you never had it so good

RJD2

RJD2, who recently left the friendly confines of DefJux for the home of Thom Yorke and Tapes 'n Tapes, will release his XL debut, The Third Hand, on March 6, 2007. But, you can stream a new song now on RJ's myspace. Even RJ himself admits that the new sound is a bit of a departure. Here's what he has to say about the new record:

It's more lushly produced, with vocal harmonies and grooves. Like the Zombies, Steely Dan and Daft Punk having some brews in a hot tub. It's sort of a garage-y produced pop record, that's got vocal harmonies, some bad-ass guitar tones, very slight riffage, just enough piano, and some tough ass drums. I think it sounds more like real human beings playing instruments than anything i've ever done. Maybe its kind of like if King Crimson went to a therapist, and came out really happy and optimistic about the world, and was just walking around giving out hugs and shit. Or you know how guys break down once a year, and tell their friends that they love them, but they still do it hella manly like? Its like that moment, i guess.

Based on this first track, I'm going to take his word for it. Nicely played, RJ.

Oh, also check out RJD2's myspace blog, in which he draws parallels between MF Doom and Sufjan Stevens.

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also:

Like D.C. last night and the ATL tonight, we're getting a surprise "Beck Jam" here in Dallas tomorrow. Word has it he'll even take your requests, as long as it's not "Loser." Get yer tickets now, as they won't last long. UPDATE: Sold out. Well, that took about two hours.

the light

Joanna Newsom's Ys isn't the only worthy Nov. 14 release from Drag City. White Magic's Dat Rosa Mel Apibus also comes out that day. Pitchfork gave this track 4 1/2 stars, calling it "some snake-charming, kaleidoscopic, aboriginal shit." So, yeah, between this song and the lead single "Katie Cruel," we've been mesmerized by this record for the last couple days.

White Magic The Light mp3

You make it sound like Christmas is a 4-Letter Word

You can now stream all 5 discs of Sufjan Stevens' Songs For Christmas box set. Just go here. You know you want to. At the very least, you need to hear "Get Behind Me Santa!" Pre-order it here.

Related: Just in time for Halloween, Sufjan's favorite horror films.





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elsewhere:

This is pretty much the most hardcore thing I've ever seen.

random observations

Marathonpacks says Birdman & Lil' Wayne's Like Father, Like Son is "leagues" better than the Dedication 2 mixtape, which is one of my favorite releases (hip hop or otherwise) of the year. MP says Dedication 2 is "too mixtapey," and he's right, but that's kinda what we like about it. At any rate, 2006 is shaping up to be one of the better years for new hip-hop so far this decade, with King, Fishscale, Hell Hath No Fury, Donuts, Food & Liquor, et al. all worthy "best of" contenders. Go read MP's post, and grab an mp3 of "1st Key" while you're there.

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Frida Hyvonen

We finally got our hands on Until Death Comes, the much-blogged about record from Sweden's Frida Hyvonen. And it's as good as these folks said it was. If you're a fan of Regina Spektor I imagine you'll really like Frida too. Listen, and consider purchasing the album from Secretly Canadian.

Frida Hyvonen You Never Got Me Right mp3

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David Vandervelde

Another Secretly Canadian artist that has our (somewhat divided) attention is David Vandervelde, who will release a 7" on Nov. 24. SC compares him to Bowie and Bolan. Download the following song courtesy of the label if you'd like, but we have to insist you go to David's myspace page and listen to "Murder in Michigan," on which he channels vintage early '70s-era Todd Rundgren.

David Vandervelde Jacket mp3

Voxtrot: Live in Denton

Voxtrot @ Hailey's

Here are some photos from Friday night's show at Hailey's, featuring Voxtrot, Yellow Fever, and the Dimes. No time for a formal review, but Voxtrot's new material (from both the Your Biggest Fan single, and the upcoming LP) sounded great, and I'm planning a full post detailing the greatness of Yellow Fever in the near future. Plus I got to talk a little with one of the guys from Lift To Experience, so that was cool.



In other Voxtrot news, the band played last night in Austin with Beirut, and Jared Van Fleet's Sparrow House side project will (finally) have a free CD release party show tonight at Beerland. There will be copies of Falls EP for sale, and Sparrow House will also play some songs with g vs. b favorite Pink Nasty, so don't miss it.

Click here for more photos of Voxtrot: Live in Denton...


Yellow Fever

car stereo (wars) vs. halloween

Austin's Car Stereo (Wars), whose mashups have been getting lots of positive press lately (the current issue of URB Magazine, VH1's Best Week Ever, Austinist, etc.), is back with a new, seasonally relevant mashup, based on John Carpenter's classic, The Fog. Listen for "I Be On That Kryptonite," "Dare," "Push It," and more.



Car Stereo (Wars) Hip Hop Halloween Monster Mash-up mp3

Here are some of the previous mashups that we premiered from Car Stereo (Wars):

Ghostface Observatory mp3
Ghostland Gets Bossy mp3
What's Up California mp3
My Love Is So Mashed Up mp3

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elsewhere:

Austin will also be representing tonight in Denton, as Voxtrot and Yellow Fever will be playing, along with our favorite Houston kids, The Dimes.

Voxtrot Trouble mp3
Download four songs from Yellow Fever here

Finally:


shit.

Thanks to Deadspin for this post. Somehow, it means a lot coming from a Cardinals fan. I can't remember watching a more frustrating game in my lifetime.

fun fun fun

The Fun Fun Fun Music Festival will take place December 1 at Waterloo Park in Austin. This thing was curated by the fine folks at Emo's and the Alamo Drafthouse, so as you might expect, they've put together a pretty nice little lineup, including gorilla vs. bear favorites Spoon, Peaches, Prefuse 73, the Octopus Project, and more.

And, since you brought up the Octopus Project, here are a few free/legal downloads from their new album, The House of Apples & Eyeballs, a collaboration with Black Moth Super Rainbow:

The Octopus Project Spiracle mp3
The Octopus Project Lollipopsichord mp3
The Octopus Project Psychic Swelling mp3

And while we don't normally post streams, we really like this new Spoon song from the Stranger Than Fiction soundtrack. Listen:

Spoon The Book I Write

Tickets go on sale today at 2 PM, so act fast, because I have on good authority that this thing will sell out quick. Just kidding, I made that last part up. I have no idea, but if I were you, I'd get tix now just in case. Click the read more link to view the full lineup...

Indie stage:
Spoon 8:50-10:00
Peaches 7:30-8:30
Black Angels 6:30-7:15
Lucero 5:30-6:15
Dead Meadow 4:30-5:15
Octopus Project 3:30-4:15
The Oranges Band 2:45-3:15
Drag The River 2-2:30


Punk stage:
Circle Jerks 8:55-10
Negative Approach 7:55-8:40
Riverboat Gamblers 6:55-7:40
Electric Frankenstein 5:55-6:40
Lower Class Brats 5-5:40
Applicators 4:15-4:45
Krumbums 3:30-4
Iron Age 2:45-3:15
ADHD 2-2:30


Dance Party stage/tent:
Prefuse 73 9-10
DJ Mel 7:50-8:50
Quintron and Miss Pussycat 6:50-7:35
Ghostland Observatory DJ set (Thomas Turner) 5:35-6:35
Learning Secrets 4:25-5:25
Dirty South Ravers 3:15-4:15
Whitey 2:30-3

The Decemberists: Live in Dallas

Colin Meloy of the Decemberists

The Decemberists and Lavender Diamond came to town last night, playing to a completely sold-out Gypsy Ballroom. Lavender Diamond's Becky Stark deftly navigated the fine line between cute, endearing drunk girl and obnoxious, annoying drunk girl (video). She described her performance as "delicate," probably in an effort to get the people at the bar to shut up. It didn't really work, but she eventually won most of the crowd over with her closing number, "You Broke My Heart."



Apparently, I'm in the minority that feels The Crane Wife isn't the Decemberists' best work (I'm in the Castaways & Cutouts camp.) The band obviously focused on the new record, and while I do enjoy some of the prog-rock leanings ("The Island" was especially awesome live), I find some of it almost unlistenable (we had to go outside during "The Perfect Crime #2"). On the other hand, "The Crane Wife" (all parts) sounded really pretty live, and the selections from Picaresque ("Engine Driver," "We Both Go Down Together") were great. Plus, Colin Meloy is a pretty charismatic geek, so it's hard not to like him regardless of how pretentious you think he is.

(Sidenote: While Petra Haden is no longer in the band (boo!), the Decemberists have enlisted a new requisite hot female violinist/xylophonist/keyboardist for this tour. Anyone know her name?)

Click read more link to view a few more shots from the show...


THE DECEMBERISTS:

what you drank

M.I.A. and Diplo (photo credit)

Diplo has a couple new things on his myspace page, both of which are worth mentioning. Of course, it could be argued that we post every single fucking thing that Diplo does, but that's beside the point. First up, an alternate version of the new M.I.A. track "XR 2"; according to the myspace page, this version will be included on Piracy Funds Terrorism 2:

M.I.A. XR 2 Turbo mp3

He also posted a new track from Hollertronix: 6 called "Chief Scrappy" that pairs the beat from Lily Allen's "Knock 'em Out" with the lyrics from Lil' Scrappy's "Money in the Bank." Listen here.

edit: The beat that Lily Allen (and Diplo) used was actually a sample from Professor Longhair's "Big Chief," a classic Mardi Gras staple:

Professor Longhair Big Chief mp3

Broken Social Scene: Live in Dallas

Kevin Drew and Amy Millan of Broken Social Scene

If I were to revisit my 2005 "Best of" list, Broken Social Scene's self-titled release would be much closer to the top spot (it was #9 on my list.) Hearing songs like "Shoreline," "Ibi Dreams of Pavement," and "Superconnected" performed live by the Canadian supergroup/art collective reaffirms why they're one of my favorite bands: they make loud, expansive, densely layered songs that have incredible depth and complexity, often drawing attention away from the fact that these are some of the most melodic, catchy pop songs ever.

While the absence of Feist almost automatically meant that this show wouldn't be as good as last time I saw BSS, this was still one of the best shows I've seen all year. Openers Do Make Say Think's swirling instrumental post-rock was a pleasant surprise, and the only complaint I have about their set is that it was too short. BSS' Kevin Drew is an intriguing dude. It's fascinating to me for some reason to watch this kid try to rein in and hold together the huge group of amazing musicians on stage, most of whom often seem more interested in veering off into total noise/chaos. Amy Millan was great in Feist's place, and "Anthem For a Seventeen Year Old Girl" sounded great despite some technical difficulties. The band's performance of "Hotel" (or as Drew called it, "dancing time") was markedly better than last time. It's become my favorite song from BSS:

Broken Social Scene Hotel mp3




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elsewhere:

The Decemberists and Lavender Diamond are playing tonight at Gypsy. LD's Becky Stark was formally-trained in opera, and from what I've heard about her live performances, she's not to be missed:

Lavender Diamond You Broke My Heart mp3

Drop The Big One.

Garrison Reid offered up this giant post. I'm returning from Detroit today. If you're somewhere between here and Dallas, go stand outside right now and wave. I might be driving by at any moment.

--------------------------------------------------------------

In an attempt to avoid middle America, I'll address only things from the West coast.



San Fran's Two Gallants have been a favorite of mine since I saw them with fellow SFians Rogue Wave, when they played Emo's in Austin in 2004. Their live energy is unparalleled...fact. Chris, our buddy Del, and I saw them last time they passed through Denton with pals the Cold War Kids. We all left thoroughly impressed. I can't say enough good things about these two guys, and I was deeply troubled by what I read of the Houston incident last week. Understandably, Chris totally avoided discussing the drama in Houston last weekend. Until the dust really settles, I don't feel Chris or I could base any legitimate opinions on a few YouTubes. I won't post those, but instead this amazing example of the duo's writing potential.

mp3: Two Gallants - Reflection of the Marionette (BBC1 Session)
pseudo-mugshots: Adam & Tyson

If you didn't get into What The Toll Tells earlier this year, I would ignore the pathetic excuse of a pFork review and give it a few more listens. It's thick (4 8:00+ songs) but interesting throughout.



Another thing that zoomed past Chris last weekend was the Damien Jurado, Rosie Thomas and Pedro The Lion's David Bazan show at Denton's Haileys. These songwriters are among the top 25 out there, in my opinion, anyway, and this was arguably one of the more compelling bills I've encountered this year. Performances of Jurado's new material were incredible. The tones of a cello have such power. The night was only disrupted by loud fans and Bazan's ridiculous Q&A sessions. He did share his acoustic version of Newman's "Political Science", which appeared on the Pedro The Lion 2004 tour ep.

mp3: Damien Jurado - Denton, TX
mp3: Pedro the Lion - Political Science (Randy Newman cover)

I also heard an amazing Tweedy cover of this song. Dodge, do some research. It's the perfect time for covers of sarcastic liberally-slanted atomic anthems.



Tangent: Eric Fisher is now part of Damien Jurado as the man became a band. Eric Fisher is the designer and producer for Jurado's new record, And Now That I'm In Your Shadow, as well as the last two J. Tillman records. Coincidentally, J. Tillman's new record Minor Works comes out today in Europe. How is this guy's amazing record being released in Europe, and yet still have no home with an American publisher? It's criminal! Jurado, Fisher and Tillman will be all over Europe through the rest of October and most of November.

mp3: J. Tillman - Crooked Roof

Thanks. G. Reid

ali shaheed mohammed got me doing calisthenics

It pains me more than you know to miss this one:



A Tribe Called Quest's Ali Shaheed Mohammed will be doing a meet & greet at the Adidas Originals store at the NorthPark Mall in Dallas from 2-4 PM today, and then performing tonight at Zubar along with our boy Skin from Hydroponic Sound System.

A Tribe Called Quest Lyrics to Go mp3

also:

Austin's White Denim, one of our favorite new bands, is playing tonight at the Doublewide.

day after tomorrow

We're on our way to Detroit watch the Tigers take on the St. Louis Cardinals. In the meantime, our friend Austin LaRoche is back with the latest installment of his column, and as usual, it's a good one. This one even comes complete with mp3s, so enjoy:

(p.s. let me preface Austin's post by saying that my file host has been hit-or-miss lately, so if the files don't work at any point, just try back)



The Top 10 Saddest Songs I've Ever Heard...
By: Austin LaRoche

I'm a "when in Rome" guy. If I go to a restaurant claiming to have the "World's Best Ribs," then I get the "world's best ribs." If I'm at a bar with over 200 beers, I try a beer I've never had before. If I'm at a peace rally, I chant peacefully.

I do the same with music. When I was in London, I listened to an inordinate amount of Oasis and The Smiths. I even had a fling with new age Brit-pop artists like Keane and Snow Patrol. Laugh all you want, but I was doing as the Londoners do. While geography is always a fun way to decide which music you're going to listen to, I like to go by mood as well. For instance, if I'm happy as hell and the world is great, there's a good chance I'll float around to some Wilco or some Bloc Party/Franz/Arctic Monkeys/(insert post-punk band from Europe with a bit of a dance kick). If I'm tired, then Sammy Beam or Will Oldham can put me to sleep. And if I'm by myself, feeling sad or lonely, then nothing beats a good depressing song. I'm talking the kind that normal folks make the "put a 'finger gun' to your head and pretend to shoot" gesture when listening to.

It's just my nature. I don't contemplate suicide or start crying, I just relate to why those guys are all sad, and before I know it, I'm hanging out with a bunch of miserable buddies and we're all being gloomy together. Call it group therapy.

Already, sad saps, here's my list of favorite tearjerkers...


Elliott Smith

10. Elliott Smith--The Biggest Lie mp3

Saddest Lyric:

Oh we're so very precious, you and I
and everything that you do, makes me want to die
Oh I just told the biggest lie

Not adding Elliott Smith to a "saddest songs ever" list would be like excluding Michael Jordan from a "greatest basketball player of all-time" list. And while the saddest Smith song is up for discussion, there's really something about the guitar in this one that really gets me every time. Not only that, but the desperation in Smith's voice really makes it sound as if this lie he is telling isn't just a lie, but the lie that will just ruin him. Elliott and his people have allowed his music to be played in many movies, I am shocked no musical director has put this song somewhere, it's just that perfect.

click to continue reading "The Top 10 Saddest Songs I've Ever Heard..."



9. Jeff Buckley--Hallelujah mp3

Saddest Lyric Even Though Buckley Didn’t Write It:

I've seen your flag on the marble arch
But love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah

I have a theory about this tune...wherever you are, in whatever mood you are in (minus furious anger), this song will exemplify that mood 20 times. For instance, say you are driving down a beautiful road during sunset and enjoying a moment of inner piece. All of a sudden, "Hallelujah" comes on the stereo and that drive becomes one of the best moments of your life. The funny thing is, Buckley said that his version was about the "hallelujah of an orgasm," so for those of you who like to make a little love to music, trying humping around to "Hallelujah" and get back to me on how much better the sex was. Actually, keep that to yourself, but I got a feeling I'll be right about it.

In the unintentional testing phase of my theory, I was going through one of those "I can't stop listening to this song" stages with "Hallelujah" when my grandmother was put into Hospice. For those of you unfamiliar with Hospice, it is the part of the hospital where patients go once it is understood that they have no chance at making it any longer. I guess the intention is to give the family one last chance to say goodbye in the final moments of someone's life. Well, the night I visited my grandmother to say that "goodbye," which, by the way, is the most awful thing you could ever have to go through in your entire life, I was handling the situation alright. I kind of kept the family loose, cracking a few appropriate jokes and trying to crack a few smiles. After awhile, I needed to get some rest, so I drove my brother, my sister, and myself back to my aunt's house. The silence was unbearable. It was 3 in the morning so the streets were bare, and we were just sitting in sadness. I hit play on my iPod and "Hallelujah" came on. And of course, I lost it. Some songs just hit you. For me, "Hallelujah" is like Mike Tyson in the late 80s--it hits harder than anything else. So maybe this one's a bit personal, but regardless, "Hallelujah" can bring tears to the most masculine of eyes.


8. Warren Zevon--"Please Stay"

Saddest Lyric:

Will you stay with me to the end?
When there's nothing left
But you and me and the wind

A few years back, Warren Zevon was diagnosed with cancer. At some point in the treatments, he realized he wasn't going to make it, so he decided to make one last album for his family, and many guest stars such as Bruce Springsteen lent a hand on different tracks. But this one, "Please Stay," was always the kicker. I believe alt-country singer-songwriter Kasey Chambers does the background vocals on this, but I'm not sure. Regardless, given the circumstances and the lyrics, if this song doesn't get to you, well, there's a chance you have no soul. But then again, anything written by a guy who is dying asking his loved ones around him to stay with him as he is dying should be disqualified from the "saddest songs ever" list for unfair boundaries. I mean, how can a modern singer-songwriter compete with that? For this reason only, Zevon sits back at 8. The song sums up everything he is going through, but it has an unsizeable advantage over its competition because of the circumstances. Anyway, for you hipsters who don't like old guys who still make albums (Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Zevon), this is one to check out just to make sure your heart is still in tact.


Joni Mitchell

7. Joni Mitchell--Blue mp3

Saddest Lyric:

Everybody's saying that
Hell's the hippest way to go
Well, I don't think so, but I'll take a look around it, though
Blue, I love you.

I'm in the "Joni Mitchell has one of the top 10 prettiest voices of all-time" camp. But there's a paradox with a beautiful voice--it tends to make the saddest of songs. There's a lot of songs from the album Blue that get the waterworks moving, but the title track seems to be the one that I always go back to. In "Blue," Joni actually sings the song to the state of sadness ("Blue") itself and seems to embrace it as the song continues. Things have been so tough on this narrator, she is so sad that, in the midst of her gloom, she has gotten to the point where the only thing she can rely on is the sadness itself. I've been in holes before, but never to the point where I could write anything close to as emotional or intense as this one. If you're not familiar with Joni Mitchell, check her out, she's truly one of the great singer-songwriters to ever live.

6. Ryan Adams--"Call Me on Your Way Back Home"

Saddest Lyric:

And I just want to die without you
oh, I just want to die without you
yeah, I just want to die without you

When it comes to my boy Ryan Adams, the magazines and media tend to talk about "Come Pick Me Up" as the incredibly heartbreaking ballad, usually with a joke like, "I mean 'steal all my records?' how awful is that?" While "Come Pick Me Up" is one of my favorite songs ever, it in no way touches "Call Me on Your Way Back Home" in the sadness category. This is the sound of someone who knew they fucked up. Not like "oh, I should have changed a few things and we'd still be together" fucked up. More like "holy shit, I just lost the love of my life because I'm a complete idiot" fucked up. While the lyrics are short, they are intense--"I just want to die without you"--what a way to sum up the feeling of being completely consumed with a breakup you just want to get past.

I also love the imagery of how he explains being young and foolish

Honey, I was just a kid,
Bubblegum on my shoes

Such a well-written line. Such a well-written album. Definitely up there in the best albums to listen to when you're looking to feel bad for yourself. One of my all-time favs.

5. The Smiths--"I Know it's Over"

Saddest Lyric:

If you're so funny
then why are you on your own tonight?
and if you're so clever
then why are you on your own tonight?
if you're so very entertaining
then why are you on your own tonight?
if you're so very good looking
why do you sleep alone tonight?
I know because tonight is just like any other night
that's why you're on your own tonight.

Very underrated song by The Smiths. Morrissey has the absolute perfect voice for a sad ballad. While there's no question that his writing in this song (and for almost all his songs for that matter) is wonderful, he delivers each line with such passion and intensity that he sells the pain to his audience like no one else with this set of lyrics could. In the span of 5 minutes, 51 seconds, he plays victim, sings regret, makes a fool of himself, and sounds scared of whatever is going to happen next. How many singers could pull that off?

(Funny note: have you ever noticed how anytime someone's voice sounds like Morrissey's, the person reviewing that person's album refers to it as having Morrissey's "croon?" What the hell is it about Morrissey that spawns the word "croon" every single time? Look into it, "croon" is used EVERY time to explain his voice. I don't think even Pitchfork can deny the phrase.)


Fleetwood Mac

4. Fleetwood Mac--Songbird mp3

Saddest Lyric:

And I wish you all the love in the world,
But most of all, I wish it from myself.

Remember earlier how we were talking about Warren Zevon's song being so sad because of the situation he was in? Well, "Songbird" is no different. It's my favorite song on the best-selling album of the 70s, "Rumours," and I think it also might be the only song that wasn't a single. (That was just a joke Fleetwood Mac fanatics.) In case you didn't know, one of the reasons the album worked so well was because there were two breakups in the band: the well-publicized Stevie Nicks-Lindsey Buckingham breakup, and the lesser-known divorce between Christine and John McVie. Christine wrote this song, and man do you feel awful for her and her situation. It's obvious she still loves him and would do anything for him, but it's not reciprocated, so she's having to tell herself to get herself to keep moving on, even if she'd rather stand still. It's so masterfully written and the simple piano melody in the background really hammers it home, not to mention that little lassie Steve Nicks and her wonderful voice. If you're one of those people who swears you don't need to get Rumours because you've heard every song from it on the radio, you need to get it just for "Songbird."

(PS--Because it was the highest selling album of the 70s, Rumors can always be found at record stores for $1-$3 on vinyl. Great vinyl to have.)

3. Bruce Springsteen--"You're Missing"

Saddest Lyric:

Pictures on the nightstand, TV's on in the den
Your house is waiting, your house is waiting
For you to walk in, for you to walk in
But you're missing

Bruce Springsteen's album, The Rising, was the most blatant and publicized post-9/11 album. No one can argue that. 9/11 isn't easy to write about. It was a lot easier to be speechless about 9/11 then vocal. I mean, what could you say? Still, 5 years later, not much has been written in the music world. There's references and albums about living in the post-9/11 world, but nothing is as directly about 9/11 and the immediate effects of the attacks as The Rising. There are songs about moving forward (the title track, "My City of Ruins") but there're also a few about dealing with losses, and "You're Missing" is the best of those. The narrator is a woman, agonizing with the fact that while everything in her once great life (house, children) are the same, the fact that her assumed husband is missing makes that great life empty. Again, without the circumstances, I'm not sure it would hit as hard. But those ARE the circumstances. Listening to this song makes me upset that 9/11 wasn't addressed in music enough. Would the great folk writers of the 50s and 60s ever allow an event like that to happen without writing hundreds of songs about it?

Musicians have been somewhat political since the war in Iraq broke out, but it's as if they just skipped 9/11. I think this is something that we need in a historic sense. 30 years from now, our kids will read books and see movies about 9/11, but they won't have much music to help make sense of what that day was really like. I listen to old music, and I feel like it helps me understand the 60s much more than any book, documentary, or TV show. But the 9/11 wave already passed, and we have very little to show for it musically.


2. Bob Dylan--"Sara"

Saddest Lyric:

Sara, Sara
It's all so clear,
I could never forget
Sara, Sara
Lovin' you is the one thing
I'll never regret

Reason 2,091,874 why Bob Dylan is the greatest songwriter of all-time: As a notorious adulterer, and a well-known drug deal and asshole, Dylan crafts a plea to his wife, Sara, who was ending their marriage at the time, to stay with him, and somehow, by the end of the song, you end up rooting for Dylan to get her back. Amazing. I've seen good imagery in songwriting, I've seen great imagery in songwriting, but I've never seen imagery as good as "Sara." Just an example...

Sleepin' in the woods
By a fire in the night
Drinkin' white rum
In a Portugal bar
Them playin' leap-frog
And hearin' about Snow White
You in the market place
In Savanna-la-Mar

Dylan paints a picture of their life with their children playing on the beach, everyone incredibly joyful, and then eventually, the beach is deserted, the love is over, and he's just begging like a drunk on the doorstep at 3:45 in the morning for her back. While I'm sure all of his fans sided with him, and to an extent, Sara appreciated the song, you gotta believe she was also somewhat horrified at that fact that he was trying to play victim. You almost have to be amazed at how big of a prick he could be to write something like this, but you'll be even more amazed how you forget everything wrong he ever did when you hear how beautiful and heartbreaking this song is.



1. Tom Waits--Day After Tomorrow mp3

Saddest Lyric:
I close my eyes every night
And I dream that I can hold you
They fill us full of lies, everyone buys
About what it means to be a soldier
I still don't know how I'm supposed to feel
About all the blood that's been spilled
Will God on his throne
Get me back home
On the day after tomorrow

Part of me thinks that because this song is so recent (2004), it doesn't deserve the top spot on this list. But the other part of me thinks because it is so recent (the Iraqi War), it makes it that much sadder.

Regardless, Tom takes into the eyes of a soldier, confused and lonely, missing his family and contemplating what he's doing in the first place. I really feel this is one of the best written songs I've ever listened to, and believe had Waits given a damn, he could have released it as a single and won about 3,000 Grammys and other pointless music awards. The Red Staters may not be too keen on this one, but I do think they should give it a shot, seeing as it's just about a confused soldier.

If you're someone like myself who is terrified at the idea of going to war so you respect very fondly the efforts of those brave enough to fight, you'll really love seeing a vulnerable side of soldiers they can't really show on the battlefield. And I know, Waits isn't actually a soldier nor to my knowledge has he ever been, but I don't think anyone believes he's too far off in his narration. Regardless, of every song I've ever heard, this is the saddest, this does make me feel the most depressed, and is a great piece of musical history.


So what about you guys? What're your favorite tearjerkers?


Random Sports Thought of the Week

Growing up, my good buddy Chad was a diehard Detroit sports fan. He got me into hockey with his love of the Red Wings, and I always kind of cheered for his teams when my Atlanta teams were sucking (which was quite often). Anyway, a few years ago, he gave me a Tigers hat for Christmas, which was weird because a) he didn't like baseball very much and b) it was the cheapest looking hat I've ever seen. Still, I never thought in a million years I'd wear the damn thing. But I will be. As Peter King wrote in his column this week, "America is rooting for the Tigers." And consider me an American. You don't get great stories like the Detroit Tigers anymore. They've played David, followed by Goliath. When the series starts, they will have a sizable rest advantage, which could either be a plus, or a momentum bump. All I know is my Tigers hat will be on--Go Motown! Enjoy the World Series, guys.

Random TV Thought of the Week

Am I the only one in the world who thinks that Lost needs to finally start answering some questions? It's been too long, fellas, I'm starting to lose interest. I understand you all are afraid that maybe this amazing myth you've created won't live up to expectations, but you guys got us to this point, and we're getting bored. Some sort of answer will be fine. Maybe a clue to who The Others are and why they are so weird. I could give a shit. And by the way, where the hell is everyone? Hugo? Charlie? Johnny Locke? We've had two episodes about Jack, Kate, and Sawyer. And Sawyer hasn't even been nearly as funny as usual. Let's get the laughs rolling, the questions to slowly start getting answered and while you folks are answering some, feel free to bring about more mystery. But move the story along for crying out loud.

new from Barsuk

No time for a full writeup, but I got an email from Barsuk with some new stuff from the great Jesse Sykes that I had to share. Both tracks are great, but I don't think it would be hyperbole to call this first one absolutely amazing:



New track from sunn0))) & Boris featuring Jesse Sykes on vocals from their new album Altar, out 10/31 on Southern Lord:

sunn0))) & Boris The Sinking Belle feat. Jesse Sykes mp3


New song from Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter's just completed album Like, Love, Lust & The Open Halls of the Soul coming 2/6/2007 on Barsuk:

Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter LLL mp3

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p.s. Did anyone just see that play by the Mets' Endy Chavez? That has to be the greatest play in NLCS Game 7 history. Wow.

tonight/dallas

There's a pretty cool (and extremely eclectic) bill tonight at Club Dada, highlighted by Austin's inimitable White Denim, whom I've talked about numerous times here and on the radio show. The headliners are a band called Tiger, from Arlington, TX, home of the Texas Rangers and Six Flags and not much else. Amanda from the Fine Line describes them as "Sylvia Plath meets Tom Waits," which might be fairly accurate, based on this song:

Tiger B-movie mp3

PVC Street Gang is also playing, and judging from the one song they have on myspace, they sound like they might be pretty interesting live. And their movie review of some Ashton Kutcher movie is the best movie review I've ever read.

bonus:

White Denim Wet Sand mp3

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exclusive new remix from CWL

Cassettes Won't Listen

Thanks to our boy Cassettes Won't Listen for offering up this exclusive new remix of The Postmarks' "Goodbye." We were unfamiliar with The Postmarks, but they hail from our ex-hometown of sunny Miami, FL, and any band that lists Francoise Hardy and Ennio Morricone among their influences is a friend of ours.



The Postmarks Goodbye (Cassettes Won't Listen remix) mp3

Get The Postmarks Remixes EP on iTunes. The original version of "Goodbye" can be heard in tonight's episode of Grey's Anatomy. The Postmarks are even offering up sweet prizes to a fan that will break copyright laws for them:

The first person to grab a clean, clear video clip of the full segment (of Grey's Anatomy) with "Goodbye" will win a 1-of-a-kind mix CD from The Postmarks. Simply rip the video, post it on YouTube and send us the link via a Myspace message!

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elsewhere:

We premiered the CWL remix of Midlake's "Roscoe" on our SIRIUS show last night, but on the off chance that you missed it, you can hear the remix here. The rest of the show consisted of music from Detroit, MI, which means plenty of Sufjan, The Supremes, and The Dirtbombs.

missy + lady sov

So apparently the fine folks at Def Jam are sending this Lady Sov remix out to everyone (including Pitchfork), but since it features the infallible Missy Elliott, we thought we'd post it too. The track's worth downloading even if you're not a Lady Sov fan, because Missy kills it, as per usual.

Lady Sov Love Me or Hate Me (Remix feat. Missy Elliott) mp3

planning to rock

ms. planningtorock

I just noticed that Janine Rostron, aka Planningtorock, will be opening for The Knife on their painfully brief upcoming U.S. tour. Based on the above photo, she's a great choice (aesthetically at least). And, after listening to a couple of her songs on myspace, she has a lot in common with The Knife musically as well, from the otherworldly vocals to the eerie and often darkly playful electronic soundscapes. In fact, Planningtorock has worked with The Knife in the past, contributing this stunning remix of "Heartbeats," in which she gives it a slightly more sinister feel than the original:

The Knife Heartbeats (Planningtorock remix) mp3

Watch the video for Planningtorock's great single, "Changes," here. Buy Planningtorock's debut album, Have It All, here.

In other Knife news, waste a few minutes at work playing this kickass "We Share Our Mother's Health" video game.

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elsewhere:

Tune in to our SIRIUS show tonight at 10 Eastern to hear the world premiere of Cassettes Won't Listen's remix of Midlake's "Roscoe" (still one of the best singles of the year.) You'll also be able to hear the song starting tomorrow on CWL's myspace page.

alcohol

CSS and Tilly and the Wall get drunk

CSS has posted a new(?) version of album-track "Alcohol" on their myspace page. I'm not sure where this track came from, but it sounds like something Lovefoxxx threw together with a Casio and a laptop. While she was drunk. Which is to say, it's awesome.

CSS Alcohol (Failed Rehab version?) mp3

In other CSS news, Lovefoxxx designed some sweet new t-shirts for one of our favorite blogs, Music For Robots. Buy one here. CSS is currently on tour, and will be rolling through Texas this weekend. Watch out for those Houston cops, ladies.

2nd class

NYC's DJ Never Forget is back with his newest mix, entitled 2nd Class: The Story of a Laptop DJ. Everyone seemed to love his Going to Work mix from a few months back, and he brings it again on this one (check that tracklist) Here's the summary, from Mr. Never Forget himself:

Stuck somewhere between ipod and vinyl djs, lies the laptop dj. Neither a selector nor old school, the laptop dj languishes in a world of 0's and 1's, able to mix, but never taken seriously. While able to obtain certain status, there is a glass ceiling they must watch their wax brethren through as they obtain international fame and fortune. Currently, there is a raging debate regarding the laptop djs place in the world. They are consumed by their need to prove that they too have an identity all their own. No longer complacent, their voices are being raised.

This is the tale of one dj's struggle.


MP3
DJ Never Forget 2nd Class: The Story of a Laptop DJ

the tracklist:

"Always Something Better (Trentemoller Remix)" Trentemoller
"La Ritournelle (Metronomy Mix)" Sebastien Tellier
"Yours To Keep (ft Annie)" Teddybears
"Computer Heat" Cansei de Ser Sexy
"I Dont Feel Like Dancing (Linus Loves Vox)" Scissor Sisters
"Muscle Cars (Freeform Five Remix)" Mylo
"The Party's Crashing Us (I Am The World Trade Center Mix)" Of Montreal
"Trick or Treatz (South Central Remix)" Metronomy
"Mama's Room (Weird Science Mix)" Under the Influence of Giants
"Standing In the Way Of Control (Soulwax Nite Version)" The Gossip
"Whoo! Alright-Yeah...Uh Huh" The Rapture


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elsewhere:

DoCopenhagen has video from The Knife's performance last night in Copenhagen.

Finally, we've been loving the B-More remixes from Austin's Bird Peterson, and he's set to release his debut LP next month. Here's a track:



Bird Peterson Right Em Off mp3

new husky rescue

Husky Rescue at ACL 2006

Finland's Husky Rescue, whom the Observer called "a combination of David Lynch and Bambi," has posted a new song from their upcoming record Ghost Is Not Real, on their myspace page. We thought their song "Summertime Cowboy" was one of the best singles of '05, and this one might be even prettier. A little darker and colder (icy, even), and no where near as cute, but that slide guitar coupled with Reeta-Leena Korhola's ethereal vocals creates a stunningly hypnotic effect.

Husky Rescue Diamonds in the Sky mp3

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elsewhere:


The Shins

via Sub Pop's official press release:

"The highly-anticipated third album from The Shins, Wincing the Night Away, is set for release via Sub Pop Records on January 23rd, 2007. The album was recorded in the summer of '06 at Supernatural Sound in Oregon, and produced by James Mercer, The Shins' singer/songwriter, and Joe Chiccarelli (Beck, U2).

The tracklist for Wincing the Night Away follows:

Sleeping Lessons
Australia
Pam Berry
Phantom Limb
Sea Legs
Red Rabbits
Turn on Me
Black Wave
Spilt Needles
Girl Sailor
A Comet Appears

The first single from the album, "Phantom Limb," will be released as a digital single (with two b-sides) via iTunes on November 14th, as a CD-single on November 21st , and on 7" on December 12."

Tonight at Good

Alias & Tarsier

Dallas people, head over to Good Records this evening for a pretty special (even by their standards) in-store performance:

Good Records Presents:

Alias & Tarsier (Anticon)
Electric President (Morr)
Astronautalis

7 PM * Free

I'm a huge fan of Electric President, who have been called "a Postal Service for the Anticon set." And the new Alias & Tarsier record, Brookland/Oaklyn, is worth checking out too. It should be cool to see these guys in a fairly intimate setting. Here are a couple mp3s:

Alias & Tarsier Cub mp3
Electric President Good Morning, Hypocrite mp3

we're going to Detroit!

Update: Oh man, this song is terrible. Apparently, someone at a Detroit radio station threw this together, and I'm going to have to recommend that unless you're a huge Tigers fan, or some sort of weird, obsessive Justin Timberlake completist, you avoid this one at all costs:

TigersBack mp3

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Sorry for the late post, but we've been on Ticketmaster all morning attempting to get World Series tickets. Our three hours of persistence paid off in the end though, as we scored two tickets for Game 2 and one for Game 7 (which we won't use, because the Tigers are going to sweep)! Our Game 2 tickets are pretty amazing, and we got 'em for face-value, which means we won't have to pay the outrageous prices that scalpers will undoubtedly be asking. We did, however, have to pay the outrageous prices that Ticketmaster was asking:


the arrow = our seats

I realize these will only appeal to Tigers fans, but here are a couple Detroit Tigers theme songs. The first one is from their 1984 World Series run, and I'm not sure where the second one is from, but if I had to guess, I'd say it's from the 1968 season, which also ended in a World Series victory.

Bless You Boys mp3
Go Get 'em Tigers mp3

Tigers in the World Series!

...in dramatic fashion! Unreal. I love you Magglio Ordonez. We're going to Detroit!!!*

*pending; we need tickets! anyone? Please?

modern luxury

Dallas Modern Luxury Magazine, clearly one of the finest American publications yet to win the prestigious Pulitzer Prize, has purported that my non-existent, warring identities will be squaring off tonight at the Cavern.

"Jump-Off's turntable warfare pits DJs Bear and Gorilla for best break beat, electronica and pop props. Observe and listen to see who has the best skills."
10/13 10p-2a.

There's so much going on in this statement that is just completely wrong, starting with the fact that I'm not DJing at the Cavern this month. Plus, there's only one of me, and I have no skills. And then there's the fact that it's in freaking Dallas Modern Luxury Magazine. (thanks to Katie for the tip)

However, if you're in Dallas and would like to go out tonight, hit this up: The Party, starring DJs Nature, Sober, $elect, and god knows who else. You have my guarantee that this will be awesome.



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p.s. With their 3-0 victory over the A's today, my Tigers are ONE GAME AWAY FROM THE WORLD SERIES. I can't even comprehend how amazing this is. If anyone's got Series tickets, I'm buying.

Cat Power on The Interface

Ms. Chan Marshall, all clean and sober and looking lovelier than ever, recently stopped by AOL's The Interface. She was very talkative and open, and she does her "funny because she's hot" stand-up routine, but she also played some songs, including her great cover of "Satisfaction." We also learn she had a date that night, but she doesn't tell us with who. Download the podcast here:

Cat Power on The Interface mp3

the setlist:

Love & Communication
John John
Satisfaction (Rolling Stones cover)
Ramblin' Man (Hank Williams Jr. cover)

New Bishop Allen

So it looks like Bishop Allen was serious about that whole "12 EPs in 12 months thing". The September EP is a couple weeks late, but it was worth the wait. And for the record, the band promises October will be on time. Check the Spanish flavor on this track, influenced by Justin's recent trip to Santiago, Chile:

Bishop Allen Like Castanets mp3

Buy any or all of the 9 EPs here

also:



Did you know Bishop Allen's Justin Rice is also an actor? His new film, Mutual Appreciation, is getting some pretty good reviews. Check it out if you get a chance.

more soup with your meal

I know this'll be old news to some of you guys, but thanks to Spine Magazine for reminding us about Moka Only's Desired Effect. Originally released in 2005, this one finally got a U.S. release earlier this month. Buy it here. On this track, MF Doom's verse is stellar, as usual, but Moka Only more than holds his own. And that bassline is nice.

Moka Only More Soup (feat. MF Doom mp3)

diplo + hot chip = shake it over and over

Thanks to Analog Giant for pointing out this unofficial Diplo remix of Hot Chip's "Over & Over," one of the best singles from one of the most enjoyable albums of the year. The improbable blend with Pitbull's "Bojangles" works ridiculously well, as is normally the case with Diplo.

Diplo Shake It Over & Over mp3

previously:

The Pack Vans (Diplo's Vans 'til Infinity remix) mp3

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elsewhere:

Here's the playlist from our SIRIUS show last night...thanks to everyone who's asked about the show, but unfortunately we're unable to post a podcast of the broadcast. Anyway, you can always listen on SIRIUS.com by signing up for a free 3-day trial, no credit card needed. Just an email address, and I know you've got a few of those.

1. m.i.a.--"xr 2"
2. car stereo (wars)--"ghostface observatory" (mp3)
3. the blow--"parentheses"
4. peter & the wolf--"bonsai tree"
5. joanna newsom--"monkey & bear"
6. swan lake--"are you swimming her pools?"
7. mustafa ozkent--"burcak tarlalarl"
8. selda--"yaz gazeteci yaz"
9. the decemberists--"yankee bayonet"
10. pink nasty--"don't ever change"
11. sun kil moon--"ocean breathes salty"
12. peter bjorn and john--"young folks"
13. the clipse--"on my shit"
14. T.I.--"what you know"
15. diplo--"shake it over and over"
16. ghostland observatory--"sad sad city"
17. poni hoax--"budapest"
18. catfish haven--"crazy for leaving" (mp3)
19. white denim--"let's talk about it"
20. matt & kim--"blazing dynamite"
21. CSS--"Music is my hot hot sex"
22. menomena--"wet and rusting"
23. beck--"soldier jane"
24. sparrow house--"when i am gone"
25. sufjan stevens--"sister winter" (mp3)
26. beach house--"master of none"
27. yeah yeah yeahs--"diamond sea" (sonic youth cover)

lightness

photo by Chad Wadsworth

Red Hunter and his band Peter & the Wolf are touring in support of his fantastic new album, Lightness. Released on L.A. label The Worker's Institute (home of Sigur Ros), Lightness mark's Peter & the Wolf's first official release, and is hands down the most beautiful work of Red's career. Catch them tonight in Denton at Rubber Gloves with Spitfire Tumbleweeds and Sarah Reddington. View all of the tour dates here, and if he comes through your town, wish him safe travels.

This song embodies everything I love about Red's work. It sounds like it's from another era, with Red's warm, familiar voice gently relaying stories of isolation, travel, and adventure. Highest recommendation:

Peter & the Wolf The Highway mp3

Lightness comes out October 31. Buy it here.

tigers win again

Despite a typically shaky 9th inning by closer Todd Jones, Justin Verlander and the Tigers beat Oakland tonight 8-5, establishing a fairly commanding 2-0 lead over the A's, and taking them a little closer to their first World Series appearance in over 20 years. I'm so there if they make it.

In the meantime, check out this video from 1984, the year of the Tigers' last pennant run. Terrible song, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Also, stay up on my boys here: Detroit Tigers Weblog

Mina Tindle + Toy Fight

Thanks to Paris band/collective Toy Fight for introducing me to the lovely Mina Tindle. Toy Fight handled the arrangements on this song, contributing a classic, timeless feel to complement Tindle's soulful vocals. The result is gorgeous; we can't seem to get enough of this one. Recommended for fans of Cat Power or Feist:

Mina Tindle The Good mp3

Download more from Mina Tindle here

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Speaking of Toy Fight (who we really like, have posted on before, and whose record will be out soon): they've also posted a brand new song on their myspace page. The band's eclectic list of influences includes Elliott Smith, Timbaland, The Kinks, Kings of Convenience, Edan, the Elephant Six bands, and the Go! Team (among others), and as ridiculous as this sounds, they all seem to come together seamlessly on this track. Nice work, guys:

Toy Fight Crystal Bass Terror mp3

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elsewhere:

More on the phenomenon of bloggers destroying everything they love. I hope my love for Best Week Ever doesn't destroy them.

finders keepers

After hearing their two newest releases, we've officially anointed Finders Keepers Records "the world's coolest record label." The thing that really strikes me about all of the Finders Keepers stuff is how far ahead of its time it sounds. Keep in mind, most of this stuff is from the '60s and early '70s.

"Regarded amongst hardened collectors of Anatolian rock as THE DADDY of all Turkish rarities, this record simply has to be heard to be believed and even then it's still literally UNBELIEVABLE. Is this record for real? Either these guys had time-machines or DJ Kool Herc had secret Eastern connections..." (source)


best cover art ever?

So apparently in the early '70s, there was an "Anatolian psych explosion" going on in Turkey. This is news to me, but our boys at Finders Keepers have unearthed two amazing gems: Mustafa Ozkent's Genclik ile elele, and Selda's self-titled debut LP. I have no frame of reference to even begin describing this stuff, other than the fact that I have a hard time believing some of the breaks on these two records came from Turkey over 30 years ago. Highly recommended, especially for DJs that are in to blowing people's minds.



Mustafa Ozkent Burcak Tarlalarl mp3
Selda Ince Ince mp3

buy these and more Finders Keepers releases here

Read our previous post on two more Finders Keepers releases

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elsewhere:

Detroit easily handled the Oakland A's last night 5-1, stealing home field advantage and to taking a 1-0 lead in the ALCS. The "experts" continue to pick against the Tigers, but like in the Yankees series, they appear to love being the underdog.

philly 'n things

infographic courtesy of Stereogum

So, apparently I can't go out of town for a couple of days without Rolling Stone accusing us "geeks who control the music blogosphere" of "destroy(ing) the bands they love" in the new Hot Issue (hey guys, Fergie = not so hot). Does anyone else think that mainstream publications are starting to give blogs way too much credit (and by extension, way too much blame) by overestimating the impact that the blogosphere has on a band's career? I also think it was especially funny that, according to the chart, my "raving about a Cold War Kids show in Dallas" was the highpoint of the band's career, and that signing a fucking record deal marks the beginning of their decline in popularity. Talk about flawed logic. Oh, and Said the Gramophone not liking Tapes 'n Tapes means their "bubble has burst." Ah well, what can you do?

Also, Diplo threw up a new M.I.A. song when I was gone. In case you missed it:

M.I.A. XR 2 mp3

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elsewhere:

In case you were wondering (I know, you weren't) we were in Philly for a couple days. It was my first time there, and that city is great. One of the highlights was watching the b-boys in Rittenhouse Square; those dudes were insane. I shot a pretty cool video of them, with some old school Black Sheep and LL Cool J playing on their boombox. Some other things I learned about Philly: they have a lot of kickass sneaker boutiques, and they really hate T.O. Here are some photos:




click read more link to view a few more photos from Philly...

parentheses

We've been bumping Paper Television, the new album by The Blow (out Oct. 24), non-stop 'round here lately. "Parentheses" is such a good song. Anyway, we were extremely happy to see that the band's record label has made their previous EP, Poor Aim: Love Songs, available for free download until Oct. 24...Thanks to the lovely ladies of TRGAW for the tip!

mp3 from Paper Television:

The Blow Pile of Gold mp3

Free EP download:

The Blow Poor Aim: Love Songs .zip

EP tracklist:
Hey Boy
The Sky Opened Wide Like the Tide
Knowing the Things That I Know
Lets Play Boys Chase Girls
The Love That I Crave
Hock It
Come On Petunia

buy Paper Television here. highly recommended.

p.s. I really got into The Blow because of this. Genius.

Hip-Hop Sunday

Here's some mainstream hip hop for you, courtesy of Spine Magazine: they've got the new Jay-Z single (we ain't hosting it) and Ludacris' re-working of the "He-Man" theme. This'll be the only time you see Luda on here (and you can write that down) but we're suckers for '80s cartoon nostalgia:

Ludacris He-Man mp3

Ghostland Observatory: Live in Dallas

I'm about to jump on a plane, so this'll be brief: Ghostland Observatory played to an insanely packed club here in Dallas last night, and here are some shots. If the photos make it look like the girl to guy ratio was like 5:1, that's because it was. If these dudes come to your town, go.




more photos after the jump...

Tigers win/Yankees suck

In possibly the greatest sports day in gorilla vs. bear history, the Detroit Tigers shut down the "best lineup ever" today to beat the Yankees 8-3, and advance to the ALCS. The game was capped by the greatest post-game celebration ever. A-Rod, you still suck, and good luck finding a new team next year. New York hates you.

tonight

We'll be heading over to Club Dada to see Ghostland Observatory tonight. Their set was the best I saw at ACL, so I'm pretty excited to see them in a tiny room. Plus, it's only 7 bucks, and should be a nice refuge from all of the annoying Texas-OU fans.

Also, despite numerous attempts, I can't get into the new record from The Hold Steady. But if they're your thing, they'll be playing with Sean Na Na and Zykos tonight in Denton. I really like the new Zykos songs quite a bit, and Sean Na Na's stuff isn't half bad. Plus, I'm sure Har Mar will strip down to his underwear, if you like that kind of stuff. I'm looking at you, Mr. Anon.

Sean Na Na Princess and the Pony mp3

Video: Yeah Yeah Yeahs perform "Hyperballad" Live at Good Records

Here's a video we shot of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs performing Bjork's "Hyperballad," all acoustic-style, at Dallas' Good Records. As with all of my videos, the video quality is mad suspect, but the audio is decent. Plus, it was the band's first-ever instore, so that's something. Click here to watch.

bonus:

Here's an older mp3 version:

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Hyperballad (Bjork cover) mp3

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p.s. Detroit beat the Yankees 6-0 tonight. What's up now, New York? Oh yeah, the Tigers are up, 2-1. Also, here's a pretty good article about why A-Rod sucks so bad.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs' First Ever Instore Performance: Live at Good Records

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs played a short but sweet acoustic set this evening at Good Records here in Dallas. Karen O informed us that this was the band's first ever in-store performance, much to the delight of the mostly not-old-enough-to-get-into-the-real-set packed house. There were also a few celeb sightings, highlighted by Sports Illustrated's Luke Winn, apparently in town for Texas-OU weekend. (Dude, it's Dallas. That counts.)

The band played about 5 songs, including "Our Time," a beautiful acoustic version of "Gold Lion," and Bjork's "Hyperballad," which I was able to shoot video of and will post later. I took a couple shots of the performance, and despite much trepidation, Garrison Reid was able to snag some sweet paparazzi shots, too.




click read more link to view a few more photos...

yeah

Good day for music here in Dallas, starting with the obvious: the Yeah Yeah Yeahs play tonight at Gypsy, but if you don't have your ticket yet, you're outta luck, because it's sold out. Instead, make your way over to Good Records for a free acoustic in-store performance by the band at 5:30, complete with free beer. Can't beat that deal.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Y Control (Brooklyn Fire retouch) mp3

After the YYYs finish their set at Gypsy, go to Minc to see DJ Nature:



Cat Power The Greatest (DJ Nature remix) mp3

hell yes

Detroit stole one from the Yankees today in The Bronx to tie the best-of-5 series at 1 game apiece. Joel Zumaya and his 103 mph fastball are unstoppable. And F you, A-Rod.

Division Day Tigers mp3

the science of sleep

We finally got around to seeing Michel Gondry's latest film, The Science of Sleep, last night. The film is obviously visually stunning, and has been called a "sunny tragedy" and "a pop-up book of a film" by some reviewers whose names we forget, and both phrases fairly accurately describe the film's darkly whimsical feel. Plus, Charlotte Gainsbourg is adorable. One of my favorite aspects of Gondry's films is the music, and while I still don't get his apparent obsession with The Willowz, the Jean Michel Bernard score complements the film beautifully in the same way Jon Brion's did in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Here's the brief song that opens the film:

Jean Michel Bernard Generique Stephane mp3

YANP has the track that Gael Garcia Bernal sang in the film. Go see the The Science of Sleep, and buy the soundtrack here

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elsewhere:

Our boy Austin LaRoche is back with the second installment in his For the Love of the Sound series, on this week's edition of These Pretzels Are Making Me Thirsty. Click the read more link to read Austin's column...



For the Love of the Sound – Part Two: Pretty Boy Pangle

By: Austin LaRoche

Column Note: I'm doing really bad with the whole "finish editing during the weekend when there's about 2,000 football games on," so instead of expecting a Monday column each week, just know the column will be either posted Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, depending on how long it takes to make it perfect. Alright, onto this week...

Because my buddy, Pangle, is going through a little bit of a rough patch, I figured it was time to bust out another "For the Love of the Sound" column for him. However, before we get started, there's a few things you need to know about Pretty Boy Pangle...

1. He is my favorite person to make fun of in the world. He takes it better than anyone I know, always laughs things off and enjoys picking on himself like no one I've ever seen.
2. He once bragged he was Gerber baby.
3. He is an actor, living in L.A. and will be a household name soon.
4. Sandy Cohen is jealous of his eyebrows, PBP has the thickest brows west of the Mississippi.
5. After he becomes a household name, I will finally be able to write the script I want and get it in the right hands, so look out for that somewhere in the 2012 range.
6. I will only refer to him in this column as Pretty Boy Pangle or PBP because of this conversation we once had…


PBP: I'd like to be in a horror movie.
Me: As the villain or as one of the guys trying not to get killed?
PBP: The guy trying not to get killed.
Me: It'll never happen, you're not pretty enough.
PBP (agitated): WHAT?
Me: Look, you're not ugly or a bad looking guy, I'm just saying, pretty guys like Ryan Phillipe and Freddie Prinze Jr. get those roles, and you're more of a masculine, handsome type. And I mean that as heterosexually as possible.
PBP: Lots of people call me pretty.
Me: Name one person other than your family or girlfriend that thinks you're "pretty"?
PBP: Ok, everyone in Crestview (his hometown). Everyone at my high school.
Me: You grew up in a town with 600 people, and they ALL thought you were "pretty?"
PBP: Yes, that was my nickname, everyone used to call me Pretty Boy Pangle.
Me: Wait, did you say Pretty Boy Pangle?
PBP: Uh oh.

I wasn't kidding when I said he was my favorite person in the world to pick on.

Anyway, when I told PBP that I was trying to write a few sentimental pieces about my friends, I told him I was only going to refer to him as Pretty Boy Pangle or PBP in his column, and instead of saying something along the lines of "Oh God, are you really?" or "I knew I never should have said that to you" he proclaimed, :my acting teacher out here always calls me pretty. She's always like 'How is someone as pretty as you not already discovered?'" Now do you understand why he's my favorite person to make fun of?

Anyway, PBP and I met in college our freshmen year and remained great friends throughout, and we were even roommates for a couple years. One of our favorite activities in the world had been driving to new destinations. During our freshmen year of college, Pretty Boy Pangle and I used to find the roads that left Tallahassee and just get lost down them. We realized there were about 7 main roads that left town, and there wasn't one we didn't adventure down.

(Note: For those who read the first edition of the For the Love of the Sound, you might remember that Dave and I used to drive around and listen to music a lot as well. However, we used to drive and get lost on city roads. We didn't usually go miles away, so it was kind of a different experience. With Dave, it was an excuse to listen to music, but with PBP, it was always about finding something new, seeing a town we had never seen, etc.)

During the drives in the early days, PBP would educate me on classic rock. You see, my parents aren't big music fans. In fact, I think my mom listens solely to Christian contemporary and my dad listens to the country stations or talk radio. I wasn't born a music phene. But thanks to Napster, I became one (but that's an entirely different story). However, Pangle was born a music phene. His dad was a classic hippie, with amazing stories of hitchhiking across the country to follow the Grateful Dead and watching Bruce Springsteen perform in a little dive bar in a no-name New England town. So while I grew up on Amazing Grace and Way Down Yonder on the Chattahoochee, Pretty Boy Pangle was learning about the Dead, Crosby, Stills, Nash, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, and all those guys. But being a man of the South, PBP's dad made sure his son knew about southern rock.

I remember listening to stuff like the Marshall Tucker Band and obviously Lynyrd Skynyrd back when we were freshmen. We'd listen to all that stuff the Drive-By-Truckers are always singing about, and it made sense at the time. Although Tallahassee is in Florida, it is in the panhandle, which most people don't realize is very similar to Alabama/Georgia not only in geography, but in culture. We'd be rocking out to Seger while driving through some crappy, old Southern town that PBP would always think of as "gothic" or "traditional" and I would consider to be simply "crap," so this music wasn't just on in the background, it seemed to soundtrack our trips through these little towns. PBP was from a small town like most of these and I had grown up in the suburbs of a large city, so I guess driving through those towns was a way I was supposed to understand his life, and what it was like to be somewhere where the air was fresh and the pace was slow.

It's funny going back on the history of our friendship, especially musically, because it changed very drastically. But while the tunes may have changed with age, our minds and the way they worked certainly did not.

I realized Pretty Boy Pangle and I were supposed to be life long pals the night we drove 5 hours to my house in Atlanta. We were listening to music, making each other listen to songs we loved (I specifically remember playing him the Pearl Jam song "Black," which is still one of my favorite Pearl Jam songs). As we would listen to these songs, we'd start describing a movie we were creating in our minds, and where each song should fit inside that yet-to-be-made film. We did this with every song the entire drive, and with every drive thereafter. Sometimes, we'd put a song into a movie that had already been made that would have worked better than the one used, but usually we would just imagine a group of characters we had never met, and really didn't know much about, however, we knew that in certain moments of their lives, they needed these songs playing in the background.

(Let's pause for a humorous tidbit I always tell people. If I won the lottery, and then invested well, I would hire a very well respected music fan to follow me around with an iPod with speakers and when certain moments in my life were happening, he would always play the perfect song. Of course, this would be a tough decision because I don't trust anyone's music taste but my own, so it would have to be someone who really understood my taste. This is no easy feat. Regardless, once the digits align properly, I'll start taking applications, so I'll let you guys all know just as soon as I win, alright?. Back to the story.)

Well after our freshmen year, when all the road in the panhandle of Florida had been discovered, Pretty Boy Pangle and I didn't really drive around as much. Where was the fun after the unknown was identified? I mean, you may think Cairo, Georgia sounds like something from a Flannery O'Connor story, but in reality, it's a gross town you drive through on your way to somewhere more important. And now that we had seen all the towns in the area, none of them seemed important anymore. (Possible exception: Monroe, FL is a real pretty Southern town and is actually a nice place, but everywhere else...Yuck.)

A couple years went by and I became a music junkie. PBP didn't really talk after freshmen year because my musical journey headed different places and for some stupid reason, I didn't trust his taste to evolve. I mean, the guy loved classic rock, and while bands like the Drive-by-Truckers and even some early My Morning Jacket may have appeased freshmen PBP's taste, I just figured Pangle and I would divorce, musically. We drove as many roads as we could on the same wavelength, I believed.

But that's the coolest thing about music taste--it can always evolve and it can always go places you never imagined. Think about all the albums and artists you hated at first who you now love. Sometimes, maybe you have to go somewhere, or experience a different time in your life to get it, but sometimes, things click. Maybe you always hated Bob Dylan, but after a night of drinking your sadness away, you heard "If You See Her Say Hello" and thought to yourself, "damn, that really makes sense." Or maybe you thought that southern rock was for "rednecks" and "hicks" and you find yourself driving across Tennessee and all of sudden, you look at "Tuesday's Gone" in a new light. Or more specifically for the indie crowd, say you're not really an electronica guy, and then the cool indie chick in your dorm convinces you to go to some club and the two of you have a blast dancing to Hot Chip and Herbert and all of a sudden, you're a huge electronica fan. Our experiences and our friends totally dictate those shifts. Music tastes aren't born, they're created and then they are evolved. Think about what you listened to as a child. Wasn't that supposed to be the most honest time of your life? Were you really telling people when you were 7 years old that Pavement changed your life? I my case, I had a Vanilla Ice tape, as well as an MC Hammer one.

But my taste evolved, and for some stupid reason, I didn't let PBP's evolve with me at first. Instead of bringing PBP along for the ride during my music evolution, I left him in the dust with his Almost Famous Soundtrack and some homemade yams. I set out on a great adventure, listening to thousands of amazing tunes, and slowly but surely becoming a respectable music fan. I was going on this crazy journey, listening to things I never even had a clue about, and I never went across the hall to say, "Hey, PBP, come check out this Bright Eyes guy." It was strange.

At the beginning of our Junior year, I got a job at a golf course about 45 minutes out of Tallahassee, down on the Gulf Coast. My buddy, Dave, who you met in a previous article, worked there with me for the Fall 2003 semester, and when he could no longer work because of school, I needed someone to car pool with, and Pretty Boy Pangle adjusted his schedule so we could work together Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week. We ended up working together for almost 2 years.

But I couldn't make a 45 minute drive six times a week without my good music. So I started turning ole' PBP onto some stuff, and he was digging it. I'd play him new songs, burn him CDs, and he seemed to like EVERYTHING. I turned him onto bands such as Modest Mouse, The Shins, Ryan Adams, and Wilco, and I was starting to see where PBP's taste COULD go. It could follow mine easily, because these songs may have just been a few chords and lyrics to everyone else, but for Pretty Boy Pangle and I, they were the fuel we needed to accelerate our dreams of creating people and stories and moments that would hopefully one day matter to people other than the two guys driving around in the white Saturn 4-door.

If I had been up the road in this metaphor of a musical journey, than PBP put the pedal to the metal on that piece of shit Saturn and wouldn't let me run away anymore. He couldn't go on the journey alone, and I didn't want him to. I wanted him to ditch the Saturn and hop in to my Jeep Cherokee where the music was always loud and the mind was never sleeping. It made the journey so much better. Because after all, we can all think of these things in our mind--what songs will play at certain characters/real people's weddings and/or funerals. But how much better is it when your musical twin suggests something even better than you imagined and leads your mind on one of those crazy creative roads you didn't even think of?

Once we got to that point of synchronicity, Spring Semester of 2005 came around. Pretty Boy Pangle's last semester, and easily his toughest. He didn't have time to find new music, in fact, he even joked on an online profile under the category "Favorite Music" that he was into "music that his friends gave him." Which was fine. Hell, I don't mind slinging like Avon and Stringer, ya know? (And that Ladies and Gentlemen was the weekly "throw in a subtle joke about The Wire to gain more buzz about it" moment. We'll be sure to make sure Omar or Bunk get a line next week.)

It had to be the second week of January and I was in one of those "damn, I've downloaded a ton of albums recently, and I've listened to all of them about once a piece and gone to the next, so I need to play 'catch up'" phases and finally got back around to the classic Neutral Milk Hotel album In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. And to be honest, the vocals were a little tough for me to get into at first, and because throwing a song about The King of Carrot Flowers into a movie in my head was a little difficult, I was about to register it under the "give it another chance when you're in a weird mood and are really looking to expand your tastes in a more eclectic way" file, when the title track came on.

Now, it's hard for me to write about the logistics of music. I don't play instruments, I couldn't really tell you the difference between melody and harmony (although I think I could answer it right on a multiple choice test), and anytime I like the way the background music sounds, I say a song has good "instrumentation." So I can't tell you the way a music professor can why "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea" is amazing, I can only tell you why I love it, and why it has become the most important song in my life.

The second I heard "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea", I could garner a couple things about it. One, the song had to do with a moment. The moment is a little strange and I don't know exactly what is happening in that moment, but I know that moment is incredibly important. Two, I could place this song in a thousand movie scenes, but wouldn't because somehow I couldn't get to that imaginative part of my head with the song--somehow the song made me selfish. And three, Pretty Boy Pangle would LOVE this tune.

But the importance of the song lies in the selfishness the song took over in me. I don't mean selfish in terms of "nobody else can ever like this song more than me," but rather, "fuck characters, this is it, this moment is the next 4 months of my life." You see, that January began what was the last semester for about 90% of my best friends. I elected to take less classes and stay for another football season, but everyone else was ready to go. Here we were, our last few months in our euphoric bubble. Or as Jeff Mangum was telling me...

And one day we will die and our ashes will fly from an aeroplane over the sea, but for now we are young, let us lay in the sun, and count every beautiful thing we can see.

This is probably my favorite music lyric ever. I KNOW its PBP's. We lived those 4-5 months with that philosophy, going out, making mistakes and laughing about 'em the next morning. PBP wasn't as crazy as everyone else, remember, he had the tough schedule, but he was just as committed, which made his performance that semester all the better. He would study and work on papers until 4-5am just so he could go out the next night. The guy got a total of 27 hours a sleep each month, I' convinced. And why? Because time was running out, real life was on the horizon, and if he didn't go out and be a dumb kid with all of us, he'd never get to do it again.

That theme of "time running out before we're too old" doesn't seem to be going anywhere. It seems like we wanted to establish those last few months as the last time we were "young," but now that we're a few years removed, that desire to be considered "young" hasn't gone anywhere. We've just made new excuses to be young. "We're freshmen in the real world," Rachael always says. After all, we all have bosses, and most of them are older, right? Those are the old guys.

This is how we all live. We live by this desire to feel young. Even when I have kids, I'll probably take them to Little League practice and look at the older parents and say to myself, "geez, I'm pretty young compared to these guys." When I enter my first retirement home, I'll walk by a 97 year-old man and call him a "geezer." Somehow, I'm always going to find that excuse to consider myself "young" in some capacity, because old almost seems like giving up, and Jeff Mangum wasn't about giving up, and neither were we. I'm sorry...correction--neither ARE we.

With PBP and I, our conversations and life situations have been significantly different since we were freshmen, and even more since college graduation. But somehow, that song is still implanted in our brains, more specifically, that lyric, on how we want to live life. Pretty Boy Pangle and I may never become huge successful actors or screenwriters or masters of the universe. We may continue to travel down the "one step at a time" lifestyle we embark on right now. But we make sure we enjoy it. We have to. It's as if that lyric in the song bonds our friendship to the point where we have to live and love every minute, otherwise we're letting the other guy down, and that’s not something either of us really care to do.

Last year, Rachael and I created a slide show with all of our pictures from the past year. We finished it off with "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea". It's the perfect slide show song. I can hear that song, picture a friend, and as the song plays, envision hundreds of great memories and pictures and moments I've shared with them. I've tried to do this with PBP, however, the 3 minutes, 22 seconds just isn't enough time.

I think back on the beer pouring incident(s), the back deck tears, a couple fun road trips, and about a thousand late night memories we don't really remember at all. But somehow, the song always ends, and there's too much left off the table. I'll forget late night conversations in Doak Campbell Stadium or the time he threw me out of the way when a drunk driver swerved my way (don't worry, he was only going like 18 MPH, but it was still a little scary). I always try to make a mental picture out of every memory and stick it into my mind while listening to our heterosexual love song. And somehow, the song always ends, and I can't get all the memories in there.

I guess with the best friendships, it's hard to keep count of all the beautiful things you have seen.


Random TV Thought of the Week

Last night, I was enjoying yet another lovely episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, when it occurred to me that every show idea they presented in their sketches seemed 2000 times funnier than every SNL sketch since Ferrell left the show. Do you think Lorne Michels has the stones to just fire the whole cast and all the writers and start from scratch with a young, hungry group of people looking to create funny TV? Something tells me there's a lot of politics in the writing staff and some young, funny writers can't be heard because some old guy who still swears by the More Cowbell sketch is still in charge. Did anyone see Studio 60's idea for "The Nicolas Cage Show?" That could be hilarious. Maybe SNL should just regurgitate old ideas with new actors and this newer society. I would watch Wally's World or something that mocked the old Chris Farley Show. I don't care if it's been done already, it was funny, and currently sketch comedy shows really suck, and I'm not happy about it. PS--Does anyone watch Mad TV? I know it's on, but I've never actually met anyone who watches it.

Random Sports Thought of the Week

It's time for the baseball playoffs! Woohoo. Actually, this year really doesn't excite me much. I grew up in Atlanta and am a diehard Braves fan, so let's just say this year is a little weird for me. Regardless, I can still take the fabulous "Anybody but the Yankees" approach to the postseason, even if there's a great chance the Bronx Bombers will win. I thought if the Twins played the Yankees in the 5 game series, the Twins would have a chance, but now, I don't see anyone stopping them, unfortunately. I can't wait for Mets fans to find out about how good Tom Glavine is in October, that should be fun. I guess I'm pulling for the A's, because I think Moneyball is a cool strategy, but with football going as great as it is now, there's a good chance I'll lose interest in baseball until April. Hope whoever you guys are pulling for (I know Chris is hoping his boys knock off the Yanks this week, and I really hope so, too) make a good run, and let's hope we don't see the guys in pinstripes celebrating at the end of the month. Weird Yankee tidbit to scare you: Looking down their roster, every player has been selected to an All-Star game in the last 3 years except one--Robinson Cano. But don't feel bad for Mr. Cano, he had the 3rd highest batting average in the American League this year.

it's dark now. you should head home.

I might've mentioned this before, but we fucking love Pink Nasty. If you're not familiar with Ms. Nasty, imagine a slightly more neurotic and hilarious Neko Case, or a much more badass Jenny Lewis, and you'd be getting close. We've had a crush on Pink since we saw her open for Jose Gonzalez at SXSW '06, so needless to say, we're excited about the release of her new album, Mold the Gold. This song, featuring the voice of the great Bonnie "Prince" Billy and Ms. Nasty's completely insane brother Black Nasty (really NSFW), is one of the highlights. As for the subject matter of the song, we'll let Pink tell it:

"its about when i was living at home in wichita and i was bored and depressed out of my fucking mind and then all of the sudden the BTK killer resurfaces and starts spooking the whole town out so i wrote this song about being bored but still thinking you could get strangled and masturbated on any moment. it features the disembodied voices of paul and will oldham and black nasty. i picture them wearing top hats with curly snowy mustaches when they sing this part!"

Pink Nasty BTK Blues mp3

There's another song w/ Mr. Will Oldham on the album, and kids, that one's worth the price of admission; it's called "Don't Ever Change." Pink calls it "a power duet" that will "no doubt replace 'The Time of My Life' as one of music's most enduring ballads."

buy Mold The Gold here.

See Pink Nasty perform in Austin at The Parish on Oct. 11 with Mark Kozolek.

Black Nasty, who produced the album, also plays in The Kevins. Read an article about the Nasty siblings in Harp Magazine

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elsewhere:

Here's the playlist from our SIRIUS show last night:

1. Susan Christie--"Paint a lady"
2. Swan Lake--"Widow's Walk"
3. Sparklehorse--"Don't take my sunshine away"
4. St. Vincent--"Now Now"
5. Alela Diane--"Pieces of String"
6. The Long Winters--"Honest"
7. The Knife--"Heartbeats (One Music Session)"
8. The Knife--"You Take My Breath Away"
9. The Knife--"We Share Our Mother's Health (ratatat remix)"
10. The Knife--"Bird"
11. RJD2--"1976"
12. M.I.A.--"Sunshowers (diplo remix)"
13. Madvillain--"All Caps"
14. Justice vs. Simian--"We Are Your Friends"
15. Mark Ronson--"Just" (radiohead cover)
16. Ghostface Killah--"Run (ratatat remix)"
17. Masta Killa--"Iron god Chamber"
18. MF Doom--"Rhymes like Dimes"
19. G-Unit--"Stunt 101 (ratatat remix)"
20. Yeah Yeah Yeahs--"Cheated Hearts (peaches remix)"
21. White Denim--"wet sand"
22. Love is All--"ageing had never been his friend"
23. the Prototypes--"ici ou peut-etre demain"
24. Ghostland Observatory--"midnight voyage"
25. The polyphonic spree--"lithium"
26. Johnny and the moon--"kid heaven"
27. Love--"alone again or"
28. Sufjan Stevens--"sister"

the freedom

I've avoided mentioning/posting about the new Swan Lake record for numerous reasons, but I gave it a good solid listen today on a bike ride around the lake, and shit. It's amazing. I know they don't want bloggers posting random mp3s from it, so instead we'll just hotlink to Pitchfork's exclusive. Seeing as how they've resorted to posting reviews featuring video of chimpanzees drinking their own pee, we don't think they'll mind.

Swan Lake The Freedom mp3

Beast Moans comes out Nov. 21

steppin' out

If you have a band and you guys don't suck, you should probably enter this contest that Awesome, Inc. and Imeem.com are running. Enter here for a chance to win the opening slot on the bill of their CMJ party on Nov. 1 (see above flier) featuring Thunderbirds Are Now!, Lo-Fi-Fnk, and the Harlem Shakes, plus DJ sets by our girls from CSS and our boys from Car Stereo (Wars) and Finger on the Pulse. And perhaps most interesting is the fact that this will be the first U.S. appearance for Sweden's Lo-Fi-Fnk. Okay, admittedly, I know nothing about this band, but this Hot Chip remix of their "Steppin' Out" has me intrigued:

MP3:
Lo-Fi-Fnk Steppin' Out (the Two Beauties from Hot Chip remix)

bonus:

We premiered this mashup a while back, and VH1's Best Week Ever proceeded to call it "frighteningly cool" and "the hippest mash-up in history." We tend to agree.

Car Stereo (Wars) Ghostface Observatory mp3

but they look like sneakers

The increasingly awesome Analog Giant introduced me to this track by the Bay Area's The Pack, which has apparently become something of a myspace phenomenon, and with good reason. Diplo has made the track even better by lifting the beat from Souls of Mischief's classic "'93 til Infinity" for this remix, giving the song the same breezy, bouncy feel of the stuff I used to love as a kid in the mid '90s (Hieroglyphics, anyone?) It's a perfect fit, and I guess that's why he's Diplo, and we're not. Highly recommended:

edit: files are back and should work fine now.

The Pack Vans (Diplo's Vans 'Til Infinity Remix) mp3

Listen to the original here, and buy the 12" here

Also, Analog Giant has a couple more remixes of the song

Bonus:

Souls of Mischief '93 til Infinity mp3 (highly-est recommended)

tigers/playoffs

After getting swept/embarrassed by the Kansas City Royals over the weekend, the Detroit Tigers somehow managed to come from ahead to lose the AL Central to the Twins on the last day of the season, earning them a trip to NYC to play the Yankees. I'm trying not to think about the fact that this is essentially an unwinnable series for such a young team (check the experts' predictions), instead focusing on the fact that no one (not even me) expected the Tigers to get anywhere near the playoffs this year. The series starts tonight in the Bronx, so if you can pry yourself away from Dancing With the Stars or Gilmore Girls or whatever to cheer against the hated Yankees, I'd appreciate it. We need all the help we can get. And for the record, as a former resident of both cities (Detroit and San Diego), I'm pulling for the highly improbable 1984 World Series rematch. Leave your predictions/condolences in the comments.

p.s. I know some of you hate girls and sports, so I'll (loosely) tie this in to indie-rock by pointing out that Fox is using The Walkmen classic "The Rat" in their promos for the Tigers-Yankees series. So there.

The Walkmen The Rat mp3

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elsewhere:



Spine Magazine has a track from the Clipse's upcoming album, Hell Hath No Fury. We can't wait for this one, and after being pushed back approximately 8 times, it should finally drop in December:

The Clipse On My Shit mp3

kid heaven

Wolf Parade's Dante De Caro (ex-Hot Hot Heat) has a new band, called Johnny and the Moon, and their self-titled debut LP is the first release on brand new Kill Devil Hills Records. Johnny and the Moon's stuff is not quite as fierce as Wolf Parade's, veering back and forth between meandering folk and straight-up country stomp. According to the promo disc I got, it's "the sorta folk music that's been stretched apart and bound half to the rocky hills and mountains of the region, and half to the gentle calm of the lake they looked over." Either way, this record has been on repeat around g vs. b headquarters the last few days:

Johnny and the Moon Kid Heaven mp3

I'd love to tell you how to buy this album, because it's really good, but the label's site isn't up and running yet, so stay tuned.

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elsewhere:



eMusic has released an exclusive Cat Power EP, consisting of songs recorded in June 2006 for KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic. Sign up for the 25 download trial thing to download it for free. Here's the track list:

1.The Greatest
2.Remember Me (Otis Redding cover)
3.Ramblin' Man (Hank Williams cover)
4.Good Woman

Best of September

It's safe to say that September was one of the best months for me, personally, in the history of this blog. Not only did September bring the release of new music from some of my favorite artists, but I was also given the kind of unparalleled access and opportunity (for me, I mean) to see some of those artists perform that's normally reserved for "real" music journalists. So here's our list of the best of the month, specially designed for those who don't have the time or desire to read my nonsense everyday.


(photo: garrison reid)

We got two new Sufjan Stevens songs this month, both of which suggest that his best work is yet to come, and these should silence naysayers who whine that Sufjan has become boring and predictable. The guy is a genius and has cemented himself as one of the best songwriters/composers of our generation:

Sister Winter mp3
"Majesty Snowbird" (live)--download here

We also got highly anticipated (by me) new songs from two of Austin's best bands, Voxtrot and Peter & the Wolf, and they didn't disappoint.

Voxtrot Trouble mp3
Peter & The Wolf Safe Travels mp3


Dana Falconberry (photo: Chad Wadsworth)

The next grouping of songs is sort of a response to a commenter (anonymous, of course) who stated, "you always find the most stunningly beautiful yet questionably talented women for your blog." You're right about the "stunningly beautiful" part, but I couldn't disagree more with the "questionably talented" part. In addition to posts on favorites St. Vincent and Joanna Newsom, the following artists that we talked about this month (who happen to be women) are extremely talented, and all of their albums have been in constant rotation around here all month.

Dana Falconberry Sadie mp3
Alela Diane Pieces of String mp3
Susan Christie For The Love of a Soldier mp3
Niobe Give All to Love mp3



The Austin Mixtape was one of my personal favorite posts, and we got some great comments refuting my claim that Austin currently has the best independent music scene in the country. I still stand by it, though.

gorilla vs. bear's Austin Mixtape .zip


Ghostland Observatory

Finally, as I mentioned before, we attended a ridiculous number of amazing shows this month, and were lucky enough to get decent photos from most of them. Here's a list for those that missed them the first time around:

show photos: Sufjan Stevens (twice), Joanna Newsom, The Polyphonic Spree, ACL Day 1, ACL Day 2, Sufjan + The Raconteurs ACL Taping, Cat Power ACL Taping (and her ACL set), Ratatat