Hey old NewmRadio friends. I’ve been missing the daily bs and banter ’round this blog…and of course RT…but my time has been tied up lately with new things. If you haven’t heard my weekly radio show yet, there’s actually a lot of overlap. I’ve even been rockin’ the ‘Case for (Phil) Collins’ segment every week on the show! I noticed it’s harder to put parentheses around (Phil) when you’re speaking.
The show is called Beyond Beyond is Beyond and yes, I just learned the word ‘Beyond’ and am over-using it like a 3-year old. It’s listenable at all times on eastvillageradio.com but I record live weekly on Thursdays between noon and 2:00 ET. After that, you can listen to the most recent show in the archive.
When writing about an event that I’ll be DJ’ing at this weekend, a writer on the EVR page recently (today) said this about the show…and pretty much nailed it…
Let’s face it: most of your hipster types were too cool (or, secretly, too geeky) to go to their proms. But that doesn’t mean you have to miss out on that primal rite of passage, and just think: now you don’t have to wash your older brother’s van to get him to buy beer for you. EVR’s own Mike Newman, host of the hot new heavy-psych show Beyond Beyond Is Beyond will be manning the decks at The Shalimar Theatre Company’s fifth annual prom-themed benefit party Prom-iscuous, a note-perfect recreation of your typical high school prom right down to the crepe paper streamers and disco ball, except with the welcome addition of an open beer bar provided by Brooklyn Brewery. The party starts at PS 122 (150 1st Avenue [at East 9th], New York, NY) at 9 p.m.; tickets are $30 at the door, $20 through the website.
And if you haven’t yet checked out Beyond Beyond Is Beyond (every Thursday from noon to 2 p.m. ET), make this the week. Mike mixes hard rock, heavy psych, a hint of prog and some thematically appropriate softer sounds featuring vintage rockers like Roky Erickson, Man, Moby Grape and the almighty Edgar Broughton Band (best known for their mindbending 1970 single “Apache Dropout,” mashing up the Shadows’ dead-cool twang instrumental “Apache” and Captain Beefheart’s scarifying “Dropout Boogie”) alongside the best of the new acts mining those inspirations, like Wooden Shjips, Dungen and Akron/Family. Trendy folk have only recently realized it’s cool to like this stuff, but Mike’s been there all along.
I like that description! And if you’re in New York and can come out to the shindig on Saturday, I can guaratee a good time. Here’s the Time Out New Yorklisting for Prom-iscuous. If you can make it, then do! If not, check out my radio show some time and maybe get in touch with me for show ideas or requests. I’d always love to hear from ya!
I just got word yesterday that my radio show, Beyond Beyond is Beyond, is going to become a fixture on East Village Radio. The show received lots of great feedback after a couple test run slots and it will now be airing weekly, every Thursday from noon to 2:00 (starting March 5th). Tune in live!
Wanna hear the first two test-run shows? Well, here they are…
Those should tide you over till March 5th, when I go back live! You can email me requests, rants, raves, mp3 messages…to beyondbeyondisbeyond (at) gmail (dot) com.
In case you missed the first edition of my new radio show, Beyond Beyond is Beyond, you can download an mp3 of the stream here. The sound quality isn’t perfect as it was a rendering of a stream and there were a couple mic anomalies, but still definitely listenable.
And, the second edition will be airing live on East Village Radio’s “On the Fly” spot on Thursday, February 12th from 2pm to 4pm. After that, a stream will be available there for a week too. The second BBiB show, aka Lovepsych, will have all kinds of lovey Valentine’s-related stuff and emails and requests from you, your loved one, or perhaps someone you know.
And then after that, I’m hoping that my show will become a permanent fixture on East Village Radio and you’ll be able to hear me there whenever you want! Fingers crossed.
You can also email requests, rants, stories, mp3’s of your own recorded voice for use on future shows to beyondbeyondisbeyond(at)gmail(dot)com.
Hey guys, I just played Jesse Sykes on my first Beyond Beyond is Beyond radio show on East Village Radio and was happy to stumble on this brand-new Daytrotter Session that the band just did. There are 4 songs that are recorded live in a studio and there is plenty of fuzzy guitar and haunting vocals and that other nice trippy stuff I dig. Check out the session here, you can even download all of the songs to put in your very own iTunes library!
these songs were recorded in early october as we were be-lining it home from a US tour to catch a plane to europe where we were to continue for a couple more weeks…as we pulled into the daytrotter studio our van started to make some funny noises…the kind of noises that are suggesting to you that you may be screwed!! well, luckily we did the recording and the fellows there at daytrotter were very kind as i couldn’t have been more stressed out at that moment, as i wasn’t convinced we were going to make it home to catch that plane! needless to say, im so glad we have this document, as it was one of the best autumns of my life in some ways and as it always seems to be the case, the memory of that day stands out as such a cool testament of how close we have become as a band…dealing with things that seem insurmountable at the time….anyway, as we pulled away from the studio hours later, our vans u joints completely shit the bed (clunk clunk clunk….thats what it sounds like if you ever hear that noise…)and somehow we lucked out and found a kind hearted mechanic a few blocks away who fixed it on the fly….i remember the big white puffy clouds of iowa and the birds chirping as i sat waiting for the van to be fixed…lots of kind gentle souls there in iowa-thank you to all of them who helped us get home safe, we made that flight too!! anyway, enjoy this recording j.s.
My radio show, Beyond Beyond is Beyond, will once again go live on February 12th from 2-4:00 pm on East Village Radio after a successful first episode. It will also be streaming afterward, for those that miss the live feed. The hope is that after the second show, BBB will be offered a regular weekly slot on EVR. Download the first show here.
Show #2 will be just two days before the most popularly unpopular Hallmark-created holiday for lovebirds, Valentine’s Day. And wouldn’t you (or your better/worse half or stalker/stalkee) want to hear your lovey-dovey or lovelorn song requests dedicated to them by you and read by amazing radio host, Mike Newman? Well, of course they would! So send me all your email requests for great love-themed songs to BeyondBeyondisBeyond (at) gmail (dot) com. Keep in mind the show’s format…make it rock or at least be trippy…or best case, BOTH! I won’t be able to play all requests…only the bests.
Can’t wait to see what yun’s have in store, and your lover will be blown away when they hear their psychedelic dedication! Remember, send ‘em now (no SASE required) to BeyondBeyondisBeyond (at) gmail (dot) com. Sorry…trying to dodge spam…… literally!
*amazing lynx love imagery brought to you by Macho Mel, whoseart is currently on display at Capricious Space in Brooklyn through Valentine’s Day
Well, I’ve heard of a couple reunions that are going to happen this year…and both get a fuckin’ rousing thumbs up from this rock-bloggin’ fool! The one I JUST heard about today is Mott the Hoople…yes please. They only have a couple London dates lined up thus far, but they best bring their asses across the pond!
And this one I heard rumblings about last year, like Flea will play bass, but it has been confirmed since the start of 2009…The Faces!
Bring ‘em on! I just hope that tickets for these shows aren’t through the roof (who am I foolin’…they will be). I’m actually pretty tired of big gigs any more. There’s so much about them that’s unappealing. First, the ticketing ‘class system’ is a shame. It means that the kid that loves the band the most will never get good seats because he can’t afford them and rich douchebags will have all the good seats. But rock & roll isn’t about them, it’s about that little kids dreams and the blues of the blue-collar working man.
And also the way that shows ’sell out’ within minutes of going on sale, but then tickets magically appear on a scalper site…which Ticketbastard and Jive Nation claim to have no hands in. Bullshit.
My advice is to seek out the up-and-coming great rock bands and catch them at small clubs for $10-$15, and be able to say you saw them before they were huge. And ususally those shows are more fun anyway! The big problem with it though is for those kids in Kansas and East Buttfuck, Wherever. Nobody comes to their town. There are no cool rock clubs there. Well, find all that cool music online, and move when you turn eighteen…to a city that rocks!
Okay, big tangent there.
In summary, big ‘YES’ for the Mott and Faces reunions! And a big ‘NO’ to the current class system of live music ticket sales. I’ve said my peace.
Sorry it’s been a little slow around here, and I’ve virtually ended RT. I know we have a round to finish and Kev is one answer away from winning, but I may phase out RT after this round…but maybe not! I’ve been spending time on different things and evaluating which ways I will lead myself into 2009. This weekend I’ll be preparing my audition ‘maiden-voyage’ show for East Village Radio, which will air live on Thursday from 2-4 pm right here at this link (listen live upper right of webpage). The show will be called Beyond Beyond is Beyond and I’ll be crossing my fingers that I pass the audition and end up with a regualar time slot! If nothing else, it will be a great two hours of far-out rock radio!
Btw…here’s what my neighborhood looks like from the train these grey wintery days…
Here are a few things that have caught my eye lately that I’ll bring your attention to…
@ The Pretty Things have cancelled their 41st Annniversary Tour, which is a shame because the Pretties are unrightfully forgotten in the rock world, and actually released a tremendous album in Balboa Island last year! As a matter of fact, check out “Feel Like Goin’ Home” from that album…
The truest sentence in this piece is “Apple knows what you want before you know you want it.” Dig…
NUTS! But we’ll all have ‘em by 2011.
Apple’s iTunes Store will also be changing it’s strict one-price for all songs pricing scheme to a pricing triumvirate … $ .69, .99, & 1.29. Seems fair enough. The only ones that will be $1.29 are the popular ones, and we hate that crap anyway! Oh yeah, and everything will be DRM-free by March. Clutch.
Sometimes a band comes along who reminds you that not all of the good music has already been made. Unfortunately there’s way much more crappy novelty. But when we look back in 10, 15, 20 years on the ground-breaking and lasting music from this era, we will certainly be listening again to Animal Collective.
I just ordered Animal Collective’s new Merriweather Post Pavilion album on 180 gram gatefold vinyl, and all record labels should take note. First of all, it’s a band that are true musical artists with longevity. Huh? Wha? Yeah, remember that crazy notion? And there is really no one else in Animal Collective’s league. They’re not indie, they’re not rock, they’re not electronica, they’re not jam… they’ve created their own thing.
Secondly, the vinyl was released today, January 6th, two weeks before the official release of the CDs and iTunes downloads. How cool is that? And of course, inside the vinyl is a download card which entitles you to download the mp3s or wav files. It costs a bit more, $22.98, but I don’t care because I will pay extra for exactly what I want! That’s what the major labels had forgetten. They just wanted to charge a lot for everything across the boards. No thanks. That’s not what I want.
And lastly, I heard the last track from this album from some music promo site, which was streaming it a few weeks ago, and I knew I had to have this record. Granted, I have been an Animal Collective fan pretty much since the band started in 2000 and was making a lot of very out-there music. And I bought those ‘out-there’ albums because I heard something going on underneath that was truly sublime and original. And now, I feel like Animal Collective are reaching their fully sublime, creative potential. I played the aforementioned promo song, “Brother Sport” (which I recorded into Pro-Tools), when I DJ’d my New Year’s Eve party, and it was just perfect in a roomful of revelers. Since I will respect Domino Records’ policies, I will not post the album version of “Brother Sport” here, but here is a live video of the band performing the song a while back (but keep in mind…the studio version is much better)…
Meanwhile, I will wait for my vinyl to arrive, since I ordered it a little on the late side for it to show up today and I’ll see what kind of things you guys have to say about Animal Collective. Is it possible that they are the most innovative band of this era or are they just geeky little knob-twiddlers…or somewhere in between?
Happy New Year everybody! I’ve been laying low on the blog lately as the end of 2008 rushed by, sending me to Florida over Thanksgiving, then Chicago the first week of December, then upstate NY for Chrismukah, and then to Heather’s bar in the East Village of my good ol’ NYC for New Year’s Eve, where I was proud parent and DJ of what had to have been the raddest NYE throwdown in town..and which also raised over $350 for the NY Times Neediest Cases Fund! Matter of fact, here’s a pic of the two super-handsome DJ’s and their uber-stunning foxes at said event…
Ever since 7:00 pm on NYE when I finished my work and met up with my DJ accomplice, Rudeboy Chippy (left above), everything has come up roses. We started the load-in and tech with some good hearty beer-soaking San Loco tacos and got the party ready to roll for 9:00. I loved hearing from people that were expecting to have a nice chill NYE with friends at a bar, who actually had a drunk. sweaty, rockin’-till-the-wee-hours night of mayhem. The beer, champagne, tequila, whisky and weeds flowed like a pirated steamboat on a delightfully stormy sea carrying its drunken mates to an island of renewal and hope.
The days that followed have been perfect too. We had our friends/family, Scott and Mara, staying with us so we ended up doing all kinds of fun things. Recovery day was spent in PJ’s brunching, watching football and setting up the new juicer and Saturday was packed full of fun stuff like the transit museum, a Broadway show (Speed the Plow sans Piven), impromptu ice skating at Prospect Park in Brooklyn, and more drinks and football with Paul and Scott at Hi-Fi in the East Village, where we even had seats at the bar on a Saturday night. As our guests headed back to sunny Miami Sunday morning, the rest of the day was spent catching up at home, playing guitar, watching a little more NFL playoff football and a little college basketball.
So I’ve got some music-related stuff that I’ve been thinking about coming up in the next post but before anything, I wanted to wish you all a phenomenal 2009, filled with music and love and all the things that make you happy! And no more BUSH! Good riddance, you fink!
If you’re in NYC, be sure to come by my DJ-event and super-badass New Year’s Eve party at Heather’s Bar in the East Village. It is being billed as ‘Journey Into 2009: Werewolve Bar Mitzvah’. It will be a night full of great music, awesome people, and plenty of drinking and debauchery! And the small $6 cover will go to the NY Times Neediest Cases Fund to help the hungry and homeless in NYC during the brutal winter months. Hope to see ya…
Well, here’s the first, and hopefully last, ammendment to my Best Albums of 2008 post. Late last night I totally realized that I had left this absolute 2008 gem off of my list…and I knew it was a crime. So here it is…you’ve heard me talk about these guys a coupletimes before in 2008…it’s Bryan Scary and the Shredding Tears with their brilliant Flight of the Knife!
Flight of the Knife is a poppy prog-like concept album, full of complex and quirky arrangements, which are all irresistably catchy and satisfying. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up…you will be pleasantly surprised that such a new band has the chops to pull this kind of music off and has the balls to make something this unique these days.
All right, you’s guys, I’ve got opinions about albums and since everybody likes to show off their super-important and highly-refined musical tastes by way of year-end lists, I’ve decided to join everyone…like a sheep to slaughter. I’m gonna have some oldies which I’ve just been turned onto in 2008 sprinkled in there too, so please don’t be alarmed that I don’t only listen to new music. In fact, it’s not healthy to only listen to new music.
After mine, you have to show me yours though…as creepy as that sounds. So start thinking about everything you heard in this last great year of our unruly despot’s reign, and be ready to list ‘em by the time you finish looking at mine.
Okay, yes, they are friends but this album is truly original and stands out in a sea of indie-rock music that is becoming more and more boring. Hooks abound, beautiful harmonies, and amazing arrangements…all with a good sense of humor too.
Here’s an album I was all over when I got an advance copy. It’s totally trippy and neo-psychedelic and totally up my alley. Here’s me singing it’s praises last January…lalala. The backlash is already present but isn’t it always there for bands who get any kind of recognition for actually being good?! They sounded great at a super-packed McCarren Park Pool this past summer too! I look forward to a second album from these cats.
Here’s another one that I got an advance of and I picked it for my year-end list last year even though it came out in 2008. Trippy , heavy, ter’riff’ic! These guys have a great loud live show too. On the album, “Wucan” will hypnotize you…and live, “Wucan” will bewitch your skull. You’ve been warned!
Steve Hall and I went to Madison Square Garden last night to see the one and only Sir Neil Young…and boy did he not disappoint. Maybe there was a bit much (and too many in a row) of new stuff, but it is evident theat Neil has not lost a step from his younger days. This guy was rockin’ hard, jumping around, rippin’ out some killer distorted and crunchy guitar solos. There were a lot of highlights, but I loved starting out with “Love and Only Love” from the oft-overlooked 1990 album, Ragged Glory, and a blistering “Cowgirl In The Sand”. But man, that “Rockin’ In The Free World” had people in a frenzy, and the “A Day In The Life” encore was amazingly raucous.
As you can see from this crappy iPhone pic, our seats weren’t so great (since we’re only middle class..and this was after we snuck down another level), but we had a great time and the sound was very good at MSG.
Anyway, definitely go see Neil on this tour if you have the chance. The guy is a true legend, who sounds as good as he always has. Here’s the setlist:
NEIL YOUNG & HIS ELECTRIC BAND
1. Love And Only Love
2. Hey Hey, My My
3. Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
4. Powderfinger
5. Spirit Road
6. Cortez The Killer
7. Cinnamon Girl
8. Oh, Lonesome Me
9. Mother Earth
10. The Needle And The Damage Done
11. Light A Candle
12. “Cough Up The Bucks”
13. Fuel Line
14. “Hit The Road And Go To Town”
15. Unknown Legend
16. Heart Of Gold
17. Old Man
18. Get Back To The Country
19. “Off The Road”
20. Just Singing A Song
21. When Worlds Collide
22. Cowgirl In The Sand
23. Rockin’ In The Free World
—
24. “Get Behind The Wheel”
25. A Day In The Life
Well, the Holidays are once again upon us, however heavily, and today I’ve got for you several things that I would love to find in my Christmas stocking on any of the days of Hanukkah or harvest nights of Kwanzaa. But wait, silly…don’t reach for your credit card to start buying them for me. For I’ve already received them from merry media mavens and poinsettia-pwning publicists, so that I could show you how wonderful they are so that you can buy them for your loved one or stalking victim. Be glad you didn’t have to wade through all the crap to get to this cream, because I did. You’re welcome.
Here’s Part One of my first annual Stalking Stuffer Shortlist (at least I have another full year to come up with a better title)…
The first item that you or your loved one should own is the DVD Sunshine Superman-The Journey of Donovan. It is the ultimate super-documentary of rock’s underrated mystic man. Donovan was never quite purely classic rock, singer/songwriter, world music, folk singer, or spiritual guru, but quite an amazing amalgam of all of those things, and a profound influence on many important recording artists…such as Jimmy Page, John Mellencamp, Graham Nash, Devendra Banhart, and lots more. The first disc is a 3-hour chronicle of rock’s underrated mystic man, which is narrated by the mystical man himself. The second disc is chock full of concert footage, TV appearances, music videos, and more about the private life of Donovan. Sunshine Superman-The Journey of Donovan is a must if you call yourself a Donovan fan and possibly the Lost Ark for the uninitiated.
The next item for your lover’s stocking is Ween-At the Cat’s Cradle 1992. Long-time Ween fans will rejoice and new Ween fans will befuddle at the sheer brown-ness of this 1 CD-1 DVD package. Up until 1994’s Chocolate and Cheese, Ween wasn’t a band at all…but a DAT machine for backing drum tracks, a guitar, an adventurous sound man, and two drunk silly potheads who fooled their way into making fantastic music a career for over 20 years now. Ween-At the Cat’s Cradle 1992 is a perfect window into the Ween live experience right before the duo decided (or could afford) to hire a band. The sound is great, the songs are genius, the video is deliciously lo-fi, and the package as a whole is decidedly brown. Ween’s legacy will far surpass Radiohead’s (at least in my mind)!
*Get the special edition that includes a 18″ x 15.5″, handmade, SIGNED silkscreened poster of the cover for the special Boognish in your life!
And third but not last (since there will be another Stalking Stuffer Shortlist installment), is by a fantastic band from my ol’ hometown, land of Skyline Chili, awful NFL football, and surprisingly good college football (go ‘Cats). Cincinnati’s Shake It Records was just a kick-ass record store when I left Cincinnati 8 years ago, and now it seems they are also a kick-ass record label. Wussy is one of Shake It Records’ most promising bands, and I’ve really been digging their recent Rigor Mortis EP. Wussy is an indie-rock band that hasn’t forgotten the second part of that genre title, as many indie groups have. In short, Wussy is an indie-rock band not afraid to bare its rock balls. Wussy writes smart and catchy songs, and plays them loud and tight with plenty of fuzzy drone guitar. And isn’t it just fun to say Wussy over and over. So put a little Rigor Mortis in your loved ones stocking this Christmas.
I’ll have the next Stalking Stuffer Shortlist here for you soon!
I have to post this! I missed SNL this past week, but I assume this was on it. Andy Samberg is really doing his best to keep SNL funny…and of course, Kristen Wiig. But check this shit out…
And whilst i’m jocking Andy Samberg, check out these recent gems…
Hey all, so I’m back from taking two trips in the last couple weeks and then getting sick the last couple days, and this seems to be at the height of music news, and certainly of interest to me. Coldplay is being sued by Joe Satriani for stealing his song, and to tell you the truth, I would be suing them too…coincident or not!
Check out this comparison…
Pretty damn convincing, huh?
Not only that, I remember when the album first dropped and this song was being used in iPod commercials, there being some hubbub over it sounding a bit too much like a song by a band called the Creaky Boards.
So what do you think? Either we have a case (or two) of plagiarism, or people just need to get a little more creative!
I’d only had a passing acquaintance with Reggae courtesy of a college friend who introduced me to Bob’s “No woman no cry” back in the Seventies, and, truth be told, these uneducated ears (at least back then) couldn’t deal with it. But, fast forward to the punk explosion and a bit of bandwagon-jumping by three newly-peroxided punk masqueraders. and Reggae, albeit a radical version - was served up again, and consumed with relish. I still believe The Police laid the path that joined Marley’s Reggae with the rest of the world, a “back door” if you will, through which we could explore it further.
Sting, in conjunction with the wonderful syncopated rhythms of Stewart Copeland, left acres of space across the sonic landscape I had never encountered before. Sparse, beautiful bass lines, weaving in and around those luscious hi-hats and Summer’s expressive guitar tapestries.
He could write a mean lyric too. but when you crown this package with a totally unique vocal delivery, you have a world beater. All I can say is, if Sting doesn’t deserve a place in this series, I don’t know who the hell does.
A comeback World tour with his original partners in crime (or should that be against crime?) shows that he can still bring it to the table.
Recommended listening: Spirits in the Material World – Try playing the bass line to this and singing it at the same time. You WILL go insane. It is pure genius.
Walking on the Moon – Less is more. Three bass notes, some hi-hat, and THAT voice, voila: Gold Dust!
Check out this amazing portrait of our next President! It was made by Kev Moore’s partner, French artist, Miki. It really shows the worldwide respect that our country has gained by taking a step in the right direction by electing Obama. Maybe it takes the U.S. hitting rock bottom to spur our citizenry off of their couches and into realizing that many of the ways we do things need to be changed.
Below the portrait are some words about the piece from the artist, Miki, herself. Cheers, Miki! Very well done!
(Based on a photo by Bill Burke, pageonephoto.com)
So, my first Barack Obama portrait is finished.
I think it is quite different from the portraits I have seen from him on the net. On most of them the artists emphasize only one aspect of his personality.
This is not what I wanted.
I wanted to paint Obama as a human being, with all his facets:
his humanity, his leadership, his honesty, his hopes, his decisiveness…
Of course I never met him personally, so it can only be the Barack Obama I perceive through the TV and the photos I have seen from him. And I saw all of these qualities on his face.
I can only hope that I have caught a little bit of his soul…
And if you are wondering what he is counting…. words of course:
Frances – All The While
MGMT – Oracular Spectacular
Black Mountain – In The Future
