puredanger.com Blog

Musings on MP3s and audio media January 10, 2007

Filed under: music, web — Alex @ 9:28 pm

I thought some of you would enjoy this blog from David Byrne about the co-evolution of music and recording mediums. There are some interesting questions near the end about whether music will be created that is produced specifically for MP3 and headphone listening. Not sure I’ve seen that but who knows what our kids will be listening to in 10 years.

AppleTV and iPhone January 9, 2007

Filed under: music, news, web — Alex @ 12:41 pm

I’m watching the MacWorld keynote with Steve Jobs right now on a live transcript. He intro’ed the Apple TV (formerly iTV) which is a set top box that hooks up to your TV. Lets you watch movies, TV shows, listen to music, look at photo slide shows, etc all streamed from your PC or Mac via iTunes. $300. Pretty sweet.

They also announced a deal with Paramount for more movies. Passed their 2 billion songs downloaded mark. Selling 5 million songs a day. Moved up a spot over Amazon as 4th biggest music reseller.

But even better is the iPhone. It’s super thin and all touch screen. Multi-touch gestures to control it. 8 GB iPod built-in. 2 MP camera. Can show wide-screen. Proximity sensor, light sensor, accelerometer (can tell if you are showing portrait or landscape). Visual voicemail. Wifi and EDGE connectivity. Works with Cingular only I guess. I’m drooling – looks amazing. $500 for 4 GB and $600 for 8 GB. Available in June (still needs FCC approval).

I feel very happy with my decision to buy some AAPL stock last week (up 5% on the day right now). Wish I’d bought more…. :)

Pretty good coverage on the Engadget transcript although I’m sure all the Apple store stuff will be up later today as well.

James Brown is dead. December 25, 2006

Filed under: music, news — Alex @ 12:17 pm

James Brown died early Christmas morning at 73. He was a funky, funky man and a legend. Probably what I found most interesting about him was his ability to mold and shape a band around himself. You hear this most in some of the live tracks out there where he builds up a jam, bringing guys in and out. Admittedly, those guys could play, but it was his vision that got them all pointed in the same direction and creating the incredible grooves he’s known for. RIP.

Update: Here’s another post with a great pic of JB.

My Favorite Albums of 2006 December 22, 2006

Filed under: music, recommendation — Alex @ 10:41 pm

Thought it was time for my own personal musical roundup. Here are my favorites. Not all of these are 2006 releases, but they are all albums that were new to me in 2006 and frequently listened.

Breakestra – Hit the Floor (2005) – If you’ve got a thicker slice of funk this side of 2000, I’d like to hear it. You cannot listen to these guys without grooving. The album has some straight-ahead funk, the canonical hip-hop track with a pile of guests, and some more laid-back stuff and it is all worthy of your undivided and immediate attention.
Nada Surf – The Weight Is a Gift (2005) – This is a consistently great pop album and never fails to hook me within minutes. Oftentimes I catch a song on shuffle and end up listening to half the album. This album also contains one of my absolute favorite songs of the year, “Blankest Year”, which is two minutes of pure pop wonderment.
The Raconteurs – Broken Boy Soldiers (2006) – Jack White’s other band put together a great rock album this year. Hopefully this means rock is back! It also contains one of my favorite songs of the year, “Level”. They also have one of the best band web sites ever.
Ben Kweller – Ben Kweller (2006) – Ben put out a great pop record this year that I’ve found myself getting hooked back into over and over. My favorite track on the album is “Penny on a Train Track”.
Mike Doughty – Haughty Melodic (2005) – Mike is better known for his band Soul Coughing, although I guess even Soul Coughing is fairly unknown. Anyhow, he’s been doing solo work for a few years now and I think as a whole it’s better than his Soul Coughing stuff. It’s a lot more stripped down, less instrumentation, but that brings out his quirky lyrics and music more.
Imogen Heap – Speak for Yourself (2005) – For some reason I came across Imogen’s last album and it was just what I wanted to listen to for a while. Kind of pop/dance/electronic music. The track “Hide and Seek” was definitely one of my most-listened this year – it’s all vocals, with heavy electronic processing. Best heard loud.
Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam (2006) – PJ is back with the first album I’ve actually liked since Vs. Lot of good stuff on this and I certainly heard it a lot in the car and at home as it was one of Mary’s favorite CD’s of the year too.
Fall Out Boy – From Under the Cork Tree (2005) – probably my favorite power pop ear candy album of the year. Lots of fun stuff and ridiculous song titles. Another power pop honorable mention would be Panic! at the Disco.
Shout Out Out Out Out – Not Saying Just Saying (2006) – Two drummers + four bass players + two samplers + five synthesizers + five cowbells + two octapads + one vocoder = awesomeness. Dance electronic funk. Check out “Dude You Feel Electrical”.
Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not (2006) – Great unique stuff from these UK guys. They put out a couple other decent EPs this year too but my favorite stuff is all on the album. My favorite track is “Red Light Indicates Doors are Secured”.