The Flaming Lips, “Kundalini Express”
I just love the electro weirdness of this Love and Rockets cover from The Flaming Lips featured on the new Love and Rockets Tribute album that’s out now. It’s one of my favorites on the album and I can’t get enough of it. Play, repeat, play, repeat…
Radiohead, “These Are My Twisted Words”
Earlier this week the world was mourning the fact that Radiohead announced they were out of the LP album business and have no plans to release any. Then today, a new MP3 suddenly appears on the Internet from the band, “These Are My Twisted Words”. If I didn’t know better, I’d say these cheeky bastards are toying with us. Whether this is contrived or coincidence, I’ll take it.
Artist: Woods
Album: Songs of Shame
File Under: Lo-Fi, Psych Rock/Jam Band
Recommended if You Like: Mount Eerie, Dungen, Wavves, Crystal Stilts
Featured Track: “Rain On”
I’m pretty much a sucker for anything filed under the murky category of ‘lo-fi’ but I particularly like the genre-bending twist the Brooklyn-based group calling themselves, Woods, puts on it – which is a combination of lo-fi, psych rock, jam band and Neil Young-tinged folk.
It sounds ridiculous but it works in a delightfully quirky and unpredictable way. For just when you think you’ve got their sound figured out – fuzzed out guitars, off-kilter vocals – they’ll throw in a nine minute guitar jam (“September With Pete”), a great cover (Graham Nash’s “Military Madness”), a melancholy ditty (“Rain On”) or an experimental instrumental (“Echo Lake”). Wrap all that together with the hazy ambience of cassette tape recording and you’ve got yourself an album worth listening to. Trust me.
For those in the Bay Area, Woods is part of a stellar bill of music planned August 30 at Bottom of the Hill also featuring Kurt Vile and Dungen.
The Wooden Sky, “Something Hiding For Us In The Night”
Recommended if you like Shearwater and Okkervil River, this Toronto-based group are preparing to release their second album, “If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone” on August 25. Check it out! It’s lovely.
First time I heard this band I was immediately transported back to days of yore, circa 1990 something, while discovering Jane’s Addiction ‘in a haze.’ Turns out the NY psych five-piece has been selected for the Flaming Lips curated Sunday date of All Tomorrow’s Parties New York. The three-day festival takes place Friday, September 11th through Sunday, September 13th at Kutcher’s Country Club in Monticello, NY.
Hopewell’s recent album, Good Good Desperation is available now on Tee Pee Records.
Vodpod videos no longer available.
First it was The Dead Weather and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, then Sufjan Stevens, now add Noah and The Whale to the list of indie bands making films. With this endeavor, Noah and The Whale’s chief singer/songwriter, Charlie Fink, has crafted and directed a film to coincide with the release of their new album, The First Days of Spring, which is set for October. The First Days of Spring will be released on Cherrytree/Interscope alongside a film of the same name which marks the directorial debut of Charlie Fink and runs the same length as the record. The release is the highly-anticipated follow-up to their gold- selling 2008 debut album Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down.
Sea Wolf’s sophomore album, White Water, White Bloom is due out September 22 on Dangerbird Records. The band has made a track from the album, “Stanislaus”, available for free download. Look for the band in your town this fall!
Tour Dates:
September
14 Santa Barbara, CA – Soho
15 Costa Mesa, CA – Detroit Bar
16 Pomona, CA – The Glass House
17 Los Angeles, CA – The Troubadour
18 San Francisco, CA – Bimbo’s 365 Club
21 Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
22 Vancouver, BC – The Media Club
23 Seattle, WA – Sunset Tavern
25 Salt Lake City, UT – In The Venue
26 Denver, CO – Hi-Dive
29 Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry
30 Milwaukee, WI – Mad Planet
October
1 Chicago, IL – Schubas Tavern
3 Indianapolis, IN – Radio Radio
4 Newport, KY– Southgate House
7 Columbus, OH – Wexner Center for the Arts
9 Toronto, ONT – Sneaky Dee’s
13 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
14 New York, NY – The Mercury Lounge
16 Brooklyn, NY – Union Hall
17 Philadelphia, PA – North Star Bar
18 Baltimore, MD – The Talking Head Club
19 Washington, DC – DC 9
24 Nashville, TN – Exit In
28 Austin, TX – Emo’s Jr.
An extensive interview with Thom Yorke this month by The Believer revealed that the band has no imminent plans to release a full LP anytime soon. In fact, Yorke was quite candid with his feelings for the traditional album format and creative process, saying: “None of us want to go into that creative hoo-ha of a long-play record again. Not straight off. I mean, it’s just become a real drag. It worked with In Rainbows because we had a real fixed idea about where we were going. But we’ve all said that we can’t possibly dive into that again. It’ll kill us.”
Yorke also went on to discuss his thoughts on the CD and music industry stating, “I mean, I always hated CDs. Me and Stanley [Donwood] always hated CDs. Just a fucking nightmare. There’s a process of natural selection going on right now. The music business was waiting to die in its current form about twenty years ago. But then, hallelujah, the CD turned up and kept it going for a bit. But basically, it was dead.”
But fear not, the band intends to continue to make music, just on their own creative terms. And only a band like Radiohead could help shape and define what that means. So in the meantime look for more EPs one off tracks, like last week’s release of “Harry Patch, In Memory Of”.
Yay, Yo La Tengo! This is the second video in a series of five from the upcoming Yo La Tengo album, “Popular Songs” due out September 8th on Matador Records. Can’t wait to see them at Treasure Island this fall!
I’m a bit smitten with Julian Plenti (aka Paul Banks of Interpol) and his solo debut, Skyscraper. Here’s the new video for the track “Games for Days” available for free download.
the OCMD 