2-25-12 - "Downtown Sugar" ~ The Long Time Darlings

Pittsburgh rockers The Long Time Darlings have been on the fringe of my consciousness for a while now, though I've yet to catch a show.  I picked up a freebie track ("Baby Doll") a while back and it comes up on the ol' iPod from time to time, and I enjoy it every time.  Then, I found out from my boss that guitarist Brian Sproul and his folks are long time* family friends of he and his wife.  Said boss forwarded me the link to this video, and you know what?  It's a pretty great song and a pretty great video.


* - totally unintentional, I swear.


You have to love a band whose info page on facebook includes such gems as "Record Label: Ha-ha! That's hilarious!" and "Band Interests: Beer, vinyl, hockey, whiskey, sex."  Rock bands just wanna have fun, you know.  And hockey is just plain awesome, eh?


So on to the video:

[per Brian, it's "a little risqué".  But only a little. Consider yourselves forewarned.]

"Don't bet against yourself, darling…

push your way to the front."

And you can get both Downtown Sugar and Baby Doll on Bandcamp for FREE.  So yeah, do that.  And  if you like these two tracks, then go buy their album, so they can afford to record more rockin' rock songs.  (Okay, that one was intentional, and I apologize.)

2-24-12 - "Song For You" ~ Jenny & Tyler

Here's one my little brother got me hooked on.  This duo met in college, started playing music together, fell in love, got married, and are living the dream of every hopeless romantic hipster musician.


The song starts out minimally, but builds and builds into a beautifully orchestrated arrangement with rich harmonies and deeply sincere lyrics.  There's not a lot of digging to be done to interpret this track, so just bask in the glow of the love expressed and the joy of the tune, and the sweet music video filmed in Seattle + Silverdale, WA:

Some good live performance videos out there, too.  Here are two good ones:

Also, they have a ton of freebies on their website, for the price of an e-mail address.  Ten songs (okay, two are duplicated, so eight songs) just like that; two more if you go to briterevolution (just now found this site; seems cool) and sign up.  Download and give it a listen, but if you like it, be sure to go back and support the artist financially (always the best policy for facilitating that good music continues to be made!)


(Aside: can I just say that I very much appreciate artists who post lyrics on their own sites?  songmeanings.net is great, but people mishear things a lot even on a site like that.  I just like to know that what I'm hearing is what they're saying, ya know?)


EDIT 2-26-12: oh look, MORE free tunes!  This time on noisetrade.com.

"Hear my song for you

I will not hold my tongue…"

2-21-12 - "Millenium" ~ Robbie Williams

So this one is somewhat tongue-in-cheek (I mean, late '90s pop, amirite?)  But despite the cheesiness of the song, it still has one of my favorite lyrics of all time, and on Fat Tuesday, I thought it was appropriate.

Ponder, if you would, the depth of this statement in light of today's first world societies and the shallowness of the religious "sacrifices" made during the upcoming season:

"Overdose at Christmas, give it up for Lent..."

2-16-12 - "Little Talks" ~ Of Monsters And Men

Heard this tune on WYEP en route out of Pittsburgh to WV for work this morning.  It's quite good; has a little bit of an Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros vibe (specifically the song "Home", with the female/male vocal tradeoff, and the female leads have some similar qualities...), and some solid lyrics.

The six-member outfit blends accordion and trumpet with acoustic guitars and keys, for a sound that's not quite unique (there's nothing new under the sun, after all) but quite enjoyable, and distinctive from the majority of stuff that's out there these days.

Oh yeah, and they're Icelandic... how about that?

Here's a live performance captured by Seattle's KEXP radio:

And  here's the recorded version (vevo link):

 "Little Talks" ~ Of Monsters And Men 

"There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back..."

"Well, tell her that I miss our little talks..."

2-15-12 - "Prophets" ~ A.C. Newman

Here's a pretty sweet song I heard on a rerun of How I Met Your Mother.  I'm not too snobbish to discover tunes through TV shows, so if you're that kind of hipster, deal with it.


A.C. (Carl) Newman may or may not be a familiar name to you (he wasn't to me, but that's just because I hadn't done my research until tonight).  This guy is a founding member of The New Pornographers (hmm, I can tell from listening to this song, now that I know...) and what's more, he's CANADIAN.  Just like Robin in the show, eh?


Anyway, I like the song.  It's catchy, but not too catchy; has pretty solid / motivational lyrics, and anchors a poignant scene in the show (but definitely stands up without the show... just sayin', it's one of those songs... like how "Rivers and Roads" was used in the final scene of the show Chuck.)

"I was a silent partner, I know
the part of the forest where you shouldn't go..."

2-12-12 - "Settler" ~ Balmorhea

I found this band on thesixtyone the other day (a site worth checking out - fun way to discover new tunes).  They're an instrumental outfit from Texas, named after a small town quite a ways away from the bigger cities.  Their sound, however, is much larger than their namesake.

Balmorhea (pronounced Bal-moor-ay) bring lush orchestration and soaring melodies, reminiscent of carefree summer days.  This track features a backbone of piano with strings along for the ride.  A subtle guitar breakdown  laced with ethereal vocal harmonies gives you a breather before the climax, when the pace picks up and claps join the strings and vocals in a manner reminiscent of The David Wax Museum.  This type of tune could easily be part of a movie soundtrack, but stands alone as well:

2-11-12 - "Now We Are Free" ~ Hans Zimmer / Lisa Gerrard

Great movie, great soundtrack, great composer, great singer.  That's all I have to say about that.

Wait, I lied... I have a bit more to say.  In investigating the lyrics(?) of this song, I read that it's not an actual language, but rather, glossolalia (sometimes known as "speaking in tongues"...)  Interesting, no?  We learned a new word today!

2-10-12 - "Needing/Getting" ~ OK Go

Yet another ridiculously fun music video from OK Go.  This one takes a different approach on the Rube Goldberg theme of the This Too Shall Pass video - now it's an electric car and some pretty good timing on a piano-laced desert stunt track:

Oh yeah, and here's the album version, where the visuals aren't nearly as impressive but the audio is a little clearer... well actually it's pretty distorted guitar, but.... yeah.

"So I been sitting around, wasting my time

wondering what you been doing

aw, and it ain't real forgiving, it ain't real forgiving

sitting here picturing someone else living..."

PS - you can download the "video version" (car version) of the song on the band's facebook page.

2-7-12 - "Glowing Mouth" ~ Milagres

Just found this band thanks to 1,2,3's facebook post regarding upcoming shared tour dates.  This song is delectable and transcendental, with ambiguous yet intriguing lyrics.  A slow vibe that just draws you in.


Album version:

And of course, if there's a sweet acoustic rendition on youtube, I'm obliged to include it as well:

"When the tide is low we’re digging through the loam..."

PS - free download of the track on bandcamp! (and at least one more freebie if you poke around there...)


PS2 - check out the whole session on biguglyyellowcouch (including downloads of 3 tracks).  


PS3 - holy crap there's a Daytrotter session (also with free downloads!)  It's like freakin' Christmas in February!

2-5-12 - "Serpents" ~ Sharon Van Etten

This one has caught my ear on 91.3 WYEP a few times lately.  For some reason, it reminds me of Florence + The Machine, but that may just be me.  The song is a driving folk rock tune about snakes, and who doesn't love that?


But seriously, the serpents are a metaphor for the poisonous thoughts left over from a traumatic relationship.  Van Etten's lyrics are a maelstrom of resentment and conciliatory efforts as she tries to come to grips with these emotions.  The harmonies dance a tightrope on the edge of catastrophe, evoking the mental turmoil and dragging the listener along for the ride.

"you hold the mirror well 

to everybody else..."

2-3-12 - "Sequel" ~ TeamMate

Here's a sweet new track from a sweet new band.  A band comprised of Scott Simons, an expatriate of West Virginia who's been living in LA, and Dani Buncher, a Pittsburgher who you might know from my ramblings about Big Hurry and Big Snow Big Thaw (the other two bands for which she is the drummer)  I'm not gonna lie, I'm a bit disappointed this band isn't called "Big TeamMate" or something to that effect...


Oh yeah, and the duo used to date for, like, ten years, so that adds an interesting dynamic.  This is their debut single, just dropped last night.  It deals with their breakup and some of their story, some pretty rough relationship stuff set to infectious upbeat pop sounds.  If this is any indication, they'll be quite a fun show at Brillobox next weekend...

Oh by the way, free download of this track on their facebook page.  Bangarang.


"Sometimes all you've got is too much
sometimes nothing's ever enough..."

2-1-12 - "Fog In The Valley" ~ Good Night, States

Every time I post a song that involves an Echo Chamber session from the Draw Us Lines crew, I'm reminded of a line in The Rescuers Down Under (you know you loved that movie as a kid)... "We're gonna have to make connections with a bigger bird." (said by Wilbur of Albatross Air, when asked whether it's a non-stop flight to Australia...)  They do such a good job over there at DUL, and capture some truly amazing songs stripped down to the roots in the EC sessions.  Not to mention, some of the songs are as yet unreleased (this one is from Good Night, States' upcoming "Country / Static" release - due 4.5.12), and the EC videos are the only versions available for me to post.

Good Night, States are yet another gem formed in the coal valleys of the Steel City... but they throw in some Jersey attitude for good measure.  Given their long-distance relationship, they're more than slightly elusive as far as live concert performances go, and I've yet to see them.  But I can guarantee I'll be at their next PGH gig, good Lord willin' and the creek don't rise.

This song will blow you away.  At least, it blew me away; I'll try not to oversell it since not everyone's musical tastes are identical.  But if you like the folksy feel and lush harmonies of The Head And The Heart or Fleet Foxes; or haunting, love/heartbreak songs like "Liar" or "Poison and Wine", I'll wager you'll like this song too:

"Fog In The Valley" ~ Good Night, States (from Vimeo.com, Draw Us Lines Echo Chamber Session)

"what i want more than silver

what i know i'm gonna wish i had

what i'd die and i'd kill for

some intimation that i make you glad..."

PS - props to percussionist Dan Harding for the awesome Where The Wild Things Are t-shirt (and the ridiculous glockenspiel breakdown), and to the venue for this EC session, which is a gorgeous local church - Eastminster Presbyterian.