Artist: Rob Crow's Gloomy Place
Title: Oh, The Sadmakers
Album: You're Doomed. Be Nice.
Release Date: March 4, 2016
Pre-Order CD/LP: shop.temporaryresidence.com/trr264
Pre-Order Bandcamp: robcrow.bandcamp.com/album/you-re-doomed-be-nice
Pre-Order iTunes: itunes.apple.com/us/album/youre-d…d1059507533?ls=1
You're Doomed. Be Nice. is Rob Crow's first album since his heavily-publicized withdrawal from music – specifically the toxic byproducts of the lifestyle of a touring professional musician attempting to survive in an industry of diminishing returns. Rather than perform, record, and mix every note himself – a trademark of his previous solo endeavors – Crow formed Gloomy Place, a band made up of close friends that includes another member of the beloved Heavy Vegetable. Recorded and mixed by Ben Moore (Hot Snakes), You're Doomed presents a fascinating dichotomy: dynamic, eclectic prog-pop backing alarmingly confessional, often acerbic lyrical themes. This juxtaposition makes for an album of confrontational yet accessible songs filled with wry wit and emotional depth.
Whereas Crow's previous solo endeavors acted primarily as low-key stop-gaps between Pinback albums, the stakes are markedly higher here – and it shows in both the depth of songwriting and impressively labyrinthine performances. Gone are the 60-second blink-and-you-missed-them acoustic sketches that became a staple of Crow's solo albums; You're Doomed is filled with the kind of thoughtful attention to detail and craft that was a hallmark of Pinback's legendary catalog.
You're Doomed. Be Nice. is the diamond carved out of a particularly rough chunk of Rob Crow's life – one that's either the first gem of an inspired second act, or the culmination of an undeniably influential career. In either case, the quality of its cut will last a lifetime.
I love Mystery Twins in part for their explosive style of garage rock and howling vocals but they occasionally come out swinging with something a bit softer that packs just as much punch. This live, two-minute, performance of Now & Then is beautifully shot and just the right amount of `haunting` in the vocal performance.
I'm intrigued by the trailer for City World. It's a quiet affair but there's something foreboding and apocalyptic about it that calls to me. Aesthetically, it feels influenced by the likes of Terrence Malick or early David Gordon Green - very natural and slow-paced but giving you enough time to pore over the shots.
Brooke Waggoner and her band really love to perform. You can see it through their performance of 'Ovenbird', from Brooke's newest LP. Beyond being incredible musicians, Brooke's infectious indie ballad was a sample of the genius that's born from artists who play simply for the love of music.
License this song and more by Brooke Waggoner on Musicbed: musicbed.com/artists/brooke-waggoner/243
Musicbed Sessions is a cinematic performance series featuring Musicbed artists recorded live at Musicbed HQ in Fort Worth, TX. Check out Musicbed.com/sessions to see what's coming up, watch more films or RSVP to attend a session.
Sessions are made possible through contributions from RØDE, Presonus, Blackmagic and Guitar Center.
I've previously posted about Al Paulsen, the illustrator responsible for the imagery emblazoned on the Golden Record currently hurdling through space. I also made note that Paulsen is the grandfather of the amazing talented Invisible Creature, two designers who have more than established their talent in their own right.
With that in mind, these NASA Commissioned Posters from the duo are just that much more enjoyable. Not only are they wonderful to inspect but they're part of a continued lineage of Space Illustrators. Not too many people can say that.
Often a leap of faith is required to fully, immersively, enjoy things you find on the Internet. This Reddit thread points to a Taiwanese "trend" of grooming dogs into square, spherical and other shapes. It's downright adorable. It's also probably not a trend but a handful of people participating in a small number of fun things. Regardless of the popularity of it, there are a number of galleries worth browsing.
If you recall your computer history properly, Xerox PARC was the source of modern computing. Sure, many came before them and many after but the idea of a GUI, a mouse and a window'ed environment is largely attributed to them. But have you ever seen it? I'd only seen glimpses and clips.
So, encountering this 25-minute PARC demo is pretty fascinating. At first glance it seems like a fairly rudimentary batch of mouse usage and clicking on text. However it's not far off from what we're doing now, 30+ years after its inception. Oh, and as a total bonus, it's got some great glitch and weathering to the video, so you could watch it purely for that.
Two of my friends recently relaunched their Internet Homes and I felt completely moved and inspired by them both in different ways. Please take some time to read what these folks have to say and putting them in your regular rotation.
Jed Sundwall - his introduction to the new home is great but the entry I, Sensor really grabbed me. Jed is honest, open and reflectively appreciative of his life in a way I find completely admirable. He's also got an eloquence to his insights that create a total PEVZ.
Robbie Player - a tireless worker, amazing champion for his hometown (Charlotte) and passionate music advocate have always set Robbie in an admirable place for me. His resuscitation post is great insight into why it's important to have your own home on the web, not just contributing to the pile of existing services.
These two are regular visits in my web visitation schedule as it's always good to hear what they have to say. Hopefully I can even take it a little further and finally motivate myself to finish the renovations around here.
For the past four years, Since78 has been a reliable home to many great mixes. He recently announced that he's shuttering the project for new things. I can't fault him for such a thing and look forward to his imminent forthcoming podcast. In the meantime, I'm going to grab as many mixes as I can and store them away for future enjoyment.
Also recommended, follow creator Brian Gossett on Twitter and Soundcloud.
