The East Austin Studio Tour, an artist’s haven for showcasing their work, went on for two weeks from November 8th to the 18th. The event took place mainly in studios, bars or galleries in East Austin where many local artists in Austin reside. Instead of documenting the tour as a whole, we decided to narrow down our focus and look solely at the glass blowing artists and their different methods for producing and promoting their art.
Before the upcoming 2012 Presidential election’s, I interview my boyfriend, John, to see his outlook on who he was voting for and why and who he thought was going to win the election. John is a strong Obama supporter, and also voted for Obama in the 2008 elections.
If anyone doubts the fact that hip-hop has been watered down by white cultural appropriators, they should look no further than up and coming rap artists: Kitty Pryde and Riff Raff.
Originally from Daytona Beach, Kathryn Beckwith, a.k.a. Kitty Pryde, is 19 years old, works at Claire’s in the mall, and is about as threatening as a high-school cheerleader. Along with so many non-Black rappers before her (think Das Racist and Kreayshawn) Pryde realized immediately that by rapping in a comedic, tongue-in-cheek way she could gain a following. Obviously, by no means could Pryde ever be able to claim “street” authenticity, and she knows she’d be foolish to do so. In fact, her approach is explicitly and openly comical in nature, as she was a member of a comedy hip-hop group called Jokers in Trousers; and this is where Pryde first caught the eye of the fellow white joke-rapper Riff Raff.
Clad in cornrows, a grill, comical bling, B.E.T. and MTV tattoos on his neck, Riff Raff is a walking billboard for joke-rap. With an underground following, Riff Raff has collaborated with Kitty Pryde, Action Bronson, and Kreayshawn’s former rap partner V-Nasty. What he lacks in verbal skills (which is quite a lot), he makes up for in his absurd persona. According to Riff Raff himself, he was the inspiration for the main character in independent filmmaker Harmony Korine’s upcoming film Spring Breakers. Unfortunately, or fortunately – depending on your outlook – the role went to James Franco. At any rate, Riff has made a big splash in the world of contemporary media, and for better or worse, this guy is not going away.
In my opinion, the success of Kitty Pryde and Riff Raff is a new milestone, as it marks the clear death of hip-hop as we once knew it. A medium that once provided a voice for disenfranchised African Americans in the inner cities, hip-hop now is in the hands of the “rap-game Taylor Swift” and the self-proclaimed “Texas Tornado.”
The number one selling single on I tunes is currently old pop sensation, Britney Spears. Her new song with the original founder of the Black Eyed Peas, singer William Adams, known by his stage name, “Will.i.am,” has a completely different aesthetic than the catchy pop songs she sang when she first started out.
Will.i.am got his start in the music business when he founded the group, the Black Eyed Peas in L.A in 2003. He has also worked with Michael Jackson, Justin Bieber, Rihanna, U2, Usher, Justin Timberlake, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Nicki Minaj to name a few. Will.i.am is working on a new album called Willpower and his new song with Britney Spears, “Scream and Shout” will be featured on it.
The song starts out with Britney’s voice digitalized with a robotic flow to it, as she repeats the same lines, “you’re going to turn this shit up,” “all eyes on us,” “they’re watching us,” multiple times in a monotone voice. The song then cuts to Will.i.am saying the same line, “I want to scream and shot and let it out” over and over with Spears joining him.
It is obvious that, “Scream and Shout,” required absolutely no talent to make. Just like most popular music today, this song was digitalized to sound more aesthetically pleasing. It has no instruments; only digitalized beats in the background. It is pathetic this song made it to number one on I tunes solely because the two performers are famous, not because they are producing quality sound with a meaningful message. Honestly, to me, the song sounds like a broken record with Britney and Will.iam saying the same lyrics over and over again. I hope that this is not the future of music as the quality of sound in the music industry has been declining quickly over the years. It saddens me that artists think that they can make millions by producing music that takes no hard work or innovation of ideas. It has come to the point where instead of selling their music, they’re solely selling their image.
Fun Fun Fun Fest, started up in Austin in 2006 and immediately was a success for all music enthusiasts in Austin. I decided to see if the name held true to its word by checking out the festival this past weekend. I only bought a one-day, Saturday ticket for $75. Although I would have loved to go all three days, Saturday had the most artists I wanted to see, including the band my cousin was a former member in, Starfucker. Unfortunately, I miss Keayshawn; a young white girl rapper, but I was able to see Real Estate; an indie band from New York, Starfucker; my cousin’s band from Portland, and Girl Talk; a mash up DJ.
Graham Williams, the founder of Fun Fest, previously worked at Emo’s and decided one day to have a small concert at different parks with his friends which continued to grow from there. Originally at Waterloo Park it moved to Auditorium Shores because of increased festival growth.
The festival has a wide range of music from indie, hip-hop, punk, metal to comedy acts. They also had a wide range of food trailers including a whole foods trailer, which I wish I had had time to sample. Although Auditorium Shores is much smaller than Zilker Park where ACL is held, there were multiple fences giving the festival a spacious, intimate feeling. There was also a skate ramp where local skateboarders and bmx bikers were showing off their tricks.
Fun Fun Fun Festival is a unique way to promote upcoming artists and bring people together to enjoy live music, good food and laughs together. I’m glad that I decided to partake in a festival that lives up to its name.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsAPYGTyyOI
Die Antwood, a duo made up of Ninja and Yo-Landi Vi$$er, is a group from South Africa that formed in 2008. Their music falls under a new category of music, as it’s a combination of electronic with rap beats. They claim their music is based off Zef culture, the idea that you can still be sexy and stylish, even if you’re not wealthy. Their lyrics are explicit with their biggest seller being “I fink u freeky.” Besides continually using swear words, their tactic behind the creation of their songs and videos is to be completely shocking and scandalous, because that’s the only way they think they can “wake people up”.
The main vocalist, Watkin Jones, takes on the stage name“Ninja” in Die Antwood. Jones was part of the South African hip-hop scene for many years and takes on a role in his video that is very different from his previous personas while in other bands. In Die Antwood’s music videos, he’s portrayed as hyper and violent, constantly dressed up in outrageous outfits dancing around.
The other rapper in the group, Yo-Landi Vi$$er, acts just as absurd in the music videos. In their video “Fatty Boom Boom”, Yo-Landi Vi$$er is making fun of white tourists by pretending to be a diva on a safari ride going through the streets of South Africa. The “diva” then spots a black local with yellow eyes who is actually Yo-Landi covered in black paint playing another role, while “Ninja” is covered in white powder rapping next to her. Then, Yo-Landi appears as an albino with red paint across her eyes, wearing a red skirt. The video flashes back and forth between the black Yo-Landi and the white Yo-Landi. This stark contrast is their way to emphasize the divide between the wealthy white community in South Africa and the poor African Americans. This video relates to their theme of Zef, as they are making fun of the typical white tourist visiting South Africa while glamorizing the African American’s.
Die Antwood is a new genre of music that is going to challenge how we look and see music. These “musicians” are turning what we think of as music today, into a completely different art form. Instead of using lyrics as the main conviction of meaning, these artists are using the images shown in their videos to grab their audience’s attention
Although it didn’t come as a surprise to many people, Oakland-based white female rapper Kreayshawn’s debut album “There’s Something ‘Bout Kreay” was one of the worst grossing albums of all time. Despite featuring tracks with Kid Cudi and Diplo, Kreayshawn’s album only sold 3,900 albums, placing 104 out of 200 on Billboard’s Hot 200, making it one of the weakest debuts ever.
Kreayshawn rose to Internet stardom last spring after her hit video “Gucci Gucci” went viral. Covered in colorful tattoos, the 23-year-old petite rapper dresses in thrift store clothing and appeals to a hipster crowd; “Gucci Gucci” itself was a critique of the high-end fashion industry. As of yesterday, the video has nearly 39 million hits.
The success of that one video landed her a six figure record deal with Columbia records, but after “Something ‘Bout Kreay”’s poor sales performance, it’s unlikely that she will rise to stardom. This seems show that record companies need to strike while the iron is hot; in hindsight, it certainly seems like a mistake for Columbia Records to wait a year after the success of “Gucci Gucci” before releasing her album.
I have a Saturday ticket to Fun Fun Fun Fest, so next month I will have the opportunity to see this petite white rapper and her bizarre entourage. Famously, her sidekick V-Nasty, another white rapper, generated a great deal of controversy last year for refusing to stop using the N word while freestyling. Interestingly, some rappers, like Fat Joe, came out and supported her; however, most people were offended, and rightfully so. Although probably not a racist, V –Nasty clearly is an obnoxious person and a huge publicly liability for Kreayshawn.
At any rate, it seems as if Kreayshawn’s fifteen minutes of fame are just about up, so I look forward to catching her performance in Austin. I have a feeling it will be horrendous, but I’m intrigued nonetheless.
Although I often find that electronic music loses a lot of its luster in the live music setting,Toronto-based Crystal Castles were a hit at Austin City Limits last weekend. Having never seen them perform before, the band really exceeded my expectations.
Made up of Ethan Kath and Alice Glass, this duo of lo-fi experimental musicians put on arguably the most high-energy performance of all three days. With heavy bass, billowing smoke, and an intense light show, the duo had the audience going crazy. Ethan kept things relatively low-key as he hovered over his keyboard, but the front woman Alice stole the show. Dressed in all black with straight bangs and bright blue hair, she was stage diving, pumping her fists, and frantically swinging her microphone stand around.
Headlining on a secondary stage on the very last night of ACL and competing with the Red Hot Chili Peppers for a portion of their set, Crystal Castles were probably as surprised as me to see such an incredible turn out. I was particularly surprised because not only is their music electronic and lo-fi, but it’s also quite melancholy. At any rate, it’s clear to me now that they make up for their melancholy tone with their incredible high-energy live performance.
I would even say that of all the shows I saw over ACL, Crystal Castles was the most entertaining. Even if you are not a fan of electronic music, I recommend checking them out if they ever come to your city. They put on an impassioned live show, and the perfomance will stay with you for days.
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Although I was initially skeptical of all the hype, the Atlanta psychedelic garage rock band The Black Lips do indeed put on an incredible show. I had the opportunity of seeing them at Antone’s at an ACL after party. Guitarist Cole Alexander was spitting constantly, fans crowd surfed and threw beer onstage. All in all the Black Lips surprised me by putting on an amazing performance, just four days after returning from a tour in the Middle East.
Cole Alexander, puking on stage during a show
It’s interesting that the Black Lips decided to go on tour in the Middle East this September, especially after they were kicked out of India a couple years ago for public indecency. The provocative band is known for their shocking behavior onstage, which historically has included public nudity, urination, vomiting, and kissing each other. It’s no surprise these antics didn’t go over well in India. Nevertheless, it appears that their recent Middle East tour was a success. They played shows in Egypt, Tunisia, Lebanon, Dubai, Cyprus, Jordan, and two concerts in Iraq.
Much like everything these guys do, their Middle East tour was an attempt to shock and gain publicity for the band. They seem to have this down to a science. When the Chic-fil-A – gay rights controversy was in full swing this summer, a photograph of band members Cole Alexander and Jared Swilley making out while eating Chic-Fil-A sandwiches at an airport immediately went viral on the Internet. The Black Lips live for controversy like this; in fact, they’ve said that they want conservative Church groups to picket and protest outside their concerts.
Arguably much of their desire to offend conservatives comes from their upbringing in Atlanta. Their public high school implemented a zero tolerance policy for bad behavior directly after the Columbine massacre, which lead to Swilley and Alexander’s expulsions from school. Since then, they haven’t stopped outraging people, and although it undoubtedly comes with some consequences, it sure makes for an awesome live show. I’m looking forward to seeing them perform at ACL for a hopefully more vulgar, outrageous performance.
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Neon Indian, a new indie/electronic band, was founded by twenty-third year old Texas Native Alan Palomo. Palomo experiments with different techniques to produce a very unique sound, unlike anything heard today. Although electronic music is becoming increasingly popular among today’s younger generations, Palomo still incorporates musical instruments such as the drum and the keyboard played by other members of the band. I decided to go see this band live because I admired Palomo’s incredible talent at such a young age as well as his inspiration to create a completely different sound. I think it’s important to think outside the box with any medium as you’re producing something never seen or heard before promoting progress and giving the perspective audience a different way to view art and life.
After seeing Palomo live I realized because he uses the computer primarily to generate this unique sound, it isn’t as transferable to the stage. This barrier to bringing your sound to the stage is a constant theme I’ve noticed when going seeing electronic bands compared to bands that use instruments. Performances are always better if the band has instruments because it represents the talent of a band as a raw entity with no studio to tweak their sound to make it sound better than it really is.
Besides the sound not being as transferable, I also think the venue was not ideal for Palomo. The show was at the new Emo’s on Riverside. This was my first time at Emo’s new location and I was not impressed by the alteration. The new venue is very open with high ceilings and only one room, making it seem like one big arena with no bleachers. There is also no outside patio at this Emo’s, making it very stuffy in this gigantic space. Besides having a terrible layout inside, the location picked for this venue could not be worse. Located 10 mins down Riverside, it is not a lively, fun part of town but rather makes one feel that they have just crossed the border into Mexico. It is obvious that Emo made this chane to downgrade as changing locations brings down the cost of rent substantially, but unfortunately it also came at the cost of also downgrading many good shows to come.
The members of Starfucker, my two friends, my dog, and me hanging out at my house
When Portland, Oregon based Starfucker (STRFKR) comes to Austin in November for Fun Fun Fun Fest, they will encounter the largest fan base they’ve ever seen. On the heels of the success of their second album, Reptilians, STRFKR will be sure to draw large crowds in Austin. I will definitely be in attendance, as my cousin Ian Luxton is in the band.
Some have argued that their band name is an impediment to their success, but I think it’s just the opposite. Having an eye-catching, incendiary name creates interest immediately; take N.W.A. and the Coathangers for example.
Although initially formed by Josh Hodges in 2007, the band’s sound has undergone an enormous transformation, which I personally attribute to Ian’s influence. Their first album, the self titled Starfucker, was more of an electronic dance-synch-pop record; whereas, their follow-up features more musical instruments and has more of an indie rock feel.
Their most recent album, Reptilians, is a hybrid of electronica and indie-rock, danceable music that stands on its own. The album has an upbeat sound, which is interesting because it focuses thematically on death. There are excerpts from Alan Freed, the British philosopher who argued that death gives meaning to life. It’s an interesting juxtaposition. They have upbeat, poppy sounds superimposed with recordings of Freed saying things like, “Death is like manure, just as manure fertilizes the plants and so on, so the contemplation of death and the acceptance of death is very highly generative at creating life. You get wonderful things out of that.” Hodges’ grandmother died last year, which could explain some of this aesthetic.
In addition to electronica and indie-rock, Starfucker has an element of glam rock in their presentation. It’s not uncommon for the band members to wear dresses and paint their nails, much to my Dad’s dismay whenever we’re out to dinner with my cousin. I’m really excited for Fun Fun Fun Fest, and looking forward to hanging out with my cousin.
Originally from Canada, rock and roll legend Neil Young took the
American music industry by storm in the 1970s with Harvest and After
the Gold Rush, not to mention his work with Buffalo Springfield and
Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Still pertinent in 2012, Young and his
life-long friends and band mates from “Crazy Horse” released a studio
album Americana in June, and they have another one, Psychedelic Pill,
scheduled for an October 30th release date.
Teaming back up together for the first time in over eight years, Neil
Young and Crazy Horse’s second 2012 release is a nine-track, double
album with a ton of long jams – one song as long as 27 minutes and
three over 16 minutes. Psychedelic Pill, as its name suggests, is sure
to have a ton of lengthy, dreamlike songs.
The artwork and song lyrics of these two 2012 albums have many Native
American motifs throughout. Although Young himself has no Native
American heritage, much has been spoken about his “cultural
misappropriation” of Native American culture. Personally as a Native
American myself, I don’t think his songs are trying to slander the Native American community, because I think it has always been done in good taste.
At any rate, the eternally young and mobile, 66 year old rocker is
also coming to Austin next month, as he is headlining Austin City
Limits. Even he is past the age of most peoples retirement, Neil is not planning on slowing down any time soon. Constantly flailing and dressed down in jeans and ratty tennis
shoes, Neil Young will definitely be a memorable performance.
Just like Bob Dylan, Neil Young has clearly stood the test of time.
I’m really looking forward to hearing the upcoming two albums and
catching his performance at ACL next month. I think Crazy Horse will
most likely join him for the ACL set, especially considering that they
want to promote their new material. It’s sure to be an awesome show.
As house music is becoming increasingly popular, these “artists” are not recognized for their hard work as there is very little talent involved in remixing tracks on a computer. There is no longer a message trying to be conveyed to the audience, but instead most house music consists of the same beat with words remixed into it that don’t provoke any kind of inquisitive thought. It does not matter whether or not the words go along with the melody of the song as the technology being used can make anything sound good.
Steve Aoki performing at Identity Festival in Dallas
I can attest to this lack of skill from the latest festival I attended where I saw Steve Aoki, a DJ and electro house musician from California, perform. Instead of creating quality music for his fans, Aoki would press play on his laptop and then run around on stage drinking from a champagne bottle.
The fact that artists are able to make millions of dollars from solely being on stage, drinking champagne promotes the message that an artist doesn’t have to produce quality work in order to become successful.
Bands who are committed to working hard and creating unique melodies with lyrics that have depth need to start emerging, because if music keeps going in this direction we will start to see a downgrade of music and a lowering of the cultural intelligence of society.
After six decades of albums, Bob Dylan is arguably the most prolific artist still around from the 1960s. Although his family members don’t speak highly of him, nobody can deny that he is one of the most influential singer-songerwriters of all time. From Blood on the Tracks to Nashville Skyline to the Wonder Boys Soundtrack, Dylan has proven that he’s a talent that covers multiple decades and generations.
All this being said, one has to wonder if he is jeopardizing his career by churning out albums in the 21st century. Although he did showcase his talent when Wonder Boys came out, the majority of his work post-1990 has been poorly received. Although I haven’t heard his new album yet, I have a suspicion that it might be along the lines of his recent Christmas albums; in essence, ruining his legacy.
Personally, I prefer his work from the 60s even before he was famous; this work was truly legendary, as it changed the shape of folk forever. I don’t listen to folk today, but I would never even think of listening to folk music had it not been for Bob Dylan’s passion – or at least the passion he used to have.
There is no denying that Dylan is a forefather of folk-rock, and a true legendary figure in rock and roll; however, I would argue that by churning out albums he is jeopardizing his legacy.
Although Dylan performs constantly, I don’t believe that his heart is in it anymore. At his most recent tours, he is known to play an insanely short set and only play one encore tune. I am a huge Dylan fan, as I love Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde, but I have a feeling that his passion for his for work is waning.