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"Does that mean I have a massive ego? Is there something wrong with that?" asks Panda Bear, a/k/a Noah Lennox, about his latest conquest as a solo artist. Though Lennox is the soaring, helium-voiced member of the ubiquitous Animal Collective and the man responsible for one of the most praised albums of the decade -- the jubilant, loop-heavy Person Pitch -- we tell him that he's no Kanye when it comes to arrogance. "I've never been to an award ceremony, so you never know," he warns. "If you let me loose in that zone, I'm going to go crazy."

Hopefully, this day never comes. Currently recording his fourth album, Tomboy, and preparing for a set at Governors Island this Saturday, Panda Bear chatted us with about the solo artist's ego, inner conflict within the new record, and, out of all people, how Frank Sinatra and Bach are among his influences.

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​Shitty dancing, friendship, awkwardness, staring, confusion: Like a middle-school dance, these are the consistent themes of Pavement's music videos. I know this because I watched them all, and then -- four plastic dinosaurs, two yellow ponchos, and one soggy bowl of cereal later -- I made one myself. Last week, reunited indie-rock legends Pavement, who have inadvertently amassed a rabid cult following in their 11-year absence, announced a contest alongside Jimmy Fallon: Submit a video of yourself playing guitar, win a chance to perform alongside Stephen Malkmus and friends on national television. I decided it would be a good idea to win.

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Die Antwoord
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Sunday, July 25

Yo-landi Visser, one-half of the notorious internet phenom South African rap project Die Antwoord, has a thing for spanking her own gold, spandex-plated butt. Naturally, this is a distracting spectacle to see onstage at the Music Hall of Williamsburg--so much so that I am caught off guard when the other half of Die Antwoord dropkicks me in the skull. Ninja, Visser's scowling, six-foot-something male counterpart, has somersaulted off the stage, mid-"Enter the Ninja." As Visser had said at the beginning of the song: "He was the wrong Ninja to fuck with." Duly noted.

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Bethany Cosentino, Kid Cudi, and Rostam Batmanglij
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Tuesday, July 20

It was just two weeks ago that Converse attempted to answer the "Hey, What if Kid Cudi, Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino, and Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij Made a Song Together??" question, hosting the three disparate musicians on one jovial, summer-themed track. Next up? Seeing whether the three sometime-stoners had any chance at all of recreating the song, "All Summer," live, in front of an audience. Thus last night's private Music Hall of Williamsburg showcase: DJ set by Batmangili, rock show by Best Coast, rap concert by Kid Cudi, and a surprise grand finale. In theory, it was an excellent idea; in real life, not so much. As Kid Cudi said, later in the night: "You take advantage of my kindness." We kind of know the feeling.

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via SlantShackJerky

​Tell me that isn't the most gourmet (can this word be applied to dried-up cow meat?) beef jerky you've ever seen. Over at Brooklyn Fireproof, the goods are being supplied by jerky newcomers SlantShack Jerky, whose mission statement is "To unleash a jerky flavor revolution upon the meat loving masses." Somehow, corporate sponsorship of indie-rock shows in tiny Brooklyn venues seems moral, if not saintly, when beef jerky is involved. Oh, and Freelance Whales are headlining. Admittedly, we are unsure as to how their prissy, L train-serenading pop-tronica fits in with this rousing affair. But damn, have you ever been to a beef jerky party?

They brought dolls.

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We all have our opinions on whether or not a group of abdominal-flaunting werewolves should be getting their thang on to Grizzly Bear via Twilight, but it's time we hear it straight from the fans themselves. Thus, I ventured to Union Square's Regal Cinema last night; there, hundreds of seasoned "twi-hards" gathered to experience the Twilight saga's third film, Eclipse, premiering at midnight. Polling various members of the the twi-mob, I ascertained the true impact of the film's infamous soundtracks. And, holy shit.

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Mount Wittenberg Orca

​In the words of the Dirty Projectors' Dave Longstreth himself: "Don't listen on those tiny stereo speakers -- put in on the stereo and blast dat shiiiiiiiiiiii!!"

Aside from commanding us to "blast dat shiiii," bet you never thought Longstreth would be singing (presumably) the vocal line of a daddy whale on a new album called Mount Wittenberg Orca. As it's been explained, Stereogum's Brandon Stosuy facilitated the Bjork/Dirty Projectors collaboration after calling upon their services for that Housing Works benefit concert last year. Things went from Bjork asking "What should we do?" to Longstreth responding "I guess I'd really love to write a bunch of new songs for us to sing together," and next thing you know, Bjork has "agreed to sing the part of the mom whale." Amber, Angel, and Haley, the harmonic sirens of the Dirty Projectors, are assuming the roles of the kid whales. This sounds exactly like you'd imagine.

The album's single, "All We Are," below:

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​"I pioneered a subgenre of rap called 'potato rhyming.' My name's ToTs, and I rap about potatoes."

And so the legend begins. Michael "ToTs" Heagerty has officially beaten all you slackers to setting the world record for "Most Potato References in a Rap Song." The song is called "Crispy," the first single off his Kickstarter-funded debut album, The Coup de Tots, to be released later this year. But why, Michael Heagerty, why do you rap about potatoes and not their delicious, incredibly underrated cousin, yams? He responds only with a question: "If you can go back 10 days, can you tell me the truth and say you haven't had a potato in some form?"

Well, shit. Listen to "Crispy" after the jump:

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In the "top secret" filming location of Ted Leo's music video for "Bottled in Cork," I am waiting to choke a punk-rocking goon with my polka-dot ascot. Director Tom Scharpling sent a casting call two days prior, instructing fans to attend the shoot wearing nothing but their "finest theater-going or punk-rocking attire." Beside me, this chick wearing a tutu and platinum Gene Simmons combat boots looks ready to stomp my Fela!-loving ass. But all speculation is put to rest when a member of Scharpling's crew saunters into the middle of the Bell House's bar area. "So, what you're waiting for today," she explains, "is a rock musical starring Ted Leo & the Pharmacists."

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Santiago Felipe

​When 300 pounds of perspiring flesh take the stage to recite the lyrics of a band the New York Times refuses to pronounce, reverse psychology occurs. To alleviate our fear of what is, by any standard, a very large man, we flip the classic stage fright device-- "picture your audience naked"--and project it onto that 300 pound creature we affectionately call Pink Eyes. We like to see the Fucked Up frontman naked and, thankfully, he complies. In celebration of his total lack of self-consciousness, we've rounded up our favorite blush-inducing Pink Eyes poses.

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