Drop It Like It's Carl

Hello friends. I have more music and videos for you to enjoy. So enjoy. Support the artists if you like what you hear.

1. The Hood Internet - "What You Know About Transparent Things": I'm pretty sure I've posted this before but I don't care. It's so awesome, it deserves a double post. A mash of Fujiya & Miagi's Transparent Things and TI's What You Know About That. Creative title, eh?

2. Grizzly Bear- "While You Wait For The Others": Another incredible song off Veckatimest, another candidate for Carl's Album of the Year.

3. Van She - "A Sharp Knife": A somber-yet-catchy tune from the Aussie dance-rockers. Is it just me or has Australia been pumping out awesome bands like nobody's business? A veritable hotbed, i tell ya.

4. LCD Soundsystem - "Starry Eyes": Another glitchy tune from the master of glitch, LCD Soundsystem. This one was done for the Darfur benefit album, Causes 2 which is a superb album, on par with Dark Was The Night, in my humble opinion.

5. Bowerbirds - "Northern Lights": A beautiful song which starts sparse and slowly swells into magnificence. All with a guitar, drums and a piano. This is why I love music.

6. The Avalanches - "Frontier Psychiatrist": A throwback to 2001. I used to listen to this song 10 times a day when it first came out and still love it. The Avalanches (also Aussies) haven't made an album since Since I Left You but damn, was it good. To make the album they used over 3500 samples from records they found at a garage sale. There have been rumors of a new album for a couple years now, but nothing yet.

7. The Bran Flakes - "Stumble Out of Bed": Speaking of samples, these guys do it too, and do it well. Some of their songs are pretty out there, but their album I Have Hands is well worth a listen or two.

8. Solid Gold - "Who you Gonna Run to?": This Minneapolis-based band is one to watch in the future. Their first release Bodies of Water is flying under the radar, even hard to find, but it's a keeper. Enjoyable to listen to all the way through. The record can feel dark and melodramatic at times, but a pulsing rhythm throughout the album balances that feeling. This song is a good microcosm of the darker parts of the album.

9. John Vanderslice - "Too Much Time": This is a standout from Romanian Names.

10. Sebastian Tellier - "Sexual Sportswear": Not sure how the name relates to the song (especially since the song doesn't have any words), but it's groovy indeed. Not that you would need me to point this out, but sex is a pervasive theme on his album Sexuality.

11. Cut Copy - "Strangers in the Wind": Guess where Cut Copy is from. Yep, Australia. And they're awesome. Who knew? This one is just another bad-ass track from In Ghost Colours which is chock-full of bad-ass tracks.

12. Sound of Arrows - "M.A.G.I.C": I feel like most of these songs posted today were a little gloomy - how about an gleeful song with some children singing about magic. Yeah? Here ya go. Yaaaaay!





Carl-Approved Videos:

Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks"
Grizzly Bear are some strange guys. And I mean that in the best way possible. If you needed some proof watch this creepshow of a video. It has them in a church, singing and looking quite crazed, then they start to glow and then. . . . . . just watch.



Moby - "Pale Horses"
The second single of his still unreleased Wait For Me. This sounds more like it belongs on Play than it does Hotel. This is a good thing. The video finds a little alien losing all his friends as their washed away in the rain. Really sad stuff here folks, prepare to get dusty.



The National - "Runaway"
The National perform an unreleased song (hopefully) off their upcoming album.



One of the best commercials I've seen in awhile. Pure genius. Keenan Thompson (LeBron) and David Allen Grier (Kobe) do the voices if you were curious. I was.

867-530-CARL

Homies, Carl's back with a vengeance. Once again, it's time for another mish-mosh of stupefying songs and videos. Without further ado. . .

1. Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks": The first single from Grizzly Bear's new album Veckatimestand it's a beauty. It's a little more lively and upbeat than most of their past work, but when it does show signs of getting a little too glittery, they reign it back in. Still has the same retro-baroque-folk feel as their previous work. Great unofficial video posted below too.

2. Friendly Fires - "Lovesick": My love affair with Friendly Fires remains in full effect.

3. The National - "So Far Around the Bend": Off the Dark Was The NightAIDS awareness benefit compilation. Waiting for their new album with bated breath, but this will have to do for now.

4. Van She - "Kelly": Pure pop excellence.

5. Gomez - "Airstream Driver": I haven't been a fan of Gomez in the past but I was pleasantly surprised with a few song off A New Tidesuch as this one.

6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Runaway": Starts off sounding like a creepy lullaby you'd hear in a horror movie and morphs into a haunting rock anthem.

7. Ladyhawke - "Magic": I'm partial to songs that could be playing with the end credits of a Steven Seagal movie. This strikes me as such a song, playing among highlights of his exquisite head-butts and roundhouses.

8. Sebastian Tellier - "Fingers of Steel": The Frenchman has some smooth grooves on his latest album Sexuality.

9. Stars - "A Thread Cut with a Carving Knife": Yes, they can be sappy and I'm sure their lyrics are quoted in many a high school yearbook. But to their credit, Stars does beautifully combine melancholy lyrics, melodies and atmospheric sounds like few bands around.

10. Passion Pit - "Little Secrets": A highlight off their long-awaited first LP Manners. Has anyone else noticed the strange-yet-effective trend of sampling children singing. Musicians take note - kids singing in your chorus is "hip".

11. Phoenix - "Love Like a Sunset Parts I & II": While I love all the great bouncy, jumpy, synthy songs they create, this epic digs deep and may just be their best song.





Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks (unofficial)"
The song is put to clips from the french film, Le Ballon Rouge and it works well.



Phoenix - "1901"



Animal Collective - "Summertime Clothes" (Letterman)
Interesting performance on Letterman the other night.



Crystal Stills - "Love Like a Wave"

Testing, Testing. . .

Carl told me he is fed up with IMEEM and you know what? I am too. I'm testing out a different method - Lala (which, by the way, is a Carl-approved site for buying, listening, finding new music, etc). With Lala, the first listen is full length, then 30 seconds for every play after that. Not ideal, but better than IMEEM. If you set up a Lala account (recommended), you can buy "web" songs for 10 cents, this means you can't actually download it but can stream it anytime, anywhere you have an internet connection. Since I've been hyping up the Junior Boys new album Begone Dull Care so much, I'll start with that. Some highlights from the album: Bits & Pieces, Hazel, Parallel Lines, The Animator. . . they're all kick-ass. Happy listening.

Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Carl

Friends, first off I want to apologize that IMEEM is cutting more songs than usual down to 30 seconds. Believe me, I'm pretty jazzed about it and looking for ways to get around this debacle. In the meantime, it's a pain, but you can click the "listen to full song" link and it will take you to IMEEM's site and play you the full track.

1. The Field - "Silent": The Field is coming out with a new album and if it's half as good as From Here we Go Sublime, we're in for a treat. I'll pay homage to said album with my favorite track. It's special. Just close your eyes and let the song seep into your pores. Don't be scared.

2. The Shout Out Louds - "Normandie": Best track of Our Ill Wills. They need an new album, stat.

3. Royksopp - "A Higher Place": This is off their old Melody A.M. album, but if your a Royksopp fan, it doesn't get much better than this dreamy, bouncy adventure of a song.

4. Justice - "Let Love Rule (Remix)": Not their best, but defintely and interesting choice for a remix. So is thier remix of U2's Get on Your Boots (See Next)

5. Justice - "Get on Your Boots (Remix)"

6. White Rabbits - "Percussion Gun": The NYC sextet shows off some rhythmic intensity here. Feel it.

7. Junior Boys - "Bits & Pieces": Begone Dull Care is steadily climbing up Carl's charts for Record of the Year contender. These guys ARE minimalist electronic music. They define the genre (even if i just made it up).

8. Junior Boys - "Parallel Lines": See above. Go see them live too.

9. Harlem Shakes - "Strictly Game": The best song off their new Technicolor Health album. They might be a bit more enjoyable with a better lead singer, but I still dig, nonetheless.

10. Chromeo - "Call Me Up (Bag Raiders Remix)": Hotness.

11. Bat For Lashes - "Glass": Two Suns is another stellar 2009 album, I've heard the lead singer, Natasha Khan compared to Kate Bush or Tori Amos, I don't know about all that, but I do know her voice is incredible and that "Daniel", which I posted the other week, is my new song-crush of the month (also posted a live performance below). This one is pretty good too.




And now I offer you a treat, the kind of video that doesn't come around all that often. Kinda gotta feel bad for poor old Mr. Wobbles, though. . .

Kid 606 - "Mr. Wobble's Nightmare"



I'm not sure I've ever heard a more stunning live performance than this one from Bat For Lashes on Letterman.

Bat For Lashes - "Daniel"