We’re excited to announce a special early release of our new album, Elvis Perkins In Dearland!
With the help of our friends at Amie Street, we are releasing the album a week early for only $8.
When you purchase the album, $2 will be donated to Clearwater, an organization founded by Pete Seeger that’s dedicated to protecting, restoring and celebrating the Hudson River. Clearwater is one of the very best environmental education and advocacy organizations in the country.
Click here to purchase the new album. We hope you enjoy it and thank you for supporting this excellent organization!
Elvis, Brigham, Nick and Wyndham
You gotta at least head over there and grab the free download of “Shampoo,” probably my favorite track off Elvis Perkins In Dearland. But don’t take my word for it, check out the video:
Elvis Perkins In Dearland plays the Cafe Du Nord tomorrow night
After Pirate’s Gospel, Alela Diane’s mesmerizing debut record, made my Top 20 of 2007 I had pretty high expectations for her follow up. Believe me, To Be Still met ‘em in spades. Recorded in various locales over 2008 (including a return to her father’s studio), her sophomore effort is a folk fireside dream; haunting compelling gorgeousness. Now Hear This has a copy to send to you, kind reader. Just email me with the name of Diane’s old home town (she now resides in Portland). Here’s a hint: she used to pal around with Joanna Newsom.
Here’s one of my favorite tracks off the new record to get you in the mood:
Dan Auerbach’s solo tour pulls into Bimbo’s on Friday the 13th. Tune into the Cuppa Joe Show tomorrow night at 6 PM for a chance to win a pair of tickets courtesy of me and the mighty 90.7. We’ll also be celebrating the birthdays of Miraim Makeba, Billy Gibbons, Jason Newsted, Evan Dando and Modest Mouse drummer Jeremiah Green. We’ll also be checking out the new Neko Case record as well as new music from Jason Isbell (former Drive By Trucker), Great Lake Swimmers and the reissue of Pearl Jam’s debut. And as always there’s the regular Music Picked By My Kids segment at 8 sharp. Click the picture above to get the stream if the station sounds a little fuzzy!
I’ve been an avid Avett Brothers fan ever since Emotionalism made my Best of 2007 list but sinister forces have conspired to prevent me from catching their live show, which I hear is spectacular. That will certainly change when they play the Fillmore two nights in May (Friday the 15th & Saturday the 16th). Rumor has it Magnolia Electric Co. will be opening. What a night of alt-folk bliss! Tickets go on sale this Sunday @ 10 AM. The video below comes from a nifty little corner of Bruce Springsteen’s website called Hangin’ Out On E Street where an eclectic assortment of folks (Ted Leo, Wylcef Jean & Birdmonster to name a few) present their take on the Boss and wax reverent about his influence on their careers. Guess whoever’s in charge was unaware that Sleater-Kinney used to do a rippin’ cover of “Promised Land.” God I miss those ladies…
I love how the stock clerks rockin’ the storeroom look fits perfectly with Bruce’s blue collar oeuvre. How much fun would it be to jump behind that drum kit?
The solo debut from one half of the Black Keys sounds like, well, the Black Keys. What did anyone really expect? Unless Auerbach spent 80 minutes playing the bagpipes it was bound to. So folks hoping to hear Dan stretching himself will be disappointed but I’m digging this. The Fogerty like blues howl is replaced with a deeply soulful crooning in just the right spots and a bass player (god forbid) makes for an interesting low end counterpoint missing from the Black Keys’ drum/guitar minimalism. My favorite addition is the haunting Hammond B underpinning this track right here:
Keep It Hid is out on Nonesuch Records. Dan will be at Bimbo’s March 13. I’ll be giving away a pair of tickets during my show on KALX at 90.7 FM next Wednesday so tune in! More tour dates and streaming tunes can be found at Auerbach’s myspace page.
Robyn Hitchcock’s second record backed by the all star trio of Peter Buck on guitar, Young Fresh Fellow Scott McCaughey on bass, and Ministry skin pounder Bill Rieflin may not match the last couple of records he’s released but after 30 years of consistently fantastic songcraft his missteps stand shoulders above the pop paff topping today’s charts.
Goodnight Oslo is out on Yep Roc Records. If you have a couple hours to kill check out Robyn’s official site. There’s a reason it’s called The Museum of Robyn Hitchcock.
Like a crazy mix of Leonard Cohen’s despair and early Dylan’s exuberant folk rock Elvis Perkins In Dreamland play music that is catchy and penetrating at the same time. The despair is understandable as frontman Elvis Perkins lost his father, actor Anthony Perkins, to AIDS in 1992 and his mother on one of the 9/11 planes. But the exuberance defies sorrow in a celebration of everyday life with one of the catchier songs I’ve heard in weeks. A driving rhythm offset to marvelous effect by the delicate harmonies of Lavender Diamond’s Becky Stark.
A couple more tunes are streaming at their website. Their self titled second record is out on XL Recordings March 10, pre-oreder it here. He is (or is it they are? I’m so confused) playing the Cafe Du Nord the very next day.
Red Hot Org., the international HIV and AIDS charity dedicated to raising money and awareness through popular culture, turns 20 this year. To celebrate the folks responsible for such amazing compilations as No Alternative, Red Hot and Blue and many more have turned the reigns over to The National’s brothers Dessner for compilatin #20, Dark Was The Night. Out on 4AD on February 16th, these 31 exclusive tracks from an impressive array of artists include some fascinating collaborations: Conor Oberst & Gillian Welch, Antony & Bryce Dessner and Feist & Ben Gibbard. Check out three of my favorite tracks:
And I’m also digging this track you can keep for yourself:
THIS DISC
1 Knotty Pine – Dirty Projectors + David Byrne
2 Cello Song (Nick Drake cover) – The Books featuring Jose Gonzalez
3 Train Song (Vashti Bunyan cover) – Feist + Ben Gibbard
4 Brackett, WI – Bon Iver
5 Deep Blue Sea – Grizzly Bear
6 So Far Around the Bend – The National (arrangement by Nico Muhly)
7 Tightrope – Yeasayer
8 Feeling Good (Nina Simone hit) – My Brightest Diamond
9 Dark Was the Night (Blind Willie Johnson cover) – Kronos Quartet
10 I Was Young When I Left Home (Bob Dylan cover) – Antony + Bryce Dessner
11 Big Red Machine – Justin Vernon + Aaron Dessner
12 Sleepless – The Decemberists
13 Stolen Houses (Die) – Iron and Wine
14 Service Bell – Grizzly Bear + Feist
15 You Are The Blood – Sufjan Stevens
THAT DISC
1 Well-Alright – Spoon
2 Lenin (a Funeral outtake) – Arcade Fire
3 Mimizan – Beirut
4 El Caporal – My Morning Jacket
5 Inspiration Information (Shuggie Otis cover) – Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings
6 With A Girl Like You (The Troggs cover) – Dave Sitek of TV On The Radio
7 Blood Pt 2 (Castanets cover) – Buck 65 Remix (featuring Sufjan Stevens and Serengeti)
8 Hey, Snow White (Destroyer cover) – The New Pornographers
9 Gentle Hour (Snapper cover) – Yo La Tengo
10 Another Saturday – Stuart Murdoch
11 Happiness – Riceboy Sleeps
12 Amazing Grace – Cat Power and Dirty Delta Blues
13 The Giant Of Illinois (Handsome Family cover) – Andrew Bird
14 Lua – Conor Oberst + Gillian Welch
15 When the Road Runs Out – Blonde Redhead + Devastations
16 Love vs. Porn – Kevin Drew
I host the Cuppa Joe show on KALX in Berkeley every other Wednesday from 6 to 9 PM. You can tune at 90.7 or online by clicking HERE
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NEXT SHOW: October 28 FUNDRAISER SHOW!!
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Check out past playlists HERE
Got something I HAVE TO HEAR? Wanna send me free stuff? Email me at mike@nowhearthismusic.com
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Quick note about the tunes
The mp3s on this blog are to give folks a little taste. Imagine they're those little pouches on the bag your Sunday paper comes in. You know, the one's with a packet containing just enough toothpaste to brush your teeth once or twice. They are left up for a limited time. If you find something you like support the artists by dragging your friends to their shows and/or buying their CDs/records/schwag. If you are the artist (or their label/representative) and don't want an mp3 on here, please email me (mike@nowhearthismusic.com) and I'll remove it posthaste.
