Penguin Prison - The Heat

"And don't you get freaked out / when the voices get loud"

When the groove hits and all else fails, you just go with it. I've been a fan of Penguin Prison for a very long time and he's not let me down yet and this new single proves no different than his previous releases. It's funky and it's cool and it's just got his signature all over it. It's a pretty rad song that just has you bobbing along the entire way through. I think he's got an amazing point of view and a pretty spectacular way of creating music that the world needs more of. This is an incredibly fun track and I'm glad we have new material from him.

To me this song is all about not sweating the small stuff cause in the grand scheme of things, it's all small stuff and despite your best efforts it's all gonna cycle back through. So you take time to take care of yourself and you make sure you're getting enough rest and living your life the best way you can. We don't spend enough time within our own self care and that can be problematic. Music is one of the best ways to take care of all that ails you and when it's music that's this good, it's not a problem to just sit back and let it do what it needs to do.

Penguin Prison - Golden Train

Never ever going to turn down a video from Penguin Prison.  And this official video for "Golden Train" is here.  This man has a groove that is so inherent in everything he does, it's not funny.  This is one of my favorite tracks off his 2011 debut release.  It's just a funky dance track that builds into this amazing party in of itself.  It has a fantastic beginning, middle and end and is done right.  There aren't many artists out there that can do what he does in the confines of 4 minutes or less.  I've talked about how amazing he is and how cool his music is in the past.  And as much as I appreciate this video, what I would LOVE to hear from him is new material.  This track has been bouncing around for a while now and a new album or EP would be incredible.

Top 25 Musical Happenings of 2011

Last year I made a list of the top 25 different things in the music industry that made me stand up and take notice and I feel like I should keep the tradition going.  I don't really like picking strictly albums or singles because I don't think that's representative of what's happened in the industry.  I want to do more as far as live music next year so that I can post more about concerts so that's in my plans.  This blog has been a great part of my life and it's allowed me to hear music I might have never heard in the first place and I hope that you are able to learn about new artists as well from this blog.  If you've been reading my blog, you know I can be all over the place and this list is no different.  These aren't just albums or singles or anything in particular, just things that were pretty amazing.  Music is a super important piece of my life and I hope it's part of yours as well.

Penguin Prison - Penguin Prison

There are times when you can just sit back and trust an artist.  It's these times when you don't mind turning all control over to them and letting them do what they do best.  I wish these moments came more often but when they do happen, you cherish them because they are all the more special.  As corny as those two sentences are, when talking about the debut album from Penguin Prison, every word is true.  He knows what he's doing and there aren't many people that can work their way around a synthesizer like he can.  Chris Glover grew up on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and had some pretty diverse musical influences ranging from Johnny Cash to Aaron Neville.  Being in New York City, he was influenced by the city and the culture and everyone around him.

Those influences have made a huge impact in his musical career and you can hear them coming through in his music.  Over the past handful of years, he has been releasing single after single and finally has compiled them all into an amazing album that is nothing more than pure synthpop magic.  From the opening beat in Don't Fuck With My Money to the outro of Someone Got Everything, this album defied every expectation I had of it. The first single I heard a year or so ago was Fair Warning and I immediately fell in love with his talent and the message he represented in his music.  The album doesn't reinvent the wheel but it takes the best of the genre and makes the best possible use of all the tools available.  There isn't a low point in the album and it's one of the only albums in a long time that I can just throw on and listen from start to finish.  A Funny Thing is one of the high points in the album and I think it's probably one of my favorite tracks.  The video below is an exclusive video performance he did in Paris of A Funny Thing.   Take a minute to listen to it and then go buy the album.  It's well worth it.

Penguin Prison - Don't Fuck With My Money

I can make all kinds of statements about this video being filmed at an Occupy Wall Street demonstration but all I'm gonna say it was a damn smart idea. It's totally socially relevant and it is going to be a cause that their fans are already behind so it's like two great tastes that go great together. The song is a pretty awesome track off their self titled album. Chris Glover, aka Penguin Prison does an amazing job on the vocals on this track and the video is really amazing. Chris says this about the song/video:

“I wrote and recorded “Don’t F*** With My Money” some time before the Occupy Wall Street protest began but I felt that some of the lyrics reflected the sentiments that a lot of people have right now, ” Glover says. “Inspired by OWS and by the other protests that have sprung up all over the world, I decided to film a video for ‘Don’t F*** With My Money’ at the Occupy Wall Street March that went from Zuccotti Park to Times Square.”

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Penguin Prison - Something I'm Not

It appears that I am late to the game with this artist but I can damn sure tell you that I'd rather be late than not be there at all. This track is good. It's not just good it's GOOD. It has a beat that seeps into you and makes your head bob and your ass bounce a little. I dig that and the vocals are solid. Again, when you take an electronic type song and throw male vocals on it....it tends to be hit or miss and for one, this is a hit. Rock solid, dead on. I am going to do some more digging around and learn more about this group and I will get back with everyone on what I find.