Need You Tonight - Beck & Annie Clark

whew, this is hot

Washed Out

Summer is arriving and who is better to prepare us for another great summer other than Washed Out. They sound exactly as they sound. Reminiscent of salt-stained clothes, sun-burnt skin, laying out in the park with your friends day drinking, walking around the city, and by late afternoon you are absolutely washed out laying on the bed, trying to figure what to do with the night.

Ernest Greene is the man behind Washed Out. He is from Perry, Georgia who came out with his first EP last year, "Life Is Leisure", which became an immediate hit. I remember last summer being the chill-wave/lo-fi movement with artists like Washed Out, Toro Y Moi, Blackbird Blackbird, Atlas Sound, Memory Tapes, Memory Cassette, Niva, Millionyoung, Teen Daze, and so on taking over people's playists. It was a magical time with music for me.

Washed Out will be coming out with his long-awaited LP this July, but to endure these next couple months you can enjoy his newly released single "Eyes Be Closed".

Eyes Be Closed - Washed Out by let them eat tiramisu


In case you haven't heard his EP (GOD FORBID!!!), I decided to pull a few of my favorite songs.








-Look at life through rose-colored glasses-

Discodeine

Dirty.Dark.French.Disco. need I say more?

Discodeine was introduced to me by yet again, my music doppelganger (Tom) a few weeks ago. Pilooski and Pentile make up this french duo who joined forces in 2007. They have remixed several well regarded artists such as Metronomy, Whomadewho, Bot'ox, Photonz, Yelle. Then in January this year they finally released their first album under Dirty/Pschent records. There are some songs on the album that I cannot stop playing especially "Singular" featuring a special artist of mine, Matias Aguayo (Oh god I heart him so much!)

So take a listen to some more of that French goodness.

Discodeine by let them eat tiramisu

Braids

A month ago I went to go see Baths at the Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco. I have been listening to Baths since my friend Kyra introduced it to me last summer. I missed the first opener (sorry, forgot the name but heard they were super cheesy) but luckily I was able to get there in time to catch Braids...
To be perfectly honest, I was more tickled by the opener Braids than Baths.
I actually ended up seeing Braids, yet again, open for Toro Y Moi at the Great American and was still impressed.

So a little about Braids,
Consist of four young people from Calgary, Canada that formed an art rock band together. Kanine Records released their album , who’ve put out records by Grizzly Bear, Chairlift, and Surfer Blood. Drowned in Soundcloud described it perfectly saying, "It does them a disservice but most coverage mentions them as the female-fronted Canadian Animal Collective but there’s something else going on amongst their record that has a little bit more heart and soul than Merriweather - they make me think more of Bjork’s Homegenic record and at times they have the grandeur of Blonde Redhead. There’s also a Joanna Newsom cuteness to the vocals, which seems sort of at odds with the mathiness of the widdly guitars."

BRAIDS - "Lemonade" by BRAIDS

BRAIDS - 'Plath Heart' by SpunkRecords

Braids - Glass Deers by themightyhealthy

Braids - Same Mum by LifeBoxset.com

Tycho

 Imagine songs that would describe the surreal feeling of floating on waves, flying through clouds, or even just smoking a bowl on a beautiful night. Well to me, this is what Tycho's music reminds me of- complete bliss.
I am excited to say that I will be seeing Tycho this Thursday night at the Independent. My friend Rick introduced me to Tycho one night when he gave me his Bose headphones and told me to listen to this song "The Disconnect".
It was a whole different world! (for the life of me, PLEASE buy a pair. It really does change the quality and the experience of music. No joke!)
Tycho is Scott Hansen who currently lives in San Francisco. He is also a graphic designer (ISO50) who creates whimsical visuals to go with his ambient/downtempo music. I have never seen him before but have heard of nothing but amazing reviews of his live shows. If you are a fan of Boards of Canada, Flying Lotus, Four Tet, or Bonobo then you better take a good listening. Definitely check out his website and listen and look at some of his shit.

the song that made me fall head over heels...



Tycho live visuals test footage from ISO50 on Vimeo.


"The Disconnect"
"Circular Reeducation ft. Jianda"
"Past Is Prologue"
"Cloud Generator"

So I guess I will see there

Safari Disco Club

Oh I remember when I first time I heard Yelle... French pop songs that would just stick in your head all day and by the end of the week you could proudly say you know French.
Well it has been quite awhile since I've had one of these moments. But now it is all about this Safari Disco Club
I don't know how exactly to describe a Safari Disco Club to you but it basically looks like this...



She will be coming in May for a show at the Regency. I bought a ticket already but I sadly won't be in San Francisco at the time...

Maceo Plex

"Located deep within the circuitry of a mechanical alien host known as Maetrik you will find a complex web of synaptic dispersements resembling what could be called a soul. And this soul which drives it's host and manipulates it's every move is finally beginning to emerge. Its name is Maceo Plex. The emergence of such an entity has been the result of a need for feeling, a need for interplanetary funk. We as humans consider this need a feeling, a feeling rooted in emotion, and emotion being the very basis of humanity.

Maceo Plex is on a quest to fullfil his need to inject feeling and funk into the world, and he's already proving to be quite productive. With deep and funky works of audible engineering for the label Crosstown Rebels in the form of a full length album titled "Life Index", a night with Maceo Plex will be one of galactic proportions.

To explain the evolutionary process behind Maceo's existance we must travel back to 1993, to the beginning of his creativity. At the start...Maceo was intrigued by a pair of circular shaped objects designed for holding discs created from vinyl that produced vibrations resulting in sound and music. Soon he began conjuring up mixxes of techno, electro, and house music that quickly gained him popularity within the early 90s rave culture. But in 1997, while Heavily influenced by the sounds of other modern funk theorists such as Model 500, Kenny Larkin, Idjut Boyz, Convextion, etc... Maceo began experimenting with hardware modules containing knobs and keys to form his early musical compositions. Seduced by the sounds of techno & electro, Maceo grew into a technologically advanced being later to be known by various names such as Mariel Ito or Maetrik.

After many years of prolific works on such labels as Treibstoff, Dumb Unit, Cocoon, Audiomatique, Modern Love, Mothership, to name a few...Maceo aka Maetrik travelled the world playing in some of the best clubs such as Rex, Cocoon, Fabric, Womb, etc... Now in 2010 Maceo has begun to strip back some of his robotic body armor known as Maetrik in order to expose a more musical and groove based side the world has not seen yet.

The profound change has taken Maceo Plex from the complex and dark life in America to his current homebase of Valencia, Spain. The sunny and relaxed atmosphere has been quite useful to Maceo in his lengthy inward journey that is very apparent in his music. After a much needed retreat into the funky sounds of Parliament Funkadelic, Moodymann, Atjazz, Isolee, and Luomo, Maceo has finally completed his transormation and is shining brighter than the star Sirius....and his newest musical output reflects his radiation in a variety of beautiful colors. In late 2010, Maceo's single "Vibe Your Love" will finally be released on the very foward thinking label Crosstown Rebels and will include a hefty funk remix treatment by Zev of the Wolf & Lamb clang. Soon following will be the full length debut album aptly titled "Life Index" which chronicles Maceo's life long transformation into the soulful ball of energy he is today.

Once experienced, the album will make it abundantly clear the level of versatility Maceo Plex posesses among his many auditory shells. And the world will understand Maceo's pristine vision of house music from beyond." - Crosstown Rebels 

How I describe it -> SEX
My Picks: "Arise", "The Feelin'", "Your Style"

CRMCD012 - Maceo Plex - Life Index by Crosstown Rebels

TOTALLY ENORMOUS EXTINCT DINOSAURS

!!! JUST AS AWESOME AS THEIR NAME !!! but you can also call them TEED.

Not sure exactly why I love them so much. I think it is the guilty fact that it's part trashy electro, part bit-pop, part techno, and part vocals from a boy who calls himself "Orlando Dinosaur".

Oh and Mr. Dinosaur has awesome headdresses and awkward dance moves. I can't wait to see them play next month! The show will be on Saturday March 26th at the Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco. TEED will also be playing at SXSW this year as well.

Check out their myspace for more info.

"The Garden"

"Household Goods"


Roundhouse Blackbox Sessions

Bear music

This week's music trend has been all about bears. Do not even know why but I discovered two bands this week that just so happen to have bear in the title. 

Bear Hands

Two weeks ago I went to go get a haircut (and I never get haircuts. I didn't get one for a year and a half!). Well the haircut ended terribly (I cried for hours) but I guess the one positive thing that came out of it was how the salon was playing Bear Hands the whole time, and that is how I discovered them. I seriously thought they were MGMT at first. As it turns out, they are under the same label as MGMT and have opened for them on several occasions.
Their album Burning Bush Supper Club is a must download. It is a quirky album filled with gritty melodic vocals, catchy beats, distorted heavy guitar lines, and abstract lyrics.

"Tablasaurus"
"Crime Pays"
"High Society"


*oh and this unofficial music video is fucking awesome




Bear In Heaven

I spent the day with my friend Tom to go get coffee and he started to play Bear in Heaven in his car. Ahh god bless his soul for introducing me. I am surprised I never discovered them before. I have been listening to their sophomore album, Beast Rest Forth Mouth, on repeat for the last few weeks. Recently I have become such a sucker for psychedelic progressive indie rock. Open your blinds to the rainy weather outside and blast some Bear In Heaven in your apartment.

"Lovesick Teenagers"
"Dust Cloud"
"You Do You"
"Ultimate Satisfaction"

Poolside- music for this sunny weather

You know those songs you listen to when it is all sunny out and you are just fully satisfied with life and cannot stop smiling? I know everyone has at least one. Well the other day I discovered one of those kinda songs from LA duo Poolside called "Do You Believe?"

This IS the song to listen to when you are poolside (or at least take you away from the snow and cold weather you may be having). It is a real catchy tune with a combination of disco/funk/pop. Once you listen to it you probably will need to replay it a few more times- it's that addicting.

This song hasn't been released yet but it will be coming out March 14th on Sydeny's music label Future Classic. Eeek can't wait to listen to this on my iPod this spring!

Poolside - Do You Believe (Rough Mix2) by Poolside Music

Defiantly check out their blog here and their facebook here. You should really keep an eye and an ear out for this duo from LA- I have a feeling they will get pretty big this summer ;)

So long, farewell to Bobby Farrell

Eliot told me the other day that Boney M's lead singer, Bobby Farrell, passed away earlier this week. I absolutely adore Boney M and Bobby was the main reason why. If you see the Rasputin video, you will see why I am obsessed. This is a tribute for you Bobby Farrell.

Ariel Pink's Rock and Roll Circus

I found these photos on Pitchfork this morning and found them wildly amazing. Ariel Pink played at Lincoln Center last night for a Rock and Roll Circus. It's like a beauty pageant + my little pony + Ariel Pink. These photos were taken by Erez Avissar. Good job!

Music of the year 2010

These were some of my favorite albums that were released this past year (in no particular order).

-Pantha du Prince. Black Noise

-Toro y Moi. Causers of This

-Broken Bells. Broken Bells

-Art Department. Vampire Nightclub/Without You

-Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti. Before Today

-Twin Shadow. Forget

-The Black Keys. Brothers

-Diamond Messages. Smoke & Mirrors EP

-Röyksopp. Senior

-Holy Fuck. Latin

-Hot Chip. One Life Stand

-Baths. Cerulean

-Massive Attack. Heligoland

-Caribou. Swim

-The Radio Dept. Clinging To A Scheme

-Best Coast. Crazy For You

-LCD Soundsystem. This Is Happening

-Nicolas Jaar. Time For Us

-Gold Panda. Lucky Shiner

-Phantogram. Eyelid Movies

-Tame Impala. Innerspeaker

-Broken Social Scene. Forgiveness Rock Record

-Local Natives. Gorilla Manor

-Washed Out. Life Of Leisure

Diamond Messages - music to obsess to

If you are a facebook friend of mine you probably have seen me post music videos from Diamond Messages over the last two weeks. Let me just say I fell in love... really I did.
Diamond Messages was originally a duo but the Smoke & Mirrors EP (came out last month) was done exclusively by Jason Craig. This EP has an emotional and deep quality to it due to the combination of ambient psychedelic music with hip hop rhythms. I probably listen to this EP on repeat for an hour each day. I just keep falling in love over and over and over and over again.
 My introduction to Diamond Messages was through their music video for the song "Liquid Dream". It is crazy how much this video matches with the song. Both the video and song take me back to my days when I was middle school when my innocence began to disintegrate. It is sad but very beautiful at the same time. The video consists of clips from a Swedish movie En kärlekshistoria aka A Swedish Love Story. I'm pissed as hell at Netflix because they don't even have this movie to rent! Really? I mean it is fucking Netflix, they are supposed to have every movie out there (except porn- bummer).






Smoke & Mirrors EP by Diamond Messages

I was trying to do some more research on Diamond Messages and I found this great review by Liam Dufferwiel on Spontaneous Rhythms.

Smoke and Mirrors

"The lead track Smoke and Mirrors opens with a mysterious ambiance before the drum progression and electronic hooks that are the heart of the track are introduced. The track drifts pleasantly along, like the soundtrack to a summer drive, before relaxingly drifting away without giving even the suggestion of a finale."

Liquid Summer

"Liquid summer brings reminders, like dreams, of times past when life was built on innocence and half truths. The passing moments when you didn’t realise that you were young and that ever so slowly that youth was in decline. The track treats the listen gently, letting them invest their own emotions and memories from the forgotten summers that the title evokes before slipping away without even the hint of warning that is so typically synonymous with youth. The subtle nuances of dread that linger throughout the track only adds to the over all feeling of loss that this track so perfectly captures."

Let's Make A Vow

"Let’s Make A Vow is a standard sample of measured electronica. Driven by the calculated bassline the track sets the mood of the track that has suggestions of the electric undertones of Leftfield, where the Faisal remix gives the track more of a club feel."

I also find this interview by Truants really interesting if you want to get to know more about Jason Craig and his creation of Smoke & Mirrors.

"A Christmas Homage" by Katie Schwartz

My friend Katie wrote this one morning. I read it last week and thought it was the most genius rave Christmas poem ever. So here it is:

"A Christmas Homage" by Katie Schwartz

Twas the weekend before christmas, And all through the bay
There were so many parties, Just in one day
The headphones where hung by serato with care
In hopes that this next mix won't raise any hairs

Some children were nestled all snug in their beds
Others had candy kids dance through their heads
Mamma in her jeggings, and I in my beanie
Had just settled our brains on a very long evening

When out on the street arose such a clatter!
I sprang from my post to see what was the matter
Away to the drop box, I hid all the cash!
Was acting quite normal and not at all brash.

The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow
Gave lustre to objects like nobody knows
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear
But a miniature DJ with eight tiny reindeer!

He rolled right on through and got set up right quick
I knew in a moment this must be DJ Nick!
More rapid than eagles his groupies they came
As he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name!

"Now Dealer! now, Dancer! now, Weird guy who's stripping!
On, House-head! on, Twostep! shit! That guy is unzipping!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.
So it's up to the house-kids, party on they do
With a sleigh full of tracks and DJ Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard some guy say
This guy was ranked 3rd last week on RA.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney DJ Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed up in fur, from his head to his foot
Because some hipster once told him, it's irony misunderstood
A satchel of goodies a sack full of tracks
He looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.

His eyes-how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
Where under his nose it remained white as the snow.

The stump of a pipe he passed to the next geek,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath,
He had a smug face and a little round belly,
It would have shook if he laughed, but he was told it would have ruined his image so he didn't.

He was happy deep down for his time was just near
To closing a set that would make us all cheer.
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
I knew in a moment this'd be on the internet.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all our heads with tunes of rebirth.
Laying his finger aside of his nose,
He gave a wink, and a sniff, up the chimney he rose.

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
His set and the night would be unforgettable.
But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a long night!"

before the new start to a new year

Yes I deleted all my past posts. I did this on a whim last week. I know I haven't contributed to my blog in MONTHS, so I thought why not start from scratch! Some of the people who I told this to were "Why the fuck would you do that?!" Well to answer that, the past "let them eat tiramisu" was mainly a fashion based blog. Over the last 6 months I have been getting more and more burnt out of fashion. I was going to FIDM (the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising) and this month I chose to take a leave of absence for some time. Right now I am in a rut with life and trying to figure out what I truly want to do with my life and to find the inspiration and determination that I have lost. So long story short "let them eat tiramisu" will no longer be a blog centered around fashion- it will be centered around what I find inspiring right now- music.
So lets give a toast because it is Christmas and New Years is a week away! This will be a new beginning for me and my blog.
Eat some goddamn tiramisu