dates/tours/fun!

Matt Nathanson at the Fox again, oh yeah. Dude puts on a fucking great show. I had to throw the "fuck" in there because Matt says "fuck" approximately 83 times per show. Not for the kids.

Jan 19 2008 The Rockboat Miami, Florida
Jan 25 2008 Jack Rabbits Jacksonville, Florida
Jan 26 2008 The Social Orlando, Florida
Jan 27 2008 Workplay Theatre BIrmingham, Alabama
Jan 28 2008 40 Watt Club Athens, Georgia
Jan 29 2008 The Handlebar Greenville, South Carolina
Jan 31 2008 Recher Theatre Towson, Maryland
Feb 1 2008 Toad’s Place New Haven, Connecticut
Feb 4 2008 The State Theatre State College, Pennsylvania
Feb 5 2008 St. Andrew’s Hall Detroit, Michigan
Feb 7 2008 Knickerbockers Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 9 2008 The Fox Theatre Boulder, Colorado

Glen Phillips has been to town several times in the past few years, but I haven't seen him since summer 2000. Oh my! Lookit, he's even visiting the western slope, the mountains and the lovely Fort Collins.

01/19/08 The Rock Boat Miami FL
01/24/08 The Rock Boat Miami FL
01/26/08 Ann Arbor Folk Festival Ann Arbor MI
02/07/08 Steve's Guitars Carbondale CO
02/08/08 Far East Center Grand Junction CO
02/09/08 Avogadro's Number Ft. Collins CO
02/10/08 Fox Theatre Boulder CO
02/15/08 AcousticMusicSanDiego San Diego CA
02/16/08 McCabe's Santa Monica CA
02/17/08 Freight & Salvage Berkeley CA
02/21/08 WOW Hall, Comm. Ctr. for the Perf. Arts Eugene OR
02/22/08 The Aladdin Theater Portland OR
02/23/08 Triple Door Seattle WA
03/26/08 Club Passim Cambridge MA
03/27/08 Tupelo Music Hall Londonderry NH
03/28/08 Wilde Auditorium West Hartford CT
03/29/08 Joe's Pub New York NY
03/30/08 The Avalon Theatre Easton MD
04/02/08 Jammin' Java Vienna VA
04/03/08 World Cafe Live Philadelphia PA
04/04/08 Club Cafe Pittsburgh PA
04/05/08 Brighton Center For the Performing Arts Brighton MI
04/06/08 The South Gate House Newport KY
04/09/08 The Music Mill Indianapolis IN
04/10/08 High Noon Saloon Madison WI
04/11/08 Old Town School of Folk Music Chicago IL
04/12/08 Shank Hall Milwaukee WI
04/13/08 Cedar Cultural Center Minneapolis MN

Everything Absent Or Distorted - local heroes make an appearance at the Hi-Dive. Yee-haw.

02-16 Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Pela - their MySpace page lists this show on March 10, the Hi-Dive says March 3... At any rate they rocked the house last time they played there.

03-?? Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Grand Archives, the current band of former Band Of Horses dude Mat Brooke. This is gooooood stuff.

03-04 Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Sons & Daughters are coming to the Hi-Dive with Bodies Of Water (one of my new favorite bands)!

03-17 Atlanta, GA - The Earl *
03-18 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
03-21 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
03-22 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
03-23 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
03-24 Cambridge, MA - Middle East (Downstairs)
03-25 Montreal, Quebec - La Sala Rossa
03-26 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
03-28 Chicago, IL - Double Door
03-29 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater
03-31 Denver, CO - Hi-Dive
04-01 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
04-03 Seattle, WA - Neumos
04-04 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richard's on Richards
04-05 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
04-07 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall

* with Citay
via

Get ready for the Hotel Cafe Tour 2008! This tour's artists include Ingrid Michaelson, Cary Brothers, Sara Bareilles, Josh Radin, Bob Schneider, Dan Wilson, Meiko, Priscilla Ahn, Kate Havnevik, Eric Hutchinson, Greg Laswell, Jessie Baylin, Jim Bianco, William Fitzsimmons, AM & Christopher Denny. Above all I hope we get Jim Bianco and Bob Schneider...

3/6/2008 San Diego, CA — Belly Up Tavern
3/7/2008 Santa Barbara, CA — Stateside
3/8/2008 Anaheim, CA — House of Blues
3/9/2008 Los Angeles, CA — Hotel Café
3/10/2008 Tucson, AZ — Club Congress (WxSW)
3/11/2008 Tempe, AZ — The Club House
3/13/2008 Austin, TX — Parish (SxSW)
3/14/2008 Dallas, TX — House of Blues
3/15/2008 Houston, TX — Red Room
3/17/2008 Birmingham, AL — WorkPlay
3/18/2008 Nashville, TN — Exit/In
3/19/2008 Atlanta, GA — Center Stage
3/20/2008 Chapel Hill, NC — Cat's Cradle
3/21/2008 Annapolis, MD — Ram's Head Tavern
3/22/2008 Philadelphia, PA — World Café Live
3/24/2008 New York, NY — Fillmore @ Irving
3/25/2008 Boston, MA — Paradise Rock Club
3/26/2008 Ithaca, NY — State Theatre
3/27/2008 Pittsburgh, PA — Mr Small's Theatre
3/28/2008 Chicago, IL — Park West
3/29/2008 Madison, WI — High Noon
3/31/2008 Minneapolis, MN — Fine Line
4/1/2008 Kansas City, MO — Record Bar
4/3/2008 Boulder, CO — Fox Theatre
4/4/2008 Denver, CO — Bluebird Theatre
4/5/2008 Salt Lake City, UT — Avalon Theatre
4/7/2008 Boise, ID — Big Easy
4/8/2008 Seattle, WA — Neumos
4/9/2008 Portland, OR — Wonder Ballroom
4/11/2008 San Francisco, CA — Great American Music Hall
4/12/2008 Los Angeles, CA — Henry Fonda Theatre

purchase tickets

Blitzen Trapper is returning! I missed them twice last year and don't intend to do so again...

02-22 Seattle, WA - University of Washington #
02-28 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill *
02-29 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour *!
03-01 San Diego, CA - Casbah *
03-02 Phoenix, AZ - Modified *
03-04 Denton, TX - Hailey's *
03-05 Houston, TX - Walter's on Washington *
03-06 Hattiesburg, MS - Thirsty Hippo %
03-07 Tallahassee, FL - The Beta Bar *
03-08 Everglades National Park, FL - Langerado Festival
03-09 Jacksonville, FL - The Eclipse *
03-11 Birmingham, AL - BottleTree *
03-13 Austin, TX - Yard Dog Gallery (Schubas SXSW party)
03-14 Austin, TX - SXSW
03-15 Austin, TX - SXSW
03-16 Norman, OK - The Opolis *
03-17 Columbia, MO - Mojo's *$
03-19 Nashville, TN - Exit In *
03-20 Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn *
03-21 Columbia, SC - New Brookland Tavern *
03-22 Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle *
03-23 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 *
03-25 Washington, DC - Black Cat *
03-26 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's *
03-27 Cambridge, MA - Middle East *
03-29 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
03-30 Worcester, MA - Clark University *
04-01 Montreal, Quebec - La Salla Rossa *
04-02 Toronto, Ontario - El Mocambo *
04-03 Buffalo, NY - Mohawk Place *
04-04 Cleveland, OH - The Grog Shop *
04-05 Detroit, MI - The Magic Stick *
04-06 Chicago, IL - Schubas *
04-08 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon *
04-09 Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry *
04-10 Grinnell, IA - Grinnell College *
04-11 Omaha, NE - The Slowdown *
04-12 Lawrence, KS - Jackpot *
04-14 Denver, CO - Hi-Dive *
04-15 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge *
04-17 Vancouver, British Columbia - Media Club *
04-18 Seattle, WA - Neumo's *
04-19 Portland, OR - Holocene *

# with Menomena
* with Fleet Foxes
! with Grand Archives
% with Beach House, Papercuts
$ with Mahjongg
via

Cloud Cult - the only date that matters. Yay!

05-17 Larimer Lounge, Denver, CO

my top albums of 2007 #20-11

20

Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
I never got into Spoon until Gimme Fiction. Ga x 5 is a lot better.
TLOBF review

19

Georgie James - Places
2007 was a great year for indie pop...
TLOBF review

18

Elvis Perkins - Ash Wednesday
This is a lovely album. I am still kicking myself for missing Elvis Perkins In Dearland opening for My Morning Jacket way back in January. At least seeing him play would have kept that evening from being a total bust...
TLOBF review

17

Panda Bear - Person Pitch
This album is so great I didn't even bother with that Animal Collective one... :)
TLOBF loves...

16

Cloud Cult - The Meaning Of 8
I fell in love with this band from the first time I heard the album. I was also fortunate enough to catch them live twice this year, one of the best live bands I've seen.

15

Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
I'm pretty sure I'm in love with everything that Zach Condon creates.
TLOBF review

14

Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
I have never been able to get much into Iron & Wine and almost didn't even bother with this one. I'm sure glad I gave it a chance though, this is some of the most gorgeous music to come out this year.

13

Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover
Spencer Krug is god.
TLOBF review

12

Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
And Kevin Barnes just keeps on delivering the goods...
TLOBF review

11

White Rabbits - Fort Nightly
One of the strongest debut albums in recent memory. Calypso rock at its finest, and a fabulous live band to boot.

Stay tuned for more tomorrow...

the best of 2007... part 2

Are we halfway through 2007 already??? I should believe it, what with all the new releases this year that I can't seem to keep up with. I have done the best I can, and would like to share the fruits of my "labor" with you - part 2 of 2007's best new music tracklist:

01 Elvis Perkins - While You Were Sleeping
02 Cloud Cult - Pretty Voice
03 Revival - Favorite One
04 Get Him Eat Him - The Coronation Show
05 White Rabbits - While We Go Dancing
06 Good Shoes - Never Meant To Hurt You
07 Arctic Monkeys - Fluorescent Adolescent
08 The Veils - One Night On Earth
09 Dan Deacon - Pink Batman
10 Handsome Furs - Dead + Rural
11 Art Brut - People In Love
12 The Teeth - Shoulderblade
13 Pela - Trouble With River Cities
14 Voxtrot - Firecracker
15 The National - Apartment Story
16 Elliott Smith - Looking Over My Shoulder
17 Ryan Adams - Pearls On A String
18 Bright Eyes - If The Brakeman Turns My Way
19 Page France - Pigeons
20 Blonde Redhead - Spring And By Summer Fall
21 Narrator - A Decade In Kentucky

download it!

And I've re-posted my tracklist from January-March at sendspace, in case you missed it the first time around:

01 - The Apples In Stereo - Can You Feel It?
02 - Deerhoof - +81
03 - LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great
04 - The Broken West - Down In The Valley
05 - Apostle Of Hustle - Chances Are
06 - Of Montreal - A Sentence Of Sorts In Kongsvinger
07 - Menomena - Air Aid
08 - CYHSY - Mama, Won't You Keep Them Castles In The Air...
09 - Illinois - Nosebleed
10 - Modest Mouse - Spitting Venom
11 - The Arcade Fire - Keep The Car Running
12 - The Besnard Lakes - Devastation
13 - Panda Bear - Take Pills
14 - Beirut - Scenic World (Version)
15 - Andrew Bird - Dark Matter
16 - Jamie T - Calm Down Dearest
17 - Dr. Dog - Worst Trip
18 - The Shins - Girl Sailor
19 - Papercuts - Take The 227th Exit
20 - A Sunny Day In Glasgow - 5:15 Train
21 - Do Make Say Think - A Tender History In Rust

download it!

And again, my favorite albums, take two. These are the ones I listened to the most from April - June... some released during those months, some released earlier that I didn't hear about or have a chance to get to (no order here other than good ol' alphabetical...). I tried to limit myself to 10 again, I really did. But to no avail:

Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare:
I gotta say that nobody is more surprised than me at how much I am loving this album. Last year's overhyped Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not didn't really do a whole lot for me. The sophomore effort from these kids is a completely different story. It's fabulous.

Favorite tracks: Brianstorm; Teddy Picker; Fluorescent Adolescent; 505







Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated:
The UK isn't holding anything back this year; Art Brut has delivered another highly enjoyable sophomore album from across the pond.

Favorite tracks: Direct Hit; People In Love; I Will Survive; Post Soothing Out











Bright Eyes - Cassadaga:
I wasn't expecting a lot from this album, especially after the mediocre showing of the Four Winds EP. But Conor yet again turns in a very nice effort.

Favorite tracks: Clairaudients (Kill Or Be Killed); Four Winds; If The Brakeman Turns My Way; Classic Cars









Cloud Cult - The Meaning Of 8:
Cloud Cult has been, hands down, my find of the year so far. I'd never heard of them until about 4-5 months ago, but they've consumed much of my time during those months. They are incredibly talented both live and on record, they are environmentally sound, they are amazing. If you haven't heard them, do it now.

Favorite tracks: Chain Reaction; Chemicals Collide; Pretty Voice; Your 8th Birthday; The Deaf Girl's Song






Dan Deacon - Spiderman Of The Rings:
I never thought I liked the so-called "electronica" music. This year is seeing LCD Soundsystem and Dan Deacon unequivocally change my mind.

Favorite tracks: The Crystal Cat; Wham City; Pink Batman









Elvis Perkins - Ash Wednesday:
It's hard not to feel guilty sometimes by gleaning so much enjoyment from someone else's suffering. In the case of Elvis Perkins, his father (Anthony Perkins) died of AIDS when Elvis was just a teenager. And if that wasn't enough, his mother was aboard one of the planes flown into the World Trade Center on September 11. If only we could all take our tragedies and craft something so lovely as Ash Wednesday...

Favorite tracks: While You Were Sleeping; May Day!; Emile's Vietnam In The Sky; Ash Wednesday




Good Shoes - Think Before You Speak:
Even more from the 2007 UK invasion. This is not a deep album, but it sure is a helluva a lot of fun.

Favorite tracks: The Photos On My Wall; Never Meant To Hurt You; Small Town Girl; Ice Age











Narrator - All That To The Wall:
Bouncy, spazzy, catchy, and wonderful.

Favorite tracks: August 32nd; Speeding Up The Gang; All The Tired Horses; A Decade In Kentucky














The National - Boxer:
Good fucking lord. I'm not too keen on giving away my secrets before the end of the year, but this one and Andrew Bird's Armchair Apocrypha are (at this early stage) duking it out for album of the year. This one is like auditory crack, it is.

Favorite tracks: Fake Empire; Slow Show; Apartment Story; Gospel









Page France - ...And The Family Telephone:
Since the first time I heard Page France, I felt that Michael Nau's voice should be terribly annoying to me. But it isn't... In fact, it's rather endearing. Even more endearing is this album filled to the brim with incredible melodies, lyrics, and musicianship. Brilliant.

Favorite tracks: Wet Dog Afternoon; Be My Pianist; Pigeons; Here's A Telephone






Pela - Anytown Graffiti:
Seeing these Brooklynites live a few weeks ago no doubt has a lot to do with their album appearing here. They are incredible live, and my enjoyment of Anytown Graffiti has increased exponentially since the show. Really really great stuff.

Favorite tracks: Waiting On The Stairs; Drop Me Off; Trouble With River Cities; Song Writes Itself








Revival - Horses Of War:
I guess when you consider how I've taken to all things horses the past couple of years, it should come as no surprise that I fell in love with album immedately. Another great new find.

Favorite tracks: OK, honestly? This is one of those rare albums where every track is just as strong as the next. I have tried to choose favorites, but every time I listen to this album, the conclusion is always the same. I can't choose. You should have seen me trying to pick a song for my playlist! And I'm sure I'll change my mind on that tomorrow... lol.




Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger:
I'm admitting it now - I was afraid to have high hopes for this album. Ryan hasn't released anything "officially" since 2005, which was hit or miss for me. I loved Cold Roses, I liked Jacksonville City Nights, and I likely listened to 29 about 3 times before deleting it from the iPod. But apparently I needn't have worried at all... with Easy Tiger Ryan has released a masterpiece, critics be damned. I love this album, it's a very healthy mix of all the styles Ryan's adopted over the years. And like many of his fans, I've harbored some concerns about him in the past few years... I gotta say that nobody is more thrilled than me to know that he's working clean and sober these days. xoxo.

Favorite tracks: Goodnight Rose; Two; Tears Of Gold; Pearls On A String

Voxtrot - Voxtrot:
Poor Voxtrot. Over the past couple of years they've released 3 EP's to some very critical acclaim. Come their first full-length, though, they've had to really take one on the chin. Personally, I don't get all the negativism about this album. I think it's amazing.

Favorite tracks: Introduction; Firecracker; Easy; Every Day






White Rabbits - Fort Nightly:
My goodness, where did this band come from? I love this album, and I'm proud to say that I heard of them before I read about them on Pitchfork OR NME... yeah, that's right.

Favorite tracks: Kid On My Shoulders; Navy Wives; While We Go Dancing; Tourist Trap








And of course, some more albums that are certainly worth a listen:

Aereogramme - My Heart Has A Wish That You Would Not Go
Au Revoir Simone - The Bird Of Music
Battles - Mirrored
Bear Colony - We Came Here To Die
Ben + Vesper - All This Could Kill You
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Baby 81
Blackstrap - Steal My Horses And Run
Blonde Redhead - 23
Cary Brothers - Who You Are
The Clientele - God Save The Clientele
The Comas - Spells
Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond
Dntel - Dumb Luck
Dungen - Tio Bitar
Electric Soft Parade - No Need To Be Downhearted
Elliott Smith - New Moon
Feist - The Reminder
The Field - From Here We Go Sublime
Fields - Everything Last Winter
Frog Eyes - Tears Of The Valedictorian
Fujiya & Miyagi - Transparent Things
Get Him Eat Him - Arms Down
Grant-Lee Phillips - Strangelet
Grinderman - Grinderman
Guster - Satellite EP
Handsome Furs - Plague Park
Idlewild - Make Another World
Joanna Newsom - Joanna Newsom & The Ys Street Band
The Kissaway Trail - The Kissaway Trail
Klaxons - Myths Of The Near Future
Land Of Talk - Applause Cheer Boo Hiss
Maximo Park - Our Earthly Pleasures
Moonbabies - Moonbabies At The Ballroom
Mouthful Of Bees - The End
Neko Case - Live At ACL
Odawas - Raven And The White Night
Ola Podrida - Ola Podrida
Palomar - All Things, Forests
Peel - Peel
Pelican - City Of Echoes
The Photo Atlas - No, Not Me, Ever
Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers - No More Beautiful World
The Rosebuds - Night Of The Furies
The Sea And Cake - Everybody
The Shaky Hands - The Shaky Hands
Shapes And Sizes - Split Lips, Winning Hips, A Shiner
The Tailors - Wakey Wakey
The Teeth - You're My Lover Now
Travis - The Boy With No Name
Tupelo Honeys - Tupelo Honeys Salute You
The Twilight Sad - Fourteen Autumns, Fifteen Winters
The Veils - Nux Vomica
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
Yacht - I Believe In You. Your Magic Is Real

Crazy to think that some albums I love won't even make it into the top 50 for this year.

Another yay for 2007!

truth time

A couple of confessions for you tonight. First, about why I keep a blog - not necessarily to inform, but more because I'm just too lazy to keep a journal. Music is really one of the most important things in my life, and while I love to get hits and comments and whatnot, this thing is here mainly for my own personal recollection. And second (believe it or not) I only started listening to indie music about a year and a half ago. True, true. And trust me, at my age, I'm kicking myself for missing out on hundreds of fantastic bands that were making music during my younger years. I just never knew better. Naive as it seems, I figured all the best bands were on the radio - the only exceptions being the folk acts I discovered during my Moxy Fruvous rock tourism days...

Having confessed that, one of the things I love about my blog is that it allows me, at times, to pinpoint the exact moment when I became obsessed with a certain band. Tonight, for instance, I can look back and see that it was February 16, 2007 when I fell head over heels in love with Minnesota's Cloud Cult. It was that same day when I discovered that Cloud Cult was playing the Larimer Lounge on May 10. Anticipating something for 3 months does not always turn out so well... hopes and expectations are raised and often shattered.

So what happens after nearly 3 months of Cloud Cult anticipation? My evening began when I left my house at 10:00. I'm really too old for this... :) Got to Larimer at least in time to see 30 minutes of Achille Lauro's set. A cursory glance at their MySpace page earlier this evening informed me that they are of the "Lounge/Death Metal/Jazz" persuasion, which interested me not at all, which is why I left pretty much in time to see Cloud Cult at 11:00. Lucky for me the show was running late, as these local guys put on a damn fine show. Their last song, introduced as their newest song, was fucking amazing. Seems they're having a CD release show at the Hi-Dive on May 31, and I'm kinda feeling the need to attend.

And Cloud Cult? Wow. I cannot remember the last time, if ever, I felt the way I feel about tonight's show: completely indescribable - it seems corny to say that it's as if I was transported to another time or place, but... As I sit here now, it's hard to believe that I was actually at a Cloud Cult show tonight, it just seems so surreal. Perhaps it was the two painters on stage - I've heard that CC often has an artist creating a work of art as they play. I wondered whether the Larimer Lounge stage was big enough for a painter, but hey, we got two. One was Craig's wife Connie, the other (name escapes me) doubled as a trumpeteer. Awesome. Besides the painters, there was a smoke machine and some cool lighting effects. But above all it's Craig's songs that take the breath away. This band is incredible beyond my ability to describe.

I was not able to tear myself away from my Cloud Cult-asm enough to get a setlist, but I did note below some songs that I'm sure they played. Of course there was more, but damn if I can remember.... Some tidbits to share:

-Craig played the entire set with one shoe on and one shoe off. I'm pretty sure that he had 2 shoes when they were getting set up. He is such an artist... :)

-I was nearly in tears when they played "Thanks". Seriously. I don't cry at shows... not that Your 8th Birthday doesn't reduce me to a blubbering mass every time I hear it, but I sense that they don't play that song live too often. Yes, I was very moved by this performance...

-They closed the show (main) with Happy Hippo - Craig said that the last time they were in Denver to promote Advice From The Happy Hippopotamus there were 2 people at the show. At least I don't feel so bad about being late to the Cloud Cult party...

-"That's the end of our set but there's no backstage to run to here...". Lol. They played a two song encore, which I am certain ended with Take Your Medicine. Beautiful ending with some audience participation.

I know they played these:

Chain Reaction
Please Remain Calm
Chemicals Collide
Pretty Voice
Thanks
The Deaf Girl's Song
Happy Hippo
Take Your Medicine

Yes, I love this band... Thank you Steve for turning me on. 8>

You can take it in stride
Or you can take it right between the eyes
Suck up, suck up
And take your medicine
It’s a good day, it’s a good day
To face the hard things

pretty voice

Check it out - and if you live in the Denver area, go see Cloud Cult at the Larimer Lounge on May 10. If you don't live in the Denver area, see them wherever you can. :) And buy The Meaning Of 8. It's fucking beautiful.

some minnesota love

A couple of weeks ago I found a new band to obsess over... a band which comes from Minneapolis and goes by the name of Cloud Cult. Since hearing their new album, The Meaning Of 8 (due out 4/10/2007), I just can't get enough. Yes, this is old news I know... but it begs the question: just what are they putting in the water in Minneapolis?

Beyond Cloud Cult I've recently "discovered" two more Minneapolis bands who've recently put out some really good shit.

Mouthful Of Bees. Their record The End was released on 2/15/07 and is of the indie art/power pop persuasion. Of course this is not the first blog ever written about Mouthful Of Bees, and in some light research (i.e. the first page of a "mouthful of bees" google search) I found several blog posts about them. Unsurprising to me is that I saw them at least twice compared to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah & fellow Minnesotans Tapes n' Tapes. Mouthful Of Bees skillfully wind their way through rockers as well as slower tempo songs. The album's production is fuzzy, and there are sporadic bursts of noise (hence the CYHSY comparison?) but at the center of it all are some real fun songs. Personally, I rather like the fuzziness in some cases. Who wants to forever listen to slick production that completely masks the spontaneity and even heart of the songs? So are these youngsters poised to become the next indie blog darlings? Time will certainly tell... just remember that although you may not have heard them here first, at least you heard them here before you heard them on Pitchfork... :)

Listen to The Now. Buy the album.



Download "The Now" (mp3)
from "The End"
by Mouthful of Bees (Afternoon Records)
Buy at eMusic

The Original Mark Edwards. He's not as new as and not quite as "my cup of tea" as Mouthful Of Bees, still The Original Mark Edwards released a great album entitled The Doom Loop on February 13. Sadly, a google search turned up precious little information about this man. Besides his MySpace page, the most I could find (well, OK, so I looked for like 5 minutes, but I'm lazy!) was at the Minnewiki. The album? Stylistically, it's all over the place. Not that that's a bad thing. Keeps you guessing, at the very least. I grabbed the album from emusic the other day.... don't get me wrong, I love emusic, but I wish they'd have some sort of liner notes downloads to go with the albums. From the Twin Cities City Pages I learned this:

It's also a solo project in the most extreme sense; just check out The Doom Loop's credit line: "OME: guitars, vocals, bass, drums, beat box, Wurlitzer, kitchen pots, violin, electric kazoo, synthesizers, hand claps, tambourine, programming, piano, toys, clarinet, organ." Amazingly, that's about it. The liner notes go on to mention that one Steve Goold, a real brick house of a drummer, performed on half of one song, and that Edwards's wife Heidi sang backup on two others. Mixing duties on a handful of tracks were farmed out. Otherwise, everything the listener hears on The Doom Loop—with its six-part vocal harmonies, unholy warbles of recircuited children's toys, and countless tracks of guitar, synth, and kitchen utensil clamor, all twisted and chunked together like so many Rubik's cube blocks into no solid color but something that much more interesting, nay, original—all of this is the work of one man.

He experiments with vocals, he experiments with instruments, and the result is an incredibly likable album. I've only listened to The Doom Loop a couple of times, but I can say that the comparisons to The Flaming Lips, Neutral Milk Hotel and Apples In Stereo are not unfounded. Think 1960's pop meets 2000's synth experimental. Very nice.

Now listen to these songs and buy The Doom Loop, too. Yay Minneapolis!



Download "The Doom Loop" (mp3)
from "The Doom Loop"
by The Original Mark Edwards (Princess Records)
Buy at eMusic

Download "Danger, Danger" (mp3)
from "The Doom Loop"
by The Original Mark Edwards (Princess Records)

although i'm not yet certain of the meaning of 8...

...I do know that I am completely smitten with a band out of Minnesota that goes by the name of Cloud Cult. I had never heard of the band until a week or so ago when I was catching up on one of my most favorite blogs - The Sneeze. If you don't read The Sneeze, you should start right this minute. I like to think of it as the Seinfeld of blogging... at it's core it's really about nothing, but it's fucking hilarious as shit. I've been a fan of The Sneeze for a couple of years, ever since I was turned on to the travesty that is Steve, Don't Eat It! Brilliant.

It was this post that caused my newfound crush. Steve at The Sneeze recommended Cloud Cult, so really, how could I pass up a chance to check them out? After all, Steve is a friend of Guster, so he has a good track record as far as musical taste goes. I managed to track down a copy of their upcoming album entitled The Meaning Of 8 (to be released April 10, 2007 - buy it!!). It sat on my iPod for about a week, and then this evening, for reasons not entirely clear to me, I was hit with the urge to give it a listen. I've played it 3 times through now, pretty much nonstop. It's that good.

Being the obsessive music fan that I am, I thought I'd do a little Cloud Cult research. God bless the internet. I was stunned to learn that The Meaning Of 8 will be Cloud Cult's 5th album!!! This is a critically acclaimed indie darling of a band that I hadn't heard of until roughly 7 days ago. Consider this: Pitchfork rated their 2005 release, entitled Advice From The Happy Hippopotamus, a whopping 8.3. Holy shit. Rest assured that will be the next "new" album that I check out.

From what I understand, The Meaning Of 8 was conceived out of a tragedy; in 2002 the two-year-old son of front man Craig Minowa passed away unexpectedly. Such knowledge only causes the lyrics to make me cry... :) During my Cloud Cult research, I noticed a lot of reviews likening The Meaning Of 8 to The Arcade Fire. I can somewhat see this comparison - Cloud Cult certainly embodies some Arcade Fire-ish elements, such as the urgency of the music and the grand instrumentation. Still, Cloud Cult projects their very own sound. And it is a brilliant sound.

Naturally, I visited Cloud Cult's homepage as a matter of course. And as if the indie pop brilliance of The Meaning Of 8 wasn't enough to win me over, I discovered that the band not only eschews major labels in favor of self promotion, but they are also dedicated environmentalists. They have this note when you click to enter their store:

Welcome,
We are happy to have you in our little Cloud Cult shop. As you probably know, we are a totally independent band. All of these Cloud Cult goodies are made with organic and/or recycled materials, and green energy credits are purchased to negate any greenhouse gases produced in manufacturing these items (that means we pay to have a lot of wind power pumped into the grid in order to provide all of the electricity we need to make this yummy stuff). We also plant ten trees for every 1,000 albums sold just to be sure any other pollutants are absorbed. We have turned away major record label interests so we can be sure we can maintain control of providing Cloud Cult music in the most environmentally friendly manner possible. By purchasing your Cloud Cult products from this website, the band receives a much higher portion of the money than if you purchase anywhere else. So please support the band by getting your goodies here. Thanks.

I command you to go forth and buy lots of Cloud Cult stuff from their website!!!!! Please also check them out live (I'm so excited for a Denver date!!!):

3/15: Austin, TX - SXSW - Showcase on 3/15 at 10pm Emo's
3/16: Austin, TX - SXSW - Daytime Fader Magazine Show
3/17: Austin, TX - SXSW - Daytime WOXY.com Show
3/17: Austin, TX - SXSW - 6pm Denver Post Show
3/30: Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater
4/3: Atlanta, GA - Smith's Old Bar
4/4: Athens, GA - Tasty World (18+) $5
4/7: Elkins, WV
4/11: Washington D.C. - Black Cat (all ages) $10
4/13: Philadelphia, PA
4/14: New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
4/15: New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
4/16: Boston, MA
4/18: Chicago, IL - Schubas (21+) $10
4/19: Madison, WI
4/24: Bozeman, MT - The Filling Station (21+) $5
4/25: Missoula, MT - The Loft (18+) $8
4/26: Portland, OR - Fez Ballroom (21+) $10
4/27: Seattle, WA - Neumos (all ages) $10
4/28: Salem, OR - Willamette University (Brown Field)
4/29: Eugene, OR
5/4 : SanFrancisco, CA
5/5: Los Angeles, CA
5/6: San Diego, CA
5/10: Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge
5/11: Omaha, NE
5/12: Kansas City, MO