In a late-stage capitalist society, one might argue, music serves a function not unlike that of the university, albeit on a more populist level: the reproduction of the prevailing (state) ideology. One might further argue that the specific mechanism of this ideological apparatus, especially as transnational cultural industry begins to render state boundaries more irrelevant (as the twin flows of capital and labor become global rather than regional) is to reproduce the prevailing ideology via the illumination of the boundaries thereof; that is, in a late-stage capitalist society, music serves to show the boundaries of acceptable behaviors within the context of seeming rebellion.
Both the subsumption and the paradox of this apparent rebellion are easily visible in the profit motive and industrialization of music: no longer an oral or folk tradition, though the argument could be made that such traditions fit neatly into the feudal system, with 'groupies', drugs, and other elements of the so-called 'rock 'n roll lifestyle' composing perhaps a symbolic subset of the traditional Droit de Cuissage, the rise of the "music industry" shows clearly the hypocrisy of artists who claim to distrust the so-called system while at the same time profiting from its capitalist-industrialist nature.
Oh, and here's a couple of tracks from a new album that Seattle instrumental hip-hop artist The Insider just put out earlier this year. Album is available for free at this site. Don't be a part of the system. Check it out.
...I'm sorry for the pun. Really, I am. It was just there. I couldn't help myself. THE PEOPLE WHO MADE ROCK BAND HAVE A REAL BAND. And it's awesome - some of the funnest hip-hop I've heard in a while (though I would note that Seattle has an amazing underground hip-hop scene... more on that, hopefully, in my next post).
Anyways - because nothing says 'hip' like a hip-hop group that has one black guy, that is composed entirely of employees of a video game development company, and that's named after a neurotransmitter - I present: Oxytocin.
Awesome poster, isn't it?
Anyways, from the first moments of the pseudo-gothic intro to the first song, "Ludlow", you realize that this isn't going to be a typical hip-hop album. By the time the narrator is finished talking to an alien in the same track, you realize that, hey - this isn't just out of the ordinary, it's really frickin' cool.
Oxytocin - Ludlow
If there's one flaw to this album, it's that it's a little bit self-indulgent and near-schizophrenic... then again, the entire thing is available for free from the band's website, so it's not like they're costing themselves income. Case in point: the album's fifth track, 'Cathode Rays' which is done in 8-bit. WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT? I mean, it's pretty good as an 8-bit track - and it's definitely got some funk to it, but it doesn't, to me, fit the tone of the rest of the album. (note: if you've been reading AAH for a while, this isn't the first 8-bit track we've posted...)
Oxytocin - Cathode Rays
So... yeah. When Oxytocin stick to what they know, though, they do it really, really well - as evidenced by the final track I'm linking to this afternoon, "Do it for me", which spotlights Nay (AKA The Beatles: Rock Band Lead Producer Naoko Takamoto)'s vocals over a bugged-out, syncopated synth-orchestra beat, and which unequivocally kicks the stuffing out of a lot of more commercial work.
Oxytocin - Do It For Me
So there's a nice sampling of the sound that Oxytocin puts out in their self-titled debut album... if you like it, you can, as I've mentioned, get it for free off of their website. Hope you enjoy!
What, you say? Yup. Mmhmm. Yarly. Anyways - Voodoo Economics. Formed in 2005; one EP and two albums out - and available for free on their website - currently on hiatus.
Not enough information for you? Try this: they're a high concept band. What's the high concept?
Megatsunami hits; dead bodies reach critical mass, and meat wakes up. Girl talks to meat; meat talks back.
Yes, meat. Red stuff, tasty? Yup.
Weird enough?
All that aside, though, they've got a really cool sound - kind of like a bluesed-out, slowed-down Nine Inch Nails, but with a female lead vocalist. And since (as I might have mentioned) all their music is free (!) it won't cost you anything to check out.
I've loaded two of their tracks here; the first one (hit soft like a featherload of bricks) is from their first album, if::then::iminami. The second one (Meathook) is from their second album, Nighttime Sabbaticals.
Voodoo Economics - hit soft like a featherload of bricks
So Friday night (last night), nattily attired (as usual) and smartly groomed (also as usual), I strolled downtown to the famous Blue Moon Tavern, where so many of my illustrious forebears have swapped tales, wisdom, and unnamed substances while enjoying the very best of Seattle's indie music.
Anticipating a great show from The Katherine Moore Situation, I walked up to the tavern's blue-neon-lit front door... only to be confronted by a sign: 21+ Only. Undaunted, I continued into the tavern - where I was promptly asked for ID. Having not yet walked this earth for 21 years, and not being among those who have acquired documents that claim (with whatever amount of prevarication) that they have, I took my leave, muttering various imprecations under my (as always) fresh breath.
Walking about Seattle's University District, sipping on a green tea latte and various balms for my slightly wounded ego, I took the opportunity to whip out (in a manner not unlike Cleavon Little) my mp3 player and listen to Boxcar Rebellion's new EP.
Boxcar Rebellion, it should be noted, is not The Katherine Moore Situation. But it's close! ...in that it shares some of the same musicians and some of the same songs. Two of those songs in common are embedded with this post, and the energetic, soul-fuelled blues that fills them is really cool to listen to. You can download the whole EP - six songs - from BoxcarRebellion.com for free, if you feel like it. I haven't been able to find any mp3s from The Katherine Moore Situation, but you can listen to a lot of their music on their Myspace. Good stuff.
Boxcar Rebellion - Hallelujah
Boxcar Rebellion - Kansas
In News From My Life... I've spent the last couple of days looking for apartments, and I've put in an application for a studio about a mile from the UW (that's the University of Washington, for all you proles out there). With luck, I'll have a place to live by the first of September. Seattle so far is a little bit overwhelming - it's a heckuva lot more crowded than Deland - but I've got a feeling that after I get settled, I'm going to love it.
Have a great Saturday afternoon, everyone! Enjoy the tunes!
Hey there, we at Attempts At Hip would love to hear from you. If you have music suggestions, questions, or anything please email us at JackIrish300@gmail.com. If you're a record label or band and feel that we've over stepped our bounds, please let me know and I'll take down/change whatever needs. We showcase music merely for sampling purposes and so people can get a taste of great bands, we don't intend on infringing upon any rights.
