speed of dark

This girl is going hiking today. Have a good weekend, and don't be an April Fool!


Jawbox: Cornflake Girl

City-State: Zipper Girl
myspace

Homegrown: Surfer Girl

Lou Barlow: Caterpillar Girl

The Magnificent Bastards: Mockingbird Girl

Radiohead: Cinnamon Girl (Neil Young cover, live)

We don't call ourselves Speed of DARK for nothing--I happen to like broody, moody music. Like many people, I find darker feelings more compelling, more interesting, more complex.

These songs by two new artists are in the dark groove. I've been listening to all four of them for a couple of months now nearly every day, and my initial crush on them has held up over time. Neither of these groups has a record to sell at this point, but if they can continue to create music like this, they are people I am interested in watching--and buying when the time comes, as I hope it will.

Goldroom

The British foursome of Joe Bond (vocals, keyboards), Gareth Price (guitars), Dan Murdoch (bass), and Ross Saunders (guitars and programming) creates rich sonic landscapes, each as unique as a snowflake. Put on those headphones, close your eyes, and let them transport you to some faraway place.

"Hanoi" pulls the listener into an Eastern marketplace of swirling colors, unidentifiable objects, and strangers' faces. The song has so much texture, you can almost smell the exotic spices as the music begins to whirl around you. A flute trills, and you catch a glimpse of a slant-eyed beauty as her bangled arm passes a hand adorned with finger cymbals in front of her face, but like a figure seen from a moving vehicle, she is gone in an instant. In the midst of all the activity, you drift unnoticed and strangely apart...

Traveling on, traveling on

From one life to the next

You just end up leaving everyone behind

What have you got to say

When you're gone?

Goldroom: Hanoi

"Eyes of the Dead" would have been right at home on the soundtrack of the movie The Crow (the first one), which was an excellent set of dark, occult-themed songs. Twice during the five-plus minutes, the music is reduced to a rumbling bass that instead of feeling quiet is like a storm gathering ominous strength, then a fresh onslaught bursts onto your ears.

Goldroom: Eyes of the Dead

Visit Goldroom's myspace for brand-new offerings available for download: "Ryu," "Bongo Oddity," and "Hooligans of Doom."



The Venus In Furs



Of all the bands I've ever heard or read about that claimed Radiohead as an influence, this Atlanta-based group is the only one that actually manages to remind me of them. Adam Kiske's vocals are not an exact match for Thom's (not that I'd want them to be), but overall the interplay of Kiske's voice range and piano (keyboard) with Brent Hickman's guitar lends a Bends-like flavor to their music. Cal Wooten provides the bass, and Blaine Elliott handles the percussion.

Resembling Radiohead is a mighty task by itself, but The Venus In Furs demonstrate that they go beyond the resemblance. "Abyssal Gigantism" especially gets deliciously stuck in my head for hours.

The Venus In Furs have been in the recording studio, and they expect to have their first CD ready in May or June. I'll be looking for it.

The Venus In Furs: Abyssal Gigantism

The Venus In Furs: Tree-Legged

Visit The Venus In Furs' myspace to hear an additional track, "The Walk In." Georgia readers should watch for notices of upcoming shows in the Atlanta area.

From the first moments of tooth-grinding distortion followed by that barooom of bass, you know this song is different. The rest of the band picks up the beat, then the angelic voice of April Devereaux begins to croon.

Don't stare at me with those hollow eyes

Your disillusion is my guilt and pride

Convenience tried to comfort a lonely soul

While crystal tears fall, I cry too

There is nothing else I know like "Pixy," the oddly-named tale of a doomed love triangle, the first track of the only album by short-lived Seattle band Sybil Vane, and one of my favorites of all time. Ah, Sybil Vane, I have wondered so many times, what happened to you?

Before the blogosphere came along to hype unknown independent bands to glory, having a video on MTV was THE way to become known. I only recently found out that Sybil Vane had a video for "Pixy." I saw it once and once only on YouTube. The poster apparently ran afoul of someone's permissions because the next time I looked, the video was gone and his account had been closed. The video was filmed in art-house black and white, with April in odd Kabuki-like hairdo and most of the time wearing nothing but a few strategically-placed leaves. No wonder I never saw it on TV!

I was able to catch up with Sybil Vane's drummer, Joey Veneziani, about the lost video. He said:
"It was made/directed by [the same director as Nirvana's] 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' among others. The video was a huge mistake as far as I was concerned. The director talked April into that Geisha girl thing with images pasted over her more private areas, but in the end she looked a little too naked and MTV wouldn't touch it. It was just really stupid for a first video--that concept would be better for an established artist. Funny thing: about 6 months after we made it I see the first video by the band Garbage and it's directed by [the same guy] and it looks and feels exactly like the SV video without the Geisha thing. I felt like we were his guinea pigs..."

And so a twist of fate launches one band into fame and leaves another standing at the terminal. And sometimes there is no second chance to catch a flight.

Another thing I asked Joey about was the artwork for the album. It is graphically sexual and unmistably B*S*D*M*-oriented. How in the world did the record company agree to it?

"The artwork was chosen initially for the cover and then we saw some of the artist's other work and liked it. If I remember correctly the record company liked it too but wanted to crop the images for obvious reasons. Dave (Hillis, guitar and vocals) made it his campaign to not have the original artwork edited and thought controversy would be good if it came, and made his arguments citing other artists like Jane's Addiction, Roxy Music etc. for unsavory album art. I don't know why they caved in. The rest of us were cool with editing it, but Dave was definitely the leader of the band and the most experienced in the music biz so we went along. April and I were very young at that point - she was around 22 and I was 20."

So for good or bad, the artwork stayed. Not so evident from the front cover but apparent in the other images is the theme that physical intimacy without emotional intimacy is a rather barren experience, but people can still be in bondage to it. The man wears a jester's hat, and the couple never look at each other or appear to experience joy in what they are doing.

Some, but not all, of the songs reflect a correspondingly bleak stance. "Whips and Lollipops" takes the fun view. "Swallow" appears to be an anguished anti-porn message:

These sheets hide hidden filth

New lover, same four walls

Boys will be girls

Why can't you be a man?

"Fairy Tale" is exactly that, as if for a few minutes we can pretend that love is a shiny, perfect world where nothing can go wrong. It is one of my favorites on this album: shimmery and full of water images and April's gorgeous voice soaring like golden sun over the tides and storms.

Pixy

Whips and Lollipops

Pleasure plays a game

Lustful laughter, whips and lollipops

Little wonder life leaves scars,

Little wonder at all...

Painted pictures

Are at the fingertips

Fear blinds brightest color

Leaves the darkest hope.

Fairy Tale

Dave Hillis is a music producer and engineer in London who has worked with a variety of musicians, currently with Thee Heavenly Music Association.

Joey still lives in Seattle, and he says to his knowledge that April does too. She left the uncertainties of show business to settle down and have a family. I hope that she sings for them. At the time I saw the "Pixy" video on Youtube, there was a comment there from bassist Darren Jones saying that he still plays a little bass now and then.

This forgotten gem is available as a used CD from amazon. I have not found any site where downloads are available.

Sybil Vane's myspace (unmaintained)
Joey V myspace
Dave Hillis myspace

My brother Uncle T is a valued occasional contributor to Speed of Dark. For this post, he has supplied a review of Lucinda Williams in concert that he attended at the Granada Theater in Dallas, TX on March 10.

Uncle T happens to be a major Lucinda fan and has seen her more times that I can remember, in Dallas and at the New Orleans Jazz Festival. I'll be forever grateful that he gave me Car Wheels On a Gravel Road many Christmases ago, and that he also turned me on to the Heartless Bastards, who opened this show.

Since Uncle T reviewed the Heartless Bastards in January (see post) and the set list was similar, I'm going to jump right to the main attraction of the evening. I also have a disclaimer in that the album versions I have are without a doubt softer than the live versions he describes. Turning the narrative over to Uncle T now--

Lucinda Williams at the Granada Theater, Dallas, March 10, 2007

As I entered the venue, Erika Wennerstrom (of Heartless Bastards) was hanging out at the merchandise table. I went over and briefly spoke with her, telling her how much I enjoyed their January show at Sons of Herman Hall. She was in a good mood and said they were having a great time touring with Lucinda. Out back after the concert I ran into drummer Kevin Vaughn, who recognized me from the previous two concerts where I'd seen them.

The granada theater is a legendary movie theater and lower Greenville Avenue fixture in Dallas, renovated for concerts several years ago and sponsored by CD World. It’s got good acoustics and is a nice place to see a show. There was a big crowd, but I was able to have a pretty good view close to the stage throughout the night.


This was the fourth stop of the tour promoting Lucinda's latest CD West, released several weeks ago. I was surprised that her rhythm section (bass and drummer) had changed since the last time I saw her. I really thought her last band, the quartet, was an excellent ensemble.

I’d seen Don Heffinton play drums for her before at the first three Lucinda concerts I’d attended. Doug Pettybone did some brilliant guitar tonight, doing lots of extended and wild soloing. He always turns in a good performance, but tonight he was on fire once they started getting into the more electric material. And Lucinda was in very good spirits. They didn’t seem to have their set list down to a fine art, and often Lucinda went around to the band members telling them the next number to be played.

My only complaint was that they didn’t play many songs from her new CD, which I really like (most of it anyway). But what they did play sounded very good. She tended to play the more hopeful songs that are toward the end of the CD, and didn’t play any of the first eight songs on it. Maybe she didn’t want to play them because they cover emotional areas of her life that she no longer wants to dwell on. But she did defend these new songs by saying they weren’t “dark”, as some music critics had stated.

Set list (in this general order) and comments:

1. Ventura: They started off with a very quiet version of this, with Lucinda on acoustic guitar and Doug on pedal steel. It seemed a pretty subtle way to start out a concert to me, so I figured this would be a mellow night of quiet music based on her new CD. Thankfully, I was wrong.

2. Fruits of My Labor: This was another quiet song, but here Lucinda started doing some great singing on this. In fact, she sang very well throughout the set.

3. Drunken Angel: She introduced this song written about her old friend, Austin songwriter Blaze Foley. The volume of the band started picking up at this point, with Doug playing lead guitar and harmonica.

4. Lake Charles: She introduced this song, written about her old Louisiana boyfriend named Clyde. She said they’d ride down Interstate 10 in southern Louisiana and eat boudouin, the Cajun sausage. The crowd loved this one, as they always do in Texas.

5. West: This was the first song they did off the new CD; the title cut. This was a very good quiet number.

6. Out of Touch: Doug started this song from Essence off with some great funky electric guitar playing. This was the band’s first hard rocking effort.

7. Right In Time: They did a great job on this Car Wheels song.

8. Words: A song off the new CD, which was great in concert. Doug did some amazing guitar soloing on this. He seemed to switch electric guitars almost every other song, keeping his guitar tech very busy.

9. Righteously: As the song started, Lucinda wanted to stop it because she botched the lyrics. But it didn’t really matter, and the band continued to play the song anyway since they were into a nice groove. Doug caught on and simply lengthened the intro, allowing Lucinda to repeat the opening verse again without stopping the song’s momentum. Doug played some amazing guitar soloing on this, really going wild at the end.

10. Essence: They did a really good version of this tonight too.

11. Rescue: This was excellent in concert, and is one of my favorites off the new CD. Really great song, I think.

12. Wrap My Head Around That: This is another one of her “rap” type songs, which she disavowed when she introduced this song (“it’s not rap”). This is my least-favorite song on the new CD, but in concert it works well because of its bass-heavy rhythm.

13. Real Live Bleeding Fingers and Broken Guitar Strings: This is a Stonesy rocker from World Without Tears.

14. Joy: Nice version of this one, with Doug laying down some funky guitar throughout.

15. Get Right With God: They ended the set with a nice up-beat version of this song, with Doug playing some mean slide guitar. This was the final song of the main set. However, they came back for an encore after about five minutes with the crowd clapping for more.

Encore:

Overtime: They did a nice mellow version of this song. Great.

Lowlands: This was a new slower song that she said might be on her new CD. She introduced the name of the song several times, so I’m pretty sure she said “Lowlands” saying something about Jack Kerouac inspiring the title, though none of the lyrics mention the word. It was a pretty good song; with lyrics much more positive and upbeat than anything on the moody West.

Still I Long For Your Kiss: She did this Car Wheels song next, and sang it in good form. The band also played it well.

Come To Me: This is a Howlin’ Wolf cover I’d see her do this a couple of times in concert before. Lucinda sings it in a very seductive manner, and Doug did some very fine and funky blues guitar.

All in all, a very good show and up to par with her other performances I have seen.


Heartless Bastards will appear again with Lucinda tomorrow night, March 27, at Hart Theatre in Albany, New York

See Lucinda Williams' full tour schedule on her myspace page
Official website
Buy: amazon, itunes, sonic boom records

Of all the Scots bands that I like, Idlewild is at the top of the list or near it. Their first album, 100 Broken Windows has been the standard of comparison for Scottish rock since I got it in 2001, and their 2003 follow-up The Remote Part only upped the ante. 2005's Warnings/Promises probably was meant to be thoughtful and reflective, but to me it came of as listless.

I always thought Idlewild's long lines and multi-syllablic vocabulary was adorable but a bit pretentious, but I loved them for their lofty intentions. In Make Another World, the pretentions are gone and all the things I liked about them in the beginning are brought back in spades.

Everything, as it moves,

As it moves I watch it turn right into gold

--"Everything (As It Moves)"

Just how this record turns into gold for my ears. All the energy, the dazzling guitars, the long repeated phrases, and the lovely dark melodies are present--all the things that made every song my favorite song the minute I heard it. The harmonies are intact, and the songwriting has a new, sharper focus. I dragged out 100 Broken Windows and The Remote Part CDs and gave them a listen just to be sure my perceptions were on track, and I found that the new maturity made me like the current CD even more than these.

Make Another World has the freshness of a first album teamed with the skill and talent of a band that has been in the business for over a dozen years, which Idlewild has. Although "No Emotion" was released as the single on iTunes, Idlewild may as well have drawn a number from a hat or thrown darts to select it because most of the other songs are just as good or better.

It is officially in my Best of 2007 list, and it wouldn't surprise me if it ends up in the top five. Yes! Buy it! amazon or itunes


A Ghost In the Arcade from Make Another World (2007)

Live In a Hiding Place from The Remote Part (2003)

These Wooden Ideas from 100 Broken Windows (2001)


myspace | Official website | Buy: amazon, itunes

Pop over to lost in your inbox today for a hilarious video commentary on the ubiquitous "Pachelbel's Canon." And yes, his name was Johann.

Warning! Political opinion ahead.

I wasn't going to create a post today until I saw this cartoon by John Deering, creator of one of my favorite strips, Strange Brew. I am a cartoon nut. I love to laugh, and Deering is a master of absurd humor, my favorite kind.

But today's strip is too truthful and too sad to be funny, and I feel like passing the message forward. At the same time, I was listening to this song which seems to echo the tone. If I could find all the lyrics, I'd print them, but below are a few that I feel confident printing here.

Great Lake Swimmers: There Is a Light from Ongiara (2007)

Put all your weapons away...

Stop, listen, feel...

Believe, believe...

Believe in your lives

I am listening to Ongiara and beginning to like several songs, even though at first I was prepared to think they were all kind of the same. Other beauties I recommend are:
"I Am Part of a Large Family"
"Passenger Song"
"Hands In Dirty Ground"

See more strange brew
About the cartoonist: John deering

Buy Ongiara: amazon | emusic | itunes

When I think about American Idol (which isn't often, actually), I think about what a pity it is that there are so many bands and musicians, struggling to make it, that actually have talent. Not just singing other people's songs kind of talent, but the ability to play a musical instrument, or write music and/or lyrics, or to have stage presence. Just like in that Wilco song, "the best bands will never get signed," there are so many deserving musicians and bands you'll never hear, who get frustrated and fed up with the game...okay, I'll step off my soapbox now.

Anyway.

Alt-gramma and I were befriended on myspace by Desmond Reed, a college student who records on breaks from school in his bedroom at his parents' house. Desmond has been self-promoting on myspace and has already been written up in a couple of music blogs, most notably i am fuel, you are friends.

He's got a great voice and his guitar is very good too: remniscent of early Ben Gibbard minus the angst. His funny and inventive lyrics make me laugh no matter how many times I listen to them. I just think that once Desmond can pull a band together, or at least be able to devote himself more to his music, he'll go far.

When I first visited his myspace page, he had a song called "Who I'd Like to Meet", about myspace. This song is now available on the BabyBoom Records Sampler 2, released Monday, March 19. This is a great song - worth the price of the compilation CD all by itself. Check out the songs he's been gracious enough to send me, and check out the new ones available to stream on his myspace page. Watch out world, here comes Desmond.

desmond: the babysitters club

desmond: summer vacation

desmond: guinea pigs (alt-gramma's favorite)

myspace | buy the babyboom records sampler

Sunny Day Real Estate was formed in 1993 from components of other bands in Seattle, Washington. At a time when the music industry was looking towards the dreary Northwest for grunge and alternative groups, Sunny Day seemed to fit the bill. Their melodic guitars, unintelligible lyrics, and tendency to name songs with numbers (see songs "8", "5/4", "47"...you get the idea) somehow missed the big fame wave that Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and others were riding, but the band had their own following.

The original band consisted of Nate Mendel on bass, drummer William Goldsmith, and guitarist/singer Dan Hoerner, but the addition of Jeremy Enigk as the lead singer and guitarist sealed the band. The band released two 7-inch records, Flatland Spider (before Enigk) and Thief, Steal Me a Peach (after Enigk). In 1994, SDRE released Diary on the Sub Pop label, a somber but hard-rocking collection of songs that could be considered emo hard-rock. Alt-gramma was actually the person in our household to discover and bring SDRE into the rotation. But I digress. "Seven" was the terrific breakout single and did garner the band some recognition and airplay, but "In Circles" is also very well-known and an excellent song.

After an extended tour to support Diary, the band regrouped to record their next album. However, due to a collection of issues, one of which was lead singer Enigk's becoming a born-again Christian, the band broke up in 1995. At the end of 1995, Sub Pop released the self-titled album that the band had been working on prior to the break-up, also known as the Pink Album, so named for its horribly bright, Pepto-Bismol pink cover.

After the breakup, Nate Mendel and William Goldsmith joined the fledgling Foo Fighters, and Mendel remains their bass player today. Jeremy Enigk embarked on a solo career, and Dan Hoerner worked behind the scenes on other artists' music. But in 1997, the band reunited (without Mendel) and recorded How it Feels to be Something On. The band went on tour in support of the album, and Sub Pop recorded a DVD and disc of live performances, simply titled Live in 1999. However, the band left Sub Pop and signed with BMG affiliate Time Bomb. The excellent album The Rising Tide was released in 2000, which was a different direction for the band - a mellower, softer sound with beautiful backing strings and keyboards. Unfortunately, the label folded before the band could go on tour in support of the album, and they broke up again.

In 2003, Mendel, Enigk, and Goldsmith reunited as The Fire Theft, and released a self-titled album, which culminates in a nearly fifteen-minute operatic show ender, "Sinatra". I used to have this album, and I cannot find it anywhere. Very irritating.

Jeremy Enigk continues his solo career to this day, and released World Waits in 2006, and embarked on a tour in support of this album. I haven't heard much of this album, but what I've heard of it is more folky than emo hard-rock.

What a long, strange trip it's been! If you haven't been indoctrinated by Sunny Day Real Estate, have a listen and then go pick up their albums. Who knows - maybe they'll reunite again!

from 1994's Diary:
sunny day real estate: in circles
sunny day real estate: song about an angel

from 1995's Pink Album (LP2):

sunny day real estate: j'nuh
sunny day real estate: red elephant

from 1999's Live:

sunny day real estate: pillars [live]

from 2000's The Rising Tide:

sunny day real estate: tearing in my heart
sunny day real estate: the rising tide

from 2003's The Fire Theft:

the fire theft: uncle mountain

SDRE unofficial website | jeremy enigk myspace | buy SDRE and Jeremy Enigk albums

find more on hype machine

My first post about MySpace friends had some success, so I'm doing it again. It could become kind of an irregular feature. MySpace certainly has its frustrations and limitations, but for me it is also a candyland of fine new musicians that I can actually contact.

Today I'm featuring three of those whose music I have come to enjoy immensely. I play these songs often, and I hope you'll like them too. All three have had releases within the past calendar year that are available to purchase as albums or individual songs. I think there will be more good stuff to come from each of these bands.

Mouthful of Bees

This Minneapolis foursome's CD The End, released just a month ago, offers a variety of musical styles from gale-force rockers ("Get Out") to echo-y folk ("Upon Reaching Cedar Falls, IA"), all with a solid base in the 90's alternative style that I like. Singer Chris Farstad has a kind of warbly voice that reminds me of early Talking Heads' David Byrne. Good? You betcha!

Mouthful of Bees: The Now
Mouthful of Bees: Under the Glacier

Also highly recommended: "Talking", "Sunny," "Old Gold," and "I Saw a Golden Light."

myspace | website | Buy: emusic

Upcoming appearances:
Mar 19 2007 - Intermedia Arts, Minneapolis, MN
Mar 24 2007 - Walker Art Center Scavenger Hunt, Minneapolis, MN
Mar 24 2007 - Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, MN
Apr 1 2007 - 89.3 The Current (tune in!!) - Minneapolis, MN
Apr 14 2007 - We All Have Hooks for Hands, Sioux Falls,SD
Apr 20 2007 - Off The Record-Radio K, Minneapolis, MN
Apr 21 2007 - Varsity Theatre, Minneapolis, MN



Head Like a Kite

Seattlite David Einmo was inspired by his family's home movies to write a whole album of weird songs with titles like "Your Butt Crack Smile" and "Interested in Worms?" Accented with weird bleeps and rhythms, the songs are playful and intriguing, although not all equally listenable--for example, I much prefer "Smile" to "Worms." An unknown female vocalist appears on some songs like the disturbingly titled "Tell Mommy You Want a Sip of Beer" and "Noisy At the Cirus."

Random Portraits of a Home Movie was produced by Brian Deck (Modest Mouse, The Secret Machines, Iron & Wine) and includes guest appearances by members of Smoosh, Kinski, The Posies, Crooked Fingers, Preston School of Industry, Sushirobo and others.

Amazingly, Einmo is taking this stuff on the road with Trent Moorman on drums, keys, and sampler.

Head Like a Kite: Words of a Friend
Head Like a Kite: Tell Mommy You Want a Sip of Beer

Also highly recommended: "Noisy At the Circus" and "Butt Crack Smile."


myspace | website | Buy: itunes, emusic



On tour:
Mar 30 2007 - The Crocodile Cafe, Seattle, WA
Apr 6 2007 - Sportscenter, Yakima, WA
Apr 20 2007 - Cafe Nine, New Haven, CT
Apr 22 2007 - Contemporary Arts Center, North Adams, MA
Apr 23 2007 - Black Cat, Washington DC
Apr 24 2007 - Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, PA
Apr 25 2007- Carnegie Mellow University, Pittsburgh, PA
Apr 26 2007 - TBA: New York, Chicago, Cleveland, New York, New York
Apr 29 2007 - Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, MN
May 3 2007 - Larimer Lounge, Denver, CO
May 5 2007 - Monks, Salt Lake City, UT
May 8 2007 - Cinepsace DIM MAK Party, Los Angeles (Hollywood), CA
May 10 2007 - Casbah, San Diego, CA



sharpetiquette

At first listen you might think that the bare-bones sound of this lo-fi acoustic Los Angeles act would not hold your interest very long, but you'd be dead wrong. The spare sound serves to frame some very sharp lyrics that get you hooked in much faster than you'd imagine. The Sufjan Stevens influence is apparent, and on their MySpace site you'll find a very nice cover of Death Cab For Cutie's "I'll Follow You Into the Dark." I've included some of the lyrics to "Old Eyes," which makes me think of a couple of well-known female celebrities who seem to spend most of their time screwing up their lives and getting their pictures in the tabloids.

sharpetiquette: Old Eyes

It's hard to argue with millions sold

It's hard when what you think you were told

It was only a matter of time

Ideals, they don't turn on a dime

She has old eyes, old eyes

Young face, but still it's hard to hide

She has old eyes.

Freedom isn't in the magazines

Free isn't here, only where she's been

The truth is only neatly-packaged lies

We're left to look like we're surprised

She has old eyes

Also highly recommended: "She's In My Blood" and "Don't Leave Me Hanging Here."

myspace | Buy: itunes, emusic

Hooray for our Arcade Fire Contest winner! Lots of thanks to all who came and left comments. We appreciate all our readers.

Don't miss future posts--Subscribe to Speed of Dark!



Lucky people who were able to travel to Austin TX for South by Southwest already have their schedules planned. I'll just have to fake it by continuing the virtual tour Indie Mom started on Tuesday. The good part about virual touring is that you can be in two places at one time, and as is usual in festivals of this type, you would have to clone yourself in order to see all the acts you'd like to.

Why do I include the SXSW links? Because sometimes the bands provided songs there to stream or download.

Thursday, March 15

We can start with late tonight, which rapidly turns into Friday morning.

Kaki King from New York, NY - 10 PM @ Cedar Street Courtyard
When I married again almost exactly two years ago, I wanted simple, acoustic guitar music for the outdoor reception. I downloaded several CDs' worth of songs from iTunes, and Kaki King was among my favorite discoveries.

Kaki King: Ingots

website | myspace | sxsw


Stars of Track and Field from Portland, OR - 10 PM @ Momo's
This is the song that made me a fan when they were giving away MP3s on their web site before Centuries Before Love and War was released.

Stars of Track and Field: Say Hello

website | myspace | sxsw


Winterpills from Northampton MA - 11:00 PM @ Momo's
I've fallen in love with Winterpills' "Broken Arm," but so has everyone else, and the song is posted everywhere. Luckily, that isn't their only good song. There are lots to choose from, from both their current CD The Light Divides and from their self-titled debut.

Winterpills: A Ransom

website | myspace | sxsw



Friday, March 16

Maritime from Milwaukee, IL - 12 AM @ Soho Lounge
Indie Mom turned me on to Maritime last fall, and I love "Parade of Punk Rock T-Shirts." "Calm" is another good song, one of many.

Maritime: Calm

website | myspace | sxsw


Goldrush from Oxford England - 12 AM @ Maggie Mae's Rooftop
Goldrush sound less like a Brit band and more like they're from the southwest U.S. The fact that they took their name from a Neil Young song is a dead giveaway, nevertheless, they have developed a rich sound of their own, not unlike Great Lake Swimmers.

Goldrush: There's A World

website | myspace | sxsw

The Oohlas from Los Angeles - 5 PM Austin Convention Center
Standing up for my homies! This short appearance is not in the middle of the night, and it does not conflict with other shows, so let's go!
website | myspace | sxsw


Young Galaxy from Montreal, Canada - 10 PM Habana Calle 6 Annex
We saw Young Galaxy at one of their first performances, and they were darn good for a new band--I bet they are even better now. Click here for our review and pictures. The song links are still good.
Official Website | myspace page | sxsw


Badly Drawn Boy from Manchester, UK - 11:30 PM @ Stubbs
Tempermental Damon Gough is known to throw tantrums if a show isn't up to his standards of perfection, so expect anything, including some good music. Click here for some beautiful photos from BDB's concert last fall at the Troubadour in Hollywood, taken by Ed Wang. See more pics here on Ed's photo site.

Badly Drawn Boy: The Time Of Times

website | myspace | sxsw

I have chosen a winner at random for the Arcade Fire Neon Bible contest: congratulations to Marlow from Bronxville, NY! Marlow's favorite song from Arcade Fire was "Une Année Sans Lumiere" from Funeral.

To those of you who weren't chosen, thanks so much for dropping by Speed of Dark and check back often for future contests and giveaways.

arcade fire: une année sans lumiere

Check out hype machine for more Arcade Fire, and get the new album as soon as possible!

OMG! If Wednesday's band lineup at the Austin, TX South by Southwest Festival wasn't enough, stay tuned for Thursday! Below I've listed some great bands performing on Thursday, and even if you don't make it to SXSW, many of them are currently on tour and may be round your way soon.


Thursday, March 15:

In case you missed Say Hi to Your Mom's Wednesday show, you can catch them at Buffalo Billiards at 8:00 pm. I mentioned them on wednesday and posted one of my favorite tracks. Check out this song from 2003's Numbers and Mumbles.

say hi to your mom: let's talk about spaceships

official website | myspace | buy their music

Midnight Movies, an awesome group from Los Angeles, will play at the Blender Bar at the Ritz at 10:00 pm. We last saw this band opening up for Silversun Pickups and they played an awesome show. Midnight Movies will release a full-length album, Lion the Girl on April 24, 2007, and you can pre-order it from Amazon, and buy their earlier stuff from iTunes or from their online store.

midnight movies: golden hair [syd barrett cover]

official website | myspace | buy their music

A great band that I "met" on myspace, Armor for Sleep will perform at Exodus at 10:30 pm. I can favorably compare them with other bands I found through myspace and featured earlier on this blog, like self against city and the graduate. Armor for Sleep are currently on tour all over - check em out.

armor for sleep: my town

myspace | buy their music

Another band on the cusp of making it big are Canada, playing at Habana Calle 6 Annez, at 11:00 pm. Canada is also playing Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday at SXSW. The band's not actually from Canada, but from Michigan. Isn't that the same thing? (Kidding.) I'm sure they've never heard that lame joke before. Anyway, Canada released This Cursed House in 2006 and it's definitely worth a listen.

canada: beige stationwagon

myspace | buy their music

Everyone's favorite Brit troublemaker, Amy Winehouse, will hopefully make an appearance at Eternal at 12:00 am. She's apparently been cancelling shows lately, which is a shame because I'm sure she'd put on a great performance (if not too drunk). I didn't have a chance to pick up her latest release, Back to Black, which came out today stateside, but I know I'll buy it tomorrow. I love the shoutout to Slick Rick in this song.

amy winehouse: me and mr. jones (fuckery)

official website | myspace | buy her music

Other great bands on Thursday include:

Who Made Milwaukee Famous at La Zona Rosa, 1:00 am
Limbeck at Latitude 30, 12:00 am
Stars of Track and Field at Momo's, 10:00 pm
The Dears at Stubbs, 11:00 pm

Any many, many more...check out more SXSW information on the official website of SXSW, on posts from my fellow bloggers and (even though it's been slightly discourteous to this blog lately), hype machine.

We can't let Tuesday pass by without a bit of time-traveling, so here we go back to ever-popular 1995.

The film Tank Girl, based on the main character from a punk art British graphic novel of the same name was not that great a movie by anyone's standards and certainly not in the eyes of creators jamie hewlett and Alan Martin. The writing was terrible (not Hewlett's fault), and while I like Lori Petty, she was too dolled-up for the character (see real Tank Girl from Deadline, Sept. 1993), and she didn't have the chops to carry a feature film. Very interesting though, is young Naomi Watts as Jet Girl.

The movie did, however, have a pretty cool soundtrack. Believe it or not, the music coordinator was Courtney Love-Cobain, back when she was at least partly sane. "Let's Do It" is my favorite of Joan Jett's work. I was already listening to Bush, Belly, and Veruca Salt, but "Roads" was my first introduction to Portishead. This CD also had the first song I'd heard by Bjork, "Army of Me."

So before you head out to the video store for a bit of post-apocalyptic Aussie nostalgia, how about getting in the mood with a few MP3s.

[MP3] Portishead: Roads

[MP3] Belly: Thief

[MP3] Bjork: Army of Me

[MP3] Devo: Girl U Want

[MP3] Joan Jett and Paul Westerberg: Let's Do It

Jamie Hewlett is now best-recognized as co-creator (with Damon Albarn) of the virtual band Gorillaz.

Bjork will be appearing at the 2007 Coachella music and arts festival

Buy: amazon

Sources: wikipedia | film info: imdb | cool fansite

Friday night Indie Mom and I attended an unusual concert: a rock group performing with live strings at an art museum. L. A.'s own Earlimart appeared in a small and exclusive engagement with a string quartet at the getty center. Afterwards Indie Mom and I asked ourselves, Why don't more people know about Earlimart???

Both of us have appreciated this band since their 2004 album Treble and Tremble, but they have been around a lot longer than that. In the past seven years they have honed their sound to somehow balance hard-hitting rock with a mellow sort of weariness, introducing strings into the mix without getting watered-down or pretentious. The threesome, made up of Aaron Espinoza, Ariana Murray, and Joel Graves, has been working on their new album, Mentor Tormentor for the past year, and last Friday was one of the first times the new songs have been performed live.

All of last Friday's components were extraordinary, beginning with the beautiful Getty Center itself, an architechtural marvel in travertine, perched on top of a hill that miraculously isolates it from the noise and bustle of Los Angeles. The Harold M. Williams Auditorium is an intimate setting more accustomed to classical than rock concerts. The 450 seats were cushy, and the rows were steeply banked so that everyone had a good view of the stage. As we waited for the concert to begin we were lulled by ambient piano and soothing phrases in a monotone voice. You can hear something similar on Earlimart's website (link below).


The backdrop to the stage was a dense starfield punctuated by occasional shooting stars--a reference to a lyric in "Nevermind the Phonecalls." During the concert a cow, a pair of eagles, a trio of pigs, and a tiny galleon, a reference to the band's studio "The Ship," drifted occasionally across the stars.


To a background of strange carnival music and cricket sounds, which resumed between songs throughout the show, the musicians took the stage, with Jason Borger (American Music Club) on keyboards and Derek Brown (Eels) on drums. Aaron Espinoza introduced the Dream String Team, made up of four members of the USC String Machine, and joked that they had drunk up all the beer backstage. The four laughed amiably and did not deny the accusation.

Then the music began. I can't remember when I've been to a show where all the elements of the sound were in such perfect balance. In little rock clubs, if you aren't standing in exactly the right place, some part of the mix, often the vocals, is completely drowned out. Here, all was clear and distinct, and--a blessing to my old ears--loud but not painfully so.

The set consisted mostly of new songs, but there were also a few beloved older ones. From the new album, the songs I recognized:

Answers and Questions (released last year on 7-inch EP, and already favorite of mine. Listen to a 45-second sample here)
Don't Think About Me
Nevermind the Phonecalls
Happy Alone (with Ariana solo on vocals)
Gonna Break It To Your Heart
Everybody Knows Everybody

Those last two are very satisfying rockers. I know I am going to love this CD.
Old favorites included:

Heaven Adores You
All They Ever Do Is Talk
The Hidden Track
Lazy Feet 23

The first three are from 2004's excellent Treble and Tremble. The third is from Everybody Down Here (2003) and the band had never performed it live before.

The most impressive of these to my ears was "The Hidden Track." The soft edges of the recorded version were instead focused and sharpened without losing any of the beauty. The live strings made "Heaven Adores You" truly heavenly and gave "Don't Think About Me" just the right pathos.

The final number, a kind of hootenanny with special guest friends, did not provide a final shining moment, in my opinion, but it couldn't tarnish the rest of the evening. At the side of the stage when the others had left, Aaron and Ariana gave each other a big, congratulatory hug. It seemed like a short show, probably because there were no opening bands and there was none of the usual interminable waiting for equipment to be set up, tested, and replaced when it failed. It was a nice to be at a show where there were no delays between songs due to something gone wrong.

Mentor Tormentor will be released in June or July. Two songs can be streamed at their MySpace page. Buy albums/songs at amazon, itunes, emusic

Earlimart Blog | website | myspace

Look out, music world, the SXSW Festival is here and we will not be there, sadly. However, even if I was going, I think I'd go nuts trying to see all the bands that are playing. Jesus H. Christ, there are so many bands playing at the same time, even if I had Homer's cloning hammock, I still wouldn't be able to see them all.

A brief highlight of bands that will play on Wednesday, March 14 at SXSW:

Annuals will play at the Beauty Car Patio at 12:45 am. Annuals released Be He Me in 2006 and "Bleary Eyed" was featured on this blog as a song I missed on my Best of 2006 list.

annuals: complete or completing

myspace | buy the album

The Mountain Goats will play at Emo's Main Room at 11:00 pm and are another band I love. I am sorry I won't get to see them live at SXSW. I featured their song "Woke Up New" from 2006's Get Lonely on my Best of 2006 list, but I like their old stuff too. The song below is from their 2002 release Tallahassee. This angry little song was the first I heard from the band, and made me laugh and cry and want to hear more.

the mountain goats: no children

official website | buy their albums

Birdmonster will perform at Habana Calle 6 Annex at 12:00 am and has lately been featured on this blog. We unfortunately missed the opportunity to see them live a couple of times, but life intervenes, you know? Enjoy this track from 2006's No Midnight.

birdmonster: all the holes in the walls

official website | myspace | buy their music

Say Hi to Your Mom will play at the Austin Convention Center at 1:00 pm and if you haven't heard these guys play live, make sure you're in attendance. This band is a favorite of mine and were another featured band on my Best Songs of 2006 list with their vampire themed release, Impeccable Blahs. Check out this track from 2002's Discosadness (love the keyboard that comes in at about 3:23).

say hi to your mom: blizzard

official website | myspace | buy their albums

Find more artists from SXSW at the official website, at my fellow blogger's sites (see links on this page), and on hype machine.

As Indie Mom mentioned here, March 2007 is a heavy-duty month for new music. It's almost impossible to keep up with it all without a staff of researchers, which we certainly don't have. I'm afraid that a lot of really good groups will get lost in the flood, and one thing you should know about me is, I am ALWAYS on the side of the underdog.

Beirut

Amid all the hoopla over Arcade Fire (see our Contest!) and the leak of the new Wilco album, Beirut has quietly released a two-song EP called Pompeii. Don't expect the electricity of Gulag Orkestar here--these appear to be from a few years previous to last year's big premier, but you can hear the magic beginning to form. Very interesting, as usual for Zach Condon.

Beirut will be appearing next Wednesday, March 14, at SXSW.

Beirut: Napoleon on the Bellerophon from Pompeii (2007)

Available only at emusic
website | myspace | sxsw



Siberian

Also releasead this week was a debut six-song EP by Seattle band Siberian. I've been happily listening to these two cuts for months, and I've found that the other four songs are of equal good quality.

Name-dropping is entirely unnecessary, but it's interesting to note that members of Siberian helped make J. Tillman's 2006 CD, Minor Works, one of my favorites of the year. Finn Parnell played banjo, Zach Tillman (brother of Josh) played bass, and Colin Wolberg played singing saw.

You won't hear banjo or singing saw on Hey Celestial!, however. Siberian's sound is a jangle-rock blend of Keane and the Acorn, with a few more rough edges than the former (but I like that) and more consistency than the latter. Parnell cites 70s prog-rock band Yes as an influence, and I can hear that too.

From Hey Celestial! EP (2007):
Siberian: Soft Rains

Siberian: Paper Birds

website | myspace | Buy at itunes

Upcoming appearances:
Mar 9 2007, 6:00P--Live in-studio on 1077.7 The End!--Seattle, WA
Mar 10 2007, 9:00P--Crocodile Cafe(EP release)--Seattle, WA
Mar 31 2007, 1:00P--KEXP presents Sonic Avalanche at the Summit--Snoqualmie, WA

Too Dark For A Picture

For another great little band that I think has a bright future ahead, go back to my post of March 2 for the full story on Too Dark For a Picture. We were having a problem with our feed a few days ago, and these songs did not get nearly the recognition I think it should have, so I am reposting one of the MP3s today. Please check that post and give the others a try. The band and the management thank you!

Too Dark For a Picture: Only Dreaming

Were you as excited as I was that Neon Bible, the new Arcade Fire album, was released on Tuesday? Did you take your lunch break at 10:00 am, rush to the nearest music store and buy the special edition CD package? Did you move the CD cover back and forth to see the pages of the Neon Bible move, while waiting for the cashier to turn on her cash register so you could pay (since you were the first person in the store)? Did you immediately rip off the plastic wrap, ignore the extra special little goodies in the package, and shove the disc into your CD player? Did you sit in your car, not eating lunch on your very early lunch break, and listen to the whole disc twice while playing with the little special goodies and flipping through the liner notes? Then, did you infect your 11 year old son on the way home from school? Or blast it from the speakers as soon as you got home? Are you listening to it right now?


If not, well then I guess you're not as excited as I was. But, you might be excited about winning a brand spanking new, unopened Special Edition Neon Bible CD, complete with nifty box, liner notes including full lyrics for every song, and two neat little flip books, shipped to you absolutely free.

Contest Information!

The contest winner will a brand spanking new, unopened Special Edition Neon Bible CD, in box, as described above. All you have to do is post a comment to this post with your favorite all time Arcade Fire song and your email address (so I can contact you if you're the winner). The contest ends March 12 at midnight, and I will pick the winner at random from the comments received. The winner will be contacted via email, and will need to respond by midnight on March 15, or I will pick another winner at random.

Good luck and enjoy these great new tracks from Neon Bible:

arcade fire: keep the car running
arcade fire: ocean of noise

(image from illustplosion)

For the record, let it be known that this is my first post using my brrrrrrand new, custom-built desktop computadora. I forget just how long it has been since I got my old one, which I once thought was as great as a computer could be, but it has certainly been at least six years, maybe seven. How things change. Hopefully 2 Gigs of memory and a dual-core processor will be able to keep up with the growing size of programs and resource requirements of virus protection for a while. Dang, does it ever zip along! Yeehaw!

I picked up Daniel Lanois's second solo album, For the Beauty of Wynona, in a used CD store primarily because of the cover, which features an extremely thin, naked young woman holding a knife in a menacing manner. It has in large letters across the front "American Version." These words cleverly hide the girl's nipples from excitable U.S. purchasers. Guns and knives are OK with us, but not nipples. Presumably, people in other countries don't have to be shielded from such atrocities.

By 1993 Lanois, who is just a little younger than I am, had produced albums by Brian Eno, Robbie Robertson, and Peter Gabriel, had already won his first Grammy for producing U2's The Joshua Tree (1987), and had worked with Bob Dylan on Oh Mercy (1989) and with the Neville Brothers on Yellow Moon. He also released his first solo album, Acadie in 1989.

For the Beauty of Wynona was recorded during breaks from other projects. Lanois typically leaves his unmistakable mark on other artists' recordings, but he is also influenced by them. Some of the sounds here, as in the title song and "Brother L.A." clearly reflect his work with U2's the Edge. In others ("Indian Red" and "Learning How to Crawl") you hear the New Orleans flavor of the Nevilles.

This is a darker record than his first, partly inspired by the riots in Los Angeles of April the previous year. Both "The Messenger" and "Brother L.A." speak of those dark and violent times.

Fuzzy electric guitars are pared down and used as a foil against the acoustic instruments. Lanois has a huge talent for playing the spaces between the notes, a characteristic shared by Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits. Listen to the guitar solo in the middle of "The Messenger," for example. The notes come just as you're dying to hear them. The two instrumental tracks, "Waiting" and "Death of a Train" provide more obvious examples. I once put them together seamlessly on a cassette tape, and it was pure heaven.

Lanois continued to work with U2 as well as other artists, notably Emmylou Harris on Wrecking Ball. He won additional Grammy Awards as producer or co-producer in 1992, 1997, 2000, and 2001. Lanois also produced movie soundtracks which include the films Philadelphia (1993), Blown Away (1994), Trainspotting (1996), Sling Blade (1996), and Good Will Hunting (1997).

In 2005 he released his latest solo album, Belladonna as well as Rockets, an attempt at a best-of collection. The problem is, his songs are all so good it's impossible to choose what's better than something else.


Whole Lotta Love To Give

For the Beauty of Wynona

Our prayers don't mean nothin much

To the heart that cannot be won

The Messenger

Got a letter from a messenger

I read it when it came

It said that you were wounded

You were bound in chains

You had loved and you were handled

You were poisoned, you were pained

Oh no, Oh no

You were naked you were shamed

You could almost touch heaven

Right there in front of you

Liberty just slipped away on us

Now there's so much work to do

official website | myspace
Buy at amazon and itunes
Other albums by Daniel Lanois at emusic

Sources: wikipedia, L.A. Times newspaper article, June 1993.

Here's a little support for five local favorites of mine who will be appearing at SXSW or the vicinity from March 14-18. Each of the songs I've posted is only one of a bunch that are in frequent rotation on my players. You may not be able to see them in Austin, but be sure to check their MySpace pages for their current tour schedules because they may be coming your way.

Division Day

I may be slow getting on the bandwagon for Division Day, but now that I'm here I'm enthusiastic. I have not heard a bad song yet from this foursome. As evidence of their goodness, their 2006 album, Bear Trap Island is currently sold out, but their website says it will be available again soon. I'll be buying it. Their previous album, The Mean Way In is available on itunes.

Division Day: Colorguard from Bear Trap Island (2006)

website | myspace | sxsw
Also touring Arizona, Texas, California, and Las Vegas



The Broken West

I'm late catching onto The Broken West as well, as they've been all over the music blogs for a while. This bright jangle-pop is just the antidote for all those dark, minor chords I seem to sink into. Great driving music here.

The Broken West: Brass Ring from I Can't Go On I'll Go On (2007)

website | myspace | sxsw
Tour schedule covers too many states to list. These guys are all over the U.S. this spring.
Buy at itunes, emusic



The Oohlas

Praise has been nearly unanimous regarding the impact of this fun-loving threesome who regularly post photo contests on their MySpace page. Humorous lyrics and catchy melodies by Ollie Stone are matched by the solid talents of brothers Greg (Everclear) and Matt Eklund, making the Oohlas one of the brightest stars to watch.

The Oohlas: Tripped from Best Stop Pop (2006)

website | myspace | sxsw
Extensive tour schedule includes dates in several states as well as California
itunes



GLISS



I featured GLISS in a post in January. I love the echo-y sound and the heart-broken cracked voice.

GLISS: Blue Sky from Love the Virgins (2006)

website | band blog |myspace



Mar 15 2007 1:30P SXSW - Whoopsy Magazine Party @ Trophey's
Mar 16 2007 6:30P SXSW - Congress Day Party

Tour schedule includes Colorado, Washington, and Oregon
Several albums available on itunes, emusic




Le Meu Le Purr


Their cartoon-character-quote name was the initial attraction (remember Pepe Le Peu?), but there's lots more to like in this Ventura band's solid-rock sound and their no-holds-barred attack.

Le Meu Le Purr: Sharing Orchids from Sweet Smell of Asphalt (2004)

website | myspace | sxsw
Also touring this month in Colorado, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas
Buy at itunes

March is looking to be quite a month for new music releases. The Arcade Fire and Amy Winehouse are at the top of my list for most anticipated new releases, but Idlewild, Neil Young, and Kaiser Chiefs, among others, will release new albums during the month. Enjoy some old and new tracks from these artists.


idlewild: everything (as it moves) from make another world (3/5/07)
idlewild: the bronze medal from 100 broken windows (2001)

buy idlewild albums | find more on hype machine

neil young: heart of gold from harvest (1990)
neil young: out on the weekend [live] from BBC recordings (1971)

buy neil young albums | preorder live at massey hall cd/dvd (3/12/07)
find more neil young on hype machine

kaiser chiefs: ruby from yours truly angry mob (3/10/07)
kaiser chiefs: you can have it all (light orchestral) from you can have it all (2005)

buy kaiser chief albums | find more kaiser chiefs on hype machine

Rachel Williams and Max Golding of Too Dark For a Picture
It's a storyline fit for a movie script: An accidental meeting in a karaoke bar between a gifted, electro-beat boy and a pixie-faced folkie girl with a great voice. The combination of their unlikely elements sparks an exciting musical fusion. Next stop, fame and fortune?

Although the fame and fortune have not yet happened, this is the story behind Too Dark For a Picture. Rachel Williams tells me, "We met at a coffee shop in downtown Ventura (California) last year, which happened to be hosting an open mic I forced myself into at the last minute. Max was there, I had a demo on hand, and the rest was a blast." Max recalls having to lift his lower jaw up off the floor when he heard Rachel sing.

Although both Rachel and her TDFAP collaborator Max Golding are working on solo projects, that accidental meeting has led to recording nine songs together. Kind of like peanut butter falling into chocolate, the combination is something quite different than either one by themselves. Max's dance beats give Rachel's dreamy tunes a kick in the pants. Rachel's lyrics bring focus to Max's churning instrumental landscapes. Both take the other to an entirely different musical place than either thought of going.

Think: Portishead on prozac...Cat Power with drum and bass...Fiona Apple with a California glow.

Rachel and Max plan to complete their current projects before returning to TDFAP. Max is working on an album of sound perversion called Dizzy Fingers under the name of Maxwell Lewis? Yes, with the question mark. Rachel has her own solo project, Birds Fled From Me and also performs with Bedroom Eyes. Write to her on MySpace, and for $5 she'll make you a CD of five of her songs.

Meanwhile, I'm hoping for the happy ending to this story. Listen to these songs, and then try to forget them. Just try, I dare you. You'll be back.

Too Dark For a Picture: Only Dreaming

Too Dark For a Picture: Do Not Fear the Dark

Birds Fled From Me: Why I'm Not

Maxwell Lewis?: Televators (Mars Volta cover)

Too Dark For a Picture: myspace
Rachel: Birds Fled From Me myspace | Bedroom Eyes myspace
Max: Maxwell Lewis? myspace
Buy Maxwell Lewis? Scraps on itunes

Earlier in the month, I posted about different songs with the same name after a comment from my son, He Might Be Giant. He asked if bands are allowed to call songs by the same name as another song. When I told him that yes, it happens all the time, he said, "well, then how can they tell them apart?"

These songs are obviously very different from each other, but very excellent in their own way. Enjoy.

j. tillman: take care> from tour EP 2006
hot chip: take care from coming on strong

I used call the local (crappy) radio station to request Creep, by Radiohead, and they would always play Creep, by STP. Good song, but not the one I was obsessed with.

thom yorke: creep [acoustic] from pablo honey [the original version, that is]
stone temple pilots: creep [live] from family values tour 2001

In reference to alt-gramma's post yesterday about Catherine Wheel...the first song is one I grew up knowing the lyrics to, and can't forget no matter how hard I try.

catherine wheel: wish you were here [pink floyd cover] from like cats and dogs
incubus: wish you were here from morning view

Find more great music on hype machine or buy the albums on which these songs appear by clicking on the album link to go to amazon.com.