Supraluxe

Supraluxe: Surf Music

2011-06-23T07:43:00.001-05:00

Tokyo on Surfline!

Supraluxe on Moozone

2011-05-03T12:52:00.001-05:00

Music for cows, apparently.

Review: Powerpopaholic

2011-04-29T17:35:00.001-05:00

9 out of 10. "After a few albums finding their sound, this Minnesota band has found its sweet spot."

Review: Absolute Powerpop

2011-04-28T07:42:00.001-05:00

The Super Sounds of Supraluxe

Every Little Piece

2011-04-25T12:33:00.001-05:00

Light In Your Veins

2011-04-25T00:22:00.001-05:00

supraluxe.com

Supraluxe on YouTube

2011-04-24T23:32:00.001-05:00

Subscribe. Connect.

Podcast: Filmed But Not Forgotten

2011-04-24T20:16:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe on Filmed But Not Forgotten

Podcast: Radio Orphans

2011-04-24T20:11:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe on Radio Orphans

Podcast: Indie Music Sampler

2011-04-24T20:10:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe on Indie Music Sampler

Podcast: For Immediate Release

2011-04-24T20:09:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe on For Immediate Release

Podcast: North Star Radio

2011-04-24T20:07:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe on North Star Radio

Podcast: Jaan's World

2011-04-24T20:03:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe on Jaan's World

Supraluxe on BandCamp

2011-04-21T08:10:00.001-05:00

Where It's At

2011-04-19T22:59:00.003-05:00

Visit the Supraluxe website.

Back To The Land

2011-04-19T18:50:00.000-05:00

You Are A Winner

2011-04-16T16:25:00.001-05:00

The Super Sounds of Supraluxe

2011-04-13T11:16:00.002-05:00

The Super Sounds of Supraluxe is out now. Visit supraluxe.com to preview, watch videos, purchase, etc.

2010-12-06T12:29:00.001-06:00

2010-12-03T16:00:00.001-06:00

2010-12-02T16:20:00.001-06:00

The Super Sounds of Supraluxe - Studio pics

2010-12-01T13:11:00.003-06:00

The Super Sounds of Supraluxe

2010-11-29T15:49:00.002-06:00

New music news! The third album is almost done. The Super Sounds of Supraluxe will make an excellent stocking stuffer.

Podcast!

2009-08-24T01:02:00.001-05:00

Supraluxe appears on Phil Coyne's new show, Midsweep, on Rhubarb Radio.

http://www.rhubarbradio.com/programmes/midsweep.aspx

Podcast!

2009-08-24T00:38:00.002-05:00

Supraluxe appears on the new Artist Review podcast! Catch it at: http://tinyurl.com/nf8p84

There's life in the old tunes yet..............

2009-05-03T00:16:00.001-05:00

Snowboarding. A good fit I think?

New CD almost done

2009-04-10T17:23:00.002-05:00

We're putting the finishing touches on the new CD, and we're aiming to make it available shortly. Jim is finalizing vocals, Bob is busy producing and arranging, I'm singing some background vocals, and Bill will be working on CD layout, etc.

Stay tuned here for details.

Captain Beefheart's 10 Commandments of Guitar Playing

2009-04-04T11:16:00.002-05:00

1. Listen to the birds.
That's where all the music comes from. Birds know everything about how it should sound and where that sound should come from. And watch hummingbirds. They fly really fast, but a lot of times they aren't going anywhere.

2. Your guitar is not really a guitar Your guitar is a divining rod.
Use it to find spirits in the other world and bring them over. A guitar is also a fishing rod. If you're good, you'll land a big one.

3. Practice in front of a bush
Wait until the moon is out, then go outside, eat a multi-grained bread and play your guitar to a bush. If the bush dosen't shake, eat another piece of bread.

4. Walk with the devil
Old Delta blues players referred to guitar amplifiers as the "devil box." And they were right. You have to be an equal opportunity employer in terms of who you're bringing over from the other side. Electricity attracts devils and demons. Other instruments attract other spirits. An acoustic guitar attracts Casper. A mandolin attracts Wendy. But an electric guitar attracts Beelzebub.

5. If you're guilty of thinking, you're out
If your brain is part of the process, you're missing it. You should play like a drowning man, struggling to reach shore. If you can trap that feeling, then you have something that is fur bearing.

6. Never point your guitar at anyone
Your instrument has more clout than lightning. Just hit a big chord then run outside to hear it. But make sure you are not standing in an open field.

7. Always carry a church key
That's your key-man clause. Like One String Sam. He's one. He was a Detroit street musician who played in the fifties on a homemade instrument. His song "I Need a Hundred Dollars" is warm pie. Another key to the church is Hubert Sumlin, Howlin' Wolf's guitar player. He just stands there like the Statue of Liberty-making you want to look up her dress the whole time to see how he's doing it.

8. Don't wipe the sweat off your instrument
You need that stink on there. Then you have to get that stink onto your music.

9. Keep your guitar in a dark place
When you're not playing your guitar, cover it and keep it in a dark place. If you don't play your guitar for more than a day, be sure you put a saucer of water in with it.

10. You gotta have a hood for your engine
Keep that hat on. A hat is a pressure cooker. If you have a roof on your house, the hot air can't escape. Even a lima bean has to have a piece of wet paper around it to make it grow.

Nerds never throw away their Topps cards

2009-03-16T17:08:00.003-05:00

Kona

2009-02-13T13:31:00.000-06:00

Goodbye old friend.

Another Supraluxe Christmas

2008-12-25T01:34:00.007-06:00

The sweetie on the right oughta give you necrophiliacs a boner.

2008-11-29T00:36:00.001-06:00

Why I like Wikipedia

2008-11-12T09:31:00.000-06:00

From the Peanut Butter entry:

"Many people derive amusement from feeding peanut butter to their dog. While most dogs appear to like the taste of peanut butter, they appear to lack the ability to eat it with anything resembling traditional social grace."

The Future Is Now

2008-11-08T00:07:00.003-06:00

Click for full size

Roll Tape

2008-11-02T21:57:00.002-06:00

New Supraluxe sounds are on the way.

I woke up this morning

2008-10-02T12:01:00.002-05:00

with Shandi stuck in my head. That may be the only time anyone has ever uttered those words. I must be regressing.

I cannot believe

2008-08-24T01:53:00.004-05:00

the Mountain Goats are a sincere band. I expect they'll issue a press statement one day to that effect. We'll all have a good laugh and people will pretend they were in on the joke all along.

World's Tallest Woman

2008-08-20T00:53:00.002-05:00

Sandy Allen has died at age 53. She stood 7'7" tall. I knew who she was only by virtue of the Split Enz song Sandy Allen, from Time and Tide. RIP

Oates

2008-08-14T00:43:00.002-05:00

He's Mustachioed.

It's not really happening. Wait, yes it is.

2008-07-04T00:50:00.001-05:00

2008-03-31T00:03:00.001-05:00

New Bees Kiss Ice Cream Cheeks

Tolkien Teenager

2008-03-28T01:17:00.002-05:00

Long Ago

Super Mario Drums

2008-03-21T22:16:00.002-05:00

Super Mario Brothers 2 was a great game, a classic. One of my favorites. An Italian drummer named Andrea Vadrucci apparently likes it too, enough to figure out how to drum to the soundtrack.

Bert and Ernie Go Brutal

2008-02-01T23:31:00.000-06:00

Richard Hawley

2008-01-25T23:55:00.000-06:00

Tonight The Streets Are Ours.

Jim Risser Sings

2008-01-25T23:52:00.000-06:00

Hole in his pocket. Twiddle dee dee.

Genuinely Interesting Dept

2008-01-25T23:50:00.000-06:00

Runnin' With the Devil vocal take, isolated.

Bob gets a new computer

2008-01-17T12:25:00.000-06:00

"It's got 4K of magnetic core memory!" he says excitedly.

2007-12-11T08:27:00.001-06:00

Something new / Something old

2007-10-04T00:01:00.000-05:00

Supraluxe has finally finished construction on the new (yet to be named) studio and we're excited about the next batch of songs. In revisiting some of the material that didn't make it on the last release, we re-discovered Sunday's Not So Bad (there were other shiny happy gems that got orphaned too). It will remain unreleased - we've moved on to new material. Sometimes good stuff is elbowed out by better stuff, but everyone has a couple "C" kids. They all come from the same place though and we love 'em.

The web is a baby

2007-09-20T09:55:00.000-05:00

As ubiquitous as it is and as reliant as we've become on it, it's easy to forget that it is not that old.

Flashback 1986

2007-09-14T15:19:00.000-05:00

Two bands that helped me survive the 80's

Shoes

2007-09-12T00:42:00.000-05:00

The saying is you can tell a lot about a person by their shoes, but there are better indicators. Ex: How someone plays their instrument speaks to their self image and social skills. How they draw faces - 2D, 3D, perspective, angle - tells you how they process and express ideas. And how they say they feel about these is most telling of all. Of course, how or whether we choose to analyze others says something about us.

Panflute

2007-08-23T09:38:00.001-05:00

None of these will be harmed in the making of the new CD

2007-08-21T23:36:00.000-05:00

Unless Jim springs for one.

Let's go

2007-08-21T23:04:00.000-05:00

OK, Jim, Bill and Bob - I'm getting itchy to get ensconced in the new digs with you guys and start committing things to tape. Time's a wasting.

!!!!!!!

2007-08-19T02:05:00.000-05:00

Very Interesting

2007-08-18T13:30:00.000-05:00

Michael Tilson Thomas interviews James Brown. A musician interviewing a musician, so it's not the normal "Remember when you were in the Beatles? That was awesome" stuff.

Link to MTT page

Direct link to interview

.

To wit

2007-08-18T01:30:00.000-05:00

There's nothing unique or original about your self-awareness. Discuss.

Music Lesson

2007-08-18T00:29:00.000-05:00

Thelonious Monk's middle name was Sphere.

We Have Liftoff

2007-08-17T10:49:00.000-05:00

It's a studio! According to Gob, "It looked so nice, I had to buy a new mixer..." Note the attractive Navab Brothers rug.

How bout a Land of Talk vid

2007-08-13T00:35:00.000-05:00

How bout a Land of Talk pic

2007-08-13T00:21:00.000-05:00

Target

2007-08-12T23:06:00.000-05:00

Went to Target tonight for undershirts, and had a little time to kill so I thought I'd see if they have tobacco pipe supplies and accessories. I was pretty sure they wouldn't and I didn't want to waste my time walking around looking, so I approached a not so clean-cut young man wearing the standard uniform, red shirt and tan pants, and inquired about pipes, filters, cleaners, etc. Oh yeah, and I have my kids with me, standing right there beside me. Mr Young Target Employee says (channeling Spicoli) "Oh dude, we don't carry that stuff here - you're gonna want to go to a head shop, and there aren't any around here. Are you familiar with Uptown? Cause there's like a bunch of head shops in Uptown, like the Fetus....(rattles off list) - so I'd try that." I really didn't know what to say - if I correct him then he will feel dumb x2 because he totally misread what I was asking for AND he had just revealed himself as a total stoner. So I didn't, I figured later that night if he thought about it he'd realize he might have said the wrong thing and it would eat at him, maybe even bug the shit out of him. Or if it was me that's what I'd do. So I just said "OK, thanks for the info." "Hey good luck, man." As we walked away my son says "Hey dad, what's so funny?"

Shared

2007-08-10T18:11:00.000-05:00

The Victims

The victims of the 35W bridge collapse were like a representative cross section of Minnesota, and that seems to make the randomness of it more real. It wasn't people I would never meet, and they weren't all from some far off place I don't know anything about. They were us. I think we all share their grief, and I take some comfort in that. I hope they do too.

The Gift

2007-08-10T03:15:00.000-05:00

You can't always tell right away when someone has it - sometimes people get lucky and write one great song - but now and then even a monkey will draw something that looks like a face. Anyway today I heard Breaxxbaxx by Land of Talk on the radio and I really liked it so I picked up their LP Applause Cheer Boo Hiss. And they have it, in gold flashing letters with a cherry on top. What's going on with the Canadians? All the cool music is coming from up north right now.

Pics of the kid

2007-08-06T21:18:00.000-05:00

I know it's like someone showing you too many pictures of their kids, (here he is in the wagon! and isn't he cute with the pudding on his face!) but the Supraluxe studio is nearing completion, and we're excited, and you're going to look at some more damn pictures.

Supraluxe Recommends

2007-08-04T01:28:00.001-05:00

Upturned collars.

Hot Fuzz.

The Collapse

2007-08-01T23:45:00.000-05:00

I have crossed this bridge more times than I can count, from back when I was a prep cook at the Ediner at the Pavilion mall til yesterday. I've always hated it, because the guard rails are so short I felt like I could go flying off. And it was a long way down. Every time I've ever crossed a bridge in my life I've felt a pang of fear that it could collapse. Just one of those irrational fears, like the elevator thing. Just before it fell, at 6:02, I was in my car listening to Richard Hell on the Current, a song I've never heard before. Then I stopped to pick up my son at his martial arts class. I was trying to get him to pack his things and get going - he was talking to some other kids about a Pokemon game for his Nintendo. I stared at a bizarre formless tattoo on the arm of a woman there. Right then......boom. Richard Hell. Tattoo. How many people on that bridge were listening to The Current at that moment? Listening to Richard Hell? Or was it Money Mark, the next song? (I don't know exactly when it collapsed) Have you ever worried that you might die in your car while listening to a song you hate? I have. What a horrible thought - imagine that the last song you hear is by 38 Special. But the thing I take away from this - pay attention. Listen to every sound, absorb every sight, breathe in every scent, live in the moment - you never know which moment will be your last. And please, God, when it's my turn, don't make me die listening to 38 Special.

Keep Moving

2007-08-01T15:09:00.000-05:00

Keep Moving by Ivy has a lovely, satisfying bass part. Adam Schlesinger's tone, the way he locks in with the kick, the spaces between notes.....perfect. It's not a bass "part", it's simply a song component.

They Shoot Horses

2007-08-01T01:13:00.000-05:00

(Don't they?) I suppose the hardest part of growing up is realizing that the much anticipated moment where it all makes sense will never arrive. Dogs, when they get their supper, they're set. I want to be like that.

Goodnight, Tom

2007-07-30T23:21:00.001-05:00

The Studio

2007-07-30T22:51:00.000-05:00

Progress on the new as-yet-unnamed Supraluxe studio is on the march. This will be our home - practice room, studio, and lounge all in one. Note the soft feminine colors.

It was 18 years ago today.....

2007-07-26T19:50:00.001-05:00

Bob was two.

The Hang Ups

2007-07-24T23:49:00.001-05:00

There's no better band from our fair burg than The Hang Ups.

Peter Criss has a new solo album

2007-07-24T23:16:00.000-05:00

It's even worse than the one Paul Stanley did last year. I wanted to like it, I tried really hard, but when I got to the cover of Send In The Clowns my head exploded.

Famous bands with 3 members named Bob

2007-07-22T03:01:00.000-05:00

Flamin' Oh's

Sugarloaf

Now I Know

2007-07-18T23:16:00.000-05:00

what kind of beer Dan Murphy drinks. Not that I was wondering. I love my neighborhood - I've lived here forever - one of the guys from Savage Aural Hotbed lives nearby and you see someone from Soul Asylum at the liquor store. And the place is peppered with people from other not as famous but you might have heard of them bands. Then there's me, jumping up and down cause the Current played one of our songs while I'm staining the garage.

Amy Winehouse

2007-07-17T23:14:00.000-05:00

Is missing the same tooth as me!

I believe I know this guy

2007-07-17T14:16:00.000-05:00

He used to host wake-up-and-get-drunk parties.

It's Friday the 13th

2007-07-13T12:23:00.001-05:00

Don't walk under any ladders.

You can count on

2007-07-09T20:51:00.000-05:00

Forks, spoons and knives. You'll be 90 years old and still use them. I don't think anyone's going to invent anything that will revolutionize the utensil industry. The inventor of the spork probably thought he had something going though.

Fireworks

2007-07-05T22:10:00.000-05:00

Took in the fireworks yesterday, like every year. Haven't missed a fireworks display ever, I don't think. The best thing about them is the satisfying "bang" the big ones make. Crisp, strong, loud, like a cross between a rifle and a kick drum. I wish I could bottle it.
Happy 4th.

A Week

2007-07-04T01:41:00.000-05:00

Bismarck, reunion. Medora, horseback riding. Bismarck again. Home. 21 hours in the car. Ask me about my vacation.

Be the first to review this album

2007-06-21T12:46:00.001-05:00

Why We Live Here, Pt II

2007-06-17T00:24:00.000-05:00

Lake Harriet

Lake Calhoun

The Lake Harriet Bandshell has the best popcorn in. the. world.

last.fm

2007-06-15T11:20:00.000-05:00

last.fm is totally addicting - I'm sorry I ever found it.

Speechless

2007-06-14T18:04:00.000-05:00

I just got Instant Karma - The Amnesty International Campaign To Save Darfur. Jackson Browne does a straight cover of Oh My Love. I started to cry while listening to it - I'm not sure why it brought that to the surface, maybe because it seems so pure? But it was pretty cool to have happen.

Bob the Builder

2007-06-14T09:29:00.001-05:00

Recording studio builder Bob. Building studios. Don't forget the intergrity gasket, Bob.

Anyone else notice?

2007-06-11T21:37:00.000-05:00

Dios Malos, Mando Diao.
White Stripes, Black Keys.
Wolf Parade, Wolfmother, Wolf and Cub.
Coldplay, Snow Patrol.
The Bees, A Band of Bees, The Bird and The Bee, Mouthful of Bees.
Longwave, Rogue Wave.
Cloud Cult, The Cloud Room.
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Starlight Mints, Wondermints.
Elbow, The Shins.
The National, The Grand Nationals.
The Beta Band, VHS or Beta.
Forward Russia!, Somebody Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin.
Update:
Supraluxe, Super Deluxe.

Bald Guy

2007-06-11T00:01:00.000-05:00

When I wrote about being played on Daily Source Code the other day, I was sort of contemplative about it. We've gotten spins on lots of shows, but AJ at Bald Guy Show has stuck with us more than any. Getting played on DSC was like going on a date with miss popularity, but AJ's consistently supported us. I thought about how to say thanks but the words never sounded right so I never posted. Then AJ posts that he's Maakba. I don't even need to say it, you know, you can figure it out. Give him some love.

Kisses

2007-06-10T20:49:00.000-05:00

to Astronaut Wife - a fabulous MN band. I love these guys. When I love someone I want to read about them, but there isn't much about them on the internets. How I wish.....

Camera Phone Camera

2007-06-09T00:43:00.000-05:00

I Has Updating Again

2007-06-08T08:21:00.000-05:00

I wish there was a good easy way to share music with friends, but everything always comes back to burning CDs. I was sorting one of my spindles of CDs the other day and found one that Jim made for me that he called "Rich and Creamy Mix". I forgot I even had it. Jim will make me CDs and he doesn't label the contents so if I like something I have to google the lyrics. Band of Bees, Fruit Bats, Josh Rouse, Sleepy Jackson, Doves, Jose Gonzales, some obscure dude named Elliott Smith, Big Star doing a Big Star cover, and other goodness.

So cool. It was like finding a $100 bill in a jacket pocket.

I Has Updating

2007-06-07T22:24:00.000-05:00

A month or two ago I recommended getting the Vonnegut out. I did, and you'll thank me if you do too. I started with Breakfast of Champions, which I didn't really like as much as I remember liking before. I moved on to Slaughterhouse Five - big improvement. With kids in tow I went to Half Price Books at Miracle Mile and bought Cat's Cradle. I sort of blasted through it up to page 200, then realized that I wasn't paying nearly close enough attention to detail and concepts so I started over from the beginning. Never done that before but it was totally worth it. When I finished that I almost read it another time. I didn't though, I went back to HPB and got the hardcover of A Man Without a Country which I read in one sitting. It was the funniest book of the 4, a collection of ruminations that reads like you're chatting with the author over beers. Order of like: 1) Cat's Cradle, 2) SF and AMWAC tied, and 3) B of C.

Then I decided to give Kurt V a rest and picked up More Pricks Than Kicks by Samuel Beckett. Shocking change of style from KV, much thicker denser reading, lots of going to the dictionary and not understanding the early 20th century literary references. Or something. I like a story about how some guy makes toast as much as the next guy but I think I'm going to put it down now and find something else. Oh, speaking of something else I tried to read Rabbit Run by Updike but I didn't get far. Seems like kind of a routine story about how messed up modern life is, and I, um, know that already? I suppose I like writers who turn reality inside out more than those who just reflect it.

So I'm taking suggestions now. Please leave your number and a brief message after the tone.

Um, wow?

2007-05-25T15:46:00.000-05:00

Run Rabbit Run just got played on the biggest music podcast in the world*.

Adam Curry's Daily Source Code - Show #608

*Last time I checked.

Super Furry Jeans

2007-05-16T23:05:00.000-05:00

Kohls tonight/trying on jeans/dressing room/overhead muzak is Northern Lights by Super Furry Animals/excitedly exit dressing room/unzipped ill-fitting pants/"Shhh Shhh, who is this again, hang on, don't talk, hang on"

This evening's moment of Zen.

Supraluxe Practice

2007-05-10T16:00:00.000-05:00

Jim's there first, w/beard, trimmed. I'm there second, in shorts, shirt. Bob arrives third, pony tail, two beers. Bob's wife drops off more beer. Bill busy, at home. I light Nag Champa. Atmosphere likened to Spencer Gifts. Jim asks if I want to be a quieter band. We sit on stools. There is talking. Lights get dimmed. I cannot remember bass parts, make up new ones. There is singing. I tell Jim he writes good songs. Jim tells me I have muscular calves. There is a break. Bob plays lovely keyboard stylings, very Holiday on Ice. Or something. There is more talking.

That's just the way it is.

Math Lesson

2007-05-08T22:38:00.000-05:00

The 10 mpg 2007 Hummer H2 has a 32 gallon tank. Price of a gallon of gas in Minneapolis today is $3.09. $98.88 to travel 320 miles, or a $1 every 3.24 miles. Just sayin'.

More MN Musik

2007-04-30T22:52:00.000-05:00

Very few "new" "literate" "serious" songwriters are actually original, insightful, or tuneful. Or they're only one or two, seldom all three.

I heard the song "Amygdala" by the Honeydogs on the Current the other day, and liked it so I bought it....

....Back up a step, I've never liked the name "Honeydogs". Not that I thought about it, it's just a visceral thing....

....I immediately had faves and then other songs I didn't like at all. Elan Vital, for instance, sounded like a 10cc knock-off from The Original Soundtrack. As I listened a few more times though, something sort of clicked in my head and I realized that not only wasn't Elan Vital a cheap rip-off, it was a fucking brilliant musical and lyrical statement. All the songs started connecting with me (musically first, that's how I operate), and in short order I came to realize that I was listening to a work of rare musical genius. Heads or Tales, for instance, literally almost reduces me to tears. Yeah I'm a softy. Blow me. I catch myself humming the songs, lots of different ones, to myself. One will get stuck in my craw and I'll have to stop what I'm doing and go put it on. It's that kind of connection.

The lame part, of course, is that I'm just now discovering Adam Levy's songwriting. Here's this freakishly amazing band in my home town and I never gave them a chance because I didn't like their name. Sheesh.