Spoon - Got Nuffin EP

download now

Got Nuffin is the sixth EP by the indie rock band Spoon. It is set to be released June 30th, 2009 by Merge Records. This EP will mark the first newly recorded music for Spoon since the release of 2007's Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga.

R.I.P., Michael.

i was definitely one of those kids who danced in front of the television with a hairbrush microphone whenever michael came on tv. for me, he was a childhood idol of sorts. his contributions to the music industry were endless.


we'll miss you, mj.

Portugal. The Man - The Satanic Satanist

download here

from equalvision records:
For The Satanic Satanist, Gourley and his bandmates - Zachary Scott Carothers/bass, and Ryan Neighbors/keyboards, and the drummer for the album, Garrett Lunceford - flew to Boston’s Camp Street Studios to work with Paul Q. Kolderie, whose previous clients include both the Pixies and Radiohead, with additional production help from Adam Taylor (The Lemonheads, The Dresdon Dolls) and Cornershop sitarist/keyboardist Anthony Saffery.

"People Say," the lead-off track, finds Gourley speaking out against the human cost of war. On “Lovers in Love,” the band works the groove like Isaac Hayes or Curtis Mayfield in their blaxploitation days, while “Work All Day” could pass for questlove slowing down the beat to “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise).” The Satanic Satanist also finds them working more with loops and samples than they have since their 2006 debut.

this album is SO GOOD you guys. i feel kind of douchey posting this a month before it's officially released, but i'm pretty excited about it and want you to listen asap.

side note: the album has only 10 tracks, not 11. so when the tenth track "Morning" comes up as "Track 11", just relabel it track 10.

Elvis Costello - This Years Model

download here

released in 1978, This Years Model has managed to remain extremely contemporary. this album quickly become my favorite to put on while i'm driving in the car, especially now that i can roll the windows down and crank the volume up. its so high energy and fun, probably my favorite costello record. check out tracks Pump It Up, The Beat, Chelsea (I Don't Want to Go) ((which can definitely be seen as an Arctic Monkeys influence)), and No Action. But really, all tracks here are worth a listen, or 20.

Discovery - LP

download here

Discovery is keyboardist/producer from Vampire Weekend Rostam Batmanglij and Ra Ra Riot singer Wes Miles. Due out July 7th, this album seems to be the electro-pop response to summer.
Featuring guest appearances by Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig and Dirty Projectors' Angel Deradoorian, and a cover of Jackson 5's "I Want You Back".

Jeff Beck - Truth

download here

from last.fm
Jeff Beck isn’t your typical guitar legend. His goal, in fact, is to make you forget that he plays guitar.
“I don’t understand why some people will only accept a guitar if it has an instantly recognizable guitar sound,” says Beck. “Finding ways to use the same guitar people have been using for 50 years to make sounds that no one has heard before is truly what gets me off. I love it when people hear my music but can’t figure out what instrument I’m playing. What a cool compliment.”
Like few guitarists before him, Beck plays the entire guitar. Using his fingers instead of a guitar pick for greater speed and control over the fretboard, Beck adds deft twists of the volume and tone knobs to shape the notes as he’s playing them and further bends sounds into a rubbery tangle with his controlled cruelty on the whammy bar.
Artists featured on this album include Rod Stewart, Ron Wood, Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Nicky Hopkins, and John Paul Jones.

Nas - Illmatic

download here

just click that button up there. that's all you need to know.

Neko Case - Middle Cyclone

download here

from pitchfork:
Neko Case is a force of nature. Her voice can knock you over-- it's one of the strongest in any genre. She has immense control and surprising physical and stylistic range, able to jump from cowgirl honkytonk to pop muse to Americana banshee with ease and grace. However, on her fifth studio album, Middle Cyclone , she literally becomes a force of nature: Case sings opener "This Tornado Loves You" from the point of view of an actual tornado, tearing up trailer parks and cutting a 65-mile swath in search for its beloved: "I carved your name across three counties," she sings defiantly as the guitars whip around her and the snare patters frantically, suggesting destruction can be a demonstration of love. Later she's a cyclone, an elephant, a killer whale, a dove, a magpie, and possibly a mollusk. Middle Cyclone features the same core group she's been playing with for years-- including guitarist Paul Rigby, bass player Tom V. Ray, multi-instrumentalist Jon Rauhouse, and back-up singer Kelly Hogan-- along with a supporting cast that includes regulars Garth Hudson of the Band, M. Ward, Sarah Harmer, and members of Calexico, the Sadies, and Giant Sand. With an increasing familiarity between them, this cast finds new ways to sell her songs and couch Case's vocals in unpredictable arrangements.

side note: neko case is actually opening a recording studio at the old catamount arts buliding in my town, saint johnsbury. which, obviously, is awesome.

link crappage

***all links are now back up. thanks for your patience!***

so i've had a slight fall out with mediafire this morning and currently all of the links to music are down. this will be fixed by the afternoon. sorry for any inconvenience.

to maybe tie you over a bit until then, here's a taste of what i'll be posting later this afternoon. from her new album middle cyclone, this is neko case with the song "people got a lotta nerve".

Robert Randolph & The Family Band - Live at the Wetlands

download here

"Randolph sends lightning bolts through the audience in this August 2001 recording at a now-shuttered Manhattan club. He blends the showmanship of his blues inspiration, Stevie Ray Vaughn, with his own unique instrumental mastery, transforming his steel guitar into something more like a lead vocalist. Randolph constantly makes his 13-string guitar play call-and-response with his own singing. It's the musical equivalent of a white-water thrill ride." --Ted Drozdowski

this stuff is siiiick blues jamming. your entire body will be moving to this album. all members of the band possess a talent hard to come by in any genre. i dare you not to dance.

Beirut - Live at The Music Hall of Williamsburg

download here

i've heard many good things about live beirut for a while. if clips such as this one don't grab your heart and tug a little, then you probably won't be too interested in downloading the album.

if, however, you ARE a beirut fan, i'd suggest scooping this album up. beirut's shows are full of energy and passion, and the crowd totally eats it up. there's a wonderful cover of Brazil here, as well as a few b-side tunes that to my knowledge haven't been formally released.

Murder by Death & Amanda Palmer - Split

download here

these two tracks were released on 7'' vinyl, with Amanda Palmer recording the Murder by Death song "Three Men Hanging" (featuring Zoë Keating on cello and Lyndon Chester on violin) and Murder by Death recording Palmer's "Another Year".

Say Hi - Oohs and Aahs

download here

give this a listen if you like bands such as Nada Surf, Ra Ra Riot, Headlights, and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin. i'm a rather large fan of the song "Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh". :D

The Mars Volta - Octahedron

download here

from inthenews:
Octahedron is the fifth studio record in six years from the Mars Volta and sees the group eschew grand concept albums and instead focus on channelling their creativity into eight bluesy numbers which all stay on the right side of the ten-minute mark. Not only does the album title mirror the number of tracks, but there is a discernible method to this madness, which is more than can be said for some of the band’s previous indulgences. There is enough flamboyance to appease hardcore fans, but newcomers will be drawn in by the lilting melodies of With Twilight As My Guide and the swaggering rock of Teflon.

"These eight tracks make up the Mars Volta's most consistently compelling slab since 2005's salsafied Frances the Mute. But make no mistake: Rodriguez-Lopez still favours 12 solos where one will do." - Spin

"As intoxicating as they are infuriating, the Mars Volta flow between Latin flavoured jazz-fusion and tight, muscular rock." - Guardian

Against Me! (is) Reinventing Axl Rose

download here

this is one of the most impassioned albums i've listened to. a must have. i can't say enough good things about it.
favorite tracks: Pints Of Guinness Make You Strong, We Laugh At Danger (And Break All The Rules), Reinventing Axl Rose, Baby, I'm An Anarchist!

The Tallest Man On Earth - Shallow Grave

download here

from pitchfork:
Matsson is an adept fingerpicker, and his guitar is easily as central as his voice, which is high, crackling, and rich. Much like Dylan himself, Matsson has mined the American south for inspiration, and his frantic strumming and front-porch poetry recall everyone from the Carter Family to Lead Belly to, most noticeably, country bluesman Mississippi John Hurt.
Matsson's melodies are remarkably pliant, and while it's understandable to be skeptical of another skinny dude with a mustache, a guitar, and a worn-out copy of The Anthology of American Folk Music, the more time you invest in Shallow Grave, the more you'll realize how unusually memorable it is. Ultimately, Shallow Grave transcends comparison-- which is saying an awful lot, given the popularity of its prototype-- and Matsson is a natural-born folksinger, earnest, clever, and comforting.

thanks to eric for the recommendation.

CocoRosie - Coconuts, Plenty of Junk Food EP

download here

from last.fm:

CocoRosie is a duo from North America that was formed by Sierra Casady (Rosie) and Bianca Casady (Coco) in 2003. Sierra and Bianca Casady are North American half-Cherokee sisters. Sierra, the older of the two, was born in Iowa, and Bianca was born in Hawaii. Their mother nicknamed them Rosie and Coco, respectively, from which their musical act takes its name. Stylistically they may be assigned to the indie rock, psych folk, folk-tronic genres, and are sometimes associated with the new weird america movement. Sierra, who studied operatic vocal techniques, does the lead vocals and also plays guitar, harp and flute. Bianca is a percussionist and also beatboxes. The group also uses various objects such as toys to construct their unique sound. They were actively touring in most of 2004, playing across the U.S. and throughout Europe with artists such as TV on the Radio, Bright Eyes, Battles, Devendra Banhart, Busdriver among others.

i've only listened to the first track, but i'm already digging on this album pretty hard

there she goes again

hey guys. so here it is... the music blog i've been contemplating for months. i'm hoping to do a few posts per week. this blog will primarily feature full album downloads and video clips. i might do a review or two if i feel inspired... but mostly i'll leave the tunes at your discretion. then again, i hate not knowing what i'm about to download... so i'll probably be lazy and copy and paste something from last.fm or sommat. if there is a record or artist out there you'd like me to post/promote, feel free to let me know and i'll do my best to find it. feedback is more than welcome, and i appreciate comments letting me know if you're downloading anything so i can at least see if this blog is worth running in the first place.

i know i'm supposed to post some sort of disclaimer letting you know that piracy is bad and that the riaa is king. but i'm of the opinion that the riaa can suck my cock. sooo...fuck you, riaa. i'm going to post music. all you people out there can do as you please with it. though i WILL say... if you do happen to fancy a record, or an artist, please go see them on tour. that is, in my opinion, the number one way artists receive payment, unless of course they're self-funded, in which case... buy their music (i'm lookin' at you, AFP).

freddie mercury looks rather crooked up there and i'm having technical difficulties... but he's sexy so hopefully that'll blindside the lack of centeredness. wordz.
and i dont know how i feel about the font colors. meh. i'll probably change them soon.

now i'm thinkin...i'mma go post some musics.