everybody's down

Not only are No Age the face of the Los Angeles underground, but they're easily my favorite band of 2007. Their perfect 'diamond in the rough' blend of lo-fi bombast meets artsy pop made quite a splash at last month's CMJ festival and their Sub Pop contract and new material show no signs of slowing down.

"Everybody's Down" - the standout from this years' Weirdo Rippers LP is two-chord rock at its finest (although the best part of the song is the one time Randy hits that third chord.) This is the 4th song of November's mix, and is what's beautiful about living in L.A. To know this song you have to see it live, so here's the next best thing:

lovers who uncover

This song showed up on my radar awhile back in the form of another Crystal Castles remix. I kind of like the original better - which is rare for a CC remix. Little Ones are from around these parts and this song is pretty much all I know of them. They're currently touring other countries with Kaiser Chiefs, becoming popular, and all that good stuff.


The video has some sweet shots of my dream Fender Jaguar guitar and sort a cute concept, so check it out:

run to your graves

November's second installment comes in the form of The Mae Shi's poppiest number "Run To Your Graves." Due out on their upcoming release HLLLYH, this has been a live staple of theirs for awhile now and always a fan favorite. Having randomly walked into their performances numerous times when I've been there to see other acts, this is the band I've probably seen 'by accident' more than any other band.
If you're unfamiliar with the band here's an introduction from their Myspace:

If you are just hearing of us now, you missed out on four records and 250 shows of busted electronics, spazzier-than-fuck drums, crazy-ass boogie guitar, distorted caveman bass and throat-destroying vocals. You missed us playing in 100 different basements and garages to 100s of different kids. You missed our 59-minute-long debut EP and our 5RC debut full-length, Terrorbird, which was a hyper ADD-afflicted hip-hop concept album about monsters and the Old Testament. You missed six different home-screened t-shirt designs and our 2004 mix tape, which collected our favorite 1200 songs in under 80 minutes. You missed Heartbeeps, which was the next step in our self-improvement plan, in which we put our best foot forward and tried to state our case powerfully and succinctly in 15 minutes.

Here's the brand new video (released last week) for Run To Your Graves featuring members of the band, HEALTH, 14 Year Old Girls, and DJ Kyle H. Mabson. Pretty fun concept, so enjoy:

November 2007

TADA! After a three-plus month hiatus, TapeRock is back just in time for the month of November's mixtape. I apologize to all (two) of you who were looking forward to the August, September, and October installments but we'll start up right where we left off...

This month our mix is going to be made up of songs from L.A. based bands. There are so many great bands that have been a mainstay in our scene out here as well as tons of up and comers. Expect some changes around here in the coming weeks, especially once I get my new computer up and running at home.

Our first song for November has been one of my favorites for a couple months. It's a remix of an L.A. band via a non-L.A. band - so it still counts as local. HEALTH vs. Crystal Castles - Crimewave is the track. HEALTH is a band that's been apart of the L.A. scene for awhile now. Head over to their MySpace if you don't know what they're all about or even read this terrific interview from WeShotJR. This song was the catchiest song of the summer and I'm excited for some of you to hear it if you haven't yet. It's one of those songs that makes you want to hit the Play button once it's over.

July Mix - 15. Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues

For the final song of the Album Opener Mix I had to go with what I know best. Dylan does album openers better than anyone - he always has great songs at track #1. "Blowin' in the Wind," "The Times They Are A-Changin'," "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" to name a few were all album openers. Hell, Rolling Stone magazine's #1 song of all-time "Like a Rolling Stone" was one of Dylan's A1's. I picked this one, "Subterranean Homesick Blues" because it's an all-time favorite of mine and also because it's a nice compact, upbeat number perfectly suited for the mix tape format. Check out the seminal video for this song from D.A. Pennebaker's doc "Don't Look Back":

This concludes our July Mix. Expect a download link as soon as I get moved into my new place and compile all the songs...

July Mix - 14. Arcade Fire - Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)

There isn't a lot to say about this song because it's an obvious pick for the mix. When I heard this album before all of the hype, this was by far the stand out track to me. A classic beginning to what has become a classic album already. I'm not a big fan of their latest effort, but this record will go down as one of the best of the 00's. This will be a good lead in to our last song. Tune in tomorrow for the official final July tracklist. Here's the music video for it:

July Mix - 13. Wolf Parade - You Are A Runner And I Am My Father's Son

This song comes off one of my favorite records of 2005 Apologies To The Queen Mary and sets off one of the best one-two punches to start an album I can think of. "You Are a Runner..." begins with a punchy kick/open hi-hat drum beat and sets the tone for the rest of the album. This is a perfect place in the mix for this song with it coming off the heels of Modest Mouse's track. Isaac Brock is responsible for signing this band and produced most of the album (and you can tell WP borrowed a lot from him, especially vocal stylings.)

July Mix - 12. Modest Mouse - 3rd Planet

I originally wanted to include "Teeth Like God's Shoe Shine" off of The Lonesome Crowded West, but at six minutes plus, it breaks every rule for a mix tape. "3rd Planet" is a classic Modest Mouse track and has always been one of my personal favorites and The Moon and Antarctica is their second best album. This song is the perfect way to kick off the album and will make for a great addition to the mix.

July Mix - 11. Joanna Newsom - Bridges and Balloons

The fact that Joanna Newsom is such a divisive artist has baffled me for a couple years now. I was in love with her lyrical imagery, her musicianship, and her one-of-a-kind voice from the first half of a song that I heard of hers. But I have met more than a handful of people that just plain cannot stand her - and I honestly don't see how. This song opens up one of my favorite albums of 2004, The Milk Eyed Mender. The melodies that Newsom weaves throughout this song (and the entire album) are remarkable. There is also a Colin Meloy (Decemberists) cover of this song that is pretty great as well. Check out both (live) versions of the song for yourself:
Joanna:

Colin (live in studio):

July Mix - 10. Pixies - Debaser

From their 1989 release, Doolittle, Pixies' "Debaser" is one of those songs that was ahead of its time. Going back and listening to it this morning, I realize that this is what every single band on the radio back in 1996 sounded like (a good 7 years or so after its release.) There are some bands that are still ripping off the Pixies and this song even today. There's a really cool article on Wiki about the album and also about this particular song. You can check out all the details for yourself if you'd like. Here's the music video for the song:

July Mix - 9. Ben Kweller - How It Should Be (Sha Sha)

Ben Kweller's "Sha Sha" was meant to be the first song for Side B of the tape, but I kind of forgot to put it in slot 7 or 8 so there might be a slight edit in the ordering of things. I had always thought that this was a cool way to open an album, with an extremely catchy, goofy, and short song. It only clocks in at somewhere around 1:30. This album is one of those CD's I've never really gotten tired of. I never played it out like I've done with so many other things, so I can still go back and listen to it every once in a while. Here's a live recording of Ben playing it in Cincinnati:

July Mix - 8. Talking Heads - Psycho Killer (Live)

I feel like the record version of this song has had a resurgence of sorts in my life and is getting closed to becoming played out - but not this version. This live take, which is the opening track from the Heads' 1983 live release Stop Making Sense is nothing short of brilliant. Featuring just David Byrne and a boombox on stage, this song and performance was a precursor to a lot of today's bands that mix prerecorded material with live instrumentation. If you know the studio version of this song but not this one, you're in for a treat. Check out the video above from the Stop Making Sense DVD.

July Mix - 7. Spoon - Everything Hits At Once

In honor of tonight's secret Spoon show at Little Radio (that I'm still currently waiting to hear back on whether I'm going or not) I've selected their opening track off 2001's Girls Can Tell. This song embodies everything that I like about this band - interesting arrangements and instrumentation coupled with a funky feel. This is from my second favorite Spoon record but it's their best album opener. It's also a good change of pace for the mix. Check out this really cool animated video for the song:

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for tonight's show.

July Mix - 6. Weezer - My Name is Jonas

I'm not sure that any album over the course of my life has helped shape my musical palate as much as Weezer's Blue Album. I remember that BMG scam of a CD club had sent the CD to my older sister back in 1994 and upon first listen I promptly stole it from her. The opening track "My Name is Jonas" was slated to be the third single off the record but at the last minute "Say It Ain't So" was chosen instead. The acoustic intro to the song takes the listener in one direction and as soon as the distorted guitars kick in with the vocals, it yanks the listener in another direction. The call and response on this song work really well and it's one of the very few songs that original guitarist Jason Cropper had writing credits for (he came up with the acoustic pieces.) Check out Rivers' haircut in this live vid from the 2000 Warped Tour:

July Mix - 5. Billy Bragg and Wilco - Airline to Heaven

This song comes from 2000's Billy Bragg and Wilco collaboration Mermaid Avenue Vol II. The idea behind these releases is pretty cool - giving the words of Woody Guthrie to Wilco and folksinger Billy Bragg and seeing what kinds of songs they could come up with. The opening track, "Airline to Heaven" is my favorite off of this release and one of my favorite songs by Wilco overall. It displays one of the prettier melodies of Jeff Tweedy's and it works really well against the chugging beat of the music. The slide guitar solo in some of the live versions I've heard is mind-blowing. Whenever I hear this song, it's usually stuck in my head for the rest of the day. Check out a live video from a 2006 concert in Duluth MN:

July Mix - 4. Radiohead - Airbag

I was going to save this one for later on in the mix, but I think this theme leads to enough quality material that I don't really need to hold back. In honor of Stereogum's Tribute and the 10 year anniversary of OK Computer last week, Radiohead's "Airbag" is batting cleanup in the 4 spot. The song is about the feeling of having a near accident, and suddenly having this rush that life is all that more precious. The opening riff paired with the sleigh-bells kicks the song off powerfully, and Thom almost didn't get away with including the bells - the rest of the band was against them. I always am so enthralled to hear Radiohead studio tales, because with the way the songs turn out, it seems to be such a mystic recording experience. This album is in my top 4 favorite of all time and I absolutely love everything about this song. Here's a pretty cool live video of them performing the song back in 1997:

July Mix - 3. Beastie Boys - Sure Shot

The Beastie Boys' Ill Communication will always be in my top 5 hip-hop albums of all time. The opening track, "Sure Shot" is debatably the best song on the album (I'd also make a case for "Root Down" as well.) Sure Shot's classic intro of that weird dog-like noise into a Jeremy Steig flute sample can instantly take most of my generation back to 1994. This song was the gateway to the most badass thing my 11 year old ears had ever heard. Check out the classic music video:

July Mix - 2. The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

The opening and title track off of what a lot of critics consider the most influential rock 'n roll album of all time deserves a spot on our July mix. The song was written by Paul but credited to both Paul and John. This opening song introduces Paul's 'role playing' concept for the whole record and let the listener know right off the bat that something a little different is going on here. This isn't the best song off the record by far, in fact at a paltry 2:02, some people would consider it merely an "intro" - but there's just something about that opening rip-roaring guitar tone that makes this song necessary for our July mix. Here's the video from the Yellow Submarine movie:

July Mix - 1. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit

There's a lot of pressure in selecting the opening track to an Opening Track themed mix tape. So I went the safe route and chose the most obvious song for the spot. For anyone in my generation "Smells Like Teen Spirit" should be a little special. Even if you don't like the song - you still have to respect what it did for pop music. Now I know the sounds of Teen Spirit had been heard before this song came out, but never by such a wide audience. Having heard a couple people in the music industry recount their stories of exactly where they were when they first heard this song on the radio makes it even more seminal to me. Anyways, you've heard it all before - so here's the music video:

July Mix Tape - Album Openers

Every great record has to have a great opening track. It's the first sounds a listener hears when first turning on a new album. Record labels pore over every minute detail when coming up with a tracklist, and it is no accident as to which song will end up in the #1 slot. I think this will be a fun theme because it'll give us a chance to explore some classic albums and explore the reasoning behind sequence selection. Also - opening tracks usually lend themselves to some upbeat and attention getting jams. E-mail, facebook, or comment on here with any suggestions you may have for July. June mixes will be available to download tonight, so stay tuned for a link.