“Yeah that’s right…Pow!” there is a new record from the king of collaboration. It’s called Bird House, and this time Jad Fair is jammin’ with French experimentalist Hifiklub and Germany’s kptmichigan. In a world of music where everyone seems hung up on nostalgia and recreating the past, Jad Fair (most notably recalled as the voice of Half Japanese) is always moving forward.
Musically, this record features more synthesized sounds than the average Jad Fair record, as his partners fiddle with reverberating electronic textures as a groundwork for some fresh and groovy rock ‘n’ roll. Lyrically (particularly within the highlight track “Let’s Win”), Fair seems to be beaming with optimism. Although his signature nasaly schizophrenic voice hasn’t faded, his message is one of pure positivity and celebration. As others look to the past, Fair (who has recorded like billions of songs with millions of people since the 70s) savors the present and is stoked for the future. As buzzing synths prepare to transform into a cheerful slide guitar riff in “Let’s Win,” Fair says “This time is a good time/ This time is the best time/ Celebrate!” I don’t know why, but nothing feels better than positive affirmations from someone who seems totally bonkers.
The record is released by Joyful Noise and will feature Fair’s signature groovy folk art on the cover and screen-printed on the B-side. Read more about the release here.
• Jad Fair: http://www.jadfair.org
• Hifiklub: http://www.hifiklub.com
• kptmichigan: http://thekaptainslog.blogspot.com
• Joyful Noise: http://www.joyfulnoiserecordings.com
DJ MC
“SUPER MC !!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Last year, after compiling and releasing the untouchable, better-than-the-first Chicago footwork comp Bangs & Works Vol. 2 (TMT Review), Planet Mu’s Mike Paradinas released an equally fantastic, 47-song mix of leftover footwork tracks via Mixcloud (stream it now!). There were plenty of stellar tracks — Jlin’s “BOTC Flight Anthem,” DJ Roc’s “Next,” Young Smoke’s “Rip Miah Da Great,” every track by legends RP Boo and Traxman — but one that particularly stood out for me was DJ MC’s “SUPER MC !!!!!!!!!!!!!”
DJ MC recently released the track, among many others, on his SoundCloud, so now I can play it over and over and over and over and over and o-o-o-o-o-o-over and over again again again and over and o-o-o-o-over and over and over and over again and over and over and over again again again a-a-a-a-again and over and over and over and over over over over over and over and over again. Check it out here:
• DJ MC: http://soundcloud.com/mariocooper
• Planet Mu: http://www.planet.mu
Julia Holter
“Marienbad”
In Tragedy, Julia Holter exhibits an extreme form of patient composition via recording herself recording… Err, recording is what that barren sound was on Tragedy, right? With “Marienbad,” Holter presents that same kind of patience, only through noticeably time-consumed pop music engineering. Like, there are almost, like, like mini-movements within this five-and-a-half-minute song. You think it has anything to do with the two different labels’ (Leaving Records and RVNG Intl.) coastal rivalry? Sounds from the West being more washed; sounds from the East being bopp’y. Respectfully, RVNG Intl. is fronting $crill for her next release Ekstasis on CD and double LP formats, to be released early March.
• Julia Holter: http://juliashammasholter.com
• RVNG Intl.: http://igetrvng.com
Burning Star Core
“Practice April 4th 2008”
C. Spencer Yeh, who we had the pleasure of interviewing late last year about his new album 1975 (review coming soon!), has released an almost four-year-old Burning Star Core practice on SoundCloud. The lineup features Robert Beatty, Mike Shiflet, and Trevor Tremaine, and it sounds infinitely better than any band practice that I was ever involved in.
• C. Spencer Yeh: http://www.dronedisco.com
• Intransitive: http://www.intransitiverecordings.com
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