Athens Ear Buds (1-21-10)

This is the final weekly Athens Ear Buds. It ran out of gas after a 14-month run (not counting summer). I just got tired of nagging people to contribute. And those "œpeople" include myself and my news staff here at The Athens NEWS.

While AEB was going strong, I think it was a unique and amazing community musical undertaking. But the dang thing pert near wore me out.

In the future, we may figure out how to resuscitate AEB as a less frequent feature. I've gotten a few ideas from contributors, and am willing to listen to more. If anybody else has any ideas about how to continue Athens Ear Buds in a different form or format, please e-mail me at news@athensnews.com.

Thanks again to everyone who contributed, and as always, please do not take my lazy bad example and buy all your music online. Instead, ignore my lazy bad example, and buy your records from Haffa's in Athens. "“ Terry Smith, Athens Ear Buds executioner

John McVicker is a NIMBY. Terry Smith's plea for brevity in last week's Earbuds didn't fall on deaf ears. Here's my take on Iron and Wine's fine new two-CD "Around the Well" (Sub Pop! 2009) in haiku form
Sam Beam rarities -
Home and studio -
Two disks, winter firelight -

Greg Bikowski, bassist for the Bob Stewart Band and the Bikowski Jazz Trio; paramedic for SEOEMS: For something a little different, take a listen to Steve Reich's "Different Trains" (Elektra/Asylum, 1989). The basic idea for this piece was generated from Reich's childhood during World War II when he traveled across the country by train, from Chicago to New York, in order to see his divorced parents. The piece is for string quartet (played on this recording by the Kronos Quartet) and tape. Reich essentially recorded interviews with train workers and riders and mixed them with recorded steam train whistles and sounds from the 1930s and 1940s. For the final part, Reich takes testimonies from Holocaust survivors and mixes them with sirens and alarms from WWII. Meanwhile, the Kronos Quartet plays repetitive chant-like phrases that match pitch with the interviews and testimonies. It's quite an eerie sound, but compelling. It's both a documentary and musical composition. The "B" side of the disc features Pat Metheny playing Reich's "Electric Counterpoint," which he composed for Metheny. Also well worth the listen.

Brandon Thompson, an Athens native who doubles as DJ B-Funk and misses Silverball and Aladdin's Castle: Various Artists "Anjuna Beats Volume 7" (Anjuna Beats 2009). This is the latest installment of the massively popular trance compilations put out by Above and Beyond's Anjuna Beats label. It seems that uplifting trance has gone the way of the dinosaur as far as electronic dance music goes. Previous trance superstars Paul Van Dyk and Tiesto (two of the top three DJs in the world) have even been making their way into more house-based music lately, abandoning much of their trance fans. It's great to know that Above and Beyond is still pumping out fresh-sounding epic tracks for the trance music faithful. This double CD will take a while to get into, but I promise on repeated listening you'll be hooked. Stand-out tracks include Above and Beyond's latest hit "Anjuna Beach" and Adam Nickey's "Callista (Stone Face & Terminal Mix). An excellent closer to the album is Cold Blue's "Downhill." My favorite track off the album and probably favorite track in the last three months has to be Super8 & Tab's "Iriufushi." The breakdown to this song is quite good, but the buildup to this monster track is better than most and will have you up moving around in no time. For more excellent trance music like this, check out Above and Beyond's weekly podcast @ www.trancearoundtheworld.com.

Dave Alexander, Athens' resident trainspotter and Dave Rave promoter: Dance music in 2009 was dominated by dubstep. Dubstep has its roots in UK garage and drum 'n bass "“ two genres I never really cared for "“ but I admit I'm hooked on dubstep's signature wobble bassline, especially dubstep re-works of popular songs. The artists to watch out for are Caspa, Rusko, Sub Focus, Chase & Status, and Skream. The latter's remix of La Roux's "In For the Kill" was arguably the remix of the year. BBC's Annie Mac has been championing the dubstep sound, and if you want to hear more, I recommend checking out her online radio show at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/mashup/. I also recommend checking out Burial's album "Untrue" (Nov. 6, 2007 on Hyperdub Records), which was one of the first albums to bring dubstep into the mainstream.

Andy Vogel is an OU student who writes for ACRN: Spooky is a rapper whom you may have run into on Court Street. He is also a person who may have hustled you to buy a DVD of his music. The local rapper gets his name from one of the ghosts in the Pacman game, thus explaining the character with stunna shades on the cover. His DVD includes seven videos and five live performances. Most of the live performances are from various strip-clubs and motocross places around Ohio such as Zanesville and Xenia. The most notable video would have to be "CD KING," a "how-to" on selling CDs (rule 1, have change for a $20!). The music video is complete with videos of OU students stumbling out of the various bars and buying his DVD. If you're lucky, you might spot him on the street selling. Go ahead and give to the cause of Spooky. However, you have been warned: his videos are very very graphic. Check out his myspace.com/spookyentertaiment site for upcoming tours and album releases. He used to do his thing at 19 South, which is now regrettably closed.

Gabriella Owen is reflecting on a majestic, music-filled weekend: Charlotte Gainsbourg, "IRM" (Because Music, 2009). Charlotte Gainsbourg's new album, "IRM," beholds everything you would expect from the veteran actress; her soft voice flows over thick and harsh melodies that clearly reflect her producer, Beck Hanson, who performs a duet with Gainsbourg in her first single, "Heaven Can Wait." This album is a far stretch from her 2006 album, "5:55," which was her first studio album in 20 years. The jump from stark piano chords to the rhythmic strum of Beck's guitar shows she is obviously improving her taste. IRM stands for magerie par résonance magnétique, which, in English-speaking terms, is an MRI, which Gainsbourg had to undergo when she was suffering a brain hemorrhage. The clicking and whirls of sounds in an MRI are transformed into the music behind her new album, revitalizing the tantalizing procedure. Applause is in order for our fascinating French lady, who has brought back the beauty that has started to seep away from folk music. (Editor's note: And most emphatically since Monday's passing of Kate McGarrigle of Montreal's Kate and Anna McGarrigle.)

Terry Smith, editor and Ear Buds czar. This video is in tribute to the great folk singer Kate McGarrigle, who passed away on Monday.