X Games 2014 (Saturday)

I have high hopes for the X Games.  I went ahead and bit the bullet and bought wristbands for the whole family, including the 3 year old, so we shall see how well this plays out in reality versus in my likely deluded mind.  I need to have them watch some YouTube clips of Big Air tonight to get them psyched up for what they are going to see next week.

In addition to the sweet-bra extreme sports action, the festival is going to have a handful of bands playing throughout Saturday.  My hope is that we might take a chunk of time here and there to go sit down with some overpriced corndogs and enjoy a little bit of music.  Once again, we'll see how that plays out.  My thoughts on what is available on Saturday:

1 pm: Auto Body
Three EPs, from 2010 to 2014, and the Austin-based band describes themselves as "Electro Disco."  The most recent EP, Too Late for Words, is a fast-paced synth dance attack.  Sounds like a pile of synthesizers getting it on with a drum machine.  Seems fun and innocent enough for the kids to enjoy if we don't want to go watch the RallyCross.

1:15 pm: Magna Carda
Not available on Spotify, but assuming this is the same band available on BandCamp as Magna Carda, this is an Austin rapper Megz Kelli who can rap pretty damn well over clean, interesting beats by Dougie Do.  Its actually great stuff - a lot of complicated word play, nimble speed rapping, and interesting lines that mostly avoid the generic braggadocio you find on most new rap albums (See every Rick Ross album).  And the beats lean towards really appealing and spare jazz samples and not heavily overproduced synth sludge.  Feels like classic Tribe Called Quest or Digible Planets.  I'd much rather see this than Auto Body, although I may need some earmuffs for the kiddos.
I think you should go listen to this: http://creaturecreativemusic.bandcamp.com/

2 pm: Wavves
Alternative rock. Loads of guitar distortion on basic rockers.  More than half a million listens for 9 of his songs, and more than 1.2 million for two of them (Demon to Lean On from 2013 and King of the Beach from 2010).  His recent music is much more polished and enjoyable than his first two albums, which have terrible sound and are more like a dude's raw garage rock project.  I like the 2011 EP Life Sux, which includes Nodding Off (with Best Coast) and I Wanna Meet Dave Grohl, which is bound to be true, and the 2013 album Afraid of Heights.  Good alt rock.

3:15 pm: English Teeth
One 2010 three song EP of raw rock.  The copy with this one video says they call themselves "Texas indie Britrock" which sounds about right. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLUq5AdDkYM.  Kind of an Arctic Monkeys-type sound on the first two songs, then a little new Green Day-esque on the first cut of the EP (Panic!).  None of the Spotify tracks have more than a thousand listens, but this is worth listening to.  Good rockin' time.

4 pm: Jayceeoh
Remix other people's music on the turntable guy. 

5 pm: Bad Religion
This is O.G. Los Angeles hardcore punk from the late 80's and early 90's, although I never really got into them, my punk crush was always Fugazi.  Bad Religion was interesting among the punk scene because they didn't shy away from singing harmonies.  The music is faithful punk - pounding, tight snare drum with distorted power chords over the top - but the harmony is a great addition to the vocals.  Sorrow is a great track from their 2002 album The Process of Belief:

5:15 pm: Black and White Years
Electronic indie rock from Austin.  Power to Change got some airplay a few years ago on local radio:

That video is creeping me out, but the song is pretty catchy.  Their most recent album (2013's Strange Figurines) has more of a MGMT feel to me.  Good music.

7 pm: Mystery Skulls
I was guessing I'd get some black death metal with that name, but nope, more electronic pop dance music.  Highly danceable stuff:

Funny video - that priest has some sick moves, yo.  Sounds like this is an up and coming band, recently signed with Warner and has been working with Nile Rodgers and Avicii.

7:15 pm: Not in the Face
I love this band name.  Makes me smile even before I have any clue what the band is about.  After listening to their 2011 album Bikini, I like the music as well.  Blues-y, distorted rock and roll from here in Austin.  Some surfy reverb, a little rockabilly, its fine fun.  I bet this show is a freaking blast.

8:30 pm: Cash Cash
EDM.  One song on Spotify with over 16 million listens, while the rest of their songs each have less than a million. 

I can't say this interests me much, but sadly, my kids would probably enjoy this the most out of any of the music on this list.  They've been trained to think the generic beat drop is the end-all-be-all of good music.

10 pm: Kanye West with Mac Miller
Kanye's music is awesome.  There is no need for me to describe it to you unless you live under a rock.  In which case, I think it is cool that you get the internet there. 
I had not heard of Mac Miller until last year's Watching Movies with the Sound Off.  Rolling Stone was all about Goosebumpz, a bonus track on the album - good, offbeat track but not very interesting lyrically.  This guy's more popular songs are generally just generic brags over the current beats of the day - Miller's big hit was called Donald Trump:

Again, good beat, but dumb lyrics about haters getting mad because he has lots of money.