The genesis of this little guy was actually a riff from (don’t laugh) a Zelda game that got stuck in my head and I turned it into a song, but it wasn’t really working, so I scrapped it. Sometime later my friend Phil sent me this choppy rhythm track, it sounded like waves made of Legos struggling against each other, and I put about 100 echo-y guitars on it and it really did start to sound like lapping water. Lo and behold the Zelda riff sort of naturally appeared again and sort of floats over the top of everything. Seemed fitting for an intro to an imaginary place called Winnogrand.
I had this simple two-chord sequence lying around from literally years ago that all of a sudden seemed viable again, so after playing it on acoustic I channeled my inner Johnny Marr/Paul Maroon and came up with these messy little counter-melodies. The vocal melody and lyrics are sort of a playground taunt inspired by the childlike, nightmare imagery of Jonathan Donahue.
A little place called Winnogrand…
Barbara Poček
Your favorite Frenchmen Phoenix make an epic return with “Entertainment.”
“Amok” by Atoms for Peace
Belle & Sebastian making “Tigermilk” and “If You’re Feeling Sinister.”
President’s Day is the Christmas, if the quality of alt media that’s been released today is any indication.
The art of the Not-To-Do List
When making a to-do list, you should consider making a “not-to-do” list at the same time. The “not-to-do list” isn’t about critiquing yourself, it’s simply about prioritizing. Pick a few things that you really don’t have to do today (but perhaps usually do) and write them down. You’ll be amused at what you find.
I thought I had every imitative angle of Ryan Adams’ Rock n’ Roll covered only to discover that I somehow missed the most obvious one. No, really.
Ryan Adams: Rock n’ Roll (left)
John Lennon: Rock n’ Roll (right)
Renowned producer sets out on his own with Ultraista debut
Ultraista, the new project from producer Nigel Godrich (Beck, Radiohead) is essentially the same band as Atoms for Peace, minus Thom Yorke. Naturally, that’s a little too bad.
Percussion wunderkind and oft collaborator Joey Waronker joins Godrich and vocalist Laura Bettison for a chilled-out take on their respective resumes, and as one would expect, it sounds like a killer cocktail of past projects: an AIR loop here, a Radiohead synth there, but with an added dose of outer-space.
Bettison is given the unenviable task of distinguishing herself from other vocalists Godrich has worked with before (er, Thom Yorke), as well as other female vocalists who typically define this brand of downtempo. For the most part she’s game, especially on the delightfully weird “Easier,” but other cuts, like “Gold Dayzz,” are practically crying out for Yorke’s singular honey-throated inflection.
Check out the video for smalltalk.
