Review: White Denim at Music Hall of Williamsburg

I rarely go to shows with lineups that are completely unfamiliar to me, but I took a leap of faith and trusted my friends to bring me to a good show. The headliner was White Denim, a trio from Austin, Texas that’s known for its unique mesh of genres. What I was unprepared for was the rocking antics of three guys who are all excellent musicians, without a single weak link.

It was hard to tell where one song ended and another one began. In a stream of consciousness style of playing, White Denim seamlessly moved from one idea to another. They reminded me of Akron/Family, another band who fearlessly pushes the boundaries of what “rock” music should be. In the case of White Denim, everything was done with an unpretentious, artistic flair. I could have written a term paper on White Denim’s influences, and it still would been a humble portrait of the trio. Perhaps, it is to the band’s advantage that they look a little grunge.

As a first-time listener, I would classify the night’s performance as mostly psychedelic math-rock. For me, the complex time signatures were the centerpoint of the music, with the drummer leading the way. Guitarist and lead singer James Petralli had a certain affinity for the wah pedal, and Steve Terebecki was the most active bassist that I’d ever seen. I feel that it’s become increasingly rarer to experience live bands who can actually play their instruments very well. I respect that the members of White Denim are truly virtuosos on their instruments, something that a music lover should never take for granted.

In a time when it seems like anyone can make music with a laptop, it’s refreshing to know that there are people who are still making music with talent and dedication, which is unfortunately becoming the old-fashioned way. If you’ve grown tired of seeing overhyped, mediocre bands, White Denim is a must-see band that will restore your faith in music.

Nov 20 @ Cafe Eleven – St. Augustine, FL
Nov 22 @ One Eyed Jacks – New Orleans, LA

Link to this article:
http://www.breakthruradio.com/index.php?b=review.php?id=186

- Mimi Kim

BTR Live Studio: David Wingo of Ola Podrida

You listen to the whole show here on BTR!

00:00 David Wingo of Ola Podrida
01:04 Closest We’ll Ever Be
04:40 Interview
10:00 Room Full of Sparrows
13:36 Jordana
18:18 David discusses the story behind Your Father’s Basement
20:11 Your Fathers Basement
24:20 We All Radiant
28:23 Sink or Swim
32:44 Interview
38:30 Donkey
42:14 Run Off the Road

12/11 @ Mohawk – Austin, TX

Blogger of the Week: Microphone Memory Emotion

Great blogs usually start with great names. Microphone Memory Emotion’s name comes from the song “All Boy Band” by the band Park Ave., featuring the one and only Conor Oberst on the drums. Georgia of MME talks about some of her current favorite artists and has put together a tailor-made playlist for your listening pleasure. Our favorites are the very dancey tracks from Lemonade, Cold Cave, and Tanlines.  Listen now!

00:00 DJ Mimi (Let’s Rock The Beach – Real Estate)
01:19 Useful Chamber – Dirty Projectors
07:45 Lemon – Velvet Davenport
10:42 MME on MME
11:57 Get Up – Washed Out
14:55 Dance Song ‘97 – Sleater-Kinney
17:42 Pool Swimmers – Real Estate
20:54 MME on High Places
21:56 From Stardust to Sentience – High Places
25:26 False Jesii Part 2 – Pissed Jeans
27:58 MME on playlist part 1
28:40 Prisoner – Alex Bleeker & The Freaks
30:40 Daily Vacation – Ducktails
34:13 MME on playlist part 2
35:32 Bejan – Tanlines
39:07 Big Weekend – Lemonade
44:10 The Trees Grew Emotions and Died – Cold Cave
48:12 MME on podcasts, future projects
48:38 Faded Blind + Paper Thin – JP05
52:28 All of Denver is Wasted – Weed Diamond
55:33 Freeway – Kurt Vile
58:09 DJ Mimi (Let’s Rock The Beach – Real Estate)
58:43 Animal Tracks – Mountain Man

-Mimi Kim

BTR Presents: DIY In Brooklyn @ Shea Stadium on Nov 19

Art, music and fashion collide on November 19 at the new Shea Stadium for a free night of DIY in Brooklyn, presented by BreakThru Radio.  Jam to music sets from Nunparty, Scott Deadelus, Total Slacker, and Byrds of Paradise.  Feast your eyes on photography by Ben Rowland and comic illustrations from Josh Neufeld, author and illustrator of A.D. New Orleans After the Deluge.  Browse the fashion pieces on display by men’s and women’s designer Jeannette Tiso.  Do all this while sipping on an ice cold Brooklyn Lager, free while it lasts!These artists did it themselves – shouldn’t you?  Hope to see you there!Thursday, November 19
Shea Stadium
20 Meadow St | Brooklyn, NY
Doors 8pm | All ages | Free

A Brand New Overnight Sensation!

For more info on the bands, more tour dates, and other junk, visit http://hit-record.handglops.com

Listen to the show HERE!
00:00 Mic Break
02:19 Winter – Christmas
04:48 Castle – Christmas
07:27 Mic Break
08:50 Nostalgic Mirage – Brain Idea
10:43 One More Time – Brain Idea
14:24 Freudian Slips – Big Troubles
16:30 Mic Break
17:57 For Those Who Were Asleep – Dash Jacket
20:22 Blah – Dash Jacket
22:19 Mic Break
23:39 Bird in My Garden – Dream Diary
26:58 End of Summer – Young Salmon
28:10 Before I Leave – Young Salmon
29:24 Mic Break
30:34 I Miss You Mrs. – Brown Ghosts
34:13 Says to Liz – Petting Zoo
37:00 The Sting – Petting Zoo
39:02 Mic Break
40:28 Bouyancy – Woven Tales
44:29 Dried Blueberries – Woven Tales
49:50 Mic Break
52:22 Rambling – The Yolks
57:22 To Do List – So Cow

Christmas

Dec 4 2009 – 1611 E 4TH. AVE – Olympia, WA
Dec 5 2009 – CHEZ PUGET – Olympia, WA

Big Troubles

Dec 4 2009 – Monster Island Basement – Brooklyn, NY
Dec 17 2009 – Cake Shop – New York, NY

Dream Diary

Dec 3 2009 – Cameo Gallery – Brooklyn, NY
Dec 5 2009 – Building above Roebling Tea Room – Brooklyn, NY

Donnis

Late nights yield surprises.

Saturday evening was spent soaking up the shiny new sound of Donnis. His new album, 10.Deep Presents: Diary of an ATL Brave came out of the ether and jumped onto my radar with a massive blip. First I heard “Sexytime,” a hilarious song with a chorus of “I’m gon’ bring some friends some of mine/ And we gon’ have sexytime/ You can bring some friends of yers/ and we gon’ have some sex occur/ ‘Cause girl I got Patron in my cup/ I’m all dr-own up/ and you know I’m tryin’ to fuck/ So what’s the hold-up?”

At the end of the song, like bonus material on a DVD, Donnis breaks down in a gale of giggles. It’s like he fell laughing out of the recording booth after singing such lyrics, and that is excellent. Nothing is better than hearing people who can laugh at themselves. The whole room relaxes a little.

A banger called “Country Cool” came on next. As soon as the song started, I thought, “this sounds like…” and then Donnis answered my question when he said “you know the home of Country Grammar.” Indeed. Nelly was who I was thinking of, esp. when the “chorus” rolled around, which is nothing but Donnis saying “ah” “ah “ah” “uh” “uh” “ah” in a harmonic fashion, while a quick-paced clap crushes along. It’s awesome, but explaining it in print does the vocal no justice. The same issue comes up describing certain lyrics from Nelly and the band Pinback, where the sounds of the words are more important than the actual meanings. Needless to say, the chorus is stickier than flypaper, and don’t be surprised if you catch yourself humming it aloud at random moments, frightening friends and strangers alike.

Bringing a fat stamp of approval, Bun B. makes a for a swell ‘featuring’ in “Country Cool.” He literally appears out of nowhere, with no ad-libs to hint at his upcoming guest spot, a big ol’ “yeah, Bun B, king of the trill transmittin’/ Live from Texas where them boy’s ain’t bullshittin.’” His voice has always reminded me of Nate Dogg’s, all deep and boss-declarative. It’s great hearing him own it in the midst of a such an infectious party song, where Donnis advises wacky people to “just pick your coffin out.”

Two songs into it, I was hooked. Then “Gone” came on, a joint which could easily make Donnis famous. It’s got a starshot, laser-beamed beat, complete with an ethereal synth choir and a T.I.-flavored bounce. “In the middle of the club blowin’ indo/ Rolling up a Swisher Sweet as fat as Mr. Winslow/ ‘Cause right now only Family Matters/ And all these other niggers pissed ’cause they got little bladders” says Donnis, and all is well at the club for winter 2009. The chorus of “We gone, let’s get some green/ Let’s get some drink/ Let’s get it on/ Say tonight we gon get goin, goin gone/ Say tonight we gon get going, going gone” makes for a catchy, neon-lettered chant, complete with a surprisingly un-annoying T-Pain filter. Meanwhile, underneath the bed, a tinkling stew of whirling space sound effects heightens the drama, bolstered by a campy, yet key, 70s-style haunted house organ.

Similar to the fun-yet-clever lyrics, the production throughout the album is top shelf. It’s the kind of stuff they keep in the back, until someone asks for it by name up front. Then you got to pay, but boy is it worth it. I’m not sure who did the beats for Donnis, or if he did them himself, but it’s safe to say they was done proper. Feel free to break him out on the hi-fi next weekend, right at that critical point in the night where A. the party ends or B. the afterparty is christened.

A B beats out an A, in this case.

Link to this article:
http://www.breakthruradio.com/index.php?b=article.php?id=1215

- Matt Lehtola

BTR Live Studio: The Renaldo The Ensemble

THE RENALDO THE ENSEMBLE  LISTEN HERE ON BTR!

Check out their new album, WHY ARE YOU?, see their performance of Radio Purgatory at Dixon Place in Manhattan on December 4th, and their live set at The Living Room on December 5th!

00:00 The Renaldo The Ensemble
09:43 Good Cry
12:42 Lost and Alone
16:07 Half a Man
18:35 Interview
21:40 Rhumba
25:08 Blue Ribbon
28:39 The Renaldo The Ensemble

Artist of the Week: Kurt Vile

It’s no secret that Kurt Vile is one of my favorite musicians. His music has been compared to the likes of Neil Young and Bob Dylan, but don’t let the music journalists distract you. Kurt Vile is just a regular dude who loves music, and he may be one of the most prominent bedroom recordists of recent times.

A former forklift operator and a guitarist in The War on Drugs, Kurt Vile has released a mind-boggling amount of records and 7″’s in the past two years. While it seems like Vile is vying to win an award for being a hard-working music man, most of the material has been recorded over the last decade. My personal introduction to Kurt Vile was Constant Hitmaker, originally released in 2008. True to its name, Constant Hitmaker is a collection of Vile’s most accessible lo-fi psych-pop hits, drenched in his signature sound of otherworldly experimental noise. Constant Hitmaker quietly made its way onto several “Top of 2008″ lists that I’d seen, but this year’s God Is Saying This To You… remains a Vile classic for me. Its pensive, soothing melodies and dabbles of electronic sounds could haunt dreams.

With Matador knocking on his door, Kurt Vile left the bedroom to record his ultimate album. In addition to the acoustic finger pickers, Vile also teamed up with the Violators (Adam Granduciel, Jesse Trbovich, and Mike Zanghi) for the jammy songs like “Hunchback” and “Inside Lookin’ Out.” The album has been generally well-received, and it showcases the breadth of Kurt Vile’s stylings. Clocking in at over seven minutes, “Freak Train” is a must-hear song that’s complete with an unforgettable scream-sing.

Childish Prodigy will not be the last that we hear from Kurt Vile, and I’m eager to hear what he has coming up next. He’s already been playing new material like “Peeping Tomboy” at his shows, so it seems like there are more songs left in him. We don’t expect any less from Philly’s Constant Hitmaker. Be sure to check him out if he passes through your town.

Live:

Nov 17 @ Europa – Brooklyn, NY
Nov 18 @ Brooklyn Masonic Temple – Brooklyn, NY
Nov 19 @ Iron Horse – Northampton, MA
Nov 20 @ Swarthmore College//Olde Club – Swarthmore, PA
Nov 21 @ Messiah College – Grantham, PA
Dec 8 @ Maus Habitos – Porto, Portugal
Dec 9 @ Fragil – Lisbon, Portugal

Link to this article:
http://www.breakthruradio.com/index.php?b=artist.php?id=253

- Mimi Kim

Brand New Show on BTR: Geek Out

Listen to this brand new show right here on BTR!!
With seven books and six films to draw inspiration from, the Wizard Rock movement is as strong as ever with hundreds of bands brandishing mics for the cause. Joining us today is Astoria Greengrass of Swish & Flick, and we’ll hear a couple of tracks from their party album, In The House Of Slytherin (which you can purchase here). Astoria will discuss how she joined the community, share her thoughts on the emerging Twi-rock scene, and give us details on the wizrock bonanza known as Wrockstock.

00:00  Wynn & Mimi (background track: Year of the Snake – Sufjan Stevens)
03:11  Swish and Flick – Swish and Flick
06:47  Mimi & Wynn (background track: Year of the Snake – Sufjan Stevens)
09:34  My Dad Is Rich On A Boat – Swish and Flick
12:25  Interview with Stacy (aka Swish aka Astoria Greengrass)
16:36  Astoria Greengrass and the Pure-Blood Prince – Swish and Flick
20:43  Chatting with Swish
24:05  S-L-Y in Slytherin – Swish and Flick
27:47  Conversing with Swish
33:08  Hogwarts House Party – Swish and Flick
35:29  Mimi & Wynn (Year of the Snake – Sufjan Stevens)
37:33  Cho Chang (Shake Your Thang) – Swish and Flick

Tour Dates
Dec 19   Evil Day 2 @ Elk’s Lodge (w/ Draco and the Malfoys) – Hoboken, NJ

Fear the Marcellus Shale

The Marcellus Shale (Image from New York Times)

There’s an incredible video posted at the website of Toxic Targeting, an environmental watchdog group that maps toxic sites on a lot-by-lot basis. The video shows a man lighting his tap water on fire. The water, and the tap, belong to a disabled Vietnam veteran who has lived in his Candor, New York home since 1962.

Naturally, he called in a complaint to the Department of Environmental Conservation. Unfortunately, the DEC did nothing. They didn’t send anyone out to investigate the problem. All they told the veteran was, “don’t drink the water.” Yeah, thanks. Not an issue.

The veteran lives above something called the Marcellus Shale, a formation few people know about, but which has a huge impact on their water and gas supplies. It’s basically a giant rock formation that extends from New York all the way down to Tennessee. Industry first became interested in the Marcellus Shale when scientists realized there was gas inside the pores of the rock.

Walter Hang, President of Toxic Targeting, explains in an interview today with Democracy Now, that a new process called “slick water hydrofracking” was developed to extract the gas. However, the extraction involves tremendous amounts of water, and it’s incredibly polluting. The water that comes out of the ground has toxic chemicals, petroleum compounds, and it’s actually radioactive.

Huge corporations like Chesapeake, Fortuna, Talisman, and Hess benefit from slick water hydrofracking, but the process is potentially polluting the drinking water of 15 million people, including 9 million New Yorkers.

With further Marcellus drilling planned, the full range of environmental consequences from this breed of drilling has yet to be seen.

Link to this article:
http://www.breakthruradio.com/index.php?b=article.php?id=1213

- Allison Kilkenny