3 Local Compilations To Check Out

2Audioconfusion

Sampler 3

You might have seen copies of this collection floating around town. Jalipaz of Audioconfusion, one of the Valley’s most popular recording studios, has pulled together tracks from some of our favorite bands that recorded at none other than his own Mesa studio. Where else can you hear the mellow folk of Adam Allred in the same mix as JJCnV’s “Funk Time”? Playboy Manbaby, Dogbreth, Tierra Firme, Mr. Mudd & Mr. Gold, and a host of other locals lend songs to the eclecticism that represents Audioconfusion. Personal favorites from Sampler 3 include The Haymarket Squares’ “Big Ol’ Car” and horizon i’s “Figures” (of course). Listen here and download for free. And, if you’re looking for someplace to record your own music, Audioconfusion covers the gambit of sounds and genres. The proof is in the Sampler.

 


3The Paper Knife

Speakeasy Compilation

Maybe you’ve already been to a Speakeasy Jazz event hosted by the Paper Knife, maybe not. If you have, you already know about the ooey-gooey jazz jams that fill Parliment every other Sunday (roughly). If not, here is your chance to experience the innovative jazz happenings that transpire there regularly. All the tracks were recorded live at Parliment which gives the listener an authentic experience of the shows, complete with improvisational flourishes and audience approval. Even though the compilation contains only four tracks, they are hefty numbers that carry the listener for more than half an hour. The Chris Light Quartet, Micah Hummel Quartet, King Duck, and the Kelso Brothers Quintet are the artists featured on the Speakeasy Compilation which can be heard here where, if you’re lucky, they still have a copy or two of the limited edition cassette tape released by Rubber Brother Records. I also recommend delving into other releases from The Paper Knife for more jazz numbers you’re sure to enjoy. You can do that here.

 

4Related Records

Banter

As Andrew Jackson Jihad jokes that their new album will just be a collection of interludes, it’s an appropriate lead-in to this collection of stage banter brought to you by the weird folks of Related Records. Compiled by Andy Warpigs, Banter has moments that were both f
unny and reminiscent. HotRock Supa Joint laments that “My Gear Is To Muthafuckin Hot For This Joint” while Nerdzerker talks nerdy for you. Ray Reeves offers a “Carne Asada” joke while Fathers Day teaches the audience how to please a woman. For those of us invested in the local art scene, this collection is commemorative, an accounting of some of the coolest (and strangest) bands that held our stages in recent history. For others, there is humor to be gleaned as well as informational material to help you get through life (i.e. where not to electrocute people). Listen here.