MEDIA ROOTS – Thievery Corporation, a DC-based music group, released their sixth studio album last year titled Culture of Fear and continue to receive rave reviews among followers of this genre. Its electronic beats are expertly fused with several acoustic sounds which are the hallmark of this recording artist and DJ team.

The black album cover, featuring only a remote surveillance camera, reminds listeners of the current state of diminishing control of personal privacy in modern society. Tracks titled “False Flag Dub,” “Tower Seven,” and “Culture of Fear” invoke a perspective that is not only highly uncommon in the music industry but virtually unexpressed anywhere in general society.

The influence of this group, formed in 1995, cannot be understated. They performed last month at the Fairgrounds in Washington DC for a capacity audience and are appearing next Wednesday in Kansas City before heading to Austin City Limits the following weekend.

We have taken the liberty to feature below the official video of Culture of Fear featuring Mr. Lif as well as the song’s lyrics. Check them out and let us know what you think about this group of music activists.

Oskar Mosco for Media Roots

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The official video of Thievery Corporation’s Culture of Fear featuring Mr. Lif.

Culture of Fear 

Seems to me like they want us to be afraid, man.

Or maybe we just like being afraid.

Maybe we just so used to it at this point that it’s just a part of us,

Part of our culture.

Security alert on “orange.”

It’s been on orange since ’01 G.

I mean what’s up man?

Can’t a brother get “yellow” man?

Just for like two months or something?

God damn,

Sick o’ that.

Mic check –

The groove is dead so I’m a rhyme like a lunatic.

I do this shit with an unassuming wit.

The corporation conjured up the bass and the tempo.

My name is Liff – that’s the intro – now let’s go!

The flow of life, throwing strife into the mix,

The big dark condition and the world is sick.

The powers that be

A power in me

To speak a cause

Stress and strife that I see every day

And more to speak upon.

Culture of fear:

It’s up in your ear.

They’re telling us terrorists about to strike

“Maybe tonight?”

Right….

Let me back up slowly

With critical analysis of those who control me.

It used to be we just had a screen in the crib — on the TV,

But now we carry screens when we leave, see?

Laptops, smartphones, now we’re never alone.

A new affliction I call it “media dome.”

But on the road famine is the programming

You want to watch a favorite show because it’s so slamming

Hold hands and let’s gaze into the beautiful glare

While we’re here so immersed in this culture of fear.

Yo – we fear the IRS, fear the INS, fear God.

But we’re more afraid of the credit card than the terror squad.

That’s really all — sending weapons overseas

Yet Mastercard and Visa want to buy me the greed.

They deceive, the enemy is in the fine print.

They assassinate, sell-it, with no single assailant.

Forms, I’m stealing, to give a view of blue sky.

It’s beautiful, then a couple choppers flew by.

Represent an element ahead

A sentiment that you feel on the road, for real,

The deal stars with a spark, concludes with a handshake.

Physical to alter your subliminal landscape

Relief thinking I can really trust that guy

To be honest could have, should have really punched that guy.

Now it’s operation shank a banker

Thank you for the loan

See you when you come to repossess my home.

Alone at night sweating with visions of Armageddon

I never seen the threat yet I feel threatened.

Parts of our society designed to smear

Freedom: don’t succumb to this culture of fear….

Don’t succumb to this culture of fear…

Don’t succumb to this culture of fear.

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Photo provided by cesereperdomo.

MEDIA ROOTS — If you’re like me, you’ll do your darnedest to make sure you catch the lovely J Mascis or the tender and mighty Dinosaur, Jr. anytime they come to town.  For some of us, this means catching life-altering gigs at venues like San Francisco’s Fillmore or Slim’s.  So, imagine my delight when my dear brother Mónchis said Henry Rollins would be previewing on his KCRW radio show J Mascis’ forthcoming release of instrumental guitar-driven transcendence from his new eponymous side-project, Heavy Blanket (below).  

But if you’ve never heard of ’em, for starters, check out Without a Sound.  You will not be disappointed.  J Mascis was recently ranked #5 of the top 100 guitarists of all time by Spin.  Indeed; Kurt, Lee & Thurston, Jimi to name a few.  And all share a love of Fenders, too.  Even Morrissey’s legendary bassist, Gary Day, at the Beauty Bar in SF’s Mission District joined me in chatting about J’s purple sparkle Fender Jazzmaster guitar one fine night the very gallant gentleman was hosting a stylish soirée. 

But don’t just fast-forward to the second hour of Rollins’ KCRW radio show for the Heavy Blanket world-premiere because Rollins has plenty of life-affirming, soul-nourishing musical vitality in store for you—from delectable stylists, such as The Stooges (with a track pre-dating Joy Division’s “New Dawn Fades”), Janis Joplin, The Ramones, Marnie Stern, Jimi Hendrix, The Ruts, Generation X, and more, such as, quite possibly, the first time distorted guitar was ever recorded, certainly popularised, with Jackie Brenston & His Delta Cats right on down to the Japanoise sounds of Fushitsusha.  Also, check out the excellent recent J Mascis concert from the Aussie 2012 Sydney Festival (below).  

Messina

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Henry Rollins: KCRW Broadcast 162  Saturday, 28 APR 2012

Heavy Blanket
Heavy Blanket
Outer Battery Records

1. Galloping Toward the Unknown
2. Spit in The Eye
3. Blockheads
4. Corpuscle Through Time
5. Dr Marten’s Blues
6. No Telling No Trail

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LA WEEKLY — Fanatics! Hello from beautiful Sydney, Australia. I am a few hours away from another show here. I have been finding some great records here that will find themselves in our upcoming shows over the summer. I think you’re going to like what we will be laying on you in the weeks and months upcoming!

In our first hour, we will be rocking some serious guitar heavy hitters. If you look down the list, it’s all heavy weight all the way through but you will notice something conceptual in the second part of our show.

Now, in tonight’s second hour, we have a very special record we will be playing for your in its entirety. A side project of our good pal J Mascis called Heavy Blanket will be releasing their first and perhaps only album on May 8. Visit J Mascis’ site for more information.

Read more about Fanatics! Henry Rollins’ KCRW Show Tomorrow Night : World Debut of J Mascis/Heavy Blanket Album.

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Sydney Festival 2012: Watch J Mascis and other great gigs on Moshcam.

“Me, I’m a part of your circle of friends
And we notice you don’t come around
Me, I think it all depends
On you, touching ground with us

I quit, I give up
Nothing’s good enough for anybody else
It seems

I quit, I give up
Nothing’s good enough for anybody else
It seems

And being alone is the best way to be
When I’m by myself, it’s the best way to be
When I’m all alone, it’s the best way to be
When I’m by myself, nobody else can say
Goodbye

Everything is temporary, anyway
When the streets are wet
Colours slip into the sky
But I don’t know why that means
You and I are
That means
You and I quit?

I give up
Nothing’s good enough for anybody else
It seems

I quit, I give up
Nothing’s good enough for anybody else
It seems

And being alone is the best way to be
When I’m by myself, it’s the best way to be
When I’m all alone, it’s the best way to be
When I’m by myself, nobody else can say

Me, I’m a part of your circle of friends
And we notice you don’t come around”

***

Photo by Flickr user total13

“Circle” © 1988 (Brickell/Withrow)

MEDIA ROOTS— Plaintive ripples of harp-like plucked string sounds of Björk’s invented gameleste set the aural stage for the Icelandic singer in Biophilia, her eigth studio album.  ‘Moon‘ is a gentle opener, and tesla coil rhythms reminiscent of slightly softened saw-wave synth sounds follow with ‘Thunderbolt‘ procession, ushering the listener into Björk’s latest opus.

The literal and metaphoric are then joined with sculptures of sight and sound in ‘Crystalline‘.

 ‘Crystalline’

In the post-Napster, post-Bit Torrent world, when record companies reel from the digitisation of music, Björk continues to engage listeners on multiple levels and keep them wanting the full package beyond the downloaded mp3.

With Biophilia, Björk delivers a musical experience which functions as a living multimedia art installation.  The ‘ultimate edition’ of the album comes replete with thematic imagery, stories to each song, and more.  Ever the forward-thinking artist, Björk embraces modern app tech and user-interactivity, such as the iPad suite, allowing listeners to easily remix and re-imagine her music.  Biophilia, Björk revealed, was “partly composed on an iPad.”

Björk once noted, in response to criticisms of electronic music being soulless, that if it didn’t have soul, it’s because one didn’t put it there.  Björk shows us just how much humanity electronic music can embody.

“Cosmogony,” like much of this album, is a truly ambitious exploration of human existence, a sensory exploration of the inner and outer universe. 

Biophilia deserves mindful listening, challenging the listener to empathise, as in “Hollow,” with its fugue-like vocal swirls and pedal-point organ-synth tones, before reaching its electronic climax propelling forward continuity of DNA.  “Now come forth, all species,” sings Björk biophilically.

Here, the journey of life means flourishing and affliction.  “Virus,” gently and rapturously reminds us of the reciprocity of living bonds.  “Like a virus, patient hunter / I’m waiting for you, I’m starving for you / My sweet adversary.” 

One may recognise signature phonologies, as in “Dark Matter.”  But sheer conviction intertwined with tonal musicality has always made Björk’s songs function despite unconventional phrasings, which accommodate unusually expressive lyricism.

Some listeners may complain Björk’s ‘artiness’ is too much or that she’s tried too hard to prioritise ‘abstraction’ over ‘songs’ or sing-along ‘pop songs.’  Yet, this offering requires time to grow on the psyche.  As an ever-evolving artist, Björk takes risks that pushes boundaries. 

“Sacrifice” is an example of pushing the tone poem form, inversely punctuated with familiar reassurances of rhythmic regularity, impelling listeners to reconsider the comforts of the familiar and our own self-imposed limits as listeners. 

From the high-energy whirlwinds of “Mutual Core” and “Náttúra” to the meditative counterpoint of “Solstice,” Biophilia glides across and through realms of living energy, form, and motion.

The fact that Björk has largely self-produced Biophilia points to the crystallisation of her artistry, whilst maintaining her unique integrity.  We bear witness to an adventurous and seasoned artist throwing down.  With Biophilia, Björk reaches, quite successfully, for new ground, new planes, and new dimensions.

Written by Felipe Messina for Media Roots

Photo by flickr user Alexandre Hamada Possi

CRAVE ONLINE– We’ve been hearing bits and pieces of this Radiohead remix album over the past couple of months, with new singles from the band ushering out a few of them at a time. Among the featured mixers on the record are appearances from Modeselektor, Jamie xx, Caribou, Four Tet and several others, making for an odds-and-ends collection of wildly varying interpretive spins on the beloved band’s most recent album.

The full remixes set, “TKOL RMX 1234567,” is now available for streaming below.

The 12-inch remix album arrives October 10, order it at http://radiohead.com/

Written by Johnny Firecloud, Founder, Managing Editor of Antiquiet.com