EAR FARM :: music information helps grow ears

EAR FARM has moved!

2008-06-16T01:18:00.002-04:00

It's been a great run on Blogger... 1,924 posts from October 2005 to June 2008. However, it's time for EAR FARM to move on to bigger and better things. We'd love for you to come along with us!

From now on EAR FARM will be located here: http://earfarm.com

Please update your links accordingly. We'll see you on the other side.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #12: Paraskavedekatriaphobia

2008-06-13T14:13:00.000-04:00

Paraskavedekatriaphobia: the fear of Friday the 13th.

Horror movie fans will have to wait until next year for the remake of the 1980 Sean Cunningham classic Friday the 13th; fans and foes of the day itself have only one chance this year to either revel in its glory or hide from the world for twenty four hours. You see, today is Friday the 13th. Watch out.

If we had planned things a bit better we'd be on our 13th mix this week, but we didn't. And hey, maybe we don't want that many thirteens all up in one post together. Still, we won't let no stinkin' paraskavedekatriaphobia stop us from gettin' busy with EAR FARM's Muxtape #12: twelve (Muxtape doesn't allow thirteen!) songs dedicated both to the wonderful horror series, and to the unluckiest of days in the entire calendar. Be careful out there!

Listen to this week's muxtape HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #12: Paraskavedekatriaphobia
1. "Moments of Terror" by Harry Manfredini
2. "Psycho Killer" by Talking Heads
3. "Luck's Up" by Public Image Ltd.
4. "Good Friday" by Why?
5. "I Ain't Superstitious" by Megadeth
6. "Jason's Theme" by Brendon Small
7. "Thirteen Women (And Only One Man In Town)" by Bill Haley And His Comets
8. "Unlucky Day" by Murder City Players
9. "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder
10. "Jason" by Sufjan Stevens
11. "The Crystal Lake" by Grandaddy
12. "Triskaidekaphobia" by Jimmy Sutton's Four Charms

*above photo from HERE.

Recent EF mixes:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)
EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
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A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments. View all EAR FARM mixes HERE.

Top 10 (Musical) Things To Do in New York This Weekend

2008-06-13T12:00:00.000-04:00

This weekend, the best and brightest (but fortunately not hottest) options for your musical-themed entertainment, as humbly suggested by us....

10. Run for the hills! It's Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden SUNDAY

9. Take the ferry over to Staten Island and Rock The Harbor at SI's first original rock festival SATURDAY

8. Enjoy Bonnaroo AND air-conditioning all at once on SUNDAY at 9:00pm when Fuse airs My Morning Jacket and Mastodon's Bonnaroo sets

7. Head to The Yard SUNDAY and get your block party on with Afrika Bambaataa

6. Hit up Jones Beach Theater after a SATURDAY on the beach to see The National, Modest Mouse, and R.E.M.

5. Or, stay indoors at Bowery SATURDAY or SUNDAY as Mission of Burma performs Signals, Calls, & Marches in its entirety

4. Celebrate The Music Slut's 3rd Anniversary at Pianos SATURDAY with Drink Up Buttercup, Mussels, Unicycle Loves You, and The Physics of Meaning

3. Pretend Central Park Summerstage is the Columbia quad with Vampire Weekend SATURDAY

2. Blow your mind with the Brooklyn Philharmonic as they perform John Adams' "Shaker Loops" synched along with two barges worth of fireworks SATURDAY at South Street Seaport

1. Witness Oneida perform 2005's The Wedding in its entirety alongside a string quartet and multimedia art show at the Kitchen FRIDAY and SATURDAY

A fairly eclectic mix but still only scratching the surface. What are your top picks for the weekend?

OPP

2008-06-13T08:25:00.000-04:00

Nat Baldwin does Daytrotter, and reveals his fandom for the Boston Celtics

Those unable to make Bonnaroo take heed: here is the live webcast schedule

Beck reveals Modern Guilt album art, tracklisting, and release date (July 8th)

Metallica blames managers for taking down mostly positive reviews of their forthcoming album

My Morning Jacket playing Madison Square Garden on New Year's Eve

Michael Stipe will be signing copies of the R.E.M. photo book Hello at McNally Robinson on 52 Prince Street on Sunday

AND on topic, watch R.E.M. cover Television with "See No Evil"

Pharrell Williams wants to produce the new Strokes album

Atlantic Records sues Stone Temple Pilots for trying to leave their contract early

Weezer invites fans to perform alongside them on tour

Music journalist quits over allegations he hired a ghost writer

8+

2008-06-12T14:02:00.006-04:00

"The Past Is A Grotesque Animal" by Of Montreal which clocks in at 11:53

Rome: 1992. We met in the garden. Among daisies and lillies and bumble bees and fountains made of sculptures of adorable fat little child angels and dozens of loud American high school students on holiday; only a small portion of which were themselves fat little children. Even with their ridiculously loud clothing, unconscionably loud mouths, and 'hopefully I won't get mugged' fanny packs, these were our peers. Each of them was like us, but so much more obvious about their vexed malcontent.

There you were with your Public Image Ltd. t-shirt and belt buckle that screamed Texas. There I was with a hundred lines of poetry running through my mind and a camera pointed squarely in the face of each statue that came my way. Statues are so much easier to photograph than people, and friendlier too. I turned away as you walked by the first time, still able to see enough of you to catch passions just like mine hidden behind your eyes. Upon your second passing you caught enough of me to see I wasn't much more than a clown. I was in the middle of showing off my skills of imitation. Your head whipped around, my friend laughed. It wasn't what I'd call the most ideal manner of making a first impression...

"A dog?!" your face silently said.

"Do it again dude," Rob laughingly hushed as he hit my arm repeatedly. This had already been wowing him for a day and a half: I'd cover my mouth and bark a bit, off to the side, whenever some family of sharply dressed Italians came our way. The kids would spin around and tug at their parents' pants and excitedly proclaim something in Italian. "Ciao ciao fettuccine alfredo!" or something. I didn't speak Italian so everything sounded like an order at Amedeo's to me. I'll admit it. It embarrassed me endlessly given how well I'd been managing with my French in Paris. Of course, equally embarrassing was the fact that I was a skinny American kid wearing a fanny pack. Guess I forgot to mention that part - I too was one of the kids wearing a fanny pack. Our teacher/chaperone was making all of us wear them in Italy. "Baaad pickpockets in Rome... lots of gypsies," he kept saying. It was the first, and last, time in my life I've strapped on a fanny pack. And let me tell you, it dropped my already delicate self-confidence down about four notches. Not to mention that I was in the middle of playing Allen Funt sans hidden camera for an audience of one.

Who am I kidding? Audience of two. I enjoyed what I was doing as much as I hated it. And at that moment - Lord knows why - I was hugely on top of my game. The summer of 1992 will forever remain the three month span in which I peaked as a Michael Winslow wannabe. I covered my mouth, in what was surely the greatest single moment of my entire career as a ventriloquist voice FX guy, and let go of two well thrown barks...

"Rrrawgh, rrrrrawgh!"

You saw where it came from this time. You were ready for it. You knew it was me and you marched right over to where I stood - even though the dog must've sounded like it was barking from some super-secret hiding place in the bushes far away. I mean, let's be clear about that. I was throwing my voice expertly and nothing but your amazing detective skills could've led you my way. Right?

My instigating friend Rob turned swiftly and walked away laughing.

"Oh my God, that was you?? Do it again, again!" you exclaimed.

I turned red and obliged. I was, and am still, a very reticent performer. This spur of the moment show wasn't what I'd call my preferred manner to try and woo the adorable tall girl from Texas (with fine taste in music) who'd seemingly been placed in my presence by the Gods. Argh! What a mistake. I'd kill Rob as soon as I could get away; however, at the moment I was caught performing my bark for the sizable Houston contingent which you'd gathered around. Thinking back, this was clearly the first sign that you liked the potential of "me" as much as I did you. I'm stuck wondering why I ever let go of my barking ability when it obviously worked so well with you.

Our t-shirts impressed each other and our heights were well aligned. That's pretty much all you need to fall in love at sixteen years old, and I think it helped my chances that I was barking so well when put on the spot. I ended up teaching three guys from your group just how I worked my magic, the magic with the barking. I never did tell them how I worked my magic with you.

It was an unofficially school-organized trip for both of us. Our teachers had gotten together and booked trips for a group of their students to visit Europe and do so in as educational a manner as possible. The two teachers that led our trip were my 10th grade History and English teachers. Actually, they were my Paideia teachers but that's another story for another time. Point is, they constructed our itinerary around what they'd taught us in class, and it was pretty awesome. Your group from Texas was on a similar vacation; as fate would have it, my nerd-fueled itinerary would intersect with yours in Rome. There in the Villa Borghese gardens, in front the Temple of Asclepius, amidst the barking of (now) quite a few faux-canines. I spoke to one of my protégés about the girl I'd just met...

"Yeah man, of course I know her - we go to school together. Duh. But look, you have to get in line. You and every guy in my school want to date her. She's brains and beauty. Funny and smart and cute and hot! And rich too! Good luck with that."

Some might say it was Cupid's arrow, some the way our t-shirts collided. Others would figure that my dog bark imitation skills made your heart skip a beat, or that our blue eyes locked once and never let go. At least one person in my group wondered why my attention was so easily caught by you rather than by her; and the same could be said about every guy who was traveling with you. What can I say? I fell in love with the first cute girl that I met who could appreciate Oscar Wilde and great music at a time when neither of us knew anything of love or life or pain or suffering. Or Rome. Or great music, or Oscar Wilde really... standing on a rooftop in Italy, alone with our misconceptions of De Profundis and The Ballad of Reading Gaol, it was a moment of perfection destined for nothing more than perpetual reflection. Frozen in time.

Things could be different, but they're not. It's like we weren't made for this world; but I wouldn't really like to meet someone who was.

August, 1992: Rome. The past is a grotesquely distorted animal. Even the apocalypse is fleeting. There is no death in this ugly world and nothing can defeat you. You're a monument in my mind and you haven't aged a bit in sixteen years. Yet I don't even remember your name, or what you looked like well enough to recognize you if we met tomorrow on the street. But somewhere, there you are. Still bringing the rain, still feeling Wilde's pain. Sometimes I wonder if you've mythologized me like I have you.

*above photo of the Temple of Asclepius in the Villa Borghese Gardens from HERE.

Buy Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? on Amazon.

EAR FARM's 8+ is a weekly feature that showcases songs longer than 8 minutes. In the recent past these songs were featured on EF's 8+:
The Controllers - "Somebody's Gotta Win, Somebody's Gotta Lose"
Islands - "Bucky Little Wing"
Grandaddy - "He's Simple, He's Dumb, He's the Pilot"
Broken Social Scene - "Backyards"
Oingo Boingo - "Change"
Count Basie - "Blues For The Barbecue"
The Besnard Lakes - "You've Got to Want to Be a Star"
M83 - "Couleurs"

To see a full list of every song featured in EAR FARM's 8+ click HERE.

S/S Friends = Clothes + Music

2008-06-12T11:20:00.002-04:00

Sam Champion guitarist Sean Sullivan has a busy summer ahead. In addition to the July release of the Brooklyn quartet's sophomore full length Heavenly Bender (North Street Records) and the inevitable slew of live shows to support it, he recently started the clothing line S/S Friends with girlfriend Sarah.

Consisting of "seasonally specific" clothing items (namely swim trunks and knit hats), the label pairs each item with a specially curated music release for every run. The initial set features mens swim trunks (see above) with a 7" vinyl single "Easy Street", which Sullivan describes as a "weird and winning study of early reggae styles and recording techniques."

The goods are already available at a number of retailers in Manhattan and Brooklyn (and even L.A.). See the list HERE or to order direct from their Cobble Hill HQ hit them up at ss@friendscanvastrunks.com.

In the meantime, be sure to catch Sam Champion on June 27th when they play the Prospect Park Bandshell with Cold War Kids and Elvis Perkins (canvas trunks optional).

Listen: "Your Party Was Yesterday?"

See also:
- Sam Champion To Record Live Album...TONIGHT
- Sam Champion @ Texas Garage - 15 March 2008 (SXSW Day 4, pics)
- EAR FARM's Top Ten Bands To Emerge in 2007 & Ten To Watch Out For in 2008

Visit Sam Champion on Myspace.

OPP

2008-06-12T08:11:00.000-04:00

Free Geekery offers 100 FREE sources for (good) downloadable music

REMINDER: Reserve your Sonic Youth 4th of July tickets today

Social network for iPhone knows what you're listening to and where you are listening to it

Austrian dungeon victim wakes up to Robbie Williams after two-month coma

Will anyone sing for John McCain?

Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner handles this week's Guest List on Pitchfork

Mods & Rockers Film Festival in Hollywood opens June 26

Boy George to perform free show for NYC sanitation workers

Scott Storch is wanted by Miami-Dade police

Band of the Week: Ratatat

2008-06-11T15:30:00.003-04:00

Band: Ratatat (or RATATAT depending on who you ask)
From: Brooklyn, NY
Sound: Imagine majestic melodic 8-bit video game soundtracks played in perfect intervals by Eddie Van Halen and the ghost of Duane Allman
Similar Artists: Daft Punk, Walter Meego, Hot Chip, Trans Am, Laromlab
Listen Now: "Mirando"

Much of the advance word surrounding Ratatat's forthcoming LP3 (out July 8th on XL) has focused upon the record's incremental shift away from straightforward rock compositions in favor of a broader and more worldly sound.

Now if by worldly we're referring to "otherworldly", these reviews seem pretty fair. But the problem is that Ratatat - the duo of multi-instrumentalist/programmer Evan Mast and guitarist Mike Stroud - have never really made traditional rock music to begin with, so any assessment of their evolution from 2004's self-titled debut through 2006's Classics to LP3 has to keep this in mind. When you've already started with a wholly innovative take on the rock formula - symphonic movements the length of pop songs that utilize the electric guitar's brash melody in lieu of vocals - you can only go further down the rabbit hole.

And this is exactly what the band accomplishes on LP3, not so much a dramatic reinvention but a logical exploration further into the nuances and contours of the world they've already created, splitting it open and shaking it up a bit....

Before, Ratatat was the sound of cruising hot asphalt in a Trans Am with T-tops and playing Contra in the basement of a parallel world. Now, Ratatat is the sound of hand claps spattered around sacrificial bonfires at the mouth of a volcano in a parallel world (while still playing Contra).

These are changes in atmosphere, changes prompted by Mast's continued excellence at building pulsing sonic landscapes that bubble and gurgle with electronic bursts at exactly the most rewarding moment. These are changes that largely flow from the variation in percussive sounds and textures on the album, as Mast has introduced a slightly more organic give and take to his beats and rhythms. This isn't to say that Ratatat sounded cold and clinical before; one of the band's main strengths has always been in generating a warm fuzzy pulse to their electronic grooves. Instead, it just suggests that they coaxed a bunch of Ewoks into the Catskills (where LP3 was recorded) to bang on soup cans, knotty tree roots, and whatever else they could find. Tracks like "Dura" display this trend perfectly, blending compressed drum samples with occasional bursts of clattering seashells, while others such as "Mi Viejo" favor layers of hand drums and what sounds like a combo of water droplets in a bucket and a deck of shuffled cards.

The beauty of all this is that Ratatat appears to have further tweaked a winning formula while maintaining what has been so immediately identifiable and transcendent about their music: Stroud's guitar. That trademark wail, channeled and manipulated through god-knows-how-many analog and digital middle men, still commands the spotlight throughout much of the album. That's very much a good thing.

And all of it - the extra-planetary funk, freshly organic click-clacking beats, glistening guitar lines, and throwback vibe to 1980s video game warfare (Predator!) - is on display in this video for "Mirando", the second single from the album. If you haven't seen it, you must; if you have, you must watch it again:

Pre-order LP3 HERE

Listen:
"Mirando"
"Shiller"

See Also:
- Vinyl Triumphs Over CDs (again) + New Ratatat
- Ratatat Live Videos

See Ratatat Live:
07 July - Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
08 July - Portland, OR @ Holocene
10 July - San Francisco, CA @ Slim's
12 July - Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex
15 July - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Visit Ratatat on MySpace.
--
In the recent past, the following bands have been featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week:
Steinski
These United States
Kelley Polar
Plants and Animals
All the Saints
I'm From Barcelona
Bombadil
Tapes 'n Tapes

See the entire list of bands featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week HERE.

EAR FARM's Top Photos

2008-06-11T12:21:00.004-04:00

(above photo of Bell at Pianos... more pictures of Bell HERE)
In preparing for our move over to http://earfarm.com (happening on Monday, June 16th!) I decided to take a look at all of the pictures I've taken thus far for EAR FARM and select some of my favorites. It wasn't easy - I've uploaded over 2900 photos (mostly live concert shots) to EAR FARM's Flickr page since October of 2006. But I managed to select about 200 of my favorite ones and put them in a nice little Flickr set that you can view HERE. Over time I'll be sure to continually add favorites to this set. As well, if you'd like to see these pics in a nice little slideshow, click on through to the other side where there's a lovely TV theme song waiting for you...

Listen: "Picture Pages Theme Song"

*above slideshow created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

EAR FARM's Mixes

2008-06-11T10:37:00.001-04:00

Below (after the jump) you will find links to each of the custom mixes featured on EAR FARM to date, listed from most recent to oldest. In order to make room on our server, not all of these are currently available to listen to or download; therefore, be sure to check back often so you don't miss out on future EAR FARM mixes! There's a new one posted every Friday with some special ones thrown in here and there randomly and on our favorite holidays.

Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)
Muxtape #10: MARS!
Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
Locally Grown: an April Mix Tape from Brooklyn Based and EAR FARM
Muxtape #5: 2:42
Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
Valentine's Day Mix 3: Easily the Cheesiest
National Kazoo Day: Top ~~Ten~~ Eleven Songs That Feature A Kazoo
You Name The Mix #1
New Wave Cure For A Serious Case Of The Mondays Mix
Presidential Campaign 2008 Mix
All I Want For Christmas Is Music Mix
Beatles Cover Song Mix
10 Songs by Sassy Magazine 'Cute Band Alert' Bands (and yes, I did some research) Mix
Saxophone Mix
Gambling Mix
Chemistry Mix
Thanksgiving Mix
Dangerous Cities Mix
Mix for Barry Bonds
Valentine's Day Mix 2: Easy Cheesier
"Easy Cheesy" Valentine's Day Mix

OPP

2008-06-11T08:16:00.000-04:00

Gorilla vs. Bear asks various artists what their favorite album of 2008 is so far

Of Montreal readies new album

Bradley's Almanac has mp3s of the entire 25-song Breeders set in Boston recently, including Beatles and Amps covers

Idolator rounds up reviews of My Morning Jacket's Evil Urges

Beck plays a bunch of new tunes at an L.A. secret show

Coolio takes a fantastic voyage and gets arrested for suspended license

Production issues to delay Coldplay tour by two weeks

Have Franz Ferdinand gone Afrobeat for their new album?

Kings of Leon drink all day and write a new album as a result

I Want My MTV - After the Jump Fest (feat. videos from Health, Pela, Mixel Pixel, and more)

2008-06-10T17:05:00.001-04:00

Below you will find a selection of seven music videos from artists playing the upcoming After the Jump Fest. This year's festival happens June 21st from Noon until the wee hours @ the Music Hall of Williamsburg and Galapagos. Dig?

"X-Ray" by Snake and Jet's Amazing Bullit Band (above)

"Heaven" by Health (above)

"Trouble with River Cities" by Pela (above)

"HJIH" by Project Jenny, Project Jan (above)

"Pretend Psalm" by Phil and the Osophers (above)

"Uncalibrated" by Bridges and Powerlines (above)

"At The Arcade" by Mixel Pixel (above)

Three for Free - The Antlers, Lissy Trullie, The Austerity Program

2008-06-10T15:03:00.001-04:00

EAR FARM's Three for Free: three EF approved, free and legal MP3s posted each week. This week - three songs from artists playing this year's After the Jump festival. Click on the artist name to go to their site, click on the song name to listen to the song.

Listen:
The Antlers - "When You Sleep" (My Bloody Valentine cover)

Lissy Trullie - "Self Taught Learner"

The Austerity Program - "Song 17B"

'Band' On The Run: new iPhone application

2008-06-10T13:00:00.003-04:00

Amidst news of the awesome (and affordable) new generation of iPhones, it was something else entirely that caught our attention yesterday: BAND.

The brainchild of Moo Cow Music's Mark Terry, Band is a new application for iPhone that will allow users to compose original tunes on the go with the usage of a two-octave piano, guitar, bass guitar, drum kit, vinyl scratcher, and mixer via the phone's touchscreen. And according to a WIRED report on the new gadget:

All instruments will be usable in the same song, while a multi-touch interface will allow up to five notes or samples to be played at the same time. Animated keys and strings will appear to move when activated, and any part can be edited, erased or overdubbed. An included metronome keeps the beat to keep each part on time.

Check out the above demo video to see Band in action; the initial edition should be available in a few weeks time, while future versions of the application will even allow users to create their own instruments. Apologies to "books" and "reading", but it seems we may have found a new subway activity?

Listen: "Band on the Run" (Foo Fighters cover version)

After the Jump Full Lineup and Schedule Announced

2008-06-10T11:30:00.000-04:00

Here is the official After the Jump Fest flyer, designed by Rob Corradetti of Mixel Pixel (also playing the evening show at ATJF). Taking over the Music Hall of Williamsburg, Galapagos Art Space, and a substantial chunk of North 6th Street starting at noon on June 21st, ATJF is partnering with Make Music NY, Metromix, Stereofame and others (including over 40 bands) to support underfunded New York City school music programs.

So you want a specific schedule and set times to the madness? You got it...after the jump...

Today's NEW Releases

2008-06-10T10:15:00.001-04:00

Another great week of new releases, checkit:

What else is out there on this alarmingly hot week?

OPP

2008-06-10T08:38:00.000-04:00

Following the release of Third and the announcement they will not play live again in 2008, Portishead goes crazy with solo projects

Reserve your tickets for Sonic Youth's Fourth of July show starting at noon on Thursday

Los Angeles Times: My Morning Jacket, Martha Wainwright benefit from oversharing

Stream the new Sigur Rós album in its entirety over at their website

Billy Bob Thornton pursues his first love with his band the Boxmasters

The Guardian blog: why rock can't shock any more

Bradford Cox, Eleanor Friedberger, and others join Converse's new campaign

Chuck Berry won't shill for John McCain even though his song's been appropriated for his campaign; he's an Obama supporter

Warner Music Group pulls its music from Last.fm

Hit-or-miss: "Science Killer" by The Black Angels

2008-06-09T16:04:00.000-04:00

Listen:
"Science Killer" by The Black Angels from Directions To See A Ghost

View:
Image search results for Science Killer - above image is from the first page of results (and was originally from HERE).
--
In the recent past these songs were featured in Hit-or-miss posts:
"Look At Miss Ohio" by Gillian Welch
"Music To Watch Girls By" by Andy Williams
"String Bean Jean" by Belle & Sebastian
"Buzz Fledderjohn" by Tom Waits
"Pump up the Bass" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
"Jet City Woman" by Queensrÿche
"II. In Taberna: Estuans Interius" by Carl Orff
"Dangerous" by Frente!
--
EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss is a weekly feature (every Monday) wherein the EF music library is put on shuffle, the song that plays is then searched (using the song title) on Google images and a resulting photo (plus an MP3 of the song) is posted. You can see all of EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss posts thus far right HERE.

Chuck Berry @ BB King's - 6 June 2008 (pictures, live video)

2008-06-09T12:25:00.001-04:00

"I have no business running around on stage like a young boy... I'm eighty-one years old," Chuck Berry explained as he excused himself for launching into a signature duck walk during the song "School Day." The passing of time clearly weighed heavily on his mind last Friday night - he choked up mentioning the recent death of his good friend Bo Diddley on more than one occasion, and obviously felt as if he needed to apologize to the audience for time having finally caught up with him in regards to his ability to run, dance, jump, and duck walk around stage the way he used to. Yes, the duck walk. And he can still pull it off. Kind of. Or, not really. But given the man's age, it was as rousing and impressive a feat as I could've imagined. Here was one of the fathers of rock and roll - at eighty one years old - so caught up in the moment that he couldn't help himself. He was on fire, mid-solo, and it just happened. The audience erupted and he finished the song with a huge smile on his face.

About a third of the show went just like this, a living legend living up to his name. The rest of the show was partially uneven, out of tune, and aged. However, the spirit of Chuck Berry carried the night handily; most memorably, as he caught himself repeating a song mid-set and then admitted that he'd forgotten what he was playing...

(pictures and live video after the jump)

above: Chuck Berry @ BB King's slideshow
Berry had just finished a medley of hits (including a rocking version of "Roll Over Beethoven") while showing a hint of difficulty remembering the lyrics to one song. He paused briefly before beginning "My Ding-A-Ling" to reassure the audience that he'd "remember the words to this one." Indeed, he did. However, after leading the crowd through the song he went right into "Roll Over Beethoven" - again. An air of unease settled over the room as everyone but Chuck realized immediately that we'd just heard "Roll Over Beethoven." Within measures Berry realized what he'd done and stopped mid-song. "I actually forgot what I was playing... I'll admit it!" he confessed, "Politicians oughta do that - admit it!" His handling of the moment brought levity and refreshing honesty to what could've been a miniature disaster. Instead, he went right into "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" without pause. You can see the whole thing for yourself below.

For the final two songs of the night, Chuck invited "six young ladies" to join him on stage. The "six" ended up being closer to fifteen or twenty women, and they brought Chuck Berry right back to late-'50s form... rocking, rolling, dancing, and strutting around the stage. He even ventured out into the audience while rocking out before departing to a standing ovation with his impromptu entourage of twenty screaming female fans in tow. The concert was one third amazing, one third showing signs of old age, and one third pure entertainment. No matter how you slice it, a living legend.

Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll.

*above slideshow created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Listen:
"Memphis, Tennessee"
"School Day (Ring Ring Goes The Bell)"

Watch:
"My Ding-A-Ling" into "Roll Over Beethoven" into "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" (live, from this show)

Visit Chuck Berry on MySpace.

OPP

2008-06-09T08:11:00.000-04:00

AC/DC's new album will be exclusively sold at Wal-Mart

Watch clips of Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones playing with the Foo Fighters at Wembley Stadium

Alabama (the band) sues their own drummer for $200k for being "overpaid"

Rolling Stone's "Ask a Rock Star" turns to....David Cook?

Radiohead covers Portishead's "The Rip"

Man Man prep summer tour EP

The New York Times profiles Trent Reznor

Dethklok show evacuated due to fire

The Virgin Megastore at Times Square will close in 2009

EAR FARM's Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)

2008-06-06T15:33:00.001-04:00

Ladies and gentlemen, a change is gonna come... EAR FARM is about to change big time. We won't be starting over from scratch per se, but we will be giving EAR FARM a junior kickstart in hopes of making the site something bigger, something brighter, something much more awesome. Here's the deal: in just over a week we're going to bust a move out of Blogger for good and start new/start again. Like the Jeffersons (and thanks to some supersweet design work by our friends at Destroy Space) we'll be movin' on up to a brand new address with a funky fresh layout. Checkit: as of Monday, June 16th, you will be able to find a completely redesigned EAR FARM over at http://earfarm.com.

Asked to comment on the move, EAR FARM said "I want to be a farmer, a real farmer, and I am confident that things with the new site will be getting better and better with each passing day as I grow into this better version of me. I'm excited!"

You can listen to this week's muxtape celebrating the new EAR FARM HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #11: A Change Is Gonna Come (EAR FARM's relaunch mix)
1. "Getting Better" by The Wedding Present
2. "Bust A Move" by Young MC
3. "Start New" by Cloud Cult
4. "Junior Kickstart" by The Go! Team
5. "The Jeffersons" by Ja'Net Dubois & Oren Waters
6. "Start Again" by Folk Implosion
7. "Change" by Tears For Fears
8. "Something Bigger, Something Brighter" by Pretty Girls Make Graves
9. "Better Version Of Me" by Fiona Apple
10. "A Change Is Gonna Come" by Otis Redding
11. "I Want To Be A Farmer" by Pete Seeger
12. "Scratch" by Morphine

***Remember... Monday, June 16th: the new EAR FARM launches over at http://earfarm.com***

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

Top 10 (Musical) Things To Do in New York This Weekend

2008-06-06T13:40:00.001-04:00

Music, BBQ, music, green markets, music, outdoor films, music, empty pools and more music...must be the dawn of summer in NYC. Below we give you our semi-biased top ten music-related events going down this weekend, and there's no shortage of options:

10. Go see Squirrel Nut Zippers jitterbug all over Highline Ballroom TONIGHT
9. Get your Hot Rocks off at the Delancey SATURDAY with Autodrone, Bella Noir, and Monster Eiffel Tower
8. Watch some short films on a rooftop and listen to Dirty on Purpose TONIGHT with the kickoff of the Rooftop Films 2008 Summer Series
7. Head to Music Hall of Williamsburg SATURDAY to see EF faves White Rabbits along with The Subjects and Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson
6. Enjoy food, drinks, community, and music from These New Puritans at GOOD Magazine's Farmer's Fair SATURDAY
5. Sign off MySpace and physically go to Fillmore SUNDAY as Gnarls Barkley and Battles play Rupert Murdoch's 150th Secret Show
4. Witness rock royalty with your own eyes TONIGHT at B.B. King's with Chuck Berry and SUNDAY with Little Richard
3. Catch the first McCarren Pool show of the summer TONIGHT with M.I.A. and Holy Fuck
2. Soak up live jazz, bluegrass, and R&B while soaking up copious amounts of BBQ at the Big Apple Block Party SATURDAY
1. Won't you take me to MonkeyTown...TONIGHT as Takka Takka performs their new album Migration in it's entirety at 7:30pm and 10:00pm

You know the deal, this doesn't pretend to be a comprehensive list of this weekend's offerings but rather what's most caught our fancy. So, what is catching YOUR fancy?

Spam Filter: The Walkmen New Album Details and Tour Dates Revealed

2008-06-06T12:15:00.002-04:00

You're looking at the cover art to The Walkmen's fourth LP, You & Me, coming out on Gigantic Records this fall (and not in August as previously reported). The press release states:

With some romance and drama, You and Me harnesses a sense of classic live-band production into meticulously constructed, unique-sounding rock songs. The sound would definitely not be mistaken for old, but it would be impossible to ignore the most timeless influences. You and Me offers a distinctive twist to the“Walkmen” sound of their first three records. Each song shows focus, and an up-beat enthusiasm apparent in all lyrics, music, and performances. It is a long record, clocking in at just under an hour, and it presents a wide range of ideas.

Intriguing yes? There's more too; the band also released the tracklisting and announced some August tour dates - including two Bowery stops - in advance of the record's release. Check it out after the jump...

Here's You & Me's tracklisting:

1. Dónde está la Playa
2. Flamingos (for Colbert)
3. On the Water
4. In the New Year
5. Seven Years of Holidays (for Stretch)
6. Postcards from Tiny Islands
7. Red Moon
8. Canadian Girl
9. Four Provinces
10. Long Time Ahead of Us
11. The Blue Route
12. New Country
13. I Lost You
14. If Only It Were True

And here are their tour dates:

18 Aug - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom, New York
19 Aug - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom, New York
21 Aug - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
22 Aug - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
27 Aug - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir
28 Aug - Vancouver, BC @ Richards on Richard, Vancouver (co-bill w/ Man Man)
29 Aug - Victoria, BC @ Rifflandia Festival, Victoria (Black Mountain, Destroyer, etc.)
30 Aug - Seattle, WA @ Bumbershoot Festival

Happy Friday indeed!

Listen: "Everyone Who Pretended to Like Me is Gone"

Watch:
"Little House Of Savages" by The Walkmen (live @ The Earl, Atlanta, GA 9 Mar 2008) on YouTube | download QT
"If Only It Were True" by The Walkmen (live @ The Earl, Atlanta, GA 9 Mar 2008) on YouTube | download QT

See also:
- The Walkmen, Franz Ferdinand: The Musician as Food Critic
- 8+
- The Walkmen and Vampire Weekend @ The Earl (Atlanta) - 9 Mar 2008 (pics, video)
- The Walkmen @ Avalon - 17 October 2007

Visit The Walkmen on MySpace

The Naked Hearts @ Club Rehab - 4 June 2008

2008-06-06T10:45:00.001-04:00

The Naked Hearts kicked off their June residency at Club Rehab on Wednesday night, delivering a smoldering set of taut, melancholic tracks.

Projected shifting patterns provided the only illumination onstage and emphasized the spare, dark qualities of the band's material. And it was great to hear these songs, previously confined to the intimate but limited confines of a 4-track recording, come to life and pop with an urgent swagger in the live setting. Even better was the handful of other standout tracks I had yet to hear (and that hopefully will all make it onto the band's forthcoming debut album). The Hearts check into Rehab for the next two consecutive Wednesdays so be sure to check them out; in the meantime check out more pics after the jump...

Listen:
"Mass Hysteria"

See The Naked Hearts Live:
11 Jun - New York, NY @ Rehab w/ SUSU and So L’il
18 Jun - New York, NY @ Rehab 18 2008 9:00P
21 Jun - Brooklyn, NY @ Make Music NY Festival
24 Jun - Brooklyn, NY @ Zebulon w/ So Li’l

Visit The Naked Hearts on MySpace

OPP

2008-06-06T08:09:00.000-04:00

Terrence Howard to release an album this fall?

Van Halen reunion grosses more than $93 million

Bob Dylan endorses Barack Obama

Members of Led Zeppelin to rock Wembley with Foo Fighters tonight?

More details emerge about Mastodon's "creepy" new album

American Idol runner-up David Archuleta signs a record deal

Last.fm jumps into live music with Bowery Presents

8+

2008-06-05T15:00:00.001-04:00

"Somebody's Gotta Win, Somebody's Gotta Lose" by The Controllers which clocks in at 8:03

Matt and I made a bet. It is not without precedent, but more on that in a bit.

First, the good news. After what's felt like a solid five to seven months of playoff basketball, the NBA Finals commence TONIGHT. "Ho hum," you may say - or probably something less Grimms Fairy Tales-ish and more like "Who effing cares?" - but before your jock-averse eyes glaze over, consider the following:

The 2008 NBA Finals is a matchup of the two most storied franchises in professional basketball history, The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers.

FACT: Boston and L.A. have faced each other in the NBA Finals a total of 10 times, with Boston winning the first eight meetings and L.A. the most recent two. This last matchup occurred twenty-one years ago (1986-87). That's over two decades of anticipation (at least for Boston fans).

FACT: The Celtics and Lakers lead all NBA franchises with the most championships; Boston has 16 and L.A. has 14.

FACT: L.A.'s head coach Phil Jackson is one championship away from becoming the coach with the most titles in NBA history. Who would he surpass if L.A. wins? Deceased Boston coaching legend and Celtics' guardian angel Red Auerbach. Jackson and Auerbach are currently tied with nine championships each.

FACT: The 2008 iteration of the Celtics-Lakers rivalry features the league's best defense (Boston) facing off against the league's best offense (L.A.).

CONJECTURE: This year's Finals could potentially save the NBA and reestablish a level of prominence it hasn't enjoyed since before Michael Jordan retired. Marred by ever-dwindling television ratings, culminating with a record-low 6.2 rating for last year's Spurs-Cavaliers Finals, the excitement and glamour implicit in the Boston-L.A. matchup are expected to bring professional basketball back to a mass market and boost ratings considerably.

FACT: I am a lifelong Celtics fan; Matt has been an unapologetic Kobe Bryant fanatic since he first came into the league 12 years ago (and thus Lakers fan by default). And similar to the Gallagher brothers, such conflict only makes us stronger. This is why we came up with a friendly wager. It's very simple: somebody's gotta win, somebody's gotta lose....

It's not so much that the winner gains anything, unless you want to categorize witnessing the loser suffering for seven days as a "gain" (which I'm totally cool with). For those who don't know how the playoffs work, it's a best of seven series - meaning there will be at least four games and at most seven to decide the 2008 champion. And so, the morning after the deciding game, the loser will have to march into the sporting goods retailer of his choice and purchase a baseball cap with the opposing team's logo on it (to clarify, I would have to wear a gaudy purple and yellow Lakers hat and Matt would get to wear an awesome green Celtics cap).

Following this shameful act, the loser will have to wear said cap for the following SEVEN days whenever he dares show himself in public, whenever in proximity of the winner, and whenever in a group of three or more (this final proviso means if such numbers occur in the privacy of his home, tough noogies, the hat must go on).

Additionally, we recognize the increased role of the Internet in our daily lives and are all in favor of harnessing the power of social-networking sites to maximize the loser's humiliation. As such, the loser will also have to use the opposing team's logo as his profile picture on both his MySpace and Facebook accounts throughout this seven-day period.

Finally, the loser will have to read and subsequently write an EAR FARM "book report" on a text of the winner's choice, however tangentially related to music the winner sees fits. Matt has just informed me he has already picked out his choice for me. I'm undecided about my selection but am leaning towards something Boston-related, maybe this?

The superstitious among you may think I'm jinxing the Celtics by indirectly betting on them (if we can define betting here by wagering not to be humiliated), and former Mike would have probably agreed with you. However, this was before two incidents shaped my current position:

First Incident, 2004. Matt and I make a similar wager to the one laid out above (without the social networking and book report caveats) for Super Bowl XXXVIII. My beloved Patriots beat his wretched Panthers and I experience the distinct joy of watching him wear a Patriots hat for a week straight. Lesson learned: it appears supersititions are dumb; not only did my betting have zero effect on the outcome of the game, but humiliating your friends is fun.

Second Incident, 2008. I refuse to make any sort of wagers on Super Bowl XLII, still perhaps slightly cautious of creating bad karma for the undefeated squad. They lose the game and destroy their perfect season. Lesson learned: the Patriots do not care about how I choose to live my life.

So here we now stand, heads unadorned and social networking profiles unmolested. Game one is tonight, with the potential of six more to follow. Somebody's gotta win, and well, somebody's gotta lose....

*above photo courtesy of Matt's photoshopping skills and inspired by the NBA's There Can Only Be One campaign

Buy In Control on Amazon.

EAR FARM's 8+ is a weekly feature that showcases songs longer than 8 minutes. In the recent past these songs were featured on EF's 8+:
Islands - "Bucky Little Wing"
Grandaddy - "He's Simple, He's Dumb, He's the Pilot"
Broken Social Scene - "Backyards"
Oingo Boingo - "Change"
Count Basie - "Blues For The Barbecue"
The Besnard Lakes - "You've Got to Want to Be a Star"
M83 - "Couleurs"
David Byrne - "Happy Suicide"

To see a full list of every song featured in EAR FARM's 8+ click HERE.

FREE download: Nine Inch Nails Tour EP

2008-06-05T11:38:00.001-04:00

Rejoice! Nine Inch Nails is giving away more free music. This time the offering is a free EP featuring songs from the four excellent bands who will be supporting NIN on the Lights in the Sky tour this summer. The bands: A Place To Bury Strangers, Does it Offend You, Yeah?, Crystal Castles, and Deerhunter. To download the EP go HERE, for tour dates go HERE.

In addition, Trent Reznor just announced the final personnel lineup of NIN for the "foreseeable future." He calls it "unquestionably the strongest lineup I've EVER had" and I'm inclined to agree. Joining him onstage will be one of the best guitarists I've seen in person, Robin Finck, keyboardist Alessandro Cortini, current DEVO drummer Josh Freese, and Beck's favorite bassist Justin Meldal-Johnsen. Apparently they've "been working on something really special for these shows" - grab a sneak peek by checking out pictures from NIN tour rehearsal HERE.

Listen:
"Echoplex" by Nine Inch Nails
"To Fix The Gash In Your Head" by A Place To Bury Strangers

Visit Nine Inch Nails on Myspace.

OPP

2008-06-05T08:07:00.000-04:00

Country star George Jones is getting a stolen guitar returned to him 46 years later

Why? forced to cancel tour dates as 2/3 of the band come down with the mumps

Yes also cancels their tour as lead singer Jon Anderson has fallen ill

Obama's nomination unleashes tide of questionable music blogging?

Dave Eggers handled "guest whistling duties" on Aimee Mann's new album

Check out Stereogum's Quit Your Day Job feature with Torche

Oneida set to release new album Preteen Weaponry on August 5 before releasing a triple album in 2009

Drowned in Sound interviews Silver Jews' David Berman

Liars to release digital-only Freak Out EP on July 8

Joy Division edition of Microsoft Zune available June 17

Band of the Week: Steinski

2008-06-04T14:31:00.000-04:00

Band: Steinski
From: New York, NY
Sound: the O.G. of sample-based hip-hop sound collages
Similar Artists: DJ Shadow, Girl Talk, Cut Chemist, Liam Howlett, RJD2
Listen Now: "The Payoff Mix"

Robert Christgau on Steinski: "He's just a perpetually disillusioned optimist who still assumes that the sounds and images rippling through the American consciousness are, forget copyright, every American's birthright--that we're all free to interpret and manipulate them as we choose..."

Now here's a little story I've got to tell
About three bad brothers you (may not) know so well.
It started way back in history
With Tommy Boy, Double Dee, and our man - Steinski.

Tommy Boy had a little contest, 1983 was the year
Just Double Dee, Steinski, and a quart of beer.
Riding across the land, kicking up sand,
"Play That Beat, Mr. DJ" - they were in demand.

Un-lonely DJ Steinski
All by himself with his boy Double Dee.
The workplace was beatin' down on their baseball hats
Music studio gettin' hot, ad agency gettin' flat.
Lookin' for some fun, they ran into renown,
Turned hip-hop on its face with a brand new sound...

Backstory: Steve Stein (aka Steinski) dropped out of both Temple and Franconia College before finding his way to Madison avenue where he worked as an advertising copywriter for six years. During this time he taught copywriting at The School Of Visual Arts and spent his evenings promoting and DJing dances in Brooklyn and downtown Manhattan hip-hop clubs. Then, one day in 1983, he and partner Douglas DiFranco (aka Double Dee) entered the Tommy Boy Records promotional contest to remix the single "Play That Beat, Mr. D.J." by G.L.O.B.E. and Whiz Kid. They blew the jury away (a jury that included Afrika Bambaataa, Shep Pettibone, and "Jellybean" Benitez) and took first prize with ease with their song titled "The Payoff Mix" (listen above/below). "The Payoff Mix" became the first record in a series now known as The Lessons - Lesson Two being "The James Brown Mix" and Lesson 3: "The History of Hip Hop." An underground sensation was born as the series quickly became much sought after by collectors which, in turn, led to homage records by DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist (among others). However, somewhat ironically, the duo wouldn't see their music officially/widely released until this year due to copyright issues surrounding the flurry of film, music, and vocal samples they employed.

Today: Now, for the first time, Illegal Art has made available a Steinski retrospective titled What Does It All Mean? 1983-2006 Retrospective. The release is split into two discs: the first record contains b-boy anthems, avant sound collages, samples galore, and more than a couple of introspective looks at rap, rock, dance, and the nation which gave birth to the culture of hip-hop. It's legendary when considered as a career compendium - it is the landmark when considered in terms of the impact these songs have had on a generation of producers and DJs.

The second disc contains an hour-long mashup titled "Nothing To Fear: A Rough Mix." This mix was produced for Solid Steel/BBC London and was described by Salon as, "the closest thing to a masterpiece the genre has yet produced." The retrospective is essential listening for anyone who considers his or herself to be in love with music. Period. I'll say it again (for emphasis, you know): What Does It All Mean? 1983-2006 Retrospective is essential listening for anyone who considers his or herself to be a true lover of music. Period. If you fell in love with Night Ripper by Girl Talk in 2006 - if you think Endtroducing... is one of the great albums of the '90s - you owe it to yourself to understand what came before.

The history of hip-hop has been built upon the shoulders of itself time and again. It got its start as a unique genre at house parties and clubs in New York city with MCs rapping over beats provided by DJs who were looping breaks in dance, soul, rock, and funk records. It got its start as an art form a few years later when Steinski "took hip-hop's tradition of reformatting existing material and made it a postmodern funhouse." Postmodern funhouse! Jam on it.

I said jam-j-j-j-j-jam on it.

*above photo from HERE.

Listen:
"The Payoff Mix"
"Lesson 2 (James Brown Mix)"
"Lesson 3 (History of Hip Hop)"

Visit Steinski on MySpace.
--
In the recent past, the following bands have been featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week:
These United States
Kelley Polar
Plants and Animals
All the Saints
I'm From Barcelona
Bombadil
Tapes 'n Tapes
White Hinterland

See the entire list of bands featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week HERE.

Naked Hearts Residency Starts Tonight

2008-06-04T11:24:00.000-04:00

The Naked Hearts are a relatively newish trio on the NYC radar, having only played their first show earlier this year at the Delancey. StereoactiveNYC was there and plenty liked what they heard, and from their praises - and a more recent glowing CMJ review - our interest was considerably piqued.

Imagine our delight when singer/bassist Noah Wheeler hooked us up with their melancholic and moving pop gems (which we will in turn hook you up with below), a batch of songs that were deftly constructed and lovingly recorded on a Tascam 4-track and in full embrace of the lo-fi hiss and warbles that came along with it (nowadays you need a Pro Tools plug-in to get those effects).

The band continues their steady ascendancy by kicking off a June residency at Club Rehab TONIGHT. After that, they plan on recording their debut album in July. Here are all their dates:

04 Jun - New York, NY @ Rehab w/ Hologram and the Soundscapes
11 Jun - New York, NY @ Rehab w/ SUSU and So L’il
18 Jun - New York, NY @ Rehab 18 2008 9:00P
21 Jun - Brooklyn, NY @ Make Music NY Festival
24 Jun - Brooklyn, NY @ Zebulon w/ So Li’l

And here are the tunes...

Listen:
"Mass Hysteria"
"Like I Do"
"Naked Hearts"

Visit The Naked Hearts on MySpace

OPP

2008-06-04T08:16:00.000-04:00

The Minneapolis City Pages chats with R.E.M.'s Mike Mills

PopMatters: ten reasons Bo Diddley is the forgotten heavyweight champion of rock

Deerhoof's new album Offend Maggie is due out on October 7 on Kill Rock Stars, and they reveal more details too

Alton Kelley, the artist who helped create the psychedelic style of posters of the 1960s San Francisco rock scene, died Sunday at age 67

Yeah Yeah Yeahs have commenced recording their new album

NYC Taper examines whether music blog payola is a problem

Brooklyn Vegan has pics from Black Lips' Maxwell's show on Monday

I Want My MTV - Morrissey walks

2008-06-03T17:05:00.001-04:00

Watching the music video for Morrissey's most recent single ("All You Need Is Me"), it occurred to me that something felt oh so very familiar about it... the outstretched arms? The tambourine? Mozzer surrounded by boys? Yes those, okay, sure. But more than that, it's the walk. Morrissey singing and walking towards the camera: the most basic of Morrissey music video tactics. How many other videos of his can you name that feature this overplayed action-infusing device?? I came up with a total of eight...

"All You Need Is Me" (above)

"Tomorrow" (above)

"We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" (above)

"The More You Ignore Me The Closer I Get" (above)

"Dagenham Dave" (above)

"Certain People I Know" (above)

"I Have Forgiven Jesus" (above)

"The Youngest Was the Most Loved" (above)

Three for Free - The Avett Brothers, The Everybodyfields, Martin Stephenson

2008-06-03T15:33:00.000-04:00

EAR FARM's Three for Free: three EF approved, free and legal MP3s posted each week. This week - three songs from Ramseur Records. Click on the artist name to go to their site, click on the song name to listen to the song.

Listen:
The Avett Brothers - "Will You Return?"

The Everybodyfields - "Everything is Okay"

Martin Stephenson - "Salutation Road"

EF History Lesson: Product Placement (L-O-L-A)

2008-06-03T12:00:00.003-04:00

Today is June 3rd. Thirty-eight years ago to this very day, Ray Davies was forced to fly round-trip from the US to England just to record the words "cherry cola" in place of the original lyrics he had written and recorded for the Kinks' future hit "Lola".

The BBC had refused to give air time to the track so long as its original lyrics remained in place. Any guess what these forbidden words were? Let's see, "Lola" is a song about a transvestite so I'm guessing it's something a bit edgy, right? Something NSFW? No? What were these evil words then? "Coca-cola".

Odd, yes? See, time was the BBC didn't take too kindly to overt product placements in songs. It appears they were committed to drawing a sharply defined line between entertainment and advertising (or art and commerce if we want to sound even more self-righteous). And this isn't to suggest that Coke was paying Davies on the sly to shill their soft drink; Davies just happened to use their product as a lyric, most obviously because it rhymes with "Lola".

Still, the BBC held their ground, Davies flew halfway around the world to fix the lyric, and the public went on looking at transvestites without craving a Coke (just a generic cherry cola instead). That was 38 years ago to the day. Since then, things have changed (and I'm not just talking about a Coke commercial becoming a hit single)....

Candie's is happy Fergie wore Adidas for this show
Of course you're familiar with Run-DMC praising their signature unlaced kicks in "My Adidas" or other hip hop artists dropping references to Cristal and Courvoisier in their lyrics; the presumption is that they all share genuine affinities towards these products.

But how did we get from the Kinks to Fergie? Last year, Fergie signed a $4 million deal with Candie's - a teen clothing line - to incorporate their products into the lyrics of her songs. Speaking about the deal, an Interscope executive (Fergie's label) said the following:

"The trick is to make the brand part of the song, so that it slips down easily rather than chokes the fan[...]Candie's will reach teens, but it has no say over exactly what Fergie will sing, or when. Fans might think she is just singing about candy. But it's got to work in the song."

Gross. Where's the overprotective arm of the BBC when you really need it? At least in "Lola", we could really believe that the champagne in the tranny club tasted like Coke; Davies didn't have $4 million worth of motivation in suggesting it. Tweenagers beware. Next thing you know you'll find out that "London Bridges" really wasn't about the London Bridge...

Listen: "Lola"

*above image found HERE

Today's NEW Releases

2008-06-03T10:15:00.000-04:00

Pretty sweet week for releases, definitely makes up for last week:

Happy June. What else is out there and new today?

OPP

2008-06-03T08:35:00.000-04:00

Stars pay tribute to Bo Diddley, who died yesterday of heart failure at age 79

Liam Gallagher's wife challenges Gordon Ramsay to a cookoff

PopMatters interviews Portishead

Paul McCartney plays "A Day In The Life" live as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club turns 41

Tori Amos leaves Epic Records and decides to go indie

The Streets' Mike Skinner reveals he will make two more albums and then call it quits

Coldplay to apparently release quick follow-up to Viva La Vida

Alice Cooper set to release a concept album about a spider serial killer

Hit-or-miss: "Look At Miss Ohio" by Gillian Welch

2008-06-02T16:04:00.000-04:00

Listen:
"Look At Miss Ohio" by Gillian Welch from Soul Journey

View:
Image search results for Look At Miss Ohio - above image is from the first page of results (and was originally from HERE).
--
In the recent past these songs were featured in Hit-or-miss posts:
"Music To Watch Girls By" by Andy Williams
"String Bean Jean" by Belle & Sebastian
"Buzz Fledderjohn" by Tom Waits
"Pump up the Bass" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
"Jet City Woman" by Queensrÿche
"II. In Taberna: Estuans Interius" by Carl Orff
"Dangerous" by Frente!
"Keep Their Heads Ringing" by Dr. Dre
--
EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss is a weekly feature (every Monday) wherein the EF music library is put on shuffle, the song that plays is then searched (using the song title) on Google images and a resulting photo (plus an MP3 of the song) is posted. You can see all of EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss posts thus far right HERE.

5+5=10: 5 bands, 5 songs, 10 words about each

2008-06-02T13:43:00.002-04:00

The Broken Letters - Haunted, beautiful post-Southern Rock: Slint meets Band of Horses.

Listen: "Licht"

Visit The Broken Letters on MySpace.

Peachcake - Soda pop, tootsie rolls, old-school video game music - yum.

Listen: "The Winter Song"

Visit Peachcake on MySpace.

The Grizzly Owls - Brigitte Bardot singing over Morricone; drenched in reverb - TR-909 backbeat.

Listen: "What's A Girl To Do"

Visit The Grizzly Owls on MySpace.

Two more bands, two more songs, twenty more words, after the jump...

Devastations - Some Love and Rockets plus Nick Cave: dark, sexy, mysterious.

Listen: "Mistakes"

Visit Devastations on MySpace.

Golem - Yiddish gypsy-jam punk folk rock that explodes in concert.

Listen: "Warsaw"

Visit Golem on MySpace.

OPP

2008-06-02T08:20:00.000-04:00

Okkervil River announces tour - with two stops at Webster Hall Oct. 6-7 - and details of The Stand Ins

Prefix has this past weekend covered, with pics from Apes and Androids at Bowery, Wire at South Street Seaport, and Ponytail at the Knitting Factory

The Boston Globe is the latest to do a trend piece on the comeback of vinyl records

Morrissey sets September UK release date for ninth studio album, Years of Refusal

Pitchfork interviews Why?

The New York Times reviews Saturday's Stone Temple Pilots show....and is concerned about Weiland

Associated Press: Over the top MTV Movie Awards have smoke, no fire

Mastodon, Slayer, and Trivium line up November European tour dates together

Kurt Cobain's ashes stolen?

EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!

2008-05-30T16:04:00.000-04:00

With the recent (successful) landing of the Phoenix Mars Lander all up in the news, I've had Mars on the brain tons lately. In fact, I nerded out and downloaded an animation (from here) of the entry, descent and landing of the Phoenix Mars Lander and added a Black Moth Super Rainbow song to it. It's pretty sweet. Check it out over on EARF... Mars fever! Let's get people on that planet already. "Come on, Cohaagen! You got what you want. Give those people air!"

You can listen to this week's EAR FARM muxtape HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #10: MARS!
1. "Tip Your Hat To Whitey (Mars)" by Chris Rock
2. "Mars Loves Venus" by The Brunettes
3. "Mars Needs Women" by Mylo
4. "The Stars Our Destination" by Stereolab
5. "Mars Sparkles Down On Me" by The Wedding Present
6. "Woodpecker from Mars" by Faith No More
7. "Red Planet" by NRBQ
8. "Teenagers From Mars" by The Misfits
9. "Honey Bee (Let's Fly To Mars)" by Grinderman
10. "I Married A Martian" by Sparks
11. "Holst: Mars, The Bringer Of War" by London Symphony Orchestra
12. "Life On Mars?" by Seu Jorge

*above picture found HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

LOST: Theoretical Answers to 10 Questions Posed in Last Night's Finale "There's No Place Like Home, Parts 2 & 3"

2008-05-30T14:02:00.007-04:00

Last night ABC aired the season finale of their hit show LOST. Per usual, fans of the series were given answers to many long-standing questions and then, ultimately, were left with a slew of new questions to ponder in the months leading up to the first episode of Season 5. One thing, however, is certain: the producers dig some late '80/early '90s rock. Check out the Pixies song that featured prominently in last night's finale posted below/after the jump.

In addition, click through to read my postulations about some of the big unknowns currently perplexing LOST fans and please post your own theories and thoughts in the comments. However, be warned: SPOILERS ARE CONTAINED WITHIN: don't read this post if you haven't seen the episode. Forward at your own risk...

10. The manchild: Walt is still very important. And in his late 40's. Will he use his superpowers to revive a dead animal (or person, or "philosopher") or two next season??
9. The whisper: I'm guessing that Sawyer asked Kate to deliver something (a message?) to his daughter.
8. The bomb: Michael is dead. Jin is not: he'll be found (alive) by Daniel in his raft.
7. The Redhead: Miles knows that Charlotte has been to the island before. Then she realizes it's true... but who is she? A prior Dharma girl? Ben's childhood girlfriend? Ben's biological daughter he previously thought dead who was raised by someone connected to Jin/Sun? (she speaks Korean remember) She's definitely someone important... wonder how many toes she has on each foot?
6. The time machine: I'm thinking Daniel is going to do some time travel experiments in the Orchid ("Desmond is my constant"). Desmond already has time traveled. Ben seems to do the same by moving the island and waking up in Tunisia. Who else time travels? Everyone. Including the polar bear that ended up in the desert but used to push that cold-ass donkey wheel back in the day when moving of the island was needed.
5. The dream: Kate had a dream. There was a phone call (that, when played backwards, says "The Island needs you. You have to go back before it's too late.") and Claire showed up. But why did Claire explicitly say not to take Aaron back to the island? Isn't she supposed to raise him? And, is Claire still alive? I say yes. But as to the mixed signals between her and Ben about coming back to the island - who knows. (Also, was it just me, or did Claire look pregnant in that dream?)
4. The Widmores: Penny and Desmond are going to work against her father, something tells me Sun isn't really wanting to work "with" Charles Widmore either... but ultimately, who is he? Dharma Initiative? What's this thing he has going on with Ben?
3. The island: Poof! Island is gone. To where? Or, rather, when... I have no answer for this save the fact that temporal displacement is (clearly) very central to this entire story. Also, I'm back to thinking that this island could be Atlantis and that all of our main characters are descendants of the original inhabitants... or something.
2. The dead philosopher: (aka, Schrödinger's coffin) John Locke is Jeremy Bentham is... dead in the coffin. Did he kill himself? I'm thinking yes, in a very Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode IV kind of way. ("If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine.") Speaking of Bentham, his Panopticon is worth reading about in regards to LOST. Big time.
1. The return: Season 5 is shaping up to be about how/when/why Jack, Kate, Sayid, Hurley, Sun, Aaron, Locke, Walt, et al. get back to the island. Big lol potentials lie ahead of us as the Oceanic 6 (plus) have to Weekend at Bernie's Locke's ass back to the island. I can't wait.

Listen: "Gouge Away" by The Pixies

*above picture from HERE.

Scripps National Spelling Bee Finalists Beware: EAR FARM's Surefire Stumbling Blocks

2008-05-30T11:25:00.001-04:00

Look at poor Akshay Buddiga faint. This infamous clip from the Ghost of Scripps National Spelling Bees Past should be a warning to the precocious youngsters battling it out in Washington D.C. today (the Semifinals are on NOW on ESPN and the Finals are on tonight on ABC at 8:00pm): this competition is INTENSE.

Pitfalls and perils await kiddies; best to train hard and be prepared for ANY situation that may face you this afternoon. Like when the judges start throwing curveballs and present those deceptive words whose pronunciations bear little to no bearing on their actual spelling, stuff like that.

The disconnect between pronunciation and spelling is harsh. That's why EF is here to give you a quick primer while you refuel on juice boxes and cookies in the Comfort Room. So in the off chance they hit you with a tricky band name during the Finals tonight, we've got you covered.

The Top 8 Potential Stumbling Blocks. Beware!

8. The judge says a word that sounds like "oh nye duh"; correct spelling is O-N-E-I-D-A: Oneida

7. The next word sounds like "bohn eevair"; correct spelling is B-O-N I-V-E-R: Bon Iver

6. The next one sounds like "luckily"; too easy right? Right. The correct spelling is L-Y-K-K-E L-I: Lykke Li

Congratulations, you're down to the final 5. Grab another Capri Sun and continue your training after the jump...

5. This word sounds like "soof-yan stevens"; it's one of the most mispronounced names in indie rock. That's right, the correct spelling is S-U-F-J-A-N S-T-E-V-E-N-S: Sufjan Stevens

4. The next word sounds like "shoe shoe"; correct spelling is X-I-U X-I-U: Xiu Xiu

3. The final three. Okay, this word sounds like "lay sah vee fahv"; correct spelling is L-E-S S-A-V-Y F-A-V: Les Savy Fav

2. The judge says this one very quickly and it sounds like "sih ur rose"; correct spelling is S-I-G-U-R R-Ó-S: Sigur Rós

1. Your last challenge. The judge adjusts his glasses and says this word has a few different pronunciations. He first says something that sounds like "chik chik chik" and then "pow pow pow" before following those up with three clicking noises made with his tongue on the roof of his mouth. Tricky. The correct spelling is !-!-!: !!!

So there you go, you're all set to dominate the competition today and tonight. Go forth and...wait, what's that you say? The judges pick actual words and not band names for the bee? Oh....you may be screwed then. Sorry about that.

OPP

2008-05-30T08:00:00.000-04:00

Swap out your boring strum bar with a real guitar string via this Rock Band mod kit

Watch Beach House play a song they just wrote while on a train in Norway

Yahoo! Music considers the 25 Most Rockin' Guitar Riffs of all time

Steven Tyler went to rehab to find a "safe environment" where he could recover from foot surgery

David Cook has a record-breaking 11 new songs debuting on America's Hot 100 singles chart

My Morning Jacket confirmed to play Toronto's North By Northeast festival

Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett commissioned to do the two-minute title sequences for BBC's broadcast of the Olympics

Sammy Hagar thinks his new band Chickenfoot - which also includes Chad Smith, Michael Anthony, and Joe Satriani - is as good as Led Zeppelin

8+

2008-05-29T15:03:00.000-04:00

"Bucky Little Wing" by Islands which clocks in at 9:38

"Bucky Little Wing" is a hidden track on the first Islands album Return to the Sea. Hidden in the puzzle above are 15 words pulled directly from the lyrics to the song. The words can be positioned forwards/backwards, up/down, and diagonally. If you'd like a hint, click HERE for a list of all 15 words you are looking for. Good luck!

*answer key located HERE.
**above puzzle created using Puzzlemaker at DiscoveryEducation.com.

Buy Return to the Sea on Amazon.

EAR FARM's 8+ is a weekly feature that showcases songs longer than 8 minutes. In the recent past these songs were featured on EF's 8+:
Grandaddy - "He's Simple, He's Dumb, He's the Pilot"
Broken Social Scene - "Backyards"
Oingo Boingo - "Change"
Count Basie - "Blues For The Barbecue"
The Besnard Lakes - "You've Got to Want to Be a Star"
M83 - "Couleurs"
David Byrne - "Happy Suicide"
Fleetwood Mac - "Oh Well"

To see a full list of every song featured in EAR FARM's 8+ click HERE.

Dead Confederate & All the Saints LIVE tonight @ Pianos, NYC

2008-05-29T12:03:00.000-04:00

EAR FARM favorites Dead Confederate and All the Saints are finally in New York City tonight playing a show together at Pianos! Be sure to check out both bands as they're undoubtedly going to blow the roof clean off that mother. For a preview of what to expect, check out the video (above) that we grabbed in Austin of Dead Confederate opening for R.E.M. during South by Southwest. Seriously, watch it. You get to see that at Pianos! Unreal.

More goodies after the jump...

Watch:
"Tortured Artist Saint" live @ Stubb's - 12 March 2008 (QuickTime, higher quality than YouTube)

Listen:
"The Rat" by Dead Confederate
"Sheffield" by All the Saints

Buy: Dead Confederate [EP]

See Dead Confederate/All the Saints live: dates HERE

See also:
- R.E.M. @ Stubb's BBQ - 12 March 2008 (SXSW Day 1, pics, live video/mp3)
- EF Band of the Week: Dead Confederate
- EF Band of the Week: All the Saints

Visit All the Saints & Dead Confederate on MySpace.

OPP

2008-05-29T08:09:00.002-04:00

NME investigates the worst album covers ever

Sunset Rubdown do a Black Cab Session

Wired takes a look at some of the best new animated videos out there

Malawi court approves Madonna adoption

Cracked has 7 reasons why the new Kid Rock song may be the worst tune ever

R. Kelly's defense claiming music critic Jim DeRogatis is guilty of child pornography for handing over Kelly's sex tape to the cops????

Sony Music taps into its photo archive as a resource to use during hard times

Band of the Week: These United States

2008-05-28T15:15:00.001-04:00

Band: These United States
From: Washington, D.C.
Sound: Delicately dense portraits and hyper-literate lullabies to the American soul and spirit
Similar Artists: M. Ward, Andrew Bird, Iron & Wine, Bon Iver
Listen Now: "First Sight"

You could define These United States most simply as a musical project helmed by D.C.-based wordsmith Jesse Elliott. You could then broaden this definition to include his fantastic collaboration with David Strackany (aka Paleo, the force behind last year's epic 365 songs in 365 days Song Diary project) that resulted in These United States' debut album A Picture of the Three of Us at the Gate to the Garden of Eden. While you're at it, you may as well also include the 30 other musicians who all got their paws on Elliott's muse and wouldn't let go during recording, until we're left with a revised understanding that goes something like this: These United States appears to be a pack of musical gypsies, a life-affirming ethos of goodwill and tall tales, proof of Johnny Appleseed's enduring legacy in 21st century America (don't worry, more on this later), and an all around kick ass band.

Don't take my word for it though. It wouldn't be fair. After all, I was the one dense enough to completely neglect that they were in town two weeks ago AND on the same bill as Plants and Animals at Union Hall*. And now that I come groveling after the fact, reeling from the spellbinding portraits Elliott spins and conjures throughout A Picture of the Three of Us... and demanding more, it's just too damn late. See, the band is off to tour Europe in a few weeks, and any chance of seeing them unfurl their tents, shake the dust off their boots, and set up camp in our neighborhood anytime soon is unlikely.

But there is a silver lining. Elliott took some time out of his Memorial Day weekend to converse with EF via the medium he so enthusiastically commands throughout his music, the written word (fancy talk for email). Check out our exclusive Q&A after the jump...

EF: I was first hoping you could describe the collaborative process between you and David Strackany. For example, were these all songs that you had previously written that he had then taken and added arrangements to or was there more give and take involved?

JE: a little more give and take than that, but that was the basic Idea. I was plunking around on acoustic and electric guitars, worried mostly about Words and Rhythm. Strackany was toying with the thought of becoming a producer - he's got a real ear for sonic landscapes. the two of us together were lookin' to get out beyond the land of folksong, wanted something richer and weirder, but still organic. just started making sounds and layering them on top of these simple tunes I'd written.

EF: I understand there were upwards of 30 musicians contributing to the album. How did you manage to kind of keep the original vision of your songs with so many "cooks in the kitchen"? Or was surrendering and letting go just another element of the songwriting process?

JE: surrendering to people who are better and smarter than me is one of the only things I'm interested in, musically. I'm not really a musician, just kind of a writer in wolf's sheepskin. it's great, cause I don't have to have TOO much vested interest in whatever the original idea behind a song was. things evolve or die. the world's wicked and lovely like that.

EF: At the risk of this sounding like a job interview, your bio states that before These Unites States you were a gonzo journalist. What were the sorts of things that interested you as a writer and what would you report about?

JE: everything. I'd mostly just rant. hence the Gonzo. a polite word for mad dumb hilarious rambles, I think. life, death, current events, game shows. I did a series of pieces on September 11, 2001 - drove out to NYC from Iowa, got there Sept 12 at 4 am in the morning, spent a week walking around the streets talking to people. people are magical. people are really the only thing I ever wrote about. god bless em. so damn strange, what they do and don't to the world.

EF: I bring up the journalism background primarily because listening to your words, it's obvious you're a gifted writer. You paint some incredibly vivid scenes and portraits through the use of some very literate lyrics. How is the songwriting and lyrical process informed or influenced by your background?

JE: thank you kindly, Mike - means a lot to me. I've got panned for using too many words in a lotta places, always nice to hear that a few people out there like words as much as I do. I think I'm going for something that's more purely aesthetic than what people like right now. there are all these amazing emotional and personal songwriters out there right now, the Bon Iver kinda model. and I love that stuff and it's beautiful and it cuts right to my heart the same as it does for so many people, obviously. but songwriting for me is more like collage, or like shooting one frame, 1/24 of a second, of 16 mm film for a week, on a road to Florida, clicking that button once every 30 seconds, say, and then going back months after that week and seeing what transpired, rapid-fire, something overwhelming and nonsensical and yet perfectly a part of its very own warp-speed narrative. I did that once, with film, I mean - and I think it stuck with me in writing. I like words and rhythm and sentences and cadence and phrasing and all that junk more than emotion. does that make me a horrible person?

EF: If forced to choose one (indulge me here), would you identify yourself as a writer, musician, or performer?

JE: I write. that's not to say that I'm the best of the three at that particular task (or even that I'm very good at any of them, really) - that's just what sets my heart racing - that sentence you can really set sail on.

EF: In terms of music, what other current artists and bands have really been clicking you with lately?

JE: we just played a few shows with Plants and Animals, and they really blew my mind. love them kids. there's a great kinda psych-folk-desert-dirge scene in DC right now, as embodied by The Federal Reserve, a collective some of us started, and also Gypsy Eyes Records, a really good local label. I think you're always influenced most by your immediate peers, so for me it's those folks and other random bands like The Great White Jenkins from Richmond or The Cotton Jones Basket Ride from up the road in Maryland.

EF: What about some of your all time favorites?

JE: Beck. Andrew Bird. too obvious to mention Dylan? again, a lot of the more Aesthetic Experimentalists, in my book. number one of all time, of course, would have to be Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem. there's prolly no person in this world I've loved more or longer than I loved Jim Henson.

EF: Now, on the literary side of things, what writers or works have you been into these days and what have been some of the most influential in your own development?

JE: I've been reading this really wonderful book of poems by a guy named August Kleinzahler, called Sleeping It Off in Rapid City. I spent the last week out in the rolling Mississippi River valley of northeast Iowa, seeing old friends and family, and it just fit perfectly with the curve of every hill, and even of the whole entire earth, I think.

EF: The concept of America and the legacy of this country seems to be deeply intertwined with your musical identity. From your band's name and its honoring of American folk to where you currently live (Washington D.C.) and the fact that your ancestor was Johnny Appleseed (and as an aside, is that really true?), what do you make of this connection to the United States that runs throughout your own history at a time when it seems cooler to travel Europe with a Canadian patch on our backpacks?

JE: John Chapman, in the family bible in Fort Wayne, IN, I kid you not. I was surprised as you, but my cousin did this genealogical roots thing a few years back, and it checks out, and I guess it makes Good Solid Sense - would certainly explain (in that wonderfully mythological, this-may-have-absolutely-nothing-to-do with-real-life but-isn't-it-a-fun-way-to-explain-phenomena-in-the-world we-will-never-fully-comprehend-anyway kind of a way, y'know?) my love of land and geography and walking and humming (and apples? I guess I sort of like apples. I definitely like seeds.) and, damn it can be hard to say it sometimes, but, yes, still, America. it's the psychological and the physical geography that does it for me, all the beautiful castles of Europe and the easily defensible stances of Canada aside. there's nothing easy about America. John Chapman went crazy. I'll be damned if I'm not gonna try and get every long mile down under my feet before the whole thing explodes in a big old thrilling supernova, though.

EF: And speaking of Europe, you guys are about to head over there for a fairly extensive tour. How are you feeling about that and what's next for These United States afterwards?

JE: we love the UK. the further from Home you are, the kinder Strangers become. I can't wait to tour Indonesia some day. people are wonderful everywhere. there so much of the world encompassed just in that tiny little island strip between Brighton and Aberdeen. probably even more than we'll ever know, even further, up north, down to Plymouth, out to the westernmost of Wales. we get a wonderful warmth off those Brits. they drink like skilled fish. after the UK, back up north, hopefully finally to Canada, which we've not hit up yet somehow in the last 350 shows we've played. then out West again, touch the Pacific, breathe some of that into us, we always need that, the West. into autumn, who knows - a new album out maybe? we are the skilled fish of our own destiny!

*belated thanks to those who brought the fact that These United States had played that Union Hall show to my attention after the fact. Alas.

Listen: "First Sight"

Watch: These United States go on a quest for tequila in Tijuana during SXSW HERE

See These United States Live:
18 Jun - Washington, D.C. @ Rock and Roll Hotel
20 Jun - London, UK @ The Vortex
21 Jun - Norwich, UK @ B2
22 Jun - Newcastle, UK @ Head of Steam
23 Jun - Nottingham, UK @ Bodega Social Club
24 Jun - Cardiff, UK @ UWIC (Tommy’s Bar)
25 Jun - Bristol, UK @ The Louisiana
26 Jun - Bath, UK @ The Porter (Moles Club)
27 Jun - Glastonbury, UK @ GLASTONBURY Festival (Croissant Neuf Stage)
28 Jun - Glastonbury, UK @ GLASTONBURY Festival (Bandstand Stage)
29 Jun - Swindon, UK @ The Vic
01 Jul - Manchester, UK @ The Ruby Lounge
02 Jul - Glasgow, UK @ Oran Mor
03 Jul - Edinburgh, UK @ Cabaret Voltaire
04 Jul - Oxford, UK @ The Cellar
05 Jul - London UK @ The Troubador

Visit These United States on MySpace.
--
In the recent past, the following bands have been featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week:
Kelley Polar
Plants and Animals
All the Saints
I'm From Barcelona
Bombadil
Tapes 'n Tapes
White Hinterland
Man Man

See the entire list of bands featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week HERE.

TV News Producer Cheatsheet: Offbeat News Stories (with accompanying bumper music)

2008-05-28T12:47:00.001-04:00

Peru, Chile fight over potato's origin: The historic rivalry between Chile and Peru has taken a new form as the two countries argue over the origin of the potato. Read more/above photo from HERE.

Listen: "Mashed Potato Time" by Dee Dee Sharp

Liquor store owner told to stop taking shoplifters' shoes: Tired of losing $1,000 worth of merchandise a month in thefts, Gabe Fidanque started telling shoplifters he caught that they had two choices: Give him one of their shoes or he'd call the police. Read more HERE/photo from HERE.

Listen: "No More Shoes" by Stephen Malkmus

Maine town selling old jail for $200,000: If you're in the market for a roomy brick-and-stone house - complete with some pretty impressive security features - look no further. The Somerset County Jail in downtown Skowhegan is for sale. Read more HERE/photo from HERE.

Listen: "In The Jailhouse Now" by The Soggy Bottom Boys

View more offbeat news/bumper music matches after the jump...

Duo tries to break world handshaking record: Kevin Whittaker and Cory Jens shook hands with one another Monday for 9 1/2 hours, trying to beat a handshaking record of about nine hours set by two Germans. Read more HERE/photo from HERE.

Listen: "The Handshake" by MGMT

Girl stung by scorpion in Wal-Mart watermelon: A 12-year-old girl picking up a seedless watermelon from a bin was stung Sunday by a tan, inch-long scorpion that had apparently stowed away in a shipment from Mexico. Read more HERE/photo from HERE.

Listen: "The Scorpion" by Megadeth

OPP

2008-05-28T07:30:00.000-04:00

Stereogum does a premature evaluation of Weezer's forthcoming Red Album

Pick the song that will be inescapable by this time next month over at Idolator's 2008 Summer Jam Tournament

A Brooklyn man convicted of music piracy may face five years in prison

Smashing Pumpkins to celebrate their 20th anniversary with a tour and DVD

Check out Rainn Wilson's Sasquatch blog over at Rolling Stone

Ratatat announce small tour with a stop at Music Hall of Williamsburg July 15th

MuxFind lets you search and discover on Muxtape

Rock Band stage kit - complete with fog machine and stage lights - to come out this August for Xbox 360

I Want My MTV - new videos from Kanye West, El Jezel, Black Kids, and Cut Copy

2008-05-27T16:04:00.000-04:00

So, Kanye is being all Kanyey and has just released a second eog-flippin' video for "Flashing Lights"... the first one was directed by Spike Jonze. It was pretty raw. I think I like this one directed by Bill Pollock a lot more. Check it out below, as well as a few other brand new vids from El Jezel, Black Kids, and Cut Copy...

"Flashing Lights" by Kanye West (above)

"Champagne & Cold Coffee" by El Jezel (above)

"Hurricane Jane" by Black Kids (above)

"Hearts On Fire" by Cut Copy (above)

Three for Free - Pomegranates, Caverns, The Dark Romantics

2008-05-27T14:31:00.000-04:00

EAR FARM's Three for Free: three EF approved, free and legal MP3s posted each week. This week - three songs from artists on Lujo Records. Click on the artist name to go to their site, click on the song name to listen to the song.

Listen:
Pomegranates - “Whom/Who”

Caverns - "This Are Syntax"

The Dark Romantics - "Is This Really Happening"

Islands @ Webster Hall - 24 May 2008

2008-05-27T12:00:00.003-04:00

Islands made their second appearance - and first as headliner - at Webster Hall this past Saturday evening and filled the cavernous space with an appropriately large-sounding set. From the muscular opening riff of the show (and album) opener "The Arm" onwards, they seemed intent on channeling the darker, muscular rhythms and arrangements that dominate Arm's Way while explicitly turning their noses at the lighter fare that comprised much of 2006's Return to the Sea.

Personally, I enjoyed the attention and detail paid to Arm's Way; it's an involved affair that really benefits from the added openness and urgency found in the live setting. "Vertigo", the album's 11 minute closer, absolutely devastated as the perfect set closer, revealing layers upon layers of intertwined strings and rhythms that the band expertly allowed to breathe and evolve into a composition that transcended the sum of its parts. It was amazing. Same goes for "J'aime Vous Voir Quitter" and "Pieces of You", though the subversive moment of the night would have to go to Nick Thorburn crooning "Kids Don't Know Shit" to a blissfully unaware all-ages crowd. And it was this crowd that seemed to want more Return To The Sea, cheering wildly every time the band would launch into one of its selections while Thorburn deadpanned and downplayed their earlier material, telling them they should be more excited for the new songs.

Old, new, it doesn't really matter when seeing Islands live, and while some youngsters bristled at consecutive 8+'s to end the set and begin the encore ("Vertigo" followed by "Swans"), such sequencing decisions are just the tip of the eccentric iceberg when it comes to seeing Thorburn live (here I'm thinking back to a Unicorns show when they stopped "I Was Born A Unicorn" halfway through to close the set before finishing it during the encore). Better to go with it kids, because according to Thorburn you don't know shit anyway. Check out more pics and tour dates after the jump...

*photos by Peter Beer

Listen: "The Arm"

See also:
- Islands @ Cedar St. Courtyard - 13 March 2008 (SXSW Day 2, pics, live video/mp3)
- Spam Filter: Islands are a comin'
- Islands @ R Bar - 19 October 2007

See Islands Live:
27 May - Ottawa, Ontario @ Babylon
28 May - Montreal, Quebec @ Le National
29 May - Toronto, Ontario @ The Phoenix
30 May - London, Ontario @ Call the Office
31 May - Waterloo, Ontario @ The Starlight
01 Jun - Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot
02 Jun - Chicago, Ill @ Logan Square Auditorium
03 Jun - Minneapolis, MN @ First Ave.
04 Jun - Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium
05 Jun - Winnipeg, Manitoba @ West End Cultural Centre
06 Jun - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan @ Amigo's
07 Jun - Edmonton, Alberta @ Starlite
08 Jun - Calgary, Alberta @ Warehouse
10 Jun - Vancouver, British Columbia @ Plaza Club
12 Jun - Seattle, Washington @ Neumo's
13 Jun - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
14 Jun - Eugene, OR @ Broadway Block Party
16 Jun - San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo's 365
17 Jun - Los Angeles, California @ Henry Fonda Theatre
19 Jun - San Diego, CA @ Epicentre
20 Jun - Tuscon, Arizona @ Club Congress
21 Jun - Tempe, Arizona @ Clubhouse
23 Jun - Austin, TX @ Emo’s Outside
24 Jun - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theatre
25 Jun - Houston, TX @ Walter's
26 Jun - Baton Rouge, LA @ Chelsea's
27 Jun - Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade
28 Jun - Charlotte, NC @ Neighbourhood Theatre

Visit Islands on MySpace.

Today's NEW Releases

2008-05-27T10:30:00.003-04:00

Feels like a Monday but it's already Tuesday, here are today's new releases:

Hmm, not so much a huge week for releases it appears. What else is there?

OPP

2008-05-27T08:05:00.000-04:00

Prefix has a 3-part "illustrated review" of the recent Black Moth Super Rainbow/Subtle show at the Rock & Roll Hotel in D.C.

The Streets play first UK show in over a year

KEXP has a review of Day 2 of Sasquatch, and so does the A.V. Club

Yale gives Paul McCartney honorary music degree

Build your own mini music publication with Idiomag's new widget

MuchMusic counts down the 12 most powerful musicians of today

Hit-or-miss: "Music To Watch Girls By" by Andy Williams

2008-05-26T16:04:00.000-04:00

Listen:
"Music To Watch Girls By" by Andy Williams from 16 Biggest Hits

View:
Image search results for Music To Watch Girls By - above image is from the sixth page of results (and was originally from HERE).
--
In the recent past these songs were featured in Hit-or-miss posts:
"String Bean Jean" by Belle & Sebastian
"Buzz Fledderjohn" by Tom Waits
"Pump up the Bass" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
"Jet City Woman" by Queensrÿche
"II. In Taberna: Estuans Interius" by Carl Orff
"Dangerous" by Frente!
"Keep Their Heads Ringing" by Dr. Dre
"At It Again" by Sublime
--
EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss is a weekly feature (every Monday) wherein the EF music library is put on shuffle, the song that plays is then searched (using the song title) on Google images and a resulting photo (plus an MP3 of the song) is posted. You can see all of EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss posts thus far right HERE.

EAR FARM Mini-mix: Memorial Day

2008-05-26T14:42:00.001-04:00

Below is a selection of three songs in honor of Memorial Day. As well, in response to a recent comment and some emails I've received, I'd like to give a brief update about my situation... basically, last Wednesday I had to have reconstructive surgery on my shoulder/arm that I injured a few weeks ago. It's been extra-debilitating (but I'm doing fine and recovering), so my posts will not be the most wordy/frequent over the next many days. However, I'll be back to normal action as soon as I can. You betcha.

In the meantime, have a happy Memorial Day!

Listen:
"The Ballad Of The Green Berets" by SSgt. Barry Sadler
"Battle Cry Of Freedom" by 2nd South Carolina String Band
"Battle Hymn Of The Republic" by Eef Barzelay

*above photo of Arlington National Cemetery from HERE.

OPP

2008-05-26T09:43:00.001-04:00

KEXP has a review of Day One of Sasquatch

Is Blender going out of business?

Does music belong in humor? The A.V. Club rounds up 15 novelty songs from prominent funnymen

The Chicago Tribune has a piece about the effect of gas prices on touring musicians

And somewhat on topic, details emerge about Radiohead's green touring techniques

Check out the Mountain Goats Daytrotter session

Watch the video for the new Ratatat song "Mirando"

Peruse Pitchfork's guide to summer festivals

EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist

2008-05-23T14:30:00.002-04:00

I'm a mover and a shaker. I won't wear sweatpants outside the house and I'm not above walking down the wrong side of the subway stairs to get where I need to be. I like to constantly make "On-The-Go" playlists to alleviate the boredom between points A and B. Thus, this mux is plain and simple; it's basically just my most current "On-The-Go" playlist. Boom bam. You can listen HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #9: Pulled From My "On-The-Go" Playlist
1. "Let's Talk About It" by White Denim
2. "J'aime Vous Voir Quitter" by Islands
3. "Don't Sell Me Now" by Hey Hey My My
4. "Hold It In" by Jukebox The Ghost
5. "Slowly Typed" by Pavement
6. "Navajo" by The Black Lips
7. "One Wink At A Time" by The Replacements
8. "Sea Shanty" by Plants and Animals
9. "Science Killer" by The Black Angels
10. "Deep Water" by Portishead
11. "Angelo (4-Track") by Sublime
12. "Hugs On Soil" by Windy & Destiny

*above picture found HERE

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
EAR FAM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

Top 10 (Musical) Things To Do in New York This Weekend (Memorial Day Edition)

2008-05-23T12:00:00.001-04:00

We figured we'd spend another Friday looking at the weekend's musical offerings. And why not? Though it's a holiday weekend and many of you may be fleeing the city (we don't blame you), some among us will be stranded. For those unable to Escape From New York, may we suggest the following (again in semi-particular order):

10. Stay in, be a hermit, and watch Neil Diamond on Jimmy Kimmel Live TONIGHT or R.E.M. on Austin City Limits SATURDAY
9. Expand your mind at the Knitting Factory TONIGHT with the psychedelic jams of Black Moth Super Rainbow (with Subtle)
8. Head back to the Knitting Factory (Tap Bar) SUNDAY for the Muggabears, Salt & Samovar, Forest Fire, and a Grizzly Bear DJ set
7. Go wish the Brooklyn Bridge a happy birthday and take in the array of performances there throughout the weekend
6. Like Ringo with your eggs? Go to B.B. King's SATURDAY for their Beatles Brunch
5. Enjoy the good weather (finally) at the opening of The Yard SATURDAY
4. Watch more than 30 bands all day SATURDAY and SUNDAY at the 2nd Olive Juice Music Festival at Cake Shop
3. See Van Halen at Madison Square Garden TONIGHT...hurry, go now before they reschedule again!
2. Go to Webster Hall (earlyish) on SATURDAY to see Islands
1. Celebrate Bob Dylan's 67th Birthday Bash with an awesome lineup of guest performers at Rehab TONIGHT

As always, this doesn't pretend to be a comprehensive roundup of everything under the sun, so please let us know what YOU are most looking forward to and enjoy the holiday weekend!

ARC Summer Record & CD Sale

2008-05-23T10:20:00.000-04:00

You may recall us having talked up a rather large record sale in Tribeca back around the holidays. For 10 glorious days the folks at ARC rolled out all their vinyl duplicates and sold them for absurdly reasonable prices, and we were able to walk out of there with a treasure trove of near-mint condition records ranging from Graceland to David Lee Roth's Skyscraper for about 3 bucks a pop. Well guess what? They're having another sale next month.

For those who need a refresher, ARC is the ARChive of Contemporary Music, a not-for-profit archive and research center and the world's largest collection of popular music. Board members include David Bowie, Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, Lou Reed, Martin Scorsese, Keith Richards, Paul Simon, and Fred Schneider.
--
From Saturday June 7th through Sunday June 17th, ARC will be open to the general public from 11am to 6pm for a summer sale. Their press release states the following:

WHAT TO EXPECT
Admission is free! New items daily. Over 20,000 items for sale

CDs are NEW donations from record companies, NOT used, returns or defects!
Mostly pop and rock recordings. Collectible LPs are priced below book value.
Hundreds of CDs are priced at $1 to $5 each. Cassettes are 2 for $1.00
Just released NEW & HOT CDs are $5 - $10.

PLUS
The most + BEST 7" singles we've ever offered! o many desirable and hard to find
Shelves of new music books o 100s of sealed/unopened LPs
African, Reggae & world-music releases o
Classical LPs 50¢ or LESS o laserdiscs o videos
For the dis-en-vinyled our Astroturf Yardsale of 50s kitchen stuff and clothing!!!

Location: Ground Floor, 54 White St. Three short blocks south of Canal, between Broadway & Church in Tribeca. Take the 1 train to Franklin, or any train to Canal.
--
As before, EAR FARM will definitely be checking this out. Will you?

OPP

2008-05-23T08:13:00.001-04:00

Donewaiting sits down with Oneida for a great interview

Looks like Muxtape went down yesterday in a "perfect storm of elements", and EF lost our latest mux as a result

Head over to Daytrotter and listen to a recent set from Grand Archives

Augusten Burroughs is the latest author to contribute to Largehearted Boy's Book Notes column

Okkervil River plan new album, The Stand Ins, to be released September 9th

The Seattle Times has a preview of this weekend's Sasquatch Festival....from the perspective of the Sasquatch?

PopMatters reviews The National's new film A Skin, A Night

Mastodon taps producer Brendan O'Brien for their next album

Death Cab For Cutie scores their first number one album with Narrow Stairs

8+

2008-05-22T14:50:00.002-04:00

"He's Simple, He's Dumb, He's the Pilot" by Grandaddy which clocks in at 8:53

In which we examine the role of airplanes in rock and roll mythology....

At the risk of sounding like a Jerry Seinfeld bit, what's the deal with airlines lately?

Recent headlines have utterly swelled with a surplus of negatively angled aviation tales and tidbits, and some of them are even unrelated to the obscene price of gas and oil. Amongst the latest and greatest:

16 May - USA Today updates a story on how JetBlue forced a New York man to sit on the toilet for more than three hours on a flight from California.

20 May - An annual survey from the University of Michigan shows passengers find airlines "dismal", giving them their worst marks in customer service since 2001

20 May - Due to mechanical problems, The San Antonio Spurs have to spend the night on an airplane scheduled for Los Angeles after eliminating the Hornets from the playoffs earlier in the evening.

21 May - American Airlines announces it will begin charging fifteen dollars for passengers' first checked bags. Public outcry results.

Note the dates here, these headlines were all within the past week! Factor in the rise in public conscience and near-universal impulse to reduce carbon footprints - last we checked Radiohead wouldn't even get on a plane to play Conan O'Brien - and it appears airlines and planes are about as popular and likable as Lisa from Top Chef.

And surely we've all undoubtedly had our own personal horror stories when flying. Off the top of my head I'm thinking of past flights in which I've experienced/witnessed episodes of vomiting, being projectile vomited upon, emergency landings in Finland, emergency landings in Raleigh, panic attacks, heart attacks, merciless hangovers and more, and I certainly don't even consider myself an extensive traveler.

Yet, a wholesale dismissal of airplanes for the sake of personal vendettas, inconveniences, and ecological considerations would prevent us from examining one of the more profound sidebars in rock and roll history: the airplane's intriguing place in rock mythology (top 5 list alert). Come fly away with me....

Given the bum rap that planes, pilots, and airlines have gotten over the years, it's no surprise that most of the phenomena on this list carry negative associations. In any case, we present for your consideration a smattering of aviation-related rock and roll watershed themes and moments:

5. The Scene of the Crime - What is it about airports and planes that make musicians go bonkers and get arrested? It almost seems to be a rock and roll rite of passage: at one point in your career you will get unrepentantly shit-canned and cause a scene or try to smuggle something illegal on a plane or in an airport. Past alumni include Paul McCartney (smuggling marijuana), Keith Richards (passport problems), Axl Rose (threatening airport security), Courtney Love (air rage), Peter Buck (assaulting staff on plane), Liam Gallagher (drunkenness on plane), Ian Brown (threatening pilot), Snoop Dogg (THREE separate airport arrests), and Scott Stapp (public drunkenness, see mugshot below):

Scott Stapp's Mugshot, taken from HERE
4. The Sign of Excess - What says "I've arrived" more than an enormous jet with your band's logo on it? Exactly. In Almost Famous, the scene where fictional band Stillwater upgrades from a bus to the plane symbolizes their absolute apex of popularity. Likewise, Led Zeppelin's ultimate flexing of their rock omnipotence came through the unveiling of THE STARSHIP (also seen in lead photo):

Zeppelin doing their best Beatles imitation while deplaning from the Starship, HERE
This behemoth was THE singular representation of rock excess in the 70s (check the plane's inner schematics HERE to get a better idea). Nowadays, with the record industry in shambles and most musicians adopting a more ecologically responsible ethos, such extravagance has become all but extinct. The Starship can remind us all of better days though.

3. The Idol Killer - Apart from overdoses and STDs, it seems the greatest occupational hazard facing musicians is plane crashes. The number of talented lives that airplanes have claimed is staggering. Blender actually ran a piece about this a few years ago entitled "The 10 Worst Rock Star Plane Crashes". Among the unfortunate are Otis Redding, Stevie Ray Vaughn, half of Lynyrd Skynyrd, John Denver, Aaliyah, and Ozzy's BFF Randy Rhoads.

Randy Rhoads' gravesite on the 25th anniversary of his death, from HERE
2. The Invasion Vessel - Every generation from my grandparents to Miley Cyrus can no doubt identify the iconic images of the Beatles arriving stateside for the first time in 1964. In an elaborately staged press event, the Fab Four posed and mugged amidst the enormous backdrop of the Pan Am plane that had brought them to the States, heralding the arrival of the British Invasion and beginning of drastic (and awesome) changes to the landscape of rock and roll.

The Beatles arriving at JFK in February 1964, from HERE
1. The Day the Music Died - Not to privilege certain rock deaths over others, but this particular tragedy is worth noting as THE defining intersection between aviation and rock if for no other reason than the relative magnitude and future influence of the musicians involved. On February 3, 1959, a plane carrying three rock and roll pioneers - Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson - crashed en route to Fargo, ND, instantly killing all three. As Don McLean would later immortalize in "American Pie", this was THE day the music died.

a photo from the crash scene, found HERE
Wow, I'm a bit depressed now. Come to think of it, airplanes kind of deserve the public's scorn....with the exception of The Starship of course.

*above image from HERE.

Buy The Sophtware Slump on Amazon.

EAR FARM's 8+ is a weekly feature that showcases songs longer than 8 minutes. In the recent past these songs were featured on EF's 8+:
Broken Social Scene - "Backyards"
Oingo Boingo - "Change"
Count Basie - "Blues For The Barbecue"
The Besnard Lakes - "You've Got to Want to Be a Star"
M83 - "Couleurs"
David Byrne - "Happy Suicide"
Fleetwood Mac - "Oh Well"
Phish - "You Enjoy Myself"

To see a full list of every song featured in EAR FARM's 8+ click HERE.

The Brooklyn Bridge Turns 125: The Musical Legacy

2008-05-22T11:00:00.002-04:00

Today marks the beginning of a five-day celebration commemorating the 125th anniversary of the Brooklyn Bridge. According to the Associated Press, thousands of people are expected to gather for the bridge's birthday blowout later today, with festivities including a performance by the Brooklyn Philharmonic, a fireworks display, a Navy flyover, the unveiling of a colorful new lighting scheme and even the debut of a tribute song written in the structure's honor.

The party continues throughout Memorial Day weekend with a staggeringly diverse array of activities, events and performances scheduled to honor the bridge. Like what? Well, for example, on Saturday you can head to the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park and play a round of mini-golf at a course specially designed for this occasion that features little replicas of some of Brooklyn's most famous sites, including the bridge (of course), Grand Army Plaza, and Keyspan Park. The recession can't be too bad if we're building impromptu mini-golf tribute courses, right?

There are also a variety of dance and musical performances lined up throughout the weekend, check out the full schedule HERE.

Now, given the celebratory vibe of the weekend - and seeing that the bridge is getting its very own tribute song - it's only fitting to briefly highlight the Brooklyn Bridge's musical legacy as well (after the jump)...

Of course, there's Frank Sinatra's classic 1947 musical It Happened in Brooklyn in which the bridge features prominently (as the film's most famous song "The Brooklyn Bridge" suggests). And who can forget the Rolling Stones' press conference and kickoff for their massive 1997 Bridges To Babylon tour held under the Brooklyn Bridge? Certainly not U2, who staged a similar spectacle in 2004 and recorded a live EP for iTunes in the process, Live From Under the Brooklyn Bridge.

And if we're really to nitpick, couldn't we even make the argument that the Brooklyn Bridge was the very catalyst for opening up Brooklyn and making it more accessible for future generations to live, work, and create the amazing music scene that dominates the borough today? As the AP piece states:

Historians note its role in shaping the city: It linked Manhattan with what was then a largely rural Brooklyn, helping spur a Brooklyn growth spurt, Schweiger said. Brooklyn's population grew by 42 percent between 1880 and 1890, while Manhattan's grew by about 26 percent, census figures show.

Happy Birthday Brooklyn Bridge, here's hoping Dave Sitek gets to produce your new tribute song when you decide to record it.

OPP

2008-05-22T08:23:00.000-04:00

'N Sync svengali Lou Pearlman sentenced to 25 years in prison

Sam Champion is Rolling Stone's Breaking Artist this week!

Red Hot Chili Peppers disband (for a year or so)

Steven Tyler checks into rehab after two decades of sobriety

And the winner is.....David Cook wins American Idol in a landslide

Sonic Youth reveal the details of their Starbucks hits compilation album

The National and Yeasayer confirmed for Summerstage

Weezer is on the June cover of Spin

Watch the trailer for Heavy Metal in Baghdad

Band of the Week: Kelley Polar

2008-05-21T14:31:00.004-04:00

Band: Kelley Polar
From: Sullivan, New Hampshire
Sound: Body-movin' zero gravity pop filtered through the '80s... the 2080s
Similar Artists: Isolée, Human League, Thomas Dolby, Daft Punk, Junior Boys
Listen Now: "Entropy Reigns (In The Celestial City)" (live on "Fair Game")

Imagine music that delivers on the promise of both '70s krautrock and '80s synth-pop at once while managing to highlight the warmth of the human voice in a manner that's as comforting as it is danceable. Music that feels at home alongside The Human League and New Order that isn't strictly derivative of such New Wave landmarks in a way that a band like Cut Copy is - music that's not blown out Zoo TV-style like Daft Punk but still enlivens in a similar manner - and, frankly, music that delivers a jolt of originality and fresh life into a genre (dance) that's most often about predictability, re-hashed ideas, and conformity. As proven on 2005's Love Songs Of The Hanging Gardens, and again on this year's standout album I Need You To Hold On While The Sky Is Falling, the music of Kelley Polar is an expanding universe unto itself in which one "could spend a thousand years just drifting through the atmosphere." Welcome.

Kelley Polar, née Mike Kelley, first showed interest in music at the age of three playing DJ to his disco-loving older sister (musician Blevin Blectum) on a plastic Fisher-Price turntable. Not long after that he was schooled in piano and violin before moving on to his passion: the viola. Adventures playing the Green Kangaroo of the violin family led to awards, an infamous tenure at Oberlin Conservatory, and eventually Juilliard. It's during this time that Mike Kelley met Morgan Geist, he of Metro Area and Environ Records, and assembled a group of Juilliard players (dubbed the "Kelley Polar Quartet") who would soon be heard on some of Metro Area’s biggest tracks. Kelley's stay at the illustrious NYC School would, however, be cut short: he was expelled from Juilliard for the "riot" during his Master's Recital. Consider this misfortune a stroke of good luck for listeners the world over...

After leaving Juilliard, Mike Kelley retreated from his self-destructive city lifestyle by returning to the countryside of his youth in rural New Hampshire where he began work on the songs that would become his universally adored debut album Love Songs of the Hanging Gardens (the Chicago Reader and Stylus both had the record on their respective "Best of" lists, Pitchfork predictably undervalued and ignored it). Live shows and touring ensued and Polar gradually built a devoted fan base who egerly anticipated his next move. They'd end up waiting three long years for the follow-up record, but would be well-rewarded a mere eighty seconds into the first listen of I Need You To Hold On While The Sky Is Falling when Polar lets the beat DRRROP.

While Kelley's first album was admittedly full of hints about his desire to get away from the planet Earth ("Subtle or not-so-subtle messages...I have a planetary claustrophobia that I would appreciate having addressed."), his second album blasts the listener far beyond the reaches of our atmosphere without as much as a single pause. It's an entire galaxy of disconnected fantasia, one that listeners are likely to either adore or detest in a matter of minutes. Polarizing: equally prog-y, disco-y, electro pop-y, heady, sexy, risky, and unique, I Need You To Hold On While The Sky Is Falling just might be the best album released in 2008 this side of the Kuiper belt. With a robotic whisper and double servings of Faltermeyer in the synthesizers, it's the lush organic strings and lovingly placed human vocals that will keep you grounded as the dark energy of Kelley Polar lifts you up; up out of our solar system, into the Oort cloud, and beyond. For God's sake, strap yourselves down!

Preview snippets of nine songs from I Need You to Hold on While the Sky Is Falling HERE, listen to a live version of one of the album's standout tracks below.

Listen: "Entropy Reigns (In The Celestial City)" (live on "Fair Game")

Watch: music video for "Chrysanthemum" over on EARF

Visit Kelley Polar on MySpace.
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In the recent past, the following bands have been featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week:
Plants and Animals
All the Saints
I'm From Barcelona
Bombadil
Tapes 'n Tapes
White Hinterland
Man Man
We Barbarians

See the entire list of bands featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week HERE.

R.E.M. on Austin City Limits this Saturday - Watch Clips

2008-05-21T11:30:00.003-04:00

While we were busy rubber necking backstage at Stubb's at the sight of Michael Stipe, Michael Stipe was busy making the most of R.E.M.'s stay in Austin. The band made their first ever appearance on Austin City Limits during SXSW and PBS is set to air the hour-long show this Saturday, May 24th (for Time Warner Cable subscribers here in New York, this means WLIW channel 21 at midnight). Here's the setlist from the show:

* Living Well's the Best Revenge
* Mansize Wreath
* Drive
* Accelerate
* Hollow Man
* Electrolite
* Houston
* Supernatural Superserious
* Bad Day
* Losing My Religion
* I'm Gonna DJ
* Horse to Water
* Until the Day is Done
* Man on the Moon

Nice. In the meantime, check out ACL's exclusive interview with the band HERE and watch them perform "Supernatural Superserious" either HERE or below:

AND, if that's not enough, we also have a nice QuickTime video of the band performing "Hollow Man" from this show.

Watch: "Hollow Man" (QT)

*above photo taken by Matt during R.E.M.'s SXSW Stubbs show - 12 March 2008

Visit R.E.M. on MySpace

OPP

2008-05-21T08:18:00.000-04:00

Listen to the new Silver Jews song from the forthcoming Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea, "Strange Victory, Strange Defeat"

The Chicago Tribune looks at groupies through the years

R. Kelly's defense team wants Jim DeRogatis to testify

Death By Audio Records launches

The two Davids battle to become the 7th American Idol

Built to Spill plots new album, fall tour

Led Zeppelin will allegedly play four shows at the Toronto Skydome this August

NERD to make their own Hard Day's Night movie?

Witness a Kraft salad dressing commercial use a Flaming Lips song to sell their wares

Crawdaddy: Why the album isn't dead just yet

I Want My MTV - Elbo.ws top videos (White Williams, The Cure, Ladytron, and more)

2008-05-20T17:05:00.000-04:00

Below are five of my favorites of the videos that are currently charting in the Elbo.ws top videos...

"Violator" by White Williams (above)

"The Only One" by The Cure (above)

"Ghosts" by Ladytron (above)

"Space and The Woods" by Late of The Pier (above)

"Bill O'Reilly Flips Out" (dance remix) by Lucian Piane & Torrey Meeks

Three for Free - Windsor for the Derby, French Kicks, El Madmo

2008-05-20T15:03:00.000-04:00

EAR FARM's Three for Free: three EF approved, free and legal MP3s posted each week. This week - three songs from artists with new records out today. Click on the artist name to go to their site, click on the song name to listen to the song.

Listen:
Windsor for the Derby - "Hold On"

French Kicks - "Abandon"

El Madmo - "Vampire Guy"

Spam Filter: Ben Sollee

2008-05-20T12:00:00.001-04:00

Arriving early for the Plants and Animals show at Mercury on a very wet Friday evening, I was fortunate to catch the majority of opener Ben Sollee's solo set. A "folk cellist" (my term, hence the quotation marks) from Louisville, KY who also performs with the Sparrow Quartet alongside Bela Fleck, Abigail Washburn and Casey Driessen, Sollee's plaintive and heartfelt performance was the perfect antidote to having just been pummeled by near-tsunami conditions. Besides, he absolutely shreds on the cello (and I'm jello baby).

Well it turns out Sollee just released a digital only EP this past week in advance of his solo full-length album Learning To Bend (out June 10th). The EP - If You're Gonna Lead My Country - premiered at #2 on eMusic behind In Rainbows and is also now available on iTunes and Amazon. As the title suggests, the subject matter is pretty much overtly political, and Sollee's caustic indictment of the Bush administration is nicely tempered by his honeyed delivery and dulcet cello work. However, listening to the recorded version I would have to say that the simple, unadorned live version I witnessed sans accompaniment (and particularly sans the sax I hear on the single which tips the scales slightly towards a Dave Matthews vibe) was far more effective and ethereal. So that being said, if you have a chance to catch Sollee and his cello live - and if you're planning on heading to Bonnaroo this applies to you - definitely do it.

Listen: "A Change Is Gonna Come"

Visit Ben Sollee on MySpace

Today's NEW Releases

2008-05-20T10:15:00.000-04:00

One of our most anticipated albums of the year drops today, hooray for Islands:

Some great offerings, but what have we missed?

OPP

2008-05-20T08:18:00.000-04:00

Listen to the brand new Islands Daytrotter session, which includes a Brian Eno cover

Or, listen to Beck's latest jam "Chemtrails" from his forthcoming Modern Guilt album

Napster launches an MP3 store

Takka Takka's Migration LP due July 29th on Ernest Jennings Record Co.

Ra Ra Riot sign to Barsuk Records and also playing a free show w/RSVP on Thursday

Fuse TV will televise six hours of Bonnaroo for the first time this year

Bored? Learn how to set up a pirate radio station

Hit-or-miss: "String Bean Jean" by Belle & Sebastian

2008-05-19T17:05:00.000-04:00

Listen:
"String Bean Jean" by Belle & Sebastian from Dog On Wheels

View:
Image search results for String Bean Jean - above image is from the first page of results (and was originally from HERE).
--
In the recent past these songs were featured in Hit-or-miss posts:
"Buzz Fledderjohn" by Tom Waits
"Pump up the Bass" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
"Jet City Woman" by Queensrÿche
"II. In Taberna: Estuans Interius" by Carl Orff
"Dangerous" by Frente!
"Keep Their Heads Ringing" by Dr. Dre
"At It Again" by Sublime
"The Day I Tried To Live" by Soundgarden
--
EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss is a weekly feature (every Monday) wherein the EF music library is put on shuffle, the song that plays is then searched (using the song title) on Google images and a resulting photo (plus an MP3 of the song) is posted. You can see all of EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss posts thus far right HERE.

The FreeCreditReport.com Hit Songs or: How to Steal Music From MySpace, YouTube, and Everywhere Else

2008-05-19T14:02:00.003-04:00

Sing it with me...
They say a man should always dress for the job he wants,
So why am I dressed up like a pirate in this restaurant?
It's all because some hacker stole my identity,
Now I'm in here every evening serving chowder and iced tea.
Shoulda gone to free credit report dot com,
I coulda seen this comin' at me like an atom bomb.
They monitor your credit and send you e-mail alerts,
So you don't end up selling fish to tourists in t shirts.
*offer applies with enrollment in Triple Advantage.

Over the past six months FreeCreditReport.com has slowly, deliberately, and most definitely, taken over my mind with their series of commercials featuring actor/musician Eric Violette. I'm still unclear as to who composed the three greatest jingles on TV at the moment, but whoever it was deserves a Lifetime Achievement Telly Award. The more TV I watch (it's been a lot recently), the more I see the FreeCreditReport.com commercials. The more I see the FreeCreditReport.com commercials, the more I learn to love and appreciate them; and, the more adept I become at singing along to each perfectly placed lyric. Masterstrokes these ads are, proof positive as to why you shouldn't go DVR-skipping all of the commercials out there.

Then I got to thinking... how cool would it be to have these songs as MP3s?! To be able to bust out "Dream Girl" (see below) on my iPod whenever I feel like it? Yeah! To be able to sneak "Singing Pirates" (above) into a DJ set between Madonna and Special Ed?? Genius. I fired up my copy of WireTap Studio and grabbed MP3s of the three FreeCreditReport.com commercials and I've been rocking 'em like an atom bomb ever since.

But wait! Searches referring people to EAR FARM have shown that learning how to grab streaming audio from any given site is something that's of interest to a great number of folks. Perhaps you too would like to know how to download streaming audio, yeah? Well I'm going to walk you through how to do just that - steal audio from any website (MySpace, YouTube, etc) and save it on your computer as an MP3, AIF, etc. Click on through for the FreeCreditReport.com songs, video of the other two commercials, and EAR FARM's How to Steal Music From MySpace, YouTube, and Everywhere Else tutorial...

Alright. First of all, the following How to Steal Music From MySpace, YouTube, and Everywhere Else tutorial is going to be given for Mac users. Apologies to those of you using PCs, but I haven't had one since 2002 and don't even know what they look like anymore. However, I'm not going to leave you completely hung out to dry. PC users can check out this how-to article which suggests you use Audacity. I'd also suggest checking out Freecorder and the how-to article that's posted HERE.

Now, for those of you using Macs and wondering how to capture/record and save streaming audio to your computer, you're in luck. Just follow the easy steps below and enjoy your brand new ability to save any audio on the web to your computer for listening enjoyment on your own terms.

How to create an MP3 of the above YouTube clip:
1. Download Ambrosia's ace application WireTap Studio. Using WireTap Studio you "can record the discrete audio output of any application, as well as all system audio, or record audio input from any microphone, line-in, or audio input hardware." This means you can tell it to record something that's streaming in Firefox while you listen to something else in iTunes - it rules. For starters, you can download the trial version for free for 30 days.
2. Once you've downloaded the application and installed it, just open it up, you'll notice a tiny interface box that appears... click on the piece of paper image in the bottom left of this box (preferences) and click Format once this opens. Now you can select MP3 as your desired format. I use MP3 High Quality (160kbps). Close preferences and click on the first (upper) of two drop down menu selectors within the WireTap interface. This will allow you to select your internet browser as the source of the audio you're going to record. I'm using Firefox.
3. Press play on your streaming audio source to get it started loading but then pause the streaming source and go back to the beginning of it. In this case, with the above YouTube clip, I press play and then pause immediately to get the entire clip loaded. Then I drag the YouTube cursor back to the start. You're now ready to record.
4. Hit record on WireTap (button with the large circle) and then press play on your source (the YouTube clip). When the streaming audio is complete hit stop on WireTap (square button). Your file will automatically open in a new window.
5. Next, click on Editor in the top toolbar and select Crop Leading and Trailing Silence. This will remove any extraneous silent audio at the beginning and end of your clip.
6. In the same toolbar at the top, select File and then Save. Your clip has now been saved in the WireTap Library, which you can access by clicking Window and selecting Library. Within the Library you can rename your brand new MP3 and send it to whatever other location/application you'd like (such as iTunes).

That's all there is to it. It's amazingly easy and WireTap is incredibly robust in its capabilities. If you think you're going to want to grab streaming audio from websites with any kind of regularity I'd highly recommend purchasing the full version of this software. I've used it to snag a wide variety of streaming live shows, audio from YouTube, and much more. Check out the three MP3s posted below for an example of the results.

F-r-e-e that spells free,
CreditReport.com baby.

Listen:
"Singing Pirates" (FreeCreditReport.com)
"New Car" (FreeCreditReport.com)
"Dream Girl" (FreeCreditReport.com)

Plants and Animals @ Mercury Lounge - 16 May 2008

2008-05-19T11:15:00.000-04:00

With no room left to hide offstage Friday evening, Plants and Animals' bassist/guitarist Nicolas Basque instead huddled precariously behind a guitar cabinet as the adoring crowd cheered for an encore.

The move was purely symbolic; the crowd could easily see his Sideshow Bob mane tufting up from behind the amp, but the band still admirably improvised the whole classic disappearance/reappearance encore routine with what little material props they were given. The move was also metaphoric; the sight of Basque crouching behind an amp in lieu of retreating to a backstage oasis aptly summarized the experience of seeing Plants and Animals amidst the relative intimacy of Mercury Lounge. Which is to say this: their sound, songs, and performance could all well have obliterated a far larger venue.

From the opening strum of the epic "New Kind of Love" to rousing closer "Bye Bye Bye" - made all the MORE powerful and raw live without the layers of extra choral vocals heard on the album version - the band proved that three exceptional musicians playing three simple instruments (with an occasional touch of keys and autoharp) would have been enough to fill the cavernous space of Mercury's big brother Webster Hall down the street. It was remarkable to hear the intricately constructed anthems of Parc Avenue come to life with little more than two guitars and drums, as the bottom end of the band's sound was somehow filled and expanded for the duration of the set in which Basque didn't even play bass.

And while the set didn't progress as smoothly as singer/guitarist Warren Spicer probably would have liked (he broke strings on two different guitars on two consecutive songs), the band's infectious good cheer and enthusiasm, coupled with Matthew "The Woodman" Woodley's drum solo approximation of Bel Biv Devoe's "Poison", kept things upbeat and made for an even more memorable experience. It was a perfect end to a week of nerding out to Parc Avenue nonstop and made me instantly regret not going to see them at Union Hall on Saturday (did anyone make it out to that show?). Check out more pics of our most recent Band of the Week after the jump...

Listen: "Faerie Dance"

See also:
- Band of the Week: Plants and Animals

See Plants and Animals Live:
01 Jun - Haarlem, Netherlands @ Patronaat
02 Jun - Utrecht, Netherlands @ Ekko (with Sunset Rubdown)
03 Jun - Njmegen, Netherlands @ Dornrosje (with the Do)
04 Jun - Tilburg, Netherlands @ O13
05 Jun - Dublin, Ireland @ Crawdaddy
06 Jun - Glasgow, Scotland @ The Captain’s Rest
07 Jun - Edinburgh, Scotland @ Wee Red Bar
09 Jun - London, UK @ Big Chill House
13 Jun - Lausanne, Switzerland @ Le Romandie
14 Jun - Paris, France @ Mains D’Ouevre
23 Jun - Seattle, WA @ Nectar
24 Jun - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
25 Jun - San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
27 Jun - Pomona, CA @ Glass House
28 Jun - Los Angeles, CA @ Spaceland (with Panther)
10 Jul - Ottawa, Ontario @ Ottawa Blues Festival
16 Jul - Sherbrooke, Quebec @ La Telephone Rouge
18 Jul - Yellowknife, Northwest Territories @ Folk on the Rocks Festival
19 Jul - Yellowknife, Northwest Territories @ Folk on the Rocks Festival
25 Jul - Guelph, Ontario @ Hillside Music Festival
26 Jul - Guelph, Ontario @ Hillside Music Festival
03 Aug - Montreal, Quebec @ Osheaga Festival (Parc Jean Drapeau)
09 Aug - Marysville, Ontario @ Wolfe Island Musicfest
17 Aug - Salmon Arm, British Columbia @ Salmon Arm Festival

Visit Plants and Animals on MySpace.

OPP

2008-05-19T08:13:00.000-04:00

The Guardian blog has the 10 Most Memorable Festival Performances

Watch professionally shot footage of the entire Metallica set from Saturday's KROQ Weenie Roast over at Blabbermouth

Paul McCartney, Bloc Party, Morrissey among nominees for sexiest vegetarian award

Brian Wilson's That Lucky Old Sun album due in September

Juliana Hatfield to pen autobiography

After The Jump Fest Noise Stage lineup announced

David Bowie to bring The Man Who Fell to Earth to the theater stage

Brooklyn Vegan has pics and the setlist from last night's Beirut show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg

EAR FARM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball

2008-05-16T15:14:00.000-04:00

Wallowing in self-absorption this past week, focusing entirely too much on my injury, I created the following mix. The song order kind of tells the story of how I became a crippled wiffle ball legend. You can listen HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #8: I Broke My Arm Playing Wiffle Ball
1. "Wiffle Ball" by Halliburton(s)
2. "Falling and Laughing" by Orange Juice
3. "The Arm" by Islands
4. "Definition of an Accident" by Mancino
5. "Emergency" by Wilderness
6. "Broken Bones" by Howling Bells
7. "Broken Man" by Corrosion of Conformity
8. "Fractured (Like Chandeliers)" by Polvo
9. "Bones" by Radiohead
10. "Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister
11. "Healer" by Marnie Stern
12. "Good Arms vs. Bad Arms" by Frightened Rabbit

*above picture found HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

Top 10 Things To Do in New York This Weekend

2008-05-16T13:00:00.001-04:00

....musical things that is. Apart from the New Kids on the Block/Miley Cyrus/Gavin DeGraw/Jonas Brothers tweenstorm at the Izod Center tomorrow night, here are ten things worth checking out during this (rainy?) weekend. In semi-particular order....

10. See The Midgetmen, The Bosch, and Red Beard @ Fontana's TONIGHT
9. Go to Bowery Ballroom SUNDAY and see if Black Kids have gotten any better
8. Pick up a limited-edition copy of Seven Summits while watching The Secret Life of Sofia (and others) @ Rehab TONIGHT
7. See Beirut @ Music Hall of Williamsburg SUNDAY before Zach Condon disappears again
6. Watch The Virgin Suicides SUNDAY at BAM and surrender to Air's mesmerizing soundtrack
5. If you have young'uns (actually a prerequisite for attending), head to the Living Room SUNDAY for a special kids performance by Los Campesinos! and Pela
4. Witness Local H bring down Union Pool SUNDAY
3. Catch EF Band of the Week Plants and Animals TONIGHT @ Mercury Lounge and SATURDAY @ Union Hall (w/Rock Plaza Central)
2. Get your METAL on with The Sword, Torche and Stinking Lizaveta @ Music Hall of Williamsburg SATURDAY
1. Spend your entire weekend at the Knitting Factory as the No Fun Fest takes it over TONIGHT, SATURDAY and SUNDAY

Of course, there are tons more options out there, these are just the ones that have most caught our eyes/ears/broken bones. Let us know what else is going on?

David Byrne's Carpet of 100 Guitar Pedals

2008-05-16T11:00:00.000-04:00

Look at all those pedals. No, it's not the bedroom of a Guitar Center sales rep, it's David Byrne's latest work in progress. As if turning the Battery Maritime Building into a massive sound sculpture wasn't enough, Byrne is now readying a "guitar pedal carpet" installation for an event honoring Christian Marclay next Wednesday at the Puck Building.

Recently on his blog (a regular source of info here at EF), Byrne briefly described the project, which will essentially take the space separating the entrance to the Puck Building and the reception area - meaning that everyone will have to pass through - and transform it into a giant walkway of 100 guitar pedals all linked together and then run through an amplifier and guitar. Byrne stated:

We’ve tested a portion of it to see if there are any unexpected problems and I was surprised to discover how well it works. Of course, the sounds are fairly random, and stepping on one or two of the distortion or fuzz pedals raises the screaming noise level pretty high, but that will be adjusted. Happily, some pedals will loop whatever is going on at the time of their activation, and so there will be constant sound changing all the time.

This seems like a punk rock version of the "Soundstairs" that Christopher Janney built for the Boston Museum of Science back when I was a kid. I used to spend entire afternoons running up and down those piano-like steps and triggering all the cool sounds; hopefully, the folks at Wednesday's benefit will have as much fun, though Byrne has expressed reservations about women showing up in heels and having to traverse the pedal minefield. But fear not stilettoed masses, he's busy planning an alternate passageway for you as well.

Listen: "Road To Nowhere"

Visit David Byrne on MySpace

OPP

2008-05-16T08:16:00.000-04:00

The Guardian blog talks about the subtle art of selecting supporting bands

New hope for accused file-sharer in RIAA suit

Konami introduces Rock Revolution video game to compete with Guitar Hero and Rock Band

The Seattle Times profiles Reggie Watts

Wedding Present re-team with Steve Albini on new album - El Rey - coming out this Tuesday

Shania Twain and super-producer Mutt Lange to split

Guitar tutorials are blazing up iTunes podcast charts

8+

2008-05-15T13:11:00.004-04:00

"Backyards" by Broken Social Scene which clocks in at 8:14

"Sticks and stones may break my bones but wiffle ball will never hurt me."

Right? No. Actually, it's words. "Words will never hurt me" is the correct second half of the battle cry of the undersized that's heard in backyards across the US every summer. It means: "Yell at me all you want, you big bully, but your words won't be breaking these bones, no sir." It's a passive resistance meant to reassure those who can't yet defend themselves. In truth, I always paid the phrase little to no mind. But it rang in my head like a TV jingle because I had a strange fascination with the breaking of bones as a child. I'd say it over and over in my mind ("sticks and stones, break my bones...") and imagine the sticks and the stones and the breaking of bones and what that must feel and sound like. I didn't think it "fun" but definitely found the whole idea of fractures "neat." Which could be a result of me always wanting what I couldn't have (my friends were all breaking bones and getting casts -cool!- but not me); or, probably was just standard macabre little boyishness. Regardless, given the collective reaction to the story I'm about to tell you, you might think the axiom was meant to be about the impotency of wiffle ball rather than inability of language to crush anything other than one's spirit.

Here's what I've been telling people this past week that's had them all equally perplexed: "I broke my arm in two places playing f'ing wiffle ball."

And the standard response: "You broke your arm playing wiffle ball?! How the....???"

That's right, I did. I broke my arm playing wiffle ball. And this is how it happened...

I was in North Carolina last week, playing wiffle ball with my nephew. He's 10 years old and plays too much soccer for his own good. Which means he's quick and competitive (nice). But he needs some baseball influence in his life, especially growing up in the South. I know it. So I figured why not start with wiffle ball, right? A harmless introduction to America's pastime. Good, clean, backyard fun!

So there we were, two dudes playin' ball. It's important that you realize it was just the two of us because you can't really play any kind of baseball with just two people. But that didn't stop him from sprinting around the bases each time he hit one of my strike-every-time batting practice pitches. I'd toss it right in there and he'd smash it over my head and cruise around the bases before I could even retrieve the ball, let alone catch up to him and tag him. "Ohh, I scored again! Home run! Woo!! You can't get me out old man! 18 runs, no outs!!"

Once I considered winging the ball at him - hitting him with it to get him out, like in kickball - I knew it was time to step up my game. Hey, when I played wiffle ball as a kid with only two people pegging the other kid was fair game. Shoot, it used to be a legal way to get a runner out in pre-baseball baseball. And believe me, I could've hit him with that wiffle ball with ease. But it probably would've hurt, and -you know- I'm an adult and all. So instead I opted to go for the tag.

I threw a big fat pitch and he belted the ball up over my head. It bounced off the roof of the garage, a rightful homer if such boundaries had been set up. But they weren't. As he trotted around the bases, secure that I'd lazily retrieve the ball and make no attempt to tag him out, something within me snapped. Not my arm bone -not yet- but something else entirely. My 'playing wiffle ball with a 10 year old' competitive pride. I grabbed the ball and sprinted towards the kid full speed. Even though I was wearing jeans and big clunky leather boots, there was no way I wasn't going to tag him out. A silent lesson for him: "if I wanted to, you'd be out every time little one." So I ran. And right before he touched home plate I got him. OUT. Proof that I can still move it if I want to. And right after that I "tripped over my own speed" (his phrasing, not mine) and fell with my arms outstretched, full-force on my left shoulder. OUCH. Proof that I can't still stop so well if I need to.

Immediately I heard a pretty gruesome crunching noise that sounded like a bunch of crisp stalks of celery being broken en masse. I figured I'd separated my shoulder and possibly torn some ligaments or something. I knew it was bad news on the spot. Then I went to the ER, got x-rays, and found out that I'd broken my humerus in two spots. The whole process took around four hours - a bit long if you ask me. Then again, it seemed like twelve hours at the time.

It's my first broken bone; first official one at least. I know I had a hairline fracture in high school on my thumb from playing baseball - real baseball - and catching one too many hard throws at first base. That one hurt, but not too terribly bad. I also had another baseball-related broken bone from having someone step on my pinkie toe with their metal cleats. Made my toe look like a little fat blood sausage, that one. I know... it was nasty, and hurt pretty fiercely too. However, neither of those injuries was anywhere near as incapacitating, or painful, as this wiffle ball injury.

I can't do much of anything. Or, now I can because I've relearned my entire existence based upon having only one functioning arm. But for the first three days I wasn't doing so well in life. Each moment was miserable. And I'm not meaning to be a drama queen, but seriously. The pain was extraordinary - it's since moved into the realm of "dealable."

The fractures are on my humerus at the very top where it connects with my shoulder. I likely have ligament or tendon damage, that's TBD sometime next week with an MRI. Fingers crossed, because I'd really rather not add rotator cuff surgery to the recovery mix. As it is now, simple acts such as putting on my socks can take minutes. I can't really fully bend over to pick anything up, I fear very crowded scenarios such as concerts or subway cars (I know right?), and I can't lay down flat to sleep in a bed. I've been sleeping entirely on the couch, propped up on my good shoulder with the bad one pointed skyward, hoping that I don't move in my sleep and wake up to sharp self-inflicted shooting shoulder pain. This tactic allows me to sleep for a few hours at a time; which is nice, all things considered. But any sudden movement of my left side involves potential terror... laughing, coughing, or sneezing hurts like a mofo and I've quickly grown tired of my sling and the side effects (no cast for this particular combination of fractures). Add to all of this the fact that I'm no big fan of my prescribed painkillers (Vicodin) and you might see why I've been a bit grumpy and inactive since last Friday. Did I wish this upon myself??

There was a time about ten years ago when I figured I'd probably never get to experience a real fracture. I was well past my "danger years" so, other than something like a random car crash, how could I break any bones now? Especially living in a slow and mellow place like North Carolina... no broken bones to be found there. And then I moved to New York City and that kind of thinking completely changed. The danger quotient skyrocketed from the moment I struggled to carry my guitar, suitcase, and synthesizer up five flights of stairs (all at once) to my first (nasty) New York apartment. I imagined what inevitable scenario would lead to my first fracture now that I lived in danger zone numero uno (and this was pre-September 11th, mind you). A mugging? Being caught in subway doors? Walking up and down those very stairs to and from my rat-partment every day?? A fall from a party on a roof deck in Williamsburg? Being hit by a taxi? Walking by a tall building and having the misfortune of being directly underneath some miserable soul who'd just lept out a window 50 stories above?? The possibilities were endless. Little did I know, the danger did not lie waiting for me in the harrowing concrete jungle of New York City; rather, I'd meet my doom back in sleepy old North Carolina playing an overtly low-impact sport called wiffle ball in a backyard (of all undangerous places) with my ten year old nephew...

"Suburbs and backyards may break my bones but New York City will never hurt me."

I think I'll stay here in the city for a while. Resting and recovering away from the perils of suburban backyard life. Typing. With. My. One. Good. Arm.

*above image from HERE.

Buy Bee Hives on Amazon.

EAR FARM's 8+ is a weekly feature that showcases songs longer than 8 minutes. In the recent past these songs were featured on EF's 8+:
Oingo Boingo - "Change"
Count Basie - "Blues For The Barbecue"
The Besnard Lakes - "You've Got to Want to Be a Star"
M83 - "Couleurs"
David Byrne - "Happy Suicide"
Fleetwood Mac - "Oh Well"
Phish - "You Enjoy Myself"
Green Day - "Homecoming"

To see a full list of every song featured in EAR FARM's 8+ click HERE.

The Streets will walk to the South of France for a video?

2008-05-15T10:45:00.003-04:00

The Streets - aka Mike Skinner - unveiled some interesting news this morning via an entry on his MySpace blog. Attempting to shoot what he refers to as a "music video-type music video" for the new song "The Escapist", he wrote:

For this work of creative moving imagery I have decided to walk to the south of France. I will be relaying the highlights of it with you over the next few weeks of my journey. The fuller story will also be told on our new www.beatstevie.com website, but check that at your peril as it currently resembles a building site. Mayhem is trying to work out how to design websites.

From a grey Dover I bid my English and Albion farewell. Long live Michael Palin.

Okay, now for some context. Apparently, "The Escapist" was originally intended to be included in a film of the same name, but after the director rejected it Skinner decided to put it on his forthcoming album instead. And according to the Beat Stevie site (Beat Stevie being Skinner's "anything goes-based television show" that airs on Channel 4 in the UK), work on the new album - the Streets' fourth full length - is complete and a mastering date has been set for June 19th with the hopes of releasing it later in August. Just a warning though, any attempts at hearing the new tracks on Skinner's MySpace will only result in being subjected to a horrendous cover of Elton John's "Your Song". Honestly.

A casual Google mapping of the quest from Birmingham to Nice reveals it to be a shade under 1000 miles. Yikes. However, based on the ferry pics included on Skinner's blog post, it looks like he'll be starting his trek on French soil. It's almost like he's fit, and he knows it too...

Listen: "Fit But You Know It"

Visit the Streets on MySpace

*above photo found HERE

OPP

2008-05-15T08:17:00.000-04:00

Jon Brion to score Charlie Kaufman's new movie

Black Tide to play free L.A. show as part of James Frey's book tour

Guitar Hero IV will allow users to create and upload their own songs, while first images of the game's drum set have also been revealed

Neil Diamond's newest album Home Before Dark is the first of his 46th charting albums to reach number one

Watch the new Man Man video for "Mister Jung Stuffed"

Santogold records song with Julian Casablancas and Pharrell Williams for Converse

And in other shoe collaboration news, Saul Williams pairs with Nike

Local H played every single song in its catalog during a recent seven-night Chicago stand

The Office's Creed Bratton is also a platinum-selling recording artist?

Band of the Week: Plants and Animals

2008-05-14T14:57:00.001-04:00

Band: Plants and Animals
From: Montreal, Quebec
Sound: Lush, 70s AM rock gets sprawling, epic treatment with incredible results
Similar Artists: Buffalo Springfield, Arcade Fire, My Morning Jacket, Loose Fur
Listen Now: "Feedback In The Field"

The picture says it all. As if the cover of Sgt. Pepper's came to life and had a hallucinogenic picnic in the backwoods of Middle Earth, the happening depicted above is about the most fitting visual representation of Plants and Animals that I could imagine.

That this is also the cover art for the Montreal-based trio's debut full-length Parc Avenue (Secret City Records) then makes perfect sense, a fitting harbinger of the eclectic menagerie of electric folk, psychedelic boogies, sing-song flower child freakouts and all around damn good songwriting contained within.

The album cover is also as good a place as any to delve into discussing a band that has as much to offer as Plants and Animals. Without getting too preachy about the necessity of listening to certain albums start to finish - or too curmudgeonly by wishing for the bygone era of sitting down with a tangible piece of art in your hands (ie vinyl) - let's just say that Parc Avenue makes a strong argument for the simple joys found in fully losing oneself within the nooks, crannies, and broader landscapes of an entire album. Of all the records I've heard so far this year, this is the one that I'd most like to strap on a pair of vintage cans for, plop down on my beanbag chair, fire up the lava lamp, and listen to while obsessing over the liner notes (you know, assuming my bedroom looked like Greg Brady's).

Plants and Animals seem to not have forgotten the lost art of album listening as an event, and for that reason alone Parc Avenue is an utter standout. Of course, such grand visions haven't always defined the band either...

Formed while Warren Spicer (guitar, lead vocals - eventually) and Matthew "The Woodman" Woodley (drums, vocals) were still in high school in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the complete lineup didn't come together until the two met Nicolas Basque (guitar, bass, vocals) while studying in the music department at Concordia University. The trio put their first batch of songs to tape shortly thereafter, a collection of instrumental jams that would form the precursor to their current pan-optic sound. From these more modest attempts at songwriting, they eventually evolved into a phase their bio refers to as "taming the sprawling wilderness of their sound and sculpting real songs," which naturally meant the introduction of vocals. Thus, Spicer stepped to the mic and "lead the way to a (hitherto unheard of) vocal domination of their material—as if he had been possessed by the ghost of some recently departed soul singer."

Truly, and it's this emotive and dynamic howl that binds much of the disparate sounds and genres on Parc Avenue into a cohesive whole. As such, it's incredible to think that this powerfully effective instrument was the last element introduced and incorporated within their songwriting process. Alongside the crackling rhythm section of Basque and Woodley, Spicer's lived-in voice adds even more warmth and organic familiarity to the material. One moment, he adds snarling Mark Knopfler-esque affectations to the verse of "Feedback in the Fields" while the next leading the sugary sweet chamber chorus of "Bye Bye Bye".

Of course, with track titles such as "Faerie Dance", "Feedback in the Fields" and "Guru" and several songs clocking in at over seven minutes to accompany adventurous instrumental breaks, jam-band conspiracists may cry foul at the band's presumed lack of focus (as though they've gone a bit "too organic" perhaps?); such charges would be short-sighted though. There's an enormous difference between writing a long song for the sake of writing a long song and doing so because the composition requires appropriate time and space to grow, shift, evolve and resolve.

Every song on Parc Avenue unfolds patiently and naturally, and as a result the entire album feels fully realized instead of half-baked, in service of the song as opposed to in spite of it, and always pushing forward instead of treading water. Besides, if you were having this much fun recording the seven-minute album closer "Guru" (see video below), you wouldn't want to stop the jams either:

Luckily, we'll have ample opportunity to experience such revelry firsthand as the band is in the midst of an East Coast tour that includes a pair of New York-based shows this weekend. Plants and Animals and hippie dances oh my!

Listen:
"Feedback In The Field"
"Faerie Dance"

See Plants and Animals Live:
14 May - Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live Upstairs (with Rock Plaza Central)
15 May - Baltimore, MD @ 8 x 10 (w/ Rock Plaza Central)
16 May - New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
17 May - Brooklyn, NY @ Union Hall (w/ Rock Plaza Central)
18 May - Boston, MA @ TT the Bear’s (w/ Rock Plaza Central)
01 Jun - Haarlem, Netherlands @ Patronaat
02 Jun - Utrecht, Netherlands @ Ekko (with Sunset Rubdown)
03 Jun - Njmegen, Netherlands @ Dornrosje (with the Do)
04 Jun - Tilburg, Netherlands @ O13
05 Jun - Dublin, Ireland @ Crawdaddy
06 Jun - Glasgow, Scotland @ The Captain’s Rest
07 Jun - Edinburgh, Scotland @ Wee Red Bar
09 Jun - London, UK @ Big Chill House
13 Jun - Lausanne, Switzerland @ Le Romandie
14 Jun - Paris, France @ Mains D’Ouevre
23 Jun - Seattle, WA @ Nectar
24 Jun - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
25 Jun - San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
27 Jun - Pomona, CA @ Glass House
28 Jun - Los Angeles, CA @ Spaceland (with Panther)
10 Jul - Ottawa, Ontario @ Ottawa Blues Festival
16 Jul - Sherbrooke, Quebec @ La Telephone Rouge
18 Jul - Yellowknife, Northwest Territories @ Folk on the Rocks Festival
19 Jul - Yellowknife, Northwest Territories @ Folk on the Rocks Festival
25 Jul - Guelph, Ontario @ Hillside Music Festival
26 Jul - Guelph, Ontario @ Hillside Music Festival
03 Aug - Montreal, Quebec @ Osheaga Festival (Parc Jean Drapeau)
09 Aug - Marysville, Ontario @ Wolfe Island Musicfest
17 Aug - Salmon Arm, British Columbia @ Salmon Arm Festival

Visit Plants and Animals on MySpace.
--
In the recent past, the following bands have been featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week:
All the Saints
I'm From Barcelona
Bombadil
Tapes 'n Tapes
White Hinterland
Man Man
We Barbarians
The Dodos

See the entire list of bands featured as EAR FARM's Band of the Week HERE.

Fugazi Covers Project for Charity - Bands Wanted

2008-05-14T11:56:00.000-04:00

Christina Da Costa, Jeffry Opdyke, Michael Sowiski, and Phil Rosenbloom have put together a benefit project for charity - Fugazi has agreed to let them produce and sell the album - and they're looking for more bands to participate.

The foursome is participating in Braking the Cycle (a 275 mile benefit bike tour which supports HIV/AIDS services provided by the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center of New York City) and decided that putting together, and selling, a Fugazi cover album would be a great way to raise money for the event. All proceeds from sale of this cover album will be going to the benefit via this fundraising team.

The one catch is that the time frame is rather condensed: they want to have a list of all participants and the songs they are going to cover within the next two or three weeks. You will then have until August 4th to arrange, rehearse, dust off your 4 track, whatever, and get them an MP3 file of your final track. Sound exciting? Then visit The Fugazi Covers Project for more information.

See the tracks already spoken for HERE.

Listen:
"Styrofoam" by Fugazi (from Repeater)

*above cover of End Hits from HERE.

Visit Fugazi on MySpace.

OPP

2008-05-14T08:20:00.000-04:00

Community Board meeting to decide the fate of Union Hall tonight?

Explosions in the Sky give Drowned in Sound a guide to this weekend's ATP shows, which they've also curated

The Minneapolis City Pages interviews Bon Iver

Weezer pushes up release date of their new album by three weeks to June 3rd

Beck's new album has a name: Modern Guilt

MTV's The Real World is coming to Brooklyn this summer?

Rush's founding drummer - John Rutsey - found dead at age 55

Also, RIP American artist Robert Rauschenberg

Green Day side project Foxboro Hot Tubs map small spring tour

I Want My MTV - new videos from Radiohead, Justice, Stereolab, and Portishead

2008-05-13T16:31:00.000-04:00

It's as simple as that - below are recently released videos from Radiohead, Justice, Stereolab, and Portishead that have caught my eye. Meaning, I like them and you will too...

"All I Need" by Radiohead (above)

"Stress" by Justice (above)

"Three Women" by Stereolab (above)

"The Rip" by Portishead (above)

Three for Free - Hint Hint, Minus the Bear, Six Parts Seven

2008-05-13T14:31:00.000-04:00

EAR FARM's Three for Free: three EF approved, free and legal MP3s posted each week. This week - three songs from artists on Suicide Squeeze Records. Click on the artist name to go to their site, click on the song name to listen to the song.

Listen:
Hint Hint - “Long Branch, New Jersey”

Minus the Bear - "Dr. L’Ling"

Six Parts Seven - "Falling Over Evening"

The Secret Life of Sofia - Seven Summits Out Today

2008-05-13T12:00:00.000-04:00

When we last checked in with The Secret Life of Sofia, they assured us the release of their debut full-length Seven Summits was "semi-imminent". And after weeks of hand-assembling 500 limited edition copies, they've emerged from their impromptu sweatshop to announce that as of today the wait is officially over!

To get your mitts on one of the limited edition copies, you have several options. Firstly, you can head over to their site right HERE and have it shipped to you for $12 (includes shipping).

OR, if you're like us and have one of those semi-fetishist collection compulsions, lead singer/guitarist Kyle Wilson tipped us off that the lower-numbered copies (they are all hand-numbered after all) are currently stocked at Etherea and Sound Fix (and he assures us that #1 of 500 is on the shelves at Etherea) for $8.

And of course, the band will also be selling copies at all future live shows for $10, their most recent string of dates listed after the jump along with some interesting info about the inspiration behind Seven Summits....

a glimpse inside the TSLOS sweatshop during the hand-packaging process
Wilson posted a MySpace bulletin late last night/early this morning detailing the stories and characters behind the songs on the album. As he writes:

"All of the stories on Seven Summits are at least partly true. Some are completely true, and were told to me firsthand. Some are more like historical fiction. All of them, I hope, are respectful to the parties involved, most of whom I have great admiration for.

The idea of writing the album Seven Summits first came to me on a climb of Long's Peak in Colorado. The experience was life changing, and I soon became intoxicated with the drive to climb more peaks. I also became fascinated with the stories I was hearing from other climbers and reading in books.

So it's a limited edition, hand-numbered concept album? Shoot, we like where this is going.....

Listen:
"Outside"
"Fifty Fourteeners"

See also:
- The Secret Life of Sofia - new record, two brand new MP3s, live dates
- The Secret Life of Sofia @ The Delancey - 26 February 2008
- StereoactiveNYC/Hot Rocks Official CMJ Showcase - 20 October 2007 @ The Delancey
- The Muggabears, The Secret Life of Sofia, Mancino, Nous Non Plus @ Pianos - 12 May 2007
- EAR FARM Presents... at Sin-e - 29 June, 2006

See The Secret Life of Sofia Live:
16 May - New York, NY @ Rehab (Crashin' In)
30 May - New York, NY @ The Delancey
05 Jun - Brooklyn, NY @ Glasslands Gallery
20 Jun - Harrisonburg or Charlottesville, VA @ TBA
21 Jun - Washington, D.C. @ The Velvet Lounge
22 Jun - Philadelphia, PA @ M Room
27 Jun - Lehigh Valley, PA @ TBA
04 Jul - Brooklyn, NY @ The Yard

Visit The Secret Life of Sofia on MySpace.

Today's NEW Releases

2008-05-13T10:15:00.005-04:00

This weeks best and brightest:

What else is coming out this week?

OPP

2008-05-13T08:29:00.000-04:00

After The Jump tickets are on sale now

Arcade Fire to score writer/director Richard Kelly's (Donnie Darko) newest film

Mark Ronson to team up with The Zutons at Glastonbury

Watch My Morning Jacket perform on last weekend's Saturday Night Live

Shearwater's frontman leaves Okkervil River to focus on his other band full time

Did you know that Cher will be playing 200 shows at Caesar's Palace in Vegas over the next three years? Neither did we

Well, did you know that Madonna played Pantera at a recent UK concert? Again, same here

Prefix has photos from Sunday's Radiohead/Liars show in Washington D.C.

Hit-or-miss: "Buzz Fledderjohn" by Tom Waits

2008-05-12T15:12:00.000-04:00

Listen:
"Buzz Fledderjohn" by Tom Waits from Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards

View:
Image search results for Buzz Fledderjohn - above image is from the first page of results (and was originally from HERE).
--
In the recent past these songs were featured in Hit-or-miss posts:
"Pump up the Bass" by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
"Jet City Woman" by Queensrÿche
"II. In Taberna: Estuans Interius" by Carl Orff
"Dangerous" by Frente!
"Keep Their Heads Ringing" by Dr. Dre
"At It Again" by Sublime
"The Day I Tried To Live" by Soundgarden
"I'm Comin' Down" by Primal Scream
--
EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss is a weekly feature (every Monday) wherein the EF music library is put on shuffle, the song that plays is then searched (using the song title) on Google images and a resulting photo (plus an MP3 of the song) is posted. You can see all of EAR FARM's Hit-or-miss posts thus far right HERE.

Vinyl Triumphs Over CDs (again) + New Ratatat

2008-05-12T11:20:00.000-04:00

Last Saturday at Manchester's Futuresonic 2008 Festival, participant Aleks Kolkowski hammered another symbolic nail into the compact disc's coffin, recycling unwanted CDs into functional 45rpm's for curious festivalgoers.

Using a vintage vinyl cutter, Kolkowski "overwrote" existing files on CDs by physically etching new songs onto them. Apparently, people could provide whatever WAV file they wanted and he would then cut it onto the disc. The result was a fully functional "vinyl disc" that could be played on any 45rpm-speed turntable. Pretty awesome, and a perfect illustration of Amanda Petrusich's recent article in SPIN detailing vinyl's resurgence as CDs continue to suffer. It also made us wonder whether the dude from the CMJ panel back in October will still stand behind his statement that CDs will be the dominant music medium 10 years from now. Idiot.

Now, what does that have to do with Ratatat? Well, as Gorilla vs. Bear just pointed out, the duo released a brand new vinyl 7" single last week. The track, "Shiller", will be on their new album, out July 8th on XL Recordings. Check it out below....seems everything's coming up vinyl.

Listen: "Shiller"

Visit Ratatat on MySpace

OPP

2008-05-12T08:14:00.000-04:00

NYC Taper recorded Saturday's British Sea Power show at Bowery Ballroom

Pitchfork interviews Scarlett Johansson

Metallica's new "Mission" beta site launched, and then crashed

Led Zeppelin to announce 250 million pound world tour?

DMX arrested again, this time for drugs and animal cruelty

Hype Machine calls Viacom sale rumor not very accurate

Echo & The Bunnymen announce Oct 1st Radio City date, playing Ocean Rain in its entirety with a 10-piece orchestra

EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!

2008-05-09T14:30:00.002-04:00

A special mux for a special day; this one goes out to our Earfmoms for raising their sons into some tall drinks of water who never fail to irk those standing behind them at concerts. To all the mothers, grandmothers, mothers-to-be, and erstwhile maternal figures, enjoy the following collection of maternally-themed songs hand-picked to soundtrack your Mother's Day celebrations. You can listen to this mix/mux right HERE.

EAR FARM's Muxtape #7: Happy Muxther's Day!
1. "Mama" - Stephen Malkmus
2. "Mama, Won't You Keep Those Castles In The Air & Burning?" - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
3. "Some Mother's Son" - The Kinks
4. "Your Mother Loves You Son" - Beulah
5. "Momma's Boy" - Chromeo
6. "Hey Mama" - Kanye West
7. "Shop Around" - The Miracles
8. "Mama Says" - The Beach Boys
9. "Rabbit Fur Coat" - Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins
10. "Your Mother Should Know" - The Beatles
11. "Mother and Child Reunion" - Paul Simon
12. "Mother Popcorn" - James Brown

*above picture found HERE.

See also:
EAR FARM's Muxtape #1: 12 Songs For A Cat Named Joe
EAR FARM's Muxtape #2: April Fools Edition!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #3: Fank Fod it's Friday and Finally Fpring!
EAR FARM's Muxtape #4: Rock Band Setlist
EAR FARM's Muxtape #5: 2:42
EAR FARM's Muxtape #6: Songs that used to live in my TV set
--
A Muxtape is a simple way to create and share mixtapes. That's all there is to it. Feel free to share your own mix in the comments.

Human Highway Unveil First Single: "The Sound"

2008-05-09T12:15:00.001-04:00

Feeling a little down on this rainy Friday? STOP RIGHT THERE. Firstly, it's Friday, it's really not that bad, okay? Secondly, just listen to "The Sound" from Human Highway - the duo comprised of Islands' Nick Thorburn and former Royal City/Islands member Jim Guthrie - and marvel as the gloom just melts away.

It's a beautiful song. With little more than some doubled acoustic guitars, bass, spare electronic percussion, and a xylophone interlude (or is it glockenspiel?), a simple foundation is laid for Thorburn and Guthrie's wonderfully melodic harmonies to nestle firmly within your "obsessive hummability/sing-along cortex" (just made that up) and refuse to let go. It's catchy, uplifting, built for summer, and for some odd reason makes me picture them playing it together like Nuno and Gary in the "More Than Words" video, not sure why.

Human Highway's debut album Moody Motorcycle comes out on August 19th in the U.S. on Suicide Squeeze Records. Now, will you do us a favor and just listen to the sound?

Listen: "The Sound" (removed by request - listen to the song on Human Highway's MySpace page)

Visit Human Highway on MySpace