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Representing Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, FYM showcases original artwork, thoughtful well-written feature stories about our favorites in art, music, and culture on the West Coast.
This week, Seattle’s most notable up-and-coming Hip-Hop contender—Macklemore (with beats by Ryan Lewis), debuted his second single off the yet to be released full-length, The Heist (due out October 9th). Watch the official video to Thrift Shop streamingbelow:
You may remember earlier this summer Macklemore & Ryan Lewis debuted a sharp new single supporting marriage equality called Same Love (featuring Mary Lambert).Unlike Same Love, which is a ferociously intelligent stab at backwards homophobic viewpoints, Thrift Shop showcases the lighter side of Macklemore’s lyrical talents.
The extremely well-edited music video features scenes from local thrift stores like Value Village/Goodwill, with local Northwest folk going H.A.M. on nostalgic fashions. Along with the message (you don’t have to spend a ton of money to look #BOSS), comes the humor/one-liners like damn that’s a cold ass honkey.
The song itself is BANANAS good. With backing-vocals/hook support from Wanz (who we couldn’t help but associate with Nate Dogg’s vocal stylings), this second single secures great promise to the rest of the quality material, assuredly on The Heist. Artists like Macklemore & Ryan Lewis make us proud to live in the Northwest, and we can help but support their sonic efforts—putting’ it down for The Town (Seattle). Purchase Thrift Shop from iTunes HERE.
Yesterday, Seattle’s own Campfire OK took over the Nordstrom Flagship house piano, for a surprise off-the-cuff performance! This is the second spontaneous performance FYM has been lucky enough to witness at the Flagship in the past couple months (the first being world-renowned composers Hilary Hahn & Hauschka).
Frontman Mychal Cohen was accompanied by bandmates—Brandon and Andrew for a shopping-stopping three song set experience, during the noon-time lunch hour. (pictured below)
Campfire OK proved to be quite the dynamic performers, switching instrumental roles, sharing flawless harmonies, while showcasing their infectious sonic talents to a stunned group of shoppers.
Expect BIG things from this up-and-coming band from Seattle in Fall 2012—Campfire OK gear up to release the highly anticipated follow-up to 2011’s Strange Like We Are, titled When You Have Arrived. View the new album teaser trailer below:
FYM was all smiles yesterday afternoon when Campfire OK surprised the Flagship (seriously LOVE the tunes they create). One can only hope Nordstrom will continue to this live music theme, making the Flagship store a place where anything is possible! Cheers FYM.
Our third day at Outside Lands 2012 was spent watching the incredible talents of Allen Stone, Fun, Regina Spektor, Jack White and Stevie Wonder conquer the Lands End main stage. Below are a few highlights from our final day at this premier art°music°culture festival.
FYM arrived early last Sunday to catch Allen Stone represent Seattle! Over the past few years, minus a publicist or record label, Stone has heavily made a name for himself in the American soul underground. When his 2011 self-titled album was released digitally, it climbed up to the Top 5 on iTunes R&B/Soul charts.
In July 2012, Allen Stone’s self-titled debut finally made its national vinyl release, via ATO Records. Allen Stone’s music is a perfect paring of love conquers all vocals, socially conscious happy people soul, finished with a touch of MJ pop-prowess.
It’s hard to get people moving at noon on a Sunday morning, after two days of ruthless music. But Allen Stone’s charisma live, won over the SF crowd quickly—ending in a left vs. right audience dance-off.
NYC pop-chart toppers FUN. were a surprise highlight of our final day at Outside Lands 2012. Fun. frontman Nate Ruess, formerly of The Format, carries a huge voice, and a sincere stage persona that caters to the masses.
What truly won us over was Fun’s cover of You Can’t Always Get What You Want, by the Rolling Stones. Their version can obviously never top Mick/Keith’s version, but it was an impressive addition, to their polished live performance.
Watching Jack White (under any creative sonic moniker) play guitar in person, is always a thrill to see. That day FYM was expecting a long journey through White’s 2012 solo-release Blunderbuss, but instead, we were given a career spanning performance of spine-chilling hits.
Jack White played amazing cuts off Blunderbuss, while rotating full-band countrified versions of Raconteurs, The White Stripes and Dead Weather staples. It was a true pleasure hearing the full gamut of White’s songwriting skills, packed into one unforgettable festival setting.
White closed out his performance with a true-to-form Seven Nation Army rendition that unified the audience. After witnessing several mind-blowing guitar solos from his set, FYM hung back, watched the fog roll in, and listened to Stevie Wonder from a far. It was truly a marathon weekend, and FYM couldn’t have asked for a better experience covering our third year in a row of Outside Lands 2012 Music Festival.
FYM BONUS PHOTO: Art Director J. Thomas Codling caught our publicist Nick ‘The Fresh Maker’ Codling in the perfect Mentos moment this weekend (they were handing them out for free at the gate).
Massive crowds overtook day two at Outside Lands 2012. Luckily Golden Gate Park is an expansive setting to navigate, lending a mildly comfortable journey from stage to stage on foot.
San Francisco-based Thee Oh Sees dominated a foggy afternoon at the park, with their energetic brand of garage rock psychedelia. Frontman John Dwyer’s howling vocals paired with up-tempo spazz-out jams like The Dream, create a commanding presence live.
Passion Pit’s leading man Michael Angelakos may have canceled a string of shows this year due to battling depression and bi-polar disorder, but on day two of Outside Lands his performance was aces. New tracks from Passion Pitt’s July release Gossamer, went over extremely well with the Twin Peaks stage audience.
The coolest thing FYM saw all day, was the photo taken above. While Passion Pitt rocked out their foot-stomping keyboard electro prowess, fans hoisted a man in a wheelchair up to see better. Possibly the greatest crowd surfing scenario we’ve ever witnessed.
Dr. Dog’s roots-driven sonic eccentricity, is astounding to see LIVE. Their latest record Be The Void (Anti-Records), is an album of the year contender in our book. Dr. Dog continue to tour the U.S. through November, click HERE for tour dates.
Metallica closed out FYM’s day two at Outside Lands. It was everything you would expect: pyrotechnics, juiced-up metal, circle pits, and a whole lot of negative energy. But that’s what is great about going to festivals, sometimes you get to see bands perform live, that you wouldn’t dare pay to see solo. Cheers, FYM.
You can’t ask for a better setting than San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park to showcase such an expansive offering of art°music°culture. Day one of Outside Lands 2012 played host to a bevy sonic opulence old and new.
Two Gallants started off our first day at Outside Lands 2012 on a positive note. FYM continues to be impressed with the passionate vocal power of frontman Adam Stephens. This duo based out of San Francisco, played cuts off their 2007 Saddle Creek self-titled gem, and debuted stellar tracks from their long overdue new record The Bloom and the Blight (ATO Records) due out in September.
Oakland California’s Eric Ricky Reed Frederick has had an explosive level of success this year with his music project Wallpaper. The unabashed Bay Area party rocker proved his live show night-timing prowess works on a massive scale (even during the day). Rick Reed’s on-stage connection with vocalist/hype woman Novena is an incredible treat to see live!
YACHT followed Wallpaper. on the Twin Peeks stage yesterday afternoon. Claire L. Evans is such a charismatic performer. Her sonic partnership with Jona Bechtolt and their tech-savvy mixture of cult°discothèque energy makes for an engaging show. What continually impresses FYM about YACHT is their sincere joy they bring to audiences live (truly looking like they LOVE what they do).
Up next we caught Reggie Watts surrounded by beer, wine, and food vendors being interviewed in the Outside Lands press tent. His comedic blend of soul and hip-hop is a true original.
Beck brought out the whole crew (including Smokey Hormel and Justin Meldal-Johnsen) for Outside Lands 2012. After growing up with his music for so many years, seeing Beck live for the first time was a true pleasure. Beck played popular selections from his 20+ year career, and dedicated Lost Cause off 2002’s Sea Change to the memory of Adam Yauch.
It’s been a while since FYM last saw the Foo Fighters live, we are so happy Pat Smear is back in the band, playing beside Dave Grohl. The Foo Fighters jacked-up radio hits, work perfectly in a large festival setting. You can’t deny the history of this group, and the all-out performance Grohl gives every time he sets foot on stage.
We have never been rocked so hard in our lives… Neil Young may be in his mid-60’s now, but he still can kick your ass playing guitar. His two hour set with Crazy Horse was on their terms, and they didn’t play a full setlist of classic hits, as we are sure most would have liked to have seen.
Instead Young and company made a pack to show all the performers of the day what playing rock n’ roll truly means. From the start Neil Young & Crazy Horse opened with a blistering 20-minute version of Love And Only Love. This lengthy theme of building up, and tearing down songs, continued throughout the set. One can only hope, Day two at Outside Lands will be as good this one. Cheers, FYM.
Can you believe it? Outside Lands 2012 is this Friday, August 10th! FYM is here to give you a preview of the incredible food from local vendors that will pair well with this monster art/music/culture experience. A crowd shot from last years journey below:
Ten food trucks, and over 40 Bay Area restaurants have been added to this years festivities. Outside Lands truly is a COMPLETE festival playing host to amazing live music, while featuring world-class craft brews and quality wines. Below are a few of FYM Publicist, Nick ‘can I have it like that’ Codling’s favorite picks!
Gilroy Mac from Homeroom: FYM had the luxury of making a visit to Homeroom earlier this year in Oakland and it was a Mac and Cheese delight. The Gilroy Mac is going to be for sale at the festival. We guarantee you’ll love the cheesy + garlic goodness that is Gilroy Mac. Pairing this meal with Lost Coast’s ‘Great White’ will put you in foodie heaven.
White Pizza from Del Popolo: Del Popolo opened possibly one of the most epic food trucks in the Bay Area, if you even want to call it that. Their goal for Outside Lands is to make 3,000 pizzas in 3 days. With the looks of the White Pizza that they’ll be selling, the odds are very high Del Popolo will reach their goal. Fresh mozzarella, fresh ricotta, parmigiano reggiano, basil, and garlic rounds out this mouth-watering White Pizza. Might we recommend Sierra Nevada’s ‘Outside Lands Saison’ made specifically for this fest.
Butt King Tacos from Le Truc: Le Truc, which is actually run out of a full on school bus, has some of the best looking tacos we could ask for. The Butt King Tacos feature pulled pork butt, corn tortilla, green chili thai curry, and cilantro, rounding out this cleverly named taco. Snag yourself a 21st Amendment ‘Hell or High Watermelon’ beer to make this pairing complete. Head on over to Outside Lands food section HERE for more information.
FYM has also released this week our latest music video curation via Cull.TV. The theme encompasses our Top 20 Artists we are stoked to see at the 2012 Outside Lands Music Festival. Click HERE (or the image above) to watch our Top 20 on Cull.TV. Art Director J Thomas Codling, previews the playlist below:
Seeing one of the greatest rock icons in Golden Gate Park LIVE sounds like a good journey for us! This past June, Neil Young & Crazy Horse released Americana —an astounding ode to traditional folk and roots music. The Woody Guthrie classic This Land Is Your Land, featured on the new album, is sure to go over well this Friday in SF. Watch a classic video from 1987’s Farm Aid, where Neil, Arlo Guthrie, Willie Nelson and friends perform this unifying tune above. Catch Neil Young & Crazy Horse this Friday at 8:10PM on the Lands End (Polo Field) stage.
Wallpaper. What can we say, FYM loves this guy. Our publicist, Nick ‘White-Boi-Wasted’ Codling even makes a short appearance in the video above (wearing a blue shirt and a lion mask). Wallpaper. frontman, Eric ‘Ricky Reed’ has exploded onto the national scene this year with party down anthems like #STUPiDFACEDD and Fucking Best Song Ever. We are excited to see this Bay Area native perform on the Twin Peaks stage at 2:15PM on Friday during Outside Lands.
Representing soulfully smooth sonic waves from our HQ in Seattle—Allen Stone has been an artist on our radar for quite some time now. ATO records just released his self-titled debut album this past June. See what all the buzz is about, catch Allen Stone live this Sunday at 12:15PM on the Lands End (Polo Field) stage. Cheers, FYM.
It’s music for Young Moderns. This week’s FYM Spotify Playlist is dedicated to Outside Lands 2012. Held on the generously green grounds of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, August 10-12, this festival is an annual hub of premiere art, music, food, comedy and culture. Below FYM has selected 30 different artists (10 from each day of the fest), that we are looking forward to jamming out to live! Click HERE for tickets, and HERE for a direct link to our playlist.
DAY 1: Neil Young & Crazy Horse: This Land Is Your Land Antibalas: Dirty Money Wallpaper: T Rex Tanlines: Yes Way Beck: Gold Chains Andrew Bird: Heretics Two Gallants: Despite What You’ve Been Told Papa: Ain’t It So White Denim: Cat City Yacht: Tripped and Fell in Love
Day 2: Dr. Dog: These Days Geographer: Paris Zola Jesus: Lick the Palm of the Burning Handshake Father John Misty: Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings The Kills: Pull A U Grandaddy: Summer Here Kids Portugal. The Man: When the War Ends Alabama Shakes: Hang Loose Honey Island Swamp Band: Honey Passion Pit: Where We Belong
Day 3: Fun: Some Nights Electric Guest: Waves Allen Stone: Sleep Stevie Wonder: Joy (Takes Me Over) Jack White: Freedom at 21 Amadou & Mariam: Dougou Badia Birdy: Young Blood Regina Spektor: Sailor Song Santigold: GO! Bloc Party: This Modern Love
To view the full list of artists performing at the 2012 Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco USA, click HERE. Cheers, FYM.
Weeks ago, forYoungModerns was fortunate to get a copy of In Limbo, the debut album from New York City psychedelic rockers TEEN, but as a West Coast-centric blog, we had to wait a while to post about it until the album’s then-far away release date of August 28 creeped closer and the band announced some West Coast tour dates. On top of this, the band is so feverishly new, it was hard to even put together a proper bio for these talented Brooklynites.
The suspense that had been killing us comes to a close, as we can announce the band has lined up the following tour dates leading up to In Limbo’s release August 28 on Carpark Records:
7/20 New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge w/ Dean Wareham
7/21 Brooklyn, NY @ Union Pool “Summer Thunder Series”
9/14 New York, NY @ Webster Hall w/ Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti
9/29 Chicago, IL @ Schuba’s Tavern*
9/30 Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon*
10/1 Minneapolis, MN @ 400 Bar*
10/2 Grinnell, IA @ Grinnell College Gardner Lounge*
10/3 Omaha, NE @ Slowdown Jr.*
10/5 Denver, CO @ Hi Dive*
10/6 Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court*
10/9 Seattle, WA @ Barboza*
10/10 Vancouver, BC @ The Media Club*
10/11 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir*
10/16 Los Angeles, CA @ Echo*
10/19 San Antonio, TX @ The Korova*
10/20 Austin, TX @ Red 7*
10/21 Dallas, TX @ Bryan Street Tavern*
10/23 Nashville, TN @ The High Watt*
10/27 Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506*
*with Hospitality
TEEN, fronted by former Here We Go Magic member Teeny Lieberson, and flanked by her sisters Katherine and Lizze, along with friend Jane Herships, are an absolute breath of fresh air across the modern indie spectrum. Merely lumping them together with the current wave of cloned fuzzy all-girl rock bands would be a disservice; TEEN sound like they have greater ambitions. They’re more J Spaceman than Stevie Nicks as a very welcome change.
TEENInLimbo cover art
In Limbo is nearly an hour in length yet can be breezed through in a comfortably rewarding listen. Driven by vintage synth and guitar sounds, along with Lieberson’s sharp-yet-dreamy vocals, it can be your soundtrack for lazy afternoons or chilling in your apartment after a successful first date or anything in between.
A second listen may be required immediately after the first, however, because opening track “Better” builds up to something so hypnotically catchy, it might be stuck in your head throughout the rest of the album (think Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s brilliant “FFunny FFrends” from last year). Check out the official “Better” and “Electric” music videos they recently released:
Teeny’s synths and soaring voice remind you of an angel tripping on something nice, but her more Joan Jett-esque tough-girl baritone she often uses (especially on the potential single/potential soundtrack to a cool movie trailer “Come Back”) sheds light on a tougher side of her. Perhaps the highlight of the album is “Unable”, six and a half minutes of blissful space pop. TEEN’s In Limbo is not just one of the best debuts of 2012, it may be one of the year’s finest albums period. You can also check out and download their second slinge, “Ecletric”, HERE.
On top of all this, the suddenly busy band released a mixtape called Rumblette, which features the band covering such songs as Pavement’s “Summer Babe (Winter Version)” and throwing in some Aphex Twin and Suicide on top of that. Download Rumblette for free by clicking HERE.
Blake Mills has had a remarkable sonic journey growing up in Southern California. During his early 20’s he formed a band with schoolmate Taylor Goldsmith titled- Simon Dawes. Soon after their 2006 debut Carnivore, Mills left the band and Dawes was born.
After Simon Dawes, Mills became a notable session guitarist in Los Angeles California. Then in 2010, he released an astonishing solo effort titled- Break Mirrors. After two years, this record seems to be finally getting the attention it deserves.
The album itself is a distinctive 9-song palette of personal reflection, showcasing Mills’ formidable songwriting skills, and immense guitar prowess. His tunes take the listener through a gamut of emotions- fear, heart-break, love and understanding. Songs like It’ll All Work Out, tap into a broad consciousness that any 20-something can relate to. Listen to one of our favorites off Break Mirrors above, titled- Wintersong. This Wednesday Blake Mills will be performing in Seattle at the Paramount Theatre with Fiona Apple. FYM is stoked to hear tracks from Break Mirrors in a live setting, and interested to see Mills on guitar during Apple’s set. To get a sense of what a genuine talent Blake Mills truly is, view the mini-documentary posted above. Click HERE to purchase Break Mirrors, it’s a perfect record for late-night listening sessions with friends and slow-burning companions. Cheers, FYM.
This past Friday the 13th, FYM enjoyed an evening of live music from two buzzworthy Seattle bands. The night started off with classic tunes spun by DJ Jacob James of SHIPS. His curation was an added bonus, which loosened up the crowd, lending toward a more lively audience once the bands took stage.
Garrett Vandercrimp was an engaging opening act, serving up a powerful solo performance under his one-man moniker Prism Tats. Garrett wowed us with his soaring heart-felt vocals, while rocking a kick drum and a couple Danelectros. Listen to his new single Pacifist Masochist (released yesterday) via bandcamp below:
The vibe in the room as Campfire Ok took stage last Friday was a heady charge. Both the audience at the Crocodile, and the band all seemed ready for an incredible sonic experience. For those of you not in the know, Campfire Ok is a driving mixture of foot-stomping keyboard rock, paired with dramatic lyrical sensibilities, anchored in an organic head-spinning energy. Their debut record Strange Like We Are, has been a constant staple on FYM HQ’s speakers this past year.
But this performance was all about knew beginnings. Campfire Ok championed a bevy of tunes last Friday from their new album (still to be released) titled, When You Have Arrived. Lead singer Mychal Cohen of Campfire Ok was a vibrant spirit on stage sharing their latest material. He sang with grand passion and sincerity.
Mychal’s vocal counterpart Melodie Knight, has a staggering electricity to her stage presence. Her connection with Mychal live is an undeniable bond. The entire band for that matter was full-steam ahead that night. FYM loves the variety of instruments and percussive elements the band uses to create this expansive sound live. Listen to their signature track off their last album, Strange Like We Are below:
A special thanks to everyone involved, for putting together such an amazing event. Visit FYM on Facebook HERE to view even more photos from Campfire Ok’s remarkable performance last Friday night.
BONUS PHOTOS: CAMPFIRE OK (click to expand for greater detail)
