Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream

I must apologize for not having posted in so long. But I won’t dwell. More consistent posting from here on out (at least for a while).

I wanted to share loads and loads of stuff with you today/tonight. I’ve been sent lots of different EPs from artists and bands trying to get the word out. I’ve been waiting to do a post like this and now I’m finally doing it. Wow, empowering. So the following is (in no particular order) some of the best stuff I’ve received.

1.  Alex Gladwell – Fantasia

Alex wins for best e-mail sent to me. It was straight-forward, adamant, and different.   His music is the same way.  Think Peter Bjorn & John’s knack for rhythms meets the vocals of Pinback. Perhaps I’m glorifying it a tad, but Fantasia certainly makes for an interesting listen. Urgent and accessible, songs like “Song” and “See Ya” are as cool as the mountain air (believe me–mountain air is cool). It seems as though Gladwell seems to verge into a sort of rock-hip-hop, which becomes clearer on songs like “Gospel” with its Always Sunny in Philadelphia falsetto breaking through from time to time. Overall, definitely worth a listen.

Listen to “Song”

2.  days were like lakes – Light Gets In

This was the e-mail I received: “I think you might like this song. Maybe.” While the italicized ‘might’ was probably unnecessary, the sender was right. I did like their song “True”.  Think classic Chicago (the band!) with their penchant for great breezy guitar riffs (see Chicago’s “Beginnings”) mixed with The Sea and Cake’s ability to write fresh and summery songs. Check ‘em out!

Listen to “True”

3. Kid, You’ll Move Mountains – Loomings

Best band name goes to these fellas out of Geneva, IL.  K,YMM (got to have the comma in there) has real talent, showcasing their ability–track after track–to create captivating soundscapes.  The songs on Loomings seem to call out a ‘looming’, ominous cloud overhead, and yet at the same time K,YMM seem to ignore it and make music that is optimistic and promising.  “West” is as beautiful and achingly sweet a rock song could be, while the band masterfully pairs both discipline and emotion into the wonderful “Inside Voices”. K,YMM will certainly live up to its pithy mantra–indeed, mountains they will move.

Listen to “Inside Voices”

More to come tomorrow!

Montreal producer Tor has made an interesting mixtape of his available for free on his website.  Titled Illinoize, the mixtape explores what happens when a skilled mixmaster takes Sufjan Stevens puts him in a studio with Andre 3000, Gift of Gab, Grand Puba, Aesop Rock, and  others. Taking such tracks as “Star of Wonder” with its ethereal keys and laying Aesop Rock’s powerful vocals makes for good listening.  The backbeat added to the funky riff at the beginning of “They Are Night Zombies!!…” melds perfectly with Brother Ali’s urgent raps. One of the most interesting tracks is when Tor takes the signature horns from “The Tallest Man”, adds a rather basic backbeat, and creates the effect of an R & B track with the stylings of Grand Puba.

Download your free copy of Illinoize here.

Listen to “The Tallest Man / I Like It (f. Grand Puba)”

Listen to “Night Zombies / Talkin’ My Shit (f. Brother Ali)“

I don’t really know what it is, but I have a soft spot for The Damnwells. This Brooklyn, NY collective has consistently been churning out what I term a ‘workman’s rock’.  The band is really the genius of one Alex Dezen, who decided early last year to change up the supporting cast.  Fortunately, the music hasn’t changed.  And if that isn’t good enough for you, how about the fact that Dezen is currently working on getting his MFA at University of Iowa’s ‘Iowa Writers’ Workshop’ and that he actually teaches a class on ‘rhetoric’?  Damn!(well)

And here’s the coolest part about Dezen: he actually is offering his album for absolutely nothing in return! You heard me: free! If you don’t believe me, click here. That means that you’re going to get this album, queue it up, and begin listening.  You’re going to hear the now classic Dezen vocals on “Bastard of Midnight”, as its emotive verses explode into the vast ether of the chorus.  Maybe your ears will also catch the folky strains of “Dandelions” with its steady homologous guitar and keyboards.  As you soak up the rhythms of “55 Pictures” and the golden echoes of “Everything”, you start to realize what Dezen is getting at.  There’s clearly some serious personal discovery hidden within this record, the sound of man moving into a new stage of life with a little chip on his shoulder and some hubris to boot.

‘Somewhere between nothing and something is everything / Somewhere between darkness and wonder is every dream / Somewhere between braking and broke there’s a song to sing’.  Need I say more?

Get a copy of One Last Century for FREE!

Listen to “Bastards of Midnight”

Listen to “Everything“

“No one’s gonna come / Tell you how it’s done”.  Norwegian sensation Sondre Lerche has made his name known, but for me it goes back to his stunning debut.  “No One’s Gonna Come” is the definite highlight on this track.  If only he could go back to the style of his first quirky venture, I’d be much happier with Lerche’s work!

Grab a copy of Faces Down and all his other good stuff.

Listen to “No One’s Gonna Come”

Postsecret: word on the street is that Lerche will be having an album coming out this year. According to him, it will be the most wonderful “Sondre Lerche experience yet”.

Two Fatboy Slim videos. Weapon of Choice and Praise You.

I received my copy of Dark Was the Night last week, and I was eager to tear it open and crank it up.  And I have to say that I’m more than pleased.  Though I think they top-loaded the better tracks in the 1st CD (the 2nd CD is a little lacking), what’s not to like when you have Bon Iver, Iron &Wine, Sufjan Stevens, Feist, The National, and My Brightest Diamond all hanging out together (sonically, that is)?

Make sure you get yourself a copy of Dark Was the Night.

And if you want to know what songs I liked:

Django Haskins’ Chapel Hill collective The Old Ceremony is out with their new album Walk On Thin Air.  I wish I could say I was more impressed with it, but it seems that The Old Ceremony has stuck with their hit-and-miss routine from their self-titled debut.  I did want to steer you to an intriguing track from Walk on Thin Air–it’s a little anthemic in nature and I do love anthems.

Listen to “Til My Voice Gave“

Matthew Ward has always been one of those singer-songwriters that I’ve so desperately wanted to like.  The Portland, Oregon native boasts a calm demeanor, but it’s clear that there’s much more to him when he opens his mouth and strums his gee-tar. Perhaps that’s why I found the whole She & Him concept to be incredibly enjoyable.  Here was M. Ward doing something fresh (at least on the time scale of several decades) and unique.  And then, just as I’m getting over Volume One, here comes M. Ward back again with his new LP Hold Time.

Hold Time is a great folk album.  It won’t knock your socks off, and it certainly won’t sock you or bop you, but the truth is that there is something to be said for artists that are just a joy to listen to (I’m ending in a preposition, okay?).  The jangly guitars on “Rave On” with the insanely catchy chorus of harmonious ‘I Say Rave On’s are a perfect example of just what M. Ward can do.  The higher range vocals of M. Ward take a turn for the baritone on  “Shangri-La”, certainly the highlight of the album.  “To Save Me” is as infectious as folk songs get, with hints and tones of one Zooey Deschanel in the background.  Hold Time has really impressed me, not just with its accessibility but also its listenability.  So what are you waiting for?

Make sure to get a copy of Hold Time.

Listen to “Shangri-La”

Listen to “To Save Me“