Saved by the Broken Bells.

I'm liking this new collaboration between Danger Mouse and James Mercer of The Shins (aka Broken Bells).  I guess I usually look forward to who Danger Mouse teams up with (MF Doom, Gorillaz, Beck), but he has this rep with me though for starting strong with a couple great tracks and then coming out with a slightly disappointing or even overrated album. (see Gnarls Barkley and Dark Night of the Soul w/ Sparklehorse). I didn't even think the The Grey Album was all it was made out to be.  Anyway, he's made a living off of promising collaborations, and even though the full products are good but not great, there are always a few highlights.

Arigatou Gozaimasu

Thanks, Cibo Matto, for a sick ass cover of Nirvana's About A Girl. One of my favorites. I don't think its them in this video, though.

Smack it up, flip it, rub it down

I hate Ashanti and J-Lo. I really hate their producers. Whenever that song "Foolish" came on the radio, i just wanted to shoot myself. All they had to do was sample a song that was already a hit and put their own half-ass singing on top of it. Biggie Smalls is probably turning in his grave while El-Debarge is cutting himself.

Below are some producers that i respect. Listen to the original (one of my favorite motown songs). Hear how they flip it. Sampling at its best.

Martha Reeves& The Vandellas - Quicksand (The Original)


Blu & Exile


Apathy

Mmmm. Watcha Say.

Driving in this morning I didn't have my iPhone adapter, so I turned on the radio and on comes an R&B song that samples Imogen Heap's Hide and Seek.  I don't even want to get into how retarded I think the original is, but to take that and then add some cornball R&D beat and lyrics over it is beyond me.  I don't know who it's by, so I'm not even going to link to it nor do I care enough to look it up.

Anyway, the song did remind me of an old SNL digital short by The Lonely Island guys that I thought was hilarious. To get it though, you'll need to watch the original they spoofed from the critically acclaimed show... The O.C. Right. Both ridiculous videos below.

Drowning all the cares in the world.

You know when you reach that point in the week where the weekend is coming up and you're just ready to get it over with.  It's not quite Friday, so you can't celebrate just yet, but your mind has checked out.  That's where I'm at right now, and this is the kind of beat that sonically expresses that. Makes you want to just wander off with your headphones on and do nothing without a care in the world. Na na na na na na...

Aht Uh Mi Hed

Just completed my last final. I'm ready to empty my brain.

Shuggie Otis knows what I mean:



And some more funky shit by Shuggie that just makes you want to bob your head while eating a pint of salad from your favorite fake Japanese restaurant:



From Shuggie to you... and your mama, too.

Creating a unique twist and putting your own style. Good luck. Making it better than the original? Beat up your kid sister for that rabbit foot keychain.

I love covers if executed right. Here are some covers that i feel are better than the original.

The Original: The Shirelles


Cover 1: Smith (thanks lyn-lyn)


Cover 2: The Beatles

I Get So Weak in the Knees . . .

Brian (aka the Brain, Bunny, Queso) told a story about one of his job interviews from a few years ago. The interviewer asked him, "what are your weaknesses". So-called great candidates usually express "i'm a perfectionist" or "i work too hard". Dude straight up said, "women". Within the next couple of days he was informed that he got the job because of that answer.

Here's a tribute to my fellow males' weakness from Lee Fields. His album was in constant rotation in my car. Definitely one of my favorites.



Early 90s Slow Jams Not Needed

feeling great feeling good how are you?

this is a song that you chill with a glass of sangria.

This one time in band camp.

What do you get when you take a classic hip-hop album and cover it as a full-band instrumental? Enter the 37th Chamber by El Michels Affair. Pretty funky for a bunch of white guy, band geeks.

El Michels Affair via Truth & Soul Records

With friends like these...

Deep Friend Frenz off the Mm...Food album.

"Some Gay Shit"

I asked one of my friend's roommates what he's been listening to. His response, "A little bit of everything. Some gay shit too. You know, John Mayer" . . .

The Cardigans. Yes, the very same group that sang "LoveFool". Their album, "Life", is one of my "guilty pleasure" albums. I'm a sucker for bass lines and female vocals. I don't think this is "some gay shit". But again, this can be my ego talking. Check out some examples below

Raw Solo at 1:08


Drumming and organ. Sounds like the Meters went Indie Rock.

Everybody loves the sunshine

Because it's freezing outside.

They See Me Rolling They Hatiiiing

This morning driving through downtown, I heard a:

BMW M3 with Rims blasting his subwoofers to Lady Gaga driven by a Guido

AND

Mazda Miata blasting 2-Pac driven by a Nerdy College Asian Kid . . . Probably a science major.

Love Song for you Sensitivos

I want a "Gangsta Bitch" like Apache says
Who raps like Lauryn Hill did on "Nappy Heads"
And fuck wearing lingerie, I be tearing you out of it
Put my tongue in your pussy and speak the Arabic alphabet

- Apathy



Track Title? True Love. Yup, this is my shit.

Nice soul sample. Phonte from Little Brother. Clever lyrics referencing Raekwon, the Beatles, Starter Jackets, & a "Raphael Saadiddy hoe". . . That's True Love

You can't hide from the truth.

Driving home the other day, I was flipping through my iPod and chose something I hadn't heard in awhile: "So...How's Your Girl?" by Handsome Boy Modeling School. Forgot how good of an album it is. Here's a sample.

The Truth (feat. Roisin Murphy and J-Live)

Let's start the show.

Welcome to the first official post of the Humble Egos: a blog of music, videos, and anything else we feel like sharing.  First, bare with us while we sort out a real design, but chances are we'll get too lazy or too busy to do that.  Second, why "Humble Egos"?  Because we were sitting at a bar one day thinking of oxy morons, and this was the one we liked the best.  "Good Asian Drivers" was a distant second.  (Just kidding)

To kick things off, it would've been way too easy to post Common's "Start The Show". Instead, I give you the sample for that, "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" by famed jazz harpist, Dorothy Ashby. If you like this, check out "The Windmills of Your Mind." Both really good beats.