Summer Camp

Some photos I took summer at sleepaway camp-

Motherhood means mental freeze

Most 90's rock fans know Kim Deal as the back-up singer and bassist of the Pixies. While on their hiatus post-Doolittle, Deal was assembling her own rock band, the Breeders, whom I actually prefer more than the Pixies.
1993's Last Splash, the Breeders' second album, consists of hypnotic melodies and droning guitar. "Cannonball"'s distinctive bassline can be recognized and head banged to instantly. "No Aloha" and "Mad Lucas" are not quite as pop-y, but are still extremely pleasant to listen to.  Deal's wonderfully elusive lyrics are complemented with her smooth yet raspy voice. The combination is mesmerizing.
The Breeders encountered several obstacles along their path. Some members developed drug problems, while others began family and preferred their suburban life over the unsettled, rock n' roll lifestyle. They released a few albums after Last Splash, but they were not as successful. 
Twenty years later, they began practicing to perform all of Last Splash again on a Europe and United States reunion tour. They will be releasing a double edition of Last Splash, titled LSXX. 

I pray I pray I will see one of these shows!

Read the 4AD announcement here.

Won't you play me today?

Ty Segall was born and raised in Southern California, in a sunny, laid-back hippie town until Ty reached high school. He heard some mumblings of some classmates who were casted in a reality show, titled with the name of their hometown, Laguna Beach. After the show aired, his guitarist, Charlie Moothart said, who also grew up in the area, “Everybody wanted drama.” The romance of the tight-knit community had fled.​

The theme of nostalgia appears frequently in Ty Segall’s dreamy rock music. He sings of saying goodbye to the past in “Goodbye Bread”. His music is heavily influenced by 70’s rock ‘n’ roll and punk such as T. Rex and Iggy Pop. This year’s Hair, a collaboration with San Francisco’s White Fence, was also a recent product of the sounds of the past. The album is a delicious hazy 60’s inspired work, with lucid musical references to many psychedelic bands such as Magical Mystery Tour-era Beatles and grittier, quicker garage rock.

Ty Segall’s reminiscence may seem out of place in the electronic popular music of today. But Segall is well aware of this- “There are all these kids who are growing up on Skrillex and all this digital music. What are they gonna think when they hear rock ‘n’ roll?”

Read the Pitchfork cover story here.