Category Archives: Music

20/20 or Sex Ray?

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Count on the West Coast to turn out an Asian/South Asian pop dance remix duo for today’s #MusicMonday.(h/t Ennis. Seriously.)

Sex Ray Vision is a pop/dance band out of Stanford University. The group consists of two computer science majors at Stanford, producer Ravi Parikh and vocalist/songwriter Brian Yoo. They’ve been making music for over a year ever since they met as roommates with a goal of getting you to dance through the power of catchy pop hooks and hot beats. [freshnewtracks]

The songs are fresh sounding, rich with youthful fun and has this electro-pop production with an autotuned 80s music feel. You can listen and download their mixtape Sextape Vol. 1 off their soundcloud (below) for FREE and, according to their website SexRayVisionMusic.com, they’re dropping a new song every week. “Need Someone” has got to be the catchiest song in this mix but I simply can’t get “Under the Moonlight” out of my head.

Sextape Vol. 1 – Get Down by sexrayvision

Shucks, I wish I could get autotuned. Everything sounds better autotuned. Continue reading →

Friday: Clarence Jey’s Day

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In the immortal words of earnest autotween singer Rebecca Black, “Yesterday was Thursday, Thursday…Today is Friday, Friday…Tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday comes afterwards.” The viral video sensation “Friday” produced by Ark Music Factory hit YouTube two months ago, and since then the video has received over one hundred million views and broken into the top track lists on Billboard and iTunes. The SF Chronicle’s Asian Pop columnist Jeff Yang interviewed Sri Lanka-born composer and Ark Music Factory cofounder Clarence Jey, who co-wrote and produced “Friday,” to find out more about this guy behind the song and his thoughts on pop music. Continue reading →

Rollin’ with the Bhangra Queen

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Meena’s news post shares the info that popular DJ and repeat White House guest Rekha Malhotra will perform live at the White House’s largest annual event, the Easter Egg Roll. The event’s theme this year is “Get Up and Go!” promoting health and wellness and encouraging kids to be healthy and active as part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative to combat childhood obesity. DJ Rekha will be on the Ellipse with other musical performers, bringing her blend of bhangra and hip-hop beats to get people moving.
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Desis Rap to Hip Hop Beats

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Hip Hop Desis.jpgWhile meandering through City Lights Bookstore late last year, I recognized a face on the cover of a book. This never happens. Especially in the Asian American Studies section of the bookstore. It was the one and only Chee Malabar posturing on the cover of Hip Hop Desi: South Asian Americans, Blackness, and a Global Race Consciousness (Refiguring American Music) written by Nitasha Tamar Sharma. Though I didn’t buy the book, a quick glance at the pages revealed a few familiar names, from Rukus Avenue to D’Lo to some other names I didn’t recognize. I stumbled across another book recently also covering the Desi hip hop scene. (Is this a trend?) Desi Rap: Hip Hop and South Asian America is a collection of essays by people from the scene and edited by Ajay Nair and Murali Balaji. With essays by Vijay Prashad, Sunaina Maira, the1shanti and DJ Rekha, this is a book on the top of my must read list right now. And of course, Chee Malabar also contributed an essay to this book.

Which leads me today’s #MusicMonday – a remix leaked by Chee Malabar. He is back in the studio, working on a forthcoming album scheduled to come out late this year. Orange Suit Theory is a remix of the Jay Electronica beat found through this link. But in my opinion, Chee’s remix is done so much better and throws a political spin to the bling-ified chest thumping original lyrics. Plus, Chee used “macaca”. Extra points for that. Get your free download below.

If this song reflects Chee’s progression as a hip hop artist, I can’t wait for the new album to drop.

I’d also love to hear from readers who have read Hip Hop Desi or Desi Rap and get a review. Are there any other similarly themed books out there as well? Continue reading →

Take Five: Sachal Studios-Style

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You know how I like the jazz… Above, a Lahore-based wonder currently going viral (h/t Frederick N., who sent to a list I’m subscribed to). I love the above, as I love the original. What a great synthesis of tabla, sitar, guitar, strings… My favorite parts: the guitar stuff around the two-minute mark, plus the sitar on the main melody. Continue reading →

Chaal with Baraat

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red baraat.jpgGet up. Get up out of your office chair. Ready? Now get ready to move your butt and shock your cubicle mate. Today’s #MusicMonday comes from Red Baraat and I double dare you to listen to this song without dancing. it’s impossible. And it’s free to download!

This song is just one of many live tracks on an EP the band is dropping very very soon. I’m a big fan of Red Baraat and interviewed Sonny and Sunny after the release of their first album. I’ve never seen them perform before and am itching for them to come tour out to the West Coast. After watching this clip, it’s hard not to want to see them.

Folks in Louisiana,Texas and Canada though are in luck – the band starts their summer tours next month, traversing the dirty South and Canada, aye. Check out their site for the latest tour dates and be sure to visit their bandcamp for the release of their latest live EP.

Baile, baile! Continue reading →

Brimful of Music from Cornershop

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Guess who is back? Cornershop. And this time they are back with a brimful of music for today’s #MusicMonday.

The song above is United Provinces of India (hmm, India’s anthem in light of the cricket win?) and is my favorite out of their latest. A couple of weeks ago, Cornershop released their 8th album Cornershop and the Double “O” Groove Of. Six years in the making, the album came together when the band met unrecorded Punjabi singer Bubbly Kaur. They were inspired. Her voice lilts through the entire album, acting as a consistent thread in an eclectic mix of music. This album maintains the unique Cornershop Brit-pop flavor and has pushed the envelope on redefining the ‘fusion’ genre while keeping it fresh and new. You can get the album now directly from the band’s online store right here.

Interested in a free download off of their latest album? Check out the link below!

It’s a comeback for Cornershop – for people that have heard their recent songs, what do you think? Continue reading →

Batting Lashes for Strangelove

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I may be just sliding by with slipping you a #MusicMonday tune at 11:45pm Pacific Standard Time on this Monday night, but I came across this song at the last minute that just had to be shared.

BAT FOR LASHES – STRANGELOVE by Gucci Guilty

The gorgeous Natasha Khan from Bats for Lashes (whom we’ve written about here) just tweeted about her upcoming tour in Australia, which is how I stumbled across the song above. A cover of Depeche Mode’s Strangelove, the song was created for the Gucci Guilty for Him perfume campaign. I usually am not a fan of songs that are created for products but my love for Depeche Mode covers outweighs whatever dislike I may hold. And she’s just so pretty sounding. The cover is ethereal, and reminds me of White Hinterland.

I’m always on the hunt for new songs for #MusicMonday. Keep me posted – if you have a song or an artist that should be featured on a future #MusicMonday, get at me! Continue reading →

Sanjaya returns to the stage

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Good news, American Idol fans! Sanjaya Malakar, Sepia Mutiny’s all–time favorite contestant, is back. Sanjaya, a 2007 Idol finalist, is currently starring in the off-Broadway musical Freckleface Strawberry. Based on actress Julianne Moore’s children’s book of the same name, the play follows the title character and her friends as she learns how to accept her freckles and individuality. Sanjaya plays Danny, a friendly athlete who is one of Freckleface’s closest friends.

“This is the first time I’ve done professional theater,” said Sanjaya when we recently spoke over the phone. “I love the challenge of really taking on a character.”

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