Looking forward to Feist

So I hate to boast or rub it in any one's nose, but I got tickets to see Feist play on her first US date for the tour: June 8th in Northampton, MA. Not only did I get tickets, but I got GOOD tickets; I'm not going to need my binaculars for this one. All I want to say about that is I am STOKED! As much as I love Feist on album, her live performances take it to a whole nother level. As a general rule, I tend to enjoy live music more anyway, but this is really a show that I'm looking forward to.

Opening for her is Grizzly Bear, a band that I know nothing about. Luckily, I have over a month to educate myself about their music and tune my ears into their sound. Any suggestions for me? Should I start with their debut or skip to their second album Yellow House?

Feist's new album, The Reminder, comes out today, and you best believe that I'm going to be purchasing it via iTunes so I can get it into my iPod as fast as possible. Opening up the album is the song So Sorry, a song that I've absolutely loved since finding it on rbally (who disappeared, then was reincarnated, and is now missing again... we miss you). Here's the live version for you to enjoy:

Feist - So Sorry (live) : Live at Park West 1-27-06 (studio version on The Reminder)

"sometimes i find that it helps if you say...
i'm sorry,
two words that i always think
oh after you're gone
when i realize i was acting all wrong"

Visit her website, her label Cherry Tree Records, and become her friend on MySpace.

Junior Vice Presidents in command

It was rather fortuitous that I stumbled across the Junior Vice Presidents. One of their members, Jeff Robinson, was the lucky winner of the SXSW contest that I ran a little while back and in exchange for all the goodies he got, he sent the band's latest release, Whores Drawn Carriage, my way.

In Jeff's own words about the band:

The band is made up of 3 beautiful young men picked from both sides of Canada ... 2 of us are from Vancouver and the other is a Toronto boy. We're completely tired of a lot of the music scenes lately... especially emo, with their cookie-cutter song stylings, idiot haricuts, bullshit eyeliner, they basically represent everything that's wrong with music. We focus on songwriting, arrangement, and energy... instead of buying tight pants and applying eyeliner.

I can't say that I'm completely against tight pants and eyeliner (I did grow up in the 80's after all and my first concert experience was with Motley Crue - but don't hold that against me). The JVPs bring a sound that's fairly heavy - with a Queens of the Stoneage meets System of a Down sort of feel to them (especially some of the vocalistic trappings of Hustler, the lead vocalist, with music that starts, stops, and starts again behind the lyrics). It's got a lot of urgency and energy rushing through it - certainly mosh pit material at the very least. Check it out for yourself and drop the band a note if you like what you hear.


Junior Vice Presidents - How Will They Know? : Whores Drawn Carriage

Junior Vice Presidents - Small Town Single Women : Whores Drawn Carriage

Junior Vice Presidents - In the Wake of Destruction and Despair : Whores Drawn Carriage

Like what you hear? Buy the album right from the band by e-mailing them at jvprock@hotmail.com

Visit their website and become their friend on MySpace.

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More Presidential Music

Drugstore (with Thom Yorke) - El President : El President

Neil Young - Let's Impeach The President : Living With War

Wyclef Jean - President : Welcome To Haiti Creole 101

Cary Brothers - singular, not plural

That's right. As confusing as his name sounds, even though he does in fact have brothers, Brothers is his last name as well. Hailing from Nashville, TN, Cary Brothers is poised to finally release his first full length album on May 29th. I say finally because his name is already familiar to many for his song Blue Eyes from the Garden State Soundtrack. His songs have also appeared on Scrubs, Grey's Anatomy, and ER.

Instead of settling on being a one hit wonder though, Cary went on to release two EPs on his own Procrastination label - All the Rage (2004) and Waiting for Your Letter (2005), and then continued to work on the material that would become Who You Are, the album that he's releasing on May 29th via Bluhammock Records.

The record is a blend of songs ranging from piano driven ballads such as All the Rage (supported by Matt Hales from Aqualung) to smooth string arrangements such as Loneliest Girl In the World, to new wave 80's homages like The Last One (inspired by brat-pack flicks like Sixteen Candles according to Cary). “The songs are pop, but not built-for-radio pop songs,” Brothers explains. “I like melodies that grow, songs that have more than one meaning. Radio songs have the big hook at the beginning, then they hammer that into your head for the next three minutes, instead of letting the song grow slowly, organically.”

Although it's hard to believe, Cary was not always steering his course towards a musical career. His family has a long tradition of working as teachers, and in fact he majored in English at Northwestern University where he played in a cover band playing the Allman Brothers and the Velvet Underground. He then went into film in L.A., starting his own independent movie company, which he eventually closed to pursue his dreams of writing songs that he could share with others.

I was lucky enough to see him live last night opening for Brandi Carlile at the Ironhorse Theatre in Northampton, MA. Unfortunately because they were late arriving due to heavy traffic coming out of NYC (where they played two nights before), Cary played a very short set, only 6 songs. Five were from his upcoming album (including the two below), and the sixth was his well known Blue Eyes. I had the chance to talk to him before Brandi took the stage and he commented on how odd it was playing with just a cellist backing him after just having finished the album in the studio with a full band behind him. He is planning on coming back around in July with a full retinue to support him, and I'll be eagerly awaiting seeing him play again.

Cary Brothers - The Glass Parade : Who You Are


Cary Brothers - If You Were Here : Who You Are

Visit his website, his label Bluhammock Records, and become his friend on MySpace.

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I wouldn't want to slight Brandi Carlile in this post so I'll add that her set was a wonderful and generous mix of songs from her older albums, her latest release The Story, and some kick-ass covers (Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues and Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah). At the end of the night, the crowd was even blessed with an appearance by Brandi's sister hopping up on stage with her and singing a few songs.


Brandi Carlile - What Can I Say : Brandi Carlile

Brandi Carlile - Hallelujah : KCRW Morning Becomes Eclectic

Visit her website, her label Columbia Records, and become her friend on MySpace.

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TOUR DATES - Cary Brothers and Brandi Carlile

4/30: Towson, MD @ Recher Theatre
5/02: Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
5/04: Portsmouth, NH @ Music Hall
5/05: Boston, MA @ Paradise
5/07: Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern
5/08: Cleveland, OH @ Cambridge Room – House of Blues
5/09: Ann Arbor, MI @ The Ark
5/11: Chicago, IL @ Schubas
5/12: Chicago, IL @ Schubas
5/15: Indianapolis, IN @ Music Mill

Awash in EPs

EPs are funny little creatures. They come in little cardboard sleeves, carrying forth 4 to 6 songs usually, in an attempt to convert the uninitiated, to build up enough momentum, garner hype, and generate excitement for the release of an LP. In such a tight space, sometimes musicians will include a wide range of sounds in order to appeal to as many listeners as possible. Others hold together as tight packages truly representative of their sound.

For the longest time I could never remember the difference between an EP and an LP. Extended play versus long play - what's the difference? Growing up I can remember listening to my father's record collection (and 8-tracks as well, but that's a completely different animal), but that was on the cusp of the cassette tape technological revolution. It's hard to imagine playing an EP now and having to get up and flip it over after 2 songs. Scratch that - it's hard to imagine having to get up and flip over an LP after 4 songs. I'm too spoiled by digital music and MP3s: being able to put my iPod on shuffle and listen to it for 17.2 days without having to touch it.

Well, anyway, here are a couple EPs that I've been spinning as of late.


Sea Wolf

Just like fellow Irving bandmate Shana Levy who set out on her own to create Let's Go Sailing (she released her debut back in March - read about it here), Alex Church is setting his own course under the moniker of Sea Wolf. He's poised to release his debut release, the EP titled Get to the River Before It Runs too Low (I love this title if nothing else) on May8th and is currently on tour with labelmates Silversun Pickups.


Sea Wolf - The Garden That You Planted : Get to the River Before It Runs too Low

Sea Wolf - I Don't Know If I'll Be Back This Time : Get to the River Before It Runs too Low

Visit his website, his label Dangerbird Records, and become his friend on MySpace.

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Eastern Conference Champions

Home Away is actually the second slice of ECC that I've got to taste. The first was a previous EP titled The Southampton Collection EP which I posted up on back here last year. They're building up steam, touring like crazy, and are planning on releasing their first LP some time later this year.


Eastern Conference Champions - Navy Man : Home Away

Eastern Conference Champions - Nice Clean Shirt : The Southampton Collection

Visit their website, their label Suretone Records, and become their friend on MySpace.

Win Some Midnight Movies

Last week I talked about Midnight Movies' latest release, Lion the Girl, which just dropped on the 24th. If you've been jonesing for the album but haven't picked it up yet, here's your chance to win a copy, along with a Midnight Movies T-shirt. Just leave a comment (or e-mail me) with your name, e-mail address, and your favorite low budget or outdated film to watch on TV late at night when you can't sleep. I'll pick a winner sometime next Fridayish and notify them via e-mail.

While you're leaving your comment, listen to the following remix by former Smashing Pumpkins member James Iha:

Midnight Movies - Patient Eye (James Iha Remix) : studio version on Lion the Girl


Visit their website, their label New Line Records, and become their friend on MySpace.

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More movies to listen to

Pulp - TV Movie : This Is Hardcore

Spoon - This Book Is a Movie : Girls Can Tell

Death Cab for Cutie - A Movie Script Ending : The Photo Album

Von Südenfed - Take 2 and call me in the morning

Hmmmm, Von Südenfed. Where to begin? If you were to take Andi Toma, Mark E. Smith and Jan St. Werner and stick them in a line up, my money's on you not picking them out as the three members of the band. Put the three of them together though, and you get some music that's three lanes to the left of ordinary.

Start out with some KMFDM, include one part Fatboy Slim, add some They Might Be Giants random sound effects and spoken lyrics, put it over some techno and disco inspired beats that make you want to dance likes it's 1984, and then lighten it up a bit so it could show up on SNL's Sprockets, and you still haven't even stuck your little toe in the shallow end of what Von Sudenfed is serving up. Talking about the album, Jan St. Werner says, "I feel like now it doesn’t matter, it’s not important, which decade you’re referencing or whether you’ve got the coolest break or electronic trick. It’s just the energy that counts." Energy is certainly the unifying theme to the album, from beginning to end.

The album is scheduled to be released June 5th, with some select North American tour dates in the fall. While you're waiting, enjoy the following tracks:


Von Südenfed - Flooded : Tromatic Reflexxions


Von Südenfed - Family Feud : Tromatic Reflexxions

Visit their label Domino Records and become their friend on MySpace.

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KMFDM - Light [Fat Back Dub] : Light Single

Fatboy Slim - Kung Fu Fighting (Techno Dance Remix) : Dance Dance Revolution 2nd MIX

They Might Be Giants - Why Does The Sun Shine? (The Sun Is A Mass Of Incandecent Gas) : Why Does The Sun Shine?

Aqualung Goodies for Air-breathers

Although Matt Hales, a.k.a. Aqualung (not to be confused with Aquaman), looks to be seriously pigeon-toed on the cover of the latest issue of Ragged, I assure you that it in no way impairs his musical making ability!

Matt broke into the spotlight in 2002 with some fahrfegnugen luck when his song Strange and Beautiful was used in a VW Beetle commercial. Since then he's been continuing to craft "grownup" music, as he calls it. His latest release, Memory Man, was released last month, and he's on tour now promoting it (dates below). For those of you who haven't listened to Aqualung before, his music sounds and feels like a mix between Keane and Radiohead's album The Bends.

When asked about the album, Matt says, "So when it was time to make a new album I wanted to have all those flavours - from fucked up space rock to ghostly glockenspiel, from old fashioned piano songs to linear soundscaping. And I was reading Beckett and Blake and thinking about fatherhood and fate and love and death and the future, so that's in there too. So it's complex record, ambitious and full of drama."

And thanks to Ragged, I have the chance to give away the following prize pack to one lucky reader:

- Aqualung hoodie

- Aqualung t-shirt

- a copy of his latest cd Memory Man

- and a hard-copy of Ragged

All you have to do to be eligible is leave a comment (or e-mail me) with your name, e-mail address, and the name of your favorite super hero (from the Justice League or other). I'll pick a random winner around next Wednesdayish and notify them by e-mail.


Aqualung - Pressure Suit : Memory Man

Aqualung - Outside : Memory Man

Aqualung - D.C. Song : Live at the 9:30 Club 4-16-07 (courtesy of On Tap Magazine)

Visit his website, his label Sony Music, and become his friend on MySpace.

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Tour Dates

April
28 Exit / In, Nashville, TN
29 Blueberry Hill, St. Louis, MO

May
02 Fine Line Music Cafe, Minneapolis, MN
03 Pabst Theater, Milwaukee, WI
05 Bluebird Theater, Denver, CO
07 House Of Blues, San Diego, CA
08 Fonda, Los Angeles, CA
10 Fillmore, San Francisco, CA
12 Neumo's Seattle, WA
13 Richard's on Richards, Vancouver, CA
14 Wonder Ballroom, Portland, OR

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More Super(hero) songs

Lazlo Bane - Superman : All The Time In the World

The Ramones - Spiderman Theme : Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits

TV theme - Batman 60's TV Theme : Batman

The Radio Winner

Congratulations to Mary for winning a vinyl copy of The One AM Radio's latest release This Too Will Pass, an autographed poster, and a Dangerbird Records Hoodie.

The One AM Radio - What You Gave Away : A Name Writ In Water

Visit The One AM Radio website, their label Dangerbird Records, and become their friend on MySpace.

How many more Earth Days?

Here's hoping that the Earth is around for many more Earth Day celebrations without us screwing it up too much more.

Ane Brun - Laid In Earth : A Temporary Dive

Rusted Root - Back to the Earth : When I Woke

Belinda Carlisle - Heaven Is A Place On Earth : Totally 80's

Elvis is in the building (Perkins that is)

For the last two weeks I honestly haven't been able to get enough of Elvis Perkins' debut album Ash Wednesday. I know it's been out since the end of February (oddly enough, the album was released February 20th, the day before Ash Wednesday), but it only came to my attention recently. By now I'm sure everyone is aware of Perkins' tragic life. His father the actor died of complications associated with AIDs in 1992, and his mother was an unfortunate passenger on one of the flights involved with 9/11 almost to the same day, nine years later.

The album conveys a melancholy longing, a searching, an emptiness, an attempt to understand and accept mortality, a grasping at some way to deal with life's bitter blows. It evokes emotions that few musicians even try to summon up, never mind succeed. The first and last tracks of the album are my favorite, but to be truthful, there isn't a song that I skip past. Elvis wrote them in the order they appear on the album, some before the death of his mother, and some after. If you have yet to try his album, please try it; if you have but didn't instantly connect like I did, please give it another chance.

In almost every track I find lyrics that touch me...

While You Were Sleeping

I'll never catch up to you
who sleeps so sound
my arms are useless
my heart beats too loud to go to sleep

All the Night Without Love

Well I once caused your cells to shimmer
And you once caused my cells to shimmer
Now we go all the night without love
Without love

Moon Woman II

You got this power over me
my shadow hungers for you
but we must not ever meet
no we got to play it cool

It's Only Me

It worries me
that there's someone on my mind
who I don't see
I close my eyes to disappear
into the fields of stars between my ears
the dark
as they overlap
we follow one another
as we fade to black

Ash Wednesday

You take away yesterday
to give to me today
when nothing's free no now it's
Ash Wednesday

It's A Sad World

Stay if you want
there is enough
sadness for the
both of us

Sleep Sandwich

Once I learn these lines
I will madly sing lullabies
into the unborn fans
you write the bible and I'll
read it off my eyelids

The last track, Good Friday, is one that I can listen to over and over and over. It's a sparse arrangement, with a low thrumming buzz in the background that goes right through my spine and gives me goose bumps if I focus on it.

Come lay here beside me
and I'll fear nothing
now give you my body
and I'll breathe your breath
no one will harm you
inside this song
we will be safe here

Elvis Perkins - It's Only Me : Ash Wednesday

Elvis Perkins - Good Friday : Ash Wednesday

here's a track off a single eMusic is offering...

Elvis Perkins - The Dumps : All The Night Without Love Single

Head over to Daytrotter to get his session from February.

Visit his website, his label Xl Recordings, and become his friend on MySpace.

We have a Winner!

Here's Tom getting his prize from Quentin. I've blocked out his face to protect his identity.

Congratulations to Tom for winning a copy of Quentin Tarantino's new soundtrack for Death Proof, and a grungy retro movie poster to go with it. Sorry I don't have copies for everyone who entered!

Since I caught so much flack for not having seen Kill Bill 2, AND for not owning either of the Kill Bill soundtracks, I went out and got the CDs and watched the movie. My life seems much more complete now. And as an addendum to my previous Tarantino post, here are a few tracks from the two soundtracks:


The 5.6.7.8's - Woo Hoo : Kill Bill, Vol. 1


Lucy Liu (Dialogue) - Queen Of The Crime Council : Kill Bill, Vol. 1





Charlie Feathers - Can't Hardly Stand It : Kill Bill, Vol. 2



David Carradine & Uma Thurman (Dialogue) - The Legend Of Pai Mei : Kill Bill, Vol. 2

More British Brothers - The Electric Soft Parade

First they sent us the Kinks, then Oasis, and now we have England to thank for sending over The Electric Soft Parade. There must be something in their gene's over there that pre-programs brothers to want to start rock bands. In this case, it's the dynamic duo of Alex and Thomas White, hailing from Brighton, providing the backbone of the group.

The album swings from inorganic electric feeling tracks that feel futuristic like Woken By A Kiss, to quiet introspective tracks like Shore Song, to harmoniously Beatle-esque tunes like Secrets, to Ben Folds-ish piano driven gems like Cold War, and every shade in between...and that's the way the band works their mojo. Although the tools used vary, there is a unifying theme weaving itself through the album: trying to hold on to a love that is slipping away...

from Life In the Backseat:

And at the end of the day, you were only ever a friend
And so when you’re on your way out, when all of this is coming to an end
when the curtains have closed: won’t you think of me then?

from Shore Song:

You won’t get bored of me so easy this time
I’ll be exactly what you need
You’re like the tides, I’m like the moon – connected somehow

from No Need to be Downhearted (part 2)

Missing you, just like having a routine taken away
The space where you lay

It's rare to find an album sharing a story. Listen, enjoy, and then get the album on April 24th so you can get the whole story.


The Electric Soft Parade - Shore Song / Surfacing : No Need To Be Down-Hearted

The Electric Soft Parade - Misunderstanding : No Need To Be Down-Hearted

Visit their website, their US label Better Looking Records, and become their friends on MySpace.

Then visit this Brit's site to get a grasp on ESP's catalog of albums from the other side of the pond.

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More Brit Band Brothers

The Kinks - Celluloid Heroes (Live) : Come Dancing With The Kinks - The Best Of The Kinks

Oasis (and friends) - Fade Away : Help: A Charity Project For The Children Of Bosnia