Our friends at the WFMU Free Music Archive just sent over this new compilation, a collection of tracks from Ampeater Music, featuring tracks from Mt. Eerie, Chad VanGaalen, Truman Peyote and tons more. And of course, as with *everything* on the FMA, it’s totally free to download. So listen below with the streaming player, or go nuts and d/l the whole thing.
Frank YangIt could have been an interesting study in contrasts if I’d bothered to go to both free shows happening in Toronto yesterday evening. Down at Union Station, you had local aspirant arena rockers Metric drawing throngs while shutting down a key chunk of downtown at rush hour as part of a cell phone launch for a major international corporation. And up in Little Italy, there was Christopher Chu – one quarter of California’s pop merchants The Morning Benders – leading fans and passers-by in singalongs from a makeshift wooden stage outside an ice cream parlour, presented by the independent record store around the corner. Guess which one I went to? Yeah, the one with free ice cream.
Photos: The Morning Benders @ The Big Chill – August 4, 2010
MP3: The Morning Benders – “Promises”
MP3: The Morning Benders – “Grain Of Salt”
MySpace: The Morning Benders
Pitchfork talks to Win Butler about Arcade Fire’s Terry Gilliam-directed webcast from Madison Square Garden tonight and an upcoming project with director Spike Jonze. The New York Times talks to Gilliam about the show and Rolling Stone gets some details on their dedication to analog on The Suburbs.
Janelle Monáe has a new video from The ArchAndroid, which I just picked up this weekend and may well be as mind-bending as everyone is saying it is.
Video: Janelle Monáe – “Cold War”
Baeble Music is streaming a full show from New York featuring Stars.
In talking to NME, long-time R.E.M. compatriot Ken Stringfellow says the band’s new album is sounding “very old school”. It’s due out next year.
Jose Gonzalez’s band Junip will be hitting the road this Fall with Sharon Van Etten; both have new records coming out – Junip with Fields on September 14 and Van Etten with Epic on October 5.NYC Taper has a recording of Sharon Van Etten’s show in New York from last week.
MP3: Junip – “Rope And Summit”
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “Love More”
NOW profiles Wild Beasts.
“What do you think he's gonna be like? I bet he'll be tall.”
“It's hard to tell from the pictures.”
“It's definitely hard to tell. I think he'll be tall. He has such a sweet face, I wonder if it'll change at all.”
“Because of us?”
“Because of us, and because of all the people he'll meet because of us.”
“I bet it'll change a lot. You start to look like the ones you love.”
“Do you think so? I hope so. God, I love him already.”
Continue reading at Said The Gramophone →
[Buy]
Dustin Wong – Infinite Love
Out 10/19 on Thrill Jockey
The Extra Lens – “Only Existing Footage” The John Darnielle/Franklin Bruno duo once known as the Extra Glenns is now known as The Extra Lens– and they’ll be releasing a new album, Undercard on Merge come 10/19.
Patterson Hood of the Drive-By Truckers is keeping a tour diary at Flagpole.
Seattle Weekly interviews Sub Pop art director Jeff Kleinsmith about graphic design in an age of digital music downloads,
The Nashville Scene profiles singer-songwriter Josh Ritter.
Cincinnati CityBeat interviews singer-songwriter Kim Taylor.
The Portland Mercury profiles singer-songwriter Joanna Newsom.
The Guardian lists the best new bands of 2010.
Morning Edition profiles Balkan Beat Box.
Balkan Beat Box describes its sound as "globalized urban mash-ups," with brass bands, wedding organs and a rooster's crow all finding a place in their recordings. Although the three band members were raised far from the Balkans, percussionist Tamir Muskat traces the band's inspiration to a childhood that amounted to musical potpourri.
PopMatters also interviews the band.
