This one just bleeped up on the ole’ radar, and I must say I like what I see and hear here! All we really know about Gross Relations at this point is they’re four dudes from Brooklyn, who have written and recorded at least one catchy-ass song. They are at this point unsigned. This … Read more
Blur frontman Damon Albarn has proven, time and again, that he can craft some pretty darn catchy tunes. Albarn established and honed his songwriting endowment with Blur, and has continued to cultivate it with his wildly popular project, Gorillaz (not to mention The Good, The Bad, and The Queen). Gorillaz cranked out a banger of … Read more
All photo credit: Katie Guymon Last Sunday, I had the distinct and super cool privilege to attend one of the STL LOUD recording sessions at R&R Music Labs. Andy Berkhout, a local singer-songwriter (by way of Milwaukee), was there to record his orignal song, “Times and Things,” for the inaugural STL LOUD EP, the first … Read more
Photo by Brendan Stuart It’s a glorious day for those of us whom, for the past few years, have been crack-scratching our left arms for some new music from Bill McCarthy and his band of merry-men once known as Pela. I, luckily, found their music later than some others, seeing them open for The Gaslight … Read more
Singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams will release Blessed on March 1st, along with a Deluxe Version that has a 2nd disc dubbed “The Kitchen Tapes,” which are home recordings “Lucinda made of each song on the day she wrote it.” Williams will be on a short U.S. tour in March. Track listing for Blessed: 1. Buttercup 2. … Read more
If one attempts to uncover information about the NYC film school duo known as Cults on the all-seeing, all-knowing world wide web, one will find all sorts of good info on various forms of religious and worship-based sects or groups of people bound together by the common adulation of the same object, ideal, or person. … Read more
Raleigh NC’s Birds of Avalon have spent the better part of the past three years on the road with the likes of The Racontuers, The Flaming Lips, Black Mountain, The Fucking Champs, Mudhoney,and Ted Leo. And judging from a few first-hand accounts, they have one of the best live rock shows going. The band will … Read more
Ducktails, the one-man indie-pop project of Real Estate‘s Matthew Mondanile, has officially made my morning. I mean, not only did seeing the name remind me of my Saturday mornings spent in Duckberg as a kid, but this first morsel from his new LP is just built for a sunny fall morning in the south. … Read more
The boys of Tahiti 80 have been in the music game for a long time, at least compared to so many of the indie upstarts who work diligently to avoid “flash in the pan” status. Spearheading the French Invasion of the late ’90s and early 2000s, along with notable acts like Phoenix and Air, Tahiti … Read more
So, we’ve gone through all of our favorite original songs of 2010 already. Now, it’s time to pay attention to the non-originals: the covers we enjoyed most this year. Dagnabbit, cover songs are squirrely; they are very hard to do well. Even we four at Speakers in Code know that, and all we can do is … Read more
One thing the most gluttonous of gormandizing holidays is not lacking is…girth. Given Thanksgiving is now overflowing with deep fried turkeys, blow-up yard pilgrims, ethnic cleansing debates, wine, family tension, pickled beets (you know who you are), and football, it seems as though there’s barely enough room to pack in one extra pinto bean. … Read more
Well, look at that. We told you about the band a few weeks back, and now The So So Glos are unveiling the MP3 and music video for “Fred Astaire,” the second single from their Low Back Chain Shift EP. The video, directed by Matthew Greeley, sees the band in full suits and ties, with … Read more
I love you baby, can I have some more? There’s darkness in that lyric. Of course, it comes from Neil Young’s “The Needle and the Damage Done,” one of the best songs off Harvest, a great album from 1972. And yes, he wrote it about it about Danny Whitten, the original Crazy Horse guitarist whose … Read more
When Liz Phair released the song “Bollywood” from her new album, Funstyle, on her website in July, it caused a few Twitter waves. And these waves had teeth. They were “how could Liz Phair rap and release this song?” waves. People were pretty sure Liz Phair had rabies, or something. On first listen, I didn’t … Read more
First, let me draw your attention to the above picture. Just what is going on here? Mirrored sunglasses, confetti, oranges, and…Abe Vigoda? I couldn’t help but giggle a little at the utter randomness happening in the shot. Yet, Brooklyn’s Your Youth’s press shot perfectly embodies its music: punky fresh and blatantly brazen. “Awake” takes me … Read more
Pictured: Kentucky Knife Fight Hey, whaddya doin’ Saturday? Gotta hot date? Doesn’t matter. Bring her (him?) along to the party. Of course, I’m talking about the super spectacular Firebrand Recording Showcase at one of the best venues in all of Saint Louis, Off Broadway. It’s a night designed to celebrate the local recording studio, owned … Read more
Recorded and filmed at The Village in Santa Monica, California, the latest MySpace “Transmissions” session features Broken Bells, the critically-acclaimed duo of James Mercer (The Shins) and Danger Mouse. For a limited time, fans can download stripped-down versions from the session, including:1. The Ghost Inside 2. The High Road 3. October 4. Vaporize Watch video … Read more
In order to commemorate Mayer Hawthorne’s recent two month U.S. tour, Stones Throw has put together a collabo pack featuring a plethora of goodies including a t-shirt designed by Freegums and a heart-shaped USB drive (ooh la la) containing Hawthorne’s cover of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” The release party (and final stop … Read more
I met with La Strada’s singer/accordion player James Craft before the show – fully admitting I had no prior knowledge of the band outside a few listens of what they have posted on their MySpace page. The songs I had heard, were somewhat deceptive streaming over the internet on my sweet, tiny PC speakers at … Read more
According to this post on Steve Earle’s Facebook page, there is a new little Earle running around! Read the details below: Allison Moorer and Steve Earle welcome into the world their first child, John Henry Earle. John Henry was born on April 5th at 10:07am, weighing eight pounds, two ounces and measuring 21 inches long. … Read more
Oh, holy crap, Interpol just did something pretty cool. The below email recently hit inboxes: Hello everyone. We’re stirring. Please take a moment to visit our website: http://www.interpolnyc.com/ We want to show you something. And make sure you come back soon. We will be posting important information and dates in the coming weeks. Thank you. … Read more
RollingStone.com is reporting that Neil Young’s next album will be produced by Daniel Lanois, a surefire dream pairing that will most likely result in a “very heartfelt record,” according to David Crosby. Lanois produced Emmylou Harris’ breakthrough album, Wrecking Ball, which was named after one of Young’s songs. As you might know, Young is set … Read more
These days, Martin Sexton’s ready to go. He’s just started his lengthy U.S. tour w/ the Ryan Montbleau Band, which will be celebrating his wonderful new album, Sugarcoating. Produced by Sexton and Crit Harmon, Sugarcoating’s 13 tunes are ready for your next road trip this June, July, or August. It’s definitely a breath of fresh … Read more
Soul and punk seem to be two very conflicting things – maybe that’s why The Gaslight Anthem’s 2008 release, The ’59 Sound, came out of nowhere for me. They’re a group of tattooed guys from the fertile punk grounds of New Brunswick, New Jersey, but when I heard the title track for the first time, … Read more
Let’s just get this out of the way. This is feel-good music. Nothing more, nothing less. Sometimes, we need bands like Sunshine Collective to simply brighten our day and make us smile, and not think about hidden meanings. Besides, it’s finally April, and the sun is probably shining wherever you may be. Brian Arbuckle and … Read more
In honor of The Mynabirds’ debut album release, the band has offered up another track off of What We Lose in the Fire, We Gain in the Flood to follow the fabulous, blue-eyed soul jam “Numbers Don’t Lie.” This time it’s a frenzied carousel number ending with an ex-lover booted from the ride. The Mynabirds … Read more
We all have bands we believe in with all our hearts. Over the Rhine is that kind of band for me. Since 2001, I’ve purchased all their albums, attended many of their concerts, and encouraged many of my friends to listen to their songs like “Latter Days” and “Spark.” Karin Bergquist and Linford Detweiler of … Read more
If I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that an Ani DiFranco concert is not a victory lap. It’s not a greatest hits party. DiFranco isn’t on stage to pose (heck, it’s 2010, and you couldn’t even bring your camera into the venue). She’s not touring to re-live her past, as much as some of … Read more
Living smack dab in the middle of the U.S. of A. hasn’t given either Jason or I many feasible opportunities to attend the various music festivals that take place in other parts of the country. I won’t lie and say I don’t get maniacally jealous when I hear about other bloggers throwing parties at SXSW … Read more
Josh Ritter’s So Runs the World Away is less than a month away from being released around the world (unless you’re planning on getting a vinyl copy at your local indie store on Record Store Day, which is April 17th). I’ve had a chance to listen to the album, and I’ll tell you that it’s … Read more