As is the case with most long-standing music blogs, most if not all of the music we review, we have received for free from each artists' publicist or record label for posting and reviewing purposes. Also, many of the concerts that we review, we have received the tickets for free. We are required to disclose this fact by the FTC now (though I think it's pretty well understood within the music blogging community).
I also feel the need to add that we receive hundreds of submissions each month. So even though we receive them for free, we are under no obligation to give them a positive review, or any review at all, and therefore our opinions have not been swayed by the fact that we are receiving this music for free. This entire blog is based completely on our subjective opinions, but this is why we provide mp3s (which we DO have permission to post) or links for you to listen to the artists' music and form your own opinions.
If you have any questions, or for some reason need to know the precise company who sent us a specific mp3, please email us. Thank you.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Holiday Hash pt. 2
Em's traveling the world today and I'm still riding high on my holiday music buzz, so here's part 2 already.Baby It's Cold Outside - Johnny Mercer and Margaret Whiting [mp3]
A Christmas/Kwanzaa/Solstice/Chanukah/Ramadan/Boxing Day Song - Christine Lavin & The Mistletones [mp3] (itunes)
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Saturday, November 29, 2008
Holiday Hash pt. 1
Yup, with the closing of the Thanksgiving holiday, it's officially time to string up those lights, put your Christmas tree/Hanukkah menorah/Kwanzaa colors/Boxing Day Box in the window and to break out the holiday music. And I just so happen to have one of the BEST holiday music collections out there, so be prepared to be right clicking like a mother. Due to the large size of my collection, I decided to do installments throughout the month. Enjoy installment one- you may notice that I have a bit of deep love for the old classic crooners like Bing and Frank...just ain't the holidays without em.
Happy Holiday (Beef Wellington Remix) - Bing Crosby [mp3] (itunes)
White Christmas - The Drifters [mp3] (itunes)
Why Can't It Be Christmastime All Year - Rosie Thomas [mp3] (more on Rosie's xmas album here) (itunes)
We Wish You The Merriest - Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and Fred Waring & His Pennsylvanians [mp3] (itunes)
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee [mp3] (itunes)
Frosty the Snowman (Rondo Brothers Remix) - Patti Page [mp3] (itunes)
Friday, November 28, 2008
Woodhands
For those of you techno enthusiasts, here is the Toronto band Woodhands. They kind of remind me of The Faint's more techno-y stuff. Their song Dancer, however, reminds me of The Cranberries meets Electric Six meets The Faint. It's an interesting combination. So here's some dance music to start your weekend off right.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Thanksgiving Waves [mp3] - Eef Barzelay - "Bitter Honey" (iTunes)
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Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Its soooommeone's birthday!
Happy Birthday (12" mix) by Altered Images [mp3]
Birthday by The Bird and the Bee [mp3]
Birthday by The Beatles [mp3]
You're Allowed 20 Birthday Parties by Patton Oswalt [mp3]
The Boy is Mine by Brandy and Monica [mp3] (our favorite song for a large majority of our coexistence)
Monday, November 24, 2008
School of Seven Bells
Despite being in Minnesota on Minnesota Monday for once, I am going to represent my 'hood by posting a Brooklyn band today - School of Seven Bells. Their new album “Alpinisms” is an interesting mish-mash of genres – electronic, experimental, pop, rock, and various influences from around the world. What comes to mind is The Cranberries meets Evanescence meets MIA. I have to say I didn’t expect to like it at first, but it’s grown on me with each listen. Their music is fairly dramatic, a little bit haunting, but still catchy, and has some great complex layering. It’s always a very full sound that they maintain throughout most of their songs.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Faded Paper Figures
Faded Paper Figures began as a "side-project" (aka lets experiment with everything to see what amazingness we can create) for two gents named John and Kael that eventually reached genius indie-tronic pop status with the addition of female vocal harmonies provided by a gal named Heather. Nowadays everyone and their mom is comparing Faded Paper Figures to Postal Service, which means they're clearly doing something right. Their songs twinkle and beep while John's voice electronically and sweetly glides softly along. It's hard not to like these guys. I'm actually going to listen to Logos while I'm taking my run today. Check them out.North by North [mp3]
Logos [mp3]
Purchase their album Dynamo on iTunes
Logos [mp3]
Purchase their album Dynamo on iTunes
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Friday, November 21, 2008
The Paper Raincoat
The Paper Raincoat is a musical adventure about a fictional character named Grace who returns to her childhood home after her father dies and discovers designs for a paper raincoat in his old study. The memories rush back to her - the paper raincoat was one of her father's failed inventions that tore the family apart when Grace was a child, resulting in Grace deciding to never pursue her dreams out of fear that it would result in similar disastrous ways. Now older and wiser, Grace tries to figure out a better way to live her life and pursues her career as a writer, rewriting her own story in a book she calls The Paper Raincoat. Brooklyn's own Amber Rubarth and Alex Wong are the masterminds behind this colorful collaboration they call Safe in the Sound, Amber providing most vocals and piano skills and Alex using his wizardry with various electronic instruments to create this magical and meaningful EP. Each song has a different stylistic approach ranging from catchy indie-pop to more folk-rock, but the cinematic orchestra foundation glues it all together. The two drew inspiration from their own experiences of moving to NYC and starting anew and really work in little things to make it relatable- in the first song, Sympathetic Vibrations, the character Grace is on a plane ready for departure, with a recording of the flight attendant spiel starting things off.
Their myspace tells us to expect a full length album and many many shows in 2009, but until then, I'd suggest picking up this EP.
Sympathetic Vibrations by The Paper Raincoat [mp3]
Current Shows:
The Bowery Ballroom - TONIGHT- NYC
Dec 11 Hotel Cafe, Los Angeles, CA
Meiko Can Be Yours For Just $1.99
So my house is getting new furniture any minute now and I don't know how long all of it will take, but I wanted to post asap to let all you Meiko fans out there know that Meiko's album is available on Amazon for $1.99 TODAY ONLY. Get on it while you can.
A secondary, real post to follow this in a few hours. Hopefully I'll be writing it whilst sitting on a nice new big comfy couch...
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Thursday, November 20, 2008
These United States @ The Knitting Factory
Last night I headed over the The Knitting Factory for one last show before I head to Minneapolis for Thanksgiving week. I managed to catch the end of Mean Creek, who I enjoyed for their two last songs but I don't feel I can really write about them based on that. It was fitting that they were playing with These United States, though. They had a very similar style.
These United States were quite good. They made me feel as if I knew what it must be like to live in a small town in the south and go to the same local bar every weekend where my favorite local band (composed of all my friends) plays all the time. It was an intimate performance in a lot of ways. They even opened up the floor for a Q&A at one point. There were also times when I was watching them and thinking "these songs are the perfect soundtrack for a movie taking place in the south." It's amazing that they've perfected the country rock sound so well that it evokes the south for me when they're originally from Washington DC. Overall, I really enjoyed the show and I thought they had a good energy. They owned the stage without being imposing. And their music is really easy to get into - people in the audience were tapping their toes and bopping their heads, if not full out dancing.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Tainted Love
It's pretty rare that I post covers because I tend to like whatever version of a song I hear first the best, but I thought this one was interesting. It's My Brightest Diamond covering the '80s classic Tainted Love, made famous by Soft Cell. This song is part of a whole album of pop songs covered and revamped by indie artists. It's volume 2 of a project called "Guilt By Association." The album also features artists such as Matt Pond PA and Robbers on High Street. The album comes out February 17th.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Rose Hill Drive
Here's a song by Rose Hill Drive for you today. It's a great rock song, perfect for driving fast on the freeway (or head-banging at stoplights). Not that I condone speeding... And head-banging is bad for your brain. So maybe just stick to drumming on the steering wheel? Point is, this song has an awesome energy and you can't help but rock out to it in some way. Enjoy.
Monday, November 17, 2008
An Interview with Frontier Ruckus
I recently had the privilege of interviewing Matt from Frontier Ruckus, one of my favorite folk bands of recent times. Here's what he had to say.
I hear you delayed the album so you could release it on Matt's birthday? Why was it important to you that it be released then?
The album kept getting pushed back just for promotional purposes and due to how long we were taking in wrapping up all the little details that go into finishing an album that we hadn't really considered. All of a sudden we were looking at a November release date and I thought, "My birthday is November 6th; I can't think of a better gift for myself than the catharsis of this heavy world called Orion Town--sounds good."
Matt - what is your songwriting process?
My songwriting process is to allow the container of my body to go a long period of time (for The Orion Songbook it was my entire life up until then) where I'm just bloating and becoming heavy with obsession for place(s). I feel like I write mostly about places and that the people are less characters than they are more just extensions and images and contents within the containers of places that won't allow themselves to be abandoned by me. And the places I'm talking about are often amorphous and very hard to define. Orion Town is not one town but many towns touching and blurring--it is the multiplicity within the whole. So I am filled by all this seemingly ineffable stuff and memory when I pick up a guitar and hopefully through music I can somehow organize and codify it all into a simpler, less overwhelming form. The image is the most important thing to me and, in a good song, hopefully a large part of the image remains intact after the transaction between internal unvoiced mythology and song occurs.
Once you come in with a song, Matt, how do you guys and decide on instrumentation and construct the songs from there?
Several of the songs on The Orion Songbook have been around for a long time--since it was just David and I. Back then I would bring a song to David and he would just start playing banjo to it and it would sound perfect--very natural. Now there are several more people and more parts to figure out and everyone just kind of hones them as we go along. We really don't think about it all too much as a group, until we get into a studio. We're kind of lazy like that. Everyone is really good about figuring out what they want to do on a song individually, though, and it's still very natural even with more people. Everyone cares about whatever the core of the song may be and how they can complement it. Ryan will obsess over how an extremely minute difference in a beat will effect a song; Zach has to decide what instrument he wants to play on it, or will spend a long time meticulously arranging trumpet harmonies; and Anna has an ear for harmonies that bring a lot of ease to the vocal aspect.
How does the studio process differ from live performances for you guys?
We recorded The Orion Songbook with all of us playing together live in one room, for the very, very most part. I didn't do a single overdub on the record. And I'm not saying that in a boastful way, in fact I'm sure there are probably many people out there who will find fault in it. But that is just the way we feel most comfortable doing it--we really don't do well tracking the core of a song in a piecemeal way. We like to be able to look at each other as we play and try to remember exactly what it is that we're singing about and convey an image instead of just recording notes. This isn't to say that Zach didn't have fun layering horns, since he was the only horn player, or that we didn't have fun trying different textural things after we had the bulk of the song down, but I just enjoy an honest portrayal of what the band is capable of and thought that that would in turn deliver a more accurate account of what Orion Town means.
Where is your favorite place that you've played so far?
Anna and I sang to a rowdy drunken pub in Dublin once and I barely remember it. That was nice. Our best shows of all time have probably been in Lansing. We had a great time busking outside of a strip club in Washington D.C. once and used all of the tips to fill up a hotel bathtub with ice and cans of beer. That night I slipped down the entire rain-slicked set of stairs of the Lincoln Memorial on my side and ribs at 4 am.
Where is the place you would like to play the most in the world?
We're gonna be overseas this summer, which is thrilling. I would like to sell out the segment of shore of the St. Lawrence River that runs past the town Ogdensburg, New York.
Now that you guys have a record label, where do you see the band going over the next few years? What are your short term and long term goals as a band?
We want to release as much music as possible. I have many songs. And the idea of a seemingly endless tour sounds very nice. The Expansion of the Touching-Towns Touring Recital. I want to make snow globes of Orion Town. We're gonna release an EP of our more countrier songs and, also, The Orion Songbook will be out on vinyl in February with about five extra tracks from the Orion mythology, manufactured with the help of our friend John Krohn.
What's the story behind the tandem bike video?
That tandem bike is half-owned by me, and half-owned by someone who is very special to me with whom I made a pact that prohibited me from riding the bike with anyone other than said person. Needless to say, the evidence that that video provided of my and David's mustachioed joyride put me in the doghouse.
A question for Zach - How did you learn to play the saw and do you have any tips for people who would like to learn how to play the saw?
I learned to play the saw by watching youtube videos of Julian Koster playing the saw. By modeling yourself on a sawyer, you can learn to play it prettily. Though, I've noticed that when some people who've seen me do it for years try it, they'll hold it upside-down or bow it over the teeth at first. Literally, I think the easiest way to play the saw is by keeping the handle between your knees, curving it into an 'S' shape with your non-dominant hand in any way that doesn't hurt. And when just starting, I recommend hitting it with something, like a mallet or a pen, before bowing to find the "sweet spots," which change depending how strong your saw's bent, analogously with the pitch. There are so many important tips. Jiggling your leg (as if you needed to urinate) for vibrato, sweeping the bow along the saw so you don't need to be quite so accurate, to name two. Really, I just recommend watching a fellow sawyer and playing with friends or music. If you play alone on the saw, you're lost.
I hear you delayed the album so you could release it on Matt's birthday? Why was it important to you that it be released then?
The album kept getting pushed back just for promotional purposes and due to how long we were taking in wrapping up all the little details that go into finishing an album that we hadn't really considered. All of a sudden we were looking at a November release date and I thought, "My birthday is November 6th; I can't think of a better gift for myself than the catharsis of this heavy world called Orion Town--sounds good."
Matt - what is your songwriting process?
My songwriting process is to allow the container of my body to go a long period of time (for The Orion Songbook it was my entire life up until then) where I'm just bloating and becoming heavy with obsession for place(s). I feel like I write mostly about places and that the people are less characters than they are more just extensions and images and contents within the containers of places that won't allow themselves to be abandoned by me. And the places I'm talking about are often amorphous and very hard to define. Orion Town is not one town but many towns touching and blurring--it is the multiplicity within the whole. So I am filled by all this seemingly ineffable stuff and memory when I pick up a guitar and hopefully through music I can somehow organize and codify it all into a simpler, less overwhelming form. The image is the most important thing to me and, in a good song, hopefully a large part of the image remains intact after the transaction between internal unvoiced mythology and song occurs.
Once you come in with a song, Matt, how do you guys and decide on instrumentation and construct the songs from there?
Several of the songs on The Orion Songbook have been around for a long time--since it was just David and I. Back then I would bring a song to David and he would just start playing banjo to it and it would sound perfect--very natural. Now there are several more people and more parts to figure out and everyone just kind of hones them as we go along. We really don't think about it all too much as a group, until we get into a studio. We're kind of lazy like that. Everyone is really good about figuring out what they want to do on a song individually, though, and it's still very natural even with more people. Everyone cares about whatever the core of the song may be and how they can complement it. Ryan will obsess over how an extremely minute difference in a beat will effect a song; Zach has to decide what instrument he wants to play on it, or will spend a long time meticulously arranging trumpet harmonies; and Anna has an ear for harmonies that bring a lot of ease to the vocal aspect.
How does the studio process differ from live performances for you guys?
We recorded The Orion Songbook with all of us playing together live in one room, for the very, very most part. I didn't do a single overdub on the record. And I'm not saying that in a boastful way, in fact I'm sure there are probably many people out there who will find fault in it. But that is just the way we feel most comfortable doing it--we really don't do well tracking the core of a song in a piecemeal way. We like to be able to look at each other as we play and try to remember exactly what it is that we're singing about and convey an image instead of just recording notes. This isn't to say that Zach didn't have fun layering horns, since he was the only horn player, or that we didn't have fun trying different textural things after we had the bulk of the song down, but I just enjoy an honest portrayal of what the band is capable of and thought that that would in turn deliver a more accurate account of what Orion Town means.
Where is your favorite place that you've played so far?
Anna and I sang to a rowdy drunken pub in Dublin once and I barely remember it. That was nice. Our best shows of all time have probably been in Lansing. We had a great time busking outside of a strip club in Washington D.C. once and used all of the tips to fill up a hotel bathtub with ice and cans of beer. That night I slipped down the entire rain-slicked set of stairs of the Lincoln Memorial on my side and ribs at 4 am.
Where is the place you would like to play the most in the world?
We're gonna be overseas this summer, which is thrilling. I would like to sell out the segment of shore of the St. Lawrence River that runs past the town Ogdensburg, New York.
Now that you guys have a record label, where do you see the band going over the next few years? What are your short term and long term goals as a band?
We want to release as much music as possible. I have many songs. And the idea of a seemingly endless tour sounds very nice. The Expansion of the Touching-Towns Touring Recital. I want to make snow globes of Orion Town. We're gonna release an EP of our more countrier songs and, also, The Orion Songbook will be out on vinyl in February with about five extra tracks from the Orion mythology, manufactured with the help of our friend John Krohn.
What's the story behind the tandem bike video?
That tandem bike is half-owned by me, and half-owned by someone who is very special to me with whom I made a pact that prohibited me from riding the bike with anyone other than said person. Needless to say, the evidence that that video provided of my and David's mustachioed joyride put me in the doghouse.
A question for Zach - How did you learn to play the saw and do you have any tips for people who would like to learn how to play the saw?
I learned to play the saw by watching youtube videos of Julian Koster playing the saw. By modeling yourself on a sawyer, you can learn to play it prettily. Though, I've noticed that when some people who've seen me do it for years try it, they'll hold it upside-down or bow it over the teeth at first. Literally, I think the easiest way to play the saw is by keeping the handle between your knees, curving it into an 'S' shape with your non-dominant hand in any way that doesn't hurt. And when just starting, I recommend hitting it with something, like a mallet or a pen, before bowing to find the "sweet spots," which change depending how strong your saw's bent, analogously with the pitch. There are so many important tips. Jiggling your leg (as if you needed to urinate) for vibrato, sweeping the bow along the saw so you don't need to be quite so accurate, to name two. Really, I just recommend watching a fellow sawyer and playing with friends or music. If you play alone on the saw, you're lost.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Fanfarlo
Fanfarlo's biggest news as of yet may be just the fact that they have returned to the UK after spending some time in Connecticut recording their first album, but trust me, when their album is finally released in 2009, these guys are going to be big. This young 6-piece pop rock British group sounds as if someone took Radiohead, cranked up the tempo by 10-20 bpm and put it through a Fleet Foxes filter. Their music features arpeggios, horns, strings and acoustic guitar galore alongside lead singer Simon's crooning vocals, the songs themselves sounding absolutely complete, contained and perfect. The more I listen to them, the more I can't wait for this upcoming album. Here's two previously released singles/demos for your enjoyment:Fire Escape [mp3]
Sand And Ice [mp3]
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Nationwide Prop 8 Protest
For all of those Joining the Impact in mind, body and/or spirit today, here's some music for ya.
Sisters in the Struggle- Lesbians on Ecstasy [mp3] myspace - itunes
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Friday, November 14, 2008
Funky Fresh Senior Choir
Double post is warranted under amazing circumstances such as this. I hope you have already seen this, but in case you haven't...
Can anyone find the real website for this choir? The website listed at the end of the video doesn't actually exist, much to my dismay. The second after I can order off of the 55+ menu at Perkins and get away with it, I am so joining this group.
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Rachel Goodrich
The words I would use to describe Rachel Goodrich include fantastically goofy and delightfully wonderful. This 24-year old writes catchy self-proclaimed "shake-a-billy" ( "not rockabilly- it doesn't rock; it shakes.") songs like the joyful The Black Hole and incorporates instruments ranging from the guitar to spoons to the kazoo to pots and pans in her music. In her album, Tinker Toys, Goodrich allows her voice to naturally warble in all the right places while keeping things fun and quirky. The result is well-crafted music created by a girl you just want to know better. Watch her extremely lo-fi music video and tell me you don't want to be her friend:The Black Hole [mp3]
Upcoming shows:
November 14th, 8pm New World Brewery - Tampa, FL
November 15th, 8pm Anti*Pop Fest at the Social - Orlando, FL
November 19th, 10:45pm The Florida Room - Miami Beach, FL
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Ane Brun @ Union Hall
Last night I had the wonderful pleasures of seeing Ane Brun play at Union Hall. She was everything I hoped she would be and more - incredibly talented, sweet, funny. It was really a great show. She played all of my favorite songs of hers, including Song No. 6, The Puzzle, Rubber & Soul, and more. In between the songs, she would tell us about what the songs were about, her inspirations, her experiences. For example, I learned that The Puzzle is actually about a friend of hers who was dumped by a pop star. Her voice sounded even richer in person than it does on the recordings. In my review of her album, I said one thing I missed was the simplistic beauty of some of her older songs, as this new album has much more complex arrangements (and they're gorgeous arrangements too but there was something captivating about the spareness of some of her older music). This show was the perfect showcase for how high a quality her music is because it was just her and her guitar, but the music was so full and engaging. That simple beauty that first made me love her music was there in spades and she didn't need an orchestra behind her for the songs to be completely stunning.Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Hearts of Palm UK
Hearts of Palm UK , not to be confused with Hearts of Palm, is an indie poptronica group that centers around the softy silk voice of Erica Elektra. You may be surprised to learn after listening to the tracks that all the songs were originally composed on guitar and then transformed into sweetened electronica using a Korg workstation. The tracks were mastered by Henrik Jonsson in Sweden, who also worked on Lykke Li and Camera Obscura's albums. The overall sound is folk-inspired lo-fi pop turned twinkling synth electronica, if you can imagine that. If not, then give it a listen, cause it's pretty wonderful. I Flow [mp3]
EDIT: Since someone is apparently writing up multiple reports on my posts, let me clarify for this one, just in case you didn't know: this mp3 was sent to our website by the bands' management for review and sharing purposes, ok? Ok. thanks.
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The Purpose of GFP, restated
Due to the recent notification I received from google Blogger about my last post which has been since removed by Blogger due to a filed complaint, I feel its very important to restate a few things about this music blog.
Mp3s are for sampling purposes only and are only available for a limited time. We encourage all those who like the music they hear to support the artists and purchase the music through the various links we provide. If we have posted your music and you want it removed, simply let us know by emailing us at guiltfreepleasure@gmail.com, and it will be removed immediately. We would like to think that this blog and the music blogging community as a whole is a place of mutual respect and trust between artists and bloggers. We only seek to share new and wonderful music that we have enjoyed with others so that those artists can grow in their fan base and familiarity.
Thank you.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
These United States
A fitting band name for the current outpouring of patriotism that many Americans are participating in right now, These United States seem to me to fall in between two of my favorite country-ish bands: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and A Night In the Box - upbeat country, bluesy rock music, with a equal hint of pop and grit. They're currently in the midst of a post-election tour. Here are the remaining dates:
Nov 13 Detroit, MI @ PJ's Lager House w/ The Javelins and Lightning Love
Nov 14 Fort Wayne, IN @ the Brass Rail w/ the Orange Opera and Prabir & the Substitutes
Nov 15 Lexington, KY @ Al's Bar, w/ Crown Electric
Nov 16 Louisville, KY @ The Rudyard Kipling
Nov 17 Cincinnati, OH @ Southgate House
Nov 18 Pittsburgh, PA @ Brillobox w/ Jeremy Messersmith
Nov 19 New York, NY @ Knitting Factory w/ Scotland Yard Gospel Choir
Nov 20 Waterbury, CT @ Brooklyn Cafe
Nov 21 Swarthmore, PA @ Swarthmore College w/ Bishop Allen
Nov 22 Washington, DC @ Black Cat w/ The Cassettes
Get Yourself Home (In Search of the Mistress Whose Kisses Are Famous) [mp3]
(iTunes)
(iTunes)
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Sunday, November 9, 2008
Juliette Commagére
Today I have some music from Juliette Commagére for you, of LA band Hello Stranger. She's come out with a solo album called "Queens Die Proudly." There's something rather '90s about her music, which - coming from me and my love for '90s music - is a major compliment. Particularly the title track, my favorite track on the album, which is a techno power ballad of sorts. The album is full of pretty, reverberant ballads slightly reminiscent of the '90s that Juliette's voice floats over with ease. She's definitely doing pretty well for herself, doing residencies with the likes of Petra Haden, collaborating with Maynard from Tool, and touring with the Foo Fighters (speaking of '90s music....). So check her out.
Queens Die Proudly [mp3]
Purchase Juliette's album on iTunes
Purchase Juliette's album on iTunes
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Saturday, November 8, 2008
Sara Lov
Sara Lov is starting to make quite the splash on the music blog scene- and for good reason. Sara is not new to the performing realm- she is most commonly known as being a member of the Devics, but has recently split off to pursue her own music. The indie/pop/folk singer was signed to the Nettwerk label this past August. Since then, she has already produced her first solo EP, The Young Eyes, and her first full-length debut album Seasoned Eyes Were Burning will be released April 2009. The 5-track EP contains two amazing cover songs, "My Body Is A Cage" (Arcade Fire) and "Timebomb" (Beck), as well as 3 originals that showcase Sarah's honeyed melancholic voice and strong skill for the subdued musical dramatics.
My Body Is A Cage [mp3]
A Thousand Bees [mp3]
Purchase The Young Eyes on iTunes
A Thousand Bees [mp3]
Purchase The Young Eyes on iTunes
Also, KaiserCartel are currently nominated for The Deli's "Artist of the Month" (and deservedly so), but they need your vote! Please take a second out of your day to vote for them by clicking here.
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Thursday, November 6, 2008
The Lodger sings my feelings about America
Sometimes my iPod just knows what to do.
Now, I was driving home from a friends house Tuesday night after the election results came in, feeling pretty good about America. Regardless of who you voted for, and whether or not they won, you must admit that both of the candidates gave eloquent, appropriate, emotional and inspirational speeches that absolutely fit the bill. I was really proud of how gracious both of the candidates acted under the circumstances and how the concept of unity was shared and promoted by each side. I think tuesday night was a wonderful way for other countries to view America as a nation that promotes such positivity and friendship. There were no examples of anyone acting like a sore loser, and that honestly shocked me. I was really proud of America for the first time in...possibly ever. I was thinking that when this song came on, and it pretty much summed it up for me. I have a new found respect and admiration for the people in this country. Here's to a new phase in our country, everyone.
The Good Ole Days by The Lodger [mp3]
Check out The Lodger's myspace
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Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Music Videos to Celebrate
This has been a crazy week (in a good way! OBAMA! WOO!) so I'm going to post some music videos today. First up is Jukebox the Ghost with their new video for Victoria. It premieres on MTV2's Subterranean at 1am tonight.
Next is a pretty cool video (in my opinion) by Passion Pit for their song Sleepyhead.
Here is an older video from The XYZ Affair - All My Friends (for those of you Nickelodeon fans of my generation - see a few people you recognize?)
And lastly an artsy video from Ane Brun for her beautiful song, The Puzzle.
Next is a pretty cool video (in my opinion) by Passion Pit for their song Sleepyhead.
Here is an older video from The XYZ Affair - All My Friends (for those of you Nickelodeon fans of my generation - see a few people you recognize?)
And lastly an artsy video from Ane Brun for her beautiful song, The Puzzle.
Monday, November 3, 2008
KaiserCartel @ Cafe Du Nord
I had the immense pleasure of meeting the up and coming indie duo of the year the other night in San Fran when KaiserCartel opened for Matt Hales at Cafe Du Nord. KaiserCartel are the dynamic Brooklyn-based duo consisting of Courtney Kaiser and Benjamin Cartel, and I've posted about them before. I was lucky to meet them before and after the show and get to know them a bit better, and before I get to talking about the concert, here's some words from KaiserCartel themselves:How did you two meet?
CK: We met at the Knitting factory in NYC. We were playing in separate bands; Courtney Kaiser band and Benjamin Cartel band. We met in the back stage area and traded cds.....then we saw each other on the street a few months later, and made a date to hang out and exchange songs. Then because both our bands couldn't tour, we did a midwest tour together under our solo names, and audience members were asking us when the KaiserCartel cd would be coming out. It grew from there.
You were both teachers before you became KaiserCartel. With your tours and growing popularity, do you think you'll ever return to the classroom?
CK: We both love children and love teaching. When we're on the road, children find us, and we are able to still get that exchange without being in a formal classroom. I have no idea whether we will both one day be back in the classroom, but I think children are attracted to the music we make as well as adults, so we will be involved in some way forever.
What inspires your music?
BC: We like to watch movies and a lot of the time, and that can be an inspiration. Our song "White Dove" which is on the new EP "Okay and Other Things We Feel" was inspired by a 1960's art film titled White Dove. We are also inspired by everyday events in our lives and in lives of our friends.
What is your song-writing process like?
BC: Sometimes we write together and sometimes one of use will come with bits and pieces of a song and the other will add and change aspects of the song. Our process is all about the collaboration, so no matter how it happens, collaboration is always key to what we're doing.
CK: We use a little hand held tape recorder as well as garageband to record what we're working on. Right now we are focused on writing songs for the new record and writing songs for a friend who is working on a larger project in Africa called "The Art of Conversation."
Where did the cat puppet (displayed proudly on the drums) come from?
CK: I picked Daniel up at the Chelsea flea market. He reminded me of the Daniel from Mr. Rogers only black. His fur just seemed like the same fur. Then, I put my Grandma's watch on him and he just became a part of the show....We have to take him everywhere! We left him at Arlene's Grocery during CMJ and were so worried we lost him. Then we found out the soundman took him home. I heard that Daniel was well behaved, so I am glad about that!
I overheard you talking about how a milk frothier from Target is a nifty musical instrument- care to expand a bit on this?
BC: While we were making "March Forth" in LA with our producer Matt Hales (aka Aqualung), we heard Matt telling a runner to go to target to pick something up. We figured it was more tea. When the runner came back, Matt showed us the milk frother. He started playing it on piano strings, and Courtney started running around the studio using it on everything in sight.
CK: I loved it! It sounded amazing, so we have the sound in various places on the record.
Courtney, you seem to play the guitar a bit differently - you construct the chords mainly by using only your thumb. Any reason for this?
CK: One day, a long time ago, I changed the tuning on my guitar to open D. I was experimenting really, but loved the way that it sounded. I also discovered that I could make really cool sounding chords using my thumb and leaving some of the strings open. I think I used my thumb because my hand is so small.....
You end your concerts in a wonderfully special way by stepping off the stage and singing directly to and amongst the audience. What inspired this decision?
CK: We really like to connect with the audience in a different way. I think we are comfortable singing acapella because we did this as teachers, so really its so easy to do..But as we started doing this in the beginning, we realized were really having an emotional exchange with people and that made us want to do it more. It is my favorite part of the set.
You mentioned that you have written some new songs- any talk of when the next album will be recorded?
BC: We can't disclose that info yet, but we are working on it and will be doing demos at home first.
And because I like to end interviews James Lipton-style, what is your favorite word?
BC: color
CK: Vibration
KaiserCartel have a special version of Season Song (which btw, really should be on an Apple commercial) out right now on their website in order to encourage people to "Whistle While They Vote." Courtney says, "We are heading down to PA tuesday to entertain people while they are standing in line. The lines are super super long and people get bored and frustrated, so we are hoping that we can keep them there with our music!"
Support the Artist: Purchase KaiserCartel's other songs on iTunes
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TT The Bears w/ Margot and The Nuclear So and So’s
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First Unitarian Church w/ Margot and The Nuclear So and So’s
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Nov 21 2008 8:00P
The Pike Room at Crofoot w/ Margot and The Nuclear So and So’s
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The Bottom Lounge w/ Margot and The Nuclear So and So’s
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Nov 26 2008 8:00P
Steel City Coffee House w/ Jim Boggia
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The Kent Stage w/ Carrie Rodriguez
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Club Cafe w/ Carrie Rodriguez
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Dec 6 2008 8:30P
Acoustic Cafe
Bridgeport, Connecticut
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