The boys who make up the New York City band, Harper Blynn, truly represent the melting pot that is the greatest city on earth. For our second installment of 10 to Spin, the band’s summer playlist does the same, melding genres, jumping decades, and crossing borders. From quirky Mexican lounge music to of-the-moment indie rock, Harper … Read more
Photo credit: Katie Guymon I trekked to Chicago last weekend to attend the Pitchfork Music Fest for the first time ever. Knowing that I’m simply not as quick and nimble as I once was, coupled with the fact that my “bounce back capabilities” aren’t completely intact, I only bought tickets for Sunday’s line-up (what I … Read more
Canadian violin master Owen Pallett is offering up his new EP Lewis Takes Off His Shirt as a complimentary download to cool people for the next week. Awesome! Lewis Takes Off His Shirt features the Heartland album version of “Lewis Takes Off His Shirt” as well as remixes by Dan Deacon, Benoît Pioulard and CFCF. … Read more
Here at Speakers in Code, we can’t believe it’s almost August. Of course, that means LouFest is just that much closer, and we’ve been looking forward to the inaugural two-day festival, which takes place August 28th and 29th in Saint Louis’ Forest Park, for quite some time now. So, naturally, we’re pretty excited to announce … Read more
If you’re anything like us at Speakers in Code, the music tips you take most seriously are the ones that come from musicians themselves. That’s why we started this here new feature, 10 to Spin, which includes a carefully crafted mix of songs by our (and your) favorite artists. We’re giving bands free reign to … Read more
Photo credit: Danin Drahos Louisiana boy and ex-Acid Bath member, Dax Riggs, is gearing up for the release of his second sophomore album, Say Goodnight to the World. The effort’s been called “heavy, haunting, otherworldly, and seriously rocking,” and today’s JOTD is perfectly representative of those adjectives. In fact, it grows ever more so heavy, … Read more
Swedish musician, Moneybrother (Anders Wendin), is already a big deal in his native country. But, he’s making a big mark stateside already, with his brand of “pub soul,” influenced by the music to which he actually listens: roots-rock, R&B, and maybe even a little disco. Yeah, disco. There’s no way you can listen to “Born … Read more
Here at Speakers in Code, we can’t believe it’s almost August. Of course, that means LouFest is just that much closer, and we’ve been looking forward to the inaugural two-day festival, which takes place August 28th and 29th in Saint Louis’ Forest Park, for quite some time now. So, naturally, we’re pretty excited to announce … Read more
Brooklyn’s powerful folk-pop duo of Courtney Kaiser and Benjamin Kartel is known simply as Kaiser Cartel. They’ve been making music together since 2004, and despite Kaiser’s classical vocal training (she lent her vocals to the upcoming Sufjan Stevens album) and Kartel’s penchant for self-teaching, the pairing is remarkably satisfying. While songs off the new album, … Read more
I’ve been somewhat infatuated with Jenny Lewis since she went solo with 2006’s Rabbit Fur Coat. I know she was making music with Rilo Kiley long before her foray into her soul-stirring, The Watson Twins-backed alt-country dazzle, but nothing RK put out made me wanna keel over and die like “Rise Up With Fists!!” and “Born Secular” … Read more
True to the euphoric state their name conjures, Electric Tickle Machine has earned a reputation for exuberant live shows punctuated by Flaming Lips-style blasts of confetti and impromptu naked, dancing bodies. The music – a mix of classic “psychedelic-tinged” rock and happy garage pop luckily transfers perfectly to tape, topped off with one of the … Read more
A little Friday soul-treat for our Speakers in Code friends with a special message from Fitz himself. This should get that weekend started properly! Hey Everybody, Fitz here. I know everyone has been patiently waiting for our album release Pickin’ Up the Pieces on Dangerbird Records coming Aug. 24th. To hold you over until then … Read more
With just a little over six weeks until the release of their third full-length, Warp Riders, The Sword are finally giving us a little nugget from their eagerly awaited new material. Needless to say it freaking rocks – and I’m using “rocks” as a verb here people, not a sissy adjective. “Tres Brujas” is a … Read more
“Directed by Kevin Custer, director of the band’s seven-part ‘Making of AMERICAN SLANG’ series that documented the process of recording the new album, the video for the title track features live performances from the group as well as striking black-and-white images of New York City, one of the band’s many muses for their critically-acclaimed new … Read more
To find the perfect way,Which album to say,I la la love you.With this plastic cassette,It’s not finished yet,It’s gonna tell you slowly. I didn’t fully hop on the Tift Merritt bandwagon until 2008, when the singer-songwriter from North Carolina released Another Country, an album that I still hold dear to my heart. Songs like “Keep … Read more
Hey there guys and gals, I’ll keep this short (say, three sentences?) since the Kings from TN decided to leave their fans out in the blazing heat after three songs last night in St. Louis after a pigeon (a pigeon!!) dumped on the KoL bassist. Remember when Ryan Adams fell off the stage in Liverpool … Read more
Do you enjoy musical groups with a bevy of multi-talented members? Yes! Do you indulge in your favorite musicians’ side-projects? Indeed! Do you dig Bon Iver? Naturally! Do you groove to jazzy, extended, eighties-style, spaced out jams? Why not! If you answered all of the above in similar fashion, then GAYNGS (yes, all caps) should … Read more
Off Broadway in St. Louis has quite a show for us next week as Deer Tick will be rocking the stage on Thursday, August 5th. We’re very excited for the show, but we’re even more excited that Off Broadway has given us 4 tickets to give away to 2 lucky winners! All you have to … Read more
Alt-country is the one genre of music that I understand completely. It’s strangely familiar after growing up in the south, but when executed properly, it takes me to new places that challenge the definition of the category. True to form, I connected instantly with Athens-based alt-country newbies, Futurebirds the first time I queued up the … Read more
Making lush, beautiful, but serious music that reaches well beyond simple “Wall of Sound” comparisons is truly an art – and our Jam of the Day does this seemingly with no effort. That’s because Frankie Rose is more concerned with maintaining a specific mood than rehashing the hooks your parents lost their virginity to. Sometimes … Read more
At times during Sarah Jaffe’s stellar debut album, Suburban Nature, you’re left wondering how the singer-songwriter from Texas is only 24. Her voice, as alluring as it is, isn’t as sweet as it is loud and confident; the subjects she sings about echo a younger Kathleen Edwards, only just as fierce. And it only took … Read more
First things first, let’s spend a moment contemplating the awesomeness of this band’s name: The Goodnight Loving. Who doesn’t want some of that? Next, let’s discuss the Milwaukee band’s slick and souped-up garage rock. Taking cues from The Strokes (without the cynicism) and pulling together a cocktail of rock ‘n’ roll genres (surf, honky tonk, … Read more
Today’s jam is a spooky jam. It scares the hell out of me. It’s probably one of Neil Young’s darkest songs, from one of his darkest (yet somehow hopeful) albums, Sleeps With Angels. If you aren’t familiar with the album, it contains three songs that are, in my opinion, crucial to understanding Young’s music — … Read more
Jill Andrews, besides being one of my favorite songwriters and humanitarians (she recently raised over $1,000 for the people hurting in Haiti), is also a master at covering songs. And for her March cover song, she has given us a beautiful cover of Tift Merritt‘s “Supposed To Make You Happy.” Check it out below. Also, … Read more
Last Saturday night, after fourteen hours of traveling, I finally got into a taxi headed home from the airport. Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing the world. But after a week of sleeping in someone else’s bed and an entire day of clusterfucks, a taxi from the airport feels almost as good as the … Read more
Ignore the complexity of this band’s name. And yes, it sure is complex. So much so that a few months ago, a tutorial video was sent my way in order to help me master the confusing moniker. See below. Yet, The Bewitched Hands On The Top Of Our Heads make captivatingly fundamental pop music. “Hard … Read more
Described as a cross between Neil Young, Gillian Welch, and Martina McBride, singer-songwriter, Jennie Arnau, mixes her down-to-earth Appalachia upbringing with the gritty New York City, her current home. On the surface, “Bouncing Ball” is a refreshingly simple bit of alt-country, given the plucky banjo and Arnau’s cheerful doo-wahs. But dig a little deeper, and … Read more
Yup, I’m taking it WAY back to 1971, Leonard Cohen style. Like you could have stopped me. This song has always frightened the hell out of me with its unforgiving sense of what is real. It’s such a sobering tale of all the shit that can go wrong in your life. Well, to me it … Read more
Two nights ago, I went to a concert at The Old Rock House in Saint Louis to see We Were Promised Jetpacks. However, The Lonely Forest, one of the night’s openers, stunned me with its frenzied enthusiasm and indie rock purity. One of my favorites of the night happened to be today’s JOTD, “We Sing … Read more