Spitzer consists of a couple young men raised in the same house in Lyon, France. These brothers have one goal: Make you dance. Currently, the duo is working on a four song EP called Roller Coaster and if the four tracks on their myspace page are any indication of what we’re in for, we’re in for some big, bright and bold dancefloor action. I love the early Speak & Spell-like synth tones used on “Disco Biscuits.” Of course they’ve been pumped up ala Marion Jones for maximum rump-shakin’ enjoyment. The track opens with one synth riff getting overshadowed by another, high up in the mix, trampling over the first until that second riff distorts itself into oblivion as the track finally settles into its groove, a slamming epiphany imminent. Spitzer proves France still has fertile fields to harvest for yet another generation of club kids.
The Radishes
I never pegged myself as a sucker for reminiscing about some bygone era of youthful indiscretions set to a soundtrack so loud that it did permanent hearing damage. Then again, I never figured that the moment I had a child, my life before that moment would become an abstraction only referential as fragmented memories and out-of-body mental snapshots. I hope that doesn’t sound too wistful because there’s nothing better than being a parent, but on our first “official” family road trip this past week there were a couple of moments when I’d just about gotten my fill of baby-friendly playlists and was ready for a quick mental cleanse of the kind that The Radishes are fond of administering. Y’know, the kind with simple riffs repeated fast and loud, driving bass and drums (provided by the former rhythm section for Ministry!), and acidic vocals that scream alienation, anger, and irony. Alas, when the baby is sleeping in the back seat and your wife has taken the reins of the iPod, you don’t always get that instant aural gratification. But when you’re home early on a Friday morning and the rest of the family is asleep behind closed doors, you can put on the headphones, turn it up all the way and get a good dose of noise, sweet noise.
Z-Trip
For the longest time you’d have to dig up classic Z-Trip mixes by way of some friendly shared drive somewhere. Now that Z-Trip has sobered up from his major label affair (only one album…who saw that coming?), he’s his own boss. And that means, among other things, a website with downloads to die for. I’ve included a couple of his original compositions (featuring the inimitable Chali2Na and Lateef the Truthspeaker). But if you haven’t already heard such classic mashup mixdowns as Uneasy Listening, Live at the Future Primitive, and The Anti-War Mix stop what you’re doing right now and pay a visit to Chez Z-Trip.
Demander
The Santa Ana’s are roaring in these parts. The winds and smoke burn my sinuses, eyes and throat. And after spending two hours helping my 6th grader with his math homework my brain’s burnt as well. Fight fire with fire! Demander has brought a sweet equilibrium to my dry and fried skull. Imagine Siouxsie Sioux rising out of the DC punk scene as part of the Dischord family. Yeah, it’s cool, and cools, like that.
Miss Fairchild
The promo materials promise that Miss Fairchild aren’t a bunch of “suburban white kids play-acting at being an ’80s funk band.” Well, unless they were born in Detroit fifty years ago they are exactly a bunch of suburban white kids posing as an ’80s funk band, and guess what??? THAT’S OK. All I care about is that you actually pull it off without a whiff of irony. Miss Fairchild does just that. They are 100% committed to a rump-shakin’ dancefloor party, no wink-wink-nudge-nudge attached. Miss Fairchild bring the smooth, R&B-styled party-pop, the kind that’ll have all your friends waving their hands in the air like they just don’t care, especially during the “cha-cha” breakdown in “Number One”…”Yeah Rosie, Yeah Rosie, Yeah Vije, Yeah Vije, Yeah Patty, Yeah Patty, Yeah SylviiiiiiAAAA!!”
Now all they need to do is hop on the road with Hunter Revenge and Gen-Y’s Prince will have his Morris Day counterpart. Deluxe.
Cheyenne
Cheyenne is a rock group whose members are mostly from Norman, Oklahoma but who now reside in Brooklyn. Despite their current residence (go Brooklyn!), to these ears they’re much more influenced by those Southern-slash-Midwestern roots than by the affected, irony-drenched post-rock that can sometimes permeate the Brooklyn scene. And that’s a very good thing. Lead singer Beau Jennings has been compared to Pedro the Lion’s David Bazan and I’m not one to deny it, but musically Cheyenne is far more downhome and far less emo. “The Whale” builds from steady handclaps and a sturdy piano melody into monster guitar riffs and chiming keys tuned to a playful yet pensive harmony. “Painting Horses” follows a similar classic pop formula but conjures a deeper roots rock aura thanks to Josh Harper’s climactic, chicken-fried guitar solo. There’s been a rewarding Southern rock resurgence over the past several years thanks to the likes of My Morning Jacket, Kings of Leon, Band of Horses and others. Cheyenne deserves to be added to that list, even if they’ve decided to call Brooklyn home.
Clare & The Reasons
It’s fall. It may be 87 sacreligious September degrees in NYC right now, but as far as I am concerned it is fall. I want my braised meat, I want my long sleeve shirts, I want cups of tea and I want old school loungey twilight songs. Husband and wife duo Clare & the Reasons are perfecto for such seasonal urges. I think I once mentioned my secret compulsion to enjoy sappy soundtrack songs (it’s true, I’m sorry), and Clare & the Reasons (who named their album “The Movie”) are like all the joys of my secret musical vice without the any of the cringey guilt. Its plucky and sweet enough for my to get me my fix, but wacky and hip enough that I can play it for others and anticipate a jealous “wait, who is this playing??” Love that. Plus, the entire delicious album is on Emusic.
Neighborhood Texture Jam
One last Memphis music history lesson. I saw Neighborhood Texture Jam at the Antenna Club in Memphis in 1988 (as nearest as I can recall), and one their most appealing features was the absurd song subjects, like “Torsoes of Murdered People” and my personal favorite, “Mall Boutique” on the life of a mall worker. The suggestion box at 3hive recently got an email about NTJ, so with their new website comes the opportunity to share the NTJ love. More MP3’s can be found at their website.
Hasch’m’Méneum
This is a fun mystery.
Having stumbled upon Hasch’m’Méneum through the backalleys of Last.fm, I have yet to find any more information on them. The best source of information comes in the way of the “electrojazz†tag given to them on said social music network. Normally we at Moodmat shun genre names, especially those of the hastily taped- and stapled-together variety. But this one ain’t bad. Hasch’m’Méneum’s “jazz†has a blues-y chug to it, and their “electro†bubbles a bit under the surface. So songs like “Heliotrope†wouldn’t be out of place in a Jazzanova set, and “Slide†evokes the “future sound of Hull,†a.k.a. Fila Brazillia. Who are these masked men? And why did they leave us two free albums to download?
Dan Sicko (special guest to 3hive.com)
The Hudsons
The Hudsons often describe themselves as a hard-working band, making this an appropriate Labor Day post. Offering up a solid blend of folk & country, I ran across this Austin trio while researching Texas bands for my friend Tim. He’s got a friend moving there, and wanted to clue him in to the scene (which is probably pretty big, considering the size of the state and all that). I was hooked on the clean sound and classis lyrics of the Hudsons from “It Just Takes One”; that is, after all, all it took. If you like what you hear — and this goes for you too, Tim’s friend — head over to the band’s website for a half dozen live tracks, or to Sonicbids for more studio recordings.