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therecordconnection · 1 year

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Ranting and Raving: "New Guru" by Vulfpeck

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Did you ever hear the one about the eight guys that walked into a sauna all wearing silly red hats? So, these eight guys all walk into a sauna and then they start playing funk music...

That's the closest thing to a punchline that I've got.

If you're unfamiliar with Vulfpeck, let me catch you up to speed real fast. They're a funk outfit founded in 2011 by multi-instrumentalists Jack Stratton and Theo Katzman, keyboardist Woody Goss, and bassist Joe Dart. They had a meteoric rise through their impressive musicianship, humor, and cleverly shot and edited music videos on Youtube, most of which are just captured performances of the band playing their songs in what looks like your grandmother's living room (see: their video for the song "Dean Town".) Over the years, they've added to their roster with guitarist Cory Wong (not to be confused with the Vulfpeck song "Cory Wong") alto sax player Joey Dosik, and sometimes lead singer Antwaun Stanley. In their time, they've released several EPs, six albums, and a live album of their sold out show at Madison Square Garden back in 2019. In short, they've been groovin' for quite a while and their status as funk masters is nothing to scoff at.

On November 25th, 2022, after a roughly two year hiatus and a slew of side projects featuring the various members, the Vulf pack finally reconvened–with the aforementioned silly hats and in a sauna of all places–and began posting videos of them playing songs that would eventually be found on their latest album, Schvitz, which was released on December 30th. They are all worth your time, but one song on the album in particular gripped me the first time I heard it and is still just as wonderful after the three-hundred and eightieth time. That song would be "New Guru."

This song has claimed the top spot for my favorite Vulfpeck song and it's the one I plan to use to introduce people to this group for the rest of time.

Contrary to what you might think, the haze you see in the video (posted above) isn't coming from the sauna. It's actually from the heat coming off the groove of this song. Everything about this just hits. It's groovy, it's funky, it's fun, it's got a bit of disco in there that makes this fun to dance to. It's got all eleven herbs and spices and even some of the ones they don't tell you about. It's tight, it's concise, it's utterly fantastic and every single member of this band once again reminds you why they're some of the best out there right now.

I think it's appropriate that this song came out when it did (December 8th) because that's around the time everybody starts seeing an onslaught of corny social media posts that talk about all the changes and possibilities and good things people are manifesting for with the start of the new year. Most of those end up being complete bunk and I'm aware of that cynical view. We make New Year resolutions we know deep down we're never going to fully commit to keeping and after about a week into January the excitement of the new year dies away and we settle back into the same old dull routine. Once more, from the top.

Then this song came along and rattled my cage. I heard this song for the first time and I threw that cynical view into the garbage bin. It was mostly based on the lyrics for this song, which are some of the best that the band has ever presented. The lyrics fit the overall themes and ideas that you find creeping around at New Years, welcome and embrace the new, throw away and reject the old and broken. "I gotta say no no (no no) / To those old clichés / I gotta say go, go (Go, go) / To this brand new way." For a song on an album that came out two days before the ball dropped, I imagine the ideas presented on the song weren't lost on the band.

But it isn't just the lyrics that are great, it never truly is. To me, a song's message becomes great when it's in the hands of a performer that can really sell it. And Vulfpeck has that with their secret weapon: the stellar vocals and dynamite performance that Antwaun Stanley delivers on this track. Stanley has been the featured vocalist on many of my favorite Vulfpeck songs ("1612" and "Funky Duck" are two good ones that showcase just how good he is) and now I get to add his work on "New Guru" to the top of that list, because I'll tell you right now, he makes this entire song really shine.

This is the closest Vulfpeck will probably ever get to taking you to church. In a strange way, the sauna robes give off the look of makeshift church choir robes and Antwuan's delivery has the feel of an uplifting song you might hear in a church service... if that church presented music that was solely devoted to the funk. To me, the bridge and the third verse is where I get that vibe the most. Here they are in full:

When there's wrinkles in your sleeves You take off your shirt and you steam it When there's dishes piled high in the sink You get out the sponge and you start cleanin' All the menial tasks distract from the fact That there's a hole in your soul like a wall has a crack You put off the repairs, pretend they're not there And you failed to address the mess 'cause you're scared So you look for a source to carry the weight To lighten the load of a soul gone astray To wake you up and get you through the day To cut through the brush, show you the way

These lyrics are a bit silly and would sound dreadfully corny if left in the wrong hands, but thankfully, they're in Antwuan's hands. He presents these words with such authenticity, such genuineness, such love and care and grace that you buy what he's selling. I did the minute I heard it. The use of something silly like putting off household chores juxtaposed with all too real feelings of facing things head on and finding fulfillment in your life just creates pure magic. It's about seeking salvation and hopefully finding it. It also explains why people would get tricked into following false leads and con artists that offer nothing of real value. Everybody wants to be shown the way and find the answer to their plights, regardless of what they might be. If "patience has left you feeling miles away" or you found out you were lied to or you found that "hope is a fugitive that's on the run," Vulfpeck offer one simple answer: "Find you a new guru."

But, if you'd rather have a comparison that has no ties to religion, Antwuan performs this song similar to the way Maurice White from Earth, Wind & Fire delivered messages tinged with spirituality. The lyrics definitely fit the kind of message Maurice would've enjoyed and hyped up, the chorus especially. Hell, the groove on the chorus is pure Earth, Wind & Fire at their funkiest. It's such an infectious earworm (which is fitting, because the track before "New Guru" on Schvitz has a song sung from the point of view of an earworm, brilliantly called "Earworm".) It's a repetitive chorus, but a damn good one nonetheless. You hear it once and you just keep singing along with it (and keep singing it long after you've heard it.) The harmonies between Antwuan, Theo Katzman (who is drumming on this one), Joey Dosik, and the song's co-writer Jacob Jefferies all blend well together and just add to that infectious quality. It fucking hits and it's just such a fun song that's so well done, plain and simple.

One final aspect that I think adds flavoring to this song is Vulfpeck's trademark humor, which is here on full display, both in the video and the song itself. The silly red hats that look like the famous cone hats from DEVO's "Whip It" video were already mentioned, but other little bits include the video choosing odd moments to zoom in on things (like the close ups of Antwuan's face about 50 seconds in, Joey singing background vocals all the way in the back at 1:14, the camera following only Antwuan's hand at 2:29, etc.) and Cory Wong and Joe Dart both sneaking in the famous riff from "Dueling Banjos," of all things, during the third verse (it's at 1:58, Cory himself has a comment on the video that just says "dueling banjos quote made the cut." Ridiculously smooth.) However, the funniest part, arguably the part that keeps me coming back, is near the tail end of the song, when Antwuan asks the band for a key change ("Come on, y'all, take it up for me") only to immediately go back on that ("My bad, bring that down, bring that down.") It's such a little thing, but it puts a smile on my face and it makes me laugh every time I listen to this song. To make it clear, this is both on the album and video. The video adds even more humor by having Antwuan give Theo a thumbs up after the band brings it down, as if they're saying to each other, "We got it back on track now."

What Vulfpeck have done on "New Guru," and Schvitz as a whole, is something special. The band has provided such a fun and feel good song that feels right for this moment in time. Ever since the 2020s started it feels like we've been living with nothing but darkness (and there's been a lot of darkness these last few years...) but the pack are back to remind us that there is still fun to be had. We can still look towards the new with bright eyes and anticipation. We can find new hope and new things get excited about that will keep us going and help us find the answers we seek.

If you were looking for something uplifting to start off 2023, it ain't gettin' much better than this. What "New Guru" provides is a wonderful lesson and a damn fun song to keep us going through continued darkness.

So say no no to those old clichés and say go go to the brand new way. May the new gurus you find in 2023 show you the way and put the light back in your soul. And above all else:

Take care of one another. It's gonna be another crazy year.

#original content #ranting and raving #vulfpeck #new guru #Youtube

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thejokebox · 1 year

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Oh, this menial task distracts from the fact that there's a hole in your soul like a wall has a crack. You put off the repairs, pretend they're not there. And you failed to address the mess 'cause you're scared.

#vulfpeck #new guru #i cannot not love these guys

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official-aryan · 13 days

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जो गुरु शास्त्रों के अनुसार भक्ति करता है और अपने अनुयायियों अर्थात् शिष्यों द्वारा करवाता है, वही पूर्ण संत है।

चूंकि भक्ति मार्ग का संविधान धार्मिक शास्त्र जैसे - कबीर साहेब की वाणी, नानक साहेब की वाणी, संत गरीबदास जी महाराज की वाणी, संत धमर्दास जी साहेब की वाणी, वेद, गीता, पुराण, कुरआन, पवित्र बाईबल आदि हैं। जो भी संत शास्त्रों के अनुसार भक्ति साधना बताता है और भक्त समाज को माग दशर्न करता है तो वह पूर्ण संत है अन्यथा वह भक्त समाज का घोर दुश्मन है जो शास्त्रों के विरूद्ध साधना करवा रहा है।

बंदीछोड सतगुरु रामपाल जी महाराज

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fierceawakening · 7 months

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Ooof time to go on an unfollowing spree I think

“We don’t know how to lose weight” actually we kind of do though?

Slow, sustained changes in diet over time.

I don’t understand why some people want to treat this like it’s fundamentally impossible. We shouldn’t have to shun foods we like a lot that aren’t as nutrient dense as we’d like, but making occasional replacements isn’t bizarrely impossible. It baffles me that people claim it is.

Said it before will probably say it more times than I can count before I die but I legit don’t much like chocolate croissants any more. I find them too sweet, and not filling like pastries with nuts or cheese or meat, which I consciously chose to eat instead after a health scare some years ago.

I used to literally eat one a day. Sometimes two.

Should people hate and curse themselves if they find changing habits difficult?

Absolutely not.

Are they allowed to give up?

Yes.

Does this make all habits fundamentally fixed for all time?

No, that’s bullshit.

There are good reasons to choose not to change habits, and “fuck, this is hard” can be one. But this nonsense about how you should never try, and if you DO TRY it’s because you think you’re special (as if there’s something wrong with setting difficult or long term goals for yourself) needs to die in a fire.

Yesterday.

#weight loss #every once in a while some new guru sells this shit again #it’s tiring #massively uncharitable #it’s black pilling is what it is

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bhavesh372 · 5 months

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#santrampaljimaharaj india god meditation news indian spiritual allah religion status hindu shiva haryana krishna baba guru #satlok #satlok_ashram_news #satlokashram #satloktv24 #santrampaljimaharaj #satsang #guru

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kashmirichaiwithmehr · 1 year

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all punjabi singers do is cry over their exes, compliment a girls outfit, and car

#mehrtalks #ive been listening to mickey singhs new album #common themes 🥰😋#i swear womens clothing shops in punjab are probably half filled just with dudes because every other song has a lyric about them ->#wanting to buy a suit for their girl or some shit #also lets be real their exes are prob just talking stages 🧐#mickey singh #diljit dosanjh #ap dhillon #guru randhawa #imran khan #and i stg every other male punjabi singer to ever exist #punjabi #punjabi music #punjabi songs

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bloodsplatteredcinema · 2 months

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Greetings, fellow Gorehounds!

In honor of the recently released Godzilla Minus One and the upcoming Godzilla X Kong, The Horror Guru has decided to dive into the original 1962 Toho classic: King Kong vs. Godzilla!

This fast paced movie riff/movie review is filled with bad puns, silly skits and a lot of behind the scenes info on the making of the movie!

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channel17 · 8 months

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It's ALL about SELF SELF SELF SELF SELF

Keep your focus on YOU

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pushing500 · 6 months

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Guess who fixed their rimworld save?? That's right, it's me! :D

I immediately got raided by mechanoids when I loaded back in, which was scary until I looked closer and-

A group of mechanoids have *single solitary mechanoid has arrived nearby. Just one little guy all by itself.

Poor little pikeman. It almost seemed too easy to just use Tamarind's skip psycast to get melee-inspired Irwin and Xanxalbur in close, then defeat it in three hits.

The zeushammers are extra good against mechanoids since they give EMP bursts, so the pikeman never stood a chance. And even better, Irwin has a little mood bonus because of his fulfilled inspiration and Xanxalbur's kill-happy trait. This raid was basically just a "welcome back" present from Randy!

It was a little disorienting as Benevolent-Overseer Gracie to read about Colonist Gracie getting into a relationship, but I guess I'm happy for her. Not so sure about Wyn'yeysh, whoever he (or she, I guess) is. Sounds like a Yttakin name- of course. Are any of my colonists not related to Yttakin??

Hot Minute doesn't even have a partner listed in her social tab, so I am going to assume she doesn't care about him (or her, I guess) that much.

And then I just thought you should all see Ro as a child, with his perpetually irate expression and his magnificent hair. Isn't he the cutest little thing?? I love him so much.

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