Sonic Opus

(Indie Rock) Giving Up the Gun appears on Vampire Weekend's second album, Contra.  Contra is easily one of the best releases of 2010, so far.  Vampire Weekend burst onto the scene in 2008 with their eponymous first release, which melded the worlds of Ivy League "preppyness" with their distinct love for world beats/African rhythm.  This style is carried over nicely on Contra, but, unfortunately, is not shown very well on Giving Up the Gun.  I personally didn't like this song on the album.  It was simply... too simple.  Too regular.  Nothing about makes it appealing to me, whereas the rest of the album is unbelievable. The video for Giving Up the Gun is entertaining, however.  This song has nothing to do with tennis, but that's all that is conveyed in the video.  With actors and artists such as RZA, Jake Gyllenhaal, Lil Jon, and Joe Jonas, it becomes more comedic than meaningful.  I feel it's worth a view. Buy Contra on CD: Contra or vinyl: Contra

(Indie Rock, Baroque Pop) Owen Pallett is a one man genius.  I love his work.  Heartland is his latest release, and the first under his own name.  Prior records were released under the name Final Fantasy, based off the popular Japanese video game series (which is what originally drew me to his work.  With Heartland he used a lot of violin arrangements melded together through digital bleeps, and carried along with his voice.  Definitely a nice album for anyone interested in softer music. Probably the most popular song on the album, Lewis Takes Off His Shirt, is the first track to get it's own music video.  Personally, I didn't find the video that entertaining. It was just off in my opinion. Symbolism? Maybe? Idk, there is a lot of hidden themes it was trying to convey.  Orange soda, stabbing yourself, hockey mask, blowing dust, stacking soap... Anyway, check it out. Great song. If you like Owen Pallett, or Final Fantasy, get the CD: Heartland or LP: Heartland (2 LP)

(Minimal Techno) Hey all.  I just realized that Pantha du Prince and Noah Lennox (Panda Bear) released a music video to their single Stick to My Side.  It's not the greatest video. In fact I was a little disappointed, but it's not bad either. It's just... really weird. But maybe all you weirdo's out there will like it a little more.  It's a great song by Pantha du Prince, featuring Panda Bear (of Animal Collective), and the video actually does capture the essence that the song is trying to convey (I think...). Anywho. There is a bigfoot-esque character in here that seems to be like friends to this human and the human lets him stay in his house. And later he runs out and finds another monster thing and hugs it incredibly awkwardly. That sums up the video... in the snow. Support Pantha du Prince (and Noah Lennox). Buy the CD: Black Noiseor buy the vinyl: Black Noise