Tag: Tame Impala

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Music

Tame Impala – Feels Like We Only Go Backwards

I don’t know man.

More and more I’m noticing how narrow the scope of conversation is these days. I mean what’s happened to awareness, culture and knowledge? Have we become nothing more than entertainment slaves with dialogue limited to football and the latest gossip about some pop star? The world is experiencing one of the most radical changes in history and almost everyone around me knows more about the score of the football games than any of the completely insane changes happening in the power realm or all the other issues we ignore at our peril.

The matrix has you…”

I don’t know about you but I can’t settle on that narrowness. This is our time, is being great at fantasy football really what will define the zeitgeist of our generation? I can’t settle on being surrounded by such apathy for the richness of our history and the complexity of the present. I want to be inspired by those around me and I want to inspire in return! They say you’re only as dope as those you surround yourself with and man it’s heartbreaking to look at those closets to you and not be sure if you’re great for them or them great for you.

For crying out loud can I meet someone who can explain hyper loop, put me on to great art from the Italian Renaissance, talk Bitcoin, globalization, transhumanism, Higs Boson or inflation? Tell me about someone amazing, the last great book you’ve read, architecture, futurism, your passions and dreams!? I mean anything but this tunnel vision programming. Don’t get me wrong, I love the escape and lure of mindless entertainment as much as the next person but can we really live within such mental delusion all the time? Look at history, we’re limitless but consumption culture is making that a distant concept.

I’m just trying to grow, learn and share man. I want to live and function at the highest level with people who are also there. We are literally the most beautiful, most complex creatures with such a rich world yet we’re marginalized to an alarming extreme and few seem to notice. I don’t come from much and I’ve spent my whole life trying to do everything possible to absorb as much as I can so I can have something to bring to the table. You spend your whole life trying push yourself and everything around you forward and one day you realize that everything just seems to regress, I just don’t know.

Tame Impala – Feels Like We Only Go Backwards

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Music

Tame Impala – Feels Like We Only Go Backwards (Chrome Canyon de-mix)

Oh this one is messing with my head. Tame Impala makes such beautiful wooziness on their own and then this guy Chrome Canyon comes along and twists up their sound even further.

I’m getting ahead of myself. Ya’ll know these Impala dudes right? Well, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards was the moody centerpiece to their 2012 effort Lonerism, which was one of last year’s better full lengths. A lot of the cuts from that album are head-trips for broken hearted folks, the aforementioned track included. I know it’s cliché, but we’ve all been there, right? Another night in a string of nights alone and left to your own devices, you spend the evening swimming through your thoughts. Usually there’s a mopey or “emo”, depending on your age demographic, record on in the background. You shouldn’t be indulging these feelings, though at times there’s something addictive in wallowing in your own downer vibes. That kind of mood aided and abetted by the emotional undercurrent in a lot of Tame Impala’s songs, thanks in large part to singer/guitarist Kevin Parker’s I’m-a-time-traveler-from-the-1970s-how-will-I-return-home? voice. Sure, sure, these songs have soundtracked other kinds of altered states. All I’m saying is, this band writes sonic vistas and landscapes that be traversed by anyone, clear-eyed or otherwise.

Anyways. This “de-mix” by Morgan Z under his musical guise Chrome Canyon, is pretty dope. He mines the dazed and confused vibe of the original and warps it even further. I’m talking old cassette sitting on the dash in a hot car warp. Bright and hot with spots from sun damage, Feels Like We Only We Go Backwards (Chrome Canyon de-mix) is three minutes and twenty-one seconds of reeling sound that is just on the verge of unspooling. In other words, it’s not a bummer. Quite the opposite, actually.

The drums have been turned up in the mix and the distortion is mortaring my earholes. The vintage organs are swirling all over the place and, as they still retain the same rainbow shimmer from the original cut, the effect is kaleidoscopic. Some newfangled keyboard chords occasionally pierce the haze but their quick entry and decay keeps things off kilter. That interjecting gong is a nice touch too.

Sway to this.

Tame Impala – Feels Like We Only Go Backwards (Chrome Canyons de-mix)

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Classics Music

EMPT Classics: Tame Impala – Solitude Is Bliss

Great songs are timeless, they resonate regardless of the time, place or people you hear it with. Tame Impalas Solitude is Bliss is one of those songs. Recently I’ve fallen in love with the art of mastery, if you’ve seen that Jiro Dreams of Sushi documentary you’ll know what I’m talking about. My relationship with music is a tricky one but without a doubt the more I put into it the more it gives back and right now I’m in a stage where my entire being is dedicated to it and it feels fantastic.

You will never come close to how I feel…”

As romantic as artistry seems when the final product is done, the journey there can often be lonesome road full of inner turmoils, endless work, pains, joys, discoveries and enlightenments. It’s a beautiful thing but it certainly requires one to appreciate objectivity and solitude. Anyone who knows what I’m talking about will hear this songs hook and immediately feel that rush through their body validating those endless nights trying to become good at what you love. One of my favorite songs from Tame Impala and most certainly an EMPT Classic. Re-enjoy.

Originally posted July 12, 2012

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Whoever left the comment asking for more rock either read my mind or you’re a close friend in disguise, either way I’m on to you and you’re suggestion came at the right time. I tend to go into these late 60s, early 70s psychedelic rock binges and that’s exactly where I am right now. The reason being is that the good psychedelia offers so much in terms of highly complex arrangements, creative use of effects, surreal lyrics, unique instrumentation and plain old good musicianship that one can get lost and entertained for days with a style that has so much to offer. Anyways, I needed to get my fix but this time I didn’t have to go back to the 60′s to get it. Tame Impala’s recently release LP Innerspeaker fit the bill to perfection.

The album is void of any definable single but my favorite song by far is Solitude is Blss. For the most part lyrics are used sparingly throughout the album but this track his the exception. The story is about a social rebel if you may who loves and finds beauty in solitude.

Space around me where my soul can breathe
I’ve got body that my mind can leave
Nothing else matters, I don’t care what I miss
Company’s okay
Solitude is bliss”

Now I don’t believe in any extreme’s so being a complete hermit is something I can’t condone but when it comes to appreciating and needing some alone time I couldn’t agree more. Throughout the song lead singer Kevin Parker is trying to explain how certain things are just different and only achievable through solitude but the person he’s saying it to is probably the exact and can’t seem to understand.

Don’t ask me how you’re supposed to feel
You will never come close to how I feel…”

This is a great track from a very good album, enjoy.

Tame Impala – Solitude Is Bliss

Categories
Music

Tame Impala – Elephant

Your weekly dose of Thursday is here, and it’s sexier than ever. With a heavily distorted guitar sound and an airy McCartney-esque vocal, Elephant hits the nail on the head with my emotion for this Thursday. As I walked down the street to this with my new headphones, I felt like I belonged to another era. Maybe it’s because the song itself feels like it’s from another musical era, or maybe it’s because it was raining and this song just made everything so much more intense on the sidewalks of NYC.

The tonal pattern is similar to that of a track runner jumping hurdles. Consistent running on a straightaway for about 10 feet or so, then a hurdle. I know I talk about roller coasters a lot in my posts, but this one isn’t quite a roller coaster, because it is so steady with the consistent raised guitar notes.

The lyrics aren’t complicated, but I’m constantly drawn to any song subject matter that is elephants.

I bet he feels like an elephant

Shaking his big grey trunk for the hell of it.”

I recently started a new job, where I’m now starting to feel like I’m part of a new place and a new vibe. But it’s been an interesting adjustment. You know that feeling you get when you know there’s nothing wrong with you, and that people like you because you’re not weird, but you still feel like an elephant in a small room? There’s really no reason for you to feel this way, but you do. That is how I feel whenever I start at a new place, in general. You start to fall into a groove after a while, where you begin to shrink down from elephant size. Maybe you shrink to your spirit animal. I think mine is a lioness. The point is that the feeling is normal, and if you thought you were the only one, you now know that one of the people you trust for music from EMPT also feels like an elephant at times. You are not alone!

Enjoy this sexy tune, joyeux jeudi!

 Tame Impala – Elephant

Categories
Music

EMPT Presents – S U M M E R : a n t i – w i n t e r 3A by Ryan Radler

Ah yes Monday, Sunday’s hangover returns once again…

In recent news, the S&P downgraded the U.S. Credit and apparently no one knows what that means, the stock market is in shambles and it’s only getting worse, Big Boy from Outkast got arrested on drug charges, great times all around my friends. Thankfully, Mondays on EMPT now mean the release of a new Ryan Radler mixtape and let me tell you folk, there’s nothing like some good music to keep your perspective in these times. Last week Ryan sent me an email kicking it about the inception of these wonderful mixes and I’m posting here because it sounds like me an all of my friends every weekend and listening to the tapes it couldn’t make more sense. Anyways, I gotta go work on the music for a few restaurants but press play on another wonderful mixtape, check out Ryan on Facebook and try to ignore the 25% loss on your portfolio, it will get better as usual. Enjoy.

Back in my loft, I began dreaming of Summers-gone-by. I remembered one of my favorite summers back in 2008 in Van Nuys, CA.
1. Crashed random friend’s house + Belonged to gay x-pornstar (Scariest/Nicest guy I ever met)
2. One very clean, but very ghetto “above ground” Pool + Floating blow-up chairs
3. Blistering hot valley sun + Not a cloud in the sky! 
4. 12 pack of Corona + 12 slices of lime
5. The Bestest of Friends + One great little Basenji Dog named “Ghost”
6. The “Western Electric” Summer mix PodCast + A really powerful set of surround-sound computer speakers 
Item #1 through #5 were enough to make the day a perfect “10”, but it was #6- my friends’ Summer mix music on the stereo- that made the day live on in my mind, Without the music that made the soundtrack of my Summer, I might have forgotten all about this glorious time in my life. The mix was filled with summery Rock & Roll, Electronic, and Folk music infused with 70’s loungy vintage organs and horns with conga breakdowns and dirty jazz tones.. The podcast spoke to me. It reached out and grabbed me by the floaties and slowly drifted me around the pool. It popped the caps of my beers. It took all my calls and forwarded them to voicemail. It held my hand and kissed me on the cheek and told me everything would be alright- and it was.
I have searched high and low for this mix, but to no avail. No one seems to know where it came from or how to get it back. It was at this moment that I decided that instead dropping into my usual winter depression, I would begin my own homage to this one summer day and resurrect the Summer mix that I had loved so much back in Van Nuys. 

S U M M E R : a n t i – w i n t e r 3A :

1. Jump in the Pool – FRIENDLY FIRES
2. Make You Mine – MIAMI HORROR
3. Pacific Theme – BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE
4. Un Homme Et Une Femme (Chant) – FRANCIS LAI
5. New Theory – WASHED OUT (RAC MIX)
6. Lisztomania – PHOENIX (Classixx Version)
7. Only Love Can Break Your Heart – I BLAME COCO
8. Puppets – DEPECHE MODE (ROYKSOPP REMIX)
9. Glad to Know You – CHAZ JANKEL
10. Heaven’s On Fire – THE RADIO DEPT.
11. Rad Racer – WORK DRUGS
12. Solitude Is Bliss – TAME IMPALA (MICKEY MOONLIGHT REMIX)
13. Zebra – BEACH HOUSE (RING TRACK REMIX)

EMPT Presents – S U M M E R : a n t i – w i n t e r 3A by Ryan Radler

Categories
Music

Le Miel du Mois by Steph Lund: Fevrier 2011

There’s a million Valentines day commercials on TV, red is everywhere and I still had no idea it was already February until Steph sent me the lastest installment of LMDM. Who can blame me though, the city’s been dark and cold for who knows how long so I’ve made it my duty to zone out on all things music.

This month Steph is a facilitator because all you want to do while listening is escape to the surreal dreamscape she creates with the song selection and sequencing. Just listening to See of Bees going to Jamie XX to Fleet Foxes will instantly change your environment and put you in an extremely relaxed, balanced and creative mindset. Don’t forget though, this is a Steph mixtape and what goes down must come up and you could start dancing at any time with little to no warning. Once again, Steph kicks it up a notch cooking up a mix fresher than the rest leading me to title Steph and LMDM as your favorite mixtape maker’s favorite mixtape, enjoy.

I discovered Sea of Bees in Rough Trade, London. The opening track on the album is Gnomes, and I thought it was perfect to open the tape with that as well. Her voice is strong and a little different and I think it sets a great tone for February’s mix. Agent A & Omae is another band I found last month that you should definitely check out more on their bandcamp and download their whole album, its amazing. I could say something about each track, but I’ll leave it at that and let you decide which are your new and maybe some old favorites..”

Le Miel du Mois at work? That’s much better than work at work! Download

Tracklisting:

  1. Sea of Bees – Gnomes
  2. Jamie XX – Far Nearer
  3. Fleet Foxes – White Winter Hymnal
  4. Foster the People – Helena Beat
  5. Agent A & Omae – Breathing 2007
  6. Polarsets – Morning
  7. Aydio – Deltitnu
  8. Slowwave – Pour
  9. Wine & Cheese – Make It With You
  10. The Naked & Famous – Young Blood
  11. Starfucker – Born
  12. Vadoinmessico – In Spain
  13. Candy Claws – Catamaran
  14. Tame Impala – Lucidity (Pilooski Remix)
  15. Ratatat – Mi Viejo


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Categories
Music

Tame Impala – Solitude Is Bliss

Whoever left the comment asking for more rock either read my mind or you’re a close friend in disguise, either way I’m on to you and you’re suggestion came at the right time. I tend to go into these late 60s, early 70s psychedelic rock binges and that’s exactly where I am right now. The reason being is that the good psychedelia offers so much in terms of highly complex arrangements, creative use of effects, surreal lyrics, unique instrumentation and plain old good musicianship that one can get lost and entertained for days with a style that has so much to offer. Anyways, I needed to get my fix but this time I didn’t have to go back to the 60’s to get it. Tame Impala’s recently release LP Innerspeaker fit the bill to perfection.

The album is void of any definable single but my favorite song by far is Solitude is Blss. For the most part lyrics are used sparingly throughout the album but this track his the exception. The story is about a social rebel if you may who loves and finds beauty in solitude.

Space around me where my soul can breathe
I’ve got body that my mind can leave
Nothing else matters, I don’t care what I miss
Company’s okay
Solitude is bliss”

Now I don’t believe in any extreme’s so being a complete hermit is something I can’t condone but when it comes to appreciating and needing some alone time I couldn’t agree more.  Throughout the song lead singer Kevin Parker is trying to explain how certain things are just different and only achievable through solitude but the person he’s saying it to is probably the exact and can’t seem to understand.

Don’t ask me how you’re supposed to feel
You will never come close to how I feel…”

This is a great track from a very good album, enjoy.

Tame Impala – Solitude Is Bliss