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Can you be in love with a song?

Wait, wait, I can vouch for it, I am in love with this song. It is divine!

When I met her she was standing by a door
I ain't never seen a light like that before
Now she's left me for something more sure
And I don't know if I
I can do this anymore

Listen:
Amos Lee - "Skipping Stones" (mp3)

In other music related news:

British group The Dave Clark Five have been rocked by tragedy just 10 days before they were to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame - frontman Mike Smith has died.

A source at the Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, tells RollingStone.com that Smith, 64, was found dead on Thursday morning. Reports suggest Smith died of pneumonia in London.

Labels: Amos Lee, dave clark five

He says he was the "classic loser" in high school staying at home with his parents on the weekend while his brother and sister would go out around the town and having fun. I don't know if that gave him more time or helped open a creative outlet in songwriting or not, but I'm happy something prompted the musical flow. Gabriel Mann is a genius at songwriting. A genius I tell you! And from what I have read about him, I seriously doubt he is gloating or bragging "look at me now" to the idiots he once went to school with.

Mann is a "piano rocker" like Billy Joel perhaps. He has studied piano since the age of 7 and thanks his Mom for that influence, as she was a pianist, too. Then in middle school he became comfortable enough to compose his own music. He's been doing it ever since. His songs are written straight from the heart, so much so I wonder if the ink he used was his own blood. But that might be just too gross. Please know I mean it strictly metaphorically speaking.

His most recent album is more energetic than past releases, but just as melodic. Tall Buildings, is his 4th full length album and it released on September 4, 2007. Linus of Hollywood (The Charlatans, Puff Daddy) produced it, Dave Trumfio (Wilco, OK Go) mixed it, and the band members were Adam Marcello on drums, Carson Cohen on bass, and Steve Mazur on guitar.

The man of many talents also recently produced Sara Bareilles' (Epic) Careful Confessions album.

Listen:
Gabriel Mann - "Unbroken" (mp3)

BUY HIS MUSIC!

Labels: gabriel mann

"Broken Records formed in December 2006 in Edinburgh, Scotland, by seven multi-instrumentalists. Using a range of instruments including guitars, bass, violin, cello, accordion, mandolin, piano, trumpet, glockenspiel and drums, they create a sound combining traditional European folk with modern Scottish alternative music."

I don't know how the above information could NOT entice someone to want to listen to Broken Records music. Knowing their talents on paper should be enough to peak your curiosity, right? Still at the same time could something that packed with different instruments end up sounding put together and good?

Yes.

Broken Records sounds incredible, their nearly perfect (not too perfect) music is something not easily found in our world today.

The vocals I struggle with though because I think some of it is too strained. There are periods of the music during which the vocals sound relaxed and comfortable. But there are also portions during during which the vocals are just a tad out of their happy range. Thankfully the brilliant musical production makes up for the screeching...okay maybe not screeching but dude face it you're not a song bird.

Listen to "Slow Parade" trust me, just wait for it. Once you get to the last 30 seconds you'll be so hooked. The trumpet at the end is just amazing! And they keys, oh the keys THEY SHIMMER!

Listen:
Broken Records - "Slow Parade" (mp3)

BUY THEIR MUSIC! (There is a paypal link on their myspace page)

Labels: Broken Records

A few years ago Alejandro Escovedo stopped releasing music. He contracted a serious illness and it caused significant damage to his liver. He admits freely that he drank too much. He says he "stared his own death in the face." I admire his openness about this and am happy to know he is able to get back up and out into the music scene.

"Musically, Alejandro Escovedo is in his own genre." David Fricke, Rolling Stone

I'm going to have to agree with Rolling Stone on this one, though I don't typically enjoy their magazine.

Alejandro Escovedo's new album, Real Animal is his 9th solo album and the follow-up to his 2006 release of the The Boxing Mirror. The new album will be released on June 10, 2008. It was produced by Tony Visconti (David Bowie, Thin Lizzy).

This release is one I am definitely going to be buying. His music is so intense and raw it penetrates your very soul.

For those of you in Texas you should try and get to one of his shows. Yes, he is well enough to get out and start touring but for the month of March he will remain in Texas.

Listen:
Alejandro Escovedo - "Fall Apart" (mp3)

BUY HIS ALBUMS!

Labels: Alejandro Escovedo

From the Angie Stone Giveaway contest I was able to choose TWO winners because Angie so kindly sent me TWO discs for the contest!

Commentors Daisy and Kari were chosen using random.org.

Both Daisy and Kari need to give me their mailing address within seven days so I am able to send out their prize. I was able to send an e-mail notifying Kari, but I do not have a way to contact Daisy, so I hope she is reading.

Thank you to lose who entered and congratulations to the winners!!!

Those reading today, don't forget to enter the Dreaming Isabelle contest which ends March 14th at noon (EST).

Labels: contest

We're nearing the end of February and I'm in the mood for another contest so what do you say, let's give it a go.

First please note the Angie Stone CD giveaway ends tomorrow, Friday the 22nd. Leave a comment on that post before 12 p.m. tomorrow and you'll still have a chance to win her album.

This new contest will be for a "Dreaming Isabelle" EP, sticker and magnet. Weehoo! I wrote about Dreaming Isabelle on Posh Mama. Every Thursday on Posh Mama one of my reviews is featured on the front page.

Here is an excerpt of that review about Dreaming Isabelle's music, "It's gritty and yet melodic, most definitely music I would describe as posh. =o) Even though this is modern day music there are hints of influence from classics like The Beatles, it's just a bit updated. The music isn't over produced and the emphasis is not on showing multi-instrumentalism like many new indie artists. This band focuses on creating well written songs, their craft is definitely in their lyrics and blends."

Leave a comment and you'll automatically be entered into a giveaway for their latest EP and you'll get a Dreaming Isabelle sticker AND a magnet! This contest will end on March 14, 2008 at 12 p.m. EST. A winner will be chosen at random using a Random.org.

Good luck!

Listen:
Dreaming Isabelle - "Not Missing You" (mp3)

Labels: contest, Dreaming Isabelle

Currently on repeat in my office is +44's song "When Your Heart Stops Beating." I love it. It's very much comparable to Starting Line or Taking Back Sunday. It's a little bit too mainstream emo for most of my readers, but I love it and so this is what you're getting. =o)

Foolishly the band cancelled a recent European tour, very Kelly Clarkson style. They have opted to go back to the studio and continue recording before heading out on a full fledged tour. THey should have thought of that first, things like this hurt a fan base.

The band consists of four members: former Blink-182 members Mark Hoppus (bass guitar and vocals) and Travis Barker (drums and keyboards), Transplants touring guitarist Craig Fairbaugh and the lead guitarist of The Nervous Return, Shane Gallagher.

On October 23, 2007, Mark Hoppus stated that +44 had officially signed a deal with Interscope Records to start recording +44's second studio album. I honestly have no idea what they are up to right now and my research is leading me to old content, so if any of you know +44 then send me a line.

Listen:
+44 - "When Your Heart Stops Beating" (mp3)

Labels: plusfortyfour

On March 25th you can buy "Panic At The Disco's" new album Pretty. Odd. and you so should. Me? I have it pre-ordered because I was just so excited I couldn't not put it in my online cart and click submit.

You might already be a fan or you might not be, I sort of fell into the latter category until recently. Their glam rock didn't impress me, it was too "sitting in the back seat of the school bus and thinking you're cool" for me. But their new material has me hooked.

The first single "Nine In The Afternoon" hit radios on February 4th and quickly made an impression, a good one at that. It's so good to hear them focuising on their music rather than knowing they are more worried about their image.

Listen:
Panic at the Disco - "Nine in the Afternoon" (mp3)

Pre-order the album now! Look below for tour dates and make sure to scoop some tickets because people are already plowing over each other to get them.

They're also touring to promote the new album and it's a HUGE tour. Several of the shows are actually already sold out. They are coming to Philly and I do hope to score tickets. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on that one. I think even Brae would love that show. It would be a family trip for sure.

04.10 San Francisco, CA @ Warfield SOLD OUT
04.11 San Francisco, CA @ Warfield
04.12 San Diego, CA @ Soma
04.13 Phoenix, AZ @ Mesa Amphitheatre
04.15 Tulsa, OK @ Brady Theater
04.17 Ruston, LA @ Thomas Assembly Center
04.18 Dallas, TX @ Palladium Ballroom
04.19 Austin, TX @ Stubb's BBQ
04.20 Houston, TX @ Verizon Theater
04.22 Tampa, FL @ Ruth Eckerd Hall
04.23 Miami, FL @ Fillmore Miami Beach
04.24 Orlando, FL @ House Of Blues
04.26 Atlanta, GA @ The Tabernacle SOLD OUT
04.27 Atlanta, GA @ The Tabernacle
04.29 Myrtle Beach, SC @ House Of Blues
04.30 Washington, DC @ Constitution Hall
05.02 Orono, ME @ Alfond Arena
05.03 Troy, NY @ RPI Field House
05.06 Rochester, NY @ Gordon Fieldhouse
05.07 New York, NY @ Roseland Ballroom SOLD OUT
05.08 New York, NY @ Roseland Ballroom
05.09 Philadelphia, PA @ Festival Pier
05.10 Wallingford, CT @ Chevrolet Theatre
05.11 Boston, MA @ Bank Of America Pavilion
05.13 Montreal, QC @ Metropolis
05.14 Toronto, ON @ The Sound Academy
05.16 Cleveland, OH @ Tower City Amp
05.17 Columbus, OH @ PromoWest Outdoor
05.18 Indianapolis, IN @ Egyptian Room
05.20 Detroit, MI @ Fillmore Theatre
05.23 Chicago, IL @ Congress Theatre SOLD OUT
05.24 Chicago, IL @ Congress Theatre
05.25 Milwaukee, WI @ Eagles Ballroom
05.27 Minneapolis, MN @ Myth
05.30 St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
05.31 Omaha, NE @ Westfair Amphitheatre
06.01 Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theatre
06.03 Denver, CO @ The Fillmore Auditorium
06.04 Salt Lake City, UT @ Salt Air Theatre
06.06 Vancouver, BC @ PNE Forum
06.07 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
06.08 Portland, OR @ Portland Expo Center
06.10 Reno, NV @ Grand Theatre at Grand Sierra Resost
06.13 Las Vegas, NV @ The Pearl
06.14 Anaheim, CA @ The Honda Center

In other music related news I was asked to write about Tegan And Sara recently. When I started writing I immediately wanted to include my thoughts on the recent bashing of them based on the possibility that they "might be" lesbians. I included the paragraph thinking it would be edited out, but they published it. So rock on!

Read it here >>

Labels: Panic At The Disco

Straight from their website we have the latest and greatest news of one of my favorite bands ever, The National.

NEW SHOWS:
+ May 11 - Aula Magna - Lisbon, Portugal
+ May 12 - Olympia Theatre - Dublin, Ireland (Third + FINAL show added!)
+ August 11 - Vega - Copenhagen, Denmark

NEW FESTIVAL ANNOUCEMENTS:
+ T in the Park, Scotland: July 11-13
+ Benicassim, Spain: July 17-20
+ Haldern Pop Festival, Germany: Aug 2-4
+ Oya Festival, Norway: Aug 5-9
+ Way Out West Festival, Sweden: Aug 8-9

Being the loving people that they are they also wanted fans to know Bryce Dessner will be performing two shows with Glenn Kotche (from Wilco) at The Kitchen in NYC, March 13 + 14th.

Listen:
The National - "Slow Show"

Buy the Boxer album! (It's perfect, every track, trust me!)

Labels: music news, The National

Tapes 'N Tapes (warning their website will try to blind you) have released a new upbeat and funky track called "Hang Them All" it's a song from their upcoming album Walk It Off. The album will be in store on April 8, 2008. Today is the first day of their pre-sale for their North American Tour which is probably why they decided to release the track.

I really like it and it immediately got my toes tapping. It's quite catchy though the production is a bit too lo-fi for me and I could do with a tad bit less repetition with the vocals. Broken record lyrical snippets irritate me.

Right now the band is in London. They'll hit up the SXSW on March 12th and officially begin their next tour on April 10, 2008 at First Avenue in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Listen:
Tapes 'N Tapes - "Hang Them All" (mp3)

Labels: tapes n tapes

You know the term "bubblegum pop" used to describe artists who combine the sounds of the 70s with a tinge of grungy material from current times? The Whitsundays fit the definition pretty well.

Some people think they could stand being more original, but I think they definitely add their own flair to their tracks. What I hear in "Sorry James" or "It Must Be Me" is full and adventurous. Unlike Apples In Stereo who almost try to hard for the retro sound, The Whitsundays just played and if that meant veering and branching they just went with it. The production doesn't sound stiff or meticulous which I think ends up the problem with other bands who allow their influences to be too much of a guide.

Thus, it's catchy and hummable. =o)

Who are The Whitsundays?

Paul Arnusch - vocals, percussion
Dave Swanson - guitar, vocals
Clint Frazier - drums
Lyle Bell - bass, vocals
Doug Organ - keyboards

Listen:
The Whitsundays - "It Must Be Me"

Labels: The Whitsundays

If you enjoy keys you should not continue to deprive yourself of Keren Ann. It's not monumental, but for me it's perfect. Light, airy and crisp sunshine all in a few finger movements. For this you'll want to listen to "Liberty" oh it's just a beautiful piece of music!

And if you want something a bit more hooky you'll want to listen to "Lay Your Head Down" which is my favorite Keren Ann song. Oh my gosh I love it. Hand claps, harmonica and her gorgeous voice. With a constant light percussion beat which sounds like angels wings. I can't imagine and wouldn't be able to explain someone who loves music, not liking this song. Seriously. It would be a notion I simply could not grasp. I find the entire track, start to finish, completely intoxicating.

Both of these songs are off her 5th album (3rd album in English) which is a self-titled record. It released in the US on May 8, 2007.

She leaves the States for an International Tour beginning March 13th, but she will be hitting many, many venues nearby up and down the east coast. This will include a stop at Johnny Brenda's in Philly. I might have to see if I can score some tickets to that one. Right now she is in Minneapolis.

She lived in Israel and in the Netherlands until the age of 11, when her family moved to France. She retains her Dutch and Israeli citizenship. You can find most of her songs in French if you look around and it sounds even more amazing!

Listen:
Keren Ann - "Liberty" (mp3)
Keren Ann - "Lay Your Head Down" (mp3)


Concert Alert:
Elton John is coming to play a show at the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark, DELAWARE! *faints*

Labels: Keren Ann

They're not kidding when they tell you they are experimental. Misophone at times sounds like indie pop, at other times I feel like I'm listening to some kind of nightmare induced circus music.

And I'm awarding them a medal for having the longest album name ever created in history. Are you ready for it? Okay take a deep breath because otherwise you'll fun out of air with this one. Where Has It Gone, All The Beautiful Music Of Our Granparents? It Died With Them, That's Where It Went, is the name of their album. Holy run-on Batman! That is the title of their most recent of 13 albums, yes, 13.

Misophone is made up of a multi-instrumentalist S. Herbert and a poet/lyricist M.A Walsh. I think with this last album they must have just tried to touch every single style of music out there, while also giving it a bit of cotton candy lovin' of their own. If you think about it too hard you'll end up finding the combination of sounds too confusing, so just relax people! Oh the engineering that must have gone into these tracks.

Listen:
Misophone - "You Can't Break A Broken Heart" (mp3)
Misophone - "White Waves" (mp3)

And of course, buy their music!

Labels: misophone

We know about actors who cross over into the singing realm and vice versa, but never before have I heard of a rapper crossing over into the geek world.

Kanye West now has hiw own search engine.

According to the press release, "The site is powered by Google and Ask, meaning users will continue to receive the same results they presently receive from other top search engines. Every search on Kanye's engine, however, comes with digital dollars called Swag Bucks which can be redeemed for Kanye prizes, including: autographed CDs, MP3 downloads, clothing, exclusive Kanye West merchandise and consumer electronics."

And you should know he is also in the process of writing a book. While the book deal for Thank You and You're Welcome was confirmed as early as mid-2007, excerpts from the book have now been released on Kanye's official blog at KanyeUniversecity.com. West, who co-wrote the book with fellow Chicago native J. Sakiya Sandifer, says it will be filled with "creative humorous and insightful philosophies and anecdotes used in creating my path to success."

****

And I know y'all need music for today so here are a few randoms for you to grab.

Listen:
The Republic Tigers - "Buildings And Mountains" (mp3)
Michael Jackson feat. Kanye West - "Billie Jean" (mp3 remix)

Labels: Kanye West, Michael Jackson

Let's celebrate Black History Month with another contest! Angie Stone released her new album on October 16, 2007 and there's no better giveaway to honor Black History Month with then this record. The Art of Love and War was released on the label Stax which you may recognize as being the label for Otis Redding, The Emotions and Luther Ingram (just to name a few). Of course, Concord Records, owns them now, but they have carried on the same great music.

Angie Stone feels this is her best album yet. Stone exclaims, "This is a reflection of where I am both mentally and spiritually and what I feel I've attained at this point in my life." Wiht that kind of intensity and passion put into music you just know it has to be good. Stone's previous work earned her the reputation of a modern-day Aretha; talk about getting a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T, to be compared to someone so great!

Her music is sweet and, for me, quite inspirational. The lyrics give a fresh perspective of how we should look out our lives and feel good about it. This is the type of music which could be classified as timeless and listened to for years to come. This seems to be what Stone was going for, "I think my personal favorite is 'Happy Being Me,' Stone points out. "I guess that title gives you a clue about how I'm feeling right now."

Make sure to leave a comment on this post and in a couple weeks I will pick a winner (randomly) and let y'all know who the lucky person is who will get this CD, wrapped and sealed to listen to vocal prowess Angie Stone whenever the moment suits them.

This contest ends at 12 p.m. on Friday, February 22, 2008. A winner will be chosen at random from the comments below using random.org.

Listen:
Angie Stone - "My People" (mp3)

Labels: Angie Stone, contest

A blend of classical, electric and pop music..."Quitzow" is the name of the band and they just recently launched an album on Young Love Records, but I'm not feeling any love them for them and the only part of classical they have is the "al."

Oh the screeching. The awkwardness. It's painful. Maybe I'm being too harsh and I just happened to listen to a bad track right off the bat, but I struggled to get through it. Normally my ears don't rebel like this, it's just really bad.

It sounds like they threw random pieces of distorted sounds together and then recorded a birds cry for help just before it torpedoed into a window.

Hmm, okay, that's mean. I'm sorry. Not sorry enough to remove the line, but sorry nonetheless, because here I am bashing someone who is just doing what they love. I applaud them for whatever the hell they think they just did.

*slaps forehead*

Listen:
Quitzow - "Stay Away from John" (mp3)

By no all means, buy the music!

Labels: Quitzow