Since the sad news that Beastie Boys’ Adam Yauch passed away at 47 after a battle with cancer, I’ve been delving back into the Beasties’ back catalogue pretty frequently. The New York trio were my first musical obsession when I was a teenager. I still remember vividly the copied cassette of the group’s 1994 album Ill Communication I borrowed from my sister that led me into a new world of exciting musical possibilities.
The Beastie Boys taught me that music didn’t have to be boxed off into definable genres, that any source was fair game for inspiration whether that’s a flute loop from a jazz track, punk and hardcore, funk, rap or even, a Tibetan monk chant, which was inspired by Yauch’s conversion to Buddhism. The band took these sources and formed their own identity that was completely unique to them.
It was the band’s 1989 classic album Paul’s Boutique that best exemplifies the “good artists borrow, great artists steal” sentiment. The album supposedly features anything between 100 and 300 different samples. The record is so littered with them that there’s a website, paulsboutique.info, dedicated to the album’s samples and its myriad of pop culture references.
Contrary to popular belief, the Beastie Boys actually cleared the majority of the samples on the album. According to Mario Caldato Jr., the band’s producer, they spent around $250,000 on sample clearances.
Nowadays, restrictive and expensive copyright licensing laws mean that a record like Paul’s Boutique would costs something in the region of $20 million to clear (according to bit.ly/beastiebreakdown) making the album impossible to release and subsequently influence so many people it has done in the last 23 years. The Beastie Boys were pioneers. Rest in peace Adam Yauch.
Kristen Flaherty is a Stanford psychology and sociology graduate who moonlights as a rapper. She recently released three free volumes of a mixtape called I Stopped Caring In ’96 that showcases her unique Chicago-bred style that simultaneously pops and rocks.
kflay.com
Beyoncé’s cool younger sister (pictured) sings over a song from reclusive ambient masters Boards Of Canada? This you have to hear…
Fans of fuzzy and dreamy-sounding music will dig Seapony, Seattle-based purveyors of twee-rock who will be releasing their debut album Go With Me through Sub Pop off-shoot Hardly Art at the end of the month.
The ska-influenced Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win from the Beasties’ new album Hot Sauce Committee Pt.2 features Santigold on the hook and is the sound of summer in the city.
After releasing a new song called ‘Make Some Noise’ last week, the trio went ahead and debuted the trailer for their forthcoming 30 minute film which stars Seth Rogen, Elijah Wood and Danny McBride as vintage Beastie Boys with Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly and Jack Black as future Beastie Boys. The film also stars Will Arnett, Susan Sarandon, Stanley Tucci, Ted Danson, Steve Buscemi and Jason Schwartzman.
Beastie Boys mashup album
From the same guy who brought you the Jay-Z/Radiohead remix album Jaydiohead, comes a mashup album where the Beastie Boys are mashed up with themselves to surprisingly good effect.
http://www.doublecheckyourhead.com/
Neon Indian remixes Au Revoir Simone
One of my favourite new acts of the year remixes the Brooklyn girl trio into a synthesized Italo-esque head swhirl.
http://short.ie/neonsimone
Starsmith takes on Lisa Mitchell
Rising London producer Starsmith takes Australian Idol winner into new Balearic territory.
http://short.ie/starsmiff
New Los Campesinos!
The under-rated Welsh septet quietly released a new song and video for ‘The Sea is a Good Place to Think Of The Future’ on their blog last week.
http://short.ie/loscamp
Muse = Queen?
Muse have made the next logical step from their epic bombastic rock to Queen-style OTT ballads if the ridiculously-titled United States Of Eurasia Parts 1-6 from their new album is an indication..
The Horrors remix Memory Cassette
It’s been a good week for the former panto-goth rockers. A Mercury nomination for the excellent album Primary Colours and this uncharacteristic spacey dance remix for good measure.
http://short.ie/horrorsremix
New Beastie Boys track
On the same day that the Beasties’ Adam Yauch announced he will undergo cancer treatment, Too Many Rappers from the forthcoming Hot Sauce Committee Pt.1 with Nas as a guest appeared. Still as good as ever.
http://short.ie/beastienas
Jay-Z with Kanye and Rihanna
The Hova’s upcoming Blueprint 3 album has started to leak material – this time by The Roots’ talisman Questlove via Twitter. ‘Run This Town’ is as pop as Jay-Z gets.
http://short.ie/jayz3
