Phoenix : We Love It Compilation Released Tomorrow

I was going to try to summarize this, but I got an e-mail from Mr Psyko Steve Chilton earlier that breaks it down pretty well. This is one of the most exciting things I've seen Phoenix do in a very long time, by a group of people who really love Arizona music . . . And we finally have a compilation of local bands that DON'T suck! Phoenix FTW!

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Stinkweeds Record Store Day Comp "Phoenix: We Love It"

Stinkweeds Music is releasing a compilation of Phoenix artists exclusively for record store day called "Phoenix: We Love It." The comp will feature the first post-Format track from The Format guitarist and songwriter Sam Means. It will also feature a new and exclusive track from Go Big Casino, Go Big Casino is Jimmy Eat World front man Jim Adkins side project and is a cover of a Rubens Accomplice song. The comp has new and exclusive music from Kinch, Gospel Claws (ex-Dear And The Headlights), Courtney Marie Andrews, The Foxglove Hunt (ex-Fine China) as well as music by Miniature Tigers, Chronic Future, Zachary James Doods and The Go Reflex.

Phoenix: We Love It 1 Go Big Casino "I'm Leaving" *
2 Miniature Tigers "Cannibal Queen"
3 Sam Means "Yeah Yeah" *
4 The Foxglove Hunt "The Time Redeem" *
5 Kinch "Rudimentary knowledge" *
6 Chronic Future "Sometimes"
7 Gospel Claws "I Don't Want to Care Anymore" *
8 The Go Reflex "Rincon Life"
9 Saddles "The Philanthropist" *
10 Back Ted N-Ted "Legend" *
11 Courtney Marie Andrews "Red Handed Aesthetic Attraction" *
12 Zachary James Dodds "If I Leave"

* New And Exclusive

The comp is limited to 1,000 copies. The artwork for every single CD is unique. They are hand painted by Mike Busse of Chronic Future and each feature a unique sunset and one of five templates of a Phoenix sky line.

The Comp is a partnership with Modern Art Records, Common Wall Media, River Jones Music, Western Tread Recordings and Psyko Steve Presents.

It can be pre-ordered here:
http://www.stinkweeds.com/searchresults_output.cfm?fromemail=16498

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If that's your thing (you know, CDs of bands that don't suck) you can download live performances from local bands as performed on The Blaze 1260AM's local music show The Basment. I'm told "Sounds from the Basement Vol. 2" will be coming out early May as well so keep an eye out for that.
Download here:
www.purevolume.com/theblaze1260am.

Miniature Tigers Invade Daytrotter

Miniature Tigers dropped by Daytrotter.com during the winter and recorded four amazing tracks : two from their album Tell it to the Volcano and two brand new tracks that I was lucky enough to see live when they toured the East coast in February with Ben Folds. This band is making some serious waves and for good reason : the music is just plain good.

Also, that picture is awfully precious.

Take a listen and download it here:
http://www.daytrotter.com/dt/miniature-tigers-all-the-pretty-girls-are-just-not-enough-concert/20030652-3737970.html

Smashley's Top 5 Album List (Thanks Hoodlums)

So in honor of Record Store Day on Saturday, I'm taking a cue from my all-time favorite record store, Hoodlums Music in Tempe. They are hosting a "High Fidelity" night in conjunction with their neighbors at Changing Hands bookstore, and asked their employees to come up with their top 5 albums under the following categories. I'm not going to pretend that I know as much as Steve from Hoodlums knows. During my days as a college rep, I'd be very careful as to what bands I'd mention around him, for fear he'd catch me being the major label sell-out that I am (all in good fun of course) Steve is one of the smartest people this business has, and I'm so thankful he and Kristian were able to continue stickin' it to the man in their brand new store. I have yet to find a record store in New York that I like as much. As I fill this out, I've come to realize that I a) didn't really grow up on music and b) have so much more to learn, so maybe a few hours in a record store each work would do me some good.

My Top Five Lists, by Smashley

“You don’t have this?” albums (like Jack Black’s comment on Blonde on Blonde).
Ryan Adams - Cold Roses
Jimmy Eat World - Clarity (you'd be surprised)
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Hearts of Oak
Ben Folds - Whatever and Ever Amen
Elliott Smith - XO

“Watch me sell this” albums (like Cusack about Beta Band).
(in place of this, here are bands I was surprised I could get people to pay attention to in the past)
Boys Like Girls - s/t
Kings of Leon - Because of the Times
Metro Station - s/t
Citizen Cope - Every Waking Moment
MGMT -Oracular Spectacular (seriously)

Albums for your hippie-chick sister.
Imogen Heap- Speak For Yourself
Grizzly Bear -Yellow House
Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
Bon Iver - For Emma Forever Ago
Blitzen Trapper - Furr

Groups you didn’t like at first – but love now.
Jimmy Eat World (seriously)
Wilco
Nada Surf
Fleet Foxes
Denison Witmer

Groups that critics hate – but you love.
Matt Nathanson
Jimmy Eat World
Incubus
Jack's Mannequin
Joshua Radin

Albums critics love – but you just don’t get.
Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion
Handsome Furs - Face Control
Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
Calexico - Garden Ruin
Of Montreal - . . . most everything. I do love their live show though

Albums to listen to on the road
Limbeck – Hi, Everything’s Great (sorry Andy, we're all too similar)
Jack's Mannequin - Everything in Transit
Jimmy Eat World - Futures
Nada Surf - Lucky
The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow

Songs about the Music Industry
Reel Big Fish – Sell Out
Ben Folds - One Down and 3.6
The Format – The Compromise
Sara Bareilles - Love Song ;)
Ben Lee- We're All in This Together (they don't play me on the radiooo!)

Punk albums (90’s-now)
The Adicts - Rise and Shine
The Libertines - Up the Bracket
MxPx - Life in General
Alkaline Trio - Goddammit
Horrorpops - Hellyeah!

Jamming Guitar Albums
Mars Volta - Frances the Mute
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - The Tyranny of Distance
My Morning Jacket -Z
What Laura Says - Thinks and Feels
Explosions in the Sky - Those Who Tell the Truth

Albums you found at the ASU Hoodlums
Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
Manchester Orchestra - Live a Virgin Losing a Child
Busdriver - Roadkillovercoat
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
Denison Witmer - Are You a Dreamer?

Albums you have discovered at the new Hoodlums
(in fairness I haven't been around much for new Hoodlums, here's what I bought last time)
Fleet Foxes - Sun Giant EP
The Swell Season - The Swell Season

Older albums that you have discovered recently (old is so relative...):
DeYarmond Edison - Silent Signs
Doves - Lost Souls
Cursive - The Ugly Organ
Brian Jonestown Massacre- Thank God for Mental Illness
Fleet Foxes - Sun Giant EP

Newer artists for middle-aged cats who still explore music
The Gaslight Anthem
Bon Iver
Kings of Leon
Jimmy Eat World
Ben Folds

Sunday-morning albums:
Nada Surf - Let Go
The Tallest Man on Earth - Shallow Grave
Great Lake Swimmers - Bodies and Minds
Nick Drake - Bryter Layter
Sufjan Steves - Illinois

Concert Videos
-I honestly don't own any

Reasons CD is better than vinyl
I can import it on my computer
I can't stand when vinyl pops
Not having to get up and turn it over every 6 songs
More portable
More available

Concerts you have attended
Ryan Adams - Rialto Theatre, Tucson AZ
Jimmy Eat World - Tempe Beach Park , Tempe, AZ
Bon Iver - Music Hall of Williamsburg - Brooklyn, NY
The Weakerthans/ New Amsterdams - Webster Hall, New York, NY
Jim Adkins/The Format/Reubens Accomplice Acoustic - Galvin Playhouse, Tempe, AZ

Manchester Orchestra Full Album Premiere on MySpace

Manchester Orchestra : Atlanta, GA : www.myspace.com/manchesterorchestra

I went to SXSW in 2006, trying to gather ideas for my college radio station, being supremely bummed out every time I walked to a show to find it was 21+ (I was 19 . . . what a bust!) I spent my days in the panels and my nights getting to as many shows as possible and I was very fortunate to have a badge and be able to bounce around as long as my feet would keep up with me. Usually it wasn't an issue just walking into a show, but as I arrived to see Belle and Sebastian, I saw a huge line outside of Stubb's. Cool, whatever, I'll wait.

SXSW is very much like rock and roll summer camp. You go from place to place and everyone talks to everyone, because we're all there for the same reason. As I was waiting in line, I start talking to a young bearded guy with the general SXSW small talk ("So, what do you do, where are you from, can't believe we have to wait in line, did you see Morrissey's sweet pomp in person? Me too!") I mention that I'm with college radio from Arizona and he mentiones his name is Andy and he's in a band from Atlanta called Manchester Orchestra. He invites me to their Paste magazine showcase the next afternoon, and I graciously accept. However, the next day I was torn between that, a Rogue Wave Day Stage showcase and one of the many dorky panels I wanted to attend, so I ended up not going. (shame on me, Midlake and Josh Ritter both played. Man, I suck sometimes)

A year later, I was browsing through (*surprise!*) Paste magazine and see a little write-up on the band, and I recognize the name and that familiar beard. "Hey, I met that guy! Cool!". I get all amp'd up and head to our campus record store to find some new tunes and low and behold there is their debut release "Like a Virgin Losing a Child" on the listening post. Finding the coincidence funny, I take a listen to a few tracks and buy it. Later that night, I'm looking through the local concert calendar (can you tell I'm a nerd?) and I see that Brand New is FINALLY playing a smaller venue in Phoenix, which I had been holding out for. I go to grab my credit card and I see that their direct support is . . . Manchester Orchestra. This is all in the course of just one day, and all too coincidental.

That night I post on my LiveJournal (geez, how many hipster cliches can I squeeze in here?) and write a bit about how I'm excited for the show, and how funny it is that Manchester Orchestra keeps popping up, and how much I liked the album I just bought. The next morning I see I got a comment that says

"Hey, I remember meeting you! Let's stand in line together at Brand New. - andy" I didn't actually end up seeing him, as most of these big shows go, but I rocked nonetheless.

A few years later I end up doing college marketing for them (their label Canvasback is a subsidiary of Columbia Records) and sharing the story again with Andy at a party when they were in town with Annuals. It's proof that this world is all too small.

Long story aside, the boys are releasing their 2nd album, "Mean Everything to Nothing" next week on Canvasback and it is now available as a full preview their MySpace. It's going to take a few more listenings, but it seems to have the same dark melodies that caught me the first time. I'll probably review it in the next week or so, once I have a copy in my hands :)

Very excited for how far they've come, and excited to hear what's next. Now, who has an extra ticket to the sold out show in NY on the 29th? Eh? Eh?

ASU Announces Okkervil River Show w/Austin Gibbs April 24th

Okkervil River, www.myspace.com/okkervilriver

ASU's Programming and Activities Board has announced a FREE on campus show on Friday April 24th with indie-folk darlings, Okkervil River! I got a chance to catch them with The Via Maris Fall of 2007 and was amazed and what a crowd they brought. One of the most distinctive voices in rock and roll, this is an absolute treat for the ASU students. For FREE! I hope they appreciate it. Show starts at 7PM

Local golden-boy Austin Gibbs will be direct support, having just released his new EP online.
www.myspace.com/austincgibbs

#6.3-Okkervil River-Our so-called friend
by lablogotheque

Coats and Villa Make a Record (and Post New Songs)

Coats and Villa : Tempe, AZ : www.myspace.com/coatsandvilla

Local bands come and go, but one of the saddest dissolutions was that of The Morning Kennedy Was Shot. They released an EP in March of '07, and shortly after went their own ways. It was a shame, as they had had an incredibly well produced album under their belt and a truly ambient and involved live show. They really did have the most potential out of many of the bands floating around during that time.

However, out of that came Coats and Villa, two of the former members of TMKWS, Wayne Coats (drums) and Nick Villa (guitar and vocals), which are releasing their record "Make a Record" on Saturday April 18th @ The Peacetree House. They've put up three new tracks on their MySpace, one of which includes one I've been jamming to as of late, "Runaway". Many of the same tones of Morning Kennedy Was Shot are all there, this very dreamy, warm, just-short-of-psychedelic sound, with one of the more distinct voices out of Arizona.

Excited to see where this new direction has taken the boys. These are real musicians with a real shot of making an impact.


And if you really want a glimpse as to what I mean, check out this video (ft part of an old MKWS song)

Scream at the Moon, Where Are You?

Desert Noises : Provo, UT : www.myspace.com/thedesertnoises

There's something undeniable about music from the southwest. There's a certain desert aura, or as I heard Rodger Clyne put it recently, a "lonely jangle" that seems to be the common thread in a lot of music coming out of Arizona, Utah, Texas, Nevada and NM. It's only after living in a city made of concrete for the last year that I could fully appreciate that jangle, and likely why I tend to keep buying albums from jangl-y desert bands.

It's only fitting then that I'd be immediately drawn to a band with "desert" in their name. Desert Noises hails from Provo, Utah, home of one of my favorite desert wanderers, Drew Danburry. He posted a video he directed for their song "New Man", which is sort of a paradox of the whole desert vibe. I've heard New York described as "living in black and white", and have come to see the west coast as a sort of Oz like alternative, full of color. However, this video is shot in black and white, but creates the colors for itself through the tunes and that lonely desert jangle.

Those of you in Phoenix can check them out with Austin Gibbs on April 15th @ Modified.

The Loveblisters' Last Exit

So one of the very first rock shows I put on was at Neckbeard's Soda Bar in Tempe in 2005. We had a solid lineup, but needed a really great "headliner" to round out the night. Someone told me about this band The Loveblisters, and how they'd be a really great fit. I called Rob that night to see if they were interested, and alongside confirming the show, we chatted and talked at length about Mitch Hedberg. I was sold from there. I had them several times on The Basement, and they even helped end a chapter in my life by playing the Sounds from the Basement CD release show almost a year ago (which essentially became my going away show, weird) The CDs have lived in my iPod and Newborn Stars is still one of my all-time favorite tunes.


Four years later and the 'Blisters are closing the book on their amazing ride. I geek out about a lot of bands. I adore the type of sound that comes out of AZ and a lot of the people that make that music, but The Loveblisters far and away embody everything that is good about Arizona, music and Arizona Music :) I'm quite grateful that I got to see them play one last set here in NYC, but am still sad to know that I won't see them carrying in equipment, dressed in full suits into the Modified.
:)

I encourage you all to head to Last Exit tonight and bid them goodbye. While they're moving on to great things individually, it's clear that the AZ scene won't be the same after what they created together.



And for fun, a really cool Flaming Lips cover they did this week :)

It's Not the Size of Your Tower, It's How You Use It

What is Seven Watt Media?

When I was 19 years old, I was hired as Director of Promotions for The Blaze 1260AM, the college radio station at Arizona State University. It was as "college radio" as you could imagine : lack of funding, old equipment, stuttering freshmen DJs and a need to be able to improvise with very few means. We ran on a mere 7 watts (it was FCC mandated that college stations that pay a certain amount could not exceed 10 watts. Most corporate radio stations run on over 25,000) We had a huge advantage in online broadcasting, but still lacked the funds to get our name out there in a traditional way. In my department, I had an annual budget that barely paid for pens, let alone any large-scale marketing campaign. One afternoon, in an effort to be inspired, I dug through the old supply closet that held the dreams of years of other promo Directors . . . and also some paint and butcher paper.

Our building sat on the south side of one of the busiest streets in Downtown Tempe, and often had lines of cars sitting idle during traffic. And here we have a building with an odd amount of window space over the doors. I rolled out the butcher paper in middle of the lobby of the station and tried to think of what would best draw attention and cause as few traffic accidents as possible. While listening to our station over the speakers, a bumper played between the songs :

"The Blaze 1260AM , 7 huge watts of raw radio power. It's not the size of your tower, its how you use it"

I quickly jumped up and started painting the latter part of that statement on the butcher paper, as wide as 3 of the glass doors out front. I made sure to tag it with our website and gathered a few tall boys to help me tape it up. It stayed up for a good two months, and a lot of times I'd walk to the window and watch as people read the sign, knowing it made an impression.

It was my goal from then on to go beyond my means. I spent that year guerrilla style, making deals and working off of exchanges. Finally convincing people that we were a legitimate radio station, and leader of the music and ASU community. Being as vocal and visible as possible. While I knew not everyone would tune in, I also knew that with enough reminders, people would take notice. I heard from a friend a few years later that he felt that year that there wasn't one person on ASU campus who didn't know what "The Blaze" was.

This carried over into a lot of aspects of my life. My college didn't offer a music industry major, so I made one up for myself. I spent my life improvising and creating things, such as a launch of a film my brother made, working with local bands in various capacities (including a live performance show on The Blaze that first broke What Laura Says, Dear and the Headlights, Kinch and more) and building a lot of somethings out of nothings. I worked my way through college and eventually back east for work, finally getting paid to work in an industry I love and having means to expose music to people who may not have heard it before.

That's where Seven Watt Media came in. In an attempt to keep myself interested in active in music, I decided to try out a few aspects of the business aside from my day job and seeing how it can be done in the same guerrilla style as The Blaze. I knew that our station didn't broadcast far (usually within a mile or so of Tempe) but I always had it in my head that at least ONE person might be listening, and that makes it worth it. In times where I sometimes question the music industry or my love for music in general, I keep that thought in my head and my heart. There are so many other ways to love and enjoy music, and you have to be open to how you and other people experience it. I've taken on a few projects and plan on taking on a few more, just to get my feet wet again.

So what is this blog? That's a great question. It might turn into a place a post a few videos every couple of days. Maybe rant about some new industry initiative (but seriously, iTunes, tiered pricing on songs? Really?) or figure out rhetorically (or not, who knows) what direction music is going and why anyone should still care.

There is a lot to explore in music, and I'm excited to do so . . . while I'm still excited to do so.