Water Curses/Enjoyed

Long time no post eh? Here's some sweet songs I've had on repeat the post few weeks. Final Fantasy and Grizzly Bear's Ed Droste cover my favorite Bjork track Possibly Maybe and do an amazing job of it while No Age takes a stab at Bjork's It's Oh So Quiet. There's a whole tribute album called enjoyed out for her big hit, way back in the day, Post that's got a superb line up also including Evangelicals, Xiu Xiu, Dirty Projectors, Liars(!), Atlas Sound and some other good acts. You can find it over at stereogum if you so please. I've listened to the title track of Animal Collective's forthcoming EP on almost repeat walking to school everyday. The EP is coming out pretty soon, and here are my two favorites. It's been a while but enjoy(ed)!.

6 for kicks/buddha machine

I found my first step to tedlightenment yesterday in the form of a crude fm radio called the Buddha machine. This enigmatic plastic device contains 6 ambient loops that can be changed with a black dial- very mesmerizing. The fact that Daniel Day-Lewis is possibly the greatest actor of our time was concreted yesterday after witnessing the greatness that is There Will Be Blood. Anyways, these songs have kept me strumming along- enjoy:

Sorry for the lack of posts recently, our time has been elsewhere. In the near future we will be changing a lot of this blog, turning it into a "fraternity" of LC musicians and exciting people. So don't give up on the blog just yet.

Thanks

Happy New Year

Welcome to 2008.

Mac got a sampler and that is way fun, sorry for lack of posts.

The Biggest Badass

I would like to point everyones attention toward a very good friend and teacher of mine, Mario Cipollina. He is the former bassist of Huey Lewis and the News and has been in various other bands recently but is working on his solo bass album. Mario has been immersed in music all his life, with his mother refusing to let him play in one of his brothers, Johnny Cipollina (of Quicksilver Messenger Service) growing band. He recently finished his website, www.mariocipollina.com
His website includes some samples of his soon (hopefully) to be released solo album and also some videos. This post is titled The Biggest Badass because honestly, Mario is one big badass, sporting a leather suit, slicked back hair, shades, and a cigarette for every performance. If you don't believe me, just watch the video below.

Newspapers+ More at the Interstate/Brass Monkey + Winter Relocation

Last Saturday the Newspapers played at the Brass Monkey (or is it the Interstate?) along with a couple of other bands.

First off was Please Step Out of the Vehicle, a fun little poppish/almost ska-ish (without the horns etc) band that played fun pop songs to move your ass to. Their myspace says they're a psychedelic pop group, but the pop was way more apparent than the psychedelia. They had a strong political slant, which was refreshing to see in a small band like them.

Next up was Sukey Tawdry, a great synth-pop, riot grrl-esque band. I know its lame, but the fact that the guitarist + bassist were girls just made me think of girl bands to compare them to, so here we go! I felt a strong Stereolab vibe coming with the soft vocals and synths, but the strong rhythm section rose above Stereolab's straight-forward 1-2 beats. They had a great dynamic, building swelling soundscapes with the voice and synth, and then rocking out straight-ahead with the six string. They're playing a show at Backspace, where the Pony caught The Thermals & Yacht a few weeks ago, on January 17th. I would go see them, not only are they a great band but Backspace is a fun place to go, but I'm going to be out of town(more on that later). I recommend seeing these guys live, real firecrackers. Also, they are mighty fine girls.

Then Pony-faves The Newspapers took the stage, playing their usual amazing pop-punk-dance-funk-ass-fuck that got the crowd to moving. I was impressed by the fact there was a gaggle of high-school looking girls jumping and singing along with every single line of each song. Sorry, guys, I took pictures, but like an idiot(again), I left my camera in Portland with the memory card inside. Well, I guess there will be a post-Christmas present waiting for you readers at the end of January.

Although I didn't see Reporter, I heard they were flat out amazing, and now that I'm listening to their myspace page, I'm wishing I hadn't left. Goddamn bus leaving so early. They opened for The Thermals on tour earlier this year. Mark your calendars, they're playing January 21st at The Tube and the 31st at Holocene. I'll try and squeeze a full live review of them out of John, who was there.


Please Step Out of the Vehicle
Sukey Tawdry
The Newspapers
Reporter

ALSO:

Dear Portland, we will miss you. For the next month the Pony will be relocated to the beautiful Bay Area, which I can't say is better than the PDX but is amazing in its own way. We've got year-end lists comin' atcha, to pass the time, and a New-Years planner for any Yay-Area Pomegranates looking for something to do.

TT2: Muslces, The Avlanches, Diplo

Contrary to popular belief, Australia has some awesome music acts. Lets take the recent hit by the newly established electronic Muscles- Guns Babes and Lemonade. I really can't say enough about this album. It is sure to a) make you happy b) make you dance and there's nothing wrong with that. Another group hailing from Melbourne that has an incredible, and incredibly overlooked, debut record is The Avalanches. Since I Left You is comprised of thousands of record and movie samples. The album hit at the dawn of the willennium, but I think most need to take a step back and appreciate this fantastic pieces of work. Last up is the dj god Diplo. He has collaborated with artists, namely M.I.A., all across the globe and has a plethora of stunning mash-ups and dance sets. I'll possibly post some of his more lengthy efforts in the future, but in the mean time here are two superb mixes of the Black Lips and Peter Bjorn and John. I just broke my toe, so I can't dance, so dance for me please-Enjoy: