photo by me top of the monday evening! trying to get back into this blogging thing, but admittedly its been tough. then again, for the past year or so i have been going in spurts, which i guess is better than nothing esp after almost 8 years of doing this. anyway, so my boys centro-matic are in the studio recording a new record which has a working title of take pride in your long odds . seems mildly fitting for the band, who i think is one of, if not the best bands playing [...]
Late spring is such a raw and wet time of digging out from under the ice and (maybe) melting snow (not this week though, in Colorado). There is something about the world that seems undressed, on the verge of new, and full of promise. It is as if all of nature around me is living that wonderful Ryan Adams lyric " precious little thing / with eyes that dance around without their clothes ." I know this is late-ish, but I'm gonna call April a wash and declare it not too late to salvage this spring. Some [...]
Overseas is a supergroup featuring one of my favourite artists, Dave Bazan, along with some of his favourites: Will Johnson of Centro-Matic and South San Gabriel, brothers Matt and Bubba Kadane of Bedhead and The New Year. I just listened to another awesome Grapes of Rad podcast episode featuring Dave Bazan talking about the new project, I listened to it while I was sanding and varnishing shelves. That's right, I'm a grown up. Thank you, Grapes of Rad. Here's an Overseas track, can't wait to hear more. You can pre-order the album and get [...]
Living room tours are all the rage this spring. While house shows are nothing new, we've gotten a number of great touring artists coming through town to play your neighbor's front room—and it's a fine antidote to dark, noisy clubs with bar-priced drinks. Also, some of the people who host these living room shows have dogs. Dogs make all shows better. The Undertow music collective is responsible for a lot of these shows we're seeing (the company's creative director Mark Ray lives here in Portland, where he works at the North branding agency). Will Johnson of [...]
Here are a couple more free gems via Noisetrade that should be added to your iTunes library posthaste. We discovered the indie-folk of Horse To Water via a FB post from longtime MM fave Wooden Wand . Their album Not Me But The Mountain is described as " a journey through the minds of vivid characters that live on the fringe ", and so it proves as it is filled with stories rich with detail and anchored by subtle hooks that will find yourself unconsciously humming the next day. Not only [...]
My next Fuel/Friends house concert is one week from today! On Wednesday night, April 24, Will Johnson is finally coming to play after a long time planning. Will is a Texan songwriter who fronts Centro-matic and South San Gabriel, making smoldering, understated music for the last twenty years. He's also collaborated on some of my favorite side projects in recent years: with Jim James and Jay Farrar on that tremendous Woody Guthrie album New Multitudes last year, as a [...]
Based on name brand alone, you'd have to figure Overseas has the making of something incredible. And then all you have to do is listen to "Down Below" for confirmation that, yes, this will probably be just that. There's David Bazan (Pedro the Lion, Headphones, solo career). And then there's Will Johnson (Centro-matic, South San Gabriel), who trades singing duties with Bazan. And, oh, yeah, there's Matt and Bubba Kadane (Bedhead and the New Year, who are freaking great). Pretty soon, people will start throwing around that "supergroup" word, though [...]
I know Ryan will agree with this, as Overseas are pretty much our favorite super group. As Texas kids of the 90s, we grew into our own listening to the music of Centro-matic , Pedro the Lion and Bedhead , all who have components that are playing key roles here. That's right, you've got the Kadane's, Will Johnson and Mr. Bazan. I don't think that anyone who was around that the very thought of that combination alone gets chills going. I don't need to say much, but I'll share a [...]
Overseas è un supergruppo costituito dal ritorno sulla scena musicale americana dei fratelli Matt e Bubba Kadane (Bedhead, The New Year) insieme a David Bazan (Pedro The Lion) e Will Johnson (Centro-Matic e South San Gabriel). L'album uscirà l'11 giugno del 2013 ma le prevendite sono già cominciate attraverso il sito ufficiale della band dove è possibile acquistare nei formati Cd e Vinile e ottenere istantaneamente (al momento dell'acquisto effettivo) una versione digitale in formato mp3. Come ormai prassi per molte band, si punta al vinile di qualità (master con una risoluzione a [...]
Frank Yang Though I'm probably a bit late to the Caitlin Rose party, her 2010 full-length debut Own Side Now having completely flown under my radar, I'm thankful that I was able to get it into my ears earlier this year before her follow-up The Stand-In came out because it gave me a reference point to appreciate just how good The Stand-In is. Which is not to say that there's anything wrong with Own Side Now at all - it's [...]
Suelo coincidir en gran medida con esas listas que aparecen de vez en cuando publicadas por ahí, en plan "Las canciones más tristes jamás escritas", a las que acudo como el perrito de Pávlov al oír la dichosa campanita (aunque luego resulta que lo miré un día en wikipedia y por lo visto de campanita nada, que era un metrónomo): hay que ver cómo me gustan estas tontadas. El caso es que por ahí suelen andar siempre, desde clásicos inmortales de la talla del " Ne Me Quitte Pas " de Jacques Brel, hasta modernos clásicos como " The Drugs Don´t [...]
Steve Gullick Sad news out of Indianapolis yesterday morning, as word got out that Jason Molina , had died. Unbelievably prolific from the late '90s through the mid '00s first as the skeletal Songs: Ohia and then the lushly-arranged Magnolia Electric Co., as well under his own name, he helped craft the template of raw yet elegant, emotionally bare and beautifully sad songwriting within the folk, blues, and roots-rock idioms. Following the release of Molina and Johnson , his 2009 collaboration with Will Johnson of Centro-Matic , Molina seemed [...]
I snatched up Wilco’s A Ghost Is Born as soon as it was released and listened to it over and over. But I didn’t understand what was up with all the noise. That first month it seemed like noise was all over the record and it bummed me out. I probably put the record away for a month or two and when I listened to it again the noise really wasn’t there and what I heard was a bunch of really cool songs. Dorado’s Anger, Hunger, Love, and the Fear of Death works about the same way for [...]
Sometimes I just want a rock show. This was the perfect lineup. No antics, just songs. Good songs. It was a long night at The Mohawk , a few shots from ONUINU pending postage. Part one of the pics cavalcade will be for the show on the outside stage with Centro-Matic , Frank Smith and Moonlight Towers . Click through for a few comments and plenty of pics. Pound-for-pound, I call Moonlight Towers one of the best bands you [...]
Date 2/1/13 Location The Mohawk Doors 8pm Tickets Mohawk @ Frontgate Double bill of diversity. First up, Will Johnson blows the dust off of Centro-Matic playing the outside stage. Hoping to get some new tracks out of this deal. Doors are 8pm, show at 9pm with Frank Smith and Moonlight Towers opening. [...]
Blogger wouldn't let us use more than 200 characters in our labels, hence this second post, as promised. What a bunch of characters Blogger are. And just look at poor Brown Recluse down there, its Play arrow all wumpy-jawed. Sheesh. (Hope you enjoy the music, though.) Centro-matic - Only In My Double Mind mp3 Woollen Kits - For You mp3 Milk Maid - Do Right mp3 Reigning Sound - Everything I
top of the day! almost merry fucking christmas, peoples! frankenstrangler is pretty much the gentlemen from the district attorneys, along with a couple other athens folks. please dont ask me to name them, but i know they are solid folks. from what i gather, and i may be wrong, they play around athens under the frankenstrangler name from time to time. well they have a xmas ep that you can download for free which is made up of tunes from chuck berry, wham, beach boys and the best band on the planet, imo, centro-matic. consider this my little gift to [...]
From the makers of your favourite digital mixtape here's Xmas Special. Download 1. Title: Boxing Night Artist: Frightened Rabbit Album (year): State Hospital (EP) (2012) Submitted By: tincanman Comments: Just me and these walls/And a beaten up chair/On boxing day…. You got to admit, the Scots have a unique ability to suck the fun out of anything. This band is so, so, so good! 2. Title: Fuselage (It’s Starting To Look Like [...]
Singer-songwriter Jason Molina (Songs: Ohia, Magnolia Electric Co.) is back with Autumn Bird Songs, his first new music since 2009's Molina & Johnson release. Molina made these recordings several years ago before health problems, rehab and financial problems sidelined his music career. Autumn Bird Songs was recorded with just Molina, his acoustic guitar and a cheap recorder, resulting in a spare and somber album. Molina’s lo-fi, DIY approach adds layers of texture and atmosphere, from the haunting openness of the expansive room to the subtle sounds of the recorder as it captures noise and separates [...]
A couple of weeks back I mentioned Centro-matic as a barometer of cool when discussing music. EELS are another perfect example. The thing I like about EELS is you never know what you are going to get. There have been some albums I absolutely loved and others I found less rewarding. I could talk to another EELS fan and they would have the completely opposite opinion. Judging by this track, I feel like Wonderful, Glorious will be the former. Tweet
Captain's Dead
I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS
Friends With Both Arms
End Hits
Mad Mackerel's Blog
So Much Silence
Austin Town Hall
Indie-eye // re-censore (k.o.c.)
Chromewaves
The Songs We Love
Nine Bullets
Powerpopulist
Beat Surrender
Record Dept. Music Reviews
HearYa: An Indie Music Blog
Listen to Pharrell Williams’ new song “Happy”, off the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack
Listen to an unreleased version of Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer” with Arthur Russell on cello
Bass Drum of Death – “Dregs”
