Berkeley Place-A lil' bit of BK from VA One of the top rated indie music blogs on the internet. Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Outgoing: Total Outgoing: 1 0 54 11276

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

ROCKERS WHO THINK THEY CAN RAP . . . A to Z 2007-08-27 04:39:02 Sometime in the mid-1970s, Afrika Bambaataa was kicking out a brand new sound up in the Bronx, while down at CBGBs punk was being created by Richard Hell, Blondie, The Ramones, and The Talking Heads. Although they were scared, a few of the white folks were taken across to the Bronx, to see what the black and brown folks were doing. Soon after, Debbie Harry came out with Rapture. And Raprock was born. Subsequently, Aerosmith would help break black rappers to a mainstream (suburban) market theretofore accessible only by The Beastie Boys. The Brooklyn trio helped break rap into a moneymaking art form. And because one good turn deserves another, Run DMC would revive the careers of Aerosmith who had previously managed to snort up, shoot up, and dry up all their cred. The worm then turned as Limp Bizkit, Sugar Ray, and Linkin Park all tried to write original crossover tunes. Mostly, their efforts were suckcesspool. The art of the crossover goes hand in hand with the art of the cover, ...

A QUICK BASHING 2007-08-26 19:04:46 At last! Someone else didn’t like the new Rilo Kiley album! I didn’t hate it, but I really don’t get all the showering of praise. It can’t be just because Jenny Lewis is cute. The songs are all fine, but every single one makes me think of another song by another artist. There are certainly some fun songs to listen to on it, particularly “Silver Lining,” but overall there’s just not a lot of Rilo Kiley in it. In other words, I find it derivative. Of course, I’m the same shmuck who is brave enough to say that the new M.I.A. album isn’t that good either. It’s a lot of the same stuff over and over, with old-school techno beats that could and should have been way more interesting (as they were on her first record). There, I said it. Now you can all never read my blog again because I’m obviously just an asshole who knows nothing blah blah blah. There, I said it for you. ...

NEW DRUNK COUNTRY 2007-08-26 18:56:17 Regular readers know that DC has an open invitation here: Anything they create will be posted here. Period. I love their unique brand of oddly named instrumentals. They need to be hired to score a Sofia Coppolla western. Or maybe a Lindsey Lohan high school hijinx comedy. That would be interesting. Here is their latest, along with their as-usual hilarious e-mail to me. Mr. E., Long time no nowt, etc. & then some. Busy, see? Nuts everywhere & up to them in guts: travelling, radio, housework, needlepoint. That said, new tunes are pissing out of us like refugees. Not sure if’n we gave you the first attached (Amelia Jane Refrain) before, but if not we are now. Second (the you-shaped hole) is a new half tune what is a demo spliced into a bitesizable for ear fitting. This will be a much longer piece with lots of other things & so consider this a rough mix of a 2/4 completed demo. If you want to use them on your lovely space then please do. If now, then not then. W ...

RIGHT BY YOUR DOOR and WAR 2007-08-26 14:52:03 I saw two movies this weekend! RIGHT BY YOUR DOOR  Maureen McCormack (best known as Howard Stern’s movie bride) and Rory Cochrane I’m a mainstream movie guy who digs action and violence not slowness, sap or period pieces, so I generally stay away from small indie flicks, with some exceptions, but this movie is truly amazing.  If you dig horror, it will scare the crap out of you on a deep, gut level (especially if you live in a major city).  If personal relationships is your thing, it will tear your guts out through your aorta.  Heart-wrenching and horrifying, it tells of a terrorist attack in Los Angeles, and one man and one woman who survive, on different sides of the same door.  If you’re a right-winger, the slightly paranoiac atmosphere might irritate you, but no more than the lefty slant on 24, and I know lots of Bushies who really dig that show.  The acting is first-rate, the direction keeps a fast, action-film pace in essentially a three-person character ...

FLEETWOOD’S HACKS 2007-08-26 08:12:57 People in a Position to Know Records offers a 6 song tribute to The Fleetwoods, a great (if too-little-remembered) doo wop band, who made the classic tunes Mr. Blue, Graduation, Come Softly to Me, Go Away Little Girl, Tragedy, and To Know Her (Is To Love Her)). The album was a limited pressing (only 490 made!), by members of the bands Norfolk and Western (M Ward’s backup band) and Graves. They’ve got a myspace page, too. It’s too damn bad that it had limited release–e-mail the record company and demand that they release this material digitally. It’s awesome. The covers remove any trace of novelty (as well as nearly all dated doo-wop sounds) and turn these chart-toppers into sweet, but no cloying, love songs. Mr. Blue is my favorite track. It starts slow, almost to the point of ponderous, but when the swing kicks in it becomes a terrific tribute to the days of barbershop quartets, only updated with a modern sound. Check it out. Mr. Blue. ...

10 REASONS MY BLOG LISTS TO THE LEFT or TOP 10 TOP 10 LISTS 2007-08-25 20:44:56 1. 10 Recording Mistakes that Made the Final Cut. 2. The NY Post’s 100 Best Cover Songs of All Time. 3. Top Ten 80s Sit Com MILFs. I can’t agree with lots of these choices, except for Peg Bundy and Erin Gray. 4. Top 1 Best Shameless Cross Promotion. 5. The 5 Best Top 20 Spoon Songs. 6. 13 Worst Foreign Accents on Film. 7. Top 10 Karate Flicks. What? No Kung Fu Hustle? 8. Best albums of 2006. Out of the top 20, I think at the end of ‘06 I probably would have agreed with about 8 of these, and I still listen to about 3. 9. Top 10 Comic Book Movies. Popeye? Flash Gordon? Dick Fucking Tracy?? Scratch that. Make this “Top List With Absolutely No Credibility.” 10. Top 10 Lame Excuses For Supporting the War in Iraq. ...

THE TOP 10 SOUNDTRACK TUNES 2007-08-25 14:33:01 Well, I’m sad to say that unlike the other interblognetpolls I’ve taken, this one is a bust. Not only are the responses few and far between, but they’re all over the place. If you’re curious to see some of them, the ones that weren’t e-mailed to me, you can find them here. As you can see, there are no clear far and away winners. A few votes for the same tunes here and there, but nothing overwhelming. So, I’m gonna close the voting and post my own list. For those who did respond, CHECK YOUR E-MAIL! You may be receiving a notice that you’re getting some free swag as a reward for participating. My list, in no particular order: 1. Cold Wind-Arcade Fire (From 6 Feet Under). Their most chilling song, other than tunnels. 2. Everybody Knows-Concrete Blonde (From Pump Up The Volume). A vastly underrated movie (with a horrible title–that song isn’t even in the flick) about pirate radio, with a terrific soundtrack. This is just one ...

STEPHANIE’S ID-Grus americanus 2007-08-25 07:54:54 So, the other day I had an hour to kill and I always spend that time checking out the mailbag. The next disc in a stack that’s way too large for a single pair of ears is called, Stephanie’s ID. I think, what a horrible name for a band. Then I realize it’s not Stephanie’s I.D. its her id. Y’know, that part of Freud’s map of the psyche that is based on the pleasure principle, rather than on reality or compromise. The id wants what it wants. And then I think, what a great name for a band! Part quirky, part pop, just like 90s altrock redhead goddess Tori Amos, Grus americanus is full of soaring vocals and catchy hooks, odd and thoughtful lyrics, and clever gymnastics. From one song to the next, singer Stephanie Morgan’s voice morphs from Edie Brickell to Tori to Natalie Merchant, while the music goes from hipsway to spacey psychedelia. Hey Hey Hey (It’s Gonna Be OK) could easily be a Macy Gray song, with its slow grinding groove and s ...

THE GREENSLEEVES RECORDS COLLECTION 2007-08-24 14:52:04 Greensleeves Records is known to dancehall and reggae fans around the world as the label that hosts all the good reggae that isn’t by a Marley. Their new retrospective spans all 30 years of the label’s existence, with cuts from nearly all of their best artists. The full track listing is below, so I’m not gonna belabor it, except to note that the physical release date is soon–September 3rd–but the iTunes release is even sooner (8/28). iTunes will bundle a PDF booklet along with each purchase that includes all of the goodies packaged in the physical product — exclusive images and interviews with the label’s founders, along with quotes and stories from artists. CD1 01) War - Wailing Souls 02) Where Is Jah - Reggae Regulars 03) Born For A Purpose - Doctor Alimantado 04) Look Youthman - Barrington Levy 05) Another One Bites The Dust - Clint Eastwood & General Saint 06) Wa-Do-Dem - Eek-A-Mouse 07) Zungguzungguguzungguzeng – Yellowman 08) ...

THE TOP 10 MADONNA SONGS EVER 2007-08-24 12:39:27 I’m not the biggest Madonna fan in the world, but I accept her place in our society and appreciate it for what it is. This dude thinks he knows the top 10 Madonna songs, but he’s just wrong. I can live with “Crazy for You,” but is it really one of her best? And “Words”? And “Ray of Light” is her best song? Come on. The 10 best Madonna songs are: 10. Human Nature. I loved this song until the crackhead who lived below me cranked it full blast on a loop for literally days on end. Which wasn’t as bad as when he left his phone on speaker, off the hook, so at 3AM we’d hear that three-tone beep and then the lovely old lady saying, “If you’d like to make a call, please hang up . . .” If I had to pick another slow song of hers, I’d have to go with her duet with Prince, Love Song. 9. Get Into the Groove. I have nothing snarky to say about this song. It’s just real damn good. Get Into the Groove-Soni ...

PICTURE OF THE DAY 2007-08-23 21:36:03 ...

SCION CD SAMPLER 18-SPANK ROCK GIVEAWAY! 2007-08-23 11:35:36 We love to give away the Scion CD Samplers here, because they always feature up-and-comers, cutting edge dance, hip hop, and the like. This give-away also coincides with our attempt to compile a list of the best songs from modern soundtracks. So, we get to use it as prizes! This compilation features a mix put together by Darko of Spank Rock, and features great stuff by DJ Food, Coldcut, Kid Koala, and many more. Full list: Kid Koala - Stoppin Traffic/Kid Koala - Party At Eric’s/The Herbaliser - Geddim! Coldcut - Boogieman/Ty - This Here Music /Hint - You Little Trooper. Spank Rock - Backyard Betty. Blockhead - The Art of Walking/Hexstatic - Chase Me. Coldcut - True Skool. Mr. Scruff - Get A Move On/Spank Rock - What It Look Like. DJ Food - Dark Lady. Amon Tobin - Four Ton Mantis/XXXchange - Lady Huh. TTC - Telephone/XXXchange - Clint. Pop Levi - Sugar Assault Me Now (Part 2)/Spank Rock - Competition. Bonobo - Nightlife (ZeroDB Mix)/Spank Rock - Far Left (Mochipet Remix). TTC - U ...

MF GALLAGHER AND MF BOZO 2007-08-23 05:18:59 A reader of the blog pulled in by our recent Professor Murder post forwards the most distressing news. As you can tell from the picture on the top of this post. one of my favorite performers of all time is MF DOOM (a.k.a. 50% of Madvillain and DangerDOOM, a.k.a. Viktor Vaughn, etc.) But the reader says that in some recent dates he hasn’t quite been himself. There’s been someone else behind the mask, who lip syncs for a 20 minute set. He says this happened to him at the August 15 show at the Independent in San Francisco. He says that the starting acts played for about 2 hours and then faux-Doom came out “looking about 100 pounds lighter than he has ever looked” and “his mic was turned way down low, and you couldn’t hear his voice, and there was no crowd interaction between songs. Just this skinny “Doom”, holding the mic real close to his face, and a bunch of hype men on the sides. 20 minutes later, it was all over.” Was anyone ...

PARADE-“Answer Me” 2007-08-23 04:41:36 I can’t say why exactly, but for some reason “Booths” off Parade’s new EP, “Answer Me,” reminds me of The Alan Parsons Project, just a little. Apart from the more obvious 90s alt-rock influences, I mean. The EP is a neat little thing, with interesting interplay between the Scott Trinh’s lead guitar lines and Emily Martin’s bass, as well as vocal tracks that continually surprised me in tone and range. Overall, it brings the Hotlanta band a notch above your average shoegazer. In some ways, the tracks reminded me of Edie Brickell’s first record, which had been greatly influenced by Jerry Garcia’s wandering licks. Plus, it’s just 5 bucks on CD Baby. That’s Hott-Parade Hunting-Parade ...

PROFESSOR MURDER 2007-08-22 03:59:15 I recently came across a 2006 EP from New York foursome Professor Murder titled, “Rides the Subway,” and I dug it. I know I’m a year late, but hopefully I’m not too late. It was a remarkably short but equally remarkably infectious collection of dancepunk tracks that (in my view) are way better than anything OK Go! or The Go! Team ever released, and equally as good as the new !!!. The standout track, “Champion,” is essentially a chant, with various forms of percussion (cowbell!) and storytelling verses around a shouted, fuzzy hook “Champion!” followed by some mumbling that I can’t quite make out). On “Camron’s New Color (Part 3),” the band takes their percussive experimentation a step further, with each instrument hitting a beat slightly before or after the beat that came before it. It’s a style similar to Eminem’s old vocal style, before he perfected his ability to hit the mark. The various rhythms give a tribal feel but also keep you on edge, constan ...