Haiku Review: Astro Coast by Surfer Blood

Haiku Review of Surfer Blood's Astro Coast

Armed with fuzz guitars
Rocking like Rivers used to
Florida SoCal

Notes: Before I say anything about Surfer Blood's excellent Weezer-esque debut record, Astro Coast, let's get up to speed and take a look at what I had to say in October when I'd only heard their "Swim" single and news of the LP just broke...

"Remember what Weezer sounded like when they were good? Kanine Records does and they’re indulging their power-pop nostalgia by releasing Surfer Blood’s semi-anticipated debut record. Titled Astro Coast, the long-player was recorded in the band’s dorm room at the University of Florida. Even more impressive, bandmates John, Tyler, Thomas, and Brian were just freshmen. Though the guys aren’t surfers or from California their pop strokes are SoCal through and through. That said, Astro Coast should shake the snow off your headphones by the time January 19th rolls around or you know, whenever it leaks just before Thanksgiving."

So there you have it, succinct, no? Now, let's get to the meat. Why is this record so great? Well, not only does it recapture some of the primitive magic of The Blue Album, but it's something not too many indie-rock releases are these days: a guitar record. True, the guitars may be washed with reverb, but there are solos to be found, melodic ones, and in the front of the mix no less! No twinkling, arpeggiating keyboards, but plenty of distortion and squall. A welcome change-up.

On Astro Coast, the aforementioned Weezer comparisons are both apt and weak. These Floridians distinctly mimic west coast vibes, Dick Dale Stratocasters and all, playfully mixing them with pop-charms, which (duh) mirror Rivers Cuomo's early labors. The lyrics, not so much. While there's a fair amount of teenage wanderlust and desperate romance, nothing is as heart-on-it's-sleeve as you might expect.

The closest the gang comes to Mr. Cuomo's jaded romantic observations are found in "Twin Peaks," with lines like "Twin Peaks and David Lynch / Met on your couch at Syracuse / Your sexual advances / Are unconvincing and untrue" or "Why Is everything a chore / I'm too young to be defeated / Let's make fun at the video store / With Blue Velvet and other titles." All sang like a Weezer track and backed by a "Sweater Song" interlude, mind you.

Thankfully, Weezer isn't the only influence to be heard. A crafty ear can make out plenty of Built to Spill, Born Ruffians, and even some Pixies, so it's not like Surfer Blood are trying to re-make one of their favourite records. AKA, there's plenty here for Weezer-haters to take home.

Let me be clear, none of this a bad thing. While you may have heard pieces of Astro Coast before, the overall delivery is refreshing and frankly welcome in an era where everyone with a laptop is aping Animal Collective. While the album is fairly one dimensional, Surfer Blood catch a break for being 18 and producing a literal freshmen LP. If anything, they show a lot of promise. Album art that would make Robert Shaw blush is just a bonus.

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Swim - Surfer Blood

Floating Vibes - Surfer Blood

Twin Peaks - Surfer Blood

Lil Wayne Made Saints' Official Super Bowl Mascot

Today is Super Bowl Sunday and given that the New Orleans Saints are facing off against the Indianapolis Colts, was there any question I wouldn't be posting Lil Wayne?

While I'll be spending the day drinking milk and watching the game, New Orleans will hopefully explode following their win, during which all of these tracks and more should fill the streets and bars. No doubt Kim Kardashian already has them on her iPod.

"And yeah I'm quite fine, but shorty much finer and I just get behind her and smack it like E. Honda."

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Fireman So Cold (A-Trak Remix) - Lil Wayne

Pass the Dutch - Young Money

Watch My Shoes - Lil Wayne

Gettin' Some Head - Lil Wayne

First Rate People Announce Ladies' Night

Sounding like a mash-up of the Tom Tom Club and Stars, First Rate People’s “Girls’ Night” is my newest pre-game jam. It’s back-and-forth guy/girl vocals, dribbling-over, heavy bass, an over-produced beat, and twangy guitars, could easily score your amateur mixology or that ugly-duckling/swan montage from She’s All That.

The lyrical 8th grade-romance hearkens back to a simpler time, when sleepovers were our speakeasies, but the true charms of “Girls’ Night” are buried in that breezy melody. I’ll take a Dark & Stormy please.

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Girls’ Night – First Rate People

Friday Is Kickin' It Old School

It's Friday and if you're anything like me, you're dying to hear Bell Biv DeVoe's guaranteed crowd-pleaser "Poison." Maybe you'll even choreograph a karaoke performance with your friends? I know I will. Don't let the good vibes stop there though, throw "Buffalo Stance" or "The Humpty Dance" into the mix. And for good measure, Del tha Funkee Homosapien should round things out. You'll be both the hero of the night and scratch that 90s pop-rap itch.

You never trust a big butt and a smile.

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Poison - Bel Biv DeVoe

Buffalo Stance - Neneh Cherry

The Humpty Dance - Digital Underground

Mistadobalina - Del tha Funkee Homosapien

Haiku Review: Contra by Vampire Weekend

- Haiku Review of Vampire Weekend's Contra -

The boys have grown up
Songs more busy, full of heart
Still, backlash will come
Notes: So Vampire Weekend's Contra has been out for almost a month (even longer if you count those scurvy digital pirates) and most everyone has by now come to their own critical conclusions. There are plenty of those who dig it and plenty of those who despise it, but most subjective minds (should) agree that the record is a solid sophomore effort.

Put me in that last camp. Upon my first few listens, I felt the record came off as top heavy, but the more time I spent with it, the album felt back loaded. Now, things have evened out in my ears and while Contra may have at first sounded foreign, the parallels to Vampire Weekend are much more obvious.

For example, from a thematic perspective, it's pretty clear that these things equate:

White Sky = Mansard Roof
Horchata = Oxford Comma
Cousins = A-Punk
California English = M79
I Think Ur a Contra = The Kids Don't Stand a Chance
Which is just fine. While the East Coast, boat shoe lovin' quartet may have added a bevy of bells and whistles to their sound, they're still the Vampire Weekend you know and love. Or hate. Still, VMPR WKND do take some risks. For starters, this record isn't nearly as immediate as its descendant; those hooks are harder to fish out this time around. And those bell and whistles I mentioned? They add some unique sonic depth and shoehorn fresh ideas into Ezra's blue blooded lyrical playground.

By definition, Contra's a successful sophomore record: it sticks with a working formula, but throws enough curve to distinguish it from its predecessor. If you're a fan of Vampire Weekend, you already own it. If you loathe them, you've already bashed it. Move along, there's nothing left to see.

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Horchata - Vampire Weekend

Joanna Newsom Wants You to Have One on Her

The first time I heard Joanna Newsom, I was a sophomore in college procrastinating on a paper for a class on the sociology of religion. Apparently Ys had just been released and after reading the 9.4 review on P4k, I opened up SoulSeek and downloaded the record immediately.

I remember listening to a lot of Tapes 'n Tapes, Holy Fuck, and Sufjan around then and wasn't at all prepared for Ys' madrigal poetry -- just look at that album art. But the nuanced record quickly grew on me. While so much of Newsom's brand of folk music can make for a difficult listen (12-minute-long songs, her sharp voice, et al.), I soaked it up like your stereotypical sponge. Listening to "Emily" still takes me back to that cramped single dorm room and living with my stowaway cat.

And so I snatched up the rest of her discography (and scored a t-shirt from a radical friend who saw her live) and wasn't disappointed. The far less epic The Milk-Eyed Mender leaned heavier on traditional folk and Newsom's early self-released EPs adequately showcased her promise. If you're patient and willing, there's a wealth of beauty and substance to be mined from any of her records.

Which brings me to the status quo. After a three year drought, Newsom is finally releasing new material. Come Feburary 23rd, we'll all be treated to the three-disc Have One on Me. So far, her label, Drag City, has streamed but two tracks. "'81" delivers typical Newsom harped storytelling, but "Good Intentions Paving Company" shows the most promise. It finds her in full-on Joni Mitchell-mode, at her most accessible, and backed by banjo and full percussion. If this is the new direction she's heading, count me in.

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Good Intentions Paving Company - Joanna Newsom

'81 - Joanna Newsom

Sprout and the Bean - Joanna Newsom

Frankenstein on the '09 Dancefloor

When you spend most of your days downloading torrents, reading Gorilla vs. Bear or Pitchfork, and listening to nothing but your iPod, it's easy to forget about the dreck of FM radio. Sure, there's the occasional reminder, like the Grammys, a friend who incessantly complains about Beyoncé's "Single Ladies," a prepubescent sibling, or a grating car ride sans-aforementioned iPod, but for the most part, all that ish is avoidable.

That being the case, whatever does permeate your hip bubble must be either really catchy, really awful, or in most cases, both. I'm surprising no one when I assume everyone has heard Ke$ha's ridiculous "TiK ToK" or Miley's "Party in the U.S.A." I even caught my Polish grandmother humming the latter.

Both tracks kindof dominated pop radio in '09, but I'm still hearing these songs when I go out, which is my excuse for posting the two remixes below.

The Hood Internet rework of "TiK ToK" is a clever mash-up with YACHT's "Summer Song" that's the biggest remix departure from the original I've heard (though that Fred Falke Remix is still sweet). The real highlight of this post is the (albeit old) Biggie vs. Miley track: "Party and Bullshit in the U.S.A." The title really says it all.

Right-Click + Save Link As:

Summer of Tik Tok (Ke$ha vs YACHT) - The Hood Internet

Party and Bullshit In the U.S.A. (Miley vs. B.I.G.) - Hathbanger