scissorkick

Scissorkast 6: Double Agent

I have two solid days of work ahead of me — big machines, large plots of brush to clear, moving earth — and I think this mix is the optimism I wish I had going into it. First half has some instrumental rock classics and moody electronic/krauty stuff and the second half indulges the youthful [...]

Spokes

To be truthful, I rely on the RIYL picks to do a lot of the work for me. I could go on and on about a band, but if you know your shit like most of you do — and know the bands I use as similar recommendations — than really there’s no reason to [...]

Fink (Cinematic Orchestra Remix)

I can’t say that I’ve been a huge fan of the “acoustic pop/folk” thing as it always seems to remind me of the James Blunt/John Meyer frenzy over the last decade or so. Of course, we can go way before that for generations of solid folk music, but often, when that lone troubadour is paired [...]

Bibio — Ambivalence Avenue

By now it’s no surprise how much I admire the work of Stephen Wilkinson’s Bibio pseudonym. His first few releases for the Mush imprint were an inspiring blend of pastoral acoustic folk and experimental field recordings. When news of a jump to pioneering electronic label Warp hit the blogosphere, it got me thinking about the [...]

Polvo: Back with a Bowl

It’s not often that bands break up and reunite over a decade later without some kind of clear financial motivation. Sure Polvo have had their share of shows over the last year in some of the biggest festivals around (they killed it at ATP), but after listening to their newest track “Beggars Bowl” — which [...]

Nosaj Thing — Drift

I’ve been corrupted. You know you’ve stumbled upon something great when you’re exhibiting obsessive behaviors like playing a song 10 times in a row because 2:55 just isn’t long enough. “Light #1″ is that song. Old-school heads will instantly think back to the best parts of Mike Paradinas’ finest U-ziq stuff like “Hasty Boom Alert” [...]

From Monument to Masses — On Little Known Frequencies

There are perfect records and then there are perfect records. As a die-hard proponent of all things instrumental, I realize that my opinion skews when it comes to wordless rock music. Or solidly produced instrumental beats. Or the combination of the two. I’d be naive to expect Pitchfork to slap a 9.9 on On Little [...]

Aether

Snow is an integral part of the character of NYC. A city teeming with transplants, you get this collective anxiety right after a fresh snowfall, as the winter drags on with throngs of people hotly anticipating 100 degree days that smell of dog piss and uncollected garbage. Nah, if you ask me, summer in the [...]

Scissorkick Picks for 2008 Podcast