Tag Archive for 'Pixies'

OURSTAGE MODEL U.N.- BRAZIL

Published by Sam C. on August 16, 2009 in Playlists. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .
Mateus Starling

Mateus Starling

Bem-vindos to this week’s Brazilian edition of OurStage Model U.N.! The music of Brazil is known to be representative of its people, a diverse range of influences from all over the world. For the country that gave us such great gifts like Carmen Miranda, the Samba and the Bossa Nova, it’s a bit of a downer that more recent developments in Brazilian music aren’t well known in the states. Fortunately, American music bloggers gushing over 60’s psychedelic garage rockers Os Mutantes and new ravers CSS, have helped spark an interest in Brazilian music of old and new. To quench your curiosity,  take a break from making your Carnival costume and give these Brazilian artists on OurStage a shot:

HITCHCOCKS are a psychobilly/surf band from São Paulo. Known for making edgy surf instrumentals, their music would feel right at home in the soundtrack of a 60’s science fiction B-movie.

Autoramas are quite popular in Brazil’s alternative rock scene. After all— not just any band gets to open for the likes of Mudhoney, the Pixies and Guitar Wolf. With new wave influences such as Devo and The B-52’s, the band has the potential to win over many new fans in the states.

Brazilian born guitarist Mateus Starling is bursting at the seams with talent. After graduating from Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mateus paid the bills by writing TV jingles and working as a session musician. Earlier this year, Starling released Kairos, his debut solo album with a live jazz instrumental focus. Listen to the track “Guerreiro” and you’ll understand why critics in Brazil are calling him the “future of the Brazilian guitar.”

Database

Database

Database is one of the biggest names in Brazilian electronic music. The two Producer/DJs that form Database, Lucio Morais and Yuri Chix, were childhood friends that went to film school together and gained popularity throwing down dance parties for their fellow classmates. After releasing two successful compilation CDs, contributing a remix to Fat Boy Slim’s Southern Fried Records, and playing numerous festivals in Brazil, Database is ready for a full forced breakthrough in the US. Most recently the duo worked with Brooklyn electro-pop outfit French Horn Rebellion, co-writing a single for the group’s Friends and Beaches EP. You can catch Database live as they open for French Horn Rebellion’s current US tour.

Another big buzz act from Brazil is the alternative rock group The River Raid. These moody rockers cite their biggest influences as The Stooges, Violent Femmes, Radiohead and Sonic Youth. Check out the sweet Moog sounds on their track “Electric Cool”.

Rio guitarist Alisson Souza’s “Esses Dias,” is an instrumental track blending blues and Latin jazz. Souza has a unique approach to combining several layers of break beats, flamenco-styled guitar solos and heavy blues guitar breakdowns over a somber organ. It’s definitely one of those great recordings you hear something new on with each repeated listen.

Staff Picks: Essential College Rock…

Published by brianw on April 9, 2009 in Editorial, Playlists and Rock. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .

…And, who they influenced!

My first installment of Staff Picks! I finally get my chance to share my list of the three college rock bands that I think we owe the most thanks to. I’d had this list on my desk for weeks before our editor Jessica finally let me publish it – apparently all I had to do was “ask”.

College rock is one of the most important forces driving the evolution of music forward. Where would we be without the bands that met in the basements of dirty dorms to howl and screech instead of writing papers? That is not a world I want to live in, I can tell you that.

they might be giants

3) They Might Be Giants.

Sure they’re nerdy. Of course you don’t hear an accordion used in rock music often. But when it’s done well, people listen. They Might Be Giants came from humble beginnings, including recording some of their first songs on an answering machine as the greeting in order to spread the message about their songs. Their unique sound took them from gigs in front of an answering machine to one of the best-recognized rock bands of our time.

REM

2) R.E.M.

Allmusicguide said it best when they wrote, “R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock.” No other single band so clearly straddled the gap of turning a fringe movement of complicated vocals and carefully laid out guitar work. Everyone remembers Automatic For The People as one of the immortal albums.

 

the pixies

1)Pixies.
While they weren’t a massive commercial success, the Pixies turned out to be one of the most important bands to sparking the grunge and alt rock revolution of the early 1990’s. Even Kurt Cobain of Nirvana attributed much of his own success and inspiration to listening the Pixies. In a 1994 interview, Cobain said:

“When I heard the Pixies for the first time, I connected with that band so heavily I should have been in that band – or at least in a Pixies cover band. We used their sense of dynamics, being soft and quiet and then loud and hard.”

These bands, in addition to shaping the future of modern rock music, have played a heavy hand in shaping alt rock on OurStage as well. Check out some of the below artists for a sample – they the cream of our crop, all with powerful influences from some of the bands mentioned above.

Ten Songs to Listen to While Studying

Published by ejquinn on September 15, 2008 in Playlists. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .


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Unlike my freshman roommate, I never had the ability to study while listening to my favorite songs.  I just couldn’t handle the competition between written text and sung vocals.

But that all changed in grad school when I discovered the magic of instrumental playlists.  With instrumentals, I could appease my need for audio stimulation without those pesky, distracting vocals. I compiled lists of instrumentals by my favorite bands (Pixies, Yo La Tengo, American Analog Set), threw ‘em on my iPod, and enterred a beautiful zen-like state.

Above is a playlist of my 10 favorite instrumentals from the OurStage instrumental channels.  Here’s a track list: Continue reading ‘Ten Songs to Listen to While Studying’

Mason Proper: Olly Oxen Free (Review)

Published by ejquinn on September 10, 2008 in Artist Feature. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

“Down that twisted path, you can find us there,” sings Jonathan Visger, frontman of Mason Proper, at the beginning of “Only a Moment.” It’s an apt warning of the haunted territory the schizophrenic Michigan rockers wander on their latest album, Olly Oxen Free.

Continue reading ‘Mason Proper: Olly Oxen Free (Review)’