It’s hard to believe Record Store Day is only in its third year, having quickly become an institution around the US and overseas, drawing thousands of audiophiles into record shops to snag exclusive special-edition releases and watch intimate in-store performances by everyone from Ani DiFranco to the Black Lips to Bill Callahan. It all began when Chris Brown, employee of the local Maine/New Hampshire record store chain Bull Moose, decided to give brick and mortar record shops a day in the sun. Having visited the flagship store in Portland, Maine, we can confidently state that Brown and his co-workers definitely know what they’re doing.
By now, you’ve probably heard about some of the kajillion 7-inch and fancy vinyl releases just waiting to be snatched up this Saturday, so we’re going to give you a quick rundown of the most stellar in-store performances and events happening all over the country, plus a chance to win some sweet Smashing Pumpkins merch.
After collaborating with Air for her last album, Charlotte Gainsbourg teams with Beck for IRM, a record inspired in part by the French star’s run-in with head trauma.
The album’s title is French for MRI, a test Gainsbourg became familiar with after a 2007 boating accident. The sounds of the machine inspired the title track, one of an album’s worth that Beck composed with her input. Meanwhile, the pair duet on the dreamy single “Heaven Can Wait,” while songs like “Trick Pony” and “Greenwich Mean Time” bring a funkier edge to the proceedings.
2009 has been such a fantastic year for music that it’s difficult to start thinking about 2010 so soon. How can we, when we still haven’t tired of milestone albums from the likes of Animal Collective, Atlas Sound, The Flaming Lips, and Dirty Projectors? Thankfully, next year is shaping up to be equally exciting, with new offerings on the horizon from Vampire Weekend, Yeasayer, Spoon and many more. After the jump, we pick the 12 albums we’re most excited for in 2010. Which records are you looking forward to?
It’s not enough to just be awesome at one thing anymore. More and more artists are multitasking, and we’re seeing a particular amount of crossover between the somewhat unlikely genres of music and literature. But wait — aren’t musicians supposed to be outgoing egomaniacs and aren’t writers supposed to be tweedy shut-ins? Well, the writer/musician isn’t exactly a new trend — remember Tarantula, Dylan’s stream-of-consciousness book of prose-poetry? And don’t forget that Leonard Cohen was actually a writer first. So maybe there’s something to this whole writer turned rock star thing. Here are some multitaskers who make us feel bad about ourselves when we lie around the house all Sunday.
The opening sequence of Antichrist is an oscillation between, “oh, isn’t this lovely” and, “oh c’mon, give me a break.” In many ways, it’s a fractal for the remainder of the picture, as well as Lars Von Trier‘s entire career to date. Every frame in the destined-to-be-debated Antichrist might sever audience reactions more precisely than its notorious scissor wielding sequence, but there is no denying its visual appeal. It has a video-game-like clarity that pushes digital to a place celluloid snobs never dreamed it could breach. But while the images are breathtaking, the content is often cheesy, overwrought, and borders on parody.
There are always films that people can’t stop talking about long before a festival begins. At this year’s New York Film Festival, Lars Von Trier’s Antichrist (screening this weekend) has such an honor. After a packed showing at Cannes that shut out many members of the press, those who saw it couldn’t stop talking and blogging about how, well, revolting it is. Read More »
If the nerdy film reports from Cannes are true, then filmmaker Lars Von Trier (who might have given you motion sickness with his 2000 flick, Dancer in the Dark… or maybe that was just us) is kind of a dick; indieWIRE quotes him as saying, “I am the best film director in the world… All the others are overrated, so that’s quite simple… I just met Scorsese [at the hotel] and I think it’s quite easy for all of you educated people [to see] where most of these things come from… This knowledge I have that I am the best director, I see it as true. I am sure other directors may feel the same, [but] maybe they dont say it. I am not sure I am. I just think I am.” So there’s that. Read More »
