New! Video Interview: Peter Moren Of Peter Bjorn & John
Singer-songwriter Peter Moren talks about dealing with success, how he
feels about his solo career, making The Last Tycoon and more.
New! Andrew Volpe of Ludo Now A Mogger!
Welcome Andrew Volpe to MOG! The lead singer of Ludo blogs about the group’s shows, and his thoughts and experiences while on the road.
Ludo's latest release is this year's "You're Awful, I Love You."
Other Artist MOG pages to check out:
News
Where it's at: Beck announces vinyl release and new tour dates
http://mog.com/pinkertonwasbetter/blog_post/172429
Lupe Fiasco Reveals Plans For Supergroup w/ Kanye & Pharrell
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/172399
John Lennon 'Peace' lyrics sell at auction for $833,654
http://mog.com/Sturgell/blog_post/171987
New Ludacris "Preview" Mixtape On The Way
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/172350
The Faces In Talks For A Reunion
http://mog.com/Charley_Rogulewski/blog_post/171925
Rock Band 2 To Feature Exclusive New Guns N' Roses Song
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/172346
Radiohead Star In A New Video Without Cameras (Somehow...)
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/171949
John Legend Interviewed About New Album "Evolver"
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/172339
Alicia Keys To Sing New James Bond Theme?
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/171945
Thurston Moore, Mike Watt, Byron Coley On "No More Bush Tour" w/ 50 Foot Woman
http://mog.com/mollifire/blog_post/171715
Death Cab, REM, NIN, and Lil Wayne Headline 2008 Voodoo Festival
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/171812
Album Reviews
Augusts1: "Here it is plain and simple: Scarlett Johansson is not a singer. She’s an incredible actress with loads of talent. No question about that. I’ve enjoyed every movie I’ve seen of hers. But Scarlett is not a singer. Yet there are plenty of musicians and singers who can’t sing well. Mick Jagger, Lou Reed and Richard Butler can’t sing. Yes, they have moxie, and they didn’t let their unusual voices stop them from having successful careers in rock. So it’s no surprise that Scarlett hasn’t been deterred from releasing her debut CD, Anywhere I Lay My Head."
http://mog.com/Augusts1/blog_post/171734
Album: The Coral Sea
incurablyerin: "With The Coral Sea, Patti Smith—poet, artist, rock ‘n’ roll legend, wave-maker, and genuine Renaissance Woman—has created yet another awe-inspiring work, in this case something very different than the rock ‘n’ roll of her other albums. This one, a double-disc set of live recordings, features two live performances of Smith’s epic spoken word poem "The Coral Sea" (published in a book of the same name in 1997)."
http://mog.com/incurablyerin/blog_post/171485
Artist: Bonnie "Prince" Billy
Album: Lie Down in the Light
sageturk: "The "Prince" releases the counterpoint to his previous masterwork, "I See A Darkness" - and leaves us wondering which is more terrifying."
More…
http://mog.com/sageturk/blog_post/171855
Artist: Various Artists
Album: An England Story - From Dancehall To Grime: 25 Years Of The MC In The UK
Mollifire:"The title of this beautiful collection is the first sign that we're dealing with a well-researched music anthology. I half expected it to come with its own Dewey Decimal code or Library of Congress number! Besides being a historic document, An England Story is clearly a labor of love for the music contained within and the rich musical heritage represented by this collection."
http://mog.com/mollifire/blog_post/171860
Album: Real Animal
Mike the Knife: "Whether you pigeonhole singer-songwriter-guitarist Alejandro Escovedo as alt-country or Americana or just call him a pop musician, his career has been the proverbial long, strange trip – and, ultimately, a good one. I mean, the guy was close to death from Hepatitis-C in 2003. Thanks to modern medicine and the financial support of his friends and fans, he recovered – and has since released his eighth and ninth solo albums, including this year’s eclectic, electric Real Animal. His remarkable odyssey continues."
More…
http://mog.com/Mike_the_Knife/blog_post/172158
Album: I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too
Joxley: "It’s hard to believe that latest release I Know You’re Married But I've Feelings Too is only Martha Wainwright’s second full album – collaborations with artists ranging from brother Rufus to Snow Patrol, the Canadian-American songstress has firmly established herself with the music scene. And securing assistance on this record from (amongst others) Pete Townshend and Donald Fagen, this record is unlikely to loose her that place."
More…
http://mog.com/Joxley/blog_post/172109
Nas Video For "Sly Fox" Slams Corporate Media
http://mog.com/mollifire/blog_post/171841
Bloc Party: "Mercury"
http://mog.com/Charley_Rogulewski/blog_post/171926
Estelle: "No Substitute Love"
http://mog.com/mollifire/blog_post/171366
N.E.R.D.: "My Drive Thru" feat. Santogold & Julian Casablancas
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/171647
Albert Hammond Jr.: "GFC"
http://mog.com/Sturgell/blog_post/171861
Beck: "Gamma Ray"
http://mog.com/Charley_Rogulewski/blog_post/171798
Killer Mike & Ice Cube: "Pressure"
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/171242
Feist "1, 2, 3, 4" on Sesame Street
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/172365
Behind the Scenes of The Game and Travis Barker’s "Dope Boys"
http://mog.com/MrFrost/blog_post/172351
Stream
Album: Untitled
Track: Hero
http://mog.com/Michael_Goldberg/blog_post/171614
Artist: Joseph Arthur
Album: Foreign Girls
Track: Lovely Cost
http://mog.com/Michael_Goldberg/blog_post/172311
Artist: DJ Foundation
Album: Old Skool G-Had
Track: Old Skool G-Had
http://mog.com/Michael_Goldberg/blog_post/171791
Artist: Fleet Foxes
Album: Fleet Foxes
Track: White Winter Hymnal
http://mog.com/Michael_Goldberg/blog_post/171930
Scribes4Life, or Scribes for short, is one of the most hip hop-devoted Moggers writing on MOG. Having seen MOG listed as a music website suggestion in a men’s magazine in January 2007, he signed right up and he’s "never looked back." It’s even helped him find artists like Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Brother Ali, Orgone and The Cool Kids. "Everybody on here knows SO much about music."
Though he’s enraptured in hip hop music these days, Scribes admits, "It took me years to look past Hip Hop to see what the world had to offer in terms of music." He surely discovered what was out there by "[jumping] in feet first." He recalls, "When I first started really listening to music in terms of a broad spectrum of genres, I […] bought at least one CD per week based on anything, from recommendations to album cover art. I even joined BMG or Colombia House under two different names so that I could get 20 CD's in the course of a week. Yeah, I'm an addict."
In his recent posts Scribes4Life has had some thoughts to share about hip hop. Currently he sees a large divide. "It’s moved from the underground/mainstream argument to East v. West to Crunk, Bling, Gangsta, Conscious, & Emo Hip-Hop. With all the divisions, there is a lack of unity within the culture in general. Division creates weaknesses. So when someone has a debate about who's real & who's fake, they don't take the time to realize that these created divisions have driven the artists who want fame & money (Fast) to jump in lanes that lead to the payload. When people ask why aren't the vets retiring & why don't the new-comers kick that real Hip Hop, they don't realize the generational gap that has been established. These divisions have created a ‘Them vs. Us’ state that can really only be corrected by following patterns of Jay, Nas, Kweli, Kanye, Lupe, Mos, etc."
What’s an emcee to do? Scribes suggests, "EMBRACE- Every one of these emcees has reached beyond a ‘mainstream’ or ‘conscious’ label, and even the genre itself." Drawing from his aforementioned list of emcees, he expounds upon their contributions to modern day hip hop, "We can say that Jay and Nas are mainstream, but the reality is that both men have done songs with lesser-known artists and really take pride in their music as an underground cat might. We can say that Lupe and Kweli are conscious, but what do you call the music that brings UGK, The Game, Jay-Z, Styles P, Snoop Dogg, and Ghostface on the track? When you get Little Brother working with Lil Wayne, people get pissed and arguments about why Wayne is hailed as the king ensue. Meanwhile, there's little to no credit given to the fact that these two acts are seen at very different angles, but still make good music together. During the 19th century black people were categorized how much of their genetic make-up was black (quadroon, octoroon, quintroon). More often than not, now people are just black or they're not. Strange, but true...why can't Rap or Hip Hop music, just be Hip Hop?"
Hypothetically, if Scribes4life could pick seven living artists to hop aboard an Ark to preserve the artform of hip hop for all of eternity, who would they be and why? "Rakim (amazing lyricism, smooth delivery, originality, dope freestyles, most quotable), Nas (dope concepts, dope lyricism, often relevant topics, originality),
Pharoahe Monch (astounding lyricism, ill delivery, definitive originality, sometimes relevant topics), Lupe Fiasco (great lyricism, crazy originality, extremely relevant topics), Talib Kweli (excellent lyricism, genius concepts, dope delivery, always relevant topics, sick freestyles), Black Thought (excellent lyricism, amazing delivery, more and more relevant topics, uncanny freestyles), Gift of Gab (amazing lyricism, amazing delivery, often relevant topics, wonderful concepts).
Stop by and talk records with Scribes4Life!
My Favorite Album For Each Year I've Been Alive...What Are Yours?
matt cleveland: "This is a list of my favorite albums for each year I’ve been alive. I tried to stay away from compilations, mainly because I’m an album lover, and there are enough albums put out each year that I was able to find at least one to slot as my favorite. I also didn’t include ep’s or soundtracks (except for runners up). I sorted my iPod library by year, and started at 1979 and worked my way down to 2008."
More…
http://mog.com/matt_cleveland/blog_post/172393
Best of The Blogs In June
FluxCapacitor: "For this post, I've chosen 10 of the best songs from all across the interweb in June. The list includes my favorite leak, live performance, next big thing, team-up, electronica, Swede (yes, it’s only sensible that they get a category all of their own)...and much, much more, peeps!"
More...
http://mog.com/FluxCapacitor/blog_post/171568
Musicians, Actors, Writers, and Thinkers, Oh My!: A Concert Review of Fleet Foxes in NYC (with live video)
Nella Mia Anima: "The Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, Stanley Kubrick, Ethan Hawke, Jane Fonda, Mark Twain, Dylan Thomas, Jack Kerouac, Arthur Miller, Thomas Wolfe and that's just the beginning. New York City is unique in that it can shine as the superhero of uniqueness as much as it can fall victim to being just another stereotye. And the city by no meanskeeps either a secret. My most recent trip there allowed me to experience much more of the former than the latter."
More…
http://mog.com/Nella_Mia_Anima/blog_post/172299
Every Old Mixtape is New Again
Brickback of The Dead Husbands: "The best things I discovered were the mixed cd's. The mix tapes. The cassettes with little pieces of tape designating their point of origin, their contents, their miniscule, handwritten tracklists folded carefully and tucked inside plastic coffins. The tapes were nice, and finding my cassette player made it all the better, but a few earth shattering discoveries left me more crippled than the box of journals had."
http://mog.com/brickbat/blog_post/171380
Hip Hop never died - it just evolved outside of the USA
SerenityLife: "It kills me how some people would like to write off Hip Hop but it is alive outside of the USA. Somalian born, NY and Canadian raised hip hop artist K'naan is a testimony of a young man growing up in the USA listening to Hip Hop but he took the art and claimed it as his own by incorporating stories and beats from his life and all his travels."
More…
http://mog.com/SerenityLife/blog_post/171871
It’s Not Me, It’s You.
pinkertonwasbetter: "Break-ups suck, everyone knows that. You run over what went wrong in your head a billion times over. You destroy their favorite t-shirt. You wait by the phone for hours, waiting for them to call. What happens though when it's your favorite band that does you in?"
More…
http://mog.com/pinkertonwasbetter/blog_post/172382
One Copy Left
Rawwkiddoh: "After work today I headed out to pick up a few cd's for myself. Call it a reward for a great day of school, call it me feeding my addiction if you will. I had a list pre-made of three albums I wanted to get. Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies, Albert Hammond Jr. and M83. Me First is a band that brings back a lot of memories and the cd is a collection of all their first 7 inches they put out way back when."
http://mog.com/Rawkkiddoh/blog_post/171701
The most wanted song
Fistula Spume: "The Most Wanted Song" is a musical work that will be unavoidably and uncontrollably "liked" by 72 ± 12% of listeners. I figured since I posted "The Most Unwanted Song" it would only be fair to post the most wanted one. "
http://mog.com/fistula_spume/blog_post/171224
Montreux Jazz Festival: Where Santogold Meets Buddy Guy Who Brings Surpise Guest Billy Gibbons
indiepixie: "Nestled on the edge of Lake Leman (evidently the locals do not call the lake "Lake Geneva"), Montreux Jazz Festival has held court since 1967 in an idyllic, mystical setting that only adds to the enchantment of the music emitted from its grounds. On any given day, you can watch one of the world's greatest jazz artists' voice quake in one corner, while a world-reknown DJ spins in the basement below, as Europeans mix with Americans over cocktails on the grass, and couples gaze at the lapping lake as the sun sets. To call it heavenly only half describes the experience."
More…
