Culture Greyhound

Hard to believe, but the greatest week-and-a-half of your year, SXSW, is rapidly approaching. And so, as a fellow Austinite, music blogger, and total South-By fanboy, I feel inclined to prepare those of you stepping into the fray for the first, or maybe even twentieth, time. There’s already so much to RSVP for, and new info is leaked every day. And so, every Friday, from now until party time, I’ll be giving my picks for new announced events and providing much-needed RSVP information.

To keep up with the hooplah, I advise you pay close attention to this Google spreadsheet, which is updated regularly. You can also look at my personal Google spreadsheet, which is by no means comprehensive, but might help you with your party planning. Also, this public Twitter list I created is always great to find up-to-the-minute info on just-announced showcases and parties, official or otherwise.

My Picks This Week:

Do512 and AirCover’s Epic Interactive Party
CNET Party @ Maggie Mae’s featuring Delta Spirit
GSD&M Presents: The Industry Party
EFF SXSW Mashup Party
GigaCrate 5-Year Anniversary Party
Unrefined Hype Extended Play Showcase
IHeartComix Official SXSW Showcase
Pitchfork Official SXSW Showcase
Noise Pop Party
Red Bull Thre3Style Showcase
AV Club March Into Softness 2012
Filter Cedar Street Showdown 2012
Filter/Dickies Parties 2012

Bonnaroo happens this June in Manchester, and the festival announced their lineup. I personally find the results pretty mixed, and not as strong as Coachella, but there are some gems hidden here and there. It also gives us Austinites a good idea of what to expect when ACL announces their lineup later this summer.

Highlights include Radiohead, Beach Boys, the Shins, St. Vincent, Battles, Kendrick Lamar, Aziz Ansari, Joy Formidable, Ludacris, Big Freedia, Phantogram, Major Lazer, and so much more. Full lineup is here, and you can also listen to a Spotify playlist of the groups here.

It may not be out until February 21st, but you can stream Sleigh Bells’ sophomore album Reign of Terror in its entirety at the New York Times website. I’m currently doing just that, and I will likely continue to do so throughout the day.

The Shins: “September” (b-side of “Simple Song” 7”) from Record Store Day on Vimeo.

HOLOGRAMS – ABC CITY from Holograms on Vimeo.

Every Saturday, I post a 15-20 minute podcast featuring some tracks I’ve been jamming the previous week, as well as some commentary and random musings from yours truly. Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Veronica Falls – My Heart Beats
Saint Etienne – Tonight
Holograms – ABC City
Future Unlimited – Golden
Tourist – Placid Acid

Hard to believe, but the greatest week-and-a-half of your year, SXSW, is rapidly approaching. And so, as a fellow Austinite, music blogger, and total South-By fanboy, I feel inclined to prepare those of you stepping into the fray for the first, or maybe even twentieth, time. There’s already so much to RSVP for, and new info is leaked every day. And so, every Friday, from now until party time, I’ll be giving my picks for new announced events and providing much-needed RSVP information.

To keep up with the hooplah, I advise you pay close attention to this Google spreadsheet, which is updated regularly. You can also look at my personal Google spreadsheet, which is by no means comprehensive, but might help you with your party planning. Also, this public Twitter list I created is always great to find up-to-the-minute info on just-announced showcases and parties, official or otherwise.

My Picks This Week:

Do512 and Shiner Present: The Big One
Paste Magazine Day Parties 2012
Brooklyn Vegan’s Hotel Vegan Parties
Official SXSW Austin Never Sleeps After Parties
Reverb Party
Athens In Austin
Insound/Oh My Rockness Party
Pop Montreal’s Pop Is Serious Party
Aquarium Drunkard Day Party
Consequence of Sound/Knuckle Rumbler Party
Media Temple’s SXSWi Closing Party
Mashable SXSWi House 2012
Unightus.com Launch Party
Startup Weekend, Zaarly, Twilio Party

The video for Yeezy and Hov’s relentless smash hit from last year is here….and it might give you a seizure, apparently. Other than that, it’s pretty excellent. Watch at your own risk.

This New York duo has been making disco-inspired tracks for five or six years now, and they’ve finally compiled enough jams for a full-length. Taking a refined approach to the escapist 70’s genre, Escort brings a non-stop party that’s a joy to put on repeat. Hidden beneath the veneer of abandonment lies some pretty stellar production work, and some undeniable catchiness, as is evidenced on tracks like “Makeover” and the cheesy sendup “A Sailboat In the Moonlight.” These guys cover all the bases of disco, and don’t take the music too seriously. Because as any music historian will tell you, it never was that serious to begin with.

Buy Escort’s self-titled album at Amazon.

Today I continue a series of posts dedicated to the best albums of the last decade, posting analysis of one album at a time.

29. Of Montreal – Hissing Fauna Are You the Destroyer?

Kevin Barnes had certainly already made a name for his project Of Montreal with two eccentric, excellent albums Satanic Panic In the Attic and Sundlandic Twins, not to mention a high-energy, over-the-top live show. But it’s the near flawless Hissing Fauna where Barnes reached the apex of his songwriting ability, and gave us an ultra-high-concept album tackling his own personal turmoil with depression, isolation, and sexual frustration.

Of course, even then, saying things like “sexual,” “high-concept,” and Of Montreal in the same sentence was redundant. But if there was any question as to what exactly the Athens-based band was up to, they made that pretty clear with Hissing Fauna. At this point, you either jumped on board to help Barnes wave his freak flag, or you bowed out. But amidst all the layered falsettos, funk-disco hybrid moments, and weird sound effects, Barnes was writing his most introspective material ever. “Gronlandic Edit” talks about isolation in Norway and the quest for religion, while “Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse,” probably the theme for the entire album, deals with the autobiographical depression the frontman was going through, sleeping for hours in a friend’s apartment.

But if you’re like me, a person who doesn’t really delve into lyrics until many listens later, you won’t notice all this sadness amongst all the heavy dance jams this album is packed with. Hissing Fauna is loaded with fan favorites, live staples, and instant Of Montreal classics, including the sex-soaked “Fabregie Falls For Shuggie,” which is still probably my favorite Of Montreal song ever. As the years went by, it could be argued Barnes went a little overboard with the whole thing, as he’s in the middle of releasing a litany of convoluted, unfocused albums, but back in 2007, he and his group reached a personal best with Hissing Fauna.

Listen to Hissing Fauna Are You the Destroyer on Spotify.