Pretty Lights - Lost And Found

This fella has drifted quite a ways from the trippy soulful grooves that got him big in the first place, lately opting for big-sounding electro dub. I really wasn't a fan of his last album, which is disappointing because I loved his older stuff. I guess we all have to evolve in our own ways and obviously somebody is really digging his new stuff, but I just ain't feelin' it. This is actually a b-side from the new album, and for me it's better than most (if not all) of the a-sides.

Pretty Lights - So Bright

New new new... with video highlights from Red Rocks.

Pretty Lights - You Get High

A regular feature on the blog, this one was released yesterday.

Pretty Lights - We Must Go On

Another sweet track from Derek Vincent Smith.

Pretty Lights - I Know The Truth

You should probably watch this in HD. Just cuz it's freakin' awesome.

Best of 2010 Part 5

Off to Moncton soon as I'm done this, then back to Freddy Beach Thursday. Good times had by all, but time to get back to work. Got a lot done in 2010, but there's waaay more to come in 2011. Probably gonna have to drink more coffee. A lot more coffee.

On to Part 5... and into the top 10!

#9

Pretty Lights

Making Up A Changing Mind

Derek Smith is from Colorado. When he does a show, he calls himself Pretty Lights. Derek makes amazing music. So amazing that I'd never even heard of the guy until like six weeks ago, and now he's changed the way I look at the future of production. He's that good. Everyone I've since exposed him to has thought almost the same thing. "Whoa..."

This is the first of three EP's he released this year, and for my money it's the best. They're all awesome though, and the most awesome thing is... you can get them all absolutely free on his website. What? Free? Who does this guy think he is, Radiohead? Sure, you can make a donation. If you like what you hear and you can afford it, I encourage you to. If you can't or don't want to though, you can still get his stuff. All of it. This guy wins my musical inspiration of the year award by a country-style nautical mile.

Future Blind

Still Rockin'

I Can See It In Your Face

#8

The Black Keys

Brothers

The Black Keys are bringin' back the blues. The dirty, dirty blues. Sure, they sound like a rock band, a bit like the White Stripes, but deep down they're all about the blues. The dirty, dirty blues. There's only two of them. Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney. They've been around a little while, but they're relatively young and this is definitely their best work to date.

You've all heard Frank the Funkasaurus Rex sing "Tighten Up", and you were probably impressed. I can tell you with a considerable degree of certainty that the rest of the album is just as good. Could maybe do with a little more Frank though. This album is probably best heard on vinyl in your dirty, dirty bedroom. It'll make you laugh, it'll make you cry. It'll make you wonder why. Why? You've forgotten already have you? It's all about the blues. The dirty, dirty blues.

Everlasting Light

Howlin' For You

The Only One

#7

Caribou

Swim

Daniel Snaith is a brilliant producer who goes by the moniker Caribou. Mr. Snaith was born in London, Ontario, but now resides in London, England. Coincidence? Probably. He won the 2008 Polaris Prize, probably the most prestigious award in contemporary Canadian music, for his album "Andorra". This time around he was a finalist, but didn't win. Odd, because I think this album is noticeably better.

I posted the two singles from the album back in August, but there is so much depth in this album in only nine tracks that it's really something you have to play start to finish. It's almost like an electronic opera. Snaith isn't a particularly talented singer, and I'm not sure he's really figured out how to translate his music in the live arena to great effect just yet, but he's a brilliant orchestrator and his sound is very unique. He's another who's best is yet to come.

Hannibal

Kaili

Leave House

BONUS BEATS!

Hot Pink Delorean - Bee Eff Eff [Lazy Rich Remix]

Woooo electro madness. Off to Moncton, Part 6 tomorrow!

Pretty Lights - Let 'Em Know It's Time To Go

The blog was getting a little stale so as you can see I've given it a bit of a face-lift. I'm not sure if I'll keep it like this, and I'm still tweaking the color scheme a bit, but it'll do for now.

This is Pretty Lights. I'd never heard of the guy until Paul was playing some his stuff before work the other night. What a great find! This guy mixes all kinds of different genres and plays some really phat mixes of old funk tunes, like this track that uses a sample from Stretch's classic "Why Did You Do It". Inspiring stuff, and I also like the live performance with the live drum set. I've been considering a framework for my own live work and something like this is definitely in the mix. Donso is another group experimenting in awesomeness, and I've included them as some bonus goodness.

BONUS BEATS!

Donso - Mogoya

Exciting times.