Eyedea & Abilities, in my case I needed a primer on to gain a real sense of him and where my expectations were to lie, but going into the show relatively blind is what its about nowadays, and I’m always up for it.

The duo, consisting of an MC, Eydea, and a DJ, Abilities,  hit the stage at about 11: 45 pm.  As things go I’m pretty new to Eyedea and have known about ...]]> Eyedea & Abilities – The Echoplex, February 11th

Eyedea & Abilities, in my case I needed a primer on to gain a real sense of him and where my expectations were to lie, but going into the show relatively blind is what its about nowadays, and I’m always up for it.

The duo, consisting of an MC, Eydea, and a DJ, Abilities,  hit the stage at about 11: 45 pm.  As things go I’m pretty new to Eyedea and have known about Abilities for a minute now.  In the end though its about  the music.  The show at some points had a new comer to Eyedea, like myself, bobbing and at other times moved to wonder openly, “Is this rapper’s only ability to spit as quickly as possible?”

As stated, I’m relatively new to Eyedea, which with any artists you are really taking in full bore for the first time (lyrics, presence, fans, and look) it can be a frustrating occurrence.  With a little research on my end, Eyedea clearly possesses the ability to convert any hip hop head and with his freestyle background, his cache is securely in place.

As I stood amongst a crowd whose sartorial choices were that of lumberjacks and graffiti artists (past, present, and future) I came to a few conclusions:

1. 1. I wish Eyedea would ride some of the excellent production work Abilities brings to the table.
2. 2. Eyedea’s rapid fire, self aware style was in full display.  Peppering the crowd with asides on his current physical and emotional state, Eyedea kept the crowd amused between and during tracks. He knows his audience and worked with them throughout the set.
3. 3. I wanted more from Abilities, beyond keeping the tracks moving along, only a few times did he really display his *ahem* abilities.
4. 4. I came away genuinely enjoying the show, and looking to dig into their discography.

The crowd, which reached to the first level of pillars at the Echopex, gyrated and pumped their fists to every word and bass drop.  The crowd needless to say were fans and appreciated the show.  Perhaps it was arriving way too early at the venue, the late hour, but most likely the frustration with the 9 out of 10 denizens of Echo Park who either had no jumper cables or out right lied to me, but this was a show for the E&A true believers; I’m coming around.

A Gil Scott-Heron release is an event to be lauded and explored, for this review I will try to move away from my knee jerk reaction for the former and attempt the latter.

Gil’s latest release I’m New Here, released on independent label XL Recordings and produced by label owner Richard Russell is a well crafted work.  The creative influence from the owner of perhaps the dopest label around is clearly apparent on “The Crutch” and “Your Soul And Mine.”

This is ...]]>

A Gil Scott-Heron release is an event to be lauded and explored, for this review I will try to move away from my knee jerk reaction for the former and attempt the latter.

Gil’s latest release I’m New Here, released on independent label XL Recordings and produced by label owner Richard Russell is a well crafted work.  The creative influence from the owner of perhaps the dopest label around is clearly apparent on “The Crutch” and “Your Soul And Mine.”

This is not to say Russell has simply taken Gil’s former recordings and constructed his own “Gil Scott-Heron” album, like so many posthumous Tupac Shakur albums. He has brought Gil forward with the new movements in music: to pick from the XL Recordings roster you could profess that the album is part Radiohead, Beck, and all Gil Scott-Heron.  Tracks like “Your Soul and Mine” and “New York is Killing Me” being clear examples of that sound.

Gil is comfortable in this setting. Never seeming out of place or lost; you must remember he was on the forefront of movements like acid jazz, if he doesn’t know his way, he’ll just make it up.  Russell has given Gil a new avenue to explore the power of words.  Since the release of the haunting single “I’m New Here”  there was discussion as to its meaning.  We’ve come to such conclusions that Gil is coming to grips with death, a retrospective on his life, or an overview on the state of America: economic straits & a black president.  I at first among the last group.  Taking his words and extrapolating upon them that he is in a place he never expected to be, with the past considered heavily, he sees a new day, but there is still a deep pallor of dread, indicated by the pulsating and viscous track accompanying Gil’s words.

My final conclusion is that I’m New Here is an amalgam of all three.  Gil Scott-Heron uses his family and personal life as an analogy for the changing America and to cope with the assuredly approaching finality of death.  As he states “I come from a broken home” and later “I came from a broken home,” after presenting the ups and downs of his family life (America), he seemingly comes to multiple conclusions: the past made him who he is today, its a sort of cathartic moment when he comes to grips with that; he can move forward and has gone through too  much to dwell on it.

I’m New Here is a quality pickup,whether a fan of Gil Scott-Heron or not.  It is a wonderful listen, with passion and purpose, not to be passed up.

Stirring up a big boiling pot of industry buzz is a most prolific DJ and nephew to the late great Alice Coltrane, Flying Lotus.

The famed beat master is all set to release his third studio album, Cosmogramma,  April 4th of this year.

There are several concrete reasons this album is generating so much buzz:

First off, Radiohead front-man Thom Yorke lends his vocals to the track “…And the World Laughs With You”.

Secondly, this is FlyLo’s 3rd studio album. While ...]]>

Stirring up a big boiling pot of industry buzz is a most prolific DJ and nephew to the late great Alice Coltrane, Flying Lotus.

The famed beat master is all set to release his third studio album, Cosmogramma,  April 4th of this year.

There are several concrete reasons this album is generating so much buzz:

First off, Radiohead front-man Thom Yorke lends his vocals to the track “…And the World Laughs With You”.

Secondly, this is FlyLo’s 3rd studio album. While the first two were remarkably creative efforts, upon listening to them it is undeniable that our DJ/Producer/Laptop-mastermind still has potential to maximize.

In an interview with pitchfork he explains, “”I’m finally getting to the point where I can make the kind of records that I want to make– that I wanted to make when I was younger, things that I dreamed about making. It’s this fusion-y kind of thing where all the elements of the music that I love are there.”

Lastly, nobody ever knows what the hell to expect from this guy. The “fusion-y kind of thing” he creates always surprises even the most keen music lovers.

Check out the track-list below and unless you’re a music hating robot, mark April 4th under the arrival of “Super-groove-love-makin’-tunes”.

1. Clock Catcher
2. Pickled!
3. Nose Art
4. Intro//A Cosmic Drama
5. Zodiac Shit
6. Computer Face//Pure Being
7. And The World Laughs With You ft. Thom Yorke
8. Arkestry
9. Mmmhmm ft.Thundercat
10. Do The Astral Plane
11. Satelllliiiiiteee
12. German Haircut
13. Recoiled
14. Dance Of The Pseudo Nymph
15. Drips//Auntie’s Harp
16. Table Tennis ft. Laura Darlington
17. Galaxy In Janaki

We were lucky enough to have time to sit in with one of the hottest stars in the business, Kiefer Sutherland. You’ll get to see the interview soon, but check out this first-hand account from LP33.tv Head of Production, Jorge Roberto Ramirez.

It was a normal Friday morning as we pulled into the crew parking of the hugely popular 24 set. We were scheduled to interview the world famous Kiefer ...]]>

Keifer Sutherland on set of "24" during his LP33.tv interview.

We were lucky enough to have time to sit in with one of the hottest stars in the business, Kiefer Sutherland. You’ll get to see the interview soon, but check out this first-hand account from LP33.tv Head of Production, Jorge Roberto Ramirez.

It was a normal Friday morning as we pulled into the crew parking of the hugely popular 24 set. We were scheduled to interview the world famous Kiefer Sutherland for LP33.tv about his thoughts on co-owning his record label, Iron Works.

After we checked in with security I was informed that we would need to ride to the filming location which was located in the middle of a busy street in downtown Los Angeles…several blocks from where we were currently located.

Mr. Sutherland was shooting scenes for 24 but wanted to talk to us about our plan for the interview. This came as a bit of a shock for me since I had not planned on speaking with him prior to the actual interview and my normally rock solid nerves were beginning to get the best of me.

A white passenger van pulled up and we were told to board the vehicle, as we passed down the streets I could hear the production crew through walkie talkies and it was clear this was not your typical production. We approached a corner that was heavily guarded with police, crew, trucks and hundreds of extras standing by for the scene. We were told to get out and wait for a break in shooting, so Kiefer could speak with us. As I stood there I began to wonder what series of events had led me to this moment. I am on the set of arguably one of the largest scale TV productions in the world waiting to talk to Jack Bauer about our interview…was this a dream?

A short while later Rebecca, our liaison to the shoot approached us and said he had a moment to talk. She quickly rushed us up the stairs of the building. Once we arrived at the top of the stairs, she guided us to a small corner where Kiefer was sitting down playing chess with someone from the crew.

So there I was, talking with one of the most famous people in the world about our interview with LP33.tv. The hustle and bustle of being Kiefer Sutherland could not be more clear at this moment…hundreds of people around moving lights, stopping traffic, and all of this contingent on one character the world has come to adore.

Kiefer said hello and we began discussing the timeframes and expectation for the interview, we were with him for only minutes before the assistant director came into view and told him they were ready to shoot. We walked down the stairs together and discussed the final logistics, Kiefer stopped on his mark, and I was moved out of the frame of the camera about ten feet away, the director yells “Action!” and he turns and says “thanks”, one second later he became Jack Bauer, grabbing a women by the arms and pulling her up the flight of stairs. I got back into the van and returned to basecamp…he arrived within the hour and gave us an amazing interview.

Keep your eyes out for the full LP33.tv interview with Kiefer Sutherland.

FYF Fest and San Diego’s The Soft Pack are gearing up for a 10 show marathon across Los Angeles on Saturday, January 30th.

Starting at 10 am the four piece will be traveling via FYF Fest’s veggie-bus to 10 different locations around LA.

As the day progresses, and people get more wasted, additional bands Avi Buffalo and Crystal Antlers will join the mayhem.

The marathon commemorates the release of The Soft Pack’s self-titled LP, out February 2nd, via Kemado Records.

Fans are ...]]>

FYF Fest and San Diego’s The Soft Pack are gearing up for a 10 show marathon across Los Angeles on Saturday, January 30th.

Starting at 10 am the four piece will be traveling via FYF Fest’s veggie-bus to 10 different locations around LA.

As the day progresses, and people get more wasted, additional bands Avi Buffalo and Crystal Antlers will join the mayhem.

The marathon commemorates the release of The Soft Pack’s self-titled LP, out February 2nd, via Kemado Records.

Fans are encouraged to follow the FYF Fest bust around Los Angeles. For those brave enough to hit all 10 shows, there is a free giveaway at the end.

For info on secret locations  or to simply follow the madness follow the band at TWITTER.COM/FYFFEST or TWITTER.COM/THESOFTPACK.

The Marathon:

10:00am                  House Party
5227 Irvington Place
Los Angeles, CA 90042

12:00noon              Frankie’s (Sunset Junction)
3323 West Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA  90026

1:00pm                     FMLY Mansion (with Avi Buffalo)
1210 Appleton Way
Venice Beach, CA  90291

3:30pm                    Fingerprints *mega giveaways at this show!
4612 E 2nd ST
Long Beach, CA 90803

5:00pm                    SECRET BEACH SHOW
*Follow twitter.com/fyffest or twitter.com/thesoftpack for location!*

5:30pm                    House Party  (w. Crystal Antlers)
6382 Rochelle Ave
Westminster, CA 92683

7:30pm                    House Party at a Fan’s House
Downey, CA
*Follow twitter day of for location!*

8:00pm                    Vacation Vinyl (with Dunes)
4670 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027

10:00pm                  Silverlake House Party (with Woah Hunx)
*Follow twitter day of for location!*

12:00am                  Secret Location
Los Angeles, CA
*Follow twitter day of for location!*

Welcome our Northeast scouts!!

DANIEL OAKLEY, NYC, SENIOR SCOUT Daniel has a long history in booking and promotion, most namely working under the guide of Dez Dickerson and Movement Nashville. Having been part of the Nashville, California, and New York music scenes, Daniel currently resides in a position at Sony Music working with Digital Marketing & Release Planning for the Epic Records Division. See Daniel’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

MICHAEL FALIS, NYC With a past heavy in the DJ scene, Michael developed ...]]>

Welcome our Northeast scouts!!

DANIEL OAKLEY, NYC, SENIOR SCOUT
Daniel has a long history in booking and promotion, most namely working under the guide of Dez Dickerson and Movement Nashville. Having been part of the Nashville, California, and New York music scenes, Daniel currently resides in a position at Sony Music working with Digital Marketing & Release Planning for the Epic Records Division.
See Daniel’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

MICHAEL FALIS, NYC
With a past heavy in the DJ scene, Michael developed the dance imprints Warmth Records and The Savant Guard. He is currently the General Manager at Earth Program Music, a hybrid music publishing company and record label group which is pleased to announce the new white label CMS and POS solution Synchtank ™. Warmth Records and E.P.’s electro label The Savant Guard have released records from Montreal house stalwart Dave Allison, Philadelphia’s Pink Skull, Downtown rave sweethearts Cubic Zirconia, Glo-fi pioneer Toro y Moi, and many more. Alongside his duties at Earth Program and LP33.tv, Mike serves as the Technical Director of internet radio pioneer East Village Radio.
See Michael’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

LAUREN STEMPLER, NYC
Lauren is currently a second year law student at New York Law, and is Vice President of the Media, Entertainment and Sports Law Association. She is presently a licensing and marketing intern for the Beggars Group, which encompasses Matador Records, XL Recordings, Rough Trade Records, and 4AD.
See Lauren’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

Drum roll please… our Southeast scouts!

ROBERT EVANS, ATLANTA, SENIOR SCOUT Robert has been managing and consulting with artists since late 2004, when he was asked to join the management team of former Squirrel Baiter Peter Searcy. Since then his company – Audible Attraction – has grown to include management and consulting work with artists, producers, labels and managers all over the country. He has worked with artists such as Fetchin Bones and Morning State, management companies Milk Money Consulting and Timbre ...]]>

Drum roll please… our Southeast scouts!

ROBERT EVANS, ATLANTA, SENIOR SCOUT
Robert has been managing and consulting with artists since late 2004, when he was asked to join the management team of former Squirrel Baiter Peter Searcy. Since then his company – Audible Attraction – has grown to include management and consulting work with artists, producers, labels and managers all over the country. He has worked with artists such as Fetchin Bones and Morning State, management companies Milk Money Consulting and Timbre Unlimited, record labels DB Records and Toucan Cove, television with Turner Broadcasting and Krystal Restaurants just to name a few.
See Robert’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

BRIAN KNOTT, ATLANTA
Brian co-founded ATF Records in Atlanta and successfully ran the label for 7 years (2000 – 2007). Brian is also the founder of the A3C Festival held in Atlanta each Fall that has opened its arms to over 500 artists since its start in 2005 including Rakim, The Juice Crew, DJ Premier, Black Sheep, The Clipse, Del the Funky Homosapien, Little Brother, Wale, and B.o.B. Following ATF era Brian has worked closely with a number of companies/events in the music industry including Remix Hotel, The Atlantis Music Conference, Affix Music and helped to develop Red Bull’s “EmSee” event which debuted in Atlanta in the Fall of 2009 and is slated for a number of national tour stops in 2010.
See Brian’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

RICHIE CORDARO, NASHVILLE
He currently resides in Nashville working with the Roy Orbison estate assisting the Vice President of the company on a variety of projects including licensing the catalog for film and television promotion, managing online merch store and more. Richie is looking to work with artists and bands as an artist manager or tour manager in the near future.
See Richie’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

Please give a warm welcome to our Central TMI Scouts! Make sure to keep an eye out for their up to the minute news!

JENNY APPLEBAUM, AUSTIN After graduating from Emerson College with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Marketing, Jenny moved to NYC to take a position as an assistant manager at World’s Fair where she worked with El-P, The New Pornographers, Devendra Banhart, and many others. After two years at World’s Fair and a brief stint at Madison House (where ...]]>

Please give a warm welcome to our Central TMI Scouts! Make sure to keep an eye out for their up to the minute news!

JENNY APPLEBAUM, AUSTIN
After graduating from Emerson College with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Marketing, Jenny moved to NYC to take a position as an assistant manager at World’s Fair where she worked with El-P, The New Pornographers, Devendra Banhart, and many others. After two years at World’s Fair and a brief stint at Madison House (where she worked with The Dresden Dolls and others), she moved to Austin, TX to work as a Talent Buyer at C3 Presents. She is currently booking Stubb’s Jr, The Parish Room, and Antone’s.
See Jenny’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

BRIAN HOLL, CHICAGO
Shortly after touring with We The Living, Brian discovered Chicago-based band Company of Thieves while opening for a band in Milwaukee. Brian realized the potential in the band, impressed their management company (Second Wave Music) located in Chicago, and made the move from Milwaukee to start representing them as Associate Manager. Brian was also assigned to be editor of Second Wave Music, which reached out to local and unsigned acts in Chicago.
See Brian’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

Meet some of the TMI Scouts! They’ll be bringing you hot, brand spankin’ new music to check out, so make sure you keep an eye out for their blogs!

DALLAS OSBORN, SAN FRANCISCO, SENIOR SCOUT Throughout the years, Dallas has worked for several music-based websites such as www.alternativeaddiction.com, www.melodic.net as well as written some blasts for A&R-based blogs. More recently, he has written for www.crazedhits.com and more specifically had a weekly column called “soundcheck” with the www.kingsofar.com site. He’s currently ...]]>

Meet some of the TMI Scouts! They’ll be bringing you hot, brand spankin’ new music to check out, so make sure you keep an eye out for their blogs!

DALLAS OSBORN, SAN FRANCISCO, SENIOR SCOUT
Throughout the years, Dallas has worked for several music-based websites such as www.alternativeaddiction.com, www.melodic.net as well as written some blasts for A&R-based blogs. More recently, he has written for www.crazedhits.com and more specifically had a weekly column called “soundcheck” with the www.kingsofar.com site. He’s currently involved with San Francisco’s Alternative Rock Station Live 105’s Street Team.
See Dallas’ full bio and playlist on LP33.

CHRISTEN GREENE, SEATTLE
In 2002, Christen Greene founded Faux Pas Productions, an artist management firm and boutique booking agency created and developed from a 360-model where artists’ receive priority attention and individualized marketing and branding plans. Christen personally manages Chris Pureka, The Amity, Andrea Gibson, Jeff Taylor (Atlantic) and Jose Ayerve (of Spouse) and is the Responsible Agent for Andrea Gibson, Chris Pureka and The Amity Front. Christen was also the day to day manager for Kaki King, Sonya Kitchell and Dar Williams under The Velour Music Group.
See Christen’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

WILL FRANK KIKER, LOS ANGELES
After graduating from the University of Austin in 2003 with a Bachelor’s degree in film, Will spent years working in talent management under John Crosby before moving on to assist film/TV producer Gavin Palone (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Gilmore Girls, Drop Dead Gorgeous). However, his addiction to music became overpowering and Will, ignoring a few intervention attempts, decided to give up the well paid job and completely change career course – into the music industry. Will is currently using his talents to produce an album for the AIDS Project Los Angeles, due out March 30th, 2009.
See Will’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

NICK BOWDEN, LOS ANGELES
Nicholas joins the LP33 team after two years of working with WIRED Magazine and News as a publicist and writer where his work at San Francisco’s Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival provided extensive coverage of upcoming bands and artists featured on WIRED.com’s Underwire Blog and homepage. During his tenure, WIRED magazine won 3 ASME’s for General Excellence, Best Design, and Best Section while WIRED.com was awarded The Best Magazine Website award by Adweek. Nicholas brings a relentless passion for music combined with his award winning experiences to the LP33 network.
See Nick’s full bio and playlist on LP33.

We are in two wars, we’ve handed out billions of dollars to the banks, who turned around and passed out huge bonuses to their employees and yesterday the Supreme Court ruled that campaign donations are a form of free speech protected by the 1st amendment. Great, now big corporations can spend whatever they want to on influencing elections.

We, as a country, are doing nothing about global warming, which is going to affect every person on the planet. State ...]]>

We are in two wars, we’ve handed out billions of dollars to the banks, who turned around and passed out huge bonuses to their employees and yesterday the Supreme Court ruled that campaign donations are a form of free speech protected by the 1st amendment. Great, now big corporations can spend whatever they want to on influencing elections.

We, as a country, are doing nothing about global warming, which is going to affect every person on the planet. State after State is banning same sex marriage, denying people a fundamental right because of sexual preference.  What the hell is going on?

I was a young kid in the late 60’s and the country was in trouble then. One big difference between now and the 60’s is the protest music coming from the artist community. Where are the artists today speaking out against what is happening to our country and world?

What is causing this silence?

Is it because there isn’t a draft? Are people not getting that their liberty and the liberties of future generations are at stake? Could we as a culture/generation be that self centered that it doesn’t touch us in a profoundly personal way or is it that we just don’t care?

I don’t know about you but I’m angry as hell. I want to support our troops- by bringing them home now. I do not want huge multinational corporations picking who is in Congress. I do not want to deny any group of Americans rights that others enjoy. I want to take very seriously the threat of climate change. Music has an incredible power to unite people and to rally like minded individuals into action.

Where are the leaders who will galvanize the youth culture into action? I know it can work I’ve seen it in action and have been an active participant in it.

There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear
There’s a man with a gun over there
Telling me I got to beware
I think it’s time we stop, children, what that sounds
Everybody look what’s going down
There’s battle lines being drawn
Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong
Young people speaking their minds
Getting so much resistance from behind
I think it’s time we stop, hey, what that sounds

LP33 is excited to announce the public debut of Treadstone Music Intelligence, aka TMI. First, let me bring you up to speed…

What is TMI?

TMI is a global network of handpicked scouts who gather intelligence on emerging artists and cultural trends in order to bring you the hottest new acts in the music scene.  TMI is the creation of A&R research industry leader Paula Moore, who has been responsible for discovering and recommending artist signings like Santigold, The Killers ...]]>

LP33 is excited to announce the public debut of Treadstone Music Intelligence, aka TMI. First, let me bring you up to speed…

What is TMI?

TMI is a global network of handpicked scouts who gather intelligence on emerging artists and cultural trends in order to bring you the hottest new acts in the music scene.  TMI is the creation of A&R research industry leader Paula Moore, who has been responsible for discovering and recommending artist signings like Santigold, The Killers and David Banner.  Combined with Paula’s unique A&R methodology and intel from TMI Scouts, hundreds of artists have been recommended and signed to major label deals.

Where the scouts are and what do they do?

TMI Scouts are everywhere. The TMI Network is divided into regions across the globe, each being managed by a senior scout.  Senior scouts personally canvas their region for emerging talent, in addition to maintaining a local network of industry contacts, DJs, press and high profile music insiders.

The rest is pretty straight forward – TMI Scouts compile information from their team and identify what’s hot and what’s not. Artists who make the cut are sent to LP33’s headquarters in Los Angeles. Finally, the LP33 music strategy department considers the information and recommends the best of it to the appropriate parties.

Who are the scouts?

The last question will be answered by the scouts themselves.  Over the course of the next couple of weeks twelve senior TMI scouts will begin contributing on LP33’s blog.  Starting today, LP33 will be introducing our U.S. team of TMI Scouts.

Know this…

LP33’s music strategy team is the only one of its kind-in the world.

Each scout has been handpicked and trained by Paula Moore and the music strategy team (click the link and read her bio to get a firm sense of who’s handling the big picture).

Outside of Paula’s expert training, each TMI Scout has proven, in their own way, that they have what it takes to identify emerging talent. To drive my point, current TMI Scouts have started record labels, consulting companies, and managed major label artists.

Congratulations, you’ve found your way to the inside track of the A&R world. We know you’re going to be psyched by what’s coming down the pipeline.  We know we are, and can’t wait to share it with you.

Check out our TMI channel which features  music videos and live performances from artists selected by the TMI Scouts.