Like De La Soul? Indie hip-hop? Check out Stage Dive by Sol. Feel-good rap, but not fluff; a classic sound, but not overly simplistic – this 23 year-old puts out pretty quality stuff.
Download here (via Indie Shuffle).
Caught by: Jesse
Melbourne-based Cut Copy have been surfing the small tidal wive of semi-fame that came with the release of Zonoscope for a little while now, so I suppose it’s only to be expected that their songs are now being remixed endlessly. As usual, most are mediocre or unmemorable at best – but some are really fresh. Toro y Moi brings his chillwave prowess to “Blink and You’ll Miss The Revolution” with splendid results:
via Earlab
Caught by: Jesse via PickUpTheHeadphones
If you liked that one, check out this one: Toro Y Moi – “New Beat (Star Slinger Dancehall Remix)” (stereogum.com)
Check out turningArt – a rotating artwork subscription that works a little bit like Netflix. You get a special frame and make an online queue of prints you want on your wall. When they send you one, you switch out the old one and send it back in the new one’s postage box. I don’t know how good the quality of these prints are, but there’s some great stuff on their website. (Click here for an example.) For those who can’t necessarily afford your average Van Gogh, sounds like a good idea, right? The best part – for every dollar you spend on the service, you get a dollar credit to buy an original. When I get my first apartment, this might be an ideal wall decoration plan.
Caught by: Jesse
Hey all! It’s been a while since our last post. Sorry about that. We’ve been on vacation in Apathyland.
What brought us back (besides a deep sense of obligation to our faithful and adoring readership)? Yellow Springs, Ohio‘s Wheels: sweet, earnest americana and folk-pop with flavorful bluegrassy harmonies and a pleasant rootsy aftertaste. They’ve named it “outdoorsy bird funk.”* Whatever you call it, we like it.
Check it out: http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/song_8842184
Check it out: And did I mention? The band’s still in high school. They’ve only been together for like 2 years. And they already have an album out (Fields on Fire).
If you combined…
Avett Brothers, OAR, Dispatch, Local Natives, Bob Dylan, Old Crow Medicine Show, Simon & Garfunkel, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes, Ed Sheeran, Pokey LaFarge, Guster, Mumford & Sons…
…you’d have a kind of approximation of their natural, earnest sound – but only a very rough approximation. So for now, it’s just “outdoorsy bird funk” to us.
They certainly have potential; here’s hoping they keep pushing their musical frontiers. Wheels‘ alluring simplicity is at once their greatest strength and their greatest weakness… however appealing, it might get old after a while.
Caught by: Jesse
Does rioting and burning cars ease the pain of losing the Stanley Cup? Only Vancouver knows. It can’t be easy losing to America at the one sport Canada is good at, eh?
In other news, The Maple Trail has come out with some chilled-out electro-folk – perfect for assuaging all that Canucky fury.
In other good news, you can now get yourself a free copy of Forward, Cris Cab’s debut album at his website.
Caught by: Jesse
Here are some songs that I can’t stop listening to and/or singing to myself when I’m bored:
Skip the Charades – Cold War Kids
I have totally been diggin the Cold War Kids lately. I haven’t always been such a fan but consider me converted. Hopefully I’ll even wind up seeing them in two weeks if I get my shit together and get some tix.
Night of the Hunter – 30 Seconds to Mars
So graphic, so sexual, so good. Not only can I not get enough of this song, but I’ve been into all the remixes as well. If you haven’t heard this song, go listen to it! It is divine.
Photograph – Santana ft. Chris Daughtry
It’s only a little embarrassing, but I can’t get this song out of my head. I’ve always been a sucker for Santana, and let’s face it; he’s awesome.
Sometime Around Midnight – Airborne Toxic Event
This song makes me want to drink whiskey at a smokey club while eye fucking old boyfriends. And makeout with someone. This song is pure amazingness and I can’t stop listening.
Caught by: Rachel
What is Recess?
The best part of the school day. Laid-back rap/r&b for these hot summer days. A time to play outside. High-level skills for your aural satisfaction. The period after lunch. The duo composed of Sene and TheClubHouse.
Get the new album free here. I dare you not to like it.
Caught by: Jesse
Last night, I saw Weezer at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston. It was freezing and raining, but Weezer was absolutely amazing; even better than when I saw them on their Memories tour, and that was awesome. They played most of their big hits, and a lot of stuff off the blue album. I wish they had played some more songs from Pinkerton, but oh well. Rivers Cuomo’s voice was amazing, as was his and Brian Bell’s guitar work. A few songs in they added a third guitarist, which just made it that much more awesome. Everyone was standing up, jumping, dancing, singing along, and whatever else they felt like doing to the music. It was great.
I have nothing bad to say about this show. The Sheila Divine opened for them, and they were pretty good. I probably would have liked them better had it not been about forty degrees; the cold weather just made me antsy for some Weezer action. I can’t wait until the next time they’re in town so I can see them again. Trust me, you should go see them. Easily the best show I’ve even been to. So, since you can’t be at a Weezer concert right this second, you can listen to The World Has Turned and Left Me Here, which was awesome live.
Caught by: Rachel
The song’s been out for a while, but check out the uber cool video with the uber famous high wire walker Jade Kindar-Martin (or as famous as high wire walkers get, anyhow) all aflutter in The Low Anthem’s video for “Boeing 737″.
The Low Anthem combines folk rock and electronica, using some fairly unusual instruments: antique cymbals, singing saws, you name it. They play in Portland tonight; get a half price ticket here.
Caught by: Jesse
The Antlers – “Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out”
The Antlers, an indie rock/dream pop band from Brooklyn, made waves with their cinematic musical landscapes in their first full-length album Hospice. Their songs, with sparse vocals and lots of reverb, are filled with this irresistible sense of sweeping remorse, but somehow don’t get weighed down in gloom. Intriguing stuff. Often it sounds like background music for a scene of slow-motion loss or relationship drama in a TV show – but without the clichés.
Burst Apart, their second LP, was released today. You can stream it from NPR here.
Caught by: Jesse
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