Weird Fishes

Radiohead – Street Spirit (Test Post – embed video)

Caitlin W — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:33:00 +0000

more about “radiohead street spirit“, posted with vodpod

This is a great video!

I wouldn’t be a music blogger from Austin. . .part 2!

Caitlin W — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 18:19:39 +0000

Here are the rest of my picks for ACL!

Saturday, September 27

The Fratellis are an upbeat band from Glasgow who you probably have already heard, and just don’t know it. “Flathead,” a song off of their first studio album, “Costello Music,” was used in an Apple iPod commercial. What makes the Fratellis great, and totally worth seeing, is the energy. Many of their songs are really upbeat and danceable, so this is a great way to jump into your afternoon of music experience.

Man Man is sort of impossible to describe. However, as it is my job to try, I will. 5 guys with crazy nicknames from Philly dress in white and war paint and bang around on instruments to songs that feel very community-oriented; audience participation seems vital to the chanting and clammering music. They are definitely a little more experimental, but if you are feeling adventurous, this is your group to try. Their myspace gives you a good idea of what their music will sound like, and what their attitudes are. Also, the sound quality on this video isn’t great, but the video itself will give you a vague idea of what to expect: The song, “Engwish Bwudd,” is a fan favorite.

Conor Oberst’s incredible indie track record speaks for itself. This is a must-see. His new music video for the song “Souled Out” is stupendous.

The Black Keys or Iron & Wine? Robert Plant and Alison Krauss or Beck? Why does ACL do this to us?? Anyway, personally, the first set is more difficult for me to decide upon. I’d probably lean more towards Iron & Wine, because I like the quieter stuff, but if you have more bluesy leanings, The Black Keys are the way to go. As for the second two, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are musical giants. They are my pick, hands-down.

Sunday, September 28

Against Me! are punk-rock legends. If you stand near the front, be prepared for moshing (I will be hiding safely in the back with earplugs.)

Again, with the scheduling choices!! Okkervil River are Austin’s musical darlings, with a great, full sound and a boatload of musical talent. Blues Traveler is a total trip down memory lane. If you caught them at the super-dusty, super-hot 2005 ACL fest, definitely go to Okkervil. Here is a performance at Austin’s Waterloo Records that might help you along your deciding-way:

The Raconteurs and Gnarls Barkley at the same time? Really? Good luck on this one – I can’t help you here.

Band of Horses are great. They remind me of My Morning Jacket in some ways. If you have been looking for a great new rock band to love, this should be it.

Enjoy the fest!

I wouldn’t be a music blogger from Austin. . .

Caitlin W — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 02:24:29 +0000

Next weekend just so happens to consist of the greatest three days of the entire semester (thinking in school-terms, of course) in Austin, Texas. Naturally, I am referring to the Austin City Limits Music Festival. From Friday, September 26th until Sunday, September 28th, 65,000 people will be rocking out to fantastic music in the lovely, concert-converted Zilker Park. Naturally, as a music blogger, I must recommend artists for those of you attending who aren’t sure who to catch! I am starting with Friday; I’ll post about Saturday and Sunday tomorrow.

Friday is a great, great day. If you only see one artist, it MUST be the much-buzzed-about Gogol Bordello. This band is truly stupendous, and their fan following is super devoted. You may have seen lead singer Eugene Hutz in a 2005 film called “Everything Is Illuminated” with Elijah Wood (based off of the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer.) The group, a Ukrainian gypsy punk band based out of New York, has awesome energy during live shows. Often, they will leap out into the audience, crowd-surfing on a giant drum head. They are political and raucous and put more passion than is conceivable into their show. They’re scheduled to play during the heat of the day, so be sure to stock up on water to avoid passing out! Here is a video to give you an idea of what to expect:

Another great, dancey band begins right after Gogol Bordello: Hot Chip. These guys, from Great Britain, have a fantastically danceable blend of electric and pop sound, and their stuff is super catchy. Keep the water intake up! Here’s another video to give you a taste:

After all of that dancing, I recommend cooling off with The Swell Season, comprised of Glen Hansard (of The Frames) and Marketa Irglova. You will probably recognize them from the 2006 indie musical flick “Once.” They have been touring around with songs from the film, as well as other original tunes they have created together. Their sound is absolutely gorgeous; the voices compliment beautifully. Many of the songs are love-themed, either about new romances or “lover scorned” heartwrenchers. Mostly, they are a truly great way to calm down in the beautiful Austin evening.

I’ll be back tomorrow to give you my recommendations for days 2 and 3!

More ways to listen online.

Caitlin W — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 00:19:14 +0000

TechCrunch posted today about a new team-up involving Yahoo and Rhapsody. The two are joining forces so that listeners can search for music on Yahoo, and listen to up to 30 songs for free per month. You can subscribe to Rhapsody if you want to have access to unlimited songs, or you can listen to 30 second clips after your 30 full songs until the next month starts up. I particularly appreciate the idea that if you want to try out a song, but decide you don’t like it before a minute is up, it doesn’t count as one of your “songs” for the month.

Another great source for online music is Pandora. It works this way: you make a “radio station,” categorized by your favorite musician. You can have a station with just one musician, or make a station with lots of your favorite musicians. Then, when you press play, you will be treated to a mix of that artist’s songs, as well as similar artists. That’s the beauty of Pandora – it can let you in on great new artists you never knew about before, but that you discover you absolutely love because they are in the same category as your station’s artist. You can also rate music as you go, so that you hear songs you enjoy more often, and songs you don’t like won’t be played anymore.

Last.fm is a well established online source of music. It’s great for community building, and another great way to make new music discoveries – you just look at the profiles of people who like artists that you like, and see what else they are listening to!

Just another Wednesday night in the live music capitol of the world!

Caitlin W — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 08:07:13 +0000

If you happen to make it down to Austin, Texas, on any given Wednesday night, the act to see is The Spazmatics. The four guys that make up the group have high energy and crazy attire, and they play nothin’ but your favorite 80′s tunes all night long. The group also performs regularly in Houston, Dallas, and in other cities across Texas. In Austin, they always play the Cedar St. club on 4th. Tonight, they played tons of hits, including A-Ha’s “Take On Me,” Billy Idols’ “Dancing With Myself” and “Rebel Yell,” George Michael’s “Faith,” and Dexy’s Midnight Runner’s “Come On Eileen.” Of course, this is just a smattering – they do 3 sets, so you can dance yourself far into the night. The lead singer, Al, has a truly impressive voice, particularly when covering Billy Idol tunes. Bjorn, the guitarist, can rip out solos like nobody’s business. Geoffery’s an ace on bass, and Cecil is a talented and enthusiastic drummer. All in all, these guys have talent and fun, which makes for a winning combination.

The Spazmatics seem to be gaining a cult following among college kids and, apparently, film celebs! At tonight’s show, it seemed that lots of the crew from Drew Barrymore’s film-in-progress, “Whip It!” were in attendance. Spotted for sure were Ellen Page and Drew Barrymore herself. The cast and crew are in town, shooting some scenes in Austin this week. That’s the great thing about Austin’s music scene – it attracts EVERYbody!

The fantastic cover band, The Spazmatics!

R.I.P. Richard Wright

Caitlin W — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 04:38:47 +0000

Richard Wright, a founding member of the classic rock group Pink Floyd, died yesterday, September 15th, 2008, after a short battle with cancer. The New York Times included a well-written story about Wright from the Associated Press. All the best to his friends, family, and fans.

Weird Fishes – Intro Post!

Caitlin W — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 21:15:59 +0000

Hi folks. My name is Caitlin, and I am the lead (and only!) current blogger for “Weird Fishes: Trends in Music.” This blog is designed to keep you posted on the current trends in music, from industry news to new technologies to fantastic bands creating a buzz. My goal is to collect all of the various kinds of music trends being reported, and link to them here. I’ll weigh in with my thoughts, and also do some original reporting, particularly about groups from Austin (my hometown.)

The name of the blog is based on a song from Radiohead’s latest release, “In Rainbows.” As has already been thoroughly reported, the release of the album was incredibly innovative, as Radiohead made the album available as a digital download, and people could pay as much as they liked for it. There was a minimum tax charge assigned, but it was miniscule. I feel like this could be an incredible direction for music to take. It remains to be seen if more and more artists will release their albums in this vain.

TechCrunch and others are currently most interested in the launch of MySpace Music, a joint music venture-gone commercial. MySpace is partnering with folks like McDonalds and Toyota for this project, which is supposed to generate a lot of money. I wonder how much all of these giant conglomerates will impact the actual music being produced and consumed via MySpace. I know that a lot of musicians have broken onto the scene through the website, and it will be interesting to see how this launch affects musicians’ participation.

Indie darlings Peter Bjorn and John are releasing a new instrumental album, “Seaside Rock,” set to drop in the middle of the month. As soon as it does, I will post a personal review. Until then, you can preview three tracks here.

That’s all for now. Welcome to the blog!