photo credit: rick

When I heard about Google Music and read a few stories (below), I figured I would jump in with both feet and get in while the gittin is good. Hell, maybe even snag some new listens before everyone and there mother has their tracks streaming and up for sale.

Here are a few quick observations I had when researching and signing up for Google Music. Read the rest of this entry

Image by matthewvenn via Flickr

There’s a specter haunting the fringes mediocrity – thousands and thousands of incredible musicians who can play, can create – who can do amazing work.Years ago, these musicians could only be heard among their family and friends. Maybe they would play at some alleyway bar. Or maybe, just maybe, someone would hear them and serve them up to the masses – but only when tamed and put into a marketable genre. That era is over. Anyone who can create should record their music and share it with the world. Let me show you why you – anyone should just get started. Read the rest of this entry

Flying Lotus, Melissa Auf der Maur, Pokey La Farge and The South City Three, Little Miss Higgins, Christopher Tin, and Jackson Browne and David Lindley are among the diverse self-released and independent label talent named today by Music Resource Group (MRG) as the Judge-determined Winners of The 10th Annual Independent Music Awards (The IMAs), the influential awards program for fans and bands.

The 10th Independent Music Award Winners Have Been Announced!.pdf (60 KB)

This post was submitted by Lauryn.

They’re only nineteen
Antonio Paul Treasures
Making bouncy songs

Australian duo Antonio Paul

What’s the origin of the name Antonio Paul? I’ve heard that it’s a combination of your last names, but I’ve read that your last names are Papalia and Edwards. Can you set the record straight?

Yeah, we can see how that would confuse people haha but Antonio Paul is actually our middle names. We used our middle names because Papalia Edwards or Marc & Michael didn’t have the best ring to it. Haha Originally we called ourselves Paul Antonio but we thought it sounded too much like a European DJ so we made a last minute swap.

So what famous girls do you talk about when you should be practicing?

Haha good question! Me, I like the generic mainstream type of girls like Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift. They’re pretty close to my age. Michael prefers the older and mature girls like fellow Australian, Miranda Kerr and sex bomb Megan Fox. Haha We sound so seedy.

What’s the best part about having only two people in a band?

We’re best friends so we have super similar thoughts on music ideas and we are always hanging out so it makes it easier to make decisions and to jam heaps. Having multiple members in a band makes it hard to get them all on the same thought train and getting everyone on time for practiso (practice)

Your music has some hip hop and punk undertones, was that intentional?

Funny you should ask that, I am currently writing this from the back seat of Michael’s car going up to Perth for a punk and hardcore show. Haha But to answer your question, was it intentional? I would say yes, but the local music scene in our area is mainly punk and hardcore, so I guess the punk undertones came out naturally. As for the hip hop, I didn’t mind some beats and rhymes as a kid, but I love the flow and the rhythm of rappers and how they are so coooool

Every musician has a moment, either a mind-blowing show or the first sacred listening to what might be a major influence or something else that makes them decide to do music. What was that moment for you?

Sitting on the couch watching the music channel being like hmmm…I can do that haha, nah we have always been into music and playing instruments from a young age so it wasn’t really a sudden decision to start doing music. But a collective experience would be Michael and I playing at a school talent show with Michael pump’n tunes out on his guitar and me slam’n out some vox. I don’t know if we were any good but it felt cool.

You newest EP is called Treasures. Tell us, what is it that you value the most in life? Besides family and friends of course.

Weekends, money, driving and girls…Haha family and friends who values that? Haha we value being happy and not surrounding ourselves with negative or stressful things, just enjoying life

How long did the EP take to record? What was the process like?

It took about 2 months to get everything organized, polished, recorded and mixed. What was the process like?….hmm you know how you see music videos of artists in the studio having fun, doing it on the first go, being all happy and meaningful…yeah for us it was the opposite, just two guys hating on each other, yelling, arguing and a lot of hurt feelings. We finished recording all the guitar, bass, drum and synth tracks for “City Dreams” and I finished mixing it ready to move on to the next song and then I saved over it. You can imagine we would be pretty grumpy and that was only in the first week haha

Check them out here and listen to their song “City Dreams” it’ll make you happy

Break it down for us
Tim Permanent, make us dance
You make great avant-pop

TimPermanent (Yes, it is one word on purpose)

Tim, we hear you are about the release your new EP Marker, what have been the best and worst parts about recording it?

I would say the best and worst parts, both, are that I wrote and recorded the whole thing myself, alone. Being that I had full creative control was very much a plus but I am limited by my own resources. The only exception is that I had the help of Niki Haris who co-wrote “Black & White” with me, which was such a huge gift.

What song means the most to you and why?

The song “Asymmetrical” means the most to me as it came out as a rebuttal almost. I am not sure if it sounds like that but there most certainly was very high emotion at the time I was writing it. I was having a very hard go at things at the time and was struggling. Life was throwing me loads and loads of challenges and I was really doing everything I could to just be ok.

What inspires you to write a song?

I don’t know where the songs come from, really—they just kind of come. Sometimes it feels like I am like a vessel, like the songs happen to me. Then sometimes when I want to write I can’t.

Sometimes there is like an urge, like an itch I need to scratch and I go and press record and an hour later an entire production is done.  The opening song “Extraordinary” happened like that. I guess sometime they come at times of high emotion too but that’s not always the rule either. Hmm….

If you could have had any one artist contribute to your album, who would that be?

I guess it would have to be my very first and only real idol Michael Stipe of REM.

Describe your live show to us. Is there anything you expect to be different with these new songs?

I find it important to really connect on stage with each song’s truth .That being said, my show is very theatrical, not in visual way but I am a performer.  I engage in my songs live. I have already been performing most of these new songs, that’s how I knew to release them. My shows are like the test market for the releases.

Have you ever had anything embarrassing happen to you while performing?

Since I write and produce most of my music electronically I have been known to perform to tracks, like on a CD. And there have been times when the CD has skipped and that can be embarrassing. First, because I’m performing to a friggin’ CD but also I’d be right in the middle of some intense vocal or something and then clip, clip, clip, clip ——- it’s like AH!!!!! WTF!!!  HEY SOUND GUY! would you mind skipping ahead to the next track or maybe I’ll take the opportunity to play an acoustic song. Maybe someday I will have a band.

What have been some of your main musical influences?

REM, New Order, Depeche Mode, Missing Persons, Missy Elliot, Tori Amos, Madonna, Digable Planets, Mary J Blige, MIA, Imogen Heap, Peter Gabriel, Radiohead, Joan Osborne, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, throw in a ton of dance music too- techno, house, jungle, triphop, drum n bass- this list could go on and on and on and on-

In the spirit of the Halloween season, what has been your favorite costume you’ve dressed up as?

Honestly, I make an incredibly convincing girl. The only time I ever dressed in drag was on Halloween and I used to do it every year on Halloween and I loved it! I love it because I would dress like a regular girl not like a crazy drag queen and nobody would even know it was me. I would go and see friends and people that I knew wouldn’t even think twice. They would just think I was some strange girl because I wouldn’t talk. There was something fantastic about it!  I haven’t done it in 5 or 6 years but this question has brought out the memory of how much I enjoyed it so maybe I will do it this year.

Check out TimPermanent here or on Facebook

The Spies have some nerve
To air the revolt on TV
We all want to see

The Spies are: Mark Matkevich, Leo Francis, Adrian Barrio, and Dylan Giagni
Names do not correspond with picture above, The Spies wish to remain a mystery

Explain to us the title of your album, Televolution?

LF:   The idea for the title came as a response to an old spoken word piece by Gil Scott Heron called ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised’. Now, when it was written, the sentiment was that it was directed to the underground. The individual thinkers were not the people who sat in front of the evening news, they wanted to know what was really going on. They wanted to affect real change. But with the advent of the internet and independent media, they could then use these technologies as an effective tool. In our culture today, everything is televised and covered by media. Every little move we make is tweeted and blogged about and posted on Facebook immediately. I began thinking that today, the title may have been ‘The Revolution Will Be Televised’. Then I just pushed the words together to make it catchy.

Leo and Mark, you both moved to LA from Philadelphia, what was reasoning behind that decision?

LF:   Warmer weather and hot girls in bikinis. Seriously. Also, I heard that there are many a music  and acting scene here.

MM: I actually moved from Philly to NYC, where I lived for 3 years, then to LA.  I was flying to LA to audition a lot, my lease was up in New York, so I moved.  So, I guess the answer is acting…and homelessness .

What song seems to get the best crowd response live?

MM:   I would say 2 songs.  “You Got Some Nerve,” which gets the dance groove going, and “National Pastime.”  Craig Finn of The Hold Steady once said that their “songs are sing along songs” so is “National Pastime.”

AB:  “Shatterproof” or “You Got Some Nerve”

Mark, you recently got out of acting, what was your favorite acting experience?

MM:  Haha.  You make it sound like I escaped from Rikers Island.  I’d have to say my first TV gig I guess, which was on Law and Order: SVU.  It was a scene with Chris Meloni.  It was their first season, and he was fresh off of shooting Oz for HBO.  I guess he was still holding on to that character’s prison mentality, because he kicked my ass in an interrogation scene.  I was like wait, I’ve taken a stage combat class, and you’re not supposed to really hit people!  It was great. Three cheers for method acting.

In the 90s boy bands, there was always the sexy one, the baby, the goofy one, and the smart/sensitive one in a band, what role are the members of The Spies?

MM:   I would say Dylan is the Tin Man, Adrian is BA Baracus, Leo is Luke Skywalker, and I am of course, Bill Murray.

LF: Mark is the sexy one, Adrian is the goofy one, Dylan is the baby, and I guess that leaves me as the smart sensitive one….though I am not sure anyone else would use that to describe me…except my mother. I’m more like the edgy one….like that one Backstreet Boy that was allowed to grow a beard and get his ears pierced, or maybe it’s more like we are all the goofy one.

Have you ever been mistaken for Russian spies?

LF:  Not since we changed our names from Sergei, Boris, Stalin and Lenin, and stopped calling everyone ‘Ruskie’.

DG:  Only once, but by the Russians. Apparently I look a lot like one of their operatives. They were actually very gentle about the whole mix up.

What was the craziest thing you ever saw that you weren’t supposed to see?

MM:  The Philadelphia Phillies winning the 2008 World Series.  Awesome.

AB:   A prehistoric flying turkey in Philadelphia, on tour.

DG:  Don’t tell him I said this, but I saw Leo changing out of his super hero costume.

What 3 personalized tools would you each have on your Swiss army knife?

DG:   A drum key, a salt shaker filled with Lawry’s salt, and a Japanese kataha saw.

LF:   Guitar tuner, guitar pick, and my Netflix account.

MM:   Adrian Barrio, Leo Francis, and Dylan Giagni.  But only if I could be a tool on theirs.  Ok, now this interview is getting weird.

Find out more about The Spies on Facebook or here

When you were growing up, was there ever that kid in your class that was good at everything? Good at school, good at sports, good with the other kids, and good looking? Well, if that kid grew up to be a musician, he’d probably be like Julian Shah-Tayler who switches from songwriter to producer to performer to DJ with the greatest of ease, talent unwavering.

Already Julian has worked directly with Joaquin Phoenix, JC Chasez, and Violet Flames to name a few.  As a sonwriter, he co-wrote the smash hit “Wrap It Up” which has been featured in Whip It, GTA 4, Sopranos, Kyle XY and CSI Miami. He has also remixed a number of artists and DJed in clubs worldwide from the from The Razzmatazz in Barcelona, the Maria in Berlin, Death Disco/Kill All Hippies/Transmission/The Queen is Dead/The Secret Door in London, Happy Endings in New York, and Standard Hotels in Los Angeles. Do you see what I mean? Julian Shah-Tayler is an artist to watch for his versatility,musical integrity and sophisticated artistry.

You have been in a number of bands over the years, how you feel about having a solo project?

It feels great. I have been writing with a solo project in mind before, during and after the time I was in bands. It would be fair to say that in a lot of the bands, the songs were tantamount to solo efforts anyway. Finally because I play all the instruments and produce the songs as well as sing them, I get to do exactly what I want with them now.

What inspired the lyrics to the song “Wetter”?

Ha ha. Strangely I wrote the backing track for JC Chasez (*NSYNC) because I was working with him on some other projects. When I thought of the “naughty” lyric, it just stuck, and I decided to finish the song myself. I read a lot about Prince in my youth, as I was a huge fan. I think that using provocative lyrics does not necessarily denote a lack of subtlety across the board with the rest of the oeuvre. It was only ever intended to be a fun song, and it has certainly proved itself a favourite with my live audiences and radio stations.

You have a full length coming out at the end of the year entitled Coito Ergo Sum, what does that mean and can you expand on it?

Coito ergo sum is a corruption of the Descartes maxim: “cogito ergo sum” which means “I think therefore I am”
Coito, however means “I procreate”…….. The idea is that the use of latin is a little highbrow, but the message is quite cheeky really. I think that meeting of highbrow and lowbrow culture and intent reflects the content of my music nicely. I am quite serious, but irreverent and silly at the same time. Think perhaps of CNN presented by Monty Python…..

How does making music in the UK differ from making music in the United States?

My methods do not differ in the slightest bit between the US and the UK. I think the way it is perceived is the chief difference. Los Angeles is obviously a far cry from London, but my process is the same. Filter life through art and make it sound as interesting as possible….. Repeat.

You have collaborated and/or produced a number of other acts including JC Chasez, Joaquin Phoenix, and Whitey, who was your favorite to work with?

My favourite collaboration is the ongoing one I have with Scott Fairbrother in “adamandevil”, although the experience of working with Joaquin was the most “unusual” as he is a self-confessed non-musician, articulating himself most often in sensate terms. He’s quite brilliant as a producer actually, as he could take the musicians out of their comfort zone into a non-musical paradigm. This creates a very specific mood which helps create an idiosyncratic sound.

What role do you prefer, producer, songwriter, or DJ?

I am most definitely in my element as a singer/songwriter which comprises certain production things as well.

I read somewhere that you write between 50-70 songs a year and put out a new EP every few months, where do you get all this inspiration?

The songs are cathartic. I guess I am writing my diary/autobiography in song form, I guess you could say. Any emotional baggage can be offloaded in musical form.

You were once in a band called Drink Me, so if you were a vampire and could blend any 3 celebrities’ blood into a drink who would they be?

Shannyn Sossamon, Prince, (it would be purple) and Sigourney Weaver (for that added zing).

Find him on Facebook and keep an eye out for his label Impossible Things Records.

Don’t you love it when things just work out the way they should? When everything falls into place and every problem that arises solves itself, magic happens. Well in this story about a little band called Applepolish (as in shoe polish not polish hot dog), two brothers decided that they wanted to try their hand at music and learned that they didn’t need to hire a producer or someone to design the album art or someone to create a music video, they could do it all themselves. Let me just say, they’ve done a superb job. They put a lot of the D.I.Y. bands out there to shame.

How did you guys come up with your name?

It was some years ago my brother and I needed a name for our musical group. We couldn’t come up with a name. Then we picked up a dictionary and decided to go with the first word we came across. I came across the word Applepolish. I liked the sound of that word and felt that it went well with the music we were making.

Do you find it difficult to be in a band with a sibling or is it a bonus?

We get along very well and are used to working together. We have worked together consistently and successfully for a while now.

If you were put in a dance-off contest with fellow Colombian, Shakira what song would you dance to in order to show her up?

If it’s a Latin song, then En Barranquilla Me Quedo by Joe Arroyo, another fellow Colombian, because we’re both from the city of Barranquilla and we can have a Salsa dance off.

If it’s one of her songs, I’d dance to Hips Don’t Lie and we can see who moves their hips the best.

If it’s one of our songs, I’d have her dance to Bandwagon and see if she can help us create a special dance for that song.

You guys write, produce, record and engineer your own music as well as videos, is this something you guys went to school for?

We have been self-developing these skills on our own for years. First we started with keyboards, then to bass, and eventually to guitar. The recording process also developed over time with each demo and song that we recorded. Eventually we felt ready to record Spirit Threads and are currently working on a new EP for the fall and a new CD for early 2011.

What are your individual strengths when it comes to making music?

Our best strengths are in the production and artistic qualities of the music and songwriting.

If someone were to make a movie about Applepolish, whom would you want to play both of you?

David Blaine would play Johan Palacio and Marc Antony would play Richard Palacio, hehe.

Good choices!

Find them on MySpace and Facebook-go on, support the D.I.Y. goodness

Oh, the sonic joys of youth! When laughter was crisper and songs weren’t transient, but left deep lasting impressions on our souls. Doesn’t it feel as if some of the best memories in you life were enhanced by a subtle song playing in the background? Or perhaps, the music was the main attraction–driving around in the the car with your high schools friends and singing your favorite chorus to the cars beside you. Those were the days. For my latest interview, I got to speak with Frederico (see pic below) from the band Youth Sounds. By the end of the interview, I was reminiscing, hopefully you’ll recall fond memories as well. Enjoy!

What inspired the name Youth Sounds?

I was thinking about band names and what would go well with our sound and Youth Sounds just seemed to fit with what we were doing. Our music is really driven by a sense of nostalgia.  I feel that as we get older our memories are intermingled with a handful of pop songs and albums that really meant something significant to us during the time the memory was being created. I want Youth Sounds to have that affect on people. So, hopefully in a couple of years when people think back on what they were listening to, maybe one of our songs will be tied to one of their memories.

Is it harder or easier to be in a band with your sibling?

I would have to say that it’s a lot easier being in a band with my sibling. We’ve been working together for so long that we’ve reached an understanding with one another. We respect each other’s form of artistic expression and trust each other’s ideas and opinions completely. I trust that any decision she makes will be made for the betterment of the band and that the end result would be a positive one and not at all detrimental. I believe that she shares this point of view as well, and the confidence we have in one another really affects all our musical endeavors.

As brother and sister, what is the worst argument you’ve gotten into?

I can’t really recall any intense arguments we’ve had in recent years. We’re actually really close so we don’t get into it when we disagree about something, but believe me, as kids we had some genuinely ridiculous arguments to say the least. There’s one minor spat that comes to mind that ends with Erika’s foot in a wall, lol. I will spare the long details on how she got her foot in the wall but let’s just say that the result of that argument was the both of us getting into some major trouble, hahaha.

Who are your influences and do they differ between the two of you?

They definitely vary between the both of us. We’re a very musical family and we’ve been surrounded by music all our lives, so our appreciation for different genres started very early. Our grandparents and parents have been a huge influence, introducing us to so many artists with varying styles and sounds.  So we’re very open in our selection of music and I believe that has really helped us find our bands sound. Erika is really into soulful artist with unique voices and will freely admit that she’s a sucker for some good ol’ R&B. My music selection changes daily whether I’m listening to all of David Bowie’s albums or Broken Social Scene, Ryan Adams, or Billy Holliday. It all depends on what I’m in the mood for.

You’ve just finished recording your new EP The Bit Parts what song are you most excited to show other people?

Honestly, we’re very excited about all the songs on this EP. We’re ready to get them out there and into people’s hands so that they can hopefully enjoy the music we’re making. This EP has been a long time coming and we want to share it with whomever is willing to listen. And if not, we’re just gonna have to hit the streets with our instruments and harass passersby with our obnoxious singing, hahaha.

Was it always a party growing up in the capital of Mardi Gras?

Yeah it’s definitely always a party down here in the big easy. No joke, this is the city that will turn anything into a party no matter what it is. It could be something arbitrary, like ending your shift at work, or important, like your kid graduating from kindergarten. You’ll have all these kids together on a space walk and all the adults getting plastered, partying it up. For all the locals, Mardi Gras has become something you learn to survive. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a really beautiful and a unique experience but it is in no way convenient for the locals. Basically, the whole city shuts down, so you can imagine how difficult it can be getting from one point to the other. But growing up in a city with so much culture and life is absolutely a plus, no doubt about it.

One of the tracks on The Bit Parts is called “As Strangers Would,” which leads me to the question have you ever taken candy from a stranger?

No, I can’t say that I’ve ever taken candy from a stranger. I wonder if anyone does that any more?

From what I understand, the members of Youth Sounds have been in the music game for a long time. This is just their latest project. So go on, become a friend on MySpace why don’t ya.

Image Source:Criminal Justice

Today’s the day. We are finally gonna do it. You and I are going to tell the boss to take a freakin hike. We are gonna play hooky. Yep, we are going to the beach or the bar or wherever and we are gonna have couple….and just chill! Hold that thought, press play and check out my latest offering…

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