Superchunk Summer

Sounds like a sweaty July afternoon. And ever so vaguely reminds me of “Nothing But A Good Time” by Motley Crue. As you were…

  Superchunk – “The Summer”
 

Anna Sun

Summery and spot on for July.
Love this song. And it’s free at this link. Go get it!

 

YeahYeahYeah – Prison + Playlists

So I took a little jaunt to Philadelphia this weekend. We ate fried macaroni and cheese balls and checked out “Terror Behind the Walls” at the Eastern State Penitentiary, a remarkably well-run (practically Six Flags-ish, it even had corporate sponsorship) haunted house on an enormous old prison right in Philly.

  Over aforementioned cheeseballs, this little ditty came over the restaurnat stereo system. The voice was familiar but the song was not. Now I realize I can’t buy the single track but instead have to buy an entire SpiderMan 3 Soundtrack. Ugh.

  Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Sealings”

  OHHHH, I curated a couple playlists on Digster that they’ve placed under the moniker of a different editor (such is life) for the time being. So while the fuzzy pic isn’t me, trust that the selections and the description are indeed mine. (Except ‘Calm’ and ‘Happy’ — these are definitely not calm and happy.) Halloween-themed of course! Is It Scary? Playlist

  And here’s another one, though my editor seems to have sprinkled in some of his own tracks as well. 3 AM Eternal Playlist

So Portuguese

So I still don’t understand this band name at all but they look poised to break through in a bluesy Foster the People-ish way with their new track “So American.”
 

A couple a years ago, the song below caught my attention.
“My Mind”

 And “So American” is looking to seal the deal. Enjoy!

 

Mad Men + Filght of the Conchords + The National

What in the world is going on here? Your guess is as good as mine…but major props for using Mad Men’s John Slattery and Flight of the Conchords Kristen Schaal.

  And on a completely unrelated note, did everyone see that FotC’s BrettMcKensie was just cast in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit. Short + New Zealand = natural fit.

  The National – “Conversation 16”

Free Fuse Tracks – Datarock, Dum Dum Girls, The Lonely Forest, Joan As Police Woman, Typhoon

Come one, come all and check out these delectible treats on the FUSE TV website.
 
There are some great tunes here – and there all for the grabbing. My favs are below, so sample them here and then hit the site and get the ones you like for yourself.
 
Bridges & Powerlines – “Mirabell”

 
Datarock – “Catcher in the Rye”

 
Dum Dum Girls – “He Gets Me High”

 
Joan as Police Woman – “The Magic” (love the bizarro video)

 
Jonquil – “Fighting Smiles”

 
Kap Kallous – “Nothing’s Free” (get your hip hop on!)

 
Rilo Kiley – “Science vs. Romance”

 
and now for the Pacific Northwest portion of the freebies.
 
Yes, this is EXACTLY how gloomy it normally is during the 4th of July in Washington State……..The Lonely Forest – “Turn off This Song and Go Outside”
 
And this one, which reminds me of what a bunch of crunchy, 20something Portland-ers would sound like if crossed with Sufjan Stevens…….

 
Be sure to grab Sleigh Bells and The Naked and Famous if you haven’t already!!
 
 

Richard Ashcroft – Not Bittersweet Anymore

The Verve’s Richard Ashcroft has taken that frown and turned it upside down with these straight ahead anthemic rockers that sound surprisingly perky, almost like BITUSA-era Bruce….
 
“Born Again”
 
“Are You Ready”

I like Linkin Park? Really? Yup, it’s official….

In my VMA wrap-up I wrote about being surprised by how much I liked the song Linkin Park performed at the awards ceremony. Well I finally got a hold of the record, and lo and behold, they’ve apparently have a newfound fan.
 
I’m sure that the band’s taken some heat for A Thousand Suns. The sound of the album is far removed from the Limp Bizkit-style rap metal that I remember hearing in the ’00s. This is a more electronic, melodic sound, with quite a bit of keyboard – almost akin to current Depeche Mode. And the album is constructed as a whole piece, as opposed to a collection of tracks. Some of the songs fully embrace “We’re in it together”-style U2 bombast (to iffy results). They worked with producer extraordinairre Rick Rubin and developed a lot of the concepts via “automatic writing” – basically taking their stream of consciousness “free-writes” and re-working them into songs.
 
So I’m surprised how much I like this record. Here’s a smattering of some tracks so you can tell if you’re on board too.
 
This was the next single following “The Catalyst” (which they performed at the VMAs). “Waiting for the End” (official video)
 
You’ll get my DM reference when you listen to this song – a bit droney but the melody gets stuck in my head. “Robot Boy”
 
And I guess this track combines their more agressive guitar style with this newer sound. Definitely the song that has grown on me the most. “Blackout”

Civil Twilight

Courtesy of the current BIG LOVE promo. For better of for worse, the U2/Coldplay/Thom Yorke comparisons are on point…though I think this has a nicely morose layer to it.

Civil Twilight – "Letters from the Sky"

Morning Daylight Bender

Good track…And the video takes a seasonal approach. I approve!

Morning Benders – “All Day Daylight” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QtWTRW4R-Y&feature=related