If you haven’t seen this already there’s a bit of Old Man in the Sea in this video. These guys have come a loooong way from their days of of making tracks that sounded like they were made in a shower. All kinds of special effects in this video including an awesome mic for an arm and guitar neck for a leg.
New album “We Were Dead Before the Ship even Sank” out March 20, 2007.
Modest Mouse: Myspace | Official Website
Pilot Speeds debut album as Pilot Speed (formerly Pilate) Into the West came out way back in September of 2006. I shared with you all a video way back then and now I’m back with some words. Pilot Speed is four guys from Toronto, Ontario. I don’t think I know of any other band that I listen to from Canada than Billy Talent, and those guys are way different music that I’ll probably share sometime. They are as a whole alternative rock, YET it’s not all that hard; more melodic and beautifully composed. It’s all very poetic and they rock when they do, and yet they can put out a perfect tear jerker for some movie. At least that’s what I would do with some of these tracks. 
Here’s a few tracks to grab hold of and enjoy.
Pilot Speed:
Myspace | Official Website | Buy on iTunes
MP3
Pilot Speed – Barley Listening
Pilot Speed – Knife-Grey Sea
Pilot Speed – Into Your Hideout
Well I just found out that MOKB posted this but whatever. Honestly I should read music blogs more like I used to. Anyways I wanted to write about this because Shout Out Out Out Out remixed a Bang Gang song which I posted on a bit ago.The song is Find What You Get off their album Johannsson album. SOOOO has an arsenal of fifteen instruments to create all kinds of dancy tracks. If you read this blog I’m usually all about the dance tracks. They will be at SXSW this year so make sure to go dance if you are going to be there.
Shout Out Out Out Out: Myspace | Official Website
MP3 (from all over the web)
Bang Gang – Find What You Get (Shout Out Out Out Out remix)
Shout Out Out Out Out – Dude You Feel Electrical
Shout Out Out Out Out – Procrastinators Fight Song
Shout Out Out Out Out – Chicken Soup For The F**K You
Just in case you didn’t know we are all North American Scum, well I guess not my readers outside of North America.
This video is awesome cause it’s all space like and a fight in space and peril and the whole bit.
Sweet foil space suits.
Also this new album “Sound of Silver” is as I just learned “one of the most hotly-anticipated cd’s of 2007″ by the The New York Times. ITS GONNA BE HOTTTTTT. Honestly I don’t know yet I’m just passing along info on this whatever Friday. I do like the song/video though.
LCD Soundsystem: Myspace | Official Website
A new online music magazine just launched a little bit ago for all you to enjoy. PLAYGROUND MUSIC MAGAZINE is the name and it is nothing short of awesome. Not only do they have good bands, good photos, good words, they have an awesome design to the mag AND they have free tracks to click and download immediatly in the PDF. What more could you ask for than all that for free?! I’m excited to say that I was able to contribute to it’s birth with my live photos of Wolfmother.
Honestly – this is the best not only music but any online magazine I have seen. I would spend a whole long post talking about each feature and give it a design critique, but I don’t have that kind of time and lets just stick to the music. Head over and download the first issue.
Over the past month or so I’ve been emailing back and forth with Heathcliffe Bird, producer/creator/graphic designer of the whole bit. I asked him a few things and he answered.
What is the idea behind PLAYGROUND?
The aim is to put together (over a few issues) the magazine we always wanted to read… one we could pick up from wherever we were, free of charge, and with new bands, music, writers, photographers and things that we’d really want to know about. And some place to hang out and play and swap ideas. We also spend a lot of time on blogs and sites and listening to bands and we wanted to be able to shout about how good some of the stuff thats out there is. And we wanted something we could play with. Like our own skunkworks… somewhere we can try and figure out how to do the things we love about publishing while folding in all the tricks that the web and new media can do.
It’s like in a perfect music magazine you wouldn’t just read about bands… you’d hear them or watch them or chat directly with them if they’re doing something you really like. You don’t just read about stuff… you join in with it. And we wanted the kind of magazine that we could join in with, and that our mates and anyone who wanted could chip in and play with. Something less like MTV and more like having yr mates round and having fun, i guess.
How did PLAYGROUND come about?
Playground came about from loving and working on print magazines… we kinda wanted to see what would happen if we tried producing a magazine but using web and new media instead of paper. Just to see how it works and what we could do differently.
The web is great because it’s so fucking immediate. It can link out to anything from any place so its great for exploring… and you can play with sound and video which is fantastic. But there’s still something great about picking up a new issue of a magazine. Like being able to read cover to cover and knowing its all pages that you haven’t read before… and the way that magazines flow and how the pace changes throughout. If a good website is like listening to great tracks, then a good magazine is like a great mixtape. When you spend time around good editors you start to realise how smart they are at this stuff. Its old school tricks that we’re starting to lose as magazines get replaced by web.
So we started thinking about what would happen if you could podcast a website but put it together like a music magazine and we tried building it… It’s taken us the first issue to work out a format that’s do-able. But that’s pretty cool. Now we have to build it and make it work.
Do you plan on going to print or staying online?
Definitely online. Doing this is like being a kid with lego. And ’cause we’re inventing we get to bounce ideas off total strangers and have some great chat. And we can do stuff that isn’t possible on paper, and we can keep everything we do free of charge. But we have much to do to make it viable, and thats the stuff that we’re focussed on right now.
What do you think or want the future to hold for PLAYGROUND?
We’re just starting out so i guess the thing is to try and create that magazine that we’d kill to read. Issue one was about working out how pdf pages work and trying stuff out and working out how long things take and whats practical and possible… so we pinned down a lot of technical stuff and a design and commissioning and production and we’ve got tight writing styles and layouts to bring in for issue 2.
As a new magazine with no backing, getting bands and writers was a massive headache for the first issue. We were lucky that even with no magazine to show, some of the PR and music guys figured we were worth taking a chance on and lent us time. That was lucky and excellent. Now that we’ve shown we can deliver something, we’re starting to work out proper schedules for interviews and features and getting hold of bands is much easier. So issues 2 and 3 will see more content, more bands and new writers.
We’re also putting our backs into the free downloads. Where we had to rely on linkouts for free tracks in issue one, we’re chatting to PR and artists now about getting pre-cleared and exclusive tracks for download. If people are gonna read us, we want to give them something back. We’re also starting to look at audio podcasting and putting together stuff that runs alongside the written mag. We’ve been testing out on-page audio as well so you can hear tracks without leaving the magazine.
And over the next few issues, we have to work really hard on getting more writers, upping the bar on everything and finding us more readers. At the end of the day, its the readers that matter. And if anyone’s up for chipping in or playing, we’d love to hear from them. It’s that ‘having people round yr house’ thing… People are smart. Telling them what to listen to is all well and good but chatting to people about what’s great is stuff that makes it worth getting out of bed. People rule.
PLAYGROUND MUSIC MAGAZINE: Official Website
So I keep forgetting to bring my new music with me from home so I can listen at work – and sometimes put up a post if I have the extra time. Sorry folks. I have some great stuff that I’ll be sharing very soon. This week was a bit hectic for me and school projects.
On to my other topic – Jim Carrey’s Celebrity playlist on iTunes. It’s up because it’s a promo for his new movie The Number 23 which looks both awesome and creepy. Therefore I will go see it. He has some artists on his list I wouldn’t guess. For instance Broken Social Scene and She Wants Revenge. Who am I really to judge though. But the track that takes the cake Jim Carrey’s “I Am the Walrus.” What does he have to say about the track?
“I Am the Walrus” (Track 23): ‘Well I am.”
To check out the whole playlist – click here (will open iTunes)
You may say – “Isn’t this an indie rock blog?” and “Why is he writing about such a mainstream band?” To answer these possible questions: 1) I guess this is an indie rock blog, yet it’s more of just a blog where I write about music I like. 2) Because Foo Fighters is one of the bands that I have been listening to forever. I’m talking 1997 The Colour and the Shape when most of you may have started listening. I was just a wee lad in elementary school and the Foo Fighters were awesome. Songs all over the radio – “Everlong,” and “Monkey Wrench” were the really popular ones. Soon after I started slowly getting my hands on all the Foo Fighters albums I could – all the way up until their last full length release in 2005.
IN YOUR HONOR (2005) Mini Review
In Your Honor is a dual disk that is very unique. Disc one is all the usual things you’d hear from the band; good solid rock. The first three songs are one of the best starts to an album that I’ve ever paid attention to. It opens up with “In Your Honor” which screams in your face and has a super epic lead up. Next is “No Way Back” that is excellent in true Foo Fighters style. Third is the single “Best of You” which is pretty easy to like even with any musical standard you may have. The video is stunning aswell.
Disc two is all acoustic/softer tracks. I think Grohl and crew wanted to make something different, yet didn’t want to just mix in a few acoustic tracks with the rest so disc two was born. I can’t really pick a couple tracks out of the rest because I find them to be for myself on an equal awesome scale
Back to why I why I’m writing about the Foo today. Honestly it was just what I ended up listening to first today and I remembered how much progress they’ve made over the years that developed into the album In Your Honor. I like em so I write about em. They just released a live album Skin and Bones which I havn’t checked out yet but will soon.
Foo Fighters:
Myspace | Official Website | Buy on iTunes
MP3 (nothing off of disc two cause you should buy it! or listen on iTunes)
Foo Fighters – In Your Honor
Foo Fighters – Best of You
This is the second video for the song and honestly it’s pretty creepy. Everybody seems to think they stole the idea from Garden State. At least that’s what every commenter that knows everything on the Youtube post says.
Points of interest in the video:
Enjoy it or leave a comment saying that they stole the idea from Garden State. One or the other only please.
Last night I ventured to JAX’s return of Indie Schminie which she pointed out I have perfect attendance. It was at The Scene which is a tiny little dive bar with an easy atmosphere and great drink prices. They’ve got a little stage that sounds pretty good + pool table + photobooth + Mrs. Pacman / Galaga. I made it to the fourth stage playing Mrs. Pacman which I was fairly pleased with. It’s a small place but felt really cozy. Plus any beer for 4 bucks had me going back for Newcastles often. Now onto the music but first a short story.
Adrian Grenier was there. Of all places – a tiny dive bar in Glendale. I was actually starstruck. I couldn’t believe it. I was probably such a little girl about it because I watch Entourage alot. I asked him when the new episodes were on, he told me April which I also just found out from the website. I almost didn’t recognize him because he was sporting a sweet beard and hanging out with the guys from The Good Listeners. All in all – the combination of music, friends, and a star sighting made it a great night.
Now the music.
For mp3’s from each band – head to Rock Insider.
The following is in order from openers to headliners. (Mezzanine Owls)
I missed Civil At Rest which I’m a little dissapointed about but it’s okay.
Civil At Rest: Myspace | Official Website
Tandemoro
Never heard these guys until the show. Jaxxy told me I’d like them – and I do. Good ole indie pop I can never get away from it. Notable Highlight was a Devo cover of uhhh that one song I forget. You would know it. Lead singer Mike Griffin’s voice sounded a little harsh (he may of had a cold or I might be a dbag and that’s his style) but the music and lyrics are good.
Tandemoro: Myspace | Official Website
The Good Listeners
The Good Listeners are all talent. ALL. They’ve fused together all kinds of instruments into awesome indie pop rock songs. Like the picture above they had a projector setup – yet the funny part no video. Just the blue light for the whole deal. I was kinda waiting for something to happen yet nothing so that’s just the way it goes. I think lead singer (Nathan?) told us at the start of their set there was no video but hey whatever. Great set, these guys really know what they are doing and it shows in the music.
The Good Listeners: Myspace | Official Website
Mezzanine Owls
The Mez Owls were the main reason I went out to the show last night. I’ve been excited about the owls since around the time of this post. All good songs, all good times. They seemed really “together” if you know what I mean. They hung around before the show, went up there and did their thing and did it well. I honestly don’t have much to say about the performance, it was just good. A solid good performance to add to their buzz and soon to be fame and fortune. We can only hope.
The Mezzanine Owls Myspace | Official Website
It seems that Youth Group have been doing their fair share of blowing up. Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone writes, “Youth Group are destined for hugeness.†That’s pretty sweet I suppose.
I don’t usually post up tour schedules yet I felt like it today. Go and enjoy.
For more on Youth Group (mp3’s and words) head to the Music Glob archives
3-9 Doug Fir Portland OR#
3-10 Crocodile Cafe Seattle WA#
3-12 Slim’s San Francisco CA#
3-13 Spaceland Los Angeles CA#
3-14 Casbah San Diego CA#
3-15 Filter Austin TX*
3-16 Soho’s Austin TX*
3-17 Latitude 30 Austin TX*
3-20 Beta Bar Tallahassee FL +
3-21 AKA Lounge Orlando FL +
3-22 The Earl Atlanta GA+
3-23 Local 506 Chapel Hill NC+
3-24 Grey Eagle Asheville NC+
3-25 Exit Inn Nashville TN+
3-27 The High Tone Memphis TN+
3-28 Mojos Columbia MO+
3-30 Southgate House Newport KY+
3-31 The Billiken Club St. Louis MO+
4-1 Grog Shop Cleveland Heights OH+
4-5 Space Gallery Portland ME+
4-6 Middle East Club Cambridge MA+
4-7 Century Lounge Providence RI+
4-9 Maxwells Hoboken NJ+
4-10 Mercury Lounge New York NY+
4-11 North Star Bar Philadelphia PA+
4-13 Black Cat Washington DC+
4-14 Club Cafe Pittsburgh PA+
4-15 Magic Stick Detroit MI+
4-17 Empty Bottle Chicago IL+
# – Headlining
* – SXSW
+ – with Aqueduct
Youth Group: Myspace | Official Website
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Another video on the Aqua Teen Hunger Force marketing bit.
You know these “Listening parties” are awesome. You can check out the cd before you buy. I already have the album and have been listening constantly. I can’t help it. Just good songs – happy songs.
To give a listen head over to the AOL Listening Party
If you want to download some tracks, head to the musicglob archives.
Softlightes: Myspace | Website |
Buy on iTunes
Radars to the Sky is a Los Angeles band that recently emailed me to let me know about their e.p release show yesterday. I couldn’t make it out yet when I woke up today at around noon I gave their music a listen again and thoroughly enjoyed it on this sunny afternoon. It’s a mixture of rock with some softer bits. I can’t seem to avoid listening to “Long Walk Home.” Mostly because the beautiful mixture of male/female vocals.
I think I’ll go take some photos. The song has inspired me today at this hour. By the way if you havn’t noticed I don’t usually post on weekends thus this post not really being full of information. I just wanted to share the band/song and would especially like to see a good video made out of it.
Radars to the Sky: Myspace
These are two of my favorite shows so I thought I’d jump on the bandwagon and post this up.
It’s genius.
If you don’t know what all this is about – do some research.
This video was made all on lead singer Juliette’s cell phone. Sexy and great video. If you want to get more of 8MM head to the archives to grab some mp3’s and read how much I like them.
They have been getting all kinds of media exposure the past many months – including songs on primetime television shows. They will also be played on tonights Grey’s Anatomy which is supposed to be “an episode not to miss.” At least that’s what the commercials are saying – I don’t watch the show. I’m all about HOUSE. Awesome for them – make sure to pick up the album.
8mm: Myspace | Official Website
