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14 Nov 2009 13:51

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Music: Saturday Mixtape: Our decade in review goes all the way to 2006

  • 1. Tokyo Police Club may have ushered in the era of the blog-buzz band, but that doesn’t mean their first mini-album doesn’t hold up. These Canadians, who weren’t even old enough to drink (in Canada!) at the time, brought a lot of energy to their post-punk stylings, if not a lot to say. Unfortunately, the Black Kids/Pitchfork fiasco can probably be blamed partially on their success.
    2. In 2006, TV on the Radio finally lived up to the potential of their first EP thanks to their amazing second album, “Return to Cookie Mountain,” which is on the shortlist for best album of the decade. “Wolf Like Me” is on the shortlist for their best song. If “Staring at the Sun” didn’t already exist, there’d be no contest.
    3. While Girl Talk’sNight Ripper” is definitely of a single amazing piece of cloth, “Hold Up” deserves mention simply because it features the best single use of a Weezer song since 1997 – including by Weezer themselves.
    4. The great thing about The Thermals? They sound like a bunch of goofy grown-up kids playing punk rock, but (unlike Tokyo Police Club) the subject matter they tackle is dead serious. On “A Pillar of Salt,” Hutch Harris tackles religion with lyrical book smarts but with the energy of a six-year-old.
    5. If girl-group pop was slowed down to just before the point where the life was completely sucked out of it, you’d have Grizzly Bear’s “Knife,” their calling card into the top tier of indie rock. source

01 Sep 2009 10:28

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Music: Jay-Z: Huge Grizzly Bear fan. Who’da thunk it?

  • The thing I want to say to everyone – I hope this happens because it will push rap, it will push hip-hop to go even further – what the indie-rock movement is doing right now is very inspiring. It felt like us in the beginning.
  • Jay-Z • Regarding Grizzly Bear specifically (he was recently spotted at a show with Beyonce) and indie rock in general, and how what they’re doing inspires rap. He says that if they can break really big (well, Grizzly Bear did go top-ten on the Billboards earlier this year) “it will force hip-hop to fight to make better music.” • source

26 May 2009 01:17

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Music, Politics: Pitchfork sez Grizzly Bear’s new album is the bees’ knees

  • 9.0 rating for the indie band’s ultra-hyped “Veckatimest” source

06 Apr 2009 11:17

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Music: It’s Spring! Here’s five albums you should save your nickels for.

  • one German garage act King Khan & The Shrines (a killer live act) finally brings their blazing “What Is?!” to the U.S. (April 21).
  • two UK act Art Brut’s “Art Brut vs. Satan” (out May 12 Stateside) promises to be high-concept (in a really good way).
  • three Jason Lytle, the former lead dude of Grandaddy, goes uber-twee with solo debut “Yours Truly, the Commuter” (out May 19).
  • four Also on May 19, Eminem, long out of the game, tries to remind everyone that he’s still alive and still worthy with “Relapse.”
  • five Perhaps the most anticipated indie release of the Spring season? Grizzly Bear’s highly-hyped “Veckatimest” (May 26).

06 Mar 2009 13:44

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Music: Pitchfork Fest 2009: Getting us worked up already

  • The bands so far: Some of the bands already on board for the July 17-19 fest – which has only been partly announced – are killer. The first night is full of classic indie rockers like Built to Spill and Yo La Tengo. Day two boasts more recent indie faves like our current musical crush The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. And day three already boasts The Walkmen and Grizzly Bear. Sounds amazing.
  • A cool new idea: The last few years of the fest have featured All Tomorrow’s Parties-sponsored shows featuring such luminaries as Public Enemy playing their greatest albums in full. But this year, they’ll allow fans to vote for what the bands play in their setlists. Want to hear Yo La Tengo play nothing but stuff from “I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One”? Or more recent stuff? Your vote counts! source

14 Feb 2009 09:42

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Music: Grizzly Bear has an upcoming album. It’s named after an island.

“Veckatimest” is a small, uninhabited island off the coast of Massachusetts. Look it up, indie nerds! source

03 Feb 2009 06:30

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Music: Bonnaroo’s lineup is out. Judge how big your favorite band is here.

  • The headliners beat Coachella. Bruce Springsteen brings the E Street Band with him to lead the festivities. A reunited Phish, The Beastie Boys, Nine Inch Nails, Wilco and David Byrne also show up. Further down, the list includes such luminaries as TV on the Radio, Andrew Bird, Girl Talk, Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear, Raphael Saadiq and Chairlift. But we’re just skimming. Check out the entire list! It beats Coachella this year! source