The LOST : Season 4 premiere mixtape

In celebration of the return of the greatest thing to happen to the serial drama since, well, the serial drama … tonight (ABC – 8/7C) the writers’ strike, a lack of award shows, and TV’s general lacklusterness will all be washed away when JJ Abrams bathes us in his directorial beauty.

Who will be rescued? Will anyone be rescued? Who was in the casket? Where are Jack and Kate in that flash back/flash forward? Who is the “he” Kate was referring to? God, the questions!

[mp3] Elliott Smith – Let’s Get Lost
[mp3] The Dears – Lost in the Plot
[mp3] The Essex Green – Penny & Jack
[mp3] Ben Folds Five – Kate
[mp3] The Good Life – I Am an Island
[mp3] Crystal Skulls – Locked Down
[mp3] Ron Sexsmith – I Think We’re Lost
[mp3] Beck – Lost Cause

Buy these records at insound.

Noise Pop 2008 Final Lineup

Noise Pop announced today the addition of M. Ward / Zooey Deschanel, White Denim, Working for a Nuclear Free City, Quasi, and The Rosebuds. Shaping up to be my most jealousy-enducing fest yet this year. Too bad air to San Francisco is so expensive. Also appearing: M. Ward / Zooey Deschanel, White Denim, Quasi, The Rosebuds, Blitzen Trapper, Fleet Foxes, Magnetic Fields, Holy Fuck, Stellastarr, Birdmonster, Human Giant, The Mountain Goats, Film School, Helio Sequence, Cursive, Port O’Brien, David Dondero, Delta Spirit, Mstrkrft, & MORE

What’s Cooler: Wolfgang’s Vault, who recently purchased Daytrotter, will offer some free and exclusive audio and video from the fest for those of us who can’t make it. Thanks, technology.

[mp3] The Rosebuds – Kick in the Schoolyard
[mp3] Port O’Brien – I Woke up Today
[mp3] The Mountain Goats – Get Lonely

Buy Noise Pop tickets

Time to Pretend

MGMT is, to me, a most unfortunate type of band: they’re a band who was too overexposed too fast. Before I could even give them a listen I was sick of hearing about them, and when I do so, I like what I hear. Had I discovered the Brooklynites on my own I’d probably be a pretty regular fan. Popularity is a double edged sword.

The booming epi-electronics of Time to Pretend‘s narcotic and neurotic hook make for a nice drive on an open road at night. Try it!

[mp3] MGMT – Electric Feel
[mp3] MGMT – Time to Pretend

Buy MGMT music

Cutest Couple

Matt Ward & Zooey Deschanel. Seriously, look at my Last.fm profile and you’ll see how much I love M. Ward, look at my DVD collection and you’ll see the insatiable thirst I have for Zooey Deschanel, so this collaboration was always exciting to me.

Steeped in the sort of AM golden-age pop your parents were listening to as infants, this is a very promising look at She & Him : Volume One (March 19 – Merge). The duo has a meager two dates lined up (one at sxsw and one at Noise Pop), but here’s to hoping to a real tour soon.

[mp3] M. Ward & Zooey Deschanel – When I get to the Border
[mp3] M. Ward & Zooey Deschanel – Why Do You Let Me Stay Here

Destroyer North American tour dates

And even a Nashville date! Huzzah! Can’t wait to see Bejar & co. This is sure to be the most fun you’ll have at the movies all year, or whatever so make sure you make it out to the closest date.

[mp3] Destroyer – European Oils

Destroyer 2008 North American Tour Dates
03-14 Austin, TX – The Parish (SXSW)
04-16 Minneapolis, MN – 400 Bar *
04-17 Chicago, IL – Logan Square Auditorium *
04-18 Detroit, MI – Pike Room *
04-19 Toronto, Ontario – Lee’s Palace *
04-20 Montreal, Quebec – Club Lambi *
04-22 Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg ^
04-23 New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom ^
04-24 Philadelphia, PA – North Star Bar ^
04-25 Washington, DC – The Black Cat ^
04-26 Asheville, NC – Grey Eagle ^
04-27 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle ^
04-28 Atlanta, GA – The Earl ^
04-29 Nashville, TN – The Mercy Lounge ^
04-30 St. Louis, MO – Blueberry Hill Duck Room ^
05-01 Kansas City, MO – Record Bar ^
05-02 Omaha, NE – Waiting Room ^
05-03 Denver, CO – The Walnut Room ^
05-13 Edmonton, Alberta – Starlight $
05-14 Calgary, Alberta – #1 Royal Canadian Legion Hall $
05-16 Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge $
05-18 Phoenix, AZ – Rhythm Room $
05-19 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour $
05-20 San Diego, CA – Casbah $
05-21 San Francisco, CA – Independent $
05-23 Portland, OR – Aladdin Theater $
05-31 Vancouver, British Columbia – The Commodore $

* with Colossal Yes
^ with Andre Ethier
$ with Devon Williams

Is your bed made? Is your sweater on?

Back in July, I got the “Blue cd-r” from Vampire Weekend and instantly fell in love with the tracks Cape Cod Kwassa, and Oxford Comma. I set to work playing them or sending them to everyone I knew, some loved and praised, while others scorned and mocked. Certainly, this will be the norm for the NYC based ivy-league quartet. Backlash will ensue, it’s just unavoidable after the amount of exposure they’ve been recieving from everyone from NME to the Post. But, good sirs and madams, I encourage you to look past this and enjoy the groovy goodness of these two songs in their original demo form and go buy the band’s LP which is out now.

[mp3] Vampire Weekend – Cape Cod Kwassa
[mp3] Vampire Weekend – Oxford Comma

Buy Vampire Weekend’s record for 10 bucks at insound.

Now I’m just standing still

I hate it, more than anything, when I overlook something or forget to listen to a record that I later get to, only to feel like an idiot for wasting time without it. This was the case with the impossibly catchy new record from a band called Synthar. Just who is Synthar, you ask? Why, I’m glad you did, good reader! Synthar is a band, as you might’ve guessed, built around synthesizers and fronted by a man named Johnny Bertram. You may know Johnny from previous bloggings, or from Peace on Earth (to which he contributed an amazing track).

I suppose it should come as no surprise how good this record is. The Bertram solo records were exactly like this: silent sleeper cells of songwriting perfection, wiing to be unearthed by the hardened heart of a reluctant listener. The songs are all at once Genesis and Boards of Canada, as glacial and growling as Bedhead at moments and as cheery and dance-inspiring as Say Hi, or Architecture in Helsinki on synthroids.

I really can’t reccomend this record enough, please, I beg of you just pick it up. It’s rare that you find a record from a band this unknown that is this special.Get in on the ground floor for once, people. Synthar may very well be the most essential band you’ve not heard of. Buy it in swanky packaging or drm free mp3’s at the bands site, also one dollar of each record sold goes to Habitat for Humanity…..seriously freaking buy it.

[mp3] Synthar – Beating Drum
[mp3] Synthar – Standing Still

BUY SYNTHAR’S SELF-TITLED RECORD.

The Hottest State

Soundtracks are an often overlooked source of joy for me. I love a good soundtrack, and I love a score even better. The Hottest State is a little bit of both and somehow was overlooked completely, though it features a tracklist with names such as M. Ward, Feist, Cat Power, Norah Jones, Bright Eyes, and the Black Keys. The Hottest State, if you don’t know, is a film by Ethan Hawks, and it’s soundtrack was curated by Mr. Hawke as well. You might also be in the dark about the source of said songs, well good reader, let me inform you. Each and every song on the album was written by a fellow named Jesse Harris. You could know Jesse as the guy who wrote that one song for Norah Jones, or you could know him by his solo career, which is also worth your attention.

Full disclosure: I’ve yet to see the Ethan Hawke film which the soundtrack accompanies yet, but I can tell you that the soundtrack is, for lack of a good adjective, amazing. Admittedly, it’d be hard to screw something up with the aforementioned list of contributors, but Harris’ sparse and intimate songs make a very nice canvas for painting on.

[mp3] Feist – Somewhere Down the Road

Buy The Hottest State Soundtrack.

Flip the record over, let the tears become one

There was a six month period last year, between when I got a real turntable/amp/set of speakers (upgraded from an old suitcase player) where I was quite literally addicted to buying vinyl. From April to October I bought, on average, 4-5 pieces of vinyl per paycheck. This starts to add up after a bit, so I made myself take a little break. I am now happy to report though that I am ready to start buying vinyl again (hopefully in a bit more moderation), and will do so Thursday (tomorrow is booked solid) afternoon at Grimey’s.

Now, there is a lot I don’t like about Nashville (A LOT), but we are very lucky in a few areas, one of which being music shopping. Grimey’s is, in my opinion, the best record store in the world. So, in celebration, here is a relevant Elliott track and a Vinyl b-side from Death Cab.

Feel free to suggest some vinyl purchases in the comments.

[mp3] Elliott Smith – Let’s Turn the Record Over
[mp3] Death Cab for Cutie – Jealousy Rides With Me

Listen to me, I’m on your stereo

As Mr. Malkmus once so eloquently put it. You can listen to me talk about the new Say Hi record on this weeks episode of Blog Fresh Radio. I’ve appeared on said show a few times before and I can confidently say they are nice people and worthy of your weekly listening. To stream or download the episode, head on over to BFR.

[mp3] Okkervil River – In a Radio Song