Songbird
Jun
18
Holy Roller, Portugal. The Man
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Happy Tuesday! I have officially moved up North to the Bay Area and I am finally able to sit down and figure out just what I would like to do with Untitled Records. I have been doing this mp3 blog in some form since 2006. I want to do something new, yet still have it centered around the music of my liking. The whole design needs to be refreshed and in the next coming months this will be one of my goals. Thanks for your patience and stay tuned.
Meanwhile, my summer album is the new full length from Portugal. The Man.
They team up with Danger Mouse to produce this seventh full length album that is Gospel, passionate indie rock at its best. https://sexedate.ch. The songs on the album question faith, the realities of the current state of the World, letting go and finding your own way as hard as it is. The album has serious depth and they serve it up in a sing-songy anthem indie rock that makes it easier to digest.
Evil Friends has been on constant repeat and I am scouring the record stores near me to find some of their older albums on vinyl.
Holy Roller (Hallelujah) – Portugal. The Man
Evil Friends 2013 (Atlantic)
Apr
24
Low, The Invisible Way
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Update: I have been trying to post this for weeks. The uploaded mp3 just would not play and it was all very discouraging. Trying again. :)
The new album from Low is absolutely gorgeous. Piano driven, melancholy melodies that wrap around my soul. Amethyst is by far my favorite song from this 10th studio release. Slow, methodical and ever so pretty.
You hide, you always hide
So deep inside the amethyst mine
The color bleeds and fades to white
What used to be a violent mind
The Invisible Way 2013 (Sub Pop)
Oct
31
Changing Seasons
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For the last 2 months I have been obsessed with Sea Wolf’s new album Old World Romance. I can’t say I have always been their #1 fan, in fact it took this third full length album to really get me to dive deep into their discography. I say “their” loosely considering the band is made up of lead singer and founder Alex Church and a band of backing musicians that started off as a rotating bunch (currently the band consists of Theodore Liscinski, Lisa Fendelander, Joey Ficken). I think you hear that disconnect in the first couple of albums, a lack of inspiration and connection with the music. However, on Old World Romance Church goes back within himself to find inspiration and he does a great job of connecting with what he wants, who he is and what he wants his music to say about him. With this new album we get a collection of songs that are a bit more darker than his previous but still in the beautiful style that is Sea Wolf. An album that is well crafted and because of that I find myself coming back to it quite frequently.
Old World Romance 2012 (Dangerbird Records)
I watched you sleeping and could not believe it
You and I beneath shadows on ceiling
You seem so different so much younger than before
I’m still the impostor with my suitcase on the floorSometimes the feeling coming back
I feel that darkness at my back
That’s why I’m always being engine
And you can fool it till the season’s changingOutside the windows of canyons of buildings
Some storm came down washed away the silence
Even when the roof filled up began the some beans
Still solve the curtains and love that seemsSometimes the feeling coming back
I feel that darkness at my back
That’s why I’m always rearranging
And you can fool it till the season’s changingAnd I’m still looking forward
Oh I’m still looking forwardI put on the brave face
Left some words on paper legs
Hoping that I would some day come to be
A man you always saw in meSometimes the feeling coming back
I feel that darkness at my back
That’s why I’m always rearranging
And you can fool it till the season’s changing
Till the season’s changing
Till the season’s changing
Till the season’s changing
Till the season’s changingAnd I’m still looking forward, yeah I’m still looking forward
Oct
3
Milk & Sticks
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I originally posted about Boy & Bear here. From the time I heard their single, Mexican Mavis I was obsessed. Their debut full length, Moonfire was released in August and I am in love. It exceeded my expectations. Their sound is big, with busy rhythms and soaring harmonies. Fantastic. I have an itch to see them live and I am in luck as they are currently on tour and in town next week. Check it.
Moonfire is a definite favorite and you will be seeing it on my year end list.
Moonfire 2011 (Universal)
Born from the Soldiers Arms
But our spirit keeps a moving on
And, one meter at a time we’ll fall
It’s a bloody hill and a broken wall
We’ve been singing like a lunatic
Knee deep in our milk and sticks
Just a kid with a broken arm
It’s sling shot ahead of harmOh I’m hungry for the feeling honey
Cause it’s moving faster than the speed of sound
I left you a lizard by the lake my lover
It was so profound
While we found
While we foundTorn like a beaten man
It’s another dog and a foreign man
And you’ve been carrying a broken stone
New tricks and a buried bone
We’ve been born to be motivated
Half that are cultivated
I promise you when the time does come
We’ll be down river with my loaded gunOh I’m hungry for the feeling honey
Cause it’s moving faster than the speed of sound
I left you a lizard by the lake my lover
It was so profound
While we found
While we found
While we found
While we foundJust like the rest
You’ll be coming back if you’re looking for paradise
The silver line it separates your body from your mind
What a mess we’re in
There’s a monster in my head
There’s an animal screaming that I’m on my neck
Oh no you better get off my friend
There’s a monster in my bed
There’s an animal screaming that I’m on my neck
Oh no you better get off my friend
What a mess we’re in
Oh no you better get off my friend
Oh no you better get off my friend, yeah
Oh you know you better run my friend
Sep
7
Shed Your Love
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Time is slipping away.
Shed Your Love – The Helio Sequence
Keep Your Eyes Ahead 2008 (Sub Pop)
Drank the dark wine of the New York night
My shattered mind across the borderline
Spent the night in someone else’s arms
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
On a subway train before the dawn
The ride was short but my thoughts were long
Couldn’t figure what got in to me
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
Headed out to leave it all behind
Escape it all to see what I could find
Told you on the phone across the sea
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
Fell off of the plane in Amsterdam
Shop the streets to find out who I am
Come on back to me, reality
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
Home again to find that you were gone
On a subway train before the dawn
Said that you couldn’t stay and wait for me
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
Drank the dark wine of the New York night
My shattered mind across the borderline
Spent the night in someone else’s arms
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
Shed your love, shed your love
Aug
10
Gun Shy – Widowspeak
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Widowspeak is a trio hailing from Brooklyn, NY and they create fabulous shoegaze indie rock that is ever so dreamy. Their sound is a cross between Mazzy Star and Beach House. Absolute love.
Gun Shy 2011 (Captured Tracks)
Jul
14
Vetiver, The Errant Charm
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Their fourth full length album just makes you feel good. It is upbeat and airy, a gentle mix of rock and pop that is perfect for a summer afternoon. I am all about the summer right now, just as long as it stays 75 degrees. Enjoy!
The Errant Charm 2011 (Sub Pop)
Jun
13
Last Orange Hours Of The Day
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I think what attracts me most to Okkervil River is their lyrics. “West over water I rambled and paced/And the blood river raced like the sweat down my face/And the stadium roared, and the warriors embraced/And the golden shore groaned beneath the weight of my tastes/And I blazed in the last orange hours of the day/Until the dust hazed and hid us away.” They have always had great lyrics, but I think on this album Will Sheff pushes the envelope of his song writing capabilities. The lyrics are darker, more poetic and he opens himself up to the song writing process allowing himself musical freedom by becoming the producer. Rider is an indie-rock anthem that really stands out on their new album I Am Very Far as well as the opening track The Valley.
I Am Very Far 2011 (Jagjaguwar)
Jun
2
Tamer Animals, A Favorite
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Other Lives proves they are here to stay with their new album Tamer Animals. A collection of beautiful, dark, melodic, indie rock songs. I can hear they have grown as a band on this new album, you can hear it immediately with their opening track Dark Horse. They are not afraid to hold back and experiment with new instruments and sounds. They seem more confident in who they are and what kind of music they want to create, the outcome is an amazing album that is fantastic from beginning to end. One of my favorites in 2011 so far.
Tamer Animals 2011 (TBD Records)
May
23
The Kills @ The Fox Theater
Filed Under Show Reviews | 3 Comments
For the record I have never been to Pomona, CA in my entire life, it is not exactly the kind of place you would go to just hang out. When I found out that it was the only way I could see The Kills live I jumped at the chance. I never thought I would be going to see The Kills… But their new album has given me a whole new appreciation for their garage indie-rock style. It is not that they have done anything different on their new album Blood Pressures, but they have managed to create a gritty guitar driven record backed with Allison Mosshart’s bad-ass rocking vocals and they have done it better than they have ever done it before. The two are that much better live, they stepped on stage and rocked that theater. I sung and danced my ass off. I couldn’t take my eyes off the stage for a second as the two ooze rock and roll. They have quickly become one of my favorite bands and Blood Pressures will be high on my year end list that is a given. If they come around again to your area they are a must see.
Blood Pressures 2011 (Domino Records)
Set List:
No Wow
Future Starts Now
Heart Is A Beating
Kissy Kissy
U.R.A Fever
DNA
Satellite
Tape Song
Baby Says
You Don’t Own The Road
Sour Cherry
Encore:
Last Goodbye
Pots & Pans
Fried My Little Brains
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