Sing Your Song in the Shower

Team Ghost – Colors In Time [MP3]

derekstevens — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 02:55:23 +0000

Team Ghost is the new project of Nicolas Fromageau, whom you may recognize as a founding member of M83. He left before the recording of 2005′s Before The Dawn Heals Us, and I don’t remember hearing much from him since. Now, backed by multi-instrumentalist Christophe Guérin and Jean-Philippe Talaga, Fromageau returns with “Colors In Time.” The song comes from the band’s debut EP, You Never Did Anything Wrong To Me, due out April 26th on Sonic Cathedral Records.

MP3: Team Ghost – Colors In Time

Murs & 9th Wonder – The Problem Is (ft. Sick Jacken, Uncle Chucc) [Video]

derekstevens — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 19:13:06 +0000

Murs and 9th Wonder are ready to release Fornever on April 13th, and after the jump you can watch the video for first single “The Problem Is.” The duo is fantastic, as usual. Don’t miss this, could be one of the best albums of the year.

Notable New Releases

derekstevens — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 14:21:53 +0000

Tuesday is, quite possibly, my favorite day of the week (at the very least, it’s third behind Friday and Saturday). Just knowing that newly un-boxed albums are being placed on store shelves across the country is enough to get me through the day. After the jump, you’ll find the three albums I’ll definitely be buying, and a list of all albums being released today. Interested in what’s coming out next week? Next month? Check out the full release calender here.

Three Albums I’ll Be Buying:

I Can Make A Mess Like Nobody’s Business
The World We Know
Myspace

Brighten
Be Human EP
Myspace

The Bird and The Bee
Interpreting The Masters, Vol. 1: Hall and Oates
Myspace

Other Notable Releases:
Archie Bronson Outfit – Coconuts
Bright Eyes / Neva Dinova – One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels [Re-issue]
Jónsi – Go Do EP
Look Mexico – To Bed To Battle
Love Is All – Two Thousand and Ten Injuries
She & Him – Volume Two
Static of the Gods – Knowledge Machine
Weakerthans, The – Live From Burton Cummings Theatre
Yeasayer – O.N.E.

Jónsi – Time To Pretend (MGMT cover) [MP3]

derekstevens — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 01:13:40 +0000

Jónsi stopped by the Jo Wiley Show on BBC Radio 1 this past weekend, where he was nice enough to grace us with this in studio cover of “Time To Pretend” by MGMT. With just a piano to accompany him, Jónsi’s falsetto soars and the end result is gorgeous.

Jónsi’s debut solo album, Go, is due out April 6th via XL Recordings.

MP3: Jónsi – Time To Pretend (MGMT cover) (right click -> save as)

Weekly Dose of Hip Hop [Mixtape Monday]

derekstevens — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 00:56:12 +0000

It’s hard to keep track of the seemingly endless flood of new hip hop tracks being released daily; there are unreleased singles, new leaks and mixtapes being released at alarming rates. Which isn’t really a problem, I just don’t have the time to listen to everything. To combat this, I’ll be highlighting a different mixtape every Monday. Head after the jump to see this week’s pick, and click here to see past weeks.

Sacramento, CA emcees C-Plus and Gameboy recently teamed up with DJ Oasis to release Avant L’Orage mixtape, which serves as a preview for the duo’s forthcoming album Saving Sacramento. Previous to this, I hadn’t heard of any of these guys; I still barely know anything about them, but they’ve won me over.

Released: March 19th, 2010
Rating ?/10
Standout Tracks: WingStop, Say Something, Party with Plus & Game
Download: here

Track Listing:
01 Intro
02 What They Talkin’ Bout
03 So Many
04 Wingstop
05 Say Something
06 Video Phone
07 Hard
08 Go Kart
09 Love Come Down
10 Party w/ Plus & Game
11 Gangsta Love
12 Until The Fat Lady Sings
13 Pretty Girls
14 Break Up
15 Outro

Sing These Songs In The Shower [Recs]

derekstevens — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 01:19:34 +0000

Sunday seems as good a day as any other to post some recommendations, so here they are (well, technically, they’re after the jump. So click “Sunday Recommendations” below). Then come back next Sunday for some more. That’s right, every Sunday. Want to see some old recommendations? Click here.

Wiz Khalifa (Myspace) :: If you were to ask me, I’d tell you that Wiz is the most talented artist on XXL’s “Top 10 Freshman Of The Year” list, even though his first album dropped back in 2006. He’s got a busy 2010 lined up, with his third full-length and two mixtapes in the works, as well as being in the midst of a nation-wide spring tour that will bring him by Cambridge on March 30th.

Polar Bear Club (Myspace) :: Chasing Hamburg was one of my favorite releases of 2009, but it wasn’t until just recently that I ventured further back into the Club’s discography. The Redder, The Better, the band’s first release, display’s their raw talent and with songs like “His Devotee” it’s no surprise they’ve become so popular.

Lupe Fiasco – What U Want [MP3]

derekstevens — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:45:44 +0000

An unfinished version of “What U Want” from Lupe Fiasco‘s forthcoming album Lasers can be heard below.

MP3: Lupe Fiasco – What U Want

Boston Concert Update

derekstevens — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:10:29 +0000

While I don’t get out to as many shows as I’d like to, I still enjoy knowing what’s going on in (and around) the city on any given night. My Fridays are spent searching for new concerts to add to the calender, seeing which shows in the coming week still have tickets left, and checking which shows’ tickets go on sale in the near future. It’s a lot of work, so I might as well share the fruits of my labor with you.

Concerts This Week

Friday, the 26th
Spirit Kid @ Middle East Upstairs
w/ Via Audio, Pattern Is Movement, Ha Ha Tonka
Tickets :: Doors at 8pm :: $10 :: 18+

The Appreciation Post (Record Release Show) @ T.T. The Bear’s
w/ The Organ Beats, The Bynars, Art Decade
Tickets :: Doors at 8pm :: $10 :: All Ages

Saturday, the 27th
Crime In Stereo @ Middle East Upstairs
w/ Transit, Make Do and Mend, Defeater
Tickets :: Doors at 1pm :: $10adv/$12dos :: All Ages

Black Joe Lewis @ Great Scott
w/ Cedric Burnside and Lightnin’ Malcolm
SOLD OUT :: Doors at 8pm :: 21+

Monday, the 1st
Rogue Wave @ Paradise Rock Club
w/ Avi Buffalo
Tickets :: Doors at 7pm :: $15 :: 18+

Tuesday, the 2nd
Surfer Blood @ Great Scott
w/ Turbo Fruits, Doomstar!
SOLD OUT :: Doors at 8pm :: 18+

Thursday, the 4th
Efterklang @ T.T. The Bear’s
w/ Balmorhea, Bare Teeth
Tickets :: Doors at 9pm :: $10

Tickets On Sale This Week

Friday, the 26th
This Providence @ Middle East Downstairs on April 13th (Tuesday)
w/ The Audition, Anarbor, The Bigger Lights
Tickets :: Doors at 7pm :: $12adv/$14dos :: All Ages

Mono @ Middle East Downstairs on May 28th (Friday)
w/ Twilight Sad
Tickets :: Doors at 8pm :: $12 :: 18+

Concerts Added This Week

3/05 :: Title Tracks + Pretty & Nice :: Middle East
3/18 :: Jarrod Gorbel :: Middle East
3/26 :: Basia Bulat :: T.T. The Bear’s
3/30 :: Wiz Khalifa :: Middle East
3/31 :: Japandroids + Love Is All :: Middle East
4/01 :: Girls :: Paradise Rock Club
4/06 :: Smith Westerns + Acrylics :: Great Scott
4/06 :: Ben Folds :: House of Blues
4/08 :: Cymbals Eat Guitars + Freelance Whales :: Middle East
4/08 :: Dashboard Confessional :: House of Blues
4/11 :: Fanfarlo :: Paradise Rock Club
4/12 :: El Ten Eleven :: Middle East
4/15 :: Red Sparrowes + Doomriders :: Middle East
4/16 :: The Appleseed Cast :: Middle East
4/16 :: Bo Burnham :: House of Blues
4/17 :: Liars :: Paradise Rock Club
4/18 :: Aloha + Pomegranates :: Middle East
4/23 :: Apples In Stereo :: Middle East
4/25 :: Spirit Kid :: T.T. The Bear’s
4/28 :: Little Boots :: Middle East
4/29 :: Frightened Rabbit :: Paradise Rock Club
4/30 :: The Album Leaf :: Paradise Rock Club
5/08 :: Local Natives :: Great Scott
5/18 :: The Spill Canvas :: Middle East

Blast From The Past [Thursday Nostalgia]

derekstevens — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:57:32 +0000

I seldom watch a movie twice, and only on rare occasions will I deem a book good enough to re-read. There are, however, plenty of albums that I will listen to time and time again (this number is probably in the hundreds). My musical taste was shaped by these albums… but before I run off a long list of cliches, head after the jump to see this week’s edition of “Blast From The Past.”

Orange County, CA’s Name Taken may have been a band for only five years, but in that time they released one of the most complete and consistent records I’ve ever heard. Their full-length debut Hold On, released in April 2004 on Fiddler Records, competes against Clarity and Deja Entendu for the title of my favorite album. High praise for an album that many claim is a bland attempt at copying the work of their contemporaries. But from the opening chords of “Control,” my impressionable teenage self was hooked.

MP3: Name Taken – Hold On

I never got the chance to see the guys in concert, and my parents (understandably) denied my requests to be flown to California back in 2007 for their reunion shows. And while I wish new music was still coming from the Name Taken camp, I’m glad the guys are pursuing college educations. There’s plenty of time for them to get back together after they get their degrees.

Sherwood – You Are [Video]

derekstevens — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 01:26:29 +0000

Sherwood‘s video for “You Are” can be seen after the jump.

The guys will be in Somerville on March 14th for a show at the Armory, which is (as I’ve mentioned before) quite unfortunate as I’ll be out of the country.