Joy's Blues

On Wednesday night I saw Adem and Akron/Family. The former alternated between a shambling brilliance and a shambling tedium, at their (or his, more accurately, though his band was essential to the music's success) best quite enjoyable. He played songs from his new album, Love and Other Planets, songs with intentions of a cosmic grandeur which never quite reached those heights. Ironically, Akron/Family beat him at his own game, channeling astonishing, beautiful noise seemingly from above, at once celestial and impossible. I became entranced by their glee and their sincerity - it was clear they were having fun, but it was also clear what they were doing was special. It was music for the infinity of a summer evening!

Just a day later, I was sent music that reminded me, immediately, of AK-AK's bearded homages to the cosmos. It was Joy, or Joy's Devil's Blues. The songs were a loosely-woven blanket cast wide, warm evening air through the holes. Notes rang with twilit clarity, up like smoke, dissipating into night and space. These back-porch transmissions reminded me of Califone and Lowlights, the twisted blues of the former played on the latter's astral nighttime highway. Hushed and buzzing, this is flawless music at exactly the right time. Give it a listen, I couldn't recommend it more.

From Devil's Blues

Joy - Tigers Paw [mp3]

Joy - Strummed On A Bent Harp [mp3]

From the Devil's Blues sessions

Joy - Devil's Blues [mp3]

Joy - Sea Life [mp3]

Visit Joy online, and purchase Devil's Blues (Shrimper Records) from Midhaven.

***

Did everyone see Dan's video for Sunset Rubdown's "Us Ones In Between" at Said the Gramophone? How about that!

Did everyone get Josh Ritter doing Modest Mouse's "Blame It On The Tetons" at I Guess I'm Floating? It's like a favorites overload.

Dear Mr. Supercomputer

Sufjan Stevens - Dear Mr. Supercomputer [mp3]

What did I say? He can do it all. "Dear Mr. Supercomputer" sees Stevens and friends, dressed as robots, showing off their light hearts and gracious touch. It's funny, it's endearing, it's unpretentious and affecting. Of course, the typical Sufjan motifs present themselves: "Oh my God I can't believe it/ What went wrong, the human race/ In its place/ Superstition." But it's not like we've heard this before, at least not this way: "One-two-three-four-five-six-seven/ All-com-pu-ters-go-to-heaven," they jingle, goofy as the thought of the word supercomputer.

The Avalanche will be availabe on Asthmatic Kitty in July.

Wait, Think

Think About Life - Paul Cries [mp3]

It took me exactly one listen to fall in love with this song. It features an incessant, overdriven note and a drum machine named Matt Shane, which propel it to a thrilling speed early on and never look back. The vocals themselves are unhinged, but are confined by the sheer speed and relentlessness of the music, which works to the song's benefit. I suppose this is why it's so listenable despite being crazy - as fast as it may go, it's still under control. "Wait, just wait. Wait for me, please wait for me," they sing, but Matt Shane knows better.

Think About Life's self-titled debut comes out May 2nd on Alien8 Recordings. Visit Think About Life online.

Walkmen News

I almost forgot! Those interested can download two new Walkmen songs from the upcoming album A Hundred Miles Off! Opening track "Louisiana," which has been featured on their MySpace page, has mariachi horns, which seems to have put some people off. Not me, however! Utter brilliance! Album closer "Another One Goes By" is the other available song, which I hear is fantastic. I'm gonna wait 'til the album drops May 23rd to hear the rest.

Buy "Louisiana" and "Another One Goes By" from iTunes now!

Someone from the Walkmen forum actually went to Mercata Studios (when it was still around) and got to listen to a couple tracks from their upcoming Harry Nilsson cover album, Pussycats:

[House engineer] Kevin played us "Many Rivers..." and "Mucho Mongo." I don't have enough superlatives to tell you how good the songs sounded, but we were basically reduced to tears by the end. "Rivers" in particular was just amazing. I thought it was the best vocal performance I'd heard yet from Hamilton, and apparently he was sick as a dog when they recorded the vocals for that song.

You wish you were there! Make sure to visit the Walkmen online.

S.S. Avalanche

Sufjan Stevens - The Henney Buggy Band [mp3 removed]

Somebody commented on the song's original Stereogum post:

Any truth to the rumor the Sufjan shot his load all over Illinois and not rosie thomas?? Seriously, can he save a good song or two for the next state?

Funny as this reads, it really does voice a concern of mine. How is this man so consistent? Are my worries unfounded? He hasn't hinted at slowing and his output is of uniformly good-to-great quality, the closest thing to a wunderkind we've seen. Perhaps more than my worry that Stevens will lose steam, I fear that I'll begin taking him for granted. In my college career alone, he's released three of my favorite albums. At this point not only do I expect Rhode Island or Oregon or Nebraska (slight problem with that one?) to be excellent, but I expect The Avalanche, nothing more than demos and rarities, to be fantastic as well. Demos. I'm not sure if that's fair - there's certainly no other artist I dare demand this much of.

All that aside, "The Henney Buggy Band" is a cool, slinky number, a late-night street-light song brought to life by Stevens' impressive cast. It sounds like a production, too: instruments entering one after the other, all short, jumpy notes, never still except to let Stevens' ghost-falsetto ring. "Forget about yourself and all your plans," (I think). As before, his lyrics are at once stunningly personal and impossibly allusive - for all the references to obsolete motor companies and runners in Bloomington, the song remains about us. And that's what saves it from becoming a dry history lesson - the allusions are just a vehicle (ha) for Stevens' story about kissing you on the face, on the playground.

The Greatest War in American History

Hey there loyal B+A fans, Tino here holding it down for all you interested in essays outside of the classroom. I hope Brian had a nice time perusing (I use this word in the way Sixty-six percent of the Usage Panel finds unacceptable; quickly glancing over)¹ through northern Europe and what not. So I will get right to it.

-- The Civil War --

The American Civil War was the “greatest war in American history” -Civilwar.com I whole heartedly agree with this because the fire arms from this time period are quoted as being “beautiful” by one Army of Mom.² Army of Mom also points out that womans clothing from the time was “so cool” but goes on to say that it also made her glad to be living in the 21^st century, apparently the clothing looked uncomfortable. I don't know if I agree with this point, I mean, I've got some poor quality clothing in my dresser drawers and it is pretty uncomfortable even being made in the 21^st century. During battle there were a great number of different flags flown, these flags along with the blood and guts and dirt and flames made for a very colorful war, it must have been just like a painting out there, so serene and peaceful. It truly was a great war for America. Anyways, enough of my opinions, lets get back to what Army of Mom thinks. Army of Mom felt that locks of hair found on the battle field and put in the museum that she visited was “bazaar” but in actuality it is nothing of the sort. I just happen know this lesser known fact about the civil war: Lovers at the time would trade locks of hair to pin next to their hearts before the men went off to war; photographs were expensive, a medium we take for granted daily, so instead of a photo to keep near, most soldiers (and their loves back at home) would carry a lock of hair tied up in a ribbon as a remembrance. The Civil war spanned from 1861 to 1865, during Abraham Lincoln's presidency, but sadly Mr. Lincoln was not able to see the triumphant ending, he was killed by a murderous villain named John Wilkes Booth on April 14^th 1865, just about a month before the war's official ending when the remaining confederates surrendered. Luckily John Wilkes Booth got his on April 26^th 1865 in some tobacco barn. Shot dead. All in all about 650,000 Americans died in the civil war, disease killing more than half of them.

1 http://www.thefreedictionary.com/peruses

2 http://www.armyofmom.com/2006/03/civil-war-museum.html

Running/Returning

Stupid, stupid me. The Triptych Festival is upon us in sunny Schottland: five days, three cities, twenty venues, too many bands to count. The biggest draw, the act I was most excited about, what could be the highlight of a year of shows here: the Silver Jews. Well, I let that one slip by, and now it's sold out.

It was gonna be special.

Silver Jews - There Is A Place [mp3]

Perhaps the only thing that hits harder than Berman's assertion that "there is a place past the blues I never wanna see again," is what comes a couple minutes later in the song. Suddenly, terribly, awesomely: "I saw God's shadow on this world. I saw God's shadow on this world... I took a hammer to it all." He sings this with a conviction to match, working everything into a frenzied finale.

Silver Jews - Punks In The Beerlight [mov]

Herman Düne - Black And Brown Blues (Silver Jews cover) [mp3]

I don't know Herman Düne, but I see that he can make a nice song using a ukelele. The Catbirdseat is all over ukeleles, by the way.

Visit the Silver Jews online, buy the fantastic Tanglewood Numbers here.

All hope's not lost though, as tomorrow I'll be discovering Akron/Family. I've only heard one song of theirs, which I have come to love dearly, called "Running, Returning." What I like best is that the singer, I'll call him Akron, holds his wonderfully imperfect, crystal notes in a way remniscent of Jeff Mangum. It sounds reckless at first, the way he pushes them and the way they won't stay still, but it really isn't. Akron is trying his hardest to make those sounds come out right, to sing his insides out. And what results - this music - sounds like Animal Collective. But humans, not animals.

Akron/Family - Running, Returning [mp3]

Visit Akron/Family online, buy Akron/Family here, and check out this artwork:








Enjoy.

The Click Wheel Five

I love this idea of putting rock stars' iPods on shuffle and having them explain (or apologize for) whatever comes up. I did the same (not suggesting that anybody cares what I have on my iPod), and here's what turned up:

DJ Shadow - Changeling [mp3] [buy]

Funny, Kevin from So Much Silence just told me that DJ Shadow grew up in Davis, CA, my erstwhile and future home. Endtroducing..... is a classic, the result of what must have been intense cratedigging. Sampled in "Changeling" are:

"Soft Shell" by Motherlode
"Klondyke Netti" by Embryo
"Touching Souls" and "Inner Mood I" by Kay Gardner
"The Man Who Couldn't Cry" by Loudon Wainwright III
"Invisible Limits" by Tangerine Dream, and
"Here Comes the Meterman" by The Meters

...none of which I'm familiar with.

Elton John - Rocket Man [mp3] [buy]

This is a ridiculous song. A ridiculously awesome song, yes, but really - what is he talking about? Read this hilarious pop-song correspondence from McSweeney's.

Bob Dylan - Don't Think Twice, It's All Right [mp3] [buy]

I think this is one of the finest songs ever written. Lyrically it can't be matched, containing verse after timeless verse of embittered resolutions. "A statement that maybe you can say to make yourself feel better...as if you were talking to yourself," Dylan called it. Musically, contrasting the boldness of the lyrics, a beautifully understated clawhammer phrase plays in the background, only to be bled upon by Dylan's harmonica at the end.

M83 - 6. [mp3] [buy]

This is a good example of Before The Dawn Heals Us' dark and urban-sleek sound, though its intensity is blemished by a series of awkward and overlong pauses at the beginning.

The Mountain Goats - Island Garden Song [mp3] [buy]

Another masterful songwriter! "My garden will grow so high/ My garden will grow so high/ That I will be completely hidden" - archetypic Mountain Goats.

It Came From Memphis

Memphis Industries, home to acts such as Field Music and the Pipettes, has a free label sampler up at Emusic. Check it out here.

Field Music - Feeding the Birds [mp3]

Field Music - You Can Decide [mp3]

I bought this band's self-titled debut without ever hearing them, based purely on positive reviews and recommendations. I've listened over and over, trying to pick out what made these Newcastle kids so special, coming up empty every time. Much has been made of their Futureheads-Maximo Park ties, which make themselves pretty apparent from the beginning. Perhaps the problem is that I want to hear the other parts of these bands' sounds in Field Music, especially the former's unbridled, manic joy. Field Music sounds sedated, like good songs through a weak radio, something like that. "Feeding the Birds," though, caught me quicker than any song on the album (except the sublime "You Can Decide"). It's not terribly different from their other songs, but everything here comes together and keeps perfect pace, like clockwork.

Visit Field Music online, and buy Field Music here.

All Things Feist

My hope is that you've come across All Things Feist already. It's a new and fantastic resource that lives up to its name - live sets, rare songs, (hott) photos, news and video.

Canadians love Nina Simone:

Feist - See-Line Woman (live) [mp3]

The Constantines - See-Line Woman [mp3] [buy] [web]

Brian loves Feist:

Enjoy.

Did You...

The Kills - The Good Ones [mp3]

Get the real good ones? Did you get the good ones? All this Yeah Yeah Yeah-ing and this is what I've reverted to. No Wow is sex, man, and since I can't tell what Karen O's doing I'll be happy to listen to what she could (should?) have instead.

Visit the Kills' MySpace and buy No Wow here.

The Wilderness

Wilderness - Gravity Bent Light [mp3]

Wilderness is the forest, wolves, sharp rocks and teeth. Wilderness is undomesticated and athletic and acerbic - terribly, awesomely magnificent. Wilderness (the band) is the finest approximation of wilderness I've ever heard, invigorating like cold air and fear.

Visit Wilderness online, purchase new album Vessel States here.

***

I've got visitors, don't know how much I'll write this week.

Go get the Constantines' cover of Neil Young's "Cinnamon Girl" at Stereogum!

Enjoy!

Happy Easter

Page France - Jesus [mp3]

Apparently, perplexingly, and sadly, Michael Nau came under some fire for this song, probably for the chorus:

Jesus will come through the ground so dirty
With worms in his hair and a hand so sturdy
He'll call us his magic, we call him worthy
Jesus came up through the ground so dirty

Detractors, I think, are missing the song's beautifully celebratory intent. Nau has a way with images, and "Jesus" may be his finest work, filled with dancing animals, wine and cheer. Like the best art, for all its surrealist leanings the song betrays a remarkably human emotion; namely an absolute, unshackled and wobbly joy. It's the sound of the biggest grin through the happiest tears, love love love.

Visit Page France online, buy the album.

The Velvet Underground - Jesus [mp3]

A year before, the Velvets wrote songs about transvestite smack dealers and luckless Waldos, with a jarring intensity which would come to be recognized as the root of the next decade's punk paroxysm. Of course, a year can make all the difference, especially if you're a volatile, immensely talented and ambitious group. 1969's The Velvet Underground, now Lou Reed's show, amplified the accessibility while reducing the volume, a collection of undeniable pop songs often bordering on folkiness. Somewhat appropriately, the debauchery delineated in previous albums gave way to disarmingly beautiful and straightforward confessionals, with a theme of redemption running through the songs. "Jesus," in particular, shows this, the lyrics simply reading:

Jesus, help me find my proper place
Jesus, help me find my proper place
Help me in my weakness
'Cause I'm falling out of grace
Jesus
Jesus

Reed's plea couldn't be any more direct, or heartbreaking. Or absolutely beautiful. There's hope in this naked appeal, in both the honesty of Reed's voice and the music's quiet determination. It's a deeply inspiring tune, hope you like it. Happy Easter.

Buy the album.

I Am Nothing But Books

You've probably seen the 8+ feature over at Ear FARM, in which Matt spotlights the longer (eight-plus minute) songs. It's one of my favorite ideas, and today when I found myself spinning a certain epic (with a title to match!) over and over, I couldn't help but share.

The Anniversary - I Believe that the End of the Reign of Terror is Soon Near [mp3]

Funny enough, this was my introduction to the band I'd call favorite for years. It's a stunning, if grandiose, statement from the now-defunct Lawrence band, complete with distinct sections and a wonderfully emo sincerity throughout. Which isn't to say it's too precious - at their best (and indeed most of the time) the Anniversary transcended emo's negative connotations, producing ridiculously catchy and interesting pop. "I Believe..." is their strangest song, and my personal favorite. I've never been able to describe the sound adequately, perhaps due to the thousands of plays, each one further defining it as its own separate entity, an anomaly in both the Anniversary's catalog and my collection as a whole.

First, it's ambitious. It works around multiple parts, all well-executed in their own right, and attached seamlessly. Two minutes into the song, thrilling, surf-inflected guitars hit like a storm wave (coincidence?), clearing out the cool, rolling intro. When they subside, only dark keys remain, the song leveled and reconstructed over the rest of its running time. There seems to be a logic to the progression, an accessibility not always present in such epics (see Friedberger symphonies).

Second, it's self-assured. The Anniversary never had a problem with confidence, as those who followed them into Your Majesty's pretentious change-the-world Beatles phase can attest. Here, it allows them to pull of what could easily be a silly, eight-and-a-half minute flop. Though they're a bit ridiculous, the lyrics do lend the song the aforementioned air of grandiosity, sounding better than they read. (That said, I did write an award-winning poem based on them in high school.) Along with the sweeping music and Adrienne Verhoeven's beautiful chorus of "Ahh"s, they create a dynamic, interesting song whose passion keeps it just-this-side of self-indulgence.

The track was released on Vagrant Records' Another Year on the Streets, still available here (from $0.29, too).

***

Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands has Rilo Kiley's appearance at the Elliott Smith tribute show.

Rbally has Josh Ritter's appearance on German radio - not to be missed.

Enjoy!

¡Lost Hermanos Cubanos!

I went, blindly, to the Liquid Room last night to catch the Cuban Brothers. I had been told there would be breakdancing and music and comedy, and while there was, it was nothing like I expected. I envisioned a show in parts, a factioned stage and the type of self-conscious appreciation I give to things I don't know much about - breakdancing, DJing, and performances in general. Little did I know...

There are four "brothers:" two breakdancers, a DJ, and an MC, "Miguel," who leads the show. The dancers amazed, the MC humored and flowed, and the DJ kept everything high - and in a glorious inversion of my stuffy expectations, it all happened at once. It was the most fun I've had at a show all year, longer even. Despite seeing this man (Miguel) naked:



Check out their website for the backstory, pick your own parts to believe. But even better, see them live if you're in the UK. A clip from their single, "A Million Stories:"

The Cuban Brothers - A Million Stories [mp3 clip]

Needless to say, only an ounce of their magic, their energy and happiness, can be captured here. This is a single piece of the puzzle, hopefully you can see where it might fit in.

Buy their new album, A to Z, here.

Enjoy!

The Moon! The Moon!

Johnny And The Moon - When You're All Alone [mp3]

Johnny And The Moon is Dante DeCaro, and Dante DeCaro is part of Wolf Parade. These, his solo songs, do not sound much like Wolf Parade. Johnny And The Moon forgoes the intensity, opting instead for a loose, grinning sound. "When You're All Alone" shambles and rambles, a mountain music jukebox playing Dylan, drunk. DeCaro sings weary through a smile, his friends and his instruments don't even bother, bouncing happy and yelling happier.

Johnny And The Moon - Kid Heaven [mp3]

The most spaced of the three, "Kid Heaven" makes for a wonderful dream transition, it's pure air. "When the morning tore the skyline/ I was counting stars from death-light/ When the range was black and white/ We were ghosts." And so it goes.

Johnny And The Moon - Johnny Meets The Moon [mp3]

RIYL moonshine from the still, porches and banjos, the moon (natch).

Visit Johnny And The Moon's MySpace!

Nicolai Dunger's Song

At first, I listened to Here's My Song (my first exposure to Dunger) on a primarily vocal level, intrigued by the nuances and power of his singing voice - somewhere between Van Morrison's soulful projection and Alec Ounsworth's constantly cracking itchy throat, it's a vibrato that soothes as much as it excites. Here, thankfully, Dunger makes the most of it. "Hunger," for example, finds it unbridled and rollicking, building along with the music to a fantastically rock-n-roll finish, all double-time drums and pounding pianos. Appropriately, Dunger reigns in his pipes on the next track, "Slaves (We're Together Like)," a song that strolls along, unhurried, on strings and brushes. My favorite moment, though, comes two songs later. Here, on "White Wild Horses," he gives a true vocal performance - strong, dynamic, and affecting. Confident and assertive, Dunger lets fly a series of gorgeous falsettos, careful not to overpower the delicate melody while still belting it out.

As I said, the vocals were what grabbed me initially (and didn't let go for some time). Of course, half the reason they work is because the rest of the album succeeds in sounding good. It's clearly informed by and a homage to old rock and soul, often spot-on (the eight-minute "Year of the Love and Hurt Cycle"), though Dunger's impassioned performance makes this anything but mimicry. The piano and drums work wonderfully on the album, bouncing where appropriate ("Tell Me"), lilting on "Country Lane," and straight barnburning on "Hunger." And, in the latter, I've got to mention that saxophone, sealing the deal on a true rocker.

There are a couple misfits here, "Someone New" an attempt to further the album's theme while falling flat, and more than a little terrifying at its end. And "Way Up High" is abrasive in its intensity, which can be good or bad depending on how you're listening. But overall, it should be clear, Here's My Song, You Can Have It... Don't Want It Anymore/Yours 4-ever (full title) is a terrifically well-executed album, entertaining well beyond Dunger's stand-out vocal performance.

Nicolai Dunger - Hunger [mp3]

Nicolai Dunger - White Wild Horses [mp3]

Visit Nicolai online, and purchase Here's My Song here.

Enjoy!

Get Her!

It's my job to keep you on top of Regina Spektor's happenings, and while this isn't the "Samson" post I can't seem to write, it's still pretty good.

You can download (legally (but not freely (but you're okay with that, right?))) three songs from Begin to Hope NOW!

"Fidelity"
"Better"
"Summer in the City"

are all available in the online outlets today. Here's the direct link to "Fidelity" in the iTunes store.

Begin to Hope will be released June 13th, an album I've been anticipating quite a bit.

Visit Regina online and at MySpace.

Read my thoughts on "Fidelity" and "Better."

Enjoy!

The Procession

Today was the best record shopping outing I've had in a long while. I didn't realize there were so many tempting new UK releases! Calexico, Pretty Girls Make Graves, The Streets, and the Fiery Furnaces were all calling me from their shelves, and those are just the albums released yesterday. Of these, I only came home with PGMG's Elan Vital, choosing instead (in my infinite judiciousness) to get Show Your Bones and Silent Shout, as well as some special Wolf Parade releases.

Apologies to the Queen Mary was one of the strongest releases of last year, and certainly my favorite debut. I know there are too many animal-band-names around at the moment, but Wolf Parade actually suit the moniker. Their music is instinctual and forceful (qualities which are shared with wolves), as well as wonderfully anthemic (which makes me, at least, think of parades). Since then, anyways, I've been clamoring for more. More Krug and Boekner, more paranoid exorcisms and bleeding lupine hearts. I knew they made their debut on Sub Pop with a self-titled EP, but had never come across a copy. I found one today, as well as their second EP (Wolf Parade EP was their third). It's a self-released disc-wrapped-in-paper affair which features early versions of songs from Apologies, along with two I hadn't heard before.

Wolf Parade - The National People's Scare [mp3]

Wolf Parade - Killing Armies [mp3]

"The National People's Scare" is fantastic, a song paced perfectly for Boekner's ragged, slow-burn voice (think "Same Ghost Every Night," but better). It's gorgeous and majestic, sad, sombre. Rain in pine forests, something like that. "Killing Armies" is Krug's, it's alive (not more alive, but alive in a different way). I think my sister said it best - if you have a voice like that, you've got to sing. It's cracked and manic, and delightfully expressive. Together, they make the best vocal tag-team in indie rock.

You can still get the second EP online, definitely worth it, recommended, etc. Go here, scroll down to the end.

Buy their Sub Pop EP here, also highly rec.

I also found this Wolf Parade fansite, where you can get some rarities (and if you know where to look, even more).

Wolf Parade - Wits or a Dagger [mp3]

Wolf Parade - Secret Knives [mp3]

Funny, these two share a relationship similar to the first pair, in that the second is raucous where the first sounds more pensive. Of course, pensive for this band does not necessarily mean mellow (they are wolves, remember). It's thoughtful, to be sure, but still sounds unsettled. This is what Wolf Parade does best, voice their reservations without being reserved, making for a refreshingly compelling listen.

Enjoy.

I'm Floating?

I hope all of you read I Guess I'm Floating. I bet you do. On the slight chance you don't, however, there's no better time to start. Reasons:

Gnarls Barkley and Dangerdoom songs you might not have heard.

New Sufjan Stevens (!)

AND

An exclusive interview with Josh Ritter. It's interesting and well done, showing Ritter to be admirably humble and genuinely excited about what he does. Besides the interview, there's a write-up of The Animal Years and a download of "Wolves," one of the album's finest tracks.

Enjoy!

Children Gone Bad!

I hear something I like in Shapes and Sizes. Or, rather, many things I like - there is a lot going on. Electric things, fuzzy things, noisy things. There are two parts to "Island's Gone Bad," a sleepy start and a raucous end, with a wonderfully abrupt transition that makes more sense the more it's considered. Rory Seydel wakes the band up with a voice strong and clear, a story about nine long years. By the end of the first act, everybody's up and playing their instruments, strumming and pounding as if they're trying to make something happen. Sure enough, the magic works and they step back to let the instruments play themselves - now they can dance and sing and yell about sweet fruit and clean air! It's all quite interesting, and fun, and give it a try.

Shapes and Sizes - Island's Gone Bad [mp3]

Visit Shapes and Sizes online! Their self-titled debut is out July 11 on Asthmatic Kitty, info on it here.

***

I discovered yesterday that the Secret Machines new album, Ten Silver Drops, can be streamed in full from their website! Go dismiss any reservations you may have, it's a gooood one. Also, they have a new blog (that has yet to be written in).

The great M3 Online (Good Weather for Air Strikes) has some Franz Ferdinand b-sides, including "L. Wells," which has reaffirmed my faith in the Scottish superstars after their so-so last album. Go listen, and check out the three (!) new videos too.

Enjoy!

The Entire Animal Years

I didn't listen to much music on my trip, which turned out to be a strangely effective way of discovering what I'm really into these days. There were songs I missed badly, as I was for once out of touch with my "Lightning Blue Eyes" and my Josh Ritter and my one Lavender Diamond song I cannot, for the life of me, stop listening to.

Now that I'm home and listening and not sleeping and probably procrastinating, I'm happy to say that you can listen to the entirety of Josh Ritter's flawless The Animal Years online! Americans, especially, take note, as the album is officially released on Tuesday. People in the rest of the world already have the album and unanimously love it, so don't miss out.

Click here to listen to The Animal Years.

My series on Josh Ritter:

Part I - "Girl in the War"

Part II - "Lillian, Egypt"

Part III - "Thin Blue Flame"

Visit Josh online, check his MySpace for tour dates, and buy The Animal Years. It's lovely.

Oh! Also, check out these tracks from his self-released and self-titled 1999 debut. It's still available, but only online.

Josh Ritter - Beautiful Night [mp3]

Josh Ritter - Leaves and Kings [mp3]

Enjoy!

Gran Touristo

I'm back from some serious vacation, back in front of my failing computer sieving through mail and messages and the approximately 1,000,000 blog updates I've missed. I'm harried. Since I couldn't make it through it all, and I don't really care anyhow, I checked in on my very very favorites.

The Rich Girls are Weeping and Said the Gramophone and the Catbirdseat (there they are) have showed me new Final Fantasy. Please listen to the new songs (maybe I can get by without mentioning the album's name) and love them, immediately, as I have done.

Stolen from StG, "Song Song Song" is my early pick of the three I've heard. It's percussive (I think Liars!) and restless - Owen Pallett a (supremely talented) child singing and singing a song about everything.

Final Fantasy - Song Song Song [mp3]

Visit Final Fantasy's website (but not now, it's broke). And buy Has A Good Home.

Catbird Records' fifth release will be an album by Tap Tap. Hey - they aren't Swedish! Or are they? Don't matter when I like a song this much.

Tap Tap - Come On Feet [mp3]

And those Rich Girls - they have my heart. Two (!) Wrens covers that I didn't have, a track from the Mountain Goats' EP I'll apparently never have, and a rare Yeah Yeah Yeahs song. Yes, they have my heart.

Enjoy!

Scrivi

I'm in Italy, near Milan, but I don't know the name of the town. It's beautiful beyond beautiful here... just... wow. Last night over the Best Meal of 2006 (never too early for awards) we listened to, of all things, Broken Social Scene and the Magic Numbers and other strange and wonderful acts coming from the radio in the room next door. Lucky me, lucky me.

Broken Social Scene - 7/4 (Shoreline) [mp3]

Enjoy!