Thursday, March 25, 2010

The XX, a group from south west London, came out with one of the raddest albums of 2009 last August. The band combines guitar and synth swells reminiscent of The Cure, with complex, yet simple beats via a drum machine. The end result is a spacey electronic sound choc full of beautiful melodies and moody, surreal lyrics.

Still in their late teens, these kids have a lot of potential to be one of the leading acts in modern music by taking old tricks and putting a new spin on them. Joy Division meet The Postal Service. Here's the opening instrumental track on their self titled debut xx.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

No Direction Home

Martin Scorsese. We all know who he is. Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, The Departed,and most recently Shutter Island. All incredible movies made by an incredible man. There is a side however, that people do not know to this little Italian American film director.

The Band, Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones. Scorsese and rock n' roll? Yes, Scorsese has directed The Last Waltz, which documents one of the greatest concerts of all time which consisted of The Band, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and other famous Canadian artists, No Direction Home, a near-four hour film that documents the incredible life of Bob Dylan, and Shine A Light, the Rolling Stone's 2006 Beacon Theater performance.

I'm not going to crank out a movie review or anything, but I just want to share this with you guys. Below, there is a little clip from No Direction Home, a movie I suggest you watch. It's a rare live version of "Love Minus Zero/No Limit", that Bobby played for his friends including Donovan and many beat poets, off of the legendary 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home. Bummer, sony copyrighted the original live version, here's the second best, sorry.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

She & Him - New Album out March 23rd


Her voice melts like butter on a stack of hot pancakes. His guitar shimmers, boasts and smiles all at the same time. Together, they are She & Him, Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward. In 2008, the established actress and folk guitarist came out with Vol. 1, an unforgettable album that combined 70's pop hooks with cascading guitars. To get a taste of this album check out "This Is Not a Test" and "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?", both great tunes.

Just recently this dynamic duo released a single for their upcoming album, Vol. 2, "In the Sun." Judging by this one song, I think we're in for a treat people. It's catchy and wonderful in every way you'd want.This song shows some great progress, and seals the deal that these two are just going to keep getting better and better. I don't know about you, but I'm itching for this one to hit the shelves. (Check out "In the Sun" below)

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Psychedelic Gems

I love psychedelic music. When you get that trippy stuff from the sixties, it doesn't get any better. I mean there's some killer psych rock out there today. But lets travel back to '67 to a nice little tune called "I Won't Hurt You" by an LA band called The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band. Might take a few listens, but the melody will grown on you. The tune is posted down low. Enjoy. (Check out this new inde psych band Real Estate in "Tracks To Check Out."



Gathering of the Vibes


This festival was originally created in 1996 by Ken Hays and some oh his dead head friends. The inaugural festival "Deadhead Heaven - A Gathering of the Tribe" was held on the campus of SUNNY Purchase to celebrate the life of the late Jerry Garcia and bring a place of joy and weekend of music and spiritual replenishment. Over the year the name has been changed to "The Gathering of the Vibes". This festival that started out as just a small group and a few bands has transformed into thousands of screaming fan who come to see a star studded line up. Last years performances included, among others:Ratdog, Dark Star Orchestra, moe, State Radio, Perpetual Groove, Buddy Guy and Crosby, Stills & Nash.
The 2010 Gathering of the Vibes celebrates the 15th year of the festival.Vibes, as it is referred to be annual attendees, is growing in popularity as modern-day hippies find a place to assemble. The 2010 line up is to released on March 19th. Early tickets are on sale now. The 2010 Vibes is July 29- August 1 at Seaside Park, Bridgeport, CT.
Below is a link the Vibes website where further information is available.
http://www.gatheringofthevibes.com/Home

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Analog Recording

Aren't you tired of those 65 year old die hard Bob Dylan fans who are always reminiscing of the old times, and passing up today's music. I feel like slapping them in the face every time i hear that. Check out The Tallest Man on Earth, an awesome Swedish folk musician (ma boy Bairdo posted a link to a killer song by this dude.)

An awesome thing about music nowadays is that analog recording is coming back from the grave. Some of today's greats such as Jack White, Wilco, and M. Ward are re-popularizing it. Bands all over are doing it, check out this jazzed up and groovy tune by this 10-piece group Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. (I'd like to point out this guy's mad classy dancing)