Some cutesy fun

Still need a bit more help getting up in the morning?
Here's another remedy for ya:
GOOD SONG: Light Bulb (ANR Remix) by Rachel Goodrich

So THIS is the famed founder of Shake-a-billy.
Interesting.

Such a fun song! I recommend it as a purely fun, danceable ditty to brighten your day a bit. Don't think too much about the words. The remix is better than the original, which is too cutesy for my taste. However, the original song has a HILARIOUS video:
Check it out here: Lightbulb video
Rachel Goodrich is a Miami-based musician, who claims to be a "shake-a-billy" artist. Yeah, OK, whatever the heck that means. I hate all these new micro-genres that people make up. Anyway, though, her music is definitely fun and quirky (although I fear she might be a perfect living example of Problem #4 here) . She can play the guitar, ukulele, banjo, kazoo, autoharp, piano, and others (question: who *can't* play the kazoo?). Her first album, entitled "Tinker Toys" came out in 2008, and her new self-titled album came out this year.  If you like twee-pop, or retro-sounding/vaudevillian stuff, you will enjoy her un-remixed music.

If you liked this song/the original song, you might also like:
The Boy Least Likely To
Lykke Li
Jens Lekman
April Smith & the Great Picture Show

Over and out,
Anna

Better than an alarm clock!

Need a little help getting up in the morning?

I know I do. What with this incredibly gloomy MONTH of bad weather, it hasn't been too easy to get my butt out of bed and out the door every day.
I recommend a healthy helping of some GOOD SONGS to assist you in your quest.

Their music is so energizing, it almost makes me want
to go biking. Almost.

GOOD SONG #1:Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People

GOOD SONG #2: Call It What You Want by Foster the People.

Foster the people was originally called Foster & the People, but because people kept messing it up, the new version stuck. Mark Foster, Mark Pontius, and Cubbie Fink (yeah, amazing name, I know) are the three main members, with some other dudes (Sean Cimino and Isom Innis) coming out to play at their live performances. They formed in California and DANG, do they make some find indie-pop. Really, if this stuff doesn't get you out of bed with your head bopping, I don't know what will. They released an EP in January, and their full album, entitled "Torches," dropped in May of this year. There are already various remixes of this stuff (check out The Hype Machine), which doesn't surprise me at all. It's just begging for it.

FYI, they will be playing on SNL on October 8th (this coming Saturday).

If you liked these songs, you might also check out:
Passion Pit
Local Natives
The Go! Team
Campire Weekend
and lots of other indie-pop groups which are popping up (ha! pun!) all over the place

Over and out,
Anna

When the (bon)fire is low...

So, remember that Shakira song "Waka Waka?" The one that they played all the time at the World Cup? Well, she recorded it with a group from South Africa called Freshlyground, and it turns out they are awesome!

Look at all those beautiful people of all shades

Here is a GOOD (SUMMER) SONG of theirs: Fire Is Low by Freshlyground

The members of Freshlyground hail from South Africa, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe, and are assorted ethnicities, and their diverse cultures and backgrounds make for some really cool music. They formed in 2002 in Cape Town. They released their first album, Jika Jika, in 2003, then followed it with another in  2004 and another in 2007. Fire Is Low comes from their most recent album, Radio Africa, from last year (2010). They are Afro-pop with a bit of jazz. Or maybe Indie with a bit of jazzy pop. Or maybe African with an indie-pop twist. However you describe their sound, they are a lot of fun. The lead singer, Solani Mahola, has a really beautiful, jazzy, smooth voice that is extremely smile-inducing. The other band members include Simon Atwell, Peter Cohen, Kyla Rose Smith, Julio "Gugs" Sigauque, Josh Hawks, and Seredeal "Shaggy" Scheepers. All those band mates means lots of instruments: flute, mbira, harmonica, drums, sax, violin, guitar, bass, keyboard, etc., etc. How can you not love it??

This song makes me want to dance around on a summer night when the bonfire gets low. It's impossible not to groove to that beat! Listen! The sax! The clapping!
I hope you enjoy this song, because I sure do.

If you did, indeed, like this song, you might also check out:
Paul Simon
Manu Chao
Arno Carstens
Belleruche
Laura Izibor

Over and out,
Anna

P.S. If you are in DC and free (I'm not. Oh well.) on July 2nd, you should totally go see their show at Black Cat!

Summer Time and the Livin' Is Easy...

WHOOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOO!

I had my last day of school on Friday! Students don't realize how much teachers look forward to the summer. Definitely more than the kids do. For real.
So, in honor of my first week of summer, I thought I'd start posting fun summer songs. How's that?
This first post on Manu Chao may not be big news for those of you who are close to me and have had mixes made by me. I am a bit obsessed with Manu Chao, and I play him all the time. But for those of you who are not well-acquainted with him, or who have forgotten about his awesomeness, read on!

Manu looking appropriately beachy. 

GOOD SONG: La vie á 2 by Manu Chao, from his album Clandestino (1998)
I have heard this entire album by Manu Chao approximately 300 million times. My sister used to play it *all* the time when we shared a room, and I have memories of going to sleep to it and waking up to it later in the night when she had gone to bed, but had forgotten to turn off the lights and the music. Because of this I know ALL the lyrics to his song Bongo Bong, which is one of my favorite songs on earth. Also definitely worth a listen. But yeah, the album isn't exactly recent. But it is a classic in my book. Manu Chao is a freaking genius. He sings in French, English, Spanish, Arabic, Portugese, Italian, Galician, Wolof, and I think more. He is super-popular in Europe, but hasn't made it quite as big here in the States. His popularity is growing, though. His music has about a million different influences in it, so it is hard to describe. It's a hell of a lot of fun, though. Manu Chao & his band Radio Bemba have released three albums to date: Clandestino, Proxima Estación: Esperanza (2001), and his most recent one La Radiolina (2007).

Buy his music here: Manu Chao!

If you like this song, you might also check out:

Mano Negra (an earlier band of his)
Orishas
Gogol Bordello
Beirut
The Skatalites

More fun summer music of all types and tastes coming along soon! Keep your ears open!

Over and out,
Anna

(Belated) International Month Post #3: Lebanon + Egypt

OK, sorry guys. I know May is over and so technically, International Month should be over too. But you know what?

I was busy.

And it's my blog and I can do what I want.

So this post gets to be included in International Month's posts, since I *meant* to post it ages ago.

Next up? Got some great music goin on, from Lebanon and Egypt, two Arabic-music-producing powerhouses. 

The madonna link isn't so hard to see, I don't think...

First we have Y.A.S., this awesome electropop duo from Lebanon, made up of Yasmin Hamdan and Mirwais Ahmadzaï. Mirwais produced albums for Madonna, so he's got some pretty serious cred going on. Yasmin used to be part of Soap Kills, a Lebanese group that sang in Arabic  as opposed to English or French, and spurred many others to do the same. So she's also got some cred. 

GOOD SONG #1:  Get It Right, off their album "Arabology"

The song is really cool. It actually mixes English and Arabic. It's set in Egypt even though Y.A.S. is Lebanese, like I said. 

GOOD SONG #2 of theirs is Mahi, which you can listen to off their myspace. I love her voice on it, singing entirely in Arabic. It's got a nice groove to it. It's still electronica I guess, but not as Madonna-esque as Get It Right.

I'm gonna have to go ahead and say I think
she looks much classier than Yasmin.

Also from Lebanon, but in a totally other genre, we have Fairouz, who is arguably the most famous of all Lebanese singers. She is known as Fairouz (which means "turquoise" in Arabic, apparently) but her real name is Nouhad Wadi Haddad, and was born in Lebanon in 1935. She's a Christian (Catholic by birth, Greek Orthodox after her marriage) and is hugely popular in Lebanon and Syria. She started her singing career in the early '50's after attending a music conservatory and marrying into the Rahbani family, who worked at a radio station. She is still out and about performing at concerts around the world. Go her!

GOOD SONG #3: Beirut Hal Zarafat

Her voice is incredible-- with that sort of deep female huskiness to it that seems to be pretty common in Middle Eastern music. This recording is a live version, and is amazing. I wish I could understand what she was saying. Whatever it is, it sounds beautiful and moving. I think it's sort of an ode to the city of Beirut.

(BUY HER MUSIC HERE: Fairouz) 

On to Egypt!

So now I'm sharing with you a singer who, if you know anything about Egyptian/Middle Eastern/Mediterranean music (which I didn't until my boyfriend made me a few mixes), you will recognize. If you already are super-knowledgeable about all this, then you'll just have to forgive me for this post. Amr Diab is one of the most famous recording artists in Egypt now. He is credited with creating "Mediterranean music" which is a pretty awesome, if I do say so myself, blend of Egyptian music and Western rhythms and influences. He was born in Egypt in 1961, and is now the top selling artist in the Arab world. Not too shabby, Amr. 

I'm guessing about 10,000 Egyptian girls have this picture
posted to their wall.

GOOD SONG #4: Amarain

So this is the first Amr Diab song I heard (thanks to that previously mentioned mix). And I became obsessed with it. It's got a great slightly Spanish feel to it, plus some nice violin, and the lyrics in Arabic and Diab's distinctly Middle Eastern vocal style. So cool! His videos tend to just be lots of beautiful women making sexy faces at the camera and dancing like wild things around him. Although some babies are thrown into the mix, here, too. which is odd. Why the babies, Amr? It is pretty entertaining though, anyway. And the song is amazing. If this song doesn't make you want to dance, then I think you're dead.

GOOD SONG #5: Lealy Nahary

Just thought I'd throw this one into the mix, too. I find the cadence of the vocals interesting (I don't really know how else to describe it), and the hand-clappy sort of beat is lots of fun to dance to alone in your room. Or with others. Whatever you prefer. 

If you liked these songs, you might also check out:

Soap Kills

Nancy Ajram

Shereen

Alabina

Tamer Hosny

Elissa

Over and out,

Anna

International Month Post #1: Brazil!

Hello all!
This month I have decided to dedicate to music from the non-English-speaking world. It's fun to get out a bit. And this first post is dedicated to... Brazil! Whoo-hoo!
Brazilian music is super cool. There are tons of influences in most Brazilian music, and much of it is sort of a fusion between different styles, cultures, and sounds. Samba, tropicália, rock, funk, African music, jazz, folk, pop, reggae, and Bossa Nova all play their part. This seems quite appropriate, as Brazil itself is such a mixture of cultures and traditions. 
So, without further ado are three (!) GOOD SONGS for you, straight from Brazil!

GOOD SONG #1:Essa é Pra Tocar no Rádio by Gilberto Gil and Jorge Ben

Alert! Alert! Man in a hat! My favorite!

I first heard really good Brazilian music when I worked at a coffee shop in NYC and my coworker would play the album that this song is from. It is totally different from the music that I was used to hearing, filled with an unstoppable beat, wild and wonderfully weird monkey-like vocal noises, elements of ... of... all sorts of cool/hot Brazilian sounds that were new to my ears. I loved it! This is my favorite song from the album Gil e Jorge, I think. But the whole album is definitely worth listening to, if you like this song. Gilberto Gil and Jorge Ben are icons on the Brazilian music scene, and are good artists to start exploring. 

GOOD SONG #2: Essa é Pá Tocar no Rádio by Slim Rimografia

Slim Rimografia, not related to Slim Shady.

This song is so fun! I think I discovered Slim Rimografia on amiestreet.com (alas, now taken over by amazon, and totally useless), although I'm not positive. However it was I'm glad of it! This is a really great song by a Brazilian hip-hop artist, and it samples none other than my first GOOD SONG! I have no idea why it's called "Essa é Pá Tocar no Rádio," though, instead of "Essa é Pra Tocar no Rádio." Who knows. Anyway, I love his vocal style, and also the style of the girl (?) Coruja who is also featured on the track. I'm surprised by how cool Portugese rap sounds. 

GOOD SONG #3: Já é by Jorge Aragão.

You'd be smiling, too, if you were this dude.

I got further (MUCH further) into Brazilian music after my friend Matt made me a Brazilian music CD, some 40 tracks long, that introduced me to some amazing Brazilian artists that never, ever fail to make me feel happy. This track was on there, and I just had to share it with you all. It's a fantastic live recording of his, and man, it just makes me want to MOVE. 


If you liked these songs, you might also check out:
Caetano Veloso
Elis Regina
Milton Nascimento
Djavan
Sergio Ricardo
Contra Fluxo
Kamau


Over and out,
Anna

My Retro Music Dream Duo

Ever dream about having your own music festival, where you chose all the acts? Or about choosing your own musical dream team? Or even about what it would be like if two amazing bands became one, or two singers got married and had babies that were like perfect mixtures of their parents, with their collected musical genius?
'Cuz I do.


And one of my new favorite things to think about is what kind of kid Eli Paperboy Reed and Adele would have together, if they got together. I can't tell you what they would look like, but they would probably make music like their parents. Which is a very good thing.


Who are these people, you might ask. Well, with no further ado...

How could you not love this?

GOOD SONG: Take My Love With You by Eli Paperboy Reed and the True Loves.


So this dude is FANTASTIC. I saw him live with a bunch of my friends last Thursday at the Rock and Roll Hotel in DC, and he just blew us all away. Such an amazing live performer. You feel like you traveled back in time 50 years. A little info on him: Eli Reed is originally from Boston, but moved to Mississippi after high school, and got his career started there helping out with the gospel music with a just-starting-up church. The rest is history. His music is "neo-soul" which basically means great soul music that is also relevant and fun. It also means that his band, the True Loves, are freakin sweet. There is nothing sarcastic, ironic, shocking in his music. It's pure enjoyment. 
I HIGHLY recommend seeing him live if you get the chance.
(This is also a GOOD SONG of his: Come and Get It) 

Classy lady!

As for Adele, you probably know her because of her hit song "Chasing Pavements" from her album entitled "19," which was good, but honestly, just not as good as anything on her new album, "21" (I'm seeing a trend here). 

I really want her to get with Eli Reed because their babies would have more soul than... than.... I don't know, a lot of people. They would be FILLED WITH SOUL. FILLED, I TELL YOU. 

Her new album has a lot of goodies on it, and I am making a prediction right now: you will probably hear the song "Rumour Has It" a lot on the radio starting about now. 

But I think this song is even better:

GOOD SONG: I'll Be Waiting by Adele.

Adele is huge right now in England, and I am aware that this post is not going to be most people's first exposure to her, but honestly, I don't really care since that isn't truly what this blog is for.  She is an amazingly talented young woman (younger than I am!), and I gotta admit that it's pretty cool that a singer like her (soulful and gorgeous but not a skinny, slutty pop star) has made it so big. Her voice is so powerful that it gets me every time. Her songwriting isn't stellar, but she could be singing about cauliflower for all I care.

So yeah, that's my dream duo. 

Who's yours?

If you like these songs, you might also like these artists (both old and new):

Duffy

Sam Cooke

Aloe Blacc

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings

The Zutons

Stevie Wonder

Otis Redding

Janelle Monae

Cee Lo

Over and out!

Anna

Love and the Lack Thereof: February Post #4

SO: The Features.
They're a great band who seem (to me) to get very little press, despite their awesomeness. They're from a random town somewhere in Tennessee, and have been together since middle school (Really?? Really!!).
Ever since high school, I've loved their extremely danceable, high-energy, but surprisingly emotional and well-written songs.
So, for this post, I picked:
GOOD (LOVE) SONG: The Idea of Growing Old

You turn me on to the idea of playing croquet, as well. 

It is a great love song about real love. The kind of love that makes you look forward to growing old with someone, being married, annoying each other, and still loving each other. It's clear that Matthew Pelham (the singer and song-writer of the band) has a great sense of humor. I love the lyrics:

"We can lay around
and count the number of times
I've acted foolish
and you've rolled your eyes.
You turn me on
to the idea of growing old."

Let's hope your loved one turns you on to the idea of growing old, with them right by your side. Cuz that's real love right there.

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: The Features!

If you liked this song, you might also check out:
Razorlight (they toured with them, and that's who I saw them open for)
The White Stripes
Locksley
Kings of Leon
The Zutons
Cloudcult
The Cloud Room
The Dandy Warhols

Over and out,
Anna

"No One Ever Does It Like That Anymore"

Despite the fact that Mark Ronson was born in London, I think of him as being a New Yorker. Considering that he went to Collegiate High School in NY, then New York University (my alma mater!) and began his career in my glorious hometown, I don't think that this is a stretch.  He is such an enormously talented DJ/turntabelist/producer, I want him to be a New Yorker. The way he combines different musical traditions/band/sounds in his songs is just plain genius. Granted, his work can be a little hit-or-miss (or mostly miss, if you don't like hip-hop that much), but the stuff of his that DOES work is great.

Ronson, hard at work. 

His new album "Record Collection" just dropped a little while ago, and is a ton of fun. Ronson features of some of the songs, but an insane number of people are involved too, as usual. The record is technically by "Mark Ronson & The International" so I guess "The International" includes all those other folks.
The two best songs on it, that both have amazing videos are:

GOOD SONG #1: Bang Bang Bang (odd mash-up of old commercials, weird Japanese TV-show, and 80's style "futuristic" fun... oh yeah, and Q-Tip!!!)

GOOD SONG #2: The Bike Song (feat. Spank Rock)

One thing that I find interesting about him, though, is that as much as I love a lot of his fun singles (like the ones above), some of my FAVORITE songs of his are his short little instrumental bits that come in between songs on his album, like "Missing Words"  and "Selector" (from this latest album) and "Inversion" and "Diversion" from his previous album "Version."  Inversion is competing with "Can't Hardly Wait" by Justin Townes Earle as my #1 played song.

Anyhoo, hope you enjoy.

If you like these songs, you might also like:

(Note: OK so, since Mark Ronson has no particular style, these rec's run the gamut)

Calvin Harris
A Tribe Called Quest
M.I.A.
Adele
Lily Allen
Duran Duran

BUY HIS MUSIC HERE: MR & the Int.

Over and out,
Anna

Good Things, Indeed

So I'm aware that I haven't posted a lot of soul/R&B since my post on Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. This post changes all that. I haven't been able to stop humming these two GOOD SONGS by Aloe Blacc and I thought I would share them with you.

GOOD SONG the first: I Need A Dollar (Who doesn't need a dollar these days?)

This song has the perfect mix of piano, trumpet, and Aloe Blacc's SWEET vocals. Who is Aloe Blacc you might ask? Well, his real name is actually Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III... I don't blame him for changing his name. He is the son of Panamanian immigrants, and a lot of his music has a nice Latin flair to it. He began as a hip-hop/rap artist, but then branched into more retro music, and boy! am I happy about it! He has two albums out now: "Shine Through" (2006) and his most recent album "Good Things," which came out this September (2010). He weaves together R&B, soul, hip-hop, jazz, and salsa influences to make his songs work so damn well.

Mr. Blacc looking pretty snazzy in white.

Good song the second: Loving You Is Killing Me (the song + the lyrics)
Also from "Good Things," this song is just so good, and makes me wanna dance. You can definitely tell he has some real rapper cred here. My favorite line: "How did you get to be so evil, girl?" sung by the falsetto chorus.

If you like this song, you might also like:

John Legend
The Roots
Talib Kweli
People Under the Stairs
Danger Doom/Danger Mouse
Janelle Monae
Al Green
Marvin Gaye

BUY HIS MUSIC HERE: Aloe Blacc!

Over and out,
Anna

Your Video Game Soundtrack

So in my head I like to put together music videos for the music I'm listening to. Often times they include ridiculous, super-choreographed dance sequences that can only happen in my head. Lots of special effects. Engaging story lines. Beautiful people. You know, the works.

My imaginary music videos for the music of Ratatat are no exception. Cool (read: goofy) dances and the whole shabang. 

The one difference: All of my imaginary characters, set, moves, and costumes are stolen from Mario Bros. I freely admit it. Floating gold coins, overalls, and a princess are all extremely important in all my imaginary Ratatat music videos. I can't help it! I dare you to listen to Ratatat and NOT think of video game music. It's impossible. Their music (especially the songs on their earlier albums) is clearly influenced by the crunchy guitars and goofy sound effects you probably grew up hearing on your gameboy/nintendo/other outmoded and obsolete form of entertainment. 

Inspirational stuff.

Try imagining your very own video game music video with this GOOD SONG, from their album entitled "LP3": Shempi

Now, this isn't to say that Ratatat always sounds silly. Plenty of their music is surprisingly sophisticated, and actually moving (for some reason, this GOOD SONG always gets me, even sans lyrics: Breaking Away).  Ratatat is comprised of Mike Stroud (guitar) and Evan Mast (all that other stuff) , and they've got real talent. They met at Skidmore College and recorded their first album entitled, oddly enough, "Ratatat" in 2004. Excluding remix albums, they have four albums out to date: "Ratatat" (2004), "Classics" (2006), "LP3" (2008), and "LP4" (2010). Their first album betrayed their sense of humor, as pretty much all the vocals it included were only silly clips at the beginning and end of songs. The have kept this humor, which makes me like them a whole lot more. 

Serious music for serious people. Clearly.

Their most recent album, "LP4," came out just recently and has carried on their tradition of dance-able but unusual instrumental techno music.  Currently, I'm addicted to this GOOD SONG off the album:
Neckbrace.

You'll probably need a neck brace after bobbing around to that one as many times as I have.

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: Ratatat music!

If you liked these songs, you might also like:

LCD Soundsystem
Daft Punk
RJD2
Simian Mobile Disco
Justice

Over and out,
Anna

Talking Like a Jerk

OK, so because of a sweet hook-up from a friend of a friend, I got to go to Virgin Mobile Free Fest at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD, where a whole bunch of bands played outdoors on three different stages. The one I was most excited about (beating out even Yeasayer and Thievery Corporation) was LCD Soundsystem!


I was not disappointed. They played a FANTASTIC set. You can't listen to them and not move. There was one guy in front of me who looked like he had pogo sticks for legs. For a solid hour, which is impressive.


I am aware that LCD Soundsystem (aka James Murphy) is relatively well-known, so this post is not going to be about introducing you to a good song, per say, but rather more of a reminder that the song is good. 

The GOOD SONG for today is Dance Yourself Clean. This song is long, just a warning. But it rewards patient listeners. Halfway through, it REALLY ramps it up.

I suppose one could, potentially, "dance yourself clean"
in a bathtub. Good thinking, James.

What I found interesting was that in between sets concert-goers could text messages to be displayed on huge mega-screens by the stages. Most of the messages were silly or stupid, some were vulgar, some were nonsensical in-jokes, but a few were thought-provoking.  TWO of them touted LCD Soundsystem as the "voice of this generation." I honestly don't know how I feel about that. Or rather, I think I might believe it, but I'm not sure whether I like what our generation is saying. His lyrics are actually very interesting for an "electronica/dance" group, but there's also a real sense of jaded-ness (is that a word?) and disillusionment. Maybe that's a good thing. I don't know. 
But I have to admit I like the lyrics to Dance Yourself Clean, which includes this verse:


"Talking like a jerk,
Except that you're an actual jerk,
and living proof,
that sometimes friends are mean."


And also these words:


"Every night's a different story
It's a thirty-car pile-up with you
Everybody's getting younger
It's the end of an era, it's true."


Although perhaps his song Losing My Edge is the one that most speaks ABOUT this generation (although perhaps not from within said generation), which is particularly funny for those into music. The whole song is about how he is losing his edge, his "cool," his "hipsterness" to those in the younger generation, who idealize and idolize music from the years that they never even witnessed.
The whole lyrics are here, but these are a few choice lines that I like:


"I'm losing my edge. 
To all the kids in Tokyo and Berlin. 
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Brooklynites in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered eighties. 
But I'm losing my edge. 
I'm losing my edge, but I was there."

and

"I used to work in the record store. 

I had everything before anyone. 
I was there in the Paradise Garage DJ booth with Larry Levan. 
I was there in Jamaica during the great sound clashes. 
I woke up naked on the beach in Ibiza in 1988. 
But I'm losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent. 
And they're actually really, really nice. "

Well anyway, I'm sorry to hear that Mr. Murphy feels that he is losing his edge, but he still makes darn good dance music.


But tell me, dear readers, who do *you* think is the voice of our generation?

BUY HIS MUSIC HERE: LCD Soundsystem

If you like this song, you might also like:

Daft Punk

Hot Chip

!!!

Lonely Dear

Broken Social Scene

Caribou (formerly Manitoba)

Over and out,

Anna

"Can you keep a secret?"

"Honestly?     No."

That's the opening line to The Whitest Boy Alive's newest album (2009) entitled "Rules." The song is "Keep a Secret."
It's the GOOD SONG for today, so check it out yourself: Keep A Secret (by the way, ignore the two minutes of silence at the end of the song... don't know why they're there)


I've loved The Whitest Boy Alive (let's just call them TWBA from now on, OK?) since their first album came out in 2006. I became somewhat obsessed with their song Burning, and couldn't stop playing it for a long, long time. The band is made up of Erlend Øye, Marcin Öz, Sebastian Maschat, and Daniel Nentwig. 
Side Note 1: Erlend Øye (from Norway) is also in the great band Kings of Convenience, who made one of the BEST VIDEOS EVER: 
I'd Rather Dance With You!!
Side Note 2: it is MANDATORY that you watch this video. 


TWBA is one of the many great bands to come out of the icy cold yet strangely catchy-song-filled countries of Norway & Sweden these days (OK, so TWBA is technically based out of Berlin, but whatever, most of the band members are Norwegian), like Sondre Lerche, The Tallest Man on Earth, and Jens Lekman. 


Their sound is a bit spare, but surprisingly catchy. Maybe it's their strong bass and drums, but it's really hard to keep your feet still while listening to TWBA. Erlend Øye's voice is rather unemotional, but his lyrics are great, often with a interesting humorous note to them. 


OK, I also like them because Erlend Øye is so adorably dorky-looking. 

Yeah, pretty white. 

DOWNLOAD THEIR MUSIC HERE: TWBA


If you like this song, you might also check out:


Sondre Lerche
Kings of Convenience
Ratatat
Joy Division
(all very different from each other, but TWBA pulls from all of them)


Over and out,
Anna

Where there's a will, there's a way... and probably also the Cangelosi Cards.

Let's get one thing straight: I know nothing about jazz.
Most jazz I don't really like. I find it boring.


BUT, old-school, New Orleans style, big band jazz I most certainly DO like. And that's where the Cangelosi Cards come in.

Twinkle lights + Cangelosi Cards = Retro Romance

I heard them play live at the Telephone Bar in NYC years ago and was BLOWN AWAY. They are so much fun, and their singer Tamar Korn has the most amazing voice: high-pitched, girly, yet growly when it needs to be. They sound like they came straight outta the 1920's or '30's.
Super old-school, they are a jazz band with lindy, swing, folk, and blues influences.


So, today's GOOD SONG is "Get Some Cash For Your Trash," which you can listen to on the Down Home Radio Show website. Listen to it here: Cash For Your Trash


I also want to post some videos of theirs:
This song, Dinah, is great. And listen to that harmonica! IT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE A HARMONICA! It sounds like the lovechild of a harmonica and a trumpet... or something like that.


And THIS VIDEO (it's "Millenburg Joys" ) is also GREAT. Look at those dancers! What a fun time everyone is having. Both of these videos were filmed at the fabulous Glen Echo Park (in their Bumper Car Pavilion) right near me outside DC. I've been there a bunch of times, and it's a whole lotta fun. What's amazing to me is how much people LOVE to dance to them-- not just at Glen Echo, which is the whole point of going to Glen Echo, but also at places like the Telephone Bar. When I saw them there (they used to have weekly gigs there before the place closed) they played in a TINY room with no dance floor, and yet people still got up and danced up a storm. Where there's a will, there's a way...


If you want to buy their album, go here: Los Musicos Viajeros. It's fantastic!


If you like the Cangelosi Cards, you might also like some of these guys (some old, some new):


Dean Mora
The Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Whispering Jack Smith
Billie Holiday
Glenn Miller
Benny Goodman
Boilermaker Jazz Band




Over and out,
Anna