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Everything I post on here I post on The Echo. You can go there for the time being. I may start Play, Memory back up again... Cheers!

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Low documented in new film

A movie documenting the lives of the members of the slowcore powerhouse Low has been released. The title of the documentary is You May Need A Murderer, taken from the lyrics from their song, "Murderer."

Here's the press release on the documentary:

In almost fifteen years, Low became an institution on the indie and alternative scenes. Famous for their quiet, beautiful slow songs, and fascinating harmonies, as well as their religious background (core members Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker are Mormons). For this documentary, a film crew followed Alan and Mimi on tour, at home in Duluth, MN, in their church community, and as parents. It's more than an on-the-road or behind-the-scenes video. It shows Sparhawk as the ambivalent main character in an intriguing movie about religion, violence, conscience, and madness. It can also be seen as a touching love story.

Cut Copy release video for "Hearts on Fire"

This is the official video for "Hearts on Fire," as opposed to some of the fan-made versions floating around. The video is pretty accurate to the sentiments of the song. Man, it would suck to have your tears/rain perpetually falling on your head.

American Idol rigged; worst 'idol' yet

A phony rocker vs. a power-ballad kid? Yeah it doesn't sound like my thing. But I can appreciate a good voice. That's why it's so obvious that American idol was rigged this year. The kid, David Archuleta, has a frikin amazing voice. David Cook, the self-proclaimed rocker who sounds like the lead singer from Creed and dozens of other bands, has a good voice too, but it's not even close to the quality of Archuleta's. You could hear it in Simon's and Paula's comments. The blogosphere has apparently already been blurbing about it. The producers wanted it(because apparently he's more "current" ??) and they got it: some smug "Collective Soul"rocker who will be forgotten in 5 years. The fix is in this year on American Idol. Poor kids.

Fleet Foxes do Daytrotter session

The Northwest isn't shy of delivering great talent year-in and year-out and Fleet Foxes are testament to that.
Fleet Foxes laid down some tunes for Daytrotter a little while back. I was gone for a little while so I missed some stuff. But Fleet Foxes are one of the year's best new bands and their track, "English House," from the Sun Giant EP is one of my favorite songs of the year so far. The boys from Washington, who may remind you of My Morning Jacket (sorry, Band of Horses doesn't sound like either), recorded four songs for Daytrotter. Two are from Sun Giant, the title track and "Drops in the River." The other two songs will appear on their forthcoming self/titled album, "White Winter Hymnal" and "Sun it Rises."

For the complete session and excellent article on the band, check here.

First video from The Cure's upcoming album: "The Only One"

The Cure's yet-to-be-titled new album drops September 13th. Robert Smith has promised a new song for fans every month, starting this month with "The Only One." And they've made a video for what appears will be their first single.

Grand Archives on Craig Ferguson

I wasn't allowed to stay up late enough to see the best new band of the year perform on the Late Late Show. God Bless Youtube, huh. Matt and co. chose the sublime "Torn Blue Foam Couch" to play for the occasion.

Album of the week

Portishead
Third (Mercury)









hear: Silence, The Rip, We Carry On, Machine Gun, Small, Magic Doors

New video: Portishead's "The Rip"

Not for the most sensitive eyes, but definitely intriguing.

Destroyer @ Bowery Ballroom, 4.23.08

Recommended listening:

My Bloody Valentine return to the American stage; "My Bloody Underground" released

This may be old news but I would be remiss if I didn't mention something about My Bloody Valentine touring North America. Yes, the 2nd best shoegaze band ever(congratulations Slowdive), will play the big cities this Fall: L.A., NYC, SF, Chicago, and uh, Toronto? What has Seattle and Miam- just Seattle- done to you Kevin?! Sale dates and prices aren't available as of yet. Also not available is a detailed explanation as to the reason they chose Roseland in NYC for their grand reunion tour. Roseland?

Dates:

9.22 New York, NY: Roseland
9.23 New York, NY: Roseland
9.25 Toronto, Ontario: Ricoh
9.27 Chicago, IL: Aragon Ballroom
9.30 San Francisco, CA: The Concourse
10.01 Los Angeles, CA: Santa Monica Civic
10.02 Los Angeles, CA: Santa Monica Civic




In not-so-related-news, the winner for best album title so far this year goes to The Brian Jonestown Massacre for their latest release, "My Bloody Undergound." Even funnier is that it already has a wikipedia page of its own. The blatant intentionality of the name is just hilarious. That's Anton Newcombe for you. What I don't get is that if it's supposed to pay homage to The Jesus and Mary Chain as well, where's their spot in the album title? "My Bloody Underground's Mary Chain"? Come on Anton.

Tapes 'n Tapes release "Hang Them All" video

Tapes 'n Tapes' first single off the recently dropped Walk it Off is the power-poppy "Hang Them All." And as these things typically go, they made a video for it.

AlbumS of the week

Cut Copy
In Ghost Colours (Modular)










hear: Feel the Love, Lights and Music, Unforgettable Season, So Haunted, Far Away, Strangers in the Wind, Nobody Lost Nobody Found

















The Kills
Midnight Boom (Domino)












hear: U.R.A. Fever, Cheap and Cheerful, Tape Song, Getting Down, M.E.X.I.C.O.C.U., Sour Cherry, Alphabet Pony

The National releasing Boxer "making of" DVD; EP

Apparently the boys from Ohio(originally) thought Boxer was such a hit that they should release a video of how they actually did it. And apparently, so did La Blogotheque's Vincent Moon, who is the director of the film, titled "A Skin, A

Night." I'm betting Vincent came up with that gem. Included with the video is the less-stealthly titled 12-track Virginia EP, a collection of unreleased songs, demos, live performances, and covers. It may be the lengthiest EP to date. Both are set for a May 21st release date. Below is the tracklist.

Virginia EP tracklisting:

01) YOU’VE DONE IT AGAIN, VIRGINIA (previously unreleased)
02) SANTA CLARA (UK b-side)
03) BLANK SLATE (UK b-side)
04) TALL SAINT (demo)
05) WITHOUT PERMISSION (unreleased cover of Caroline Martin song)
06) FOREVER AFTER DAYS (demo)
07) REST OF YEARS (demo)
08) SLOW SHOW (demo)
09) LUCKY YOU (daytrotter session)
10) MANSION ON THE HILL (live)
11) FAKE EMPIRE (live)
12) ABOUT TODAY (live)

Morrissey performs on Craig Ferguson

Morrissey has apparently released a new single in the UK: "All You Need is Me." But it looks as though he still spends plenty of time in L.A., as he introduces the new single for the "Late Late Show." Homeboy still isn't aging too well...

Portishead rock Coachella

They kill this song. Can't wait to hear the entire album.

Album of the week

M83
Saturdays=Youth (Mute)










hear: Kim & Jessie, Skin of the Night, Graveyard Girl, Up!, We Own the Sky, Dark Moves of Love

New Scott Weiland solo album

That's right, dust off your flannel shirt and faded jeans -or buy some leather pants and a Slash wig I guess- because the lead singer of the former bands, Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, is in the studio working on his 2nd solo album. We recommend that Scott dust off the flannel shirt and not the leather pants though. His 1st solo album, 12 Bar Blues, was released back in the late '90's when STP was in full throttle -and other than Tiny Music and Purple, is probably the best album Weiland has ever put out solo or collectively. Although there is a rumored STP reunion, Weiland is looking to release a record down the lines of his old school sound, no doubt with some modern structure that his 1st solo work shined with. Adrian Young, the wild hands behind the peddles of No Doubt, is lending his sticks to the project, and Veteran producer Steve Albini is apparently helping Weiland on the production side.

Rogue Wave @ Fillmore(Irving Plaza), 4.12.08

Zach Rogue is one nice dude. I'm pretty sure he appeased every single bursting request that came from the crowd. I guess this stood out to me because in these parts, bands don't go out of their way to be congenial. Rogue Wave is from Oakland and so it makes perfect sense. Great energy and solid execution from the band. They seemed to really mean it and the crowd responded well. The set list included tracks from all three records but it was heavily bias toward the new album -which I love so it was cool with me. "Harmonium," the final song from their first set tore the house down and was definitely my favorite of the night. The crowd was split, some cheering loudest for Lake Michigan and others for the beautiful ironic "Screw California," which apparently a couple chicks in the front were pretty desperate to hear.


Recommended listening:

New R.E.M. video: "Hollow Man"

Good song but a video that really doesn't go with the song at all. All you need to know is that the video was done by someone named "Crush." Yep, sensory overload. It is worth watching once though.

New Weezer album cover unleashed

I wish so bad it was April 1st

AlbumS of the week

Destroyer
Trouble in Dreams (Merge)


Dan Bejar is one of the most intellectual minds in music. While Trouble in Dreams doesn't match the brilliance of Destroyer's Rubies, it still shows Bejar's knack for rustic, infectious tracks and clever lyrics. It starts off very strong with the first two tracks and reaches it's climax at the album's centerpiece, the amazing "Shooting Rockets(From the Desk of Night's Ape)." But the album also finishes off strong with the solid tracks, "Leopard of Honor" and "Libby's First Sunrise." It's not necessarily a "troubled" album but it does have an overall undertone of frustration, especially relevant to women.
























hear: Blue flower/Blue Flame, Dark Leaves Form a Thread, Foam Hands, Shooting Rockets (From the Desk of Night's Ape), Leopard of Honor, Libby's First Sunrise




R.E.M.
Accelerate (Warner Brothers)










Somebody has been listening to Teenage Fanclub. Much has been made of the new R.E.M. album. We get it -the power is back. And the power is very much welcomed. Still, while Accelerate is a very fun and intriguing album with clever lyrics of its own, track for track, it's not one of R.E.M.'s best. Don't get me wrong, Accelerate has many good tracks and I totally recommend it. It just doesn't have many "great" tracks. But songs such as "Houston" and "Mr. Richards" are compelling, and Accelerate is definitely consistent. If I were to star it, I'd give it 3 and a half.


hear: Man-Sized Wreath, Supernatural Superserious, Hollow Man, Houston, Accelerate, Mr. Richards

New My Brightest Diamond material!

Shara Worden's voice is majestic. Her new album, A Thousand Shark's Teeth is due out in June. The first sample from the new album is the sublime "Inside a Boy." Check it.

Heidi Montag raps on TRL...well, tries

Warning: this video is not for the faint of heart.

R.E.M. does marathon Take Away Show session

La Blogtheque isn't just for itsy-bitsy indie-rock bands but full-blown rock bands like the magnificent R.E.M. After releasing just over half-an-hour of welcomed amped-up rock, R.E.M. and Vincent Moon of La Bogotheque met as R.E.M. performed 5 songs. That's right -not just 2 or 3..this is R.E.M- it's 5. Four songs were from the new album: "Until the Day is Done," "Living Well is the Best Revenge," "Houston," and "Sing for the Submarine." The fifth song was "On the Fly."

R.E.M. - Until the day is done

R.E.M. - Living well is the best revenge

R.E.M. - On the fly

R.E.M. - Houston

R.E.M. - Sing for the Submarine