New Video: Raphael Saadiq “Love that Girl”

For those of you that aren’t yet familiar with Raphael Saadiq– he’s the former member of popular R&B band Tony! Toni! Toné! who also has had his share of successes as a producer, in addition to being an artist. If you can’t remember back to the 80’s, you may be more familiar with Saadiq from songs such as “Still Ray,” “Be Here (feat. D’Angelo)”– both off of his debut solo release Instant Village. Beyond that, his song “Get Involved” featuring Q-Tip, was another minor hit.

The point is that Saadiq has always been a grossly under appreciated artist whose critical acclaim never came close to matching his commercial success. With all the hype going into his latest album however, that could possibly change. Perhaps thanks to his girlfriend Joss Stone, Saadiq has gone old-school with The Way I See It. Unlike most other albums that simply have a “retro”-feel, Saadiq’s songs sound less like a rip off and more like he’d went into a time machine to make this album.

All that being said, here’s Raphael Saadiq’s new music video for the song “Love that Girl,” it’s quite a dandy. The Way I See It hits stores September 16th.

Raphael Saadiq “Love That Girl” The Way I See It

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New Kings of Leon video “Sex on Fire”

These guys are just on a roll. First they release the epic single on iTunes and on their website and now they’ve released a video that manages to match the powerful single. The religious undertones of the video are hard to ignore, and as a whole, the presentation is pretty slick. Check out the video below. Only by the Night will be released September 23.

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R.I.P. LeRoi Moore (September 7, 1961 – August 19, 2008)

It has recently been announced that LeRoi Moore, best known as the saxophonist/flutist for the Dave Matthews Band, has passed. According to the press release from the bands website, Moore died from sudden complications relating to his ATV accident back in June, where he suffered a punctured lung among other injuries. Dave Matthews Band is still set to play their Staples Center show tonight as scheduled with Jeff Coffin of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones playing in his place (he had been filling in for Moore since the injury). Moore was only 46 years old and will be sorely missed by all.

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The Walkmen You & Me

Fuzzy Bits:

Release Date: August 19, 2008

Last Album: “Pussy Cats” Starring the Walkmen (2006)

Sounds Like: Potentially the best album of 2008, not to mention the best album the Walkmen has ever made.

Overall Rating: 100

2008 is quickly gaining momentum as being a fantastic year for music, as The Walkmen has dropped a bombshell of an album that is well worthy of the early praise it has received already. The Walkmen have always shown flashes of greatness, which was more prevalent on their first two albums– Bows & Arrows and Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me Is Gone– but here on You & Me, the Walkmen are consistently terrific. Even better, is that this time the highlights are in the subtleties. There’s no onslaught of sound a la “The Rat” or “Little House of Savages,” but instead the music as a whole is perfectly nestled into this haunting– and at times claustrophobic atmosphere, a near continuation on the sound they featured on their debut album. The opening “Dónde Está La Playa” sets the tone immediately with the drums and organ sounding as far off as can be, and vocalist Hamilton Leithauser sounding subdued for once. It’s certainly off-putting (especially for die hard Walkmen fans), but trust when I say this is a definite grower. Each song is a perfect continuation of the last, unfolding before your ears much like a novel– and before you know it you’re hooked. There are certain songs, such as “In The New Year,” “Postcards From Tiny Islands” and “Four Provinces,” that are certainly strongly linked to the typical Walkmen sound. These songs never feel safe however, especially in the context of the album that boasts such surprising musical growth and maturation. The absolutely gorgeous “Canadian Girl” and the lonely “Long Time Ahead of Us” are songs that particularly stand out. While fans of the Walkmen’s heavier material are going to be disappointed, it’s hard to argue against the path they chose for this album. In all its subtle quirks, You & Me is gripping, beautiful, a touch sad, and always excellent. Kudos to the band for releasing such a masterpiece.

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New My Morning Jacket video: “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream, Pt. 2″

Remember that book you read when you were a wee little one called Where the Wild Things Are? If you do, this video should register pretty high on the nostalgia meter. If not, well, then let this pop culture reference float above your head and consult your nearest library and/or Wikipedia upon viewing this clever video. While I already enjoy this song from My Morning Jacket’s latest Evil Urges, it matches the video so well that it makes me appreciate the song more. Check it out below:

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Lollapalooza 2008 Recap: Sunday

Sunday
Although Sunday could not hold a candle to either Friday or Saturday, it was still sprinkled with some phenomenal performances. One would just hope that next year the headliners will actually get to be heard, whereas this year there were problems on both ends (unlike the previous two days).
Highlights: The highlight of Sunday was unanimously John Butler Trio, the Australian band that proved their festival playing capabilities. The eight minute performance of “Ocean” (shown below) is easily one of the highlights from the entire weekend. The National also gave a strong showing, opening for Nine Inch Nails at the Playstation 3 stage. As for the headliner, the muddy sound quality notwithstanding, Trent Reznor’s crew put on a very good show as well. Last but not least, Gnarls Barkley also gave a good performance, one that was much better than they were last time, to the point that people even stayed past “Crazy.”
Lowlights: Despite having a full band Iron & Wine bored many to tears, managing to sap the energy out of any song from the very good Shepherd’s Dog album and slow everything down to the same tepid pace. The crappy sound quality during Nine Inch Nails was inexcusable, there’s no way that Kanye West (who was playing on the complete opposite end of Grant Park) should be louder than Nine Inch Nails.

All in all, this was certainly the best Lollapalooza so far. The second-tier bands were far too jumbled, and organizers could’ve done without one of the headliners and moved The Raconteurs into a headliner spot. Also, with Lolla running at capacity for 2/3 of the festival, it doesn’t seem like they can afford to get much bigger– as the incidents during the RATM showed the difficult position security is in with these kinds of festivals. With that in mind, Lollapalooza may thrive a bit more in featuring artists on the brink and bigger name mid-level bands and boasting only one headliner that is exclusive to Lollapalooza. Beyond that, and the needed tweaks with the sound quality and improvement in food/vendors are the only other complaints. It was a fantastic weekend here in Chicago, and hopefully it was an unforgettable experience for many.

John Butler Trio performing “Ocean” at Lollapalooza

Lollapalooza 2008 Recap: Saturday

Now for part two of the Lollapalooza coverage:

Saturday
Unfortunately, the crowd at the Rage Against the Machine show overshadowed what was otherwise a fantastic day two of lollapalooza. If you haven’t heard much about it yet, Jim DeRogatis of the Chicago Sun-Times has a great summary of what went on.

Highlights: Putting on one of the best shows of the weekend, Does It Offend You Yeah? was absolutely stellar– it was almost a crime that they were playing so early. Equally hyped Foals also put on a fantastic show and really packed the smaller Citi stage. As expected, Jamie Lidell and his supremely funky band managed to sound even better on the big stage than they did at The Abbey Pub. Last but certainly not least, Wilco, Nudie suits in tow, put on a phenomenal show that could’ve easily gone on for longer.

Lowlights: Not sure what Lupe Fiasco was thinking this year, but there was just far too much going on with his show– less is more. Dr. Dog was also disappointing as the vocals were off and they also just seemed to be lacking in overall energy. Lastly, Rage Against the Machine fans, for adding insult to injury on what was a dubious pick from the beginning. It’s all fine and good to have a “nostalgia” act, but throwing in Rage just didn’t seem to fit the overall idea of the new Lollapalooza, they would’ve been better off forcing Smashing Pumpkins to show up.

Check back for the Sunday recap tomorrow

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Lollapalooza 2008 Recap: Friday

After a few days of recovery, I can now write a full fledged recap with a clear head. While Lollapalooza 2008 was by far the best of the Chicago-based Lolla’s, it certainly has some room for improvement. Crazies at Rage Against the Machine aside (because really, who didn’t see that coming?), the fans were surprisingly awesome despite the drastically larger crowd. A few more food vendors next year couldn’t hurt and they definitely need to work on adding another cooling tent. As far as the music was concerned, Friday and Saturday were absolutely jam packed with goodness, while Sunday was a hit-or-miss affair. Here’s a quick recap of all that unfolded at Lollapalooza this year.

Friday
While the first day was obviously all about Radiohead, there was a good number of solid performances prior to their show. It’s too bad that they put the Raconteurs in the terrible position of playing right before Radiohead on the opposite side of Grant Park– which prompted a mass exodus at about 7pm, but other than that there wasn’t much to complain about scheduling-wise.

Highlights: While seeing a dozen guys headbanging on stage before yelling out seemingly random lyrics with a half-dozen equally enthusiastic guitarists made me feel like I’d accidentally attended a Guitar Hero session, Bang Camaro was actually quite entertaining. Holy Fuck fully lived up to their name, as their incredible performance stood up as being among the best over the weekend. The Go! Team and The Raconteurs, despite being repeat performers in both cases, really wowed the crowd, upping the ante even from their previous Lolla appearances. Of course, Radiohead lived up to their expectations. While the set was a bit mellow, they were certainly top notch and the fireworks from the Bears game at Soldier Field seemed to be timed perfectly to the music.

Lowlights: I’m blaming the heat, but no matter how you look at it, The Kills absolutely sucked. Not even playing for a full hour, Alison Mossheart left the stage in the same condition as her shoddy, molten Leopard jacket, with Jamie Hince not fairing any better.

All in all, Friday made quite the impact and set the tone for the rest of the festival. With it being sold out (thanks to Radiohead), getting through the crowd to your stage of choice was quite the task, nevermind stopping for food or drink. That being said it was an absolute blast, and I left feeling very optimistic about Saturday.

Check back for the Saturday recap tomorrow

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Kings of Leon Announce Tour, Reveal New Single: “Sex on Fire”

With the anticipation for Only By the Night increasing by the day, Kings of Leon finally kicked the promotion into full swing as they announced both their US tour dates and their new lead single, “Sex on Fire.” Like “Crawl,” “Sex on Fire” continues with the 80’s-based undertones, with this track sounding a bit more Strokes-influenced. All in all though, this song, like “Crawl,” is pretty amazing. The way things are looking, that September 23rd release date can’t come soon enough.

US Tour Dates
September
23 New York, NY Webster Hall w/The Whigs

October (w/The Stills and We Are Scientists)
11 Las Vegas, NV The Joint
12 San Diego, CA House of Blues
15 Los Angeles, CA Nokia Theatre
17 San Francisco, CA Warfield Theatre
18 San Francisco, CA Warfield Theatre
20 Seattle, WA Paramount Theatre
21 Portland, OR Schnitzer Hall
23 Denver, CO The Fillmore Auditorium
25 Austin, TX Austin Music Hall
26 Oklahoma City, OK Bricktown Events Center
28 Houston, TX Verizon Wireless Theater
29 Dallas, TX Palladium Ballroom
31 Chicago, IL Aragon Ballroom

November (w/The Whigs and We Are Scientists)
1 Minneapolis, MN Orpheum Theatre
3 St. Louis, MO The Pageant
5 Milwaukee, WI The Eagles Ballroom
7 Toronto, ONT Kool Haus
8 Detroit, MI The Fillmore
10 Washington, DC DAR Constitution Hall
12 Boston, MA Orpheum Theatre
15 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory Ballroom
18 Atlanta, GA The Tabernacle
19 Nashville, TN Nashville Municipal Auditorium

Kings of Leon “Sex on Fire”

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