The Useless Critic 2.0

I felt like at first - encountering Tuxedo - that I had run into a photocopy of Chromeo. I guess you could call them that, and seeing Mayer has done a lot of work with the guys from Chromeo, it might even be an apt comparison.  (Despite the semi-disparaging title of this blog post, I actually don't think they're that bad! And that's not because I'm a Mayer Hawthorne fan).  Tuxedo is half Mayer, half Jake One (a celebrated producer in his own right). They make very, very, VERY '80s-heavy funk. They released their debut self-titled album last month.  "Do It" is a pretty strong single, and "Number One" is fairly decent, even if it's kind of sickeningly cheesy at times. I feel like you'd expect to hear "Number One" at someone's wedding in 1987, after everyone has drank way too much Schnapps and Grandma has started grinding with the priest.  My major takeaway from my crash course through their album is Tuxedo had the r...

Before I post my sometimes-weekly playlist. let's celebrate what March 30th has been like previously: - Seward's Folly - An obsessed Jodie Foster fan shot President Reagan - John Denver had his first #1 hit. The song? "Sunshine on my Shoulders." This all being stated, here's this week's playlist. I put some new music on it for a change. Like the Chromeo single, some newer Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes and Beck's "Waking Light." Which is an excellent song and somewhat reminds me of his "Sea Change" work.  I love that Lorde song I included, btw. Albeit you are probably sick of it by now. Make it a great week!

1.) FEIST - saw her last week with the Happiness Project at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. As Daryl can attest to, the Happiness Project sure was boring. "a big snooze," Marty Crane would say. They were like the Books but too driven by concept to be really interesting.  the idea was the band made music out of taped testimonials of their neighbors' perceptions of happiness and how that varies from person to person. and they sure were talented musicians but that was the end of it. But Feist! FEIST! she blew us all away. I have not listened to Metals with any real depth yet, granted I like what I heard. She was brave and experimental and quirky and sweet, joking around with the audience. You could tell this woman was more than happy to get her and her amazing band (which now includes back-up vocals from MOUNTAIN MAN ). And despite her music often coming across as mellow and muted via recorded form, in person, SHE ROCKS. It's totally believable she was once a me...

AND THE PSAS I'M MAYER HAWTHORNE Mayer Hawthorne - How Do You Do PSA #2 from MayerHawthorne on Vimeo . JUST KIDDING I JUST WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH HIM THAT IS ALL YOU ARE WELCOME HE IS PLAYING WITH CHROMEO AT TERMINAL FIVE NEXT MONTH AND I AM NOT GOING BECAUSE I AM POOR BUT HIS NEW ALBUM COMES SOON LOL LIKE ME KURT APPRECIATE

YES.  YES. a tour together? in the fall? in the United States?  (no NY :( ) but my GOD PITTSBURGH.

Watch this and tell me http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJilSrS-Rbs that you do not want to learn French from the one member? WE'LL MEET UP ON THE FLOOR, AND MAYBE DO THE TRUCK.  I real post tomorrow. for reals. if we get less than 300 views tomorrow, I am lighting myself on fire. 

GO NOW IT'S FREE CHROMEO IS INCLUDED http://www.prefixmag.com/media/mayer-hawthorne/impressions-covers-ep/52254/

TICKETS ON SALE SATURDAY MATT AND KIM, CHROMEO, MIA, LCD SOUNDSYSTEM, PAVEMENT, NEON INDIAN, LUDACRIS, JIMMY EAT WORLD, GOD I CAN'T THINK STRAIGHT JUST LOOK THIS UP ONLINE I LOVE YOU AND I AM GOING TO THIS, HELL OR HIGHWATER, IF IT IS FREE

SO DISAPPOINTING. At least there's Phoenix ... but it just seems very unspired to me this year. AND WTF WAS UP WITH THEIR WAY OF INFORMING THE WORLD? OH MY GOD. LAME LAME LAME Standards the Flaming Lips will appear, and Weezer, and also, Chromeo with Daryl Hall. which is confusing for me. it's not like I can afford to go, but still. ugh! I'm getting pretty excited for the Jonsi album, in other news. Who is the lead singer of Sigur Ros- his solo project. see here:

Chromeo is an electronic/dance duo comprised of P-Thugg (Patrick Gemayel) and Dave 1 (David Macklovitch). As their Wikipedia entry so astutely states, "The two childhood friends jokingly describe themselves as "the only successful Arab/Jewish partnership since the dawn of human culture." They became relatively well-known with the release of their second album, Fancy Footwork, which featured the singles "Fancy Footwork", " Tenderoni ", and " Bonafied Lovin' ". I personally discovered them via their song "Opening Up (Ce Soir On Danse)". "Night by Night" is the first single off Chromeo's third studio album, to be released in the summer of 2010. I don't really know how to describe it. The song is almost an '80s throw-back while simultaneously building on their discography in an organic, interesting way. It fits well in the electronic/dance genre that is becoming relatively popular (see La Roux, Ladyhawke). F...