Daytrotter Sessions - The Bowerbirds

Great Daytrotter Session from The Bowerbirds. This is one of the better Sessions I've heard from Daytrotter. The Bowerbirds are a great band if you haven't heard them and you really should check them out. Listen to "Human Hands" and "Untitled" first and then everything else. I'll post a feature on them soon but you can keep busy with their take away shows that I posted a while back. Check them out here, here and here.

Daytrotter Sessions - Bishop Allen

Bishop Allen stopped by Daytrotter last year and did a pretty good set. Listen to "The Monitor" and "The Same Fire" and "Butterfly Nets" (this one is very different than their normal). The song "The Monitor" is very Bright Eyes esque. These songs are a slight different than their usual stuff mainly because it's only one of the guys from the group and they don't have as much of their quirkiness on the tracks. Still worth a listen. First posted Bishop Allen back on this post.

Google lives in the ocean

I had a wikipedia Friday:

Who wins the American Settler Invasion?

Thought this was a pretty cool map: Top US Ancestries by county

What are they oooooing?

So I was watching the Germany and Turkey Euro 2008 game the other day. Before the game started I heard the crowd chanting with "ooooo's" to a familiar rhythm that was playing under the crowd noise. This included both the Germans and the Turks "ooooo"ing all together. After a few minutes I realized it was "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes. How has a hit rock song in the US become a unified chant at a multi-national mainstay sport, a sport which is way more popular than American football? You would guess that the Germans would be singing a German anthem and the Turks a Turkish anthem, but no, they've agreed and both know the US centric song "Seven Nation Army". I guess the White Stripes have invaded Europe like the Beatles invaded the US. If that's true I'd like to pick a new candidate to bring American music to European soccer matches.

Take Away Show Friday - Bon Iver "Flume"

#93.4 BON IVER - Flume (second take)
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Take Away Show Friday - Bon Iver "The Wolves (Act I & II)"

I was a big fan of last week's Bon Iver take away shows so I'm posting the last two of theirs:

#93.5 BON IVER - Wolves (Act I & II)
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Take Away Show Friday - Delano Orchestra "Between Day and Night"

Delano Orchestra - Between Day and Night
Uploaded by lablogotheque

You Can Open For Coldplay

Article from pitchfork about Coldplay's invite of a local bands to open for them. I wonder if Greg's former band Argus is going to submit a video?

Where do I start? - Matt Costa

(see previous post to see what this post is all about)
Don't worry if you've just heard of Matt Costa and now like him. He only has 2 full albums which makes it easy to catch up on his albums. The best album to start on, purchase and hear a good sampling of his music is "Songs We Sing". I highly recommend picking up this album, especially the songs: "Cold December", "Sunshine", "Sweet Rose", & "Yellow Taxi". So, start on "Songs We Sing", sample it here.

---

If you're adventurous and/or heard that album and like to move on, continue below...


Matt Costa only has 2 full albums and a handful of EP's. I would ignore most of the listings in that link and focus on his best album "Songs We Sing". Once you get an appreciation for his music you can move onto the good but not as good as "Songs We Sing", album called "Unfamiliar Faces". His most catchy tune and the song that's gained him the most notoriety is "Mr. Pitiful".


It's a great song but the album doesn't follow suit as much but is still very good. More songs to check out are "Cigarette Eyes" or "Miss Magnolia" If you are a fan of his "Songs We Sing" you'll like most of "Unfamiliar Faces".

From there you can move onto the EP's, "Elasmosauras EP" or "Matt Costa EP" but I wouldn't buy them as they share songs with his main two albums.

Matt Costa is a great artist and one of my favorites, I definitely recommend starting on and buying "Songs We Sing" and then taking it to his latest "Unfamiliar Faces". Enjoy.

Where do I start? - The beginning

I was talking to a friend of mine the other day about Matt Costa. He had never heard of him and wanted to try him out but didn't know where to start. It got me thinking about this site. I post a lot of new bands that may have already 2-5 albums under their belt. With more than 2 albums already out there it's hard to know where to start with the artist (eg. The Avett Brothers, Mason Jennings) , especially if they had signed with a label during the years or if their band had changed from album to album. So I'm going to start something new I like to call "Where do I start?" where I feature an artist that has more than one or two albums under their belt and I'll recommend a good album to start with and where to go from there. I'm gonna put it out there; if you like it, you can take it, if you don't, send it right back.

First artist, Matt Costa, will follow this post. I'll continue with artists that I've already posted on this site. Hope you guys like it and it helps in your music acquisition process.

(to come: Avett Brothers, Mason Jennings, Eric Hutchinson, etc...)

Fireman save the day

or give the truck a wash:

Sufjan Stevens - Henney Buggy Band

I was re listening to this song today and I gotta say it ranks up there with Sufjans best upbeat songs and best of all last.fm has it free . (play it below)

Sufjan Stevens – Henney Buggy Band

All of Last.fm's free songs

The Microphones

The Microphones - purevolume. This is a guy that could easily fit onto a soundtrack like on Juno or a Zach Braff film. He's very low key in that most songs I've heard he has no band, just his guitar. I guess he's got a modern day Nick Drake or Elliot Smith thing going on. I'm not the biggest fan of him but he's got an alright sound and might have more potential. Listen to "I Felt Your Shape" if you want to get a feel for him.

Music on TV - June 23-28

Monday, June 23:

FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: the Black Angels
NBC: The Tonight Show With Jay Leno: Sleepercar (rerun)
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Drive-By Truckers (rerun)
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Grizzly Bear (rerun)
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: N.E.R.D. (rerun)

Tuesday, June 24:

NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Billy Bragg (rerun)
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin (rerun)
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Billy Idol

Wednesday, June 25:

CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Three 6 Mafia
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Tift Merritt

Thursday, June 26:

SUNDANCE: Live From Abbey Road: Kate Nash
FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: Damien Jurado
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Cyndi Lauper

NBC: Friday, June 27:

NBC: The Today Show: Coldplay
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Wild Sweet Orange
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: the Raconteurs (rerun)

Saturday, June 28:

FOX: Fearless Music TV: Bear Hands, Uh Huh Her, the Epochs
PBS: Austin City Limits: Café Tacuba (rerun)
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Wilco (rerun)

New Seabird album

Seabird, whom I posted back in February, is releasing their new album this Friday "Til We See The Shore". I haven't heard any of it yet but from what I've heard it's got a lot of people talking about it. And if it's better than their last album then it will be worth a purchase, as their last one was definitely worth a purchase. Might have a review for you later. For now, check out their site or iTunes.

Matt Wertz

Matt Wertz is playing for free in Virginia Beach this Thursday at Neptune's Park on 31st St.

Here's a cheesy video:


He's playing with Matt Nathanson:


and Anna Nalick:

Avett Brothers Alive

Last night I saw the most entertaining concert I've ever seen. No question about that. I saw the Avett Brothers at the Attucks Theater in Norfolk. Since I write like I talk and can't form a decent sentence I figured I would state my disjointed thoughts and facts about the show. There are so many aspects of them as a band that make it an incredible show...here are some:

1. It will be the most entertaining show you'll ever see.
2. You have no choice but to smile the whole time or look on in awe.
3. The brothers have two unique voices but have the ability to sound the exact same.
4. They do not have the ability to stand still.
5. They only have the ability to dance or move in noodly fashion.

6. The brothers are incredibly talented and each play the following: banjo, guitar, drums, keys, vocals
7. Scott Avett broke 14 strings between his two banjos.
8. This is the most unique band you'll ever see
9. They have defined a musical genre that no one has ever done and probably will never do. As Gregarious described it: "Killers arena bluegrass rock"
10. It is near impossible to remain seated.
11. The brothers harmonies will make you have goosebumps when heard live: (this doesn't do it justice but it's the best i can find online, see exhibit A)

12. Scott Avett plays the kick drum while playing banjo, Seth Avett plays the high hat while playing guitar...never seen that done.

13. They are great songwriters and convey their message to the audience very well.
14. Their music in the studio is very good but you will gain a true understanding and will get a true listen to their music at their live shows. You almost don't have the ability to understand or hear their music until you hear it live. I know that sounds snide but I've listened to them for a while before hearing them live and now that I've heard them live I have a true understanding for their music. I guess for the most part that makes sense with most bands but put together their personalities, their ability to interact with the audience during the song, their raw talent, and their incredible energy and you've got the whole package of understanding the real avett brothers.
15. They dress like old bluegrass hillbillies.
16. Scott Avett tunes his banjo midstrum and midsong.
17. They play incredibly upbeat songs and then when you least expect it, play a heartwarming slower song. I typically don't like slower songs, but I dug every one of theirs. (see exhibit B)


18. They play to the audience more during the songs than between their songs
19. That's enough.

If you have the chance go see their show. This was truly the most entertaining concert/show I've ever seen and probably ever will. I used to think Dave Matthews was the best live touring band but the Avett Brothers blows them out of the water. They even beat Robert Randolph and the Family Band's energy, which is a large feat considering he too doesn't know how to stop moving.

Great great show, go see them, you won't regret it. I even think if you don't like their music you will like their show. I put my guarantee on that.

Take Away Show Friday - Bon Iver "Lump Sum"

#93.1 - BON IVER - Lump Sum
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Take Away Show Friday - Bon Iver "For Emma, Forever Ago"

#93.3 - BON IVER - For Emma, Forever Ago
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Take Away Show Friday - Bon Iver "Skinny Love"

#93.6 BON IVER - Skinny Love
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Your timing is impeccable

Great page of pictures taken at the right time

Avett Brothers Livetime

Gregarious, Jason and a few others are going to see the Avett Brothers tonight at the Attucks theater, this great old small theater in Norfolk (saw Amos Lee and Mindy Smith there), and we're pretty excited cause this is a great live band...see exhibit A:



See my previous small post on them from earlier sometime ago whence.

Xavier Rudd - repost

I posted this back on 5/20/08 but I needed to repost this in case anyone missed it. If you didn't have the chance to listen the first time around or missed it, give him the listen he deserves...I guarantee you'll like him if you have ever liked any of the following artists: Jack Johnson, Matt Costa, Donavon Frankenreiter, Timmy Curran. Give him a shot.



Xavier Rudd - Last.fm. This is a really interesting artist. He's Australian, a surfer, plays the digiridoo, lap guitar, sounds like Donavon Frankenreiter and Jack Johnson with a little Timmy Curran thrown in. This guy is definitely worth checking out if not buying both of his albums. Check out all the songs, especially "Let Me Be". Good, good stuff.

FLOREZ - two new ones

You can get their new "Yellow Shoes" EP on iTunes.

It also features the song "Sweet Tea":

and yes, their bass player was on Survivor...

Music on TV - June 16-22

Monday, June 16:

COMEDY CENTRAL: The Colbert Report: R.E.M.
FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: No Age
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Adele, Stevie Wonder

Tuesday, June 17:

ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Chromeo

Wednesday, June 18:

CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Martha Wainwright
FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: MGMT
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: the Game
NBC: The Tonight Show With Jay Leno: Against Me!
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: the Fratellis

Thursday, June 19:

ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Lil Wayne
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: My Morning Jacket
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Keyshia Cole
SUNDANCE: Live From Abbey Road: Mary J. Blige
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Cloud Cult

Friday, June 20:

NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Alejandro Escovedo
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: the Baseball Project (Scott McCaughey and Steve Wynn)

Saturday, June 21:

PBS: Austin City Limits: Miranda Lambert, Gretchen Wilson

Gamerbus

So my wife and 15 other wives got together for Father's Day and rented out the Gamerbus for 3 hours last night. It was the best 3 hours I've had in a long time. It's a great idea this guy has: take an old rv, gut the thing, put in 16 fishing seats, 16 23" HD widescreen tv's, 16 xbox 360 on system link, 16 cup/beer holders and buy 16 copies of the best xbox360 games, rent it out on the hour and make bank. We each paid 28 bucks for 3 hours, so $9 bucks an hour which is cheaper than you'd pay at an arcade or Dave & Busters. Mr. Gamerbus gets to have fun watching people play video games and makes it a family business so he doesn't have to pay anyone. The guy is great too, very nice and accommodating and knows the games left and right. Our favorite game to play last night was Call of Duty 4.

It was so fun and I'm so thankful that my wife is that thoughtful of me. I wish those of you not living at the beach can experience the Gamerbus one day, it's fantastic.

The Pictures Have It

somewhere on this island, someone did something bad

Happy Father's Day to the true father

How did they find octuplets?
Fox News has been to urbandictionary.com
I guarantee you that whatever is up there, is not worth it:
Well preserved or well spray painted?

Adding to the Noise

David Ford at his best. Love this kind of stuff (thanks Jason):

W on Global Warming

W on the ranch

Old one, but great

Knock Knock

The end makes it:

So Smooth

Weezer Jam Fan

Original Article from pitchfork.com

Excerpt from article:

Here's a sentence that will make your mind explode just a tiny bit: in a recent interview with internet-based singing sensation/"Pork and Beans" clip co-star Tay Zonday for MTV.com, Weezer revealed plans for a tour in which they will invite several hundred of their fans to perform along with them.

When asked of the band's intentions to promote that new Red Album, Weezer frontman/wacky-rock spokesnut Rivers Cuomo told the "Chocolate Rain" crooner, "We're going to go on a tour. It's called the Hootenanny Tour, and it's coming to your town in June. We're gonna bring ourselves and invite a bunch of Weezer fans down to bring their instruments and, uh, jam with us. I don't know, 100, 200 people, whatever. Everyone come down and bring an instrument-- whatever you can play-- and we'll jam out on our songs." Now might be a good time to dust off that "shoulda kept it 'In the Garage'" pun you've been saving.

According to a Weezer rep, the tour will consist of "four or five" West Coast dates, kicking off at an as-yet-undisclosed venue in Phoenix, Arizona on June 16. An L.A. "Hootenanny"-style gig, meanwhile, will apparently take place in mid-summer. The Weezer site suggests more tour info will surface soon, and jeez, it damn well better. June 16 is just around the corner!

While chatting with Mr. Zonday, Rivers also mentioned plans for a more traditional Weezer tour to hit Japan in September and the U.S. in October.

What's more, consummate journalist Zonday got Rivers to open up about the aims he set out with for the Red Album. "Our approach was to get into the studio and try to blow our minds with whatever we wanted to do. To just have fun, so that when we pressed play and listened back to what we did, our minds were just blown. That was the goal." I understand the Jonas Brothers work under much the same conditions.

Take Away Show Friday - Stephen Malkmus "Wicked Wanda"

Take Away Show Friday - Stephen Malkmus "We Can't Help You"

Take Away Show Friday - Stephen Malkmus "Hopscotch Willie"

Take Away Show Friday - REM "Living Well is the Best Revenge"

Great great stuff:

Simpsons Actors

See the people behind the voices! It's a few years old and they run animation over the actors a bit too much, but it's still pretty interesting:

Introducing: Spazz McAngerly

Best/Worst Office Freakout ever: (thanks Jason)

Album Review - Fleet Foxes "Sun Giant EP"

Pitchfork gave a very good review of Fleet Foxes latest album "Sun Giant EP". Fleet Foxes has been creating a lot of buzz from this album and I'm pretty sure their fan base has grown immensely by now. Here is an excerpt from the summary:

The Sun Giant EP ends with Pecknold alone once more, singing "Innocent Son" with only a few brusque strums as accompaniment. With only the sparsest elements, he turns the song into a sort of rough county-road soul, his voice unceremoniously fading out on the final words. This song, and the others here, reinforce the impression that Sun Giant is more than a tour souvenir or a promotional teaser for a proper release. It's a sovereign work: a statement EP, supremely crafted and confident.

Album Review - My Morning Jacket "Evil Urges"

Pitchfork reviewed My Morning Jackets latest album "Evil Urges" and it didn't turn out so well, 4.7 out of 10.0. There is a free download of "Evil Urges" (song) here. Here is the summary:

Still, James' tender side also leads to Urges' best moments, which bookend the album. Nicely sequenced after the title track at the start of the record, "Touch Me I'm Going to Scream, Pt. 1" is the perfect sequel to Z's sly "It Beats 4 U", down to the songs' similarly insistent, live/synthetic drum patter, and the way they isolate James' voice in a chilly emotional purgatory, only to be cracked with passion: "I need a human by my side, untied" is vulnerability done right. James is smart enough to know when he's got something good, and he ends Urges with an eight-and-a-half minute dark disco reprise of "Touch Me", slowly taking shape as the solemn, steady "Smokin' From Shootin'" fades out. With its patient, synthetic gleam slithering around James' lusty hoodoo, "Touch Me, Pt. 2" is My Morning Jacket's Moroder moment, bringing a highly frustrating record to a close with the line "Oh, this feeling is wonderful/ Don't turn it off." If it hadn't been such an exhausting ride to get there, I might not want to.

Lego scenes, part deux

Famous pictures from history done in Legos

Everyone loves Legos

Video game scenes done in Lego's.

Daytrotter Sessions - Rogue Wave

Great Daytrotter Session from Rogue Wave

Tropic Thunder - viral video

From the MTV movie awards:

A little Mitch for your Saturday

Fly Derrie-Air

What a great spoof.

And the Donut said: "I shall be free"

Free Donut Day at Krispy Kreme Oh fantastic.

Take Away Show Friday - Bowerbirds "In Our Talons"

#90.4 - BOWERBIRDS - In our talons
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Take Away Show Friday - Poney Express "Cry" (Johnny Cash cover)

Poney Express - Cry (Johnny Cash cover)
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Love It Live

In honor of our multiple posts about Eric Hutchinson's show last weekend, I present the following question:

What's the best concert you've ever been to or your favorite band to see live? Feel free to post a comment below and include venue, opening acts, reason why it's the favorite, etc...

I have several favorites:

My favorite band to see live is Guster because I know all their songs and appreciate their talent, but also love how they interact with the crowd.

My favorite concert was back in 1994 or 1995 when I saw Eddie From Ohio open for Vertical Horizon at the now-defunct Ziggy's in Winston-Salem, NC. It was the first time I had seen EFO and they were a perfect opener. They got the crowd excited and ready for VH to rock.

Favorite "folk" show - Nickel Creek at The NorVa - they demanded a quiet crowd and waited until they got it. That was a cool experience.

Favorite "rock" show - The Raconteurs at The NorVa - I was a big Brendan Benson fan, but never got into The White Stripes. Their team-up produced an excellent live show.

There are others, of course, but now it's your turn...

The Pictures Have It

Insert a Little Jon "What":

Master Chief, in balloons:

I guarantee this sign is here because it happened before:

Bad translation or tasty drink?

Daytrotter Sessions - Seawolf

One of my top 15 favorite artists has a Daytrotter Session. He does "You're A Wolf", "I Made a Resolution", "Sea Monument" and "Middle Distance Runner". Listen to all the songs but if your day only allows you to listen to one, listen to "I Made a Resolution". If you missed my new artist feature on him, here it is.

The Hutch's Music

By the way, all these postings about our long time favorite Eric Hutchinson and no links to his music. That stops here at myspace and his main site and below...

By the way, I think his label is pushing the "Rock & Roll" song quite a bit. It's a great song but he has ones that I think are better, like "All Over Now" or "Food Chain"... Like I said in my previous post, these songs below are great live and on his live album.


Rock & Roll Video:


Behind the scenes:

The Hutch

In response to Gregarious' post about meeting Eric Hutchinson, I needed to post my own thoughts on the Hutch. If you have a chance to see this man then buy tickets and see him as you won't be dissapointed. He makes great music, he's incredibly entertaining to watch, he's witty, he's very interactive with the crowd and he's got a great band playing with him. His drummer is just plain cool and I would put his bass player's technical skills up there with Juan Nelson (hard to beat Juan's artistic creativity nature though), Ben Harpers bass player. Truly a great band to see live. There were only about 60 people there, 30 of them up front, which allowed us to be free to explore the space, but their showmanship didn't decline at all...they basically played as if there were 1000 people there.

A note on Hutch's liveness. I first heard Hutch, thanks to Greg, on his cd: "Before I Sold Out" which is a live album. It's a great place to start because I think his live stuff is better than his studio stuff. His studio albums have incorporated some good rhythms, give it an extra "umph" and "Sounds Like This" is great, but there is nothing that beats the Hutch's live voice and live quips. It was kind of like Dave Matthews back in the day of "Remember Two Things" when they couldn't match their live greatness with a studio album like "Under the Table and Dreaming". Don't get me wrong, his studio albums are very very good, but it's hard to top someone who has such raw talent that is not tweaked by a sound engineer. The soul of his voice just comes across more when heard live or heard on a live album.

Anyways, the Hutch is great to see live because he's a natural talent and very entertaining. I would suggest first starting at "Before I Sold Out" and then moving onto "Sounds Like This". If you missed the videos about the Hutch performing Justin Timberlake or George Michael, give them a watch and that'll give you a good idea of his liveness. By the way, he performed "It Hasn't Been Long Enough" as Cher would have done it in the early 90's. Go see his show.

Josh Pyke

Josh Pyke - purevolume. Another Aussie that makes a great sound in the indie/acoustic/folk genre. He puts together some good sounds and rhythms and his voice makes you want to listen. Worth checking him out, especially the song "Middle of the Hill".

The sweater you've always wanted

Bill Cosby is selling off his famous sweaters for charity. The comedian has teamed up with auction management agency Auction Cause to offer his legendary winter wear to fans via an upcoming eBay.com online auction.

Cosby wore the multi-colored sweaters on episodes of The Cosby Show, which ran from 1984 to 1992. The proceeds from the auction will benefit the Hello Friend/Ennis William Cosby Foundation charity.

The Cosby sweaters will be sold at eBay Giving Works, eBay's dedicated program for charity listings, from June 2-12.

The Hello Friend/Ennis William Cosby Foundation is a non-profit educational organization established by the Cosby family in 1997 following the murder of Ennis Cosby, Bill's son.

The funnyman's daughter, Evin, inspired her parents to auction off the famous TV sweaters after coming across them in a closet.

She says, "My mother and father were going through a storage closet, and I happened to be there and pounced on these sweaters. I told them that the price of what some of these sweaters might sell for could make a big difference in the lives of thousands of children."

This Week in TV Music

June 2-8:

Monday, June 2:

NBC: Late Night With Conan O’Brien: The Raconteurs
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Donna Summer
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Does It Offend You, Yeah?
FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: The Kooks

Tuesday, June 3:

Syndicated: Live With Regis and Kelly: the B-52s

Wednesday, June 4:

FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: Dizzee Rascal
NBC: The Tonight Show With Jay Leno: N.E.R.D.
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Coldplay

Thursday, June 5:

CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Al Green

Friday, June 6:

FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: Cut Copy
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Ting Tings
NBC: Late Night With Conan O’Brien: Lightspeed Champion
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: the Heavy
CBC (Canada): The Hour With George Stroumboulopoulos: Coldplay

Saturday, June 7:

PBS: Austin City Limits: The Raconteurs, Cat Power (rerun)
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Kanye West (rerun)
Fox: Fearless Music TV: De Novo Dahl, Temposhark

DJ meets the Hutch

Tyler and I took our wives to see Eric Hutchinson at the NorVa last night. My wife took this picture while Tyler's wife collected her prize for 2nd place in the best fan contest (free shirt)! The second picture was taken during the concert, but my phone doesn't have a flash...

The Pictures Have It