C V L T S : S T A Y W E I R D

C V L T S is a band. We recommend listening to them after your pot food starts kicking in.You will be taken to a meditative state where anything is possible. Tender Validations interviews C V L T S member Josh Thomas.

© Barrett Emke

TV: Have you been playing music for a long time?
 

JT:  we have, but not together.  gaurav played drums on a few recordings with me when i was in between bands, and we recorded a few weird covers for compilation albums under different band names, but we really didn't start writing together until june of 2010.  gaurav was moving out of town.  before he left, we got together for a few afternoons and made up wordless, drumless songs on whatever instruments we could find in my basement.  the recordings from those first two afternoons came out two months later on AMDISCS, the album is called LVST.

TV: Who is in the band, and what does each member do?
 

JT:  gaurav - clavinova, keyboards, live electronics, ghost vocals, etc.
josh - guitar, vocals, recording, editing, live tape loops.
brian (joined us after BLACK HOLE, HI FIVE) - keyboards, noise, atmosphere.

TV: When and where did C V L T S get started? Is there any meaning behind the name?
 

JT:  june 2010.  kansas city metro area.  we just wanted to find a short word that wasn't already being used.  we gave up after a while.  then we started replacing the letter U with V (as in "PVNK"), and we settled on C V L T S because we could get the .com, et al.  when we started the band there were less than 10 results in google for the word CVLTS.

TV: For folks who are unfamiliar with your music, how would you describe it?
 

JT:  dreamy, no-wave, melodic, discordant, pain management, ghost secrets, danger pop.

© Barrett Emke

TV: An excerpt from a post on the Decible Tolls back in June 2010 reads:

“the untrained eye reading this blog and a few others will see CVLTS and get all excited and shit, thinkin’ they’re going to hear some sweet Cults pop music, then CVLTS decimates them with nasty brain burning jams and dude is then all like “aaah what the fuck?””

Is this intentional? Are you riding on the wave of something that has already gotten internet attention from traffic-heavy online music blogs such as Pitchfork? (Which came first: Cults or CVLTS?)

JT:  unintentional.  we didn't know there was a band called cults when we bought cvlts.com in june 2010.  we didn't know there was a band called cults until that blog post.  a few weeks ago, i finally looked them up and listened to their 3 songs on bandcamp.  i don't think they totally suck, but it reminds me of the music in car commercials.  sorry cults.

TV: BLACK HOLE, HI FIVE EP is a project that included a 30-run limited-edition hand-painted cassette tape each with a unique vintage picture postcard as the cover. What inspired this project, and what kind of response(s) did you get from people?
 

JT:  we've been pretty spoiled by reviewers, i can't think of any reviews of that tape that were bad, it seems to be pretty well received.  the physical copies sold out in about 30 hours.  the artwork for the project was all remi's idea.  he's the guy that runs atelier ciseaux.  gaurav had been talking to him for a while, and he really liked LVST.  we liked everything he'd ever put out, and his packaging is always amazing.  when he asked us to do it, it wasn't hard to say yes.  remi got the postcards at a thrift store in paris, and the tapes are old tapes of random length that he painted black.  he erased what was on the tapes and dubbed our album on them.  we wrote, recorded, and mixed BLACK HOLE, HI FIVE in one weekend.

TV: In the age of the internet, it seems as if music and bands happen more like a tidal wave then say the waxing and waning of the moon. Some would say music has become too accessible and therefore disposable, or easily taken for granted. In your opinion, what are the positive and negative side effects of the technological age of music?
 

JT:  the positives are that we can do all recording, mixing, mastering, distribution, merch, booking and press without much help.  i don't really see too much downside to what's going on right now.  it's harder to make money selling music now because anything you want to hear can be found for free, but i think being able to do so many things yourself offsets that.  we don't have to pay for studio time, booking agents, video editors or public relations people because we can do all that ourselves.  in the before-time, you had to sell records to make sure you at least broke even, and most of the times the labels, studios, video producers and agents made more money than the bands.  now we can make music that costs us nothing, and we can give it away on bandcamp and not lose money.  i think this is a really good time in history to be making counterculture music.

TV: You have a song called Pizza Reality. We LOVE pizza, and to us it seems your song is conveying the message that the reality of the pizza may be sadder than the pizza itself. Are we off track here?
 

JT:  we came up with that song title while we were taking a break from recording BLACK HOLE, HI FIVE.  we were watching the science channel, coming down from a trip, and i cooked a pizza.  the smell, the heat, the taste, we were instantly transported from drug reality to pizza reality.  it's not a bad reality to be in.  and if you play air drums to the song, it makes it seem less sad.


pizza reality by C V L T S
 

TV: What are the top 5 bands you are listening to on heavy rotation these days?
 

JT:  earthmasters, young heat, outer limits recordings, black tambourine, yuppies

TV: Tender Validations strives to connect people in more personal ways by means of dying art forms: post mail and mix tapes and conversations. Thanks for taking the time to connect with us! Any final words?

JT:  be excellent to each other /\/\/\/\  be weird.

C V L T S - Flooded Forest / Microrangers from AAVV on Vimeo.

THE NEXT ASSIGNMENT: A POLL

Tender Validations is (once again) giving it's followers an opportunity to vote in the next assignment theme! Will it be:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Only YOU can decide...Cast your vote on the upper right side of this page. You can only vote once, so make it count! The poll will be closing at noon on Tuesday, February 1st, 2011.

Stay tuned for interviews with a metal head, and a gay porn star!

♥ TVMOTMC

WE WANT YOU.

Tender Validations wants to interview you! 

We don't care if you play music, make art, work in the sex industry, or sling coffee. Each week, we are going to get all Diane Sawyer with someone new...and this could be YOU!

Just email us at tendervalidations@gmail.com and tell us a little bit about yourself. Send us pictures of yourself, your art, your band, your ferret, your grandma, your bike, your favorite food, or anything else you want to share in cyberspace. We will devise witty questions to ask you, and voila! Instant internet fame.

Because you're tender, and you need validating.
♥ TVMOTMC

Hunx & His Punx + Hardly Art!

Mark your calendars, boys and girls! Hunx & His Punx is putting out a brand new record on Hardly Art. It's set to hit the streets March 29, 2011. Seems like we're not the only ones excited about it. Pitchfork totally blogged about it, too!

Check out this excerpt from the awesome bio on the Hardly Art page:


Too Young To Be In Love is the first fully-realized Hunx and His Punx album, and the group’s first for Hardly Art.  It was recorded in New York City by Ivan Julian—one of the founding members of inimitable NYC punk legends Richard Hell and the Voidoids.  This record was made in the same studio that one of Hunx's idols, Ronnie Spector, once recorded in. While it is preceded by the Gay Singles LP (True Panther Sounds/Matador Records, 2009), a collection of hard-to-find and out-of-print 7” singles, Too Young To Be In Love is the first proper studio record from Hunx and His Punx.

Too Young To Be In Love also marks the first time the group has ever been comprised entirely by “punkettes”—another name for the all girl band that band leader Seth Bogart (aka Hunx) always dreamed of. Shannon Shaw (of Shannon and the Clams) plays bass, and wrote three of the album’s songs. Her powerful voice on “Lovers Lane” and “The Curse of Being Young” crackles and breaks with a raw ferocity that perfectly compliments Hunx’s swoon-worthy nasal croon. This album also represents a distinct reversal of roles—the all-girl quartet (Shaw, plus guitarist Michelle Santamaria, drummer Erin Emslie, and Amy Blaustein on guitar/organ) bring the fire… while Hunx brings the softness—the sweet, oh so sweet, sugar.  All of the ladies sing on this album, and their voices combine to create some modern Wall of Sound magic.

Hunx and His Punx might be the first ever "girl group" fronted by a flamboyant gay male whose dream in life is to sound like a girl. They have created a unique new sound they refer to as "Young Oldies," a mixture of 50s teenage rock ‘n’ roll, 60s girl groups and bubblegum pop.  

to read more, follow this link







DOWNLOAD Hunx & His Punx Gay Singles (2009)
 

You know you've arrived when...

Ellen asks you to be on her show!!!

Congrats, Nicki Minaj! 

Also, her album Pink Friday is CERTIFIED PLATINUM! Might I add, it only took 28 days to achieve this title. Say what you will about her, she's a 26 year old millionaire. And no matter what, she has worked really hard to be where she is. Respect.

In the beginning of the interview, Ellen comments on how amazing Nicki is dressed. I mean, duh. Nicki always looks good. At one point, Ellen touches her diamond encrusted heels and I think to myself, "consent!" but it's Ellen, and she can do whatever she wants because people love her and she's rich.

Nicki seems to have maintained a fairly down-to-earth persona, telling Elen she'd never in a million years think she'd ever be sitting on this couch having this interview, blah, blah,blah. Just watch:

Also, can I say, I love that she openly has multiple personalities? Is this some sort of new craze? I mean Sacha Fierce? Chris Brown rapping? Is this like when it was popular to be a pro basketball player slash "actor" slash "rapper"? Except you're not attempting different skills, just slightly changing the way you do one skill? Or am I way off? Remember Space Jam???

Michael Jordan was all like "I'm gonna be in a movie where I act and play pro basketball AT THE SAME TIME! BOO-YA!" Now that's what I call multitasking.

Anyway, more about Nicki Minaj. She preformed Moment 4 Life, where she exhibited pristine hand modeling skills, and had two back up dancers dressed up just like her!

I've fallen in and out of love with Nicki ever since I first saw her Itty Bitty Piggy video a little over a year ago. But now that she FINALLY has her OWN album, LOOK WHAT HAPPENED! I'm back in love, and she's PLATINUM!

Oh, and one more thing...Look for her on the cover of V to hit newsstands this week!
I'm telling you, SHE'S BLOWIN' UP!

 I fly with the stars in the skies I am no longer trying to surviveI believe that life is a prize But to live doesn't mean you're alive...D-D-Don't worry 'bout me and who I fire I get what I desire it's my empire And yes I call the shots, I am the umpire I sprinkle holy water upon the vampire In this very moment I'm king In this very moment I slay Goliath with the sling In this very moment I bring Put it on everything, that I will retire with the ring And I will retire with the crown, yes No I'm not lucky I'm blessed, yes Clap for the heavyweight champ, me But I couldn't do it all alone, we Young money raised me, grew up out in Baisley South side Jamaica, Queens and it's crazy Cause I'm still hood, Hollywood couldn't change me Shout out to my haters Sorry that you couldn't phase me Ain't being cocky we just vindicated Best believe that when we done this moment will be syndicated I don't know This night just remind me of Everything they deprived me of P-P-P-P-Put your drinks up It-It's a celebration every time we link up We done did everything they could think of Gr-Greatness is what we on the brink of I wish that I could have this moment for life for life, for life Cuz in this moment I just feel so alive, alive, alive I wish that I could have this moment for life for life, for life This is my moment I just feel so alive, alive, alive

Follow her blog if you wanna keep up with this little scamp!

Who is Judy Carne?

When I was doing some surfing of the net to find some good songs for my weather mix yesterday, I stumbled upon this woman:

She seemed pretty cool, all pixied out in her skimpy 60's bikini. I decided I wanted to know more about her.The first thing I found out is she is credited for coining the phrase "Sock It to Me" on the TV show Laugh In...

Her real name is Joyce Botterill, and she was born in Northampton, England in 1939. She was married to Burt Renyolds (!!!) for 2 years.

It seems to me Judy had it pretty rough in showbiz. She was allegedly blamed from breaking up the Laugh In family after she grew tired of being the butt of all the jokes. Her choice to leave RUINED HER! Her marriages failed after a few years, she tried to keep on keepin on with a couple of mini-movies, a failed TV idea for a sitcom called "Poor Judy", a failed Las Vegas music act, and the TV talk show circuit. But this can't be easy on the spirit...

By the late 60's, Judy was pretty much off the radar. Turns out, she began having financial problems, and doing drugs!!! The only time she was heard from was when she was busted for a drug arrest or when she made unhappy headlines for a near-fatal 1978 car crash that left her with a broken neck. DANG! Eventually she moved back to Northampton, England. I don't blame her.

Look for her 1985 biography: "Laughing on the Outside, Crying on the Inside" for a heart-wrenching, tell-all tale.

Weather Assignment Inspiration!

JUDICIAL REVIEWS 01/05/11 Show at Fun House

Detective Agency, Butts, Pony Time, Babies

So the Ponytime/Butts show was awesome. I hadn't been to the crusty clown Fun House since 2006 when I had an unfortunate stint with the Rat City Rollergirls. It was cool this time, except for the fact that they have a basketball hoop set up outside that they won't let you play drunk!

We walked from Capitol Hill, so this was dedication. My debit card disappeared right before the show.  I was rollin' in with nothin' but the hope for good music and generous friends. Which came through in abundance...

I'd  been wanting to see both these bands for a while. We got there while Detective Agency was playing. They were cute. Reminded me of 90's indie pop like Velocity Girl or something. Butts killed it. I mean...if you're into 30 second punk songs about hangovers, which I am. For being high and not really caring, the drumming was actually good. She ripped the shit up, they were funny and brought me back to visions of Ladyfest DC. A favorite song would have to be, “The Wiggle Drip”.

The Ponytime adventure was dudical. I liked it. They took me on a wavelength that was reminiscent of random things like: the 50's, rainbows, beach parties and electrical storms. Definitely a colorful night of charming uplifting energy I was looking for in Seattle bands.    

-Bmore Free

Here's some awesome Pony Time footage!

THINGS FROM 2010...

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ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI BEFORE TODAY

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BEST COAST CRAZY FOR YOU

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LIGHT ASYLUM INTENSION

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BIG FREEDIA SHOW AT NEUMO'S 12-06-10
"Someone lost their phone during Ass Everywhere. You're gonna need that in the morning, gurl."

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WITCHES & GRAVE WAVE CRAZE

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TONETTA 777

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NICKI MINAJ PINK FRIDAY

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LOTS OF PEOPLE DIED...

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BLACK SWAN

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RESURRECTING THE 90's
(or at least acknowledging how it never stopped being cool in Portland.)

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PHOTO CHOP BEST FREE APP EVER

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THE NEED REUNITED & PLAYED A SHOW WITH THE GOSSIP!

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SCARY MASKS AND GOTH DRESSES

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TWIN PEAKS LIVES FOREVER

StickersTwinPeaks from Seth Gwinn on Vimeo.