ATG-TV: MIAMI HORROR INTERVIEW

As with all electronic music, it’s difficult to predict exactly what a “live” show will entail. Does it feature a full band rocking out on keyboards, guitars, and drums? Or an ex-bassist shuffling through Ableton, periodically hitting a cowbell?

ATG favorites Miami Horror avoided the latter at U Street Music Hall on September 11th, playing a nearly flawless set at a venue that brilliantly complimented their sound. The Australian quartet displayed full control over their arsenal of disco-influenced jams, and gave us the opportunity to catch up with them for a few minutes after the show (video above).

MP3: Miami Horror – “Summerfest ’86”

– Stephen

*Special thanks to Jacob Zverina for shooting/editing the video

But Your Line Around My Neck Keeps Pullin’

It’s been a while since I’ve walked into a concert and come out utterly amazed.  Twas the case with Annuals‘ show at DC9 last weekend, by the end of which my jaw had dropped several times over.  It’s hard to define exactly what I heard given that the North Carolina six-piece’s repertoire pretty much runs the indie gamut, but regardless of whether they were dropping bright pop-rock like “Confessor,” alt-country jams like “Always Do,” or nascent epics like “Brother,” Annuals pulled it off with plenty of panache and cohesion despite barely being able to fit on stage along with their instruments (and that’s saying a lot with two drum sets).  Definitely check these guys out if they’re playing in your neck of the woods, and make sure to grab the quirky calypso jam “Loxtep” (from their latest Sweet Sister EP) as well as the aforementioned set closer “Brother” below.

MP3: Annuals – “Loxtep”
MP3: Annuals – “Brother”

Love,
Adrian

ANNIHILATE THE WEEKEND

I’m well aware that I may be jumping the gun in the titling of this post, but some of us just can’t wait to surrender ourselves to the glory that is Friday.  Some of us also happen to be writing posts on a mix of the same name.  ATG friend and favorite Will Eastman is here to cure all your work-related woes with Annihilate the Weekend, a thirty-six minute ode to raging.  Annihilate features remixes by Will himself as well as dance, punk, and indie favorites that should keep everybody more than satisfied.  Head on over to the Blisspop blog for the track-listing.

MP3: Will Eastman – “ANNIHILATE THE WEEKEND Mix”

This weekend happens to be special for Mr. Eastman.  On December 11th, he’ll be releasing his single, “Feelin’,” on iTunes and Amazon.  Make sure to grab that when Friday rolls around.  For those of you who can’t wait, the track (as well as remixes by DC natives Nadastrom, Tittsworth, and Dmerit) is available for early download over at Beatport.

Love,
Adrian

Blisspop Gets Its Blog On

[Photo credit: Dakota Fine, BYT]

If there are two things we here at ATG love, it’s music and DC.  When we get the opportunity to talk about both in a post, you know we’ll take it.  For that reason I’m proud to announce the birth of the Blisspop blog.  For those of you don’t hail from our nation’s capital, Blisspop is the project of DC’s resident/favorite DJ, Will Eastman.  The man hosts dance parties year round in the DC area under the Blisspop banner, bringing along some of his favorite bands and DJ’s along for the ride.  Now that Blisspop’s made a home for itself on the interwebs, you can keep better track of what Mr. Eastman’s up to as well as snag exclusive downloads from other artists that carry the Blisspop spirit.  Below you can check out Classixx’s remix of Yacht’s “Psychic City”, one of the latest features on the new site.

MP3: Yacht – “Psychic City” (Classixx Remix – Fabio Pop Dancefloor Rework)

If you find yourself in the DC area this weekend, then go and check out Blisspop’s next party over at the Black Cat this Saturday, November 28th.  Yes Giantess will be showing some love with their own DJ Set along with Will, so you don’t want to miss it.

CHECK OUT THE BLISSPOP BLOG.

Love,
Adrian

The Roots Release New Album, Show D.C. Love

You may have read the title to this post and thought to yourself (or out loud), “but Zack, The Roots are from Philadelphia. Philly hates D.C. and D.C. hates Philly. How are The Roots giving D.C. love?”. Well, allow me to answer that question. Listeners attuned to the sounds of the Washington, DC Go-Go music scene, or anyone who loves percussion-heavy instrumentation, will definitely find Rising Down a pleasant surprise. This is because ?uestlove, Black Thought, and the gang have obviously been listening to go-go pioneers Rare Essence, UCB, and the godfather Chuck Brown. Take the highlight track “Rising Up”, for example. The beat is obviously crafted out of traditional go-go rhythms, and even features one of the hottest verses of 2008 contributed by none other than D.C. up-and-comer/genius/prodigy/demi-god Wale. Nobody in hip-hop right now uses metaphors and pop culture references with as much comfort and style as Wale does, and it shows on “Rising Up”.

So enjoy The Roots’ newest album, whether you be from Philly, D.C., or anywhere else. Rising Down features more guest appearances than any of their other LPs, which makes sense as this album seems to be inclusive, eclectic, and heavily influenced by multiple cultures, genres, and musicians.

MP3: The Roots – “Rising Up (ft. Wale & Chrissette Michelle)”
MP3: The Roots – “75 Bars (Black’s Reconstruction)”

The album dropped today, so go get yourself a copy.

Love,
Zack

The NBA: Where Amazing Happens?

I think you can tell I don’t like LeBron. Cut that beard off and quit copying DeShawn Stevenson.

You can also tell I’m a thoroughly biased, angry, hometown fan. But those are the best kind of fans, so get over it.

MP3: Jimmy Eat World – “Cheating Gets it Faster”
MP3: Wale – “D.C. Gorillaz”
MP3: The Postal Service – “Against All Odds
MP3: The Apples in Stereo – “Play Tough”

And for those of you who have been following what is quite possibly the best trash-talking war between two teams (and cities) ever…

MP3: Soulja Boy – “Crank That (Cousin Cole Remix)”

Big up to Agent Steinz over at the D.C. Sports Bog, which I spend more time reading than I working on ATG.

Love,
Zack

W.A.L.E. I.S. T.H.E. C.O.O.L.E.S.T.

That’s easily the best thing I’ve ever created in photoshop.

Yeah, you’ve heard me say it before, but I’ll say it again: Wale is the second coming (no, not this WALE). He is the face of the growing Washington D.C. music scene (take that Ian McKaye) and is set to explode onto the national scene after what seems to be an eternity of waiting for his debut album. Until then, however, his unbelievable mixtapes will have to tide us loyal Wale fans over. His newest mixtape, The Mixtape About Nothing, is based off of Seinfield, which is not only awesome but may just be the coolest concept album ever. Not only does dude love Seinfield, he apparently loves hockey? Check his newest, “Back in the Go-Go”, in which he refers to himself as “Wale Ovechkin“, and gives shout-outs to Eric Lindros (“Flyer than the rest of them”) and the throat-slashing of Richard Zednik. Can you imagine Jay-Z giving props to Henrik Lundquist? Or Nas giving Sidney Crosby love? I think not. This couldn’t come at a better time, as the Caps have made a historic comeback from being the worst team in the NHL to the three seed in the NHL playoffs, with the hottest goalie (Cristobal Huet) and best player in the world, Alex Ovechkin.

Check “Back in the Go-Go”, where Wale steals the show from Bun B and Pusha T (from Clipse), as well as the magnificent “W.A.L.E.F.R.I.E.N.D.S.”, in which Wale raps over yet another Justice track (see: “W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E.”). Thanks to Derek for the heads up on the Justice mix.

MP3: Wale – “Back in the Go-Go (ft. Bun B and Pusha T)”
MP3: Wale vs. Justice – “W.A.L.E.F.R.I.E.N.D.S.”\

Love,
Zack

My Brother is a Badass – Eat and Smile Foods

There have been a smattering of posts recently that don’t necessarily pertain to new music news but rather to my personal life, which has generated complaints (actually, the only complaint I’ve gotten is from Ethan). This is, however, my blog, so I again dive into personal matters, though this time I ask, nay IMPLORE you readers to check this out.

My oldest brother, Oliver, is a 26-year-old juggler-turned-stage-actor-turned-chef who recently started his own small business, Eat and Smile Foods. He offers cooking lessons at reasonable prices as well as catering for parties of as little as a romantic dinner for two all the way up to a 60 person cocktail party. I know this has nothing to do with music, but I feel like, after being blessed with his meals on my plate every time I come home from school for the past two years, everyone needs to get a chance to experience this. I mean, he makes his own bacon from scratch. HIS OWN BACON.

I write this post now because just today his wonderful and affordable services were written up in Daily Candy, the popular online tastemakers and lifestyle blog. The review is, not surprisingly, glowing, and I encourage you to hire this man if you live in or around the D.C. area. Even if you don’t need his services, be sure to read his weekly findings at the local D.C. farmer’s markets that he posts on his website. For a small fee, he’ll even dress up like the Swedish Chef from the Muppets and speak in gibberish. Did I mention he makes his own bacon?

GO HERE NOW FOR FREE SEX AND CHOCOLATE AND INSTANT ADMITTANCE INTO HEAVEN. Ok I lied, go there to see my brother’s website. Call (202)222-2222 for the free sex though (I get lonely at night).

MP3: Common – “The Food (Ft. Kanye West)”
MP3: The Walkmen – “All the Hands and the Cook”
MP3: Kanye West – “Big Brother”

Love,
Zack

Spring Break

So I’m stuck in the Cincinatti airport trying to get home for my spring break. I swear that every airlines has it out for me, as this is my third cancelled flight in as many trips. Luckily my Dad offered to pick up my bar tab, so I am unsober enough to actually enjoy Ohio (sorry to my Ohio readers). So enjoy these tunes while I try to get home to the greatest city in the world, WASHINGTON, DC.

MP3: Mambo Sauce – “Welcome to DC”
MP3: Tabi Bonney – “Beat Rock”
MP3: Cold War Kids – “We Used to Vacation”

Love,
Zack

French Kicks New Album + Spring Tour

French Kicks, born and raised in my wonderful hometown of Washington, DC, will be releasing their second album on Vagrant Records, Swimming, on May 20th (though it will be available on iTunes on April 1st). Their newest effort is refreshing and familiar at the same time, and is particularly noteworthy because the band produced and mixed it all by themselves. Lead singer Josh Wise said that, on Swimming, the Kicks “hoped to capture the joy of friends playing together in a relaxed way. We used a lot of first and second takes and tried to preserve a sense of immediacy and discovery that comes from putting things down before you really have a chance to think too hard. It’s bolder, and at the same time more intimate, than anything we’ve done.” If the whole album is anything like “Abandon”, the first single, you’re listening to a contender for the top ten albums of 2008.

Check out “Abandon” and, if you can, check out these guys in concert in the next couple months. Dates after the jump.

MP3: French Kicks – “Abandon”

Love,
Zack