
This is the last re-post for the Blogophilia series. Links for the all-in-one zip for Volumes 23-30 are still active and you can download those here . BLOGOPHILIA 22 (promotional songs from blogs and freely available materials) acquired 9/05/2010 – 10/18/2010 ripped @ 320 kbps VBR - All in one zip file here - TRACKLIST (Song [...]

Frank Yang If we're being completely honest, there's a not-insubstantial part of me that wishes that this past weekend's shows by Neutral Milk Hotel bandleader Jeff Mangum at Trinity-St. Paul's had never happened. There was just something poetic about the disappearing act he pulled following In The Aeroplane Over The Sea , as though the album-closing sounds of the guitar being set down, chair being pushed back and footsteps into the distance was of him leaving this plane and taking his rightful place in some cosmic musical pantheon, having created [...]
Jeff Mangum , Elf Power 's Laura Carter, Olivia Tremor Control's Peter Erchick, John Fernandes, and Eric Harris performed under the name The Soap Scums at Athens
Starring in surrealist films? Stumbling upon comic-book cover art? These are just some of the questions answered by Elf Power as they continue to celebrate the release of their 10th album. Not many bands can comfortably talk about the release of their 10th full-length album. Then again, most bands aren't Elf Power. Andrew Rieger's band Elf Power released their eponymous tenth record late last year. Based in Athens, Georgia, they blend the buzz of lo-fi indie sounds into compact narratives with lyrical, off-kilter references. Their slightly experimental rock, densely textured pop, and pastoral psychedelia make them one of the [...]

[Photos courtesy of EardrumNYC ] The Elephant 6 Collective is a unique force in modern American music, a merry band of collaborators whose psychedelic, Beatles-inspired songs continue to resonate with indie aficionados across the globe. If you aren't up for seeing more than 10 bands in one place at one time, you should skip the E6 Holiday Surprise extravaganzas, because over their usual three sets in a given night, they will illuminate and educate you, as well as wear down the unready. This gig at the Knitting Factory was night one of three here in [...]
The best way to get a feel for a band is to hear them live. It's a great way to start a review, too; the presentation is a vivid description of the group's power onstage, a retelling of the moment you realized that driving all the way out to see the show was worth it. [...]

Every other Tuesday, Pooch , one of the three heads behind Thisbonustrack.com will be writing for you about what warrants his "Props." This can be anything from a musician to a program to a label/studio or ANYTHING, but at the end of the day, this column is nothing but a long-winded recommendation or rant of sorts. I guess as of this week I'm starting my own little dictionary. This has been a long time coming as for the past two or three years, I've developed my own vocabulary that one of [...]

Here's the Elf Power show from Halloween weekend. Catch most (if not all) of the band's members at the Larimer this Saturday, as they come through with the Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise Tour . Elf Power 10.30.2010 Larimer Lounge, Denver, CO Source: Microtech Gefell M3002s > Lunatec V3 > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave Taped by: Lance Stack Setlist: 1. Like a Cannonball [...]

The problem with so-called best-of lists, is that they are really just a collection of items organized based on experience and time, in that there will be plenty of albums heard the following year and beyond that will hold just as much weight as these we dub as "Best." So, as of right now, at this particular time in the tail end of 2010 and the first moments of 2011, these albums are the best. There's no question about it; it will change. My next list (which I've started, but may take a while to publish) is [...]

Here at MM we share, chat, argue, bury and praise music on a pretty regular basis…like daily. So throughout the year, the Mackerel crew (Mrs Mackerel, Barry-Sean, Christy-Popper, Dr Roddy, Polly Pocket, Starbar, MM and others) keep their own ever-changing top tens ready for publication at the climax of the festive season. Fifth in line is the indomitable lion of Hixet Wood...Mr Christy-Popper. 10. Local Natives – Airplanes ( Download here, Daytrotter Session ) The first big tune of the year for me, I sort of rediscovered this while compiling my top ten. [...]
Guess it's a week to talk about comebacks from the world of hip-hop, as Lauryn Hill has announced a ten-date Northeast tour that will kick off at the Higher Ground in Burlington, VT on December 18. The semi-reclusive Hill, who is rumored to be working on the long-awaited follow up to her seminal debut The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill , emerged this past summer to play a handful of shows as part of the Rock The Bells tour to favorable reviews. Hill will focus [...]

Ground Control So maybe some of you heard that Jeff Mangum, that guy who used to be in that one band, played a surprise show of Neutral Milk Hotel tunes to a Brooklyn crowd of about 75 this past weekend ( MP3s or it didn't happen ). And while that's a pretty cool thing in and of itself, not to mention giving those in attendance bragging rights in certain circles for the rest of their lives, that it happened just before word that the Elephant 6 collective of which the Neutral [...]
There is clearly something in the water in Athens, Georgia. Whilst R.E.M., for whom I have always had a big crush, are the city's biggest attraction (at least in terms of sales) the place has continued to produce a phenomenal list of artists over the years. Elf Power just serve to reaffirm this belief. Having [...]
There is clearly something in the water in Athens, Georgia. Whilst R.E.M., for whom I have always had a big crush, are the city's biggest attraction (at least in terms of sales) the place has continued to produce a phenomenal list of artists over the years. Elf Power just serve to reaffirm this belief. Having [...]
Madeline - I waited all day from If You Make It on Vimeo . Jammer dat Julie Doiron haar geplande optredens in Paradiso en Ekko begin december heeft afgezegd. Ik keek er erg naar uit. Laten we hopen dat we haar op een later moment alsnog kunnen zien. Maar er is ook goed nieuws. Zo heeft het Patronaat Roots in Heaven weer nieuw leven in geblazen. Onder deze naam organiseerde het Patronaat in het verleden mooie avonden met bands die je met een beetje goede wil als Americana [...]

With their American tour now over and done with, don't expect Elf Power to just go into hibernation over the winter. No, the indie rock mainstays might not be sticking around US shores, but the band will be in full force overseas for a string of European shows. Check out their schedule (and wave goodbye) after the jump. Elf Power tour dates: Nov 29 - Gent, Belgium @ Cafe Video Nov 30 - Tillburg, Netherlands @ 013 Dec 1 - Haarlem, [...]
Touring Europe sounds awesome; so many languages, so much culture. Athens, GA natives Elf Power , who formed in 1994 and has amassed an impressive body of work over the last 16 years (ten albums, two EPs, a handful of singles), while also touring America, Europe, and Japan. The tour is in support of their self-titled release, came out on Orange Twin Records in September and the label works in conjunction with The Orange Twin Conservation Community, "155 acres of beautiful land on the outskirts of Athens that has initiated fundraising for a development [...]

Well, it's been awhile! Hey...look what I mixed: Remember to Right Click/Save As on Cover Art to Download So, I grew up a Doug Flutie fan... sue me. He was the big Kahuna when I was in high school, and like many Eastern Massholes, I have a special affinity for our local athletes. What's that you say about Tom Brady? Yeah... suck bilge water, hater! Sorry... that was an unusual lack of decorum on my part. I [...]