Other Lives

Gut check.

I had a hard time deciding on a single to post for this band. I'd have to listen to the album in it's entirety every time and mull over "oh this one. eh, i don't know, maybe that one?" Not a bad thing. Tamer Animals, May 10 release by Other Lives on the White Iris record label {whattup Daron!}, was crafted to be an immersion experience. Fold your legs underneath you, relax into the grass, be swept away by prairie winds.

Originally collected under Kunek by founders frontman Jesse Tabish, cellist Jenny Hsu and drummer Colby Owens - Other Lives grew in the great West of Stillwater, OK. After the studio fare of their self-titled debut, the band returned to Stillwater and took things slowly {14mos., to be exact} before producer, and Beck longtime drummer, Joey Waronker tied it off with rough-hewn twine and bolts of dusty velvet. The end-result of 11 tracks are densely layered with horns, gypsy rags, ringing ivory keys and coyote guitars. There are oboes on this album. I f*cking love oboes. Seriously.

So. I went with the song that transported me the farthest and most completely.

Other Lives are playing Red Palace / DC 6.10.11. Tempting, awfully tempting.

Other Lives // Dust Bowl III

FINALLY

Pitchfork! You did it!

I've been searching for this goddamn Fever Ray track ever since I saw the vapid, yet annoyingly hot, Little Red Riding Hood trailer. Click here.

the Diamond Center

Majorly stoked about these recent immigrants to the RVA scene. Brandi Price and Kyle Harris are the core to this psychedelically tribal thrum. Originating in Athens, GA, a rotating cast took them across state lines to Lubbock, TX where they recorded and released their second official LP, My Only Companion. Brief cameos of house pets and gatherings of friends to stomp, clap and holler make for a crafty album, full of voodoo percussion and Price's brass bell vocals.

Now calling RVA home, you'll see them this coming Sunday at Strange Matter. Feathered headdresses and peyote cactus chew will likely fit in fine.

The Diamond Center // Wtt {Live at Ipanema 19}

Mi Ami

Yes, I like this band for other reasons besides their name. Please.

More dirty freakouts.

But also, they have good taste in cities/locations. Yes, there is the choosing to name themselves after my favorite city of my entire life so far, but there's more.

They're hitting up Belfast on their European tour. And not only that, they're playing at the Menagerie, at the Ormeau Road on University Street. Shitty dive not without highly unprincipled paramilitary affiliations. They play Reggae and Soul and won't let you wear football colours inside, and it's the only bar I could reliably find Newcastle Brown, too. I have mad respect for a band who can manage to book the best seedy bar in a foreign city.
UPDATE: Belfast informant tells me that Menagerie was freed from paramilitary associations and is now owned by David Holmes. I guess that explains why the music got better. Informant assures that Menagerie is still way seedy.

But anyway, and perhaps even better, Mi Ami is coming to Richmond. (To the Triple.)

We are all travelling through space and time.



Pressure

Mi Ami plays with Thank You at the Triple on March 8th. Vaya con dios, dudes.

Tussle

Tussle's been around since 2001-- they did a couple of releases on Troubleman Unlimited before jumping over to Oslo's Smalltown Supersound and putting out Telescope Mind, in 2006, along with their new one, Cream Cuts. Isn't that such a dope name for a record?

Apparently while on tour last year with Hot Chip, Hot Chip superstar Alexis Taylor became so "smitten" with them that he wanted to contribute to this new one (on the song "Titan"). Smitten. They're from San Francisco.


Transparent C

Japanther

When I saw this flyer taped to the Bagel Czar I thought something was a little off-- Marshé usually seems to design the flyers for shows happening at Rumors, or at least the band does, and this didn't really fit what I think of as an aesthetic that either she or Japanther would really come up with. I noticed the weird varsity style of the "free" at the top.

But, whatever. Sweet, free Japanther show a block from my house. Totally down.

Then on Friday I got the Franki Chan/iheartcomix email blast that the Japanther/Totally Michael tour was kicking off, and suddenly. The flyer... Franki Chan... SCION.

Hahaha, Marshé is hosting a Scion party? Actually no, I asked her. She did sound like she wouldn't be opposed, though. Still, something funny about that flyer...

But yeah, whatever. Free Japanther show a block from my house.



Um Like Yer Smile Is Totally Ruling Me Right Now --my sister says "Critical" is their best song but I couldn't find it except a noisy live video.

Tobacco

Tobacco's myspace headline is, "Taking down PETA one member at a time." Yeah! But I think it might be because animal sacrifice is part of his religion. Leafy vines sprout from my brain and blossom into magenta fur. Backwoods Altar indeed.

Tobacco is one of the founding members of Black Moth Super Rainbow. His album Fucked Up Friends did very well on WRIR's charts this fall-- it's on the alt-hiphop label Anticon and includes a track with Aesop Rock.


He kind of looks like McKay.

Gross Magik

Esau Mwamwaya

London producers Radioclit have been tossing mixes around for a while. This fall they released their first artist-driven album, free here and a bunch of other places.

The artist is Esau Mwamwaya. He's from Malawi but has lived in London for 9 years, and he sings in Chichewa as well as English.

The album is dope for that reason but also for Radioclit's production-- you may have already heard the tracks they built with Esau using songs by Architecture in Helsinki, Santogold, MIA and Vampire Weekend, which hit the web last year.


Esau (left) met Radioclit's DJ Tron (right) when Tron visited Esau's junkshop in London. Not long after, Esau became "the African Phil Collins." The guy in the center is Johan, the other half of Radioclit.


Hide and Seek


Boyz