2/23/12

Like A Fire That Consumes All Before It


This gem of a record has been seeing frequent spins lately, imbedding itself deeper with each listen.  Arcuragi, who founded a genre called "Death Gospel" (click imaginary like button), brings a blend of folk, americana, singer-songwriter, with a dash of pop and dust storm's wallpapering of grit.  Mostly, each time I listen to this record I think how badly i want to see this guy play these songs live, to sway like a drunken sailor and scream these words along with him.  Highlights so far: The Well, Port Song.  

2/20/12

i am MASTER'S THESIS

My usual syrupy slow output on this site will be getting even more random and intermittent, as I am in the process of writing my master's thesis.  The topic: The Secondary Ticket Market.  IE, why buying tickets to concerts sucks ass in 2012.  In honor of this exercise in self torture, here's an aptly titled number from The Weakerthans' singer John K. Samson, from his 2012 record Provincial.

2/11/12

Searching for the perfect beat: Stumbleine



Been sitting here trying for a half hour to write something about Stumbeilne's Rose Tinted EP. Something clever about how it feels airy and weighty at the same time. Something intelligent about how electronics can express nostalgia and sorrow without ever being sad. Something creative about how this is music for a ghost disco, where lost souls collectively gather night after night to move to skittering beats. This is dreamy stuff, a kind of ambient-dubstep ideal for late night listening. Name your price over at the Bristol UK producers bandcamp page.   

2/10/12

The Head & The Heart - Down In The Valley

Self released, only to re-mastered and re-released by the venerable indie label Sub Pop, The Head & The Heart's excellent self titled album just saw its most recent video hit the tubes.  The track "Down In The Valley" has long been the standout on the album for me, and was a key ingredient in my fall mix.  It always makes me nostalgic for the years I spent in Jackson Hole, and this video creates the same vibe for the years of touring I never did.    

2/4/12

Karen Dalton - 1966


In an age where every blogger seems to be in a race to get firsties on posting about a buzz band to be, Aquarium Drunkard places their focus on looking back at great, forgotten, and sometimes rare recordings.  It is through this wonderful website that I discovered Karen Dalton.  

Last weekend in an impulse buy I purchased a new Dalton compilation, and its too good not to share here.  The description below comes from Othermusic.com  
"The posthumous excavation of rare Karen Dalton recordings continues with this latest installment from Delmore Records. I can safely say you shouldn't be worried about diminishing returns here, as this is a supremely intimate tape that captures Dalton and then partner Richard Tucker holed up in a remote cabin in the mountains outside of Boulder, Colorado one evening in 1966. The highlights are undoubtedly her renditions of a number of Tim Hardin tunes that heretofore had been undocumented. "Green Rocky Road" in particular is just stunning, as if you're listening to a cloud slowly unfurl across a landscape, effortlessly floating into infinity. There's also a devastating version of her classic "Katie Cruel" and a practically somnambulant version of folk standard "Cotton-Eyed Joe" that's impossible to not get completely lost in. Anything that expands our understanding of this incredibly enigmatic and troubled singer is a cause for celebration, and here's hoping that the well hasn't run dry yet as all these releases thus far have all been uniformly excellent." Othermusic.com 
Preview this gem using Delmore's bandcamp widget bellow.  


2/3/12

The Lumieers


Chalk this up to another bump from my new co-interns at Red Light Management.  This link came over my IM the other day with a note: "Have you heard of these guys?".  The Lumineers have been creating a buzz with their brand of indie Americana, ala the The Avett Brothers and Mumford & Sons.  The Denver band put out an EP in 2011 and are set to release their debut self titled record in March, followed by a tour.  Add this to the growing list of reasons 2012 is shaping up to be a damn good year for music.  The following track, taken from their Daytrotter session last October, is a stunner.    


2/1/12

Trampled By Turtles new record on the way

Probably my favorite touring bluegrass band these days, Trampled By Turtles, will release their new record Stars & Satellites on April 10th.  They played a bunch of great new songs at their sold-out Bowery Ballroom show last November.  This show, more than any show I've seen since moving to NYC, was overrun by assholes.  Kind of strange considering that Trampled presents heartfelt bluegrass tunes, and that the band is some of the nicest, most un-broey guys I've met.  It was the audience I'd expect at a Skrillex concert where Foster the People opened, not a bluegrass show.  Regardless, all signs point to Trampled moving up in the world, as their next NYC performance will find them at Webster Hall on April 17th.  There'll certainly be a little more room at this venue to avoid some of the stranger characters in the diverse fanbase these guys are drawing.  Check out the album preview bellow, or head over to Amazon where a few of Trampled's albums are still going for $5 downloads.   



Pre-order Stars and Satellites here.  

a taste from M. Wards forthcoming. . .

We'll see M. Wards new solo record A Wasteland Companion hit the shelves (or iPods, Spotify accounts, or however you take your music these days) April 10th, right in time to usher in the start of spring.  Here's the first video from the album, for the track "The First Time I Ran Away".