i wanna believe but i'm outta control

After gaining some buzz last summer with its first DFA produced tracks, Free Energy's debut, Stuck On Nothing, dropped on 3/9 via Astralwerks.
The album is an ode to the big 70s guitars and catchy choruses of T. Rex and Cheap Trick. The band has crafted a debut, which is in debt to these groups but sounds super fresh and perfectly timed for the sunshiney weather around the corner.
James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem had a hand in producing some of the album and the man's supreme pop chops can be felt throughout the record.

Give a listen below...

when the cafe doors exploded

Always get excited about new Ted Leo material.
The man's most recent album, The Brutalist Bricks, is more immediate than his last outing and overall much stronger.
The songs take a beefier, punk leaning with Leo taking it down a few notches here and there as well.
I was lucky enough to be standing about three feet in front of him the other week as he played a couple of the new tracks. Even hearing them stripped down to just acoustic guitar, the songs soared as Leo's voice sounds as good as ever.
He just seems like the coolest dude as well.

i feel just like a man

I know I've written about this record here before. It's just so good.
Adams had to come out of the gate with a near perfect record, always chasing the greatness of the debut.

ima put your lights out

Let's do a quick RnB round up. None of this is really new, just some real nice jams you need in your life these days.
I know at least a few people will be interested (adamp4, Luda) but in the last year and the last couple of months some real good stuff has been coming out in the genre.

First up, Lloyd's the Like Me: The Young Goldie ep can be grabbed for free from here
This ep is solid throughout and Lloyd has one of the most infectious voices in pop music today. The vid below is a song that requires constant jamming.


Pleasure P, formerly of Pretty Ricky, dropped The Introduction of Marcus Cooper last year and it's on par if not better than Trey Songz's '09 release.
P's record is a notable for not stretching over 18 tracks or something. He keeps it nice and clean at a 12 track pace with radio ready, heat rock and knows how to craft a serious slow jam.


Last year The Dream, Ryan Leslie, Trey Songz, Electrik Red, there was a slew of nice RnB releases.
If you want anything drop me a line and something can be arranged.

i want you back

I've had this on my computer for a while and have just gave it a proper listen.
Local Natives' Gorilla Manor plays like Copeland attempting to reach the Stereogum crowd.
The percussion is full of the floor tom strikes like so much indie rock since "Purple Bottle" dropped, but the band's drums are less immediate.
The band grabs from a number of modern influences (All Hour Cymbals,a beefier Fleet Foxes) but explores them further in crafting a stand out record all its own.

tramps like us, baby we were born to die

The posts have been mad slow because of a big move I've undertaken.
For the next few months I will be living in NYC as I have received an internship with SPIN Magazine.
The past month or so has been a whirlwind of getting everything ready for me to make this relocation. My dad and I flew out to the city last Friday without a spot for me to live, only the prospect of crashing on my cousin's couch for at most a week's time. We struck gold on Saturday, finding an apartment in Greenwich Village, about a 20 minute walk away from the SPIN offices. I'm not able to move in until the first of February so the cousin couch crashing is in full swing right now.
I start my internship this Friday and in the meantime I'm hustling applications around Manhattan trying to find a separate part time job (why do most retail stores need a cover letter for me to apply?).
I'm super jacked to start with this new chapter in my life and can't wait to share the events of the upcoming months.
None of this would have been possible without my amazing family. I am truly blessed and cannot even begin to thank you all.

Until the next time here's a hot jam

i use my cajones

Introducing...
The "On to the Next One" dancers!!!

Hov went and made himself a My Chemical Romance video,
Jay and Swizz dropped the video for their BP3 jam last week and it's pretty gnarly.

stand up

Dizzee is so playing my New Year's party this year.

don't ever turn it down

I'm on winter break, just on chillmode for the past couple of weeks back at my parent's house.
I'll be back at school come Monday with a whole lot of time on my hands and I'll get back on here then.
Until my departure from Central Illinois, here's something splendid to tide you over.

lost and found

Over the past couple of weeks, as year end best of lists have been trickling out, I have found some gems. These are records I hadn't even heard of or just did not give the time of day when they dropped.

Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson- Summer of Fear


Miike Snow- S/T


Ida Maria- Fortress Round My Heart


These United States- Everything Touches Everything

Top 10 albums of 2009

I already posted this list for the newspaper but let's toss some youtube links in with the picks.

1. Tegan and Sara- Sainthood


2. Lucero- 1372 Overton Park


3. Dirty Projectors- Bitte Orca


4. Manchester Orchestra- Mean Everything to Nothing


5. Animal Collective- Merriweather Post Pavillion


6. The Dream- Love vs. Money


7. Cass McCombs- Catacombs


8. Freddie Gibbs- midwestgangstaboxframecadillacmuzik


9. The xx- self-titled


10. A.A. Bondy- When the Devil's Loose

Top 10 Albums of the Decade

I probably didn't spend as much time as I should have when compiling this list, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.
All of the albums here are included for any number of reasons: technical advancements, time they came out in my life, etc...
Hit up the comments here or on fbook with your own lists!

1. Wilco- Yankee Hotel Foxtrot


2. Radiohead- Kid A


3. Jay-Z- The Blueprint


4. The National- Alligator


5. The Hold Steady- Separation Sunday


6. Kanye West- The College Dropout


7. Spoon- Kill the Moonlight


8. LCD Soundsystem- Sound of Silver


9. Ghostface Killah- Supreme Clientele


10. The Mountain Goats- Tallahassee

a decent human being

With the stress of finals and a looming internship interview (keep those fingers crossed) I should be listening to more upbeat stuff, keep my spirits high and all of that.
This just isn't the case after I grabbed David Bazan's newest album, "Curse Your Branches."
The man formerly behind Pedro the Lion took some time away from music the last couple of years as he struggled with alcoholism and his Christianity. Those struggles are laid bare here.
I was listening to the record earlier this morning when my roommate commented on the lyrics not fitting the mood of the music. Bazan writes pop tunes, but these lyrics are all about his inner turmoil. They are full of snark and misunderstanding, making for an introspective listen.

funnies

BELL!

Click over to the Youtube page when done, the comments are great.

babies and feelings and tears and stuff

Over Thanksgiving break my father and I got down with one of our favorite past times, copping used media.
After he scooped the new Swell Season record second hand, we discussed the film the duo starred in the other year, "Once."
Both of us were huge fans and I commented about a friend who I thought would have loved the film that severely disliked it. Her main beef was the film's contents, its relationship, was too "real."
Each letting out a similar guffaw, we agreed the "real" is what made the film a standout. The "real" is what made the film get two grown men to admit it had them shedding some tears.
Not since then has a film, with a main theme of romance got to me so much as Sam Mendes' "Away We Go."
The cast, the story, the direction, everything is wonderful here.
Sam Mendes' subtle touch guides great turns from John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph as the two play a couple expecting a child, looking for the right place to start their family.
The two leads share a chemistry rare in romantic dramedies, as they actually seem in love. Not in some Hollywood way, but as two people who are so in tune with each others needs and feelings, there is no one else in the world they could be with.
So many aspects of the script set it apart from modern romantic film. Men talk about their feelings and fears, with each other and their significant others. Maya Rudolph's character is a woman who does not want to get married, out of fear and her own principles.
The film also has a great deal of laughs. Alison Janney and Maggie Gyllenhal have super turns in their bit roles, along with Krasinski and Rudolph playing off each other as if they had been a couple for years.
This thing snuck up on me, but it's one of the best films I've seen this year.

people in nightclubs

Let's chalk that up to failed tumblr experiment #2.
I think I'll just stick around here, bunch of posts still around and most links should be functioning.
Now to the music.


I'm not too familiar with David Byrne's solo work, but "Grown Backwards" is beautiful.
For those who were caught up with Eno and Byrne's record last year, this one is in the same arena. It's all lush string arrangements and varied forms of percussion.
As my roommate Kayli and her friend Katie nap on our couches, the record has turned into the perfect rainy day between class nap soundtrack.



Byrne and Rufus above

do you feel me coming close?

The new Tegan and Sara album, "Sainthood" is a monster.
I have always enjoyed the duo, but none of its output has immediately grabbed me like this album has.
They jump around from genre to genre, never losing a step in the process. This release finds two artists working at the top of their game and is one of the year's best.
I wrote a quick review for the newspaper's website as well.

we've got tea

"Mad Men" finished up Sunday night.
Here's a column I wrote for a class today about the show and its season finale.
It was a real wonderful ep, top five of the series.

"Sunday night was bittersweet.
Audiences were given one of the most satisfying television episodes of recent memory, but now they must wait until the summer for more of the same magic.
"Mad Men" wrapped up its third season on AMC by tying up some loose ends and launching some new beginnings.
The fictional series, which depicts the lives of those working at the Manhattan located Sterling Cooper advertising agency in the 60s has been a roller-coaster of change for the last few months. From the start of its third go 'round, it has been a slow burning mess of emotion, all building up to Sunday's finale.
The series' landscape changed drastically for all of its characters as marriages crumbled, agencies shifted and new alliances were formed. In just forty some minutes of screen time, the show's creators expertly jam packed an episode with shake ups, never giving it a bloated feeling.
This balancing act, of giving viewers closure but so many questions about a series' future is certainly a skill series creator Matthew Weiner gleaned while working on another of this decade's greatest series, "The Sopranos".
The two series share many similar parallels, but one Weiner has not been borrowing much is similarities between the shows' two main characters.
Unlike Tony Soprano, "Mad Men"'s Don Draper is an always suave, rarely if every rattled boss. The character has a temper that is almost always in check and emotions which rarely pop up. He has always kept a wall between those closest to him.
On Sunday, Weiner crashed through that wall.
Audiences are given a new Don Draper. He has to become a man willing to drop to his knees and ask for forgiveness (well, in a calm and collected Draper fashion), while throwing his whole future up in the air to continue with the profession he loves.
There were so many elements this finale got dead on. Not only did it show another side of its rock-solid front man, but it was a bundle of rewards for those who have been paying attention all season.
It is almost painful when a favorite show finishes its time slot and it sinks in these sets and characters will be gone for a whole week. With great television this is always the case and "Mad Men", like all thought-provoking TV, does this expertly.
So, it is a testament to Weiner and the show's writers for rewarding its fans' patience throughout its masterful third season.
However, with those rewards come looming uncertainties about the world within the show's future, which is why its viewers will keep coming back."

i've got the cure

Sorry about the lack lately. I'm still writing, it's just over here.
As this semester has been flying by I have felt myself begin to enjoy writing film reviews more and more. This week's was an especially great one, the film, not my writing.

I feel like the month of October has been a whirlwind of school and other life stuff. Here's to hoping November gives a bit of a reprieve and I can hit this space up more often. Keep checking I'll be here.

In the meantime, there has been some good tunes coming out in the fourth quarter this year. The new Lucero record, 1372 Overton Park, is wonderful.
I just grabbed the new Tegan and Sara album, Sainthood, yesterday. First listen right now and it is further proof these twin sisters deserve way more props for their pop sensibilities.

i love my job

It's been raining for what seems like an eternity in Carbondale. All this means is I am constantly listening to depressing songs, because that's just what you do when it rains.
Nothing is stopping me from putting on Big Star or something, but cloudy skies and never-ending rain bring out the sad bastard music.
My artist of choice this week has been Cass McCombs. The singer-songwriter's 2009 release Catacombs is a super dark record. The songs are sparse, even when there are numerous instruments being utilized. Each artist is playing his or her part with a hushed intimacy, only adding to McCombs' near whisper vocals.
This is the second in two superb videos created from album tracks, check it out and hate the rain with me.