Every week we ask a different personality to pick a mood and 5 songs that get them into that mood. This week, White Mystery, quite possibly the best garage rock band in the universe, pays homage to those who rocked before them. Check out their classic picks but be careful because their choices are sure to whip you into a frenzy!
Mood: Frenzy
With a name like Bullion, and the kinda dorky-looking white kid who was in fact raised on gangsta rap behind it, what’s not to love? Sure, the music is what’s important, but it’s still just cool to know that the dude has no qualms about said dorkiness…and anyways, it’s about the energy, the good vibes, the eclectic sound, the chaotic-yet-hypnotic, laid-back soul of tracks like “Young Heartache” and the rhythms and beats behind them, more than it is about, y’know, appealing to some facet of fairweather fans that would likely later ditch him like they have of every other white rapper on the block (remember Snow?!). Bullion is one of those artists that is so much better when he’s heard, when he’s experienced. And the player below will only give you a hint of what’s really there — to get the real feel of what Bullion’s doing, you should really just pick up a copy of Young Heartache. Get thee gone wastrel, and hence to Red Bull Music Academy now.
If you’re a fan of dance-punk in the latest, you’ve no doubt heard of Matt and Kim by now. From some humble beginnings, the Brooklyn-based duo helped re-define the genre and morph it into something completely their own – something infectious, catchy, saccharine, addictive. Relentlessly…happy. (Check out that video below and tell me ya don’t feel at least the urge to crack a smile.) And perhaps even more than any other band, the two have shown how you utilize the Internet as a revolutionary marketing and self-promotion tool : with the help of MySpace and Facebook and a legion of other online social networks, Matt and Kim sprawled from no-name band on a no-name label to industry/AOR giants. Lollapollooza? Been there. Video Games? Too many to count. MTV? Yeah, if it matters anymore. (In case it does, they won breakthrough video at the Video Awards for “Lessons Learned”, off their album Grand.) Endless networking and self-advertising and self-releasing has spread them to the mainstream like a virus; everything from Gossip Girl, to Bacardi commercials, to HBO’s 24/7 and countless network television shows have proven susceptible to the charm and wit they extol. And now that we’ve caught it, we couldn’t help but post their latest single, “Cameras”. It’s from their forthcoming album Sidewalks, due out November 2, 2010.
A mix of various different beats, styles and techno-electronica flavors permeate the consoles and DJ tables of Runaway, a Brooklyn-based DJ duo who met way back in 2000 at the Sonic Groove label. It was a few more years until the minds of Jacques Renault and Marcos Cabral actually collaborated on a record, but all that time and effort obviously paid off, as it attracted LCD Soundsystem mastermind James Murphy, who dug their authentic NYC sound, and the rest was history. Their own bio describes them as the meeting of “a post-punk disco-head” (there’s a contradiction if I ever heard it) and a “Latin-Freestyle Chicago house freak’”, which probably explains the multi-headed genre beast that makes up their sound. The disco’s definitely more audible than any punk, though, and while I’m no aficionado of the genre, the Latin isn’t really coming through either — it seems to be the same sort of airy, spacey techno you can hear everywhere from NYC to Mezzanine in San Francisco. Needless to say, the boys are doing something right, as they’ve become among the most revered of New York City’s DJ acts, are working with some of the scene’s most talented producers (Toby Tobias, Tedd Patterson), have attracted the attention of label gurus like Cosmo Vitelli and Prins Thomas, and are still collaborating with some of the scene’s most renowned artists. See what all the hype is about on Red Bull Music Academy Radio.
If you haven’t heard of Katie Melua, you better hide that little fun fact from your British friends, as she is more than a legend in the UK. This spunky singer-songwriter got her start when she attended the Brit School for Performing Arts where she caught the eye of the prestigious Mike Batt, composer for everyone from Art Garfunkle to Vanessa Mae. Spellbound by her mesmerizing voice, Mike signed Katie to his label, Dramatico. By the age of 19, Katie’s debut, Call Off The Search, sold 1.8 million copies in just 5 months. Her follow-up, Nine Million Bicycles, went four times platinum and she instantly sprung to the status of England’s best selling female artist and Europe’s highest selling female artist.
China Shop picked the brain of this powerhouse of songwriting to see what she’s all about offstage:
If you live in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago, New York, Seattle, Austin, Chicago, Salt Lake City (the list obviously keeps going), then you’ve probably heard of the Spazmatics. Children of the 80’s or those who just can’t get enough of the music flock to see these wacky performers get nerdy onstage on any given day of the week. What many don’t know is that the Spazmatics are not just a super cool band that does a residency at certain spots your city; they are in fact, a franchise.
Hey you! YES YOU! We want to see you get off that couch, put down that 40oz and express yourself! An ambitious fan of INNERPARTYSYSTEM created this video to their new single, America Trash. It got us thinking, we’d like to see YOUR take on creating a video for this song. Upload your video to youtube and send a link to us at info@chinashopmag.com.
There is no disputing the fact that Slash is legendary, iconic, renowned…(I’m stopping before this all goes to his head). He’s as part of the history of West Hollywood as the Sunset Boulevard street sign itself and as a result is this year’s Sunset Strip Music Festival official honoree. Tonight at the House of Blues, photographers and press crammed like cattle behind a velvet rope to await the arrival of the man himself to his very own tribute party. As we waited for Slash, a stream of important people began to trickle down the red carpet to occupy our time. Carpet walkers included Lemmy Kilmister, Billy Boy from Poison, Warner Drive, Cherry Bomb, Twilight’s Boo Boo Stewart, Blowing up the Moon, Dan Black, Nic Adler, Franky Perez, Acidic, Kenny Aronoff, The Shrills, Juke Kartel, Kevin Brown, Diamond Lane, David George Band and more. After much anticipation, Slash made his way out of a black SUV and through the mob of press, fully done up in true Slash style – the hat, black clothing, a t-shirt with a bikini girl standing in front of a luxury car, dark shades, etc… Speaking of shades, I laughed as several photographers tried to haggle people like Kenny Aronoff into taking off their sunglasses for a photo opp and were very unsuccessful. Most of these refusers must have shared Kenny’s reason for rockin’ their shades, which was, as he laughed and explained, “I don’t want to take my glasses off, I look like shit.”
So we here at ChinaShop don’t know what your plans are for this Labor Day weekend but if you don’t have any or even if you do, cancel them quick and head out to the Electric Zoo, New York’s electronic music festival out on Randall’s Island. There will be tons of music, interactive arts displays and plenty of eats to keep your dancin’ pants on all day.
Being at Red Bull Studios in Santa Monica is an audiophile’s dream. Perfect acoustics, the best gear available, and all the Red Bull you could drink. It is especially fun when a studio like that gets put to use at the highest level, recording a full band “live.”
I walked into Friday’s session not knowing what to expect and was delighted to learn that Tutu and his gang of artist friends would be tracking the session “live.”
As the studio engineers set up the microphones and EQ the instruments, Te’Amir Sweeney (Tutu’s older brother) eases into a tasty groove. Tutu and friends join in. Tutu’s tunes are arranged, but as guitar player Michael McTaggert tells me, “They come out different every time.” The band is young, most of them circa 20 years old, but by their casual demeanor, I can tell this is probably not their first rodeo.