You are hereArchive - Feb 2010
Archive - Feb 2010
Red River by Rocky Votolato
3:27 minutes (4.74 MB)
Again, this is me trying to catch up...I realize I'm late with this one.
For those of you who don't know yet, Rocky Votolato is releasing a new album - True Devotion. The album is due out 2/23, and promises to be another fine folky adventure. I have the first single, Red River, up for download. Anyone into singer-songwriter or alt-country/folk seen will enjoy (think Mason Jennings, Pete Yorn etc etc.). Take a gander.
If you like what you hear, the full album is streaming over at Paste.
True Devotion is available right now on iTunes!
If you pre-order a physical copy through barsuk.com before 2/23 you will receive a bonus 7" single (while supplies last) and be entered automatically to win a free private house show performance by Rocky. The bonus 7" single includes the two non-album tracks "Rushing To The Ending" (with James Bowman of Against Me! on guitar) and "Connections". Both songs feature label-mate David Bazan on drums. Here's the pre-order link:
http://www.barsuk.com/truedevotion
The Only Friends Worth Having EP by The Motorcycle Industry
3:33 minutes (3.25 MB)
It's been nigh a year since I first posted about The Motorcycle Industry, and this new EP brings even more of the slacker-voiced punk band.
Name dropping The Knitting Factory, super fuzzed-out synthesizers, summer beards, and pretending to like hip-hop are just some of the high points of the 4-song EP. At times reminiscent of Fountains of Wayne, Stereophonics, or Say Anything, this is some good-times rock to get you through until summer.
Try this track on for size, it's called "Paul Newman and A Ride Home."
Twenty Two by Wakey!Wakey!
2:40 minutes (3.06 MB)
When I first got an e-mail with this dude starting at me through my monitor I chuckled a bit. I mean, seriously - who does he think he is? I recognized him from that lame show my wife watches, One Tree Hill, and thought that'd be the end of it.
Of course, I received another e-mail with just an album cover and ended up giving it a listen....low and behold, this is why you shouldn't by a book by it's cover. Or, rather an album by it's cover. Umm...I guess an album by it's cover-boy? That's it. That's the ticket!
Anywho, what I'm getting around too hear is Wakey!Wakey! - a nice little indie-pop(ish) band that should help brighten up a case of the Mondays (or Tuesdays in this case, since some of us had a late start to the week due to the Holiday). They just released their second album, and the lead off single "Twenty-Two" is pretty damn catchy.
All you kids who like your Vampire Weekend and your Grizzly Bear (and other animal named bands) will dig what you hear. Take a listen, smile with those "uh-oh, oh oh"s. You'll love it.
The full album is streaming over at AOL.
Black Lab Announces Free Mp3 of the Month
5:27 minutes (6.23 MB)
Yes, yes - I know that I've blogged entirely too much about Black Lab lately. Thing is, that probably isn't going to stop any time soon. These guys consistently put out some of the best music no one listens to, so someone needs to be singing their praises. I figure it may as well be me.
Besides, who doesn't like free stuff?
Speaking of free stuff, the point of this post was to let you all know that Black Lab has announced they'll be giving away a free MP3 every moth rather than continuing the MP3 of the Month club. Now, don't go expecting them to release "Wash It Away" or anything - these MP3s are all going to be "demos". I use that term lightly, since those of you who know Black Lab already know that their demos are pretty damn polished. Paul and Andy are working on a new album, so the free MP3s we're getting a peak at are the first editions of songs that may make it on the full length.
I subscribed to the MP3 of the Month club for a few years, so I have a pretty good idea as to what's in store. One of my favorites from the MP3s of the Month was "Ghost in Your Mind", which found it's way onto Passion Leaves a Trace. "Ghost in Your Mind" is probably my second favorite track off the album, and in the top 10 of all the Black Lab tracks I have. That being said, this demo of "The Pain is Gone" is a better starting point. It looks like the boys will be delivering us another gem soon...
I'll be updating you all with their new free MP3s of the month. It looks like they're a bit behind right now, here's to hoping they don't let this slide...any and all Black Lab is welcome by me.
Anyways, here's the download link from their site:
[mp3] The Pain is Gone
Get their music: Blacklabworld | Amazon | iTunes
Visit them online: Official (Blacklabworld) | Myspace
New BRMC - Beat the Devil's Tattoo
3:46 minutes (5.82 MB)
Yumm....
I love me some BRMC. Those of you who know me know that I have a long history with the band. I first fell in love with "Love Burns". I followed them brought Take Them On, On Your Own. Interestingly enough, the first date I had with my wife was actually to see BRMC. We didn't make it, a car smashed into us on the way and sent us to the hospital.
My wife wouldn't listen to BRMC after that until Howl came out. Now Howl has claimed one of the few spots in her car's CD case, a truly honorable spot. Since then I've enjoyed their output, but nothing has really blown me away like Howl did.
Here's to hoping Beat the Devil's Tattoo will. The lead off single (of the same name) sounds promising. Not quite as acoustic as Howl, but it sounds like we've got some soulful foot-stomping fun ahead of us.
Beat the Devil's Tattoo will be out March 9th. It's now available for pre-order on iTunes.
Take a listen, decide for yourself.
I'm writing this to you in reverse...
4:10 minutes (3.87 MB)
For those of you who have been living under a rock the last few months: Spoon put out a new album. It's called Transference. Better late than never, eh? Take a listen to the single, Written in Reverse.
Buy the new album, Transference.
Teagarden by Kaleidyscope
6:03 minutes (8.9 MB)
Well, I think it's time to get that damn picture of Train off the top of the page. Blogging time has been limited lately, but I'm hoping that I'll have some consistent posts for all of you a few times a week going forward.
First up, Smashing Pumpkins news. I'm sure most of you are scratching your heads at this - after all, Zeitgeist pretty much sucked. And by pretty much sucked, I mean it was quite possibly the worst musical disappointment I'd had in the past 5 years. The Pumpkins were always one of my favorites - always a bit more "out there" then the other 90's acts that I got first heard in my early "enlightenment era". Things have certainly gone south since Melon Collie, but I'd still been holding out until I listened to Zeitgeist. That was the straw that broke the camel's back.
I'd heard some rumors about Jimmy quitting and Billy hiring a 19 year old drummer to keep on keepin' on. This news didn't do much to encourage me to follow Billy anymore.
After shutting ignoring the Pumpkins for a few months I started hearing that not only was there new material, but it was actually good. Shocking, I know.
It seems that Billy is starting up a new project - the 44 track Teagarden by Kaleidyscope. When will it be done? No one knows. But Billy is releasing it for free, one track at a time. Two tracks are up so far over at smashingpumpkins.com, freely available to download as many times as you'd like. I've put a stream up of "Song for a Son", may favorite of the two here so you can take a gander before clicking away. I'll do my best to keep you updated as more tracks become available.
[MP3] A Song for a Son (via smashingpumpkins.com)
[MP3] Widow Wake My Mind (via smashingpumpkins.com)
