Big ups to RoVa for putting me on this one. I have been listening to this entire album all weekend long. The twenty-three year old songstress has a beautiful soft, yet classic voice that would make any Jazz lover an instant fan. Think Madeleine Peyroux and Norah Jones backed by Jack Johnson's acoustic production. I [...]
James Taylor and Carole King will undoubtedly by dueting on "You've Got A Friend" when the two pair up for a series of concerts celebrating the 40th anniversary of their 1970 tour. Apparantly the two had such a lovely time at their recent reunion at the Troubador that we now get a full "Troubadour" tour next year. We smell a Starbucks album, a PBS special and a CD/DVD package sometime around the holidays next year. You? Anybody feel like the whole " Aerosmith dumping Steven Tyler" and the inevitable "no I'm not" followed by [...]
Danish singer/songwriter Simon Lynge has a natural way with a hummable folk/pop melody and "A Beautiful Way to Drown" is a prime example. Debut album of the same name features some amazing backing from the cream of L.A.'s studio set including bassist Lee Sklar (James Taylor, Jackson Browne), guitarist Shane Fontayne (Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon) drummer Jay Bellerose (Marc Cohen, Madeleine Peyroux) . Lynge points to Cat Stevens and Simon and Garfunkel as influences but this smart pop song - with a killer hook - has a timeless sound with a modern edge. On tour now [...]

Inevitably, a love of coverage leads to a constant, ever-vigilant search for thoughtful, well-crafted reinterpretation. I spend hours each week mining full albums for the hidden cover song, and scanning MySpace and email inbox for the promotional, the one-off acoustic in-studio radio track, and the otherwise unreleased singleton, and the endless discovery is eminently worth the pursuit. But there's no question that tribute albums are the cover lover's bread and butter. I gather these things in like truffles, and hold a special place for them in my heart and in my [...]

The Chillout Show w/The Great Red Shark : 28/10/09 Massive Attack - Teardrop Florence + The Machine - You Got The Love (Jamie of The xx Rework) School of Seven Bells - Iamundernodisguise (alternate version) Thievery Corporation - Lebanese Blonde Joe Beats - Sleep or Bust The Craters - Cool Enough For School Tonnatill - Cultured Mike Bones - What I Have Left (Alexis Taylor Verison) White Hinterland - My Love (Justin Timberlake Cover) Ruby Weapon - Daily Routine (Animal [...]
01 - Kira Neris - Judy In June (Ce Matin La) 02 - DJ Cam Quartet - Nebulosa 03 - Parov Stelar - Coco ft. Lilja Bloom 04 - Bonobo - The Keeper (Redeyes remix) 05 - Gang Gang Dance - Princes 06 - Kraak And Smaak - Man Of Constant Sorrow 07 - Landau Orchestra - Conceptions 08 - Ketil Bjornstad [...]
"I wanted to get back to organic recording," says acclaimed singer/songwriter and guitarist Raul Midon of his forthcoming third album Synthesis , just out now internationally and arriving stateside February 2 (Decca). "We did more programming on the last record, and I wanted the new album to feature real musicians playing. So it's guitars, bass, drums, vocals, and not a lot of effects." Working with noted producer/bassist Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell, Madeleine Peyroux, Melody Gardot), Midon leads a crack studio band -- including Steely Dan guitarist Dean Parks - through Synthesis ' diverse mix of neo-soul [...]
MADELEINE PEYROUX TO RELEASE FIRST DVD SOMETHIN' GRAND ON NOVEMBER 24 "Bare Bones is Peyroux's most revealing, personal statement to date"– Associated Press "Madeleine Peyroux's sound is seductive and entrancing...her 11 originals sparkle on her forth album, Bare Bones." – The Washington Post Rounder Records is pleased to announce the release of Madeleine Peyroux's first DVD Somethin' Grand on November 24. The DVD running time is 142 minutes, and it includes a full-length concert, 5 bonus acoustic performances and an hour long documentary on Peyroux's life and career. The [...]
Arriving November 24 is Somethin' Grand (Rounder), a very special DVD - half intimate concert, half fascinating bio documentary - from enigmatic jazz/pop chanteuse Madeleine Peyroux . The live performance portion of the 142 minute program contains 17 from Peyroux' eclectic songbook of choice covers and originals recorded this past January in Los Angeles in support of her most recent spring '09 studio work Bare Bones . [...]
MUSIC NEWS - NYC's WFUV-FM has announced their latest CD release, FUV Live 12 ! And, as expected, it includes artists from a variety of genres and eras. The station's newest compilation of exclusive live in-studio performances recorded at New York City radio station WFUV (90.7 FM, wfuv.org) in the last year. The release takes us accross the musical universe from Elvis Perkins to John Doe & Kathleen Edwards, Nikka Costa to The Pretenders and Raphael Saadiq to Richie Havens, the CD features 20 songs [...]
So last night was the UK's MOBO awards live in Glasgow and on BBC Three. There's all sorts of discussion flying around on Twitter , mainly around the fact that Dizzee Rascal and Tinchy Stryder , despite being the two biggest UK stars right now, walked away empty handed. There's also the wider discussion that award shows like this don't make that much of a serious point in this day and age, with blogs and everyone having a voice on the internet, and that maybe they need controversies like this to get their own [...]

It's not very often Shane or myself really wants to give anyone else the chance to talk - especially about music on our own blog - but after the countless hours of work required to get the Mississippi Sheiks tribute record out the door, Steve Dawson has earned a few moments of your time. Plus, with such an amazing collection of artists talking about music that influences them, well, it's better to get the goods right from the horse's mouth. So here is Steve's own two cents on a project that means more to him than [...]

We're excited ACL (the festival) is finally upon us this weekend but as you may or may not know it all started with the TV show. The 35th season of Austin City Limits is set to debut this Saturday on KLRU with a performance by Dave Matthews Band. It was a real pleasure to be able to attend two of the tapings ( M. Ward , St. Vincent ) this year. Take a look at the full schedule down below. ( via ) October 3, 2009 Dave Matthews Band October 10, 2009 [...]
Certain television programs resist aging better than others. Solid Gold, Night Flight, and 120 Minutes are all pushing up daisies, but Austin City Limits is still going strong. While some might attribute this staying power to the fact that nothing ever gets cancelled on public television (Sorry Reading Rainbow !), the real reason is the quality of the acts. Here is a full list for the show's thirty-fifth season: October 3: Dave Matthews Band October 10: Ben Harper and Relentless7 October 17: Kenny Chesney [...]

As we mentioned a few weeks ago, Tom Petty is about to release a career spanning live anthology containing 48 overdub-less tracks selected by Petty, Heartbreaker Mike Campbell and Ryan Ulyate on November 24. The Tom Petty Superhighway Tour will start on September 29 for digital purchasers of the set in which fans will be allowed to download 24 FLACs (!!!) or MP3s of the Anthology's 48 songs over the course of the next two weeks with the other 24 coming on the November 24th release day. [...]

35 seasons, 35 years of happy music fans. Is there a better show to stumble upon late night? Especially if you can find it in HD. The show has too many highlights to name, so let's just get into the meat and potatoes and look at who is going to be on this godsend of a program. Here is the broadcast schedule for Austin City Limits' 35th Season: October 3: Dave Matthews Band October 10: Ben Harper and Relentless7 October 17: Kenny Chesney October [...]
Austin City Limits has just released its broadcast schedule for its 35th Season, which starts in October: October 3: Dave Matthews Band October 10: Ben Harper and Relentless7 October 17: Kenny Chesney October 24: Andrew Bird / St. Vincent October 31: M. Ward / Okkervil River November 7: Elvis Costello / Band of Heathens November 14: Willie Nelson & Asleep at the Wheel November 21: Pearl Jam January 9, 2010: Allen Toussaint January 16, 2010: Mos Def / K'Naan January 23, 2010: TBD / Heartless Bastards [...]

Andrew Bird , M. Ward , Elvis Costello , and Pearl Jam are only a few of the acts set to play on this seasons Austin City Limits show. The music show, which is set to kick off its 35th season next month, will also include performances by Willie Nelson , Mos Def , and Them Crooked Vultures . The television program, which is publicly broadcasted on PBS , will premier it's latest season on October 3 with a performance by the Dave Matthews Band [...]