My pal Chris Piascik has been doing “Music Mondays” for a few months now wherein he posts his top five last.fm artists from the last week.
I recently started using last.fm, so today I am copying him.
Here’s my list:
WHY?
Daughters
Bill Callahan
Teleflux
La Dispute
It should be noted that I listened to WHY? 72 times. And that’s not including the times I listened to them in the car.
Yikes.
I’m participating in a daily sketchbook/illustration project with my two buds, Ryan Lundy and Jacob Smeraglia.
We pass around drawings and add to each other’s marks.
It is called, sometimesitsfuntodothingswithfriends.biz.
We’ve been pretty good about posting at least once a day, so check it out and subscribe for fun times!!!!1
These Are Magnets was recently asked to make some music for the case studies featured on Red Square’s website. Head over to These Are Magnets’ bandcamp page to get the mixtape for free. And tell all your friends.
I was born at UAB hospital in downtown Birmingham, AL. My family left the ‘Ham when I was 10, but I returned literally every weekend from the time I was 16 until I finished college. I used to skate at Sloss, see bands at Sloss and I had friends that claimed they knew of underground tunnels leading into the backstage area of Sloss. Though I never saw the tunnels, I was still pumped to use my memories of Sloss to help there there in their quest to develop a shirt representing Birmingham.
So, all you Birminghamians, head over to there there and get yourself a Sloss Shirt!
I’ve really been digging the new Bright Eyes album. Also, I just watched two seasons of the Tudors. This is a type/distressing exercise based on those two facts.
I’ve recently gotten heavy into the geniuses that are Das Racist. When you choose to rhyme “Kierkegaard” with “hustle hard” you’re a total badass and you have my respect. Das Racist have killer beats and their lyrics are a mixture of absurdism and (what seems like) honest storytelling. They’re magnificent. The above drawing is the lyrics from their song “I Don’t Owe Nobody Shit.”
Thinking about making this one a shirt.
There is a chef in Fairhope, AL called Panini Pete. After being featured on the food network a few times, he became close friends with Guy Fieri, a food network host. Now while not cooking up panini at his shop in Bama, he tours with Guy as his sou chef. Every year, Pete gets commissions an original piece of artwork for Guy for his birthday. This year he saw my stuff in a gallery in Fairhope and “just had to get me to make something for Guy.” The piece is basically a short biography of Guy Fieri. A portrait without using his likeness. It was a big challenge to capture the story of someone I’ve never met, but it was a lot of fun!
Like a bonehead, I forgot to take a photo of the piece before I relinquished it to Pete. But Pete was kind enough to snap a quick shot for me with his phone.
Pete’s on the left, Guy’s in the middle, and my piece is on the right:
Every year The Hype Machine highlights the top 50 artists as picked by music bloggers. That list is then expressed through illustration. This year I was lucky enough to be asked to complete an illustration. I was given Vampire Weekend which I was totally pumped about. If you’re a regular visitor, then you might remember that Vampire Weekend also made it into my recent top 10 list.
Check it out in context!
This album is overwhelmingly amazing. I can promise that I have listened to this album more than Menomena themselves. Menomena are seriously geniuses and they deserve major recognition. Here are some videos of them performing in the KEXP studio:
Queen Black Acid:
Taos:
Five Little Rooms:
Lightspeed Champion is Devonté Hynes, better known as “Dev” and formerly of the band Test Icicles. This guy was a huge philosophical influence on me when I was forming These Are Magnets. The album Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You. has a sound that is familiar and brand new at the same time. I don’t know how he did, but it’s bloody brilliant. Also, on the UK special edition there is a cover of the Elvis song, Devil in Disguise that is magnificent. Here’s the video for the song Marlene: