Beastie Boys - Essential Mix

So who's excited about the Beastie Boys' new album? Coming a full seven years after their last proper hip-hop album (a long time even for them), Hot Sauce Committee Pt. 2 is a much welcomed return to form for these three pioneers of cool, especially as Adam Yauch is coming off of a battle with throat cancer. To have these guys still making super-fresh beats in their 40s is certainly something we can all be thankful for, here on this first night of Pesach.

It seems like every time the Beasties release an album, it's considered a comeback of sorts, as their albums come so few and far between over the past fifteen years or so. And now that these guys are back in the collective consciousness, it's time to dust off all those old classics, which I know have fallen off my radar over the past few years. So now I'm inclined to revisit their discography, and re-discovering heaps of gems: deep album cuts and B-sides which don't always make it on to the typical Beastie playlist. Predictably, I've made a mix compiling the best of these "lost" Beastie tracks for your listening pleasure. This compilation is chock-full of obscure pop culture references, sliced-and-diced funky fresh beats, and of course, enough doodie rhymes to keep your body movin' for the rest of the day.

Beastie Boys - Essential Mix

1. Skills To Pay The Bills
2. The Grasshopper Unit (Keep Movin')
3. Beastie Groove
4. Unite
5. Stand Together
6. Flute Loop
7. Shadrach
8. Triple Trouble
9. Hey Ladies (Green Lantern Mix)
10. The Scoop
11. Alive
12. Oh Word?
13. Putting Shame In Your Game
14. Finger Lickin' Good
15. Now Get Busy
16. The Move
17. Shazam!
18. Car Thief
19. Boomin' Granny (ridiculous)
20. Professor Booty
21. Alright Hear This
22. The Brouhaha
23. Time To Get Ill
24. Rock Hard

Download Link

Hot Buttered Rum Review - Jambase.com

This week's review tackles some pipin' hot, shit-kickin' acoustic music. The bluegrass/country/ rock-ish ensemble Hot Buttered Rum put on a raucous show last week at the beautiful Great American Music Hall, where they showed us their musical stew of pickin' + drum n' bass grooves ain't nothin' to mess with. These guys tackle the Americana of string band music with a rock band approach, and do it with grace and precision. They know how to put on a hell of a party too, said party being documented over at Jambase:

Hot Buttered Rum:: 04.02.11 :: Great American Music Hall :: San Francisco, CA

To supplement the show review, we're lucky enough to have a pristine recording of the complete concert, available for streaming or download over at the Internet Archive. This site (which coincidentally is located in SF, in an amazing old building on Park Presidio and Clement) is an incredible resource for free live music and a million other forms of free media. I would advise you to spend a few minutes browsing its database, as it's got everything and then some.

But, back to bluegrass. Here's Hot Buttered Rum doing a pre-show pre-game performance in a liquor store in the Tenderloin before their headlining slot down the street at GAMH:

Chromeo Review - Glide Magazine

DJ performances are often hit-or-miss affairs for me, as I thrive on the act of spontaneous musical creation in the moment. But Chromeo is an exception of sorts, a hybrid "band" of two dudes who perform their songs accompanied by pre-programmed backing tracks. The experience is super-fun for those who come to dance their retro-butts off, though it left me somewhat wanting in musical creativity. But apples and oranges, I suppose. The guys are clearly talented musicians if they're cranking out track after track of insanely catchy, finely-honed retro-electro-pop. The fact of the matter is that they have a huge arsenal of sing-along worthy, funky-as-hell anthems that are guaranteed to please any crowd. Here's my review of their East Bay performance:

Chromeo:: 02.18.11 :: Fox Theater :: Oakland, CA

One element of Chromeo's music that is hard to put your finger on is the level of irony present in their deliberate nods to cheesy 80's music. At first, it seemed that they were clearly tongue-in-cheek with their music's smooth Yacht Rock references (soaring sax solos and analog synths). But as time went on and they blew up, the line of irony started to blur, especially when they collaborated with Daryl Hall himself. At this point in their career, the Chromeo sound seems pretty irony-free.

But that doesn't mean these guys now take themselves seriously or anything. Case in point, their appearance on Yo-Gabba-Gabba:



And here they are in a joint set with Daryl Hall at Bonnaroo 2010 in full-band mode, with a Chromeo-ized version of "I Can't Go For That." (The vocoder being Chromeo's signature stamp on the tune.)

Spotlight On Cactus - Another Phish Mix

As Phish summer tour plans start to take shape over the past week, it's easy to forget that bassist Mike Gordon is currently on his own big tour with his own band, which is getting tighter all the time. Gordo and his band of merry melody makers recently hit up the Northwest for a number of shows, and have been dusting off some old chestnuts in the process. (Mound, anyone?)

Seeing that Mike and his band are lighting it up onstage these days, I thought it an opportune time to dust off an old mix I made back in 2004. It was originally made to trade and share with other fans at the debacle that we know as Coventry. As fate would have it, I was actually able to personally give Mike a copy of this mix when he stopped his golf cart next to me in the concert field. I chatted him up for a couple of minutes before a crowd formed around us, and learned that his all-time favorite Phish show at that time was 6/20/04, at SPAC. I also asked him if the band would ever perform "Mound" again, and he said not likely, as they had forgotten how to play it (they busted it out this past December in Worcester).

From bluegrass to Jewish songs to straight dirty cow funk, these disks showcase some of the best stuff that Mike brings to the band we know as Phish. Enjoy.

Phish - Spotlight On Cactus

Set I:
1. Sneakin' Sally (12/30/97 MSG)
2. Ya Mar (11/27/98 Worcester, MA)
3. Ginseng Sullivan (12/31/93 Worcester, MA)
4. Mound (3/31/93 Portland, OR)
5. Moma Dance (9/17/00 Merriweather Post)
6. Weigh (3/1/97 Germany)
7. Scent of A Mule (6/11/94 Red Rocks)
8. Wolfman's Brother (12/1/03 Albany, NY)
9. I'm So Tired (10/31/94 Glen Falls, NY)
10. Yirushalayim Shel Zachav -> (7/8/94 Great Woods)
11. Avenu Malchenu (4/18/92 Palo Alto, CA)
12. Uncle Pen (2/20/97 Milan, Italy)

Set II:
1. Destiny Unbound (9/22/90 UMass Amherst)
2. Ghost (11/17/97 Denver, CO)
3. My Mind's Got A Mind of Its Own (12/7/97 Dayton, OH)
4. Train Song (11/20/98 Hampton, VA)
5. Round Room (2/28/03 Nassau Coliseum)
6. Mike's Song->
7. Old Home Place->
8. Weekapaug Groove (4/3/98 Nassau Coliseum)
9. E: Contact (1/3/03 Hampton, VA)

Download Links:

Disk One
Disk Two

Cake Review - Glide Magazine

Cake is simply a timeless band. Whatever they do, it is of a consistently high caliber, and is always catchy and fun. For the past 15 years or so, we've always been able to rely on them to deliver their own brand of dry-humored pop-funk-rock-country goodness.

Their sold-out four night run at the Fillmore was proof that everyone still loves Cake, even if they've been off the map recently. And they still deliver live, playing all the songs you loved in your adolescent days that still hold a place in your heart. The show I attended was an ecstatic sing-along affair, and went above and beyond my expectations, mostly due to the outpouring of love which the audience showered upon the band and their music. Cake responded with a fantastic show, which I got to cover on Glide:

Cake :: 02.16.11 :: The Fillmore :: San Francisco, CA

Here's a performance of their recent single, "Long Time." They're as tight as they ever were:



Now compare this to a 1994 cable-access performance of "Jolene," filmed in San Francisco:



They haven't changed much, have they? If anything, they've gotten better with age...

Little Dragon Review - Glide Magazine

The Swedes were recently in town to bring us into their musical world a few weeks ago, and a sold-out crowd at the Independent was there to soak up every second of it. Little Dragon is a strange little band that excels in synthy, detached pop, and though their live show left a bit to be desired, their music as a while is thoroughly unique and worth seeking out.

Amidst all the bloops and bleeps was the soaring voice of Yukimi Nagano, who's melodies soared over the weirdness of the music. At their best, Little Dragon make you feel like you're floating around in a frigid deep space party -- it's funky, but spacious and cold as ice.

Here's the write-up at Glide:

Little Dragon :: 02.04.11 :: The Independent :: San Francisco, CA

One of their best tunes is "Runabout," and this performance gives a good sense of the unique qualities this band has to offer:



"My Step" included some nice Prince-like synths in there, too:

Tony Williams Lifetime Tribute Review - Jambase.com

Writing about instrumental music ain't easy. Especially exploratory, free-jazz-mind-fuck-fusion. Thus was my challenge when presented with the opportunity to cover and adequately express the music of Spectrum Road on paper. This supergroup of virtuosos has recently come together to pay homage to the inventor of Jazz-Rock, drummer Tony Williams, and the result is astounding.

I caught this band in Oaktown on a Wednesday night, and they proceeded to blow the tiny room away with furious playing, heavy riffage, and cerebral excursions into the outer realms of improv. With this much talent on one stage, it could have easily turned into a battle of egos butting heads together, but the musicians played with sympathy respect for each other's strengths, resulting in a mind-blowing set of agile jazz-rock.

Here's my review of the show over at Jambase:

Spectrum Road :: 02.03.11 :: Yoshi's :: Oakland, CA

This is just a small example of the musical boundaries these guys were pushing all night. Warning: this is not for the faint of heart, or those with ADD...



But the real star of the show was Cindy Blackman-Santana, the goddess drummer in pearls. Here's a good example of what this woman is capable of with two sticks in her hands:

The Budos Band Review - Glide Magazine

The turn of the new year always brings lots and lots of great touring bands to the Bay Area, and there's no better way to dive into twenty-one-one than with a great big heaping slab of FUNK. That is just what Staten Island's The Budos Band brought to the Independent for a two-day run of deep, dark grooves. Equipped with a four-piece percussion section, these Daptone Records recording artists were here to slay, and they dug deep to bring it hard to a sweaty mass of revelers. Who needs vocals when you've got nine dudes deep in the pocket rockin' your socks off?

Here's my take on the relentless party that these guys busted out last Friday night. Glide Magazine has the scoop:

The Budos Band :: 01.15.11 :: The Independent :: San Francisco, CA

For a little taste of the fires that those who go by Budos are able to conjure up, take a gander at these here moving pictures. Gamin' on ya!