back on the block

crazy end of the year, a combination of busy schedule and not having money to pay for a working ftp client made me let this place lapse a little bit. back on track.

to make up for it, there are a whole bunch of mp3s below...


2005 wrap-up (belated)

shows of the year:

1. death from above 1979 at the bowery ballroom
2. queens of the stone age at msg
3. fischerspooner at the canal room (pictured)


parties of the year:


1. fixed with jdh and dave p. at the tribeca grand - consistently great saturday nights, with crazy guest djs (hell, lindstrom, m.a.n.d.y.) and live acts (annie, whitey, tom vek).

2. shit hammered at happy ending - i went to this party for an absurd stretch this spring, something disgusting like 8 tuesdays in a row. just long enough for me to have scandalous pictures appear on the cobrasnake. thank god.

3. misshapes. (pictured) say what you will, this party is almost always a great time. i think i've gotten drunker and sweatier at these parties than at any other. highlight for me was seeing my idol do a guest dj spot, and having him drop the cazals.

singles of the year: (note: links dead as of 1/15/06 - keep coming back for new ones!)

1. lcd soundsystem – tribulations (tiga’s mix)
favorite song of the year from one of my favorite albums - the only single this year that had three different mixes (album version, tiga's mix, and lindstrom's mix), all of which would make a dancefloor go nuts. doesn't hurt that this also made in appearance in dj hell's set at the tribeca grand in february, which was out of control.

2. white rose movement – love is a number
pure synth pleasure. and great haircuts. stay tuned, they're making a couple of appearances in new york in the next few weeks.

3. three 6 mafia – stay fly (diplo’s mad decent mix)
pure filth. uncalled for bassline.

4. we are scientists – nobody move, nobody gets hurt
more affable than maximo park, and it's always nice to see a young band wide-eyed on letterman.

5. kanye west – touch the sky
it was something of a toss-up to pick a single track from late registration, but "touch the sky" really show's that kanye hasn't lost a step in the game.

6. tom vek – nothing but green lights (digitalism mix)
my personal obsession for 2005.

7. death from above 1979 – black history month (alan braxe and fred falke mix)
dfa1979 seem to be able to do for vice records what the panthers couldn't really. the show at the bowery ballroom was my favorite live event of the year too.

8. juan maclean – give me every little thing
this is one of those songs that just makes motherfuckers want to dance. make sure to check him out at supreme trading in williamsburg later this month.

9. m.i.a. – bucky done gone
there was a period of about six weeks this summer where you'd hear this song played two or three times a night at a bar. it was awesome.

10. devendra banhart – I feel just like a child
i was a late convert to this one, but now it's a go-to sunday afternoon record.

11. the arctic monkeys – I bet you look good on the dancefloor
we'll have to wait and see what the full length sounds like, but there's always room for catchy-as-fuck singles from a group of skinny british teenagers in fred perry polos. always.


12. black dice – smiling off (dfa mix)
just barely edged out "mars arizona" as my favorite dfa mix of the year. this sprawling diskopunk jam has become a staple of my dj sets.

13. young jeezy feat. jay-z – go crazy
say what you will about the social ills of having kids strutting around in snowman tshirts, thug motivation is chock full of no-frills bangers.

14. vitalic – my friend dario
i think that the lasting impact of electroclash is that it undeniably brought some of the rawk sexiness to dance music. luckily vitalic hasn't forgotten where he came from.

15. gorillaz – dare (soulwax mix)
damon albarn crooning in the background + shaun ryder + filthy soulwax beats = shooting fish in a barrel.

16. art brut – good weekend
"i've seen her naked, twice! i've seen her NAKED....TWICE!" best lyric of the year.

17. kings of leon – king of the rodeo
while they haven't really matured in terms of narrative content or underlying themes, aha shake heartbreak proved that time on the road has tightened kings of leon up as a band a hundred times over from their debut.

18. dungen – panda
perfect psyche rock.

19. dipset – dipset symphony
highlight of more than music, crazy flows from the whole crew.

20. the long blondes - giddy stratospheres
possibly what the slits would've sounded like if they had been around for britpop? a mixed bag, this is one of my favorite songs of the year but i haven't been impressed by any of the other tracks i've heard.