NEW In The Open Session! 

Young the Giant, Every Little Thing 

I knew those fees were always way too steep. If you guys have purchased from Ticketmaster, they are entitled to refund up to $1.50 per ticket, so sign up and join the settlement! 

#4Amit NEEDS YOUR HELP! There is a huge demand for South Asians to donate for bone marrow transplants. 

It’s hard not to get upset when a music critic blasts a few of your favorite musicians—and when I say favorite, I mean seeing-them-in-concert-more-than-once-I-know-lyrics-inside-and-out-while-they-are-apart-of-my-morning-commute kind of favorite—it’s hard not to be upset, right? But he is doing his job.

The article makes sense once I forget whom he is writing about. What bugs me is that he fails to mention in more depth the pop, Auto-tuned, overplayed radio noise, whose artists are “devoid of personality” more in the article. This was my favorite part—the part that made sense: 

Unlike the casual music fan, the professional music writer is also very conscious that every decision to listen to something comes with a cost: the time that could have been spent listening to something else. Those descriptions of Foster the People as “fizzy” or Young the Giant as “devoid of personality” are really asking whether there isn’t some better music their fans could be enjoying. Think of it this way: Listening to these bands is like masturbating for the third time in a day when there’s a line of attractive people right outside your door, begging to have sex with you. Wanking it may be an easy way to get off. But the grouchy music critics know that there are greater, wilder pleasures right nearby.

And when a guy can get his point across in an apparently well-crafted masturbation metaphor, I guess he has something going for him. 

Things That Music Critics Hate: Foster The People, Cage The Elephant, Young The Giant, Portugal. The Man  

Let’s call this group of bands “gateway indie rock with bad band names”: The big dog here is obviously Foster the People, but fellow entry-level party-rockers Young the Giant, Cage the Elephant, and Portugal. The Man are all basically doing the same thing: Derivative, anthemic guitar rock built on optimistic melodies and pop-friendly arrangements. In the case of Foster the People, there’s a healthy smidgen of synth-pop thrown in there for danceability points. (Read more) | Ian S. Port 

Young The Giant’s response

Haters gonna hate. Screw Em #sfweekly. Can’t wait to prove all these bitches wrong on the new album. Writing is coming along splendidly. Got more creativity in my pinky finger than this writer does in his whole existence.

Realize that it’s always a struggle to be the bigger man. We are normally pretty good/used to it because hate is inevitable. But hey, we are humans and we fudge up sometimes. Messin with us is one thing, but hey ;) you don’t mess with our friends foster, cage, and Portugal !!!

In all seriousness, we don’t write anything for anyone but ourselves and we are so happy we have support and the love of all y’all out there who actually enjoy it. 

<3 ytg 

Music: Childish Gambino

NPR dubbs Kanye West and Jay-Z the “current kings” of rap—naming off Lil’Wayne and Drake “next in line to the throne”—the new kid on the block has some serious shoes to fill, and it doesn’t look like it will be that hard. Childish Gambino, a stage name for actor Donald Glover, is about to release his first full album—“Camp”— on November 15th. 

On his IAMDONALD tour this year, Childish Gambino displayed his versatility, rapping while accompanied by a full band for part of the show, but also performing stand-up. There’s no denying that Glover’s sound is unique: He can vibe to a romantic melody with live strings and piano in one song, then follow it up with a song heavy on bass and fire-alarm sounds. If there’s one comparison that jumps to mind, it’s Kanye West circa The College Dropout: not the media-baiting megastar we know today, but the insecure guy from a middle-class family who sounded grateful just to be alive.

 If you listen to Camp on a computer, do yourself a favor and open up Wikipedia and Urban Dictionary in separate tabs. Childish Gambino’s lyrics are so dense with analogies and comedic references that you’ll need those reference guides to decode some of his verses. While his lyrical content is fresh, he consistently circles back to a handful of topics: the trials and tribulations of high school, the feeling of never being “hard” enough or “black” enough to satisfy his peers, the many people who have called him gay, and his fondness for Asian women.

That said, it’s the rapper’s honesty that keeps things interesting. Glover owns his nerdiness and wears his insecurities on his sleeve. | NPR, Kwasi Ansu 

Now, I am not the biggest rap fan out there—I can’t really enjoy it as much as other people, but I honestly see Childish Gambino in a different light. It helps that I’m a fan of Glover’s work on Community, but after seeing him live and actually listening to some of the more raw lyrics in his tracks, I can honestly say I’m a fan. He has collaborated with artists like Grizzly Bear, a band completely off-hand from what you would expect, but it works. “Bonfire” and “Outside” are my personal favorites, but what really separated him from the others was his monologue explaining the concept behind “Camp”—an emotional, relatable lesson he learned when he was young. 

Why does every black actor gotta rap some? I don’t know—all I know is he’s the best one.

Places/Shows: Upright Citizens Brigade | Los Angeles, CA

“I hope you brought a change of clothes because your eyes are about to piss tears.”

If you are ever in Los Angeles near Hollywood and you want to cry or pee in your pants just a little, go to a show at the UCB Theater. Most of the shows are inexpensive, sometimes even free, and you will not be disappointed. 

Recommend: Hot Sauce, every second Sunday of the month. 

Starring: Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation), Adam Pally (Happy Endings), Gil Ozeri (Happy Endings)

Places: Amoeba Music | Hollywood, CA

Walls are covered with posters and cult icon stickers, with shelves of memorabilia and LP players for sale. From the outside, it looks like it’s only for certain people. 

Amoeba is a run-down store filled with hipsters who despise the word, middle-aged men in suits re-living their 70s and 80s years, starving artists looking for muses, and budding music nerds alike.

And I want to live there. 

@fosterthepeople

Never forget | “…it’s the difference between closed and opened, it’s the difference between free and burdened.” -The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Music: Young the Giant

Song: Strings (In the Open Session)

Native California rockers, Young the Giant, charm us. Formerly known as The Jakes, Sameer Gadhia, Jacob Tilley, Eric Cannata, Payam Doostzadeh, and François Comtois became the official group after a few bandmate switches. With the majority of them playing as a group since 2004, they released their first album in 2010 under Roadrunner Records. 

Their sound has a very powerful Cali-rocker vibe as well as acoustic sets, mostly seen through the In the Open Sessions. If I am not mistaken, I downloaded their first single “My Body” as a Free Release from iTunes (it might have even been my first download…ever…) and I never forgot the music. Something about their emotion and soul when they perform is uplifting. While most of their tracks rely on heavy bass lines and enthusiastic drums, subtle ones like “Islands” and “God Made Man” make it up.

In all honesty, their music is beautiful—I cannot think of a better word. And in even more honesty, my writing blurb about them seems like shit just because for the first time, I am completely biased. I am just completely stoked to have their music in my life, and that’s an understatement. They never fail to put me in a good mood. 

I was lucky enough to see them live in a smaller venue last month; catch them tomorrow night on the MTV Video Music Awards and on tour with Incubus! You will not be disappointed! 

Film: George Harrison: Living in a Material World

Some soul in heaven must love me because someone subscribed us to Rolling Stone. Hello, random issues I covet with my heart!

Well, one of the things that caught my attention was the name “George Harrison” on the front. Personally my favorite of the foursome, I immediately flipped to page 13. 

Rolling Stone writer Brian Hiatt wrote a short blurb on the upcoming new film, George Harrison: Living in a Material World. Acclaimed director Martin Scorsese is set to debut the film on HBO sometime in October, according to Hiatt. Described as “the most enigmatic Beatle,” Harrison vowed to create his own anthology one day (Harrison died in 2001 after a long battle with lung cancer) and this film is his supplement to that promise. The article also points out rare Harrison home movies, interviews with Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton and the like, as well a “first-person experience” approach rather than a narrative of his life. Along with delving into his spiritual growth, struggles with fame, and rocky romances, Living in a Material World also looks at what fueled Harrison the most: the simplicity of his music. 

 George Harrison has always been my favorite Beatle; I found him fascinating, mysterious, intelligent, and capable of living simply with compassion. I feel as though his life story is more complex and interesting that others seem to think, and I believe with Scorsese behind the camera, we will be able to get a new perspective of “the most enigmatic Beatle”. 

Music: The Paper Kites, “Bloom”

Ever since I could read, I read. I read every free moment I had. I remember from fourth to sixth grade, I would beg my dad to take me to the library if he ever picked me up from school. I would usually run to the movies if I felt lazy, picking up Mary-Kate & Ashley VHS tapes that I would have on repeat for the week. Still, I wanted to read. If I was not meant to go into Journalism or something like it, I do not know where this random two years of Steno Notepad essay writing came from. Two I remember perfectly: a book on astrology and a book on Magic Johnson. I took notes, read, re-read, drafted, edited, and finalized essays on the stars and Magic Johnson.