Finley and his very first stand up.

Finley asked me not to post this on Facebook, but I definitely wanted you guys to catch a glimpse.

FFEF Take 2 - Mutemath 'Odd Soul'

My main draw to Mutemath is the fact that they are so percussion driven and 'Odd Soul' stays true to that. They open the album with a raw, edgy, rock and roll sound(kind of their on take of the Black Keys), take a breather and relax in to something of a more laid back sound mixing in some vibraphone during 'Sun Ray.' Next they move into a Maroon 5ish sound with 'Allies,' using some distorted keytar, that's right they have a keytar. Mutemath makes another turn with 'Cavalries' and take us back to the seventies with some classic organ, seventies drum beats, heavy cow bell and bongos mixed throughout the song. The album settles in the 70s groove giving us funky bass lines, old school guitar riffs/solos, staccato piano, and spacey organ for the next few songs, but then the whole thing kinda fizzles out with the last three songs. This album is all over the map but it's still an okay listen.

http://music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/spinner#/3

You might have to scroll back and fourth if the album moves up or down their rankings.

FFEF - Radiohead TKOL Remix

So if you're into dubstep and Radiohead this might be cool. The way I figure it is that these different remixers can't fuck the album up any worse than Radiohead did, but I don't want to speak too soon. It took me a couple of times to get the Play all to work, so you might have to refresh the page a couple of times. I might write a little more after I get farther than 30 seconds into listening. We shall see.

http://music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/spinner#/1

You might also have to scroll back and forth at the top of the page to find the Radiohead album

I noticed the new Mute Math album was on the site as well. It could possibly be another solid album to check out considering they are playing workplay soon....only drawback is that they are playing the same night as Blind Pilot in different rooms. Mutemath is a definite 'must see live' band, but since I've seen them once I will personally be catching Blind Pilot.

UPDATE:

Okay there definitely is a way for these people to fuck up King of Limbs worse than Radiohead did. I couldn't make it halfway through the album. I'm currently sampling Mute Math's 'Odd Soul' and should have a review up later today.

Upcoming Concerts in Bham

Fleet Foxes - Oct 3 - Alabama Theater

G Love & special Sauce – Oct 7 – Workplay

Margot & the Nuclear So & Sos – Oct 12 – Bottletree

Pretty Lights, STS9, Big Gigantic - Oct 13 - Tusc Amp

Mutemath – Oct 20 - Workplay

Blind Pilot – Oct 20 – Workplay

Dead Confederate + Great Book of John – Oct 28 - Bottletree

Moon Taxi – Oct 29 – Workplay

Ra Ra Riot - Oct 30 - Bottletree

Perpetual Groove – Oct 31 - Workplay

Phantogram – Nov 12 - Workplay

moe - Nov 18 - Workplay

I wish I could go back to college with a really awesome video camera

This Devin Graham character just travels around on other people's dime and makes these crazy ass videos. Kudos to him or his idea team, because every time I watch one of his videos I instantly want to be there doing what they are doing. Honestly I have figured out his business model, now all we have to do is find some hot girls and buy a camera

Great idea + hot girls + party atmosphere + cool camera + Cool camera angles = Internet Gold

I'm pretty pissed that they didn't have a helmet cam on any of these shots. AND he simply took his bicycle video and put a slip and slide in it and just doubled down on that ass without lifting a creative finger...very sneaky Mr. Graham...veeeerrrry sneaky

P.S. Who invited Kenny Powers and his wave runner...

More New Music - Red Hot Chili Peppers

For those of you who didn't know, Red Hot Chili Peppers released a new album this week. I'm With You, the 10th studio album by the band, the first album since 2006's Stadium Arcadium, features yet another new guitarist replacing John Frusciante, who left the band in 2009, but trust me, this album is much better than the Dave Navarro, drug induced One Hot Minute.

The Chili Peppers keep with the familiar style of their more recent music, but with a noticeable new style in guitarist Josh Klinghoffer. The band even calls it out saying, "This is a new band, same name, but it's a new band."

The band credits the Rolling Stones as a big influence of the new material. I don't hear it really, but then again I don't listen to the Rolling Stones. The lengthy album (14 tracks) has gotten very favorable reviews, and I agree with most of them, though I might have chosen a different single to kick the album off with. But if you like the later works of RHCP, this album should fit nicely into your existing play lists.

You can stream the album right here, though I don't know how long it will be available. Let me know what you think.

What Happened to Cam Newton's Pants

Have you ever thought to yourself "gee, I wonder what happened to the pants Cam Newton wore in the BCS National Championship Game?" No? Well, I haven't either. But that doesn't mean their final destination isn't worth checking out. According to this article at The War Eagle Reader, the pant ended up ensconcing Playboy Playmate Jaime Edmondson. I've linked to the article but I've already given you the goods.

NPR's First Listen: Blind Pilot 'We are the Tide'

The new album will be streaming now until it's release on September 13.

http://www.npr.org/2011/08/28/139912429/first-listen-blind-pilot-we-are-the-tide

They will be playing in Bham at Workplay on October 20. (And for you His Eminence, they will be playing in Mobile on Oct. 19 @ Soul Kitchen.)

The Great Book of John

Birmingham's The Great Book of John has released their second album. The self titled record can be streamed http://music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/spinner#/20. The band carries 3 members from Wild Sweet Orange, and while this band is more laid back, folk rock you can still hear that pop that made WSO so famous. Frontman Taylor Hollingsworth sounds a lot like George Harrison in the way he scoops and dives his notes, almost like he's singing with a steel guitar effect. It's refreshingly different from most of whats going on out there right now. I might add some more after I've heard the whole album a couple of times.

And Then There Were 9

So, the Ames Straw Poll was yesterday, and the results were as follows:

1	Michele Bachmann	4,823	28.6%
2	Ron Paul	4,671	27.7%
3	Tim Pawlenty	2,293	13.6%
4	Rick Santorum	1,657	9.8%
5	Herman Cain	1,456	8.6%
6	Rick Perry (write-in)	718	4.3%
7	Mitt Romney	567	3.4%
8	Newt Gingrich	385	2.3%
9	Jon Huntsman	69	0.4%
10	Thaddeus McCotter	35	0.2%

A few thoughts:
1. Everyone talks about how important Iowa is for the presidential election, yet Mitt Romney didn't even bother to show up here. Does Mitt know something that the rest of us don't know? No one has really even pointed this out in the media. In fact, most still consider him the frontrunner despite the fact that he finished below a write-in candidate (Rick Perry) who announced his candidacy the day of the poll.

2. Ron Paul finished second only 1% behind Bachmann. Everyone is saying it is huge for Bachmann that she won, but hardly anyone has mentioned the fact that he finished a close second with little money spent on the event compared to the winner.

3. Tim Pawlenty has now pulled himself out of the race. This was just a matter of time considering his inability to be a "sexy" Republican candidate. It appears that it is a matter of time before Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum do the same.

4. WTF is Sarah Palin up to? Her tour of American historical sights just happened to take her to Iowa?! Here is my theory on her. She will eventually join the race, but has strategically stayed out to avoid any media scrutiny until right before the Iowa caucus. A shrewd political move that doesn't surprise me one bit. She has to be one of the most disingenuous politicians I have ever seen.

5. Finally, the absurdity of American politics is on full display any time we talk about Iowa. It is completely stupid that Iowa...fucking Iowa...has as much influence on politics as it does. It is a state full of Christian social conservative corn farmers whose biggest city is smaller than Birmingham. What was the big hit at the Iowa State Fair this year? Fried butter. That's right, butter on a stick that is deep fried. That's what the people who have a major influence on American politics are into. Iowa is a huge reason why the federal government keeps subsidizing corn farmers, so that politicians can bribe farmers into nominating them for the presidency. Why the Hell does this tiny state that hardly represents America have so much influence? The state of Iowa hijacked American politics, and it blows my mind that other states refuse to move their primaries up to take some of that influence.