Technophobiac.com
Where The Music Ends And The Underground Begins
Archive for January, 2008
Exclaim! Magazine Selects Kobo Town’s Independence As Top 10 Album of 2007
Author: admin26 Jan
target="_blank">Exclaim! Magazine Selects Kobo Town’s Independence As Top 10 Album of 2007
border="1" width="240" height="180">
Toronto-based, roots-calypso act Kobo
Town is capping a pivotal year with their debut album
selected in Exclaim! Magazine “Year in Review 2007.” Voted a Top 10 “Groove” Album of 2007, following Amy
Winehouse and M.I.A, Independence was the only album by an unsigned act in the category. The band
was also recognized by the 2007 Toronto Exclusive Magazine Awards with a Best World Song Award
for “Corbeaux Following.”
“Lyrically and musically Kobo Town is a trans-national triangle that connects Toronto, Jamaica
and Port-of-Spain, the sort of thing that could only happen now, here. Reaching back past soca’s
hollow mainstream din, Kobo Town resurrects, reinvigorates and redefines calypso for the new
millennium. Independence is an important album not only because of the editorial observations on
post-colonial life and trans-border cultural connections but because it offers an almost forgotten music
new life by coyly injecting it with a therapeutic blend of reggae, dancehall and dub. As such
Independence comes with a promise: it’s well on its way to facilitating a belated introduction between
Canada and the art of the calypsonian.” Brent Hagerman,
target="_blank">Exclaim! Magazine
Since the November release of their much-acclaimed debut album Independence,
across Canada, from the Montreal Jazz Festival to British Columbia’s Salmon Arm Roots and Blues
Festival. The band has also been a regular of the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC), including
Canada Live, FUSE, Bandwidth and Big City Small World. Kobo Town is working on a follow up album
for the Spring of 2008 and preparing for a U.S. tour. Named after the vibrant and turbulent
neighborhood in old Port-of-Spain where Calypso was born, Kobo Town strives to recover the social
conscience, satirical storytelling and strong acoustic/organic rhythms that characterized Trinidadian
music in the past.
Kobo Town is a member of the MusicDish
Network, a complete artist development program, leveraging brand development, saturated and
relationship marketing, digital distribution and industry outreach to support emerging artists’ and
bands’ careers.
Content provided by the target="_blank">
vspace="0" hspace="0">Copyright © MusicDish, LLC 2007 - Republished with
Permission
click here for free music content for
your site or blog
Dancehall Sensation Tippa Irie Brings His Radio Show To Reggae Powerhouse BigUpRadio.com
Author: admin24 Jan
target="_blank">Dancehall Sensation Tippa Irie Brings His Radio Show To Reggae Powerhouse BigUpRadio.com
width="200" height="170" align="right">BigUp
Radio, the leading Reggae music website (
target="_blank">www.bigupradio.com) and operator of the most listened to Reggae internet radio stations, is
pleased to announce that UK based Dancehall sensation Tippa Irie will now be bringing his show to the
world on BigUp¹s Dancehall internet radio station.
The most recent addition to an already strong line-up of DJs and shows from around the world,
the “Tippa Irie Radio Show” hosted by Tippa Irie out of London, England will air monthly on the
second Saturday of each month, focusing primarily on UK and European Dancehall artists and music. The
Tippa Irie Radio Show will feature special guests, new and unreleased songs direct and of course,
the host with most, Tippa Irie himself!
Commenting on his decision to take his show to the world on BigUp Radio, Tippa Irie said, “I’m
very excited to be working with BigUpRadio.com. I’ve been a fan for years.” said Tippa Irie. “One
of the best things about internet radio is the ability to reach a worldwide audience without
leaving London. It’s quite brilliant!”
BigUp Radio Sr. VP Paul Abramson shared Tippa¹s enthusiasm for the the Tippa Irie Radio show
saying, “It’s an honor to be working with one of the pioneers of UK dancehall reggae. Tippa Irie
has been making his mark not just on Dancehall but on Reggae and urban music for more than 25 years
and we¹re excited to hear what he¹s got in store for 2008. Whatever it is, I’m sure his show
will deliver positive vibes globally.”
The Tippa Irie Radio Show premieres Saturday Jan 12, 2008 on BigUp Radio¹s Dancehall internet
radio station, airing at 5am, 11am, 5pm and 11pm EST.
About BigUp Radio
BigUp Radio was founded out of a love for Reggae music and a desire to share the greatest in
Reggae music with fans around the World. For more than five years BigUp¹s Dancehall and Roots
radio stations have been among the most listened to Reggae stations online and responding to listener
requests for the full spectrum of Reggae music, in October of 2005, BigUp added stations for Dub,
Soca, Ska, Reggaeton, Dub & Gospel. BigUp¹s stations, which generate over two million tune-ins
each month, are available using iTunes, WinAmp or Windows Media, and for mobile listeners through
Spodtronic.com¹s SpodRadio, Nokia Internet Radio and through the Mobile Broadcast Network. BigUp
Radio¹s web-site features one of the largest catalogs of Reggae CDs, DVDs and vinyl available
anywhere as well as the latest news, reviews and event listings.
About Tippa Irie
Anthony Henry - a.k.a. “Tippa Irie” - emerged from England’s Saxon Sound International - the
star-studded travelling sound system that has been at the forefront of the U.K. reggae dancehall
scene for the past 25 years and helped launch the careers of artists such as Maxi Priest, Papa Levi
and Smiley Culture. Tippa Irie was part of the new generation of British MC’s who developed the
‘Fast Talking’ style chat which today can be heard in modern day rappers like Busta Rhymes. Tippa
toured extensively with his friend and long-time sparring partner, Pato Banton, throughout the
Eighties including an appearance at Jamaica’s Reggae Sunsplash and their U.S. debut tours together. The
U.K. DJ duo of Tippa Irie and Pato Banton had become one of the genres favorite combinations. As
the Nineties began, the dynamic duo pursued their solo careers. Over a decade would pass before
Tippa & Pato would reunite in the studio with legendary singing sensation Peter Spence to produce
“The Good O!
ld Days”–a track featured on Pato’s 2000 Grammy-nominated ‘Life is a Miracle’ and Tippa’s “I
Miss” tribute album to his late and great sister/MC Miss Irie.
Content provided by the target="_blank">
vspace="0" hspace="0">Copyright © MusicDish, LLC 2007 - Republished with
Permission
click here for free music content for
your site or blog
Amy Speace Joins Ian Hunter On February UK Acoustic Tour
Author: admin24 Jan
Amy
Speace Joins Ian Hunter On February UK Acoustic Tour
width="200" height="265" align="right">Wildflower Records artist
target="_blank">Amy Speace will be joining renowned artist Ian Hunter as a special guest on
his upcoming UK Acoustic Tour.
Upcoming Tour Schedule
Date City Venue
19 Feb 08 Edinburgh, Scotland Cabaret Voltaire
20 Feb 08 Aberdeen, Scotland Tunnel Club
22 Feb 08 Leeds, England Varieties Theatre
23 Feb 08 Manchester, England Lowry Theatre
24 Feb 08 Cardiff, Wales The Point
26 Feb 08 Plymouth, England The Hub
27 Feb 08 Milton Keynes, England The Stables
29 Feb 08 Ipswich, England The Manor Ballroom
01 Mar 08 Market Harborough, England Leisure Centre
02 Mar 08 Dartford, England Mick Jagger Centre
Amy Speace’s CD
released in the UK through ADA/Ryko last year, receiving rave reviews from the press across the
pond:
“[Songs for Bright Street] is a superior example of stunning music at its best … guaranteed to
make waves this side of the Atlantic. … a unique country-folk sound that can be best described as
an Americana Dido… both illuminating and effortly accessible.” The Verve
“… a baker’s dozen of heartfelt, soul stirring, uplifting and crashing down again songs … Ms.
Speace knows how to rip your heart out and shred it to pieces.” - Zeitgeist-scot.co.uk
“If you’re a fan of Lucinda Williams / Caitlin Cary / Roseanne Cash then give this girl a whirl
and wonder why you haven’t heard of her before… [Songs for Bright Street]’s got the lot - lots of
sad country twang, a dollop of folk and just a smidge of pop… In short, it’s full of melodic
treats that will make your heart ache.” - Lonesome Music
“Speace combines country and folk to great effect and her lovely vocal inflections invite
favourable comparison with her compatriate & contemporary Dar Williams. A fine album …” - Classic Rock
Society
“Songs For Bright Street’ by Amy Speace & The Tearjerks is a piece of nu-country magic - superbly
crafted, rammed with lyrical reality, overflowin’ with instrumental brilliance. Oh, and then
there’s those Amy Speace vocals - simply stunning!! Country music at its grittiest, most tangible and
outrageous best!” - Toxic Pete
“This cool little lady … has one of those spellbinding voices that just draws you in … soft
and seductive, yet witty and street smart, and a little dangerous … Her voice is to die for but
the Americana foly, twangy country arrangements … and the confrontational songwriting come up to
the same level. This album is like the summer we never had … she gets two fullhearted thumbs up.
Hell, I’ll give her a few digits extra. She’s that good.” - Irish World
From the rustic rush of “Step Out of the Shade” to the bittersweet lilt of “Water Landing” to the
gentle acoustic intimacy of “Two,” Songs for Bright Street’s 12 original compositions (plus a
slyly countrified reading of the Blondie classic “Dreaming”) showcase Speace’s unique gifts, offering
catchy Americana with indelible hooks, sharply observed lyrics and a gritty urban edge.
Content provided by the target="_blank">
vspace="0" hspace="0">Copyright © MusicDish, LLC 2007 - Republished with
Permission
click here for free music content for
your site or blog
Elliot Carlson Boteros Parasite: A Love Story
Author: admin10 Jan
Elliot
Carlson Boteros Parasite: A Love Story
by Mark Kirby,
border="1" width="288" height="191">
Styles. Categories. Genres. Sub genres. Man, it gets dicey placing a type of music in its
appropriate box, especially when confronted with someone who has a unique personality and approach to
music. That’s what’s up with
I can come up with is this: his music is the traffic circle where the singer songwriter with a
guitar and some hip hop records meets post-grunge rock and electronica spirits and they collide.
Then drive on. If you want to hear an original interesting voice get this CD. If you’re young, like
14 or 15 years old this is a guy you can really claim as your own. I’m an old head but I remember
what it was like (artists and groups, if you’re open-minded and still developing, will keep finding
you and making the soundtrack of your l!
ife). Thank you and goodnight.
hspace="2" vspace="2" border="0" align="right">Oh, what? You want more? Specifics? Okay. First let
me tell you what it isn’t. Botero doesn’t do what an A&R record executive told me at a music
conference many years ago. He is not “throwing different types of songs at us (that is, A&R men) and
hoping that something sticks on.” Botero clearly has his own thing and it’s developed quite nicely,
and, best of all, shows the potential to develop more. He is a singer songwriter, a bard with a
guitar; he is also someone for whom technology is not just a tool, but cool and fun. Besides drum
loops and synthesizer licks there are various electronic percussion sounds, various “bloops” and
“bleeps” that dance playfully on the tracks. The backing and, for lack of a better term, augmenting
vocals are sometimes processed, nasal whispered. He had fun making this record and it shows. The
opening tr!
ack “Love Hurts” gives the old Negativeland treatment to George Bush.
The next two songs “Francis and Matilda” and “Home Sweet Home” are dense, bluesy rockers that
have a nasty edge that comes from a hand clap heavy beat and slightly distorted overdriven voices
and guitar on the former, and the straight up live band with Botero’s slide guitar, Darren Lipper’s
bass and Gideon Grossman’s drums on the latter. Any of you readers ever heard of Black Oak
Arkansas? How about Beck? This song is kinda like that, but also smart and chock-full of sass. Then he
flips the script with the Euro electronica dance parody “Je t’aime Felix”and the funky, downtempo
“Starless Lounge,” featuring sexycool Brazilian rap by Joao Joya. Other cuts use a mix of the
above; that is, electronic touches with guitar rock.
Still other types of music morph out of electro indie rock style. “Lullaby” starts as a
psychedelic folk song and then becomes a samba pop song. “Game Over” is a languid hip hop infused
R&B-meets-guitar rock song. It features a vocal of somebody’s “Chop Chop” features western country guitar
that invokes wide open spaces like the music of Chris Isak or surf. The beat is a techno type
groove with mechanical hand claps. The song breaks down to a hyper tango with super fast claps as he
sings “Sweet Adeline, please be mine/ I’ll never let you go/ Chop chop.” “Plastic Bag Tree”. The
beat is comprised of various bleeps, hits, and drums by Grossman (dig the brush work). He colors
this song with many unexpected elements: keyboard-created horn hits, atmospheric electric guitars,
distorted and clear background vocals. Like many of the songs here, there are surprising tricks
like deviating from and augmenting the typical verse-chorus-verse structure with bridges, and bridges
to exten!
ded verses, and bridges to bridges.
The songs all have similarities but it’s the differences and the quality of the arranging and
writing that make this CD a standout. It deserves and hold up under repeated listenings. Each song
could receive one of my patented, wordy essay-reviews. They have that much meat and that much
variety. This shows that Elliot Botero picked up on the true punk ethos - not dumb anger or
glorifying the stupid for fear of being pretentious, but the old school punk thang of anything goes.
Content provided by the target="_blank">
vspace="0" hspace="0">Copyright © MusicDish, LLC 2007 - Republished with
Permission
click here for free music content for
your site or blog
