W♥M

News: Lily Allen and Mason Proper Remixed, Beastie Boys are old, Gossip & Jetpacks Tour

nobody@vox.com(W♥M) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 03:25:59 -0500

Here's a roundup of some music news that's come across news.weheartmusic.com.

I don't know how this is entirely legal, but LA-producer Doctor Rosen Rosen remixed Lily Allen's album, It's Not Me, It's You and made it available as a free download on his website, doctorrosenrosen.com. The only thing that he claim to have lifted is Allen's original vocal tracks and that all the background and mix is completely original.

Clearly the man is in love with Lily Allen. He admitted to first seeing the video for "Smile" in "a crappy hotel room" while on tour in Iceland. Ever since then, he's been a fan. He reached out to her record label to see if they were commissioning remixes for her new record, but of course, they weren't interested. But that wouldn't stop a man obsessed, right? So what we have here is an un-endorsed, unofficial release of a "darker" remixed album of It's Not Me, It's You.

While I think this is a good marketing ploy to expose non-fans to Lily Allen, it's also great exposure for this producer/mixer Doctor Rosen Rosen as well. Unfortunately, I think the lawyers won't agree on my views.

Mason Proper - Safe For The Time Being (The Paronomasiac Remix)

Safe For The Time Being

Speaking of free downloads, goldestegg.com tells me that the new Remix EP from Mason Proper (official/myspace/W♥M) is available for free. The link I'm given is zShare. You get "Safe for the Time Being" remixed by The Paronomasiac and Wallpaper. (I recently mentioned his remix of Das Racist, calling it "d-u-m"). What's cool is the EP also includes a video for "Safe for the Time Being".

Mason Proper is currently on tour:

Beastie Boys - Body Movin'

Beastie Boys

There's no doubt about it, the Beastie Boys are old. Even Triumph the Insult Dog pointed this out at their recent Bonnaroo appearance.

You've gone from "Check Your Head" to "Check Your Prostate".

Apparently Adam ("MCA") Yauch was diagnosed with "cancerous tumor in his left parotid (salivary) gland". It's treatable, but unfortunately it affected MCA's vocal chords... as a result, Beastie Boys canceled all upcoming concert appearances.

From a video statement on Beastieboys.com:

I just need to take a little time to get this in check, and then we'll release the record and play some shows. It's a pain in the neck (sorry had to say it) because I was really looking forward to playing these shows, but the doctors have made it clear that this is not the kind of thing that can be put aside to deal with later.
- Adam Yauch

Gossip - Pop Goes The World

Gossip

Since I am a fan of Gossip (official/myspace/W♥M) and my review was done prior to their US tour dates (they were at the time doing promotional touring in the UK, where you have to admit Europeans loves Gossip more than Americans). So here's the US Tour dates, courtesy of sonymusic.com:

We Were Promised Jetpacks - Quiet Little Voices (Radio Edit)

We Were Promised Jetpacks

Thanks to motormouthmedia.com for sending in some information and upcoming tour dates for We Were Promised Jetpacks. Jetpack's latest album, These Four Walls was released earlier this month, their upcoming tour schedule:

More information about Jetpacks and Twilight Sad on news.whm.

Hype Machine Popular (7-20-09)

Elizabeth & the Catapult - Race You

Finally, W♥M made some news, however minor it was. One of our tracks for Elizabeth & The Catapult became wildly popular on The Hype Machine! It peaked at #10 on the popular list, which are ranked when a Hype user marked the song as "love". As soon as the track hit the top 20, the "love" number grew quickly to 170 (just to give you an idea, average 'loved' W♥M tracks are about 1 to 5).

After three days, The Hype Machine dropped the song off their ranking.

07/23/2009 03:14:34 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic♥news.weheartmusic.com

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W♥M025: Mason Proper

nobody@vox.com(W♥M) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 16:17:15 -0500

09/28/2008 16:11:34 ♥ written by vu ()

Arianna Solare - Lift Me Up

Jacky & Strings - Vamonos Paya

Abbotfinney & Jeffrey Alan - Show Me Something Better

You Bet! - It's Love

The Shangri-Las - Simon Says

Gossip - Careless Whisper

Subscribe to our show at podcast.weheartmusic.com, via RSS Feed.

Download this episode (39 min)

Music used/mentioned: Arianna Solare (W♥M), Mason Proper (W♥M), Abbotfinney, The Sugarcubes (W♥M), Sunn O))) (W♥M), Jacky & Strings, You Bet!, The Shangri-Las (W♥M), and Gossip (W♥M).

PART ONE
Jon from Mason Proper was nice enough to stop by and talk about:

the #2 most added album on College radio station this week
The origin of "oly oly oxen free"
"There is a Moth in Your Chest" title and two different versions of their album explained
Moth vs Oxen
The story behind their friendship with Cloud Cult
Upcoming CMJ
Insound.com's exclusive limited DVD and remix contest (ends Sep 30^th).

PART TWO
Alex tells us about his recent Southern Lord purchases...on his BIKE!

PART THREE
Vu ♥ 60s girl pop and soul, so he mentions: You Bet!, The Shangri-Las, and Gossip.

CREDITS: Special thanks goes to Jessi Hector at Sneak Attack, Alex from We Heart Music, Christina from Ariel Publicity, Jacky and Strings, Abbotfinney, and, of course, Jon Visger from Mason Proper.

Links: www.weheartmusic.com podcast.weheartmusic.com

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Mason Proper

nobody@vox.com(W♥M) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:56:23 -0500

09/23/2008 20:53:50 ♥ written by andrew ()

Safe For The Time Being

Mason Proper

Tour Dates

09/24/08 Live on 107one Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, Michigan
09/25/08 CD Release Party w/The Silent Years, The Novel Citizen @ The Blind Pig (ALL AGES) Ann Arbor, Michigan
10/21/08 Dovecote Records CMJ Showcase @ Rehab New York, New York
10/31/08 Rubbles Bar w/ Those Transatlantics (18+) Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
11/01/08 Small Planet East Lansing, Michigan
11/07/08 New Horizon Winona Lake, Indiana
11/08/08 WIDR Presents Mason Proper @ Papa Pete’s w/The Mighty Narwhale Kalamazoo, Michigan
11/10/08 Black Cat w/Cloud Cult Washington DC, Washington DC
11/11/08 Bowery Ballroom w/Cloud Cult New York, New York
11/12/08 Heirloom Arts Theater w/Cloud Cult Danbury, Connecticut
11/13/08 Middle East - Downstairs w/Cloud Cult Cambridge, Massachusetts
11/15/08 Bug Jar Rochester, New York
11/22/08 The Intersection w/the Mighty Narwhale Grand Rapids, Michigan
12/13/08 The Beat Kitchen w/Everthus the Deadbeats (17+) Chicago, Illinois

Discography

[2007] There Is A Moth In Your Chest

[2008] Olly Oxen Free

[2008] Shorthand EP (iTunes Exclusive)

Michigan's Mason Proper make this whole Rock n' Roll thing seem effortless. Reminiscent of the Pixies or perhaps early Spoon, and occasionally uncannily channeling Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, their ambient but crisp mid-tempo rock provides a gloomy (though never overtly depressing) soundtrack befitting the first full day of fall in the Midwest.

Released today, Mason Proper's LP "Olly Oxen Free" is significantly less of a hard-rocker than their 2006 debut "There is a Moth in Your Chest," but it seems to decently capture a more measured, laid-back tone - stretching out the wavelength while managing to retain the same amplitude and intensity of their previous offering.

At the start, Jonathan Visger's ominous vocalizations have me looking over my shoulder, expecting stalkers in the form of electric-guitar-wielding apparitions. From spooky opener "Fog" and slow-ish head-bobbers "Point A to Point B" and "Lock and Key" to the progressively emerging pulse of closer "Safe For The Time Being," the whole tone captures a tune-in-and-zone-out feel, without ever approaching the fuzziness that often defines "shoe gaze."

It's not an album to consume in small bites - it works best as a whole. Start at Track One and let the guitar-driven melancholy draw you in and immerse you in its murky depths. Ten songs in thirty-seven minutes may be a bit brisk, but that's what "repeat" buttons are for.

Links: masonproper.com myspace.com/masonproper

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