Still in the process of learning to play their instruments, Subway Sect debuted at the 100 Club Punk Festival on September 20th, 1976. Other bands on the bill included the Sex Pistols, the Clash, and the Buzzcocks. How's that for a lineup? In 1978 while recording what was intended to be their debut album, the band's manager sacked everyone with the exception of songwriter Vic Godard. Working with unpaid musician friends, Godard eventually released What's the Matter Boy? in 1980. The songs on What's the Matter Boy? bear [...]
Over the weekend, I spent a lot of time driving to and from my former roommates wedding. As a result I spent a lot of time catching up on new music. Most notably, I found, was that I need to devote more time to the latest Okkervill River album, and two, that there is a new Lil Wayne disc coming; though probably not until next year. Lil Wayne has been trumpeting himself as the best rapper alive in the past year or so, which I tend to agree with. I'll give you a pass on [...]
Sweet! Check out the original message from the band here . stereogum graciously gathered the details for us here . In short: -It comes out in 10 days (Oct 10). -They're calling it In Rainbows . -Radiohead is releasing it themselve, apparently. No label. -Thus far, it is available in Download or Discbox format only. -And the best part is, the price for the download version is up to you . My advice: Radiohead is providing us with a grand opportunity to give a [...]
Last week we posted about Sam Beam of Iron and Wine's set at Messiah College. The show was the second in a pair of acoustic teasers for the fantasic The Shepherd's Dog . Two days prior to the Messiah College show, Sam performed at Milwaukee's Pabst Theater . The tracklist is strikingly similar with one major exception, TSD stunner "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" closes as the second encore. Download Iron & Wine - Flightless Bird, American Mouth [...]
The Twilight Sad will be at Gooski's in Pittsburgh on October 2nd. Not sure what the cover will be, but the bar tender last night told me probably $5-7. A steal! Be there. I scoured the intertoobs for a decent Twilight Sad video but there seems to be nothing but horrendously grainy live bootlegs of almost unlistenable audio quality. The only exception seems to be this strange Ingrid Bergman montage to the tune of That Summer At Home I Had Become The Invisible Boy. But what the hell? Here it is. And besides, black [...]
One-off albums hold a mythical place in pop music history. A band appears, seemingly from thin air, and burns hard and bright before quietly disintegrating. Their music is left to stand on its own, pure and untouched by the excess that success often breeds. Formed in 1978, Young Marble Giants released one album, 1980's Colossal Youth , and a handful of other tracks. Stuart Moxham, the band's principle songwriter plays stiff palm-muted guitar lines and swirling organ leads, while his brother Philip's bass lines often carry the [...]
You may have noticed by now that when I get excited about something, I get really effing excited. Call it a character flaw, I guess. Although it may be a little premature, I'm going out on a limb here and declaring that Strawberry Jam marks the second entry Panda Bear will have on my top 10 of '07. Let's just say, some shit's gonna have to go down real fast if he's going to get bumped from the list. As a follow-up to Person Pitch , his brilliant solo record released earlier this [...]
September is a month without an identity. The seemingly endless possibilities of summer are over, but the rustic woodsmoke scent of autumn has yet to begin. Big Star's September Gurls captures this bittersweet feeling, like the crisp taste of an apple plucked straight from the tree. The guitars ring out like the Byrds with a bit more muscle and the sweet harmonies hint at those not-so-distant summer days. But when Alex Chilton sighs "I loved you, well never mind" it's as if he can see the oncoming deadness of winter and just might collapse from the weight of it all. [...]
Iron & Wine's latest album, The Shepherd's Dog , is out this week, but we've already written about that here . In February of 2007 Sam Beam played a pair of seemingly random shows, the second of which took place at Messiah College in Grantham, PA. With minimal backing, Sam tried his hand (or fingers) at several songs that would find their way in expanded versions on The Shepherd's Dog . Stripped of TSD 's kitchen sink instrumentation, many of these songs are given more space to breath allowing for added emotional resonance. One [...]
When it comes to BSS fanboys, there are few as intensely unabashed as yours truly. Well, that is perhaps not true; there are a lot of goddamn BSS fanboys out there. So take this for what it's worth: I've been in bands before, and I know that we were lucky if we could get the drummer to stop dicking around long enough to play four consecutive bars of something that even slightly resembled what we were trying to play; and a doctorate thesis can be, and probably has been, written about the delicate psychology involved in convincing a [...]
I know that British grime isn't for everyone. In fact it's probably for very few. The problem is, this MIA record doesn't play like her more grimey Arular . This new record is like a trip through Sri Lanka (her father's homeland if you aren't in the know), but on that trip you are fervently dancing and partying. MIA seems confident and married to the music that she's putting out this time. The second track, Bird Flu, hits you with a barrage of organic drums and child like screams that make you think [...]
My head feels heavy and thick like a can of condensed soup. Sleep deprivation has finally taken its evil tole. Admittedly, this happens to me a lot and when it does I find it near impossible to listen to music for more than a few seconds before shutting it off. These are the days when I end up listening to NPR very quietly on the drive home. Today was different though. Today I discovered Gravenhurst. More specifically, today I discovered their song "Trust." The band's third album, The Western Lands , was recently released by Warp [...]
I have to admit I'm a little bit late to the party on this one. A couple years ago I happened upon a random web forum thread posing the question "what is the ultimate indie-rock song of all time?" Scrolling through the sea of posts, all of the favorites were well represented: Teenage Riot, Debaser, Summer Babe (Winter Version), etc. I decided to check out a few I'd never heard of. Web In Front by Archers Of Loaf fell in that category. Knowing nothing about the band, I felt pretty safe, after only one listen, in agreeing that [...]
First, look past the name that invokes images of Alice and the Mad Hatter. Then prepare yourself for unbridled listening enjoyment. I'll admit, upon first "skim" through the tracks, I thought I was getting myself into another hipster retread. You can try to make comparisons to bands like the Walkmen, for instance. However, White Rabbits do bring a sense of east coast cool, but also the feeling of a more simple and elegant yet dangerous time. This record plays like something you should be listening to in a speakeasy while sipping gin. Listen [...]
Its worth getting a bit car sick to see Annie Clark do a cover of the Beatles' "Dig A Pony" from the back of a London cab. Consider my schoolboy crush cemented. (via GvB , via forkcast ) --- Buy Marry Me from Amazon.com
Those of you who have been giddily following Menomena, as I have, since the release of their first full length album, playfully titled I Am The Fun Blame Monster , will be pleased to know that they've released a video for Evil Bee from their most recent and most excellent effort Friend And Foe . While the video is a rather sick and twisted affair (i.e. vomiting and fornicating bumblebees enslaved and forced into cannibalism by an evil race of crows... with tank treads?) still, you can't help but find these guys downright lovable. While their albums are [...]
A new album by Sam Beam's musical moniker, Iron & Wine, comes with a number of expectations. He is from the south. He plays gently finger picked acoustic guitar. He sings in a near whisper. He has a beard. Despite these somewhat limiting parameters, each new release has seen Iron & Wine's sound expand to include new dimensions. Shepherd's Dog , out September 25th on Sub Pop, marks the largest departure from the aforementioned expectations yet. Beam's songs still evoke a strong sense of cinematic imagery, but [...]
If you're one of the 3 people who currently read this blog, you may have noticed its recent inactivity. Fret not, dear reader, because behind this facade of nothingness lies a virtual cornucopia of musical goodness. What I am trying to say, is that my long-time friends Matt O. and Sam will be joining me in contributing to Colour Me Impressed . We're hoping that between the three of us we can pump out more regular content while posting about a broader range of topics. In tribute, here's an excellent track from Crooked [...]
Watching TV has always been a favorite past time of mine. Not only does it provide a great escape from reality, but it also provides fodder for my obscenely short attention span. What's making me watch more than ever is the fact that the commercials in between are now allowing me to listen to my record collection without leaving the couch. Peter Bjorn and John lending their pop sensibility to Pontiac and Levi's, Modest Mouse helping to hock Nissans, The Flaming Lips making neon Dell lap tops seem like a good idea. I could go on [...]
As you may have already read, Hilly Kristal, the founder of the famous NY club CBGB passed away this week due to complications with lung cancer. CBGB is often considered the birthplace of punk and it is difficult to deny its importance in rock history. Originally intended as a club for bluegrass, country and blues, Kristal opened his doors to the loud, messy bands of the neighborhood and provided a home for the Ramones, Television, the Talking Heads, Blondie , and more. Forced to close, the club held its final show in October of last year. [...]
Colour Me Impressed
Bison - Quill
Neutral Milk Hotel- Aeroplane Over the Sea
Shinichi Osawa – Big Beach Mix 2012
