bigalittlea.
29Jul08
While it doesn’t seem to be listed on the Bluebird’s website there is a mean show coming up on Sunday. It includes William Sides Atari Party, giveupnewyork, Spunky Toofers (pic above), Bit Bare and Player Two. If at one point in the evening you realize they are using sample from Mega Man 3’s Shadow Man Stage, please fight the urge to go home and dust off your NES and stay for the rest of the show.
William Sides Atari Party - Project Horizon
giveupnewyork - Dreaming of Winter
Player Two - Obsolete Technology
Parts & Labor.
16Jul08
Thanks to ol’ trusty P4K I just read that one of MusicSucks’ favorites Parts & Labor will be releasing their new album (cover above) featuring fan submitted audio on October 21. Additionally, they will be hitting the Billiken Club Oct 25!
Our next edition of the STL Spotlight is with Superfun Yeah Yeah Rocketship. Everyone’s favorite WWF wrestling, comic book toting man about town. Check him out at The Bluebird July 13th!
How did Superfun get it’s start?
I started out in the 2 man band the Beautifuls, but after my friend Wes quit, I started performing by myself and it just kinda took off from there.
Where do you draw your musical influences from?
I really listen to everything. Weezer is by far my favorite band ever in the world. I listen to a lot of electro stuff, indie rock stuff, top 40 pop music, rap, country stuff. Pretty much I listen to a mixed bag of stuff and try to bring that to what I do.
What have you been listening to a lot of lately?
Lately I’ve been listening to the new Weezer album. I’m a pretty big fan of that. I’ve been listening to this DJ called Treasure Fingers a lot. A little bit of Mates of State, a little bit of Kenny Rogers. Thats all I can think of off the top of my head.
Do you think that you are most influenced by current artists or stuff you grew up listening too?
I’d say more current artists for sure. When I was younger I pretty much only listened to country music and the Toy Story soundtrack. Then I got into a lot of metal. So I’d say it’s more of what I’m listening to now.
Are there any musicians/artists that standout to you right now?
Weezer, of course. I’ve been kinda in a drought when it comes to finding new stuff to listen to. Nothing has really been catching my attention lately.
Back in the day I used to read Scud: The Disposable Assassin and Johnny the Homicidal Maniac and relatedly Squee but what are your favorite comics?
I’ve always been a big X-Men fan. I’m still that way. Just Marvel in general. I really like Ultimate X-Men. I’m really far behind in my comic reading though, I need to catch up.
What is your favorite piece of musical equipment?
My laptop/the internet. That’s about all I used these days.
Whats your favorite food?
I’d have to say Red Robin. I love that place.
The Roadside Graves are headed to the Lemp to headline a full bill of MEGAFAUN, Matt Dill, Eric Hall and Harlot Bride. Should be a good show. To boot they have been getting some good press lately for their latest single Ruby places like Stereogum and Prefix. Be there July 17th, it’s only $5!
With an eye on what’s happening locally, Musicsucks is starting a series spotlighting local StL bands. One part MP3 free-for-all, one part interview, and one part soundcheck we’re hoping to highlight the diversity of talent right here in your own Lou. Today we’re talking talking with Robby Ritter from The Ghost Of The Forest, who professes a love of percussive instruments, fellow radiant popsters The Pomegranates, and all things “east of unusual.”
I first saw TGOTF at some random Red Sea basement show and they knocked my socks off with their naive exuberance. I immediately bought their hand-made $5 debut. This teen bedroom-pop outfit from St. Charles has a delightfully sparkling piano-driven sound that combined with lo-fi guitiars borrows heavily from Broken Social Scene’s instrumentals, with doses of sunny Camera Obscura-esque melodies, and Nick Diamond’s (The Unicorns/Islands) influenced rhythms. All of which belies lyrical themes of yearning, lost love, death, and ostracism. My favorite ‘We Are Men’ is both a hilarious commentary on masculinity (We are me/We fight with our hands/we steal your women/and pillage the land) and expose of the juvenile male experience. Their sophomore album “My Time To Die” is available at local Slackers locations, and you can catch Robby’s solo act Bear (The Ghost) at the Lemp Arts Center July 29th.
We Are Men (LISTEN)
The Ghost Of The Forest (LISTEN)
MS: How did The Ghost of the Forest get it’s start?
RR: well it all started back in 2006. I was a bright starry eyed child, looking for love in all the wrong places. One day i was driving to my school, and i saw these woods, and i was like, man, it would be sweet to play a show in the woods (which i still want to do!) and then the name The Ghost Of The Forest hit me. The first song i recorded under this new name was heavily influenced by Liars. I knew this would be my new style, dark, scarry, and awesome! Shortly after this i wrote the song “OH”, which is on our new album ‘My Time To Die’ and realized that in my heart, i was a pop song writer. The next song i recorded was ‘We Are Men’ which quickly rose to number 15 on the charts. I knew that i must start a real band. Collin and I played ‘We Are Men’ at our schools talent show. It went over pretty well, and we decided that it was time for the big leagues. We started asking friends to join the band. Our debut show was May 28th ['06] at Lemp Arts Center with Berlin Whale and Frog Eyes. Since then we have added new members and lost old ones, but we have finally found our sound and are ready to take the indie world by storm!
MS: Where do you draw your musical influences from?
RR: Well personally my biggest 2 influences are Sigur Ros and Sufjan Stevens. But across the band we get influences from Animal Collective, The Strokes, The Beatles, The Walkmen, Arcade Fire, Patrick Wolf, The Cure, and Gorillaz (just to name a few)
MS: What have you been listening to a lot of lately?
RR: hmmm… tough question, i usually just put my ipod on shuffle. I really like Pomegranates. They are a smaller band from Cincinnati and i listen to their CD and EP alot. oh, and i just heard the new Fleet Foxes cd….it blew me out of the water.
MS: Do you think that you are most influenced by current artists or stuff you grew up listening too?
RR: Well i used to be influence by The Unicorns, but lately i am mostly just influenced by what i listen to now.
MS: What is your favorite piece of musical equipment?
RR: well i grew up on drums, and since i play piano all the time it is really fun to play drums. Im gonna go with Drums for $500, Alex.
MS: Whats your favorite food?
RR: I really like Pei Wei, i think it is Japanese.
Here is an interview with Cadence Weapon, if you haven’t checked it out his new album Afterparty Babies is pretty dope.
New Girl Talk.
23Jun08Since you are already on MusicSucks it means you are online and can download stuff. As such, go buy the new Girl Talk album, it’s a “name your price” sorta thing and is really easy. Well worth the money you have sitting in your paypal account already.
alaska in winter
17Jun08New Wolf Parade Due Out Tuesday.
13Jun08
Hey kids, go to Vintage Vinyl, walk past the new Coldplay and pick up the new Wolf Parade album At Mount Zoomer on Tuesday. From what’s on their myspace and what I heard last year it should be killer.
