I like to think, mainly because it makes me feel less pathetic, that everyone who went to college and studied something other than business administration had some kind of youthfully pretentious obsession. Mine was Marshall McLuhan, the new media oracle from the Great White North who looked like a professorial Salvador Dali, had a cameo in a Woody Allen movie (nay, the best. cameo. ever.) and was an astoundingly salient bullshitter. I ain’t saying I don’t still love the man, just that nearly a decade after graduation it’s funny to look back and think of taking my dog-eared copy of War and Peace in the Global Village to my bartending gig at Benihana and intensely and conspicuously reading it between mixing Mai-Tais—as if any of my Japanese coworkers gave a damn. We were so cool once, weren’t we? Anyhow, I think of McLuhan’s fabled “global village†now because two of my favorite Japanese acts (the other one is Cacoy) this year have come to me from the Danish label Rumraket, which is doing for non-European music in Europe what Minty Fresh has been doing for European music in the U.S. of late—namely, rockin’ it. Kama Aina, whose name is Hawaiian and whose sole member is Takuji Aoyagi, doesn’t rock it, per se, he soothes it with loopy little lullabies built around clean, undistorted percussion, guitar and other sweet, naturalistic sounds. “Hotaru†is prettiest on headphones, where you can nearly see each bang and pluck. But if you’re just not that visual, check out the video for “Glasgow Sky,†which is as inventive as Bjork and twice as contemplative.
Kunek
Tim Ortopan is back for another guest DJ session. About 9 months ago he brought us Joseph Arthur. Now we have Kunek. O:
I went to high school with a kid named Kunec and at first I wondered if there could be any connection to the band Kunek. They sound like they could have been the socially awkward students sitting alone at lunch reading computer magazines that I remember. Could he have produced these beautiful songs of loneliness and sadness? It seems unlikely as I did not go to high school in Oklahoma nor could the student that I remember ever be described as “a delicate intersection of science and emotion—at times organic, dynamic, buoyant or ethereal.†I hope things are going well for the Kunec that I remember, but I know you will enjoy this Kunek straight from the flowering Oklahoma art-rock scene.
Beat Hive
 We’re pushing three years serving music fans by “sharing” from artists and frankly it’s time we give back to the music makers. Introducing BeatHive.com (no relation to 3hive). BeatHive is an online marketplace for musicians to buy and sell loops. They currently have producers from the US, UK, Spain, Argentina and Canada, offering their best loops in Apple Loop and Acid formats, which work in programs like GarageBand and ACID. This means even uninitiated songwriters can grab some loops and start banging out the hits.
We came across BeatHive and thought it was the coolest thing since curly fries, so we asked them if they’d be willing to share some free loops with y’all. They said yes! Both WAV and AIFF formats are available and all the loops are 100% royalty free. Mouse over the handy buttons to hear each of the loops. The download links are just below. 3Hive 12-pack Contents: |
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| Drums 1 | Synth 1 | ||
| Scraper | Guitar 1 | ||
| Triangle | Drums 2 | ||
| Guitar 2 | Pedal Steel | ||
| Electric Bass | Synth 2 | ||
| Drums 3 | Bass Synth | ||
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Download Apple Loop AIFF Format Here Download ACIDized WAV Format Here (Not sure which format to use? Click here.) CONTEST: Make Stuff from BeatHive, Post it on 3Hive! | |||
The Crabapples
Yes, OCD, you don’t need to tell me. “Hi, my name is Clay, and I’m obsessively compulsed with Slumberland Records!” Hey, the first step is admitting you have a problem. And my problem is the self-described “loud but melodic…catchy tunes played with sloppy abandon” that are Slumberland Records and the Crabapples. Continuing with the self-descriptions, the Crabapples rush “along in a breathless blur, fuelled by lager, explosive tunes and a love of great pop.” I’ll be sure to bring that up at my first meeting…
Tom Rothrock
An album named after the instrument it fetishizes, Resonator (a wood-bodied guitar with a single metal coned center often called by the brand name DOBRO) is producer Tom Rothrock’s first album as a recording artist. You’ll immediately recognize the Resonator’s bluesy soul sound as the backbone of many of Beck’s early songs. You old-timers and blues enthusiasts may scoff at pop music’s grope at authenticity, re-discovering the guitar some fifty years after its heyday. You cannot, however, chide Rothrock’s passion for the instrument. This instrumental work resonates with respect and reverence. He adds hip-hop beats, live drums and strings to the equation for a cinematic mood and scope. Fitting, considering it was Michael Mann’s urging Rothrock to compose the score for Mann’s film Collateral, that set the prolific producer to work on his own compositions. Getting your hands on the entire album may prove problematic as it’s been limited to a one-time pressing of 1,203 hand-numbered copies. Not to fear, it’s just the first in a series of instrumental albums planned by Mr. Rothrock, released via his newly re-launched Bong Load Records.
Blake Miller
“Son, you must be/Your own tree/Let your roots grow/Let them grow deep.” Wise words, though when sung by a 19-year-old Blake Miller they’re not so much delivered as sage counsel to the listener as they are repeated the way a kid would sing the grocery list on his way to the corner store lest he forget. Blake’s youth isn’t the only thing that makes him sound so special. His very human and melodic brand of folk helps distinguish him from the so-called “freak folk” genre (see Devendra Banhart) and creates a space he can call his own. I guess you could say he’s being his own tree…
Hello Saferide
Remember a few weeks ago when I gave you some music that my pal Lisa had recommended? Well, she’s done some more spot-on MP3 hunting, and rather than give my own take on it, let’s hear directly from the woman herself. Take it away, Lisa…
Everyone loves love. We really do. We love us some love. And because there simply aren’t enough misanthropic recluses out there who can’t find other humans to care for their sorry selves, there is a truckload of songs made to feel how we feel. And that’s great. Really. It’s great. That said, it was breath-of-fresh-air time when I finally to listened to Hello Saferide – a guitar-playing Swede who’s a little nutty, a little neurotic, totally self-conscious and, OMG, she’s not even a little bit afraid to be such a girl.
Hello Saferide wishes her ex-lover the very worst on Valentine’s Day, she hopes you keep your socks on in bed because, well, she’s still scared of feet, and she knows that “somebody” ordered too many drinks last night and “somebody” reckoned that dancin’ on the bars was all right. Yep she’s a total mess, but she delivers her personal brand of nuttiness with such quirk, flare and snark that I’m right there with her. It’s nice to hear someone feeling how SHE feels, not how she thinks the rest of us will. And somehow, underneath all of that idiosyncrasy and Hello Saferide-ness, it’s all totally relatable.
Aloe Blacc
I’m ashamed to admit I would have passed this guy up if I had to gone on name alone. Not to be a jerk, but Aloe Blacc?? Are we really running out of stage names? What’s wrong with Nathanial Dawkins? But, after taking in his magnificient R&B gem “I’m Beautiful” for the first time, I got over my prejudice real quick. This guy’s voice is pure enough to invoke comparisons to Motown legends. His debut, Shine Through has just the right amount of polish (despite being recorded in a makeshift bedroom studio) and draws from a rich array of musical influences, old and new. If most Stones Throw releases reek of chronic (not that I’m complaining, mind you), this joint’s a breath of fresh air. Inhale.
Stones Throw took down the “I’m Beautiful” MP3, but you still get a lovely B-side from the single.
The One Night Band
So this is what old school ska/reggae sounds like in Montreal. Reminds me a bit of those early Bob Marley recordings when he had short hair and wore matching outfits with Rita and Peter Tosh. “Who feels it knows it…” Singing in both English and French, The One Night Band’s debut album, Way Back Home came out summer 2006. Hey Sam, how do you say “rude boy” in French?
Tahiti 80
Since 3hive’s own Sam lived in Tahiti for a short time and speaks French, I almost feel like I’m stealing a Sam band, a la this entry from Sam last week, since Tahiti 80 are a Parisian quartet named after a t-shirt that singer Xavier Boyer’s dad got from a Tahitian trip. Sam and I both fell for Tahiti 80’s lovely pop masterpiece “Heartbeat” from their 2000 album Puzzle, and the band’s gift for wistful, delightful pop has grown and matured with their new release Fosbury. A Tahitian Treat indeed!
Addendum:
1. For our non-US readers, Tahitian Treat is a fruit punch flavored soft drink. Mmmmmm.
2. Pardon the kinda crappy 96 kbps Changes MP3 made available to us. So be sure to grab the recently added “Here Comes” VBR MP3. Thanks Min!