MEMORY TAPES

Dayve Hawk is a pretty interesting guy. He lives in South New jersey, doesn't have a cell phone, and doesn't drive. He simply hangs out with his four-year-old daughter and makes some of the most beautiful ambient-chill-wave-electronic music around. He is not a recluse though, he goes by a few different musical aliases but everything stems around MEMORY TAPES. Over the past few years he has done some fantastic remixes for some great bands, including an appearance on the ATL RMX. In 2009 he released his proper debut album "Seek Magic". The record got rave reviews and landed itself a #25 spot on my Top records of 2009 list. He has never played a show, but that is about to change.

After many requests he is finally hitting the road with...probably his laptop and venturing to the UK, doing a set at SXSW, and a few US cities. One lucky city happens to be right here...in Las Vegas...in the Hard Rock. A little strange and a lot a bit random. It's kinda like the time Air played at the Joint (4-26-2006 to be exact). My memory is a bit hazy, but I think I was out of town for that one. His style and sound definitely don't fit the Las Vegas-party-all-night vibe, and he is not one to 'rock the party'. So this should be one interesting evening. I encourage everyone to attend this concert and support people making art for the sake of making art.

February 16th @ Hard Rock Hotel

Treeship
22:21min 51.2mb


Yeasayer "Ambling Alp (Memory Tapes Remix)"

RIP Jay Reatard

"It ain't gonna save me.
It ain't gonna save me, no how!"
-J.R

Memphis garage-rocker dies at the age of 29.
The story is all over the place. Look into it.

The Take-Away Show :: Phoenix

I first posted on la Blogotheque’s Take-Away Show when I shared an amazing one-shot video of Sigur Ros playing in a cafe. Vincent Moon's style is unique and highly admired by several of my film friends. In his Take-Away segments, he films indie bands playing acoustically in all sorts of public and intimate places: back of a moving pickup truck, New York subways, alleyways, or walking through whatever particular town he seems to meet the bands in. They all share an exciting and daring element.

I probably won't make it to France this year, but Vincent met up with Phoenix in Paris. They got a few songs in and the story behind it is worth the read. link

Frank Gehry

Feels like I have been building the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute myself. Everyday I see a new development as I pass by on my bike. The opening has been pushed back and back, but it looks like construction is close to completion. Gem of Downtown Vegas.

Blood Brothers Vinyl Re-Issue

The kids are still screaming, or kinda more like yelping, along to Love Rhymes With Hideous Car Wreck. Now they can jam to the craze quintet from Seattle- The Blood Brothers on vinyl. Epitaph Records was kind enough to re-issue their catalog (minus Rumors Laid to Waste EP and their debut This Adultery is Ripe) last year. I got a chance to see these guys play a few years back with ...Trail of the Dead, before they disbanded in 07. They were completely chaotic but in the best kind of way. My to-buy-in-the-near-future record list just got a little bit longer.

ATL RMX

In case you feel like getting rowdy in an Escalade this weekend. Adult Swim and Beaterator did a collaboration to bring some tough remixes from Atlanta's finest. Holla fam.

New Years Res.

In 2009 I wanted to quit drinking soda, win a bike race, establish stronger base-miles when training, and keep everything on point. Check, check, check, and I guess...check. In the spirit of stepping my game up I wrote my New Years Resolution/Goals for 2010. Should be a very busy and exciting year...

Take care of my car.
It doesn't get driven very often, but I was definitely lacking on routine maintenance last year. I plan on driving out to LA and AZ a lot this year for races, so my car needs to be ready to go.
Expand music collection.
Vinyl or CD it doesn't matter, I didn't buy as much last year as I would of liked. I've got a list the length of my arm, of records I need! I'm diving more and more into the hip-hop realm, mostly 90's, and would like to pick some more up.
Save money.
I spent close to 4 grand on bikes last year! Totally worth it but it put me in a hole many times. I think this brings me to my next resolution...
Stay in more.
Why spend so much money on drinks when I can just buy a bottle and have company over? Right? Right!
Travel more.
I already have a few trips lined up.
Get back on track with school.

I finally figured out what degree/major to aim for.

Balancing school, work, riding, and life is the ultimate goal for this year.

ATDI

I have been thinking about this post for a while.

Normally I always keep my Facebook IM app off. Often times, I would leave Facebook open but continue onto other tabs, then an IM notification would catch my eye and get me completely sidetracked. But that app did bring me one lovely surprise.

After falling asleep one night, I awoke to a single instant-message from Bryan Novelo. It was a link to an article: a show review from an El Paso, TX quintet. That band was At the Drive-In. I love ATDI, and no one knows this more than Bryan. They played a tiny coffee shop in Germany. The footage is bare-bones; a single camera with decent sound, but you can see that something incredible was happening. The band had so much energy and heart, it would have been surreal to see that band in that setting. The article is interesting and the videos are beautiful. I was late for work that day because of it.

2009: A Year in Review

+I gave my heart
-She gave it back
+I rode my bike

See you in the '10

hours > miles

Sunny Sunday Track Day

Finally getting comfortable on the track. Working on getting some good base training during the off season. There's no better way to spend a Sunday than to drive out to LA with Ian and Danny. Collection of photos from past trips...

TOP 50 RECORDS of 2009

Here it is, My Top 50 Records of 2009. Enjoy.

1. Dirty Projectors “ Bitte Orca”
2. Grizzly Bear “Veckatimest”
3. Animal Collective “Merriweather Post Pavilion”
4. Atlas Sound “Logos”
5. Pains of Being Pure at Heart “Pains of Being Pure At Heart”
6. Phoenix “Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix”
7. Fuck Buttons “Tarot Sport”
8. Neon Indian “ Psychic Chasms”
9. Bibío “Ambivalence Avenue”
10. Lotus Plaza “The Floodlight Collective”
11. Destroyer “Bay of Pigs EP”
12. Cold Cave “Love Come Close LP/Death Come Close EP”
13. Air “Love 2”
14. Shark Speed “Sea Sick Music”
15. Delorean “Ayrton Sienna EP”
16. Nosaj Thing “Drift”
17. Burial / Four Tet Slip “Wolf Cub & Moth”
18. Lamb of God “The Wrath”
19. Deerhunter “Rainwater Cassette Exchange”
20. Dinosaur Jr. “Farm”
21. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “It's Blitz!”
22. Converge “Axe to Fall”
23. Volcano Choir “Unmap”
24. Russian Circles “Geneva”
25. Memory Tapes “Seek Magic”
26. Riceboy Sleeps “Riceboy Sleeps”
27. Girls “Album”
28. Andrew Bird “Noble Beast”
29. Mark Kozelek “Lost Verses LIVE”
30. Raekwon “Only Built for Cuban Linx II”
31. Kurt Vile “Childish Prodigy”
32. DOOM “Born Into This”
33. Polvo “In Prisim”
34. Built to Spill “There Is No Enemy”
35. Discovery “LP”
36. The Clientele “Bonfires on the Heath”
37. Dizzee Rascal “Tongue n’ Cheek”
38. NO AGE “ Losing Feeling”
39. Wilco “Wilco”
40. Royksopp “Junior”
41. Monsters of Folk “Monsters of Folk”
42. The Dodos “Time To Die”
43. Lightning Bolt “Earthly Delights”
44. CFCF “Continent”
45. Kings of Convenience “Declaration on Dependence”
46. Basement jaxx “Scars”
47. Jookabox “Dead Zone Boys”
48. Simian Mobile Disco “Temporary Pleasures”
49. Six Organs of Admittance “Luminous Night”
50. YACHT “See Mystery Lights”

ARGON 18 KRYPTON

New Bike Day Vol 2. Time to step my game up. I'm now entering the world of road cycling. Special thanks to Danny Kam @ NuVision Cyclery, Matthew, and MASH for collaborating and making this bike happen.

2010 Argon 18 Krypton.
HM Carbon Fiber frameset, Campagnolo Athena 11 groupo, Fulcrum 7 race wheels...specs





I rode around downtown and let Aaron do his thing...set here

It's all about moving units.

I had heard a brief tidbit about this on NPR but it looks like the Federal Trade Commission are forcing disclosures when bloggers review something they got for free. Not a super big deal but you can understand how some people would flip...

Beginning today, bloggers, Twitterers, and others who write online reviews or endorse products using new media must disclose it when they receive free merchandise or payment for writing about an item. The guidelines update the FTC’s 1980 guide addressing the use of testimonials in advertising, remapping marketing rules for the digital realm, where it’s hard to know if the exclamatory musings of fashion hounds and best-disposable-diaper posts by suburban moms are inspired by a great product or a free product.

Full article...boston [dot] com