Pitchfork unveiled the 2nd single (“Cone of Light”) from The Almighty Defenders forthcoming gospel record. The super-group consists of members of the Black Lips, Mark “BBQ” Sultan and King Khan. The album will be released on 9/22 via Vice. King Khan discussed the record with us in a recent interview.
MP3: The Almighty Defenders – Cone Of Light
Emily Kokal – Image by Dan Monick
Warpaint has an undeniable presence. After one of their live shows or even one listen to their music, you know you’re experiencing something special. Yes, they’ve got God-given talent, and yes they’re beautiful, but they’ve worked hard to get where they are now. The Echo Park based quartet of Emily Kokal (vocals, guitar), Jenny Lee Lindberg (bass, vocals), Theresa Wayman (vocals, guitar) and Josh “Jocelyn” Klinghoffer – have drawn comparisons to Cat Power, Sonic Youth, Mazzy Star and The Slits.
Earlier this year they self-released their debut EP, Exquisite Corpse – which went straight to #1 on Amoeba Records local artists charts. Exquisite Corpse will be re-released worldwide on Los Angeles indie-label Manimal Vinyl next month.
I recently caught up with Emily Kokal by phone to discuss the origins of Warpaint.
R&G: Warpaint has been very active this past year.
Emily: Yeah. It’s been really fun and gradual. It seems like it’s all been right on time. When we’re ready to move forward or we get better, it happens naturally. We did a residency at Spaceland last August, and after that, we started playing a lot more local shows and more shows led to opening slots for bands like Little Joy. It’s been really fun and exciting playing a lot of shows in LA, getting better with each other, writing more songs, and now touring and playing for strangers, which is really nice. We’re so used to playing for all of our friends, which can be a tough crowd when they’ve seen you play 15 times in the same venues. I think you come to know what to expect a little bit, whereas being on the road, you’ve got to deal with different PAs, different crowds and places you’ve never been. You just have to let go, do your best, play your best and not really care. Just find the best way to play with each other no matter what the circumstances are. We’re loving it.
R&G: How important was it to self-release your EP this year?
Emily: It was especially important because we recorded it almost two years ago. It was like being pregnant too long. Getting it out there has been really fun. Releasing something is great, because for so long we were playing shows without any music that you could listen to in your car. Having a product for people to play and listen to has been really good for just raising awareness so people can come see us play live. That, to me, is the best part of what we’re doing right now – the live stuff. Especially because the EP was recorded a while ago. I’m really proud of it and there have been just so many changes. Getting it out there gives us room to make another record and put out what we feel is happening with us now.
R&G: You guys formed in 2004, why did it take so long for Warpaint to release an EP and tour outside of the Los Angeles area?
Emily: We were just learning how to play together and more than having any ambition to really get out there, it was a little bit more innocent and about the process. We all lived together, played music together and wrote songs together – it was about discovering how to write. Everything we did was completely new. When we would write a song, we would be like, “Oh, I can’t believe we just did this.” We jammed on things forever and never wrote – just played. We never really mapped out songs. In fact, we would map out songs and before we ever played shows, they would change like five times because we’d want them to go somewhere else or be more interesting to us. Then, when we started playing shows, that’s when we really had concrete songs. We still change our songs all the time though. It’s hard to keep playing the same songs the same way.
Thom Yorke
Latitude Festival – July 19th, 2009
Henham Park in Southwold, Suffolk UK
Set List:
The Eraser
Weird Fishes/Argpeggi
Atoms For Peace
Harrowdown Hill
Follow Me Around
Everything In Its Right Place
The Present Tense
Cymbal Rush
Black Swan
Videotape
Encore:
There There
True Love Waits
For Full Show Download (Melophobe)
*Thanks Michael
1.) Soundtrack – (500) Days of Summer
2.) Dead Weather – Horehound
3.) Phoenix – Wolfgang Amodeus Phoenix
4.) Maxwell – BLACKsummers’night
5.) Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest
6.) Grace Jones – Hurricane
7.) Wilco – Wilco (The Album)
8.) Mos Def – Ecstatic
9.) Fabolous – Loso’s Way
10.) Dirty Projector – Bitte Orca
*Week Ending – 7/27/2009
Grizzly Bear
May 8th, 2009
Later with Jools Holland – BBC 2
Two Weeks
While You Wait For The Others
Download:
Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest (iTunes)
Bigtétény’s Finest – Lovasok A Szakadék Fele
Futurecop! – N.A.S.A.
Scottie Diablo
Last week we ran our first installment of ‘Manager Spotlight’, where we speak with rising stars in the music management business. This week we caught up with Scottie Diablo of Acid Bird Management in Los Angeles. Scottie currently manages Austin-based rockers White Denim.
Follo Rollo & Grady On Twitter (click here)
R&G: How did you get your start in the music business?
Scottie: My obsession for music almost got me kicked out of school at a young age. My path to the guiding light of Rock ‘n’ Roll was born in the early 80’s. I learned about the history of Rock ‘n’ Roll by reading lots of fanzines, magazines, attending live shows, studying liner notes, studying album cover art and absorbing anything music related. I never played an instrument, so starting a band was out of the question. The only way I could contribute to the “art” was becoming a manager. I had enough street smarts and knowledge of music that assisted me in managing my first band around 1995. Initially it was bullshitting club bookers on how many people the band drew, collecting money, and meeting people within the L.A. music club scene. Nowadays a band can book a tour with a few bulletins on their Myspace account. Back then, it was phone calls and driving to clubs to drop off music. My favorite clubs back then were AL’s Bar (Downtown L.A.), Bar Deluxe, The Garage, and Moguls in Hollywood. The first band I managed dissolved in the late 90’s and I didn’t manage another band until the mid-2000’s. I worked with a band that got signed to Secretly Canadian/Dead Oceans, a post-punk band from New Zealand, and a rapper from the Midwest. Those three artists independently found greener pastures. The stars aligned in 2007 when I met with White Denim. In my mind – the most important band in Rock ‘n’ Roll today.
R&G: What advice would you give to aspiring managers?
Scottie: Never be an asshole to anyone. That’ll get you nowhere fast. I never understood these young manager types that were complete dicks. People assume that just because you’re a “manager” you’re entitled to be an asshole. I’ve never bought into that bullshit. If you’re a manager of Starbucks, would you treat your customers like assholes? (#2) It’s all about your “ear” and the excitement you feel for the artist(s) you’re working with. If you’re in this for the big bucks, then it’s time to move onto a career in plastic surgery or owning a “trendy” mobile taco truck. I get hit up all the time by loads of bands asking me to be their manager. I feel really uncomfortable getting solicited by a band that I’ve never heard of. I’ve managed bands because I have a personal connection with their music. I’m not a “band collector”. Some managers or gigantic management companies take on artists because they see the flavor of the month cash cow. I actually overheard a guy at The Echo a few years back yell, “Dude, check out my artist roster on the website, it’s growing like crazy dude”. He was drenched head to toe in Ed Hardy clothing. Fuck Rosters. Fuck expense accounts. Fuck tax write-offs at the bar. I don’t buy into that. Never have – never will. I do this for the sheer pleasure of watching passionate people write/record incredible songs and blowing minds with their live show. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve listened to an album, the band rolls through L.A., I go to see them play and they think they’re the second coming of The Who at Leeds. You have to earn that shit. Period. The “All Look, No Hook” doesn’t fly in my book. My point after all this rambling is simple: Discover and uncover bands that YOU like. Don’t work with bands that are the flavor of the month. Music flavors change as quickly as a click of a mouse. In my opinion, that’s a waste of time. Screw trends. Trends are for fashion. Also, never dwell on “potential” failure. We all fail. Managing is tough. That’s a fact. Big Daddy Kane declared “Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy”, so I’ll apply that same logic to band management.
Friendly Fires
Time: 12:30pm – 1:15pm
Stage: Budweiser
MP3: Friendly Fires – I’m Good I’m Gone (Lykke Li Cover)
Portugal. The Man
Time: 1:30pm – 2:30pm
Stage: Playstation
MP3: Portugal. The Man – Everyone Is Golden
Kaiser Chiefs
Time: 2:45pm – 3:30pm
Stage: Budweiser
