Me Likey; Coeur de Pirate - Comme des enfants

Coeur de Pirate || Comme des enfants from Dare To Care Records on Vimeo.

Me Likey; Pilar Diaz - "Piñata"

Mayer Hawthorne is The Truth (Re-Edit, Updated Vid)

Mayer Hawthorne has a new single and here's a simple video for the song. My first introduction to Mayer Hawthorn was through DJ Addverse. After bar hours closed, the bartenders and workers would request some tunes as they shut down. Mainly, the music was pretty chill, but not in that martini lounge setting way. More like The Doors and soul music. Each time Mayer would play, your lips come together and go "oooo." Then when I found out the vinyl is heart-shaped, color-red and he's a white dude who's NOT dead(!)..omg, where has he been all my life?. Soul music for REAL.

plus, Stones Throw record owner, Peanut Butter Wolf is good creepy;

Phoenix - Lisztomania (brat pack mashup)

This makes me wish summer was already here, instead of spring break-up. I can't wait for the French band that sings in English Phoenix's 1901 to come out. I might be setting my expectations too high, but I think it could be the summer album for 2009.

John Lennon's Jukebox

"In the mid-60s, John Lennon purchased a portable Discomatic jukebox that held forty 45 rpm records. The records in that jukebox are the focus of this documentary that examines John Lennon’s musical taste and the influences on the Beatles. ..."

Michel Gondrey

Today, director Michel Gondrey has launched his official website. Nothing really of interest, unless you want to buy stuff, which is kind of lame coming from a guy who's last film was all about do-it-yourself. Movies ain't cheap, eh? Mr. Gondry recently did a guest DJ stint on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic.

Some of the past shows on "Mornings..." are viewable, and I recommend checking out Raphael Saadiq's stripped down acoustic set.

Adventureland

I'm a sucker for good "coming-of age" movies. There's a hint of nostaglia that makes you remember "back in the days..." The really good stories reveal how messy and scary growing up can be. Gregg Mottola's Adventureland falls in the good category. This Nerve article has a decent enough review of the film, so I'll spare you a summary review.

Yo La Tengo handles the original music to the film, which makes the film 10x more awesome, but the music credits don't stop there. This site reveals how much good music is in the film and makes me what to take all of my friends to go see it just to enjoy the music. Thank goodness, it's a good film as well. (I orginally planned to see Fast & Furious with my little brother, but he had plans to see that already, so I took him to a movie I was going to see anyway) For a little more information on Yo La Tengo's film music contribtutions, check here.

Klosterman

Chuck Klosterman gave a lecture along with Q&A session about a week here in Anchorage. Klosterman is a writer known for his memoirs, Fargo Rock City, Sex Drugs & Cocoa Puffs, and his writing for Esquire and Spin magazine. He talked about his development as a writer which was kind of catered to the expected audience; students at UAA (the event was free to the public). Of course, his speech and Q&A session had plenty of pop references and he was just as witty live compared to his writing.

You can always learn something from someone's development, but Klosterman warns that he doesn't have a ritual. He did go through a post-college newspaper job that he called his "woodshedding" period, and he must have saw a lot of blank faces so he briefly explained "woodshedding." This bit of knowledge was enlightening because I feel like this stage of my is what Klosterman is describing. I'm not saying I'll become a writer like he is, but maybe I'm honing skills that will be very practical in my profession just like a musician who dedicates themself to a craft.

Portraits of BBC Radio DJs

"Ninety per cent of the population tune in every week and with listening figures soaring, top radio presenters reveal the highs and lows of broadcasting. Portraits by James Mollison"

That freaking blows my mind away! 90 Percent! Then again, I'm not sure what the rest of the statistic means. Is that out of the whole UK population? Is it out of the 3 million who listen to radio? Nonetheless, to have 90% is incredible no matter what the rest of stat means. Also, the above portrait is Annie Mac. She is mainly known for her show called "Mash-Up," which could be described as the show you would want to hear prior to going out on the weekend or if you're a fan of dance music with a bit of bounce that will instantly make you want to dance and tear the club up. Then again, that's just what I think whenever I hear her show.

Btw, sometime down the line, I'll give proper love to some stateside radio people, especially folks doing things in Alaska.