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Tour De Vaap

“A compilation of music from 417”

Monthly Archives: May 2011

30/05/11 Kendrick Lamar – HiiiPOWER

“I got my finger on the motherfuckin’ pistol,
Aiming it at a pig, Charlotte’s web is going to miss you,
My issue isn’t televised and you ain’t gotta tell the wise,
How to stay on beat, because our life’s an instrumental”

Kendrick Lamar has been floating around the rap game for a minute now, but I have kinda overlooked him, so far. Although I downloaded the Kendrick Lamar EP sometime last year, I wasn’t really impressed with more than a few songs. But recently, Kendrick’s name has been mixed in with some heavy hitters in the game, like Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, as well as some prospective up-comers, like J. Cole and Jay Rock. A few weeks ago this track, produced by J. Cole, hit the internets and caught my attention. Now with a video filled with revolutionaries and racial tension of past and present, this track clearly illustrates that Kendrick has been doing some lyrical learning from his peers. For that, I am glad, ’cause Kendrick spits on this track, hard. Keep as eye out for this dude and check out the lyrics here. – D. Gold

27/05/11 tUne-YarDs: W H O K I L L

An eclectic mix of indie rock, layered vocal loops, and an occasional jazzy fretless-bass, there’s a lot more to W H O K I L L than the strange capitalization and spacing lets on. Though the band’s name implies multiple members, it is actually the solo project of Merrill Garbus, who released her first album under the tUne-YarDs moniker in 2009. Though W H O K I L L was not the easiest album for me to break into, after a few listens, the infectious hooks which drive Garbus’ otherwise fairly experimental and low-tech subversion of traditional pop music help the listener work their way deeper into this truly unique and diverse album. I would highly recommend this album to fans of Dirty Projectors or anyone looking to expand their definition of lo-fi. – B. Orwin

tUnE-yArDs – Bizness

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25/05/11 Brian Eno – 1/1

I’ve always loved ambient electronic music.  Through exploring Wikipedia pages and other research, I recently discovered Brian Eno’s ambient classics. Eno, a brilliant electronic composer, released a string of ambient and minimalist albums throughout the 70s and 80s. So far I’ve only checked out Ambient 1: Music for Airports and Discreet Music. Both albums are awesomely minimalistic and remind me of the contemporary drone masters Stars of the Lid. Eno’s music fits perfectly as calming, background music for work or just mad chilling. For a sampling of his sound, check out the first track off Music for Airports. – Jon the Wolf

Brian Eno – 1/1:

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24/05/11 Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr – Morning Thought

“I would love to protect you, I would love to release you, I would love to become you, I would love to pretend but we don’t know how, we don’t know how to”

Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr.  A weird name with a sound to match.  Weird, but extremely addictive.  This Detroit duo makes songs with smooth and catchy rock vocals (think The Shins) with some peculiar distorted guitars and other bleeps and blips in the background.  All of this combines to form one amazing and unique sound.  Their debut album, It’s a Coporate World, out June 7th is no exception to this odd brand of pop rock.  The first single off the album, “Morning Thought” is full of big booming drums and powerful guitars and a glockenspiel, perfect for getting yourself up and running on an otherwise lazy summer morning.  Check it out here or download it for free form their website.  Either way I guarantee you’ll get hooked on this odd duo, I know I am. – M. Kauf

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23/05/11 Sleigh Bells – Rill Rill

“You are the river flow
And we can never know
We’re just a weatherman
You make the wind blow”

In my film class we discussed how powerful of an impact the editing of raw footage has on the way it eventually will be received. Like DNA, with hundreds of thousands of instructions for different protein synthesis depending on what segments were read and in what order, unedited film can be transformed into a hundred different types of films with various styles, aesthetic and artistic emphasis. In a similar fashion, Sleigh Bell’s “Rill Rill” transforms an upbeat guitar riff from the ever funky track, “Can You Get to That,” by Funkadelic into a noise-pop masterpiece that is sure to get stuck in your head. Through an eclectic mash-up of refreshing female vocals, an upbeat guitar sample, and tasteful use of snaps and synth, this music duo from Brooklyn has created a classic. Check out the track below, as well as the funky fresh track it samples from. – M.Hoff

Sleigh Bells – “Rill Rill”

Funkadelic – “Can You Get To That”

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22/05/11 Notorious B.I.G. – Gimme The Loot (Superginger Dubstep Remix)

“Man, I throw him in the Beem, you grab the fucking C.R.E.A.M
and if he start to scream “bam! bam!”, have a nice dream.
Waaaammaamaamaaaa…...”

Biggie! + Dubstep! = A Really Sick Remix! This dubstep remix, by Swedish 17-year old Superginger, government name Jakob Zetterberg, has been making rounds on the internet after being uploaded to his Soundcloud a few weeks ago. As a fan of Biggie and a some good d-step, I stumbled across this gem on HypeMachine a few days ago and since, have been enjoying its genius. Mixing the Notorious “Gimme the Loot” acapella with some major wamps may make this jam a summer classic. Peep the stream below and download HERE. Enjoy! – D. Gold

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20/05/11 Wild Beasts – Smother

I’m not really a fan of grandiose indie music: complex orchestration in rock music shouts hypocrisy. This is not to say that lo-fi is any better, with literally hundreds of bands passing off generic songs as art by adding reverb and recording on a four-track from the 1980′s. Wild Beasts fit into neither category, combining catchy guitar hooks with layers of challenging percussion and a driving bassline to create music with real presence. But they don’t use cheap tricks to mask a lack of musicianship; rather, they make the listener work to appreciate their sound. Though at first the lead singer’s voice may be off-putting, after a few listens Smother rewards handsomely with a solid set of tracks that don’t lose their sheen after even a few weeks of dedicated playtime. – B. Orwin

Wild Beasts – End Come Too Soon

Wild Beasts – Bed of Nails

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19/05/11 Bohren and Der Club of Gore – Street Tattoo

New-age jazz is a genre left untouched since the avant-gardists of the late 60′s, and there’s a reason for it. People forget what the primitive sounds of Jazz were: a slow, melodic bass line with drums functioning as a plate to serve the saxophone and piano, and it is here we begin to see why musicians haven’t had the gall to break free of their usual high, upbeat notes. But fortunately there’s Bohren and Der Club of Gore: a group often associated with “doom,” a title meant to reflect that sinking feeling you have when hearing a 65-crochet tempo, but it shouldn’t be discouraging. Bohren’s music is certainly dark, though it should be seen as the removal of  a taboo that has left dark-sentimentality out of the genre since the Evans era. Enjoy carefully.

-J.Brookes

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18/05/11 Lord Huron – The Stranger

“You came out of the ocean like you came out of a dream. Your voice, it sounds familiar but you are not what you seem.”

I know this is later than my usual post.  It’s been a long day of packing, unpacking and repacking.  But in this moment of temporary relaxation I wanted to share an artist who has been on/off my radar for quite some time.  Lord Huron, stage name of the brilliant Ben Schneider, is a band best described as mellow indie folk blended with subtle indian influences.  But that doesn’t quite do it.  Lord Huron can’t be categorized that easily.  His sound and style is incredibly unique.  The music is quiet yet uplifting, the lyrics are beautiful and Schneider has an eye for imagery.  The album art itself is beautiful and filled with images of dinosaurs magical lakes and elephants.  And the words have a beauty all to themselves.  Each song is a passionate adventure and I find myself listening to both of his EPs over and over again without ever reaching a point of boredom.  ”Stranger,” the third song off of Lord Huron’s second EP Mighty, is no exception.  It is a dark tale of uncertainty and perhaps paranoia.  Check out the music video below for a taste of the Lord Huron trifecta of music, lyrics and images.  If you like it, I highly recommend the rest of the EP (and all of his music for that matter). – M. Kauf

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16/05/11 NEW: Bon Iver – Calgary

New Bon Iver track, Calgary, was officially released today off the new self-titled album out on June 21. Stream above from youtube and download for FREE from the official, boniver.org.

Hit the Jump for the lyrics!

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