TRANSVERSO

- A culture magazine reaching terminal verbosity -

There is Now a Campaign to Get Musicians to Stop Playing "Wagon Wheel"

Music NewsWeston PaganoComment

Let's be honest, "Wagon Wheel" was a fun song the first time you heard it. Maybe it even continued to be an entertaining sing-along the second or third time you witnessed it being performed. But now? Now it has been played far, far too much.

And now someone has finally had the courage to say what we've all been thinking for years: Please stop playing "Wagon Wheel." The brave folks behind the aptly-named site stopplayingwagonwheel.com have started a campaign to make the world a "'Wagon Wheel'-free zone," imploring artists everywhere to "Improve your gig, jam, or open mic today by not playing 'Wagon Wheel.'"

The site features a handy FAQ should you need anything cleared up:

Q: Why?
A: It’s overplayed.

Q: Really?
A: Absolutely.

Q: But I/we put a new spin on this song by...
A: Please stop playing ‘Wagon Wheel.’

Q: But...
A: Please stop playing ‘Wagon Wheel.’

Q: Are there exceptions that should be considered?
A: Yes. If...

1. your name is Bob Dylan;
2. your band is Old Crow Medicine Show; or
3. your name is Matt Andersen

Then you should play this song.

Q: What if my name is Darius Rucker?
A: Please stop playing ‘Wagon Wheel.’

Like any good social movement, there is merch. The online store features anti-"Wagon Wheel" shirts, mugs, and this poster:

Just say no!

Listen to Transverso's 2015 Summer Playlist

Music ListTransverso MediaComment

Summer has officially started, which means you need a summer playlist! We've taken the responsibility of compiling 20 of the best tunes to come out so far this year that can serve as the perfect soundtrack to all of your typical summer activities, whether it be driving with the top down, relaxing by the pool, hanging out at a family reunion, or feeding gummy bears to Belle & Sebastian. Check it out below.

You Can Send Future Islands' New Music Video "A Song For Our Grandfathers" as an E-Card for Father's Day

New MusicWeston PaganoComment

Future Islands frontman Sam Herring doesn't need a special occasion to become one of our generation's most passionate and moving performers, but it certainly doesn't hurt.

In the new Jay Buim directed music video for "A Song For Our Grandfathers" the band is seen at an actual family reunion in their native North Carolina where they greet relatives, have a meal, and eventually performing the song during which Herring is immensely emotional. They are also seen in the cabin where they started writing their breakout album Singles which came out last year.

Just in time for Father's Day, Future Islands have made the video available to be sent as an e-card which you can send to your dad and, even more appropriately, your grandfathers, here.

From the album Singles, available now: http://smarturl.it/Singlesi Directed by Jay Buim (http://www.beardwizard.com/) - video credits below http://www.future-islands.com/ https://www.facebook.com/Future-Islands/ https://twitter.com/futureislands http://4AD.com/artists/futureislands Purchase Singles at iTunes: http://smarturl.it/Singlesi Purchase Singles at 4AD: http://shopusa.4ad.com/singles Purchase Singles at Amazon: Singles at Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1dKh4z5Aayt8FFDWjO5FDh Director: Jay Buim Producer: Alexis Celic DP: Kyle Repka Editor: Rachel Webster Colorist: James Tillett Production Company: Pomp&Clout

'Jurassic World' is Rousing Summer Fun

TV/Film ReviewEthan WilliamsComment

With the original becoming one of the most successful and influential blockbusters of all time, the Jurassic Park franchise seemed as extinct as the dinosaurs it brought back to life after a string of truly disappointing sequels that were all horrific attempts to recapture the Spielberg-ian magic that sparked the original.

So with all of the remakes and sequels abounding these days, the idea of another "soft reboot" of the dinosaur park adventure could certainly seem like little more than a cynical cash grab, designed to be yet another blockbuster that keeps pushing the envelope in terms of mayhem. However, Jurassic World proves both that there's still some magic left in the dinosaurs we saw 22 years ago and that these creatures can still inspire awe and excitement in the hearts of all moviegoers.

Jurassic World transports us back to a completely revamped Isla Sorna, this time a functioning and beautiful theme park with all of the shows and attractions that John Hammond imagined all those years ago. It’s the culmination of the promise of the original film and it’s breathtaking to see the park many of us could only dream about, even if we already know that something has to go wrong in order for this new movie to exist.

Knowing that its audience is aware of the incoming disaster, Jurassic World becomes a meta-commentary on the movie itself by posing the idea that people will get bored by the dinosaurs unless they become bigger, badder, and scarier. Not only does this new “Indominus Rex” exist to draw in more ticket-buyers at the theme park, but it also puts the butts in seats for the movie itself.

Subscribe to TRAILERS: http://bit.ly/sxaw6h Subscribe to COMING SOON: http://bit.ly/H2vZUn Like us on FACEBOOK: http://goo.gl/dHs73 Follow us on TWITTER: http://bit.ly/1ghOWmt Jurassic World Official Movie Clip #1 - Alive (2015) - Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard Movie HD Twenty-two years after the events of Jurassic Park, Isla Nublar now features a fully functioning dinosaur theme park, Jurassic World, as originally envisioned by John Hammond.

The movie revolves around Owen (Chris Pratt), an ex-Navy guy brought in to study dinosaur behavior and train Velociraptors; Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard), an uptight corporate b-word (probably the film’s most offensive character in terms of portrayals of gender); and her two nephews Zach and Gray, who have been shipped off to the theme park while their parents sort out their divorce. None of them are remotely deep characters, but it’s never really important, simply because they are vehicles to make us care about what’s happening, and I would argue the same is true for the original Jurassic Park. As long as the audience cares just enough about them, the movie doesn’t lose their attention.

So while the cast of human characters at the center of the movie feels a little thinly sketched, and many of the expository dialogue scenes at the beginning inspire more eye-rolls than anything else, it all feels in service of telling a really entertaining blockbuster story. Even if they feel flat they’re inherently likable, and as much as some scenes evoked chuckles, Jurassic World plays everything out with such earnestness it always comes off as harmless and even charming.

The silly scenes at the beginning—specifically Owen’s first exchange with Claire at his “bungalow” and his first scene discussing the weaponization of Velociraptors with Vincent D’Onofrio’s Hoskins—are balanced out by things like the thrilling chase in the gyrosphere, which rivals the T-Rex jeep scene in the original in terms of the sheer terror it inspires. Any nitpicks you could have with the film’s logic are steamrolled by spectacle, so it feels ultimately pointless to debate about its sexism or use of product placement (neither of which bothered me too much but are valid points).

In fact, things that seemed so ridiculous in the trailer, such as Owen driving a motorcycle alongside four Velociraptors, are actually quite exciting and never over-the-top. So while the climactic dino fight at the end may feel like fan service for the most part, that doesn’t stop it from being sheer prehistoric bliss.

Jurassic World is populist filmmaking in the thrilling vein of the original. All of the character moments feel earned, and the dinosaur action scenes are thrilling without ever becoming Michael Bay-style overkill. Living up to the expectations of a movie as beloved asJurassic Park is never easy, but Colin Trevorrow and his team did quite an admirable job. It’s easily the best of the Jurassic sequels because it does something we weren’t sure was possible: make the dinos magical again.

Jurassic World - Official Trailer (HD) The Park is Open - June 12 http://www.jurassicworldmovie.com/ Steven Spielberg returns to executive produce the long-awaited next installment of his groundbreaking Jurassic Park series, Jurassic World. Colin Trevorrow directs the epic action-adventure based on the novel "Jurassic Park" by Michael Crichton.

Watch Jon Hamm Feed Gummy Bears to Belle & Sebastian Onstage at Bonnaroo

Music News, TV/Film NewsEllen WilsonComment
Photo: John Connor Coulston / MTSU Seigenthaler News Service

Photo: John Connor Coulston / MTSU Seigenthaler News Service

While it’s now expected that comedian Ed Helms will make an appearance on the farm at Bonnaroo each year, his Hangover co-star Zach Galifianakis and Mad Men man Jon Hamm's antics were a little more of a surprise. They joined Helms onstage during the Superjam and preformed “We Are The World" after crashing the Comedy Tent earlier in the day and performing a bit in which Hamm made Galifianakis his dog and fed him the live-giving treat of gummy bears.

This was largely unknown to the audience for Belle & Sebastian's set in This Tent, though, so when Galifianakis abruptly and energetically introduced the indie-darlings by shouting, “Hey Everybody! My name is Chad Farmhouse, I run Bonnaroo. We’re really excited to have one of the greatest bands of this generation…in my opinion. Please welcome the glorious Belle and/or Sebastian!” it was hilariously confusing, with many not even recognizing the actor with his new beard-cut.

After a few songs, frontman Stuart Murdoch stops and tells the audience that he ran into Zach and the comedy tent where he saw him being fed the gummies. Murdoch wondered aloud, “I thought why doesn’t that ever happened to me? Why can’t I ever be fed gummy bears onstage by a famous person… I wonder, could you come feed me gummy bears” and all of a sudden, Jon Hamm appeared on stage, a jar of gummy bears in hand. The crowed went wild as Don Draper silently tossed the succulent sweets into Murdoch’s mouth and the crowd before scurrying off stage again as quickly as he had come.


 

Watch Pastel and Peculiar New Music Video for Beirut's "No No No"

New MusicWeston PaganoComment

After teasing fans with several bizarre stills over the past few weeks, Beirut have finally released their music video for "No No No," the title track off their forthcoming record due out September 11 via 4AD.

Pastel and peculiar, the Brother Willis directed, American Bandstand-esque performance is riddled with oddities from a skunk being used as a trumpet to an odd man smashing a bottle over frontman Zach Condon's head as he sings, showing the band at their most playful. Check it out below.

'No No No' by Beirut, the title track from the new album released 11th Sept.


Watch Tears for Fears Cover Radiohead's "Creep" at Bonnaroo

Music NewsEllen WilsonComment
Sun-Times Media

Sun-Times Media

"I cannot tell you how excited we are to be here," Tears for Fears' Roland Orzabel said after the band opened its classics-laden set with surefire fan favorite, "Everybody Wants to Rule the World". But an unlikely highlight took place a few songs later, as the English 80's legends covered Radiohead's "Creep," which you can watch below.

"We have a word in England that expresses this joy - yabba dabba doo," Orzabel concluded in the most English deadpan imaginable before seeing out the set with a one-two punch of "Head Over Heels" and "Shout."


Watch What Goes Down in Foals' New Music Video "What Went Down"

New MusicWeston PaganoComment

Earlier today Foals debuted the title track from their upcoming album What Went Down on Annie Mac's BBC Radio 1 show, and now we have a visual to go along with the sound.

Frontman Yannis Philippakis went on air after the song and described it as "animalistic," but went on to say that "there's a little bit of everything" on the new record. "What Went Down" takes the visceral, brutal themes explored on the band's last record Holy Fire and runs with them, as Philippakis chants possessed, altering between distrust and affection.

Directed by Niall O’Brien, the music video isn't quite as explosive as "Inhaler" or as jarring as "Late Nite," but fits restlessly in the middle hinting at what will surely be one of this year's most compelling records.

'What Went Down' Directed by Niall O'Brien Pre-order the new album WHAT WENT DOWN now: http://foals.co.uk. In stores 28 August. http://instagram.com/foals http://twitter.com/foals http://facebook.com/foals

Father John Misty Shares Heartbreaking Video for "I Love You, Honeybear"

New MusicEllen WilsonComment

Father John Misty has released a soul-crushing new video for the title track to this year’s standout album I Love You, Honey Bear, which was co-directed by Josh Tillman himself as well along with longtime collaborator Grant James.

Tillman describes the video as “an average night in the lives of two EMTs,” portrayed by comedians Brett Gelman (The Other Guys) and Susan Traylor (Greenberg), who go from being drunk and high in the back of an ambulance to getting called to the scene of an emergency. The victims, played by Tillman and his wife Emma (who also co-wrote the song), are seen peacefully sleeping through a gas leak. Check out the video in its entirety below.

I Love You, Honeybear, is out now on SubPop.

Tour Dates: 

6/24 - Glastonbury, UK @ Glastonbury
6/26 - Bexhill, UK @ De La Warr Pavilion
6/27 - Killarney, IE @ Killarney Food & Music Festival
7/1 - Gdnya, PL @ Open'er Festival
7/2 - Roskilde, DK @ Roskilde
7/2-5 - Barcelona, ES @ Vida Music Festival
7/18 - Pemberton, BC @ Pemberton Music Festival
7/19 - Colwood, BC @ Rock the Shores
7/23 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Twilight Concert Series @ Pioneer Park
7/ 24 - Calgary, AB @ Calgary Folk Festival
7/ 25 - Edmonton, AB @ Interstellar Rodeo
7/26 - Seattle, WA @ Capitol Hill Block Party
7/31 - Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
8/ 01 - Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom
8/ 02 - Montreal, QC @ Osheaga Festival
8/ 03 - Portland, ME @ State Theatre
8/ 05 - New York, NY @ Central Park Summerstage^ [Sold Out]
8/ 11-15 - Oslo, NO @ Oya Festival
8/ 13-15 - Gothenburg, SE @ Way Out West
8/ 14-15 - Haldern, Nordrhein@Westfalen, DE @ Haldern Pop Festival
8/ 16 - Saint Malo, FR @ La Route Du Rock Festival
8/18 - Vienna, AT @ The Full Hit of Summer Festival
8/20 - Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop Music Festival
8/20-21- @ Paredes de Coura, PT @ Pauredes de Coura Festival
8/21-22 @ Biddinghuizen, NL @ Lowlands Festival
8/23 - Beacon, UK @ Green Man Festival
9/18 - Indianapolis, IN @ Egyptian Room at Old National Centre #
9/19 - Shakopee, MN @ Festival Palomino
9/20 - Madison, WI @ Orpheum #
9/21 - Covington, KY @ Madison Theatre #
9/23 - Columbus, OH @ LC Pavillion *
9/24 - Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre *
9/25 - Rochester, NY @ Anthology *
9/26 - Boston, MA @ Boston Calling
9/28 - Baltimore, MD @ Rams Head Live *
9/29 - Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz *
9/30 - Athens, GA @ Georgia Theatre *
10/1 - Birmingham, AL @ Iron City *
10/2-4 - Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival
10/5 - Tulsa, OK @ Cain's Ballroom #
10/7 - St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant #
10/8 - Louisville, KY @ Palace Theatre #
10/9 - 11 @ Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival
10/9 - Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall #
10/12 - Tucson, AZ @ Rialto Theatre *
10/15 - Las Vegas, NV @ Pool at the Cosmopolitan *
10/16 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern * [Sold Out]
10/17 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern *
10/18 - San Francisco, CA @ Treasure Island Music Festival
10/22 - Galway, IE @ Roisin Dubh
10/23 - Belfast, UK @ Mandela Hall
10/24 - Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street
10/26 - Sheffield, UK @ Plug
10/27 - Cambridge, UK @ The Junction
10/28 - London, UK @ O2 Shepherds Bush Empire [Sold Out]
10/29 - London, UK @ O2 Shepherds Bush Empire [Sold Out]
10/31 - Paris, FR @ Pitchfork Music Festival
11/1 - Bologna, IT @ Locomotiv
11/2 - Munich, DE @ Strom
11/3 - Weisbaden, DE @ Schlachtof
11/4-8 - Reykjavik, IS @ Iceland Airwaves
11/11 - Nantes, FR @ Stereolux
11/12 - Lyon, FR @ Epicerie Moderne
11/13 - Koln, DE @ Luxor
11/16 - Copenhagen, DK @ Vega
11/21-22 - Mexico City, MX @ Corona Capital Music Festival
* w/ Mikal Cronin
^ w/ Angel Olsen
# w/ Tess & Dave

 

 

 

Mac DeMarco Impersonates Michael Jackson in New Video, Announces Contest For 69¢

Music News, New MusicWeston PaganoComment

Have you ever wondered what it would look like if Michael Jackson was resurrected and sang a new Mac DeMarco song? Do you like contests? Do you like the number 69?

If you answered "yes" to any of those questions (or even if you didn't; I'd be impressed if you'd thought of the first one before now), you'll want to check out the music video for "Another One," the title track off of Mac's forthcoming mini-LP. 

Uploaded by CapturedTracks on 2015-05-18.

The video sees our favorite slacker rock weirdo playing every instrument on the track while standing in the ocean, as he makes even the lyrical themes of anxiety and jealousness sound smooth and chill in that signature DeMarco way.

In a follow-up video today Mac teaches his fans how to play the song and challenges them to cover it, the best of which he will award the coveted prize of... 69 cents. I wonder how he came up with that number. Maybe it's what a Canadian dollar is worth these days, who knows.

HEY WSUP I HOPE YOU MAKE A VERSION GOD BLESS YE HAVE A LITTLE FUN WHY DON'T YOU? JAH BLESS YE CAN'T WAIT 2 HEAR YA LYRICS: YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO AFRAID SHE MIGHT NOT LOVE YOU ANYMORE AND THOUGH SHE SAYS SHE DOES AND HASN'T LOST YOUR TRUST WHO COULD THAT BE KNOCKING AT HER DOOR?

The description states, "DON'T BE CONCERNED WIT A DEADLINE, JUST HAVE A LIL FUN, WE'LL SEE HOW SHE'S GOIN IN A COUPLE DAYS OR SOME SHIT."

Another One is due out August 7 via Captured Tracks.