Brain of a Fish Band Pick: The Dead Weather

I was lucky enough to attend the taping of the mtvU Woodie Awards back on 11/18. It's quite an experience to be present at any awards show…especially a music-related one like this. "The Woodies"  is an awards show specifically for mtvU, which is the MTV channel that specifically caters to college students and their favorite indie bands.

While I was there, to some degree, I felt a bit out of touch with some of the music that seems to be capturing the hearts of Generation Y. These groups...Passion Pit and Matt and Kim, to name a couple, were enjoyable, but I just wasn't connecting to it in the same way that this demographic does. However, there was one particular exception...The Dead Weather.

The Dead Weather is Jack White's latest project. For those of you hiding 'neath the covers, Jack White is the singer/guitarist of The White Stripes, as well as his popular side project, The Raconteurs. The Dead Weather was formed by White along with Alison Mosshart, from the Kills. In this band, Jack White exercises his multi-instrumental talents. We were used to his moody vocals and his messy, yet brilliant, distorted guitar in White Stripes. In the Dead Weather, however, White primarily plays drums (and plays them quite well, I might add). During live shows, he'll occasionally step upstage to play guitar, too. Most impressive though, is his ability to successfully take on the daunting task of singing lead vocals while playing drums.

What astounded me most about seeing them live was their raw energy. A powerful, classic-sound. This song particularly has a punkish energy that's almost reminiscent of  Rage Against the Machine.

Check out this video of them performing  Treat Me Like Your Mother  live (not from the Woodies). This song is from their debut album, Horehound. Also, check 'em out when the Woodie Awards airs on Dec. 4th on mtvU.

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Brain of a Fish Video Pick: Hot Video from Foo Fighters

Here's a new video from one of my favorite bands, Foo Fighters.  They are led by insanely talented, multi-instrumentalist, Dave Grohl, who we also know as former Nirvana drummer. As a musician myself, I'm always inspired by Grohl's musicianship, his songwriting ability, and his pure musical energy.  In these post-Nirvana days, he's managed to configure this band of amazing musicians, including one of my favorite drummers...the heavy-hitting, Taylor Hawkins.

The Foo Fighters are about to release their Greatest Hits collection, which includes the new single, Wheels. Check out the video!

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Brain of a Fish Video Pick: Hot Video from Muse

Here's a video from a great band called Muse. They've been around since the mid-90's and have been extremely popular in the UK. In fact, just yesterday, they received the top prize at Britain's Q Awards..."The Best Act In the World Today" Award!  While they've been relatively unknown in the U.S, they've started to make their mark in the U.S. with their latest album, The Resistance.  This mark has been big enough that they are currently on the road as openers for none other than U2.  Check out this video for their single, Uprising. You'll hear some obvious influences, such as Radiohead and Depeche Mode.

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Brain of a Fish Video Pick: Hot Video from Silversun Pickups

Here's my video pick from a unique band that's been gaining tons of popularity with their most recent album release, Swoon. I was fortunate enough to see them play a few tunes live recently. Silversun Pickups are a great combination of hard-hitting beats, smooth vocals, and top-notch musicianship. Here is their latest video, Substitution.

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Brain of a Fish Video Pick: Hot Video from DCFC

Here's a video from a band that's been growing on me lately...Death Cab for Cutie. The song is called Grapevine Fires,from their latest release, Narrow Stairs.A creative video by a band whose popularity is rapidly growing...and for a good reason. Check them out! Enjoy!

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Hips Don't Lie!

As my friends and family already know, my favorite band is called The Mother Hips. The blurry photo to the left was taken from my phone last April when they played The Mercury Lounge, in NYC. Anyway, they're a band from Chico, California that came onto the scene with a big splash back in 1991 with their debut release, Back to the Grotto. After their sophomore release, Part Timer Goes Full, they were unfortunately dropped from their record label. However, that didn't stop them. With their growing fan base, they continued to release albums on indie labels and by themselves. They were first labeled as a hippy-ish "jam" band in the genre of Phish, for example. However, they went on to prove those labelers wrong. Each of their albums has a distinct sound that borrows from a variety of genres. While "Back to the Grotto" was in fact a "jam" band sound, Later Days sounded like a raw rock band, but with a heavily peppered country sound. With Green Hills of Earth and Kiss the Crystal Flake, the Hips began experimenting with different sounds, in somewhat of a psychedelic fashion..however, laden with perfected harmonies that are very reminiscient of the Beach Boys.

The Hips are about to release their latest album, Pacific Dust, which, after streaming some samples, sounds as if they've successfully melded all of the sounds from their previous releases and have created a brand new sound. The album is available for pre-order here: http://www.motherhips.com/pacificdust/index.php You can also stream a few sample tracks from the new album here.
It officially will be released on 10/27.

They have only recently, in the past few years, begun to place shows on the East Coast. Their almost cult-ish fanbase is primarily on the West Coast, but has been rapidly expanding. Lucky for us, they will be playing 2 shows at Joe's Pub in NYC on 11/17 and 11/18!

Now go place your order for Pacific Dust! If you're a true music fan, you won't regret it. These guys will blow your mind.