Another Beautiful Take Away

 The amazing people over at La Blogotheque continue to amaze as they coax the most beautiful performances out of some of our most important (or at least soon to be important) artists for their Take Away video series.  The Antlers set is no deviation to this wonderful pattern.  Quite simply: beautiful.  Enjoy!


The Antlers - Two / Epilogue - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Great Songs: Spacemen 3 "Lord Can You Hear Me"

Tasty Mashed Potatoes

Stereogum and team9 present MySplice 4, their annual mash up of the year's best up against some, errm, classics.  Some of this is actually quite tasteful indeed.  Personally, digging the Cure and Phoenix track. Without further adieu, for your listening pleasure, we present...  


Great Songs: Patsy Cline "She's Got You"

Great Songs: Chuck Berry "Brown Eyed Handsome Man"

Amanda Palmer Has Yr New Year's Set

Amanda Fucking Palmer has the perfect plan for a perfect night to kick your New Year's celebration off this Thursday evening.  The erstwhile progenitor of all things burlesque will throw her estimable talents and trickery into a unique concert experience with the Boston Pops that is sure to please.  Special guests for the night include the wonderful Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade (who we hosted this past summer at our annual Traditions festival), Sxip Shirey, Adam Matta, and a world premier of a short film (starring AFP herself alongside Bill Nighy!) by none other than Neil Gaiman.  A gourmet boxed dinner (if such a thing actually exists!) is included in the ticket price.  What's not to like about that?

Get your tix:
http://www.bso.org/bso/mods/perf_detail.jsp?pid=prod3500019

Moby's Pads

Moby gives us a tour of his incredible drum machine collection.

New London Archives: Low-Beam - Charge of the Light Brigade

At long last, we are happy to announce the digital release of Low-Beam's Charge of the Light Brigade.  The New London group's magnum opus was recorded over several years with Michael Deming (Lilys, Pernice Brothers, Silver Jews) at the helm at Studio .45 in Enfield, CT.  The record has fantastic new takes on the band's classic material including Airstream, Tuffy Rhodes, Fathom, Parabellum and more.  Though the band is not currently playing live, the tunes still hold the test of time and the collection will be a much welcomed addition to anyone's catalog of the early 2000s' scene in New London.  You can stream the record below or visit the Mystic Music Archive for full downloads.  A limited edition physical release is in the works over at Cosmodemonic Telegraph.

Great Songs: The Kinks "Tired of Waiting"

Do You Know the Way....

I would hit this for sure just to hear the world debut of Flaming Lips covering Dark Side of the Moon.  The recording is out today via iTunes but throw in the live performance, the biggest balloon drop ever, a huge disco ball, thousands of wide-eyed (cough cough) fans, and that's a New Year's extravaganza, errrm FreakOut! not to be missed.

Palmer doth Protest

Wherein Amanda Palmer discusses the state and role of the female performer through a ukulele tune and finds the continuum between Lady Gaga, herself, and Madonna.

New London Archives: Can Kickers - We're Dying but We Ain't Dead

The Can Kickers are a perennial favorite in New London Towne (and all over the planet as far as we can tell!)!  Kicking out the punky old time jams like no one else, the trio has toured relentlessly playing living rooms, basements, parking lots, football stadiums (well, at least football stadium parking lots) and any other venue they can stand up and get down.  The Kickers are back in town for a gig at the Oasis Pub
in New London on Saturday, December 26 where they will be joined by Brazen Hussy and 420 Blackbirds.  In the meantime, hit play and crank it up.

Take Away Phoenix

Phoenix - 1901 - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Bring on the Bells

We're finally getting a taste of the new collaboration between James Mercer of The Shins and Danger Mouse.  Dubbed Broken Bells, the new act has readied a ten track slab of tunes due out March 9, 2010 called The High Road.  Early adopters can purchase the record in all the usual formats (cd and vinyl options) or as a special limited edition music box.  Those curious but not sold on proceedings can dip their toes in the lovely waters for the cost of a simple email and receive an immediate download of lead track "The High Road" for a limited time today only prior to its full digital release on iTunes tomorrow.  It's a lovely song that seems a logical step from the last Shins record with the obvious, umm, bells and whistles on the production side you've come to expect from a Danger Mouse project.  I'm really looking forward to the full release.  Get that download now over at the Broken Bells site.

Heat Miser

Well, I was thinking about that cool Christmas special with Heat Miser and Snow Miser and instead stumbled on this little gem from Elliott Smith's early band.  Had to share with you all!

Butterflies of Love with Mark Mulcahy

Shot this at the recent New Haven release celebration for the Ciao, My Morning Star collection celebrating the music of Mark Maulcahy.  It was quite a night indeed with some wonderful performances including Dumptruck (playing "Back Where I Belong" - a song I included on every mixed tape I made back in high school), Ray Neal with a crew of my fave New Haven players, both Ray and Mark with Jounce (featuring Pete AND Pete from that show and doing "Snacks and Candy"), Chris Collingwood (of Fountains of Wayne), Elvis Perkins, Boy Genius, The Reducers, and of course my old pals Butterflies of Love with Mark in tow as seen below.

Mos Def be Tripping

Breaking News from Broken Bells

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apparently The High Road is hard to find....

more details and hopefully some music when we have it!

otherwise register at www.brokenbells.com

B-Ball B- Ball B-Ball

deerhoof!

Shatner does Palin, Palin does Shatner

It's poetry AND music AND funny as hell, so I had to share:

New London Archives: Seratonin 'Uptake'

Gradually adding the back catalog at Cosmodemonic Telegraph up online.  This is the first and only release from Seratonin, a band with deep routes in the Mystic scene (featuring members of Skimbleshanks, Mindbender, Magpie, Delta of Venus, and Grand Passion) and the precursor to Low-Beam.  In fact, a handful of the songs on this collection carried through to that band's set and are even featured on the forthcoming swan song release 'Charge of the Light Brigade'.   The record was recorded in the basement at Secret Theatre and features Mat Tarbox on vocals, Sean Fake on drums, CJ Stankewich on guitar and vox, and Rich Martin (yours truly) on bass.

Down to the Filter

One of the great records of The Twenty Oughts is finally being released on vinyl.  Tom Waits' Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards is an odds and sods collection over three discs that sounds like anything but a hodgepodge patchwork piece.  In fact, the record is a seminal release from a national treasure that is staggering in its depth and breadth.  Waits' unique and uncompromising vision grabs you by the throat and drags you through the underbelly of some beatnik hobo fantasy land where you always find yourself under the lone street lamp in the fog taking a drag off your last cigarette, rinsing it down with a swig of whiskey from your hidden hip flask.

It's a melancholy world with bursts of beauty busting through the edges; those edges hanging on the precipice of some otherworldly cliff at the bottom of the world.  The fact that there is a whole additional slab of vinyl featuring six previously unreleased songs in this seven (!) record collection should send any loving soul to the piggy bank with a hammer to find the extra ching to repurchase this outstanding (astounding!) collection. Don't miss it, pretty sure that these won't be around for long!

http://www.tomwaits.com/albums/#/albums/album/4/Orphans/

Mulcahy Tribute at Toad's Place Friday

Mark Mulcahy is one of the singular voices in Connecticut rock history. His band Miracle Legion's career ran parallel to that of REM though due to label woes they never received quite the level of notoriety that their friends from Athens did. Still, their music was hugely influential on a great many artists still playing today (I certainly count myself among them). Mulcahy has also released a handful of solo albums each more challenging (and inspiring) than the last and it can truly be said that he is one of America's great songwriters of this generation.

For those in doubt, look no further than the very special tribute record, Ciao, My Morning Star, which was recently released to celebrate the songs of Mulcahy and help raise money to support the musician who recently lost his wife and mother of his twin daughters. The record is a savagely beautiful and somewhat melancholy affair that features such contemporary luminaries as Thom Yorke, Dinosaur Jr, Michael Stipe, and Elvis Perkins as well as local faves like The Butterflies of Love (who Mulcahy played drums for in early incarnation Bug) and The Gravel Pit. The digital version of the record includes an extra two discs worth of material by artists from around the globe who have donated their tracks to this special cause. In celebration of the release (and the music), Toad's Place in New Haven will host an exciting concert this Friday, December 11, featuring Elvis Perkins, Chris Collingwood (of Fountains of Wayne), The Reducers (who recently recorded a song with Mulcahy called "My Problem" - fingers crossed they'll play it!), The Butterflies of Love, Winter Pills, Dumptruck (!!!) and many more. Should be a wonderful night, definitely not to be missed.

John Winston Ono Lennon

in our thoughts always...

coming up roses

Feeling Feelies

Lee is Free

Sonic Youth have seemingly always been in the forefront of my musical landscape. I've seen them too many times to count and been fortunate enough to work with a few of them on projects over the years. Always happy to hear them extol their craft as Lee does in this interview as part of the BBC's The Story of the Guitar series.




Make sure to visit the BBC site for the series for a virtual tour of the great guitarists of our day (Les Paul, Johnny Marr, Pete Townsend, The Edge, Richie Havens, Mark Knopfler, and even Jack Black!) speaking openly and lovingly about their own personal affair with the guitar.

Live Neutral Milk Hotel!!!!

The Merge blog is dishing out some tasty goodness to celebrate the re-release of the Neutral Milk Hotel classics In an Aeroplane Over the Sea and Live on Avery Island on 180 gram vinyl in the form of two live videos shot at the Knitting Factory back in 1998. So good, here's my fave:

Doc Ellis and the LSD No-No

I like this song, nothing's wrong...

Children are singing...

Beck's stellar Record Club just keeps getting better and better. The project has proved an enlightening exercise and proven out the possibilities of the musical community post-Major Label crappiness and demise. The tantalizing array of musicos making their way Beck-ward for these sessions is dizzying and just plain fun. This go round the crew are taking on the cult classic Oar record by Skip Spence. And what a crew it is: Wilco is on hand as is Leslie Feist and supplying the beats is James Gadson who kept time on many of the Bill Withers classics as well as songs as notable (and huge!) as Express Yourself and I Will Survive!

Record Club: Skip Spence "Little Hands" from Beck Hansen on Vimeo.

Got Blood?

TV on the Radio frontman Kyp Malone keeps it raucous and trippy with the teaser clip for "Give Blood" off his excellent Rain Machine solo effort. Who knew the creatures under your band could also be your backing band!

Method Acting

Monsters of Folk take their big star video turn for the catchy lead single "Say Please" off their tasty new slab.

in the hood

Sesame and me turn forty this year! Happy Birthday!

Sew and Sew Sew And Sew from Wherever Wherever

Lisa Hannigan performs at in-store appearance in Denver. She quite simply has one of the most hauntingly beautiful voices around.

Going Rogue

A few years back Pat Sturgeon, drummer for the awesome Rogue Wave, was diagnosed with a failing kidney and forced to deal with the realities of that fact on his career as a musician. He also had to struggle through the process of securing a replacement for his failing organ. The heart wrenching struggle to deal was caught on film (along with some great music in support of his cause!) in the newly released documentary D Tour. You can view a trailer and other goodies over at PBS's site (they'll be airing the doc in some markets) and the full piece will be steaming through November 17 at . You can also grab a free mp3 from the soundtrack from Rogue Wave by signing up for their e-list:

the future is now

When an apple falls from a tree in another galaxy, will there be a pie in the sky? Could you eat it?

Get 'em why they'r hot!

The new LCD Soudsystem cover of Alan Vega's "Bye Bye Bayou" leaked so fast that the band and their label Parlophone have decided to get out in front of it and offer up free legal downloads to the first 20,000 takers. It's a great teaser for those of us chomping at the bit for the follow-up to the seminal Sound of Silver LP whihc Sir Murphy has been in studio developing for an early 2010 release. Goodness all around!

Head over to the LCD Soudsystem site for yr free goodies!

Do Heartstrings Mend?

Miles Kurosky of the much loved Beulah is set to return to action with a solo debut at the top of 2010 out on Shout Factory! Good news for everyone indeed. You can keep tabs on his cheerful psychedelia at his(how do you say?) minimalist website:

mileskurosky.com with some tunes to follow on myspace

Eraserhead

We told you about the new Thom Yorke supergroup just a few days back. Now we've got video and mp3 evidence via You Ain't no Picasso and the youtubes!

MP3: Thom Yorke – Judge, Jury, & Executioner (live, new)
MP3: Thom Yorke – Lotus Flower (live, new)
MP3: Thom Yorke – Open the Floodgates (live, new)
MP3: Thom Yorke – Skirting on the Surface (live, new)

Whack White

Jack White's only lead turn on the excellent new Dead Weather debut gets the full art school film treatment and the results delight. Enjoy, "I Cut Like A Buffalo":

and on and on and on

The great news just keeps on rolling in as word comes out of an exciting new collaboration between The Shins mastermind James Mercer and Sir Danger Mouse, Brian Burton, who have secretly worked together to form a new band called Broken Bells. Rolling Stone has the scoop including a handful of song titles ("The High Road", "The Ghost Inside", "Sailing to Nowhere/Deviant Sister") and news of a release via Columbia in early 2010. It all sounds just a little dark from those titles. Mercer adds "there’s some really sinister, nasty shit going on in there". Can't wait. There's a band site that's worth lurking around in the coming months over at BrokenBells.com.

Something Great

First, Thom Yorke announces a new band to support The Eraser material and now we have word of new material and a tour from LCD Soundsystem. I love Autumn in 2009! Apparently, James Murphy just got access to the band's own Facebook page and has had a flurry of "announcements" since then:

LCD Soundsystem is currently finally getting control of this inane facebook page which we didn't even know about. boo. it's fun to be on yr heels! yay!
Tue at 4:10pm

LCD Soundsystem to respond to stuff: i think new album in march. so there. in studio as we speak (type) waiting for something to get edited and got an email that i can now access this thing. so there. thanks for the niceness, etc. blah j
Tue at 4:15pm

LCD Soundsystem will totally tour next year also. as many places as we can. places we've been to a bunch (hello, dearest glasgow!) and hopefully places we've never been (mexico? serbia? china?) with what i think will be the best version of the band yet. ... there will most likely be a single before the new year, and the new 45:33 remixes are coming out right now.
Tue at 4:33pm

LCD Soundsystem should be a certain number of free downloads of the new single when it's ready. i must say, though, that we're trying to make the vinyl include a free download, so i recommend that. mainly because we worked really hard on the art and the mastering, and we're proud of it.
Tue at 4:33pm

LCD Soundsystem the art is photos by ruvan Wijesooriya and graphics by dfa superdesigner mike vadino of bureau. the mastering for the vinyl (and digi) is by my engineer hero, original mentor, and best vinyl cutter ever, bob weston of shellac at chicago mastering. i'm honestly really excited.
Tue at 4:35pm

LCD Soundsystem record: march. tour: after.
Yesterday at 1:52am

To Live and Die in LA

May as well just quote this one straight from the horse's (pulling apart?) mouth:

"??????
hi
in the past couple of weeks i've been getting a band together for fun to play the eraser stuff live and the new songs etc.. to see if it could work!
here's a photo.. its me, joey waronker, mauro refosco, flea and nigel godrich.

at the beginning of october the 4th and 5th we are going to do a couple of shows at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles.
we don't really have a name and the set will not be very long cuz ..well ...we haven't got that much material yet!
but come and check it out if you are in the area. we've also got locals Lucky Dragons playing.
all the best"

yeah, that's thom yorke over at DEAD AIR SPACE announcing his new band! They've also announced a couple of dates in LA this coming Sunday and Monday. If only, I were in LA!

Streaming Wild Things

First clues to exactly Where The Wild Things Are emerge in the currently streaming soundtrack to the long anticipated adaptation of the Maurice Sendak children's (and adult really) classsic by Spike Jonze. Yeah Yeah Yeah's Karen O takes the lead with The Kids and creates a uniquely enjoyable and rejuvenating experience that will have you smiling sweetly and serenely (and just a little sadly) as we await this much anticipated cinematic event. I know I can't wait!

Lips Like Sugar

A strange choice for a strange band supporting a strange record but somehow in the end it all makes perfect sense and surely makes you smile. The Flaming Lips present "I Can Be a Frog":

The Flaming Lips "I Can Be A Frog"

Oh Barlow, My Barlow

I'm off to see the opening night of the Dinosaur Jr tour on October 2 up at the Middle East in Boston and a special bonus to that night is opening act Lou Barlow and the Missingmen. Back in the day, I was in to both camps involved in the great divide (even got to play a show with Sebadoh) and it's good to see both that the reunion is holding strong but also that Lou is getting out front as well and sharing some new material. His new record is called Goodnight Unknown and is October 5. It's been four years or more since any new material. Here's a first track off that new slab called "Don't Apologize".

The Waiting is the Hardest Part

OK, so I'm in a bit of state in anticipation of new Built to Spill material with the impending (still a few weeks away!) release of There is No Enemy. What's nice about these periods is that you occasionally stumble across tracks and vids you never new existed. I had a pleasant and sweet such discovery this morning over at Muzzle of Bees who have kindly posted a psychy beautiful synth ditty of Doug Martsch solo. The track is "Save Me" and is apparently off the Rotating Tongues 2 Compilation. Check it out!



PS: If you are interested, Warner Brothers has several BtS records available on vinyl for some pretty sweet prices. Just saying.

Pretty Please

Monsters of Folk prove they've got that certain je ne sais quoi with a take on the lead single "Say Please" off the new record over at Conan O'Brien's house. One thing for sure, Mike Mogis is a shredder. Another thing is Yim Yames has that George Harrison vibe down just right. Conor's got some bad-ass 70's cop glasses. M Ward takes the lead role here even if just subtley and that's all right. A great group and probably worth checking out on tour in case they never pull this off again.

It's not free, it's for sale

Lily Allen has taken a stand in the illegal downloading/file sharing war that is reshaping the music industry by calling 'Shite' on some of the bigger name acts (including Radiohead) who say the downloads are simply the equivalent of taping your friends records. Lily has launched a blog called It's Not Alright where she has firmly expressed her views and where other artists of some repute are joining her side of the great debate. Worth a look see for sure to better understand how this issue is affecting artists of all walks, great and small.

A Font of Goodness

A sweet, trippy vid from Matador band Times New Viking who are rumoured to be hitting the Oasis Pub with local faves Fatal Film in the coming months.

Yo La Takeaway

La Blogotheque present...

Yo La tengo - A Take Away Show - Part 1 from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Yo La Tengo - A Take Away Show - Part 2 from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

http://blogotheque.net/Yo-La-Tengo,5049

C'est parfait, c'est magnifique!

11th Dimension

Julian Casablancas of The Strokes strikes off solo with a blast of synthy pop out of left field. The new album Phrazes for the Young is out October 20th.

Thom's the Best

Thom Yorke's heady and marvelous cover of the Mark Mulcahy tune 'All for the Best' from the stellar and stirring Ciao, My Morning Star compilation celebrating the latter's songsmithing has been given an appropriately trippy and surreal video treatment. The vidvid is currently on view exclusively over at Rolling Stone headquarters. Turns out that it's Thom's brother Andy Yorke providing the haunting and very Mulcahy-esque backing harmonies. Very nice indeed. The compilation is currently available through iTunes and will hit the physical world on September 29th.

Autumnal Equinox

It bodes well for the looming autumn that Built to Spill tracks have begun leaking out from their forthcoming seventh long player There is No Enemy and that the band will be in full stride touring the country to support the new material over the next couple of months. Stereogum has a first dip into the sparkling waters of the new record if you can't wait (I know I can't) for the October release date. there are a couple more tracks for your listening pleasure over here (though, unfortunately, they are accompanied by one of the most poorly written and researched reviews I have read of any record ever).

There Is No Enemy is out 10/6 via Warner Bros. The tour is happening right now:

09/21 - Boulder, CO @ Fox Theatre
09/23 - Omaha, NE @ Slowdown
09/24 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avene
09/25 - Madison, WI @ Barrymore Theatre
09/26 - Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
09/27 - Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom
09/28 - Bloomington, IN @ Bluebird Nightclub
09/29 - St. Louis, MO @ The Peageant
10/01 - Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
10/02 - Newport, KY @ Southgate House
10/03 - Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
10/04 - Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
10/06 - Toronto, ON @ Lee's Place
10/08 - Ithaca, NY @ State Theater
10/09 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
10/10 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
10/11 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
10/12 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall
10/13 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall
10/14 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
10/15 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
10/16 - Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero
10/18 - Carrboro, NC @ Cat's Cradle
10/20 - Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Club
10/21 - Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall
10/22 - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater #
10/23 - Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live #
10/24 - Austin, TX @ Stubb's #
10/25 - Oklahoma City, OK @ Diamond Ballroom #
10/27 - Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theatre
10/28 - Tucson, AZ @ Dry River
11/15 - Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall
11/17 - Bellingham, WA @ The Nightlight
11/18 - Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
11/19 - Seattle, WA @ Showbox at the Market
11/20 - Seattle, WA @ Showbox at the Market
11/21 - Spokane, WA @ Big Easy

Oh Baby

Devendra Banhart is returning to the fold with an album out via Warner Brothers on October 27th. The first track, 'Baby', is a poppy little diddy that nods in the general direction of Donovan quite heartily. You can hear the new tune over at Devendra's Myspace.

Tom Jones does Arctic Monkeys

Ok, so Deerhoof doing Canned Heat is pretty cool but apparently the Outside Lands festival had Tom Jones covering Arctic Monkeys "I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor". I Am Fuel, You Are Friends has an mp3 from a Wembley show cover of the same. Just one word: wow!

New Deerhoof at YANP

Well, we heard it first here in little old New London at this year's I AM Fest on September 12th but You Ain't No Picasso has a live clip of new Deerhoof number "I Did Crimes for You" (via NYCtaper). The whole live set which features the excellent and surprising Canned Heat cover "Going Up the Country" is also available. What a great band and what great people. It really was such a treat having them in for this year's I AM Fest!

Elvis Perkins is underwater

These Are Noise Friends

a former New London regular is still making good on their promise of bringing the good noise to the masses. One of the great live bands and inheritors of the sonic fringe, These Are Powers, people....

So Far

Great Song, Great Band, Great Compilation, Great Cause....

Poor Kid(s)

MGMT give young boy the brown acid but at least they make up for it and make his mom is Joanna Newsom!

Makes me smile...

MGMT: Kids

You were a child,
crawlin' on your knees toward it.
Makin' mama so proud,
but your voice is too loud.

We like to watch you laughing.
Pickin' insects off plants.
No time to think of consequences.

Control yourself.
Take only what you need from it.
A family of trees wanting,
To be haunted.

Control yourself.
Take only what you need from it.
A family of trees wantin',
To be haunted.

The water is warm,
but its sending me shivers.
A baby is born,
crying out for attention.
Memories fade,
like looking through a fogged mirror
Decisions to decisions are made and not fought
But I thought,
this wouldn't hurt a lot.
I guess not.

Control yourself.
Take only what you need from it.
A family of trees wantin',
To be haunted.

No One Is Laughing...

but we are very happy for new Regina Spektor material...
Laughing With

Whatcha Whatcha Whatcha Want?

Thanks to youaintnopicasso for the tip, yo!

The Dirt on Dirt

Thanks to Muzzle of Bees for the tip on this cool look at Levon Helm's new slab of tunes Electric Dirt the follow up to the exceedingly excellent and Grammy award winning Dirt Farmer.

free for all

You gotta like a major label act giving the music directly to the fans. The money is clearly in the touring and merch these days so why not give the tunes directly to the peeps (they'll end up with them anyway in all likely hood through some P2P or other). Enter Coldplay and the LeftRightLeftRightLeft live release that is now available for all to download for free over here. It's a fun and free wheeling live recording that keeps the audience in the mix on tracks from their recent releases and the big hit "Clocks". Personally, I love hearing the crowd sing along and clap with the band in lieu of the hollow sound that most board mixed live records take on.

Tracklisting:
1 Glass of Water
2 42
3 Clocks
4 Strawberry Swing
5 The Hardest Part / Postcards From Far Away
6 Viva La Vida
7 Death Will Never Conquer
8 Fix You
9 Death And All His Friends

beauty for a beautiful day

Double Bubble

Thanks to Amrit at Stereogum for pointing us to a new Shins track from the recent flurry of shows. James Mercer is sporting a new line-up and developing new tunes for a potential new record for release in 2010 on his own label Aural Apothacary. For now , we'll have to be happy with fanshots from the front rows. Works for me!

Animals!

Regina Returns

We posted previously about the impending new slab o' tunes from sexy, trickster songstress Regina Spektor. Well, the first tune from the new album, Far, is now available through her myspace. Happily, she is remaining true to her strangest tendencies and the lead single, "Laughing With", is not the pop track you might expect after the hits she so easily tossed off on Begin to Hope. There's also an endearing and silly blog post that is well worth the read off to the right under the music player - it's called Far(t).

Fleeting Moments

An animated video for Fleet Foxes 'Mykonos' created by Sean Pecknold (brother of lead Fox Robin):

Mykonos from Grandchildren on Vimeo.

VidVid: New Matt & Kim

Lessons Learned

Video History: Pixies & Throwing Muses

I remember my first time seeing both of these bands at a club called Axis on Lansdowne Street in Boston back in the Fall of 1987 (I think, it's all a little blurry). It was a double bill and there were about 50 to 75 fans there. Surfer Rosa was being pushed hard by Newbury Comics and WFNX had both bands on the radio constantly. The show was a revelation. I was already into the Muses green self-titled record (the song Green Eyes was a personal fave) and their set did not disappoint at all with its manic electrified take on folk music. Audience members were reaching onto the stage writing their own requests onto the band's set list (I still have one somewhere!). Kristen Hersch is an enchanting front person with her eyes locked on the back of the room she seems to be looking straight through you when she channels her songs. Tawnya plays the cute coy young thing next to her intellectual older 'sister'. I was in heaven after there set. The Pixies came on and proceeded to frighten me out of my hazy happiness with a jarring and aggressive set that sounded like nothing I'd ever heard before. My musical world would never be the same after that night. This video is a little after that time frame but it brought me back and I thought it would be fun to share. Enjoy. Frank Black is an arrogant hoot throughout!

Wild Clover

Prince returns with a triple album set only available at Target. Typical for the Purple One but a strange move indeed for anyone else on the planet given the state of the music industry. Where most artists are turning to one song at a time delivery systems via youtube and twitter, Prince packs a punch with a dense set of new material. Whether any of it will hold up to his greatest work (which for me hits right around Sign Of the Times) only time will tell. Chances are given his last several releases nothing will rank so high. I can't remember anything off Musicology though I did like Old Guitar off that last record (what was it called again?). Anyhoo, he's got a nice take on Crimson & Clover the classic Tommy James and the Shondells number that is also available in a psychedelic 007 meets Barry White vidvid that's worth a passing glance. Why he slips into a bit of Wild Thing is beyond me but it works just fine.

Public Enemy

It's never a bad time for Built to Spill. Something about Doug Martsch's delivery, his poetry, and his sound just puts me at ease and hits my bliss. I hit the day in need of some of that goodness and so wen ton a little search for tunes. In the process I stumbled across a little tidbit of news that put a big grin on this dour gray New England day: Built to Spill is working on a record for release this fall called There is No Enemy! Doug revealed the great news in a little interview over here at Rotoworld. How Rotoworld (#$%&!??) got the scoop, we'll probably never really know. They also clued us into another little gem we'd had no idea about: Boise Cover Band's Unoriginal Artists cd featuring covers by Bowie, Beefheart, and The Delusions as well as an instrumental take on The Pretenders Chain Gang. BCD of course features Sir Martsch himself as ringleader. My copy is on order! In the meantime, here's a great impromptu bit of Doug playing Liar for some fans who couldn't get tickets to a sold out show.

Vampire Riot

The secret has been out for a while (at least if you've been anywhere near the Oasis Pub or Sean Murray anytime in the recent past) but there's a fancy new project/supergroup featuring Rostam Batmanglij and Wes Miles (of those certain little acts who could: Vampire Weekend and Ra Ra Riot!) called Discovery. Their tunes offer up a more spritely version of Postal Service and are chock full of yummy happy beatness. Neon Gold has a download for your tasting pleasures.

Singing Saws

Julian Koster of the Music Tapes (and Neutral Milk Hotel) sat down and answered some questions for David Glickman (who has kindly posted it on his blog The Creative Intersection). A must read for sure, so check it when you can!

Silversun Pickups: Panic Switch (video)

Halleluja

Leonard Cohen sings his classic track. Enough said:

Take Away Fleet Foxes

Fleet Foxes - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Wake Up!

The Spike Jonze theatrical reenvisoning of the Maurice Sendak classic children's book Where The Wild Things Are is finally on its way to us (though not until October 16th!). The new trailer features a slightly stripped down and cool new take on the classic Arcade Fire track Wake Up. According to I Am Fuel, You Are Friends, a certain Ms. Karen O is also listed as a musical director for the project. Methinks we are in for a yummy soundtrack indeed. Here's the trailer:

Feeling Called J.A.R.V.I.S.

I'm off to the Dutch but had to post the good news: a new collection of Jarvis Cocker tunes produced by studio guru Steve Albini is on its way to audiophiles everywhere. The record, Further Complications, is out 5/28 on Rough Trade. Stereogum has a first taste in the lead single "Angela" - grab it while you can.

Holy Windfall, Batman!

There's almost not much you can say except for "Wow", "Blam", "Pow"!!! Independent minded and free-form forged radio titans WFMU are putting the music where their love is and have launched the Free Music Archive. the bi-line for the site says it all: "It's not just free music; it's good music." Teaming with guest curators including KEXP, the ISSUE Project Room, and dublab, the station is building a Library of Congress like collection of the music that makes are heart's swoon....and rock, and roll, and scream, and grow. There's a treasure trove of goods from all genres including the experimental bits you'd expect from FMU as well as jazz, folk, rap, spoken word and more. Rainy day hobbiests rejoice, let your downloads begin!

Got This Crazy Feeling

M. Ward's dreamy take of Buddy Holly's "Rave On" from his excellent Hold Time collection gets an appropriately puppet blessed animation treatment. The song features Cotton Queen Zooey Deschanel on back-up vox. So good.

Industrial Symphony

Connecticut native Moby returns on june 30 with a new record, Wait for Me. The kick-off starts now with a special treat in the form of a video directed by legendary film auteur David Lynch (strangely his only previous foray into music video creation was a typically blurred-reality take on Chris Isaac's Wicked Game). Moby was apparently inspired by a talk that Lynch had given on the role of art and commerce. From moby's site:

david was talking about creativity, and to paraphrase, about how creativity in and of itself, and without market pressures, is fine. it seems that too often creative output is judged by how well it accommodates the marketplace, how much market share it commands and how much money it generates.

In making this record i wanted to focus on making something that i loved, without really being concerned about how it might be received by the marketplace. as a result it’s a quieter, more melodic, more mournful and more personal record than some of the records i’ve made in the past.

100% of My Love

She really is just too cute for words, that Zooey Deschanel. First, she's playing Dorothy in a weird and wild Oz redo, then she's in a band with everyone's fave partner-in-muse M.Ward, and goes and marries the romantic pop bard Ben Gibbard. What's an it girl to do to follow all that up? Well, it turns out you write a diddy for the Cotton industry and star in the commercial it soundtracks. Sounds, god awful, I know, but it works. Well. I'm off to by some cotton briefs and boxers and anything else made of the stuff right now!