Author: Jennifer

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Postcards from the Pit: The Darkness / Foxy Shazam / Crown Jewel Defense, Irving Plaza, 2/4/2012

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This past Saturday night I went to the third show of The Darkness’ current North American tour, which is their first visit to these shores after a six year hiatus. It was an amazing evening; one of the many highlights of my time in the pit was the multiple occasions the dudes around me started air-guitaring along with the band.

The setlist was a mixture of old and new songs, and included the entirety of their first record, Permission to Land. Highlights: One Way Ticket, Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us, Get Your Hands off My Woman, Love Is Only A Feeling, Everybody Have a Good Time and, of course, in I Believe In a Thing Called Love. If the new tunes are anything to go by, the record they’re working on right now is going to be a banger. I can’t wait to hear the rest of it.

And now, some pictures, starting with the first opener, Crown Jewel Defense, who have a record out.

IMG_4957Taylor Hood and Steve Ford

 

IMG_4942Nick Clinch

 
Next up was Foxy Shazam, who have become somewhat ubiquitous (omnipresent?) in my concert-going adventures in the last couple of years or so.

The first time I saw them was during their own headlining tour, where the first show I attended concluded with Eric Nally literally half-naked and swinging from the lighting rig on the ceiling.

But more recently I’ve caught them as an opening act for Panic! at the Disco and Courtney Love. In all instances, they have put on a SHOW (all caps totally appropriate) and the audience reacted with either enthusiasm or bafflement (Panic!) or else just plain bafflement (Courtney Love).

This time around, they won over a restive crowd within one song. The dudes around me especially appreciated Eric Nally sticking his head into the drums, and also his mid-song headstand. (I’m fond of that move myself.) I got approximately three decent pictures of them, though at this point I think all y’all know what they look like.

Anyway, here is a Eric Nally singing while bathed in moody green light:
 
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And then it was time for The Darkness. Here was where everyone (including me) really got going and started jumping, singing, and waving their hands in the air. There were one or two crowd-surfers, and at the end, someone on the balcony climbed down onto a riser and jumped into the crowd. It was complete chaos, and it was glorious.
 

IMG_4993Dan and Justin Hawkins

 

IMG_5003Justin Hawkins and Frankie Poullain

 

IMG_5020Dan Hawkins, Ed Graham is behind those drums, and Justin Hawkins

 

IMG_5022Dan and Justin Hawkins jamming out on the drum riser.

 

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Justin Hawkins playing his guitar behind his head.

 

IMG_5039Dan Hawkins, Ed Graham is (still) behind those drums, and Justin Hawkins.

 

IMG_5044Frankie Poullain

 

IMG_5049And then Justin Hawkins took his jacket-shirt thing off.

 

IMG_5051The tattoo on his stomach says “Lowestoft”, which is where they are from. It’s a town on the east coast of England, and Wikipedia tells me it’s also the most easterly point in England.

 

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I just like this one. Isn’t his moustache dashing?

 

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He donned a special fancy hat for Holding My Own.

 

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I think this costume change happened while I was trying to avoid being trodden upon by glamazons.

 

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The new costume again in color, because I like the purple light in this one.

 

Every once in a while I get a shot that I think “now that is a damn beautiful picture of [insert name here]” in an almost abstract way, as if I had just stumbled over it and not, you know, taken it. This is one of those pictures:

 

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Songs for the Superbowl

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And to conclude this edition of remix week / in honor of the Super Bowl (GO BIG BLUE!), here are some football-related tunes.

First, let us examine the ongoing evolution and remixing of Whiz Khalifa‘s Black and Yellow. This is the original, written last year for the Pittsburgh Steelers:

Wiz Khalifa - Black And Yellow [Official Music Video]

 

Then Lil’ Wayne took the beat and adjusted the lyrics to reflect support of the Green Bay Packers, and called the result Green and Yellow:

Green & Yellow (HD Music Video) - Lil Wayne 1920x1080

 

This year, Frank Henny updated it for the Giants. His version is called Blue and Red:

"Blue & Red" - ( Black and Yellow Remix) New York Giants

 

And Lil Ryan (who is not the 7 year old rapper of the same name, as far as I can tell) was one of  the many people who revised it for the New England Patriots. His version is called Red and Blue:

Lil Ryan- Red and Blue (Patriots Anthem)

 

Bonus viewing: The UN-official video, made by a high school improv class in Minnesota, for Super Bowl Hero by RAM, which is Ryan Ross (The Young Veins, Panic! at the Disco), Alex Greenwald (Phantom Planet, JJAMZ, Mark Ronson and the Business INTL) and Michael Runion (JJAMZ, The Chances). The song was written last year for the victorious Green Bay Packers.

http://youtu.be/vpJBrkBCX9g

 

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[Strangers] – Video Grab Bag

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The last time we checked in with the [Strangers] was last spring. Since then they’ve put out three EPs and released a series of amazing remixes and covers which I  present to you now more or less in order of appearance:

Lana Del Rey – Video Games  – I may or may not be starting a collection of covers of this song. This one is actually the first one I heard; I like it because it picks up the pace a little bit while still retaining the dark, dreamy character of the original.

 
http://youtu.be/De8HJUI-dLo
 

 

Tears for Fears – Shout – I had Songs From The Big Chair on tape – still have it, probably, somewhere – but I haven’t listened to it in years. Here, [Strangers] nail the propulsive power of the original while still putting their own spin on it.

 

http://youtu.be/yF-pO3HdC-8

 

Massive Attack – Teardrop – This is dreamy, trance-y ear candy. Be sure to turn it up.

 

http://youtu.be/5yfUmNHUj8c

 

AND NOW, one of their original works: Promises (feat. Lara Smiles), from EP3.

http://youtu.be/poAlMlIDhK4

 

 

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A Sampler: Utah Saints

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For Friday: a couple of tracks from Utah Saints, for no other reasons than 1) sometimes I miss clubbing and 2) their name has popped into my head a few times in the last month or so, and when I went off to find out what they were doing with themselves these days, it turned out the answer was “still rocking dancefloors all over Britain.” And also “putting out a new single at the end of February.”

First up, the new stuff, or at least new versions of the old stuff. What Can You Do For Me was originally released in 1991 and was their first monster hit. Recently they went to archive it and other early tracks and discovered the floppy disk (!) it was on had gotten corrupted and the original was lost.

So they rerecorded it, and then they remixed it, and then other people got into the remixing act too. The lucha libre-style video below is for the version that resulted from a collaboration with Drumsound and Bassline Smith:

 

Utah Saints vs Drumsound & Bassline Smith - 'What Can You Do For Me' (Official Video) (Out Now)

 

Here they are by themselves with a previously unreleased track called Rock:

 

Utah Saints - "Rock"

 

And in conclusion the official video for Something Good ’08, in which a lot of people do the Running Man:

 

http://youtu.be/oMLCrzy9TEs

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Blackwater Jukebox, TAKE THAT!!! [You Mutated Son of a Bitch]

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And for Thursday, banjos, breakbeats and blasts from the past, from Blackwater Jukebox. What was I just saying about old friends in new clothes? Or in some cases old acquaintances; I have to confess I came to appreciate New Wave in general and Depeche Mode in particular only later in life. Beck, on the other hand, I loved at first listen.

Two songs for flavor; get the rest of them here.

Depeche Motherfucker – Blackwater Jukebox by Blackwater Jukebox

Queen of the Nightmare Hippies – Blackwater Jukebox by Blackwater Jukebox

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Eleven Roses, ZZ Ward

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For your Wednesday: ZZ Ward and her mixtape Eleven Roses, which showcases a slightly different approach to the concept of the remix. Rather than shuffling or expanding the beat of the original song, she keeps it (mostly) intact and trades out the vocal track  for one of her own.

This, for example, is Better Off Dead, which features the shimmery, hypnotic beat from Tyler, The Creator’s Yonkers as the backbone of a sexy, sultry blues song:

 

ZZ Ward - Better Off Dead

 

She gives similar treatment to Childish Gambino’s You Know Me, Freddie Gibbs’ Oil Money, and Wiz Khalifa/Curren$y’s Rooftops.

There’s also two originals produced by Blended Babies (Got It Bad and Cinnamon Stix) and two acoustic versions of songs that will be on the full length record she’s releasing later this year (Til the Casket Drops and Last Love Song); I’m especially fond of Til The Casket Drops.

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Thrillseeker, CiferCrew

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Your Tuesday needs some dance music too, but a different kind, something a little more New Wave, but seasoned with reggae and dubstep. This remix is called Thrillseeker, and it comes to you from CiferCrew, in Los Angeles.

Yesterdays offering was, for me, something of an assembly of old friends (Cobra Starship, Gym Class Heroes) wearing new clothes. Today there are only a few familiar faces (Kelis, Kanye West, Daft Punk) but, well, all y’all know how much I enjoy a voyage of discovery. Bonus: there’s even someone (Yelle) singing in French!

Thrillseeker by CiferCrew

Tracklisting:

Brown and Gammon – Gwaan Plant
OVERWERK – Buzzin’
Ellie Goulding – Starry Eyed (Jakwob Remix)
Zeds Dead – White Satin
Kanye West – All Of The Lights (Pretty Lights Remix)
Daft Punk – Too Long (Cosmonaut Grechko Version)
Sonny Moore – Mora (Lazrtag Remix)
Skylar Grey – Invisible (John Dahlback Remix)
Digitalism – Pogo (Shinichi Osawa Remix)
Sepalot feat. Ladi 6 – Go Get It (Lazrtag Remix)
Frank Ocean – Thinking About You (SBTRKT Remix)
Yelle – Que Veuxtu
Kelis – Brave (Gemini Remix)
Funkystepz feat. Lily McKenzie – For U (Dodge & Fuski Remix)
3LAU – Yacht Week In America

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Up the Anti, Vol. 1, Black Cards

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Here is what your Monday needs: some thudding dance music, with bursts of WHIMBLE WHIMBLE WHOOP and BZZZ BZZZ BZZZ. Seriously, it sounds like they were having some fun in the studio when they made this one. There are 35 songs but some of them are short, so you’re bound to find something you like, and if you hate a track, it’ll probably be over soon.

Black Cards – Up The Anti | Volume One by blackcards

Download link available here.

Tracklisting

01. Gym Class Heroes & Neon Hitch “Ass Back Home (Black Cards Remix)”
02. Swedish House Mafia vs. Knife Party “Antidote (Kaskade Edit)”
03. Dada Life “Happy Violence (Caveat Remix)”
04. Skrillex & Ellie Goulding “Summit (Aylen Remix)”
05. Rihanna “We Found Love (Black Cards Live Edit)”
06. Kaskade “Turn It Down (Le Castle Vania Remix)”
07. Cobra Starship “#1Night (Black Cards Remix)”
08. Havana Brown “We Run The Night (Congorock Remix)”
09. Nero “Promises (Denzal Park Remix)”
10. R3hab “Sending My Love (Afrojack Edit)”
11. Outasight “Tonight Is The Night (Benzi & DStar Remix)”
12. Bingo Players “Rattle (Daft Punk Edit)”
13. Angger Dimas “Are You Ready (Mahesa Utara Remix)”
14. Bro Safari “Da Worm”
15. Skrillex “Bangarang”
16. Silver Medallion “All I Ask (Drunkmaster Flex & Geek Boy Remix)”
17. Ed Sheeran “You Need Me, I Dont Need You (Josef III Remix)”
18. M83 “Midnight City (Cassius Slay Remix)”
19. Steve Aoki & Rivers Cuomo “Earthquakey People (Dillon Francis Remix)”
20. Oh My! “Dirty Dancer (Alvin Risk Remix)”
21. Gym Class Heroes & Adam Levine “Stereo Hearts (Drunkmaster Flex Remix)”
22. Diplo & Skrillex “Amplifire”
23. Porter Robinson “100 Percent In The B*tch”
24. Alex Clare “Up All Night (Nadastrom Remix)”
25. Major Lazer & The Party Squad “Original Don (Black Cards Remix)”
26. Solidisco “Hooked (Codes Remix)”
27. Gianni Marino & Mahesa Utara “Gokilll”
28. Symone “Runnin”
29. DJ Fresh “Gold Dust (Flux Pavilion Remix)”
30. Wonkap “Bass Engine”
31. Lana Del Rey “Born To Die (Gemini Remix)”
32. Skrillex & The Doors “Breakin’ A Sweat”
33. Waka Flocka Flame “Hard In The Paint (Crizzly Remix)”
34. Avicii “Levels (Skrillex Remix)”
35. Jay-Z vs Nero & Porter Robinson “Hov-A-Finale (Black Cards Edit)”

Bonus pictures:

These are a few from last September, from the Black Cards set at Summerstage in Central Park when they opened for Panic! at the Disco and Neon Trees. There’s been some changes in their line-up since then – Bebe Rexha has left them to become a solo artist – but I thought I’d share anyway.

IMG_1266Spencer Peterson and werewolf dancers. (They took off the masks later.)

IMG_1307Bebe Rexha and Shaggy, who was a surprise guest.

IMG_1313Pete Wentz addressing the crowd.

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Happy 2nd Birthday, NTSIB

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Technically my second anniversary of starting to write here is a couple of months from now, but I’m chiming in to say: Happy Birthday, little blog! And also congratulations, Jessica H.! I hope you didn’t get too squashed in that Panic! pit – I totally read your story and nodded in rueful recognition, because, well, yes, that’s a Panic! show in a nutshell. (Well, maybe not the fistfights.)

And the thing is: that’s kind of why I love them. Because that pit is a hot sweaty shrieking mess, but they are shrieking with joy. And there’s nothing else like the moment when the house lights go down, the stage lights come up, they step into their places, the first notes ring out, and the pit goes off like a rocket. The screaming makes me wince, too, but it also makes me grin, and probably scream along with them.

But the best part is really afterwards, when I find all of my girls and we wobble, laughing, into the night, to find food and rehydrate and recap for each other the experience we just shared and text people who weren’t there so they can also be brought up to speed.

In a way that’s kind of what music blogging, year two, has been about for me: making friends and being part of a community. So I, too, want to say thank you to all of y’all who stop in to read, whether it’s once or every day, and also to all of y’all who alert us to your musical activities. Here’s hoping our third year together will be the best year yet.

On a somewhat related note, my contribution to today’s festivities is My Chemical Romance’s latest video. It’s a collaboration between the band and a fan, and it’s for Kids from Yesterday, the latest and last single from Danger Days. I picked this one over a Panic! video because, well, all of my Panic! girls are also my My Chem girls, and this song is our song.

My Chemical Romance - The Kids From Yesterday [Official Music Video]

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Video: Knock, Knock by Andrew Maze

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I feel like January has been kind of rough so far. Like perhaps we all need a nice bouncy pop song to chase away the still-heavy wintery darkness. Perhaps even a nice bouncy pop song that encourages us to climb mountains and visit Greenland? And comes with a delightful lyrics video?

Yes, I think so.  NTSIBBers, please join me in enjoying Knock, Knock by Andrew Maze, a singer/songwriter/producer from Moscow, Russia.

 

Andrew Maze - Knock Knock [Old Version]