Wow did you even know Mr. A to Z Jason Mraz had a new album coming out? You can preorderLove Is A Four Letter Word now or read the lyrics before its release via our good friends at Stereo IQ!
Pusha T announced “Mercy,” the new G.O.O.D. Music single will drop this Friday (aka Good Friday). Get your last discounted double filet of fish and prepare for that new Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Pusha T & Big Sean.
Portugal. The Man‘s John Gourley somehow got John Legend’s info from his manager and video chatted him to pitch his ingenious Brad Pitt show and ask John if he would mind announcing the band’s upcoming tour dates. As they say, hilarity ensues.
I’ve done my best in the past to perpetuate the John Legend is Gay rumors and for that I am sorry.
Portugal. The Man live on the Jägermeister Music Tour:
4/3 — Boise, Idaho @ Knitting Factory
4/4 — Reno, Nev. @ Knitting Factory
4/5 — Las Vegas, Nev. @ Club Veil
4/6 — Phoenix, Ariz. @ Crescent Ballroom
4/9 — New Orleans, La. @ House of Blues
4/10 — Gainesville, Fla. @ Florida Theatre
4/11 — Tampa, Fla @ The Ritz
4/12 — Orlando, Fla. @ Beacham Theater
4/14 — Athens, Ga. @ Georgia Theatre
4/15 — Lexington, Ky. @ Buster’s Billiards
4/16 — Indianapolis, Ind. @ Vogue Theatre
4/17 — Chicago, Ill. @ Vic Theatre
4/19 — Baltimore, Md. @ Ram’s Head Live
4/20 — Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
4/21 — Sayreville, N.J. @ Starland Ballroom
4/22 — Boston, Mass. @ House of Blues
4/24 — Buffalo, N.Y. @ Town Ballroom
4/25 — Columbus, Ohio @ Newport Music Hall
4/26 — Nashville, Tenn. @ Calif.nnery Ballroom
4/29 — St. Louis, Mo. @ The Pageant
4/30 — Kansas City, Mo. @ Beaumont Club
5/2 — Denver, Colo. @ Ogden Theatre
5/3 — Flagstaff, Ariz. @ Orpheum Theatre
5/4 — Pomona, Calif. @ Fox Theatre
5/5 — San Diego, Calif. @ 4th & B
5/6 — San Francisco, Calif. @ The Independent
Here’s a recap of some of the new stuff added at The House That Mahbod Built. Lyrics & explanations this week from Obie Trice‘s new album, Mac Miller’s (surprisingly good) “Macadelic” mixtape, Justin Bieber’s new smash hit “Boyfriend” and more.
Check out some of the newest additions to RapGenius.com below:
Cultural icon Lil B The Based God is taking his wisdom to NYU’s Kimmel Center Wednesday April 11th at 8 pm to lecture the future thinkers of America. Tickets are $5 with NYU student ID or $10 for non students. Should be interesting, Lil B loves the progressive humans.
Great read over at Vice. Spaceghost Purrp talked to Vice about the racial climate in hometown Carol City, Florida after the murder of Trayvon Martin, whose assasin George Zimmerman has still not been arrested.
Do you think this tragedy exposes the realities of life in Florida?
That is the shit that kills me. People think Florida is for old people. They say, “Oh, I want to come down and live in Florida.” People don’t know this place is a piece of shit, man. Fuck Florida. Everything in Florida is fucked up. The schools are fucked up. The neighborhood people always have some sort of hatred against each other. And there is always some stupid shit going on. And this shooting just topped it off.
SXSW is all the rage with the youngsters. However, I have 20 really great, plausible and totally relevant reasons why I didn’t go this year. Tell us why you’re not going to SXSW in the comments section and we’ll pay for a plane ticket and that special wristband pass for you to go in 2013.*
Big Boi at Snowball’s main stage Friday March 2nd. Might as well have been an Outkast show.
Read it. Skim it. Osmosis. Do what you wanna do. This article has some girth to it, but the central thesis of this piece would have to be that the 2012 Snowball Music Festival was one hell of an event.
Held last weekend in Avon, CO, Snowball 2012 can only be described as a raving success – with heavy emphasis on the “rave.” Like last year’s festival, Snowball 2012, or “Snowchella” remained heavy on the EDM. This years lineup included 91 artists in 3 days, featuring some of the biggest names in the electronic world: Bassnectar, Rusko, MiMOSA, Dada Life, Boombox, Major Lazer, Break Science (ft. Chali 2na of Jurassic 5), Marty Party, etc.
The Groove Tent during the day. The showcase stage for many of this year’s EDM acts.
My personal thought is that the lean towards EDM acts at Snowball is a direct result of the frigid atmosphere that accompanies a music festival in the Colorado Rockies in March. If I were to draw a scatter-plot, I assure you there would be a positive correlation there! Friday night’s temperature dropped to -1 degree. How the hell is a band supposed to play in that? My fingers were numb despite being inside my gloves, tucked into the pockets of my down jacket. Could you imagine a guitarist trying to shred without any feeling in his hands? I play guitar, and I can barely hold a rhythm when I play outdoors in 50 degree weather! -1?? No thank you… The bands that did play braved the cold heroically, and impressed me to no end – especially those that took the stage on Friday and Saturday nights when the temperatures were barely in the single digits.
Rusko at the main stage, Friday March 2nd
Overall, the atmosphere at Snowball was nothing short of magical. Most of my time was spent inside the “Groove Tent,” a massive circus tent filled with bright lights and loud bass (picture above). The music was fantastic all around, though, and with about 11,000 people on hand there was no shortage of people-watching to be had. The production value was as high as any outdoor festival I’ve gone to, and by all accounts, the entire weekend went very smoothly. I can confidently say that I will be attending Snowball 2013.
This next portion of the article is where I attempt to break down the festival for you day-by-day. I’ll give you the sights and the sounds, pictures, my picks for best show of each day, and the surprise performances of each day… all that good shit that I know you want.
—————————————————Friday March 2————————————————–
Friday was the kickoff. Doors opened at noon, but my crew didn’t get situated in our hotel until around 2:15. There was still plenty of music to be had, but one of the highlights of my Friday happened even before I got to the venue. MJF managed to finagle an interview with one of the hottest rising stars in the EDM world: MiMOSA. I’ve seen a couple of his shows and done a few reviews, so I was really excited to meet Tigran and have the opportunity to ask him a few questions and chill with him and his manager. The interview was brief and really low-key, but I definitely got a feel for what kind of person Tigran is. There was no hint of an ego. He is quickly becoming one of the biggest names in the industry, and yet he was entirely down-to-earth and excited to answer all of my questions. Also, I’m very happy to report that the MiMOSA camp is an avid MJF fan. Swag. Oh yeah, MiMOSA has been bumpin A$AP Rocky, so +1 in cool points for that shit.
Tigran and his manager Justin emphasized that they were excited to be a part of the event, both to perform and to hear a whole host of others. Tigran is working on a new solo project (Dream States, due out later 2012) as well as a new collaboration called Naked Poetry – I’m excited for both of those to drop. For those of you who don’t know MiMOSA’s music, I asked him, “What song would you play to attract fans to you and your music who have never heard you before?” The answer:
Friday night was fucking COLD. I distinctly remember thinking: this must be what a dog’s nose feels like. It was too nippy to stay in one spot, so I ended up spending a lot of my time walking around and checking out a whole bunch of artists and becoming familiar with the layout of the land. I saw a little bit of Marty Party and Major Lazer, and even though both were good I was way more in the mood for a full band instead of electronic music. So I wandered around until I found my surprise performance of the day: Tatanka. Who is Tatanka you ask? I’d be lying if I told you I had a fucking clue! After a little bit of research, though, I gathered that they are a Denver-based group that infuses a bit of electronic music with dub, reggae, and funk. Their show on Friday was characterized by a heavy influence of Caribbean bass and drum grooves, and despite the mellow tones on their EP, “Sounds in Technicolor” (below), they really rocked out at the smaller “Ballroom Tent.”
However, the best show of the night for me goes to MiMOSA, who brought the house tent down. High energy, great crowd, deep bass. MiMOSA did not disappoint.
For Snowball, as for a growing number of festivals, the venue shows are only slightly more important than your after party plans. Due to the stringency of local curfews (heavy-hitter Bassnecter got his cord pulled at 8pm sharp on Sunday night) and how small Vail Valley is, those that want a traditional late night party are forced to buy tickets for after parties at various local bars which often feature festival performers doing secondary shows in a more intimate setting. This year, MJF chilled at Agave both Friday and Saturday nights. Friday night’s featured performer, Diplo, crushed it solo following Major Lazer’s main stage show only a few hours before.
————————————————-Saturday March 3————————————————–
Saturday proved to be a difficult day… Friday night’s hangover never really subsided, and my crew didn’t make it into the venue until after 5pm (poor showing indeed). I missed Break Science (ft. Chali 2na), one of the 5 artists I was most excited to see. But I can’t really complain, mostly because it was my own damn fault.
I still managed to catch portions of 8 different shows on Saturday. The Kooks were a bit of a roller coaster for me. I thought they went from “really good” to “not bad” back to “really good” to “pretty good” and then absolutely killed it with their final track. But I don’t know enough of the Kooks to tell you what tracks they played. The surprise performance of the day was another Denver band, Kinetix. Kinetix is dymanic. Simply put, they’re the type of band that reminds you why it’s fun to let loose. Even more impressive was their ability to rock out in sub-freezing temperatures. The highlight of their show was one of the dirtiest bass solos I have ever seen. Here’s my favorite track that they dropped (though this live recording was from 2008, not Snowball).
Saturday’s best was definitely Ghostland Observatory, a group that has been touring for the better part of a decade, and is famous for their catchy beats and for their ABSURD light shows. Their Saturday Snowball show held true to their stigma. Though their vocals probably weren’t loud enough, the amazing quality of their light show more than made up for it. Sober or not, the 6,000 people crammed into the “Groove Tent” were soaking up the sights like the lights were air! It was without a doubt the best visual performance I have ever seen. The Groove Tent’s circus-like layout was an impressive catalyst for the stimulating brain-fuck. The awning of the tent extend well beyond the stage and soundboard, so the crowd was physically enveloped by the tent, and the lights could be seen from every angle… reflected off the ceiling, the side-”walls,” and even into the night sky behind us.
Snoop Dogg shut the venue down Saturday night at the Main Stage. I’ve seen Snoop before so I didn’t think it was necessary to get deep in the crowd. I was content watching from a distance. Snoop is a consummate showman. I don’t know if it’s possible for him to put on a bad performance. The main stage is down a small hill from the other tents, and by the time Snoop’s slot rolled around, the weather was in the single digits and the ground had frozen over. As much as I enjoyed the show, I think I enjoyed watching all of the inebriated and intoxicated Snowballers fall down the hill just as much. I probably saw about 80 people wipe out in the most comical fashion. Writing about it doesn’t do it justice. Use your imagination.
Saturday night’s after-party at Agave featured Dillon Francis and Dada Life. The night brought mixed reviews as Dillon Francis pitched a fit and walked out on his engagement an hour early, complaining about lack of bass and sound issues. The system was definitely messed up, and he was correct that there were issues with the soundboard and a complete lack of bass coming through, but the man was paid to play. When you make a commitment to play somewhere, I don’t care what goes wrong – you stick it out like an adult and don’t go into a pissy tantrum like an infant. Dillon Francis lost a lot of fans Saturday night. Sack up next time, chief. Luckily, Dada Life stepped up and took the stage earlier than expected to provide dispirited Agave patrons the necessary noise.
It might as well have been.
—————————————————Sunday March 4————————————————–
Sunday was the day. Everyone got kicked out of their hotels by 10am, so the whole crowd filed into the venue by 1pm to rage away the final hours of Snowball 2012. Sunday also happened to showcase what I consider to be the best performances of the weekend. Sunday boasted the likes of Two Fresh, Tribes, Afroman, Beats Antique, The Motet, and the king of EDM, Bassnectar, to close out the weekend. The surprise show of Sunday was Two Fresh. Two Fresh combines an array of influences and a diverse musical background, built on a foundation of instrumental hip hop. Their music incorporates sampling, a tight low-end and catchy synth lines, with a strong beat always at the cornerstone. Their live shows boast the addition of Colby Buckler, regarded as one of the strongest drummers in the live electronic music scene today. This energetic trio continues to bring exciting new performances to crowds across the country as their sound naturally evolves. Funnily enough, twin brothers Kendrick and Sherwyn Nicholls went to high school with me in Nashville, TN, and now base themselves out of Denver while touring across the country.
Two Fresh, view from behind the stage at Groove Tent
Though Snowball has not historically addressed a jam band crowd, the festie came through in a BIG way on Sunday afternoon – primetime at the Main Stage. The festival schedule had a slot for “Special Guest,” and did a really good job of keeping under wraps. Rumors floated around that The Glitch Mob or RJD2 might be showing up. But the special guest would not fit with the rest of the weekend at all.
Legendary jam band, Leftover Salmon took the stage for a surprise show Sunday afternoon.
Jam gurus, Leftover Salmon, graced the Main Stage Sunday afternoon appealing to a delighted group of crunchier concert go-ers that were swept under the bus all weekend as EDM reigned supreme. In the midst of a dubstep/electronic overload, Leftover Salmon proved to be a refreshing oasis. Thank god for granola. Leftover was by far my favorite show of the weekend. The band is on tour to promote their latest album “Aquatic Highway.”
This is far too long already, so I’ll wrap up. The rest of Sunday was just as eventful. The crowd didn’t seem to die down at all in numbers or in liveliness, despite the inevitable toll that a weekend festival full of recreational drug abuse and binge drinking are prone to hosting. Both Boombox and Beats Antique out-shined my wildest expectations, and Bassnectar closed out the weekend with a powerful set (complete with a fight in the crowd… if that was you, go fuck yourself).
Get the word out, people. Snowball is here to stay. It’s a phenomenal festival, and is truly one-of-a-kind. Make your plans in advance. This is one winter party that should not be missed.
Oh shit, I know at least one loyal MJF reader was really excited about this announcement. Yes, it’s true Hoodie Allen and I were gchatting. And it’s also true Hoodie is going on a 22-date headlining tour with our BFF Wax. Hoodie’s next project All American will be his first commercial release and it drops April 10th. Starting April 20th (Hitler’s birthday/National Stoner Day) in Greenville, SC Hoodie and Wax will tour the better half of America, drinking beers and campaigning for their favorite politicians drinking beers. I’ll be at the El Rey in Los Angeles selling Hoodie t-shirts. Come say hello.
ALL AMERICAN TOUR DATES:
4.20 • Greenville, SC – Furman University (w/ Tinie Tempah)
4.21 • Birmingham, AL – Birmingham Southern College
4.23 • Washington, DC – Howard Theater*
4.24 • New York, NY – Highline Ballroom*
4.25 • Boston, MA – Royale*
4.26 • West Chester, PA – The Note*
4.28 • Toronto, ON – Wrong Bar
4.29 • Poughkeepsie, NY – Marist College (w/Mike Posner)
4.30 • Detroit, MI – The Shelter*
5.01 • Chicago, IL – The Bottom Lounge*
5.03 • Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater*
5.05 • Dallas, TX – Prophet Bar*
5.06 • Houston, TX – Bronze Peacock*
5.08 • Phoenix, AZ – Martini Ranch*
5.09 • Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre*
5.10 • Oakland, CA – New Parish
5.12 • Portland, OR – Peter’s Room
5.13 • Seattle, WA – The Crocodile
5.16 • Minneapolis, MN – Cabooze
5.17 • Iowa City, IA – Blue Moose
5.18 • St. Louis, MO – Gramophone
5.20 • Philadelphia, PA – Northstar Bar
Co-worker sent this Huffington Post article over to me this morning. Basically, the label who owns the master tracks of The Eagles “Hotel California” found out that Frank Ocean has been performing “American Wedding” at live shows and doesn’t like it. As you may recognize… “American Wedding” is pretty much “Hotel California” minus Ocean’s own lyrics.
Frank’s response via his Tumblr:
He (They) threatened to sue if I perform it again. I think that’s fuckin awesome. I guess if I play it at coachella it’ll cost me a couple hundred racks. If I don’t show up to court, it’ll be a judgement against me & will probably show up on my credit report. Oh well. I try to buy my shit cash anyway. They also asked that I release a statement expressing my admiration for Mr. Henley, along with my assistance pulling it off the web as much as possible. Shit’s weird. Ain’t this guy rich as fuck? Why sue the new guy? I didn’t make a dime off that song. I released it for free. If anything I’m paying homage.
Here’s what Larry Solter, rep for The Eagles’ management company said:
Frank Ocean did not merely “sample” a portion of the Eagles’ Hotel California; he took the whole master track, plus the song’s existing melody, and replaced the lyrics with his own. This is not creative, let alone “intimidating.” It’s illegal. For the record, Don Henley has not threatened or instituted any legal action against Frank Ocean, although the Eagles are now considering whether they should. Any further questions regarding this matter should be directed to Warner Music Group as it is the entity that currently owns the master recording and made the contact with Frank Ocean’s representatives concerning his infringement of the master recording.
Here is what Tyler, The Creator had to say:
DON HENLEY IS A BITCH ASS OLD DUSTY DICK AS NIGGA. ILL FIRE ON HIS BITCH.
Frank released it on his critically-acclaimed nostalgia, ULTRA project for free. He hasn’t received monies from selling this song. Isn’t this pretty much a cover? Shouldn’t people have more beef with Karmin over shit like this? Does the label or The Eagles have a point? Should Frank have paid them or tried to get the sample cleared before performing it? Is it because the industry is greedy and the people outraged at this are old and don’t understand “sampling?” What say ye, mostly junkfoodies?
Wiz Khalifa announced via twitter today that he and longtime girlfriend (and Kanye ex) Amber Rose are getting hitched. Congrats to Amber & Wiz, I’m happy for them. Wiz is a good dude, they make each other very happy.
What’s the perfect wedding gift for these lovers? Wiz has his Taylor Allerdice mixtape on the way and I guess Amber is making music too. Is she the new Yoko? I think we’ve all seen her naked by now, right?
Macklemore… though you are occasionally dope, I don’t know if you deserved to be on this list.
Danny Brown. Good.
French Montana is literally wearing a bear.
I’ve never seen MGK with a shirt on and NOT touching his weiner… How’s that post Bad Boy signing buzz going?
What the fuck is a Hopsin? The only thing I know about him is that he wears those weird contacts. Seems like he tries too hard, though the little bit I have heard tells me he has talent.
What the fuck is a Kid Ink?
French Montana is really wearing a bear…
Roscoe Dash, the neo-gen Nate Dogg. I don’t have a problem with this since ever hook he quasi-croons makes anything immediately radio-friendly. There’s definitely more deserving people.
Is Iggy Azalea wearing a Fry Kids pelt? Why is she on here? Didn’t she say she was like a runaway slave master or something like that in one of her songs? Biggest thing that she’s been on this year is A$AP Rocky’s dick.
If Hopsin was actually smashing her with that cinder block, I would rescind my non-endorsement of him.
French Montana… still wearing a bear.
The only thing we can ever hope for is that one or two deserving artists make the list… XXL continues that trend. Plus, we have to remember that for every artist on this list that actually capitalizes on their buzz there are 10 more that didn’t make the list who will end up doing more. Also, each year we get a looser and looser definition of “Freshman.” Macklemore and Danny Brown have been doing this for years. Is the criteria just “not signed?” Leave your comments and diatribes below. What would your Freshman list look like?
*Bauce Sauce’s opinions do not necessarily reflect all those at mostly junkfood, though it probably does.
