The Game of of Montreal Guide + DJ Jester's set

Excited yet? I am, and I've already heard the whole show! Local boy DJ Jester (left) opened the show, he had also opened for Of Montreal when I saw them last in Austin, he's kickass. His set started off with a nice short mix of Neutral Milk Hotel's "King Of Carrot Flowers". He did better with "All My Exes" the last time I heard him, but I especially like the "Fraggle Rock" > "Word Up" mix in this one. If you don't need the primer below you can download the whole set here.

And just in case any of you are confused and don't want to admit it, here's

"The Game of of Montreal For Dummies"

If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to contact me. This will be very, very easy. All of the files in the Game Of Of Montreal will be stored at fileden.com, and you should be able to play the game as long as the links are still good. Let me know if your already into the game and the links aren't working. It will be widely available in the bittorrent circuit in the weeks after the close of the game, but again, the mp3s of this show here should still be working and it shouldn't take much time to play the whole game and get all the parts.

In the game, you'll go somewhere on the web, in this case let's say DJ Jester's Myspace page. The question could be Q: "What is DJ Jester's nickname?" A: The Filipino ___. The answer and clue is "fist" (all clues lowercase). Then you would take this text:

http://libsyn.com/static/funeralpudding/___.html

... and copy and paste it into your address bar. Then delete the blanks (underlines) and replace them with the clue. So in this case you should have this text in your address bar:

http://libsyn.com/static/funeralpudding/fist.html

Hit enter. If it doesn't work, you either have the clue wrong or you've deleted or added a space somewhere in your address bar. The blue text is the song links. Right-click on the song and choose "Save As..." to download it. Have fun. Make a copy for a friend. Buy your Of Montreal concert ticket now if it's not already sold out! For now, "Of Montreal is in the building, San Antonio".

In other news, Iggy Pop and the Stooges are putting out their first album in 33 years, click here to try it out. I'm going to see Chuck D speak today. He's loud. Anybody catch Swedish "new thing" Peter, Bjorn, and John on Conan O' Brien? I'm still whistling that tune. Also something cool I noticed: Besides vocals they only have a bass, drums, and congo... the synthesizer sounds are all played by the drummer on an electronic drum pad. Cool idea, nice song. Did I mention the Game Of Of Montreal starts tomorrow?

The Game of of Montreal begins in 2 days. Soundcheck Time.

Alright folks, here's a primer to show you how easy the Game Of Of Montreal is. Q: What is the name of Kevin Barnes's alter ego? A: Georgie _______. (The clue will be just what fills in the blank). The answer is three posts down if you don't know it already. Now copy the below link into your address bar and use the clue (lowercase) to replace the blanks. Oh yeah, hit enter.

http://libsyn.com/static/funeralpudding/___.html

Unlike the game, this one's at fileden.com, so it should be downloadable for a while (edit: file transfer max reached at fileden, try again Feb 26) And so this post'll hit all the mp3 aggregators and make sure fans know about the game, here's the first track, same one from the last post...

Of Montreal "Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight" (Spinal Tap)

This is all copyrighted material, all rights are reserved, and trying to sell anything you are about to download from this site will result in immediate action. Hate to be nasty, but there are many unscrupulous profiteers (I call them ebay fuckwads) who must be warned in plain English. Of Montreal has been gracious enough to allow the recording to take place, please direct any and all thanks to them via the exchange of money for their albums and concert tickets. And they have some cool tote bags at the show, too. Don't forget to pick up your copy of the limited edition EP at the show if you haven't gotten it already! Regular, nice blogger people: feel free to post a few of these live tracks on your own site anytime. Everybody else: Have fun! It is the fourth word of this paragraph that you are looking for, intrepid explorer. Sorry about the wait again.

The Game of of Montreal begins in 3 days.

Pitchfork has a review and some really good pics of the San Antonio show here. And here's another little tease:

(Of Montreal soundcheck available above)

P.S. This song is featured in the video game Guitar Hero II. Still can't place it? It's track 2 on this album.

The Game of of Montreal Will Begin Feb.1

As you can see from the mp3s in the post below, this is high quality stuff, folks. The Game will not be hard, and even non-rabid fans who are just willing to spend an extra minute looking at Of Montreal stuff on the internet will be able to play and download the entire show. The Of Montreal interview will be published soon... an extra mp3 and Kevin's interview can be found here: http://www.e6townhall.com/viewthread.php?tid=8109

of Montreal - San Antonio - Jan 21, 2007 - tease

I had to just get something out quickly. Hopefully by tomorrow evening I will have transcribed interviews with Kevin, BP, and Jamey, give me a day or two for that. I don't have pictures of the show, but eventually a killer video will be made. I still need to compare this analog source to the digital and it'll be at least a week before the whole show is ready, but after listening to it, I just have to spoil it with this highlight, Kevin Barnes's alter ego Georgie Fruit finally owning up to being the bastard son of Ziggy Stardust. Info on the song can be found here.

Of Montreal "Moonage Daydream" (SA '07)

of Montreal Tour&Mailorder-only EP

As you may have read in the previous post, Of Montreal have released a brand new EP, called "Icons, Abstract Thee". It is available only from the band on tour or through Polyvinyl, which also has a special price for the EP bundled with the new album, "Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer". This is the first song on the EP, a marked departure from Of Montreal's more glam-ish current sound, this one even features a squeezebox.

Of Montreal "Du Og Meg"
(Sorry, folks, this one was a limited time deal. However if you still want to hear this song, you'd better hurry, the EP is also very limited!)

New of Montreal, plus a scoop

WARNING: GRANDIOSE STATEMENTS FOLLOW: I don't quite know what to say about Of Montreal, or their new album, "Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?". I am both in love and lust with them. They are important. They are beautiful. They are fun. I normally hate statements like the following even in February, much less first week of the year, but seriously: I really don't see another album coming along this year better than this one, it's going to be #1 (Last year was Hot Chip, listenable again and again, then Belle & Sebastian's best yet, then some alt- country niceness from Scattered Pages... there, that's overwith). I need to take it out of my ears. At times I think, "This could really be the best thing I've ever heard in my life." Of Montreal have gone from the quirky little band with the nutso-chord-change songs to full-fledged electronic synth-pop powerhouse, although still with the unusual hooks that only they can create. They've been together in various incarnations for ten years, this newest album being their eighth proper. Something happened to the band (well, Kevin Barnes - he's the songwriter/singer/guitarist) around the time of the "Aldhills Arboretum" album (2002), about halfway through their career. This was the first album I saw them tour for, and again it was a band's first UK show, again in a tiny club, simply amazing... British crowds for the most part don't move or dance a lot during songs, but by the "Death Dance" closer my wife and I (and others) were spinning each other and dancing like never before. Nothing before from them was nearly as danceable, and the progression just took off, incorporating more electronic touches yet even more soul to match. Their shows have become legendary, very often with wardrobe changes (he came out at the last Austin show in a wedding dress, announcing he would like to marry the city of Austin, and check out the Flickr pics of Barnes in nothing but about a two inch strip of jean shorts), high energy, and choice cover tunes... during this next tour they'll be whipping out their version of the Fiery Furnaces' "Tropical Iceland"(!!!), which is also appropriate because in this new fully-realized version of Barnes's baby (named after a failed trip to follow romance), the influences are strong and many and so good, from some Fiery Furnaces influence (2:47 of "Bunny" has to be a clear nod, and elsewhere), to Prince to Animal Collective to David Bowie and even Pink Floyd, and back to old Of Montreal, because again, they've never lost their voice in their incredible transformation. There is not a single other band today who could put all of the songs on "Hissing Fauna..." together. They were the first band my wife and I fell in love with simultaneously, and they've only gotten better since. There's been a couple of lineup changes, The Late BP Helium (Bryan Poole, Elf Power) brought his virtuostic guitar skills back to the band (just amazing live) after rejoining them for the Satanic Panic tour. Taking their new sound to epic pop-psychedelia heights, this newest should do nothing but bring them the kind of success they've had coming for so long. You've kind of always had to have an open ear and mind to appreciate Of Montreal, this is no different, but the payoff has just about never been this good...

Of Montreal "A Sentence Of Sorts In Kongsvinger"

This settles it. Kevin Barnes is one of the top songwriters thus far of the twenty-first century. If you don't like that song right there, I can't even ask you to listen to it again, because I don't think there's anything that I'm going to be able to do to help you. The joy and infectousness of this and others on the album have made me think that this is an album I will use to judge online media on (much like "Aldhills Arboretum", which is still fighting this album as my favorite, and the Joggers) . If they say anything bad about it, I will know, for once, truly and certainly, that they are full of shit...

Of Montreal "Bunny Ain't No Kind Of Rider"

A feeling starts when the background voices come in for the first chorus, at around 2:09, that I haven't felt in a while. The lyrics are so straitforward... an unabashed dismissal of phonyness and a plea for pure romanticism and "a lover with soul power." Seriously, I've lost it on this band. Realize it.

And since you're reading this blog now before it turns shit-hot, I'll let you in on a little scoop (of pudding) : Sometime during the next few weeks, I have received Of Montreal's permission to record a show strait off of the soundboard. And I hadn't heard of the opening band, but after sampling their mp3s and reading this, and this (related?), whooooah.... I'm going to try using a really wonderful (now vintage) top-of-the-line reel-to-reel recorder, but will have backup if that doesn't work. Anyways... mp3s are going to be decreasing slightly in the next few weeks, I'm going to clear some room in my server space. I won't go into details now, it'll have to be a rotating thing, but I'm going to make the entire show available as a LOSSLESS (non-mp3) download. Here, first, exclusively, probably within a month, hopefully less. You're invited. BYOWhatever. Until then,"Hissing Fauna..." is out this month on the 23rd. Optical Atlas also has info on the new Apples In Stereo, out Jan. 30 (along with some great rare music for old ads), which, when combined with Poole returning to Of Montreal and Olivia Tremor Control reforming, can hopefully shut up hipster wanna-bes who love shouting "Elephant 6 is dead"! (BTW: Since this blog didn't exist then, my site of SXSW 2006: standing next to Derek Almstead outside Urban Outfitters [packed, especially with rude, surly employees] watching Of Montreal play through the glass.) You can stream Of Montreal's "Hissing Fauna..." here from Polyvinyl, as well as preorder not only the new album there (bundled with a brand new EP only available from Polyvinyl or at Of Montreal shows) but a load of singles and stuff.

Of course, the Shins

I don't believe this is officially an mp3 blog until I post some Shins. The Shins' third comes out in about three weeks. It'll be everywhere, and more people not normally clued-in to "alt" music will be listening to it, and other people will rag on it. It's probably the most different of the three, somebody bought some vibes, and the delay in putting it out is evident in how much production there is. There's still a lot of the familiar James Mercer vocal phrasings, although this time over a bit trippier, more expansive music, and I like it. It's decidedly less rockin than previous albums (not that they necessarily rocked) which is good since I'm getting really tired of most "rock" coming out these days. I'm remembering the Kids In the Hall sketch where Dave Foley as the teacher responds to the young rocker's (Bruce McCullough) shout of "rock-n-roll forever" with "well, actually, according to studies, rock has exactly six years left to live."

I saw the Shins touring for their first album in Austin, and it was a great free-wheeling show, several teases of Joy Division's "Ceremony". I met James's dad, who told me and my friend about how their family had grown up in England (military), where James discovered a lot of his early music influences. When I lived in London, I was surprised not many people had heard of the Shins, the second album had already come out, but still hadn't been released there. And I was lucky enough to get into the tiny Arts Cafe when the Shins played their first ever UK date. Much more nervousness and trepidation, but in the end the in-the-know crowd cheered sufficiently between songs to coax them back with smiles for "two more from the new album". Great memory, plus this parallel: I don't think they have anything to worry about this time, either, they're gonna do just fine with this album and they deserve it.

The whole thing's been leaked in mp3 of course, but why settle for that when Amazon is offering a special pre-order deal for only $10? One of the two tracks not found thus far in a HypeMachine search (but is on elbo) is "Red Rabbits", which is odd since it's one of the more unique songs on the album, very much like Mercer singing over an Enya tune.

The Shins "Red Rabbits"