
I don't often venture north to Baltimore, Maryland for music, but whenever I do I am usually greeted with an exceptional and relatively intimate performance. Being just north of Washington DC, Baltimore is not on the map for most artists when they look at the U.S. mid-Atlantic states. Turns out there are wonderful small venues hidden throughout the city. So I traveled the hour north on an unseasonably warm February Monday night to an art gallery in the middle of the city to see Austin band Shearwater for the first time. [...]

1. The National - Twenty Miles To NH (The Philistines Jr. Cover).mp3 2. Nightlands - Til I Die (The Beach Boys Cover).mp3 3. Lia Ices - Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd Cover).mp3 4. Small Sur - Fall Skull (Little Wings Cover).mp3 5. Wye Oak - Strangers (The Kinks Cover).mp3 6. St. Vincent - Never Tear Us Apart (INXS Cover).mp3 7. Youth Lagoon - Goodbye Again (John Denver Cover).mp3 [...]

Small Sur - photo by Henn Pict Today has been excellent so far. Really excellent. Small Sur posted on their Facebook wall this morning about a recent live recording was up for a free download. Apparently the long time in the making session for Mobtown Studios came to fruition and we now have 13 tracks to download from the "Microshow: Live in Baltimore" session! Wrapped up in this set are some new tracks, old tracks (like a personal favourite 'The Kelp'), mostly [...]

40. Gillian Welch - The Harrow & The Harvest Gillian Welch - The Way It Goes.mp3 39. The Mountain Goats - All Eternals Deck The Mountain Goats - Damn These Vampires.mp3 38. Dodos - No Color Dodos - Companions.mp3 37. Small Sur - Tones [...]

Contributing to the folk frenzy I've recently been prone to fall into, Small Sur's (@smallsur) downtempo tunes have been an excellent addition to my sleepy summer night playlists. Captivatingly subtle, the music acts as an audible portrayal of frontman Bob Keal's childhood surroundings in rural South Dakota. While the band itself came together in Baltimore, Keal's memories haven't been lost in translation. The core of the music consists of gently plucked acoustic guitar, sustained keyboard and delicate, rhythmic drums, while a variety of other instruments including sax and banjo, add depth [...]

*please disregard the fact that I only have 4 of the 5 listed below - $15.00 shipping from the USA t0 Canada isn't right. Sure a favourite releases list of 2011 thus far - I can do that. Also, as it is the weekend I am going to post 5 today and 5 tomorrow because honestly it gets me a post material for tomorrow automatically!! This first grouping is not necessarily lesser than tomorrow's grouping, but for lack of scientific research these could be considered #10 through #6 favourite releases of 2011 thus far. [...]
SMALL SUR myspace facebook last.fm bandcamp Prettyboy [mp3] From the record TONES. "Small Sur's music is perfect for those quiet moments when life winds down. This is music for lying on a California beach while watching the sun set and allowing the natural surroundings [...]

so sanft wie sich der longplayer "tones" von small sur gibt, so gemächlich hat er auch mich erobert. die zögerliche notation einer gewissheit von kunstfertigkeit, die aus geschliffenem handwerk und etwas mut und innovation hervorgeht. sie hat sich an mich herangeschlichen und nach für nach eine beziehung entstehen lassen, die mich zum nutzniesser ihrer ausprägungen macht. einer musik, die so introspektiv wie notenbedacht aktuell eher selten anzutreffen ist. sun kil moon, red house painters sind mögliche vergleiche, downtempo, slowcore, und schielt man auf aktuellen folk, müsste man die unvermeidlichen fleet foxes nennen, wenn sie die rauschefahrt kurzzeitig einstellen, vetiver, okkervil [...]

I whip my hair back and forth. Not because I am a teenage girl (although I sometimes act like one) but because there is a party. No, it's not in my pants. This party is in my ears, and soon it will be in yours as well. I am pleased to present to you The Indie Sabbath - more refreshing than an ice-cold soda in the middle of the desert. For me, music is the purest form of communication this world has to offer. I think I should have no other mortal wants, if I could always have plenty of music. [...]

Small Sur is a Baltimore, MD three-piece headed by Bob Keal, whose vocal cadence fits in nicely with genre-mates Will Oldham and Mark Kozelek. Musically, Small Sur takes some cues from Kozelek, melding the more folk-oriented vibe of Sun Kil Moon with the slowcore down-tempo of Red House Painters. With contributions from members of fellow Baltimoreans Lower Dens and Wye Oak, the band's new album Tones is introspective, image-driven, and mesmerizing. On slow-burner "The Woods," Keal sings longingly "In The Woods/I will find what I seek/ Build a home there beneath the canopy." The aptly titled Tones [...]

Baltimore's Small Sur released their new LP Tones this week, currently streaming in full on AOL Spinner, and are currently on tour in support of it around the Northeast. "Small Sur is the primary musical alias of South Dakota-born, now-Baltimore-based songwriter Bob Keal and current collaborators Austin Stahl and Andy Abelow. The project was born during the spring of 2005 in a friend's Southern California bedroom, where Keal recorded the self-titled Small Sur EP shortly before relocating to Baltimore. 2008 marked the release of the band's full-length debut, We Live in Houses Made [...]

Small Sur, a Baltimore three-piece, are seemingly playing the long-game when they recorded album number two. By that we mean you need to dedicate a lot of time to their new record to reap any real reward. But rest assured there is a gem or two here – it's just not instantaneous. This album wants to stop and observe its surroundings; it's a bit of a day-dreamer. Yet after repeated listens Bowlegs did start to unearth the subtleties which hide within the record's slow pace and gentle, lilting nature. The band is led by Bob Keal, whose voice [...]

Photo by Monique Crabb Small Sur is the musical alias of Bob Keal and his collaborators Austin Stahl and Andy Abelow. They have released a new album this week entitled Tones (which can be streamed at AOL Spinner ) and the simple, understated nature of their folk music is beautiful. The album features Andy Stack of Wye Oak and Geoff Graham of Lower Dens among others and helps to showcase the strength of Baltimore's burgeoning music scene. I simply could listen to Prettyboy any time. Its soft sounds render [...]

Photo by Monique Crabb Small Sur is the musical alias of Bob Keal and his collaborators Austin Stahl and Andy Abelow. They have released a new album this week entitled Tones (which can be streamed at AOL Spinner ) and the simple, understated nature of their folk music is beautiful. The album features Andy Stack of Wye Oak and Geoff Graham of Lower Dens among others and helps to showcase the strength of Baltimore's burgeoning music scene. I simply could listen to Prettyboy any time. Its soft sounds render [...]

We've got some more musical loveliness which has ambled out of Baltimore, in the shape of the new Small Sur track 'Prettyboy'. The mellow alt country-folk song is taken from the band's album, 'Tones', which is out any minute now. Listen to the track here: 'Prettyboy'

It's time to listen to a bunch of the tracks I have not posted recently. Here is the next NOT POSTED mix. These are just a few of the songs that would get there own individual posts on here on GIMME TINNITUS, if I only had the time. You can stream all the songs in this mix using the Yahoo media player at the bottom of the page OR if you are browsing with Chrome you can play (and scrobble ) the whole page using the ex.fm extension OR [...]
New Music Releases - Tuesday, June 28, 2011: - 100 Monkeys - Liquid Zoo - Akron/Family - - Beyonce - 4 - Clams Casino - Rainforest EP - Com Truise - Galactic Melt - Curren$y - Weekend at Burnie's - Florence + The Machine - [...]

Small Sur is the primary musical alias of South Dakota-born, now-Baltimore-based songwriter Bob Keal and current collaborators Austin Stahl and Andy Abelow. The project was born during the spring of 2005 in a friend's Southern California bedroom, where Keal recorded the self-titled Small Sur EP shortly before relocating to Baltimore. 2008 marked the release of the band's full-length debut, We Live in Houses Made of Wood , which garnered critical praise and picked up new fans. With last year's Bare Black EP and the release of new album Tones today, [...]

Even though it's stormed like hell so far it seems like May is going to be a great month. Allo Darlin- The Polaroid Song I'm yet to find a song by Allo Darlin' that i don't absolutely love. Such a great band to put me in a good mood and motivate me to go out and enjoy my life. Thao witht he get down stay down- bag of hammers Lovett- The Fear [...]

Het begint langzaam lente te worden en het weer nodigt uit om de nieuwe CD van bijvoorbeeld I'm From Barcelona op vol volume te draaien. Maar de plaat waar ik op dit moment maar niet genoeg van kan krijgen is Tones van Small Sur . Small Sur maakt muziek die zo traag is als stroop, muziek voor regenachtige herfstdagen en voor die winterdagen waarop uit elk huis de geur van zuurkool lijkt te lekken. Door dat trage tempo en de beheerste vocalen van Bob Keal komt het geluid van Small Sur in de buurt van dat [...]