Radiohead Are From The Future: "House of Cards" Music Video

In case you didn't know just how unconventional Radiohead are, now they've made a music video. Nothing shocking about that, you say? Well this particular video was created without using two minor elements somewhat important to most film-making: cameras and lighting. The not-even-remotely-satisfying explanation that "3D plotting technologies collected information about the shapes and relative distances of objects" doesn't begin to click with us. But it sure looks cool:

"House of Cards"


If you really want to know more about how they did that, Geometric Informatics and Velodyne LIDAR are the two companies at play, and you can watch the making-of video here.

-J2

Best Music Videos of All Time

Radiohead week on mC

In 1995 music videos were still relevant as ways to hear new music and get to know your favorite musicians a little better. Few made better videos than Radiohead, and few came close to the paranoid brilliance of "Just":



When OK Computer blew up everyone's mind two years later, the accompanying videos for "Paranoid Android" and "Karma Police" definitely aided and abetted.

But when Thom Yorke joined forces with the rest of U.N.K.L.E. a year later, the video for "Rabbit In Your Headlights" seemed to flow from the same determined madness of the protagonist in the "Just" video. Present in both is a realization so profound that it shatters reality. Listening to Radiohead has this same feel - that if you listen closely enough, the epiphany will become clear, and all else falls away.



-J2

RADIOHEAD WEEK ON MIDDLECOAST

This week seemed like as good as any to devote entirely to Radiohead. Few, if any, other bands can justify the grandiose hyperbole that Radiohead elicit from fans and writers and fellow musicians. Phrases like, "most influential" or "the greatest album of...", get thrown around loosely and liberally as though they're in reference to The Beatles or The Who. Or Beethoven. And yet it all seems appropriate - not enough, even. Radiohead command a reverence rarely granted to musicians (at least, to musicians of the still-making-music variety). They have achieved a status that few in the pop culture machine have - they are capital-A Artists. They make Art - Art that will be rightly studied for generations to come, not solely for their cultural significance, but for the complexity and brilliance of their compositions. And so this week we dedicate all (or maybe, probably all) posts to Radiohead.

To get you in the mood, here are Weezer and a room full of backing guitarists, violinists, percussionists, singers, and random-people-
not-contributing-at-all-for-reasons-we-don't-understand (sing along already!) performing the track that made us all pay attention to Radiohead in the first place, "Creep":



If that just makes you (like us) want to hear the original, here's the video or the mp3.

-J2

Free Is the Best Price for Things

We Got It 4 Cheap, Vol 3: The Spirit of Competition (We Just Think We Better)

While it is still to be determined what impact artists (such as Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and now Pearl Jam) giving their album album away for free online will have on the record industry, there are still more and more artists following that path. Hip Hop has always thrived on the mixtape (free today to get cheddah tomorrow), and while Lil' Wayne may be most prolific, it's Clipse that make it an art form. Not surprisingly, over tracks once belonging to Kanye ("Good Morning"), Jay-Z ("Roc Boys"), Obie Trice ("Cry Now"), and others on this latest collection, Pusha T and Malice inform us that they did, in fact, deal drugs in the past. That they can essentially repeat this notion over and over (see: We Got It 4 Cheap Vols I-II, Lord Willin', Hell Hath No Fury) and still drop lines that make the whitest boy in the room say, 'Cot Damn', is evidence that these mixtapes are not simply thrown together on a whim. The Clipse are as much poets as they were ever pushers, and each line they drop is clearly accounted for as thoroughly as each key they sold.

Witness Pusha spitting fire (from "Re-Up Gang Intro"):
"No mentions of the best without mentionin' the 4
The tales of movin' powder like the Yeti's the allure.
The writers scream more yet they don't run to the store
With all this money in the streets to write a verse is like a chore.
Ignore the lies that they tell
Under my cuticle proof the pos' that I sell.
Guess life in jail's just a manicure away
Well I don't feel like gettin' my nails done today."

The spirit of competition has Malice not wanting to be outdone by his partner. And so (on "Cry Now"):
"We the R-E-U-P Gang, that's us brah
Yes I said Gang although it's a faux pas
Funnelin' the cane, how we do is not folklore
Bitch in Vera Wang, and the kid's got gold card
Cook the heroin till it's black like Bopa
Ill with the composition, I'm Mozart
You don't want this fig' to start spittin' so don't start
Not to mention I'm everywhere like Gold Starr
Prolific like W.E.B. Dubois
Seventeen in a nickel 'n I'll fuck witcha boy"

Oh, did we mention that the Gang is giving the whole album away for free? When have you ever been able to re-up for free? Go get it here.

If you need to feed the monkey, here is the mp3 for "Cry Now":

Make friends at http://www.myspace.com/clipse.

-J2

Obligatory Radiohead Posting

Radiohead continue to take full advantage of this whole World Wide Internet thing, giving us more and more in the form of live webcasts and video, to go along with giving us their whole album, no less. Thanks, by the way, Radiohead!

Anyway, yesterday they performed live in London at 93 Feet East, which would basically be like seeing Radiohead at The Bottleneck in Lawrence, or at Schubas in Chicago - in other words, ideal. Here are a couple highlights below. NME has the whole performance here.

"15 Step"


"The National Anthem"



Bloody brilliant.

-jT

Best of 2007, Part X

In the immortal words of Soul II Soul: Back to life, back to reality / Back to the here and now, yeah. The holidays have come and gone once again, and the middleCoast offices are back open for bizness.

To finalize the mC staff member Best (and/or Worst) Lists of 2007, we present the conclusion of the:


Top 20 Albums of 2007 (Nos. 10-1)

Number Ten (10)
Artist: The New Pornographers
Album: Challengers
Label: Matador
Release Date: August 21, 2007

On their fourth full-length, the Canadian supergroup puts on a clinic in how to craft brilliant pop music. Neko Case and Dan Bejar, fresh from making two of the best albums of 2006 on separate projects, reunite with Carl Newman and the boys to produce a mature and cohesive collection of power pop and rock anthems few bands of today even attempt. "My Rights Versus Yours" is quintessential New Pornographers, while "All the Old Showstoppers" and "Unguided" are bittersweet tales that will challenge even the most afflicted shoegazers to raise their eyes and fists to the sky.

Number Nine (9)
Artist: Spoon
Album: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Label: Merge
Release Date: July 10, 2007

Album title notwithstanding, Spoon have created their best album to date with Ga [et cetera]. Wallpapering our ears with sounds stemming from Motown ("You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb" and "The Underdog") to Memphis ("Don't Make Me a Target"), the design remains complete and beautiful. Whether pounding on the keys or crooning into the mic, Britt Daniel finally gives us everything he's got, holding back only when appropriate ("The Ghost of You Lingers"), and the precision and detail Spoon has become so gifted at cultivating into pop tracks manifests itself in some of the most soulful rock in years.

Number Eight (8)
Artist: Band of Horses
Album: Cease to Begin
Label: Sub Pop
Release Date: October 9, 2007

In 2006, Band of Horses burst onto the Indie Rock scene with one of the top releases of the year, Everything All of the Time. Despite that success, co-founder Mat Brooke departed in order to spend time with his other band, Grand Archives, leaving Ben Bridwell to begin again. Now, with new Horses Rob Hampton and Creighton Barrett, Bridwell gives us a sophomore release replete with all the swirling sing-alongs, good ole boy twang, and heartfelt ballads that made the debut so tantalizing. On "Ode to LRC" when Bridwell exalts in his crystal clear tenor, "The world is such a wonderful place", the beauty of melody and harmony make us inclined to believe this simple truth.

Number Seven (7)
Artist: Yeasayer
Album: All Hour Symbols
Label: We Are Free
Release Date: October 23, 2007

With the most promising debut of the year, Brooklyn's Yeasayer mix and match a veritable smörgåsbord of influences and derivatives. "Sunrise" and "2080" are psychedelic pop gems in the vein of The Beta Band or Spiritualized, but tracks like "Ah, Weir"and "Many Waves" venture into experiments in Middle Eastern and African musics. Combined with their pitch-perfect harmonizing, they manage to pull off the rare album that is simultaneously art-/experimental-/post-rock AND accessible. Despite the journey through such worldly sounds, at no point does Symbols feel pretentious or condescending. Instead, the kool kids are friendly and inclusive, and we can all tag along for the ride.

Number Six (6)
Artist: Blonde Redhead
Album: 23
Label: 4AD
Release Date: April 10, 2007

The haunting melancholy that drenches 23 seems to make for perfect rainy-day music. The alternating vocals from Kazu Makino and Amedeo Pace provide a tender framework for their lush and yearning tracks. Each song feels consistently and continually anxious, like the jilted lover counting the days passed since loneliness struck. What surprises, though, is the point when that dejection and despair start to feel good. Attachment to the gloom fills the void and becomes cathartic, and soon the album sounds just as lovely even on a sunny day.

Number Five (5)
Artist: Peter Bjorn & John
Album: Writer's Block
Label: Wichita
Release Date: February 6, 2007 (US)

When was the last time you could hear a song - a song featuring whistling, no less - over and over and over again on the radio, in commercials, in movies and still NOT get sick of it? "Young Folks" miraculously pulls off this feat, and it may not even be the best song on Writer's Block. After the brief instrumental opening of the title track, "Objects of My Affection" leads off the album with a coming-to-terms anthem, declaring a heartening self-awareness. We then get to enjoy the aforementioned "Young Folks", followed by similarly poppy "Amsterdam", which (perhaps intentionally) leads into the mellow "Start to Melt". The next few tracks continue the wistful dream-pop before another standout, "The Chills", alters the direction of the final few songs with its echoing vocals laid over percussion and bass-driven melody that calm and quiet the soul. The mingling of the earnest and energetic pop with the brooding atmospherics will ensure the album's place as a modern-day classic.

Number Four (4)
Artist: LCD Soundsystem
Album: Sound of Silver
Label: Capitol
Release Date: March 20, 2007

Disco-punk king, James Murphy, makes the best music around for white kids to dance to. What he's also managed to accomplish with Sound of Silver, though, are some of the most touching pop tunes of the year. The humor in "North American Scum", for example, when Murphy points out that "New York's the greatest if you get someone to pay the rent" balances with the bittersweet elegy of "Someone Great" because at the surface and at the base are the sonic grooves that keep moving forward. Bringing Side 1 to a conclusion (not accidentally) is "All My Friends", a new wave throwback that would fit alongside the best New Order track. The transition from adolescence into adulthood is a difficult one rife with poor decisions and a tendency to latch onto immature behaviors; what comes across with "All My Friends" is the acceptance of mistakes and realization that there aren't really any right answers, so there can't be any wrong answers, either. So just keep dancing.

Number Three (3)
Artist: The National
Album: Boxer
Label: Beggars Banquet
Release Date: May 22, 2007

I could've easily rearranged my Top 3 albums in any order, as Boxer is quite possibly the best of the year. Matt Berninger's plaintive baritone recalls Leonard Cohen, as do many of the short stories disguised as songs. The dense arrangements and emotive tones call for deep introspection, while the intimate and personal lyrics provide the basis for each listener to relate in his or her own way. The album contains wholly different meanings for each listener taking the time to pay attention. By being dramatically specific, The National's reach widens and expands to dramatically universal territory.

Number Two (2)
Artist: Arcade Fire
Album: Neon Bible
Label: Merge
Release Date: March 6, 2007

When the revolution comes, Arcade Fire will be on the front lines, leading the charge. The ebullience and theatrics of Neon Bible alternate between anthemic arena-rock and the state-of-affairs despair. "Keep the Car Running", "Intervention", and "No Cars Go" certainly provide a fair comparison to Springsteen, as do the multi-instrumental orchestrations permeating throughout. Win Butler and company maintain their originality, however, with experiments into more progressive song structure and arrangements, such as "Black Wave / Bad Vibrations" and "Ocean of Noise". The result is a lush and enthusiastic collection of fist-pumpers that play like gospel music to indie kids. Music is undoubtedly a religious experience, and Arcade Fire open their arms wide to inspire faith.

Number One (1)
Artist: Radiohead
Album: In Rainbows (Disc One)
Label: self-released
Release Date: October 10, 2007 (online)

I've hesitated writing about In Rainbows for a couple months now. First of all, the novelty of Radiohead's online release allowing fans to choose their own price has come off as revolutionary and a slam against record companies. Whether or not this method will result in any sort of industry sea change is still to be determined. Unfortunately, the hullabaloo surrounding this topic has detracted from the music itself. Which is my other hesitation in writing on it. As a Radiohead fan, it's quite difficult to critique without any bias. The original 10 tracks of Disc One have played over and over again in my home and in my head. What I'm trying to determine is if my initial reaction is accurate. You see, I'm inclined to say that In Rainbows is very simply the best Radiohead album yet. What that means, then, is that In Rainbows is better than OK Computer and better than Kid A; and in this humble fan's opinion, OK Computer and Kid A just happen to be two of the greatest albums ever recorded in the history of modern music. So to say that In Rainbows is better than those two classics is to also say that it is one of the greatest albums of all time. A difficult claim to make just three months after its release.

What I will claim is that In Rainbows is the band's most mature and sophisticated album to date. Combining the digital-rock gloom of Kid A, the subtle textures of OK Computer's balladry, the jazz-inspired wanderings of Amnesiac, and the night rain-drenched cool of Thom Yorke's The Eraser, In Rainbows finally feels like the next logical step for the world's foremost musicians. Yorke's pained but hopeful lyrics and vocals, Jonny Greenwood's post-classical compositions, and Phil Selway's underrated beats that keep pace for songs that live outside of time - all anchored by Nigel Godrich's production - are simultaneously advanced and grounded.

Certainly, parallels to previous albums exist: the digi-rock of openers "15 Step" and "Bodysnatchers" recall "Idioteque" and "Myxomatosis (Judge, Jury & Executioner)", respectively, while closer "Videotape" shares the minimalist denouement of Kid A finale, "Motion Picture Soundtrack". But there is a buoyancy to the new tracks that hadn't existed so fully on prior albums. The paranoia remains, and maybe gravity does always win, but it doesn't always have to get you down. Even this album's title implies a light at the end of the tunnel: in rainbows we glimpse those shades of vibrant color that shine through the bleak landscape after the storm.

-JasonToo

Music & Movies

This autumn has brought with it three films revolving around musical icons that we at middleCoast are actually excited to see. The first is a documentary chronicling the life of self-proclaimed Punk Rock Warlord, Joe Strummer, entitled "The Future Is Unwritten". Filmmaker Julien Temple guides us through the ups and downs of The Clash frontman with his deluge of raw footage spanning decades.

The other two films have cast actors to represent their stars in a more narrative format. There is much ado about Cate Blanchett's portrayal of Bob Dylan in "I'm Not There", however the Todd Haynes film actually features six different actors depicting Zimmy in different stages of his life.

Finally, "Control" is Anton Corbijn's biographical film showcasing Joy Division's Ian Curtis. Sam Riley has received rave reviews, as they say, for his portrait of the troubled songwriter. At the very least, the soundtrack should be worth our while.

With the hullabaloo surrounding Joy Division, Radiohead (fresh off their own revolution) recently performed middleCoast fave "Ceremony" on their live webcast:




Enjoy.

-

In Lieu of Actual Music Television...

Lately I can't get enough of of these guys going by the moniker, dan le sac VS scroobius pip. I'm mesmerized by the lyrical schizophrenia - or maybe it's just that this guy hates EVERYBODY. Either way, I'm a fan. Check out "Thou Shalt Always Kill" -




Less entertaining of a video, but equally tantalizing lyrically, is "A Letter from God" (this isn't necessarily religious, by the way) -




And if you're like me, now you just want to hear the original version of "Planet Telex" (don't think a music video was ever made, but this'll do) -




Enjoy things.

-jToo

-

Ronson. Dig it.

So the Mark Ronson release, Version, finally drops stateside today. Everyone should show him much love and go purchase it. Or just steal it. Whatever.

Anyway, my favorite is his version (get it?) of Radiohead's "Just". I can't get enough of it. You just can't fake that funk. And the music video for it is equally enjoyable:



Actually, the Radiohead video for the song happens to be the greatest music video of all time, so here it is so you can enjoy that too:



More later....

I just have one thing to say to all you pitchfork-reading rock snobs

I just have one thing to say to all you pitchfork-reading rock snobs. You think you're so fucking cool because you wrote in your blog all about how shitty Radiohead has become or how awful Beck's last album was or how disappointing At War with the Mystics is. Fuckin fuck off with your fuckin shit. Seriously. How are you gonna sit there and disrespect Radiohead when assholes like Kevin Federline are out there producing so-called music? Why are you so fucking myopic, you fucking rock snob? I mean really, that's like if your mom gave you a kickass 10-speed for Christmas, but then because she also gave you some lame-ass sweater now you don't like the sweater or the 10-speed. Fucking brat. Radiohead gave us one of the all-time greatest musical gifts in the history of the planet in the form of Kid A. And just because Hail to the Thief wasn't up to its impossible standard now Radiohead sucks? Seriously? That's the fucking logic? Fuck you. Radiohead is and always will be great BECAUSE of Kid A, not despite Kid A. After Kid A it doesn't fucking matter what else they do. They can fart in a can for 50 minutes and call it an album and it's still great. You know why? Because Kid A was THAT FUCKING GOOD. Have some damn respect.

What happened to being a fan of music? What's so wrong with just being a fan and enjoying music? Why do you have to be a critic? There are enough fucking critics out there and they're all assholes. So don't be a critic. There is nothing good about being a critic. Aren't you fucking cynical enough, you need to be critical too? Let me tell you about critics - professional critics, that is. Critics hate themselves. That's the only explanation for how they could hate everything else. So if you hate yourself, step right up and be the next critic. Otherwise, would you please shut the fuck up and listen to the music?

Music is so fucking good. Seriously. And I know there is a lot of horrendous shit out there, but good music is so fucking good. Have you heard My Morning Jacket perform Run Thru live on Okonokos? I mean, if that doesn't do anything for you then you're an asshole and you should punch yourself. Maybe I missed my time in the free lovin bullshit of the 60s, but doesn't anyone still enjoy the power of music? The sheer joy and passion that can come across in the art form? The fucking reason you started listening to music in the first place? If not, if you're too cool, too much of a hipster to remember how joyous music is, then I do feel sorry for you.

For what it's worth, I'm still an unashamed fan of music, specifically of these - the greatest bands on the planet currently making music (in no particular order) - and I only list a few because perhaps if you've forgotten how to enjoy music, listening to them will help:

My Morning Jacket
Wilco
The Flaming Lips
The Roots
TV on the Radio
Radiohead

In the words of Jim James:
Why does my mind blow to bits every time they play that song?
It's just the way that he sings,
not the words that he says, or the band.
I'm in love with this soul, it's a meaning that I understand.

-JasonToo