Well hello again, podcast fans! Welcome to Flatbasset Radio: Episode #79!
Folks, summer's officially upon us and, in tribute, I've got red-hot jams lined up for this week's episode. As per usual, sorry for the gap between episodes. I'm very lazy. Conversely, thanks to everybody who did check out Episode #78. My buddy Nick & I teamed up for that one and I think it turned out to be the best one we've ever teamed up for.
That, however, is the last episode. On this week's show I've got a jam from my favorite reunited punk band, a cut from an iconic soundtrack, a set for our brothers & sisters in England, a spotlight on Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week, some under-informed political talk, a check-in on some of our Twin Cities friends, a few anniversaries, a lot of sweating, even more swearing, and my absolute ultimate summer jam! All that plus the Cover Of The Week & one of the most classic Flatbasset Flatclassics ever!
As always, Flatbasset Radio is completely free. I've finally set up a
decent downloading site, so if you'd like to download Flatbasset Radio:
Episode #79 (with all the appropriate iTunes tagging), just click here.
If you don't have the time or desire to download the show, just click the Mixcloud player below and you're good to go.
Here's how Flatbasset Radio: Ep. #79 plays out:
01. Descendents - Victim Of Me
02. Joey Bada$$ - Brooklyn's Own
03. The Pooches - Rhythm Of The Rain
04. Sugar Ray - Fly (w/Super Cat)
05. The Jam - Going Underground
06. Primal Scream - Trainspotting
07. The Specials - Racist Friend
08. Clementine - Evergreens
09. Devata Daun - Be A Stranger
10. Dem Atlas - Grbge Trsh
11. Frankie Teardrop - Waiting For You
12. The Smiths - I Know It's Over
There you have it, folks. Drink lots of water.
For more TCDroogsma be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma). Previous episodes of Flatbasset Radio are
archived on his Mixcloud page. Stop by Flatbasset Radio's Facebook Page & give it a "Like" if you have the time.
Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of June 12th-18th, 2016:
Devata Daun - L o o k
01. We Were Carried
02. Fascinate
03. Animal Instincts
04. Willow
05. I've Been Here Before
06. Subconscious Gestures
07. Tell Me Your Visions
08. Skeletons
09. Be A Stranger
10. They Say
(Devata Daun via Serene Supreme)
I was turned on to Devata Daun via Radio K's excellent Track of The Day program. Back in October of last year they featured Daun's (aka Nikki Pfeifer) Off The Record performance of "Animal Instincts" as one of their local tracks of the week. Radio K's TOTD program is usually pretty eclectic, but even after spending a week with the song (and repeatedly watching the "Skeletons" clip below), I still didn't know what to make of her sound.
Fortunately, shortly after her TOTD appearance, the picture slowly came into focus. Daun, Garrison Grouse, & c.Kostra (aka Ryan Olcott) announced that they were forming Pytch Records. Spending time on their Soundcloud pages led me to an array of stellar singles (Daun, Grouse, & Kostra have since had songs on my Flatbasset Radio podcast) and went a long way to galvanizing their sound. Jared Hemming's excellent City Pages write-up helped me wrap my head around what Olcott describes as their "lo-fi" & "pitch-deviant" sounds.
So, all of that background info aside, L o o k brings with it one obvious question: Can the Pytch Records sound stand up over the course of a full-length LP?
The answer, at least in Daun's case, is yes.
Opener "We Were Carried" is an excellent example of Daun's version of the sound. The elastic keyboards drift in & out of the mix like their batteries are dying at the end of each sustained note. Daun's sustained vocals are relatively stoic, belying a sneaky, simple melody that balances off those keyboards. The whole thing is held together by the percussion, which, seemingly immune from the keyboard's teetering sound, proves to be the album's secret weapon.
The studio version of "Animal Instincts" stands as an early album highlight. Over plinking, heart-monitor-esque keys that make it sound as if we're entering the scene mid-chase, Daun declares, "We are savage animals, you are my prey..." in a tone that's equally cold & sensual. The hunt gains pace via added layers of keyboards for the next 90 seconds before Daun sings "we don’t decide when the thirst takes over,
lead me to the water along that rolling river..." as the song opens into a kaleidoscopic burst of keyboards. Just as quickly as it opens up, however, it closes and the hunt begins anew.
Lyrically, Daun tackles quite a few subjects on L o o k. Nature, consumerism, longing, confusion, dissolution of friendship, religion, um... skeletons, all of them are filtered from Nikki Pfeifer the songwriter through the prism of Devata Daun. Fortunately, the fact that Pfeifer prefers keyboards to acoustic guitars keeps the subject matter from sounding too self-serious. For example, give a listen to "Subconscious Gestures:"
"These disconnections are making me numb, yesterday we felt a bond so strong..." No doubt, this is a universal sentiment that would pass as little more than cliche in some songwriter's hands. In Daun's hands, however, it's laid right in the middle of a pulsing keyboard beat, and delivered with a matter-of-fact tone that somehow relieves it of both its weight its potential for cliche. In the context of that subjects tackled on L o o k, it comes off as merely another disappointing moment in a modern, digital-centric lifestyle that has only minimal time to spare on such things. It's both relieving & disconcerting, as if perhaps the pendulum of modern emotion has swung too quickly from dwelling to dismissive.
Late album highlight "Be A Stranger" tackles this same subject matter post-disconnection. At 2:22, the song is basically Pytch's version of punk rock. Daun asks, "Why don't you go now? What is there to be afraid of when you are the stranger?" while skittering drum-and-bass percussion forces the issue along so fast that no one has the time to let on that they're hurt. "Don't be afraid to be a stranger..." she sings playfully, one last kiss-off before shutting the door.
Despite the fact that I've spent the last three paragraphs discussing the album's lyrics, make no mistake, L o o k was always going to sink or swim on its grooves, and it definitely swims. Even if the lyrics are ignored completely and Daun's voice is treated as another instrument in the mix, these songs are filled with hooks & flourishes that make it an album that rewards repeated spins. Though L o o k is essentially a collection of singles that initially stood alone, it holds together very well as coherent piece of work and stands as a great introduction to Pytch's world.
Daun will be playing at The Triple Rock June 30th. If you'd like to check out L o o k for yourself, head on over to her Bandcamp page.
For more TCDroogsma be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma). Previous episodes of Flatbasset Radio are
archived on his Mixcloud page. Stop by Flatbasset Radio's Facebook Page & give it a "Like" if you have the time.
Well hello again, internet. Welcome to yet another edition of Flatbasset Radio's Top 25!
That's right, folks, it's the first of the month. Cash your government checks, pay your rent, and indulge me in a bit of instant nostalgia.
As always, a big, big thank you to everybody who stopped by the blog last month. My buddy Nick & I put together an epic episode of Flatbasset Radio just a couple of weeks ago and it's gotten a very nice response, so thanks to anybody who gave it a spin. If you haven't given it a listen, you really should. Matter of fact, you should probably go back and listen to the other 77 episodes of the show too just to make sure you haven't missed anything.
Anyway, let's get to this post. I listened to a whole bunch of new music this month. The new Radiohead is excellent. The new Aesop Rock is even better. Fog's new one is great. I finally got around to Kanye's new one (epic!). Frankie Teardrop's new (and final) record is a gem. The new Astronautalis goes in. Ditto fore Homeboy Sandman. All in all, good month.
Before I get to the stats, the usual reminder: Every song listened to counts as a "play." Seems obvious, right? So, for example, the new Radiohead record has 11 songs, meaning each time I listen to it all the way through it counts 11 "plays." As usual, all stats come from my Last.FM page. Give it a follow if you really want to stay up on what's getting the most plays around Planet New Basset.
Alright, here we go...
01. Aesop Rock - The Impossible Kid (107 plays)
02. Astronautalis - Cut The Body Loose (77 plays)
03. Frankie Teardrop - Hell Yep (70 plays)
04. Fog - For Good (56 plays)
05. Kanye West - The Life Of Pablo (39 plays)
06. Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool (33 plays)
07. Tim Gadban - Vanishing Animal (33 plays)
08. Various Artists - ECS 100: Ecstattic Forever (A Compliation) (33 plays)
09. Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - Hearts Of Oak (26 plays)
10. Homeboy Sandman - Kindness For Weakness (26 plays)
11. The Hang Ups - The Hang Ups (25 plays)
12. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - All This Useless Beauty (24 plays)
13. Down By Law - Blue (24 plays)
14. R.E.M. - Eponymous (24 plays)
15. Tapes 'N Tapes - Outside (24 plays)
16. Lil' Wayne - The Dedication 2 (24 plays)
17. Ego Death - Daze (23 plays)
18. Paper Tiger - In Other Words: Part One (23 plays)
19. The Person & The People - Dark And Low (22 plays)
20. Various Artists - Meat Tape (22 plays)
21. The Replacements - Pleased To Meet Me (22 plays)
22. Thursday - War All The Time (22 plays)
23. My Bloody Valentine - M B V (18 plays)
24. Lunch Duchess - My Mom Says I Have A Rich Inner Life (18 plays)
25. Steely Dan - The Royal Scam (18 plays)
There it is, everybody. Stay tuned for more shows & words & stuff.
For more TCDroogsma be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma). Previous episodes of Flatbasset Radio are
archived on his Mixcloud page. Stop by Flatbasset Radio's Facebook Page & give it a "Like" if you have the time.
