Obamarama

Here's something to think about: on our morning commute this morning, we realized that just about a quarter of our Blackberry playlists were somehow Obama-related. This wasn't an intentional thing, as our boy Barack seems to inspire the more creative dudes making music, but it kind of made us wonder what will happen come November 5th. Whether Obama wins or not, would we then need to purge our music collection? Do topical songs like this come with an expiration date and suddenly become irrelevant or can we be free to bump the massive amount of songs of differing quality and the countless unsolicited Obama mixes for the next four years? We don't know the answer to this, but we'd certainly still get hyped if someone dropped House Music United's ode to Obama, "Yes We Can", on Election Day.

Guilty Pleasure of the Week: "Cookie Jar"

We're starting to wonder if this column is going to be overly Katy Perry-related. Whatever. We like to keep it in the fam, whether it's ours or not. This week's pick is the pro-promiscuity ditty, "Cookie Jar", penned by Katy's current boyfriend, Travis McCoy of Gym Class Heroes. Actually, we're not sure if it's exactly pro-promiscuity, it may be more of an issue regarding dude's complete and utter failure at being monogamous. That's his bad. With Ms. Perry's boner party credentials, we'd be trying to lock it down.

Guilty Pleasure of the Week: Katy Perry

In all honesty, we should have named this post "Guilty Pleasure of The Year". But since it's sort of a kick-off for something we've wanted to do for a while, we might as well go straight to #1 on our list. Our favorite bi-curious, anti-guyliner, ex-Christian pop songstress of the moment (if there's another one that fits that description out there, let us know) caught our eyes by looking a lot like a trashy Zooey Deschanel. That is usually enough for most people, but after secretly listening to her entire(!) album a couple of times, we thinks she makes catchy shit too. We can't hate on that. Plus she has a cat and a blog named Kitty Purry, which hints at her having a sense of humor and being somewhat clever. Holla. Check out her recent cover of MGMT's "Electric Feel" here.

Lykke Li & Bon Iver: "Dance Dance Dance"

The weather in Los Angeles has been a real bitch lately. It was drizzly when we went to Detour, but then it got all maverick-y and turned up the heat for the rest of the week. We guess it's summer's last gasp. There's no real reason to complain, really, as Lykke Li came out with the perfect video to end the summer (shaddup, we know it's technically fall). The video feels too perfectly serendipitous to be completely man made. God probably came down and introduced her to the boys of Bon Iver so that they can be the backing band for her live rendition of "Dance Dance Dance". Sit back and watch her be all goofy and Swedish. It's guaranteed to make you swoon just a little bit.

spare the air festival.

We here at Whisper are interested in random, seemingly unrelated things. It is a rare occasion when two or more of our interests converge into one magical moment and thankfully, I am the one lucky enough to write about it. On August 30, 2008, the South Coast Air Quality Management District combines our love for public and alternative transportation with our love of music in their Spare The Air Festival. Spare The Air is an all-ages outdoor music festival created to raise awareness of clean air issues, public transportation options, alternative fuels and energies, and global warming. Musical acts are diverse and include The Used, Lit, and Saosin as well as Whisper faves Peanut Butter Wolf, Free the Robots, and DJ Pubes of Dance Right fame manning the appropriately named Ozone Dance Tent.

The event will be held at the Fullerton Transportation Center (aka the Santa Fe Depot Parking Lot) on Commonwealth and Harbor. Tickets are only ten bucks and some change.

Random Fact: I Like To Whisper Too... Founder Kim worked at the Knowlwood Burger on the very same block where the festival will be held. Nice place to get a good shake, malt, or burger. Oh yeah, they serve beer.

Flyer designed by Ryan Bubion of Cal State Fullerton.

88 Boadrum

If you haven't heard of the awesome Japanese band called The Boredoms check them out here: http://www.myspace.com/boredoms.

And if you haven't heard of next week's 88BoaDrum event, prepare yourself.

[Last year's 77 Boadrum event]

On 08/08/08, 88 drummers will come together at 8:08pm and drum for 88 minutes at the La Brea tarpits.


The show is free, but unfortunately it has been sold out.


But if you are really interested in being apart of this great LA event, I highly reccommend you volunteer.


We will be needing any kind of help we can from setting up mics, managing lines, doing runs for the drummers etc. We will have a huge volunteering team and it's going to be a lot of fun.

'
If you're intertested. Email volunteers88boadrum@gmail.com with

• all your contact info
• which show you would like to work
• your skill set
• why you want to be part of this event.
  
  

High Culture Meets Low Culture.

An interesting article came from the Los Angeles Times the other day talking about the blurring of the lines between high-culture and low-culture. The general thesis is that mass-media has pretty much obliterated the divisive line between the two, with more and more typically snobby cultural elitists flocking to cinemas to watch summer blockbusters and "lowly" everyday people being exposed to high art, music, and film via culture sharing sites such as YouTube. Some of you might read this and yawn at the whole thing, but one of the more interesting points in the article is the idea that by accepting everything, the tables have turns and we're starting to experience guilt in finding pleasure in work of quality.

Instead of feeling guilty about reading pulp novels, he said, we worry that we've become "elitist" if we go see chamber music or jazz. "The culture as a whole seems to have decided which arts are elitist and which ones popular, and so made some people feel guilty to be watching European movies [otherwise known as art-house stuff] or to be reading novels not likely to be turned into screenplays."

It's a view that i've been agreeing with for some time and it's a shame that, culture, at its current state is more comfortable with professional academics checking TMZ every half an hour than with a kid at McDonald's going to watch a play. Recommended reading.

Trapped In The Closet

Yes! Funny or Die.com has ALL 22 chapters of the R. Kelly movie [not the porno], Trapped In The Closet!



It's the WHOLE thing! Everyone needs to watch this! It's soooo great. Watch it. And call me.

Converse Connectivity

So,If you haven't bumped into me and been handed one of these CDs:



I recommend you download the awesome summer single, "My Drive Thru" starring Julian Casablancas from The Strokes, Santogold and Pharrell from N.E.R.D.

www.converse.com

Meet N.E.R.D.

Tuesday, 6/10 @ 9pmPurchase your copy of Seeing Sounds at Virgin Megastore H&H and receive a wristband to have it signed by N.E.R.D.
at the store!

CONTROL

Comes out on DVD on June 3rd.





Sooo good. After watching this movie, I have a new respect for Ian Curtis and Joy Division.

http://www.myspace.com/joydivision

DONT EVER GO TO GRADUATE SCHOOL

and if you do, make sure it isn't outside of southern california. ok maybe norcal.

anyway, in a constant effort to put off the never ending tidal wave of xeroxed readings on assorted mish mash, i was reminded that the santogold album comes out next week!

finally!

i can't tell if she is getting any airplay on the best coast, but she is persona non grata in my neck of the woods and its simply a travesty. her voice is hot, when i first heard it i must admit i though it was a less nasal new track from tegan and sarah (a la walking with a ghost)

anyway, she seems destined to become a new sweetheart, she is going to be on letterman etc. but im mostly excited for finally happening my hands on an album.  here is the vid for her single.

also, I just got the muhly album and it is pretty awesome. i guess he knows what he is doing.  incidentally, the guy who works at the music shop i live on top of wrote the liner notes to the album and says the next one will be even better. so watch out for that. 

back to derrida...

Get some Mojo.

Go grab the latest issue of Mojo and I swear to you, you'll be tappin' your toes and swayin' your shoulders, at least just a little bit, by the end of the night.

Aside from featuring an interesting article on LA's own the Roxy, and an article that's made me gain more respect for Jackson Browne, this month's issue features the real reason for the this post: a really great soul and blues compilation.

This compilation has every right ingredient to make you want to sway. Catchy, emotional, raw, rhythmic... I could go on. And the best part of all? They're all contemporary artists! Yep, so you can still catch live performances and even expect more great hits from 'em.

If you're a fan of blues or soul or being awesome, check this comp out, you won't be disappointed. The track listing is as follows, my personal favorite is "Nobody's fault but mine" by Beth Rowley.


"(Doin' The) Boom Boom" - Eli "Paperboy" Reed and the True Lovers
"Necessary Evil" - Edgar "Jones" Jones
"Chicken Half" - Sugarman 3
"What Have You Done" - Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens
"If This Ain't Love" - Nicole Willis
"No Smoke Without Fire" - James Hunter
"Return To Gijon" - The New Mastersounds
"100 Days, 100 Nights" - Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings
"Hard Times" - Watermelon Slim
"So He Won't Break" - The Black Keys
"Blackeyedsusan" - Jose James
"Nobody's Fault But Mine" - Beth Rowley
"Things Go Up" - Seasick Steve
"I Don't Like The Man I Am" - Pete Molinari
"Let Us Get Together" - Marie Knight

Artist of the week: Lisa Papineau

I just heard a great song with Lisa Papineau and Mathieu Boogarets, literally 5 minutes ago on KCRW. And I must say, I'm in love with this Lisa Papineau. She's the main vocalist for big Sir.

Check her out:

Website: http://www.lisapapineau.com
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/lisapapineau

Lisa Papineau - "Power and Glory Part 1" music video

Smile.

This guy made my day yesterday.





The locals told me that you can always find him chillin at Balboa Beach just wylin' out. Not in those words of course.

Bjork -Wanderlust

Here's Bjork's new video, Wanderlust:




and the making of the video:




directed by
Encyclopedia Pictura.

I love their chart book on their site:



I recommend you clicking the image to enlarge it.

yeah.

Dj Kozy

I love artist couple, kozyndan sooo much.

So much i have a tattoo of their bunnyfish on me.

So much, that everytime I bump into them I get speechless and look down.

So much that I just have to share Kozy's Dublab set.

Kozy- Dream of Tropical Sand

Kozy- Okinawan Dance Mix

CROOKED

Check it. Crooked by Evil Nine feat. Aesop Rock. These fools know how to get down.

the shittiest mixtape

Dublab events of the week:

TUESDAY, MARCH 11
DUBLAB & PART TIME PUNKS present…

GIVE UP meets A SAD, SLOW DANCE PARTY
inside = slow dancing with crying eyespatio = epic blue tunes for big tears
FREE / 21+ / 9pm-2am
La Cita336 S Hill St, Downtown Los Angeles, CA 90013
dublab.comparttimepunks.com
...stop dancing & cry then start slowly dancing again...

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

THURSDAY, March 13th
BEACH HOUSE (early show)

a special performance of lovely musical movements featuring:
BEACH HOUSE
PAPERCUTS
DJ Michael Stock [Part Time Punks / dublab]
$10 / 6:30pm / ALL AGES
THE ECHOPLEX1154 Glendale Blvd.Los Angeles, CA 90026

*************RECURRENT EVENTS*************

every WEDNESDAY
Alpha Pup presents...
LOW END THEORYfringepsychelectronicIDMreggaehiphopglitch&more



Resident DJs NOBODY, D-STYLES, GASLAMP KILLER and DADDY KEVplus Resident MC NOCANDO and Resident Artist MEAR ONE
Three rooms of sound including downstairs reggae lounge. TurboSound by Mobius Audiophile.
$5 / 18+ / 9pm-2am / Full bar with ID
The Airliner2419 N. Broadway,Los Angeles, CA 90031
lowendtheoryclub.com

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

every 1st MONDAY the month
AROUND THE WORLD IN 360 MINUTESa journey for music lovers

Please join us for a magnificent, communal music experience. We've asked all of our DJ friends, and family, to bring a few of their favorite records from around the world, and play them!(Frequent DJ rotation throughout the night.)
FREE! / All Ages
8pm-2am = 360 minutes
Rudolpho's Bar & Grill2500 Riverside DriveLos Angeles, California 90039323.669.1226

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

every 1st THURSDAY of the month
dublab presents...
MOTIF : a highly themed, monthly happening
FREE / 8pm-Midnight / 21+
Mandrake Bar2692 S. La Cienega blvd.(between Venice & Washington)Los Angeles, CA 90034310.837.3297mandrakebar.com

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

tune into the turn on:
"She comes in Colours" with the Minister Alvin X & Dr. Frederick Phases - every Monday 10pm-Mid KXLU 88.9fm
"Headspace" with Hoseh - every Thursday 8-10pm KXLU 88.9fm
"Spaceways" with Carlos Nino - every Friday 8-10pm KPFK 90.7fm