January 19

The Cold War Kids are planning on releasing a 4 song EP entitled, "Behave Yourself," on January 19th. New material is currently being worked on for the upcoming album, following the release of the EP. Also, here's a little promo video they put together for the whole thing. LA bands. *Puh.*

Moby and his drum machines

Moby talks about his gear, shows us his drum machine collection and rants about the nerds in electronic music. This is a submersion into Moby's home studio in New York. This is SO COOL.

If the vid doesn't work, check out the interview HERE.

Proceeds from Modest Mouse's "King Rat" going to non-profit marine life organization

I am apparently, severly misinformed. The musical chronology of Modest Mouse is far less expansive than I was under the impression of. I am of course referring to their albums, not every thing else. They have under their belts five official studio albums (LPs), as well as six EPs.

However, though their collection of released albums is shorter than I was aware of, their strew of songs is longer than ever.

On a serious note, this video, entitled, "King Rat," is taken from the newly released EP, No One's First, and You're Next. It was directed by Heath Ledger, and was completed after his death by The Masses, an ambitious film and music company he was a partner in. Ledger's intent for making this video was to bring an "impassioned stance against the illegal commercial whale hunts taking place off the coast of Australia each year."

Proceeds from the video when purchased on iTunes go to the non-profit, marine life organization Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Be sure to check out their stance on wildlife conservation, as well as the many ways each of us can be involved in aiding this organization.

You can download the video HERE for a humble price.

Michael Cera plays someone we have not met before

Finally, Michael Cera being portrayed as something other than a sensitive youth, finding his way in to hilarious sexual situations. Youth In Revolt looks like a comedy, and judging by this trailer, is most certainly a comedy.
Boy wants to get girl. Boy can't get girl, so decides to make for himself an alter ego named Francois. Francois is a deeper voiced, sarcastic version of himself, who seems to have stumbled out of Wes Anderson's closet. He also has a mustache. I will leave it up to you to decide whether Francois is merely an alter ego, or is in fact an example of multiple personalities.

Blonde Redhead : "My Impure Hair"

This is the final Mike Mills/Blonde Redhead collaboration for 23. And in some ways, this is the purest and most simple of the videos.

"My Impure Hair" is a delicate song, resting quietly at the closing of the album. After so much layering and stacking, thick with humidity, drug-swirls, an intangible sense of déjà vu and song after song of night-climbing city tracks, beautifully and perfectly wound into a soundtrack of concrete and post-modern thought, this track brings such sweet closure to this album destined for its place in the darkness. Its simplistic format beckons the morning sun, as it slowly rises above the end of all that was terrible about the night before.

I love how, with glooming bravado, the video slowly fades to black.

"Shot In the Back of the Head"

Taken from Moby's upcoming album, Wait For Me, here is the video for "Shot In the Back of the Head." Directed + created by David Lynch himself. Enjoy. Very dark.

Also, the song is free to download HERE.

Blonde Redhead : "Top Ranking"

Mike Mills and Blonde Redhead. What is it about their collaborations that insist he make simple, artistic music videos? Whatever the reason, it's always a delight. This one isn't like the last two I have posted. It's fun, rather than dark or sad.

Interpol : "The Heinrich Maneuver"

I have put off posting "The Heinrich Maneuver" for quite some time. My only reason for not making this post until now, had something to do with the idea, that saving the best, for the absolute last minute, is ideally the best possible thing to do. Much like when we were younger, all of us relished our bag of goods after a visit to the candy store. Some of us ate only a small portion daily, but stowed away larger quantities for a special day. Likewise, it's time this immensely disturbing video got some air-time.

It is as haunting as it is intriguing. With broad strokes and the help of Paul Banks' choice of cryptic symbols for words, "The Heinrich Maneuver" is dazzling. The story unfolds slowly as, frame-by-frame, our perception pans out in impressionistic bravado.

I can't help but feel this video flirts with some sort of symbolism, as its emergent characters divert, and regress back into the frame.

Blonde Redhead : "The Dress"

Another Blonde Redhead video, directed by Mike Mills. Once again emphasizing the subtle, and giving way for some flagitious, unspoken event, "The Dress" comes through, lyrically, so much clearer, than if we were to be watching some preordained set of images. This is such a sad song. However, I see this video as much more than merely an artistic effort to stretch the boundaries of the "less is more" mentality.
By displaying images of sadness, we are given only a piece of some thought, some perception that all of us can relate with. Each of us have a subconscious understanding/ability to relate with the images of all these sobbing individuals.

March 6

Blonde Redhead : "Silently"

This song is gorgeous. Blonde Redhead is gorgeous. "Silently" is some kind of love song, but its initial subject matter seems to differ with the dialogue and context of this video. The video tells a story of a woman, who witnesses a crime. And as we learn, she witnesses it incorrectly. Maybe she understands compassion after thinking on the the scenario the second time around. Or perhaps, she just couldn't bring herself to speak up against what had happened.

"Silently" is just one of many finely attributed music videos created by film director Mike Mills. His touch for the simple is showcased here; Minimalism at its finest.

"The Raven" interpreted by Christopher Walken

Christopher Walken reads Edgar Allan Poe. This is too great a combination to fathom. I need a drink.