Begin the Summer With New Music

I haven't used this blog in over a year. I have been satisfied enough making mixes for people to express the songs I enjoy. I would still like to share some nice ones with the ones who will not get my mixes. I encourage you, if you end up enjoying the music you hear, to go see these artists live or buy some merchandise to support them.

• Feist - Mushaboom
• Tilly and the Wall - Let it Rain
• Death Cab for Cutie - Long Division
• Hear Hums - Slow Drifters
  
• Ambulance LTD - Stay Where You Are
• Maps and Atlases - The Most Trustworthy Tin Cans

Feist's Mushaboom has a snappy little piano riff behind an incredibly catchy vocal pattern that is pretty much the focus of the song. Characterized by shy instruments, the song may appear to be minimalist. It seems it never peaks to the energy it is building up to, which works in this case because it keeps me holding on with anticipation. The female vocals are comparable to Cat Powers except I feel there is more energy and color with Feist's vocalist. Mushaboom is part of the album "Let It Die" released in 2004.

Tilly and the Wall's Let it Rain is nice acoustic song mixing male and female vocals. Cello or something like that comes in at times which is a very nice addition to the song. Drums stay in the background and come and go. Piano is thrown in too at the second verse and past that. There are a lot of catchy vocal patterns going on in this, and the background vocals that are about half the speed of the main vocal pattern is nice. I enjoy the lyrics, but don't expect anything complex or poetic. It's a little sad and a little poppy and upbeat... sad happy songs? I've heard that tag before, maybe that's what it is. Let it Rain is a part of the album "Wild Like Children" released in 2004.

Death Cab's Long Division is a fresh breeze of rock-influenced newness. Ahh I don't know how well that will translate. All the songs on their new album "Narrow Stairs" have it's own color, I think they tried something new with each song. Long Division can be compared to a more widely accessible version of We Laugh Indoors (a version of this song is available in a previous post). The song is driven by the bass and drums energy-wise, and the guitars and vocals add a nice color to the song. The chorus will get stuck in your head, very catchy. I do not want to spoil any more of this, you'll hear it. Long Division is a part of the album "Narrow Stairs" released in 2008.

Hear Hums' Slow Drifters is a song I made this month. I would really like anyone who is interested to download this song and listen to it. The song has mellow and energetic parts. Pretty conventionally set up, with focus on guitar drums bass and vocals. There are appearances of an electronic music box, rotary synths, and little side things. This song will part of a free album available for download sometime in the future.

Ambulance LTD's Stay Where You Are is a flowing swirl of dream pop and catchy guitar riffs and vocals. The song begins with some reverby guitars and is joined by some guitar riffs that are reversed to give a nice sound, the ambiance of it all is great. You'll hear one guitar drop off before the main one comes in about 2 minutes into the song. Simplistic and poppy, this song is easily accessible by anyone on the scene. There are really nice waves of guitars that come throughout the song, behind some great chord changes. The vocal patterns are great too, especially towards the end. The song builds a nice energy and then fades away. Stay Where You Are is a part of the album "Ambulance LTD" released in 2004.

Maps and Atlases' The Most Trustworthy Tin Can is an eccentric dance of fast-paced guitars and drums presented as melodic Math Rock. The technical repeating guitar riffs are great, and in this song it's just a nice glide during the verse. A music box comes in for the choruses and is a good color to add to the basic set up of guitar, bass, drums, and vocals. I cannot stress the point that this song is so melodic for being a Math Rock song... usually you think of discordant organized chaos. Or maybe that's just what I think based on what I've heard. It's all nice on the ears, but super energetic. The soft parts where the drums fall off too are great. The Most Trustworthy Tin Can is a part of the album "Tree, Swallows, Houses" released in 2006.

Fun New Tunes For Ears Wide!

I hope you, whoever you are, can enjoy my new favorites!!

• Hella - Welcome To The Jungle Baby, You're Gonna Live!
• The Sound of Animals Fighting - Prayers On Fire
• Polysics - TV'S HIGH
• Voxtrot - Soft & Warm
• Portugal. The Man - AKA M80 the Wolf

The Hella song has been a frequent play on my iPod for quite some time now. Your expectations will be fooled in this song with intricate drum patterns and a mix between simple and tech guitar riffs. The song ends with some distorted 8-bit mush. Good mush though!! I don't know about you, but I love the gameboy timbres incorporated into music. A link to The Devil Isn't Red, from the Hella website, reveals that the album can be purchased for $10.

"Prayers On Fire" will be unpleasing to unbroken-in American ears. The sounds are very alien to us, different culture!! But to the open minded listener, this song will be a nice groove. Got some Indian feel to it, some sweet arrangements, and it's the Sound of Animals Fighting, so it's good! Lover, The Lord Has Left Us can be purchased here.

Polysics is a very fun electro-spazzy-pop band from japan. "TV'S HIGH" is such an energetic crazy song. I love it much! I don't want to spoil it much more! (Polysics' website)

"Soft & Warm" is a catchy song. The vocal pattern is especially pleasing. The rhodes riff sounds pretty nice too. The song is mostly powered by the good vocals. Voxtrot just released an LP. Their music can be purchased from their website.

"AKA M80 the Wolf" is such a good song. I have loved Portugal. The Man for quite some time. This is one of the only good bands I've had the honor of seeing live. It was a nice show!! This song is so good with the mysterious mood that Celebration and Blood Brothers are known for and a catchy chorus. Take a listen for yourself though. Waiter: "You Vultures!" can be purchased for under $10 at CdConnection.

Global Warming! Scary!

This british film has sparked a lot of controversy. Some of this controversy is actually surfacing the mainstream. I recommend you watch this, especially if you've already seen Al Gore's "An Inconvient Truth".

Breakthrough memories and recent favorites

I have a lot of space from the hosting site FileDen so I decided I would make another blog entry. I am already eager to share more music with anyone interested.

• The Fiery Furnaces - My Dog Was Lost But Now He's Found
  
• Blood Brothers - You're The Dream, Unicorn!
• Architecture In Helsinki - Spring 2008
  
• Death Cab for Cutie - We Laugh Indoors (Alt Mix From The Single We Laugh Indoors)
  
• Arcade Fire - I'm Sleeping In A Submarine

I woke up this morning from a dream with "You're The Dream, Unicorn!" stuck in my head. It is an interesting Blood Brothers song from their latest release Young Machetes. The song borrows a punk appearance with the band's spastic experimental type of music. Young Machetes can be purchased from MerchDirect as linked from Blood Brothers' website.

Architecture In Helsinki's "Sping 2008" has stuck out in my music library for awhile. I remember when I first listened to the album Fingers Crossed I had never heard a band make a song like that before. Very outdoor-sun-pop feeling. The choice of instruments used by Architecture In Helsinki has always been a quality I found in them. Fingers Crossed can be purchased from the band's online store.

"I'm Sleeping In A Submarine" is a breezey pop song lead by an acoustic guitar, female vocals, and a bass drum that amplifies during the chorus. The song is unique for its mixing. The acoustic guitar is mixed into the background causing it to sound like a 8-track recorded it or a toy guitar was used. The vocal pattern is especially nice. Arcade Fire can be purcashed at Arcade Fire's online store.

I remember laying in bed one morning and first hearing The Photo Album. I always consider it the middle point of Death Cab for Cutie's transformation. When the third track from the album came up, "We Laugh Indoors", I was confused. I never would have expected this from Death Cab with only the experience of hearing Transatlanticism. It was an eerie song with an emotional dissonant climax. It was a breakthrough in music for me, because I had never heard anything like that before. The mix of "We Laugh Indoors" I posted is a revised mix from the single We Laugh Indoors. The single can be purchased from stores like Amazon.com.

I almost forgot "My Dog Was Lost But Now He's Found", which was what inspired me to make another blog entry. The song is very interesting. It is blues-type chord progressions beginning on a grand piano and works through electric guitar, unique timbres from electronic effects, and a poppy vocal pattern. The song's tempo slows down as the guitar comes in, but the vocals almost sound to go the same speed. You have to hear it, the line "My dog was lost but now he's found, my dog was lost but now he's found" was stuck in my head all of yesterday. Blueberry Boat can be purchased from sites like Amazon.com.

Just Created This Blog

Hi, I just created this blog. I want to use this as an mp3 blog to spread some good music around. I will include links to places where you can purchase the artists' album(s). Some of the following songs I've just discovered and some are just ones I've been listening to over and over lately.

• The Polyphonic Spree - Little Boxes
• Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Satan Said Dance
• Squirrel Nut Zippers - Wash Jones
• Page France - Elephant
• Of Montreal - Oslo In The Summertime

"Oslo In The Summertime" and "Satan Said Dance" are two dancey songs. They have a cool vibe of energy patched with various sounds and electronic processing. "Elephant" is a folk song with an interesting twist. The chord progression is not a usual one of folk music, while keeping true to the vocal patterns found in other Page France songs. The instruments varry from acoustic guitar, to tambourine, to overdriven bass guitar. "Little Boxes" is a song set in 3/4 with a kind of voyage rhythm and driven by vocals and horns. The lyrics, I think, are about people who are products of their enviornments. "Wash Jones" is a retro swing song that keeps a bopping mood while bringing your imagination into the 1920s or 30s. All these songs are unique and should be heard. If you enjoy these songs then visit these blog in the future for more music along these lines.

You can purchase The Inevitable from CdConnection for cheap. I think you have to register an account with them. Some Loud Thunder can be purchased at here. This is the store that is linked on Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's website. You can buy Islands' album Return To The Sea from Amazon. Albums by The Polyphonic Spree can be found there as well. You can purchase Hello, Dear Wind by Page France from their record label.