Halloween

Halloween is just around the corner, which means out come the weird ass dark Halloween songs. This one I found off of a compilation called Pulp Surfin' it's called "Letter From Jeepers" by Bob Guy, though on this mix he's credited as Mr. Guy. I have absolutely no information whatsoever about this song, though I think this Mr. Guy may have been friends with or performed with Zappa. The singer gets a letter from a certain Jeepers thanking him from throwing a ghoulish party. It's demented and downright wrong but also quite fun. Happy haunting.

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Letter From Jeepers

Antony

I grabbed this song from Aquarium Drunkard the other day, and I love it so much I can't resist re-posting it. Before "Hope There's Someone" Antony was relatively unknown, now with the Johnsons, Antony is a bright star in the indie world. However, his breakthrough came during this exact performance, at a Leonard Cohen tribute event at Sydney Opera House. He was performing with a great deal of known singers, and was placed towards the beginning of the show. When Antony stepped up to the plate and sang Cohen's "If It Be Your Will" he absolutely knocked it out of the park. This exact moment is what propelled Antony into the indie limelight, and not a damn moment too soon.

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If It Be Your Will (live)

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

With the recent revival of 90's indie rock in full swing (Pavement, Guided by Voices) it's puzzling to discover why The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's reunion hasn't gained mass interest. Though they never gained the fame they deserved, these guys absolutely brought it. They tell you right upfront what kind of music they are, a blues explosion. They recently played The Troubadour here in L.A. and from what I have read, these guys did not miss a note. Hopefully they will be around next year for the festival circuit, they would absolutely tear it up at Bonnaroo.

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Chicken Dog

Alexander: Truth

A couple weeks ago, this song mysteriously leaked on to the Internet and has received much buzz and radio play over on Sirius XMU. It is a track called "Truth" by Alexander. You may recognize him as Alex Ebert, lead singer for Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes. This is his solo attempt, I guess. There is no word on whether he's releasing a solo album, or anything really regarding as to what this song is really for. He is still currently touring with Ed Sharpe, and if they aren't coming to your town, enjoy "Truth"

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Truth

Cotton Jones

Don't pass by Cotton Jones without giving them a listen. They do a great job at mixing the warm feeling of that old AM radio pop sound with some classic country. Tall Hours in the Glowstream is a cute album, there's a lot of great vocal exchanges between the male and female singers that would make a great indie karaoke duet. For the time being, I'll leave it at that, but I have a feeling that I'm going to come back to this one in a few months and gain a whole new appreciation for it.

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Glorylight and Christie

Ted Lucas

How Ted Lucas has escaped my radar my entire life until now is a complete mystery to me. Thanks to the recent blog buzz of the reissue of this lost 1975 folk album I can now revel in this man's soothing velvety voice. The one song off this album that I have been playing on repeat for the past week is "It Is So Nice To Get Stoned" which is an underrated stoner anthem. What I love about it is that it's very funny and depressing at the same time. While it is a breezy lighthearted laid-back tune, I can also see it as a sarcastic commentary on the lives of burnouts. Regardless, Lucas should be considered among the greats like Nick Drake, Cat Stevens, and Arthur Russel. Unfortunately his work has been out of print for years, luckily those days are over.

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It Is So Nice To Get Stoned

Neil Young

It's been an odd decade for Neil Young. He released an Anti-War album, an album about Hybrid Cars, and the less than impressive Chrome Dreams II. With his newest disc, Le Noise Neil simplifies things by stripping himself of a band. Le Noise is just Neil, a guitar and occasionally some studio effects. This results in his strangest yet best album in years. It is certainly rough around the edges, and half the time I'm waiting for the band to kick in, but Le Noise has very mysterious quality to it that we have not heard from Young in a long time. This album also features some of his clearest and most concise songwriting in years, the electric cacophony of "Angry World" and the subdued acoustic "Love And War" are both very political songs that hearken back to the days of "The Needle and The Damage Done." This album is not for the casual listener, but more so the dedicated fan. It is a strange and sometimes abrasive album, but with thirty-three studio albums under his belt, Neil Young can do whatever the fuck wants.
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Angry World

Avey Tare

 

 With all the hype about the upcoming Panda Bear album, we must not forget that one of the other geniuses from indie-psych juggernaut Animal Collective is releasing a solo album relatively soon. Avey Tare released yesterday the first swampy sounding song from his alligator-inspired record called Down There which drops October 26th. I have no doubt in my mind that this record will be spinning a lot at hipster Halloween parties. 

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Lucky 1

The Black Angels

The Black Angels are a psychedelic rock band from Austin Texas. Their third LP was recently released a few weeks ago. These guys certainly know how to lay down a groove, it seems they have copied riffs from many 70s psych bands like 13th Floor Elevators and such. What I dig about The Black Angels is they are able to switch between straight forward Garage-rock ("Sunday Afternoon") and murkier rhythms ("Entrance Song") with absolute ease.

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Sunday Afternoon

White Denim

Happy Friday! How's about starting your weekend off right by downloading an entire album for FREE?! That's what Texas rockers White Denim want you to do. In anticipation for their third major release later this fall, the boys have recorded a pre-album album and are giving it away for free. In this day in age of the music industry, this is the kind of act that bands need to do more often when trying to gain mass appeal. The album is called Last Days of Summer which is not very appropriate here in LA since we recently had the hottest day ever in the history of the city. It is a good title however, for the group of songs they chose to include on this release. "Home Together" is a blissful and breezy song while "Toni Fatti" is more in line with White Denim's ramshackle garage blues. Some of the songs on here match up quite nicely to last year's great Fits release while others break new ground. Whether you love it or hate it, screw it the damn thing is free! I have no idea how long the band is going to keep this download available, so jump on this while you can!

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Last Days of Summer