It’s no secret that Austin, TX knows how to party. Take one part Austin weirdness and mix in the masterful mash ups and wicked wobble of the illustrious Bassnectar and you have a recipe for an experience you won’t soon forget. I had the privilege of sitting down with the man behind the madness, Lorin Ashton at Austin City Limits last year—his last time to blow through Austin, and he told me that he tailors his shows specifically to the audience he anticipates. Take a minute to scope him out and Stubb’s and you’ll see Asthon’s synthed out wobble and womp is hardly genre specific–he runs the gamut from familiar, bubble-gum pop, to hip-hop, to The Pixies and everything in between.
Pitchfork Media has dubbed electro power duo Javelin as an artist to watch–rising stars, and even mentions 2010’s No Mas as an album to watch. The two cousins remain down to earth and cool headed about their steady climb. Tom and George take one day at a time and lucky for me they took a few minutes out of a long drive from Rochester, New York to Columbus, Ohio to talk to me about their upcoming Austin shows with fellow electro indie darlings Yeasayer. You can catch them if you are lucky enough to score tickets to the show at La Zona Rosa (moved from The Parish to allow for more tickets) Saturday and Sunday April 10th and 11th.
- Posted on 04.09.2010 By Tara Lacey
- Tags: Bach, Beastie Boys, beck, dance, electronic, hip hop, Javelin, La Zona Rosa, live, SXSW, The Parish, Tour, Yeasayer
Pretty Lights is the moniker of electro music pioneer and producer Derek Vincent Smith of Denver, Colorado. In live shows Smith pairs up with drummer Cory Eberhard manifesting Smith’s innovation and Eberhard’s beats into the most infectious down tempo dance grooves around. Austin, TX gets their turn to get down to Pretty Lights when Derek and Cory will bring their road show to La Zona Rosa on Wednesday November 11.
Mexican Institute of Sound’s (MIS) latest album is titled Soy Sauce. Right away the album begins with what MIS is known for and does best…blending traditional Mexican music with electronica genius. “Cumbia” marries the electronic sounds of Moby with traditional music of Mexico. One could not help but dance or nod your head to the rhythm Lara created. Play it for abuela and watch her dance.
What I found disappointing was that there weren’t more tracks as danceable as “Cumbia” other than “Yo Digo Baila”. Literally translated as “I Say Dance”, it is the quintessential dance club track for DJs to spin and remix. The banda horn samples combined with electric synthesized beats is an out of the box combination for most, but it is probably what Lara hears in his head while walking the streets of D.F. (Mexico City).
Many will be caught off guard with “Sinfonia Agridulce”, MIS’s mariachi cover of The Verve’s epic smash single, “Bitter Sweet Symphony”. The violins sounds of The Verve are replaced with trumpets of course, accompanied by the Spanish guitar and a bajo sexto. Never in my life did I ever think I’d be throwing a grito to “Bitter Sweet Symphony”.
On Soy Sauce, Lara once again demonstrates that hears music in a way the rest of do not. He has already demonstrated this twice before on MIS’s previous albums, Pinata and Mejico Maxico. Listen to Mexican Institute of Sound and you will see why heavy hitters like The Beastie Boys MC, Ad Rock, had to throw down some Soy Sauce of his own, remixing his own version of “Alocatel”.
If you are in Austin, be sure and check out one of MIS’s few U.S. appearances in May at this year’s second annual Pachanga Fest
- Posted on 04.08.2009 By Ian Morales
- Tags: Album Review, DJ, electronic, latin, Latin Alternative, Latin Music, Mariachi, Mexican Music, MIS, Nacional Records, Pachanga Fest, the verve
It’s no secret that Austin, TX knows how to party. Take one part Austin weirdness and mix in the masterful mash ups and wicked wobble of the illustrious Bassnectar and you have a recipe for an experience you won’t soon forget. I had the privilege of sitting down with the man behind the madness, Lorin Ashton at Austin City Limits last year—his last time to blow through Austin, and he told me that he tailors his shows specifically to the audience he anticipates. Take a minute to scope him out and Stubb’s and you’ll see Asthon’s synthed out wobble and womp is hardly genre specific–he runs the gamut from familiar, bubble-gum pop, to hip-hop, to The Pixies and everything in between.
