![[mp3] Steve Earle - "To Live Is To Fly"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711143_lg.jpg)
As an (occasionally) over-zealous music blogger I feel like there are certain words and phrases that come up in my writing with a great deal of frequency. No, I've never used "incendiary" to describe someone's guitar playing, but I am certainly guilty of using musical descriptors taken from a very shallow, repetitive pool of options. The most glaring offense is most likely saying something is " one of my favorites " - an expression that, if used too often, will undoubtedly have a dulled impact on my regular readers. However, when I say Townes Van Zandt's dusty (case [...]
![[mp3] Sonic Youth - "Sacred Trickster"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711144_lg.jpg)
The legendary Sonic Youth have released a free track from their forthcoming Matador Records debut, and 16th album overall, The Eternal . "Sacred Trickster" is a bristling, 2-minute rocker sung by Kim Gordon that kicks off the 12 song set. MP3 :: Sacred Trickster (from The Eternal . Pre-order here ) ------------------------------ ---------------------- If you order through Matador's Buy Early Get Now program you'll receive a bunch of extra material including: [...]
![[mp3] Iron & Wine - "The Trapeze Swinger"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711145_lg.jpg)
A few weeks ago I posted about the upcoming Iron & Wine rarities compilation due May 19 called Around The Well . Sub Pop has just released the first free and legal download from the album, and it's "The Trapeze Swinger". The song, which has become a popular live favorite over the past 4 or 5 years, was originally released on the soundtrack to the (deservedly) forgotten film In Good Company in 2004, and then later as a b-side to the "Such Great Heights" single in 2006. [...]
Bat For Lashes has been getting plenty of attention lately, so Natasha Khan probably doesn't need my $0.02, but, you know, that's what I'm here for. "Daniel" is from her brand new album Two Suns and I'm kind of really digging its doom and gloom take on the 80s modern rock/pop sound. And that video up there is kind of the anti- Feist "1,2,3,4" , right? Instead of brightly colored, choreographed shiny happy people (or monster puppets for that matter) picking her up and spinning her around [...]
Hot on the heels of last year's remarkable Microcastle , Deerhunter have a brand new EP coming out soon (digitally 5/18, physical 6/8) from Kranky . Here's the title track, available as a free download today from Pitchfork: MP3 :: Rainwater Cassette Exchange (from Rainwater Cassette Exchange . Info here ) ------------------------------ ------------------------------ --------
![[mp3] Sunset Rubdown - "Idiot Heart"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711149_lg.jpg)
Spencer Krug's Sunset Rubdown is gearing up for the release of Dragonslayer this June, and the first single, the 6-minute ADD mini-epic "Idiot Heart", has just surfaced. The looser, guitar-heavy arrangement is a clear improvement, IMHO, over Random Spirit Lover's studio-based meandering, and the song really takes off around the 3-minute mark. Though his songs on Apologies For The Queen Mary were obviously stellar, I've always preferred Krug in smaller doses than whole albums - "All Fires", "Stadiums & Shrines II", a handful of tracks from At [...]
![[mp3] Pink Mountaintops - "Vampire"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711150_lg.jpg)
Most notorious for the heavy psyche-rock of Black Mountain , Stephen McBean is gearing up to release the 3rd album with his mellower side project, Pink Mountaintops . Outside Love will be released by Jagjaguwar on May 5. I haven't really spent a great deal of time with either band, for one reason or another, but after spinning "Vampire" for the better part of the evening I think that's about to change big time. McBean's vocal is completely disarming, whether alone or backed by a soaring choir on [...]
Another day, another top notch performance from the David Letterman show. Here's Neko Case performing Middle Cyclone highlight "This Tornado Loves You" with some extra back-up singers and possibly an extra guitarist or 2. The sound is crisp, Neko's voice sparkles as always, and though she may not be " rad, man " she gets a kiss on the hand from Dave. MP3 :: Middle Cyclone MP3 :: People Got A Lotta Nerve (from Middle Cyclone [...]
Yeah Yeah Yeahs stopped by the Letterman show last night and played a killer version of "Zero" from the recently released It's Blitz . I could tell you how excellent the performance was or you could just watch the video and see for yourself. Or you could take it from the words of Paul Schaffer - " Karen O is like rad, man ". Word up Paul. ------------------------------ -----------------
Just today I received a very pleasant surprise in the mail - the new self-titled album from Atlanta's The Empties (showing up just when I thought all the "simple but still cool" band names were gone). Unlike most of the unsolicited promo CDs I get, I didn't find myself rolling down the window to toss it out halfway through the first song. Quite the contrary - I was immediately caught up in the angular guitar rock, distorted vocals, and chugging rhythm of "Oh My God". The rest of the album lived up to the promise of that opening [...]
![[mp3] Deer Tick - "Easy"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711156_lg.jpg)
In 2007 Deer Tick released War Elephant , one of the year's best debuts and one of my favorite albums of that year . I was taken immediately by lead singer/songwriter John McCauley's voice, which sounded like it should have been fronting a long lost garage band from the 60s. He sounded like a kid with an old soul and attacked the songs with a swagger well beyond his 21 years. War Elephant was eventually picked up by Partisan Records and re-released in 2008. Today comes [...]
![[mp3] Dirty Projectors - "Stillness Is The Move"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711157_lg.jpg)
Check out the lead single from the forthcoming Dirty Projectors album, Bitte Orca (which is excellent, btw, and comes out June 9). "Stillness Is The Move" is a soulful bit of indie-pop and will be available as part of a 12" single with remixes and new b-sides on May 5. Domino is giving the track away for a limited time for signing up for the DP mailing list. Follow the link… MP3 :: Stillness Is The Move (from " Stillness Is The Move [...]
![[mp3] Conor Oberst - "Nikorette"](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/1711158_lg.jpg)
Last year's self-titled solo album from Conor Oberst was by no means his finest effort, nor did it try to alter his wordy, folk-influenced songwriting approach. Instead it was simply a pleasant reminder, after the clumsy missteps of Cassadaga , that Oberst is capable of writing some awfully pretty songs when he's focused. Less than a year later he'll release Outer South , a quick follow up that once again ignores the Bright Eyes moniker in favor of his new friends in the Mystic Valley Band . Outer South [...]
The Tallest Man on Earth at Club 1808: Part 2 of 2 from hoovesontheturf on Vimeo . Here's Part 2 of Hooves On The Turf's SxSW video of The Tallest Man On Earth . I posted Part 1 last week . Still in awe not only of Kristian Matsson's songs themselves but also their presentation in the live setting - if you haven't checked out 2008's Shallow Grave I highly recommend you catch up with it. And hats off to Hooves [...]
Pop Headwound
Avicii – Two Million
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Yellow Magic Orchestra edit from Chrome Canyon
Beck – I Just Started Hating Some People Today
