New: Arca - "Thievery"

Venezuelan-born, New York based producer Arca is best known for his work with Kanye West and FKA twigs. He is dropping his first solo LP Xen later this fall. Here is the first preview from that record, the queasy instrumental track "Thievery."

Jam of the Day: Gesaffelstein - "Hellifornia"

Kanye West producer Gesaffelstein (aka Mike Levy) throws down this trunk rattler from his record Adelph.

Non-Sequiturs

Sir, yes Sir!

Damn, that is one furry chest.

So darn cute.

Love this guy: so handsome, and killer body.

Big and beefy.

Blue collar fur.

Would love to explore that fur forest.

Love his banged up look, and that hot belly.

Nice guns.

Beautiful.

Yum.

Yes daddy!

Woof.

Drool.

A little lower please.

Nice frame.

Sexy bear in deep thought.

Yes, please.

Grrrrr.

More Grrrrr.

Love the furry belly.

Amazing everything.  Those pecs and gutters are to die for.

Hunky bubba.

This is just one gorgeous man.

Sexy silver fox.

I don't normally go for smooth, but damn.

Woof and Grrr and stuff.

Nice and lanky.

Just a hot man.

I think I had him up recently.  Too hot to pass up again.

Handsome with glasses.

Last weekend, I celebrated my friend Ray's 40th birthday with close friends in Las Vegas. It was the first time I had ever been, and here are my impressions:

It is never about what you do, where you go, how much money you spend, it is always about who you are there with. The friends we were with were amazing and made the whole trip special.

The hotels on The Strip are pretty amazing. We stayed at Aria, which is perhaps the most gorgeous hotel I have stayed at.

Our room was amazing: brilliant views of the City Center complex, which looked like something out of Blade Runner; everything in the room was automated, even the toilet; and the bed was like sleeping on a cloud.
Everything is expensive.

They charge you for everything. If they could somehow charge you for breathing air, they would.

Though everything looks close to each other, nothing really is.

Las Vegas is made specifically for straight people.

We went to see/hear Sander Van Doorn spin at the Marquee.  The club itself was phenomenal; great soundsystem, lights, lasers, confetti cannons.  Van Doorn spun some great music too, however, there was no "dancing" to speak of, most people just stood around and whooped.  And the club was packed to the gills with drunk people.  It was pretty difficult to circumvent them.

The most fun I had was well off the strip: a scooter tour of Red Rock Canyon was gorgeous, and a trip to a beer bust at a local gay bar was a blast.

I was surprised how poor most of the service was in Las Vegas. I guess once they have your money they just don't care.

I never got used to the fact you can smoke anywhere.  My clothes always smelled like smoke.

I also never got used to people gambling, smoking, drinking at every hour of the day and night.  Was odd walking to breakfast and seeing people at the slot machines and blackjack tables with a big cocktail in hand.

I am sure I would crap my pants.

At the rate I am going, I will be able to retire the day after I die.

What is up with all the 40 something brobrahs out there? Grow the fuck up.

My one piece of advice to give people is talk to everyone. As long as they are nice, respectful, and/or funny, I will talk to anyone, and some of the best conversations and ultimately friends I have made have come from following that logic.

Yup.

The traffic lights in Atlanta are seriously out of whack.

Andrew and I are heading to Folsom this weekend. Can't wait.

Friendships to me are two way streets. If someone does not understand that, I tend to get off at the next exit.

It always surprises me that Houston is our 4th largest city.

I'm also surprised at how much I like the Lorde album Pure Heroine.

LOL.

We watched the Tom Cruise movie Oblivion on the flight out to Las Vegas. It was a decent story line that eventually deteriorated into an incomprehensible mess.

A woman in front of me in line at Starbucks had a Hermes Birkin bag, which I sadly realized cost most than my car.

Have you ever had a friend that did one annoying thing to you and then subsequently everything they did just irritated the hell out of you?

Seriously, I don't need to see close up pictures of your wounds on Facebook.

This cracked me up.

Nothing better than getting a notification the day before I leave for vacation that American Express is lowering my credit limit. Thanks!

20 years after it was released, Nirvana's In Utero still holds up very well and, in fact, I would say it is an even better record than Nevermind.

I find it interesting when people use Facebook to present to the world a completely fabricated view of how their life is.

Yes, Kanye West is a complete douchebag, and half the time I wish he would just shut up, but damn he is a talented motherfucker. Yeezus is an amazingly complex record.

Your ridiculously cute for the day.

Lyrics Rattling Around My Brain

"Fuck, I just woke up
It's a new morning
Oh shit, she's calling me
Who's this in our bed?
Why is she still asleep?
How do I ask her to leave?
Oh shit, she's calling me

I'm so fucked up
And this girl won't wake up
How did I forget you?
After all that we've been through
Said I'm so fucked up
And this girl won't wake up
All these years that we've been through
And I killed it in a night
I killed it in a night

It's too late, I can't take it back
'Cause guilt's like a stone
That I've thrown
I thought that I've grown
But I sink in my all
I'm a ruin of good times
And all the memories
I've left behind

I'm so fucked up
And this girl won't wake up
How did I forget you?
After all that we've been through
Said I'm so fucked up
And this girl won't wake up
All these years that we've been through
And I killed it in a night
I killed it in a night

She keeps calling me
But I can't pick up the phone
She keeps calling me
But I'm not alone
She keeps calling me
But I can't pick up the phone
If she keeps calling me, I'm gone
I'm gone
I'm gone

I'm so fucked up
And this girl won't wake up
How did I forget you?
After all that we've been through
Said I'm so fucked up
And this girl won't wake up
All these years that we've been through
And I killed it in a night."

Joel Compass
"Fucked Up"

"We're never done with killing time
Can I kill it with you?
'Til the veins run red and blue
We come around here all the time
Got a lot to not do let me kill it with you

You pick me up and take me home again
Head out the window again
We're hollow like the bottles that we drink
You drape your wrist over the steering wheel
Poses can drive from here
We might be hollow, but we're brave

And I like you
I love these roads where the houses don't change (and I like you)
Where we can talk like there's something to say (and I like you)
I'm glad that we stopped kissing the tar on the highway (and I like you)
We move in between streets
I'd like it if you'd stay

Now we're wearing long sleeves
And the heating comes on
(You buy me orange juice)
We're getting good at this
Dreams of clean teeth
I can tell that you're tired
But you keep the car on
While you're waiting out front."

Lorde
"400 Lux"

"I will carry you and give you life
I will cover you and show you the way
it’s a sequence that you never learned
it’s a lesson I will never forget
I can hear you in the overtones
just an echo of the promise we made
change the future, we can travel time
or make us blind so we can never look back
we can never look back

I’m the night sky
I’m the fire in your eye
I don’t want you now and for all time
I’m the cold heart
I’m the secret that you hide
I’ll be listening
until you decide

I communicate in simple streams
(take your time)
I’m the only one who gave you that truth
(speak to me)
once you leave me you are really gone
(far and near)
give me something to remember you by
(I’ll always be here)
all that’s here is what you left behind
(majesty)
slowly moving in the back of my mind
(can’t forget)
take a moment to remember me
(and I will)
and make me blind so I don’t ever look back (never look back)
only in your name
I will ne’er be free

I’m the night sky
I’m the fire in your eye
I don’t want you now and for all time
I’m the cold heart
I’m the secret that you hide
I’ll be listening
until you decide

I’m the night sky
I’m the fire in your eye
I don’t want you now and for all time
I’m the cold heart
I’m the secret that you hide
I’ll be listening
until you decide

I will ne’er be free."

Chvrches
"Night Sky"

Appealing Things

Joel Compass
Our hotel room at Aria
Until The Ribbon Breaks
Fun Hog Ranch
Kelly and Phil
Delta customer service

Annoying Things

People who get pissy when you don't have time to see them; as if we did it on purpose
American Express "customer service"
Drunk straight girls
Friends who message without intending to carry on a conversation

Videos of the Week

Here are the videos this week that got me over my Post-Bear Week Depression:



Hyper-stylized video from Franz Ferdinand.



Interesting video from Fiona Apple, directed by her former paramour Paul Thomas Anderson.



Lush, and slightly trippy video from Washed Out.



Dark and intense video from Kanye West.



Slippery synthpop track from Soft Metals gets a sexy video clip.



Gorgeous clip from Braids.



Watery clip from Moby.



Futuristic clip from The Weeknd.

Mixtape: Arca - &&&&&

You can listen to and download the latest mixtape from amazing producer Arca, who just received production credit on the new Kanye West record. This is some intense stuff.

Video: Kanye West - "Black Skinhead"

First video from Kanye's latest record Yeezus.

Album Review: Kanye West - Yeezus

Kanye West
Yeezus
Rating: Grrrr

Despite Kanye West being one of the most controversial and egotistical artists of his generation, there truly is no denying that he is also one of the most brilliant producers out there, backing up his boldest statements and eccentricities with jaw-dropping backing tracks, never satisfied to do the expected. Following up his masterpiece My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy would be no easy task, and instead of repeating the maximalist tendencies of that record, he has changed directions entirely, moving back to the rigid structures of 808's & Heartbreak, making his harshest, most in your face record yet. It sounds like Kanye has been listening to acts like Death Grips, Nine Inch Nails, and Marilyn Manson for inspiration, and has practically made a proto-punk/industrial record. Beats are harsh and unforgiving while synths frequently are used aggressively and atonally. And once again, Kanye is definitely on his soapbox again, both politically and personally. It seems even being married and having a child has not tempered his views on relationships, seeing them as still rife with betrayal and negativity. While My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy kept to a consistent thematic conceit, here, Yeezus' whiplash changes in tone and viewpoint are frequently jarring which keeps it from reaching the high that was achieved with that landmark record.

With that said, however, Yeezus is still a breathtaking record. Opening with the Daft Punk assisted "On Sight," the album blazes forth with clattering drum programming and acid house synths that are a far cry from Daft Punk's Steely Dan-tinged new record, showing an edge that has been missing from them for awhile. Kanye spits his verses out with as much venom as possible.



Yeezus contains his harshest backing tracks ever, frequently going into speaker damaging territory, not afraid to be ugly or confrontational. From the air raid siren cacophony of "Send It Up,"



the dark electro of "I Am A God,"



or the rumbling, trap influenced "I'm In It," these tracks are fearless and intense.

Often, Kanye's vitriol meets up perfectly with his all out sonic assault. "Black Skinhead," which appears to draw influence from both Marilyn Manson and The Timelords, is another Daft Punk assisted track that bangs and clatters with breathless percussion, low synth rumbles, and Kanye commenting on race and modern culture, spitting out verses like "They see a black man with a white woman/At the top floor they gone come to kill King Kong."



"New Slaves" attacks racism, corporate consumerism, and the prison system with bile and venom, as the backing track moves from stark electronic dissonance into an outlandish, over-the-top finale.



There are a couple of missteps on Yeezus that keep it out of the running for another Kanye masterpiece. His puzzling use of Nina Simone's anti-lynching poem "Strange Fruit" to back his divorce tale "Blood On The Leaves" is out of place, and quite frankly insulting,



while closing track "Bound 2" appears to be his one concession at a radio-friendly hit that just feels completely out of place within the confines of this dark and haunted record.



Sonically, Yeezus is a marvel of aggression and harshness, perhaps one of the most anti-pop records ever released from a major artist. While on person level I find a lot of what Kanye does and says abhorrent, I have to give him respect for never doing the same thing twice and always going for broke with his music. I don't think you can ever say Kanye phones it in. While I can't put it on the same shelf as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, a couple of rungs below it is still high praise.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.

Non-Sequiturs

Damn daddy.

Beef belly.

Cute smirk.

So damn hot.

Woofy profile.

Drool.

Grrrr.

Must rub belly.

Oink.

Wow and woof.

Sexy daddy.

Fur everywhere.

Yum.

Lick x2

Yummy fur.

Gorgeous.

That bathing suit is too distracting.

Daddies.

I'm a sucker for nice back hair.

Damn hot.

Yes and yes.

Werk it.

Daddy in the reeds.

UNF.

Sigh.

Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Grrrr.

So much fur, so little time.

Yeah daddy.

Amazing.

Woof.

Sexy bear.

Speechless.

Big chest.

Wiry.

Stretch.

Adorable.

Wow.

Grrrrrr.

Nice view.

Sexy stare.

Beautiful.

Ginger daddy.

Yes please.

Always yes.

Groink!

SBJ!

Amazing beard.

There is probably nothing I wouldn't let this man do to me.

Belly!

Sexy bear.

Such a cutie.

Smirk and fur.

So serious.

Hmmmmmm.

Eyes and abs.

Pool bear.

Strike a pose.

Ditto.

Nasty Pig indeed.

Sup?

Droooool.

Adorable.

Chesty.

Smirky.

GDMF!

Hot leather daddy.

Pretty much perfect.

Damn.

Hot.

Thumbs up.

Drool again.

Silver daddy.

Cutie cub.

Fur swirls.

Gorgeous bear.

Beef!

Perfection.

RIP James Gandolfini.

Another band I just don't get is Magnetic Fields.

If it was going to happen, it would have happened already.

Are muffins just hipster cupcakes?

If I am going to be paying $60 a month for a gym, it can at least have water fountains the provide immediately cold water.

Just say no.

I can shave in the morning and three hours later it looks like I never shaved.

Everyone this week apparently forgot to take their meds. Jeez.

I am definitely feeling all of my 43 years this week.

I hate that I like the Kanye West album as much as I do.

Trust.

I love how British people say biro or bino.

Mordacious is a good word.

I fucking hate technology sometimes.

The new Sigur Ros album sounds like the band started going to the gym.

I was told by a friend that hipsters use the word ironic and show tune gays use satirical.

Yep.

Whatever Lynda Carter is doing to keep looking so young, I want it.

Conversation is a dying art.

It amazes me how small the Mona Lisa is.

I know I say this almost every week, but damn this is a small world sometimes.

Growing up I could remember almost every one of my friends' phone numbers from memory, but now, aside from own number, I don't remember/know a single one.

Your cute for the day.

Lyrics Rattling Around My Brain

"Can we walk in hope
Into another new year
Just to cast away the ghosts
Or to have the time to again
You said hold on to dreams
But I know you don't try
Cos you're innocent I know that you won't survive

I heard the phone ring
So late at night that I
I thought someone had died
Someone had died
But your voice was full of hope
Like it was on better days
On clear mornings when the rain had left the sky

I can't stand the thought of you alone
I can't stand the thought of you alone

Don't try to get close to
Us because there's nothing
But our souls laid bare
Will we survive
I know we will."

Hood
"You Show No Emotion At All"

"They burned them and screamed
come down with us, come down with us

I’ve never felt love, ’cause of the state of us
know me until I go
know me until I’m done
I’ve never felt love, I found them down there

These pictures of me as a boy
they burned them, and screamed
come down with us, come down with us

I’ve never felt love, ’cause of the state of us
come down with us, come down with us
know me until I go
come down with us, come down with us."

Cloud Boat
"Youthern"

"When I think of you in the city
The sight of you among the sites
I get this sudden sinking feeling
Of a man about to fly
Never kept me up before
Now I've been awake for days
I can't fight it anymore
I'm going through an awkward phase
I am secretly in love with
Everyone that I grew up with
Do my crying underwater
I can't get down any farther
All my drowning friends can see
Now there is no running from it
It's become the crux of me
I wish that I could rise above it

But I stay down
With my demons
I stay down
With my demons."

The National
"Demons"

"Talk to me and watch me crumble
You will see me come undone
Faithfully I will look over
There I’ll find what you’ve become
(What you’ve become)

You help me lose my mind
And you believe something I can’t define
Help me lose my mind, make me run back
What about before?
Keep biding my time,
How much longer?
Who I’ve been waiting for

Jealousy will be washed over
Carefully we look on through
Could it be easy to start over?
Somehow I will bring you too
(What you’ve become)

You help me lose my mind
And you believe something I can’t define
Help me lose my mind, make me run back
What about before?
Keep biding my time,
How much longer?
Who I’ve been waiting for

I’ve been waiting waiting waiting

You help me lose my mind
And you believe something I can’t define
Help me lose my mind, make me run back
What about before?
Keep biding my time,
How much longer?
Who I’ve been waiting for."

Disclosure
"Help Me Lose My Mind"

Appealing Things

Austra
Rick and Todd
Hot Polish men
Watching JoJo work the men
Meeting some amazing men at Peach Party
The smell of bolognese sauce simmering on the stove
Cloud Boat

Annoying Things

People who stick their tongues out in photos
Recovering from Peach Party
People who don't support their friends when they are going through a rough time
VIP tickets that don't really get you anything