Destination Unknown

Unlike my fellow writers and perhaps the majority of this blog’s readers, I don’t care much for Vampire Weekend.  Except for when they record a cover of Rancid’s “Ruby Soho.”  Enjoy.

MP3: Vampire Weekend – “Ruby Soho” (Rancid Cover)

Love,
Adrian

It’s the Way That We Function

Sometimes you’re lucky enough to come across a band that borrows a bit from a bunch of other groups you love.  That seems to be the case with me and Helen Earth Band.  The only reason I gave these guys a listen was because I read that the former drummer for Finch, a band that I was never really crazy about to begin with (except for “Letters For You”, I’ll love that song forever), was at the helm of this project.  I was pleasantly surprised right at the onset of “(We All) Talk With Knives”, the first single off of the band’s debut album, Our Own Ghost City.  There’s something about the way they blend the dream pop of Mew with the subtle prog-rock of Minus the Bear that clicks with me.  Smart and beautiful.

MP3: Helen Earth Band – “(We All) Talk With Knives”

Love,
Adrian

Is It In You Now?

UPDATE: Link fixed.

I didn’t know people still made mash-ups.  I was never a huge fan of them, aside from the wonderful collection crafted by the Legion of Doom.  Well earlier today ap.net pointed to one combining Brand New’s “Sowing Season (Yeah)” with P.O.S.’ “Optimist (We Are Not For Them)”, courtesy of a man who goes by the name of Hawkins.  Although it’s nothing more than Jesse Lacey’s vocals laid onto certain portions of “Optimist”, it works out surprisingly well.  How were these two kept apart for so long?  Kudos sir, keep up the good work.

MP3: Hawkins – “Optimist (Yeah)” (Brand New vs. P.O.S.)

Love,
Adrian

Hold Your Tongue Boy

There are a handful of names you can drop that will bring any scene boy or girl to their knees.  One of these is John Nolan, the former sharp-tongued guitarist/songwriter for Taking Back Sunday and current front man for the less-angsty indie outfit Straylight Run.  Having already proved himself as a man of many genres, Nolan released his first solo album, Height, in October of last year.  If his work with Straylight wasn’t enough of a departure from his emo past for you (after their last full-length, I don’t see how that could be the case), then Height should come as a pleasant surprise.  Although I wouldn’t go as far to say that it’s a phenomenal album, Height is definitely a commendable piece of work supported by a number of standout tracks.  My favorite of these by far is the album’s first single, “Til It’s Done to Death”.  Sporting one of the catchiest drum lines I’ve heard in a while, “Til It’s Done…” weds acoustic guitar and bubbly synth lines in the best way possible.  I just got my hands on the album today and I’ve probably played the song twenty times over already.  Enjoy.

MP3: John Nolan – “Til It’s Done to Death”

Love,
Adrian

Couldn’t You Take the Second Bus Home?

UPDATE: Should have mentioned that there are a few other covers you can download here.  It seems that Forrest has decided to record a few until issues surrounding the release of a new Hellogoodbye album are sorted out.

Hellogoodbye continues to amaze me.  Not long ago I wrote about the band’s latest single, “When We First Met,” a significant departure from their synthy pop-punk past and a large step towards a more accessible, cheery, indie-pop sound.  I for one found this to be quite an unexpected nonetheless welcome change.  Most recently, Forrest Kline and co. have released a cover of the Promise Ring’s “A Picture Postcard.”  I know, right?  I’m not denying that these guys have been fans of the quintessential emo band (not the bad kind) for a while already, but why couldn’t they have been releasing awesome stuff like this before?  Better late than never I suppose.

MP3: Hellogoodbye – “A Picture Postcard” (Promise Ring cover)

Also, don’t forget to check out Hellogoodbye’s Daytrotter sessions.  Back in December the guys recorded renditions of “When We First Met” and “Oh, It Is Love” as well as other songs that are all definitely worth checking out.

Love,
Adrian

Because I Spent Years of My Life Being a Douchebag, Loser, Criminal, Drug Addict, and General Piece of Shit, I Learned What Not to Do.

What up gang? Long time no post… my bad, I’m lazy. However just because I’m not posting does not mean I’m not searching for the dirtiest house jamz to melt your face with. It’s in that mindset that I bring the track I have for you in this post, which truly is an amazing remix. The DJ, Wolfgang Gartner, is an American (rare) from California, and has an impressive background. Gartner, whose real name is Joey Youngman (coolest name ever) taught himself to DJ at 12 years old with some tape decks and a tape recorder (damnnnn sonnnn). For years he tried to get record deal but never succeeded, because, like myself, he laments that “I did lots of drugs. Lots and lots of drugs…[and] and totally fried on ecstasy and every other snortable substance.” Also like myself Gartner checked in rehab at age 20, and within two years of completing his treatment he had three top ten singles on Beatport (I’m only three singles away from following in his footsteps!). This jam, a bassy, nasty remix of the Fugees’ classic “Ready or Not,” which samples Lauryn Hill’s unbelievable voice, blew me away when I first heard it and I hope it does the same for y’all. Rockwell Out… peace bitches

MP3: The Fugees – “Ready or Not (Fugees vs. Gartner Bootleg)

Also, as an added bonus, check out a Gartner original; “Flashback.”

MP3: Wolfgang Gartner – “Flashback (Original Mix)”

-Nick

Odds and Ends

To those of you expecting a Top 20 albums coming from me (which I failed to make last year or the year before), it..IS coming. Soon. Promise.

To those of you hoping for more activity here, that is coming as well. We’ve got a lot on our plates at the moment. Adrian is headed back to the U.K. and I am starting up a new semester here at GW. Regardless, excuses are lame, and we’ll be back and rolling A.S.A.P.

To those of you wondering if I have been keeping up with the cool kids these days, don’t worry. I am still up on it. Expect plenty of delicious gooey musical goodness coming in a very short while.

To those of you hoping that you didn’t waste your time reading this boring post without at least one cool song attached, I got you. Check out “Crysteena” by Mille, the newest artist in the Neon Gold stable. The song is an epic synth jam, building steam throughout (much like a Justice track) but with a much more 80s-centric vibe than Parisian DJ crew music.

MP3: Mille – “Crysteena”

Love,
Zack

It All Comes at Once.

I liked “Horchata” with its clever word play and obscure references to Spanish drinks I wasn’t aware existed. That’s the type of pretention we’ve come to know and love from Vampire Weekend. But I was not super impressed with “Cousins,” I’ll be honest. Pitchfork referred to it as a “the closest these non-punk punks have come to making a punk song” and frankly, I just wasn’t buying it.

But “White Sky?” I LOVE IT. It sort of re-news my fascination with the band after being disenchanted with their intense over-exposure. Ezra Koenig seems to use his voice as an echo-y windpipe against the backdrop of the bubbly, richly-layered beat and the contrast is intense and quirky and delightful.

Plus the line, “A thousand little Julias that come together in the middle of Manhattan” is a great GREAT lyric.

Fingers crossed that I can make it to a show here in NYC later this month and report back.

MP3: Vampire Weekend – “White Sky”

xo,
Linds

Guest Post: Chris Rowe Music Time!!!!?!!11!

Hi from Maine!

Having been an avid ATG follower, I thought maybe I should throw my hat into the guest-post ring.  I’m a 6’1” white kid, attend college in New England, wear vans from time to time, rant about politics, and enjoy listening to music.  Oh, and Zack’s my cousin; people are pretty, pretty jealous.  Oh, so ere’s some tunage:

MP3: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – “Home”

The entire self-titled album is complete joy, but “Home” jumps out from the rest of the songs.  It is as if Andrew Bird wrote a Fleetwood Mac song.  From the catchy whistling, the stomping rhythm, to the endearing vocal back and forth – you’ll be screaming Alabama, Arkansas ‘til you find a home of your own.  Trust me!

MP3: The Milkman’s Union – “Emerald Flares”

I couldn’t do a post without giving props to Bowdoin’s very own The Milkman’s Union.  This tune is my personal favorite off of their first album, Roads In, but it only scratches the surface of the depth to this band.  Folksy, country-twanged riffs, with rhythmic surprises layered amongst a driving beat.

MP3: Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele – “Meet Me In The Garden”

Mississippi keeps on giving.  This tune is almost a capella, almost barbershop, but then the guitar and violin jump out.  I’d love to know what those jungle noises are in the beginning of this sing-along, and I’d also love to meet this beautiful blonde in the garden.

Lindsay’s Favorite Album of 2009

I’m not going to do a top ten albums of the year list (cause I’m lazy!) because it’s pretty much a random shuffle of the albums that comprised my top ten songs depending on what I’m feeling that particular day (and I’m lazy!). But I would like to take a minute to write a short ditty about my favorite album of the year for several reasons.

St. Vincent’s Actor became increasingly important to me over the course of 2009 as I realized that more and more of the music I listen to is comprised of male musicians. Now, I’m not suggesting that one should choose the music one likes based on gender. I’m merely highlighting the importance of this artist to me and I can’t ignore that one of those reasons is her ability to play hard ball right alongside her male contemporaries.

Annie Clark is a brilliant musician and lyricist. (Whenever she sings, “I sit transfixed by a hole in your tee-shirt” I want to keel over and die at its sheer simplistic agony.) Also, she is unabashedly fearless when it comes to highlighting feelings that might make her appear unattractive. She will implore others for help on “Save Me From What I Want” (later again in “Marrow”) yet, she will return with blunt honesty to be a downright bitch on “Actor Out of Work.” She explores the gritty underbelly of being drunk and needy in “The Party,”but her quest for personal change and growth is highlighted in “Laughing With a Mouth of Blood” and “Just the Same But Brand New.”

Throughout the course of all the tracks on Actor, Ms. Clark refuses to be one thing or the other, rejects all categories, and demonstrates that, while women struggle with the various roles they are cast in, they need not play the part. The dark, droning turns in her songs shout with forceful strength, even when her voice remains sweet and soft. She is, in a word, tremendous.

In a male-dominated industry, she deserves kudos for having one of the most outstanding albums of the year. And as a female who blogs about music in a blogosphere niche where the boys come to play, Actor will always mean a great deal to me.

MP3: St. Vincent – “Laughing with a Mouth of Blood”
MP3: St. Vincent – “Just the Same But Brand New”

xo,
Linds