High Llamas "Talahomi Way"

(Drag City) So light and airy and sweet I believe Willy Wonka was involved in the production...watch out for that ceiling fan! I'd previously only heard the High Llamas cover band, Hello Alpacas, so it was awesome to hear how the real deal sounds. And awesoem that they sound like a millionaire's doorbell.

Gary Higgins "A Dream A While Back"

(Drag City) Should change his name to Gary Haggis, because his music tastes that good!

The Skull Defekts "Peer Amid"

(Thrill Jockey) So awesome they should change their name to the Skilled Perfects!

Signals - A Radio Zine by DJ Frederick

(http://signalszine.blogspot.com) I love this zine about pirate radio in part because I don't know anything about pirate radio and I'm delighted that some of this stuff that sounds incredible might be something DJ Frederick made up to fuck with me! Are there really stations that just broadcast series of numbers and letters for hours, or days, that seem to be secret codes sent by secret agents or something like that? Did Stockhausen compose with shortwave samples? Could there really be a show called "Maple Leaf Mailbag?" I sure don't know, but I do know one thing...I'm kHZ-y about this zine!

Meet Me in the Middle by Gordon B. Isnor & Christopher C. Yorke

(gordonbisnor@gmail.com) Apparantly there is an app that writes dirty poems and they used it to make this book. I went to http://mindlist.heroku.com/ and put in the name of this book and it came up with this gem:                     
                                                                        pussy-longing

cum tutelage

largesse

Meet Me in the Middle by Gordon B. Isnor & Christopher C. Yorke

sordid nectar

I think that says it all.

Rockin' the Wall

(www.rockinthewall.com) This documentary makes an impassioned argument for the role of rock music in bringing down the Berlin Wall, and despite some questionable techniques (dramatic recreations and split screen that would give Brian DePalma a headache) it's pretty effective. That the main musicians the filmmakers wrangled up got for commentary (and to help score the video) were from Vanilla Fudge should in no way indicate this was a V-Fudge-level revolution, and to be honest, I'm much happier giving props and credit to the Fudge than to Reagan!

YOKO ONO & FRIENDS TO JAPAN WITH LOVE Le Poisson Rouge, New York City March 29, 2011

Guest Review By Madeline Bocaro

Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon held two benefit concerts for Japan this week, pulling many of their famous friends together to join their Plastic Ono Band. Over two nights over $100,000 was raised for Japanese earthquake relief. The first gig was at Columbia University on March 27^th. The second one was really special.

While standing in line at Le Poisson Rouge on Bleecker Street, I noticed Kenny’s Castaways right across the street - the club where Yoko did several performances in October 1973. Back then, at the tender age of 15, I could not legally be admitted to the show. But now, here I stood almost 40 years later, waiting to see Yoko once again, resolved that she is still the most important artist in the world, remembering all the amazing times I’ve seen her concerts, exhibits and lectures over the years, and that John Lennon was right.

The sold-out intimate venue held 700 people quite warmly. The immense tangle of wires on the stage was evidence that this would be a very interesting evening!

Opening was Cibo Matto, the hip-hop/jazz/funk Japanese chicks whose delicious food-obsessive tunes feature all kinds of weird delicacies. Yuka Honda, Miho Hatori and Sean Lennon reunited their band after ten years. Their set included  ‘Le Pain Perdu’,  ‘Sugar Water’, ‘Aguas de Marco’, ‘Beef Jerky’ and ‘Birthday Cake’! We bopped to their beats and insane recipes; ‘Extra sugar, extra salt, extra oil and MSG!’ They were joined by horn players and an increasing number of participants, including Honda's husband Nels Cline of Wilco.

Patti Smith, New York’s own priestess of prose appeared raggedly yet regally with her full band, including Lenny Kaye. She spoke a heartfelt dedication to the Japanese people, and began the evangelic ‘Peaceable Kingdom’. ‘Beneath The Southern Cross’ followed. Then from her Easter album, ‘Ghost Dance’ chanting it’s appropriate and prophetic chorus of ‘We shall live again’ for Japan. A passionate ‘Pissing in a River’ from Radio Ethiopia followed. Then she dedicated ‘People Have the Power’ ‘To Sean and his mom, who have done so much work for the people, and whose family has always had so much care for the people…’

Sean announced, ‘Yoko Ono has entered the building!’ Within seconds, she appeared, singing ‘It Happened’ acapella. Although the song was written so long ago, it has recurring relevance at tragic times in Yoko’s life, and also in the state of the world. Her delicate singing abruptly morphed into screams of terror and convulsions, transforming into a song of redemption, ‘Calling’ from her latest album.

Yoko told us how the song ‘Mind Train’ originated. It was about 16 minutes long. John insisted on playing it for an unnamed famous musician, and Yoko expressed her regret of having this person endure the whole 16 minutes. However, I hope it was someone who was well deserving of the wrath of Yoko, and wish that it could have been myself instead. After all, one man’s pain is another’s pleasure! A quite lengthy ‘Mind Train’ ensued, taking us all aboard with another special guest, Antony Haggarty crooning along.

Ono also performed the hopeful ‘Rising’, the incredible blues jam ‘It’s Been Very Hard’ and my favourite - ‘Why?’ – an intense rocker featuring a free form guitar/vocal duet between Sean and Yoko, that is eerily similar to the John & Yoko version. Sean’s array of guitar pedals was astounding, and he utilized every one of them, especially the fuzz box! His girlfriend Kemp Muhl played bass all night. Greg Saunier from Deerhoof was on drums just for this song.

Yoko wanted to perform ‘I Love You Earth’ (from Starpeace 1985) because ‘the earth is angry now and needs to hear it’. Yoko allowed Antony Haggarty (who praised the song’s lyrics as pure punk) to sing this one, but then the two of them got into an I-Love-You fest that just wouldn’t quit.

Everyone sang and spoke something heartfelt and respectful in dedication to the people of Japan. However, Lou Reed shuffled onstage, cranked up his guitar to eleven and blasted out 'Leave Me Alone' from Street Hassle!  He brought along an iPad with a scrolling teleprompter - which was hilarious and pretentious because all he sings is, 'Leave me leave me leave me leave me leave me alone'!  (Yoko had sheets of musical notations too – when most of her songs are purely improvisational one-word mantras like 'Why?'!)

Lou’s song was ear splitting. He worked Yoko’s band of young Japanese musicians (and Sean) to the bone - making them play louder and harder. It was as if he was telling Yoko, 'Look! I’m even crazier than YOU are!' She stood beside him, glancing at his teleprompter, chiming in with a few inaudible screams, but she politely surrendered as Lou hijacked her band! He mumbled something about how we all must be shocked, but to the contrary, it’s just what one would expect from Lou Reed. I am not saying that it wasn’t great. I just hate to admit it because Lou is so damned arrogant!

Sean stood between Lou and Yoko, watching in awe, as if he’d bought a ticket to the show himself and forgot that he was in it. He was amazed at organizing and pulling off yet another spontaneous, chaotic, and enthralling Plastic Ono Band event.

Sean introduced the final song as a great one written by Neil Diamond...it was his dad’s ‘Give Peace A Chance’.

As we exited the venue, we each received a cool gift from Yoko – a piece of sky (jigsaw puzzle piece) in a drawstring pouch with a card inscribed:

The sky is cracked now above Japan.

Let’s come together in our dreams

to heal.

A dream you dream alone is only a dream

But a dream you dream together

Is reality.

I love you!

Yoko

Spring, 2011

Helado Negro "Canta Lechuza"

(Asthmatic Kitty) I don't know enough about whatever International/underground/ethnic/interstellar/ultra hip/made-it-up-himself genres and movements he's referencing to be smart about this Spanish language blissful, electro blooping, meditative, steamy, nature loving, hookah full of sunshine, lie down and relax-dance music. But it makes me fell g-o-o-o-o-d.

Natural Selections Vol. 1

(www.umbrellatreerecords.com) North Carolina has a post-punk explosion and this compilation absorbed the brunt of the blast. Best bands ar ethe Spandrels, Balloon Wars and Pallas Cats, but best name is Machiavillains, because it takes balls to have a name that invokes Tupac, Madlib and MF Doom, and them play literate proggy postpunk.

The Ex "Catch My Shoe"

(Ex Records) (Guest Review by Jake Austen) The Roctober book that is coming out this fall was pretty much done like 2 years ago, but it was taking forever to get the book's forward from Steve Albini, and the publisher refused to edit anything or move production forward until they had all the text. So I would call Albini at Electrical (his studio) every few days and the crazy-assed thing is that he would take the call every time, even though he knew what I was going to ask and he knew he hadn't done it because he was so busy. Talk about a stand up fucking guy, I would never take a call of someone I owed something to, I would pretend I wasn't home and get people to lie for me or use caller i.d. like I was a fugitive. Anyhoo, just before he got it done (and it's a great forward, get the book in November) he was telling me that he would do it as soon as he finished recording X. Now I love all the old X albums, and I love John Doe in the George Strait movie and Exene is an awesome lady and I've seen Decline 78 times, but c'mon! No way is a 2010 X album going to be better than the Roctober book! Get your priorities straight! So finally I say to him, "Well is it at least Australian X rather than L.A. X?" And he says, "No it's The Ex." And I shut up. Then I said, "Oooh! My bad, take a-l-l the time in the world." Obviously, if the Ex have something to say, I'm happy to be the next after the Ex! Decades into their remarkable, bizarre, challenging career, the Dutch Crass (or the Interesting Chumbawumba) continue to not only be true to whatever radical politics, propaganda, and social mission they dedicated themselves to in 1980, but they also continue to challenge themselves, with this album using some weird takes on African music that should make David Byrne and Vampire Weekend feel chumpish. Ex-cellent!