Do you ever just have one of those days? Or, as in my case, a solid 20 of them in a row? Take 2 Psapp videos and call me in the morning. I dare you to not smile at the bleeps and bloops.
-Melanie Donnelly
How’s this for nerdcore? At the request of NASA, London-based rapper the Metro recently recorded a track devoted entirely to astrobiology, in order to make the tricky subject more easy to understand. So how’d it feel to be essentially dubbed the nerdiest rapper in the land? “Being commissioned by NASA to produce the ‘Astrology Rap’ was a great compliment,” says Metro.
Check out the video below. I can’t help but think that this is something my best friend and I could have cooked up in our youth (she’s literally an astrophysics genius; I’m a nerdcore rap alum).
- Melanie Donnelly
While I don’t mean to inundate you with posts about Basement Jaxx, I just read on Pitchfork that the duo has posted a newish track, “My Turn,” for stream on their MySpace page, and it’s a lovely one–I’ve had it on repeat for about 30 minutes. Think Bjork strings, acoustic guitar, and Devonte Hynes of Lightspeed singing wistfully over some crunchy beats. What could be better?
The song was released on last month’s EP, Planet 1, which is available in the UK on vinyl, via XL. For those of you who can’t be bothered with MySpace pages (I’m one of you!), there’s a YouTube embed above.
The bouncy synth line on this song is probably what spurred my love of Moogs back in the day. Bonus points for a hilariously stark video, too.
-Melanie Donnelly
Bryn Christopher’s debut video landed in my inbox the other day, and it’s worth a watch. The British singer’s got a sick voice, for sure–he opened for Amy Winehouse on her last tour, and “The Quest” is already being used in promo spots for Grey’s Anatomy. Bryn’s debut album, My World, is due out on September 16th, and if you’re interested in catching him live stateside, he’s got two U.S. dates slated for September, hitting the Viper Room in Los Angeles on the 22nd and Joe’s Pub in New York on the 24th.
And, because I’m a sucker for any kind of insight into the production process, get a peek behind the scenes of The Quest after the jump (my favorite part is the PAs furiously puffing cigarette smoke around ).
-Melanie Donnelly
Well, that was quick. A mere 73 days after basically announcing her retirement at Bonnaroo Music Festival, cult Brit/Sri Lankan M.I.A. told Entertainment Weekly that she’ll be working on a new record soon. What caused the change of heart? M.I.A.’s song “Paper Planes,” from her 2007 record Kala, has had a huge spike in popularity after being featured in the stoner flick Pineapple Express‘ trailer. Here’s what she had to say to EW:
When you performed at Bonnaroo this year, you said it was going to be your last ever show. Did you mean it?
Well, it was my last ever show. And it still is. I stopped touring after that and I didn’t want to make music again. I was quite happy to just leave it all behind. I was happy with what I had achieved. Now, with the success of “Paper Planes,” there’s pull for me to make another record. Even my mum believes in me more [laughs]. It’s a nice encouragement. But I was planning my life as a fishing woman on the outskirts of Cambodia. That’s a joke.
-Melanie Donnelly
Geez, Kanye seems to have his music video cannon set to rapid fire. After releasing his Olympic-themed video just two weeks ago, he’s out with a new clip for Good Morning, which is a sweet little anime video featuring furry creatures and a hover Delorian. Good times.
-Melanie Donnelly
Netmix Global House Podcast
We’re back with a new podcast, Global House Sessions - August 2008. All tracks are available through Beatport.com. Subscribe to the podcast to download.
Track Listing:
Dear Jona from YACHT,
Just saw your new video, Summer Song, today. Well played, sir. Anyone riffing on Tapeheads gets a gold star in my book, though your striking resemblance to Jon Heder from Napoleon Dynamite is, on occasion, distracting.
Keep up the good work.
Sincerely,
Melanie Donnelly
P.S. Please rejoin The Blow immediately, kthxbai.
I must have listened to this song 20,000 times in 2004, and you know what? It’s still great.
Muppet Kanye gets topical with an Olympic-themed video. Bonus points for winning the 100m with shutter shades on.
-Melanie Donnelly
I stumbled upon this video by Dntel (AKA Jimmy Tamborello from The Postal Service) on YouTube, and it’s worth a watch. The song, “Rock My Boat,” is just lovely, featuring vocals by Mia Doi Todd, and the video incorporates some arrestingly homespun animation.
The song can be found on Dntel’s 2007 Sub Pop release, Dumb Luck.
-Melanie Donnelly
This Radiohead video has been making the rounds on the intertubes for a few weeks now, but the methods used to create it are so crazy that it deserves a little extra attention. Not content to use anything as conventional as, I don’t know, cameras or lighting, Radiohead’s team used the following methods to produce this Tron-meets-Apple-IIE-and-executive-pin-art video:
“…Two technologies were used to capture 3D images: Geometric Informatics and Velodyne LIDAR. Geometric Informatics scanning systems produce structured light to capture 3D images at close proximity, while a Velodyne Lidar system that uses multiple lasers is used to capture large environments such as landscapes. In this video, 64 lasers rotating and shooting in a 360 degree radius 900 times per minute produced all the exterior scenes.”
Confused? Me too, a little bit. Check out the making-of video on Google to shed some more light on the process, and while you’re there, download Radiohead’s visualization data and create your own video.
- by Melanie Donnelly
While we’re feeling the drum ‘n’ bass vibes, here’s another one from Goldie. It’s called Inner City Life. Too bad drum ‘n’ bass never caught on fully in America with the hip hop crowd. They don’t like their beats too fast, I guess. Imagine if you had Mary J. Blige or someone with that caliber voice kicking it over a fierce drum ‘n’ bass track? We’re sure there are remixes out there. If you find a video of an American urban/soul artist singing over drum ‘n’ bass, let us know and we’ll post it.
Tony Zeoli is an innovative digital media product development consultant who has been at the forefront of the convergence of music and technology since he founded Netmix.com in 1995. He has guided music, video and web application product development and strategy for a wide range of companies including Cablevision, the Associated Press and Entertainment Media Works.
With a celebrated DJ career spanning 25-years, today, music fans from around the world enjoy his DJ mixes through Netmix.com online radio and Netmix podcasts.
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The Rentals - Friends of P.
