One of our all-time fave Bjork tracks. Here performed by Robyn, our new favourite pop diva, on Swedish TV. That takes balls.

That’s Bjork herself watching, dressed in a christmas ornament of some kind. And what’s with the audience dressed in best bib and tucker? It’s because this is the Polar Music Prize presentation. This year it was presented to Bjork and Ennio Morricone. Here’s the Bjork citation.

More Robyn videos:
Robyn “Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart” Alicia Keys Cover (LIVE) at iheartradio
Robyn “Hang With Me” (LIVE) at iheartradio
Robyn “With Every Heartbeat” (LIVE) at iheartradio
Robyn “Dancing On My Own” (LIVE) at iheartradio
Hang With Me (Official)

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As low as $0.50 (hey, some are even “cheaper than free”)

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Memorial Day Weekend
Saturday + Sunday + Monday 10am – 5pm
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All covered, so it’s RAIN OR SHINE

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As though it were not enough for us to have to suffer through Apple and their fanboi’s constant over-hyping of their over-priced, over-rated, under-performing hardware and their smut-hating, prudish and censorious App store tendencies, we now have to deal with people telling us that their “record has been released on iTunes”

Yes, I admit it, I am a dinosaur. I think that if I “buy” something I “own” it. BUT, do I really “own” something if I cannot sell it to someone else? And if I cannot sell it, did I really “buy” it to begin with? It’s because of this that I don’t use iTunes or the iTunes Store and am loath to use others. eMusic is an exception because of the superior bit rate and long-standing non-DRM stance.

First I noticed was the Rusko “OMG” record, which appeared on iTunes in April and not in stores until June.

A couple of other low-lights:
Endless hype from the UK underground massive promoting the excellent new Katy B single “On a Mission” as “finally out now”. I was so excited I went to look it up on amazon UK, no luck. Yes, it’s on iTunes and Boomkat and, I assume other download services, but I cannot find a physical object with it.

New music: Björk – The Comet Song A song by Björk for the Moomins film. Available August 24 on iTunes.

Can a song be said to be truly “released” when there is no physical manifestation of it? We know that the charts have incorporated digital “sales” for years now. We even have had examples, in the UK, of singles going number on the strength of downloads only.

But somehow it still rubs me the wrong way…

Death Comes for your Vinyl

Company presses your ashes into vinyl when you die.

Wired tells us music lovers can now be immortalised when they die by having their ashes baked into vinyl records to leave behind for loved ones. No mention of the sound quality, we suspect that the records sound a bit like early 80s Jamaican pressings…

I saw this spot during the Fulham / Man U match on Fox Soccer Channel today. I think it ran next to the ubiquitous Katy Perry ProActive spot. Anyway, the point is that there are plenty of youth oriented ad buys on the English Premiere League on FSC. And we know that soccer is a strong female sport in America.

“Air has no prejudice. It does not carry the opinions of a man faster than those of a woman. Does not filter out an idea because I am sixteen and not 30. Air is unaware if I am black or white. And wouldn’t care if it knew….”

When I saw the first half of this ad on TV I thought it must be a spot for Net Neutrality! Instead it is a spot for the very company fighting hardest to kill net neutrality in the wireless realm! Wow. Just wow.

Techcrunch mentioned this a coupla days ago: Hey Verizon, Whoever Made This Is Going To Hell

I think that I should like a little more bass on this one. That’s rather odd, given that Benga is usually not at a loss for bass. There is certainly a suggestion of it, perhaps the plan is that later remixes will boost the bottom end.

This track may be the biggest crossover UK Funky / Dubstep track to date. Released by the record label associated with Rinse-FM, so it’s obviously getting play on the UK’s leading pirate radio station. What is a little more surprising is that it is also getting daytime play on Radio 1.

UK I-tunes release on August 22. Pack includes Roska remix. No idea about a US release or a physical manifestation of the track.

The invaluable Core News brings us a nice clean recording of a recent radio show:   Rob da Bank 2010-07-24 Dub vs Dubstep Special with Mad Professor, Adrian Sherwood, Coki & Appleblim

A very nice mix of new and old, does just what it says on the box.

Post includes a link to the Hotfile download and the tracklist:

Tracklist:
Slim Smith — Ain’t Too Proud To Beg – Trojan
Joe Gibbs — Chapter 3 – Lightning
King Tubby — Roots Of Dub – Blue Moon
Benny Ill, Kode9 & The Culprit — Fat Larry’s Skank – Tempa
Dubkasm — Reespek I Spek (feat. Levi Roots and African Simba) (Gatekeep and Appleblim Remix) – White Label
Coki — Intergalactic Dub – Dubplate
Loefah — Bombay Squad – Rephlex
Primal Scream — Echo Deck – Creation
The Clash — Robber Dub – Epic
Rusko — Hold On – Mad Decent/Co Operative
Magnetic Man — I Need Air – Columbia
Coki — Movado – White Label
The Upsetters — Blackboard Jungle Dub – Upsetter
The Upsetters — Blackboard Jungle Dub (Adrian Sherwood Version) – Upsetter
Lee “Scratch” Perry — International Broadcaster (feat. Roots Manuva and LSK) – Egea
Addison Groove — Foot Crab – Swamp 81
Arkist — Rendezvous – Apple Pips
Massive Attack — Teardrop (Mad Professor Mazaruni Remix) – Circa
Mad Professor feat. Luciano — Unknown Track – White Label
La Roux — In For The Kill (Skream’s Let’s Get Ravy Mix) – Polydor
TC — Where’s My Money (Caspa Remix) – DSR
Katy B — Katy On A Mission – Ammunition
Simian Mobile Disco — Cruel Intentions (feat. Beth Ditto) (Joker Remix) – Wichita

He is a diamond geezer. When I would ask him to sign records for me he was always simultaneously surly and gracious (two of my favourite things!). My signed copy of “Mercury Poisoning” on coloured vinyl is one of my greatest fetish objects.

Kickstarter provides an easy and transparent way to fund projects. Projects ask for a certain amount of money to be pledged by a certain time. If those goals are achieved, the pledges are delivered and the project gets the money. If they don’t get the pledges in the time allotted, no money is delivered. You can sign in with Facebook if you want to.

Creative Review has an interview with the artists behind the Stüssy Greensleeves covers book. Some great pics and some good stories.

Creative Review – New Stüssy book celebrates cover art of UK label Greensleeves.

Over the years, I’ve had my issues with Beck (check that great tartan backgroud!) and quite a few more with NPR’s generally bourgeois coverage of music (unabashed Radiohead fanboi-ism), but now it’s time for a hat tip or two. Via the NPR All Songs Considered (sic) blog comes “Five Great Cover Songs From 2010 (So Far)”, of which at least two are well worth the time of day.

When I was doing my nightly radio show “Forward In All Directions” I would start every show with a cover. The one above would have been perfect. A completely new way to look at an over-familiar song and make it fresh. Kudos to Beck and his Record Club gang, and thanks to NPRs ASC for the heads up.