Hugo and Kerrin Set Rules For Hairy Animals

This song is such a master class in sampling to make a really cool song. Hugo Kant makes downtempo instrumental trip-hop music along the lines of Portishead or Massive Attack but more instrumental. This song has it all, a dark ominous bass, hand clap infused creeping drums, glitched out keys and ethereal reverb in all the right places. Sprinkle that concoction with a beautiful meloncholy operatic sample, and a smooth jazzy horn solo that sounds like chilled out Coletrane and you have a song that gets cooler and cooler with every listen. This song really brings to mind the alien opera scene from the movie the 5th Element. If you dig chilled out beats with a bit of a dark feel then this is a guy you need to have in your music library. Makes for good quiet late night background music. Check out more by Hugo Kant at his his webpage

Hugo Kant - Low Gravity



I used to know this guy who looked a lot like Kai Smythe A.K.A. Hairy Soul Man. He was also very hairy, gifted with musical talent, a red head and kind of an odd guy. There was one time I saw him without a shirt on it was very uncomfortable...like more uncomfortable than talking to him normally. To be fair I was hanging out at his house with his roomates and it was hotter than the devils but crack. However, seeing him shirtless reminded me of those werewolf horror movies where the person is in mid transition for becoming a full on werewolf. Not quite covered in hair, but not human looking either. I feel bad for thinking that because he was a pretty nice guy, strange for sure, but nice. The guy knew music thoug and could play any Van Halen song you threw at him. He also introduced me to my favorite board gave ever, Settlers Of Catan, which he totally cheated at when he was teaching my room mates and I how to play. When I watch this video I sort of get the same vibes I got from that guy. Weird and off beat, perhaps a bit cringy, but also kind of cool in his own way.

Hairy Soul Man - Fuck Everything



Really all you need to know about this super talented woman is that she absolutely kills it when it comes to making music, but since I'd feel bad if that is all I shared about her, I will gush on about one of the most underrated YouTube musicians out there. Kerrin Connolly is a Boston based multi-instrumentalist who not only writes her own songs but absolutely kills it when covering others songs. Her original work is very lighthearted, goofy and fun, which makes listening to her music and watching her videos on YouTube a pure joy. Seriously if you don't at least smile a little bit while watching her videos you just might need to watch another or you might be a dwarf of seven named Ornery or something like that. The music it's self is very catchy, comedic and inviting. It's definitely something I would want to show to my Mom and not feel uneasy about the subject matter. Her voice is beautiful, crisp and she is a master at creating awesome vocal harmonies. The handful of videos she has on her YouTube channel range from original works to cover songs and each video ends with her talking a bit about the song or just chatting about her life, but not in a blah blah blah boring way. It's funny and dare I say, adorkable. Her videos are not only fun to watch but they are really interesting too if you are the least bit into seeing how music is created. The videos are very DIY oriented and show her singing and playing (is there an instrument this woman can't play?) nearly every instrument used in the song. The videos are super addicting and demand multiple viewings. Truth be told I stopped writing this about an hour ago as I got sucked into a Kerrin Connolly YouTube vortex. No Ragrets! I am not sure if she edits the videos herself but, I have dabbled around with video editing myself, and I gotta tell you, what is being done with those videos is no small feat and is done very very well. I beg of you to please go check out her stuff and show her some love. She totally deserves it and I really hope to see her go big. This is one musician that you can tell truly loves what she does and loves her fans. Because I love her work so much I am going to post a cover and a re-worked original with a band. You'll just have to visit her to see the raw version of the original.

Kerrin Connolly - Mr. Know-It-All (Young The Giant Cover)


Kerrin Connolly - The Evil One



Since getting my record stereo system back up and working after not having it for a few years I have been going buck wild with buying music. Like seriously, I am at a point where I need to sort of put myself in check before I just spend all my money on music. I am not saying I am broke, but lets just say that I have become very aware of the amount I am spending on music and it should be less. I am not joking when I say this for the past few months I have gone to at least 2 thrift stores almost every day. Now that doesn't mean I am always buying something every stop, half of the time I come back empty handed, but when I do see something cool I buy it. Because I really can't think of what else to write about I am going to post my "a work in progress" set of rules for music buying.

• Rule #1. New Album Purchases (Record Store): - You may buy a new (not previously used) record on a payday weekend. Limit 1 new album every 2 weeks. I don't know if you have seen the prices of albums these days but they generally run 20-30 bucks for a normal non special edition of an album. If I stick by this rule I will acquire 24 new albums a year. It's a modest amount for a music maniac like me, but I think it's quite fair.
• Rule No.2 Used Albums (Record Store): You may purchase used albums from a record store but the total may not go over $20 for used record store albums. Record store trips should be limited to no more than 3 per month. You may combine the used album rule and the new album rule but you may only get 1 used album and 1 new album, the amount may not exceed $40 and you must omit one day of thrift store shopping. This allows me to purchase something if I really cant pass it up, but still puts a restriction on the amount I spend and also reduces the extra trip to the thrift store during the week.
• Rule #C. Thrifted/Garage Sale Albums: You may choose any 3 days during the week to go to the thrift stores. On these days you may go to as many thrift stores as you like. You may go to as many garage sales as you like on Saturdays. Thrifted/Garage Sale purchases must be below $3 per item and may not exceed a total amount of $15 over the 3 days. This works because quite often I do not find anything at the thrift stores/garage sales. You may alter this rule only if you come across a treasure trove haul. If this is the case you may not exceed over $40 and the next week of purchasing rules are null and void. This will limit my spending at thrift stores/garage sales. Garage sales are usually a bust anyway and by setting a limit on thrift store spending I am not tempted to just buy whatever I see.
• Rule #IV Purchase Designations: Every 3rd purchase at a record store may be from an unknown musician/artist. All other purchases must be from either a well curated list of albums you want, an album that will work toward completing a musician/bands discography already in your collection, or from a well loved band that you do not have in physical media format. This rule does not apply to thrift store/garage sale purchases, but is strongly advised. By doing this I am making sure I am buying albums I am going to listen to and know that I like, while still giving me the freedom to explore new music.
• Rule #Horse The No Repeat Rule: No album is to be bought on another media format if it is already in your collection. This rule may be broken only in very special circumstances (I.E. the media format being purchased is an absolute investment over the already existing format and a can't pass up price.) This allows me to have a wider library of music but also allows me to buy the White Album on vinyl if I ever somehow stumble upon a steal of a deal.

Mick Jagger - Brand New Set Of Rules



Speaking of record buying. One of my must own on vinyl albums came up for sale recently on /r/VinylDeals. If you done know what I just said in the last sentence then good. That means more discounted records for me. Doh! Now that the cats out of the bag I guess I'll explain. It's a forum where people post links to discounted vinyl on sites like Amazon and Wal-Mart almost daily. The sales don't usually last too long so you have to be quick. You can have a bot alert you when specific album titles or bands are posted but you have to check on it quite frequently to get the really good deals on sought after records. I really have a love/hate affair with that subreddit. The music nerd in me loves it and my wallet hats it. Anyway, the album Merriweather Post Pavilion by indie Psych rock legends Animal Collective was on sale this week along with a ton of other really great albums at pretty unbeatable prices on the VinylDeals subreddit. However, there was some strange stuff going on with the deals. The seller on Wal-Mart.com had very strange descriptions for the albums ranging from descriptions of zippers to skateboard pads. I, along with quite a few other record dorks decided to take the shot and see what happens. I put in my order and got a e-mail saying it was going to be shipped by the 4th of July, Seemed normal no issue. Initially I did have a bit of regret in buying this album since I did just purchase a pricey, and very disappointing, album at Barnes and Nobel a few days prior, but I had just got paid and the price was really good so I wasn't too concerned. Yesterday I wake up and I see an e-mail stating that the order was canceled due to the product not being available. The e-mail it's self strangely worded and the subject line had someone else's name in it and a bunch of numbers. I checked me bank account and it looked like it was indeed cancelled and the refund was showing as well. I was bummed but considering the strange circumstances I was okay with it. I made sure to make a heads up post for others who might have ordered as well just in case. a bunch of people responded saying their order was cancelled too and a few were still in process. Well it turns out that the orders that were not cancelled did not receive their desired albums. Instead they received whatever the description was. Luckily for them it seems that Wal-Mart.com is being cool and refunding the purchases, but seriously, what the funk?! Who does that? I am guessing it was some sort of data entry error. I know that after a while in a repetitive job you can just go all auto pilot and zone out sometimes. It still sucks though to get someones hopes up and then not deliver..."And all over the US you could hear the cries of 50 sad record nerds come together in one harmonious cacophony of misery." All in all I am really thankful that I got off easy and didn't have to go through the process of getting my money back. Oh, well. The album goes back on my list and the grind to find continues.

Animal Collective - Daily Routine

Snotty brainwaves and drunken disgruntled employees live in San Cristobal

Ellinor Olovsdotter also known by her stage name Elliphant was discovered by chance one night at a party. She explained in an interview with Billboard, "It’s just coincidences that made me into this — a friend who needed help" She was at a party in Paris when producer Tim Deneve was playing some of his beats and a quite inebriated Olovsdotter started singing over the music. Deneve was caught off guard by her voice and was looking for a singer to flush out his demos. He recruited Olovsdotter and six months later Elliphant was signed to Swedish independent label TEN Music Group. Previous to getting signed Ellinor had worked as a kitchen worker and server in the food industry for over a decade. “The whole thing is super random and I think that’s my secret weapon in this: I don’t have anything to lose." she said. Not a bad deal for going to a party, getting hammered and singing a little bit. Since being signed in 2011 she has released 2 full albums, numerous EP's and has been featured in many songs from other artists. One of my particular favorite songs she is featured in, and where I first heard of Elliphant, was on the song "Too Original" by Major Lazer, who I am a huge fan of. Those who are familiar with Major Lazer's sound know what they are in for, but for the uninitiated you can expect a raucous heavy electronic Jamaican fused dance track that is pure energy. I highly suggest on first listen to crank up the volume and get ready to dance. Make sure to watch the video too. It looks like it was a blast to make. While that song is amazing at showcasing her hypnotic flow, her soothing raspy singing voice is not shown, so as a bonus I am going to also post a live performance of the song "Loves Me Badder" form Baeble Music. Make sure to check out her music, there is some really great stuff there.

Major Lazer - Too Original (Feat. Elliphant & Jovi Rockwell)


Elliephant - Loves Me Badder (Live)



I can't believe that I have never posted about the amazing Mal Blum! I have loved their music from the first time I heard it. It's emotional, sometimes folky sometimes rocky and the perfect type of music for those moody days when you just want to have someone to relate to, but also need a little pick me up. They have a new album set to drop on July 12 titled Pitty Boy and it looks as if they are touring quite a bit this summer in support of the new album. If you can, make sure to catch a show. Meanwhile enjoy this song! It's an older song from their 2011 album titled "Every Time You Go Somewhere". A quick note though, not all of their songs are quite this moody sounding, I just really really love the pacing of this song. And as an added bonus I will put up a song from the new album, that is giving me heavy Dinosaur Jr. vibes and that is a very good thing.

Mal Blum - San Cristobal

Mal Blum - I Don't Want To


I realize that I haven't updated this blog recently, which means that all my adoring fans who so graciously read this don't get to keep up on the events in my life. Trust me you're really not missing out on much unless you are interested in daily visits to what I call the "thrift store circuit" and hours of collecting everything that isn't nailed down in Skyrim. About 6 months ago I started a new job working in the transportation industry. I basically managed orders for multiple delivery agents. I want to start this out by saying that the people I worked with were pretty cool for the most part, in fact that was probably the only thing about the job that I really liked. Everything else was awful. There was barely any training or training documentation, the workload was really heavy and quite stressful, and communication was severely lacking on the corporate side of things. It was definitely a job where you felt like a number instead of a person that was heard and acknowledged. Every morning I would spend 15 minutes giving myself a locker room pep talk like you see in sports movies and when I left at the end of the day, I so tense and frustrated that I wanted to sit in my car and cry while blasting "Everybody Hurts" by R.E.M. I can honestly say that it was the worst job I ever had. Thankfully I realized that it was not for me early on and rambled on to another job that I like very much. This is a song about feeling trapped in career stagnation and feeling like a zombified corporate shill. If there is anything that my punk rock roots taught me it's that working for the man is a soulless endeavor. I'd like to say that I learned that early on, but truthfully I don't think it sunk in until recently. I respect those who can just switch off that part of their brain and go all auto pilot and let all the bullshit roll off their backs. It takes an iron will and Teflon skin to deal with that most of the time. I also feel really bad for them. I feel bad for those that never get the credit for their ideas, those that are never heard, those that get told they aren't good enough at what they do everyday by some entitled prick. I could write an entire book here but I need to end this ranting and I believe that I have done my due diligence in setting up this next song. With that being said I will quote the best line of this song and encourage everyone in a shitty job to shout along with it. "I AM NOT A PRODUCTION UNIT, I AM A HUMAN BEING!"

Cable Ties - Say What You Mean


Whew! That was pretty intense. Let's cool down a bit and get a little geeky with this next song, "Weightless" by Marconi Union. This song was created in collaboration with the British Academy of Sound Therapy. It is said to be one of the world's most relaxing songs and was created with exactly that intention. It's goal is to lower the listeners blood pressure, stress levels and heart rate and there is scientific data to back that claim up. Dr. David Lewis-Hodgson from the research group Mindlab International states that ""Brain imaging studies have shown that music works at a very deep level within the brain, stimulating not only those regions responsible for processing sound but also ones associated with emotions.” The data collected found that the song reduces anxiety by 65% and a 35% reduction in usual physiological resting rates. The song contains a sustaining rhythm that starts at 60 beats per minute and gradually moves to 50 beats per minute. The listeners heartbeat naturally slows to match the tracks BPM. The length is also critical in the science of the song. Lyz Cooper, the founder of the British Academy of Sound Therapy explains, “It takes about five minutes for this process, known as entrainment, to occur. And there is no repeating melody, which allows your brain to completely switch off because you are no longer trying to predict what is coming next.” The song is composed of a mix of piano, guitar and electronic samples of natural soundscapes all written in a slow moving dream like melody. This is the first song I have on my "Sleepy Time" playlist and I have listened to this track quite often. I can attest that it works very very well. I often times find that I am asleep before the song is even over, however I will admit that I do tend to fall asleep rather quickly. Why not try it out for yourself, just make sure you aren't driving or operating heavy machinery...and if you are, you probably shouldn't be reading this right now. P.S. There is also a 10 hour version on YouTube if you're into that sort of thing.

Marconi Union - Weightless


Now I am too sleepy. I can not let this post end like that. We need to get this back to proper Rop Bop levels before departing and I think I have just the right song to get us there. This band is on one of my all time favorite punk labels Fat Wreck Chords, founded my Fat Mike of the band NOFX. This all girl power pop punk band from San Pedro California bring sugary, fast, hook laden 3 part harmonies that will keep you jumping around for hours. It's snotty, it's fun and it's tough...everything punk should be. This is a live version of the song "Cheers" from their album Not Sorry. While the songs lyrics might not convey my feelings to you dear reader and I think that song title is the perfect way to end this post. Enjoy and keep rocking until next time. Seacrest, out!

Bad Cop/ Bad Cop - Cheers (Live from The Rock Room)

Attention Shoppers Pt. 2 - Blind Thrift Store Finds

About a month ago I was lucky enough to find a working stereo receiver at a local Goodwill. I have been "vinyless" for close to 5 years. I have a few movies within that time frame and I have faithfully hauled boxes of LP's from one home to another, and as any vinyl collector can tell you a stack of 25 records is surprisingly heavier than expected. Especially when carrying them up and down a flight of straits. It's been a while since I have listened to some of these records and thinking back, I rarely used my record player when I did have one. If you could see me now I am shaking my head in shame and embarrassment. To be fair though when I did start collecting it was in the heyday of digital files and file sharing programs like Napster and Kazza. While digital media is nice for conserving space I am a man who enjoys physical media. I love being surrounded by cool fun things to look at. I love cover art, reading the liner notes and lyrics, making notes on what songs and albums are great and categorizing my collection. Buying this receiver has re-ignited me love of physical media in a big way. I've always been a fan of thrift stores and even though it is kind of hazardous to my square footage I am always looking for a deal. That being said I am going to do another thrift store haul entry...probably more in the future. I am going to try to highlight the albums that might not be as well known or those that got lost in the shuffle. So lets start doing some crated digging shall we.

The first album I want to share is The album My Way by Major Harris. This was a pretty blind buy on my part. I knew I had heard of Major Harris before in passing, maybe heard a song by him but didn't really remember what he sounded like. Without even getting into the detail on this album take a second to soak in all that cover art. I mean right off the bat you know this is going to be worth a listen. I will put it right on front street here and tell you, that this album cover is a little misleading. When I look at this I am expecting some deep and heavy funky vibes. Something you'd play while cruising around the seedy side of the city at night. Sadly you will not get that pimp like soundtrack this cover so excellently conveys, however it's not a bad record. The album does still have some funk elements mixed with soul, but it has a very heavy poppy disco sound to it. The music is pretty upbeat and the first track on the album, Each Morning I Wake Up, is probably a song you have heard before. It could possibly be the best Saturday morning cleaning the house song I have heard. Actually you could say that for this whole album. The vocal on this album are pretty decent which is to be expected from someone who was once in the R&B/Soul group The Delfonics. It's definitely a smooth buttery delivery, but the lyrics do tend to come off as rather generic. The album isn't a jaw dropper but it's for sure worth a listen and fun. I would call it a nice album to throw on and do some spring cleaning. It's got some grooves to keep you moving and it has a very regenerative and happy vibe to it. I'll be honest though I mostly bought it for that badass cover art. It'll look great hanging on my wall in my vinyl picture frame.

Major Harris - Each Morning I Wake Up

Next on the list is an album that was another total blind buy for me. Again I really just based if off of the cool looking cover art. I did do a quick Discogs search for it to see what I was getting into, but did not want to be the guy in the thrift store playing YouTube videos at full volume. Lucky for me this turned out to be one of the best picks from this haul. There really wasn't much information I could find about this artist known as Kyle. I did manage to find out that his full name is William Kyle Eidson II and he is a former member of 60's garage rock group Sin-Say Shuns. He was on the same label as Billy Joel's early album "Cold Spring Harbor" album. Further reading suggest that Kyle was a pretty decent rival for Joel's album. to be fair thought Joel's album was not mastered at the correct speed, and even though the album was later re-mastered "Cold Spring Harbor" and Kyle's "Times That Try A Mans Soul" both failed to gain any traction due to Gulf + Western (a parent company of Paramount) being indifferent to the albums. However the indifference projected toward this album was not warranted by any means. The lyrics are deep and meaningful and deal a lot with, as the title would imply, everyday inner struggle but also carries a hopefulness to them as well. There are a few songs that tread into the religious side of things like the song Soul Smith, but don't let that sway you from passing on the song as it blooms into a full on jam with backing strings and some great guitar riffs. The song Think I'm Gonna Rain is a song about feeling down and out that I could easily see in a movie where the character is finally letting out all the emotion. The song sways from a dark ballad to emotional volcano of sound and vocals that make you want to yell along. This album is full of great tracks and every song feels fresh and quite relatable. It comes across as very honest, raw, and pulls no punches. This is what really makes this album shine. The music is very well produced, and ranges from straight up rockers like Black Gets Blacker, to slower folky country ballads like The Reason. When listening to this album there is no doubt of when this album was made (1971), It's got the 70's sound all over it. If you are a fan of 70's rock, this is a gem that you really should not miss.

Kyle - Think I'm Gonna Rain

Fact: I am a music nerd and i love learning about music. One of the most obvious places that one can learn about music is by reading the notes in those seemingly useless booklets that you get with your music. Yes, those booklets are more than just a pretty picture to catch your eye and yell out "Buy me! I'm cool!" If you take a gander at the song writing credits and even read the thank you notes you can really find some interesting stuff. Sadly, with everything going digital is a dying trend, but on the plus side you can find nearly any obscure artist with very little digging. Reading song writing credits has always been one of my biggest joys and i think it's something that often gets overlooked. There are tons of songs out there that are covers of other peoples songs. Old blues songs are one of the best examples of this. Just do a quick search for blues cover songs sometime and there is bound to be something you'll find that you thought was an original. I picked up and album by Huddie William Ledbetter, or better known as Lead Belly. As I was listening to the album, which is filled with great blues songs by the way, I recognized one of my favorite Credence Clearwater Revival songs Midnight Special. For years and years I thought CCR had wrote that song. As I am writing this I looked into other songs that Lead Belly and the list of his songs that were covered by other artists is pretty impressive. Black Betty by Ram Jam, Where Did You Sleep Last Night by Nirvana, Gallis Pole (Gallows Pole) by Zeppelin, Goodnight Irene by Tom Waits just to name a few. Now I want to make something clear so I don't get attacked by the other more enlightened music nerds out there. Lead Belly isn't necessarily the song writer for some of these songs. Songs like Midnight Special are considered traditional folk songs, meaning they really don't trace back to a song writer, but he did make them popular, so in a way Lead Belly is a sort of cover song artist as well. I would really urge you to do some searches today about cover songs or samples that were used in songs. there is a great website called Who Sampled that makes this such a fun and easy task. I really think you'll be surprised at what you find and you just might even find some new favorite songs!

Lead Belly - Midnight Special

I don't have a lot to say about this band, partly due to laziness and partly due to not having too much to write about. I am not sure why someone would get rid of this album. It's a pretty great 80's metal record. Now when I say 80's metal that should instantly give you an overall vibe of what this record is. Lots of tasty riffs, cheesy lyrics, and visions of skin tight leather, big hair and spandex. Originally from Boston they were originally known as Axes and released their debut EP but due to legal trouble they changed their name to Mass(perhaps their home state had some influence on their name). In 1982 their first full length album was recorded but remained unreleased until Retroactive Records released it 28 years later. That is not to say that Mass was unknown until then. they did have some success in the mid to late 80's. The single Do You Love Me was a hit on Boston rock radio and the video did see rotation on MTV. Their third album "Take You Home' had decent sales and they fourth album "Voices In the Night" was produced by Michael Sweet of the 80's christian metal band Stryper. The band did take a brief hiatus in the 90's and started recording again in the early 2000's. Like I said earlier the album is very 80's hair metal sounding and there really isn't much as variation from song to song, which is pretty typical for a lot of mid 80's metal. The one thing I do love about the album is the guitar playing is really good and there are so hot shredders in there. I wouldn't say that this is a disappointing record, because it is fun for what it is, but it's no masterpiece of music. Just a couple of dudes having a good time making some MASSive sound. If you like bands like Poison, or Cinderella, or Whitesnake these guys will be right up your alley. I'm happy to have a little metal in my collection, and the cover is a piece of art. Love the colors.

Mass - Do You Love Me

Again there isn't much about this album. The back side of the album says that Bob Anderson was one of the northwestern Indiana's most well known fiddle players. This album was recorder in 1969 and a few years later Bob died from a heart attack while rehearsing some tunes for a dance later that night. The country ramblers broke up shortly after this album was made and seems as thought they all went their separate ways and moved to different states. One taking a job at Pennsylvania State university, another moved to Michigan and two other moving to Kentucky. Judging by the picture and title of the album you know this is going to be some barn raising bluegrass music. All of the songs on the album are traditional bluegrass songs but the musicianship is really great. It's easy to see why Bob and his ramblers were well liked. The playing is tight and the fiddling is enough to make you want to clear out the cowpies and have a good ol' fashion country get down. this was a total random pick. I do love some bluegrass music, but what really drew me to this album, aside that it was in a plastic seeleve and in immaculate condition, was the amazing cover. I mean just look at that picture! Those gentlemen aren't your hipster bluegrass darlings of today. These guys are the real deal. I have a feeling that this is one of those albums that will be displayed in my vinyl photo frame quite a bit.

Bob Anderson & The Country Ramblers - Turkey In the Straw



I think that is gonna conclude this go round! I have a lot more that I can post but I need to find the time to sit down and do some writing. I have so much cool stuff I want to share but, I just can't find the time or the patience to sit down and write. There are too many undiscovered bands out there that need to be listened to and too many loose records on shelves screaming "Brad! Come find me and buy me!" Is there a clinical word for music addiction? ...Ok google