OK GO {This Too Shall Pass}
This is the second video for the band’s latest single “This Too Shall Pass.” In a bizarre, marekting-stifiling event, the original video, could not be embedded on any blogs (viral video is OK GO’s claim to fame btw) because of a profiting-sharing deal worked out between Google and EMI, the band’s label. Where does that leave OK GO whose unforgettable treadmill video, earned them a place in the spotlight?
Assed out, that’s where.
Enter State Farm Insurance Agency, who swooped in and funded an entirely new, #SuperFantastic feat of gadgetry that has become OK GO’s 2nd video for the single “This Too Shall Pass.” This video is a sort kick in the teeth to the already fading/faded image of the record industry. Will this be a dawning of a new era of corporate sponsorship of music artists? Will entire albums be brought to you by State Farm and other corporations looking to enhance their corporate good will? Who knows. For OK GO, this was the best way to get their product to the public, so for now I say, good for them!
The Red Sneaker Diaries →{treehouse talk.} @hernameisEL
#152 ↔ Mister, What Have You To Say?
After hearing the music this band produces it was hard for me to understand why they are still college students when it’s clear they should be somewhere opening on the European leg of a Radiohead tour. They are just too big to be unknown. Period. The music is soulful and fulfilling, thoughtful and organic, planned and improvised. Alex Smith, Bryan Carey, Kyle Dobbs, and Grant Wallace, (the latter two band mates are also members of BABY BABY) have discovered the method to tame the madness, gave it harmony and became Treehouse Talk, the musical movement.
The inaugural 5 track EP Nightmare Balloon was released in November of 2009, written and arranged by Treehouse Talk and produced by Nick Spezia of Ocean Way Studios (Nasheville, TN). As far as I am concerned Nightmare Balloon could have been realeased as a debut album. Tracks like “Bloom” and “O Child” offer an unforeseen depth while “White Flag Out The Window (smile)” rounds out the album with an upbeat joy about letting go of the drama and perhaps even the past.
Happenstance or divine design? I am not sure why I came across Treehouse Talk, all I know is one day I logged in to the glorious book of faces and saw on my homepage that my new friend Grant Wallace posted something to a fan page that goes by the name of Treehouse Talk. Needless to say I clicked. Four clicks and a bottle of Parrot Bay later I was stretched out on the floor of my apartment listening to Treehouse Talk’s myspace page and pondering the meaning of the universe. (Sidenote: The drunken stupor never actually happened… to me…)
“[Treehouse Talk is] Mind blowing, skin bumping goodness.”
-Grant Wallace, Treehouse Talk
Below the jump is your (re)introduction (interview, pics, media, EP download) to the melodies of Treehouse Talk, an unknown gem.
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Nightmare Balloon EP
DOWNLOAD EP HERE
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Look out for the next entry into the RED SNEAKER DIARIES…
Read More…
The Red Sneaker Diaries →{BABY BABY} @hernameisEL
#142 ↔ Watch My Spirits Fly
Let me begin by stating “I dig.” It’s important for me to mention this because I was blown away by the richness of this music. It is a pleasant blend. Past, present and future fun-rock, a genre of music coined by BABY BABY themselves.
“I could only describe it as Fun-Rock. In the vein of Weezer and Cobra Starship, not in the music by any means, but in the idea that when we step on stage we immediately start having a blast and the people in the crowd are having fun as well. That’s just what we’re about.” -Fontez brooks, BABY BABY
And it is fun. I can admit that I laughed the first time I heard “We Do This All Night Long.” I listen to BABY BABY and hear remnants of the 90s; trickles of WAR (one of my ALL TIME favorites); and bits and pieces of everything else (including band-hugs, can’t forget the band-hugs).
Yes, the tracks are a little grainy. They’re indie (in the true sense of the word)! But the audio quality takes absolutely nothing away from the musical quality. Anyone who has an ear for music can envision what “Take Me To The River” would sound like if recorded inside of a better studio. Although, I like it right now. I find myself singing these songs walking down the street. BABY BABY is infectious.
BABY BABY released their first EP, Drinking Drama Dance, a few months ago. Hailing from Carrollton, GA (Small Town/ College Town, USA); good music is good music and BABY BABY’s ever-growing popularity is proof of that. #RedSneakerDiaries recommend.
If your are new to the music, then you heard it here first. Hit the jump to meet BABY BABY the men and the music. And don’t forget BABY BABY ♥s U!
Look out for the next entry into the RED SNEAKER DIARIES…
Product (RED) Leather Jacket Chuck Taylor All-Star
On World AIDS Day, Converse launches its (PRODUCT) RED by releasing these Leather Jacket Chuck Taylor All Star. Made with motorcycle jacket-inspired leather, the limited edition sneakers will hit (RED) retailers in NYC, San Francisco and London, as well as www.converse.com. The shoes cost $200, and ten percent of the wholesale price of the sneakers will benefit The Global Fund that helps to eliminate AIDS in Africa.
Hit the jump for more pics.
The Red Sneaker Diaries →{Jimi Cravity} @hernameisEL
#139 ↔ Home Grown
Charlie, John, Rachel… Amber? No, he hasn’t penned a song bearing my name… yet. But I do feel like his music was written, arranged, and performed for me. Good music, like a good suit, should feel as though it was tailored to fit your soul. And, if done correctly, others should hear it and want to know where they can go for an auditory upgrade. All directions point Under The Helmet.
Jimi Cravity is, well, by all accounts, ordinary. He is a songwriter, a musician, a philosopher, quiet, humble, and extremely well mannered. It isn’t until his electrifying live performances that he comes alive and shows us all that we are mere mortals (and not just because his helmet is space cadet-esque). The passion is sincere and evident. Genius is relative, much like the rest of life, each person has a working definition of “genius” which is limited or expanded by their individual lived experiences. So for you, I won’t place the “genius” label on his music. I will just say that it is really, really, really, damn good; for the sake of argument.
As far as my personal taste is concerned, I think it is genius. #Epic. Each song has a story. Each story has a time and space in which its truth lives. An intro, a verse, a guitar riff, (a ridiculous drum section beneath a chorus & ad-libs layered outstandingly as heard below on “In Her Shoes.”) Each component plays its part in the construction of timeless music. Whether it is original music or a crazy Coldplay or Gnarls Barkley cover, Jimi Cravity and his Popular Muse Academy are forces to be reckoned with. “Architects of their futures,” they want to bring you into the fold, pass you a pen and ask you to transcribe your soul; challenge your legacy. I believe I can get behind that logic.
The debut album drops January 29, 2010. Prepare yourself for Atlanta born and bred alternative-rock.
Introducing, or reintroducing, the man Behind The Frames: Jimi Cravity. Hit the jump.
