Animal Lover

OK! Really trying to post more, like I said. 
Here goes:


GOOD SONG: Animal Life by Shearwater, from their upcoming album "Animal Joy" (due out next month).
A little bit about Shearwater first. The band's frontman, Jonathan Meiburg,  is obsessed with birds (like my dad!) so they named the band after the bird. A lot of their music has really interesting natural themes, especially bird themes. They focus a lot on the natural world, but not in an annoying, hyper-obsessed enviro-freak kind of way. I respect them for their fascinating and gorgeous and very well-crafted album covers, inserts, and other stuffs that go along with that. There is real craft going on here, folks, on many levels. Meiburg and bandmate Will Sheff were both members of the band Okkervil River, which is also based out of Austin, TX. Their sound is quite different, though, which you might not automatically have expected. Their fourth, fifth, and sixth albums (which were awesome) entitled "Palo Santo," " Rook," and "The Golden Archipelago" respectively, were a sort of trilogy. This new album is a departure from those. 


As for the song: I love Meiburg's voice. And the music builds and swells. I think it would be a good song to run to, if I ever did any running. 

I know. I don't get the tuxedo either. I like the bird, though.

If you liked this song, you might also check out:
The National
Wye Oak (Wye Oak opened for Shearwater)
Midlake
Coldplay (and Shearwater opened for Coldplay)


Over and out,
Anna


P.S. I love this little story about Meiburg coming to D.C.'s Smithsonian Museum:

"I had an amazing experience in D.C.," Meiburg says. "I went into the Natural History Museum and called up a scientist who works there who a paper of his I'd read 15 years ago about specimens of a giant, flightless, extinct bird of prey that he had discovered, basically. And sure enough, he was there, and he came down, and I talked to him about it for about 45 minutes. It was fantastic."

And that was an amazing experience?

"Oh, it was magical," Meiburg says. "I got to see the bones." (from npr.com)

Hold Your Head Up

Summer isn't over, folks! I thought I would post another GOOD (SUMMER) SONG while it was still the season.
I heard this song recently and knew I had to post it. It is a great, fun, super-catchy song that I have been humming since I first heard it a week or two ago. Give it a listen!!

Rockin out. Me likey.

GOOD (SUMMER) SONG: Beacon by Matt Duncan
Listen to those horns! The piano! And is that an accordion in the background? Amazing! I love the R&B vibes combined with the indie-pop sound. The whole EP is worth a listen, really. Matt Duncan, based in Kentucky, released his six-song EP entitled Beacon, winter of 2010. I can't find out too much about him, other than the facts I already mentioned (from Kentucky, male, young, makes music) but his music is happy-making.
I love the lyrics to the song, especially the first verse and chorus (I'm a sucker for songs that mention NY, for obvious reasons). It's funny, though, because I first thought that he was saying "Hold your head up, you're in Beacon"; Beacon is a artsy little town in upstate NY that I had *just* read an article about in the NY Times (read it here). But that's not what he is saying. Fortunately I like the real lyrics better than my imagined ones.

"I got friends in New York City
'Cause everyone I know left town
That's the place your day lit dreams go
Where you can't see the sun go down

Hold your head up, you're a beacon
You pull me northward in my car
You don't have to hit the big time, baby
We know who you are."

BUY HIS MUSIC HERE: Matt Duncan

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

Beirut

Jens Lekman

Elvis Costello

The Magnetic Fields

Over and out,
Anna

Maryland Represent!

So here I am chilling in upstate NY, in the Catskills, a-listenin' to some dang good alt-rock-folk-whatever-genre-you-wanna-call-it. And while I will always be a New Yorker, it's true, I have to give some much-deserved love to the great state of Maryland, since I am a resident of it now.
So, without further ado, here is Wye Oak, straight outta Baltimo'.

Apparently they're not only a good band, but also
a good decorating theme. 

GOOD SONG: Civilian by Wye Oak

I am sure you knew immediately (since you're all really into Maryland state tree history, I know)  the band is named after the famous Wye Oak tree of Maryland, the largest white oak tree in the United States... until it was destroyed in a thunderstorm in 2002. Extremely sad-making. It was 460 years old! DUDE. (In case you were curious, the largest white oak tree in the US now is the Linden Oak, located on the corner of Rockville Pike and Beach Drive in North Bethesda, MD. Nice.)
Anyhoo, they make great music together, these two. Oh yes, and "these two" consists of Andy Stack (known to play drums and keyboard at the same time!!) and Jenn Wasner. They've released three albums so far, with the most recent being Civilian (March of this year).  I love the steady rhythm that gets kicked into high gear half-way through the song. Wasner's voice has real strength to it, as does her guitar work, which goes from a nice country-ish strumming to some serious rock-n-rolling. The lyrics, in my humble opinion, show the struggle that many people do with a need for a real relationship, but having shortcomings get in the way.

"Perfectly able to hold my own hand/
but I still can't kiss my own neck/
I wanted to give you everything/
but I still stand in awe of superficial things/
I wanted to love you like my mother's mother's mothers did/
civilian."

If you liked this song, you might also like:
Deer Tick
The Cave Singers
The Rosebuds
Other Lives
Neko Case
The Rural Alberta Advantage

Over and out,
Anna

But for the grace of God

OK, another quick post while I am still out of town.

Jenny and two life-size mannequins...um... I mean, the Watson twins.

GOOD SONG: Rise Up With Fists! by Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins

So this song isn't exactly new (it's from her 2006 album "Rabbit Fur Coat"), but I think it is amazing. For some reason, I have it stuck in my head pretty much all the time. No joke. The lyrics are in my head all the time. It's strange. The lyrics are great though-- pointed without being bitter or cruel. And the chorus "There, but for the grace of God, go I" is a great line. I would be as bad as you, if it wasn't for the grace of God. Not my own goodness or abilities or what have you.

Jenny Lewis, in case you didn't know, was the lead singer of the band Rilo Kiley, and is now currently recording songs with Johnathan Rice (Fun Fact #1: I met him years ago in NYC at The Living Room, well before he was famous, thanks to a cool friend. Fun fact #2: for those of you from the DC area, he is also from the DC area- Alexandria, specifically- and went to Gonzaga. Small world.).

If you liked this song, you might also like:

Jenny & Johnny (Jenny Lewis & Johnathan Rice duo)
Rilo Kiley
Neko Case (I LOVE HER)
The Elected
She & Him
Bright Eyes

Over and out,
Anna

A Summer Bouquet

I know it's summer and I should have a lot more free time, being a teacher and all, but it's actually been a bit crazy. I've been outta town for a while, and heck, I'm still outta town. Thus, my posts this month will probably be pretty short. Oh well.

Some summery dudes making some summery music.

Here's a GOOD (SUMMER) SONG for y'all:   Get Up by Jonquil

Jonquil is a group from Oxford, England (one of my favorite places in the world. You walk into that town and feel centuries of knowledge just seeping into your bones. It's pretty cool). A jonquil, by the way, is pretty much just another word for a daffodil. In case you were wondering. Anyway, this song has some great guitar opening it up and then the drums and vocals kick in, and it just gets more fun. I have no idea what the song is about or what the vocals are really, but it's OK. It's still a fun song.

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

Wolf Parade
Yeasayer
Vampire Weekend
Yellow Ostrich
Local Natives

Over and out,
Anna

"If I had an orchard..."

So here goes a quick post before Easter for y'all (I'm allowed to say that now. I live below the Mason-Dixon line).

So most of you are probably acquainted with Fleet Foxes already, but in case you're not: They're based in Seattle (again! I can't avoid em!) and released two EP's before they really got noticed. Their song "Mykonos" off their second EP "Sun Giant" is a GOOD SONG, too. Check it out if you haven't already: Mykonos. They relelased their self-titled debut album in 2009 and got rave reviews.

Look at all that hair! Look at all that plaid!

They were just MADE to be indie folk stars.

Fortunately for FF fans, they're releasing a new album on May 3rd! Also fortunately, they released a single from that album already:

GOOD SONG:  Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes (from their upcoming album of the same title as the song).

This is a GOOD SONG for many reasons: first, I love the lyrics.

 

"I was raised up believing I was somehow unique

Like a snowflake, distinct among snowflakes

Unique in each way you can see.

But now after some thinking

I'd say I'd rather be

A functioning cog in some great machinery

Serving something beyond me."

To me those are interesting: aren't we all raised up believing we are totally unique and yet don't we all want to be part of something greater, too?

And then:

"If I know only one thing, 

it's that everything that I see

Of the world outside is so inconceivable 

often I barely can speak

Yeah I'm tongue-tied and dizzy 

and I can't keep it to myself.

What good is it to sing helplessness blues?

Why should I wait for anyone else?"

I often feel this way: everything is so beautifully crazy and inconceivable that sometimes I feel like anything I say will just fall short. But it doesn't mean lack of action, or helplessness, or despair. Instead, it's joyful. 

And then the last part of the song (I promise! No more lyrics now!):

"If I had an orchard, I'd work til I'm raw.

If I had an orchard, I'd work til I'm sore."

Yes. And yes. 

Second, their sound is awesome. Their chiming, jangling guitars and their distinctive echoing vocal harmonies are so refreshing. There is real beauty in their music and I can't wait for their new album.

Buy their music here: Fleet Foxes

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

Simon & Garfunkel

Bon Iver

Panda Bear

Grizzly Bear

Vashti Bunyan (super folksy & weird)

Joanna Newsom (super folksy & weird)

Iron & Wine

Over and out,

Anna

P.S. Happy Easter!!

Behold the Power of Telekinesis!

Telekinesis (also called psychokinesis): the ability to move or affect objects unconnected to the body using only the mind.

Right.

Fortunately, it also happens to be a great band from Seattle (Seattle! Again! Something in the water maybe?).
Telekinesis is just one guy basically, whose name is Michael Benjamin Lerner, but on tour he's joined by Cody Votolato (former member of The Blood Brothers, and whose actual brother is Rocky Votolato, who is a great folk singer in his own right), David Broecker, and Jonie Broecker. So far there have been only two full-length albums: "Telekinesis!" (2009) and "Twelve Desperate Straight Lines" (earlier this year).

Here is proof of the power of telekinesis:
GOOD SONG: Fever Chill by Telekinesis.
This seemed like an appropriate song to pick, since I am feeling sick, and there is definitely some terrible fever chill bug going around amongst my students. I think I may have caught it :(

Watch out for that eagle behind you, my friend. 

It might have telekinetic powers. 

Their new album is awesome. It's great guitar-driven and hook-filled pop, but it's not just fluff. "Fever Chill" is a little bit darker than some of the other songs on the album. His voice sounds very young, but there is a quite mature brooding emotion on the song that I really like. When the drums kick in (literally), the song reaches another level of greatness. Give it a spin!

If you liked this song you might also like:

Throw Me The Statue

The Rural Alberta Advantage

Weezer

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart

Smith Westerns

Over and out,

Anna

Dostoevsky's So Hot Right Now

So as an Art History major, I don't always get the literary references that surround me. I'm just not as well-read as I would like to be. But, when I first heard of the band Ivan & Alyosha, I thought, "Hey! There is a literary reference that I *actually* get!" Ivan and Alyosha are the names of two of the main characters in Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov," which is one of my favorite books of all time.

Look at that beard!

Ivan & Alyosha is a band from Seattle. It began as a solo project for Tim Wilson, but eventually expanded to include Ryan Carbary, Tim Kim, and Pete Wilson. So far they have released one EP entitled "Fathers Be Kind" (Tim Wilson is a new dad, by the way) and another full-length album entitled "The Verse, The Chorus." Both are great, and should definitely be checked out. 

Their band website claims that they "are not nihilist indie rockers but a new brand of tender dreamers." 

Sounds good to me!

Sorry guys, you just can't beat Dostoevsky's facial hair. 

GOOD SONG: Living For Someone by Ivan & Alyosha (the video is very simply but beautifully shot, methinks).

The song includes the lyrics:

"Draw the line between 

what you want

and what you need."

I was reminded of a section from my all-time favorite part of The Brothers Karamazov, when the wise old monk speaks about the "isolation" that plagues modern man:

"He heaps up riches by himself and thinks, 'How strong I am now and how secure,' and in his madness he does not understand that the more he heaps up, the more he sinks into self-destructive impotence. For he is accustomed to rely upon himself alone and to cut himself off from the whole; he has trained himself not to believe in the help of others, in men and in humanity, and only trembles for fear he should lose his money and the privileges that he has won for himself... 

But...we must keep the banner flying. Sometimes even if he has to do it alone, and his conduct seems to be crazy, a man must set an example, and so draw men's souls out of their solitude, and spur them to some act of brotherly love, that the great idea may not die."

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

Magnet

The Head & The Heart

Joseph Arthur

Margot & the Nuclear So-and-So's

Sloan

Oakley Hall

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: Ivan & Alyosha

Over and out,

Anna

Love and the Lack Thereof: February Post #5

Here comes another one, folks!

GOOD (LOVE) SONG: Honey Come Home by The Head and The Heart

The Head(s) and The Heart(s) in the Tree(s)

First off, I love the band's name. It's perfect! Reconciling our heads and our hearts is basically what human life is all about. I approve.

But about the band: They're based in Seattle, and so far have released one self-titled album. They came out to play in DC recently, opening for Dr. Dog and I missed them. Damn!

About the song: It's a husband (I'm assuming a husband, since it's mainly the male singers singing) begging his wife to come back. The lyrics are really moving to me. There is no bitterness, no anger, just love and repentance, and and understanding of what really matters:

"Oh God I love my vices
but they've taken me to places
that I'd never thought I'd go
and I'm ready to be home
And I think of every spark,
every whisper in the dark,
now it's time
Just wanna die with the one I love
Just wanna die with the one I love... beside me."

What a love song!

I love that song, but honestly, I think I may like this other song of theirs even more. It's not a love song, but I just had to include it in this post because it's amazing:
Lost In My Mind (the video is kinda random).

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: The Head and The Heart
If you liked this song, you might also check out:

Ivan & Alyosha (I'll probably post about them later)
The Avett Brothers
Delta Spirit
Justin Townes Earle
Mumford & Sons
A.A. Bondy
Dawes
Blue Giant

Over and out!
Anna

P.S. If you sign up for their mailing list on their website, you can get two free mp3 downloads!

Love and the Lack Thereof: February Post #1

It's February! You know what that means: Valentine's Day themed crap EVERYWHERE!
I hate Valentine's Day. The only good thing about it is that my Dad always buys me chocolates from my favorite place (Bruno Bakery on LaGuardia Place in NYC). However, I thought this year I might try to be a little less negative about it all.
I decided that this month's posts on the blog would all be about GOOD (LOVE) SONGS. And with maybe a few GOOD (BREAK-UP) SONGS thrown in there for realism, eh? The songs will be extremely varied: old, new, indie, classic, jazz, pop, etc. I like to mix things up.

Without further ado, here is the GOOD (LOVE) SONG #1:
Frank, AB by The Rural Alberta Advantage

Apparently this is what Rural Albertans look like.

This song, off their one & only album Hometowns (BUY IT HERE: Hometowns), really struck me when I listened to the lyrics. It's about a town in Canada (in Alberta, the province where all three band members are from, hence the name of the group) named Frank, where a huge landslide buried about 100 people. Check it out.
The song is about a couple who die in the slide. The lyrics are great:

My love, I will hold onto your touch
Until there's nothing left of us
Save you from this life
And the cold weight, and the Rocky's clutch
Won't take away our love

So, yeah, it's sad but it's a great testament to the people who died and to the enduring power of love.
Oh, and the song is so catchy. Those "ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh"s are great. The three band members (Amy Cole, Paul Banwatt, and Nils Edenloff) make great music together. Yay! AND, this March the band will be releasing a new album, entitled Departing. Double Yay!

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

Wolf Parade
Frightened Rabbit
The Decemberists
Titus Andronicus
Telekinesis
Port O'Brien
The Rosebuds
Songs: Ohia


Happy February! Hope you got somebody to love!

Over and out,
Anna

Quick Post--New Album Alert!

Hello all!
I thought I might just  write a quick unofficial post and send out the word (in case you ain't heard) of two great new albums that just dropped:
The King is Dead by The Decemberists (January 18th, 2011)
AND
Kiss Each Other Clean by Iron & Wine (January 25th, 2011)


GOOD SONG: Calamity Song by The Decemberists

Yeah, I have no idea what's going on in this picture, either.

GOOD SONG: Tree By The River by Iron & Wine

Sam Beam, the brains (and hair) behind Iron & Wine.
I can't decide whether I think he looks more like Zeus or Jesus.

Also, the new album by Bright Eyes, which comes out on February 15th, 2011, can be listened to in its entirety here: NPR First Listen
It's quite good, you should check it out (especially the song "Shell Games").


Enjoy!
Over and out,
Anna

I guess now I'm a Bond(y) Girl

Ok, so Palenville, NY is this tiny and quite random town in upstate NY near my house in the Catskills.  There is almost nothing going on there. And yet, it produced the fantastic Felice Brothers, who I posted about earlier. 
Turns out Palenville is also where A. A. Bondy (originally from Birmingham, Alabama) went to record his second album entitled When The Devil's Loose.

At first, I just thought to myself, "Oh, that's odd. I wonder what the connection is." I figured it was just a random coincidence. BUT...

I noticed that a bunch of photographs of A. A. Bondy on Last. fm were taken by a certain "Clare Felice." Hmmm.... Felice. Sounds familiar.

Yup, looks like Palenville. 

Turns out it's his wife. And I'm betting you a billion dollars that she is related to the infamous brothers of the same name.

So there's your connection. I feel like a veritable SLEUTH. (Although brooklynvegan knew all this way before I did. Oh well.)

Anyway, A. A. Bondy is great. I stumbled across him while on Last.fm, and haven't regretted it. He's originally from 'bama (like I said), and became mildly famous for singing in the band Verbena, although he was known as Scott back then. I have no idea why, when his real name is Auguste Arthur Bondy, which is a great name. Verbena sounded much more like Nirvana than anything that A. A. Bondy makes now, which is cool by me. His first album entitled American Hearts came out in '07, and his sophomore album came out in '09. Let's hope he keeps them coming.

With no further ado, here is today's GOOD SONG:
When The Devil's Loose by A. A. Bondy.

Enjoy!

BUY HIS MUSIC HERE: A. A. Bondy!

If you liked this song, you might also check out:
a lot of stuff I've already told you to check out, like:
Deer Tick
The Avett Brothers
The Felice Brothers
Bob Dylan (ha!)
Ryan Adams (& the Cardinals)/ Whiskeytown
Justin Townes Earle
Adam Haworth Stevens
Forest Sun
and also:
Benjamin Fitton
Cass McCombs

Over and out,
Anna

Strong Love, Weak Hearts

So a few years ago (November 2007 I think) I saw Dr. Dog live in NYC with a friend of mine. This fantastic band opened for them- the Delta Spirit. I was completely blown away by their energy onstage.
When they came onstage at the end of Dr. Dog's set, to help them sing/play the
GOOD SONG GREAT SONG "Heart It Races"
(originally by Architecture in Helsinki), I knew they were awesome. I eagerly got their album and then even more eagerly awaited more of their stuff. I have not been disappointed. Since then, they've gotten a lot more press but they haven't "sold out" or any of that sort of thing (what does that even mean anyway? Who cares?). This June they released their second album entitled "History From Below," which is fantastic. It's darker than their debut, but they work that quite well.  And I think it's high time their made their debut on AGSIHTF.

What most apartments in Bushwick look like.
Hence the blues. 

The band is originally from San Diego, and they still reside somewhere in Cali, I believe. It's comprised of Mathew Vasquez (vocals), Jon Jameson (bass), Brandon Young (percussion), and Kelly Winrich (other schtuff). Although they may hail from lighthearted SoCal, their songs deal with some heavy stuff. Example: the song "Streetwalker" on their debut album, which dealt with the subject of child prostitution. And the song on "History From Below" entitled "Ballad of Vitaly," which is about a Russian man who kills an air-traffic controller in revenge because... well, it's a long story. A true one. Super dark. But a FANTASTIC ballad.

Anyway, on their new album, I really like this GOOD SONG:  Bushwick Blues

FYI, Bushwick is a neighborhood in Brooklyn. It could easily give one the blues. 

I love the lyrics: 

Because my love is strong/

and my heart is weak/

after all

Anyhoo, if you like these songs, you might also like:

Dr. Dog

Dawes

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros

Cold War Kids (they toured with them)

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (they also toured with them)

Ra Ra Riot

Kelley Stoltz

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: Delta Spirit

Over and out,

Anna

P.S. Merry Christmas!!!

Dreamy Folk-Pop for Owls...?

There seems to be a profusion of random bands popping up with animal names (Grizzly Bear, Bear in Heaven, Panda Bear, Shearwater [a kind of bird], Wolf Parade, Dr. Dog, and the list goes on...). One noteworthy animal band out there right now, though, is most definitely Breathe Owl Breathe.

Right now they're rockin the #10 spot on eMusic's charts and for good reason. They seem like a great little musical trio, and their music just makes me happy. Also, after listening to their song "Dragon," I can tell they have a great goofy sense of humor.

The band is comprised of Micah Middaugh (on the guitar, banjo, piano, and "musical toys" section of the band), Andrea Moreno-Beals (on vocals and AMAZING cello), and Trevor Hobbes (on drums and all sorts of random instruments of the percussive persuasion). I believe they're all from Michigan, so I guess this post is yet another Midwest shoutout. 

Jump Owl Jump!

Their album "Magic Central" just came out in September, and it's great. Andrea's voice reminds me a lot of Feist's. Which is always a good thing, right?

The first GOOD SONG of theirs that I wanna recommend is their song "House of Gold." The only version I could find of it is a random live version from a show they did in Ohio, but it's definitely still worth a listen/watch. Here you go: House of Gold. I am digging her backup vocals on this one.

The second GOOD SONG of theirs from "Magic Central" is Swimming. It's quite chill, as a lot of their stuff is, but it's a great song. And, as the lyrics say, I definitely wish I was swimming right now (someplace warm, obviously. The 31 degree weather here is a whole lotta no fun). 

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

Feist

Horse Feathers

Iron & Wine

The Cave Singers

Bonnie "Prince" Billy

The Be-Good Tanyas

Pink & Noseworthy

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: Breathe Owl Breathe

Over and out,

Anna 

Another Bad Day for Justin Townes Earle

Sorry I've been outta commission for a while. Thanksgiving caught me unawares. I promise I'll make it up to you, though. These past couple of weeks I have been listening to a lot of music (especially on my long walks around Manhattan this past weekend). So here goes the next installment:


I find that there are a lot of older songs, especially country songs, that have really fun, upbeat tunes and rythyms, but have depressing-as-hell lyrics (Johnny Cash's "Train of Love" comes to mind). Maybe it's spurred on by a desire to find the silver lining in the situation. Maybe it's more of a desire to mask one's feelings. Maybe it stems from a musical tradition--- traditional Irish folk? Blues? Whatever the reason, a LOT of singers have mastered this marriage of sad lyrics + happy tune. And, Justin Townes Earle, one of my favorite alt-country-folk-rock-whatever-genre-you-wanna-box-him-in singer, has revealed the fact that he is pretty darn good at this as well.

He's feelin' down. I'm feelin' his style.  

His new album, entitled "Harlem River Blues" is amazing, and the title track is what kills me (no pun intended). It's a really fun song, and if you ignore the lyrics, quite uppity. But, of course, when you listen to what he's actually saying, it's kind of a downer. The opening lines?


"Lord, I'm goin' uptown to the Harlem River to drown/
Dirty water gonna cover me over and I'm not gonna make a sound." 

Here is the GOOD SONG: Harlem River Blues


It's clearly about a guy about to go drown himself in the Harlem River, although it's a little unusual as he seems to think that what he's doing is actually *good* for his soul. He wants to avoid trouble in the future by simply killing himself off right now while he's still "good in his grace." Interesting. Doesn't convince me, though, that it's the best idea.
Honestly, this sort of song doesn't really surprise me, coming from Justin Townes Earle. A little background: He's the son of the famous country singer Steve Earle. His middle name is a nod to another famous country singer, Townes Van Zandt (who is so awesome, by the way). He was raised in Nashville, although now he lives in the East Village (near where I was raised, which is I'm sure the reason for his move up north). He got super into drugs in his youth and then got clean. He's on tour right now, although part of his tour had to be postponed as he was arrested in Indianapolis on charges of "battery, public intoxication, and resisting law enforcement." Hmmmm...  Now you see why I'm not so surprised by his happy/sad songs. 
Apparently he decided to back into rehab after that incident. 


He's so freaking talented, I hope he gets himself together and keeps making amazing music, though, because the music world can't have people like him getting arrested all the time. 


If you like this song, you might also like:


Steve Earle (you know, the Dad)
Townes Van Zandt (you know, the namesake)
David Rawlings Machine
Old Crow Medicine Show
The Felice Brothers (I believe he's toured with them)
Those Darlins
Langhorne Slim (I believe he's also toured with him)


BUY HIS MUSIC HERE: tasty music from JTE


Over and out,
Anna


P.S. I feel obligated to mention that his song "Can't Hardly Wait" (no connection to the movie), from his earlier album "Midnight at the Movies" is my NUMBER ONE top played song on my itunes. It's freaking fantastic. No hint of suicidal tendencies on this one, I might add. It's actually a Replacements cover, not an original.
Here is a nice, pared-down, very earnest live version of it, dedicated to the late, great Christ Feinstein, bass-player for Ryan Adams and the Cardinals: Can't Hardly Wait

Bang Bang Bang!

So Recommendation month continues on the AGSIHTF... This week, though, I'm kinda cheating. I know Last.fm isn't really a friend of mine, but I just had to give this website credit for introducing me to so much good music.

The GOOD SONG for this week is FRANKIE'S GUN by the Felice Brothers (I know, I know I just posted about another brothers group, but this one is different I swear).
I don't remember exactly how I came across them on Last.fm, to be honest, but at this point it doesn't matter. They are FANTASTIC!
And what's weirder is that they are from Palenville, New York, which is about 20 minutes from my own house in upstate NY. Palenville is pretty much a nothing little town, so I give it kudos for producing these badasses.

Ok boys I know you're from the sticks, but
it's not THAT hard to find a shower.

How are they badasses, you might ask? Ok, example of their badassery: in 2008 they played at the Newport Folk Festival (of Bobby D infamy) and a huge rainstorm cut off their power. Instead of wussing out and waiting for the power to come back or just cancel, they played a totally acoustic show, jumping off the stage, and mud-puddling it out to the soaking wet and happy crowd.

The band consists of David Turbeville on drums/vocals, Christmas (that is his real name... he used to be a traveling dice player) on bass, and the two brothers Ian (vocals/guitar/piano) and James Felice (accordion/piano/organ), with occasional additions of washboard, horn section, and fiddle. Another brother, Simone Felice, used to be part of the band as well, but left amicably to start his own thang called The Duke and the King (characters from Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn). Although they hail from the Catskills, they moved to NY a few years ago and started playing their ramshackle music in the subway stations. Since then, they've made it big(ger).

Frankie's Gun in particular is a great song. Sounds like the story of a guy in an old-school Mafia drug or booze run, who is taking money off the top to buy his mom and sweetheart nice things. I like the line:

"I saw a man hit my mom one time, really
I hurt him so damn bad
I had to hide in Jersey."


Here is a link to a great live version as well: Frankie's Gun Live. Yay for accordions! I am going to go see them play live at the Rock n Roll Hotel here in DC this coming Friday (the 22nd), along with Adam Haworth Stephens. Nice! Anyone in the area is welcome to join me.

BUY THEIR MUSIC HERE: Felice Bros

If you like them you might also like:

Bob Dylan
Pete Molinari
Avett Brothers
The Duke & The King
Old Crow Medicine Show (they toured with them!)
Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band (they also toured with them!)

Over and out,
Anna

The Open Road

Let's go on a road trip! Let's get outta the city!
Fortunately, I know a really tasty Midwestern band by the name of Jayber Crow.
For those lit freaks out there, the name might sound a bit familiar. Jayber Crow may be a random indie-folk band from Minnesota, but it is also the name of a character from the writings of Wendell Berry.

Not in the band. 

I have yet to read his stuff (kinda like how I also have yet to read Flannery O'Connor... you may be noticing a pattern here), but his poetry, fiction, and non-fiction, focusing largely on life in middle America, have gained him a huge following. That following apparently includes Zach and Pete from the Jayber Crow. Which makes sense, since their music revolves mostly around life in the midwest. And it's fabulous. 

You can tell they're from the Midwest 'cuz they wear plaid...
and they're near plants.

The GOOD SONG for today is "The Farmer and the Nomad" from their short EP entitled "The Farmer and the Nomad" from 2008.
You can listen to it by going to the Jayber Crow website, and listening to it on their music player at the top of their homepage. It's the 3rd song. Here is their site: Jayber Crow


This is a pretty mellow song of theirs, although plenty of their songs are more energetic, guitar-and-banjo-driven songs. They sing of the gradual shifting from nomad to farmer. The farmer's deep roots and ties to the land combined with the nomad's longing to wander. You can definitely see why they might like the writing of Wendall Berry if you listen to their lyrics.


"But until then,
it's just the shifting grass
and the open road."

They released a full-length EP entitled "Two Short Stories" in 2009, which is awesome. On that album, I highly recommend listening to "Devil and the Desert" (about Jesus's 40 days of temptation in the Desert) and "Drinking Song of a Germinating Seed."

Their stuff in general is awesome-- you can find their two CD's ( "The Farmer and the Nomad" and "Two Short Stories") on iTunes. Check 'em out.  I'm a sucker for their harmonica. 

If you like this song by Jayber Crow, you might also check out:

Josh Ritter

Old Canes

Bright Eyes/Conor Oberst

Papercuts

Forest Sun

The Rural Alberta Advantage

Let me know what you think! Comments are good! It's nice to know if people are actually reading. And more importantly, listening. 

Over and out,
Anna