New Dan Mangan- Radicals 7" Single

I''m a big fan of Vancouver singer/songwriter Dan Mangan. In fact his 2011 release Oh Fortune made my Best Album of 2011 list with standout tracks like, "Post-War Blues" and "Rows of Houses." So I was pleasantly surprised to wake up with new music from Mangan in my inbox this morning in the form of a new 7-inch single, Radicals. 'The new release comes out digitally on October 16,  and features the song "We Want To Be Pleasantly Surprised, Not Expectedly Let Down", an outtake from his Oh Fortune sessions, as well as a cover of the Yukon Blonde track "Stairway."  
A physical version of the 7-inch will be available at all live shows, check out his website for all the tour dates HERE.


and check out a great live version of "Rows of Houses" off of his '11 release 'Oh Fortune'  below.  


http://www.danmanganmusic.com

Get to Know: Wickerbird-'The Crow Mother'

If intimate, dreamy folk tunes are your thing, then you need to seriously run out and get the new album, The Crow Mother from Wickerbird. The small solo project is the creation of Washington native, Blake Cowan. The LP was recorded deep in the woods of Washington state, and you can almost feel it in your bones when listening. The ambient and minimalist tones shine through, especially on the song, "The Fold." Give a watch to the video for the track below and tell me that the imagery doesn't fit the song perfectly.
You can also stream The Crow Mother in full over at Wickerbird's bandcamp page, where you can purchase it for only five dollars. Well worth it.



http://www.facebook.com/Wickerbird

New Video: The Alabama Shakes-"I Ain't the Same"

One of the big buzz bands of 2012 and deservedly so,  the Alabama Shakes have ridden a wave of success off of their soulful old school vibes. Their debut LP, Boys and Girls is full of goodness including the album track,  “I Ain’t The Same,” which they just released a new video for. It was directed by Jane Pollard and it is set at The Kinks singer Ray Daives Konk Studios in London.




more at http://www.alabamashakes.com/

The Helio Sequence-"Hall of Mirrors"

After a 4 year abscence Potrland electro-indie rockers, The Helio Sequence are back with a brand new album, 'Negotiations' out on Subpop Records. I was a huge fan of their 2008 breakout release, Keep Your Eyes Ahead, which featured probably two of my most played tracks of that year, the slow building "Lately" and the dreamy acoustic number "Shed Your Love."

The two piece, Brandon Summers and Benjamin Weikel recently stopped by their local Oregon Public Broadcasting station where they performed a kick ass version of the track, "Hall of Mirrors" off of the new LP.




from 2008's Keep Your Eyes Ahead:




 more at http://www.heliosequence.com/

Field Report-"Fergus Falls" live @wfuv

After a much anticipated wait for many, the debut album from Field Report is finally here. You can grab it now over at Partisan Records or over at Amazon here. In the meantime check out this gorgeous live performance of "Fergus Falls" performed live while at a stop at local NY radio station WFUV.

Can't wait to catch these guys live in the NYC area on Nov. 10th.



http://www.field-report.org/

'Song of the Week': The Bony King of Nowhere-"Travelling Man"

Not entirely that well known here in the States yet, Bram Vanparys aka The Bony King of Nowhere is a gifted singer & songwriter hailing from Ghent, Belgium. While living overseas briefly from '07-'09 I had the chance to get to know the man and his music, and he was as open and sincere as his voice is pure. His first two LP's earned him critical success across Europe and now he's readying his third album, a self titled effort which is said to have been recorded in one long creative night. It comes out in Belgium on Oct. 22nd and it should be available digitally through his website or online retailers.

The first taste off the new LP is the stripped back stunner "Travelling Man" which you can get familiar with below.



http://thebonykingofnowhere.be/ 

Matthew Ryan-"She's a Sparrow"

Listening to Matthew Ryan's music always gives me a bit of a nostalgic feeling. I can remember vividly being on a road trip with friends back in '97 & hearing his song, "Guilty" on the radio off his debut album 'Mayday.'  We were so floored by what we were hearing that we immediately found the nearest Tower Records (remember them?) to pick up the CD, and we went on to play the hell out of that disc on our trip, and we've been lifelong fans of his music ever since. Fast forward 15 years and Ryan is still putting out killer music, using the same timeless formula he always has of great storytelling, great music, and a unique point of view. There's never anything flashy, no bells and whistles, but always just enough new influences and a constant hopeless romanticism to his artistry to wow you. He's a throwback as artists go today, and one that we could use more of.

Ryan just released a brand new single titled, "She's a Sparrow" off his forthcoming album In The Dusk of Everything and it doesn't disappoint. The new album is self released & it comes out October 30th. Find out how to get it here, and be sure to listen & read along below.




She's A Sparrow
I'm leaving here
different then when i came
things can't be
what they were once they've changed

but let's go down to the mercy
let's play all the songs we loved
let's relive all that was beautiful
as if beauty was enough
i can still hear the laughter
over late nights in the flood
of a roar that broke a bright and brilliant heart
is it just too late or can't we even start.. again?

we settled down
time and disappointments took their toll
until we both stopped trying
and the summer turned to snow

now the sky is full of airplanes
no you can't make a wish
but you could throw your arms around me
like you did before all this
I'm sorry that i hurt you
i was lost and turning cruel
but i swear none of that darkness my love
was meant for you

she's a sparrow
and i'm a street
she's a sparrow
and i'm a street
she's a sparrow
and i'm a street
and i'll watch her float away
from me

Produced by David Ricketts & Matthew Ryan
http://www.matthewryanonline.com

Get to Know: Night Beds

Fresh off of signing on with Dead Oceans, Nashville based project, Night Beds have released their "Even If We Try/ You Were Afraid" 7" single. It's hauntingly beautiful stuff filled with strings and hush lullaby like vocals. Expect to hear a lot more from this group in the months to come, including the release of their upcoming full length 'Country Sleep.'

Here's a little blurb from the bands website about the forthcoming LP, "So the songs come together over acoustic guitars, over the first skeletal melodies, and then they grow. Yellen’s voice takes on a pure kind of thirst when wrapped in the sonic landscapes he devises. It’s searching. It’s taken several years to map everything out, but after a hiatus spent driving the deserts and prairies and coastal roads of the United States, sleeping in a hatchback or on friendly couches – after a long time spent alone – Night Beds has found a home in Nashville. Soon it will see the release of Country Sleep, a full-length album in the spirit of the vagabond, in the winding path to a place of good rest."



http://www.nightbeds.org/

Kalle Mattson- 'Lives In Between'

More great new music out of Ontario, Canada that makes me want to pick up and move up North of the border. This EP came out back in May but I only recently found it because of an interview that Gavin Gardiner (The Wooden Sky) gave with Mousertime blog, where he mentioned that he was producing a new record from Kalle Mattson. Being that The Wooden Sky are fav's of mine I checked it out and was thoroughly blown away. You can pick it up over at Kalle Mattson's bandcamp page by just naming your price. Don't miss out on "Waterfall" below from the EP, as well as "Come & Gone" off of his 2011 full length.



http://kallemattson.bandcamp.com
https://twitter.com/kallemattson

You can follow us on Twitter & Facebook too

Sorry I haven't been posting as much as I'd like to lately here on the blog. Life & work has been getting the best of me I guess, but I just wanted to let you guys know that you can also keep up on what I've been listening to via Facebook & Twitter, where I'm probably posting a little more frequently these days.
Thanks as always for checking things out!

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Song of the Week: Evening Hymns-"Asleep in the Pews"

I know this track has been out since 2011, but it's been blowing me away for the past few weeks and I wanted to share. I just only recently got turned onto Evening Hymns after seeing that they were opening some dates for fellow Ontario band, The Wooden Sky, and decided to give them a listen. The first two tracks I heard from the band, "Dead Deer" off their first LP, Spirit Guides, and "Asleep in the Pews" instantly had me hooked. Both tracks floored me, in the arrangements and lyrics, falling right into my sweet spot of music I love. The latter of the two tracks, "Asleep in the Pews" hails from the bands forthcoming LP, Spectral Dusk that has seen a delay in it's release from early Spring 2012 to a later date of this Summer, August sometime according to frontman Jonas Bonnetta. The new disc is said to be very personal and it was recorded in a remote log cabin in the woods of Ontario with some of the bands close friends (The Wooden Sky, Ohbijou, and City and Colour) who all make guest appearances on the disc. Get familiar with "Asleep in the Pews" below and head over to the bands website to check out their first LP, Spirit Guides & more.
 


Evening Hymns- "Asleep In the Pews"
I put my head on a hymn book and fell asleep
In the nosebleed pews it was too dark to speak
There was a man spitting fire whose words were familiar to me
He said "friends drag me out of here, pull this feeling from me"

So I spent some time in the woods, they were dark, they were deep
Long to come home to you, lay my lips down to sleep
But I got lost or was it found? I was running down a dream
Oh it was hard to explain all the pain that was running through me

This is something I am sure will be so hard to endure
And how that whispered breath would grow and get so loud
I try to work as hard as you hoping that it will cut through
To make you feel so loved and so proud

But now I'm waiting for some strength, something remarkable to change
Just like those leaves that turn to gold are then set free
Oh it was hard to explain all the pain that was running through me
Yes it was hard to explain all the pain that was running through me

Yes it was hard to explain all the pain that was running through me
On those nights in the woods, they were dark, they were deep

http://www.facebook.com/eveninghymns

New Music: Suburban Living-"Float In Clouds"

If there's any 80's new wave acts reuniting this Summer to tour, they need to look up Norfolk, Virgina's Suburban Living, aka Wesley Bunch to add onto the bill. Bunch combines elements of dreamy pop bliss and jangly new wave guitars that would make bands like The Cure and New Order envious. We loved his first single, "Give Up" that he released late last year, and now we have his newest track, the aptly titled "Float in Clouds" to help our minds wander off while were at work. Both tracks should be appearing on his upcoming EP which is slated for a release sometime this Summer.


http://suburbanlivingzzz.tumblr.com/

The Wooden Sky- In NYC Weds. 5/09 & Fri. 5/11

If you stop by the blog now and again, you probably know what a big fan I am of Ontario band, The Wooden Sky. Fresh off the release of their brilliant third album, Every Child A Daughter, Every Moon A Sun, the 5 piece has been out on the road supporting the new LP. The band rolls into our area this week in NYC, where they'll be playing shows at Union Pool this Wednesday night & Piano's this Friday night. Come on down and check them out, you won't be disappointed.
Here's one of my favorite's off the new LP, "It Gets Old to be Alone."



http://thewoodenskymusic.com/

Aunt Martha releases '87"

Constantly touring and recording it's sometimes hard to keep up with all the new music pouring out of Tim Noyes' project, Aunt Martha. Just last week Aunt Martha unveiled three previously unreleased tracks collectively titled, '87'.  The three songs, "Brian Breathing" "Kelly Mitchell" and "Earthquake" had all been around in some shape or form but had never seen a proper release. Here's what Tim had to say about '87' .... "These are the first recordings of these songs, but they were all written at different points over the course of last year. One in Maine, one in Montana, and one in the van on the streets of NYC." 

Check out a live performance of "Brian Breathing" below or head over to their website to stream all three tracks HERE.  

http://www.auntmarthaband.com/

Trampled By Turtled cover Arcade Fire-"Rebellion (Lies)"

I know I'm late to the party on these guys, but ever since seeing them on Letterman last week I've been scooping up as much Trampled by Turtles music as I possibly can. The band just unveiled a cover song of Arcade Fire's hugely popular "Rebellion (Lies)" which they performed for The A.V. Club and their Undercover series. 
Check out the Duluth, Minnesota bands most recent, Stars And Satellites, which is out now.


Trampled By Turtles covers Arcade Fire

http://trampledbyturtles.com/

Isbells- "Illusion"

Belgian band, Isbells came out with their second album, Stoalin this past March that features the hauntingly beautiful single, "Illusion." The new LP sees the Gaëtan Vandewoude led project expanding their sounds from their well received self titled debut. Here's some of what Vandewoude had to say on the new disc and it's cryptic title ..."While I’m tinkering with a new song, I tend to hum phonetic sounds or half-sentences which, at a later stage, will be replaced with sensible lyrics. But in the case of ‘Stoalin’’ I found myself unable to come up with an alterative way to express the feeling I was trying to convey. So I decided to keep the original word in, even though it’s a neologism. But as the meaning lies hidden in the emotion, I’m pretty confident the listener will get the idea.”   

Stoalin is out now via Zeal Records.


http://www.isbells.be/
http://www.facebook.com/isbells

New Video: Cold Specks-"Blank Maps"

I don't know if it's possible to fall in love with Cold Specks music anymore than I already am, but with each new little discovery of her music I find myself more amazed. The latest track to blow me away is "Blank Maps" which she just released a new video for that was directed by Olivier Groulx. "Blank Maps" appears on the double A-side seven-inch single, which also features the stunner "Winter Solstice." It's out now digitally on iTunes and physically on May 15th.  

Her upcoming LP, I Predict a Graceful Explosion hits stores this May 22nd via Mute Records





http://coldspecks.com/

Polica live on Jimmy Fallon 4/25/12

It's been a big week for bands from Minnesota, first Trampled by Turtles made their network television debut on Letterman this past Tuesday, and now the Channy Casselle led group Polica made their big debut on Jimmy Fallon last night. I just recently got turned on to this band from a friend, and apparently Polica has been catching a lot of buzz courtesy of high profile artists like Bon Iver, and most recently Jay-Z heaping praise on their debut disc, Give You the Ghost. The band performed "Leading to Death" off the new LP, watch below.


video via The AudioPerv


http://thisispolica.com/

We Are Augustines cover Damien Jurado- "Ohio"

Well this is just a slam dunk for me, combining two of my favorite artists into one great listen. We Are Augustines tackle, Damien Jurado's "Ohio" which appears as the B-side to their "Chapel Song" single released in the UK. The track also appears on their recently released iTunes live session, along with the Bruce Springsteen cover, "Tougher Than the Rest" and the previously unreleased, "Ballad of a Patient Man."
You can also catch the band on TV tonight as they'll be performing on the Carson Daly show.  



www.weareaugustines.com/

Trampled by Turtles on Letterman 4/24/12

I've been hearing a lot of talk about Minnesota band, Trampled By Turtles and their new disc, Stars and Satellites. Despite all the buzz I never really had the chance to sit down and give the band a proper listen. While flipping through the channels last night I caught the band making their network television debut on The Late Show w/ David Letterman where they performed the song, "Alone." 
You can count me in on the hype, they were brilliant, watch below. 



http://trampledbyturtles.com/

JBM- "Winter Ghosts"

I know this is a little bit of old news to some, but I'm just coming off a little vacation, so you'll have to forgive me. Brooklyn's Jesse Marchant aka JBM recently released the second single, "Winter Ghosts" from his upcoming disc, Stray Ashes which comes out next month, May 22nd on Western Vinyl. Where the first single, "Only Now" builds to an explosive burst halfway through, the new track holds back keeping things quiet and mellow.
In other JBM news, if your in the NYC area on May 19th he'll be playing with Damien Jurado at The Mercurly Lounge, with the pair adding a late set at The Rock Shop in Brooklyn after the Mercury Show. I couldn't be more excited for these shows.
Check out his website for the all the ticket info and to download the first two singles, "Only Now" and "Winter Ghosts" HERE.




http://www.jbm-music.com/home.cfm