Recently, I asked a couple people who listen to more new music than me to help me bulk up my summer playlist. Here are their picks. Feel free to add more in the comments.

Sundberg in N.Y.C. suggests:

Vampire Weekend
Spiritualized
New DCFC
Elvis Perkins
Andrew Bird
Frightened Rabbit
Girl Talk (you can download this whole album for free … in the Radiohead-like fashion)
Fleet Foxes are supposed to be good (from Seattle) haven’t heard much of their stuff though.
Bonnie Prince Billy

Also, check out: www.daytrotter.com
They have tons and tons of free downloads of live session from many bands including a few from above. If you go to the site check out the archived session. A must have song is by David Bazan – “God rest ye merry gentlemen.”—- unreal.

continue reading Listen to New Music...

Just noticed that three of the top five albums on Amazon are Coldplay albums:

I’ve been a fan of Coldplay ever since I saw the Parachutes video on MTV. Perhaps before then, but I distinctly remember sitting in front of the TV, captivated as the light changed from dim to bright while Chris Martin trudged across the beach.

That captivation took root on a California road trip with my friend Cara. Somehow the two of us ended up driving from my dorm parking lot in Seattle to our friend Caryn’s driveway in the Bay Area.

On a long stretch of highway between the California-Oregon border and Eureka I listened to Parachutes while Cara slept in the passenger seat. All that was in front of me was the car’s headlights on gray concrete with black veins running through it where it had been patched and sealed.

continue reading New Coldplay Album Drops Tomorrow...

Sundberg tipped me off to a new band called The Early Hours. They band membes are from all over the U.S. but they call New York home. Leave your thoughts below after listening to the band.

'Fading Like A Flower (Every Time You Leave)' by Roxette

You can’t deny the drama and emotion of that piano intro. Listen to it now and let the power guitar wash over you like a cleansing stream of glacier water.

This past weekend my friend Sean played me Synthar’s album “Evenings and Weekends” on the way to “There Will Be Blood.”

I hadn’t heard of the band, but he told me that the members traded files back and forth over the Internet to produce the album. It’s electronic and wonderful to listen to while working on a project.

Not only is the music good, but the physical album jackets are cool too. They appear to be hand screenprinted.

Here are some links for you to investigate:

Official Synthar Website
Synthar Myspace
iLike Page

continue reading Synthar...

My friend Nate posted this video on his site a couple days ago. I thought it was pretty nifty so I’m posting here. Enjoy.

Sidenote: Blue Scholars are playing 5 shows in a row this week in Seattle, which a new guest opener each show. Here’s more info about the show schedule.

I have Matt & Joey Roddy to thank for the following video. It features SNL comedians Chris Parnell & Andy Samberg rapping about going to see the Chronicles of Narnia one afternoon. Since viewing this video the first time I’ve probably watched it 15 times. My favorite line is SNACK ATTACK MUTHAF***A. It’s so angry, yet so poignant.

Watch the video on NBC.com.

Also, Andy Samberg, if you ever come to Seattle I would really enjoy interviewing you. Let me know.

While I was in NYC my friend Sundberg passed me his iPod Touch with a video queued up. He told me to press play, which I did. When the beat dropped I was hooked like a sea bass. All the kids in his class were doing the dance. Check out the video below and then the instructional video:

Crank That Video

Instructional Video

continue reading Soulja Boy Crank That Dance...

So, I’m not the first person or the last to write about Band of Horses. They seem to be lurking around every corner and every conversation. A couple days ago I purchased Cease to Begin on the iTunes store and have been listening to the album ever since.

Here are some words that come to mind when I listen to it:

Beautiful

Emotional

Sadness

Modest Mouse

Wonder

Inspiration

Introspection

Frequently I’m on the verge of tears while listening to this album.