Sunday, August 8, 2010

Ben Sollee's bike tour II


info on his first bike tour can be found HERE

"It's not about trying to be 'green' - whatever that means these days - and saving the environment. It's about pace of life and re-localizing. I've spent nearly ten years on the road now and the expectations of the industry are enormous. When you get a call the night before to play late-night TV the next day on the other side of the country you do it. If there's a good money gig but it's 300 miles the other way, you do it. But not if you're on a bicycle. It's a beautiful limitation, because all the reasons you once thought of to avoid these small towns go out the window and the communities become really valuable to us."

Aug 18 - San Diego CA - Sushi Art
Aug 20 - Long Beach CA - {OPEN}
Aug 21 - Los Angeles CA - The Bootleg Theater
Aug 22 - Santa Monica CA - SMMoA - Tour da Arts
Aug 24 - Santa Barbara CA - SoHo
Aug 25 - Salinas CA - The Steinbeck Center
Aug 26 - Santa Cruz CA - The Crepe Place
Aug 28 - San Francisco CA - Rickshaw Warehouse
Sept 04 - Fort Collins - Tour De Fat
Sept 10 - Harve de Grace, MD - Biller's Bikes
Sept 12 - Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
Sept 15 - Doylestown PA - Puck Live
Sept 16 - Bethlehem PA - Wild Flower Cafe
Sept 18 - Kempton PA - Renewable Energy & Sustainable Living Festival
Sept 21 - York PA - The Depot
Sept 23 - Frederick MD - Cafe Nola
Sept 24 - Bethesda MD - Mansion at Strathmore
Sept 25 - Washington DC - Edmund Burke School
Oct 07 - Richmond KY - Eastern Kentucky University
Oct 08 - Frankfort KY - Grand Theatre

Ben Sollee - How to See the Sun Rise [mp3]


visit him on MYSPACE

Sunday Morning Covers


ZIP FILE

Cold War Kids - Electioneering (Radiohead cover) [mp3]


Elliott Smith - Waterloo Sunset (Kinks cover) [mp3]


Glen Hansard - Cry Me A River (Justin Timberlake cover) [mp3]

Jukebox the Ghost - I Love You Always Forever (Donna Lewis Cover) [mp3]

Klaxons - No Diggity (Blackstreet cover) [mp3]

MGMT - This Must Be The Place (Talking Heads Cover) [mp3]


The Postal Service - Suddenly Everything Has Changed (Flaming Lips Cover) [mp3]

Ben Gibbard's voice is so well suited for electronic music. nobody else even comes close.

Robbers on High Street - Shout To The Top! (Style Council cover) [mp3]


The Rolling Stones - Like A Rolling Stone (Bob Dylan cover) [mp3]


Winter Gloves - Someone Great (LCD Soundsystem cover) [mp3]

The Strokes Post #527

Saturday, August 7, 2010

video: Titus Andronics - "A More Perfect Union" on Jimmy Fallon

wow. every time I forget, this band reminds me, very forcefully, that they are INCREDIBLE and BADASS TO THE MAX.

Saturday Music Definitions: Judge


I couldn't sleep last night so I was browsing fuckyeahtattoos and came across the greatest tattoo I have ever seen.

it says "allah wahdahu yastati' al-qadi li" which means "only g-d can judge me". it sent shivers down my spine because it reminded me of a chilling letter I once received that had that very message written on the back of the envelope (albeit in English). the fact that the tattoo is in Arabic amplified how powerful it was to me. because of my upbringing, I will associate the language with judgment forever. about me, my lifestyle, my choices. I've always wanted to get ink in Arabic, but mine will simply say سلام which is ‎"salam", or "peace"

anyhow, enjoy some tunes.

Black Lips - Before You Judge Me [mp3]

Radiohead - Myxomatosis (Judge, Jury & Executioner) [mp3]


Elvis Costello - The Judgement [mp3]

2Pac - Only G-d Can Judge Me [mp3]

The Strokes Post #526

this is absolutely fantastic:



thanks Arthur!

band of the week: Kid Cudi

I am not a big fan of the modern hip hop and rap scenes. I tend to be pretty old school when it comes to that kind of music, but one artist I’ve really been getting into lately is Kid Cudi.

Kid Cudi is from Brooklyn (originally Cleveland), and almost half the tracks on his album feature cameos by his indie counterparts, like Ratatat. Most importantly, his music sounds fresh amidst a ton of mundane rappers.

He has a very unique sound, which combines sensually deep vocal delivery and psychedelic electronica music. This creates a thrilling effect, because it makes Cudi sound like a smooth talking alien. He's like a modern, rapping Ziggy Stardust. His songs are never vulgar, they don't have to be. Cudi is a master craftsman. His lyrics reflect a vigilance to the dog-eat-dog world we live in, and his songs assure you that “this will be my world”.

Pick up his excellent 2009 album Man on the Moon: The End of Day and beat box against the machine.

Kid Cudi - Alive (ft Ratatat) [mp3]

Friday, August 6, 2010

The Strokes Post #525

Classic Track Thursday

old school Spoon is like oatmeal...
even though it's simple, you forget how good it feels until you go back to it

Spoon - Utilitarian [mp3]
from their second LP, A Series of Sneaks (1998)

a good source of fiber, too.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

must watch video: The Dead Weather rock the living daylights out of Letterman



I have a sinking feeling that Sea of Cowards will go wildly under-appreciated this year.

The Strokes Post #524


poor Nikolai always gets forgotten. yes he put out a solo album too and no it did not sound like the 80s. try folksy with a bottle of whiskey. er, I mean a flagon of absinthe.

Nickel Eye - This Is The End [mp3]

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

East Bay Express's Best of the East Bay Party this Friday in Oakland

I am considering going to this.



double bonus:

The Strokes Post #523




via.

I remember, very clearly, the night I met Binki Shapiro. it took all of two seconds for me to go from loathing her on principle to adoring her. she's so freaking sweet...and talented too.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

The Strokes Post #522

The Strokes will play OUTSIDE LANDS' TWIN PEAKS STAGE from 8:45-9:55PM on Saturday August 14th.

see you guys at the front!

Monday, August 2, 2010

stream Arcade Fire's Suburbs on NPR


in case you haven't heard it yet, it's incredible.

stream it HERE

The Strokes Post #521

via

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Sunday Morning Covers


Ray LaMontagne - Vigilante Man (Woody Guthrie cover) [mp3]

Beck feat. Wilco, Feist & Jamie Lidell - Diana (Skip Spence Cover) [mp3]


The Morning Benders - Lovefool (Cardigans cover) [mp3]


The Last Shadow Puppets - S.O.S. (Rihanna cover) [mp3]


Elliott Smith - Yer Blues (Beatles cover ) [mp3]

Rogue Wave - Debaser (Pixies cover) [mp3]


Franz Ferdinand - Sound And Vision (Bowie cover) [mp3]

Ron Sexsmith - Give Me Peace (George Harrison cover) [mp3]

Razorlight - Boys Don't Cry (The Cure cover) [mp3]

Mumford & Sons - Cousins (Vampire Weekend Cover) [mp3]


ZIP FILE

The Strokes Post #520


this INTERVIEW is crazy good. I love it when Julian's interviewers are fans. which they usually are, 'cause he's awesome

I feel like I learned a lot, the guy asked good questions. Crime and Punishment is easily in my top ten books of all time. I almost started crying when I read this part:

"Rumi’s my favorite kind of poet...That stuff is bonkers out of this world cool. And out there crazy and yeah, that’s always the dream; that the lyrics can still work like that. Cause I think he was a musician, you know? So it can feel like those poems he sang, that’s like ideal."

Rumi has always been a favourite of mine and it makes so much sense that Julian appreciates his art. The Strokes and his solo work always had a dreamy undertone to me. not dreamy like dream-pop, MBV status, but obviously coming from a brain that does not function in a linear way.

cheers to Eric for posting it first

Saturday Music Definitions: Killing


this post is dedicated to a certain Strokes song (found below) that totally struck me like a ton of bricks this morning.

The Strokes - Killing Lies [mp3]

Echo and the Bunnymen - The Killing Moon [mp3]

Liam Finn - This Place is Killing Me [mp3]


Modest Mouse - The Good Times Are Killing Me [mp3]


Pavement - You're Killing Me [mp3]


The Cure - Killing an Arab [mp3]

The Strokes Post #519



this is dedicated to a very special kid. you know who you are.