December 2007
Best of NBGL 2007 →
No best album list. This is a list of the most soulful, the most original, the biggest, the most enlightening and the most entertaining music that I’ve featured and written about this year. The best of NBGL 2007.
Such is the nature of the sort of bands I write about - bands that are frequently unsigned, still finding their feet and British - you should expect to hear a helluva lot more about...
c'est pas tous les jours que →
pic : anne-sophie J’ai essayé de ne pas compter pour voir si ça pouvait changer quelque chose, mais une autre l’a fait pour moi. Je n’ai jamais aimé les bilans, par contre je crois très fort aux résolutions, que je tiens souvent. Je vois le réveil d’ici, j’espère déjà que le jus de goyave fera passer les pilules : tu n’as pas de chance, pour cette...
To Fix The Gash In Your Head →
To close out 2007, wrap-ups of my Friday and Saturday nights, aka the final shows of the year for me. We’ll start with Saturday.
Night four of the Drake Hotel’s “What’s In The Box?” year-end series of shows could have been subtitled: “Loud, With Guitars”. And that further subdivided into two - “As Improvisational Tool” and “As Blunt...
thom yorke laughs funny →
No idea what’s going on in this clip, but I thought I’d use this opportunity to remind you to watch Radiohead’s live webcast performance of In Rainbows tomorrow evening on Radiohead.tv before you head out for New Year’s Eve. The broadcast starts around 7 PM EST. ********************************************* unrelated: Here’s some NASA footage of the Cassini...
ne pique pas les yeux →
pic : madeline zira A me réveiller dans ton salon comme ça, je me suis senti hors la loi à peu près trois secondes, heureusement je reprends assez facilement mes moyens au réveil, “où se trouve la salle de bain ?”. J’ai pas mal hésité pour savoir quel shampoing utiliser, évitant soigneusement ceux que lui a laissés. La vue était pas mal, les pigeons dégageaient un bon...
Sunday Cleaning - Volume 82 →
Over the holidays, I’ve watched a lot of movies. Here are some (cyanide) capsule reviews.
Alien Vs Predator (Paul W.S. Anderson)
First off, I only watched this because it was on TV and I was sitting in front of the TV and was fairly comfortable. I remember thinking when it came out in the theatres that there was no way this could be good - and as it turns out, I was right. Now I loved the...
Bon LoL de neige →
Pic : Brice Si je vous parle direct de feuille blanche j’ai peur que ça fasse (comme Tony Montana avec un “s” et un “r” en moins) trop rap torturé Diams + Freeman free d’la passion. Néanmoins, je crois que les repas de Noël font un peu baisser le niveau de mon écriture-Juice, la vie c’est commme ça, Isabelle Quenin l’avait dit dans ” à...
gorilla vs. bear presents: Dan Deacon →
flyer by david We are happy to present Dan Deacon and his Wham City homies on their seizure-inducing-acid-trip “Ultimate Reality” tour, live at Hailey’s on January 12. If you haven’t seen this guy live, you have no idea what you’re missing; we were skeptical when he rolled through Dallas last summer, and we all walked away converted Dan Deacon fanclub members....
Coming Home / Electronica →
“I don’t think the future is only about the musicians of the now,” Cobain replies. “The future is also inhabited by the past; it is about past messages coinciding with future technologies to bring profound truth. What you can’t see is what we believe in. Whether it is organic food or psychedelic, electronic, oak-tronic — whatever it is.” - FSOL interview.
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“Various Electronica toward the...
Bon LoL de neige →
Pic : Brice Si je vous parle direct de feuille blanche j’ai peur que ça fasse (comme Tony Montana avec un “s” et un “r” en moins) trop rap torturé Diams + Freeman free d’la passion. Néanmoins, je crois que les repas de Noël font un peu baisser le niveau de mon écriture-Juice, la vie c’est commme ça, Isabelle Quenin l’avait dit dans ” à...
elegantly wasted →
model : laet Une partie de poker qui se joue tard et sale dans le salon sur fond de dance 90’s, voilà un peu à quoi ressemble cette après-midi en tête à tête. Des ondes quadrillent la pièce mieux que les lasers de Resident Evil 3, un break en deux temps à la Dusty Kid, puis l’ostinato qui reprend, insatiable, et cours à sa fin. Comme toujours, je remporte la mise. Quelque chose...
Sueño guajiro de un invierno en Nueva York →
Photograph: Matt Stuart
The Velvet Underground - Pale Blue eyes (The Velvet Underground / 1969) The Owls - Isaac Bashevis singer (Daughters and suns / 2007) Jarvis Cocker - Baby’s coming back to me (Jarvis / 2006) Marmoset - pass it along (florist fired / 2007) Josh Rouse - winter in the Hamptons
(Nashville / 2005) Cass McCombs - That’s that (Dropping the writ / 2007) Torngat - you could...
New Margot & The Nuclear So & Sos Demo →
Local favorite, Margot & The Nuclear So & Sos recently shared on their MySpace another early listen to what we might hear on their 2008 album Animal!. Margot & The Nuclear So & Sos - I Am A Lightning Rod (DEMO - MySpace rip) See Also: MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Richard Edwards of Margot & The Nuclear So & Sos More possible Animal! previews: Margot and the...
Canon Blue : Halcyon EP →
Christmas is over, but in keeping with the idea that it is better to give than receive, Canon Blue (Daniel James) has made you a present - four brand new songs for free to be exact - and what a gift it is. Just this year he released his debut album, Colonies, through the Copenhagen-based label Rumraket. The album was mixed by Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor and mastered by Cristian Vogel, yet,...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Ezra Feinberg... →
Citay signed with new Secretly Canadian imprint Dead Oceans and released the follow-up, Little Kingdom to their wonderful 2006 self-titled debut. A fine follow-up it was and one you might have missed. If so, check them out and their growing list of quality labelmates. MOKB : Any musical plans for the 2007 holiday season? Ezra Feinberg : Citay held the second annual Citay Christmas...
You Want The Candy →
When Denmark’s Raveonettes paid us a visit this past October, they were a band with a new album but without a North American label to put it out, not that any of that stopped them from packing Lee’s Palace. Some speculated that this dictated the more stripped down than usual configuration - just Sune Rose Wagner, Sharin Foo and a drummer with a two-piece kit.
So now that they’re...
dodoctissimo →
pic: LastNightsParty / model: June D St Michel, Gare Du Nord, CDG1. 10mg et 17 heures plus tard, un tampon et une vingtaine de degrés en plus. Je fais toujours ma valise au dernier moment, et finalement j’oublie rarement quelque chose d’important, j’ai mes disques, ma montre, mes papiers, et l’appetit. Demain Chuck de Gossip Girl fait un concert à Paris, je vous laisse...
a classic education →
A real treat for the final act of 2007 on NBGL.
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MP3: A Classic Education - Stay Son
(Bologna, 3:54 mins, 192 kbps)
A Classic Education are expansive in the ‘it just sounds big, the climax of dozens of ideas, that have travelled continents looking for a means of expression’ sort of way. It’s impassioned because you can’t make music so well formed and frankly epic...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Michael... →
Michael Showalter used the power of the internet to promote his 2007 comedy album Sandwiches & Cats. He “toured” several prominent blogs and guest posted his thoughts on a variety of silly subjects. He revealed, here on MOKB, that he and his long-time partners, the cast of The State, would be reuniting to create a new The State sketch-comedy movie. Big news! MOKB : Any...
Next Year's Model →
One of the best things about the end of 2007 is that now we can turn our microscopic attention spans to the class of 2008, the acts that whose creative blood will grease the gears of music reportage. Not surprisingly, the UK press has already begun setting the stage for their new musical heroes of ‘08, with The Guardian soliciting predictions of who’ll be the next big thing from label...
tck d'espèce →
model : Maud. credit : In a relationship *fascinating blog* S’il fallait faire un genre / un jour, le 25 décembre serait new-wave. J’aime bien la new-wave, je ne dis pas ça pour me justifier d’avoir essayé d’écouter en entier le dernier Duran Duran, ni parce que j’aurais lu le livre de Bizot (RIP) sur le sujet, ni pour FAIRE LA NIQUE à Brodinski, non...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Dan Didier of... →
Last year, I listened and listened to Maritime’s We, The Vehicles album over and over and over and then ovvvveeeer again. It was always in the rotation - home, office or car. It’s still one of my favorites of the last few years. Maritime returned this year with Heresy & The Hotel Choir. It didn’t grab me like the previous, but it’s still has some choice tracks on it -...
For You →
Everyone have a nice break? Yeah? Good. Me too. Back to work tomorrow, though. Anyways.
I mentioned in this week’s MP3 of the week writeup that the Six By Seven compilation Any Colour So Long As It’s Black, long-discussed but never realized, was finally out. Six By Seven’s discography and history is long and convoluted, numbering countless members, at least one maybe two...
Link →
More festive goodness for you today. You may remember we wrote about the excellent debut album from Komarken Electronics earlier in the year. Well they have been busy writing new tracks ever since so expect to hear a lot more from them in 2008. There are four brand-spanking new tracks in their Myspace player right now and we have this great live set to share with you. Featuring old and new tracks...
Christmas Morning →
At Christmas play and make good cheer,
For Christmas comes but once a year
~ Thomas Tusser `
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“Christmas 2007. Gassenhauer”
01. Frederic Chopin - Prelude in D flat major Martha Argerich (1977)
02. Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Trios op1. no.1 Finale: Presto Vienna Piano Trio (Nimbus, 1997)
03. Ludwig van Beethoven - Piano Trios in B flat major, Op.11. ‘Gassenhauer’ Vienna Piano Trio...
MOKB Christmas Day 2007 Mix →
Happy pagan-turned-Christian-for-easy-integration-day-of-son-of-God-birthing celebration-time! No, come on…Merry Christmas! Here is another mix of holiday delights to enjoy today. I love these R.E.M. Christmas tunes. I believe they gave these and a bunch others away to their fan club members over the years. R.E.M. - Christmas Griping R.E.M. - Ghost Reindeer In The Sky Run DMC - Christmas...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Parker... →
The Whigs will release their sophomore album, Mission Control in January of the new year. They’ve played some of the new songs at their live shows recently and they’ve stopped in and previewed a couple for us on MOKB’s SIRIUS Blog Radio. From the sound of things, it’s going to be another really good one. The live versions of the two acoustic previews below rock so much...
blaqstarr + rye rye: live in dallas →
blaqstarr + rye rye rye rye blaqstarr sober + select more polaroids after the jump. merry christmas… tony romo sober/blaqstarr rye rye in technicolor
Oscar Peterson (1925-2007) →
It’s the group sound that’s important, even when you’re playing a solo.
- Oscar Peterson (1925-2007)
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My Heart Belongs to Daddy [alternate] Night Train (1962)
Georgia on My Mind Night Train (1962)
Oscar Peterson passed away today at the age of 82. It’s a great lost. He is one of the greatest piano player that I like. Something about how he carries his tune. He plays very fast, yet...
Are You Coming Over For Christmas? →
Taking a quick break from my, uh, break to bring your attention to this time-limited offer. Stuart Murdoch of Belle & Sebastian has taken a break from his calendar-curating and musical-writing and scoring activities to round up the band to record a new holiday tune called “Are You Coming Over For Christmas?”, a jazzy little duet between himself and guest vocalist Celia Garcia.
You...
MOKB Covers Project : 2007 Christmas Edition →
In truth, I can’t be sure who wrote and sang a lot of these originally. I mean, ok in truth, I could do the research for each, but I think that would just take the fun out of it for me. I mean, most are just Christmas classics. We’ll leave it at that. Tune in tomorrow to My Old Kentucky Blog Radio on SIRIUS Left Of Center, Channel 26 at Noon EST and again at Midnight EST to hear all...
New Music: Belle & Sebastian: "Are You Coming Over... →
We hope that you are enjoying the holiday break as much as we are, as we give A Charlie Brown Christmas and Phil Spector’s A Christmas Gift for You a few more spins before tucking them back on the shelf for another year. Forkcast has been as quiet as the proverbial house awaiting St. Nick, but Belle & Sebastian have posted a new song on their MySpace page called “Are You Coming...
Link →
One of my favourite tracks of 2007 has been John Zahl’s (aka JAZ) edit of Sylvia Love’s 1979 Italo Disco single Extraterrestrial Lover. It was found on the Razor Sharp Edits EP, the debut release from the new Beard Science label - one of the most talked about twelves of the year (on the DJ History forums at least). When I asked JAZ to put together a mix for us, I wasn’t really...
Bubbachups top 10 albums 2007 →
1. The Necks – Townsville (Milk of Fish / ReR)
MP3: Townsville (Excerpt)
Last October – in what normally would have been nothing but a typical autumn week with darkness setting in early and people wrapped in warm clothes, hiding from the cold wind – I experienced what was most definitely the musical highlight of the year for me. Maybe even the musical highlight of many, many years. That entire...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Greg Bertens... →
Film School’s Hideout seemed to be a very polarizing album. Their shoegazey, uber-textured “space rock” made it’s way onto many a Best Of 2007 year-end lists, but some took issue. Pitchfork argued, that pacing and sequencing were issues and it may have been overly academic for some. I don’t know, if it’s too academic for Pitchfork, I feel pretty smart. Just...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Nate Martinez... →
Pela’s Anytown Graffiti is one of those Best Of 2007 darkhorses. It’s showing up on a few lists, but I think if more people take some time with it, they’d be pretty impressed. The Trouble With River Cities is one of my favorite songs of the year - I’d didn’t make a list for those this year, but if I did, it’d certainly be on it. MOKB : Hey what are...
In The Beginning: Sasha at Aria →
With the soon to be legendary Sasha, Digweed, Sander, Spooky “rave” in Montreal just around the corner, I’ve been pondering my “best ever” parties. Luke in Argentina, Sasha & Digweed boat cruises, the 2005 Bedrock party at the WMC, the Sander Ks and Tyrant at Stereo, Danny Howells at Breathe and even Mauro Picotto on Canada Day waaay back were all amazing events. However, for me, one most...
Link →
Wishing You A Hardcore Xmas Pt. 2
I was hunting around in the archives for something festive to post, and you know what, most festive tracks are bloody awful, so I’d almost given up all hope of finding something suitable when I came across the track I’m going to post today!*! It’s one of those that I can’t for the life of me remember where I got it from or even who...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Regan... →
Busdriver’s Roadkill Overcoat was probably one of the more underappreciated hip-hop releases this year - Overshadowed by end-of-year, weaker-than-past efforts from Ghostface Killah and the Wu-Tang Clan. Not to completely slight those records - they have strong moments. Anyway, Busdriver, while displaying the sharp wit and intelligence he’s been known for in the past, experimented...
tonight in dallas: Blaqstarr + Rye Rye →
This promises to be one of the best shows to roll through here in a while. I saw Blaqstarr with Diplo back in November and I can’t remember having more fun at a show all year. 16-year-old Rye Rye — fresh off her tour with M.I.A. — will be there too, as will Dallas’ own The Party. Hands up/thumbs down, shake it to the ground, etc.: mp3: Blaqstarr + Rye Rye Shake it to the...
Link →
Wishing You A Hardcore Xmas Pt. 1
I started my other blog; Cellar Dweller, so that I had somewhere to concentrate on my love of early 90s rave music, but whilst ripping a load of old 12”s I came across a track so huge that posting it on just one blog wouldn’t suffice, so I’m posting it over both for one time only!*!
It’s also quite apt in that the track in question is...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Ivan Howard ... →
When I first fell in love with The Rosebuds, I never thought I’d have an opportunity to dance and sing on stage with them. I can’t even say it was a dream come true - all my rock star fantasies were quickly washed away in a storm of anxiety and panic as I was forced to play Courtney Cox to Ivan and Kelly’s Bruce Springsteen. All those eyes on you staring back - waiting for you...
Last Kiss for 2007 (Bossa) →
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What lies lurk in kisses.
~ Heinrich Heine ~
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“Kisses. 2007.”
01. Tom Ze - Quero sambal meu bem Soul Jazz Records Presents Tropicália: A Brazilian Revolution in Sound (Soul Jazz, 2006)
02. Quarteto Em Cy & Tamba Trio - Agua De Beber Bossa Nova Singers (2007)
03. Antonio Carlos Jobim - Lamento Wave (1967)
04. João Gilberto - Tin Tin Por Tin Tin Amoroso/Brasil (1977)
05. Stan...
I'm going on a date with Cassie. →
pic: LastNightsParty Assise sur le capot tu ne veux plus me parler, à quoi bon, tu savais dès le début que la fin viendrait. Tu as laissé tes talons tomber sur le sable et la lumière des phares eclaire le bord de l’eau, bien trop froide pour espérer un bain de minuit. Peut être même que tu mourrais, alors finalement tu hésites presque à y aller, mais faut pas déconner, tu sais très bien que...
Little Dragon : Little Dragon →
When compiling my best of list for this year, I realized, after the fact, that I left off a few albums that I listened to a bunch earlier in the year. The most glaring omission was the self-titled effort by Little Dragon. I have since began listening to this cd non-stop and have found even more appreciation for this debut. Little Dragon hail from Gothenburg, Sweden, home of José González, Jens...
Sunday Friday Cleaning - Volume 81: Holiday... →
I was going to save this one for Sunday as I did last year but the fact is as far as content goes, I got nothing in the hopper, the cupboard is bare, so I may as well clear this out and then take a bit of a proper holiday. Do some reading, watch some movies, listen to some music, whatever. So barring something remarkable happening over the next few days, I’ll probably be back at some point...
Link →
My In-Box Weights A Ton Pt. 3
There’s been a steady trickle of material through my in-box for sometime now, but I’ve got sidetracked recently, so time to catch up with some of it!*!
First up, I got an email from a New York based producer who goes by the moniker, A-ux, with a link to his Myspace page. He’s got some tasty downtempo treats for you to download to give you a break...
MOKB 2007 Holiday Interview Series : Ross Flournoy... →
If John Vanderslice is the nicest guy in indie rock, Ross Flournoy of The Broken West is a close second. Ross has made more time for MOKB and other notable blogs than most artists I’ve encountered. He and the band stopped in for an MOKB SIRIUS session early in the year, and even though they were running late for their gig, they gave us all the time needed to get a good couple songs...
Yo Gabba Gabba →
Have you seen Nick Jr’s Yo Gabba Gabba yet? Well, unless you have a kid, probably not, but I do and I know a lot of you do. TIME recently named Yo Gabba Gabba one of it’s Top TV shows of 2007. Around my house, these days, we watch a lot of Wonder Pets and Backyardigans…both fantastic. We dance, we sing, and my daughter Lucy loves it. I needed to mix it up though - there are...
Only the Sweetest Voice Could Save Me →
Photo credit: Joanna Branson
With her debut full-length Faces in the Rocks Nevada City songwriter Mariee Sioux has recorded one of this year’s most breathtaking and haunting albums. I was lucky enough to witness her spine-chilling performance on a beautiful afternoon in Amsterdam several weeks ago. That afternoon her songs seemed enriched with spiritual tales and Native American imagery. Her...