Wolf Parade - Shine a Light

Wolf Parade sound like they're fronted by a beast created with parts of The Constantines' Steve Lambke, Interpol's Paul Banks and good old Win Butler. Needless to say, they sound extremely tight and convincing, with deeply passionate songs just like "Shine a Light", the first song on their new ep for sub pop. Their debut album will be released in september (and it's very good).

wolf_parade_-_shine_a_light.mp3

Fiona Apple - Oh Well

Well, it looks like Fiona Apple's Extraordinary Machine, available online for a few months now on different p2p services, will never get released. In the end, neither Sony or Apple (who isn't happy about Jon Brion's marvelous production work) want it to be released. She has started working on a new record with someone more fashionable. Either way Extraordinary Machine is great. Here's "Oh Well."

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The Constantines - Why I didn't Like August '93

The Constantines cover Elevator to Hell's "Why I Didn't Like Autumn '93" for the June issue of The Believer magazine. Elevator to Hell where the psych band of one fourth of Eric's Trip. The Constantines are one of the most impressively constant bands in indie rock. "Why I Didn't like Autumn 93" ends up sounding like a Lou Barlow song, with it's jaded "I got a girl problem"/"I got a drug problem" lines, and then there's the chorus and it doesn't sound like anything you'd think the Constantines could sound like. That's what great bands do. Their new record will be released in the fall.

the_constantines_-_why_i_didnt_like_august_93.mp3

The Decemberists - Bridges and Balloons

Colin Meloy sings Joanna Newsom's Bridges and Balloons alone on his own for the same issue of The Believer. On this simple interpretation, Meloy takes out Newsom's harp and sharp voice to unveil a great, classic folk song.

the_decemberists_-_bridges_and_balloons.mp3

Common - Love Is

On the cover of Be, Chicago's Common poses like Marvin Gaye, with a hat on his head and a heavy smile on his face. He's cool. It doesn't mean Be is a sappy record, it's a contemporary overview of the US society, without the usual hip-hop filters -guns, bitches, dope- that often ends up sounding more like a 70s soul record than a contemporary hip hop release. There are songs about love and songs about girls who aren't tools. In other words: it's refreshing and impressive. Here's "Love Is."

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The Arcade Fire - Cold Wind

Here's a new Arcade Fire song, recorded for the new Six Feet Under soundtrack. In "Cold Wind," one of the band's most stripped-down songs, Win Butler keeps on singing dark times with a shaky voice and disarming intensity.

the_arcade_fire_-_cold_wind.mp3

Jason Molina - Nashville Moon

I saw Jason Molina play in a church, with his guitar and a trumpet player. Out of his gorgeously bare set one song stood out and i had never heard it before, a little online search led me to this live recording. Nashville Moon may (or may not) appear on Magnolia Electric Co's forthcoming ep due out in July.

jason_molina_-_nashville_moon.mp3

Ikara Colt - Sink Venice

I've been away by the ocean for a few days and now i'm back. Here's Ikara Colt's "Sink Venice". It's great and Ikara Colt are no more.

ikara_colt_-_sink_venice.mp3

The Smashing Pumpkins - Bodies

I used to be a hardcore Smashing Pumpkins fan. I know. I can't really listen to Smashing Pumpkins records anymore, it's embarassing to recollect embarassing memories. There are only a couple of songs that i can still listen to, Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness' "Bodies" is one of them : despite its "love is suicide" line, its "emo" side doesn't overshadow everything.

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Sleater Kinney - The Fox

Sleater Kinney's The Woods is a record nobody really expected, all i was waiting for was a couple of good song in a ok album. It turns out to be one of this year's very best lps, catchy and angry, with great punk songs that are also great pop songs. Some people used to call this "grunge" (don't tell).

sleater_kinney_-_the_fox.mp3

Art Brut - Emily Kane

Art Brut's Bang Bang Rock & Roll is a fun record reminiscent of The Fall and of some of E. Smith's alumni like Ikara Colt and Pavement. It's filled with deadpan humour and angular guitars. It's perfect for the Summer and no there's nothing wrong with Winter. "Emily Kane" is about an old flame.

art_brut_-_emily_kane.mp3

Daniel Johnston - Livin' It for the Moment

Daniel Johnston's music is naive and innocent and that's what makes it charming. At 44 years old, he still manages to start his shows with "Speeding Motorcycle" and end them with "True Love Will Find You in the End." "Livin It for the Moment" is an exerpt from "Fear Yourself", his 2003 collaboration with Mark Linkous. It's an exstatic power pop song sung with a manic, breathless, out of tune voice, echoing the lyrics of this awesome song. Daniel Johnston loves you, even though you make him want to kill you from time to time.

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Castanets - Heaps of Wheat

Castanets' What Kind of Cure was recorded in between Ray Raposa's travel through the USA through the Greyhound Bus system and Cathedral. In other words, it's the debut album everybody thought Cathedral was. It doesn't have the same cohesion but it is easily as good as far as songwriting goes. There is a song that doesn't sound like you could hang yourself to it and there is "Heaps of Wheat" which sounds somewhere between Black Heart Procession (the bass line), Pinback (the 80s feeling) and Castanets (the rest). It's a brilliant record, originally released as a very limited cdr and about to be re-released by Asthmatic Kitty.

castanets_-_heaps_of_wheat.mp3