Epitonic Newsletter: Vol. 4, No. 30 'The Gospel According to Lee'
08/19/02
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Earlier this month, Epitonic's Justin Sinkovich conducted an hour-long
telephonic tete-a-tete with Sonic Youth's great guitarist Lee Ranaldo.
They chatted about a variety of subjects, including Jim O'Rourke, the
new album, the group's downtown NY studio, All Tomorrow's Parties,
and whether the songs we chose to feature on Epitonic adequately
represent the band's amazing discography. One of those songs, "Dirty
Boots," from the great 1990 album Goo, opens up this week's playlist,
so you can get in a Sonic Youth frame of mind as you hunker down to
read the gospel according to Lee. Those of you who hunger for all
things Sonic Youth should check out the September/October issue of RES
Magazine, which is due to hit newstands in two weeks and will feature
the Youth's Thurston Moore responding to five burning questions from
Epitonic's Jesse Ashlock. Read the interview.
Also in Fishwrap, get the latest on Matador's alliance with Beggars
Banquet, Beck's plans to tour with the Flaming Lips, and the VICE
Magazine's nefarious plans to take over the music industry.
We also want to ask you to vote in the "Perrier Across America" independent filmmaker
contest. If you don't know about said contest, this summer our
friends at RES teamed with Perrier to give five lucky filmmakers
the chance to create The Great American Road Movie. The filmmakers
spent ten days traveling from New York City to Los Angeles armed
only with a mini-DV camera. Upon arriving in LA, they entered a grueling eight-week post-production period. Now, at last, the
fruits of their labors are ready for your eyes. One of these five
films will be win the Grand Prize and receive inclusion in this
year's RESFEST program (more on that below). But we need your help
in picking the award-winning film. You'll be asked to vote on each
film on the merits of its cinematography and effects, editing,
direction, originality, and soundtrack. The film with the highest
overall marks will be the winner. Vote!
Finally, we encourage you to check out all the new music on Epitonic,
some of which is featured in this playlist. From Sleater-Kinney to
Shakeyface, Kissing Book to Koop, we've got fresh tunes for every
taste.
"Dirty Boots"
by
Sonic Youth
One of the most important and beloved bands of the past twenty years, Sonic Youth is almost singularly responsible for the acceptance of avant-garde forms by underground rock audiences. The albums in their remarkable discography possess the unique ability to appeal to passions both visceral and cerebral. If you've never explored this band's amazing contribution to rock, now is a perfect time to start.
"Oh!"
by
Sleater-Kinney
Sleater-Kinney's celebrated trio of rock and roll cult heroes/goddesses conducts cathartic punk exorcisms (gender hierarchy, political inequality, consumerism) and baptisms (female empowerment, humanity, humor) with unflagging exuberance and passion.
"Tittiepop"
by
Need New Body
Philly's Need New Body offers exciting and bizarre stew of sounds and ideas unlike pretty much anything else going on today. Featuring former members of Bent Leg Fatima, the group sounds like Beefheart by way of '70s Germany.
"Drano In Your Veins"
by
The Styrenes
The Styrenes have been making f*cked-up records since 1971. If you've never had the pleasure of hearing them, imagine Pere Ubu backing Syd Barrett and check it out.
"Is This It?"
by
Polara
Ed Ackerson and company have been producing polished space pop since 1994. My Bloody Valentine has always influenced Polara, but that's never a bad thing.
"Crisp Winter"
by
Dame Fate
Washington DC all-female trio Dame Fate creates sweeping pieces of shimmering, elegant noirish rock beauty, walking a tightrope between spectral fragmentary pop and muscular heavy rock.
"Bolero Sin Querer"
by
Refree
One of several bold and astonishing new artists to have emerged from Spain over the past few years, Refree finds beauty in the strangest of places, making lengthy, hypnotic, entrancing compositions that feel like a distant twice-removed descendant of traditional folk music.
"All That You Give"
by
Cinematic Orchestra
Following up the much-heralded Motion with the even more ambitious Every Day, J. Swinscoe is the composer, arranger, and producer of the Cinematic Orchestra's darkly evocative, deeply soulful music, a combination of cut and paste sample techniques and live instrumental ensemble work.
"Blown"
by
Cruiser
This Scottish sextet merges ambient electronic textures with a host of older pop motifs to create ethereal, unmoored, minimalist music that hypnotizes with its repetitive figures and gentle atmospheres.
"Summer Sun"
by
KOOP
This Swedish production duo delivers their own refined, refreshing take on the burgeoning genre of nu-jazz, delivering a flawlessly intoxicating update on the irresistible sounds of swinging pre-fusion jazz and showcasing some truly incredible vocalists, including Terry Callier and teenage phenom Yukimi Nagano.
"Ogre"
by
Fingathing
A musical duo crafting surprising sounds out of two turntables and one double bass, Manchester's Fingathing use their impressive pedigrees (one's a DMC Mix champ discovered by Mark Rae, the other a classically trained bassist) to fuse stoner-rock, jazz, and anything else they can find into their own uniquely mangled hip hop aesthetic.
"Fishing For Swords"
by
Shakeyface
Brooklyn's latest beat-meister, Shakeyface snips, samples, cuts, and pastes a wide range of sounds, both found and recorded, onto a canvas of lowdown beats and bass. His original, organic sound sits comfortably on the decks next to Nightmares On Wax and DJ Shadow.
"Baby C'mon (Ron Trent Remix)"
by
Aqua Bassino
Scotland's king of cool, Jason Robertson makes deep jazzy house for French imprint F Communications and moonlights as Jay Salino for Brooklyn's versatile Statra label.
