posted by Mike on October 18, 2007 3:42 PM in Music
A few weeks ago I mentioned Amazon's download service. With their high quality files and drm-free, affordable albums, they should rival iTunes if they can expand their selection. Well, now you can support Amazon and give us up to a 20% kickback when you buy music there. We'll be making a widget every now and then with our musical suggestions from recent reviews: it's a great way to check out some new grooves and support the podcast you love.
posted by Chris on October 15, 2007 10:01 AM in Music
Jens Lekman sounds a bit like Morrissey if he wrote songs for 1970's educational videos. Jens is a crooner who writes exceptionally honest and completely schmaltzy lyrics. Here is "Sipping on the Sweet Nectar" for Monday's Your Personal Soundtrack. A great soundtrack for fall. Pay attention to the amazingly evocative lyrics.
Jens released a new album last week called "Night Falls Over Kortedala", which is jam packed full of catchy, awesome tunes. Check out Jens' full library on iTunes.
Tailgating Apple's new iPod announcement, two high profile troubles for iTunes probably isn't what Steve Jobs had in mind.
First, UK megastars Radiohead interjected their two cents on why they won't lend their tunes to Apple's popular download service. Mike Schramm from The Unofficial Apple Weblog explains:
Radiohead is choosing not to sell their latest album on iTunes not because their record company is pressuring them out of the deal-- their record company is EMI, and they're more than willing to sell the record DRM free-- but because iTunes is forcing them to break up their album into songs that can be sold separately.
It seems Thom Yorke and the lads have some principles. Chiefly, to screw their Apple-devoted fans out of music all in the name of preserving the sanctity of the album. Now, this sounds a lot harsher than I want it to. I'm an album listener to the core and as such, I understand Radiohead's stance more profoundly than most. The problem lies elsewhere - they're risking alienating fans (perhaps millions of them) for a cause that is fast becoming irrelevant. The album needs to evolve with the digital times. In this case, I'll side with iTunes. Unfortunately though, this might set a precedent for musicians with the same antiquated romanticist ideals.
Secondly, Amazon launched its music download store this morning. The huge draw here is lack of DRM protection on their inexpensively peddled, high-quality MP3s. Rob Pegararo from the Washington Post expounds:
Any venture by Amazon into digital music downloads would be a big deal in the music business, but this one is also DRM-free--every track is sold as a 256-kbps MP3 file without any copying restrictions or controls. You can play them on the hardware and software of your choice.
So far, I've seen songs selling for 89 or 99 cents each and albums going for $5.69 to $9.99--in each case, a decent discount over the prices at Apple's iTunes Store, and in particular the $1.29 Apple charges for DRM-free iTunes Plus song downloads.
There's got to be a catch though, right? Amazon's one downfall, at present, is a small selection. Right now only EMI and Universal are offering their respective catalogs to the service. Ironically though, you can buy Radiohead's music on Amazon via album-only downloads. Even more ironically, the top song since the store launched has been "1 2 3 4" by Feist, the same song Apple is trying to sell the iPod Nano with. If Amazon can bring more music on board, they could soon be the proverbial thorn in Jobs' side. I'll side with Amazon on this one, Apple's got their work cut out for them.
One of my favorite directors, Wes Anderson (he of The Royal Tenenbaums and Rushmore fame) has announced he is going to be releasing a short film that leads up to his new movie The Darjeeling Limited titled Hotel Chevalier. It's slated to be released at Apple Stores across the country, and for free on iTunes.
While his movies may be a bit formulaic, it's a good formulaic in my opinion. Also one of the TUAW commenters is fueling a mini rumor fire by saying that Natalie Portman has a small nude scene. Win!
posted by Mike on September 5, 2007 11:04 AM in Music
So eh, I'm positive this has already inundated the internets with alarming speed, but a new iPod was announced today by god, urr Steve Jobs. The iPod Touch. I'll list a few of Jobs' talking points before I get to my point:
• Available this month, $299 and $399 respectively
• Offered in 8GB and 16GB models
• 22 hours of Audio Playback, 5 hours of Video Playback
• Standard iPod connector
• Safari, YouTube, Google & Yahoo Searches all available on the iPod Touch
• Antenna on back for WiFi Connectivity
• iTunes available over WiFi on the iPod Touch
On to my query. Why would I want to buy an iPhone now with all the firepower this thing has? I don't even like talking to people on the phone. Why would I spend $699 and sign my life over to AT&T for 2 Years when I could just buy one of these for $299? It's a strange business move by Apple, but I'm not going to discredit the glory of this device.
If I can manage to mop up the puddle of drool on my desk, I might try to muster the gumption to justify this future expense to my wife.
posted by Mike on August 21, 2007 8:56 AM in Music
iTunes is, as we all know, an instant gratification service. We pay them $10 and, faster than we can blink, we’re the proud owners of the latest album by pretty much whoever we want. Yet there’s been one gaping hole in the smile of iTunes’ catalogue – The Beatles. For 6 years (since the inception of iTunes) arguably the most influential and iconic band in the last half-century has been inexcusably absent from their download lineup. There’s been mixed reports as to when we will finally be able to access the Fab Four’s dynamic cannon in .m4a format. So the benevolent folks at Apple plugged a Chiclet in for their missing front tooth: John Lennon’s solo albums are now available.
posted by Chris on April 2, 2007 7:34 PM in Podcast
This week Frodo went to Disneyland and The Geek didn't! So they talk about that in this week's podcast. But that's not all! Frodo endorses Meet the Robinsons, both applaud EMI for their DRM-free iTunes songs and they talk about the announcement of Rock Band (the game). The mailbag is opened, and last but not least: a rant about spam. It truly is a fulfilling episode of The Weekly Geek. Download it here, or subscribe to it. Notes after the beep.
Eliot Van Buskirk over at Wired's Listening Post brought up a topic this morning that's been on my mind since the "Enhanced CD" days in the late 90s. That is: Why hasn't the music industry upgraded their ideas on album art?
Let's face it- the physical CD and liner note sleeves are little more than a waste of plastic and paper at this point. Besides just being conscientious of our home planet, dragging album art into the digital age could bring the music loving consumer a whole lot more content for the price of their download.
posted by Mike on January 25, 2007 12:00 AM in Music
Geeky .MP3 Reviews: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Besides Frodo and I making an appearance at a few local shows, my tenure as Music Editor here at the Weekly Geek can hardly be described as "cutting edge" (With the 80's flashbacks and day-old album reviews and all). But here in 2007 some things should change damnit! So I’m making a more concerted effort to bring you the latest and greatest in the world of music. So now, just in from the news wire of the pop scene, I bring you some... (get ready for this...) PRE-release track reviews!!! (Holy crap. I'm so excited!)
Portland has quietly been spitting out some of the best rock talent in the last decade- everyone from the late, great Elliott Smith to the defunct Sleater-Kinney owing Oregon's Metropolis their lineage. The Seattle bands have gotten most of the attention in ages past, but it's high time our southerly neighbors got their due.
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah debuted with a new-wavish, punchy self-titled group of tracks in 2005. Since then, they've started an odd, fashionable style of having bouncy melodies, yet delivering the lyrics in the most utterly aloof way imaginable. Nevertheless, the college radio circuit backed the record with heavy rotation and it made almost every music magazine's "next big thing" list, and for good reason. Alec Ounsworth, Clap Your Hands' lead singer, being the focus of most of the praise, despite the strange voicing.
So the band, gearing up for their 2007 set, made two downloads available from the new Some Loud Thunder (which arrives in stores and on iTunes January 30th).
All Songs Considered's Bob Boilen made a statement last week about the band's new veneer on the last NPR Podcast. He said he would've rather heard Some Loud Thunder's songs "the way they were played, instead of the way they were produced." I couldn't disagree more. The more upbeat of the new cuts "Underwater (You and Me)" illustrates why less production isn't more as far as Clap Your Hands Say Yeah is concerned. The layers and new gloss on Alec's voice and the rest of the band's instruments create a magnetic, glowing aura, not present in their first CD. Instead of sounding disaffected, they sound fanciful. Instead of blasé, they sound inspiring. With flighty, pinging guitars you follow the poetic line "someday your secret will be revealed" with great intent and longing much like in more recent Built To Spill songs.
The piano work and spacey guitars of the slower "Love Song No. 7", floating vocals and well organized harmony structures, coupled with the loose drums and an accordion passage helps today's audiences revisit some of the ideas in the eeriest moments of 60's physchadelia. When Alec sings "safe and sound" you can sense the sarcasm and you feel the ground Clap Your Hands are treading is anything but safe.
With the help of long time Flaming Lips engineer Dave Fridmann, this is an incredible step forward for a band that could've limited itself to the current "cool sound" and still been successful. I think it's a risk that will pay off for them in the long run if these two songs are any indication of the greatness achieved on Some Great Thunder.
posted by Chris on January 4, 2007 5:20 PM in Rant
Throughout Nintendo's history as a game hardware and software manufacturer, they have shown an impressive amount of conservatism. Always cautious about their next move, for the most part it has been an effective means of bringing in profits. Or has it? With the release of technology so distruptive as the Wii, the industry is applauding Nintendo for being so daring. So then why is Nintendo still conservative when it comes to anything involving Internet connectivity? The DS had the dreaded friend code system, which has returned on the Wii. The Gamecube had the completely ignored network adaptor, even the SNES had the XBAND which went absolutely nowhere (although, granted it was not released by Nintendo themselves). Why release something if you don't put your energy behind it? What drives Nintendo to be so lackadaisical when it comes to anything online in a world where we have the excellence that is Xbox Live? Welcome to today's rant.
posted by Chris on December 5, 2006 4:38 PM in Rant
Look, Nintendo. I know you want to benefit from being able to stagger the release of your Virtual Console titles for the Wii. I know that being able to advertise the week that you finally release the icy death grip you have on Super Mario RPG is going to be a big boon to your sales. But what's wrong with filling the gaps a little? The Virtual Console is free (or close to free) money. What do you have to do, have a developer look at it a little, maybe kick the tires to make sure it runs and then throw it up on your server? It's not that hard. I want to be able to purchase tons of games from your back catalog, across every system you have listed. I am very willing to spend literally hundreds of dollars on your virtual magical digital goods. Just look at my iTunes purchases, I have over 500 in that playlist alone. That's $500+ I have spent on intangible items. Just give me a hit of that sweet sweet Donkey Kong Country already, will ya?
I am all for your set release schedule, I think it's cool you want to bring us 5 (or so) new games for the Virtual Console every week. Just give us a starter kit of sorts, 50 or so titles that we can choose from to tide us over until you decide to push Super Mario Bros. 3 on us for the millionth time. I'll buy it, just as I know thousands of others will. Again. And again. And again.
posted by Mike on November 24, 2006 5:07 PM in Music
Sorry for the one day delay here, but we’re back to the good ol’ 80s series after a brief thanksgiving holiday. So pull your collective belts tighter and get ready to stuff some yummy music in after all that turkey and stuffin’
Our second classic nineteen hundred and eighties album is a record by who I like to refer to as “The Beatles of the 80s.” Smart pop rock with innovative hooks, evocative lyrical lines, and superb orchestration. The genius of Andy Partridge and Colin Moulding (XTC’s founders) clashed in a hard, tumultuous rumble with the lush, glossy production style of 70s Prog-Freak Todd Rundgren on Skylarking.
The result was one of absolute discontent for XTC. Rundgren and Partridge grappled radically over the sounds on the record and the overall concept of the finished product. But this struggle is ultimately what made XTC’s brilliance more immediate and apparent to the listener. English Settlement and Black Sea only hinted at accomplished sounds on Skylarking.
How the songs blend so seamlessly on this one is just incredible. The opening medley of “Summer’s Cauldron/Grass” automatically earns your trust and from then on, it’s like the second coming of Abbey Road. “Earn enough for us” and “Another Satellite” are two more gems just familiar enough and just experimental enough to work.
The record ends with the most controversial song- a song that was one of the first outright Atheist anthems. The Christian community lashed out at the single “Dear God,” but to any educated person, the song comes off more as an ultimatum to the people that fight over religion and make the world a horrible place for everyone. Given the right-wing power in the U.S. currently and the radical Islamic terrorism in various places, the song is very resonant 20 years after its release.
posted by Mike on November 16, 2006 6:52 PM in Music
"Putting The Days To Bed" Long Winters
The first time I heard John Roderick talk on a live radio appearance, I knew I was going to like his music. During the interview on KEXP he talked about old Seattle being ruined by ugly high-rise condos, presidents running in historical cycles from autocratic to reformers, and he even stopped between songs to point out that his sister was calling his cell phone. Poignant, Informed, Down to Earth. It definitely shows in his songwriting too, except instead of dwelling on political tirades and social commentary, Long Winters linger on the heartfelt.
Putting the Days to Bed weaves Roderick's cold Alaskan roots with the brightness of Seattle's rock scene. Evident in pop gems like "Fire Island, AK", "Teaspoon", and "Seven" is the feeling that the Long Winters never stray from strong lyrical lines and very simple arrangements. It lends very well to getting immersed in the age old stories we'll listen to over and over- falling in love, being afraid of committing, or missing someone who is gone.
All the while the music is vaguely familiar of early Counting Crows and more recent efforts by Jakob Dylan and the Wallflowers. But with crunching guitars, vibrant organs, and warm vocal passages, the common denominator with bands that made it through the 90s doesn't wear thin. In the end, the Long Winters' sound never gets old. Like candle lights they are brilliant when present, and when they fade with a slow, dying ember you remember how warm and fuzzy you felt by it.
posted by Mike on November 1, 2006 7:16 PM in Music
"Bring Me the Workhorse" My Brightest Diamond
Every once in a while you stumble on an musician that you are excited about, but you're not entirely certain whether you just like it because the artist's influences are comfortably familiar to you, or if this person brings an individuality to your listening creature comforts. Shara Worden, My Brightest Diamond's mastermind and long time Sufjan Stevens live band member, immediately brings to mind Bjork and P.J. Harvey on her solo debut. In the same instant though, Worden's musical background differentiates her.
The most refreshing thing about Shara's approach to her music is that the instrumentation is hardly an afterthought. Having been classically trained in her college years, Worden's fantastic guitar and piano work serve to strengthen the web she weaves to catch new listeners. But instead of using her instrumental ability gaudily, she chooses to hide it in a complex fog that let's her vocals soar in the clear air above.
Similar in feeling to the late Jeff Buckley's Grace, her earnest, yearning lyrical patterns give Bring Me the Workhorse a heavy feel. Lead off "Something of An End" leads you into the dry, blinding lights of "Golden Star" and Worden makes you believe her lyrics that "everything has come undone/the distance between us." Just when you feel the gravity of the album could be overbearing the song "Freak Out" slaps you in the face with Sonic Youth-like dissonance and is a good change of pace.
The highlight of Bring Me the Workhorse lies in the churning cello-laced "Disappear." Recalling the beauty of Portishead's equally orchestrated and electronic approach, "Disappear" tells of a person tired of the pitfalls of modern life and warning friends not to be "too shocked" when she leaves to escape it all.
The title track closer uses a dirty Rhodes piano to show how methodically Worden has pieced together the songs on Bring Me the Workhorse and instead of a bitter aftertaste of feeling she copied her predecessors, you're left with a sweet amalgamate of blended muses turned into something very unique.
posted by Mike on October 12, 2006 6:55 PM in Music
This month will be three years since Elliott Smith committed suicide. He was a beautiful artist unable to overcome the demons of being abused as a child. His musical flare often recalled the Beatles, but he made the same sweet melodies by himself that it took four of them to craft.
I first discovered his music in 2000 when a friend was playing a tape of Figure 8 in her car. Upon first hearing the honesty and humility in his voice, I was instantly magnetized. No matter how many studio layers were piled on, his vocals always pierced as if he was singing to you in the same room.
There are many famous artists who have taken their own lives in their musical prime, but Elliott Smith was the only one that I honestly felt robbed to lose.
Thanks for the music Elliott. "I'm gonna talk in my sleep tonight 'cause I don't know what I am. I'm a little like you, more like Son of Sam."
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posted by Chris on July 17, 2006 6:45 AM in Podcast
On this week's podcast, The Geek and Frodo kick it old school, talking about The Amazing Screw On Head, third party love for Nintendo, hardcore gamers and as always, Snakes on a Plane. It just keeps getting weirder and weirder. Oh, video games are also discussed. Naturally.
I actually downloaded this album a couple of weeks ago after hearing the track "Rainbows in the Dark" on NPR's All Songs Considered (which is a great podcast, highly recommended for music nerds like me). What really struck me was that they have a tapdancer instead of a traditional drummer. That's right, a tapdancer. Poor thing must get tired at concerts. While this may seem gimmicky, Tilly and the Wall manage to use the driving Riverdance-esque beats to carve out a sound all their own.
Bottoms of Barrels is their second album, and it has all the hallmarks of a good sophmore collection. The songs are tight and well-produced, and they flow together very well. One of the ways that I can always tell an album is going to be in constant rotation on my iPod is when I never skip over a track, and with Bottoms of Barrels, that is definitely the case. Each song has its own personality, from the raucous, epic opening track Rainbows in the Dark (best described as an exuberant, accordian-laden thoughtful pep rally song, maybe) to the almost flamenco-sounding Bad Education. The songs go from completely unique and inspired, to reflective of their collective music tastes with tracks sprinkled with hints of new wave The Cure Depeche Mode Tears for Fears sensibility.
The album is unique, refreshing, happy, joyous music. Absolutely perfect for summertime and those tired top 40 summer tracks. I highly recommend checking out Bottoms of Barrels on iTunes, and if you are in the Seattle area, Tilly and the Wall are going to be performing a live show at the Paradox on July 11th. See you there!
posted by Chris on May 22, 2006 6:00 PM in Podcast
This week Frodo and The Geek get back into the swing of things and discuss New Super Mario Bros and other non-video game related items. That's right, for the first time in MONTHS the geeks talk about Sci-Fi and nerdy things again. Phew! Have some delicious show notes.
posted by Chris on April 9, 2006 8:58 PM in Podcast
In this exciting installment, The Geek, Frodo and White Mage discuss the Half Life series, and their love of all things Final Fantasy, Disney, and the two mashed together. Then, Frodo answers the mailbag. Here are some notes!
posted by Chris on February 6, 2006 8:07 AM in Podcast
This week, Frodo, The Geek, White Mage and Nevery discuss iTunes video downloads, PS3 xbox live-type service, and tons of stuff about TV shows especially Stargate. Why are you looking at me like that.
Show notes:
Some big geeky news items from today that I wanted to discuss with you fellow geeks:
iTunes added a huge amount of new tv shows to its lineup, including NBC shows The Office, Surface and Law and Order, USA shows like Monk, and my own personal exciting bit of news, Sci Fi Channel's Battlestar Galactica. If you haven't used it yet, the iTunes music store is excellent for downloading video, and at $2 a pop, it is generally cheaper than buying the DVDs. Now finally I can get caught up on Galactica...
Also, an X-3 teaser trailer is up, and honestly I had no idea they had gotten so much done on the movie. Last I heard they didn't even have a director, but as you can see from the teaser they seem to have some principal CG work done. That's pretty far into the project, I'd say. Kelsey Grammer is featured in the teaser as Beast, and he looks passable! I was a bit worried about the project not being helmed by Brian Singer, but if this teaser is any indication, X-3 is going to be very, very good. I heart X-Men.
PEACE OUT and don't forget to download this week's show.
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Throughout Nintendo's history as a game hardware and software manufacturer, they have shown an impressive amount of conservatism. Always cautious about their next move, for the most part it has been an effective means of bringing in profits. Or has it? With the release of technology so distruptive as the Wii, the industry is applauding Nintendo for being so daring. So then why is Nintendo still conservative when it comes to anything involving Internet connectivity? The DS had the dreaded friend code system, which has returned on the Wii. The Gamecube had the completely ignored network adaptor, even the SNES had the 
Look, Nintendo. I know you want to benefit from being able to stagger the release of your Virtual Console titles for the Wii. I know that being able to advertise the week that you finally release the icy death grip you have on Super Mario RPG is going to be a big boon to your sales. But what's wrong with filling the gaps a little? The Virtual Console is free (or close to free) money. What do you have to do, have a developer look at it a little, maybe kick the tires to make sure it runs and then throw it up on your server? It's not that hard. I want to be able to purchase tons of games from your back catalog, across every system you have listed. I am very willing to spend literally hundreds of dollars on your virtual magical digital goods. Just look at my iTunes purchases, I have over 500 in that playlist alone. That's $500+ I have spent on intangible items. Just give me a hit of that sweet sweet Donkey Kong Country already, will ya?
I actually downloaded this album a couple of weeks ago after hearing the track "Rainbows in the Dark" on 