Carl: The Final Frontier

People of the blogosphere, Carl is back again. Apologies for the time lapse since the last post. Shame on me. I'll make it up to you, I swear. With that in mind, I have for you today, a concoction of awesomeness for your ears and eyes. And another thing before I forget, join Lala if you haven't already. It's the best music service out there. Enjoy. . .

1. Kid Chocolat - "The Secret of the Zombies": I'm not sure where I heard this song or when, but somehow it ended up in my collection, and man, I'm glad it did. A little digging uncovered the fact that the song is not a flash-in-the-pan. Kid Chocolat is legit and his Zombiparti! album is Carl-Approved. Flowing verses about zombies and horror flick samples over flowing beats. Good shit.

2. Metric - "Twilight Galaxy": The standout track from Fantasies. It is moody and sparse, but I'll be damned if it's not beautiful.

3. The Very Best - "Warm Heart of Africa": These guys make some great ass-shaking, feel-good tunes, here is yet another off their soon-to-be-released LP. It's named after Malawi's tourist slogan and features Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig. Not that that's a selling point, it's a great song with or without him.

4. Lightning Dust - "Never Seen": Lightning Dust is a newer band on the scene with a shitload of promise. This song is one of their most intriguing efforts off Infinite Light. The song is minimalist, highlighting Amber Webber's ghostly voice, and builds a tension that never quite breaks. It leaves you wanting more. In a good way.

5. Neon Indian - "Should've Taken Acid With You": No album from these guys yet, but Carl will be first in line when it's released. Dizzy, chilled-out pop melodies seem to be their M.O., and I love it. With song titles like "Deadbeat Summer", "Terminally Chill", and "Should've Taken Acid With You" I don't think we're gonna hear any foot-stompers from them anytime soon.

6. Neon Indian - "Deadbeat Summer": See Above.

7. Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - "40 Day Dream": This is an interesting band. It's made up of 12 people who dress like it's 1970 and drive around together in a converted school bus. They make some good tunes though, including this one, complete with punchy drums and a catchy chorus. Their self-titled album Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros is definitely worth a listen. I'm still trying to decide if it's good or great. I'll get back to you when I figure it out.

8. Antlers - "Kettering": Speaking of great, this song/album from the Antlers is undeniably so. Carl-Approved Hospice in an incredible album start to finish. The theme of Hospice is Centered around a relationship with a terminally ill child. Whether it's autobiographical or not, it certainly feels like it could be. A chillingly beautiful album.

9. Rex The Dog - "Bubblicious": Switching gears a bit here. I posted the awesome video for this awhile ago and may just do it again for those of you that missed it last time. While the video caught my attention first, I realized later that the song was almost as awesome. Dance bitches.

10. Beirut - "Concubine": Beirut aka Zach Condon is an endless source of solid tunes, this is yet another off his March of the Zapotec & Realpeople: Holland double album.

11. Washed Out - "Feel It All Around": From what I've heard, Washed Out (aka Ernest Greene) has a knack for making lazy, dreamy summer soundscapes such as this one. No albums yet, but someone to watch.

12. Theophilus London - "Sabali (Remix)": The UK DJ is hit or miss when it comes to some of his remixes, but he gets it right on this rehash of Amadou and Mariam's "Sabali".

13. The Big Pink - "Velvet": The London-based duo comin' at you with some big-ass guitars. This song just kicks you in the nuts, calls your mom a bitch and doesn't even feel bad about it.

14. The Dodos - "Fables": The Dodos follow up the excellent Visiter with the equally excellent Time To Die. This song stands out as one of the best on the album. Great foot-stomping percussion in this one.

15. Futurecop! - "Tonight's Hero": I know I've sang the praises of Futurecop! here previously, but I'm doing it again. Wanna fight about it? He puts on a great live show, heavily 80's influenced. Synthtastic. Check out his Carl-Approved EP The Unicorn and the Lost City of Alvograth. Beat that name.

16. Freur - "Doot Doot": I heard this bit of hotness from the 80s for the first time the other day and was flabbergasted that I hadn't heard it before. Then I realized it was by a group named Freur and immediately understood why.

---Carl 08.10.09

Gossip - "Love Long Distance"
A disco-pop gem, complete with spandex, keytars and huge balloon heads.


Miike Snow - "Animal"
Good track, decent video.


Banjo or Freakout - Upside Down
Makes you feel like your dreaming. Great tune too to match. Also, a reminder that the last days of summer are upon us, so go enjoy the beach with the grim reaper, policemen, chickens and a huge purple guy.


Brule's Rules
Dr. Brule offers up valuable tips on living alone.

What Would Carl Do?

Good people of the blogosphere, Carl's comin' at you today with an eclectic mix of some awesome new tracks and videos. Listen up bitches!

1. Wave Machines - "Keep the Lights On": Don't confuse these guys with "Wavves" who deal in lo-fi, scuzzy, static noise rock. Wave Machines are quite the contrary, they have a clean, finely produced groove to them. Their debut album Wave If You're Really There is well worth checking out.

2. Atlas Sound - "Walkabout (w/Panda Bear)": Bradford Cox (of Deerhunter) teams up with Noah Lennox aka Panda Bear on this hazy feel-good throwback. Calliope loops, la-la voices, and a bouncy beat - a summer classic in the making. . .

3. Florence & The Machine - "Cosmic Love": I've read the comparisons to Kate Bush, but I wonder why it is that whenever we hear a woman with a strong voice they're immediately compared to Kate Bush? She sounds more like Annie Lennox to me. Be that as it may, this song is big. Big and powerful. More where that came from on her Lungs album.

4. Pela - "Lost to the Lonesome": An older song that I rediscovered recently. Pela is an all-around solid indie rock band who don't stray too far from the tried and true formula of rhythmic electric guitars, drums, and a whiny self-loathing lead singer. But they do it well.

5. Major Lazer - "Keep it Goin' Louder": Guilty pleasure time. DJs Diplo and Switch teamed up to form Major Lazer, which is both a name for their "band" as well as a make-believe cartoon Jamaican Commando who graces the cover of their debut album Guns Don't Kill People...Lazers Do. For this album, Diplo and Switch have lined up a who's-who of Jamaican vocalists and use their beats and DJ-wizardry as a backdrop. I was skeptical, but it's actually an enjoyable, entertaining listen all the way through.

6. Mogwai - "Auto Rock": Another song unearthed from a few years back. As I said in my last post, Mogwai are the masters of the epic rock instrumental, this is just another example from Mr. Beast. Movie soundtrack producers take note - put this song to any slow-motion "underdog-miraculously-beats-the-odds" scene and you're gold.

7. Bibio - "Sugarette": Off the fantastic, and Carl-Approved Ambivalence Avenue, this track bobs and weaves over, under and around a single beat. It feels pre-meditated and impulsive at the same time. Bibio is a true artist and a damn good technician.

8. Cass McCombs - "You Saved My Life": One of the better songs off his recent Catacombs album which is full of melodic, sparsely arranged songs like this.

9. Delorean - "Seasun": I read about Delorean and saw that they're from Barcelona and thought "well shit, they must be cool if they're from Barcelona. . . " So I checked them out - not too bad. This is a great summertime jam - handclap rhythms, dreamy vocals on top of piano beats and synths. Yay.

10. Shit Robot - "Simple Things (Work it Out)": Shit Robot caught my eye because a) their name is awesome b) they're under the DFA label, and they rarely release crap. True to form, this is not crap. You can feel James Murphy's (LCD Soundsystem) influence in the production.

11. Robert Francis - "One by One": I came home drunk from the bar one night, and i know I was drunk because I started watching "Last Call with Carson Daly." Enough said. Anyway, he had a guest spot with Robert Francis, who I had never heard of, so I gave it a shot. He played this song and by the end of the performance I was singing along, but whether it was because I was shitfaced or because it was actually a good song was a mystery to me the next day. I listened again, and it is indeed a good song. His album, One By One is pretty damn good too. Thanks Carson Daly. I still hate you, though.

Carl 07.22.09

Windsurf - "Weird Energy"
I must say I have a soft spot for shitty 80's montage videos. This is one of the best I've come across. Glorious.


Passion Pit - "To Kingdom Come"
A good old fashioned stop-motion Victorian science laboratory dance party video.


Bark Bark Bark - "I'm Needy"
Prepare to be entertained and slightly confused.

Carl's Songs/Videos of the Week

Hope everyone had a great 4th full of fireworks, bbq and booze. All in the name of celebrating our wonderful country's birthday, of course. Apologies for the slight absence, but never fear, Carl is back. Enjoy.

1. Holy Ghost! - "I Will Come Back": More known for their remixes, Holy Ghost! is a new-ish band under the DFA (James Murphy aka LCD Soundsystem) umbrella. I like their sound - there's a pinch of Italo-disco, a dash of 80s dance, and a shitload of awesome. Their debut album is scheduled for early next year. Check out the video below too.

2. Temper Trap - "Love Lost": Ever since I heard, and subsequently became obsessed with their first single, "Sweet Disposition" I've been eagerly waiting to hear the entire album Conditions. It's still not out in the U.S. (only in Australia), but I must say, it's damn good and is hereby Carl-Approved. Light falsetto melodies and swirling guitars aplenty throughout the album. This is one of the highlights.

3. Temper Trap - "Fools": Another beautiful tune off Conditions. This one really showcases Dougy's unique vocals.

4. The Golden Filter - "Peter Bjorn & John - Lay it Down (remix)": The Golden Filter has some funky remixes, this is one of their better attempts.

5. Mogwai - "2 Rights Make 1 Wrong": The best song off their incredible Rock Action. Not a new song by any means, but it's one of the best epic instrumentals ever created. Plain and simple. Close your eyes and let it take you to Awesometown.

6. Metric - "Collect Call": Metric's new album Fantasies is a sneaky gem. Led by the baby-voiced Emily Haines, her voice weaves perfectly in and out of shimmering guitars and bouncy synths. The results are catchy as hell.

7. Metric - "Gimme Sympathy": See above.

8. Drake - "Best I Ever Had": A brief history of Drake via Pitchfork: "Relative unknown creates mixtape with a few friends and uploads it to the internet, and then, within a few months, he's maybe/possibly dating Rihanna and fielding seven-figure offers from broke major labels. Except in this case, the relative unknown in question was a star on the Canadian teeny-drama "Degrassi: The Next Generation", and the friends in question are Lil Wayne and Trey Songz and Chris Paul. Even weirder, the main overarching theme of Drake's So Far Gone seems to be the stresses and travails of fame, even if he recorded the damn thing when he wasn't famous in any meaningful way. And now the tape has made him good and famous for real." So Far Gone is the name of the mixtape and is worth checking out.

9. Drake - "Let's Call it Off (remix)": Another remix of a Peter Bjorn & John song. PB&J can't be happy that most of their songs are better as remixes than originals.

10. Miike Snow - "A Song for No One": Swedish producers step out from behind the curtain with their critically underappreciated album. . . Miike Snow.

11. Moby - "Study War": Moby's new release Wait For Me is a throwback to his Play and 18 heyday. This is good news. Save a couple songs, Hotel and Last Night were pure garbage. Though not executed as well as Play, Wait for me goes back to that "Moby Sound" - samples, minimalist beats and strings. I know the poor guy likes to think of himself as a singer, artist, performer, philosopher, techno genius, as well as a producer but unfortunately, he's really only good at producing. Let's hope he's finally realized this, because the sooner he does, the better off we'll all be.

---Carl 07.07.09

On to the videos. . .

Holy Ghost! - "I Will Come Back"



Beirut - "Concubine"


Major Lazer - "Hold The Line"


Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Video #1
I'm sure a lot of you have seen these, but they're worth watching, whether it's for the 1st or 776th time.


Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Video #2
And the other one. . .



Until next time, enjoy this happy lizard in a chair. . .

Carl's Way or the Highway

Friendos, I have some more magical music and videos from Carl's endless vault of magical music and videos. Pay specific attention to the Chris Dane Owens video at the bottom. Not sure how I ever lived without this magnificent piece of rock-techno wizardry.

Without further ado, here are some tunes. Don't have time to write about them today, just listen and enjoy.




Chris Dane Owens - "Shine on Me"
I could be wrong, but from what I gather, I think he's taking himself seriously. Unfortunate for him, but a dream come true for us. This is directly from his website (which he clearly wrote himself):

"Chris Dane Owens is a Los Angeles native who distills many of his city's musical styles into one unique brew. Pop melodies mingle with rock guitars, driving beats, and the occasional gleam of techno-wizardry. With confident songwriting, Chris performs modern rock tracks that are crafted with uncompromising care. . . Watch Owens' spectacular new music video "Shine On Me" (the first installment of a trilogy) directed by Academy Award winning special effects artist Robert Short, whose feature film credits include; "Splash" "E.T." "Beetlejuice" and "Ace Ventura". With his custom Gretsch Sparkle Jet guitar in hand, Chris is planning an international tour for the album later this year."

Obviously, CDO's tour is not to be missed. As for the video, It's on a level of awesomeness that I'm still trying to wrap my arms around, just can't quite get there. Bow down to your overlord, Chris Dane Owens. . .




Birdy Nam Nam - "The Parachute Ending"
A new trippy cartoon video from Justice's proteges. Both the song and video simply rule. I see big things coming from these guys.



Busdriver - "Me-Time"
One of those Chuck-e-Cheese robots flips out and terrorizes some kids. Honestly, I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often. One of the better rappers around, in my humble opinion.

Carl Approved Vids

Orange Juice Jones - "Walkin' in the Rain"
A tribute to the 6 straight days of rain here on the East Coast. And counting. The only thing that has cheered me up is Orange Juice Jones. I know he'll do the same for you, rain or shine. Pay particular attention to the spellbinding choreography and his oscar-worthy rant at the end.



The Emperor Machine - "Kananana"
Now we know what the Epcot Center orb does on it's off days. Set to some Space Disco Rock. Far out.



N.A.S.A - "A Volta"
Stop-motion robots fuck each other up.



Here We Go Magic - "Fangela"
The song is better than the video, but it's interesting, nonetheless.



Erase Errata - "Crusing"
Quite possibly some of the scariest shit I have ever seen.

May the Carl Be With You

Good day my friends. Carl's comin at you again with a fresh mix of songs and videos. So listen up if you know what's good for you. Oh yeah, and sign up for a Lala account so you can listen to the tunes - it takes 10 seconds and it's free.

1. Solid Gold - "Bible Thumper": Hailing from Minnesota, Solid Gold is one of the better new bands around. Check out their Bodies Of Water LP. Shit is hot. Get in the ground floor while you can, I think they'll be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.

2. Hockey - "Too Fake": Speaking of great new bands, here's another. Though they have not yet released their debut album (expected this summer at some point), the singles they've released are intriguing. They have a little Strokes-y feel to them, but a bit more beat-driven, a la LCD Soundsystem.

3. VEGA - "No Reason": Looking for a summer dance jam? Look no further. It's got the bouncy beach ball beat, the sun-shiny synths, and the wave-like vocal loops. Weather or not you like it (not even sure I do), it's gonna get stuck in your head, and you're gonna dance.

4. Matthew Dear - "When She Don't Need Me": I've been touting Causes 2 as a top-of-the-line compilation/benefit album - this song is just another example of why.

5. Das Racist - "Combination Pizza Hut & Taco Bell (Wallpaper Remix)": This "song" is simply ridiculous - but in the best way possible.

6. Boys Noize - "Shine Shine": A cosmic instrumental groove. A great song for your next roadtrip mix, even better if your making that trip in a spaceship, flying car, or even a hovercraft. And Oi Oi Oi is a solid album. As an added bonus, the cover art is a diamond-encrusted skull. Everybody wins.

7. Kleerup - "Chords": See above. I just gave you 2 perfect songs for your next spaceship/flying car/hovercraft roadtrip mix. You're welcome.

8. Harlem Shakes - "Sunlight": One of a few fun songs off Technicolor Health. They are touring with Passion Pit this summer.

9. Au Revoir Simone - "Fallen Snow (Teenagers Remix)": A great track off Reverse Migration, an album featuring various artists' remixes of select Au Revoir Simone's tunes. An enjoyable listen.

10. Rural Alberta Advantage - "Don't Haunt This Place": Another band to watch - RAA self-released their Carl-Approved Hometowns awhile back but were recently picked up by the Saddle Creek indie label, signaling big things for the trio from, yep, rural Alberta. These guys will be big one day, and deservedly so.

11. Peter Bjorn & John - "It Don't Move Me": Their new single off Living Thing. Posted the strange video below. Not that a strange video from PB&J is surprising. . .

12. Antony & The Johnsons - "Another World": I'm gonna slow it down here for the next two songs. Off the beautiful The Crying Light this song stands out as one of the more gorgeously haunting songs I've ever heard. The depth of despair and longing this song evokes is simply incredible. Warning: Don't listen to this if you're at work and a little mentally unstable. You will cry.

13. Charles Spearin - "Vanessa": This isn't your average song. It comes off of Charles Spearin's compelling The Happiness Project. By background, the Happiness Project is part spoken-word, part sociological experiment and part musical experiment, it is the result of Spearin's discussions with his neighbors in Toronto about their idea of happiness. He recorded the responses and then reformed them into music, using the pitch and cadences in peoples voices as the basis for his music. The result is a very thought/emotion provoking album not to be missed. This song in particular is extremely affecting in which a deaf woman (Vanessa) describes her experience hearing for the first time.

---Carl 06.09.09

MGMT - "Kids"
Cool video, but at what price here guys? Poor kid is gonna be f'ed up beyond belief.



Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Heads Will Roll"



Peter Bjorn & John - "It Don't Move Me"
A creepy dad with OCD training his kid to dance like Michael Jackson? Not sure what's going on here. Your guess is as good as mine.



Spontaneous Dance Party
How to start a dance party 101.

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.

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"

Carl's Songs (and Videos) of the Week

Hi pals. Back with another fresh dose of music and videos. New and old, hard and soft, fast and slow, whatever you need, Carl's got you covered.

1. Daedelus - "LA Nocturn": Posted a smokin' hot video for this last week. This song is off Daedelus' recent combined effort with Jogger, Friends of Friends

2. Bat For Lashes - "Daniel": Deservedly, Bat for Lashes has been getting a lot of pub recently for their Two Suns album. I can't disagree with the praise. This song is excellent, as is the fan-made video below.

3. Bloc Party - "Ion Square": Intimacy slipped under my radar and I'm just discovering some of it's treasures now. This is classic Bloc Party.

4. Pacific! - "Sunset Blvd": This Swedish duo shamelessly rips 70s soft rock and 80s synths. . . and I love them for it. There are some great songs on their Reveries album. I read something awhile back that described them as the missing link between Air and Daft Punk. Couldn't be more accurate.

5. Phoenix - "Armistice": Yep. More Phoenix. Deal with it.

6. Midnight Juggernauts - "Nine Lives": This one grabs you from the get-go and roughs you up a bit, just how it should be.

7. Stars - "14 Forever": Off their overlooked Sad Robots EP, which is some of their best work to date.

8. Gomez - "Bone Tired": One of the best tunes from A New Tide.

9. Passion Pit - "The Reeling": The first cut from their first LP, Manners. I'm much more impressed with the songs off their Chunk of Change EP (listen here) but it's still solid.

10. CFCF - "Crystal Mines": The main reason I love this song is because of the outstanding video





Bat For Lashes - "Daniel"
It's not the official video, but it should be. The official one is here but doesn't compare.



M. Ward - "Rave On"



Passion Pit - "The Reeling"



Moby - "Shot in the Back of the Head"
New single/video from Moby. Directed by David Lynch. Apparently they're BFFs now. A match made in weirdo heaven.



Annnnd finally. . . a lemur-type thing getting its armpits scratched.

Listen To Your Carl (when he's calling for you)

Apologies for the brief hiatus, friends. Carl is back, sit back, open your ears and enjoy. . .

1. Kings of Convenience - "I Don't Know What I can Save You From (Royksopp Remix)": Some mellowness from the early '00s. I wonder what happened to these guys.

2. Phoenix - "Consolation Prizes": Yet another Phoenix track. I can't get enough of these guys. Great performance on SNL the other week too. By the way, since when did they become SNL material? No idea they were "big". Fuck it, good for them, they deserve it.

3. The Presets - "Talk Like That": You make me crazy when you talk talk talk talk talk like like like like like that that that that that that. Good song, but the lyrics could use some work. I have heard that they put on a show that's strong-to-quite strong, though I can't confirm.

4. Bullion - "God Only Knows": Another UK producer here. In the same way Dangermouse took The Beatles' White Album and mixed it with Jay-Z, this guy took the Beach Boys' classic Pet Sounds album and remixed it with J-Dilla. Results are mixed, but the album is definitely not to be missed.

5. Futurecop! - "N.A.S.A": I saw Futurecop! in Boston and it was a great show. Check him out if you can. Mostly instrumental with lot of 80's synths, 8-bit beats and general awesomeness.

6. CFCF - "D.A.N.C.E. (Justice)": Countless remixes have been made with this song, but there is something about this one I love. Maybe its the Peanuts-esque piano and simplicity - most remixes like to smash your face in with massive techno beats, completely masking the original song. This one strips it down.

7. Elbow - "Weather to Fly": Beautiful. I've posted thier stuff before but in case you didn't catch it the first time, Seldom Seen Kid is an incredible album.

8. Shout Out Louds - "Very Loud": I saw Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist the other day, the movie itself was mildly entertaining. Some may call it "cute", however, the soundtrack was solid, and this song stuck out.

9. The-Dream - "Take U Home 2 My Mama": How can the song not be awesome with a name like that. Another BLAZING HOT track from my favorite guilty pleasure The-Dream. Turn that shit up.

10. Hint - "Quite Spectacular": Hint's Portakabin Fever, released in the early '00s is quite possible one of my favorite albums. I fell in love with it instantly and still listen to it regularly. All the songs gorgeous intstumentals with colorful, airy melodies, and samples all backed by mid-tempo beats. A perfect soundtrack to anything, really. It's a shame that it's the only record he Hint did in this style.





Videos. . .

Minilogue - "Hitchiker's Choice"
I posted a nutso video from these guys last time. After some research i have come to the conclusion that the guy who creates these videos is a creative and talented individual.



Daedelus - "LA Nocturn"
Both song and video are nasty. Nasty x 2.



DJ Earworm - "United State of Pop 2008"
I posted this song last time. Here is the video. It kinda sucks actually, but fuck it. A few parts work, but I mean, come on. Just goes to show you mashing videos doesn't work the same way as music.



South Park - Kanye West - "Gay Fish"
A song from last week's episode in which Kanye discovers he's a gay fish.

Songs of the Week

Hello friends. It's been too long. My apologies, I've been on vacation for a week. Quick post today but there are some gems in here I assure you.

1. Theophilus London - "Hum Drum": Theophilus London is a DJ from London (surprise). His "This Charming Mixtape" has a couple highlights, this is one 'em.

2. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Skeletons": The more I listen to It's Blitz! the more i love it. This song is as beautiful as it is haunting.

3. Miami Horror - "Don't Be On With Her": Another bitchin' song from the 80's throwback sensations.

4. Helio Sequence - "Captive Mind": I've been posting a lot from these guys lately. Another solid tune off Keep Your Eyes Ahead.

5. Junior Boys - "Dull to Pause": A yet unreleased song off their yet unrealeased Begone Dull Care. I like what I hear.

6. David Sitek - "With a Girl Like You": Another great song off the Dark Was the Night AIDS benefit compilation which I wrote about breifly here. Gems galore on this thing.

7. Friendly Fires - "Skeleton Boy": Their self-titled album will make you dance. Get it.

8. Phoenix - "If I Ever Feel Better": Their 1901 single from their upcoming Wolfgang Amedaeus Phoenix got me fired up so I went back and listened to some of the classics. This is one of their best.

9. Starfucker - "Florida": I like Starfucker's chill-yet-upbeat sound. . . and their name. Posted a video from them below too.

10. Crystal Castles - "Courtship Dating": Their best song in my humble opinion.





Sigur Ros - "Vaka"
Oldie but goodie. I have always loved this song, but with the video it's even better. Gives me goosebumps everytime.



Starfucker - "Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second"
Not sure why I like this so much. But i do.



Bert & Ernie - "Ante Up"
I coudn't resist. I promise this is the last Sesame Street remix. . . for at least a week.

Thank Carl It's Friday

Happy Friday homies. Tunes and vids galore below. But first, some exciting news. . .

It has been announced that Daft Punk will be creating an original score for the upcoming Tron sequel. Tentatively titled Tron 2.0, production is set for this spring with a release in 2011. If anything makes more sense than Daft Punk meets Tron, please let me know. Their most recent creations have let me down, but if anything can revive their glory days of Homework and Discovery, this might just be it. I'm having trouble computing how awesome this could be. To celebrate my excitement, the first song, and my favorite Daft Punk song of all time, Digital Love, is dedicated to Daft Punk in their heyday. Make me proud, boys.

More breaking news. U2's new album is garbage.

Without further ado, here are some songs. As always, the selected songs tend to jump all over the place in terms of genre, tone, etc. But thats the way it's going to be. Deal with it.

1. Daft Punk - "Digital Love": Classic DP.

2-3. Stars - "Undertow" and "Going, Going, Gone": Two beautiful songs off their new-ish Sad Robot EP. A very underrated album among critcs, mind you.

4. Friendly Fires - "Strobe": Off their self-titled album. These guys make some great head-bobbing music. The entire album recommended.

5. The Helio Sequence - "Broken Afternoon": As recommended before, their album Keep Your Eyes Ahead is great start to finish. This is one of thier slower-burners.

6. Polly Scattergood - "Nitrogen Pink": Yeah, that's her real name. Interesting song, a slow builder with some real emotion that digs in deeper and deeper as the song unfurls.

7. Miami Horror - "Bellevue": Featured them last week. If you're looking for 80's throwbacks, these are your guys. Their Bravado EP is rad. . . bitchin' even.

8. The Presets - "If I Know You": One of the Australian dance-punk duo's better songs.

9. Glasvegas - "Geraldine": One of my guiltier pleasures, this song has god-awful lyrics and a painfully simple melody, but i can't get that damn riff out of my head. Their self-titled album received a lot of great reviews, but don't be fooled. It's not good. I think of them as Scotland's wannabe Coldplay, with less talent. Segway alert!. . . .

10. Coldplay - "Stawberry Swing": Speaking of Coldplay, I'm not the biggest fan but when i first listened to Viva La Vida, this song stuck out as something special. If it wasn't for Chris Martin's distinct voice, I'd have no idea this was Coldplay. Is that why I like it? Not sure.

11. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Heads Will Roll": The second single off their highly anticipated new album It's Blitz! A catchy song with a good beat. I'd give the album a B on first listen.

12. The National - "Brainy": Have you ever fell in love with an album, listened to it over and over, left it alone for awhile and then rediscovered it later to find out you loved it even more than you thought you did? No? F- you then. Well thats what happened for me with Boxer by The National. This is just one of the many gems on the album.

13. Phoenix - "1901": The first relese off Phoenix's new album Wolfgang Amedaeus Pheonix. Not too shabby.





Mr. Oizo - "Flat Beat"
Amazing.



Deathcab for Cutie - "Grapevine Fires"
A boy on a bike experiencing an over-the-top version of what's happening in the lyrics. One of the better songs on their underwhelming Narrow Stairs album.



Sportsday Megaphone - "Meet Me in the Middle"
Wait till the end.



Devo - "Freedom of Choice"
Worst video ever? You decide. Some things are so bad they're funny. But this one is so bad it makes me angry.

Fun for Your Eyeballs and Earholes. . .

Some new, some old, all awesome. . .

MGMT - "Time to Pretend"
This is what happens when you blow your video budget on hallucinogens and bows & arrows. . .



Casiokids - "I Fot Hose"
This is the Norwegian electro-pop band's new video for one of their instrumental tunes. Cartoons of their own heads on thier own bodies and on the bodies of ceremonial tribal African dancers. Hooray.



Kanye - "Welcome to Heartbreak"
Here we have a bunch of colorful pixelated Kanyes in shitty 80's sweaters singing sadly to each other about the emptiness of money and fame. Boo fucking Hoo.



Tahiti Boy and the Palmtree Family - "1973"
Dancing trees, singing mushrooms, giant waterfowl. What else could you possibly want?. . . besides the heavy drugs these guys clearly scored.



Chromeo - "Fancy Footwork"
Title track and first video from their latest album. The video plays off the creepy bodyless-leg theme they have going on their album cover and live shows. Not a great video, but the song makes up for it.



Zander Bleck - "Beyond the Horizon"
Last but certainly not least, I saw this on Nialler9, another music blog I frequent. Artists often send mass marketing emails to blogs to get their name out. This Zander Bleck creep sent the following (completely serious) email and video to Nialler9. . .

"Leave it to a talent like Zander Bleck to use his entrepreneurial skills, model looks, and amazing vocals, to create innovative and inspirational tunes and music videos that are generating quite a stir worldwide. Zander Bleck has blended his powerful singing and songwriting talent with the top production of Adam Longlands to create a phenomenal mix of vintage rock, pop and electronic sounds. A fresh fusion of club dance beats, British pop, and timeless rock, Zander Bleck offers an unconventional and refreshing style of music for listeners of every age and musical preference. Zander’s vocal talent resonates with artists like Bono and Chris Martin, and his music is energetic, infectious and distinctly a sound of his own. We would love to be a part of your blog."

In a way, Zander and his "people" are getting their wish, but for all the wrong reasons. A gold mine of unintentional comedy. Enjoy, please.

Moving Picture Shows

Hello good people of the interweb. Here's a quick installment of some videos for your viewing pleasure. Let the procrastination commence. . .

N.A.S.A. feat. KRS-One, Fatlip, & Slim Kid Tre - "Hip Hop"
N.A.S.A. stands for "North America / South America," the duo is made up of LA-based producer Sam Speigel and his Brazilian counterpart DJ Zegon. They met at a hollywood party in 2003 and discovered they had a mutual love for 60's Brazilian music. Their debut album "The Spirit of Apollo" comes out Feb. 17th and is studded with an eclectic list of big-name collaborators such as: David Byrne, MIA, Tom Waits, Method Man, George Clinton, Ghostface, Lykke Li, Kanye to name a few. These guys will make a splash in 2009 a la the Neptunes a few years back. Although from what I've heard, N.A.S.A.'s sound is more diverse and unique than their brethren.


MGMT - "Electric Feel"
Nothing says MGMT like an improptu, acid-induced jungle dance party with the creepy animal-robot band from Chuck-E-Cheese.


Fol Chen - "No Wedding Cake"
This song is from the upcoming "Part I: John Shade, Your Fortune's Made" album by Fol Chen. The video features a fish with heavy lipstick, lions working as showgirls, an owl with a bleeding heart at the end of an arrow, and assorted other strange goings-on.


Fujiya & Miyagi - "Knickerbocker"
These guys have a great downtempo sound and some pretty creative videos. Including this one.


Hot Chip - "Colours"
One of their best tracks and videos off the older "The Warning" album. Both "The Warning" and their new album "Made in the Dark" are classics and should be owned by all. Just sayin.


Junior Senior - "Move Your Feet"
An oldie but goodie from Junior Senior. A classic.


Armi & Danni - "I Want To Love You Tender"
I think it goes without saying that Armi & Danni paved the way for every ground-breaking video made to date and that "I Want To Love You Tender" will forever stand as the benchmark for which we measure all music videos ever created. It is the pinnacle of music video mastery. Soak it in.


Christian Bale Rant Remix
. . . Just in case you missed it.

O-B-A-M-A, Say It!

Awesome Video.

From the directors Vimeo Page:

"The following is a mixed-media stop motion music video and celebration commemorating the election and inauguration of Barack Obama as the forty-fourth president of these United States. Audibly showcasing Adam Freeland's remix of Daft Punk's "Aerodynamic" and the imaginative stylings of forward thinking toy artists Dalek, Bill McMullen and Kubrick to name just a few. Independently animated and directed by the progressive minds of the directing team GOLD, the piece is a labor of love that invites everyone to join in or create their own celebration this coming Tuesday January the 20th."

Daft Punk Vs. Adam Freeland - "Aer Obama"