Recorded for Cokemachineglow’s ridiculous brilliant Fantasy-Podcast, Madison’s Pale Young Gentlemen give M.I.A. the I-never-saw-that-one-coming treatment with their rendition of “Paper Planes.” Making mention of the inspiration behind the cover, percussionist Matt Reisenauer noted, “We chose the song because it samples ‘Straight to Hell’ by The Clash, which Mike and I have been singing since he bought Combat Rock in the 8th grade. It just seemed right.” In 2008 “Paper Planes” saw both a rebirth and a death-by-overexposure, and while this version might not be enough to completely revive an interest in hearing Kala ever again, its aftertaste is far more refreshing than that left by hearing it exclusively on pop-radio stations and Pineapple Express commercials the past six months.

Pale Young Gentlemen “Paper Planes” (mp3)

(Official) (MySpace)

Also: (Influenza with Mike Reisenauer of Pale Young Gentlemen) (Pale Young Gentlemen, Murzik & Grandpall Jookabox @ The Nomad)

(Official) (MySpace)

How can a band named Gay Witch Abortion stir any more controversy? Simple. Take forever to release an album, then make one and call it Maverick. That word, and the initials ‘RNC,’ aren’t taken too kindly to by folks in these parts. Maverick could be considered the protest soundtrack to the Republican National Convention, setting a tone reminiscent of Trans Am’s Liberation, an album released in a post-9/11 Washington D.C. Envision protesters marching on the State Capitol to “Down With Giants,” then getting run down and tear-gassed by the “Action Cop.” In keeping with post rock form, Gay Witch Abortion minimizes the human element behind the guitar and drums. Songs with vocals used as experiments in sound. The lyrics don’t matter, what does is the final product, what each song builds into by the end of its progression. Some songs are easier to digest, like “Unblinking Sun,” that sounds just as the song’s title suggests. But this kind of rock isn’t about making it easy on the listener. This is art rock, music that forces the listener to intellectualize what’s going on, without providing any answers.

Gay Witch Abortion “Action Cop” (mp3)
Gay Witch Abortion “Wavey Graves” (mp3)

(MySpace)

In association with OutFront MN, Join the Impact Twin Cities, the Twin Cities Avengers and Tru Ruts/Speakeasy Records, Culture Bully is helping present Hip Hop Against Homophobia at the Nomad on Friday, Januay 23.

On Friday, Jan 23, the Nomad World Pub in Minneapolis will host “Hip Hop Against Homophobia.” Performers include some of the Twin Cities’ most successful hip hop acts, representing both the LGBTQ community and its straight allies: Maria Isa, Toki Wright, Alicia Leafgreen, DeeJay Blowtorch, Kredentials, Tish Jones, See More Perspective and the show’s lead organizer, Kyle “El Guante” Myhre.

Proceeds from the show will benefit Join the Impact Twin Cities, the coalition of activists that organized the anti-Proposition 8 rally on Nov 15 that drew 2,000 people. Another rally, planned for Jan 10, promises to be even bigger, and more events are in the works.

Toki Wright: (Official) (MySpace)
Toki Wright “State of Emergency” (mp3)
Maria Isa: (MySpace)
El Guante: (Official) (MySpace)
Alicia Leafgreen: (Official) (MySpace)
Kredentials: (Official) (MySpace)
Kredentials “On The Grind” (mp3)
Kredentials “Divine Intervention” (mp3)
Kredentials “Testimony” (mp3)
Kredentials “Rock Star” (mp3)
See More Perspective: (MySpace)

Also: (El Guante and Big Cats! @ Eclipse Records) (Puerto Rican Nice: Maria Isa)

Approach Influenza as a series which serves to help give insight as to where music is born; these are the thoughts, influences and the inspirations directly from the mind of the artists. Here, Phingaz of Minneapolis’ Background Noise Crew dissects the group’s interpretation of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Funky Monks.”

On “Funk Yo Monk (We Red Hot)”:

I had the idea to remake a bunch of Red Hot Chili Pepper songs for a while - “Funky Monks” (off of Blood Sugar Sex Magik) was at the top of my list. The original song has such a hard hitting bass and drum line - [it] just cooks through the whole song. So I decided to replay the guitar and slap in a huge kick drum with hand claps. I’d been listening to Camp Lo a shit-ton around that time and loved “Krystal Karrington.” The beat has this nasty chain-like shaker in it, I wanted a similar sound in the “Funk Yo Monk” song. I grabbed my house keys, a shaker and a tambourine and just went to town.

I sang the first part of the first verse of the original song. It’s perfect and I think it works as a hook by its lonesome. I sent it out to the whole crew and said “You have to spit 16 bars on this - no exceptions.” They all came back with the crazy stew of styles and such. It’s a good thing everybody comes so differently - it clocks in over six minutes but you don’t really notice it cause every ones style is so different.

Status Regin is a perfect starter for a song like this - he always has a crazy amount of energy in his verses, so him up front was the most obvious choice. Everyone had to match up to him. TQD’s verse is a HUGE stand out. If people aren’t familiar with his cataloge - he NEVER sounds like this. It’s nice to hear him switch up his style a bit. Tone always cracks me up with his verses - he had this rhyme pattern that was just jumping out of my ears, so I told him we should really capitalize on that. So Analyrical, TQD and I all yelled along with his pattern to give it that ‘large gang’ effect. We must have done about five tracks of us all yelling. I think Analyrical spits my favorite verse - I really dig it when MC’s play around with letters, patterns and sounds. I’ve never heard so many S’s and P’s in a verse before. Phaust is my homeboy - we’ve been though some shit, put out three Albums with Sinthesis and he is part of the BNC extended family. He always blows me away with his verses. He can be super cryptic and vague [or] he can be direct and literal. I picture him spiting this verse with a stupid grin on his face. Like he just stole two packs of cigs from the corner store and sweet talked his way out of it.

Background Noise Crew “Funk Yo Monks (We Red Hot)” (mp3)

(Official) (MySpace)

(Background Noise Crew’s release show for Everybody Does This Vol. 1 at the Dinkytowner on Jan. 23. Also on the bill are Big Zach of Kanser, Carnage and The Watchmen.)

El Guante: (Official) (MySpace)
Big Cats!: (Official) (MySpace)

Also: (El Guante and Big Cats! & Megacat @ Eclipse Records Photos)

It is often difficult to gain a balanced perspective on an album after reading a single summary of the music. Bias can tilt the review, as can personal taste, history and just about everything else that is unique to the person writing it. So in an effort to offer an expanded perspective on the music here are four reactions, four impressions, Four Takes on Animal Collective’s Merriweather Post Pavilion.

A loop of a robotic voice repeating the phrase “You can dance” greets listeners at the beginning of Animal Collective’s Merriweather Post Pavilion, the bands ninth release, and easily one of the most anticipated records of 2009 for the indie set. And it’s a mantra that fans should take to heart while listening to the album, which is quite dub-heavy, propulsive, and indeed danceable at times. There is an optimistic tone to this album that I was drawn to upon first hearing it, and that has stuck with me through repeat listens—perhaps it was just a desperate need to latch onto anything “sunny” during these cold winter days, maybe it was just the fact that this album became the breezy, dreamy soundtrack to a string of idle days. Whatever the case may be, I’ve been playing this album continually for days, and it has won me over with its textured layers of Beach Boys-influenced buoyant pop, bass-driven dub, jumbled psychedelia, and dynamic sound excursions. “My Girls” is as straightforward and coherent a song that Animal Collective has ever released, and while that might vex fans of the bands more experimental earlier work like Sung Tongs, it’s really hard to deny the appeal of this track, with Panda Bear singing heartfelt lyrics about not caring for superficial things, but still wanting to provide a proper home for his girls. And the band continues the strong start of the record with the bold, innovative “Also Frightened,” my favorite track from the album. It’s five minutes of bliss, despite the unsettling lyrical undertones. Avey Tare, Panda Bear and Geologist are still taking chances musically, albeit slightly smaller ones than earlier in their career, and expanding on the sonic parameters that seem to apply to them, and them only. The second half of the record is a bit more onerous and dense than the slightly more conventional (for Animal Collective, at least) first half, with the lyrics becoming less meaningful and forming more of a collage with the music, and finds the band toying with the boundaries of sound and structure. The result is a captivating sonic experiment that rewards more upon repeat listens, with pliable songs that provide plenty of depth and spectacle. Merriweather Post Pavilion is sure to land on many year end Top Ten lists, despite being released so early in 2009, and deservedly so, for this record delivers on many different levels, and lives up to, and in my mind exceeds, the lofty and often preposterous expectations of the blogosphere. [Erik Thompson]

photo by Adriano Fegundes

I am an avowed opponent of the cult mentality. When Merriweather Post Pavilion was already being hailed as the next coming of Christ by the blogosphere (before anyone had even heard it in its entirety) my immediate reaction was extreme cynicism. Though I try to control my knee jerking, I have had a hot/cold relationship with Animal Collective since their beginning. While the altogether sublime experience that was their set at the Pitchfork Music Festival this past summer was enough to bring me over to their side, I am still not quite ready to drink the Kool-Aid. The band’s Indie deity status aside, I found very little about MPP to dislike. It is a fabulously dense journey through a cyber jungle that is every bit the masterpiece it will surely be lauded for. One should never attempt to assess art in a vacuum, and in the current clusterfuck that is our post-Bush society, Animal Collective’s music is disengaging enough to be considered escapist. In this volatile era I don’t think that young people can afford to “turn on, tune in, and drop out.” I am guilty of it too – being at an AC show is akin to visiting another wonderful planet of lights, colors, and a wholly different language of music. I just hope that in our visits to space we don’t forget about all the problems that we have to sort out down here on Earth. [Jon Behm]

Is this the point in Animal Collective’s career when we have a Radiohead-esqe discussion about distinct periods in their catalog and argue over which was better? Like Radiohead did switching from the guitars of OK Computer and The Bends to the more electronic Kid A and beyond, Animal Collective has left a distinct style (swirling masses of guitars, chants and tribal rhythms) on the great Sung Tongs and Feels to go in a more electronic direction. While they don’t have a defining moment of separation like Kid A, they have been slowly making this transition over the last couple years (to the point where their last tour had no guitar player). Both Panda Bear’s amazing solo album Person Pitch and their last album Strawberry Jam started the more electronic trend that has come to completely encompass their sound on their latest album Merriweather Post Pavilion. One thing that has not changed is that the band writes soaring songs that do little to hide their love of pretty harmonies (namely Brian Wilson) and swirling psychedelic music. One difference the band has made over the years is their transition from twitchy, almost paranoid undertones to a more sunny and optimistic sound. Maybe it is just them getting older and having families, but there are multiple songs on the new record that are downright sunny. The two songs released prior to the album’s release, “My Girls” and “Brothersport” both have blissfully sunny tracks with lyrics that are (for the most part) pretty positive stuff. Other strong tracks include the slow burning ballad “No More Runnin” and the dancey “Daily Routine.” The whole disc is a rousing success and shows how Animal Collective have the potential to put out some amazing music, no matter what the style may be. While I am not sure what my answer would be to the questions posed at the start of the review (Guitars vs. electronics), I do know that no matter what, you can’t argue with the band putting out an album as downright awe-inspiring as Merriweather Post Pavilion. [Josh Keller]

“Brothersport” Hove Festival, Norway, June 2008

“Am I really all the things that are outside of me?” The repetitive gesture in “Taste” offers more than a monotonous vocal loop within an eerie track, it’s suggestive as to an internal conflict that is readily apparent throughout Merriweather Post Pavilion. The album isn’t necessarily a reflection of the increasingly volatile economic and social environment that is the United States, but it does offer numerous personal accounts of struggle and conflict. The repetitive echo of “My Girls” offers similar insight, ringing, “I don’t mean to seem like I care about material things like a social status, I just want four walls and adobe slabs for my girls.” But aside from the thematic aspect of various songs, one that isn’t nearly as focused as these two examples suggest, the blurred soundscape beneath provides the depth and soul of the album—a sound that is as welcoming as it is intense. But to merely say that Merriweather Post Pavilion is beautifully layered isn’t enough, especially considering the source. Each new song fluently accents that which precedes it, offering what could be a single-track album, if only for the fact that splitting it up makes it easier to repeat a favorite moment. “Lion in a Coma” has a wavy didgeridoo that loosely transports the listener from the dense belly of the album to a trio of songs that shine with brilliance. “Lion” enduring a faster pace to maintain energy, “No More Runnin’” calmly allowing the blood to settle, and “Brothersport” tearing everything apart in a conclusive reinterpretation of an amalgam of influence (read: “Brothersport” is pretty much the dopest shit ever). “Am I really all the things that are outside of me?” If art is the ultimate reflection of its creator, “Taste” offers an entirely new meaning - for the brilliance suggested with the presentation of Merriweather Post Pavilion is relative to the creative minds behind it, all of which have just released one of the best efforts ever to bear the Animal Collective stamp. [Chris DeLine]

(Official) (MySpace) (Wikipedia)

Also: (Animal Collective on Late Night with Conan O’Brien) (Animal Collective “Peacebone” Video) (Animal Collective “People EP” Review)

First he collaborates with Atmosphere on last year’s When Life Gives you Lemons… and now Tom Waits is lending his growl to N.A.S.A.’s “Spacious Thoughts,” (alongside Kool Keith no less). How long before we can expect a full length Hip Hop record from the old man? You gotta hand it to him though, he knows how to pick em’. N.A.S.A. (North America/South America) is the partnership of soon-to-be superstars American DJ Squeak E. Clean (Sam Spiegel) and Brazilian DJ Zegon (Ze Gonzales). The duo utilizes a shared love of old school Brazilian funk to create masterfully crafted hip hop beats, and have partnered with a huge number of serious talents for their upcoming record. “Spacious Thoughts” presents a meeting of two of America’s most eccentric musical personalities in Waits and Keith. The union proves that not only does Dr. Dooom still have it, but Tom Waits can actually rap (sort of). He mostly grumbles/sings through his parts in his typical style (but come on, no one really wants to hear Tom Waits yes y’alling and shouting out to his homies). The backing beat is a pretty funky brass jam, but really only window dressing for Waits and Keith doing what they do best: being oddball geniuses.

N.A.S.A. feat. Tom Waits & Kool Keith “Spacious Thoughts” (mp3)

Also: (N.A.S.A. 2009 Tour Dates | Triple Rock March 6)

(Official) (MySpace) (Wikipedia)

Also: (Bruce Springsteen “Radio Nowhere” Video)

Approach Influenza as a series which serves to help give insight as to where music is born; these are the thoughts, influences and the inspirations directly from the mind of the artists. Here, Ian Anderson of Minneapolis’ One For The Team dissects the spiral of thoughts which formed the theme to one of the group’s most recent singles from their latest release, Build It Up.

On “Best Supporting Actor”:

I wrote “Best Supporting Actor” after one of my buddies drunkenly slapped me on the back and said, “Ya know dude, you’re a really good boyfriend.” I always thought it was a funny thing to say to someone, because, after all, how would he know? I mean, sure, he may have formed that opinion based on the stellar boyfriend-ish things I’ve done for my lady, but he wouldn’t really know the intimate details. However, there was more to it. He continued to explain that I was almost such a good boyfriend, that it was a fault. That I ended up neglecting my needs and own well-being in order to put the relationship first. This shocked me and we began to dissect my role in my bf-gf relationship at the time. I came to realize that, in fact, I moved my life around quite a bit to accommodate the relationship.

Granted, all relationships require a certain level of sacrifice and compromise, but as I started to tally up the major events of the relationship, I started to feel less like a great boyfriend, and more like a big pushover. This song is a bit about self-deprecation, but it’s also about learning to be honest with myself within the context of a relationship. [Ian Anderson]

One For The Team “Best Supporting Actor” (mp3)

(Official) (MySpace)