In this piece (via LA Weekly), you can download a fresh, new summer jam (“Pool Party”) co-authored by The Mae Shi’s Jacob Safari, Wallpaper and Kid Static, while simultaneously catching up on a little local indie scene gossip. Sounds like the perfect Hump Day cocktail, no?
Tag: art rock
Q&A: Abe Vigoda uses more “choruses and stuff”
In the last year and a half, the particular din made by L.A.’s own Abe Vigoda — a steely, punky, happy sort of noise — has been emanating in ever-broadening swaths from Downtown’s renowned all-ages venue, The Smell. The quartet is currently on the road into August, supporting February’s Reviver EP (PPM). In this interview, guitarist Juan Velasquez talks about touring, the Vampire Weekend comparisons, and the band’s next album.
Feature: Dirty Projectors interviewed by SMS
The Dirty Projectors may be responsible for the year’s best album, a manic and schizo piece of art-pop released last month titled Bitte Orca. It’s the kind of record that begs a lot of questions — thoughful questions that couldn’t, say, be crunched into the 140-character limitations of a Twitter post, or squeezed to the parameters of a series of SMSes. And yet, the latter is exactly what went down when, after ducking my best attempts to conduct a proper interview, DP’s David Longstreth at last offered his undivided attention — via text message. Click here to read the story (via LA Weekly), which unfolds this modern narrative in the context of the new album’s importance.
Vamos a Guatemala!
Howdy there web friend. Things will be a little quieter around Funny Ha Ha for a little bit, as this blog’s sole author/editor is heading to Guatemala tomorrow morn. I’ve got a ton of fresh work dropping while I’m gone, starting with this somewhat unusual Dirty Projectors piece, Balls Deep In The R&B (via LA Weekly). I’ll attempt brief updates from time to time but all bets are off until my return. Fresh jungle air is calling…
Feature: Glasser’s Spectacle, Meet Miss Mesirow
I’ve been enamored with the music of Los Feliz-based Glasser, a.k.a. Cameron Mesirow, for some number of months now, but I’ve mostly gazed from afar. There’s something about her humble-but-bejeweled, dreamy electronic folk-pop that begs to lie undisturbed, like a reflecting pool. Flowery language, I know, but it serves to say that when I finally got the chance to talk to Miss Mesirow, my fears were quelled: to know her music’s story is not to know her songs’ secrets. And discovering that her father is in Blue Man Group is a bizarro sidenote.
Check it all out for yourself at LA Weekly (also on stands). You can also listen to Glasser’s “Apply” in the Lala player.
Review: Deerhunter, “Rainwater Cassette Exchange”
Deerhunter, Rainwater Cassette Exchange on The A.V. Club.
Grade: B
*If you haven’t yet heard it, check out Deerhunter’s excellent “Nothing Ever Happened” (from 2008’s Microcastle) currently in the Lala playlist to the right.