Archive for December, 2009
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Exams are officially over and I can now post on a more regular basis. Hopefully.
December 12th: Good Shoes – The Way My Heart Beats
The boys are baaaaaaaaaaaaaack! Yep, Good Shoes returning with new material was definitely one of the highlights of my year. To make things even better, they gave away “The Way My Heart Beats” for free. 2010 will see the release of their second album No Hope No Future and the boys are scheduled to make a trip stateside for SXSW. I swear, just when I think I couldn’t possibly hate SXSW more than I already do…
Anyway, listen to this song, anticipate the album(!!!!), and watch their latest tour video:
December 13th: Florence and the Machine – Dog Days Are Over
Florence Welch and her incredible voice have been stirring up buzz for quite a while, but this last year the world finally stood up and took notice of Welch and her machine. Her debut album Lungs was released to critical acclaim and she’s slowly but ever so surely going to take America (or at least a huge chunk of it) by storm. Just wait. “Dog Days are Over” is one of my favorite songs that made the album, listen and love.
The First Days of Spring, A Film By Noah And The Whale
If you weren’t able to make any of the film screenings for Noah and the Whale‘s “The First Days of Spring” (or buy the CD/DVD combo pack), you’re in luck! You can now watch the film, written and directed by Charlie Fink, on vimeo for free!
The film is beautiful, so just sit down and relax for the next 40ish minutes:
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Late again, I know. I blame exams.
December 10th: The Lovely Feathers – Lowiza
I love The Lovely Feathers. Like, seriously I LOVE them. And if I had it my way, every person in the world would love them too. After three years away in Canada, they finally returned with a great new album (Fantasy of the Lot) and first single “Lowiza” was(/is) one of the greatest things in the universe and made my life so much better this past year. I mean, how many people could take erectile dysfunction and its detrimental effect on a marriage and turn it into a catchy love song? Hm? And Lowiza thinks that Jimmy’s urge is inept, and Lowiza thinks that this is what happens to men
December 11th: Video Nasties – Conversation Dies
In the midsts of all the grimey, lo-fi, punk-influenced tunes that dominate their debut album On All Fours, Video Nasties threw in “Conversation Dies” and showcased the more melodic side of them I fell head-over-heels for back in the day. Piano sounds slowly build and echo beneath pounding drums and buzzing feedback as harsh, raw vocals cry out “Can you feel his desperation as the cold light rushes in?” By the end of the songs’ 4 minutes and 24 seconds, you feel you’ve just been through something quite epic. “What” exactly that is you’re not entirely sure, but the mystery makes it that much better. Listen and love.
Word on the street is the Video Nasties have called it quits. Such a shame. With songs like this and “Ides Patrol,” I can only imagine the goods Video nasties could have delivered on album #2.
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It’s been less than a week and I’m already one post behind on this monthly musical advent-ure (snap! see what I did there? oh ho ho) .
December 8th: Sonic Youth – Sacred Trickster
After three years, Sonic Youth returned with The Eternal and proved they were as good as EVER (and that I will never be as cool as Kim Gordon, ever). Press up against the amp, turn up the treble don’t forget.
December 9th: Mumford & Sons – The Cave (Bookshop Sessions)
Honestly, it’s only right that people fell in love and went crazy for Mumford & Sons this last year. It would be difficult not to take notice of such incredible talent and musicianship. And although they sound great on record, Mumford & Sons are a band that need to be experienced live to fully appreciate what they’ve got to offer. Trust me, I learned this first hand. I give you a session version of “The Cave,” a song that stuck with me since seeing them live over a year ago. Also, I highly suggest you check out their debut album Sigh No More, only available as import right now but hopefully that’ll change soon.
I love you Jeff Mangum.
I love you Neutral Milk Hotel.
I’ve got an exam in about two hours for one of those classes where I think I feel comfortable enough with the material to not keep studying, but as soon as the exam is in front of me I will most likely be kicking myself for not studying longer. Conundrum.
To make myself feel better, I am watching these videos of Neutral Milk Hotel rocking the hell out of The Knitting Factory back in 1998. Watching them is magical:
Find the rest of the videos on goldenpuppy1′s youtube channel. Win.
