tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46899451217215364082011-07-30T10:51:23.477-05:00Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comBlogger1171100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-85467774494779906512010-06-02T19:25:00.001-05:002010-06-02T19:27:22.837-05:00

What's The Coup up to? That's what I wondered this afternoon. They haven't put out an album in a couple years. And it's been longer than that since I last saw them. Upcoming summer shows posted on their MySpace are in California, New York and Washington, DC. It would be great if they made another album and took a mega-tour around the world so we could bask in their righteous thinking people's

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-37496798885437286262010-05-13T22:04:00.002-05:002010-05-13T22:07:16.203-05:00

The comments on this video keep comparing him to other musicians, so I'm going to resist doing that, even though The Human Beat Box immediately comes to mind. Reggie Watts is really different than anyone else though because he's mixing, singing, and doing percussion just with vocal chords (and gut). He's on tour with Conan O'Brien right now and has a new CD/DVD coming out.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-3919952560573680922010-05-02T19:32:00.002-05:002010-05-02T19:53:40.176-05:00

20 Jazz Funk Greats sits at the top of Fried My Little Brain's blog roll and now that I've clicked it I don't know when I'll get to the others. After downloading Donga's SCOM mix I got sucked into Halogen by 10-20 and listened a few times in a row. Then Horrid Red's Transparent Streets while slogging through the dense review. I love it when music writers push themselves instead of posing. And the

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-22154755325769714962010-04-21T16:20:00.002-05:002010-04-21T16:43:00.101-05:00

Charlotte, Charlotte, Charlotte. This is the springtime of Charlotte, with the release of IRM, her collaboration with Beck, and a quick, first-ever North American tour. After a few shows on the West Coast and Coachella, she plays in Chicago tonight. Then after Montréal and New York, she returns to la Belle France. If you're headed to France in June/early July, you can catch her. Her dad Serge is

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-45890257039016347582010-04-07T13:52:00.003-05:002010-04-07T14:03:23.838-05:00

Great American pop songs are not what we usually talk about here, but Kanye's Soul Mixshow by A-Trak on Friedmylittlebrains a few months ago is chock full of chopped-up and messed-with goody oldies including Move On Up. It's the perfect song with tight rhythms and yet it rambles, with all sorts of instruments, heralding the era of orchestrated funk. Curtis Mayfield's cotton-candy rock-solid

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-43103750838166775702010-03-31T18:35:00.002-05:002010-03-31T19:06:25.256-05:00

A lot of musicians consider dressing smart part of their job. Duke Ellington and Rye Rye are two vastly different stylists with decades between them who nonetheless immediately come to mind. The musicians of Mauritania seem the nec plus ultra of sophistication and glamor, though. And they play and sing to match it. In the past we've posted videos from this classy land: the '70s groove of Hadramie

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-16566285656138957222010-03-20T08:58:00.002-05:002010-03-20T09:08:38.327-05:00

Apparently there are no videos of Khmer '60s pop star Ros Serey Sothea, so jeffmagic32 decided to animate a photo of her. The result is a spooky, repetitive loop of her gently swaying to one of her hits. There's a lot of information about her here, with scores of mp3s of her songs posted. We've posted some stuff about Cambodian music in the past, about the Cambodia Rocks compilation (and that guy

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-89348752546812446062010-03-10T14:54:00.004-06:002010-03-10T15:12:05.890-06:00

Music blog Orson & Welles puts out a mixtape once a month – there are eight of them up so far – by different guest DJs and with themes each time. They're mixes of independent label, experimental, new wave, No Wave, electronic, etc. over the past forty years: Étienne Jaumet, This Mortal Coil, Raymond Scott, Lizzie Mercier Descloux, Francesco Tristano... but then basic olde rock like Black Sabbath

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-21870842007526513692010-03-09T14:11:00.004-06:002010-03-09T14:31:58.781-06:00

Dale from Still Life in Moving Vehicle just told me about the ZudRangMa Records site. Click on Broadcast at the top to listen to RADIO ZUDRANGMA programs from the past two years. If you like old Thai pop, '60s luuk thung, and molam you will be in heaven. I'm listening to show #31 right now and it's unbelievable.They also spin records at clubs in Bangkok. The next one is 19 March at 808 on RCA (

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-52419225699124078812010-02-25T16:34:00.001-06:002010-02-25T16:36:10.080-06:00

He merrily sings in a honey-colored set of nothingness, but his voice is all over the place. You can almost see the hills and valleys that Eduard Xil might be strolling through. But his shirt and tie match the backdrop. And this lyric-less song negotiates a golden, creamy terrain that is at once smooth and athletic.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-14125503209100987282009-12-29T00:17:00.003-06:002009-12-29T00:53:55.555-06:00

Spanish Basque operetta singer Luis Mariano admires the tropical surroundings with his lovely, silent lady Olivia (Paquita Rico). This clip is from the 1956 film À la Jamaïque. Mariano sang in accented French throughout his career in the '50s and '60s.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-16600756494495219442009-12-17T17:17:00.003-06:002009-12-17T17:21:05.529-06:00

This afternoon someone at the bar was saying, "And she had taken a lot of Vicodin, too." There's definitely a connection here. Just how little can a singer move in her empire waist gingham gown? That's not to say this isn't a great song, and Jeanette's eye makeup and movements are an early '70s pill user look at its best. And that's not to imply she used pills, either. Even though everyone did

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-27089653607341156962009-10-23T09:22:00.000-05:002009-10-23T09:23:39.221-05:00

A stumbling funky beat and a repeating refrain on the organ that doesn't get boring. A four-second guitar solo once every minute. Provocative wailing from singer Karim Branis. Algerian rockers Les Abranis got back together in 2008 and started touring again after a twenty-five year hiatus.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-70476375722227974512009-08-27T07:03:00.003-05:002009-08-27T07:06:18.900-05:00

Wow I did not think I'd be writing about this record. Which is funny because I noticed it in the pile next to the turntable. Maybe my unconscious swept that connection under the rug. This is just too much of a monster: Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, Joe Jones on drums.You might be thinking, why? You wrote about Sun Ra, and Eric Dolphy. Why is 'Round

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-50489559999690078202009-08-26T15:07:00.002-05:002009-08-26T15:10:13.213-05:00

This 45 is somber. A lot of people think dance music and good times when they think 45s. Well, forget it. This is serious and philosophical. Both songs are stark narratives about how lonely it can be to live. I agree. We are all alone, together.Chompin' is a quiet, valient, solitary struggle. This could be the soundtrack section of a Russian or French film. If it's Russian, a lone character is

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-45816491495209015432009-08-25T10:49:00.002-05:002009-08-25T14:40:51.367-05:00

In this age of promotion and bizarre concepts like branding oneself, Dreamland Faces are not PR people. Take for instance their orange CD, which doesn't have their name on the cover and doesn't have a title. There is just a simple drawing of two fighting bunnies. I don't know what year it came out because that's not listed anywhere, either.The names of the songs and the members of the band are on

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-27044216855341536172009-08-22T09:30:00.005-05:002009-08-22T09:49:53.413-05:00

Obviously this is not the cover art, but I don't have a picture of the cover to show you so here is the group in concert. Also, a slight digression here because this is actually a CD that is mixed in with the records next to the turntable. It's a gift from the band, who stayed with us a few months ago. I missed their show because I was out of town that night, but did see them all the following

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-80815653327117227272009-08-21T09:45:00.003-05:002009-08-21T10:00:26.001-05:00

This is nearing the end of the pile next to the turntable. There is, however, another pile below it that awaits listening. So I'm not worried. And I'm sure you're not. What I'm more concerned about is that Eric Dolphy is a challenge to write about. First of all you can't help but think of his imminent death with a title like Berlin concerts. These recordings were made there in 1961, and Dolphy

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-2331298159675044852009-08-20T09:22:00.004-05:002009-08-20T09:27:40.065-05:00

The first song on side A, Brainville, is such a great start, a walk down a busy street full of fascinating people all going somewhere. Everyone's in a good mood. You are among an intelligent group of people with senses of humor. They like to laugh at situations they find themselves in, and at themselves, sometimes. What a great introduction. You want to stay among these people, keep listening to

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-62082046314337749252009-08-19T08:09:00.003-05:002009-08-19T08:14:18.099-05:00

Moving right along through the stack by the stereo, the next record is a remix of Dr. Octagon's Blue Flowers, given to me by Eric Beaumont, a musician, librarian at the county jail, and record collector. Thanks, Eric! I love this song, and played the hell out of Dr. Octagonecologyst, the album it was on.Kool Keith AKA Dr. Octagon AKA Dr. Dooom is probably one of the more eccentric hip hop stars

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-38479123841107949012009-08-18T09:13:00.005-05:002009-08-18T09:27:06.588-05:00

After Herbie Hancock's Treasure Chest is Duke Ellington, "Rockin' in Rhythm" vol. 3 (1929-1931). I don't have the other volumes; I've never thought to look for them but now that I think about it I am wanting them. This is the last in the series, according to the liner notes. Anyway early Duke Ellington is the best, I think. But he was always great. He did so much and he was always well dressed.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-46739097371951549462009-08-17T09:38:00.001-05:002009-08-17T09:40:07.565-05:00

Songs from Fat Albert Rotunda, Mwandishi, and Crossings are all on this album, released in 1974 and the third in the pile next to the turntable. To me there really is no other music like Herbie Hancock's, especially this, the earlier work. The Miles Davis influence is definitely there - Hancock left his group in 1968. Otherwise the songs are pretty far out, in a Sun Ra way but not at all like The

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-27006072988485604942009-08-16T09:13:00.004-05:002009-08-16T09:18:15.402-05:00

Second record in the pile next to the turntable: Kirk's Work. This is from 1961, before Roland Kirk added Rahsaan to his name. On this album he's playing tenor sax, manzello, strich, flute, and siren. For some reason this reminds me that there is a music school for the blind (Kirk was blind) in Mexico City, in the Centro Histórico. Because of this there are good street musicians in the

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-25135767776170536532009-08-15T09:51:00.004-05:002009-08-15T09:58:59.740-05:00

After such a lengthy hiatus from Here to Hear, it's a bit of a challenge to start posting again. As a point of departure, this is the first record in the pile next to the turntable.He Soul SoundThese are the only words in English on the cover, aside from RECORD at the bottom. There's a lot of text in Korean, and a great mid-60's photo of a two girls singing. Actually and even better, it is the

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-58727917229504813682009-06-17T14:28:00.002-05:002009-06-17T14:34:08.153-05:00

This is one of those bring-out-the-heavyweights-and-make-a-summer-hit songs, or "The G Mix" of Birdman's "Always Strapped," according to the intro. It just seems like hype for a message that's definitely not peace and love, but I still love Lil' Wayne and I dig Rick Ross's style. He wears lots of cool glasses and he's got an amulet that's a portrait of himself. Here he manages to make a baseball

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-73693607394135648102009-06-01T23:31:00.005-05:002009-06-02T00:07:11.549-05:00

The YouTube embedding code for Metro Station's "Shake It" is "disabled by request" and this probably because SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT put it up there. No big deal. I don't want to talk about the music anyway but rather the styles in the video. It's a real mid-80s melee of scrawny Ramones types (the face piercings are historically inaccurate and so is the vest with nothing under it), Rude Boys

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-82643218832725297742009-05-25T21:54:00.005-05:002009-06-03T13:30:07.062-05:00

Remember that cool Oran Gencebay clip I posted a couple months ago? Turkish singers are the sultry best! Since I don't understand Turkish (I did however teach myself over 100 words in Turkish during a 3-week visit), I didn't have any hard facts for you about this film or the singer.Lucky us, though. Soner wrote me with this wealth of information about Gencebay and Aski Ben Mi Yarattim, the film

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-63508739008418569132009-05-25T17:11:00.009-05:002009-05-25T21:41:25.663-05:00

I never got into Depeche Mode but my sister did. She was also really into the color peach at that time. Then later later later I went through a phase of constantly listening to my coworker Stacy's copy of K&D Sessions while on the job. There's an amazing remix of Useless on there that always made me think I had missed out on the Mode. That guy is a good singer. They are so funnily serious here in

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-83158552815912770802009-05-21T22:37:00.002-05:002009-05-21T22:56:53.679-05:00

What's going on? Why hasn't there been a post on here for weeks? No answer.The last music-y thing I did or listened to was a show at which Bobby Conn and The Chain played. Bobby Conn and Monica Bou Bou experimented with some new songs using laptop backup. I liked this pared-down show with just her violin, his guitar, and their solid singing. The Chain played a good show too. They recently put a

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-42148899938057217542009-04-26T05:15:00.005-05:002009-04-27T10:03:14.939-05:00

I love this Orhan Gencebay video. Especially the studio scenes. I'm guessing it must be from an old Turkish movie. I would love to see this film and others like it.You don't have to understand Turkish to follow the narrative here, or to appreciate how this clip combines music video with film scenes. As the song begins, a lovely redhead irons Orhan Gencebay's shirt with an ecstatic smile.

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-28831478325935312692009-04-20T03:18:00.003-05:002009-04-26T10:38:00.941-05:00

I'm not sure what to say about this video, except that it's super interesting. The dancers' movements are so understated and a perfect complement to the singer's full-out shouting. Also, you might think that the women are adjusting their scarves because of the blowing wind, but there are some Mauritanian videos out there where women are inside sitting still and clapping and they still continually

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-2614144049579879562009-04-17T23:18:00.004-05:002009-04-18T00:17:33.186-05:00

This week MONRAKPLENGTHAI posted a cassette by ยอดรัก สลักใจ (yodrak salakchai). As usual, there's a succint paragraph jam packed with info, the tape cover, track listing in Thai followed by phonetic spelling in Roman letters, and a song to preview. What a fantastically with-it blog! Why can't there be more stuff like it?รับครึ่งเดียว (rap khrueng dieow), the Yodrak Salakchi song preview at

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-61363247086632620662009-04-09T22:13:00.004-05:002009-04-17T21:58:59.962-05:00

This was supposed to be the second installment of my loose translation of Gainsbourg's appearance on Le jeu de la vérité back in 1984. But it didn't work out that way. Because the Serge Gainsbourg obsession is multifaceted and doesn't follow a straight and narrow path.I knew that Serge Gainsbourg did a reggae album in '79, went to Kingston and recorded with Sly and Robbie, using Bob Marley's

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-32251657544032624602009-04-01T18:58:00.002-05:002009-04-01T19:02:06.712-05:00

If I breathe every three seconds: somehow the start to the chorus just doesn't sound as good in English. Luckily there are the fuzzy, hazy streets of Paris, Benday dots, fast-spinning clocks that make me think of the woman counting the minutes in Louis Chédid's 1984 video for Hold-up, and a trip on the Charles de Gaulle-Étoile Nation line that morphs into a roller coaster ride. And the blipping

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-60247903483530821962009-03-31T15:56:00.008-05:002009-04-01T09:50:03.486-05:00

I've recently been thinking concurrently about the Venetian Renaissance masterpiece Hyperotomachia Poliphili and cute hip-hop mama Rye Rye. There seems to be some connection there, somewhere. Then I came across this Rye Rye Dirty Dancing video mash-up that Adam Murfet made, and the Eros/Venus/hot-and-awkward dance floor action all joined together, from Venice, 1499 to the Catskills in the '80s to

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-70067075517827786702009-03-26T14:35:00.004-05:002009-03-26T14:45:24.189-05:00

I recently noted that Elis Regina sits the whole time she sings during a performance with Milton Nascimento. The Brazilian music cognoscenti over at Spinning in Air responded with this conjecture as to why, as well as coming up with an educated guess about who the drummer and pianist might be:She was pregnant at the time, per some of the "info." text about that special, over on YouTube.I'd like

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-92007694459012263732009-03-21T10:28:00.005-05:002009-03-21T10:55:13.434-05:00

It's 1990. A backup chorus shouts "Yo/Go" on the upbeat and there's a little reverb on Chubb Rock's big vocals as he spreads a positive message: "Leave the guns and have fun." There's a crazy honking synth solo about three minutes in, and Chubb Rock picks up again with, "Well, coming back..." and rocks the last refrain. It all ends with some swooping violins tightly looped. Where'd they come from

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-16817737005801442192009-03-20T17:24:00.003-05:002009-03-20T17:31:17.792-05:00

The Sublime Frequencies tour is fully booked and the European dates and venues are posted here. Group Doueh, Omar Souleyman, and Alan Bishop's Maghreb DJ set will be coming to a UK/Euro city near you this spring.Now you (... I) just need to convince your (... um, my) boyfriend to go.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-85992924769761920982009-03-20T17:15:00.002-05:002009-03-20T17:21:17.786-05:00

My friend Eric was hanging out with Rico Rodriguez a couple of weeks after he sang L-O-V-E on British television for New Year's Eve. He said people were coming up to the legendary trombonist in awe, thanking him for the performance.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-2657019489607611822009-03-18T17:48:00.003-05:002009-03-18T18:00:03.446-05:00

When will I stop being annoyed that I missed Chuck D's talk last night because I didn't know about it ahead of time? Probably never.But at least okayplayer has "Bring The Noise" with The Roots and Public Enemy. So I can try to console myself with this, and you can, too. We could also go to Philly for the second annual Roots Picnic.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-40267848352426620912009-03-18T00:44:00.002-05:002009-03-18T00:47:43.703-05:00

I recently saw this video posted on confessiones nocturnae. Here's what's notable about it, in my opinion:Elis Regina sits in an armchair the whole time.Milton Nascimento is wearing a crazy-quilt dude hat and sings a mean high-pitched backup.Elis Regina makes up for not moving her tush with intense facial expressions.Brazilian Portuguese singing in the mid-'70s.Nice drum set. Who is the man

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-32960891475968057092009-03-12T16:49:00.003-05:002009-03-12T17:02:24.648-05:00

The Smithsonian Magazine online has a video about the first female to ever win the Valienato King's festival. Called Mastering a Man's Instrument, it tells young Yeime's rise to stardom thanks to her stunning skills which she mastered at the Turco Gil Academy in Colombia. Smithsonian reported on the school previously with a profile of another exceptional student who is blind.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-60002645963042806682009-03-12T14:06:00.003-05:002009-03-12T14:23:17.931-05:00

International traditional pop label (I don't know how else to describe it) Sublime Frequencies and QuJunktion are organizing a concert tour this spring: Syria's Omar Souleyman and Western Sahara's Group Doueh will perform ten shows in almost as many days in the U.K. The European leg in June is still being organized. The schedule posted at Sublime Frequencies' site includes some videos and more

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-76095535000038205632009-03-03T17:09:00.002-06:002009-03-03T17:15:30.389-06:00

Grandmaster Flash's new album is out and I haven't even gotten around to reading his autobiography yet. Which I really want to do but in the meantime I've been watching DJ videos at Fried My Little Brain. Here the X-Ecutioners take LL Cool J's olde schoolie hit and rip it to essentially one little bitty repeating shred.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-50675875361465979802009-03-03T09:47:00.005-06:002009-03-03T17:33:10.021-06:00

The recent "make your own album cover" game on Facebook, which uses the genius of randomness to put together an image, band name, and title, reminded me of Jackson Mac Low, one of my favorite poets. Mac Low was a big fan of digging up random information to create art. A friend of mine took a class with him (lucky!) and told me about the somewhat elaborate rules he'd give students to write a poem,

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-16384685521404129622009-02-27T11:50:00.009-06:002009-02-27T12:21:36.834-06:00

Probably the best thing about blogging about music is discovering other music blogs about music that are awe inspiring, like Spinning in Air. They're mostly into Brazilian music but also African stuff, like this post of a song by Osibisa, from Ghana.Their blog reminds me that we need to post more songs, and we need to visit blogs like Spinning in Air and Awesome Tapes From Africa more often.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-3518516453930015652009-02-26T00:12:00.002-06:002009-02-26T00:20:36.910-06:00

Most bleached blondes make me not want to be blonde at all. But Els Pynoo makes me want to go crispy white again. And Danny Mommens's artfully shredded shirt is actually quite practical concert wear. He won't get too sweaty with the air vents. What a hot couple! Am I talking too much about their looks? Everyone does. Even they do, on their official Web site, where their bio boasts, "Danny and Els

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-76754326552281744092009-02-15T20:46:00.004-06:002009-02-15T21:14:56.040-06:00

Santogold's MySpace has pulled down all its everything and there's a message saying go to Santigold, because she just changed the spelling of her name for legal reasons. Either way she sounds great and looks like a million bucks.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-56950989287803978162009-02-14T15:41:00.004-06:002009-02-14T16:18:35.169-06:00

I was talking to Kirsten, who just had a show at sister. She said she's really getting into The Chefs, and that Helen McCookerybook, who is (or is it was?) in the band, is also in Helen and the Horns. "Tell Annie! This is Annie music!" she enthused. Annie's in The Trusty Knife, and she made a nice video for the band's song It's All Built In. Annie's singing and musical sensibility is sort of like

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-44515510843299931152009-02-06T04:53:00.002-06:002009-02-06T05:05:19.704-06:00

Learn a thing or two about the zither from a very charming zither player, Lotte Landl. Visit her website here.

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-24985176035523053962009-02-05T20:27:00.006-06:002009-02-06T01:07:37.637-06:00

One thing that's interesting about Lux Interior's death is that when you skim through the various obits, no one seems to be in agreement on how old he was. Or even where he died. Since The Daily Swarm quotes The Cramps' reps Girlie Action, I tend to believe he died in California. Plus, he and Poison Ivy lived there, so that makes more sense than New York. But all the conflicting facts and figures

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-18069890849297411002009-01-29T01:33:00.000-06:002009-01-29T01:35:43.893-06:00

Bouncy keyboards, soaring synths, doodle-y bass, and lots of sound effects (sirens, menacing shouts) are the '80s remake of Hold up that Louis Chédid did of his own hit from 1974. In both versions he uses a woman's voice announcing the passing minutes on a loudspeaker to build suspense.The video for the 80s Hold up is a mini-film, with actor Claude Brasseur and singer/actor Alain Souchon starring

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-63208995134905667892009-01-29T00:07:00.003-06:002009-01-29T01:00:42.751-06:00

The lovely Ros Sereysothea comprises about half of the Cambodia Rocks compilation. That's not a complaint; her pinched singing style takes nasal to beyond-human levels that are fascinating. Southeast Asian ideal meets Western rock and roll. Pan Ron's got it, too, along with a prominent organ and a brief wah-wah guitar solo on Knyom Mun Sok Jet Te. There's one song by the obscure Liev Tuk (anyone

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-58421486146763384822009-01-25T14:52:00.006-06:002009-01-25T15:22:10.740-06:00

Eva wrote and told me that Manu Chao was on Austin City Limits on the 24th, i.e. yesterday. I missed it but found out the show is airing again this week on PBS. Whew.Apparently Manu Chao was on ACL in September, too.Mega-hit Bongo Bong from the insanely successful Clandestino is Manu Chao at his recycling best, reworking and incorporating the Mano Negra hit Je ne t'aime plus from years earlier

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-84821304486723301662009-01-23T02:36:00.003-06:002009-01-29T01:43:08.085-06:00

We've been toying with the idea of attending the "Festival Gnaoua" in Morocco this June. I was looking at some of the bands scheduled to play and found this live video of Saïd Outajajt.Along the way, I also found this video by Houssin amarrakchi:El houssine amarrakchi - awin lkhbarad gh dariUploaded by ouchrifBoth via amarrakchi-med.skyrock.com

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-29416984936167850862009-01-22T12:04:00.006-06:002009-01-22T17:15:36.244-06:00

Dua Kali Lima was Malaysian singer Anita Sarawak's first film. In this clip, Sarawak and Dewi Asiah gracefully sing and dance in the kitchen as they make dinner and set the table, occasionally placing bowls on each other's heads for fun. The domestic scene reminds me of both Yelle and Laurence and Hélène's videos for À cause des garçons.We wrote about French pop sensation Yelle last March, just

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-37819214532514091082009-01-19T01:22:00.003-06:002009-01-19T03:01:13.680-06:00

Here is a kuduro music video (hip hop from angola). All of the kuduro videos I've seen feature crazy dancing and this one is no exception. Also check out Sound of Kuduro which features M.I.A. and more great dancing.

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-65836056474118063152009-01-16T18:44:00.004-06:002009-01-16T18:58:06.137-06:00

The FADER has the Bangladesh – Passport Music Mixtape hosted by Don Cannon. It's so good we're taking a break from the Roy Haynes festival to listen and it's like we're now clubbing at the best scene ever in our minds. Producer Bangladesh also has the sleekest MySpace ever.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-33284808193779451312009-01-14T12:50:00.005-06:002009-01-14T13:04:29.338-06:00

Remember DJ Farraginous? Yes, that DJ Farraginous, the one we wrote about last July. He told us about WKCR's Roy Haynes festival. All Roy Haynes, all the time, until Friday, January 23rd at 9PM. We're listening during every waking minute. Right now they're playing some stuff he did with Art Blakey. Wow.The festival started last Sunday at 8AM, and is a chronological presentation of Roy Haynes's

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-57585532523285416672009-01-08T15:35:00.003-06:002009-01-08T15:43:21.924-06:00

Trained Cat pointed out that the music on M.I.A.'s Bird Flu Audition is Leftside and Esco on the Pitbull Riddim from a few years back.Here's their Wine Up Pon Her, from the same era. Nice arena concert backlighting and stunning grinds.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-13811077956598083572009-01-06T23:16:00.006-06:002009-01-08T15:45:13.704-06:00

Pumpuang Duangjan snaps photos of koi in the botanical gardens. She takes a break to sing in her inimitable voice. Why is this Buddhist wearing big cross earrings? Because they look good with her wavy mushroom cut hair. She sits cross-legged, the camera looking up at her from a lower spot on a hill. She stands and looks askance, her hair backlit by fuschia purple light.Back to photographing,

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-8737516318915362912008-12-30T04:31:00.002-06:002008-12-30T04:40:15.587-06:00

Here is a really amazing four legged dance from the auditions for M.I.A.'s "Bird Flu" video (which incidentally is also amazing). I'm not sure how this trick is done. I think there might be two people in there. The song is also pretty great.

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-5898912457671588842008-12-27T17:12:00.007-06:002009-01-02T20:19:28.651-06:00

News of Earth Kitt's death was all over the Internet this week. If you ever get the chance, read her autobiography, Thursday's Child, in which she details her incredible life from poor sharecropper to globetrotting modern dancer to slinky singer. In addition to playing Cat Woman, she voiced her disapproval of the Vietnam War while lunching at the White House with Ladybird Johnson. The Johnsons

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-472727786140001712008-12-27T16:01:00.007-06:002008-12-27T17:01:47.321-06:00

Chatri Sichon's "Chom Nang" is a really interesting Thai tape, posted at MonRakPlengThai. Apparently he was really into Indian film music and made this album which sounds exactly like an old Bollywood soundtrack except with Thai singing.Here's the first track. Download the album here.We love MonRakPlengThai. My only complaint, as a Mac user, is that everything is posted in .rar format. But, that

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-13651633406555522962008-12-19T05:07:00.005-06:002008-12-19T08:49:22.359-06:00

Here's a really great berber music video from morroco with excellent dancing. Watch the whole thing if you can. (Image is frozen at the beginnning, but don't fret)

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-3605550146169594292008-12-19T03:05:00.006-06:002008-12-19T03:24:39.410-06:00

This week I was hoping to hear something cool on The FADER. To no avail. Last week they sent me in Fat B's direction, but now nothing. Then I remembered that now and here is not where it's at. I went back to Marseille circa 2000 and was feeling it again.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-85041234436905003472008-12-18T18:42:00.008-06:002009-01-08T15:48:34.401-06:00

It's been a long time since this Gainsbourg Overdose thing started. So long, in fact, that the video that I linked to, Charlotte Forever, has been removed from the Korean site where I found it. But if you Google it you'll find this version, this version, and this version.Anyway, Gainsbourg liked doing duets, and he liked putting words in women's mouths, especially young women. Witness France Gall

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-51071456476373430472008-12-13T04:04:00.006-06:002008-12-13T04:42:22.147-06:00

A while back, I was turned on to these funny videos of well known musicians with imposter soundtracks. They are extremely entertaining. Until recently, they had been removed from youtube for copyright infringement, so I was surprised to see them resurface. Here is a video of Eric Clapton, but there are many more. Look for the videos with titles ending in "shreds".

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-84235471807550840502008-12-12T16:38:00.008-06:002008-12-19T03:30:55.306-06:00

It's so nice I posted it thrice. Definitely Bee Gees-esque but without the high-pitched squalling. Settle in and watch and I think you'll agree that each video has its own merits.In the first, the painfully sparkling sequins recall Jintara's temple fair video, with fast cuts at the end that might provoke a seizure.Next up, some nice restrained dance moves and crazy mirror action. What's better

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-71589444838873249652008-12-12T04:56:00.008-06:002008-12-12T10:24:12.527-06:00

Here's another really cool video from Mauritania. This one is old, I'm guessing from the seventies. It's shot in front of the "Banque Centrale Mauritanie", complete with shots of ladies counting money. The building looks really cool, too.

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-3945259042103428292008-12-11T23:00:00.006-06:002008-12-19T03:16:11.154-06:00

Awesome Tapes from Africa is still amazing. But now we've discovered MONRAKPLENGTHAI which is ยอดเยี่ยมเลย It's like a Thai version of Awesome. So many ลูกทุ่ง (luk thung) cassettes! So little time! The most recent posting is on ไวพจน์ เพชรสุพรรณ (Waiphot Phetsuphan). Here's a video of his, which is very Thai traditional, which means it's awesome, too, even though it's a sad guilt trip

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-37176103065187458442008-12-09T20:35:00.002-06:002008-12-19T03:16:29.802-06:00

This is one of my favorite YouTube videos. It is a Mauritanian guitarist playing a quarter-tone guitar. I don't really know anything about it, but it sounds and looks pretty amazing. If you look at related videos, you'll find some other gems, including Mauritania Didi, another favorite of mine.

Didierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04901489655315041097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-70918692804293004332008-12-07T21:06:00.004-06:002008-12-07T21:32:28.789-06:00

Lavomatik Session - GuemUploaded by imuzzikThe I-Muzzik's Lavomatik Sessions are unplugged concerts of musicians in laundromats, in Paris. Most of the bands are not my cup of tea, and there's really only so much strumming on the acoustic I can take (which is not very much). But watching Guem play the darbouka is pretty mesmerizing. He's mind-blowingly good, and the acoustics of the space really

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-74331291790464336592008-12-07T16:40:00.007-06:002008-12-19T03:18:11.204-06:00

The bassoon and flute player for The Trusty Knife, Annie Killelea, is also an amazing filmmaker, and she made a video for the band's "It's All Built In" this past summer. But calling it a video seems like a misnomer since it was shot on 16mm film. The French term clip seems more suitable. Scopitone pioneered clips in the 1960s. France Gall's "Laisse tomber les filles" with the singer's

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-86441754080402218142008-12-03T22:28:00.001-06:002008-12-19T03:18:34.102-06:00

Back in August we gave our favorites from Fat Lace's Top 10 of 2008 (so far) - what we construed to be a hip-hop crème de la crème. Atlanta hip-hop upstart B.o.B's Fuck You was one of the goodies.Fuck You (Ft. Lil Boosie & DG Yola) - B.O.BThere's a new mix of it on Who the F#*k Is B.o.B, which you should go download at his MySpace. While you're unzipping it you can watch his smoker's anthem from

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-37849150281714129112008-11-25T11:02:00.002-06:002008-12-19T03:20:15.130-06:00

This was found on natesterx's playlist of songs and old clips from movies at YouTube. The scratchiness and low quality only add to the ethereal dreaminess. Singer Keo Montha styles a great snakeskin-like shirt, and enjoying the dialog at the end is in no way hindered by not understanding Khmer.Someone in the comments section gives the Keo Montha's full name as Kan Manina Kirivath or Sambath

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-52141242160442292552008-11-19T16:29:00.003-06:002008-12-19T03:20:40.646-06:00

Marcia Baila was Les Rita Mitsouko's first hit and proved to be the theme song to a generation of Frenchie party people. If ever there was a song made for the dance floors of gai Paris, this is one. Theatrical fun and double-edged sadness: it's an homage to dancer Marcia Moretto, who died of cancer in her early 30s, and it precedes the impending AIDS crisis.A young, not-yet-famous Jean-Paul

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-17730871034254449342008-11-10T21:03:00.000-06:002008-11-18T10:36:11.574-06:00

It had been raining for days in Spain, and one afternoon in Barcelona to avoid the downpour we stopped at a CD/DVD shop in a metro station. It reminded me of the Latino record store that used to be in the subway station at Times Square, except this place didn't have vinyl or the intimate atmosphere. Both of which admittedly count for a lot.But there were some cool CDs at this place if you dug

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-48266449445017270152008-10-07T00:45:00.003-05:002008-12-19T03:21:40.852-06:00

Stripped-down, slow-rolling beats meet Roxzi and Symphony's sweet, husky voices and they sound like tough nineteen-year-olds who know exactly what they're doing and will stay that way forever. Witness Get Em' Mamis' freestyle homages to old school mamas: Salt-n-Pepa, with "Push It 2008" or a cover of the idiotic yet charming "Cars That Go Boom". Or early Madonna hits. The Get Em' Mamis have been

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-25253315689962032622008-10-04T22:42:00.001-05:002008-12-07T19:58:49.426-06:00

Mozambican Portuguese.The posturing intro with her posse that screeches to a halt and cuts to a spaghetti-western opener with Dama strutting alone across the African veldt.Snake cuddling and feather boas.The suit that guy who flings his arms around is wearing.Simple, low-budget beats that nearly drown her out.Her writhing.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-92143056267103430192008-09-29T19:14:00.002-05:002008-12-19T03:22:36.826-06:00

Among the 2008 MacArthur Fellows are Milwaukee's urban farmer Will Allen, who started the visionary Growing Power, and The New Yorker's music critic Alex Ross. Ross knows both classical classical and contemporary classical music really well. It sounds trite saying that. But he knows and loves the music more than just about anyone on the planet. And he's a great writer.The music above is an

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-77991872010422001112008-09-10T21:43:00.003-05:002008-12-19T03:23:30.890-06:00

During the long hiatus since my last post, I've been listening to Yusef Lateef's Eastern Sounds. Actually, I was listening to it a lot before that, too, and so were my roommates. "The Plum Blossom", the first track on the album, really sucks you in. Lateef plays a clay Chinese flute he bought in Chinatown. The song is awkward because the flute is quiet and breathy, but it's also obviously the

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-10849993615463198772008-08-26T22:21:00.001-05:002008-12-07T20:32:12.368-06:00

Cherrelle's really-wanna-hook-back-up-with-you "Saturday Love" featuring Alexander O'Neal has been transformed into the make-money-money "Saturday Night Hustle" by Ghanaian-Brit star Sway, with help from Lemar. Watch the videos below and compare.Everyone involved has great hair - OK, maybe not Alexander O'Neal. He's wearing a nice two-tone puffy jacket to make up for it. But Cherrelle's original

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-15744239600756816952008-08-22T09:19:00.000-05:002008-08-22T10:04:41.328-05:00

Brilliantly blurred shots and lurid colors make you feel like you've had a few too many Sang Som and sodas at the festival and started crying - maybe for joy, maybe not. Elaborate synthesizer doodling battles with Jintara's ever-adolescent voice for your aural attention. As Jintara sings, the dancers in traditional garb quickly replicate from one shot to the next: four, twenty, and suddenly

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-50368927429400291602008-08-09T18:13:00.001-05:002008-12-08T11:32:09.658-06:00

So much has been written about Serge Gainsbourg, why continue adding to the enormous heap? Because like Paris, where he lived, or Marilyn Monroe, whose photographic likeness hung in his hallways, Gainsbourg becomes more worth writing about the more he's written about.But what's worth reading? Here's a list of some online goodies:Life Stinks is a review of novels by Boris Vian and Serge Gainsbourg

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-47729963689440518112008-08-02T10:34:00.001-05:002008-08-05T16:38:24.553-05:00

How many times have you heard that hip-hop is dead? The most recently famous version would be Ice-T's crotchety assertion that Soulja Boy killed hip-hop. What began as an attempt at self-PR for an upcoming album turned into the dorkiest battle hip-hop has ever seen.Overall hip-hop is admittedly not half as exciting as it once was. But listen to the ten tracks at Fat Lace Magazine's "Below The

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-74085888040170010122008-08-01T23:47:00.000-05:002008-08-26T22:20:28.963-05:00

This week Music Thing featured a trailer from Take Me Away Fast, the upcoming documentary about German DJ/record collector/musicologist Frank. He just finished three years of digging for vinyl in West Africa. But he wasn't buying just anything old: Frank tells a DJ during a radio interview, "I'm not looking for high-life, or rumba, or cha-cha..."He was looking for Afro-funk. He's got tons of

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-39253288166633648232008-07-22T18:18:00.000-05:002008-07-22T18:41:33.483-05:00

These days it seems like everyone is going through their record collection and writing about it. Well, maybe not everyone. Just Ray Speen and The Onion's Noel Murray. Murray has allotted himself one year for the project - and this is Week 29 - while Speen is taking a more leisurely approach. He started back in November, 2006 with a review of the B-52's first album.But if Speen started that long

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-89604850307276424082008-07-21T21:45:00.000-05:002008-07-22T18:42:36.612-05:00

In addition to her inimitable warble, Cuban sixties' singer La Lupe knew how to wear a gold lamé anything. Even though she died in '92, Lupe Victoria Yoli's MySpace, a jumbled tribute with album covers, videos, and song after song, helps keep her memory alive. There's La Lupe in a pale blue chiffon cocktail dress, with Mongo Santamaría playing his conga behind her. And an ecstatic La Lupe with

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-48329665864965553172008-07-05T21:26:00.000-05:002008-07-05T23:06:51.157-05:00

One of the many tragedies of the Khmer Rouge regime was the destruction of an incredible, swinging music scene in Cambodia. But Cambodia wasn't the only country to take early '60s western rock music and make it sensational by incorporating its own delectable homegrown sound. Thailand did, too. A friend of ours recently gave us a copy of "Shadow Music of Thailand" and we're now happily playing

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-87009481939878754502008-07-01T23:47:00.000-05:002008-08-09T18:13:31.158-05:00

Essai sur la naissance d'une chanson, Yves Lefebvre, director, 1968This intimate, short documentary is a compressed start-to-finish making of "Initials B.B." It would be beautiful even if the song weren't a mega-success, with its smoky atmosphere and shots of serious thinking and creativity. But those close, close-ups of the thinky guy are Serge Gainsbourg, so the film, although nice to look at

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-34666280941692576222008-06-26T15:20:00.000-05:002008-06-26T15:27:34.162-05:00

Did you miss the post on Umm Kulthum? Just scroll down a bit for a mini-profile on her.

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-84592616229613492232008-06-19T00:06:00.000-05:002008-08-05T16:43:46.393-05:00

Most people will say Cheb Khaled if asked to name a raï musician, because he's old school raï pop and became a mega-crossover star in '93 with N'ssi N'ssi, which was partly produced by Don Was. Anyway, he made about a kajillion other cassettes and albums besides that one.Lesser known outside of the raï world but one of the most important founders of it as a modern form, Cheika Remitti could

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-55331974371084591992008-06-16T23:08:00.000-05:002008-06-26T15:32:09.863-05:00

NME reports that fans pitched a fit at Bonnaroo because Kanye West came on two hours late. The music mag says there were delays setting up the stage after Pearl Jam, who were an hour late themselves. Whatever the reason, the irked concert-goers should take a chill pill and go read West's blog, which is sci-fi designerific and on the phreaky edge of cutting. New York's Vulture knows it: they

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-61365655833389984992008-06-10T03:05:00.000-05:002008-06-26T15:16:42.619-05:00

The list of possible transliterations of her name is long, but doesn't even approach the scope of her influence in the Arab world. Born at the turn of the twentieth century, Kulthum's powerful voice made her famous fast, even though her protective dad had her dress like a boy in the early days of her career.In 1997 Michal Goldman made a nice documentary about mega-star Kulthum called Umm Kulthum,

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-9930583473795549012008-06-09T18:34:00.000-05:002008-06-26T15:31:17.498-05:00

Texas juke joint rocker Wayne "The Train" Hancock got hitched this past weekend - on stage, in Hollywood. Since he's known for his incredible live shows and heavy touring, it only made sense to tie the knot between sets. His lovely bride Gina does the booking for his band now, which seems like a great solution for a musician who will play a dozen shows in the next three weeks, and averages 200

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-105746319984255542008-06-02T23:21:00.000-05:002008-06-02T23:54:04.578-05:00

Caporal Nigga ft. Fearsa & Santor - Pure CombinaisonUploaded by elmokozoThis is from dancehall hip-hop sensation Caporal Nigga's last net-tape Cocktail Explosif, which can be downloaded at his site. His next release and his "first official full-length," Malade Mental, comes out next week. Listen to a track from it, and then click on his bio and go crazy wanting those mix tapes he's on. Or if

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-53183692362757154432008-05-30T16:19:00.001-05:002008-08-08T21:04:10.906-05:00

The first installment in an inevitable, irresistible series comes thanks to a Serge Gainsbourg page at the Korean music site Mupot.kr, with the freaky Freudian "Charlotte for ever" playing. The clip is from the 1986 film of the same name, which was written and directed by Gainsbarre and starred a scruffy old him alongside his lovely daughter. Late Gainsbourg at his sleazy best, singing another

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-41514244437595234692008-05-29T14:35:00.000-05:002008-06-19T23:33:46.968-05:00

The man who transformed the turntable into a musical instrument has written a memoir due out June 10th. The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash: My Life, My Beats is described as a "no-holds-barred" account of his life. It was co-authored by David Ritz, who has written biographies of Marvin Gaye and Ray Charles.Grandmaster Flash has been called a pioneer scores of times. How else to say it? The man

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4689945121721536408.post-71782114595953223092008-05-20T14:32:00.000-05:002008-07-26T17:21:52.709-05:00

Go to roctober.com and you'll be greeted by three separate projects: the music 'zine Roctober Magazine, the TV dance party show Chic-A-Go-Go, and the masked rock band the Goblins.The online Roctober Magazine has archives of its print editions back to 1992 when it began, with at least one article per issue available to read. There is also the Hall of Dynamic Greatness section, with a collection of

Kiki Eleanorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13998896491839873249noreply@blogger.com