Fight?-Carbon/Silicon Gunships-Bedouin Soundclash You Got Yr Cherry Bomb-Spoon ...

10 REASONS I LOVE LED ZEPPELLIN COVERS 2007-11-11 14:24:03 1. Fool in the Rain-Edie Brickell 2. Misty Mountain Hop-Stratocruiser 3. Since I Been Lovin’ You-Corrine Bailey Rae 4. Georgia On My Mind-Led Zeppelin 5. Immigrant Song-Peter Covent 6. When the Levee Breaks-Albert Kuvezin and Yat-Kha 7. Lone Wolf/Stairway to Heaven Coda-The eels. That reminds me–anybody out there interested in an all eels cover post? 8. Stairway to Heaven-Beatnix. 9. Stairway to Heaven-Tiny Tim 10. Stairway to Heaven-Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) ...

PIRATE PRUDE-Pillowcore 2007-11-11 04:20:02 Pirate Prude may not have made the best album I’ve heard all year, but they’ve certainly picked the best name for an album: Pillowcore. At least, that’s how these songs have been tagged. According to band-member Mark Freifeld, though, some or all of the songs are demos for a what he says will be a “concept” album modeled after Exile in Guyville, which was modeled after Exile on Main Street. He says he’s hit a $$$ snag, so he’s trying to find a backer. The songs do sound quite a bit like a male Liz Phair (her early work, not her recent sugar pop). And that’s a good thing. Rough, grimey, sludgy, aggressive alt-rock. Definitely worth your eartime. Give it a check. Fight Flight Complacent=Vacant Devil’s Hairslut ... Pirate

PASSIN’ IT ALONG . . . 2007-11-10 16:20:30 1. James Eric’s Covers CD. James Eric wants you to hear his new CD. It’s a compilation he’s giving away at his live shows, all covers of 1990s songs. TRACK LISTING 1. Race For The Prize (the flaming lips) 2. A Shot In The Arm (wilco) 3. Divorce Song (liz phair) 4. Meet Ze Monsta (pj harvey) (Taste this track!) 5. Digging The Grave (faith no more) 6. What Jail Is Like (the afghan whigs) 7. Who Are You (tom waits) 8. Lurgee (radiohead) 9. Winona (matthew sweet) 10. By Starlight (smashing pumpkins) 11. To Make You Feel My Love (bob dylan) 12. The Book Of Love (the magnetic fields) ZIP FILE! (hotlink) 2. Tim and Eric, Live! Tim and Eric’s Awesome Show Great Job! is, in my view, the best thing on Cartoon Network. Now you can check out their live broadcasts online. Episode #1 3. Big O! Magazine’s latest update has The Rolling Stones rarities . . . 1.Interview 2. Act Together (Studio Rehearsal) 3. Jam 4. Fool To Cry (Studio Rehearsal) 5 Down In The Hole (S ...

MF GRIMM-”The Hunt for the Gingerbread Man” 2007-11-10 04:12:42 A longtime partner to another great underground MF, Grimm (a.k.a. “GM Grimm” for Grand Master) is perhaps best known for his collaborations on one of the greatest rap albums in the history of the genre, “Operation: Doomsday.” A true gangsta survivor who has been sentenced to life in prison (but he got the sentence reduced by acting as his own attorney!), been shot (and wheelchair-bound because of it), and even had a comic book written about him, Grimm has just released his 4th independent album, “The Hunt for the Gingerbread Man.” And it is his best one yet. Previous Grimm efforts have often been disjointed or bloated affairs, but his one is a concept album about the adventures of a hood called “Gingerbread Man” in a place called Candy Land, fighting enemies with Krispy Kreme hearts who have too much yeast and keeping the cookie creeps shook. Basically, if you thought Masta Ace and Jean Grae’s “Soda and Soap” was witty (you know, the one where they name-check e ...

ZOOKEEPER- Becoming All Things 2007-11-09 08:48:24 I’ve kept this Walkmen-ish record in my rotation for a few weeks now, struggling not with whether to review it but how. Zookeeper’s album, on Bellecitypop! Records, is certainly through-and-through indie rock: Easily digestible hooks and melodies, simple songwriting, and a singer with a voice that alternates between light and hoarse. Bandleader Chris Simpson got his start in the bands Mineral and The Gloria Record, but this EP has a rawer, more classic pop feel. I really enjoy it, but I’ve had the doggonnest time trying to figure out what to say about it. Maybe you should just stream the album here Zookeeper Live: 11/12 – Emo’s, Austin, TX 11/24 – The Proletariat, Houston, TX 11/26 – The Earl, Atlanta, GA 11/28 – The Red and Black Bar, Washington D.C. 11/29 – Piano’s, NY, NY 12/5 – The Beat Kitchen, Chicago, Illinois The 12/6 – Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines, IL Snow in Berlin ...

TERRA DIABLO-Deluge Songs 2007-11-08 18:42:23 I received this CD in the mail, popped it in, and had to check and double check: This is on an indie label?! Terra Diablo’s Deluge Songs, on Nocturnal Records, has the kind of crisp production and radio-ready tunes you’d expect from a major. It’s very Stone Temple Pilot/Live–kinda grungy, kinda hard rock. Only the guys are Scots. I admit that this isn’t the kind of thing I’d tend to listen to, but I’m posting on it because something about it sounds a cut above the Nickelbacks of the world. For one thing, the lyrics are much more interesting. And for another, the guitarist is on fire. (Not literally.) If you dig radio-ready rock, this is for you. Satellites ...

APOSTLE OF HUSTLE- National Anthem of Nowhere 2007-11-08 03:39:10 Apostle of Hustle is a passel of musicians led by Andrew Whiteman, who became familiar with large, mixing-bowl music as the guitarist for Broken Social Scene. An introductory caveat: I can’t stand BSS. I find them dull, uncentered, and ponderous. I also wasn’t a big fan of Apostle?s first release, Folkloric Feel, which had a few good singles but didn’t hold together for me as a record. In fact, I’ve all but forgotten the vast majority of previous Apostle/BSS stuff I’ve heard in the past. Ahem. But someone I respect suggested strongly that I check out National Anthem of Nowhere, and even gave me a copy to listen to. So I did. Not optimistic, I skipped right to the title track, figuring it would be the biggest gun on the record and if it didn’t grab me, nothing would. When “Anthem” began, it was instantly clear to me why the band named their album after this song. Although the vocal mix is a little too fuzzy for my liking, the musi ...

MY FAVORITE YO LA TENGO COVERS, PART THREE 2007-11-07 04:28:05 I could go on forever with this, but I think I’ll stop here. Dreams (Fleetwood Mac)-YLT Don’t You Want Me (Human League)-YLT Dreaming (Blondie)-Yo La Tengo Run Run Run (Velvet Underground)-YLT Posts one and two. ...

10 REASONS I’M CALLIN’ OUT TO ALL AREA GROUPS 2007-11-06 16:39:55 Random shit I like, these folks are makin’ it happen right here right now… 1. One of the world’s greatest bloggers, Liza, posted a really cool cover of Air Supply’s Making Love Out Of Nothing At All. This song is one of my guiltiest pleasures. When every I hear it, I remember sleepaway camp as a shameless little kid, on line-up-for-the-shower day, when Kasey Kasem blasted this song in his incomparable lowest-to-highest number countdown. Which makes me think of Mark’s unwiped, cakey butthole. Where are you now, Mark? 2. Xiu Xiu-Ceremony (Joy Division comedy) 3. Haldan just posted a bunch of Digital Primate tracks, including “My Bush Would Have Made a Better President.” Weird digital hip hop, to be sure, but strangely catchy. 4. Saul Williams’ digital release, “The Inevitable Rise and Fall of Niggy Tardust,” is now ready for you to get it. This is the most discussed track so far: Sunday Bloody Sunday (U2 cover)-Saul W ...

RYAN ADAMS-Easy Tiger Live (with bonus cuts) 2007-11-06 15:02:35 I gave Ryan Adams’ new album a second try a few weeks ago, and realized it’s actually very good. It’s not as good as his first two albums (which are two of my favorite records, like, ever), but it’s easily as good as any of his other records. Really, really solid. And he’s on tour. So you can see him play the whole album, live . . . Or you can keep your fat ass on the couch and listen to it right here on the corner! That’s my preference, of course. 1. Goodnight Rose. A majestic track, and a perfect set closer. Actually, it’s a rare example of a song that introduces an album as well as it would have ended the album. 2. Two 3. Everybody Knows. Ryan Adams doing his best Jerry Garcia imitation. 4. Halloweenhead. Because it’s so much cooler to do this than to make a Christmas song. 5. Oh My God, Whatever, Etc. 6. Tears Of Gold. Breakin’ out the honky tonk. 7. The Sun Also Sets 8. Off Broadway 9. Pearls On A String 10. Rip Off. ...

YO LA TENGO COVERS, PART TWO 2007-11-06 09:57:48 Continuing posting my favorite YLT covers . . . Rasberry Beret (Prince)-Dump Sheena Is a Punk Rocker (Ramones)-Yo La Tengo Hey! That’s not Yo La Tengo!: Decora (YLT cover)-Spoon ...

I HAVE IT! (THE YO LA TENGO POSTS, PART ONE) 2007-11-06 04:43:02 I’m sure most of you know about Yo La Tengo, so I’m not going to pretend otherwise. The husband and wife team of Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley started playing with various other like-minded independent and underground artists way back in the mid-eighties, composing improvisational and often wandering art-rock. They’re kind of like New Jersey’s version of Of Montreal. But my favorite thing YLT does is covers. In 1990, the band made Fakebook, featuring covers of songs by artists like Gene Clark, Cat Stevens, The Flamin’ Groovies, The Kinks, and Daniel Johnston. The great thing about a Yo cover is that it is truly different from the original . . . They put their stamp on everything they do. Right after Fakebook, the band made May I Sing with Me, on which they were joined by bassist James McNew. Thanks to a reader, I’ve managed to get a hold of a copy of Dump’s classic That Skinny Motherfucker With the High Voice, an album of nothing but Princ ...

TWO FROM SILUH RECORDS 2007-11-06 03:24:30 KILLED BY 9V BATTERIES-Self Titled It’s almost impossible to find anything written in English about Killed By 9V Batteries except the following quote from their myspace page: “we are a noisy post pop band from weiz / austria. we’re frickeling since 2002.” That’s too bad, but because they make pretty good, pretty noisy rock and roll. The essential track is the Nirvana-like “Cherish Some Spoken Words But Record Our Laughing.” I’ve posted it below—I think it’s infectious. With any luck, it’s also catching and these folks will catch on. Anyway, if you like what you hear here, their self-titled release is available on emusic. On Siluh Records. A New Border to Run Along Cherish Some Spoken Words But Record Our Laughing LANDSCAPE IZUMA-”Kolorit” Also on Siluh, Landscape Izuma is marked by very complex, simple instrumentation. If that sounds like a contradiction, check out the first minute thirty of Rough Sheets, and you’ll know what I mean. Mos ...

BAND OF HORSES–LIVE IN 2007 2007-11-05 03:28:55 1. Is There A Ghost 2. The Great Salt Lake 3. Islands On the Coast 4. Wicked Gil 5. Ode To LRC 6. Funeral 7. No One’s Gonna Love You 8. Marry Song 9. Our Swords 10. First Song 11. The General Specific 12. Am I a good Man (Them Two cover) Unzip the horses! ...