Some 3hive history for you: Dan Snaith, a.k.a. Manitoba, was the inaugural posting to this site. Today Snaith announced that he was legally forced to change his nom de plume, hence Manitoba has been reincarnated as Caribou. I was hoping this announcement would coincide with a release date for his new album. No luck. Sounds like he’s only halfway finished. Sigh. Until then…
Pete Miser
DJ/MC Pete Miser knowingly walks the line between “stoopid” and “stupid” — and would probably even tell you that they’re homonyms, fool, so why even sweat it… “So Sensitive” is the self-effacing, gasp-inducing flip to the new single “Scent of a Robot”; a long-player is around the corner. In the meantime, take in these older cuts so you can witness the man’s range (from bustin’ chops to breakin’ hearts).
Dosh
This kid that lives seven houses down from me has this dope, super clean Cadillac. One sticker graces its rear window, dead center: Anticon. My neighborhood certainly isn’t a hotbed of fellow fine music admirerers (it’s more prone to Amway-esque consultants), so this discovery was a pleasant surprise. I’ll let him listen to my advance of Pure Trash if he lets me take my lady out in that ride of his.
Lettuce Prey
Lettuce Prey is Mike Lenert, an obsessive and insanely prolific veteran of underrated pop bands (Caterpillar, Lilys) and a recurring touring band ringer for many more. So prolific is he that his music has been distributed through numerous labels and nearly every medium possible: 7-inch, 12-inch, CD, cassette, and, (lucky for us) MP3. Prolific, of course, could be a nice way of saying not every one of his 400 published songs are all that. But these here jaunts — some tender, some bizarre — split the difference between Robyn Hitchcock and Neutral Milk Hotel, proving what the man’s capable of…
Daniel Johnston
Where to begin? The liner notes to Johnston’s new retrospective/tribute pin the “Godfather of Lo-Fi” label on him. That’s a start. Name check the tribute and you’ll get a sense of the depth of Daniel Johnston’s influence: Beck, Bright Eyes, Mercury Rev, Sparklehorse, and Tom Waits. He began in the early eighties, committing simple, raw, gorgeous songs to tape (“Put My Love Out The Door”), via handheld recorder. While his production quality has improved over time, it’s never been at the expense of his primary craft, songwriting (George Lucas take note! The new Star Wars movies suck!) Daniel Johnston makes me wanna toss my computer out the window (gasp!) and never use a cell phone again. He’s proof, and hope, that the medium doesn’t have to be the message.
Saturday Looks Good to Me
Fred Thomas leads this band of Detroit’s finest, an ever-changing lineup of musicians bringing back all that was good from ’60s pop music. Reverb-drenched boy-girl vocals, the gently strummed guitars (also reverb-drenched), it’s all here. But make no mistake, SLGTM ain’t plagiarists. They add their own originality, which makes their music so refreshing. And yes, Sam, I said Detroit.
Elliott Smith
No explanation needed.
Chin Up Chin Up
“We Should Have Never Lived Like We Were Skyscrapers” is one of those cleverer-than-thou song titles that’s long, pretentious, and altogether undeserving of seriousness. Yet it’s full of chaotic meaning, the kind indie musicians strive for and then deny striving for just to keep their ambivalent cred. It’s pretty much perfect for the song itself: a burbling rush to nowhere that comes across as a math-rocky Polyphonic Spree. When I read back over that description I feel like I should hate the band, but I don’t. In fact, I think I love those crazy skyscrapers.
Approach
This one’s for my Mizzou people, you know who you are. Not only is Approach the best MC ever to hail from Kansas City, he swings a nice lisp (especially audible on “Hey Y’all”) and makes his own funky beats. This is straight-up party fodder for your mind à la J5, Lyrics Born, Talib Kweli — and ya don’t quit…
Camper Van Beethoven
3hive is more than just a good time, it’s an education. Today’s lesson covers one of the classics. If I may share, the very first t-shirt I made myself (designed and screened!) as a skinny 16 year old was a Camper Van Beethoven t-shirt. The second was a legendary Memphis band, Think as Incas, but that’s another story. CVB — while one of the founding fathers of indie rock — was really all things to all people, genre-hopping as they felt so inclined. ‘Cause, you know, it really was all about the music. The new album from the re-united CVB, New Roman Times, comes out in October.