Of Montreal @ Roseland Ballroom, NY, October 10, 2008

All you need to know about Of Montreal's current tour: Kevin Barnes rides a white horse (like a real, live horse, not some fake, prop horse) wearing nothing but gold underwear!

If you've never seen this band live, you're in for a real head trip. The glammy absurdism borders on surreal, like a Dali painting come to life. Think bizzaro costume changes, ninja actors parading around in glittery masks and more eye makeup then you or I have owned in our entire lives. Also if I hear one more teeny bopper shout "Let's go to Outback tonight!" I will break their knee caps.


Skeletal Lamping is due out later this month. If you're in the mood for a romp through sexed-up disco-funk-land you'll want to visit this album. Seriously Kevin Barnes explicitly states that he wants to make you "come 200 times a day". I listened this album only twice, but I think he succeeded.

Id Engager - Of Montreal

and a slightly older, mellower flip-side to the above scenario:
Eros' Entropic Tundra - Of Montreal

Okkervil River @ the Tralf, Buffalo, NY 10/10/2008

A Girl In Port
Singer Songwriter
A Hand To Take Hold Of The Scene
Black
The Latest Toughs
On Tour With Zykos
Blue Tulip
John Allyn Smith Sails
Pop Lie
Maine Island Lovers
Lost Coastlines
Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe >
For Real
Unless It's Kicks

Encore:
Okkervil River Song
Westfall

Okkervil River @ Webster Hall, NY, October 7, 2008

I have been trying to see Okkervil River for years, literally years. But every attempt has been thwarted by bad scheduling, too much homework and other such lame excuses. BUT, last night compensated in every single conceivable way. And it started with a cat.
I got to the venue nearly an hour before doors opened, but this adorable black cat, lets call him Linguine (because he looks like he must be related to Spaghetti Cat), had already beaten me to being first on line. I'm assuming the cat wasn't a stray because it was immaculately groomed with a shiny, shiny coat and wasn't the least bit skittish. In fact we even cuddled and everyone assumed it was mine. We bonded. Nevermind what they say about black cats bringing bad luck, Linguine was a most auspicious start of the night. OK, OK, so now on to the actual show. IT ROCKED! Will Sheff dripped sweat and spit and being in the front row, I reveled in it. Never, never have I seen a band pour that much of themselves, quite literally on stage. AND they continued for more than two hours playing song after song after song. Howling in hysterics, so shambolically melodic!

But here's where the win comes in, the literal win. Every night on their current tour, Okkervil's raffling off a one-of-a-kind brand new song. In order to enter, all you have to do is buy a sticker (a really pretty sticker!) and all the proceeds go towards reducing carbon emissions while they tour. Great cause, great sticker, chance to win a great new song for only $2 - count me in, I'm feeling lucky!

So during the encore Will reaches into a cup and draws a number, lucky 153, and get this...I WIN. I shriek! I'm standing in the front row and jump up and down getting Will's attention. He shakes my hand and tells me to go to the merch table after the show to pick up my newly recorded song on CD. WIN!

Sooo I head back to the merch table still reeling filled with soaring music and winning awe, Kelly, their super-sweet merch lady informs me she still hasn't received the freshly recorded CD and I should just hold tight. Someone should deliver it shortly. I hang around for about 15 minutes. No CD still, so Kelly texts Will himself. By this point the merch table's beginning to get packed up and I'm getting impatient.

Then Okkervil's manager lady swings by and tells me to follow her upstairs to Webster Hall's VIP section and wait with her. Getting access to an area where I'd normally be denied is making me feel very important. Then Will himself, who might I add is THE SEX with his perfectly shaggy hair and tight, sweaty t-shirt hands me the CD and apologizes for making me wait. We hug. TWICE! (My enthusiam is akin to the that of Art Brut's "Good Weekend"). I gawk. A lot. And tell him how I've been meaning to see him forever. And I stare. I stare. A lot at his gleaming eyes and humble smile. I swear he probably thinks I'm autistic. Time to use my favorite verb: Swoon. Here's the note that Will wrote that accompanied the CD:

And as for the song, well yeah of course it's great. And all mine. But not to fear faithful readers, as soon as their tour is up I will post it for you all to hear. (or actually maybe not because the band really doesn't want this song leaking and I totally respect that) But in the meantime, try and win a copy yourself. This one's for my ears only!

But here are other great songs by Okkervil. And if you haven't already, please buy The Stand Ins. Linguine implores you!

Okkervil River - Singer-Songwriter.mp3
Okkervil River - The Latest Toughs.mp3

Andrew Bird @ The State Theatre, Ithaca, NY, 10/4/2008

Andrew Motherfucking Bird!


On the left there is Katie, our intrepid Sufjan correspondent and music rumor mill, and on the right is yours truly.

Oh but wait, you wanted pictures of Andrew Bird at the show!! Well unfortunately those are going to be a bit hard to come by, as virtually all cameras were confiscated upon entrance. We did see one or two telltale flashes go off during the performance, though, so we knew someone would get SOMEthing. And someone did! There are some pics here.

This was one of only a handful of solo shows he is performing in the NE this October. Andrew used a sample-and-loop machine to layer his own pluckings, strummings, whistles and claps to full orchestral warmth. The formal seating of the old theatre made the affair an intimate one, if not without it's occasional odd moments.

For example, while waiting for the lights to come down we kept hearing what sounded like a duck in the theatre. Also, there was the "run-by shirting:" at one point between songs, some guy ran across the front of the stage and threw a shirt at Andrew and then just kept on running without looking back. Unfolded, the shirt read "Obama '08" to which Andrew dryly commented with "I approve this message." (Which is cute and all, but can we keep the politics out for once?)

SETLIST!
Il Conformista Prelude
Sovay
Why?
A Nervous Tic Motion Of The Head To The Left
Plasticities
Natural Disaster
Headsoak
Imitosis
Fitz and the Dizzyspells ("Which sounds like the name of a Polka band")
The Water Jet Cilice
Lull
Trimmed
Tables and Chairs
---encore---
Weather Systems

The songs you might not recognize--"Natural Disaster" and "Fitz and the Dizzyspells" are on the upcoming NEW ALBUM, "Noble Beast," which will (supposedly) be a two-disc set (one of new materials and one disc of instrumentals. Live In Montreal will be a separate album)! Needless to say, if the songs we've heard so far (these, plus "Oh No," streaming over at Pitchfork, and "Anonanimal," which has been played at recent shows) are any indication, we have every reason to anticipate the January 22 release date with impatience.

OH WAIT BUT I DO HAVE A PICTURE OF ANDREW!


EDIT: hahaha, check out the dude in the background, whom we have erroneously dubbed "Larry." since been informed that his name is Bob! He is our new mascot. I shall now rate events and albums on a 5-point Larry Bob Scale. For example, I would have to conclude the Bird show in Ithaca was a FIVE-LARRY BOB SHOW!


Andrew Bird - Anonanimal(live).mp3
Andrew Bird - Why? (live).mp3
Andrew Bird - Skin Is, My (live).mp3

Note, these are live cuts from Millenium Park on September 9, with Andrew's full band. This was a solo show and had quite a different sound. Hooray for sneaky videotapers + YouTube! Here he is performing "Lull" at the Ithaca show:

"My favourite Daniel Johnston song was recorded on a tape deck before you were born..."

So you know how sometimes you listen to bands like Arcade Fire or The National or maybe Sufjan Stevens or Rufus Wainwright and it's just so atmospheric and breathtaking? Like all the many and varied instruments (I'll never forget how gleeful June was about the church organ on Neon Bible...) and the mingling voices all combine to create this perfect and otherworldly and beautiful moments? You hear it and your breath catches and it's just so amazing, all these elements coming together.

Jacob Golden manages to capture that epic, sweeping 'woah' moment perfectly on his 2007 album "Revenge Songs." But somehow, and don't ask me how exactly, but somehow he does it with just himself and his guitar. No orchestra, no choir, no church organ, not even a cello or a glockenspiel. And I don't even notice their absence.

Amazing.

Jacob Golden - Out Come The Wolves.mp3
Jacob Golden - Hold Your Hair Back.mp3
(I really, really, love this one guys. Really).

Check out his site and buy the album HERE!

dying has just been made finer

Some of you might be familiar with the e.e. cummings poem "dying is fine)but Death". Some of you might be familiar with the Ra Ra Riot song "Dying is Fine" (which is inspired by the aforementioned poem). Both are lovely in their own right. The song bubbles along with plucky orchestral strings, which I guess is the sonic equivalent of insane punctuation usage and poetic line breaks.

Here is the poem:

dying is fine)but Death

?o
baby
i

wouldn't like

Death if Death
were
good:for

when(instead of stopping to think)you

begin to feel of it,dying
's miraculous
why?be

cause dying is

perfectly natural;perfectly
putting
it mildly lively(but

Death

is strictly
scientific
& artificial &

evil & legal)

we thank thee
god
almighty for dying
(forgive us,o life!the sin of Death

Here is the song:
Dying is Fine - Ra Ra Riot

Knob, Volume Knob.

It's curious thing. My boredom with the James Bond film series is matched only by my love of the James Bond soundtracks. Live And Let Die? Nobody Does It Better? Yes, yes, yes.

Another Way To Die is a worthy entry to the list. And not just the James Bond list, but the Jack White list as well. Mr. White spends so much time in the realms of minimalism, its an interesting change to see what he does with the big band bit. I think he pulls it off, and then some.

Another Day To Die (a nice, high quality version). - Jack White and Alicia Keys

REPOST by popular (& timely!) request

Ed Note: We originally posted this entry last year, but oh what a crazy year it's been. Those of us in the States have been overwhelmed with election coverage that rivals reality TV in its absurdity. We got Obama, McCain and a little lady from some Alaskan bridge to nowhere who essentially parodies herself. Might as well throw some rock stars into the mix. Oh and yeah, Don't Forget to Vote!

This is what happens when you have new graphic design software, not a lot of creativity, and a lot of time on your hands. (If you can think of any other great pairings or campaign slogans, pass 'em on and I'll see what I can do with it.)



















This last one is for the greatest mashup of all time:
R. Kelly/Jens Lekman mashup - If I Could Rock (It Would Feel Like This).mp3

I know, it's truly difficult to imagine that Jens himself didn't write lyrics like, "the way we fuck gon' lead to chil'burfin'," and, "girl your booty so swole, how you get dem jeans around it," but it's true! You learn something every day.

Finally a good use for your old REO Speedwagon LPs

Don't worry we're not about to get all art critic-y on you, but we do want to fill you in on this awesome new exhibit, which happens to contain albums that look better then they sound.

The brand-spanking re-opened Museum of Arts and Design (the awesomely acronymed MAD) in New York has an inaugural exhibition entitled "Second Lives: Remixing the Ordinary". Basically it features mundane, household objects that have been imaginatively transformed into works of art. But needless to say we were most enamored with the butterfly records. Look at all those albums just flying away!



More info on MAD here

Don't make yourself unhappy...

Sometimes all it takes is a line. Just one lyric and you're totally won over. The latest song guilty of conquering my heart - "Hey Love" by The Piano Creeps.

"Every day means one less happy ending"

I'm not exactly sure what a disillusioned music box would sound like, but I'm pretty sure the Piano Creeps come close. I can almost see the ballerina doll twirling before the jewelry box's lid shuts tight leaving her alone in the dark. Or to put it in more concrete terms, think Martha Wainwright fronting Beach House, except less funereal and more music-boxy. Their album is also aptly entitled Future Blues (For Me and You) and is due out this October on the Kora Records.

Hey Love - The Piano Creeps

Ridiculous Cover of the Day

So you know that goofily bombastic anthem, the one with the crazy catchy/annoying synth riff that defies "earworm". Well some band I've never heard of called The Social Services completely reinvented it Beirut style. We're talking waltzing horns and lilting piano and a chorus of la la las, not to mention coyly girly vocals. It's a transformative work of staggering vulnerable beauty. My mind is blown. I wonder what Gob Bluth would think.

The Social Services - The Final Countdown (Europe cover).mp3

Super fun bonus video, Arrested Development style!

When correlation and causation are close bedfellows

Our intrepid correspondent Katie forwarded a little gem to us today: A chart graphing music preferences related to SAT scores.

Here's a tiny peak at the chart (the vertical axis means nothing):

Click to make HUGE!

Might I take a moment to smugly note that the forerunner after Beethoven's commanding lead is... why, it's none other than Sufjan Stevens! Huh! How about THAT! Guster, Ben Folds and Radiohead also take strong and unsurprising leads on the intellectual front.

At the opposite end of the spectrum are people who list Lil' Wayne as their favorite artist. We also see a cluster of people too disinterested in music to narrow down anything more specific than an entire genre: pop, jazz, gospel, rock. Clearly, the people who just say "classical" without being able to conjure up a single name only want to appear smart. Tsk. (Apparently, if you want to appear smart, you should just tell people you listen to Sufjan.)

Also of interesting note are certain artists who are very tightly clustered at a certain point (John Mayer) while others enjoy a considerable spread (OutKast). Draw your own conclusions.

There're more than 1350 schools listed here from which these results were culled, including the Top 10 rankings in music for each school. Schools are ranked according to SAT scores.

Notes of personal interest: Jess' school, Vassar, is highly ranked (#32) but lists only three artists from the list as favorite. Ask her, and she'll no doubt claim it's because they're all listening to amazing under-the-radar stuff that doesn't gain enough cumulative popularity to make rank in a list like this. [insert eyeroll here] My own alma matter, Western Washington University (#414) has a strong showing for local heroes Modest Mouse and Death Cab for Cutie--the members of which are all WWU alums themselves.

This allows us to consider certain degrees of "favoritism" among band-university relations: Christian bands are very popular at College of the Ozarks; Electronica and experimental music of all sorts is popular at, well, most schools with "technical" in its name.

This list could be a handy, handy tool. Can't choose between schools? Take a quick peek at rankings, then at music choices. (Hmmm, Maybe St. Paul's College, at #1351, wouldn't be such a good fit, listing only R&B, Rap and Lil Wayne).

Anyway. This was a long, narcissistic and perhaps somewhat irritating way of implying that this "proves" our Sufjan love somehow correlates with our high intelligence. Feel free to negate me, but I have to get back to thesis writing. It makes up for the low self-esteem.

Making the world safe once again for tra-la-la-ing

I'm still shocked that the Pale Young Gentlemen come from Wisconsin, with their eclectic Eastern European instrumentation and gypsy-like theatrics. Like how is this geographically possible? It's like the same sorts of doubts people voiced when they first learned Beirut's Zach Condon was from New Mexico and not the Balkans, but hey they took to him, so now it's PYG's turn to be embraced. Seriously Who gives two craps about authenticity when the French horn and viola are being played this melodically??

The Pale Young Gentlemen's sophomore album Black Forest (Tra La La), out October 7th is even lusher, albeit a bit more subdued then their rollicking self-titled debut. The strings are especially gorgeous. The cello swells and violins sway in such an intricate way. Andrew Bird himself would be proud. They even manage to sing "tra la la" in a way that makes me totally forget Euro-trash phenomena Gunther exists. That ladies and gentlemen may be their biggest accomplishment yet.

Listen for yourself. Lots of songs streaming on their MySpace now

And download the catchiest of the bunch here:
The Crook of My Good Arm - Pale Young Gentlemen

I'm particularly fond of the coloured hearts on their chests.

…with a tone deaf singer. Honestly, these are the most annoying vocals i have ever had the displeasure of experiencing…”

Ah, this is like a siren call to me. The disgusted listener warning others not to buy an album on account of the vocals. It almost always makes me dive for my wallet (or the download button, whichever the case me be). I love the guy who “can’t sing.” Give me the Conor Obersts and the Alec Ounsworths; you can keep your pitch perfectly boring Chris Martins and Thom Yorkes. Because you know what? The dudes with the different voices have the better lyrics. I can’t explain it, I don’t know why, but the fact remains. (Which is not to say that guys that can sing don’t have good lyrics. Sometimes they do. Except Chris Martin. I hate that guy…)

The above review is taken word for word (and lower case i’ed) from an eMusic user’s review of “Puddle City Racing Lights.” It’s a 2007 album from a mob called Windmill. I’d never heard of them before, but the quirky album cover caught my eye. (Seriously, how cool is that cover?) And I figured with every review mentioning his voice (not all were as nasty as the above) I couldn’t go wrong. And I was right.

The lyrics are equal parts gritty confessional and dreamily surreal, and I love it. The music is gorgeous. The delicateness of Sufan Stevens meets the sweeping grandeur of Rufus Wainwright. And his voice… Well, yeah, it’s definitely different. The beauty of the music only amplifies his flaws, but, for me at least, it works. It creates a tension that is echoed in other parts of the album. In the pull between soft strings and heavy drums, in the pull between the real and the absurd in the lyrics.

I am at a loss as to how this album managed to slip under my radar last year. My only real beef with it is that’s its far too late to add it to my best of 2007 list, where it most assuredly deserves a spot.

Windmill - Tokyo Moon.mp3
“the drugs were doing things you already could…”

Windmill - Boarding Lounges.mp3
“you don’t want me, I don’t want you.”

Ahoy! Here Be What ye Volume-Knobbe Be For!

Yar, it be Talk Like A Pirate Day here in the New Dutch West Indies. To be celebratin', me salty dogs, being the saucy wenches we be, hast compiled a wee list of tunes worthy of guzzling grog to. Weigh anchor!

Lambchop - Talk Like A Pirate Day.mp3

ye Mountain Goats - Pirates (So Long Lonely Avenue).mp3

ye Mountain Goats - Jenny (live).mp3
hi diddle dee dee, goddamn! the pirate's life for me!

Abney Park - Airship Pirate.mp3

And, the single greatest chanty about me scurvy scallowags ever written:
Ben Folds - Pirate Joke Song (live).mp3

Sufjan rumors & gossip

Disclaimer: this is pure speculation! "My sources" say that Sufjan is working on not one, not two, but THREE new state albums right now! Here's what one email to me said:

I've heard that, too, but it doesn't seem to be rooted in anything solid. Can't find a source for it or anything. There was also a big whoop-de-doo about a month ago with someone saying that Sufjan's next album was going to be Pennsylvania. The story behind that was that a girl's relative was the owner of a record shop in Sufjan's home town (or one of his home towns) in Michigan, Sufjan visited him and chatted about a new record he was working on, and let out the secret that it was Pennsylvania under the condition that he tell no one else. Sounds crazy to me for a number of reasons, the biggest being that if Sufjan's been so uber-secret about what he's been up to for the past year I doubt that he'd just let it out during a casual chat in a record store. Then again, we know what Sufjan's humor is like. He's probably been the one planting all those rumors, lol.

At this rate, he could release an album of himself singing in the damn shower and I would spend a whole day weeping openly over it. BUT it does seem like we've been receiving an influx of Sufjan news lately, so maybe that's a good sign.

I still maintain--and am holding out for--the speculative new album "New Jersey Loves You," which will be a piano-based, bird-themed album! (Fingers crossed!)

In other news,
Danielson, Sufjan's old buddies who helped him start his music career, is kicking off a tour with Cryptacize, a band on Sufjan's label (Asthmatic Kitty) in NYC on Halloween. EVEN MONEY Sufjan will be in attendance--probably in some sort of costume. Go to the show if you can. It'll be good for you.

Sufjan Stevens - Toilet Paper Dolls Story (live).mp3

Danielson Famile - Did I Step On Your Trumpet.mp3

Cryptacize - Cosmic Sing Along.mp3

Monster Bobby returns

We first met Monster Bobby last Summer when he opened for The Pipettes. (He conceptually engineered the polka-dotted, British girl group, btw). Just one look at his gleaming eyes and cheeky smile and we were in LUV.

And that was before we even heard his music - an infectious, yet brooding blend of lo-fi electro-pop and acoustic singer-songwriter fare.

"Work in the Morning" is his latest single off a split 7" EP. And it's just as strong as anything off his debut release Gaps. Also, for those of you lucky enough to live across the pond, Bobby's about to head out on a nice little jaunt across Europe. Wish I could make it. Why, why has teleportation not been invented yet? If it was, I'd catch every show and swoon every night.

Sep 18 2008 8:00P
Cosy Den @ Landet Stockholm, Stockholms län
Sep 19 2008 10:00P
Nationernas Hus Linköping
Sep 20 2008 8:00P
Debaser Malmö, Skåne län
Sep 22 2008 8:00P
Jolene Copenhagen
Sep 25 2008 8:00P
Haus 73 Hamburg, Hamburg
Sep 27 2008 8:00P
Gleis 22 Münster
Oct 5 2008 8:00P
Broadway Cinema Nottingham
Nov 23 2008 8:00P
Fanfulla101 @ CHUTE Rome

Work in the Morning - Monster Bobby
The Postcard - Monster Bobby

More Cowbell!

This is possibly the most BRILLIANT website on the whole wide interwebs:

So here's the deal. You're listening to your fave songs. The ones you've heard a million times before. But sometimes even the best music gets a little old, and frankly a little boring. Well these guys will help you enliven it. They make even the best song better. All you have to do is upload it here:

and it instantly adds...MORE COWBELL

Cause every song is better with the most infamous of percussive instruments (as well as Mr. Christopher Walken sound bites!). Finally, a way to satiate your cowbell needs.

Please use wisely.

Silver Jews @ Bowery Ballroom, NYC September 7, 2008

The Silver Jews only started touring two years ago. But you'd never know it from their impeccably tight and awesomely rocking performance.

David Berman’s facial expressions were almost as charming as his acerbically witty lyrics. He cast multiple smirks toward his wife, bassist and back-up singer Cassie, with an occasional wink to the audience. “How much fun is a lot more fun? Not much fun at all,” he sang in his dry, trademark tone. Berman sure fooled us.

My only complaint: they only played for an hour and fifteen minutes. For a band that tours as infrequently as the Jews I was hoping for a bit more. Oh well, maybe next time around. Whatever, I still love them to the MAX!

Strange Victory, Strange Defeat - Silver Jews
I'm Gonna Love the Hell Out of You - Silver Jews

The Death of This Summer

It's past Labor Day, the weather has turned suddenly cool (with no small thanks to Hurricanes Hannah and Ike drenching the western Atlantic coasts), Primary election day is tomorrow, and students have begun to settle into their routines.

So, two songs: a rather silly but totally appropriate one, especially for those of us who have returned to finish a post-bac degree several years after our peers have completed theirs. *cough.* This one's for us you:

Avenue Q - I Wish I Could Go Back to College.mp3

Finally, a 26-minute dance mix, made by Jens Lekman. It kicks off with a remix of his own song, "Into Eternity," then magically transitions intro almost a dozen other songs and looped samples--familiar cuts from the 70's, Afro-Caribbean beats, even soft and languid acoustic guitar. But the nonstop beat will keep you on your feet enough to barely notice or care that our warmest season has once again slipped away.

Jens says:

Sometimes I get stuck in the recording and writing but instead of cutting my wrists I open the window, bring out my records and put together little mixes for my friends. This one is a mix of some of my favourite songs from this summer and previous ones, some are cut up and put together into new songs, new remixes or whatever. They form a perfect response to the death of this summer.

Jens Lekman - The Death of This Summer.mp3