All posts by Kevin

general, video

Editors: Papillon (video)

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When nobody was looking, Editors went ahead and released a new album. In This Light and On This Evening is available digitally with a physical U.S. release due out on Jan. 19.

After a few spins, I’m not sure what to make of this new, synth-heavy direction the band has taken. The dark/industrial undertones are ripe for remixes and singer Tom Smith’s voice sounds even more affected and theatrical than normal.

Check the video below for the first single, Papillon, featuring a bunch of dudes running … and running some more. Lots of running.

general

The Whigs: In the Dark

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When we went to San Diego Street Scene last year, The Whigs were stuck in one of those somewhat sweaty/sparsely attended afternoon time slots, when festivalgoers are still shaking off the exhaustion from the previous day. But we made a point to catch the Athens, Ga., trio and it was just the jolt I needed to start the day.

With an opening stint on tour with Kings of Leon last year and the scheduled release of a new album, In the Dark (ATO), due in early 2010, my guess is that more well-earned publicity is headed The Whigs’ way.

To get a jump-start, the band is offering up the title track from the forthcoming release as a free download – another perfectly blended three minutes of energetic power and melody.

Related:
The Whigs on Jimmy Kimmel
The Whigs: Like a Vibration (video)

general, video

Frightened Rabbit: Swim Until You Can’t See Land (video)

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Thanks to Casey for calling attention to the new video for Frightened Rabbit’s single, Swim Until You Can’t See Land, which you can also stream (along with the B-side) at Fat Cat Records.

Frontman Scott Hutchison’s lyrics continue to touch an emotional nerve, perhaps showing signs of a recovery from the gut-wrenching breakup anthems from The Midnight Organ Fight. On Swim, he seems to have resolved to move on:

“Let’s call me a baptist, call this the drowning of the past.
She’s there on the shoreline
Throwing stones at my back
So swim until you can’t see land.”

remix, video

Mayer Hawthorne: Green Eyed Love (video, remix)

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We are heading to the Clubhouse tonight to check the sorta-odd twin bill of Mayer Hawthorne and Ghostface.

And wouldn’t you know it: Stones Throw released a new video today for the Mayer’s Green Eyed Love, the closer on his excellent debut A Strange Arrangement.

The video coincides with the release of a six-track 12-inch EP – on green vinyl, of course – that features remixes of Green Eyed Love. Stones Throw is offering one of them, by Classixx, as a free download.

general, vinyl

Designed Entropy I – Gold Robot Records

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It’s always a thrill to get a package from our man Hunter at Gold Robot Records, a boutique vinyl label that deals mostly in limited-run 7-inch gems.

The latest is Designed Entropy I, a four-song compilation that features cuts from Bomarr, Copy, Meanest Man Contest and Roman Ruins.

The 7-inch – produced on brown/orange-colored vinyl – was created and designed as a full experience. Gold Robot details it:

“The first entry in the Designed Entropy series features exclusive tracks by 4 different artists inspired from a common starting point. As a cohesive unit, this EP explores the relationship between design, structure, and humanity. Suggested reading to accompany the listening experience: ‘Atlas of Novel Tectonics’ by Jesse Reiser.”

Stream the tracks below and pick up the vinyl for five bucks. You can also go the digital route at eMusic, iTunes, Amazon, etc.

[STREAM]: Various artists | Designed Entropy I

hip-hop, video

People Under the Stairs: Trippin’ At the Disco

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A few weeks ago, I downloaded the digital single for the new jam from People Under the Stairs – Trippin’ At the Disco – and completely forgot to post about it until Weiss offered up the video for the track today.

PUTS continues to be one of the most prolific but overlooked acts in hip-hop. Their new album and second in as many years, Carried Away, drops today. I’ve always felt Thes One, who is living the dream, and Double K offer the perfect blend of West Coast cool and underground ethos. It’s a shame they’re not more popular.

hip-hop, video

Q-Tip (feat. Norah Jones): Life is Better (video)

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Just a couple weeks after the proper release of his once-shelved album Kamaal the Abstract, Q-Tip is back with a new video for Life is Better from The Renaissance, his critically acclaimed return that was one of my favorites of 2008.

Much like the revered Midnight Marauders album cover(s), this is Q-Tip’s ode to hip-hop – his predecessors and peers – and he shouts out some of the best: Kool Herc, The Furious Five, Run-DMC, J Dilla, Nas, Rakim and so on. I mean, I think we’ve all used the whole hip-hop-as-love metaphor. I can’t be the only one.

Anyway, the video offers a fluid storyboard-like animation that keeps the action swirling around Tip and Norah Jones.

general

Stream two new Frightened Rabbit songs

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fr_swim

We saw Frightened Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchison do an acoustic take on Swim Until You Can’t See Land from a park bench, and now we have a full-band studio version that’s available for streaming at Fat Cat. Another song, Fun Stuff, can also be heard.

According to the label, the Swim single will be released in November, preceding a new full-length in spring 2010.

Sayeth Hutchison:

“’Swim Until You Can’t See Land’ was the title I had in my mind before I even started writing the album; I was becoming more and more interested in the idea of a rejection of the habits and behaviour most people see as normal, and in turn embracing a certain madness. It’s about losing your mind in order to reset the mind and the body. Forget what’s gone before and wash it out. This is not necessarily a geographical journey, as the ‘swim’ can involve any activity in which you can lose yourself. It’s a good introduction to the record as the theme unravels therein.”

[STREAM]: Frightened Rabbit | Swim Until You Can’t See Land
[STREAM]: Frightened Rabbit | Fun Stuff

Here’s that aforementioned park-bench performance:

general, video

Sunny Day Real Estate on Jimmy Fallon

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My anticipation for next Friday’s Sunny Day Real Estate show at Marquee Theatre continues to build, and the band’s performance on Jimmy Fallon’s show only contributes to my excitement.

Likewise, NPR has made the band’s show from the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., available to stream or download.

In the Fallon performance, William Goldsmith – who’s started a new project called Brawley Banks – again proves why he’s one of my favorite drummers: He’s so locked in and intense, giving every drum crash the attention and power it deserves.

arizona, general

New Miniature Tigers: Lolita (live, acoustic)

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We’ll be seeing Phoenix’s own Miniature Tigers open for The Dodos on Wendesday night at Modified, a venue that’s stirred quite the buzz around town the past couple of days.

Anyway, the Mini T’s have been riding high and touring the country on the strength of the debut LP Tell it to the Volcano, an album I unbelievably found used on vinyl at Zia Records a couple weeks ago (along with the White Magic EP … white vinyl!). And it looks like the guys stopped by KWUR in St. Louis for a four-song acoustic session, including what appears to be a new track, Lolita.

Related:
Alvin Band: Temple Pressure (video, mp3)
Miniature Tigers on The Interface
Miniature Tigers on The Train Tracks
Miniature Tigers on Daytrotter