Cheyenne Marie Mize and Bonnie “Prince” Billy have released Among the Gold, their rendition of a collection of 19th Century American parlor music handpicked by the duo themselves. The album it is available to enjoy for everyone for free.
Track Listing:
1.) Silver Threads
2.) Loves Old Sweet Song
3.) Beautiful Dreamer
4.) Let Me Call You Sweetheart
5.) Kiss Me Again
6.) Only A Dream
Upcoming Shows
Jul 27 – Czar Bar – Kansas City, MO
Jul 28 – Vaudeville Mews – Des Moines, IA
Jul 29 – The Mill – Iowa City, IA
Jul 30 – Uncommon Ground on Clark – Chicago, IL
Jul 31 – White Rabbit Cabaret – Indianapolis, IN
Suburban Home Records Mix Tape Volume 5, “Someone’s Gonna Die” marks a new approach to our Mix Tape series. Partly because it costs less money and partly because we found so many songs we had to put on this mix (putting the running time at over 100 minutes), Mix Tape Volume 5 is available as a free download and not a physical compact disc. While we will miss the physical, tangible qualities of the past volumes, I won’t personally miss having to burn thousands of CDrs and hand-packing every one of them. Let me know your thoughts on this approach.
“Someone’s Gonna Die” was inspired by I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch In the House’s new album, “The Sounds of Dying”. Our own Andy Thomas helped me put together the track listing for this mix. The first two songs are from the new album which will be up for pre-order on Thursday, July 15th. The 2nd of Sonofabitch’s songs is a cover of Two Cow Garage’s “Postcard and Apologies” and their version is absolutely fantastic. We figured it only fitting to put Two Cow’s version on right after and while keeping with this mindset, we put a Townes Van Zandt cover by Michael Dean Damron (of ICLASOBITH) followed by the original song. The rest of the mix finds a number of Suburban Home tracks from the likes of Austin Lucas (new demo), Tim Barry, The Takers, Armchair Martian, Jr Juggernaut, Jon Snodgrass, Drag the River, and Look Mexico alongside some of our favorite tracks by new and old bands. We took submissions for this mix by bands who thought their music would work on this volume of our Mix Tape and while we had only planned on putting 1 or 2 songs from these submissions, we put like 6 or 7 songs. We apologize to those of you who submitted tracks that were not selected, but we hope you understand that it was impossible to put all the submissions on. Additionally, I picked a few of my favorite newer bands like The Evening Rig, Arliss Nancy, and John Moreland and the Black Gold Band. We put a number of oldies but goodies from the likes of Lucky Old Sun (Ben Nichols old band), Slobberbone, the Replacements, and more. I think that this could be my favorite Mix Tape yet. I haven’t stopped listening to it since we finished it.
Please download this mix. If you run a blog, please post it on there. If you are in a band on this Mix, please post the mix for download on your Facebook/Twitter/Myspace pages. After downloading the zipped folder, send it out to everyone you know. If our yousendit link expires, just email me or post a comment and I will replace the link with a new one. We really hope you enjoy this mix and if you find some new bands that have caught your ear, please consider buying a record from them or their label and make sure you mark their tour dates on your calendar.
If you could take anything home from our previous mix tapes, it would be great if you downloaded the mix and shared it with at least 4 other friends. I would love to see this mix reach people all over the world. As I always say, music is meant to be shared.
Download hi-resolution cover art and back art if you want to print your own covers in the event you want to burn this onto CDs (it would have to be 2 Audio CDs or 1 Mp3 CD since there is over 100 minutes of audio). Artwork done incredibly by Brandon Proff.
(as taken from Urban Dictionary):
v. To take elements of two or more pre-existing pieces of music and combine them to make a new song. n. A song comprised of elements of two or more pre-existing pieces of music.
2. I’m in the middle of mashing-up songs by Tom Jones and Michael Jackson. (verb usage)
1. I’ll play my mash-up of Tom Jones and Michael Jackson at the club tomorrow night. (noun usage)
Max Tannone might not a name you now until you find out that he is the man behind the mash-up that is called Jaydioheadamongst other music blending projects. Years ago my pal Kevin shared with me a track called “Wrong Prayer”, a mash-up of Jay-Z and Radiohead. This was around the time that Dangermouse‘s The Grey Album was getting some attention and being a fan of both Jay-Z and even more so Radiohead I was just impressed with what I heard. Years later that track was released on Jaydiohead, a free downloadable mash-up album made available by Max Tannone.
Recently I had the opportunity to speak with the music manipulator. He was more than kind to answer a few questions for me about mashing music. Enjoy!
BHP: Your name might be unknown to some but it’s safe to say what you have done is talked about by many. Can you quickly introduce yourself?
MT: Sure, well my name is Max Tannone. I’m from New York City and I make music and remixes. I guess this is called a producer, although my definition of a producer is someone who works with other musicians in a studio setting developing a project…perhaps that makes me more of a beat-maker or a remix artist than a traditional producer.
I use the term “mash up” myself a lot in regards to what you do but I know most people prefer to call this form sound manipulation something else. What do you prefer it to be called?
It doesn’t matter to me. People shun the term “mash up” because of the negative connotations it carries. The term has transformed into a signification of a musical gimmick, mainly due to the availability of inexpensive computer software allowing people to experiment with music. I embrace this though. I love the fact that anyone can create a mashup, a remix, an original track, whatever – with little equipment or prior knowledge. I don’t necessarily enjoy everything that’s created, but the fact that it can be done is vital. So, that being said, you can it a mashup, a remix, whatever is easy for you.
To someone who is not familiar with mashing, how would you explain it to them?
In general sound editing is manipulating or combining different sounds together. I only have experience doing this in the digital realm, and have never physically cut and spliced tape like the originators of remix culture – but the principles remain. Its easier to picture visually. Imagine creating a collage, with the different pictures that contribute to the overall image representing different pieces or loops of sound. Pictures can be layered, altered, etc. Imagine having an image of the Mona Lisa and applying 40 consecutive Photoshop filters to it. You probably wouldn’t even recognize it at the end. This is an extreme example, but you get the idea.
How did you get into “mashing” music? Was it something you recently started or have you been toying with it for a while now?
I learned how to mix instrumentals and acapellas (which is just matching their tempos and starting them on the “1”…very easy) several years ago. From here I got heavily into making my own beats, learning how to sample and adding my own elements. At the time the producer group The Neptunes had been producing every R&B and hip-hop song and I was fascinated. It was the first time I began to think about how the music was actually created, rather than just listening to it. After a few years of just doing beats, I got back into the mash-up thing, but wanted to add my own elements as well. The first track I did was “Wrong Prayer” from Jaydiohead and made it into a full out project, just to see what would happen.
Who did you first “mash” and why?
Way back in the day I would just experiment. I had hundreds of acapellas and instrumentals and would just mix random ones together. I remember being really excited the first time I got something on tempo that sounded good. Soon after you realize that this is what DJs do, live, every night. I wanted to go beyond a basic track A vs. track B type thing. The first mash-ups aren’t anything special… Mash-Up 1 , Mash-Up 2 , if you want to hear them. They are perfect examples of something a decent DJ would do live all night. So I tried to expand from this.
How do you go about finding the right songs to mix up? I can not imagine that is an easy task.
For me it starts with a concept. Than I gather as many songs as I can from each artist or genre, and just start listening. I make notes on what I think would sound good together, and just test it out. When I find something I like, I try to make it a complete song. How I choose depends on the vibe of the tracks, their respective sounds, tempos, instrumentation, etc.
How long does it generally take to disassemble songs and recreate them to your liking?
Anywhere from 2 days to 2 weeks to do one track.
Have you experienced any legal issues yet?
I got a cease and desist letter from Minty Fresh Records. They said I had to stop using the name “Minty Fresh Beats”, so now I just go by my regular name. Maybe that’s a good thing because I got a lot flack for that name, haha.
Obviously you can not make a profit from this so you allow your work to be downloaded for free on various websites via P2P sharing. Which album has been downloaded the most?
Probably the original Jaydiohead album – but I don’t know for sure. Everything has been re-uploaded by countless people on many different sharing sites. Not to mention single tracks that have been downloaded via blogs and my soundcloud page. Its impossible to know. The Jaydiohead website has over a million hits but you really cant correlate that to downloads. It could be more or less.
Jaydiohead is genius to my ears. I adore the project and can not help but to think about the ever popular DJ/Produce Dangermouse and his project called The Grey Album. Did he provide any influence to you by doing what he did years ago or did you pave your own path?
Thanks I’m glad you like it. The Grey Album is great, and was just a stepping stone for Dangermouse. The work he’s done since then is amazing – definitely one of my favorite producers. That being said, I never really thought about the Grey Album when I was making Jaydiohead. Not to take anything away from it, I was just concentrated on making something sound cohesive and interesting – just like any piece of music.
So how did you come up with the idea of mixing Radiohead with Jay-Z? Seems so far fetched yet so perfect one you hear it.
I heard “I Might Be Wrong” by Radiohead and thought it would be a nice hip-hop beat. I made a few minor adjustments and it was ready to go. I am very familiar with Jay-Z’s catalog, so he was a natural choice for me. I wasn’t put off by the number of Jay-Z remix albums that already exist. That was one of the reasons I did it, maybe I could do something that would stand out.
Mos-Dub is your most recent work and I think it is brilliant to do what you have done by combining Mos-Def with reggae music many may have never heard of before. How did you come up with this idea?
[I] recently became heavily into dub reggae music and again, thought I could sample it. Like Jay-Z, Mos is one of my favorite MCs and the idea of working with him (obviously not in person) was exciting. Dub can be very political and socially conscious, and Mos Def’s lyrics often represent this too, so they came together nicely. There are a few other MCs that I’d like to do projects with…
Have you heard from Mos Def yet in regards to this? What about Jay Z or any other major artists?
Haven’t heard from Mos Def. Jay-Z wrote about Jaydiohead on his Twitter account which was pretty cool. The Beastie Boys were supportive of Doublecheck Your Head, and posted 4 of that project’s 7 tracks on their website. One thing I want to say about the Beastie Boys is that they have been supporters of remix culture from very early on. They uploaded a bunch of their acapellas on their website a long time ago, before the mash-up and remix culture got to the fevered pitch its at now…so props to them.
That is awesome to hear that about the Beastie Boys! They are indeed one of the biggest supporters of remix culture. How did you feel when you found out their posted your remixes on their website?
I felt honored. Doublecheck Your Head wouldn’t have happened without Adam H (Adrock.) He liked Jaydiohead and contacted me about doing a similar remix with their Check Your Head album. I jumped at the chance.
Seems as if you prefer to tackle on NYC MC’s. Is this something intentional?
I’m most familiar with their work, and they are some of my favorite artists. I grew up listening to them, so these projects are tributes in a way.
Do you make it to a lot of shows in NYC or are you mainly a club kind of guy?
I’m still developing my DJ sets and “live show” per se. But as far as a concert-goer, I see stuff pretty often. The best DJ set I’ve seen in recent memory was Rusko at Webster Hall.
How about one that someone else created? Do you have any favorite mash up artists?
DJ Swindle has done some cool stuff. He did an album with Nas and Al Green that I enjoyed. I’m into kind of conceptual projects, or at least ones where every song isn’t 20 songs blended together. I appreciate that from a technical point of view, but its often musically uninteresting for me.
You started a DJ and moved to more of a producer, right? Have you produced many bands/artists you would like to mention?
Yes, although I want to get more involved with DJing. I would like to do some of this live. To be honest, my production experience outside of these projects is really limited. I haven’t been able to work with an artist or group from start to finish on an original project. I hope that’s on the horizon.
You are quite personable, more so than most artists out there. How important is it to you to be friendly to your fans on Twitter and Facebook?
It’s weird to think of people as fans. I don’t like to. I see myself like anyone else, just experimenting with music and putting it out there. I’m honored that other people are into it. Interacting with people is a great way to share ideas and get feedback. If people ever have questions or want to get into doing this stuff I try to help them.
Have you ever considered going your own way and putting out original material?
Yeah. I have a bunch of original beats, sampled beats, and more electronic dancey stuff online at my soundcloud page. I’m most comfortable with hip-hop, and would like to work with an MC on an album from start to finish. I keep coming back to this idea of a concept album where each track is part of a story or something, I don’t know why I’m into it. It could be really corny, I don’t know.
What’s next for you? Any new mashes you can hint on?
I’m working on some stuff now, I don’t want to say anything because I’m not sure how it will turn out yet. Still experimenting…I just want to keep going.
The Flatliners are about as punk as they come and I am not just saying that. The foursome who hail from Toronto, Ontario does not care about the fame and fortune so many bands seek these days. They prefer touring in vans, playing in dive bars, and sleeping on floors over lathering in luxury. Recently releasing their third full length entitled Cavalcade on Fat Wreck Chords, the band continues on with their seven year career with just one thing in mind – play punk rock music because they want to.
Starting off as a ska-punk act, the band has matured into a more melodic punk rock outfit that clearly is represented on Cavalcade. The powerful opening track “The Calming Collection” starts off album and introduces the listener to what is to be expected throughout the twelve song release. “Carry The Banner” continues with a forceful track that was heavy on the rock with gritty group singing throughout. Their sound is more likable than ever and just by hearing one song I knew I was in for something good. I also got a kick out of the opening line sampled from the 80’s metal spoof band Bad News.
Bordering on pop-punk, “Bleed” is exactly what you would expect in a punk anthem sing-a-long with plenty of opportunities for the listeners to get involved. It was the best track on the album i my opinion hands down. “He Was A Jazz Man” reached back to their ska-punk roots and sounded just amazing. “Shithawks” followed fast and furious with great harmony. Then there was “Monumental” which laid off the punk for a moment producing a great rock track I really enjoyed as well.
Proving that they have no solid genre of punk “Filthy Habits” kept a heavier sound with plenty of screaming and authority. “Count Your Bruises” stood out over most tracks with a much more mature style musically and lyrically. I was impressed thoroughly with the whole album that displays how mature this young band has become.
The Flatliners have already been going places and will continue to do so based upon their way of life and ability to rock out. Following their dream one day at a time, the band seems to always be on tour and not to mention continues to release solid punk rock efforts in a timely manner. Fans of the real punk rock, not that fashionable crap, need to have the Flatliners on their playlist. This release holds high as one my favorite punk releases so far this year and once you listen to it you just might agree.
I cannot believe it is June 22nd already. Summer is officially here and what better way to bring in the warm fun season than to jam out to some amazing music – but what exactly is out there to listen to? Luckily Atlanta act The Constellations have decided to drop their debut release titled Southern Gothic just in time to provide a great soundtrack for your summertime fun.
After two years in the making with assistance from producer Ben H. Allen (Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective), the eight piece act has released an album that mixes all the fun of bands like Outkast, MGMT, and the Gorillaz with almost a 90’s grunge / soul combination all while adding their own flair.
Honestly there really is no way to define a genre for this band as their songs range from rock to hip hop to pop – that is not necessarily a bad thing. Lacking consistency never sounded so good. Add in love for Tom Waits and guest appearances by Cee-Lo Green and Asher Roth, it is quite apparent this band is not a gimmick you are listening to.
“Setback” opened the release with a funky electronic jam heavy on the bass with lead vocalist Elijah Woods almost rapping over music that easily could be thought on something the Chemical Brothers might have created or even Fatboy Slim. This was the song that was brought to my attention to earlier in the year and needless to say it sparked my attention tremendously.
Not giving the idea that Southern Gothic might be only an electronic album came “Perfect Day” a relaxed and very cool sounding track reminiscent of good ol’ Gnarls Barkley. It’s only fair to mention Gnarls Barkley seeing as “Love Is A Murder” featured ½ of the act otherwise known as Cee-Lo Green who provided a monologue throughout the track. This was one of those songs that easily will stick to the minds of many and be broadcast all over the radio.
“December” was another track that just screamed to be played on the radio and sounded like a unreleased Broken Bells track. I could not help but think of how perfect the song would be for a going out on the town mix. “Take A Ride” proved to be another inebriated party track with the message to just raise hell starting at the barstool.
“We’re Here To Save The Day” sounded like a strange alliance between Beck and Eminem. Listening to Asher Roth supply a flow of heavy heard rhymes throughout it was apparent song clearly was out of place with the rest of the tracks yet was amusing to listen to. I also could not help but wonder why Asher Roth was almost blatantly shown the spotlight on the song while earlier Cee-Lo barely crept through his spoken word of sorts.
“Step Right Up” was by far my favorite track on the album as it was a clear tribute to Mr. Tom Waits. The song was a completely off the beaten path revolving around one of my favorite artists of the 70’s. Keeping with the iconic storytelling individual this song also keeps the funk moving around for almost ten minutes. I can not see everyone getting a kick out of this song but something tells me this is one of those songs best seen live.
“Remurder Is A Lovemix” was a soulful piece with the commonly heard advice “if you really wanna live, you gotta be ready to die”. I enjoyed this song with Elijah Woods changing up his singing style as well as the random distorted guitar solo that jumped in the middle of the track.
Southern Gothic is a gallant release by a group of musicians who seemingly refused to keep their material contained. Usually the result of something of this nature could be disastrous but The Constellations manage to pull it off in a great way. Already turning heads at SXSW and Bonnaroo the band continues to tour and will be making a stop at Lollapalooza. Do yourself a favor and make sure that Southern Gothic is part of your playlist one way or another this summer. This band will be going places, I know it.
