Skateboard P

Gotta love P singing the old 80's McDonalds commercial tune.

Pomegranates.

I don't recall posting about these young chaps hailing from Cincinnati, Ohio, but if I did who gives a shit. The Pomegranates are that good. Funny story. I have actually bought their first full length album 2 or 3 times now because it mysteriously disappeared off my computer multiple times. That's what I get for buying music on iTunes. But I have an external hard drive now. It's quite large and can hold all my beautiful ear whisperers just like Noah's Ark held beautiful animals of all walks. Wow what a terrible metaphor, but I do this in life all the time so why try and come up with awesome ones for the blog. Well my ADD has led me astray, but lets stay the course, 1,000 points of light (I think my roommate might be the only person that truly appreciates that joke). Exibit A, the feature film, disney on ice.... 'Everybody, Come Outside!' is the Pomegrantes second full length release and it truly rocks the party. The first 2 seconds (it's a crazy little fluttering guitar bit) of the first track "Corriander" can pretty much sum up Pomegranates in a nut shell. They use their guitars in a very disticnt way, which easily distiguishes Pomegranates from others, but their vocals are equally effective at this. The rest of the album does not disappoint. Each track makes its own mark and they transition nicely together to make one beautiful cohesive album. Personally I think the album is good enough to listen to straight through every time. However, there are stand out tracks. "Sleepover," "Svaatzi Uutsi" and "Jerusalem Has A Bad Day" are all excellent, but like I said earlier the whole album is terrific so don't just settle for these. Develop your own favorites. These are mine damnit. Jk, I'm just funin'.

By the way. Their album isn't supposed to come out until April 14th. They have made it available for purchase digitally though! So go buy it right now. Plus the play right here in Minneapolis on April 19th at First Ave. 7th Street Entry with Wye Oak. Don't miss it. I hear their live show is fantastic.

Be sure to check out their myspace

Here's a track off their debut album 'Everything Is Alive." It's called "Whom/Who."

J. Period Mixtape - Q Tip.

Yo! Go download this mixtape. It's free and fresh. I just gave it a full listen through. Tip actually shares some really cool stories throughout the mixtape that give some really cool insight on Tribe, hip hop, and influences.

Click here for the download.

Kanye + Complex = The New Standard.

So as you may have heard by now Kanye is on the cover of Complex magazine. It might be one of the craziest covers I've ever seen and is definitely one of the most innovative. Apparently they use these crazy laser scan and super rad cameras to get a 3D scan of his body and then the end product you see is all compute graphics or something like that. Anyways the video below does a much better job at describing the technical details that went into developing the cover and all of the other photos. Also, this is another chance for you to better understand where Ye is coming from. He has some cool things to say. I learned a bit. Enjoy...

Kanye @ SXSW.

Like I said, Kanye was going to make an appearance at SXSW. That's exactly what happened. Kid KuDi was doing his set at Levi's Fort Fader with Ye making an appearance for G.O.O.D. Music.

View it here.

I never said that it would be a great performance, it's just proof that he was there.

Lookbook.

Lookbook = my new current obsession. Well maybe not entirely obsessed, but for sure one of the songs, 'Believe the Hype.' Lookbook is a two piece band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. They are both formaly members of the band Digitata, which you may or not be familiar with. For one reason or another the band split and the remaining two members formed Lookbook. They actually played a show at 7th street entry the other night before leaving for SXSW. I missed it. Not smile times, but if it is anything like the Digitata shows used to be I'm sure it was stellar. Anywhoooo, go to their myspace and check out the song 'Believe the Hype' first, you'll be hooked. This is pretty cliche of me, but if you were driving someplace desolate during the night this might be one of the best songs to fire up. I just recently purchased their 7 song album, which is solid, but no song comes close to topping 'Believe the Hype.' Lookbook is the Minneapolis underground music scene at its best and I hope they kill it at SXSW. I thought Digitata deserved my press than they got so hopefully they'll pull a Bon Iver and blow the doors off the bitch. A little side note - Maggie Morrison, the vocalist in Lookbook, is from Eau Claire and is friends with Justin Vernon of Bon Iver. So the idea of Lookbook rackin' up some spins nationally is a very realistic possibility.

Lookbook

La Blogotheque.

La Blogotheque is somewhat of a mystery to me. Being from France much of their information is in french. This presents a bit of an obstacle when trying to figure out adequate information. One thing can be determined. Their 'A Take Away Show' segment is unbelievable. It's the mecca of live indie music performances. Not only do they take the bands out on the streets of Paris, they mic them up so the sound quality is studio-like. Below is a few of my favorite performaces so far. The bands they have worked with so far is in the range of 70 - 90, so I haven't come close to seeing them all. I've just watched the bands that I've heard of so far. Below are a few of them that I enjoyed (Noah and the Whale, Fleet Foxes, and The National), but don't let it limit you. Check out their blog yourself at the jump.

La Blogotheque

#91.2 Noah and the Whale - Episode 2
by lablogotheque

Fleet Foxes - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

#40.4 - THE NATIONAL -Ada
by lablogotheque

I gotta go...Holy Balls!

I snagged this from the bbc blog. I don't think I'd have a hard time peeing in this bathroom. Quite scary.

Kanye West to Perform at SXSW.

I'm going to go ahead and break this story before those dickbags at pitchfork. Ye is going to be performing at SXSW. Don't ask me how I know, I just do. Of course this isn't official yet, but do I really need to lie to you? SXSW is taking place next week so keep your eyes out for some youtube footage. In case you didn't know what SXSW is, I believe it's the biggest music festival in the US and if I'm not mistaken, the world. It takes place in Austin, Texas and apparently is a killer time. I'll go some day.

Are You Ready??????

I promised happy posts. This one's going to flood. I'm so happy right now I can barely stand the amount of time it's going to take me to write up this post. You know that your mind can think at more than double or maybe even triple the speed at which you can talk or write or type for that matter. I want that kind of speed damnit. So lets get to the content. Drumroll..........White Lies. Yes, that's the name of the band you HAVE to check out. So I heard about them from my favorite music publication, Clash Magazine out of the UK. I proceeded to check out their myspace, which by the way has one of the coolest layouts i've seen in a while. So what's so cool about this band? Well lets just say that I knew I was in love with this band a mere 4 seconds into the first track I listened to, 'Farewell to the Fairground.' Apparently these guys are just the beans across the pond (yes we can refer to Europe this way as well. suck it) and are expected to be considered for album of the year. Probably not by the big music industry wangs, but most certainly respectable publications such as Clash. Now as I'm writing this I've only listened to about three of their tracks so far. The best of them all so far is 'Farewell to the Fairground' the track that sucked me in. I'd post the video for it but they have disabled the embedding. Kind of shitty. Instead, I'll throw down the url for your convenience. Well I think I've blabbed enough. Just check them out. If your ears work properly you should hopefully agree that they aren't terrible.

Farewell to the Fairground - Watch it in HD fools.

Digital Divide.

I last talked about the problem of internet addiction. That might seem a little more relatable than the next issue of the digital divide. The digital divide is defined as the gap between those who have access to information and communication technologies and those who don't. This is especially prominent in Africa, which in some parts remain decades behind the rest of the world in the digital frontier. To think that somebody cannot stroll over to their local coffee shop and pick up a wifi connection with their laptop seems pretty bizarre, but yes, there are places that do not have the internet, like Africa.

Many people have have identified this as a major issue, which it is. In order for us to help less fortunate nations technology is a necessity. Technology is so crucial because it is our most legitimate shot at being able to educate a population, especially while they are young. There are companies and individuals that are devoting their lives to this cause like One Laptop Per Child (OLPC). Their mission is by through donations they will be able to provide one laptop per child in Africa in order to give them the tools and skills (especially education) they need to succeed around the world. Below you can view a video that will better articulate their message in an animated video!

You may think that the digital divide is only an issue in Africa, but it is more than likely happening in your own community. In a country where more and more information and services are being merged onto the web the demand to get everyone synced in very large. Minorities tend to be most effected by the digital divide and in order for us to be united as a nation we need to come up with a solution to get everyone on the internet that wants to be.

612 Clothing.

Time to rant again. 612 Clothing, what a joke. From my understanding they are kind of a big deal around here in Minneapolis for no good reason. Probably the least innovative shit I've seen in a long time. Here's an idea, lets call our company 612 because its our area code so we can represent son! Really? First off it's just a horrible business strategy. Who is going to want to represent 612 or a minneapolis skyline on their shirt ANYWHERE OTHER THAN MINNEAPOLIS. Way to limit your demographic. If you want to be taken seriously as clothing designers, which I hope is your goal, change your company name and stop putting Minneapolis landmarks on your T-shirts.
Sorry if I offended anybody. It's just that these are no better than tourist shirts that end up becoming your painters T's after a month. Check it out for yourself at the jump. Feel free to disagree. I may be completely off, but I doubt it.

612 Clothing

Again, sorry the posts have been a little angry. I haven't been in a good mood lately. Happy posts are on the way. New band BLK JKS from South Africa. Yay!

Internet Addiction.

Internet addictions is apparently something that has become a problem, especially in China. Having the most Internet users out of any country in the world (290 million) is a big reason why. 4 to 6 percent of the population is estimated to be addicts and more than 13 percent of them are college students. In order to qualify as an "addict," as a college student you need to spend over 6 hours online doing non-school related activities. Hard feat... There are even adults that are addicted to the internet China, which is mainly because of online gaming like "Audition." It's an online dancing game for those of you who weren't aware. One lady apparently accrued 68 internet husbands. Malarkey I say! Now for my thoughts on the matter.

My initial thoughts about internet addiction is that it's about as real as unicorns, but after thinking about it critically I take back my quick conclusion. After reading about this article I don't deny that it's a real issue. I just find it hard to understand how somebody could let it go far enough to take over their social life. Personally I think that I'm probably addicted to the internet. However, I use it for vastly different purposes than the example group in the article based out of the internet addiction rehab center in China. For instance, I like to think that the main reason I utilize the internet is for information. Not that I don't use it for recreation (i.e. I don't have cable tv so I watch a lot of my favorite shows on Hulu), I just like to think that I wouldn't use the internet nearly as much if it wasn't a good opportunity to heighten my knowledge on a vast rage of topics. Because after all, people keep saying knowledge is power, right? Plus my personal belief is that if you don't stay up on your internet, your going to suffer socially. Keeping your internet hours up heightens your exposure to all sorts of things which allows you to be well rounded is all sorts of social scenes. I'm a big music head so the net is super awesome to help feed that addiction in my life. Also, by using the internet regularly you won't become an expert at everything, but I think it gives you enough knowledge or knowhow to at least mesh into almost any social situation, granted your viewing the right information online. It's just like reading a newspaper, but the information comes at you in a little more of a disorganized fashion and there is more of it.

While I might not think I'm completely addicted to the internet I do understand peoples addition to online gaming, because I was at one point myself. Not to computer games, but to Halo for the Xbox. My freshman year in college it pretty much ran my life. I spent hours playing online with my friends in the dorm and on Xbox Live. It hurt my social life and my grades. I've since quit, but it has allowed me to recognize this as a real problem for other individuals. I think that these internet rehab centers are a good thing and have the potential to help a lot of people ease their internet addiction.

Rad, but sad.

This video is crazy. It's about a man who builds an entirely virtual and holographic world: he undertakes the construction of a monument for the woman whom he loves. One day of turning and 2 years of post-production.


World Builder from Bruce Branit on Vimeo.

Kid Cudi - "Sky Might Fall"

Mykonos

Great song/video from a great band. They're Fleet Foxes if you didn't know already.


Mykonos from Grandchildren on Vimeo.

Art Snobs.

I recently wandered over to the Walker Art Center here in Minneapolis, Minnesota and gazed at the exhibits, one being a gallery featuring artist, Elizabeth Peyton. I had never seen any of here work before, but it was pretty cold. I liked what I saw. I might not be able to interpret the art for the depth or meaning it was intended to have like most of the art crowd think they can, but I'm confident I can appreciate good art when I see it, no matter its original intentions. That being said, I'd like to go on a bit of a rant. Hang on children.

I'll start off by saying that I had never been to the Walker before, which weakens my leverage on the matter. However, I think it's applicable to other experiences I've had viewing art in public. The thing that ticks me off is the people who enjoy art, fine art in particular. This is a bit stereotypical of me and I don't normally judge people, but my instincts lead me to believe the following words. I don't enjoy dirty looks from snobby people. Now not everybody at the Walker last night was snobby, there were just a handful that I drained through my social sieve. My problem is that these people ruin the mood for everybody involved. You don't have to look sophisticated to enjoy art and you especially don't have to be some giant critical dick while you observe it. These are peoples most intimate, vulnerable expressions of themselves, and because of that I believe all art is magnificent. Obviously some artists are able to articulate better than others, that's why we've installed such institutions like the Walker, but it doesn't make some art better than others. So, all of those who aren't going to read this, lighten up. Art is for everybody, not just those who criticize it for fun and look down on kids for wearing a sweatshirt a size to small and tattered vans ((id est (i.e.) my wardrobe last night)).

The moral of the post. Don't be a prick. It doesn't take much effort and in the process, you'll make the world a little more pleasant.

Slow Jammin' The News.

So I fell asleep before the first Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, which I'm irate about, but if this clip is a sign of what's to come then I'm totally on board. Why can't we always slow jam the news?

Kanye On VH1 Story Tellers.

So if you didn't check out Vh1 storytellers with Kanye you missed out big time. He ended up playing 10 songs, which were extended in most cases. In every case the song was tweaked and completely original, meaning better! I don't normally give songs like 'Heartless' and 'Love Lockdown' much spin, but these versions were exceptional, especially 'Love Lockdown." Oh, and the stage was crazy amazing.

Now I feel it's necessary for me to share a couple of words about Ye himself. Ever since I saw his glow in the dark tour (9th Row!) its been really easy for me to be a Kanye hater. Especially after he concluded the show with a 20 minute rant about how he was going to be the best musician to ever live. Then, leading up to the release of '808's and Heartbreak,' this was another golden opportunity to reinforce my 'hater status' because of the use of auto-tone, but a little piece inside of me was super curious of the new album. I ended up getting it, and was surprisingly, very impressed with Ye's latest release. Because of all this I've come to peace with my Jonners Kanye relationship. I've realized that it is so easy to be a Kanye hater, but if you look past egoism and the George Bush comment (hahahaha), there is so much more about Kanye that you can benefit from. Vh1 Storytellers is a prime example. Ye keeps on pushing the envelope and the artist around him to make better music. With all that being said I'll leave you with yet another controversial quote from Mr. West.

"My biggest pain in life is that I'll never get to see me perform live."

One could chose to view this as egotistical, but I'm going to chose to interpret it as Kanye wishing he could see somebody perform that poured as much heart and soul into the music that they create. This is very evident on his new album and on Vh1 Storytellers. Kanye is human just like everybody else and has gone through a heartbreaking 2008. So embrace the man because he is going to be around as long as he wants to keep making music.

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

Shoegazin.

Here are a couple of songs I shoegaze to. I was pleaseantly surprised when I saw these videos this morning. First one is M83 "We Own The Sky" followed by "What Else Is There?" by Royksopp. Enjoi dudes, I sure did.

Royksopp Myspace
M83 Myspace


M83 We Own The Sky Music Video by Dax Norman from dax norman on Vimeo.


What Else Is There? from Röyksopp on Vimeo.