A friend of mine sent me this video because I like videos with fabulous production quality, I like chocolate, and I like sailors.
He was right, I enjoy this on many levels of enjoyment.
The Mast brothers are chocolatiersbased in Brooklyn. Their process starts when they choose their cocoa beans, sailing them from family farms in Madagascar, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador. According to the producers of this video at The Scout Magazine, the boys are about to embark on a journey sailing across the Atlantic to check out some more cocoa beans in the Dominican Republic.
Seems to me they really know how to savor the best things in life.
In this video, you view a little of the process of chocolate making, hear a little of the history of chocolate making, and discover how the brothers came to love and produce their sweet, sweet candy.
You know this endless stream of bedroom band, fuzzy shoegazer lo-fi pop would be really easy for me to make fun of, utterly despise or just completely dismiss altogether…if there wasn’t so freakin much of it burning up my I-tunes right now. Washed out, Wild Nothing, Neon Indian, let’s face it man, i’m hook line and sinker on this shit for the most part. Maybe it’s the fact that in the sticky humid haze of my poorly air conditioned upstairs office, the idea of a song that makes me do anything other than melt into my chair and try my hardest not to sweat is just a lot more appealing than rocking some banger and trying to give myself heat stroke dancing around up there. Or maybe i’m just a lo-fi sucker, I don’t know. Needless to say on first recommendation alone, I was pretty stoked to hear the new Bibio album. And while at first listen, I halfheartedly wanted to toss Bibio into that mix of bedroom fuzz poppers, and to some degree I still feel like that’s somewhat fair, I now find myself upon repeated listens having trouble branding this latest work in the same category.
From the percussion of the title track, to the shuffling, instantly catchy and funky guitar loops of Jealous Roses, to the subdued guitar strings of The Palm of Your Wave that feel more at home on an Iron & Wines b-side; Bibio has no shortage of musical tricks up his sleeve. And with Ambivalence Avenue he weaves them perfectly into an album that is at once slightly chaotic and incoherent, and yet somehow perfectly blended. There’s no shortage of mood shifts from the aforementioned funky loops of Jealous Roses, the haunting Haikuesque (When She Laughs), the folky Abrasion, the overtly poppy Lovers Carvings, and even a few great landmine bangers like Fire Ant and S’Vive which feature the type of up-beat hip hop vibe and experimentation with chopped percussion and samples I haven’t heard done well since Prefuse 73 was interesting. So to those like me whose guilty pleasure is this now almost inescapable lo fi drone sound, this is by far the flagship of the fleet, and for those starting to get sick to their stomach with the distorted pining of the endless parade of bedroom rockers, don’t give up the ghost just yet, cause this album may just change your mind.
When people submit photos to our flickr group pool, I’ll typically look through their photostream, and make up some kind of narrative about them based on their pictures. Juane Gallais is one of those people. Check out some more of his photos, and his interactive design collective based in London Sounds Butter.
The UK band Mumford and Sons debut album “Sigh No More” is on repeat at our house, and it is undoubtedly one of the best albums of 2009. The lyrics are truly heartfelt, and I melt when the harmonies come in. The full richness of the production echoes the intensity of the lyrics. I’m also just a sucker for banjo.
The band just spent some time touring and recording in India with Laura Marling. Check out the trailer below, which is beautiful and captures the energy or their travels.
The Pitchfork Music Festival starts here in Chicago tomorrow- and let me tell you, the line up is incredible. Tremble is most excited about seeing Neon Indian, Local Natives, and Washed Out. In honor of the festivities, we’re hosting an after party dubbed “Post Pitchfork Pilsen Party” (P4) this Saturday night at the Tremble home base.
BYOB, but expect to dance with DJ HaHa and Dr. Owning spinning some serious tunez.
On a side note:
One at Optimus is producing live webcast for the festival, which will be available on pitchfork.tv starting on Friday . So definitely check that out if you weren’t able to get tickets. A few weeks ago I worked with One to produce the the bumper/promo video that will be shown on the jumbotrons. For all of you who are going to be gracing us with your presence at Union Park, make sure to look for my hands playing the xylophone!
(me peeping through an arrow arm hole. photo by Abby Hamilton)
Joey L, Cale Glendening, and Willem Isbrucker travel deep into the rainforests of Indonesia to document the culture of the dying Mentawai tribe. While watching this behind the scenes short documentary, one understands just how deep their friendship with the Shaman healers was. Joey L’s photographs are stunning, and I am completely impressed that he brought his entire light kit deep into the rainforest.
This will be our summer jam. I’ve watched this video repeatedly, trying to discern just how it the stop animation effect was achieved. I think it’s just a series of still photographs cut out- and then placed on a set (beacuse there are life like shadows behind each layer). Any ideas?
