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MVM : Empire Of The Sun

I've been playing this song non-stop lately...it just makes ya feel good.  Here's Empire Of The Sun's "Walking On A Dream"...

Songwriter on Songwriter

My good friend Deblois is out from Florida to play a few west coast shows.  I decided to interview her about her travels, new album and which coast is better to surf on...

Ryan: Where are you from?

DeBlois: I am from Miami Florida, 3rd generation, which in South Florida speaks volumes of my bloodline: we are immune to mosquitos and hurricanes.

Ryan: Who are some musical influences?

DeBlois:  Some of my musical influences include Emmylou Harris, John Hurt, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder and Joan Armatrading.  I love the passion that these artists bring to their vocal delivery and the level of musicianship that they surround themselves with. 

Ryan: How is it going doing music full time and traveling?

DeBlois: In January of 2006, once my first record "Leviathan" was released, I started to travel the country playing music full time.  I had just moved back to the States after nearly 5 years in Costa Rica, and realized that playing music was way more fun and only slightly less lucrative than hanging dry-wall. Almost 3 years later I am still bringing the music to the people and practically exploding out of my skin with happiness and creativity, I cannot imagine any other life, and I only keep my dry-wall knife around to open new boxes of CDs and to remind myself that music is the answer. Part of what I love so much about the Road is that it is a constant mill for the firewood of songwriting, I am endlessly inspired, awestruck, and floored by my encounters with the rest of the world. 

Ryan: Tell us about some of your recent recording projects and the musicians on board with them.

DeBlois:  Now that I am ready to embark on the journey of record
making once again I am blessed to work in the studio with some amazing mentors, among them Bill Macpherson and Danny Campbell.  Bill spent his youth in the African Congo and now leads an African Jazz fusion band called Native Vibe, and runs a music workshop in Costa Rica bringing some of the finest proffesional musicians to our little home town there. Danny is a drummer/producer who is well known for playing with all kinds of projects.  His improvisational skills come from a jazz education, but his ability to truly know where the music is going comes from within, he, as they say, "gets it".  I also love to make music with my friends around the world, on front porches everywhere! Topping the list is Ryan "Pooh" Howell, whose grit and shine are irresistable in equal parts.

Ryan: What gets you writing?

DeBlois: Songwriting wears many hats in my life, there is the spontaneous ad-libbing that turns into a song over time, (provided Pooh records it so I can remember it), there is the calculated political song that comes from a place of frustration, there is the bathroom floor heartbreak, personal and universal in its agony, the tune you write with your friend about your favorite point break... and on and on. My favorite type of song is the Love Song.  It may seem obvious but I fear we will forget that Romance is the most important thing in our short lives.

Ryan: Is the surf better in Florida or in CA? Be honest.

DeBlois: And now for the really heavy question: doing my best to muffle the proud East Coaster in me, the truth as I see it is that California has the better, bigger, more consistant, less crowded waves.  There are also more breaks to choose from with free parking, delicious coffee shops near by and nice locals.  Please don't tell all my buddies back East that I said so, or at least style them like you do me, and meet them at the airport with a board and a wetsuit and a ride to Blacks.

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Check out Deblois November 2 @ ?LeStat's (8pm)

Danny Campbell on drums, guest appearance: Ryan Howell.
 

MVM : Nortec Collective's Bostich + Fussible

 I was trying to find a video to inspire some new dance moves...check out "Tijuana Sound Machine"

Björk releases "Nattura" single

Most Icelanders have a little beef with Björk for making their country look like a bunch of costumed daydreamers; she's one of their few exports and cod doesn't make popular media much.  But in the midst of all sorts of troubles in her native country, even the most stubborn of cod fishermen have to admit that she is doing quite a bit to keep the culture and geography of their nation uncompromised no matter how "out there" her approach is.

Björk has spent the past few months working with Nattura, a group who seeks to counter globalization movements threatening not only the stunning volcanic landscape of the island but also the unique culture that developed over centuries of isolation.  With the help of a few notable musicians (Thom Yorke and Matthew Herbert to name two), the Icelandic daydreamer recorded an interesting single to raise money for the cause and, from the sounds of it, start warming up for another full-length record.  You can buy the song here or on iTunes and read Pitchfork's two part interview here and here.

iLike + TuneCore = Win for Independent Musicians

iLike and TuneCore are teaming up to help create more revenue lines for independents bands and musicians... this is good news.

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iLike, the leading social music discovery service, and TuneCore, the leading digital music distribution service, today kicked off a joint effort to help independent artists make money and get discovered -- effectively becoming their own label.

This unique alliance leverages TuneCore's digital distribution model and iLike's music promotion and discovery services to give independent artists a turnkey solution to distribute, promote and sell their music. With this initiative, independent artists can essentially be their own label, as follows:

-- Distribution: TuneCore empowers any artist to distribute their music and videos worldwide to iTunes, Rhapsody, Amazonmp3, and other leading online music stores and subscription services while keeping 100% of the royalties.

-- Marketing and Promotion: iLike offers a range of free and paid music-promotion services for artists to reach new fans on leading social networks and platforms across the Web.

-- Making Money: Artists will also earn royalties when their music is streamed on iLike.com, Facebook, and other platforms where iLike is available.

How It Works: By submitting their music via TuneCore, independent or established musicians can sell their music in all the major online stores and leading subscription services, including: iTunes; Amazon mp3; and through Rhapsody, on Yahoo, MTV and iLike.

After using TuneCore to easily and quickly distribute their music to Rhapsody, artists will earn royalties when their music is streamed not only on iLike.com but also on iLike's unrivaled music syndication network, which provides music on Facebook(R), hi5, Orkut, Bebo, iLike's third-party developer platform ( www.iLike.com/developer) and other leading channels across the Web.