I'm sitting at work listening to music, and it hit my like a ton of bricks that I need to make a quick post about this incredible mix from Greg Benz.
I frequently grab sets from Hybridized , a fan site dedicated bootleg DJ mixes recorded off of various radio stations.
Greg Benz has proved to be a gold mine of DJ mixes that keep me motivated. I'm enthralled by his selections and mix choices in each and every set. After having heard countless progressive trance, dance, and house songs being spun from his seemingly endless crates of records (or gigs of mp3s)-- he blew us all away with the Aurium July 2008 set: The first mix is very chill (which I reccomend), but the one that REALLY got me was the second set.
Regardless of whether or not you enjoy Drum & Bass, you MUST grab this set.
The link contains the track list and file. I don't think there is a cue sheet available yet.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Robin Williams - Working on New Material - May 15th 2008 - Showbox
Yes.. I'm posting about going to a comedy show here.
yes... contrary to what you find in a simple Google search on this show, I thought it was fucking hilarious.
Robin Williams isn't much different now than he was 'back in the day'. His high-contrast humor lends itself to poking fun at himself and others in their darkness: making fun of his alcoholism, divorces, and our incredibly screwed up politics in the US.
He was spot on and incredibly sharp with responses to the crowd, delivery of jokes, and his AADD demeanor. I paid good money to see Robin Williams, and Robin Williams is what I saw!
The Showbox was configured for seating. There were a bunch of cocktail tables (bar height) with stool seats for everyone in the bar area, with normal tables and chairs in the pit/main floor. The Showbox cleans up nicely for events like this. Given that the tickets were expensive and that the money went towards charity, I am glad that there was effort into presenting a very club/lounge-like environment for the show.
During the show there was a belligerent drunk chick sitting towards the back that kept yelling in response to some of the off-color remarks Robin Williams made about politics and the Seattle area. It was great when he ripped into her and turned her into an example of 'what not to be' at a comedy show, as well as turned the audience against her. After the third outburst from her (that ended up being pretty vulgar), she was kicked out of the show.
I liked the grey line humor and was not made uncomfortable at all by the personal life introspection. It was refreshing to hear the cynical and dark commentary on our social structure, politics, and general observations of life. It is very much the humor of my growing up and I appreciate it to no end when it is as smartly written and presented-- but let's not forget that Robin Williams also carries a bottom line message of overall positivity in that we all need to get along together.. and that, too, was refreshing to hear.
yes... contrary to what you find in a simple Google search on this show, I thought it was fucking hilarious.
Robin Williams isn't much different now than he was 'back in the day'. His high-contrast humor lends itself to poking fun at himself and others in their darkness: making fun of his alcoholism, divorces, and our incredibly screwed up politics in the US.
He was spot on and incredibly sharp with responses to the crowd, delivery of jokes, and his AADD demeanor. I paid good money to see Robin Williams, and Robin Williams is what I saw!
The Showbox was configured for seating. There were a bunch of cocktail tables (bar height) with stool seats for everyone in the bar area, with normal tables and chairs in the pit/main floor. The Showbox cleans up nicely for events like this. Given that the tickets were expensive and that the money went towards charity, I am glad that there was effort into presenting a very club/lounge-like environment for the show.
During the show there was a belligerent drunk chick sitting towards the back that kept yelling in response to some of the off-color remarks Robin Williams made about politics and the Seattle area. It was great when he ripped into her and turned her into an example of 'what not to be' at a comedy show, as well as turned the audience against her. After the third outburst from her (that ended up being pretty vulgar), she was kicked out of the show.
I liked the grey line humor and was not made uncomfortable at all by the personal life introspection. It was refreshing to hear the cynical and dark commentary on our social structure, politics, and general observations of life. It is very much the humor of my growing up and I appreciate it to no end when it is as smartly written and presented-- but let's not forget that Robin Williams also carries a bottom line message of overall positivity in that we all need to get along together.. and that, too, was refreshing to hear.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
April 12th, 2008 - RJD2 @ Chop Suey, Seattle
The good: RJD2 was rockin' it on stage. Highlights include a killer remix set (of his own music), live performances of the more rock-based music (he had a wicked sounding telecaster), and video game references:
The theme from Zelda was played, and kicked major ass.
There was a small camera pointed at RJD2's drum pad (projected to the back of the stage on a white screen), which at first glance was blacked-out and painted with red stripes.. but it wasn't until he set up for a skit using a puppet of Mario, barrels, and samples from Donkey Kong, that I realized what the drum pad was decorated as (a Donkey Kong level). It was awesome as he used the drum pad to trigger the game sounds of Mario running, jumping over barrels, getting the hammer, and finally getting smashed by a barrel. Good times!
He played a song I hadn't heard before (I'm not a hardcore fan) that was composed almost entirely of samples played on his drum pad, such that the drum segments were about 2 bars each and could be mixed in a bunch of different patterns-- along with a few of the pads that played some really crunchy synth tones as the melody... it really made me think about how I can utilized my Korg padKontrol a bit more effectively (entertainingly, anyway).
So now that I have the "good" out of the way:
The bad: The humid: The suffocating: Hell, call it what you will, but Chop Suey SUCKS!
The show was clearly over-sold. There were so many people in the tiny venue that the door, which they couldn't keep open due to the noise ordinance, was getting steamy on the glass. It was so incredibly humid that it felt like I was breathing recycled air. It was the worst concert going experience I've ever had.. Don't get me wrong, I loved seeing RJD2, but holy hell Chop Suey is one of the worst venues ever! At a few points two of my friends had to step outside to get some fresh air during RJD2's performance.. and finally I just said 'screw this'.
I had seen the songs I wanted to see live, and felt sufficiently entertained to the point where I called the show off and we all walked back to the car to get the F out of there.
Not only was the venue itself void of oxygen, the opening act (which didn't get under way until 10:45.. 1 hour and 45 minutes after the doors opened) Dälek... didn't impress. Why is it that some groups, especially the 'hardcore' hip-hop style groups and artists feel the need to literally blow the ear drums out of concert goers? Is their music that lack luster and unpolished that they need to hide the short comings by turning up the volume to the point of distorting the output of the club system? I bet his music would've sounded pretty damn good (though repetitive from the first bar of music) had it not been so loud that we left during his last song to avoid injuring our ear drums ;P
The guy was entirely too fake on stage.. doing the mean fat-rapper-guy-stare-snarl-mean-faced-frowning-breathing-heavy-while-he-sweats-cause-chop-suey-sucks-sweaty-balls BS that is typical of that flavor of "hip-hop". The beats were pretty cool and some of it sounded VERY Massive Attack-like (I swear there was a hook lifted from one of their songs.. I wish I could remember how it went).
At one point, I could've sworn the guy was fat-breathing into the microphone.
-----
So a not-so-great opening act, a terrible venue, yet good music from the main act. It makes for an experience worth talking about at least. Maybe that's the angle that Chop Suey is going for-- a dive experience like none other.
The theme from Zelda was played, and kicked major ass.
There was a small camera pointed at RJD2's drum pad (projected to the back of the stage on a white screen), which at first glance was blacked-out and painted with red stripes.. but it wasn't until he set up for a skit using a puppet of Mario, barrels, and samples from Donkey Kong, that I realized what the drum pad was decorated as (a Donkey Kong level). It was awesome as he used the drum pad to trigger the game sounds of Mario running, jumping over barrels, getting the hammer, and finally getting smashed by a barrel. Good times!
He played a song I hadn't heard before (I'm not a hardcore fan) that was composed almost entirely of samples played on his drum pad, such that the drum segments were about 2 bars each and could be mixed in a bunch of different patterns-- along with a few of the pads that played some really crunchy synth tones as the melody... it really made me think about how I can utilized my Korg padKontrol a bit more effectively (entertainingly, anyway).
So now that I have the "good" out of the way:
The bad: The humid: The suffocating: Hell, call it what you will, but Chop Suey SUCKS!
The show was clearly over-sold. There were so many people in the tiny venue that the door, which they couldn't keep open due to the noise ordinance, was getting steamy on the glass. It was so incredibly humid that it felt like I was breathing recycled air. It was the worst concert going experience I've ever had.. Don't get me wrong, I loved seeing RJD2, but holy hell Chop Suey is one of the worst venues ever! At a few points two of my friends had to step outside to get some fresh air during RJD2's performance.. and finally I just said 'screw this'.
I had seen the songs I wanted to see live, and felt sufficiently entertained to the point where I called the show off and we all walked back to the car to get the F out of there.
Not only was the venue itself void of oxygen, the opening act (which didn't get under way until 10:45.. 1 hour and 45 minutes after the doors opened) Dälek... didn't impress. Why is it that some groups, especially the 'hardcore' hip-hop style groups and artists feel the need to literally blow the ear drums out of concert goers? Is their music that lack luster and unpolished that they need to hide the short comings by turning up the volume to the point of distorting the output of the club system? I bet his music would've sounded pretty damn good (though repetitive from the first bar of music) had it not been so loud that we left during his last song to avoid injuring our ear drums ;P
The guy was entirely too fake on stage.. doing the mean fat-rapper-guy-stare-snarl-mean-faced-frowning-breathing-heavy-while-he-sweats-cause-chop-suey-sucks-sweaty-balls BS that is typical of that flavor of "hip-hop". The beats were pretty cool and some of it sounded VERY Massive Attack-like (I swear there was a hook lifted from one of their songs.. I wish I could remember how it went).
At one point, I could've sworn the guy was fat-breathing into the microphone.
-----
So a not-so-great opening act, a terrible venue, yet good music from the main act. It makes for an experience worth talking about at least. Maybe that's the angle that Chop Suey is going for-- a dive experience like none other.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Getting Things In Order
I'm getting stuff in order on this site. It's going to take awhile since some thins, like the gutter "Artists I've Seen" list requires links that I manually put in. Wee!
Friday, March 14, 2008
Back Once Again with the Ill Behavior.
It's been forever since I've even posted to this blog, but I'm going on an all out multi-blogger assault here and it's time to bring this one out of retirement.
Here's to the future.
Here's to the future.
Monday, September 13, 2004
Lately :
.) Mos Def - Black on Both Sides
.) The Streets - Original Pirate Material
.) Beastie Boys - To The Five Boroughs
.) Soulstice - Illusion
.) Jamiroquai - Synkronized
I've been listening to a healthy dosage of Soma FM still, as well as some favourite DJ sets of mine by Way Out West and Digital Witchcraft. Tickets have been purchased to see Interpol at the Paramount Theater on October 22nd, I'm very excited =D
.) Mos Def - Black on Both Sides
.) The Streets - Original Pirate Material
.) Beastie Boys - To The Five Boroughs
.) Soulstice - Illusion
.) Jamiroquai - Synkronized
I've been listening to a healthy dosage of Soma FM still, as well as some favourite DJ sets of mine by Way Out West and Digital Witchcraft. Tickets have been purchased to see Interpol at the Paramount Theater on October 22nd, I'm very excited =D
Thursday, August 12, 2004
Now that I live off campus, I'm less likely to stream content from my machine at home. Rather than listen to my vast collection of music, I have been keeping myself exposed to new artists and groups (and some familiar ones) while listening to streaming radio. Via a friend at work and advertisements on Shoutcast, I'm now hooked on Soma FM.
The three stations of theirs that I listen to most are: Groove Salad, Beat Blender, and Secret Agent. I find that Beat Blender tends to have the best of the chillout and deep, relaxing tunes. Secret Agent is, of course, that excellent spy and world flavored music that will get you going. Groove Salad is a hit-or-miss mixed-nuts version of chillout, spy/world, and house.
At any rate, I love listening to Soma FM. If you're looking for some new stations to listen to, definately add these to your list.
The three stations of theirs that I listen to most are: Groove Salad, Beat Blender, and Secret Agent. I find that Beat Blender tends to have the best of the chillout and deep, relaxing tunes. Secret Agent is, of course, that excellent spy and world flavored music that will get you going. Groove Salad is a hit-or-miss mixed-nuts version of chillout, spy/world, and house.
At any rate, I love listening to Soma FM. If you're looking for some new stations to listen to, definately add these to your list.
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