Your DailyCrack

Phantogram - When I’m Small

The reviews and band descriptions I’ve read for Phantogram all seem to have two things in common: They seem to enjoy Phantogram’s debut album Eyelid Movies while struggling to find a genre to fittingly label the duo from upstate New York. I keep seeing “streetbeat, psych pop” thrown around, even making it onto their Wikipedia page. So, kudos to the blogger that created a new genre of music for Phantogram but in actuality they are two musicians who make music inspired from a plethora of different musical genres. Phantogram is very streetbeat-psych-popish if that means they are an accessible pop group with rock, electronica, and hip-hop influences. You could conjure up a new witty genre name whenever you feel the need to but, while you won’t see their inspirations playing nice together on every track, When I’m Small is a good song on a good album. It’s only available as an import for the time being but you can download it from amazon.co.uk.

- opparaics

Elliot Smith - I Didn’t Understand

This is a 137 seconds of Elliot Smith self-loathing brilliance. With no instruments, Mr. Smith sings to his former lover from the hole he’s stuck in and can’t seem to climb out of. Elliot was surely a man who was excruciatingly tormented by his own existence. His music is a haunting prelude to his death and offers us a window into the mind of person coping with depression and substance abuse. Those unfamiliar with his work will probably recognize his songs Miss Misery from Good Will Hunting and Needle in The Hay from The Royal Tenenbaums, which in my opinion, is one of the greatest scenes in a movie. Elliot, as a musician and writer, had talent to spare and if you’re not familiar with his work I’d suggest that you acquaint yourself.

Lyrics:

Thought you’d be looking
For the next in line to love then ignore
Put out and put away
And so you’d soon be leaving me alone
Like I’m supposed to be
Tonight, tomorrow, and every day

There’s nothing here that you’ll miss
I can guarantee you this
Is a cloud of smoke
Trying to occupy space
What a fucking joke
What a fucking joke

I waited for a bus to separate the both of us
And take me off far away from you
Because my feelings never change a bit
I always feel like shit
I don’t know why, I guess that I “just do”

You once talked to me about love
And you painted pictures of a Never-Never Land
And I could’ve gone to that place
But I didn’t understand

I didn’t understand
I didn’t understand

- opparaics

Three Trapped Tigers - 1

Two EP’s titled EP and EP 2 as well as nine songs between the two EP’s aptly labeled 1-9 hints at a mechanical churning out of musica by Three Trapped Tigers. That would be assuming incorrectly as the feel from both EP’s is anything but. Three Trapped Tigers have composed music on both releases that jump back and forth in various ways—from highs to lows, from chaotic and frenzied to peaceful and serene, from instrumental and spontaneous to digital and mechanical. Their EP’s can be found on iTunes and are relatively inexpensive. I would recommend them without reservation but if you’re not about dropping $8.00 on nine songs, songs 1, 6, and 7 are the ones I enjoy most.

- opparaics

Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse - Revenge (feat. The Flaming Lips)

Can anyone really hate on producer extraordinaire Danger Mouse of Gnarls Barkley fame? I can’t sit her and sling bullshit, I was skeptical at first. Danger Mouse hit the scene producing for a rapper named Jemini - nothing special. Then he sneaks the The Grey Album through (a cappellas from Jay-Z’s Black Album over beats sampling songs from The Beatles’ White Album) and everyone hops on his walnuts. I felt the The Grey Album received unwarranted praise because people hear The Beatles and get boners. It’s good, not great, and it certainly didn’t deserve best album of the year rankings. I blame that more on the foolishness of homo sapiens. However, his work with Cee-Lo as Gnarls Barkley, the Gorillaz, and MF Doom as DangerDoom (he also produced an album for Beck but you’ll have to get someone else’s opinion on that one) proves he has the ear and ability to utilize the talents of those around him to create quality music - exactly what a great producer is supposed to do.

That brings us to Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse present: Dark Night of The Soul, an album that’s unlikely to be released because Sparklehorse’s record label is the same one DM probably owes a shit load of money to for using the Beatles’ music without consent. You can hear it here if you haven’t already found a way to download it. When you order the album from DM he sends you a blank CD. The album exerts the creative effort that I respect and enjoy - great songs from a variety of artists and photography from David Lynch, if the special edition were still available I would advise its purchase. The song above is track numero uno and features the Flaming Lips. It’s a toss up between this song and the Jason Lytle feature Everytime I’m With You for best song in my opinion. Enjoy.

Lyrics:

Pain
I guess it’s a matter of sensation
But somehow
You have ways of avoiding it all

In my mind
I have shot you and stabbed you through your heart
I just didn’t understand
The ricochet is the second part

Cause you can’t hide
What you intend
It glows in the dark
Once you’ve sought
The path of revenge
There’s no way to stop
And the more I try to hurt you
The more that it hurts me

Strange
It seems like a character mutation
Though I have all the means
of bringing you fuckers down
I can’t make myself
To destroy upon command
Somehow forgiveness
lets the evil make a loss

No you can’t hide
What you intend
It glows in the dark
Once we become
The thing we dread
There’s no way to stop
And the more I try to hurt you
The more it backfires
The more it backfires
The more that it backfires

- opparaics

Breakestra - Hiding

“Clap your hands everybody, if you got what it takes, cause I’m Kurtis Blow and I want you to know that these are the breaks”

The break of a song is usually when the drummer and bassist are given their due, get funky, and groove the fuck out. The term became broader as time went on but originally DJ’s would loop these parts of the song while MC’s rallied the crowd and there is your birth of hip-hop in a nutshell. Enter Breakestra, releasing a new album later this month after releasing two live sets of break mixes and an original album Hit The Floor some years ago, they are all about the golden era of funk and the roots of hip-hop. Alongside Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, they are the predecessors of musical acts like Chin Chin and Mayer Hawthorne, acts that focus on creating music that captures the essence of an era when music was funky and had soul. Call up the Doc, tell him to come through with his Delorean and flux capacitor, ship a Breakestra Album back to the 60’s and 70’s, and I’m sure Breakestra would put it down.

Lyrics:

I’ve been hiding from your eyes
and staying out of reach
trying not to let my heart
keep reminding me
what I wished I’d shown you girl
when you were close enough to me
if I dont get another chance at least I have my peace
I’ve been hiding yeah (repeat) heeeey hey
Ive been hiding from your words and keeping my head clear
trying not to let my heart oh
drown under the fear
I’ve been hiding yeah (repeat 3x)
but I aint gonna hide no more - oh yeah(repeat 3x) noooo
if you can see - Oooh yeah
I’ve been hiding underneath these eyes
and I’m hoping you wont see
what a fool looks like pretending
that his love is not a dream
its waiting to be woken up or finally put to sleep
I can’t live in this world between
what I wonder what I need
I’ve been hiding (repeat 3x)
but I aint gonna hide no more - ohh (repeat)
no mmmmmm
aint gonna hide no more yeah
if you can see then you can ?
just maybe then you’ll see the man
but I aint gonna hide no more (repeat)
yeah

- opparaics

Cage - Depart From Me

A couple years ago I was conversing with a coworker of mine at the time about music. He had described how he grew up in love with Wu-Tang’s 36 Chambers but it had lost its appeal over time and concluded that rap music didn’t age well. The problem was that the music we had grown up with wasn’t maturing with us. The artists making songs about smoking weed, sexcapades, and all things reckless were still making the same type of music. We were adults looking for music that we could identify with.

I first heard Cage’s Agent Orange in a park and was told he was the Eminem of NY. He wasn’t well known and wrote music more concerned with shock value than substance. Perfect for a tween/teenager who was looking for something to call his own. In high school the shock value wore off and Cage’s music began collecting dust in my collection. Then he dropped Hell’s Winter while I was in college, an album filled with emotional and personal songs I could relate to. I felt like rap was finally maturing.

I’ve waited for Depart From Me patiently. Ignoring those who hated on Cage for totally changing his style, labeling him as emo-rap. Shoot Frank was an amazing song on Hell’s Winter and it seemed to be the style he was embracing. An artist should explore new areas and if changing his style meant more songs like that I was all for it. I was expecting Depart From Me to be a great; fresh album. It’s not. It’s a unique album but less personal than Hell’s Winter. A month ago a bootleg was floating around and Cage assured us that he was aware of a leaked “terrible” version of the album. A month later and the official copy is released, same as the leaked, accept mixed better. In fact, some of the track’s titles even change to the leaked titles when opened with iTunes. The gem on the album is the title track which was a snippet on his MySpace page. I can’t say I’m not disappointed. The album is noticeably attempting to appeal to a much broader (younger; female) audience. However, if anyone deserves success it’s a person who has battled through adversity time and again throughout their life. Cage most certainly has. I’ll spare you the details, I’m sure you can find his bio somewhere, but here’s hoping he sells a million copies.

Lyrics:

You left me so poor I couldn’t pay to play
I filled my head with what I could to make it go away
Tears eventually cake up, inevitable break-up
Laying in bed for days and you wake up
I feel the strain, am I sane or am I just not gonna heal?
I’m just as sick in the rain and found Agent trying to rebuild
Wanted demented bliss, created something to miss
I know I stormed until now, but I’m not running from this

You started shrinking when my head fell apart
You slipped away
Next time you see me you’ll know how small you are
And now it’s over, over, over
Going over your head
It’s really over, over, over
Never hold you again

You don’t think that I get it?
I was the one who let it
Fall apart into pieces
You cut your foot when you jetted
Just swimming around in my head
Not slowing down, you said
All you need to say
You can share it with the dude in your bed
You did your crying career and started climbing
I thought it could be forever
Now on all my records you’re dying
I got a lot of rest at last
Just let the world go past
Just let it go empty
I guess we just ran out of gas

You started shrinking when my head fell apart
You slipped away
Next time you see me you’ll know how small you are
And now it’s over, over, over
Going over your head
It’s really over, over, over
Never hold you again

And I guess I get
sold out of what I had
Just really wasn’t your bag
some lunatic that reminds you of your dad
I get it, you were slipping from my grasp
I just didn’t get out fast
You were jumping to the future from my past
In a flash, you were the one who erased it
I hope our replacement gives me time back I wasted
You knew it was so hard to see my brother die
so pardon me, you just depart from me
You ruined art for me…

You started shrinking when my head fell apart
You slipped away
Next time you see me you’ll know how small you are
And now it’s over, over, over
Going over your head
It’s really over, over, over
Never hold you again

- opparaics

Cut Chemist - The Garden

Give this one a chance. It’s starts off a little slow but overall is a great musical composition. The orchestrator? Cut Chemist. The first song I ever posted for Daily Crack was RJD2’S Rain which sampled Astrud Gilberto’s Gentle Rain. The general consensus is that Cut Chemist samples Astrud Gilberto’s version of Berimbau (which I’ve yet to find but another version can be heard here). A berimbau is a Brazilian instrument and, pretty much, is just a one-stringed Bow and a shaker. If you’ve never bared witness to someone getting down and funky on one, indulge yourself here. It’s probably the most gangster instrument ever. You need to get the party popping? The Brazilians got you, Macgyver style. All they need is a bow, a string, and one of those party balloons filled with rice. The Garden is Cut Chemist’s tribute to the berimbau instrument and the song it inspired. Enjoy.

Berimbau Lyrics (by user: TPT1 @ AllaboutJazz.com’s General Music Discussion forum):

(Baden Powell e Vinicius de Moraes)

Quem é homem de bem não trai
O amor que lhe quer seu bem
Quem diz muito que vai, não vai
Assim como não vai, não vem
Quem de dentro de si não sai
Vai morrer sem amar ninguém
O dinheiro de quem não dá
É o trabalho de quem não tem
Capoeira que é bom não cai
Mas se um dia ele cai, cai bem
Capoeira me mandou dizer que já chegou
Chegou para lutar
Berimbau me confirmou vai ter briga de amor
Tristeza, camará
====================================
A rough English translation:

A righteous man does not betray
the love that wants to do good for him
Whoever says they go a lot, they don’t go
because it doesn’t go, it doesn’t come
Who inside himself doesn’t try
will die without loving anyone
Wealth that doesn’t give
is the work that has nothing
Capoeira that is good doesn’t fall
and if some day it falls, it falls well
Capoeira told me to tell you that it’s already here
It arrived for battle
Berimbau confirmed to me that there will be a fight for love
Sadness, my friend

- opparaics

Black Moth Super Rainbow - Sun Lips

It’s been raining and grey for pretty much two weeks in New York so I’m posting Sun Lips as a gesture of optimism to the NY weather Gods. I heard Tobacco’s Fucked Up Friends album last year which led me to Black Moth Super Rainbow. Your taste in music is questionable if you wouldn’t give a group named with arbitrary adjectives and nouns at least one listen. Assuming such, their Dandelion Gum album found its way into my iTunes. A year later and their new album Eating Us had a spot waiting for it patiently. I’m sure BMSR’s formula for music is something like this: Rhodes Piano + Keyboard + Vocoder = Wonderful Song. The lyrics and vocoder charged vocals in a BMSR song are more a part of the song’s sound rather than an attempt to be lyrical, which is why some songs are minus the vocoder. It’s not like a T-Pain or Kanye West using Autotune to allow them to “sing” lyrics for entire songs or hooks. BMSR’s use of the vocoder helps create the feel and mood of the song just like their use of piano, keyboard, and drums. This is a great summer song, especially when the Sun has been on hiatus.

Lyrics:

I’d love to be with you
And the sun will rise, the sun will rise.
I love to be with you
And the sun will rise, the sun will rise.
I’d love to be with you
And the sun will rise, the sun will rise.

We wait in summertime
We miss you in summertime
We wait in summertime
We miss you in summertime

I’d love to be with you
And the sun will rise, the sun will rise.
I love to be with you
And the sun will rise, the sun will rise.
I’d love to be with you
And the sun will rise, the sun will rise.

We wait in summertime
We miss you in summertime
We wait in summertime
We miss you in summertime

- opparaics

Bonobo - Days to Come (feat. Bajka)

My memorial day weekend was wasted away studying for my summer session course while fending off starvation with cold leftover buffalo wings and room temperature coffee. Before my stomach realizes that it hasn’t ingested anything nutritional in the last 48 hours and before I go back and attempt to gain a vague understanding of inferential statistics, I figured I’d get a post in since it has been awhile.

Bonobo is one of those producers labeled as a “trip-hop” artist but his music has always been extremely soulful and jazzy. Much more so than other artists stuck with the same “trip-hop” label for their work. He has worked with Andreya Triana on her soon to be released debut album and I anticipate that Bonobo’s sound and her voice will be a perfect union. His last album, Days to Come, was a collection of laid-back neo-jazz tracks. The title track is no different. Featuring Bajka, (pronounced Biker according to Wikipedia) her voice finds itself at home over Bonobo’s production. A nice chill track for a beautiful Memorial Day.

Lyrics:

Journey set sail was to leave
Cause I’m only birds & bees
Lose and news and all things be
Sunlight garden low red blossoms
Moon tides of the sea

When struggling for a magic grain
We throw our life to the winds like rain
For goodness sake
Spare your failings and take the ability
To strengthen
No spirit can stimulate all minds
Blossoms of days to come

Blossoms of days to come

Move away from your western guns
Travel towards eastern suns
Far above all earthly goals
A pledge for creation’s soul
Spirit finds fresh morning and the dew
Of precious things
Hope is a phoenix building wings to fly
And what we wish shall be
Like a breathe of fresh air
Safe and secret powers
That no love can spare

Move away from your western guns
Travel towards eastern suns
Far above all earthly goals
A pledge for creation’s soul

Far above all earthly goals
A pledge for creation’s soul

Move away from your western guns
Travel towards eastern suns
Far above all earthly goals
A pledge for creation’s soul 2x

Far above all earthly goals
A pledge for creation’s soul

- opparaics