Ran across a video of Season 8 American Idol winner, Kris Allen, covering Radiohead’s classic “Paranoid Android” at a show earlier in June. The cover isn’t as bad as you’d expect. I’m sure most people will automatically hate on it, but it’s actually listenable. Apparently, he is doing it for “the street cred”.
Watch:
Most of the stuff that gets sent to me on soundcloud is well….not great….For once I have come across a nice little gem. It’s from an artist named Patrick Lee who just released his staggering 22nd album, The Last Thing. That’s pure dedication right there.
The song is called “Quittin’ Time” and its good good vibes kickin’ at every corner. Patrick’s music is a brilliant fusion of jazz, hip-hop, and rock, creating an undeniable sensation for your ears. I’m totally impressed.
[mp3]: Patrick Lee – Quittin’ Time
You can download The Last Thing for free right now at Patrick’s website. You may want to take advantage of that offer.
Phil Selway is the drummer of prolific rock band Radiohead. You may have heard of them. Just like so many other members of popular bands (The Strokes, for one), he has decided to release his own solo work. His debut album is titled Familial, set for release on August 31st via Nonesuch Records.
He is giving away the albums opener, “By Some Miracle”, for a free mp3 download if you give him some of your info on his website. Who knew that Phil had such a nice voice? Any doubts about him as a solo artist will fade away after hearing “By Some Miracle”. Laying down some lovely stuff are you now, Phil?
Stream the song below:
By Some Miracle by Philip Selway
After The National’s legendary performance at Radio City a few weeks ago, I waited after the show to see if I could meet the band. I ended up meeting Matt & Bryan, but I also met a few other fans waiting to get a glimpse of the band, two of which I have come friends with. It turns out that one of them is a talented musician. She gave me her debut EP to listen to, which I gave an honest listen, and came out more than impressed.
Her name is Laurie Cameron, and her debut EP The Melancholy Tides is something special. If your a fan of singer-songwriters such as Greg Laswell, Bon Iver and Damien Rice, then she is right up your alley. After one listen you realize that the EP is perfectly titled. Her songs reflect strong personal experiences and emotions that will move you. With beautiful orchestration and plenty sincere moments, Laurie is one talented lady that is sure to inspire.
Here is one of my favorite cuts from the EP that I would like to share with you guys:
[mp3]: Laurie Cameron – The Last Wave
If you like that you can buy the EP from Amazon or Play. You can also stream the EP at her myspace
Domino Records has made “All We Are” from the Björk/Dirty Projectors collaborative album, Mount Wittenberg Orca, available for stream. The collaborative album, which was released today, came together after the two artists played a benefit show at NYC’s Housing Works. If you head over to the project’s website, you can purchase the album, and get more info about the project.
Below, is the stream from “All We Are”. The two don’t shy away from vocal harmonies, do they?
Dirty Projectors + Björk- All We Are by DominoRecordCo
I have really enjoyed the new material that we’ve heard from The Books. This includes “A Cold Freezin’ Night”. The music video was just premiered on Pitchfork.TV. It features a lot of disjointed clips of kids, making use of all the samples of children that you hear in the song. Watch:
Vancouver natives Teen Daze find a way to take Local Natives organic wonder “Wide Eyes”, and transform it into a vibrant electronic dream-scape. I dig.
[mp3]: Local Natives – Wide Eyes (Teen Daze Remix)
I’ll have more on Teen Daze later. This should hold you over for now: Myspace/Tumblr
I forgot to post the new music video for Villagers second single “Ship Of Promises”. It was released the day I saw him perform at Joe’s Pub, so that could be how it got lost in the shuffle. Watch it below:
It comes off Becoming A Jackal, truly one of 2010′s best debut albums. If you haven’t heard it yet, you are truly missing out. Here is a mp3 of the title track, which still gets me the same way it did when I first heard it. It makes a strong case for one of the top songs of 2010.
[mp3]: Villagers – Becoming A Jackal
Conor did a session for radio station WNYC, which you can stream here.
I posted the music video for “Becoming A Jackal” below, for those of you who may have missed it:
Note: This is my first review in a while. Let’s see how it goes down. I have a rating system from 1-10, and I form the score based on indiviual song rating, which I average together to get a score. I figure it’s the best way to get as accurate of a score as possible.
Glass Vaults. What to say, what to say. Well, I can honestly say that they are one of the most talented young bands that I have come across since running this blog. Many bands impress me sure, but there is something about the Wellington, New Zealand band that I’ve taken an extreme liking to.
The just released their debut EP, Glass, on local Wellington record label Sonorous Circle. The EP consists of 5 powerful songs that paint a emotive landscape of New Zealand. The songs have a dreamy element to them that bring to mind the barren landscape ambiance of Sigur Rós. They also share the electronic prowess of M83, and the experimental creativity of Animal Collective that I dare call avant garde.
“They Will Grow”, the EP’s opener, taps into your soul. If you listen hard enough, you just may be able to taste the fresh New Zealand air. Things take off further into flight on the 7 minute epic “Set Sail”, taking you through a journey of self reflection. Try to tell me that you can’t hear the genius of M83 floating around.
“New Space” hits on sonic experimentation and tropical drums that would Animal Collective proud (one could swear to hear an Avery Tare shout during the songs beginning) . It tickles the mind to a drug filled state that you wouldn’t mind be stuck in for a few hours.
“Worrier” is song that would have fit quite nicely on Yeasayer’s debut album. The band formulates the tempo to draw out feelings of longing and return, with great effect. When he pleads you not to go, you beg along with him.
Glass Vaults cover a lot of different sounds and genres within this EP, and the culmination of all these sounds is the EP’s final track, and finest moment, “Forget Me Not”. With vocal harmonies that are ready to sweep the stiffest man off his feat, it’s a hard pressed not too be taken away by the washed out sounds that infiltrate the song. When the electronic effects tickle away into silence, you have no choice but to hit replay.
This is an EP crafted with careful hands that have created some of the most tender musical moments in 2010. Listening to these songs brought out distinct feelings on longing, regret, and passion from my life. It made me feel something, which is a true indicator of a powerful record. This is one of the finest EP’s of recent memory. I can’t wait to see what other beauty they unleash with a full length.
Guess what, you can download the whole EP for free at their bandcamp. You got nothing to loose. Give it a try below, with two cuts from the album:
[mp3]: Glass Vaults – Forget Me Not
[mp3]: Glass Vaults – Set Sail
I can’t find too much on this fella Goma, but you know what, that’s ok. We always obsess over the details behind a band, that it often overshadows the music itself. A little mysterious never hurt anyone. Back in the old days that didn’t have access to every music’s business like we do now.
So take a listen to this delightful little song called “Still I Wake Up in the Morning Thinking of You” from a guy named Goma who is from Mexico. The song dates all the way back to 2004. I don’t even know where I found this song, but I’m not going to worry about that. I had a post ready in my draft section, and I figured it was time to push it into motion.
It’s a light ballad that instantly hit home. It’s nice to have a song that is strictly dedicated to raw feelings and emotion. This one is necessary listening:
[mp3]: Goma – Still I Wake Up in the Morning Thinking of You
To be honest, I don’t really need to know who Goma is, and I doubt we ever will find out more about him. That’s fine. Lets just hope this isn’t the only song that we get. Here is his myspace if you wanna poke around.
