Epitonic Newsletter: Vol. 4, No. 35 'Busy Week: Shortlist, CMJ, Resfest'
10/25/02
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If you live in LA or New York, you've got plenty to keep you busy
this next week between the Shortlist Music Awards and Resfest in the West and CMJ in the East. Some notes on each:
The Shortlist Awards:
You may have heard a little about this welcome new awards ceremony
when it debuted last year, with Sigur Ros taking home the inaugural
shortlist prize. The event, designed to honor the year's best
emerging progressive artists, returns next Tuesday, October 29
at the historic Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood. A panel of 24
"listmakers" will choose the winner from a group of ten finalists,
which includes scheduled performers DJ Shadow, N.E.R.D., and Cee-Lo. The other nominees include Zero 7, The Flaming Lips, Aphex Twin, Bjork, The Avalanches, The Doves, and The Hives, whose
Howlin Pelle and Mike Vigilante are said to be bringing instruments to the event. Rumors abound of other
bonus performances and surprises. The ceremony promises to be both
an edifying forum on the current state of independent music as well
as a rockin' live show, so if that sounds good to you, purchase
tickets immediately. They're $50 and available through Ticketweb.
For more information about the Shortlist Awards, visit the Shortlist
page on Epitonic
and visit the Shortlist website at shortlistofmusic.com.
Resfest Los Angeles:
Beginning the day after the Shortlist Awards is Resfest's third stop
(and last American city) on its international tour. Last week's New
York stop was a smashing success, with nearly every program sold out,
terrific opening and closing night parties, and suprise Q&As with
filmmakers like Stefan Nadelman ("Terminal Bar"), Jon Rubin ("So
Many Women, So Little Hair"), Tommy Pallotta (Waking Life, Zero 7's
"Destiny" video), and Joey Garfield (Breath Control: The History of
the Human Beatbox).
The L.A. edition, set to get underway Halloween weekend at the
legendary haunted Egyptian theater along the Hollywood Walk of Fear,
will offer more of the same, if with a slightly more sinister
flavor. Every program is a knockout, from the unique worldviews
showcased in True Stories, to the hilarious waking nightmares of
Bad Day, to the poignantly funny insights of Mike Mills and Spike
Jonze's brilliant Director's Club shorts, to the audiovisual
innovations of the Videos That Rock and Cinema Electronica music
video programs. Additionally the weekend promises no fewer than
three great parties, as well as added bonuses like a special DV
filmmaking seminar Friday and a "Making Road Movies" seminar on
Saturday. Tickets to all shows are going quickly, so pick yours
up right away. A few RESPASS passes remain as well, and are well worth
the $80 price tag for the uniformly excellent five-day program.
For tickets and more: resfest.com
CMJ:
Now let's move over to the New York side of the social calendar.
Next week is also the occasion for the 22nd edition of the CMJ
Music Marathon, the biggest and best independent music festival
in the country, which runs from October 30 through November 2.
After a rather subdued Music Marathon last year, when the event
had to be postponed in the wake of September 11, CMJ is back with
a major vengeance, with hundreds of great artists performing at
venues all over the city, as well as great panels all weekend long
on everything from policy to new media to retailing. Running
concurrently is the CMJ Filmfest, which delivers an impressive
batch of shorts, features, and documentaries with an eye towards
the current synergy between music and film. But the bottom line
is the music, and this year the music is simply terrific. We're
lucky enough to feature 125 of the artists performing in this
year's CMJ Music Marathon on Epitonic, and we encourage you to
check them out in anticipation of the upcoming festival on our CMJ page.
Additionally, all the music featured in this week's newsletter is
CMJ-certified and approved.
Have a great week!
"How Many Times Can You Say Goodbye to the Same Person?"
by
The Beatings
The Beatings are an exciting and energizing band out of Boston that is carrying the noise-rock torch of seminal forbears like the Pixies and Husker Du. A must for anyone who appreciates powerful rock dynamics with a shade of dementia.
"There's No Fucking Rules, Dude"
by
Chik Chik Chik
Hey, how long have you been wanting to hear a little post-punk you can really get down to? Well now you can shake your ass to the funkiest white boys around -- but good luck trying to pronounce their name.
"Livingston Buzz"
by
Radio Zumbido
Juan Carlos Barrios's gritty Guatemalan funk bridges old world grooves with modern sample technology. Break out the woo-wah and bask in the sunshine of his home-baked beats.
"First For Wounds"
by
Cex
People have sex for lots of reasons -- maybe for love, maybe for fun, maybe for escape. Like sex, electronic artist Cex (pronounced the same way) evokes a wide range of feelings by creating interesting sounds and rhythms that exude compassion and vitality.
"Calling All Enthusiasts"
by
Radio 4
Radio 4 travels back in time to late '70s England to borrow the twitchy, danceable rhythms of second wave punk and bring them back to 21st century New York City.
"Ice Cream Sundae"
by
Quix*o*tic
The askew pop of DC's Quix*o*tic hints at Christina Bilotte's previous punk band Slant 6, but stays very mellow, minimal, and eerie.
"Speakers Push the Air"
by
Pretty Girls Make Graves
Seattle's Pretty Girls Make Graves features former members of the Murder City Devils, Kill Sadie, and The Death Wish Kids. With their refreshing energy and satisfying mixture of hardcore and post-punk, they're one of the best new bands in recent memory.
"Ice Floes Aweigh"
by
Mecca Normal
Mecca Normal has proven over their many years and albums that minimalism can be a powerful thing. If you haven never listened to one of the group's many interesting releases, imagine a meandering Patti Smith coupled with Beat Happening.
"Holy Night Fever"
by
Deerhoof
San Francisco's Deerhoof takes the wide-eyed innocence of the conventional pop song and mutates it, perverts it, undermines it, performs dangerous experiments on it, ending up with messy gems marked by screeching vocals, dissonant guitars, squirting electronics, and some surprisingly good tunes.
"So Many Cakes"
by
The French Kicks
The French Kicks attempt to strip down sound
through angular motions ripe with rhythm and rooted in melody. An exercise in frenetic glamour, there is a little bit of glitter in the teeth for these four handsome devils.
"Million $ Man"
by
Imperial Teen
San Francisco quartet Imperial Teen turns pop music on its ear with biting, hook-filled compositions that combine the timeless charm of gritty garage rock, three-chord pop-punk, and early '80s dance-pop. Among the most innovative and enjoyably twisted indie pop bands of the last decade.
"Cry 4 Help"
by
Har Mar Superstar
Har Mar Superstar is on this planet for one reason -- to make you "Sweat" like Keith himself. Harold Tillman brings R&B slow jams to the hip kids with help from his beat-constructing comrades in arms The Busy Signals.
"Satisfied?"
by
J-Live
An underground hip hop legend since '95, J-Live's got everything you could want in an MC: boundless charisma, smooth vocal cadence, positive and thoughtful lyrical skills, and a top-notch production crew to back him up. It's easy to see why this Brooklyn rapper has rapidly become a cult hero.
"Fender Bender"
by
Kid Koala
Montreal's Kid Koala is one of the world's most innovative turtablist DJs. He mixes traditional beats and breaks with random silliness faster than you can say "thrift store record scratching phenomenon." But make no mistake: this Kid has serious skills.
"No. 1 Face In Hip Hop"
by
Gold Chains
Taking no prisoners in his quest to find the sweet spot between gangsta rap, booty bass, and abstract electronic music, the over-sexed Gold Chains might be described as a Nerd With Attitude. Watch out, or you might just find yourself murdered by the microphone.
"Stars As Eyes"
by
Marumari
Marumari's synthy beats bounce along the border between the worlds of pop and abstract music. Following the lead of Boards of Canada, this is "serious" electronic music that will make you bob your head.
