Band to Know: First Aid Kit

These girls are Swedish and they rock.

Hot Jam: "Gucci Gucci" by Kreayshawn

Get to know this badass chick:

I mean, who hasn't had an exclamation point band?

The Harvard Sailing Team does it again - this time, they take on HIPSTERS:

This may as well be a parody of half of my friends. Dammit. Also !!! is a real band. And they are good. And pronounced "Chk chk chk." 

Ugh I hate myself.

Previously: Besties with Testies

Get Familiar with Holy Ghost!

Holy Ghost! is definitely one of my favorite bands right now - last year I got to see them open for LCD Soundsystem, however it wasn't until their most recent album came out that I really fell in love. Check out the video for "Wait & See" and I highly recommend downloading the album. Oh - also, how could I NOT love a band that has an exclamation point it's title?




Holy Ghost! - Wait & See from DFA Records on Vimeo.

More Music!

Every year after I get back from Coachella I spiral into a post-festival depression that involves me feeling stupid (I killed a lot of brain cells, okay?), listening to the same bands on repeat for hours on end, and endlessly researching other upcoming music festivals. 

Okay it's not that bad - I'm just being dramatic you guys! GOSH. But okay I'm in a post-Coachella music craze and the Lollapalooza (is that the most 90s festival, or what?) lineup was announced today. And Tennis is playing! Tennis! You remember them, right? I've blogged about them before - I love them! I'm not sure how they'd be in the festival setting but I imagine I would have a damn good time... so yeah, while I should be working and writing and thinking about REAL things, here I am daydreaming about taking a trip to Chicago in late August...

New Music Video from Tennis, I Want To Go To There

I want to fall into this music video. I love everything about Tennis - I mean I already did and then THIS! THIS MASTERPIECE!

Tennis - "Take Me Somewhere" from Ian Perlman on Vimeo.

Ellie Goulding

One of the best parts about writing that SXSW piece for CulturePOP was that as a result, I myself was able to discover some new music.  I'm totally loving Ellie Goulding, the UK sensation who's somehow still an unknown over here. Everything she does is amazing - I especially love the multiple remixed versions of her song "Lights" - but I'm totally blown away by her cover of Rihanna's "Only Girl in the World." You MUST listen:

Ellie Goulding - Only Girl (Rihanna Cover) by Pretty Much Amazing

The Strokes' New Album Now Streaming

great album cover, no?

Music fans! You can stream the new album Angles from The Strokes at their website. I love that the first song is called "Machu Picchu!" (Aw, Peru!) I'm psyched to see them at Coachella this year...

Glitter, Unicorns and James Van Der Beek

Good God. KE$HA. 

You just keep bringing it! Hit after hit after hit! And now you've just like, BLOWN MY MIND! This new video for your song "Blow" - which, by the way, I'm a HUGE fan of - is just seriously epic. I mean. Look at it. LOOK AT THIS VIDEO! With DAWSON OF DAWSON'S CREEK himself! AND UNICORNS.  MOTHER FUCKING UNICORNS! And did I mention the LASER BEAMS OF RAINBOWS!?!

My God. This is fantastic.

WORLD MUSIC!

If you, like, me love yourself some World Music (in this case, African music), then check out NPR's piece on the 5 New African Bands that Ruled in 2010.

Kanye's New Video Will Feature Jay-Z, Nicki, Minaj, Dead Girls, etc.

This video preview is creepy. And amazing. But the song? "Monster?" Well, it's on Kanye West's new album. It' amazing. And Nicki Minaj is AMAZING. And so is Kanye. And I love them. And Jay-Z. And I've run out of things to say besides AMAZING.

Ugh, Hip Hop Connection, why must you tease us so?

Happy Tuesday, now with 100% more Snoop Dogg

If I were into "Best of the Year" lists, there's no doubt that the Gorillaz album Plastic Beach would be somewhere in my Top 5. Here's their latest video, featuring everyone's favorite stoner rapper in naval uniform, Snoop Dogg.

Now if we could just get a music video for my favorite track of the album, "Rinestone Eyes" then I'll be really happy. I'm willing to volunteer myself and my roommates - I mean, we did sort of make a great premise for this video not too long ago during the Police Panty Raid.

Robyn's totally helping on the early-90s revival movement and I'm loving it

Check out Robyn's new Diplo-directed music video that I want to live inside.

AHH! NEW SYMPHONY OF SCIENCE JAM!

All your favorite scientists and astrophysicists and chemists and other -ists that I don't even know how to pronounce or what they do are back in this new Symphony of Science jam. Nothing will ever quite live up to their first two auto-tuned gems, but yay for more Carl Sagan!

Cosmic.

(Yes - cosmic is the new epic. Learn it, live it, love it).

Girl Talk: The Mashup Breakdown

Disclaimer: I have to give my friends over at The Coughing Dog credit for this one - but it's so good, this totally warrants a re-post...

So you've all suffered through the frustrating download time and now own copies of the new Girl Talk album, right? Great. But have you checked out THIS site yet? What is this site I'm so excited about? Well just click that nifty blue link there to see, and you will be treated to a full breakdown of every song Girl Talk uses in every track AS YOU LISTEN.

Brilliant, right?

A Haunting Music Video for "Creep" - Just in Time for Halloween

I can't stop watching this video. It's beautiful, haunting, troubling, creepy, weird and insane. And seemingly appropriate for Halloween.

Creep (Radiohead) - Scala and Kolacny Brothers from Alex Heller on Vimeo.

Crystal Castles + The Cure = Brilliance.

This is obviously going to be scored for a montage scene in something I write...

Chiquitita: Most Underrated ABBA song?

Okay. So this song is either called "Chiquita" or "Chiquitita." Those crazy Swedes definitely pronounce the former version but I've seen it listed as the latter in places.  Regardless, I think this song is especially underrated in the ABBA catalog. I am unclear as to what they're singing about and the video is real weird.  However - this jam is epic, wouldn't you agree?

Let's Talk About How Fucking Rad Janelle Monae is

Janelle Monae is really fucking rad. Let's talk about it.

Okay so you may have seen on Twitter that earlier this week I was freaking out when I discovered that her song "Say You'll Go" from her BOMB new album samples Debussy's "Claire de Lune." Janelle Monae is awesome. I mean that is killer. Debussy is without question my favorite composer ("Reverie" is the number one most listened to song in my iTunes library) and Janelle Monae is brilliant.

The best part about her new album, The ArchAndroid is the liner notes. Every song lists inspiration. My personal favorite would be for the very first jam, "Overture II:"

Inspired by Princess Leia's cinnamon buns hairstyle, Tim Burton's "Blue Girl With Wine" and Rachmaninoff's Piano Concert No. 2

So Janelle Monae and I should be friends. Obviously. We both share a love of Star Wars, Tim Burton and Debussy. Well, shit.

And I leave you with her kickass video for "Tightrope."

Now Playing: Mumford & Sons, Arcade Fire, Four Tet & Tennis

I'm a big, big music junkie. Longtime readers of this blog will remember I used to have a sidebar widget showcasing whatever music I was listening to at the moment. I wasn't that great at updating it, but sort of missed having that feature today, especially as there are some killer jams I would love to recommend.

So how about this - I'm just going to tell you about who I'm listening to right now and why you should be too.

Mumford & Sons

Sigh No More

This album has the rare capacity to bring me to tears. It's a sort of folk/rock hybrid - although I believe iTunes labels them as "freak-folk" - but honestly I just think of them as beautiful.
Current Favorite: "After the Storm"

Arcade Fire

The Suburbs

Truth be told, while I have Arcade Fire's older albums, this is the first one I've listened to on repeat and fallen deeply in love with every song.
Current Favorite: "Rococo"

Four Tet

There is Love in You

Sort of indie-electronic-mellow-trance-dance, Four Tet is great music for getting in the zone, or for just zoning out.
Current Favorite: "She Just Likes to Fight"

Tennis

Balitmore - EP

I think you could clump Tennis in the recent batch of California Surf Revival, but I like these guys a lot more than Wavves or Best Coast. This EP is only three songs and definitely leaves you wanting more - but it's totally worth a listen.
Current Favorite: "Marathon"