Cover songs. Love 'em or hate 'em, they're a surefire way to get people talking. They pay homage to the classics, and often put a new spin on something tired. Many are even more famous than the original. Sure, Dolly Parton may have penned I Will Always Love You , but it's Whitney Houston's take that put the song on the map. In fact, many women have offered their own takes on songs that aren't their own, and I'm here to give them some love. So here, I present you with some of my favorite [...]
Most of the time when an artist covers a song, they'll release it as a single, b-side, EP, live performance, or as a part of a compilation or covers album. On the rare occasion though, artists will include a cover in the tracklisting of one of their proper albums, which usually signifies that they've put more thought into the cover version or have given it their own unique interpretation. M. Ward is kind-of the apotheosis of this, including one or two covers on all his albums (including the just-released A Wasteland Companion ) but [...]
Everybody loves free music. Even me. I know a lot people read this blog just for the free tunes. And that's okay. Because I know there are some people who read the blog for the blog as well as the free tunes. And, every once in awhile, I can alert people to new music...or a new band...or a new album that just got released. In all fairness, I do think the bands deserve money...and the labels
Photography by Us ... Happy Friday to you, once again, my dear friends! Got a special little treat for ya today. The other day, I was bored with ye ol' iPod and was looking around for something different. Suddenly remembered that in my drawer behind me at my desk there's a stack of old case-less CDs I've used as dust collectors over the years. Thumbing through, found some fun little albums that I used to - and in some cases still do - listen to, but one (well actually three) CDs [...]
Sixty years after the unfancied United States' famous 1-0 victory over favourites England at the World Cup in Brazil comes another fantastic result for Team USA in South Africa Continue reading
We're back from our Florida vacation not much worse for wear, though the long slog home from anywhere proves a perennial challenge, and reentry into the world of work and chores is always bittersweet. Still, the heart is light, and for that, I owe my family a great debt: to my father for making it all possible, to my children for helping me see the world as ever wondrous through their eyes, and most of all, to my spouse for planning the hell out of yet another perfect Spring Break. Case in point: [...]
As Saturday's have become throwback Saturdays (which may or may not be changing), Sundays have become "Songs from the 2000s that you may have forgotten about, or rather songs that I forgot about" (which may or may not be changing). And here's another fantastic one that I just remembered a few days ago from the lovely Jenny Lewis and The Watson Twins who teamed up for the classic 2006 album "Rabbit Fur Coat". But of all the great tracks on this album, "Rise Up with Fists!!" is my favorite. And here's why. [...]
I'm enjoying the self-titled debut of Amber Farris' band, "Somebody's Darling." It's kind of like Lucero or Old '97s fronted by a woman with a powerful set of lungs. Rock and roll/country, straight-ahead four-person rock and roll on Shiner Records / PaloDuro Records. In fact, it's hard to write much about them, because the music is so up front and pure. It makes you want to grab a brew, sit at a bar, and stare at the chicks who will definitely dig the band. That's the best thing about alt-country sung by a [...]
Tomorrow (October 30th) is my sister's birthday, so I wanted to dedicate a post to her. After thinking about what would be the perfect songs to post, I first picked a song that always reminds me visiting her at our sleep-away camp, Island Lake. The other song is something she's never heard of, but will like because Jenny Lewis (pictured below) is a folk/country singing babe that knows how to rock. Happy birthday Kym! Rise [...]
photos and post by marc evan I walked through lower Manhattan towards Battery Park on Saturday July 4th, passing my former apartment, and all the memories that clung to it. I also passed the former site of the World Trade Center. Or the scar on the Manhattan cityscape that was once the WTC. As I walked passed the, lets just call it "the scar," I felt a little empty, somewhat embarrassed and quite upset. It is now eight years since those buildings were [...]
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. The most hated "holiday" of them all. The only people who love Valentine's Day are those terrible girls who are in happy relationships with sappy men. I hate to break it to you ladies, but ALL GUYS HATE VALENTINE'S DAY. We don't hate romanticism, but we hate this forced Hallmark bullshit. I'm glad I don't have to take someone out for Valentine's and pretend like I'd rather be with her than watching the NBA Dunk Contest tomorrow night. So to celebrate how awful Valentine's Day is and how much we hate those happy, in-love [...]
I don't like making negative posts. I do make them, but I try not to. I figure if something didn't appeal to me, why waste my time talking about how much I dislike it? I'd rather spend that time talking about subjects I actually enjoy and connecting to other people through a shared affection for whatever might be floating my boat any given week. Still, there are cases (like Hot Chip covering Joy Division last week ) where something is so bad, involves such questionable judgment or taste that I can't help but rant about it. [...]
while the record industry remains obsessed with weeding out music piracy, engaging itself with a futile battle when it should really be looking towards how to best harness the potential of this digital age, it's nice to come across forward thinking labels that embrace change rather than fight the inevitable. team love recently opened their online library , where each month different releases are made available for free download, no strings attached. it's certainly a bold move, and one would question the sustainability of such a strategy, but the bottom line is, barriers between music lovers and [...]
Conor Oberst's independent label Team Love Records has announced the Team Love Library, a rotating selection of music content that registered users can access at no cost. That's right - free. Promising to offer "Team Love albums as well as exclusive content such as unreleased songs, live or remixed versions ...
Conor Oberst and the label he founded, Team Love, has taken a novel approach to getting their music to the masses. They've opened up portions of their music library for free download, in part to circumvent music piracy. Every month (or so) they will offer up selections from their library including entire albums, B-sides and live recordings. This approach takes the notion of "pay what you want" and not only turns in on it's ear but kicks it out the door. Normally, most Indie labels will at least offer free [...]
Speaking of year-end roundups and awards : I didn't do a year end best-of list last year, and I wasn't planning on doing one this year. But back in 2006, before the coverblog started, I posted a Top Songs of 2006 tracklist for my own amusement on my now-abandoned personal blog ; the focus wasn't covers, necessarily, but the list included several, including Jenny Lewis and co. version of Traveling Wilburys hit Handle With Care at number 7, and Teddy Thompson's Leonard Cohen cover Tonight Will Be Fine coming in [...]
This is Post #666. I wouldn't call myself superstitious, but as a person who does in fact believe in Satan (i.e. that Satan is evil and is responsible for all bad things while I very much like the good things), I feel the strong urge to forego a normal post here and simply move on to Post #667. Let's laugh about this later. Six Six Six = Mix Mix Mix Jenny Lewis- Run Devil Run Clap Your Hands Say Yeah- Satan Said Dance [...]
If you would've asked me two years ago if i liked music from females, my short answer would have been no. And then i would have gone into a "but, i kinda like...." consisting of a few songs here and there. i don't know who to credit with opening my eyes to the beauty of female crooners ( most likely Kasey Chambers... ), but sometime over the last couple years i've come to enjoy more and more music from women. It's gotten to the point now where the gender of the artist doesn't matter one bit - as [...]
My brother Uncle T attended Austin City Limits the last weekend of September, and boy am I jealous! But he did bring back photos and reviews to share, so I'll be posting these for the next few days. I am always glad to know what music Uncle T is following. Our tastes are a bit different, so he often introduces me to artists I haven't been paying attention to. That's why I am going to start this short series with Uncle [...]
Side One: Track One
musicforants.com
The Concert Room
The Good, The Bad, and The Unknown
T S U R U R A D I O
A Town Full of Losers
Cover Lay Down
dailybeatz
Berkeley Place
the WILD honey pie
Quiet Color
Golden Bloggen
Battery In Your Leg
i'm waking up to...
Hypeful
Bona Fide Darling
Faronheit
This Mornin' I Am Born Again
speed of dark
Watch Prince’s new video for “FIXURLIFEUP”
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros imploran por días mejores en su nueva canción
Daft Punk – Horizon (Japan Only Bonus Track)
