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 Is it the fault of the DJ/producer/musicians that create mashups that we, as voracious online music hounds, continue to listen to mashups, or is the fault of we aforementioned insatiable musicheads, who continue to listen to whatever mashups appear on our monitors, that mashups are still made? A question a child might ask, as the old Vietnam war book commercials used to intone, but not a childish question.
There's no easy answer, but the fact remains that now, even in 2009, for crying out loud, mashups are still being made. The gold standard, such as it is, remains The Grey Album, Danger Mouse's 2004 combination of Jay-Z's Black Album and The Beatles' White Album. It was actually a good album, the result of talent and work, as well as luck. Mashups can be justified by The Grey Album alone.
Jaydiohead, though? The jury's still out, but, um, perhaps not so much. As you might have guessed, Jaydiohead brings together Jay-Z and Radiohead in ways they've never before been brought together, and is the brainchild of New York DJ Minty Fresh. Of course, curiosity will result in clickthroughs. So, you know... how is it?
It's certainly interesting to listen for at least a minute or two. 99 Anthems, the second track, will probably get the most attention. Jay-Z's now-canonical rhymes are juxtaposed with the menacing bass of Hail To The Thief's The National Anthem. It actually works, the low-end melodies ably supporting the lyrics, with the periodic toggling of hi-hat and an open ride providing breaths and chapters to the song. It's the most enjoyable track on the album.
Other tracks are also Not That Bad: No Karma is No Hook along with Karma Police, and Optimistic Moment makes good use of Thom Yorke's spooky vocals. But really, the question of this album's success is ultimately related to your tolerance for music of this nature. As an item of curiosity, it works. It's captivating for at least a few minutes; a spin around the embedded player. But will you listen to Jaydiohead often, returning to it again and again? A question a child might ask, but not a childish question. And now, I'm off to listen to Jay-Z and Radiohead, separately.
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Part 3 of our Photo Highlights unites past with present. Photographer Bob Gruen sent us images from his recently-released New York Dolls collection (Abrams Image) and was kind enough to caption them for us while he was in Paris. From this year's Lollapalooza we got a ton of images, but figured we'd focus on Radiohead. Click on the images to access the full galleries.
New York Dolls Photographs by Bob Gruen
Radiohead Perform at Lollapalooza 08
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Today, MySpace Music premiered the first of three new videos from Radiohead’s In Rainbows. All three clips were winners in a competition held by aniBoom, a so-called “virtual animation studio that partners with untapped talent around the world to create, produce and distribute compelling high quality animation brands.” I can’t honestly say I know what any of that slick copy actually means, but whatever aniBoom is, it managed to rope in some scintillating talent. Admittedly, I found the original Radiohead song, “Weird Fishes,” to be a little dreary and tedious. The video, by American artist and filmmaker Tobias Stretch, enhances the tune’s creepy factor tenfold with otherworldly stop-motion puppets set again strangely beautiful rural vistas. Check it out.
Radiohead - Weird Fishes - by Tobias Stretch
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 Well, I’ll be. One year after Radiohead shocked us all—even pirates, arrr!—by dropping In Rainbows on the internet as a pay-what-you-choose stunt, the band’s publishing arm has finally released the album’s sales figures. And everyone but traditionally minded record company execs are kinda psyched. According to Warner Chappell, the group earned more cash with Rainbows' web release—i.e., before it hit stores three months later in January 2008—than the band made with 2003's Hail to the Thief. This despite non-payers and third-party Bit Torrent downloads. All told, there were three million total copies of Rainbows sold, including digital copies, physical CDs, as well as the special box-set edition. Well done, lads.
Looking back, Nine Inch Nails’ instrumental release in March, Ghosts I-IV, moved roughly 780,000 digital and physical units its first week—some paid, some not—raking in about $1.6 million, according to reps. (This includes deluxe and variant packaging.) And it’s a respectable profit to say the least. So perhaps there is indeed a fiscal sixth-sense behind these renegade, dotcom-saavy artists’ whims. Then again, historically, “alternative” rock has tended to be an irreverent force that thrives on touring and merchandising more than sales anyhow; the bigger test just might be if bigger rock, pop, and rap artists follow suit and find a way to succeed, too.
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| The Crawl: Björk and Yorke |
| Posted 10/15/2008 11:32:00 AM by Nisha Gopalan |
| Filed under: Barack obama, Bjork, Duran Duran, Elvis costello, Fall out boy, Franz Ferdinand, Green Day, Green Lantern, impending recession, Jay-Z, Linkin Park, Radiohead, Russell Simmons, Thom yorke |
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<<Radiohead’s Thom Yorke loans Björk some backing vocals (sounding more like moaning) on the Icelandic singer’s new percussive, avant-ethereal track, “Nattura,” which officially hits iTunes on Oct. 20. [YouTube]
+ Tonight: Franz Ferdinand. That’s the name of the Scottish band’s new album, out Jan. 26. Among the 12 tracks on the CD: “Ulysses” and “Lucid Dreams,” already streaming on the group’s official site. But if you want to hear most of these songs live, click here. [NME]
+ It’s true! We have aural evidence that Fall Out Boy did indeed get Elvis Costello to sing on their song "What a Catch, Donnie” from their upcoming Dec. 16 album Folie à Deux. [Stereogum]
+ On Nov. 25, Linkin Park will release Road to Revolution, a CD/DVD set of material recorded June 29th in England, amid their hugely successful, if orthographically challenged, “Projekt Revolution” tour this summer. [Blabbermouth]
+ It’s been four years since their last album, American Idiot—so where the hell are Green Day? In the studio, recording new material with Butch Vig—see footage on YouTube. [Billboard]
+ Tough times. Over in the U.K., banker types are livid that their bosses paid Duran Duran 2 million quid to play their office party amid a taxpayer bailout. Meanwhile, the emerging recession’s hit Jay-Z, too: Mr. Hova has been forced to lower his appearance fee from $43K to $13K. [Perez Hilton]
+ The coolest presidential candidate ever? Barack Obama has okay'd Yes We Can, a mixtape in his honor, produced by DJ Green Lantern and Russell Simmons. Hypetrak has the free download.
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 <<The Smashing Pumpkins announce tour dates, their “psychedelic” next album and a Gish box set, plus an upcoming two-disc DVD release. Us? We’d kill for a Billy Corgan autobiography (and, no, this doesn’t count).
+ A teaser trailer for the Biggie Smalls biopic Notorious (allegedly out in January) hit the web…and it’s sort of underwhelming.
[Sit Down Stand Up]
+ Radiohead is just about ready to head into the studio again. [BBC]
+ Who sits atop top Ne-Yo’s wishlist of collaborators? Marilyn Manson! “Though the R&B singer reassures us: “You won't see me adopting his style. I don't think you'll ever see me in make-up.” [Prefix]
+ New music: "Human," a synthy, swelling track off The Killers’ Nov. 25 release, Day & Age; plus, "Ottoman," Vampire Weekend’s lightly marching, string-laiden offering, produced by Devo’s Mark Mothersbaugh for the upcoming Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist soundtrack. [Stereogum]
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| It
takes a lot of work to relax properly. You need the right atmosphere,
the right company and especially the right music. As part of our larger
commitment to chilling out, we’re starting to compile a list of
quality events and performances taking place across the country each
weekend that should offer the perfect relaxation quotient. Here’s the
first round. Feel free to post additions in the comments section.  << Friday, August 22: Donna
Summer at the Hollywood Bowl in L.A.; Jonas Brothers with Demi Lovato (a.k.a.
the New Miley) at the Blosson Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls,
Ohio
Saturday, August 23: The Germs at Echo in L.A. (with ER’s
Shane West channeling the legendary Darby Crash); En Vogue at BB King’s in New
York City
Sunday, August 24: Radiohead with Liars at the Hollywood
Bowl in L.A.; 25th Annual Roots of American Music Festival featuring John Doe and
Exene Cervenka as part of the Knitters as well as Patti Smith and her band at
Lincoln Center Out of Doors at Damrosch Park Bandshell in New York City
Random Opportunity for Weird Fun:
Today through September 1, at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago, you can
participating in Sing-Along Little Mermaid, which involves
unabashed singing along during a showing of The Little Mermaid (in
costume if you’d like). |
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 All Points West
Liberty State Park, New Jersey
After
several false starts and broken promises, the New York City area
finally seems to have an annual music festival to call its own. Led by two
stunning performances by Radiohead — whose live consistency is
currently without peer — the inaugural three-day All Points West fest was graced
with near-perfect weather, an incredible view of downtown NYC and a bounty
of high quality, overpriced kettle corn. While the line-up was admittedly
top-heavy and weak compared to this summer's other big fests,
once Radiohead took the stage around 8:30 on Friday and Saturday, any
and all misgivings were easily erased by the band's spaceship lighting
and endless canon of sing alongs about death, decay and the end of the
world. Good times! We're hoping for a heftier roster next year, but we can't
complain about two consecutive nights of modern classics from rock's
best live act. Check out photos and superlatives below:
Best Band (by an Obscenely Large Margin)
Radiohead
Best Subliminal Shark Week Promotion
Girl Talk's inflatable menagerie. 
Most Likely to Harbor a Deep Hatred Toward New Jersey
Welsh soul singer Duffy, who said,
"Hello, New York!" about 10 times even though the festival is
technically located in New Jersey. The Jersey dude behind us was not
happy. 
Best Futuristic Slice of Pizza
This Thing 
Best Simulacrum of the Keebler Elf Sanctuary
The Misting Area 
Most Likely to Get Nailed with a Water Bottle While in the Front Row
Couple on Stilts 
Best Phallic Meeting Point
This Other Thing 
Most Likely to Play a Cheerleader in an Upcoming Star Trek Film
The shiny Emily Haines, lead singer of Metric. 
Most Likely to Be the Only McCain Supporter in Attendance
This Guy 
Best Life Sized 3-D Cave Puzzle
Not much competition for this one ... 
Best Special Guests
Jersey delicacies pork roll, egg and cheese, who
accompanied Jersey native Nicole Atkins near the end of her set. 
Best Set From a Band With Less Charisma Than Kenny G's Big Toe
Animal Collective 
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 Radiohead
"House of Cards"
Director: James Frost
For their new video, Radiohead elected to employ Doc Brown-style technology including a Velodyne Lidar (!) instead of mortal cameras. The result? Something like Thom Yorke filtered through an iTunes
visualizer. The newfangled laser doohickeys are great for press
releases and all ... but what's more impressive is the visual wizardry
actually makes sense with the song. "House of Cards" is about slow
motion infidelity, key parties and casual sex — the evaporation of
normality in the face of impulse. "Denial, denial," wails Yorke in the
clip, his visage losing shape as a wake of digital dots wash out to
sea. While this song is probably the sexiest thing Radiohead have ever
recorded (not saying much), it's also marked by severe undercurrents of
sadness and guilt. It's uneasy and unsure. In between. So when we hear
Yorke losing himself and forgetting his picket-fence life, we see houses,
electrical lines and faces disappear. Using technology to access
humanity — nobody does it better. 
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