New Music Tuesday: Vandaveer

Shocker! NMT and another Vandaveer nod!

What can I say. After being bossed around all day I decided to do what I want (outside of clubbing baby seals).

Here it is, a track from Vandaveer’s new album Divide & Conquer. It’s called “A Mighty Leviathan of Old,” and it makes me feel better just listening to it.

New Music Tuesday (Two Days Late)

Get excited—The Whitest Boy Alive has released  Rules, the follow-up to Dreams, which is still one of my favorite albums from the last five years.

Listen for free on Pitchfork, then pick it up on Amazon. It’s feel-good music that will make a great soundtrack for your first summer BBQ.

Also recently released: The Decemberists, Hazards of Love

Coming soon:
Camera Obscura,  My Maudlin Career, April 21

What are you doing next week?

Have an hour? Great. I have a homework assignment for you:

Go get your skin checked.

Bonus, if you schedule in the month of April, you’ll likely beat the rush of people getting screened during National Skin Cancer Month (May), and will get in ASAP like I did.

I’m rocking a belly full of stitches right now, but relieved that it’s over. So let’s hold good thoughts for my dearly departed skin abnormality over the next two weeks, which, might I add, is way too long to wait for a test result.

On a New Music Tuesday-related note, my doctor brought in his iPod to do the resection today and asked if I was familiar with Mason Jennings, which struck me as odd since I know one other person who knows of and enjoys Mason Jennings. It turns out that the doctor and Jennings went to high school together.  So we listened to some of his newer tunes,  which you can partake of on Jennings’ web site.

For now, I’m heading to D’s where I’ll continue  fretting that I have three weeks to live and will never see our wedding day or have our babies, and he’ll  cheer me up by making fun of my stomach.

A Jam for All Time

It’s not Tuesday, and it’s not a new song, but it’s got a spot in my all-time top 10. It’s Band of Horses, The Funeral. I still get goosebumps when the chorus comes. It’s the kind of song I would have declared as my personal anthem when I was 13. Good thing it wasn’t written then—now I can just enjoy it for what it is: a great, great song.

(Note: The band plays a shortened version on Letterman. Trust me when I tell you to buy it in full on Amazon—you won’t be disappointed. And if so, I’ll give you your money back. Which is technically like $10 since it’s album-only.)

More tuneage from LastFM.

New Music Tuesday: MGMT

I know, it’s been awhile, right? Well, I’m trying to get back to my roots—listening to sweet jams and blogging about nothing. (Honestly, I’m doing mostly strategy at work and I’m afraid I’m going to lose all writerly capabilities.)

Anyway, I’ve dabbled in MGMT here and there, but lately I’ve actually been listening to their latest release, Oracular Spectacular. I think you’ll dig it (if you’re not already hip).

Here are three of my favorite tracks, to which I jam regularly while working for the man.

“Kids” (from their ‘05 EP; I like this version better.)

“Electric Feel“

“A Time to Pretend” (also the title track from ‘05 EP)

If these tracks don’t get you to turn up the stereo and perhaps brush a little dirt off your shoulder, well…you  might want to check yourself.

Thoughts? Share ‘em.

Tunes for Your Monday

D turned me on to Panda Bear a couple months back, although I admit I often get stuck on the track “Comfy in Nautica.”**

The video for the song consists of a bunch of skate footage which is distorted due to the fact that the camera is facing into the sun (I take a lot of still photos that way, which could be why I dig it). Pitchfork says the cinematography “captures perfectly the throbbing happy/sad ache at the heart of the song.” I couldn’t agree more.

I suppose I should’ve saved this for a NMT post. Oh well. Check it out. Or just listen to it without the visual. Either way.

**This song may or may not have randomly surfaced on my iPod as I left Colorado, as the Rockies disappeared from view in my side mirrors.

NMT :: Pitchfork’s Top 50 Albums of 2007

I can’t disagree with too many of these, although I thought for sure they’d give LCD Soundsystem the top spot.

Check out the full list here…and start downloading. And remember, if you feel like sharing your favorite music picks of the year, you can do so here at Expo next week.

[Jam of the Day]: Radiohead, Reckoner

NMT…come January 8

Get excited—Sia (the lovely voice behind Zero 7 and the ever-haunting Breathe Me featured in Six Feet Under)—has a new album dropping January 8.

The promo video for her single, Buttons, is getting crazy play on YouTube. Maybe because it’s crazy weird. Who can put clothes pins all over their face? Not me. And I’ve tried.

Peep the video here; then bide your time ’til January 8.

NMT: The Lucksmiths

Okay, so the Lucksmiths aren’t exactly new. The Aussie pop group formed in 1993 and have released eight albums, including their 2-disc 2007 release: Spring A Leak.

I haven’t blogged about or shared with you any tunes by the Lucksmiths because I love them that much. And given the penchant for today’s indie music to go grossly commercial, I guess I was trying to hold on to the dream a short while longer. Mea culpa.

But after seeing them live in a rare U.S. appearance last month in D.C., my love for the band has been reemerged and I can’t stop thinking about their awesomeness.

And here’s why:

1. The tunes are largely upbeat and infectious—you can’t help but smile and bounce around.

2. The lyrics are brilliant and quite profound, a surprise given the poor lyrical standards of the pop genre.

3. The lead singer is also the drummer. Who pounds the hell out of the drums standing up, at the front of the stage. It’s different. It’s mesmerizing.

4. They’re not hard on the eyes. Sorry, but it’s true. Not like the boys from The National, whose mugs might make you want to reach for the light switch.

5. They’re friendly. At the D.C. show, D encountered lead singer (and percussionist) Tali White at the bar, who was frustrated about the lack of service. “I don’t think she knows who I am,” he said, nodding to the bartender. D, smart cookie that he is, said, “Tell you what, mate. I’ll buy you guys a round if you dedicate the song Fiction to my girlfriend, Megan.” (Fiction is one of my all-time favorite songs, for not-so-obvious reasons I guess, and, for those who haven’t heard it, is about a girl at a summer BBQ who had a “typewritten tattoo” that read “fiction” on her arm.)

White turned to D incredulously, shook him by the shoulders and said, “You’re never going to believe this! The girl we wrote that song about is here, so we have to dedicate it to her. Otherwise, I totally would.”

In sum, the Lucksmiths rule. And I owe my love for them to my good friend Mark who introduced me to them some months ago. And now, I introduce them to you. Finally. And I’m confident you won’t be let down by this recommendation.

[Jam of the Day]: The Lucksmiths, Fiction

[Bonus material]:
A few photos from the D.C. show on my Flickr page
One of six videos taken at the show
Another great live performance (better audio!)

NMT: Aaron Lee Martin

If you’re into folk music, I’ve got something special for you this week.

A few weeks ago, my good friend Peter D. offered up Aaron Lee Martin’s album, To Those Who Have Ears, Listen and I’ve fallen, steadfastly, in love with it.

But as I started looking for more information about Martin, I discovered relatively nothing on the intarwebs. No web site (save for a Myspace page). No album info. Not on Amazon. Not on Pitchfork (Ha! Schmendricks. Who’s ahead of the curve now?). Not on CDBaby.

So I hit up the aforementioned Myspace page and sent Martin a message. Afterall, I needed to find out where to direct friends who were interested in picking up the album.

From: Megan
Date: Aug 21, 2007 4:13 PM

Hey Aaron,

A friend of mine recently introduced me to your album and I love it. I have a measly little blog (http://expo86.wordpress.com), and every Tuesday I try to do a “New Music Tuesday” post, in which I recommend to readers (mostly my friends and whomever they’ve passed the URL along to) my new music picks.

The dilemma is that I would feel like a jerk for recommending great music that no one could get their hands on. I’ve done some web searches, both under your name, the album name…all of which have yet to turn up anything.

Could you tell me how I can purchase some copies? I’m hoping to get enough response from the blog post to send readers in your direction.

Keep up the great work. I’d love to hear you in Colorado one day.

Best,
Megan

And whatdya know, a short time later, he wrote me back:

From: Aaron Lee Martin
Date: Aug 22, 2007 1:05 PM

hey megan,

thank you so much for the interest and for spreading the love, it truly does mean so much to me.

you’ve inspired me to post a blog on how to aquire a cd (which i probably should have posted a while back…oops!)

well, i did post it in a blog once, but the chances of people reading that first blog are slim.
but anyhow, i still work on snail mail, so to purchase a cd, you just send $8 to:

Aaron Lee Martin
PO Box 2098
Wichita, KS 67201

and as soon as i get your envelope, i’ll send a cd to the return address. i’m starting to realize that starting up a paypal or even using the snocap option would benefit me greatly. i guess i’m still just a little old fashioned in ways.

but again, thank you so much, and i definitely hope to come out to denver again soon. take care megan and i hope to talk to you soon.

peace,
aaron

Sigh. I like him, don’t you? But honestly, I wouldn’t urge you to send $8 to an artist who: (a) wasn’t worth listening to, or (b) I thought might take the money and run.

Don’t miss this one. Check him out and let me know what you think!

[Jam of the Day]: Aaron Lee Martin, Bluebird

UPDATE: Just found this ROCKIN’ live performance of Martin’s “Thief Song.” Oooh, boy. The gettin’ is good.