|
I’m a sucker for ‘60s-informed guitar-pop, so Kelley Stoltz is right in my wheelhouse. He’s no Brendan Benson, but he’s got an impressive bounty of should-be hits under his belt, and his fifth album, “Circular Sounds” (it just came out a few weeks ago), adds a few more to the growing list.
I reviewed it in this week’s Friday Extra, so you should totally check that out.
In the meantime, though, here’s a totally free MP3 of the disc’s first single. It’s a really low-bit-rate version, so the sound quality is lacking, but it’ll give you a good idea of what Stoltz is about. Otherwise, you can listen for him on TV. That’s his brilliant song “Birdies Singing” in the Regions Bank commercials.
A track by Kelley Stoltz, courtesy of Sub Pop:
Kelley Stoltz, “Your Reverie” (from “Circular Sounds") [mp3]
It’s long been acknowledged in local music circles that Matt Welch is a friggin’ genius. With Transitions Art Gallery, he’s single-handedly turned an empty warehouse behind Skatepark of Tampa into the one of the area’s most reliable venues for local and regional punk and indie-rock acts. Last year, he wrangled none other than Dinosaur Jr. to perform at the the Skatepark’s anniversary party. And this year? He may just have outdone himself.
The Hold Steady, arguably the world’s finest live rock ‘n’ roll band, will play Jan. 19 at Czar in Ybor City as part of the Skatepark’s 15-Year Anniversary Party.
After all, there was a Hold Steady song in the last “Tony Hawk” video game, so playing the Skatepark’s anniversary party is the next logical step.
If you caught the Hold Steady last year at the Orpheum—or the year before at Masquerade—you know this is a can’t-miss show. If you’re not familiar with the band, start with the colorful street-poet storytelling of vintage Bruce Springsteen, throw in the rough-hewn charm of their fellow Twin Cities greats the Replacements, and then add a heavy dose of the sort of crunchy guitar riffs that leave you no choice but to pump your fist, even if you’re the sort of aloof scenester who’s philosophically opposed to fist-pumping.
It’s OK. Go ahead. It’s the Hold Steady. Everyone will understand.
A track by the Hold Steady, courtesy of Vagrant Records:
The Hold Steady, “Chips Ahoy!” (from “Boys and Girls in America") [mp3]
Radiohead surprised many by announcing that their new album, “In Rainbows,” will be made available direct from the band as a digital file for everyone, everywhere, three months after recording it, and that it will cost whatever price the buyer wants to pay.
It’s out today.
Fans can “purchase” two different editions of “In Rainbows” from the band’s Web site. The download-able MP3 version, which is DRM-free, can be purchased for whatever price you want to pay. A download code will be e-mailed to you shortly after registering.
For fans with an appetite for something tangible, the deluxe edition sells for $81 and includes the album in CD and vinyl, a bonus CD of new songs and a book of lyrics.
This drums up all sorts of questions in the already-teeming industry stew, about the future of recorded music, as the lads join another big name (Prince) in saying “thanks, but no thanks” to record labels.
Cynics are calling it just another marketing strategy. In our most recent podcast, Rommie Johnson and I discuss how already-established bands like Radiohead can afford to spit on the hand that feeds them – but what of unknown musicians?
There are already reports surfacing that the album will receive a proper compact-disc release on a label sometime in 2008. Until then, enjoy what may be the future of music, if Radiohead has anything to say about it.
Brooklyn indie-pop-rockers Bishop Allen are playing with John Vanderslice at The Social in Orlando next Monday. Coincidentally, I’m reviewing their new CD in this week’s Friday Extra, while music critic Curtis Ross is reviewing Vanderslice’s latest. (Honestly, we didn’t plan it like that; we’re nowhere near that organized.) A preview of the Bishop Allen review: It’s a damn good listen with few flaws, save for some spotty sequencing.
Making a cohesive, multi-faceted album – one that displays musical versatility while still holding together from start to finish as a single, unified work — is a seemingly lost art, but Bishop Allen nearly pulled it off with “Bishop Allen & The Broken String.” The fact that most tracks segue into one another is a conceit that’s easily overlooked when they all feel like they’re “of a piece.”
And that’s the case for the first nine — up to and including the epic “Corazon” (which feels overwrought compared to its original version on last year’s January EP, but it’s still a great song). But things start to unravel toward the end of the disc, with the brash, rollicking “Middle Management,” and the whimsical finger-snapping of “The News from Your Bed.” The thing is, these aren’t bad songs in and of themselves; they just don’t really fit with the rest of the disc.
Of course, 90 percent of you will probably only hear one track at a time when your iPods are on shuffle … so who cares?
Speaking of which, if you dig literate indie-pop that wears its heart on its sleeve, you’ll want to download these two tracks, which are among the CD’s best.
A track by Bishop Allen, courtesy of Dead Oceans:
Bishop Allen, “Rain” (from “The Broken String") [mp3]
Bishop Allen, “Click, Click, Click, Click” (from “The Broken String") [mp3]
You may remember Jason Isbell as the baby-faced singer/guitarist from Drive-By Truckers. Perhaps you caught one of their raucous sets at Skipper’s Smokehouse the last few years. Or maybe you listened obsessively to their “Decoration Day” CD the entire summer of 2003 after breaking up with your girlfriend.
But more likely, you’ve never heard of him. And that’s a damn shame.
Isbell’s impressive debut solo turn, “Sirens of the Ditch,” is a bit of a departure from the Southern-fried roots rock of his former band—the songs are tighter, leaner and have sharper hooks—but still fits comfortably under the “alt-country” banner. Friday Extra editor and longtime Truckers fanatic Mitch Schafer gave it a three-star review recently, saying the new songs “showcase Isbell’s eloquent storytelling and eye for detail, proving the hotshot guitarist can deliver the lyrical goods.”
The disc came out July 10 and Isbell’s supporting tour comes to Crowbar in Ybor City on Saturday night. Supposedly he’s been throwing some killer covers into the set, including Thin Lizzy‘s “Jailbreak.” So get off the couch and set your DVR. You’re going out.
I couldn’t find any MP3s on Isbell’s site or his label’s (New West), but Autopsy IV posted this one over at Sticks of Fire. I have no idea if it’s official (i.e., legal) or not, so if you’re Jason or someone from New West and you have a problem with it, just let me know.
A track by Jason Isbell, courtesy of ???:
Jason Isbell, “Try” (from “Sirens of the Ditch") [mp3]
You might recognize “Young Folks” as “that whistling song” from a TV commercial for Budweiser, the self-proclaimed king of American beers. It’s performed by Peter Bjorn And John, the kings of Swedish indie-pop. It also features the lovely voice of songstress Victoria Bergsman (of The Concretes). She’s Swedish, too, but her vocals here somehow remind me of a disaffected ‘60s French-pop chanteuse.
And then there’s the whistling. For our money, it’s the most infectious whistling on record since “Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding.
If that’s not enough to convince you, surely you can’t resist a band with the initials PB&J, can you?
Check it out:
A track by Peter Bjorn and John, courtesy of Red Music Online:
Peter Bjorn and John, “Young Folks” (from “Writer’s Block") [mp3]
Turns out that if you search for “Zune” in Google News, it thinks you made a typo.
“Did you mean ‘zone’?” it asks.
Nice. Four months into Microsoft‘s bid to gobble up Apple‘s share of the digital music hardware market, the Zune is barely on the radar.
According to the NPD Group, the Zune held a 10.2% unit share of the hard drive music player market in the U.S. in December and a 9.9% unit share in January. Guess who owns the other 90 percent?
Think about it. Do you know anyone who owns a Zune?
Yeah. Me, neither.
You either love Bright Eyes or you hate them. You either think Conor Oberst is his generation’s Bob Dylan or you think he’s a melodramatic, self-flagellating creep. There is no in-between.
If you fall in the former camp, you’ll be lined up at a CD store on the morning of April 10 for the official release of “Cassadega,” assuming you haven’t already pre-ordered the disc on Amazon. If you fall in the later, you’ll have a whole new reason to go off on your well-worn “what a steaming pile of pretentious #####” rant when the CD debuts near the top of the Billboard charts.
It’s a win-win, really.
In either case, you can get a head start on your loving or loathing by downloading a track from the new disc. I haven’t heard the whole thing yet, but someone recently wrote, “If ‘I’m Wide Awake’ was ‘the New York’ album, then ‘Cassadega’ is ‘the America album.’” Let’s just hope that doesn’t mean it’s Bright Eyes’ “Rattle & Hum.”
A track by Bright Eyes, courtesy of Insound:
Bright Eyes: “Four Winds” from “Cassadega” [mp3]
Silversun Pickups are playing Saturday night at Ybor’s hippest new venue, Crowbar. (Or, at least, it was Ybor’s hippest new venue a few months ago. We can’t keep up.) Whether you’re still trying to decide if the show’s worth braving the St. Paddy’s crowd for, or you’ve never even heard of the L.A. noise-pop quartet in the first place, a free MP3 can’t hurt.
In the press, they’re relentlessly compared to Smashing Pumpkins and My Bloody Valentine, and with pretty good reason. Like the Pumpkins, their moody, melodramatic songs regularly flex their loud-quiet-loud muscle, and like MBV, they also smudge that line at the edge of consciousness, morphing into just-out-of-reach dreamscapes drenched with noise, while gauzy guitars stretch like taffy from riff to riff and hook to hook.
Hey, if you’re gonna sound like someone else, you could sure do worse.
And if you’re too indie to namecheck those old-school alt-rock bands, tell your friends Silversun Pickups are somewhere between Autolux and Joy Zipper. They’ll think you’re cool. (It’s OK — your secret’s safe with us.)
In any case, check ‘em out.
A track by Silversun Pickups, courtesy of SPIN magazine:
Silversun Pickups: “Well Thought Out Twinkles” from “Carnavas” [mp3]
Here’s another new CD release we’ve been looking forward to: “Wincing the Night Away” by The Shins. You might remember The Shins as Natalie Portman’s favorite band in the movie “Garden State.” Remember when Zac Braff meets her in the doctor’s waiting room and she gives him her headphones and says, “You gotta hear this one song—it’ll change your life, I swear”? That was The Shins.
Their new CD officially comes out next Tuesday, but a glitch on iTunes allowed a bunch of lucky folks (possibly including ourselves) to download it early. If you like your guitar-pop with soaring melodies and impossibly sharp hooks, every track here is worth 99 cents and then some. For a taste, you can download a track below.
A track by The Shins, courtesy of Sub Pop:
The Shins: “Phantom Limb” from “Wincing the Night Away” [mp3]
Zune, Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s iPod, hits stores Tuesday. The portable digital music player comes with a 30 GB hard drive (big enough to hold about 7,500 songs), supports both MP3 and AAC (iTunes-compatible) formats, and can also display photos and play videos.
Zune even includes an FM tuner, but its coolest feature is the ability to wirelessly share songs with other Zune users. Have something your co-worker absolutely must hear? Just send it to her Zune, and it’s available to her for three days or three listens. Too cool.
For $249, the Zune is available in black, white or brown. Yes, brown.
I just got an e-mail from my esteemed colleague Doug, who directed me to an excellent new iPod accessory: the iCarta Stereo Dock for iPod® with Bath Tissue Holder.
Too lazy to follow the link? Fine. Be that way. Allow me:
iPod + bathroom reference = instant comedy. Of course, you could substitute anything in the world for the iPod in that equation.
Anyway, let’s make a playlist for this accessory. I’ll go first:
“Taking Too Long” by the Wipers
Leave your playlist additions in the comments.
In the late-‘80s, Al Jourgensen and Paul Barker of Ministry basically invented the aggro-industrial sound that Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails would later take to the bank. Both 1988’s “The Land of Rape and Honey” and the following year’s “The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste” are pummeling, riff-happy masterpieces of the genre.
Following a wildly prolific early-‘90s period — their countless side projects included RevCo, Lard, 1000 ##### DJs, Pailhead, Lead Into Gold and PTP — the band pretty much crashed and burned with a succession of increasingly sallow efforts throughout the rest of the decade and beyond.
But 2004’s “Houses of the Mole” was a bludgeoning return to form, again capturing the explosive energy of the unlikely clash between heavy metal and dance music.
We’re hoping the new “Rio Grande Blood” (released a couple of weeks ago) will keep the comeback going. If “Lies Lies Lies” (is that a classic Ministry title or what?) is any indication, it should be an inspired collection.
If nothing else, these guys are always good for an anarchic live show, especially when their industrial-prankster alter-ego RevCo also on the bill. (That’s right, two sets in one night; there are plenty of disparaging labels you can apply to the members of Ministry, but “slacker” isn’t among them.) You can catch ‘em on July 11 at Jannus Landing in St. Pete.
A track from the new Ministry CD, courtesy of Megaforce Records:
Ministry: “Lies Lies Lies” from “Rio Grande Blood” [mp3]
Turns out Arctic Monkeys weren’t the first British indie band to generate a healthy buzz on the Internet long before they had a proper record out. Art Brut unleashed “Bang Bang Rock and Roll” about this time last year, but they’d already been making the rounds on the music blogs for nearly a year prior with their brilliantly self-referential single “Formed a Band.”
From the git-go, it was clear this was a band that didn’t take itself too seriously. Their performances were sloppy and amateurish. Their lyrics were glibly tossed-off (“Look at us / We formed a band!”). Not exactly the qualities that make you think, “Hey, these guys are going to be huge!”
And, well, they’re not huge. But they’re making a career—for now, anyway—out of the whole music thing. Luckily for Art Brut, it’s easy to compensate for technical shortcomings with gobs of enthusiasm.
“Good Weeekend” is a fine example of that. Released originally as a bootleg in ’04, it was also included (like “Formed a Band”
on the “Bang Bang Rock and Roll” CD. It’s like crossing those compact early Wire guitar riffs with danceable late ’60 beat-pop. It’s simple. It’s kinda silly. It’s insanely fun.
By the way, Art Brut are playing tonight in Orlando at The Social. There’s still time if you hop in your car … right now.
A track by Art Brut, courtesy of Fierce Panda Records:
Art Brut: “Good Weekend” from “Bang Bang Rock and Roll” [mp3]
If you’ve been hanging around Tampa long enough, you might remember the Blue Chair record store in Ybor City. It was one of the first glowing embers that signaled the historic district’s rise from the ashes in the early ‘90s. That’s when and where, at the recommendation of a friend, I caught a local band called Home performing an in-store set for a crowd of about eight people (including the store owner). Even playing to such a small crowd, the quartet squeezed blood from a stone, wringing the last drops of emotion from every note they played. They weren’t exactly virtuosos, but you could tell these guys had something.
Fourteen years later, the band released its 16th album, “Sexteen,” last week. (The initial eight were recorded on cheap Radio Shack cassettes and sold at Blue Chair or passed out after shows.) They’ve since signed to a major label, moved to Brooklyn, got dropped from the major label, hopped around from one indie to another, and—oh, yeah—released some mind-blowing music (we recommend 1999’s “XIV,” produced by Dave Fridmann).
Their sound has matured—it draws on everything from prog-rock and ambient soundscapes to psych-pop and punk—but they’re still on to ... well, something.
The thing is, Home’s music just sort of defies easy categorization. One minute you think you’ve finally put your finger on what they’re trying to do; the next, you’re using it to scratch your head.
Anyway, Home’s returning (trimphantly, of course) to Tampa next weekend to play WMNF‘s Tropical Heatwave. If I hadn’t stupidly made plans to be out of town that weekend, I’d be in the front row for their set. As is, I’ll have to find consolation in the 19 tracks of “Sexteen,” which, true to the Home tradition of ambition, is a concept album. Not just a concept album, but a concept album about sex. Hmmm.
Here’s a sample track, “Bubble,” a minimalist bit of art-damaged guitar-pop that features guitarist-singer Andrew Deutsch making what sounds like a real (albeit presumably staged) phone-sex call. OK, so maybe when I said their sound had “matured,” I could’ve chosen my words a little better.
A track by Home, courtesy of Jagjaguwar Records:
Home: “Bubble” from “Sexteen” [mp3]
Advertisement
