Beach Fossil’s Dustin Payseur takes a very laid-back approach to creating music, and it’s paid off. The band’s self-recorded debut, released in May on Captured Tracks, is filled with illusory lo-fi tracks that compliment the backround of any setting without completely fading away or being forgotten. We caught up with Payseur after the band’s performance at the Troubadour in support of Here We Go Magic to discuss important matters.

FLAUNT: You recorded your first album initially by yourself. Tell me a bit about your experience during the recording process.

Dustin: There’s not really much of a process, to be honest. You know, I kind of just sit there in my room with an instrument, be it a guitar or bass, and just kind of mess around for a little bit until I come up with something I think sounds nice. I’ll usually record that, and then layer on top of it. I’ll listen to that over and over and play something with it, and then record that on top of it. Usually it’s all recorded in one sitting and I can get a song done on the spot.

F: What is your backround in music?

D: I’m not classically trained in it, but I take a lot of influence from classical music. I love classical music, it’s one of my favorites. I mean, it’s kind of impossible to try to compare classical music to any other sort of music. It’s definitely the perfection of sound as far as art in sound, because it’s so up front that it’s backround. As a songwriter, it has influenced me in a very important way because it’s very humble. There’s so much going on, and there’s only one person writing it, and everyone else is just playing the part. There’s something about the mind of the creator versus the Dharma of just playing in and being whatever instrument you are.

F: You’re also a poet. Do you ever transform your poems into song, or is that usually a different entity?

D: Sometimes; it just depends. Sometimes if I have really bad writers block, I’ll take a notebook or something that I’ve written some poetry in, and take little pieces of it and structure it into a way that can fit with the song. But you definitely can’t take it from poetry because it’s so different. At least my style of writing poetry versus writing a song, like, write a song it has to be strict, it has to be structured, it has to work with the song, it has to flow very well, the vocals have to hit like a drum. But when you’re writing, you can be as free as you want, you can say whatever you want, and it doesn’t have to have any sort of boundaries. It’s very different, but they are both very enjoyable in very different ways.

F: You considered joining a Taoist Ministry at one point. Would you consider yourself to be a very spiritual person?

D: I don’t know. I don’t really know what “spiritual” means. I have a lot of faith in humanity. Growing up, I was really pessimistic, really interested in the punk scene, and that got me into anarchy on a very surface level. And then reading more about anarchy, reading a lot of the early texts and then reading a lot of eastern philosophy that has a lot to do with anarchy, I was like, ‘man, there is really something to this. Kind of like being responsible for yourself and if everybody thinks that way then everyone is kind of responsible for themselves, ect. It’s kind of a really great form… anyway, I’m going off on a tangent. I don’t believe in souls or spirits or anything metaphysical. There’s definitely a lot going on in this universe that we can’t explain, and we’re limited by the human mind and our sixth senses and our human perception to see how things actually are, we can only take them as how we can perceive them. If you wanna call that spiritual, then sure.

F: Does that have an influence on you as an artist?

D: Absolutely. Again, it’s letting my intuition lead me wherever it wants while I’m writing a song. No one’s taking control, not even myself. Just leaving that open and going with the flow. And even the subject matter I suppose. I just kind of let nature take over and let everything grow the same way a bush would or anything else, just let it come out.

F: I also read your bassist threw his guitar into the East River during a show a few weeks ago.

D:(Laughs) Yeah.

F: What happened with that?

D: Not much, I wasn’t really surprised. He breaks his bass a lot. He bought a brand new one right after that, smashed it on the drums to the point where he couldn’t even play it. And then in Chicago, I was playing on a guitar that I had also thrown off the night before, so it was messed up. We were both playing and everything was kinda falling apart during the set, so on the very last song without even talking about it, we both smashed our instruments. I had to go and buy a guitar like fifteen minutes before our set in San Fransisco just so I’d have something to play. But yeah, it didn’t really surprise me, he’s always spur of the moment kind of freaking out like that. And it’s good, I’d hate to have somebody who doesn’t do that.

F: What’s up next for Beach Fossils?

D: We were going to have a full length come out, writing all together as a band. But since our guitarist quit, we are going to release everything we recorded as an EP, and then release a full length as a band. We just came up with that idea a few days ago. It’s really sad that we lost him, because he was such an amazing musician and such an amazing song writer, but at the same time it’s nice that we have new beginnings and we can start again. It came as a surprise, you know, it wasn’t anything we planned on. I don’t know, it’s good to have that, it’s good to have change, to have fresh dynamics to make you push in new interesting directions.

You can catch Beach Fossils on tour now:

Aug 6 – The Earl w/ Here We Go Magic Atlanta, GA

Aug 7 – Cat’s Cradle w/ Here We Go Magic Carrboro, NC

Aug 8 – The Black Cat w/ Here We Go Magic Washington, DC

Aug 9 – Magic Stick w/ Warpaint, Javelin Detroit, MI

Aug 10 – Grog Shop w/ Warpaint, Javelin Cleveland Heights, OH

Aug 11 – Wrong Bar w/ Warpaint, Javelin Toronto, ON

Aug 12 – La Sala Rossa w/ Warpaint, Javelin Montreal, PQ

Aug 15 – Great Scott w/ Warpaint, Javelin Allston, MA

Aug 16 – Johnny Brendas w/ Warpaint, Javelin Philadelphia, PA

Aug 17 – Ottobar w/ Warpaint, Javelin Baltimore, MD

Aug 18 – Local 506 w/ Warpaint Chapel Hill, NC

Aug 19 – Pilot Light w/ Warpaint Knoxville, TN

Aug 20 – Exit In w/ Warpaint Nashville, TN

Aug 21 – The Milestone w/ Yardwork, Grommies Charlotte, NC

(http://flaunt.com/blogs/editorialdepartment/beach-fossils)

Hip to Be Square, a new Slavs amd Tartars work featured in 032c WORKSHOP REPORT #1 (MOSCOW) that is also in preparation for their forthcoming project at MOMA NY in 2011.

BAIBAKOV art projects has collaborated with acclaimed Berlin-based magazine 032c for it’s most recent exhibition, 032c WORKSHOP REPORT #1 (MOSCOW) which opens today. Installed at BAIBKOV art projects’ new exhibition space, it will feature works by Yakov Chernikhov, Cyprien Gaillard, Konstantin Grcic, Carsten Höller, Missoni, Rick Owens, Gosha Rubchinskiy, Slavs and Tatars and Andro Wekua. The pieces in the exhibit provide a challenge to the present by confronting the past.

In the exhibit, designer Rick Owens presents fabrics from his A/E 2011 collection, which include motifs from an East German monument, also featured in the current issue of 032c.

installation view

The exhibit also includes Carsten Höller’s tableware series for the timeless porcelain manufacturer, Nymphenburg. The pieces are etched with the design of Georgy Krutikov’s Flying City, distorting an antique tradition with Russian utopianism of the 1920s. The pieces are displayed on seven 032c-edition Diana tables by Konstantin Grcic, coated in metallic car paints and positioned on a large-scale carpet woven with vibrant fabrics by the Italian fashion house Missoni.

Cyprien Gaillard, Not yet titled, 2010. Postcards, beer labels. Courtesy Spruth Magers Berlin London.

Founded in 2008 by Maria Baibakova, BAIBAKOV art projects is a private, non-profit institution that promotes progressive cultural production and contemporary art within Moscow and abroad. Since its beginning, BAIBAKOV art projects has collaborated with over sixty Russian and international artists, and has produced some of the most talked about exhibitions in Moscow.

032c WORKSHOP REPORT #1 (MOSCOW) will be on display through July 25.

Carsten Holler, Flying City Tableware, 2010. Courtesy Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg.

Konstantin Grcic, Diana tables, 032c Edition. 2009. Courtesy of 032c and Andro Wekua, I’m sorry if I’m not very funny tonight, 2006. Silkscreen print. Courtesy of artist and Andro Wekua, Aquamarin, 2004. Seriograph. Courtesy of the artist.

Slavs and Tatars, Friendship of Nations (Study), 2010. Courtesy of artists.

'Forgiveness Rock Record' is out May 4 on Arts&Crafts Records.

For fans of:  Arcade Fire, The Most Serene Republic, Stars

Broken Social Scene is back with their highly-anticipated fifth album, Forgiveness Rock Record, out May 4 on Arts & Crafts.

In the five years since the release of their self-titled album, members of the Toronto collective have been working on their own projects, which could be the reason the band has taken a few more risks on this new album.

Forgiveness Rock Record sees the band delving into various elements, including the use of synthesizers on a few of the tracks, experimenting with new-wave-like electronica.

The album as a whole is a little all over the place, and certain songs don’t seem to fit, specifically “Highway Slipper Jam,” which holds a weird, but appealing, infusion of post-rock with tribal-like beats. It goes from the upbeat “Texico Bitches” to a dance track “All to All” and finishes with the softest song on the album “Me and My Hand”.

Despite it being messy at times, Forgiveness Rock Record is definitely worth listening to. As expected, the record sees appearances from other notable Toronto-based artists, including Feist, Metric’s Emily Haines and members of Stars, among others. While it is quite possibly one of the more adventerous BSS albums to date, it still holds a familiarity die-hard fans of the band will be looking for, especially toward the end of the album where the band seems to stray away from experimentation. It starts off fast and upbeat, but gradually slows down, making it an album that can be listened to in a multitude of ways.

Forgiveness Rock Record is available May 4 on Arts& Crafts Records.

It is available for pre-order now, and will also be released as a limited edition, numbered boxed set, containing seven 10-inch records pressed on 180-gram heavyweight vinyl and a digital download of the album. Only 1,000 sets will be made available for $125.

As the saying goes, “a picture is worth 1,000 words,” and in the case of Pictorial Webster’s: A Visual Dictionary of Curiosities, fine-press bookmaker John M. Carrera has given readers a plethora of images to choose from. The book features over 1,500 restored engravings from original 19th-century Webster’s dictionaries. At a first glance, this visual dictionary is just that; intricate designs that give imagry to everything from bicycles and beetles to a conferring knighthood and the Colossus of Rhodes. Beyond that, the pictures in the book tell a story, one that is prepared by each reader who connects the nouns placed in the book, just as the author intended. Pick up a copy and let your imagination roam through the pages!

(photos by Sergio Garza)

Photo by Christa Connelly Daily Titan Photo Editor. The party rages around ‘Successful House Plants,’ an art installment by Michael Christian of Oakland, Calif. This is the artist’s sixth year as part of the festival.

Walking around in the desert heat, the smell of marijuana and body odor coming from the guy in front of you as you walk around searching for the band you want to see, ah, Coachella.

The 11th annual Coachella Music and Arts Festival took place April 16-18, and attracted thousands of people from all over the world for the three-day festival to celebrate their favorite acts with other music aficionados.

Despite no longer selling one-day passes and a line-up that some considered to be upsetting, Coachella attracted 75,000 people from all over the globe, selling out the event and making it the biggest Coachella thus far.

The growth was definitely noticeable to regular Coachella attendees, including Mark Casas of La Mirada, who has attended Coachella every year since 2005.

“Every other time I’ve been to Coachella, I had been able to wander around and randomly see bands at different stages without a set plan. It seemed this year, you had to carefully plan out exactly where and when you needed to be. There was never a time I went into a tent to see a band where the crowd wasn’t pouring out of the sides” he said, adding that this setback would not prevent him from attending the festival in the future.

“Overall, I think performance-wise, this was the best Coachella yet. Every artist I saw, except for MGMT, put on a great show,” Casas said.

The festival did see some setbacks. The volcanic activity in Iceland caused some foreign acts to cancel, including The Cribs, Frightened Rabbit and Gary Neuman. However, as a whole, the festival was a success, with great performances by more than 100 artists; including up-and coming acts like Frank Turner, La Roux and Local Natives, DJ sets from David Guetta and 2ManyDJ’s, old favorites like Devo and a reunited Pavement, and headlining performances from Muse, Gorrillaz, Thom Yorke, The Dead Weather and Jay-Z, the first hip-hop artist ever to headline the festival.

The event also included new attractions, including a giant Ferris wheel at its entrance and various pieces of art, most of which were interactive.

Artists from all over the globe performed at the event. British folk-punk rocker Frank Turner, who opened the festival Saturday afternoon, was one of the artists fortunate enough to make the trek to Indio. His first time playing at an American music festival, it was also the first time that he played a show on the West Coast with his full band in tow.
Turner said that his experience at Coachella was quite different from any festival he had been to or played at in Europe.
“Friends of mine happily regailed to me stories about Coachella,” Turner said. “Glastonbury looks and feels like a humanitarian disaster, with some bands playing,” he laughed, adding that American festivals are much cleaner than European ones.
“European festivals are fun to go to because they are absolute chaos,” he said, “but to play at them is an absolute headache. Everyone who’s supposed to help you are off their fucking minds on drugs.”

Turner added that he enjoyed playing smaller live gigs better, however, he enjoyed Coachella because it gave him the opportunity to meet new people, and gave people an opportunity to listen to his music who might not have listened to it otherwise.

Artists weren’t the only one’s to come from across the pond to attend Coachella. Friends James Faiers and Matthew Mchugh of Hackley, and Luke Mchugh of Essex came to the States to attend the festival.
They all agreed that the line-up, and what they had heard about Southern California weather, initially attracted them to the festival.
The friends were impressed with Coachella, and said they enjoyed the performances of Jay-Z, Vampire Weekend, Passion Pit and The XX, among others.

“The only problem is the drinking, you have to sort of sit in a corner if you want to drink and you can’t just walk around and see bands,” they said, joking that “if they changed it, we’d definitely come back.”
The one thing about Coachella is that those in attendance can expect surprises from the artists performing, and this year was no different. Beyonce made a surprise appearance during Jay-Z’s performance on Friday, and characters from Yo Gabba Gabba were present during Lance Rock’s set the same day.

By giving the opportunity to see hundreds of bands you may or may not have heard before, and the chance for people from various backgrounds to come together to celebrate a common love for music, Coachella is quite possibly one of the greatest events for music lovers, especially those in Southern California, to attend. It is a difficult experience to describe, as each person who attends has the chance to make their own of it. A modern Woodstock by day, and arguably one of Southern California’s biggest parties by night, Coachella is one event that music fans of all ages should attend at least once in their lifetime.

“Once you go one time, it’s hard to stop,” Casas said. “Coachella is basically a giant party in the desert with great bands and great people … I can’t wait for the next one.”

The end of the work week has arrived for the majority of us, meaning time to relax and enjoy the weekend to come. It is suffice to say that what we listen to on our days off can help to induce the quality of our leisure time. Our recommendation for this weekend: Beach House – “Walk in the Park”. Whether taking a walk in the park, relaxing at the beach or simply enjoying some much needed downtime at one’s home, this dreamlike song is sure to bring repose to those moments.

'Shame, Shame' is out now.

For Fans of: The Beatles, Wilco, Fruit Bats

With each release, Dr. Dog has shown extensive growth, and the band’s sixth album, Shame, Shame, is no exception.

Their first release on Anti-records, the album contains 11 sunny-pop songs that fans of the band are sure to enjoy. However, the band has cleaned up its sound, moving away from lo-fi indie-rock recordings and instead, recording all of their tracks live. Dr. Dog continues what it started on its previous release, Fate, creating a more modern sounding ’60s revival sound, and use heavy electric guitar rifts, combining their Beatlesque sound with a harder edge.
The Philadelphia natives have also seemed to place a much stronger emphasis on vocals and harmonies, especially in opening track “Stranger,” and title track “Shame, Shame,” the band is able to layer and arrange vocals in a way that is pleasing for the listener.

Another element the band has been able to maintain is its impeccable capability to go back and forth between trippy psychedelic beats and twangy folk-rock rhythm from song to song. Tracks “Where’d All The Time Go?” and “I Only Wear Blue” are reminiscent of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club, while tracks “Station,” “Jackie Wants a Black Eye” and “Shadow People” seem to take elements from alt-folk band Wilco.

Overall, Shame, Shame is nothing you haven’t heard before, and you probably will hear this album again, however it is a great pop-rock album sure to please even the most pretentious music aficionados.

You can catch Dr. Dog perform April 27 at The Henry Fonda Theatre in Hollywood.

'Go' is out now.

For fans of: Sufjan Stevens, Sigur Ros, Múm

It is safe to say that fans of Sigur Ros will fall in love with Go, the highly anticipated debut solo work of the Iceland natives’ guitarist and vocalist Jón Þór Birgisson, aka Jónsi.

The album holds true to Sigur Ros’ signature sound; it is dreamy, ethereal and at times haunting, but withGo, Jonsi strays away from the band’s post rock resonance and maintains his own unique pop sound, mixing elements of classical instrumentation with pop rock beats and and experimental cadence. Jónsi strays away from the melancholic, pensive sound one might expect from the album, which features help from American composer Nico Muhly, who worked on Grizzly Bear’s 2009 success Veckatimest, resulting in a sound that is airy and blissful.

The album opens with “Go Do,” a bright combination of flickering flutes, acoustic guitar and pulsating percussion. “Animal Arithmetic” follows and continues the same musical aesthetic, leaving the listener with immense anticipation as to what will follow. The album’s standout track “Kolniður” starts off slow, but gradually builds up. Although Jónsi sings in Icelandic on the track, the presentation of the music as a whole is sure to leave chills down the listener’s spine, even after multiple plays.

Another thing that sets Go apart from Sigur Ros releases is that it is written almost entirely in English, unlike the band’s albums, which are written sometimes in Icelandic, but primarily in “hopelandic,” the band’s own made-up language. However, the record still manages to embrace Jónsi’s distinctive falsetto, which makes the language difference unnoticeable at first, even to the band’s biggest fans.

Whether listening to each song individually or the album as a whole, Go is sure to entice audiences who are both familiar with Sigur Ros and new fans alike.