Archive by Author

digital dance blitz

19 Dec

The Naked and Famous tonight at The Independent with some of my favorites. Yes yes yes.

Today’s Emo: Dance on Our Graves / Paper Route

‘I need you now / I need you more than ever before’

So. Emo. But so pretty. Rolling piano, silvery vocals and the steady pattering of drums make this song come over you like rain. Paper Route is a four piece indie rock band from Nashville, and Dance on Our Graves is off of their 2006 debut. Grab a box of tissues and/or a bottle of whiskey and enjoy. #emo

Today’s Untz: Blitz / Digitalism

After becoming totally mesmerized by this song/video, I saw Digitalism play a live band set last week and the German duo totally tore it up. While it was a little slower and more rock-esque than I expected with the instruments instead of tables, there was still plenty of dancing our faces off. Watch the music video once and try not to smile / want to immediately hunt down tickets to see them live. #untz

Tags: ,

night cough syrup

16 Dec

Today’s Grum track comes from TrashJuice‘s own Tom “Ferris” Faries.  I have been grabbing undercover untz from his blog for the last year, so it seems only fitting to get an official contribution. Consider this the lovemaking of our blogs (strictly musical).

Today’s Emo: Cough Syrup / Young the Giant

‘life’s too short to even care at all oh / I’m coming up now out of the blue’

A chorus saying life is too short to even care at all could be liberating, like don’t sweat the small stuff that doesn’t matter, or depressing, like fuck everything nothing matters. Since this song is about abusing the Purple Drink I am guessing it is the latter, but what a playful fun melody to take it all in with. Cough Syrup was shot over to me by my friend Chris the other day, and I have been taking steady doses since. The track is off Irvine formed indie rock quintet Young the Giant’s self titled debut of last year. Another spoonful please. #emo

Today’s Untz: Grum – Runaway (Nightriders Remix)

A groovy tune devoid of any lyrical meaning doesn’t mean a song can’t bring to mind an array of feelings. This Grum tune which has been remixed by Nightriders was never officially released. What is released is an overwhelming sense of wanting to cruise down south on the Pacific Coast Highway with the windows down, the stars out, a great friend at your side, and palm trees passing you by. This is easily one my favorite tracks of the past year and it entirely encompasses the sound TrashJuice yearns for. Turn it up. #untz – Tom

Tags: , ,

national treasure

12 Dec

A late and abbreviated post because the internet has been out in my apartment all weekend. And we have mice. And half our lights went out. And (thankfully) SantaCon happened.

Today’s Emo: I Need My Girl / The National

‘I can’t get my head around it / I keep feeling smaller and smaller / I need my girl’ 

The National show last week was so fantastic that I have been replaying bits and pieces in my mind since, trying to relive a bit of what it made me feel. So fitting for Matt Berninger to have an glass of red wine with him on stage all night, amazing that he hopped off the stage and weaved his way through the crowd of Bill Graham rocking out to Mr. November. That venue is so vast it is almost impossible to feel intimate in, and they pulled it off, closing the show with Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks acoustically, with all of us singing along to fill the space.

I was delighted (and jealous) that the band debuted two new songs in a following performance in Canada. Both are awesome, but I Need My Girl is my favorite. Steady guitar strings, an echoed chorus, and sweet but not syrupy lyrics expressing that void you experience when you have to be away from someone and you know they are the only thing that is going to make you feel better. #emo

Today’s Untz: Call it What You Want / Foster the People (Treasure Fingers remix)

‘you say, “now what’s your style and who do you listen to?”‘

Despite aggressive over listening abuse, I still haven’t gotten my fill of FTP’s addictive sound. Thankfully Atlanta based dj/producer Treasure Fingers weaves in some nice variety to one of my favorites. #untz

starry snow

9 Dec

Santa Con is an annual rite of passage for the revelers of all things fun in San Francisco (and around the world), and I am excited to rock my $14.99 Walgreens Santa suit in all of its glory, have some champagne in my orange juice on Saturday morning (OK orange juice in my champagne) and go dance my face off with a thousand or so of my closest friends throughout the streets and bars of this fine city, immersed in a sea of red and white. It is hard not to be jolly in a Santa suit… this holiday brings out the best in everyone.

Today’s Emo: Devil’s Work / Miike Snow

‘my hands, I feel like I’ve been here before’

Miike Snow has given us all an early Christmas gift for being good boys and girls… a new song from their upcoming album, and it is exactly what I wanted this year. I didn’t realize just how much I missed their signature squiggly synth until I got a fresh taste of it. This is a song that just keeps giving. #emo

Today’s Untz: Starry Eyed / Ellie Goulding (Russ Chimes remix)

‘next thing we’re touching’

A throw back: I hearted this song on Hypem back on November 20th, 2010, but I am on a serious Ellie Goulding kick, and this remix is worth a revisit. I am still kicking myself for hearing MGMT at Outside Lands (despite numerous warnings that their live performances leave much to be desired) instead of seeing the golden haired English songbird tear up Sutro Stage. You live and you learn. #untz

Tags: , ,

enormous dinosaurs and mansions on the moon

7 Dec

I got so excited about today’s artists that my post has turned into a novella. Let the surplus count towards future Cliff Note-esque musings.

Today’s Emo: Leaves Fall / Mansions on the Moon

‘I think of you when the leaves change / and I remember what it is I had’

Mansions on the Moon: this week’s stellar discovery in the internet galaxy. Leaves Fall has the beautiful vocals and lyrics of the traditional singer/songwriter world, but the silvery synth and beat carrying it forward make it its own thing – a little indi-tronic, a hint of bedroom pop. However you define it, it is the kind of song that settles into you and let’s you settle into it. We all have things in life that remind us of people, for better or worse, and leaves are pretty unavoidable, making the song all the more poignant.

Mansions on the Moon is a trio from Atlanta who are releasing their new Lightyears EP track by track on their site. With Pharrell Williams as their executive producer and this amazing sound, it is only a matter of when not if they get some serious buzz. I am reallly excited to see where these guys go. #emo

Today’s Untz: The King and all of his Men / Wolf Gang (Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs remix)

‘and if you’re dealing in a trick and a lie / I need to see her face for one last time’

I’ll admit that with a shortlist of nicknames that includes Tor Tor Dinosaur and DinoTor, I was already biased towards Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs by his name alone, but it didn’t take long for him to seal the deal with his sound. TEED is the solo project of Oxford’s Orlando Higginbottom, and Orlando is is the type of artist that makes blogging fun. He rocks an array of epic dinosaur costumes on the stage on a regular basis, takes press photos in an indian headdress, and comes across as totally enormously fun (and bright) in his interviews. Whenever I listen to his tracks I feel like I am transported back to the stone age, Land of the Lost style, but with only friendly, peaceful herbivores roaming amongst the palm trees, accompanied by a booze filled coconut and a little umbrella.

TEED also has great taste in his material – I loved this Wolf Gang track before he went pre-historic on it, and when I woke up to this remix Sunday morning to the start of a great day in the midst of a great weekend, it seemed fitting to share the good vibes. Enjoy. #untz

Tags: , , ,

broken gossip

5 Dec

A short post after an amazingly music filled weekend.

Today’s Emo: Broken Jaw / Foster the People

‘then you take it away / and I come back down’

Foster the People’s Torches has been fueling my winter runs, and surprisingly one of my favorite songs is only on the bonus track version of the album. Broken Jaw drips of MGMT with a slow intro rolling up into an opus of a chorus, and even though it is much softer than most of FTP’s stuff it is so epic and emo it really gets me going. #emo

Today’s Untz: Heavy Cross / Gossip (Fred Falke remix)

‘it’s a cruel cruel world, to face on your own / a heavy cross, to carry alone’

I caught a clip of Heavy Cross on TV this weekend in a perfume ad featuring a smashing Charlize Theron, and was reminded of how awesome this song is. Throw in the handiwork of Mr. Falke and you have the perfect antidote to Monday morning blues. #untz

Tags: , ,

rural sundown

2 Dec

I am spending the weekend camping out at the Bill Graham Auditorium for a double feature of epic emo, seeing My Morning Jacket play tonight and Local Natives and The National tomorrow. This serves as the perfect musical counterpart to next weekend’s back to back untzathon of Al P and Tycho. Thanks Bay Area.

Today’s Emo: Frank, AB / The Rural Alberta Advantage

‘and I’ll hold  / I’ll hold on to your touch / ’til they find the bones of us’

I came across this song via a vimeo link on a friend’s gchat status yesterday, which led me to this amazing video of French highliners. I was transfixed watching these guys walk fearlessly between mountains and skyscrapers on a thread, but what really caught my attention (surprise) was the song playing in the background, which I tracked down on YouTube and proceeded to devour on repeat for hours all morning.

Rural Alberta Advantage is a band that everyone has told me I should like, but previous listens to their work never really got me going. Clearly I just needed to stumble upon the right track, because now that I have truly found them I am not letting go. With a gritty yet polished sound, a killer hook, sweet mountainous lyrics that make me yearn for home in Oregon, and arcing vocals, Frank, AB stirs me to the point of making me want to jump off high things (with a rope, of course). Delighted. #emo

Today’s Untz: Sundown / Chris Lake (Laidback Luke remix)

A bit of a rambunctious track, but its Friday/Playday and I need some further stirring up to make it through work. Laidback Luke is always a treat, and he does a nice little number on Chris Lake’s track. I haven’t been out dancing to some serious untz in a couple months and this has me thirsting to get back in the game. #untz

Tags: , , ,

national dance

30 Nov

Bananas.

Today’s Emo: Terrible Love / The National

Terrible Love / The National

‘and I can’t fall asleep / without a little help / it takes awhile to settle down’

I am seeing The National headline for the first time on Saturday night at the Bill Graham Auditorium, and it has already gotten hard to concentrate on regular life three days out. The band needles itself in and out of my heart as being my absolute favorite, and this song brought me to tears at the end of Coachella last year (and not just because I was exhausted after three days of revelry).

The piano, the builds and breaks, the lyrics, Matt’s baritone–Terrible Love settles into you in the best kind of way, and after hundreds of listens still gets me every time. Love is terrible, and awesome, and spider filled and amazeballs. Thanks for articulating this guys, see you Saturday. #emo

Today’s Untz: Dance / Rebecca & Fiona

‘this is happy sleepless times’

Every month or two I come across a new song that immediately drives me totally bat shit and all I can articulate  is, “so good… so good.” I will attempt to shake myself out of my original stupor and explain why: celestial beats, whispery, sigh inducing lady vocals, and some beautiful strings nestled throughout. So good… so good. A blog favorite of mine, Sunset in the Rearview, put it like this: “This track, Dance, is less a song about dancing and more a song about making love to the floor with your feet and, by extension, your body.” Mmhmm.

Upon a little research I’ve discovered Rebecca and Fiona are beautiful Swedish princesses ruling the my world right now, and the duo recently released an album, I Love You Man, which I am checking out as I write. If the vocals sound vaguely familiar, look no further than Kaskade’s Turn it Down. #untz

Tags: , ,

red light motel

28 Nov

Favorite new website find that combines two of my favorite things: drinkify.org. Simply type in the artist you want to listen to, and this genius site will give you a track and the perfect drink pairing. A bottle of red wine all for yourself with Bon Iver, a martini of tears for the Get Up Kids, a shot of Southern Comfort for Tim McGraw et cetra. While not a perfect science (it seems to default less known bands to PBR) it’s really quite clever, and being the Monday after a long holiday weekend, we could all use a drink.

Today’s Emo: At Least I Have Nothing / Saint Motel

‘and I probably messed up / made a mistake / at least it was mine’

A delicious pop treat from up and coming Los Angelites Saint Motel. I was pulled in on first listen by the suave vocals, catchy guitar, and lead singer AJ’s smug “mmm” after singing he has nothing. The hook is inescapable, relaying the somber benefits to leading a life with no strings attached.

The band has described the song as  ‘a fucked up look at the bright side of utter despair. When you have nothing, maybe that nothingness is actually something… freedom.‘ Bright side indeed. The track follows the group’s earlier single, Puzzle Pieces, and will be dropped via an upcoming 7’ vinyl. #emo

Today’s Untz: Red Light / Gigamesh ft Amanda Love

‘music / magic’

Music magic indeed, this track makes you feel good from the ears on down. Gigamesh has been posting great stuff for some time now, but recently released his first official EP. He took the time to personally thank me for my original post of his work a few months ago, while politely pointing out that I had misspelled his name as Gilgamesh (damn Mesopotamian mythology). Never again. The whole four track EP is a win, and Red Light is the perfect way to cautiously ease back into the working world. #untz

Tags: ,

fade into everything

25 Nov

I have to blog in hiding from my one year old nephew because he is completely mesmerized by macbooks and tries to swallow them whole. My sister obtained a strange device that converted her old iPhone into a toy for him to play with. Hopefully he will take to music as much as he does to technology.

Today’s Emo: Fade Into You / Mazzy Star

‘some kind of light into your darkness’

My dad played his Best of Bridge School compilation all of Thanksgiving Day, and coming across this track again was a welcome reunion of sound. Fade into You is the kind of track you would imagine slow dancing to at prom if they played artists with a degree of complexity beyond Beyonce, with a steady sway to it that lingers. It settles into you so nicely.

The duo of Mazzy Star has released their first new song in fifteen years, Common Burn, in October, and while it is easy on the ears it doesn’t strike quite the same chord with me. Still worth a listen, and this track definitely worth a revisit. #emo

Today’s Untz: Everything in its Right Place / Radiohead (Tensnake remix)

‘everything in it’s right place’

Something I am thankful for: this edit of Radiohead’s Everything by Hamburg based dj/producer, Tensnake. The remix has been blowing up the blogesphere and dominating my speakers all week. It has been hard to track down an online version, but YouTube to the rescue. Right place, right now. #untz

Tags: , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →