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a little home

23 Nov

A home themed track to go with the holiday weekend alongside your pumpkin pie. Happy Thanksgiving!

Today’s Emo: Home / Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

‘hot and heavy pumpkin pie / chocolate candy Jesus Christ / ain’t nothing please me more than you’

I am lucky to have a concept of home that makes me all warm and fuzzy inside, returning for the holidays to the house I grew up in with a family that has picnics under the Christmas tree every Christmas Eve and that lies down on the kitchen floor between Thanksgiving dinner and dessert in order to burp to make more room for the final course.

Edward Sharpe’s version of Home translates this feeling into a love, and I totally dig it… ultimately it is people and not places that cause this sense of comfort. And people can be anywhere. #emo

Today’s Untz: Little Man / Little Dragon (Tycho remix)

‘something missing in your smile / something missing in your soul’

A chill, minimal take on Little Dragon’s Little Man by one of San Francisco’s own. Tycho, aka Scott Hansen, is playing the Independent on December 10th, and if I survive Santa Con that day I will be sure to check him out-ambient beats could serve as the perfect antidote to a morning of mayhem running around Polk Street in a full santa suit. Although maybe I should wear it to the show. #untz

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be true or bust

21 Nov

Half marathon complete! Special thanks to Classixx, Swedish House Mafia, and Avicci et al for having my back. Now just need to brave through a couple of days at work before I hop on a plane to Oregon and slip happily into the holiday weekend.

Today’s Emo: True Love or Bust / Long Walks on the Beach

‘and sure we’ve broken our hearts / like one too many times / but not too many times’

After spending the weekend running along the shore of Monterey, it seems fitting to take some Long Walks on the Beach with my Monday. This is third track I have shared from LWOTB, aka Fritz Kramer, investigative journalist by day and magical bedroom pop producer by night, and like all of his stuff, it is the kind of music that just makes you feel good. Sweet crooning, steady beats, an endearing chorus… there is nothing complex here and the gold is in the simplicity of the sound, restful while warming on the ears.

LWOTB’s site, aptly beachtheonwalkslong.com is also filled with hints of musical inspiration and thoughtful little tidbits. I know you have a day job Fritz, but think about coming and walking Ocean Beach and playing a show out here in SF. I wanna buy you a beer. #emo

Today’s Untz: Let it Be / Blackmill ft. Veela

The slower side of untz, this is my first time posting ‘chillstep’ but there is really no better way to describe this sound. Let is Be settles into you and makes you want to stretch out and loosen up, but definitely move. It’s creator, Robert Card, hails from Scotland and is a whopping nineteen years old. At a time where I was busy downing jello shots, he is already crafting some pretty accomplished stuff. Sigh. #untz

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turn down the love

18 Nov

I am heading down to Monterey for the weekend to run the Big Sur half on Sunday morning, and have been spending the end of the week gathering all my best untz and flashiest indie pop to make an epic playlist to get me through the 13.1. Definitely not a purist who believes running should be silently focused on concentration and meditation… since the whole thing will be OVER by 9:30am, dishing out the loud stuff that keeps my feet off the ground.

Today’s Emo: You Got the Love / the xx (Florence + the Machine cover)

‘sooner or later in life, the things you love you lose / but you’ve got the love I need to see me through’

While my need for new Florence + the Machine has been satiated with the release of Ceremonials, the lack of any new xx has me revisiting old favorites. Florence’s signature harp cut with the Romy and Oliver’s soft yet smoldering vocals and tossed with playful beats is the perfect soundtrack to start your Friday. After all this time it still falls fresh on my ears… but hurry up guys. #emo

Today’s Untz: Turn it Down / Kaskade (Le Castle Vania remix)

‘look before you make your beat loud / can you turn it down’

There is nothing about this song that makes me want to turn it down–it is exactly the kind of sound that will be fueling me through Sunday. Everyone has been talking about how great Kaskade’s new album is and I can’t help but hop on the bandwagon. While I love her, it is refreshing to hear one of Kaskade’s tracks laced with vocals from someone other than Haley, and Le Castle Vania spins a nice little number on the whole thing. The release of Fire and Ice makes me thankful once again that Ryan Raddon forfeited Mormonism for the church of #untz

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pirate doves

16 Nov

Little time for music this week as I have started reading this little series you may have heard of called The Hunger Games, and suddenly am totally unable to pry myself away from hundreds of pages of young adult fiction… some hybrid of Twilight minus the vampires, Harry Potter minus the magic, and Survivor except with teenagers as the contestants who are fighting till the death a la Lord of the Flys. God help me.

Today’s Emo: Wicked Games / Coeur De Pirate (The Weeknd cover)

‘bring your love / baby I can bring my shame / bring the drugs / baby I can bring my pain’

Coeur de Pirate (French for Pirate Heart) is a Canadian born singer named Beatrice Martin. Beatrice hails from Quebec and sings mostly in French (check out Les Amoures Devouees, delightful gibberish to my ears), but she puts her dirty pirate mouth to work on this cover of The Weeknd’s Wicked Games in Ingles. It is brilliant to hear such a gentle, soft voice emitting such gritty language, and while I imagine her singing it with a smirk on her face, she carries the somber tune with sincerity until the very end, when we catch a glimmer of giggles. #emo

Today’s Untz: Mother Protect / Niki & the Doves (Goldroom remix)

‘I used to follow you, follow you for days / I slept beside you, just shadows away’

I have been lusting over this song on Hypem all week only to discover yesterday that the remix artist Goldroom is the main writer for my new blog crush, Binary. New as in I have only just become acquainted and started devouring its content new, the blog has been around for some time now. Highly recommend, as with this track. #untz

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star shadow

14 Nov

And the beat goes on.

Today’s Emo: Dark Star / Polica

‘ain’t no man in this world who could pull me down from my dark star’

Gayngs may have taken themselves off the streets for the time being, but two of their talent, producer Ryan Olson and singer Channy Casselle have joined forces to craft Polica in the supergroup’s wake. Dark Star features lot of smooth brass rolling throughout, met with plenty of sass come from Channy. The sultry sound has me thinking of a singer in a smokey old club, and conveys the kind of subtle urgency that makes you want to pull someone into a dark corner.

Excited to see Casselle join the leading ladies of the fall alongside the likes of Lana del Rey and Class Actress. Her echoed, slightly sinister vocals have me reminiscent of a favorite songstress of my middle school days, Fiona Apple. Sway your way through Monday. #emo

Today’s Untz: Scale it Back / DJ Shadow ft. Little Dragon (Party Ben remix)

‘and when you reach up, the sky – I stay…’

When sifting through potential Monday morning untz I tend to sway towards the softer stuff. Epic tracks without any build can feel jarring to take with your Monday morning alarm, and it’s best not to get too riled up so early in the week when Friday feels far from reach. Thus this steady track from DJ Shadow, featuring the cool and collected vocals of Little Dragon’s Yukimi Nagano, remixed by Party Ben. You can almost hear a hint of Donna’s Last Chance in the beat. #untz

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dreams like you

11 Nov

I almost saved this for 11:11 on 11/11/11, but decided today’s tracks are too good to sit on. Don’t forget to make a wish tonight.

Today’s Emo: Dreams / Cadillac

‘these dreams won’t last forever / so hold it to the sky’

Some cheery, carpe diem indie pop to slip into the weekend with. OK, I know this sounds a lot like just about any remixed Foster the People track or something straight off of Miami Horror, but a great song is a great song, and I am welcoming the introduction of Cadillac into my arsenal. Dreams is off of the Aussie group’s self titled release out in October. The entire EP is worth a go. #emo

Today’s Untz: Someone Like You / Adele (Thomas Gold & Mark Mendes remix)

‘I remember you said, “Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead”

One more take on Rolling in the Deep? I couldn’t bare it. But another run on Someone Like You? Yes, I’ve got it in me. Thomas Gold and Mark Mendes splash something beautiful across Adele’s piercing classic, as the pitter patter of a drum line gives way to rolling piano and Adele’s striking vocals. The beats and builds make a song that bites a little more bitter than sweet a little less emo and more empowering. We’ve all been there. Repeat. #untz

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dead lion

9 Nov

I have been a bit of a lush this fall, and after a very sluggish run on Saturday after a very epic Friday evening, I decided to go dry until after I run the Big Sur Half on the 20th. I know, I know, it’s just two weeks without booze… but in this city it kind of pours. Here’s to tea and honey and rest. And music.

Today’s Emo: Paris / Grandpa was a Lion

‘Paris you are the 4th of July / floating on our backs down the river / in the failing light’

Good music settles into my mood, great music has the power to change it. Monday afternoon came with some confrontations leaving me feeling unsettled and hectic. Then Paris came along, and with it slower breathing and a steadier mind. This was temporarily forfeited at the end of first listen, because I had to turn my volume up so high to capture the whispery vocals that the piercing intro of the electro song next in queue almost gave me a heart attack. But all was well when I backtracked through Paris again, and again.

Grandpa was a Lion is Justin D’Onofrio, and his sound reminds me of early Bon Iver vocals meets The Middle East with a touch of Iron and Wine’s folk and glimpses of Youth Lagoon’s backdrop of synth; dreamy lo-fi bedroom pop to curl up into. The track is off of this month’s release, Seven Songs, which ironically contains eight, topped off with a remix of Kanye’s Runaway. #emo

Today’s Untz: Aural Psynapse / Deadmau5

Oh hai Deadmau5, pleased to see you again. Joel officially released Aural Psynapse this week, but the track is actually a rework of an earlier track of his dated some time mysteriously between 1998-2002. You can hear traces of an old school, chiller ‘Mau5 here, especially in the serene beginning, and while this wouldn’t tear down the walls of a club, I am liking it more than most of the stuff he has released this year. #untz

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a different kind of moonlight

7 Nov

Hard to head back to work after a one day weekend. Music to the rescue.

Today’s Emo: Passions of a Different Kind / Flashguns

‘come on, come on / because we can do this all night long’

Some solid vocally driven rock to slip into the workweek with. Passions of a Different Kind and Flashgun’s album of the same name have been getting steady playtime all weekend, and I am getting a the Kooks meets a tad of Frightened Rabbit vibe from the UK trio. Passions stirred. #emo

Today’s Untz: You Don’t Want to Dance with Me / Monarchy ft. Britt Love (Moonlight Matters remix)

‘how do I get you to feel what I feel for you’

The original version of this song is magical but this remix is through the roof. Moonlight Matters feels like an appropriate moniker for our remix artist– there is something dark night on a backroad sounding worked into the sound. #untz

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happy boy

4 Nov

Summer couldn’t last forever, but it kind of tried. Rain and a chilly wind have returned to the Bay alongside red holiday Starbucks cups, the need for under armor on now dark evening runs and the desire to cozy up indoors with blankets and too much red wine. Also loads of great album releases and shows to wait out the “winter” with.

Today’s Emo: Lonely Boy / The Black Keys

‘oh, oh oh I got a love that keeps me waiting’

If you haven’t caught The Black Key’s new single, Lonely Boy, you are in for a treat. And if you already have, you are in for a treat again. The bluesy rock duo from Ohio release their follow up album to 2010’s Brothers on December 6th, and this is the first taste of it. Lonely Boy has that ‘move your body now’ kind of draw to it like Tighten Up, with the catchiest of a chorus backed up with what sounds like a choir. If the rest of Camino sounds anything like this, it is sure to be celebrated. #emo

Today’s Untz: Happy Violence / Dada Life (extended vocal mix)

‘it’s like happy violence / forcing us tonight, it feels so right’

This extended mix of Dada Life’s Happy Violence has a the Love Shack meets Nintendo beats kind of feel to it that is driving me crazy in the best kind of way. I can’t quite pinpoint what happy violence would look like in practice– perhaps a gentler, more playful and less destructive version of Rihanna and Eminem’s Love the Way You Lie- but logistics aside, I like it. Happy Friday. #untz

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knock athens

2 Nov

I saw Youth Lagoon at The Bottom of the Hill last night, and the show gave me everything I needed after the kind of work day where I thought I should go straight home to bed. Instead I got lost in a 22 year old from Idaho’s first show in San Francisco. Trevor Powers produced the kind of sound that had my fingers playing pretend instruments across my purse all night, with a force that made me think my phone was vibrating in said purse all night, and displayed a mild sense of awkwardness that made me realize I was experiencing a rare opportunity to witness someone on the cusp of greatness without having them quite realize it yet. I will be sharing more of him shortly I am sure.

Today’s Emo: DIY / Keep Shelly in Athens

When I first came across Keep Shelly in Athens on Hypem a couple months ago, I assumed Athens Georgia. However, after finding myself totally transfixed by today’s track, I did a little digging and the electro-poppers actually are from Greece. TUATE’s first Grecians, and godly ones indeed. I love the persistent piano in the background, and while Halloween is over, there is definitely something a little dark and Haunted-Housey about the beats that roll in during the build. All of this is perfectly topped off by KSIA singer Sarah’s sharp vocals, and the result is truly striking.

It is a big fall for duo, as their EP, Our Own Dream, breaks November 5th, and they embark on their first US tour throughout the month, stopping through The Indepedent on the 9th. #emo

Today’s Untz: Dancing with Avicii / Captain Cuts (The Knocks vs. Avicii)

‘we don’t care if the sun comes up / cause you know we’ll be dancing with the dj’

Nothing like two of your favorite tracks being seamlessly rolled into one to take on the mid-week blues with. My friend Alex sent me this gem in response to my “send music rex plz” gchat status plea yesterday, and I’m glad that he did because it woke me right up out of my post Halloween weekend daze. These songs are both so happiness inspiring in their own right that together they are truly infectious… you are forewarned. #untz

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