Ghostface Killah

We had the legend himself, Ghostface Killah come through the Varsity Theater on thursday night. He brought his Wu-Tang legacy and swagger with him. Seeing him rule the stage like the gorilla that he is made me revisit one of his stellar solo records, "Fishscale" and thought ya'll might want a taste. You can't go wrong with this track, if it doesn't get your head bobbing, go see a doctor.

MP3: Ghostface Killah-The Champ

Ghostface Killah Myspace

Peep the City Pages feature on the Ghostface show.

Cool Kids

Alright, last Pitchfork fest post. Ever. I Promise. The next thing to blow up in hip hop will be the Cool Kids when they put out their full length record later this year.

It didn’t take long for the Cool Kids to have the thrilled hometown crowd eating out of the palms of their hands. The emcee duo bring an old school (skool), non-threatening flavor to the stage and spin rhymes about ice cream and still wearing a pager, rather than bling and drugs. Baby-face “Mikey” is the star of the group, his flow and wit are outstanding, especially when you take into account that he is only 19 years old. The Cool Kids pride themselves on writing entirely original material using no samples. With hip-hop heavyweights such as Flostradomous and Kanye West on board with the Cool Kids, make sure you keep your eyes out for them in the future.

Check out more from that day at MoreCowbell.net

Mp3: Cool Kids-Mikey Rocks

Cool Kids Myspace

The Twilight Sad

I would feel bad if I left town for a weekend to see a ton of bands and didn't come back with anything for ya'll so.....

Glasow Scotland’s “The Twilight Sad” was the first band of the day to take the stage. While it might seem lame to play first, they actually had a solid crowd due to being the first thing that everybody saw entering the gates. The band looked like they had just crawled out of bed. 1pm IS pretty early to play for a band on the road. Despite all of this, the band played well. It was something else to see that amount of sound being created from only three instruments. Although the band had probably the shortest set of the day (25 minutes), they were grateful, and used their time well. The Twilight Sounds’ dark, swirling sound was a supurb way to kick off the day

Check out more from that day at MoreCowbell.net

MP3: The Twilight Sad-That Summer At Home I Had Become The Invisible Boy

The Twilight Sad Myspace

Deerhunter

So I am back from a whirlwind weekend in Chicago. Thanks to scott for holding it down while I was away, hope you enjoyed his posts.

You can read my full review of the weekend over at MoreCowbell.net but I want to post a few times on some of the standouts from Pitchfork. Up first is Deerhunter who pulled out one of the best sets of the weekend and the bigs agree.

Deerhunter started the day off with a bang. Fronted by the errierly pale, slender, Bradford Cox, he preformed wearing two shimmering dresses, lipstick and rosary beads. Each of the members of the band looked like somebody who belonged in attendance at Pitchfork. Deerhunter’s stage presence is subtlely perverse, but in a way that works. With powerful, agressive choruses and ghostly vocals, the crowd, which was surprisingly large for 1pm, was instantly into it. Their billowing, noisy, psych-rock was a stellar, inspiring way to kick off the final day of the festival.

MP3: Deerhunter-Cryptograms

Deerhunter Myspace

Harry and the Potters

This is what happens when you hand the reins over to me for a weekend.

Between the recent premiere of the fifth movie and the upcoming release of the final book, Harry Potter fever is at an all-time high. And because not even this blog is above capitalizing on that hysteria, I give you Harry and the Potters. The group is a pair of brothers who refer to themselves as Harry Year 7 and Harry Year 4. While their songs are mainly amateruish music with lyrics inspired directly by the books, these muggles put on a great live show. I had the opportunity to see their free show at the Minneapolis Public Library during their American library tour last summer, and their unyielding energy more than made up for any lack of musical talent. If you have a large circle around July 21st on your calendar, then I have no doubt that you'll love passing the remaining days with Harry and the Potters.

MP3 - Cornelius Fudge is an Ass
MP3 - Stick It To Dolores

http://www.myspace.com/harryandthepotters

For the illiterate few that don't like Harry Potter, you can check out what Neil has been doing this weekend at the Pitchfork Music Festival over at www.morecowbell.net. I'm sure there are pictures for you?

:o:

Architecture in Helsinki

Hey kids, it's Scott. Neil's too busy listening to good music to help you do the same, so I'm here to lend a hand again.

During my time apprenticing at WNUR last year, the DJs I worked under taught me the ins and outs of playing music on the radio. While they always stressed variety in our playlists to ensure the listener is constantly hearing new music, one album seemed to get played every week. I wasn't complaining however, because Architecture in Helsinki's second release In Case We Die has enough good tracks to play a different song every week of the quarter and not need to repeat once. Now that we've reached the halfway point of summer, I've found myself listening to their bright and sunny sound again. These Aussies have a new album releasing in the States in August, and I couldn't be more excited. If it's anything like their last one, I'll have no reservations about playing it every week when I get back to the station.

MP3: Architecture in Helsinki - The Cemetery

Architecture in Helsinki Myspace

:o:

Justice

The summer of Electro/Dance/Groove/Disco continues! Justice has been making a lot of noise, both on record and in the press lately. Filled with funky bass lines and delicious fuzzy synths their hot new record "†" has made them superstars in the states practically overnight. Their hip new video for their song D.A.N.C.E. got all the hype started, and the record lives up to it. Lets keep the groove goin.


MP3: Justice-Phantom

Justice Myspace (you can listen to the whole record!)


Ill be in Chicago for the Pitchfork Music Festival all weekend. Ill try to find someone to hold you down. Check out MoreCowbell.net for some words by me.

*UPDATE* Thanks to MoreCowbell for announcing that Justice will be touring the USA with a stop at Foundation in Minneapolis on Oct. 16th!

Zibra Zibra

07/07/07 is a date that I have had on my calendar for a long, long time. Not because of triple seven, or because Prince is playing three shows in Minneapolis today, but because local standouts Zibra Zibra have chosen today to unravel their wrath upon the world. Tonight their new record (777) digitally drops at First Ave. Not only are they one of the finest young bands that Minneapolis has to offer, but they are setting the trend for how music will be distributed in the future. Simply bring your Mp3 player or any WiFi compatable device to the show tonight, and their new record will be beamed straight to you at stations set up around the room. How effing cool is that? Anyway, these guys are sexy, glam-disco-pop greatness. Imagine if Prince and Paula Abdul were baking a cake while listening to Of Montreal, the delicious treat that would come out of the oven would be Zibra Zibra.

Dont Miss Zibra Zibra TONIGHT At First Ave!

Please excuse my stream rip here:

MP3: Zibra Zibra-Lions on The Astroturf

Zibra Zibra Myspace

Gogol Bodello

What is the best live show you have ever seen? For me, the show that tops my list was Gogol Bordello at Emo's in Austin, TX on March 17th 2006. I had no idea who was on next (after the Living End) and I found myself against the stage in awe of the controlled natural disaster that is Gogol Bordello. Mixing eastern european balkan influences with reggae and punk, these guys (and gals) truly bring it. Their incredible new record "Super Taranta" come out on tuesday, and while it isnt much of a departure from their previous efforts, they haven't lost a beat. Surprise yourself and take a listen.

MP3: Gogol Bordello-Wonderlust King

Gogol Bordello Myspace

Birthday Suits

Ive been pretty alienated with some of the music that I usually really enjoy lately. For example, Page France's "Hello Dear Wind" is one of my favorite records of the last five years, and despite my early excitement for their new record, it is actually kind of a dud. Page France played the entry on Saturday night and while I had every intention to attend the show (even though Page France is nothing special live), in the end I decided instead to attend a gallery opening in which local punk duo "Birthday Suits" headlined. It was amazing. I used to play in a punk band in my high school days and after we broke up I have been drifting away from that scene and that music. Birthday Suits were a breath of fresh air. I was delighted througout their entire set, which must have included 17 songs crammed into 30 minutes. They stopped only once to speak to the crowd stating "This show is awesome. You are awesome. We are awesome." Awesome indeed.

MP3: Birthday Suits-Twin Cities Bridge is Falling

Birthday Suits Myspace