via flickr.com

[Positano, Italy]

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Flight Facilities - Foreign Language

La discotheque?  There is seriously something in that vegemite that makes some awesome music.

Flight Facilities - Foreign Language (feat. Jess) by future classic

Darwin Deez - DNA

Please provide space for head bopping.

Darwin Deez - DNA by LuckyNumberMusic

Alex Winston

Deliciously quirky.

Alex Winston - Velvet Elvis by AlexWinstonOfficial

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It's not my fault.  I've only been absent one week, tis your perception of time that is a wee bit off.  The Mad King was murdered so I had to go deal with that for a bit.  Don't worry I left before the war started between the North and the South.  I also needed to help set up Troy and Abed in the Morning---their production budget is a bit low.

I return from far and wide, from low and high and I bring back two songs on separate ends of the emotional spectrum.  The first is from Of Monsters and Men an Icelandic band that broke out with "Little Talks" earlier this year.  It always amazes me how well foreign bands can sing in English--it makes me want to try to croon out some German songs to a special Elizabeth Lemon.  I don't have a particular song in mind, but I'm sure it would involve Krapfen! and köstliches Frühstück!  I think Little Talks is great, but the following song is just so beautifully arranged and entrancing.  The song doesn't have a name yet, and the video frankly doesn't have enough views yet.  It deserves much much more.  By the by, viewing it in HD makes a world of difference.

Of Monsters and Men - Untitled

Martin Solveig - Can't Stop

The more I hear from Monsieur Solveig, the more I like him.  He creates electronic music that's not "EDM" in the traditional sense--as if there was a traditional sense of it.  It's less trance, less house and more electro-rock, electro-pop, with some tracings of dubstep.  The energy is vibrant and full and amazingly, he uses half-beats! The genius!  I appreciate how each song on his album, Smash, has a unique sound to it.  He isn't afraid to venture to different styles.  And because of that, he's quickly becoming one of those producers that I want to sniff/lick every song that they create.

04_Can't_Stop.m4a Listen on Posterous

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02_Under_Cover_Of_Darkness.mp3 Listen on Posterous

The Strokes - Under Cover of the Darkness

Even with such a distinct sound as the Strokes have--with their catchy bass lines, and sustained poppy electro-guitar notes-- who would they be without Julian Casablancas?  It's unfortunate for the other band members but Julian is The Strokes.  Just like Bono is U2.  Voices can define a band as much as the music beneath them.  Sidenote: Danger mouse is going to be producing U2's upcoming album.  

Julian has a raspy whine to his voice that when described that way should bring up images of Janice from Friends and make you run far far away from his music.  But you don't.  He even does the opposite and lulls you in with his note hanging and deliberate nonchalance.  When I listen to The Strokes I can almost visualize his voice lifted above the music.  Its distinct enough to create spatial separation from something we can't even observe the space of. I think there are very few "pure" singers that end up being stars or even mildly successful indie acts.  Even the classic "crooners" from yesteryear like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin had at-par voices.  They weren't fantastically good, but they were fantastically unique.  

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Martin Solveig ft. Kele - Ready 2 Go

Upon first impression, Kele from Bloc Party definitely had one of the oddest voices I've heard.  It's blatantly British, not exactly what you would consider smooth/sultry and sort of sounds like he has a fat tongue.  But he hits his notes and that's all that matters.  Again his uniqueness shines and his voice is different enough to be interesting but on point enough to be a lead singer for a band.

Martin Solveig does a great job of what I'll call "subtle" dubstep.  He reels in dubstep from the radical and really dischordant noise that a lot of producers put out.  He places a wobble here or there to add to the harmony of sound as opposed to letting it run wild in an isolation play.  I'd liken a lot of the "experimentation" with dubstep that we hear to picking up a guitar and strumming your fingers raw.  My niece does that--and the practice is only allowed if you're at least 1/2 as cute as she is.  Good luck on that front DJs.

I'll_Try_Anything_Once_(You_Only_Liv.mp3 Listen on Posterous

Julian Casablancas - I'll Try Anything Once [You only live once demo]

PS means PLUS SOUND.  Here is a PS.  I owe you guys because I skipped out on last week =(.  You may have heard this song from the advert for Somewhere by Sophia Coppola.  It also may have seduced you into watching the movie.  If you haven't and it hasn't then don't bother.  Listen to this song 30x instead and get more value for your time.

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I_Choose_Me.mp3 Listen on Posterous

Kai - I choose me.

Cue the sunshine, cue the birds, cue the kids rolling in the grass, cue the laughter, cue the joy.  Just broke-up?  Lost that job?  Turn this on and turn on your unabashedly adorable swagger.  

This song simply exudes excitement and confidence about life.  The kazoo has a lot to do with it.  I mean, it's called a KAZOO.  The word sounds fun, so IT better sound fun.  I get vibes of Kate Nash's voice/lyrics meets Lily Allen's music.  And the Lily Allen song that I'm thinking about is LDN.

http://www.collectionsofkai.com/

http://twitter.com/kaieleven11

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kai/134353036621946

Don't_Think_That_I_Can_Stay.mp3 Listen on Posterous

Chic Gamine - Don't think that I can stay.

A bonus for you is this song from Chic Gamine.  It demanded to be included on this Canadian edition of Melody Mondays.  "Don't think that I can stay" is structured like a marching anthem.  There's a background of soft rolling snare drums and a crescendo of horns.  Perhaps this is too create the image of the singer marching away from battle with an ex-lover?  Or is that reading too much into things.  Regardless, Chic Gamine's voices are pure and mesmerizing and the snare drums bring me back to my elementary school days when I would lug around a snare drum over my 90 lb frame and march for miles.  Miles, I say!  That should not have been allowed.

http://www.chicgamine.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chic-Gamine/8226377727

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Rolling_in_the_Deep_(feat._Childish.mp3 Listen on Posterous

dele - Rolling in the Deep [Remixed by Jamie xx ft. Childish Gambino]

Nothing has been dominating my playlist lately.  Which is why this post is coming a bit late.  For the life of this blog, I don't think I've ever posted a hip-hop/rap song.  Check.    I figured I would mix it up and use this as an excuse to talk about one of my favorite entertainers du jour.  I'm biased towards the cast behind this song, who could do a stand up job filling in as the Avengers for me.  Adele has a powerful, British voice with a lot of range.  Jamie is half of the duo The xx who happened to release one of my favorite albums of 2009.  And Childish Gambino is Donald Glover.  Yup, TROY from Community and Quipble fame.  Here and here.  This song is mainly Adele, but this post is about Donald.

I think of Donald's rapper alter ego, Childish Gambino, as a Lupe light.  I can tell that he's intelligent enough to write pun filled clever rhymes and deliver them on point, but he comes off as a little rough sometimes.

He is officially billed as writer/actor/comedian/musician.  During and post college [yes I said during] he was a writer on 30 Rock, then began acting on Community and started doing standup as a side-gig.  Sheesh.  He has officially been placed on my "I will consume everything you create" list.  So far the score is:

• early seasons of 30 Rock - hilarious
• Community - hilarious
• stand up - funny enough to enjoy
• Childish Gambino - good and on the rise

Donald is going to be on an IAMDONALD tour doing stand-up and music all in one.  Think Conan's comedy tour, but you know, way way different.  If you're interested you better go get your tickets here.  I tried earlier today and his LA show was all sold out.

This just wouldnt be Quipble without me sneaking in one of my favorite scenes from Community [Season 2 - Episode 2].  I call it "Annie discovers chloroform."

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Dear Google's social overlords,

Google +1 sounds interesting, but who am I doing this for?  Currently +1 only links to my "Google Profile."  No one looks at Google Profiles.  I wasn't completely sure how to even access mine.  I managed to find it quickly in the top toolbar across Google/Gmail, but I had to go searching nonetheless.  It is still non-obvious.  

Because no one looks at these profiles, I have no reason to share, and because I do not share, no one will look at my profile.  It's a classic chicken or the egg scenario.  Even beyond that, I and many others will question the point of sharing via +1 when everyone I know is already on Facebook.

Don't make the next Zune

Don't attack existing markets with high quality alternatives.  Alternatives need compelling forces to alter behavior and existing usage.  Case in point: the Zune.  Microsoft's Zune was a fantastic mp3 player.  By generation 2 and definitely by Zune HD I would argue that it was the best mp3 player on the market.  It's too bad that 1) mp3 players were already passe 2) most mp3 consumers were previous iPod owners and were deeply ingrained into the Apple ecosystem.  It's not enough to be comparable in an existing state of the market, because while you spent all that effort being comparable, the big and young guns were thinking about what's next, and you'll find yourself playing catch up all over again.

VCs love to abuse the phrase "skate to where the puck is going, not where it is."  I don't know why they chose this phrase to express this idea.  I thought only Canadians and Detroit/Colorado/Cornell cared about hockey?  The "lead pass" is a common principle to almost all team sports.  As the thrower, you lead the receiver by throwing the [ball] to where s/he is going.  As the receiver you run to where the ball is going to be, you don't stay where you are.  Basically, stay ahead of the curve, be a thought leader, and be a visionary.  Easy stuff.

The reason this ideology is apt is because the web evolves so rapidly.  In the web, invention doesn't just mean new ideas, it means new ideas replacing old ones.  It means the supplanting of paradigms.  Creative destruction is woven into the heart of the web.  Value destruction is just as defining of a characteristic as value creation.  By golly, that's exactly why Google is taking social so seriously.

So where is social going?

I repeat, Social wants to be Mobile.

The mobile web and the regular web aren't very compatible.  The mobile web loads slower, yes, but it is technically smarter.  It understands orientation, proximity and location and it can "see" and capture the world through images and video.  And the big difference in interaction is that almost all of the mobile web is tangible [or at least is going to be, and that's what we're doing, remember?  We are visionaries].  All of that loveliness that Apple orates to you about the iPad/iPhone can be applied to the mobile web.  It's where technology gets out of the way, and you can just interact.  Less friction, more social.

Luckily, you share custody of mobile.

If I were in your position and had the soon to be largest mobile OS in the world, I would absolutely take advantage of it.  Your social effort should be deeply integrated into Android.  When I say take advantage of Android, I do not mean just pre-install an app like Latitude or Places.  Social should be a part of Android itself.  

Android has a wonderful notification system that can be used to push all of these social notifications to users.  Each Android phone is already linked to a google account so everything would already be unified.  

The next big social effort should appreciate the beauty that is the mobile web.  And should you Google social overlords decide to embark on the next big social effort, then that responsibility is yours.

If you're serious about her, then get exclusive.

You have so many services that are disparately social.  Time to merge them all.  Don't flirt around with a million different non-compatible implementations of social.

Google Reader, Calendar, Contacts are all examples of your products that contain social elements, that I would claim never took off socially.  You can star things and share things in Reader but you can't +1? You can share notes in Reader, but you can't Buzz? It's all confusing and it's all disorganized.  If you're seriously tying company wide bonuses into this next social effort, then this "next social" should be a part of all of Google.  Actually that's not the reason that it should be.  It should be because having different concepts of social is unsightly.  Please make my web experience more beautiful.

Create a social experience worth sharing.

Social doesn't just mean being able to share.  Social means wanting to share that you are sharing.  It has to suck users in.  It has to provide enough utility when used by a few, but become decidedly surreal when used by many.  

What I think this means is concentrating on a few or even ONE specific thing that you do amazingly well.  All the "likes" or "+1s" and data collection comes later.  Being tracked online is the consequence that users accept, it's not what drives them to be social.  Facebook did this exceptionally well with sharing photos, and Twitter with tracking celebrities.  Find a niche, suck us in, and have a ball with our data once we're there.

Let's recap shall we:

• Social wants to be mobile.
• Luckily you have Android.
• If you're serious about social, then get exclusive.
• Create a social experience worth sharing.

Broad strokes, I know.  Stay with me, Larry.  More specific ideas will follow.

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Wikipedia says NewVillager is a "multi-media" duo, half from San Francisco and half from New York.  You're not familiar with the term multi-media?  I pity you and empathasize all the same.  NewVillager is more than just music, they create "music, drawings, animations, performances, films, lectures, books and writings."

This schizophrenia of interests manages to leak out on the pre-release single "LightHouse."  It's a wonderful menagerie of sounds.  The song has loads of energy and is the type of song that sounds "full" even on bass-deficient speakers.  It's currently occupying the space for 2011's version of Grizzly Bear - Two Weeks.  Quirky, catchy and fun.  Actually, "LightHouse" is better than "Two Weeks."  The roles are now reversed, "Two Weeks" is the 2009 version of "LightHouse."  If I had to sum it up in one word it would be: whimsical.  If I had to use two, it would be: melodically whimsical.  Which is perfect, because it's Melody Mondays.  Enjoy.

NewVillager - LightHouse

NewVillager_-_LightHouse.mp3 Listen on Posterous

http://newvillager.com/

http://www.facebook.com/BlackCrowBoy

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Hello The Naked and the Famous.  Hello New Zealand.  Hello fresh, emotive music.  

The Naked and the Famous are a relatively new band and definitely on the rise.  They mix electronic, with rock, with some interspersed harsher garage-y sounds.  You may have heard one of their stand out tracks ["Young Blood" and "Punching in a Dream"] on Chuck [YES] or Gossip Girl or Skins UK.  Their songs tend to be used in those dramatic scenes where there is minimal dialogue and maximum expression.  Their songs bleed expression.  Their album, "Passive Me Agressive You," although not jam packed with hits, was a pleasure to explore.  I have the feeling that they're the type of band that will evolve in dramatic fashion and I already want to hear what's next.  Not because I tire of the current selection, but because I just want more.

My personal favorite from the album is "Girls Like You."  I've listened to this song enough to know exactly how it progresses, yet the progression always enthralls me.  The lyrics absent of a melody and a voice are good but not great, but the delivery of them is meticulous and striking.  I don't know why, but the song begs me to listen to it in a large room with the volume up high.  Crisp and full acoustics aren't enough.  I need to feel the space between myself and the sound.

The Naked and the Famous - Girls Like You

13_Girls_Like_You.mp3 Listen on Posterous

I demand that you visit KCRW Presents: The Naked and the Famous. The Naked and the Famous stopped by the Santa Monica NPR station to perform a live set of SEVEN of their songs.  Full video and audio is courteously provided by LA's own public radio station.  By the by, they are going to be in Los Angeles at the Echo[plex] on April 8-9.  Tickets are only $13.  LA wins.

PS. Thanks to Julius from down under for the introduction.

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Especially from laughing your pants off.

EDIT.  In preparation for when Hulu takes that down, and for my international viewers, I found a YouTube version.

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*Read this for more insight into the massive amount raised: http://techcrunch.com/2011/03/24/color/
*An important distinction is that $7 million of the $41 million is venture debt from Silicon Valley Bank.  This makes me think that the team didn't raise an overinflated round and actually has distinct plans to put all this money to use soon.  Although, putting money to use doesn't mean much in the end--I'm looking at you, Webvan.

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When The Knocks came out with "Dancing With the DJ" last year, it was the perfect summer jam.  It was upbeat and catchy electropop with dead simple to memorize lyrics.  Then came along the Jesse Marco remix of the song which felt like a very natural extension of the original.  It was "Dancing With the DJ" just with a greater emphasis on the d-a-n-c-i-n-g.  The latest spin lets an acoustic guitar fill in for the electronic ensemble.  Lesson about me: I am a sucker for acoustic songs.  Even better are live acoustic performances.  I do wish that the acoustic was paced a little faster at the beginning, but I guess I'll have to make my own rendition for that.  Do tell if you or someone you know has a pure silken female voice.  A guitarist would also help.  I think I can man the hand drums by myself.

The Knocks - Dancing With the DJ

Dancing_With_The_Dj.mp3 Listen on Posterous

The Knocks - Dancing With the DJ (Jesse Marco House Remix)

Dancing_With_The_DJ_(Jesse_Marco_Rem.mp3 Listen on Posterous

The Knocks - Dancing With the DJ (Campfire Acoustic)

Dancing_With_The_Dj_(Campfire_Acoust.mp3 Listen on Posterous

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via etsy.com

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The first time Peter Bjorn and John burst onto the scene I could not get "Young Folks" out of my head for the life of me.  It was partially my own fault, as it was my cell phone ring tone and [unfortunately] my alarm.  The intro was everything I wanted in a ring tone, high pitched, catchy and attention grabbing.  Young Folks suffered from the the too catchy for its own good syndrome, and I quickly began to loathe its existence.  [By the by, I love the way you have to hang on the "th" in loathe.  It really puts the loathing in loathe.  So much so that it should almost qualify as an onomatopoeia.] 

This song might be my 2011 first quarter MVP.  

Let's be punny shall we? With this song, I'm going to have to give Peter Bjorn and John a [wait for it, for just a...] Second Chance.  Again, the song is infectiously alluring.  Thankfully though this time its due primarily to the rhythm/primary melody and not a bird whistling in the background.  For some reason this song takes me straight back to the 60s and England.  There's something very Beatle-esque about it that completely wins me over.  Note: I've never actually been to either the 60s or England but just trust me on this one.

Peter Bjorn and John - Second Chance

Peter_Bjorn_and_John-Second_Chance.mp3 Listen on Posterous

A bonus for you is a preview of Avicii - ID.  I'm a bit apprehensive to listen to the full version because the rhythm that hits at 0:33 is golden.  I'm usually not one to provide you guys with the latest and greatest but when the full song comes out I'll be sure to have a special midweek music post.  While we're on the topic, if anyone out there [who?] wants to send me early releases of their songs so that I can blog about it just tweet me @brianqpham and link to the Soundcloud/Youtube/Facebook/etc. location of it.

Avicii - ID

2647ID_HQ_Rip.mp3 Listen on Posterous

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See the full gallery on Posterous

via mymodernmet.com

03_Married_Life.mp3 Listen on Posterous

I was really excited about this week's Melody Monday.  I knew exactly what I wanted to post since last week and was eagerly waiting to share one of my favorite songs of the year.  But then I saw that house.  With those balloons.  

And only one melody played in this head.  It is lovely indeed.

The very unclimatic footage of lift-off.  It's not the same without the music.

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via homedsgn.com

What is it about tall, aged, raw brick walls that allures me so? They somehow manage to convey a cold industrial pragmatism simultaneously with a warm rusticity. But it is definitely more than that.

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The consumer web is making a comeback in a big way.  So much so that the storied venture capital firm KPCB (Kleiner Perkins Caulfield and Byers) has specifically allocated portions of its war chest to the sFund (dedicated to social startups) and iFund (dedicated to mobile startups).  Social and mobile are the two "next big things" in the consumer web.  And guess what, they aren't distinct.

What does social even mean?  Social at its core is simply communication.  But, we can further segment that by differentiating between pure communication and contextualized communication.  If you were curious, these are terms that I made up.

Pure communication is what happens when you call someone, text them, or message them.  Only words are exchanged.

Contextualized communication is communicating around a certain external concept.  In 2011 layman terms, I'm referring to "sharing."  By sharing a video/picture/link with you I'm communicating without the need for words. 

Ironically, in terms of human evolution, contextualized communication came before pure communication via grunts, and throwing sticks at each other, and literal, physical poking.  Language came second.  The web reversed that bit.

Pure communication wants to be mobile.

This is no surprise.  We don't want to be constricted in our communication with people.  This is why we have phones as our dedicated communication devices and computers that just happen to be able to communicate.  But even making a phone call is often avoided in favor of sending a text instead.

Phone calls and emails bring with them formalities that will oppose the flow of communication.  Communication is just that, a flowing exchange of ideas.  Emails and phone calls, through no fault of their own, introduce friction that makes it harder to communicate.  Emails have subject lines, greetings, farewells, and signatures.  Phone calls bring an expectation to express more than just one idea.

Pure communication wants to be free and it wants to be mobile.  Texting was a great solution, for its time, but costs are relatively exorbitant, character limits are simply limiting and delivery of texts are often slow.  For these reasons and more, numerous services [GroupMe, Kik, Beluga, Text+, WhatsApp, BBM] have emerged to solve this problem.

Contextualized communication wants to be mobile.

By definition, we can only share what we experience/consume.  Let's arbitrarily separate our consumption into 1) real life consumption and 2) digital consumption.

Already, smartphones have provided a mechanism to communicate our real life consumption.  Smartphones have become the most ubiquitous digital cameras in our lives.  Since they are always connected, they allow us to capture and share immediately. 

The introduction of the tablet will completely revolutionize our digital consumption patterns.  These are devices that are specifically tailored for consumption and media is slowly but surely being create specifically for them.

As we are increasingly consuming the physical and digital world via mobile devices, it's clear that sharing should also take place via these devices.  And fittingly, we will then consume on mobile devices much of what people share via mobile devices.

Both component aspects of being social have clear motivations to become mobile.  Pure communication wants to be mobile because of the freedom and the frictionless exchange of ideas.  Contextualized communication wants to be mobile because we share what we consume, and our consumption is mobile.  In conclusion, social wants to be mobile.

For those that think that Facebook won the social networking wars, you're absolutely right.  They did.  But the old construct of social networking is already getting dated.  Social wants to be mobile.  This next game is just getting started--though Facebook is starting with a huge advantage.

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