Other Stuff You Might Like: Luxury Wafers

Whilst doing a bit of research on YouTube for an upcoming post, I came across a Lissie video from LuxuryWafersVideo (posted below).  It was a great, studio rendition of “Wedding Bells,” and I was instantly intrigued.  Upon further investigation, it turns out that Luxury Wafers is chock full of amazing studio sessions by artists from Lissie to J Tillman (Fleet Foxes) and Tiny Vipers.  It’s a really great bunch of artists – all produced in a slick, yet immediately accessible and intimate style.  They offer the following about their site:

Luxury Wafers is the passion child of Landry and Peter Malick, raised with the help of an amazing network of dedicated, creative folks who also dig fine indie music.

Peter produces, engineers, mixes, writes and plays music. Hardly moderate, total immersion is his way. Long sleepless nights cozied up to his radio began for Peter in grade school. It wasn’t long before he pumped over to sketchier neighborhoods on his bike to discover the juiciest of records. Peter avidly listens to new indie music from his favorite blogs and podcasts. His professional experience goes way back to his first signing on the Vanguard label in 1968 when he was just 16. Peter engineers and mixes the Luxury Wafers sessions.

Nurtured from birth by a big, black, baby grand piano, Landry has also had a life-long love affair with music. When she was about seven, she received an 8-track with some tapes to play in it, the most rousing of which was the William Tell Overture. As fate would have it, her room was soon after remodeled and the drywall guys forever changed her life by leaving behind a mysterious copy of Led Zeppelin’s IV. Since then, she’s delighted in exploring most genres, ever connected to the core of music as she’s traipsed through life and various professional incarnations. She lives in LA with Peter, where she coordinates Luxury Wafers, helps to manage their music business, writes, cooks, teaches yoga and edits this blog. Landry books the Luxury Wafers sessions. She also photographs and shoots and edits video for the sessions.

Peter and Landry owned and operated Chessvolt Recording Studios from 1/2006 until 10/2009, when LAUSD grabbed it by eminent domain to build a new elementary school. They currently work from their home studio and at Kingsize Soundlabs Studio C (where much of the gear has found a home) as well as at various studios around LA, including Scott Gilman’s Eagle Rock Hobby Shop.

Together, the pair brings friendly ears, techie lust and artistic vision to Luxury Wafers.

The site is full of beautiful videos, free music downloads, and great information.  I strongly encourage you to head on over and check it out!  You can see some of my favorite videos after the cut:

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First Listen: She & Him – Volume Two

It’s been a scary, busy month of dissertation drafting (due any day now!), and so I’ve been a bit remiss in updating this site.  Ok, fine, entirely remiss.  And this isn’t really so much of a post, as it is a postcard… But one of the things that makes it all more bearable is the new She & Him album Volume Two.   We’ve had a quick look at it on this site before, and you can still visit that post for a free download of “In the Sun.”  But for now, and until its release on March 23rd, you can hear the whole thing courtesy of NPR.  And of course, after the cut.  Enjoy!

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Joanna Newsom – Have One On Me

Out today on Drag City, Joanna Newsom’s Have One On Me is a triple LP of amazing depth and beauty.

And that’s really it.  I mean, I could try and explain this feeling that keeps me glued to my headphones.  This transcendental stillness that makes me feel like I’m both floating and sinking.  I could go on about the amazing bravery it must take to make a collection of songs that seems so driven by intuition and instinct.  The sort of courage it must take to make two hours of intimate, oft-abstract music, and then to try and organize that into something coherent.

I could do all of those things, but I’d just be keeping you from heading on over and having a listen.

So, after the cut, courtesy of NPR, I present you with the whole album.  I’ve also separated out “Baby Birch” – my current favorite.  Enjoy!

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Friday Night Videos – Heading for the ’90s!

This week, in lieu of a proper post, I’m taking you on a journey through the ’90s.  These videos are more of an ongoing discussion about the history of music videos that I really ought to write down, or turn into a conference paper, or something.  But until then, you’ll just have to talk to me here.

I’ve left out some pretty obvious choices (NIN, Madonna, Michael Jackson, etc.) and gone with a “first things that come to mind” list of ’90s videos.  As with my other site, I’m all about seeing where all of this stuff fits together – and now you get to play, too!

So, click here, play all, and enjoy!  They’re probably not all winners, but they’ll definitely stay lodged in your brain. (You’re welcome.)  Next week, we’ll have a smaller, more focused list.  If you’ve got requests for our version of Friday Night Videos, then throw them in the comments section.  Might be fun for someone to challenge me with a theme!

As always, you can see some of the outtakes after the cut…

Continue reading “Friday Night Videos – Heading for the ’90s!”

Preview: She & Him – Volume Two

She & Him stopped by the BBC’s Radio 6 for an interview and performance of two songs – “Thieves” and “Gonna Get Along Without You Now” – from Volume Two (Out Mar. 23rd on Merge).  You can hear the BBC session by going here and skipping ahead to 1 hour, 41 minutes.  For some more details on the record,  you can visit Stereogum.

From the sound of things, fans of the first record (which, it seems, is just about everyone) will love what’s in store for them.  For those of you in a rush, visit Stereogum to hear “Thieves” right now.  You can find “In the Sun” below for your listening and downloading pleasure…

[audio:https://www.shh-listen.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/02-In-the-Sun.mp3|titles=02-In-the-Sun]

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