Ariel Bitran
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Nick Drake's Mama.
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 28, 2013 • 10 comments
I would be ashamed of myself if I did not share this with you.
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Remix: Soft Pink Truth do "Aetheric Vehicle" by Matmos
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 22, 2013 • 3 comments

Have you heard enough about Matmos from the Stereophile boys yet? Probably. Truth be told, upon first listen I didn't really like their new record The Marriage of True Minds. I found it aimless (I prefer music with intent), but I'll let Stephen tell you how he grew to love it in our upcoming April issue. Meanwhile, this remix has me thinking I should give the record another listen.

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Cats and Audio
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 20, 2013 • 21 comments
No, this will not be another monologue where I profess my undying love for Larry, our house cat, the furry little monster with a taste for human flesh and a weird fascination with the refrigerator. Larry is a music lover too. Ever since he was a kitten, we surrounded him with the sounds of Yes, Flying Lotus, and Dvorak, and now his long legs fumble into any room where music is playing. Larry will then sprawl himself out, close his eyes, and listen along.

Alright. I've broken my promise already by talking too much about Larry.

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Released Today: Lady Lamb the Beekeeper’s Ripely Pine
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 19, 2013 • 3 comments
On her debut album Ripely Pine, Lady Lamb the Beekeeper delivers a wandering collection of fantastical folk-pop songs with whimsical lyrics about love enveloped by orchestral arrangements rewarding the listener with an assortment of tones and a praise-worthy use of space.
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Stream: Krieg Und Frieden by Apparat
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 15, 2013 • 0 comments
It opens in a field or maybe an orchestra house. Pastoral and slow-moving strings set the stage. Written as a musical accompaniment to Sebastian Hartmann’s theater adaptation of Tolstoy’s War and Peace, Apparat’s Krieg Und Frieden is desolate yet tinged with reflection and hope, like Wyeth’s Christina’s World or the ending to a Kurosawa film. Harmonies in continuous ascent intersect with subdued blasts of air and dirt. The occasional soulful vocal provides a lyrical back-story to the desolation: “Deserted hopes / Deserted eyes / Deserted souls / Deserted lies,” and then an alternative, “Turn a light on, Turn a light on.” Like Tolstoy’s work, the listener is never sure if the music is about suffering or the triumph within the pain.
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X-Men in High Fidelity #2: Break on Through
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 14, 2013 • 4 comments
In the second installation of this series, the Beast invites Wolverine to his listening room.
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Live at the Lab: Gem Trails "Adobada" Lathe Cut EP
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 11, 2013 • 1 comments
I'm running sound at a new DIY venue in Brooklyn called The LAB, and I snag some weird stuff. Here's a sample…

*******

Trevor Peterson arrived with a guitar and a bevy of pedals and samplers. With the help of adaptable computer music softwares like Ableton and Logic and popular hardware like the Roland SP-404SX or the Akai APC40, the combinations of technologies passing through the Lab morphs constantly.

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Beets
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 08, 2013 • 12 comments
Photo created by reddit user will_evans10199

This morning, I revisited Stereophile's office sample of Beats Studio headphones ($299.95).

At one point, my naive ears loved these headphones.

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Hot Off the Presses: 1000 Copies of Stereophile Test CD 1
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 07, 2013 • 13 comments
Stereophile's Assistant Editor Stephen Mejias models the fresh produce

Are you curious to hear J. Gordon Holt's lecture on "Why Hi-Fi Experts Disagree"? Maybe you are yearning for Sam Tellig, the "Audio Anarchist" as identified in the liner notes, to whisper sweet nothings into your ear with his radio-friendly baritone while checking a 1kHz reference tone at –20dB. Or how would you like a dog named Ralph to howl at you while configuring your left and right speakers? All this and more can be found on Stereophile's Test CD 1, now available in the Stereophile eCommerce Store.

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FujiFilm Develops Ultra-Thin Electroacoustic Film
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Feb 06, 2013 • 3 comments

Woah.

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Innovative Audio Presents the Lamm LP1 Signature Phono Preamp
Ariel Bitran, News
Ariel Bitran • Jan 31, 2013 • 1 comments
Vladmir Lamm flips the record. The LP1 is on the top of the shelf to his left.

On Wednesday January 29th, 2013, Innovative Audio Video Showrooms hosted the NYC premier of the Lamm LP1 Signature phono preamplifier ($32,790).

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Live at The Lab: Kashka
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Jan 05, 2013 • 3 comments
I'm running sound at a new DIY venue in Brooklyn called The LAB, and occasionally I snag some good tunes. Here's a sample…

*******

Kashka is a Canadian synth-pop duo formed by vocalist/lyricist Kat Burns and synth programmer and multi-instrumentalist James Bunton. The pair arrived by way of Toronto with stacks of keyboards, drum machines, and a laptop. After a show of reverb-drenched harmonies and airy synth patches, Kat handed me a purple colored tape of their most recent album Vichada. A tape? I didn't quite understand.

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Video: "Sweet Dreams" by Angel Olsen
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Jan 04, 2013 • 4 comments

Her voice aches like a memory.

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Music Has No Borders
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Jan 04, 2013 • 3 comments
“Dude, I have a huge stack of records you should probably take a look at, tons from Tía Viví, Dad, Mom, and Bobe. There’s probably some stuff in there you can take with you,” Alberto advised.

“It’s fine bro. We’re gonna go record shopping on Saturday.”

“Dude. Just look!”

“I’m good for now. Trust me.”

My brother should not have tickled the monster’s belly.

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GigFi - Listen to Who's Playing Near You
Ariel Bitran
Ariel Bitran • Dec 14, 2012 • 0 comments
I've already admitted I have a live music problem, OK? I don't need something awesome like GigFi making my addiction worse. Much much worse.
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