Archive for the ‘music’ Category

Grab A Taste Of The SCOTT PILGRIM Soundtrack With “Black Sheep”!

If I weren’t psyched enough about Edgar Wright’s adaptation of my favorite comic series ever, Scott Pilgrim, with the release of the film 5 scant months away, the hype and anticipation is starting to ramp up with more media coming from official sources.

Early on in the production of the film, it was revealed that popular Canadian indie rock bands would have their song’s standing in as the music for the bands in the film, appropriate, as they’re indie bands in Canada.

One such band is Metric, serving as the musical interpretation of the villainous Clash at Demonhead.  The song appearing in the film is titled “Black Sheep”, and it first appeared on Metric’s Facebook fan page, but now it’s been uploaded to YouTube for all to listen.

So check it out, and get psyched like I am!

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is scheduled to hit theaters on August 13th.

Source: Metric Unveil Black Sheep, Our First Listen to the Scott Pilgrim Soundtrack | /Film.

More On The New COHEED & CAMBRIA Album!

2010 already seems to be a huge year for artistic hybrid concept albums.

I’ve already posted at length about the new Gorillaz album, Plastic Beach, the latest release from the cartoon band/musical project, so what about the other mainstream hybrid concept album – Coheed & Cambria’s new album, the final chapter in their ongoing musical/graphic novel saga, titled Year of the Black Rainbow?

Well, we are getting our first glimpses and information on the album this week, with a teaser video (posted above), plus the official release date and track list.

Per the press release issued on their website, the tracklisting is as follows:

1. One
2. The Broken
3. Guns of Summer
4. Here We Are Juggernaut
5. Far
6. The Shattered Symphony
7. World of Lines
8. Made Out of Nothing
9. Pearl of the Stars
10. In the Flame of Error
11. When Skeletons Live
12. The Black Rainbow

The album is due to hit on April 13, 2010, in both regular and deluxe flavors.  Regular is of course, the disc with music, but if you’re a Co&Ca super fan, the deluxe version is perfect for you, containing quote -

* 352-page Year of the Black Rainbow novel, penned by Claudio Sanchez and author Peter David
* “Making of” DVD featuring studio and interview footage
* Coheed and Cambria “Black Card.” Black Card Cardholders will be eligible for early entrance to selected shows, discounts on band merchandise and exclusive downloads and offers.

All and all, it sounds like a sweet package for longtime fans, but the question is – will it live up to the hype?  We’ll know in April (if not beforehand. Thanks, piracy!)

Source: YEAR OF THE BLACK RAINBOW – COMING APRIL 13th 2010 | The Official Coheed & Cambria Site.

Another Awesome Mashup: VINYL FANTASY 7!

I didn’t think that there would be a cross over between the hip hop heads and RPG nerds, but this amazing new mash up album has proved me very wrong.

Taking one part Final Fantasy VII soundtrack and another part of some of the greatest MCs going today, and you have this STUNNING mashup album – Vinyl Fantasy 7.

This album is using the Radiohead “Pay As You Like” format if you want a copy, and if you like the mix provided by the super talented Team Teamwork, give their Zelda meets hip hop album, the appropriately titled The Ocarina Of Rhyme a download as well.

Source: Vinyl Fantasy 7 is the freshest thing you’ll hear today.

You Wouldn’t Think It’d Work, But…WU VS. BEATLES!

Credit to this one goes to my boy Rosscott.

Taking one band I absolutely love, and mix them with the group I’ve dubbed the hip hop equivelent of the X-Men, and you have this – one of the craziest mashups ever released.

It’s Wu Tang vs. the Beatles – Enter The Magical Mystery Chambers, and some way, some how, it works REALLY well.

I blame the excellent mixing from Tom Caruana, who really did a bang up job on these tracks.  This is one mashup that can sit on the quality shelf next to The Grey Album and Yoshimi vs. The Hip Hop Robots. Amazing, catchy, stuff.

Source: Tea Sea Records – wuvsbeatles.

More Gorillaz Album Details Including The First Single!

Man, the freaking gate flew open today when it comes to Gorillaz!

As I’ve discussed previously on here, their new album Plastic Beach will be released this year, and we have the first single (“Stylo”, feat. Mos Def & Bobby Womack), the release date, the real tracklist and what I believe is the album art (Pitchfork didn’t elaborate).

First, the album cover, which you see at the top of the post, literally, a plastic beach.

Second, here’s the full tracklisting, dramatically different from the one I posted earlier in the month:

01 Orchestral Intro (ft. Sinfonia ViVA)
02 Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach (ft. Snoop Dogg and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
03 White Flag (ft. Kano, Bashy, and the National Orchestra for Arabic Music)
04 Rhinestone Eyes
05 Stylo (ft. Bobby Womack and Mos Def)
06 Superfast Jellyfish (ft. Gruff Rhys and De La Soul)
07 Empire Ants (ft. Little Dragon)
08 Glitter Freeze (ft. Mark E Smith)
09 Some Kind Of Nature (ft. Lou Reed)
10 On Melancholy Hill
11 Broken
12 Sweepstakes (ft. Mos Def and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
13 Plastic Beach (ft. Mick Jones and Paul Simonon)
14 To Binge (ft. Little Dragon)
15 Cloud of Unknowing (ft. Bobby Womack and Sinfonia ViVA)
16 Pirate Jet

Last, but not least, why you’re really here – “Stylo”.

The song can’t be embedded, but you can check it out on YouTube here.

It’s a strange, almost 80’s electro clash type of song.  I can’t say I dig it (yet), but I guess we’ll see how the whole album goes.

Plastic Beach hits shelves on March 9th.

Source:  Pitchfork: Gorillaz Reveal Full Album Details.

It’s Winter, So I’m Dreaming of a PLASTIC BEACH!

Since the debut of the Damon Albarn/Jamie Hewlett project Gorillaz in 2001, I’ve been a devout fan.

I love the Hewlett artwork, I love the virtual band concept, I love the ongoing backstory for the fake bandmates, but most importantly, I love the music.

What’s hard to believe, though, is that there have only been two albums released over the 9 year existence of the band.  Not counting the two b-side collections of course.

In any case, both Demon Days and their self titled debuts are some of the best albums of the past decade, and now that the release of “their” third album titled Plastic Beach is impending in 2010, I’m starting to get excited.  And luckily, Gorillaz are placating this excitement.

First and foremost, we have the above image, the first from the Plastic Beach era of the band, with an older and seemingly war-ready version of Noodles.

Next, we have the supposed tracklisting for the album, which includes some eyebrow raising guest appearances.

1. Intro
2. Seagull Massacre
3. Broken (featuring Mos Def)
4. Stylo (featuring Bruce Willis)
5. Electric Shock (featuring De La Soul)
6. Satan’s Burlesque (featuring the Horrors)
7. Pirate Ship (featuring Mark E Smith and Einar Örn Benediktsson)
8. Sweep Stakes (featuring Mos Def)
9. Carousel (featuring De La Soul)
10. Sloped Tropics (featuring De La Soul)
11. Twilight (featuring Ozzy Osbourne)
12. Daydream Daemon (featuring Mos Def)
13. Plastic Beach (featuring Lou Reed)
14. Banana Bunch (featuring Snoop Dog)
15. Arming The Nation (featuring Barry Gibb and Bobby Womack)
16. Closing Time

Bruce Willis? Ozzy? Barry Fucking Gibb?

Sounds like Plastic Beach sure is going to be interesting to listen to, if nothing else, when it hit shelves this Spring.

Does This Mean DC Comics Are Effected By Downloads, Too?

I think I’m in (artwork based) love with Cliff Chiang.

It’s been almost two years since I last featured his work here at Blast-O-Rama, last time showcasing his Gatchaman styled DC revamp designs.  But one of his latest projects is just downright jawdropping.

He’s taken classic 1980’s album covers, and redesigned them with notable superheroes in key roles.  You’ve got a Breakfast Club styled Teen Titans, Batgirl gone Purple Rain, and the most violent version of the Flashdance album cover ever.  I’ve included images of both Cliff’s version and the originals for comparison.

Honest to God, I want copies of every one of these as high quality prints.  Hook us up, Cliff!

Source: Batgirl Is Now Prince.

Best of 2009: The Songs

As I do every year, here’s a post containing a link to a download of my favorite individual tracks of 2009.

There are 31 (!) songs this go around, and the file size is 230MB, so it may take a bit to download.

…but trust me, it’s worth it.

The songs are, in artist alphabetical order…

“Isis Unveiled” by …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead
“A Bright Light” by The Appleseed Cast
“Is This Sound Okay?” by Coconut Records
“I Was Once a Loyal Lover” by Death Cab for Cutie
“The Rake’s Song” by The Decemberists
“Fake IDs” by Deleted Scenes
“Pieces” by  Dinosaur Jr.
“Temecula Sunrise” by Dirty Projectors
“Osaka Loop Line” by Discovery
“Kingdom Of Rust” by Doves
“You Don’t Have To Be A Prostitute” by Flight Of The Conchords
“Two Weeks” by Grizzly Bear
“While You Wait For The Others (Feat. Michael McDonald)” by Grizzly Bear
“All Is Love” by Karen O And The Kids
“Recipe for Disaster” by Karmella’s Game
“Santana DVX” by The Lonely Island
“Good Ol’ Fashion Nightmare” by Matt & Kim
“Repeater Beater” by Mew
“Satellite Skin” by Modest Mouse
“Heavens To Purgatory” by The Most Serene Republic
“Patternicity” by The Most Serene Republic
“Little Secrets” by Passion Pit
“Ninja-High Schooool” by Peelander-Z
“1901″ by Phoenix
“Keep Quiet” by The Protomen
“These Are My Twisted Words” by  Radiohead
“Growing Old Is Getting Old” by Silversun Pickups
“Oh, The Devastation!” by So Many Dynamos
“Hell” by Tegan And Sara
“Circulation” by Workers
“Take It In” by Wye Oak

Click HERE to download, and ENJOY!

Best of 2009: The Music

Folks, I don’t claim to be someone with perfect taste. If anything – it’s imperfect.

But, you fine readers seem to dig hearing my opinion on the matters of media, ergo, I create these top 10 lists for your enjoyment.

Thusly, here’s the first of two lists – the 10 Best of 2009 in music.  This year, I’m trying a new approach…no rankings, just a list of my favorites.  Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, but choosing one over another sounds kinda silly, and has become increasingly difficult.  I’d imagine that if I ranked these albums today, then were asked to re-rank them tomorrow, the order would be different, but never the less, they were my favorite.  If you haven’t listen to them yet – do so.  Heck, some’ll be in the Best Songs of ‘09 post, coming later tonight.

Sagarmatha by The Appleseed Cast
Seven albums in (Eight, if you count the b-sides compliation Lost Songs), featuring a new drummer and bassist, and on their third label in as many albums, it would be easy to expect little from the latest release from The Appleseed Cast.  But in creating Sagarmatha, which took as many turns away from their strong instrumental, post-rock sound as it did toward it, the band not only refined, but rejuvenated their sound. Just when the amazing peaks of their back to back releases of Mare Vitalis and Low Level Owl seemed to be long gone, The ‘Cast reminds you why you fell in love with their brand of dramatic and beautiful guitar work, with lush vocals lost in the sea of sound. Stunning stuff.

The Hazards of Love by The Decemberists
Folk Rock Rock Opera. Doesn’t sound like something that would work out, let alone be quite listenable.  As has become their trademark, The Decemberists rallied against expectation and somehow found their greatest success with what might be their most inaccessible work.  But I’ll be damned if when guest vocalists Becky Stark and Shara Worden make their immense vocal presences known if it didn’t make the hair on my neck standup.  Going into this album, I wondered if mainstream success would ruin the focus for Colin Meloy.  With Hazards, he made it very clear – he’s going to continue to create the music he wants, just have a much larger audience for it.

Bitte Orca by Dirty Projectors
You got your afrobeat in my math rock! You got your math rock in my R&B! The Reese’s peanut butter cup of awesome which is Dirty Projectors may not be what you’d expect as amazing, but there isn’t a single minute of Bitte Orca that didn’t have me hooked.  I must admit, I originally avoided this album due to it’s Pitchfork seal of approval, thinking it another flash in a pan like say, The Black Kids, but as soon as I heard this album, I couldn’t stop listening to it.  Any release that can feature the relaxed mellow rock of “Temecula Sunrise” alongside the should-be-#1-on-every-R&B-station “Stillness is the Move” on one album, and make it seem natural must be something special – and this release is flat out one of the best of ‘09. Grab it.

LP by Discovery
You figure that taking a member of Ra Ra Riot and slapping him together with a member of Vampire Weekend would just be indie rock money in the bank, right?  Now imagine that combo decides to do a techno pop album.  In a year of surprising left turns (see the above two albums), this may have been the hardest left, but it made for a surprise summer release that I couldn’t keep off my iPod.  Props for the best Jackson 5 cover ever, too – a single handed use of auto-tune which may argue in favor of everyone’s least favorite vocal editing tool.

…And the Ever Expanding Universe by The Most Serene Republic
Lost in the mix of fellow Canadian chamber-pop bands Broken Social Scene and The Arcade Fire, it seems not many people are aware of The Most Serene Republic.  But for the past few years, they’ve quietly been building a catalog of very solid albums – and with …And The Ever Expanding Universe, they had what might be their most realized to date.  Mixing catchy pop hooks with beautiful instrumentation, and even a lengthy instrumental interlude, this album is a pleasure to listen to.  Like a dewy spring morning, it’s a refreshing listen, and was just the right tone for this year.

Wolfgang Amadeus by Phoenix
This album was everywhere in 2009, and I’m not going to act like I’m super special or unique for discovering it. However, what Wolfgang Amadeus had, which so few albums have had in this decade, was the “single factor”.  Nearly any track from the album could be pulled out and released as a successful single.  And where I come from, that’s what I call good work.  If you haven’t already been inundated with releases like “1901″ or “Fences”, grab this album, click play and enjoy.  They really don’t make them like this any more.  Not that that’s a bad thing.

Act II: The Father of Death by The Protomen
It feels weird to put an album by people I actually know on a list of best ofs. That’s honestly why you don’t see Karmella’s Game’s new release in here (Seriously, You’ll Be Sorry is great stuff).  But with the Protomen’s Act II, they rose above the label of being a ‘video game rock band’, and instead of releasing just a redux of their first album – which would’ve worked -they pushed forward and showed their chops as musicians, creating an album where half was a tribute to dark country songs, and the other half was a tribute to keyboard infused 80’s style arena rock.  And I’ll be damned if they didn’t pull both off. For the sheer balls of being willing to alienate their audience with a new sound, when an easy rehash would do, The Protomen get a nod as one of 2009’s best.

The Loud Wars by So Many Dynamos
Why the hell did Vagrant sit on this album?  After many delays and pushes, The Loud Wars was released this past June, and it instantly melted faces.  Strategic, intricate guitar lines, catchy keyboard riffs, it all came together in The Loud Wars, and blew me away every minute it was in my ears.  It’s a shame they didn’t have a good time the last time they were in Baltimore, but maybe I can change that. People reading this – get up on So Many Dynamos, they’re beyond awesome. And if the gang at So Many Dynamos reads this – let’s talk a decent Baltimore show for you, eh?

Workers by Workers
Once known as Your Black Star, this band of Kansas natives decided to get a fresh name to have a fresh start, and hopefully get a new record deal in the process.  The album itself: absolutely stunning, career defining work, far exceeding their prior releases. The new record deal: as far as I know, yet to happen.  Like So Many Dynamos above, Workers are an absolutely stunning band which far too many people have slept on.  Maybe this album will change that. It’s for sure great enough.

The Knot by Wye Oak
Alright folks: take my credibility card. Despite sharing the same city as this band, and even being served by Wye Oak’s Jenn Wasner a time or two at Golden West, the first time I saw Wye Oak live was this past Sunday evening.  Why the hell had I been sleeping on them so long?  Taking the lush sound of their first release, If Children, and infusing it with a kick to the pants by way of some stellar steel guitar work, The Knot is an absolutely stellar piece of work.  Jenn’s deep vocals add a dark tone to the proceedings, but the solid rocking she does with Andy Stack will leave you amazed that so much sound can come from a two piece.  The White Stripes may’ve set the standard for a two piece boy/girl rock band, but Wye Oak tears it down and rebuilds it in their own image.

A Silly Media Deal Prompts A Silly Question

Call me tasteless, call me a jerk, but I’ve got to know…

It’s just been announced that Def Leppard has signed a deal with the media group Primary Wave to produce, amongst other things, a cartoon series and comic book.

As surreal as it is that a cartoon and comic are being made up of a British rock band who are pushing their 50’s, here’s what I want to know…

…Is Rick Allen gonna get a kick ass, Cable-esq cybernetic arm?

Original Post:  Def Leppard Get Animated Spots, San Diego Here They Come | Bleeding Cool Comic News & Rumors.

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