Buzzcatcher
UNDER THE RADAR AND
BLASTING FROM OUR OFFICES
Witchcraft

WHO: All the best black metal comes from Scandinavia, but these four Swedes hope to corner the market on drug-addled, boogiefied riff rock, as well. LATEST: The Alchemist (Rise Above) FOR FANS OF: Queens of the Stone Age, Black Mountain

Pittsburgh Slim WHO: Despite the frat-friendliness of his semi-hit “Girls Kiss Girls,” the man born Sied Chahrour is a Jigga-endorsed, battle-tested MC with a knack for both booty-shakers and braggadocio-fueled bangers—just like another rapper who calls himself Slim. LA TEST: Tastemaker (Def Jam) FOR FANS OF: Kanye West, Method Man

Big Boi, unclear on the concept of dress rehearsal

Number One With a Ballet

How is Big Boi’s first dance piece? En pointe!

Soft

WHO: Like an air horn in the middle of a snowstorm, singer Johnny Reineck’s voice cuts through torrents of echoing, chiming guitars. Commence gazing at shoes…now! LATEST: Gone Faded (Silver Sleeve/Academy Fight Song) FOR FANS OF: The National, My Bloody Valentine

As anyone who saw the dance sequences in Idlewild can attest, OutKast are no strangers to ass-shaking. Yet Antwan “Big Boi” Patton had little experience in the realm of tutus and pliés before the Atlanta Ballet approached him about collaborating on a new production. “I’ve dated a couple of ballerinas,” he says. “But I was like, ‘That sounds kind of dope—let’s crank it up.’”

If Dirty South hip-hop and a 400-year-old European dance technique seem like an odd match, well, that’s the point. “These are two art forms that are identified in our culture as so completely opposite,” says choreographer Lauri Stallings. “And rather than deny that, we’ve become enthralled by it.”

Running for six performances at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre (starting April 10), the show, titled big, stars

Big Boi himself and a younger dancer named Little Big, as they move through a series of dance vignettes set to OutKast hits (even the intense “B.O.B.”), unreleased Big Boi tracks, and material from his upcoming solo album—all accompanied by a live band. According to Stallings, big is about “examining the American dream—or the lack of it—from a 360-degree perspective.” The cast also features approximately 85 dancers, as well as members of Atlanta’s Dungeon Family hip-hop collective, including Sleepy Brown and Joi. Even Goodie Mob/Gnarls Barkley frontman Cee-Lo might make an appearance.

If all goes well, Big Boi and his ballerinas could hit the road. “We’re talking about taking this thing to New York and L.A. and Europe,” he says. “Why cheat the rest of the world?” MIKAEL WOOD

Bobaflex WHO: Having one of the worst band names of all time (is it some sort of Star Wars exercise machine?) doesn’t stop these West Virginians from serving greasy chicken-fried riffs, melancholic growls, and shit-kicking metal tunes. LATEST: Tales From Dirt Town (TVT) FOR FANS OF: System of a Down, Pantera

Biirdie

>

WHO: A trio of Los Angelenos who lend smoky harmonies to UV-ray-soaked, sad-eyed laments about alienation and detachment—ideal for those times when you need a tan and a good cry. LATES T: Catherine Avenue (Love Minus Zero) FOR FANS OF: Rilo Kiley, Bright Eyes

OK Composer For some, playing nearly a dozen instruments in Oxford, England’s most adventurous art-rock quintet might be enough, but Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood is easily bored. “I’m just immature,” he says. “I’m always hungry for the new thing.” His newest thing is Popcorn Superhet Receiver, a 19-minute orchestral suite that will make its American live debut on January 16 in New York as part of the Wordless Music Series ( wordlessmusic.org), which stages concerts with classical musicians and indie rockers like Andrew Bird and Beirut. Despite its rocky genesis—“I tried to get an orchestra to sound like a drum machine, but failed,” Greenwood says—portions of the composition ended up on the soundtrack to director Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood and won a prize at the 2006 BBC British Composer Awards, which came with £ 10,000 (about $20,800) to put toward Greenwood’s next work. “It wasn’t cash up front, I’ll have you know,” he says. “They want to see a delivered score.” LANE BRO WN