Jessica Lee Mayfield- sets album release date

Gritty 18 year old indie/folk sensation Jessica Lee Mayfield has set a date for her debut disc,With Blasphemy So Heartfelt which will be coming out September 16th on Polymer Sounds. Mayfield is coming off of a recent tour with equally gritty southern rockers Lucero and will soon be playin some dates with the Black Keys, who's member Dan Auerbach produced the album and also appeared on it. Other cameos to show up on 'With Blasphemy...' include Scott McMicken from Dr. Dog and Frank McElroy.
Producer Dan Auerbach says of Mayfield, “I think she’s dark and moody in a mysterious way, not unlike Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.” He adds, “I’m just always really excited to make music with her".
Think Lucinda Williams with more edge and attitude.

Currently you can preview two new tracks off the album on her myspace, "I Can't Lie To You Love" and "Kiss Me Again".

Kings of Leon- new track (free download)

The Kings Of Leon have made available via their website a free download of one of the new tracks from the upcoming Only By The Night, which comes out on Sept. 23rd. The new song is titled "Crawl", and is one of the new songs the group have been debuting at their recent live shows over the summer. In addition to the new track, the band have put up the first in a series of 'home movies' video clips, which are documentary style clips mixed with audio off the upcoming Only By The Night.

Download the new track "Crawl" from Kings Of Leon.

'Home Movies' sneak peek:

New releases this Week

Short list this week, but with some releases we've been highly anticipating from Johnny Flynn and Wild Sweet Orange among the group.

Here's the full list of what we came up with:

Wild Sweet Orange- We Have Cause To Be Uneasy
Johnny Flynn- A Larum
Takka Takka- Migration
Sonic Youth: SYR8: Andre Sider At Sonic Youth
James Jackson Toth- Waiting In Vain
Okkerkil River- Lost Coastlines (single)
Neil Halstead- Oh! Mighty Engine
Foreign Slippers- Oh Death Ep
Dead Heart Bloom- Fall In
The Great Northwest- The Widespread Reign of..
Erin Bode- The Little Garden

download new Walkmen album for 5 dollars

The new Walkmen album, You & Me won't hit store shelves until August 19, but for a limited time the band is offering up the new work as a download for only 5 dollars. In addition to it being a great deal and not having to wait until the August 19th release date, the group is donating all the proceeds to charity, with all donations going to the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center which will benefit cancer research and treatment. It is part of a partnership that the band has formed with AmieStreet.com and the website's "Download to Make a Difference" campaign, and according to Walkmen member Peter Bauer is "...in honor of Luca Vasallo, a friend to the band and a current patient who is seven months old and doing a great job fighting a very difficult disease".
The 5 dollar download is available for the next three weeks, to get the new Walkmen album 'You & Me' for Five dollars go to www.amiestreet.com/thewalkmen

In addition, you can currently hear the new track "In The New Year" on the bands myspace.

Sunset Rubdown to hit the road this fall

Sunset Rubdown's Spencer Krug, who shares duties as one of Wolf Parade's frontmen has been pulling double duty lately. Krug is currently touring in support of Wolf Parade's newest At Mount Zoomer which will wrapping up their dates in early August. Barely stopping to take a breather after that though, he'll be heading right back out on the road with his other project Sunset Rubdown. The band has listed a brief tour schedule for this September and October.

Sunset Rubdown tour dates:

September
15 - Cambridge, Mass. @ Middle East Upstairs
16 - Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
24 - Atlanta, Ga. @ The Earl
27 - Austin, Texas @ Mohawk
29 - Dallas, Texas @ Granada Theatre

October
1 - Lawrence, Kan. @ Jackpot
2 - Iowa City, Iowa @ The Picador
3 - Madison, Wis. @ The Annex
4 - Chicago, Ill. @ Empty Bottle

Paper Route- 'Are We All Forgotten'

Paper Route is a band I first stumbled on a few years back on a compilation of Tennesee musicians titled Ten Out Of Tenn., which featured the phenomenal electronic ballad "Second Chances". Needless to say i was instantly hooked with their work and purchased their self titled Ep at the time. The band is now back with a new 5 song Ep Are We All Forgotten which not only sees them picking up where they left off but going far beyond their earlier work. Paper Route often gets the label as an Americana based band mixed with elements of electronica, maybe due to the fact of being based out of Nashville. But the band is much more than that, with parts indie rock, mixed with pop and ambient soundscapes and doses of electronica, the band has one of the more unique sounds coming out of the Nashville scene that sets them apart.
On the new Ep the bands sound seems hard to restrain, as if built to be played in larger venues that can't hold it back. From the slow building opener "American Clouds" to the title track "Are We All Forgotten" with it's soaring chorus, the group shows great pop sensibilty and depth. "Empty House" takes things to the next level with it's southern rock guitar intertwined with it's breezy melodies, while "You Kill Me" is the most haunting track on the disc with thick layers of synth and strings setting the mood.
The group has been on tour for much of the year working on the live sound, and will continue touring thru much of August in support of the new Ep.
To check the live dates or to listen to tracks off 'Are We All Forgotten', you can visit the bands myspace.

Song of the week- "Y'all Come Back Now" by Ten Kens

Our choice for song of the week this week comes from Toronto's indie rockers Ten Kens, for the track "Y'all Come Back Now". The track was out last month on a double A sided single along with their song "Bear Fight". The group has been in studio for much of the year and are ready to make their full legth debut in September with their self titled work on Fat Cat Records.

Listen to more of Ten Kens.

The Secret Life Of Sofia- 'Seven Summits'

If we were to tell you that one of our favorite albums of late has a running theme about mountain climbing adventures, you might not believe us. But it's true, the new album Seven Summits from Brooklyn's The Secret Life Of Sofia brings to life both true and fictional tales of mountaineering adventures of the seven summits (which are the seven highest summits of the seven continents). Lead singer Kyle Wilson in fact has some training as a mountaineer and has a sort of fascination with the subject. Lucky for us the man knows what he's talking about, and it shows on the new disc. 'Seven Summits' is a smart, complex album that reveals it's charm and intricacies more & more with each listen. Not that it's not engaging as a first spin but it is appreciated more with each turn. Right from the start of the dreamy opener "Fifty Fourteeners" the listener is drawn in & swept off to a different locale altogether as Wilson's storytelling paints a lush picture. The folkish track "Outside" shows the bands ability to switch gears with it's delicate harmonies and composition, while the dark and brooding "Nepal, 1905" which is about the notorious climber Aleister Crowley again shows off the bands broad repertoire. Other highlights of 'Seven Summits' include the synth heavy "Weathering" which is based on an infamous disaster that occurred on Mt. Everest in 1996 along with the track "Nanda Devi" with it's beautiful orchestration.

The new work sees the band more seasoned and sounding more confident in it's ability than on their 2006 self titled EP. Secret Life of Sofia is no doubt a band on the rise (no pun intended), and we look forward to hearing more from them in 2008.
If you want to see the band live, you can currently catch them out on the road as they kick off their tour tonight starting in Brooklyn.

Jul 25 2008 Pete’s Candy Store Brooklyn, New York
Jul 26 2008 Double Wide Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Jul 27 2008 Carabar Columbus, Ohio
Jul 28 2008 House show Louisville, Kentucky
Jul 29 2008 Bluebird Bloomington, Indiana
Jul 30 2008 Noah’s Marion, Indiana
Jul 31 2008 Howard’s Club H Bowling Green, Ohio
Aug 1 2008 Village Green Records Muncie, Indiana
Aug 2 2008 Catacombs Butler, Pennsylvania
Aug 21 2008 Jezebel Music Feature @ Union Pool Brooklyn, New York

Listen to Secret Life Of Sofia on Myspace.

Grizzly Bear perform new song on Letterman

Though their new album isn't likely to hit stores until 2009, Grizzly Bear debuted a new song "Two Weeks" on the Late Show with David Letterman on Weds. night. The band has currently been in the studio working on their next album and is also prepping to head out on the road for select dates with Radiohead as well as some festival appearances. Of the newer material singer Edward Droste says "I think the orchestrations will be equally complex and intricate, but the mood is slightly more a sunny afternoon versus a fall afternoon."
The debut of the new material on the late night talk show circuit wasn't the first for Grizzly Bear, as earlier in the spring the band debuted another new track off the forthcoming disc "While You Wait for the Others," on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.

"Two Weeks":



upcoming Grizzly Bear Tour dates:

Jul 31, 2008 - Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge
Aug 01, 2008 - Chicago, IL - Lollapalooza
Aug 02, 2008 - Louisville, KY - 930 Listening Room
Aug 03, 2008 - Noblesville,IN -Verizon Wireless Center w/Radiohead
Aug 04, 2008 - Cuyahoga Falls,OH -Blossom Music Center w/Radiohead
Aug 06, 2008 - Montréal,QC -Parc Jean Drapeau w/Radiohead
Aug 07, 2008 - Northampton, MA - Calvin Theater w/ The New Pornographers
Aug 08, 2008 - Jersey City, NJ - All Points West Music & Arts Festival
Aug 11, 2008 - Washington, DC - Sixth & I Historic Synagogue
Aug 12, 2008 - Camden, NJ - Susquehanna Bank Center w/ Radiohead
Aug 13, 2008 - Mansfield, MA - Tweeter Center w/ Radiohead
Aug 14, 2008 - Boston, MA - Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Aug 15, 2008 - Toronto, ON -Molson Amphitheatre w/Radiohead

Feist playing free show

If you happen to live in the NYC area and can manage to get to work a bit late on Fri. morning, you might be able to catch a free performance from Feist. She will be playing tom 7/25 at Bryant Park as part of the Good Morning America concert series and will go on at approximately 8:44am. If you can stand the traditional morning show banter you might want to arrive early as it gets crowded quiet fast. Bryant Park is located on (41st St. @ 6th Ave.).

Greg Laswell- new video for "How The Day Sounds"

Singer/songwriter and Hotel Cafe alum Greg Laswell is fresh off putting out his new full length Three Flights From Alto Nido, and has just put out a new video for the single "How The Day Sounds". The video was directed by Autumn De Wilde and features actor Elijah Wood.
Check back later in the week for a full review of 'Three Flights From Alto Nido', in the meantime here's the video:

Greg Laswell:

How the Day Sounds

Cold War Kids post new song

Though their new album Loyalty to Loyalty doesn't hit the streets until September 23rd, the Cold War Kids have just posted a new track off the album, "Something Is Not Right With Me" on their myspace. The track features some classic Cold War Kids staples, with a thumping bass opening and the signature yelps of lead singer Nathan Willett. To listen to the new track "Something Is Not Right With Me" click here.

If your looking to get more of a sneak peak at the bands new material, you'll have to catch them out on the road. Here's a rundown of their tour itinerary leading up to the release date.

Aug 2 2008 Splendour in the Grass - Byron Bay
Aug 3 2008 Tivoli Brisbane
Aug 4 2008 Enmore Sydney
Aug 6 2008 Palace - Melbourne
Aug 9 2008 Belladrum Festival Inverness
Aug 10 2008 Summer Sundae Leicester
Aug 11 2008 Bloomsbury Ballroom - London
Aug 12 2008 Concorde 2 Brighton
Aug 14 2008 La Route Du Rock St Malo
Aug 15 2008 Pukkelpop Hasselt
Aug 22 2008 Outside Lands Festival San Francisco, California
Aug 23 2008 Sunset Junction Festival Los Angeles, California
Aug 24 2008 Les Schwab Amp w/ Beck Bend, Oregon
Sep 20 2008 Street Scene San Diego, California

The weeks new releases

Here's the list of what we put together for this weeks new releases you might find interesting. Not many big names on the list besides the much hyped new albums from CSS and Black Kids. But besides those, be sure to check out some quality releases from lesser known projects like Windmill, Lackthereof and Bodies of Water that are among the early favorites of this weeks lot.

Here's the list:

CSS- Donkey
Black Kids- Partie Traumatic
Brendan Canning- Something For All Of Us
One Day As a Lion- (self titled) Ep
Natalie Walker- With You
Bodies Of Water- A Certain Feeling
Lackthereof- Bodies Of Water
Avett Brothers- Second Gleam
Faun Fables- A Table Forgotten
Low vs Diamond- (self titled)
Windmill- Puddle City Racing Lights
The Ruling Class- Flowers (single)
Jay Reatrd & Deerhunter- Fluorescent Grey/ Oh It's Such a Shame (single)

new Gutter Twins track

The collaborative project of Mark Lanegan and Greg Dulli known as the Gutter Twins , have just released a new track titled "Belles". The track shows a much lighter shoegaze type vibe from the duo & is actually a cover of a song from the americana rock group Vetiver. The song is from the new forthcoming Gutter Twins exclusive I-tunes release, Adorata. The new release will feature various covers and outtakes the two recorded during the Saturnalia sessions.

Listen to "Belles" on the bands myspace.

Photo credit: Sam Holden

Land Of Talk sign to Saddle Creek

Montreal's Indie rock outfit Land Of Talk, led by dynamic frontwoman Elizabeth Powell have just signed up with Saddle Creek records. In doing so, the group have announced the release date of their debut full-length, Some Are Lakes which will be out on October 7th.
The group recorded 'Some Are Lakes' in their hometown of Montreal with help from Justin Vernon of Bon Iver fame, and is the follow up to their 2006 EP, Applause Cheer Boo Hiss which featured the electric single "Speak to Me Bones".

Some Are Lakes track listing:

1. Yuppy Flu
2. Death By Fire
3. The Man Who Breaks Things (Dark Shuffle)
4. Some Are Lakes
5. Give Me Back My Heart Attack
6. It's Okay
7. Young Bridge
8. Corner Phone
9. Got A Call
10. Troubled

If you want a sneak preview of the new material, here you can take a listen to a live version of the title track "Some Are Lakes" that the band performed earlier in the year in Paris.

Thao Nguyen- Headlining tour begins

Coming off their recent tour in support of Rilo Kiley, Thao Nguyen and her band the Get Down Stay Down are prepping to head back out on the road this summer. The upcoming tour will be the bands first headlining tour in support of their We Brave Bee Stings and All which featured the infectious songs "Bag Of Hammers", "Beat(Health Life & Fire)" and "Swimming Pools". Opening acts slated for the tour so far include David Schultz and the Skyline, Pepi Ginsberg, Horse Feathers and Tune-Yards.

Also, if you haven't seen our "Liner Notes" video interview with Thao, you can see it here.

Thao and the Get Down Stay Down tour dates:

07-19 Columbus, OH - Cafe Bourbon Street
07-20 Cincinnati, OH - Northside Tavern
07-21 Lexington, KY - Skull Alley
07-22 St. Louis, MO - Off Broadway
07-23 Des Moines, IA - The Houes of Bricks
07-24 Denver, CO - Hi-Dive
07-25 Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
07-26 Stanley, ID - Pioneer Park
07-29 Portland, OR - Holocene
07-31 San Francisco, CA - The Independent
08-01 Irvine, CA - Phoenix Grille at UC Irvine
08-02 West Hollywood, CA - Troubadour
08-03 San Diego, CA - Casbah
08-04 Tucson, AZ - Solar Culture
08-05 Lubbock, TX - Bash Riprock's
08-06 Austin, TX - Emo's
08-07 Dallas, TX - Club Dada
08-08 Lawrence, KS - Jackpot Music Hall
08-09 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
08-11 Northampton, MA - Iron Horse
08-12 Cambridge, MA - T.T. the Bear's Place
08-13 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
08-14 Washington, DC - Black Cat
08-30 Seattle, WA - Bumbershoot Festival
09-29 Upland, IN - Taylor University

The Hold Steady on Letterman

One of the hardest working rock bands in the business, Brooklyn's The Hold Steady made an appearance on The Late Show w/ David Letterman Wednesday night. In addition to the usual musical performance though, the band was included in a comedy skit by Letterman reporter Andy Kindler, who oddly and funny enough as you'll see, resembles Hold Steady lead singer Craig Finn. As far as the performance is concerned the band played "Sequestered in Memphis" from their newly released Stay Positive.

Check out the performance and sketch below.

CSS- new album + bonus material

CSS' long awaited and much buzzed about forthcoming album Donkey is almost ready to hit stores this summer. The sophomore disc is set to be released on July 21st in the UK and the 22nd in the US, and for a limited time if ordered before Tuesday through the Sub Pop webstore, fans will receive a three-song bonus CD that has two tracks not on the new disc, as well as a demo version of the the track "I Fly" that appears on 'Donkey'.
The electro-pop group from Brazil's new LP is the follow up to 2006's successful 'Cansei de Sei Sexy' which was hailed by critics and bloggers alike.

Bonus disc tracklist:

1- Hit & Run
2- Blackwing
3- I Fly (demo version)

Great Lake Swimmers- Add tour dates

The Toronto indie-folk group, Great Lake Swimmers have just announced a handful of new tour dates across the US. Singer/songwriter Tony Dekker and the group will be heading back out on the road in August and September touring in support of 2007's 'Ongiara', which featured the hauntingly beautiful "Your Rocky Spine". As far as new material from the band is concerned, we'll have to wait until at least spring 09' for the 4th disc to be released.

Great Lake Swimmers new tour dates in the US:

Aug 14 Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
Aug 16 Lyons, CO @ Folks Festival
Aug 17 Manitou Springs, CO @ KinFolks Music
Aug 19 Iowa City, IA @ The Mill
Aug 20 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Aug 21 Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon
Aug 22 Chicago, IL @ Schubas
Sep 25 Northampton, MA @ The Iron Horse Music Hall
Sep 26 New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
Sep 27 Hastings-on-Hudson, NY Common Ground Coffe House
Sep 28 Brooklyn, NY @ Union Hall

Listen to Great Lake Swimmers on Myspace.

This Weeks New Releases

The trend of slow release weeks continues for the month of July.

Here's what we dug up to check out for this week:

The Alternate Routes- The Watershed Ep
Death To Anders- Fictitious Business
The Hold Steady- Stay Positive
Joshua James- B Sides It's Dark Outside
MGMT- Electric Feel (Justice remix) single
Scarlett Johansson- I-tunes (Live session)
Nas- (self titled)
Herman Dune- I Wish That I Could See You Soon EP
The Cure- Sleep When I'm Dead (Mix 13) single
Matt Pond Pa- This Is Not The Green Fury (reissue)
Rocky Votolato- (self titled) reissue
Wire- Object 47

Jenny Lewis- reveals newest solo album details

Rilo Kiley frontwoman Jenny Lewis has just announced details of her new solo work Acid Tongue, which will be released this September. The new disc is the second solo album from Lewis, and is the follow-up to 2006’s successful ‘Rabbit Fur Coat’. The new album was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, CA in a short span over just three weeks and features collaborations with Johnathan Rice, M Ward, Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes, actress/singer Zooey Deschanel as well as a duet with Elvis Costello.
In addition to the release of 'Acid Tongue’ in September, Lewis will be hitting the road supporting the album with some brief tour dates as follows:

Sept 16- Boulder, CO Fox Theatre
Sept 17- Denver, CO Ogden Theatre
Sept 19- Chicago IL Epiphany Church
Sept 20- Omaha, NE Anchor Inn
Sept 21- Nashville, TN Ryman Auditorium
Sept 22- Knoxville, TN Bijou Theatre
Sept 23- Fayetteville, AK George’s Majestic
Sept 24- Oxford, MS The Lyric Theatre
Sept 25- Tulsa, OK Cain’s Ballroom
Sept 26- Austin, TX Austin City Limits
Oct 2- Washington, DC Sixth & I Historic Synagogue
Oct 4- New York, NY Apollo Theatre

She Keeps Bees- new songs

The dynamic duo She Keeps Bees, which is comprised of singer & guitarist Jessica Larabee and drummer Andy LaPlant have just put up three new songs from their new upcoming disc Nests on their myspace page. Jessica's voice, if you haven't heard it, is one of the more fresh and unique sounding talents out there, you could say it's a mix of Catpower with even more soul, with a touch of the rawness of early PJ Harvey.
The new disc 'Nests' from She Keeps Bees, which is the follow up to 2007's Shhhh EP, still doesn't have an official release date as of yet, but the three new tracks "Focus", "Release" and "Gimme" are more than promising enough to hold fans over in the meantime.

new She & Him video- "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here"

The hit project She & Him, from actress Zooey Deschanel & M. Ward have just released their first video for the single "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here" from the critically successful Volume One , which was released back in March. The two met on the set of the film Go-Getter, in which Ward was doing some soundtrack work and Deschanel was starring in. The director actually had them record a song for the end credits and the pair hit it off after discovering their shared musical interests, which in the end resulted in the throwback 60's country stylings heard on 'Volume One'.

She & Him- "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here":

Liam Finn hitting the road w/ Eddie Vedder

New Zealand's Liam Finn (son of Crowded Houses Neil Finn) has just announced some added tour dates in the US opening for Pearl Jams Eddie Vedder. Finn has been on the road for much of 2007 & '08 in support of his outstanding debut disc, I'll Be Lightning . Currently Finn is playing solo gigs across the UK that run till the end of July, and after that he'll hit the road with Vedder.

Liam Finn new dates w/ Eddie Vedder:

Aug 1 2008 Opera House w/ Eddie Vedder Boston, Massachusetts
Aug 2 2008 Opera House w/ Eddie Vedder Boston, Massachusetts
Aug 4 2008 United Palace Theater w/ Eddie Vedder New York, New York
Aug 5 2008 United Palace Theater w/ Eddie Vedder New York, New York
Aug 7 2008 New Jersey Performing Arts Centre w/ Eddie Vedder Newark, New Jersey
Aug 9 2008 Salle Wilfrid Pelletier/Place w/ Eddie Vedder Montreal, Quebec
Aug 12 2008 Massey Hall w/ Eddie Vedder Toronto, Ontario
Aug 13 2008 Massey Hall w/ Eddie Vedder Toronto, Ontario
Aug 16 2008 Warner Theatre w/ Eddie Vedder Washington, Washington DC
Aug 17 2008 Warner Theatre w/ Eddie Vedder Washington, Washington DC
Aug 19 2008 The Riverside Theater w/ Eddie Vedder Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Aug 21 2008 Auditorium Theater w/ Eddie Vedder Chicago, Illinois
Aug 22 2008 Auditorium Theater w/ Eddie Vedder Chicago, Illinois

Listen to Liam Finn.

New Death Cab For Cutie video- "Cath"

Death Cab for Cutie has just put out a new video for their second single off of Narrow Stairs, for the song "Cath".
Be sure to check out those chops on lead singer Ben Gibbard.

Death Cab For Cutie- "Cath":

New Albert Hammond Jr video- "GfC"

If your a fan of The Strokes, check out the new solo project from their guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.
While in between Strokes albums Hammond Jr. has just released his second solo project titled, Cómo Te Llama? which hit stores yesterday. In addition to the new album, Hammond Jr. has recently put out a brand new video for the single "GfC".




Listen to Albert Hammond Jr. on Myspace.

This Weeks New Releases

Another light release week this week, but not nearly as quiet as what the first week of July brought last week. The list this time out features some heavy hitters.
Here's what we think is worth checking out this week:

Beck- Modern Guilt
Paper Route- Are We All Forgotten
Greg Laswell- Three Flights From Alto Nido
Albert Hammond Jr.- Como Te Llama
Vancougar- Canadian Tuxedo
Blind Pilot- 3 Rounds And a Sound
Imogen Heap- Not Now But Soon (single)
Joseph Arthur- Foreign Girls
Ratatat- LP3
Son Ambulance- Someone Else's Deja Vu
Tricky- Council Estate EP
The Old Believers- Eight Golden Greats
Kerli- Love Is Dead

Bloc Party- unveil new single

Bloc Party have a brand new single coming out next month, and the band previewed the new track "Mercury", exclusively on the UK Radio 1 show last night. To listen to the new song "Mercury" click here.
The band is also said to be working on their third studio album, with producer Jacknife Lee. When asked about the state of the upcoming release, lead singer Kele Okereke said: "I think we're making the record I always wanted us to make. We're kind of just in the middle of it, we're still writing songs and mixing stuff."

He later added that the album could be released as soon as the end of 2008.

Rock Werchter Festival- Day 3 recap

Day three at Werchter featured a non stop line-up of big names that we were anxious to check out, from Kings of Leon and Band of Horses, to Sigur Ros, MGMT and Radiohead. Here's the rundown of what we saw: ( to see all the photo's click here.)
-With the daunting task of being first up on the main stage at 12:15p on Sat., Athens Georgia's The Whigs brought their straight ahead southern filled rock. Shaking the cobwebs off of the hung over crowd, the three piece band cranked up the volume and raced through rockers "Right Hand on My Heart", "Already Young", "Production City" and the highlight of the set the rousing "Like a Vibration".

- Next up on the smaller Marquee stage was indie-electo-synth outfit MGMT. There hasn't been too many bands out there within the past year who have garnered more hype than these guys, so i was looking forward to seeing what they brought to the table live. The group had the crowd on it's feet early, dancing along to the hits "Time to Pretend" and "Electric Feel" which came across stronger than on album. Other standouts of the set were the pyschedelic "Weekend Wars" and the closer, the 80's dance infused "Kids".

- Band Of Horses on the Marquee Stage, kicking off the set with the beautiful crescendo steady rocker "Is There A Ghost". Lead singer Ben Bridwell and the band seemed to genuinely be having fun inter-playing with the crowd after every song with yells of "whooo" back and forth., with Bridwell introing songs with ..."this one's called ..whoooo". Mixing in new and older material the band featured tight harmonies on "Ode to LRC" and the countrified "The General Specific" from Cease To Begin with "Islands on The Coast" sounding especially strong. Classics from Everything All The Time like "Great Salt Lake", "Weed Party" and "Wicked Gil" had the crowd shaking, while the anthemic "The Funeral" was the absolute show stopper with it's mass sing along.

-Joy Division and Interpol comparisons aside, The Editors who played during a steady rain on the Main Stage brought urgency to songs such as "Smokers Outside Hospital Doors" and "An End Has A Start". But their older track "Munich" off of 2005's The Back Room had the most bite of them all.

-Next up on the Main Stage was Kings Of Leon. With three solid albums under their belt now, the southern band bring a swagger to their set of raw energy and guitar power. Starting their set heavy with material off of the recent Because Of The Times, the band scorched through "Black Thumbnail", "My Party", "Fans" and "On Call". The band is tight live, and were particularly on point on the 7 plus minute "Knocked Up". Older material that was exceptionally intense were "King Of The Rodeo", "Molly's Chambers" and "The Bucket", but highlighting the set was the brilliant "Charmer" with Caleb's howls, then leading into "Slow Night Slow Long" to close the set. Some Day soon you'll see these guys closing a Festival themselves.

- Iceland's Sigur Ros brought their airy dream pop, opening with an older track, the ambient "Svefn-G-Englar". During their set the hippy dancing began, as the crowd soaked in the atmospheric sounds. Highlights of the groups set were the richly layered "Saeglopur", along with "Vid Spilum Endalaust" which could be the most shoegazy or pop sounding song the band has tackled, which is off of the new album and also the hectic paced single "Gobbledigook" complete with confetti cannons exploding at the finish.

-Closing things out on night three, and probably the most anticipated act at Werchter this year was Radiohead. With a huge and far ranging back catalogue to choose from now at this point in their career, the band can really show off it's diversity. Wether it's opening the show with the sweeping "Weird Fishes" straight into "National Anthem" or "All I Need" into "There There", the band can switch gears on a dime. One minute unleashing spacey electronics, the next driving beats or just flat bringing full blown guitars. Just take for example the group closing out the set before the encores by dusting off the old screamer "Just" into "Reckoner", "Idioteque" and then "Bodysnatchers". No other band can match that kind of diversity and that is exactly why the band gets labled the most influential group around nowadays. Other particularly great moments from the set were "Jigsaw Falling Into Place" which sounded particularly electrified thanks to Jonny Greenwood's guitar work, "Climbing Up The Walls" and "Paranoid Android" with thanks on the latter again going to Greenwood's solo as the highlight, before closing out the set with a phenomenal version of "Everything In It's Right Place".

Rock Werchter Festival- Day 1 recap

One of the best times of the year is here again... Festival Season in Europe!! We had the chance to attend the Rock Werchter Festival in Belgium over the weekend. To see the photo's click here.
Here's a quick recap of Day 1 highlights:

-Kicking things off on the main stage at Werchter this year were the UK newcomers Air Traffic . With a handfull of hit singles in Europe, Air Traffic is known for their piano driven rock and Coldplay comparisons. They got the crowd going opening with the frantic single "Gloria", then later on got the masses singing along on the anthemic "No More Running Away", before closing with their biggest hit "Shooting Star".

- Counting Crows mixing in new material off of Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings , the highlight of which was the melancholy "Washington Square". Frontman Adam Duritz was all energy, tightrope walking the monitors and running across the stage, while mixing in old favorites "Mr Jones", "Have You Seen Me Lately" and "Long December". The topper of the set was the usual live extended version of "Round Here".

-The National manning the smaller Marquee stage, practically blowing the roof off the joint during a driving rain storm. The Brooklyn band set the intensity level early kicking off their set with a ramped up version of "Start A War". Other highlights were "Secret Meeting", "Slow Show" and a killer version of the rocker "Abel", with lead singer Matt Berninger's voice sounding especially strong. The band closed out the dynamic set with the one two punch of "Fake Emire" leading into the closer "Mr November" which left the crowd in a frenzy. Next time around don't be surpised to see The National playing on the Main stage.

- Shameboy and Soulwax getting the techno scene kicked off in the evening

- R.E.M. reminding people that they used to be one of the biggest bands in the world not that long ago. Playing mostly their heavier rock material, as if to prove the point, the band got the set started with "Orange Crush" complete with Michael Stipe yelling into the megaphone. The group then launched through a mix of harder numbers "What's The Frequency Kenneth" and "Ignoreland" with Peter Buck sounding as aggressive as he's ever sounded on guitar. The band also broke out classics such as "Driver 8", and "Begin the Begin", but the highlight of the set had to be the audience sing along on the "The One I Love".

We also attended day three of the festival, so more highlights to come from the Day 3 line-up that included, MGMT, Sigur Ros, Kings Of Leon and Radiohead.

Notwist -new video for "Boneless"

Boneless


German indie-electro rockers, The Notwist have just released a brand new video for their second single "Boneless" off of the stellar album The Devil, You + Me.

The band can currently be seen on tour across Europe ...

Jul 5 Roskilde Festival Roskilde
Jul 15 Poolbar Feldkirch
Jul 16 Spaziale Turin
Jul 17 Jazzhaus Freiburg
Jul 18 Dour Festival Dour
Jul 19 Melt Festival Gräfenhainichen
Jul 22 Sotto le Stelle @ Piazza Castello Ferrara
Aug 3 Expo 2008 Zaragoza
Aug 8 Rockefeller / Øya Night Oslo
Aug 9 Field Day Festival London
Aug 15 La Route Du Rock Saint

Damien Jurado- New album news

Damien Jurado over the last few years has been best known for his quiet folk tales, a sort of urban storyteller. On his forthcoming new album, Caught In The Trees,which drops on Sept 9th on Secretly Canadian, the singer is said to be returning to more rock influenced roots and delving deeper within himself with more intropective lyrics. The change in direction might remind longtime fans of Jurado's early days playing in the Christian-tinged Coolidge, which featured future Pedro the Lion's David Bazan, whose music was more personal, a style that Jurado departed from to pursue the soft, darker folk songs.
Speaking to CMJ of the new direction Jurado says ...."It is the first time that I have ever written from a personal standpoint, unlike in the past, where all of my songs were short stories. There is a line in one of my songs where I say, 'How does it feel to be what you sing about?..."I'm talking to me".

Starting in August Jurado will be heading out on tour to support the new album. You can listen to the new track "Gillian Was A Horse", which is up on his Myspace now.

Cold War Kids - album preview

The buzz on the new Cold War Kids album coming out this fall has been pretty heavy. The new material has been much anticipated, since we last received a full length from the band back in 'O6 with 'Robbers and Cowards', which featured one of the years best singles in "Hang Me Up to Dry".
With the debate raging on over what the new sound of the band will be, and wether or not it will be a dissapointment to fans, the Cold War Kids have released a video teaser of the upcoming work, which for now has a September release date.

If the teaser is any indication, fans need not worry, as the album sounds like it will be pure killer!!

Brooke Waggoner- New album coming

Rising Nashville singer-songwriter Brooke Waggoner has been on our short list of artists to look out for since we heard her EP back in '07. On the verge of something bigger, Waggoner has announced the release details of her debut full-length LP, the piano driven Heal For The Honey , which will be available for all to hear on Sept. 9th. Preceding the release will be a brief tour in the southern US, which culminates with a cd release show on Aug. 13th at The Belcourt theatre in Nashville.

If you can't wait for the new album to hear the new material, Brooke is currently previewing two of the new tracks "Young Friend" and "Heal for The Honey" on her Myspace.

Lykke Li- adds US tour dates

Readying for the August 19th release date of her full length Youth Novels hitting the US shores, Lykke Li will be storming back to the States with a new set of tour dates. Already a smash across Europe, Li will be taking 'Youth Novels' to the US for the second time, after a brief but successful tour with El Perro Del Mar earlier in the spring. The new round of dates will begin at the end of August with a fuller schedule in October & November.

New Lykke Li tour dates:

AUGUST
25 Aug LOS ANGELES, CA - Hotel Café
28 Aug NEW YORK, NY - Le Poisson Rouge

OCTOBER
19 Oct WASHINGTON, DC - Black Cat
23 Oct BOSTON, MA - Paradise
24 Oct TORONTO, ON - Mod Club
25 Oct CHICAGO, IL - Empty Bottle
28 Oct VANCOUVER, BC - Richards on Richards
29 Oct SEATTLE, WA - Neumo's / Tickets 30 Oct PORTLAND, OR - Doug Fir

NOVEMBER
1 Nov SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Independent

Frightened Rabbit- new video for "Set You Free"

When you think of the group Frightened Rabbit, you may not instantly think 90's dance numbers. But the boys from Glasgow have recently tackled a cover version of N Trance's "Set You Free" circa 1994, complete with a new video for the track.

Needless to say, the Frightened Rabbit interpretation sounds nothing like the original.... thank god!!

This weeks New Releases

The first week of July is usually a light week as far as new releases are concerned with summer getting in full tilt, but here's a few that deserve mentioning that you might want to look into.

Earlimart- Hymn & Her
Reliant k- The Bird and The Bee sides
Holly Conlan- You Are Goodbye (single)
The Long Blondes- Guilt EP
Travis- J Smith EP
Brooke Fraser- Albertine
Flying Lotus- LA EP 1 x 3 EP
Friendly Fires- On Board (single)
Los Lonely Boys- Forgiven

Johnny Flynn news

Having recently been signed with Lost Highway Records(Ryan Adams, Elvis Costello, Fionn Regan), young UK indie-folk singer Johnny Flynn is ready to hit American shores. Lost Highway has just released his Hong Kong Cemetry EP in the US, which is a quick prelude for his debut full length album, A Larum, which will be coming out this July 29th.

Flynn, who has tackled some Shakespearian acting in his past, has an old school folk storytelling charm about his music, of which Flynn says ... he "tries to retain a sense of history and knowledge and bring it up to date". Stay tuned for Flynn to hit American shores live, as a tour is in the works.

In the meantime, Flynn and his band, The Sussex Wit have recently re-done the video for the folk stomping single "Tickle Me Pink", which features Flynn's alter-ego as a marionette.

Johnny Flynn- "Tickle Me Pink":



Listen to Johnny Flynn on Myspace.