"music" news and stories

It is safe to say that  when the word "drumstick" is uttered, several things might come to mind. For a musician, that first thing could be the sort of drumstick that is used to, well, play the drums. The more common thought is that of a piece of poultry, also known as the drumstick. This drumstick is the lower part of the leg the fowl. Composed of dark meat, the drumstick is easy to eat with your fingers because of a protruding bone and is quite popular for snacking, as it has a high skin-to-meat ratio.

Another type of drumstick is an Asian plant. These drumsticks are long, thin pods that grow on Moringa trees and get their name from their hard outer casing. Inside that casing, however, is a soft interior which tastes slightly of asparagus. The pods are often prepared in a similar way to green beans, getting chopped into small lengths and tossed into stews, curries and noodle dishes. The seeds inside the drumsticks are edible and are about 40% oil, which can be extracted and used for cooking.

The final type of drumstick is my favorite and has been since I first had one as a kid.

The other day, Sarah Gim posted about a Chicago meat market that was asking people to write meat-related raps. On a similar note, I recently came across an old Ask MetaFilter thread asking for songs about meat. Coincidence? Who knows. What I do know is that there were roughly 100 replies. I was glad to see that someone made the obvious connection to Southern Culture on the Skids (right) for their numerous meat related songs and album titles, including (but not limited to) "Too Much Pork for Just One Fork," "Chitlin Strut," and "8 Piece Box." Louis Armstrong and the Hot Five's "Struttin' With Some Barbeque" also made the list. Personally, I'm partial to the Willie Nelson version of that one. As you might imagine, Ween, Cibo Matto and Tom Waits all make appearances on the list as well. Sadly, two of my favorites, Blind Boy Fuller's "If You See My Pigmeat" and Louis Prima's "Closer to the Bone" didn't make the roster. I guess those aren't really about meat anyway.

The Epi-log, at Epicurious, has a lead on what music celebrity chefs are listening to. Chef and author Anthony Bourdain has a No Reservations playlist that you can download from Rhapsody. The mix is described as being "a dash of classic soul with some tasty pre-punk nuggets and flavorful jazz pieces" and includes songs like David Bowie's I'm Deranged, William S. Burroughs' The Last Words Of Dutch Schultz, and Memo from Turner by the Rolling Stones.

I'm not all that surprised to see the picks from Tony Bourdain, but it does make me wonder what other chefs listen to. Of course, I start to wonder about that only after I wonder how a chef got a playlist up alongside the ones from celebs like Ashlee Simpson and Lindsay Lohan.

Source

Bacardi B-Live will be Bacardi rum's online and mobile phone radio station.

Using a downloadable player, avalable from the website, the internet version will offer dance music from around the world. The mobile phone version allows users to listen direct on their phone. The service will "strengthen our association with music by creating more opportunities for us to connect with our target adult consumer in a way that reflects our brand values" according to the global brand director.

In Gourmet's music issue there was an article by the inimitable Anthony Bourdain on music in restaurant kitchens. Bourdain gives his own rules for kitchen music (no Grateful Dead, no Billy Joel) as well as surveying other chefs on their favorites. The consensus seems to be toward uptempo music whether it be the Rolling Stones and Black Crowes for Daniel Boulud or dance music for Laurent Manrique and Eric Ripert. This makes sense to get a crew of chefs fired up to get to work but what about the home chef?  I've been listening to Morphine, Elliot Smith and Jack Johnson lately when cooking but for cleaning up, I've listened to the same group for years. Something about the Violent Femmes goes perfectly with scrubbing dishes, wiping down the stove and getting out of there fast. What's on your playlist for kitchen duty?

Source