GIMME TINNITUS

Here are the answers we received from Mary & Rob of High Places to this q and also a…

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

m: 24 Hour Karate School (follow the link to kanyeuniversecity.com) by Mos Def

r: Dark Star, live version (lala link) off Live/Dead by the Grateful Dead. Total journey.

q: What is your favorite food?

m: Mexican papaya. Kelp pasta from Juliano’s Planet Raw. Anything pickled.

r: Hard to say… I was thinking about this the other day, I’ve been vegan most of my life, and one really cool bi-product of that is that it has made me really appreciate food on a very basic level. When I was a kid, i LOVED junk food as much as any other kid. Now I put a piece of spinach in my mouth and it explodes. I think it’s just training your palette. That being said, Vietnamese food blows my mind, particularly bánh mì chay.

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

m: Ponytail or Liars.

r: Hard question! Boredoms, especially while playing in Boadrum with them. No Age is always great. Ponytail“>Ponytail! Ponytail“>Liars are amazing live. My new local fave is Sun Araw. Its like chopped and screwed Spacemen 3. All time fave? Cro-mags circa late 80’s.

Listen:
Celebrate the Body Electric (It Came From an Angel) by Ponytail
The Other Side Of Mt. Heart Attack by Liars
Heavy Deeds by Sun Araw
Walkin’ With Jesus by Spacemen 3
World Peace by Cro-mags

Watch:
88 Boardum (youtube) by Boredoms

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

m: Uncle Paulie’s was cool while it lasted. I mean, it was kind of terrible as far as acoustics and the bathroom and stuff, but there were a lot of cool shows there.

r: We live in LA now, but being that we are from NYC: Cinders Gallery. Dead Herring house is rad too. If it isn’t too hot, Death by Audio. Playing the New Museum, the Kitchen, and the Guggenheim was pretty amazing though, just as far as cool rooms. In LA: the Smell. Ooga Booga. Echo Curio is rad, but we have never played there.

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

m: My sister Laura. She’s a writer, and I’m dying for her to write a novel.

r: We are more like the Secretaries of Keeping It Real. The Smell, hands down. I’d also like to see Chris Johanson get to build a town someday.

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

m: Our sophomore album High Places vs. Mankind is about to be released on Thrill Jockey in March!

r: New EP somewhere around there as well, but a digital single will happen before that. Lots of touring!

Listen: On Giving Up (mp3)

High Places are on Twitter.
High Places are on Facebook.
High Places have a blogspot.
High Places have a Daytrotter session.
Thrill Jockey page is here.
Upset the Rhythm is here.
Mistletone page is here.
Insound page is here.
Amazon MP3 page is here.
eMusic page is here.

BONUS: Golden (Brenmar Remix) (mp3)

Ernest Gonzales creates the blend of electronic and live instrumentation that will swirl around the small folds of your frontal lobe. Here are his answers in this installment of q and also a.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: Literally the last song I heard was Ke$ha’s Tik Tok (youtube) (ed. note: click at your own risk) which I have a love/hate relationship with but really really heard was Wind it Up (youtube) by Mark Pritchard…that song is nerdy south hard!

q: What is your favorite food?

a: Cucumbers or pineapple with lime and chile.

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: Hands down Grand Buffet is one of my favorite bands to see live. 200% energy with every song performed and the bits in between the songs are hilarious.

Listen: Cool As Hell (mp3)

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: Gotta go with Public Assembly…right before the show I ripped a huge whole in the ass of my pants so I changed in the sound booth and left them there…sorry to the soundguy if you are reading this.

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: I would give a lifetime grant to Michel Gondry to just keep doing his thing with a stipulation that he’d have to make a music video for me equal to or better than Sugar Water (youtube) from Cibo Matto.

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: My latest project is an artbook/album called Been Meaning to Tell You. I’d say go scoop up the vinyl before they are gone…its a 180 gram white vinyl that comes with a download of the book, 13 originals, and 16 remixes from Daedelus, Yppah, Take, Pollination, CYNE to name a few. Get it at www.beenmeaningtotellyou.com. BMTTY officially drops February 9th. I’m wrapping up a compilation album just in time for SXSW. The compilation is hosted by my label Exponential and will feature new music from Exponential as well as Ninja Tune, Stones Throw, Creaked, Friends of Friends, and Innovative Leisure.

Listen:
Fair Weather Friends by Daedelus
Gumball Machine Weekend by Yppah
Bee Sting by Take
Sinister Skies by Pollination
Pretty Apollo by CYNE

Here’s one track plus one remix from Been Meaning to Tell You…

Listen:
Self Awakening (mp3)
Self Awakening (Faunts Remix) (mp3)

Ernest Gonzales is on Twitter.
Exponential page is here.
Exponential is on Bandcamp.
Friends of Friends is here.
Friends of Friends is on Bandcamp.
Dublab Sprout Session is here.
Amazon MP3 page is here.
eMusic page is here.

Next up, some answers from Craig of LI’s own Slothbear.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: simpsons ‘poochie rap’ (youtube)

q: What is your favorite food?

a: babylon’s old fashion french toast in north valley stream

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: animal collective, but i’ve seen them too much.

Listen: Fireworks (mp3)

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: mckibbin apartments in bushwick

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: to slothbear no doubt, since every other band in indie rock seems to be comprised of millionaires

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: our first LP Qids is in the final stages of mixing and will hopefully be out in the next month or so, though we’ve been saying that for the better part of a year now. here’s a song called “white christmas” that’s probably gonna be track 2.

Listen:
White Christmas (mp3)

You can grab some free Slothbear recordings over @ rack and ruin records.

Downloadable: The Slothbear EP (zip)

Slothbear is on Facebook.
Slothbear has a blogspot.
Rack And Ruin is here.
Vanity Imprint is here.
Last.fm page is here.

BONUS: The Exceptional Bastards (mp3)

GDFX is the solo electronics project of Greg Fox who also creates music with Teeth Mountain, Family Of Love, and the transcendentalblackmetal unit Liturgy. Here are his answers to this here q and also a.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: Living in the Kingdom of Death (lala link) by Daniel Higgs

q: What is your favorite food?

a: Pho #5 and Vietnamese iced coffee from Cong Ly, on Hester and Chrystie in Manhattan. If you go, tell Hai that I sent you.

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: I have to say it’s Lightning Bolt. They’ve been my favorite live band since 2003, when I first saw them.

Listen: Colossus (mp3)

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: Shea Stadium, on Meadow street in Brooklyn. My cousin Adam Reich is one of the people running the place, and he’s also the main sound guy. Strong family vibes in there.

Honorable mentions (if only because I am not related to these people, not for any lesser amount of love): death by audio, silent barn, market hotel, and the meat wallet… Basically my friends’ places. What makes the brooklyn underground music scene so good is its infrastructure, which is largely due to the people who run the venues.

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: C.S.E.T.I.’s founder, Dr. Steven Greer. (google Disclosure Project for more info)

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: There is currently a new GDFX album in the works, which will be my first official release through a record label (the name of which I will not yet divulge) other than my own (Infinite Limbs/INFL). Thematic content inclusive of: collective consciousness, telepathy, the Morgenheutegesternwelt, the use of occult/otherwise esoteric meditation techniques, certain sub- and/or super-liminal resonant frequencies, the use of polyrhythms, drone, etc, states of trance, ecstasy, and what are sometimes referred to as “alternate realities”… Stepping outside of time as we experience it normally, to gain perspective and realize that we are one with all that is, beyond the current limits of our perception. Along the lines of reading a Dr. Bronner’s bottle while you’re in the shower- A soundtrack for the remote viewing of the void, visiting other parts of the galaxy and beyond, communicating with extraterrestrials, etc, if you will. A finger pointing to the moon, so to speak

It’s gonna be a banger.

[The following mp3] is totally in the demo stage- but it should give an idea of what some of this will sound like-

Listen: NEW REX (mp3)

[Here] is an excerpt from my recent live performance on WFMU, featuring collaborators Alexandra Drewchin (of Eartheater, Silver Summit and Lagoon), Ashiq Khondker (of Magnet City Kids), Tyler Dusenbury (of Thick Business, Family Of Love, and Liturgy), Max Eilbacher (of Teeth Mountain and Needle Gun), Mario Maggio (of PC Worship), and Turner Williams (of Ramble Tamble)-

Listen: (live @ WFMU 1/5/2010 part 3) (mp3)

You can download the rest of the recording, riding the tiger: good fortune and great success in 2010 and beyond (live on wfmu) for free @ Free Music Archive.

Upcoming Show:
Feb 20 @ Shea Stadium w/ Mouthus & Sightings

GDFX is on Facebook.
GDFX is on Twitter.
GDFX is on Free Music Archive.
Infinite Limbs is here.
Impose Magazine piece is here.

BONUS: Altered Ego (mp3)

The next q and also a comes from Po’Jay of Golden Triangle.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: Flyeater (youtube) by Crime

q: What is your favorite food?

a: soup

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: It’s a 3 way tie: Thee Oh Sees or Black Lips or any of King Khan’s bands

Listen:
Destroyed Fortress Reappears/Gold (mp3) by Thee Oh Sees
Cold Hands (mp3) by Black Lips
Invisible Girl (mp3) by King Khan & The BBQ Show

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: Anywhere in Monster Island (Live with Animals/Secret Project Robot/ the basement/ the street)

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: E.coli

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: Golden Triangle’s latest project is a split single with the Fresh and Onlys … coming soon, stay tuned- the artwork has snow men involved.

Listen: Invisible Forces (mp3) by The Fresh & Onlys
(ed. note: this track is from Grey-Eyed Girls)

Also, Golden Triangle’s full length debut, Double Jointer comes out on March 2 via Hardly Art. Preorder it here.

Listen: Neon Noose (mp3)

Upcoming Dates:
March 6 @ Monster Island w/ The Sandwitches
April 1 @ Knitting Factory w/ Garotas Suecas

Golden Triangle is on Twitter.
Golden Triangle is on Facebook.
Golden Triangle has a blogspot.
Hardly Art is here.
Mexican Summer is here.
Rob’s House is here.
Party Store is here.
Insound page is here.
Amazon MP3 page is here.
eMusic page is here.

BONUS: Prize Fighter (mp3)

Let’s take a brief break from the q and also a feature.

As you may already know, Dinosaur Feathers are an experimental indiepop group from Brooklyn. They will be self-releasing their new album Fantasy Memorial on March 2nd. The band weaves and mixes their varied influences (e.g. Motown, Tropicália, Africian rhythm) into their avant-pop. Listen…

Downloadable: Teenage Whore (mp3)

You can preorder Fantasy Memorial over @ Insound.

You can download their Early Morning Risers EP for free @ dinosaurfeathers.com.

Upcoming Shows:
Feb 6 @ Sycamore w/ Pearl & the Beard and Matt Singer
Feb 9 @ Piano’s w/ Blair (in residency) and Xylos
Feb 13 @ Fort Useless (Mardi Gras)
Mar 5 @ the Studio at Webster Hall (Fantasy Memorial CD Release Show)

Dinosaur Feathers is on Myspace.
Dinosaur Feathers is on Twitter.
Dinosaur Feathers is on Facebook.
nyctaper post is here.
Insound page is here.
Amazon MP3 page is here.

BONUS: Vendela Vida (mp3)

This q and also a features the answers of blogger turned rocker Kevin Diamond the singer/guitarist/keyboardist of Shark?.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: A Crime (mp3) by Carnivores. We just played with them and Dinosaur Feathers at Cake Shop last night and they blew me away. A Crime is their catchiest tune, though Organ Trail is probably my favorite so far. I just got it this morning and I’ve listened to the album three times today

q: What is your favorite food?

a: Anything Mexican. Anything involving Cheese and Beef and Beans and Tortillas. And hot sauce. And no napkins.

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: ugh. I dunno. Really tough question. Gang of Four kind of killed it, smashing a microwave with a wooden bat. Actually, Liars put on a really great show at the Pool Parties a couple years ago. Also, there’s a bunch of local bands I really love seeing live: Sundelles, I’m Turning Into.

Listen:
Second Life (Version 2) (mp3) by Gang of Four
Plaster Casts Of Everything (mp3) by Liars
Your Favorite Thing (mp3) by The Sundelles
Chin (mp3) by I’m Turning Into

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: I really enjoyed playing Silent Barn.

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: Brian Eno.

Listen: Baby’s On Fire (mp3)

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: We’re recording our first album. It’s the first time Shark? songs have been recorded as a band as opposed to just my fucking around on my own.

Here are a few Shark? songs.

Listen:
Fear! (mp3)
I’m An Animal (mp3)
I’ve Got Friends (mp3)

But know what? you should totally just download their EPs for free @ Bandcamp.

Upcoming Shows:
Feb 3 (TONIGHT!) @ Glasslands
Feb 16 @ Pianos
Feb 19 @ Fort Useless
Feb 25 @ Housingworks Bookstore (Hype Machine/Ampeater show)
Mar 4 @ Glasslands

Shark? is on Twitter.
Shark? is on Bandcamp.
Quiet Color is here.
Gimme Sound page is here.

The next q and also a features the jangly rustbelt rock of Campfires.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: Who’s In Control by Eat Skull (after the election in Massachussets)

q: What is your favorite food?

a: Really good Mexican food, which there is an abundance of here in Chicago.

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: Times New Viking in a small venue. I’ve seen them probably 8 times and it’s like getting hit by lightning each time. Also, Religious Girls from Oakland put on a fantastic show here over the summer.

Listen:
Teenage Lust! by Times New Viking
White Mage by Religious Girls

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: I don’t live in New York but Monkeytown seemed really cool. Too bad it’s getting shut down. New York seems to have a lot of cool venues though.

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: A consortium of people who will select abandoned lots in Detroit and form a giant interconnected colony for artists, musicians, writers, and other creative minds. Everyone would have to grow food and rent would be really cheap.

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: There’s a split with Cloud Nothings coming out on the Bathetic label in Chicago. It’s like 4 or 5 songs each and I’m really excited about it.

Listen:
Can’t Stay Awake by Cloud Nothings
(ed. note: this track is from the Turning On cassette)

Here’s a couple tracks from Campfires’ Burning Rivers, TV Flickers, Drifting Off to Bed tape on Leftist Nautical Antiques.

Listen:
It’s Been So Long (mp3)
Rustic Arcadia (mp3)

Campfires is on Myspace.
Campfires is on Twitter.
Mexican Summer is here.
Leftist Nautical Antiques is here.
As Above So Below Tapes is on Myspace.
FM Dust is here.
Insound page is here.

Starscream present the following answers in our q and also a series…

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: Monoliths by Maserati on my way home from class.

q: What is your favorite food?

a: I love food. I’m going to say Pakistan Tea House, place is the best.

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead! First time I saw them was at Irving Plaza with The Octopus Project and The Sword. That was before Irving Plaza was bought by The Fillmore and started hosting exclusively bands on reunion tours such as Twisted Sister.

Listen:
Wet Gold (mp3) by The Octopus Project
Fire Lances of the Hyperzephyrians (mp3) by The Sword
Richter Scale Madness (Live) (youtube) by …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: Irving Plaza pre-aforementioned shitty. Most of the good shows I have been to as of late were at Bowery Ballroom, but recently we played at the new Knitting Factory and it kicked ass! Old Knitting Factory was great too.

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: With self in mind-Anamanaguchi, so we can afford a tour van. But something is compelling me to say Matthew Cooper aka Eluvium even though he seems pretty well off.

Listen:
Power Supply (mp3) by Anamanaguchi
We Say Goodbye to Ourselves (mp3) by Eluvium

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?

a: We just released an EP called, The Space Years. It’s a follow up to the concept explored in our 2009 8bitpeoples EP, Future, and It Doesn’t Work. We made about 200 limited edition copies of this EP that come with a homemade book of photography and art by our friends that fits in to the concept; it was our first time ever making a book, that shit was a lot more difficult than thought it would be. The EP is actually only two lengthy songs, each devoted to one term of a fictitious American Presidency set in the future. The whole thing is admittedly ridiculous, but it’s a fun excuse to have ‘cool’ song titles. This year we hope to breakdown and finish a lot of material we’ve been working on to focus in to a full length album.

Listen:
Years (Five – Eight) (mp3)
Where’d You get That Belt (Remix) (mp3)

You can buy The Space Years at the 8 Bit Peoples store.

Downloadable: Future, and It Doesn’t Work EP (follow the link)

Starscream is on Myspace.
Starscream is on Facebook.
Starscream is on Twitter.
Starscream has a Tumblr.
8 Bit Peoples is here.
8 Bit Collective is here.

For the next q and also a we received some answers from D Crane from the sloppy indiepoppers BOAT.

q: What is the last song you (really) heard?

a: THREE WAY TIE
1) Vicious (youtubed doc clip) by Lou Reed
2) PPPPS (m4a) by the Nightgowns
3) That’s Something I Do (mp3) by The Apples in Stereo

q: What is your favorite food?

a: hands down—twice daily–microwave quesadillas (wheat tortilla/cheddar cheese/3 jalapeno slices/tabasco sauce)

q: What is your favorite band to see live?

a: the Nightgowns—they are always a sight to behold….mysterious/drunk/sweet/strange/the best songs around…strange venues close to my house

q: What is your favorite venue in NYC (if applicable)?

a: the cake shop was our first nyc venue….so it was magical….those christmas lights kept getting caught on the bass headstock! we saw sarah silverman upstairs eating cake…and keanu reeves!

q: OK, President Obama appoints you as the first Secretary of Culture, to whom do you give your first grant?

a: i may sound like a dick on this one….but i wouldn’t give a grant to an artist…especially a sloppy pop band. i think artists should have to be regular people too….pay their own way until their art makes that line go away….boat works regular jobs…i think there would be very little to make songs about without regular life…. so my self righteous/hairshirt/faux martyr/satyr self would rather give the money to the tacoma humane society.

q: Anything we should know about your latest project (whatever that might be)?
a: BOAT is working on a new EP….super fuzzy/super poppy distorted love songs…i want it to be called ” a nightmare love with open eyes”….but i have not run this by the rest of the band…we are also playing some popfests and doing some out of town shows this Spring

Here are three tracks from BOAT’s most recent LP, Setting The Paces, plus a couple older tracks.

Listen:
Prince Of Tacoma (mp3)
We’ve Been Friends Since 1989 (mp3)
Lately (mp3)
(I’m A) Donkey for Your Love (mp3)
Last Cans of Paint (mp3)

BOAT is on Myspace.
BOAT is on Facebook.
BOAT is on Twitter.
BOAT is on Youtube.
Magic Marker page is here.
Insound page is here.
Amazon MP3 page is here.
eMusic page is here.