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| Free Music Friday! Valentine’s Edition Posted: 13 Feb 2009 03:56 PM CST Valentine’s Day is a commercial holiday co-conspired by the greeting card, flower and chocolate companies to make some cash during the doldrums of winter. Unless you’re attached. Then it’s a fabulous holiday wherein your significant other showers you with extra lovin’ (if you what I mean) and the cliché trinket or candies. I’m happy to be in the latter category this year, though both the boyfriend and I failed to remember that tomorrow night is Valentine’s Day until just the other night (the irony!). Whether you’re blithely in love, rollin’ solo or just altogether indifferent, we’ve got some tunes about love (pro and con) for your Valentine’s Day. Sam Bisbee It’s hard to believe Sam Bisbee, who released his fourth album, Son of a Math Teacher, this week, and guest vocalist Leona Naess when they sing “that’s why I’m never gonna fall in love.” The melody is full of hooks, the drums beg your head to bounce along, and Naess’ sweet vocals atop Bisbee’s soothing tone can only make the listener fall in love with the song and its singers. Even harder to believe is the idea that Naess needs to be avoided as she serenely begs, “Save yourself from me.” Sam Bisbee (feat. Leona Naess) - “Never Fall In Love”  –
Southerners The Love Language is ready to release their self-titled debut, which hits stores next month (March 17th to be exact) courtesy of Bladen County Records. From the first moments of the band’s single “Lalita”, you can’t help but bop around to the infectious beat of this indie pop gem. The wall of sound on this track is surprising, but a great fit with the lo-fi vocals of front man Stu McLamd, who wrote, performed, recorded, and mixed The Love Language all on his own. When not an island, McLamb is joined by Jordan McLamb (acoustic guitar, percussion, vocals), Junis Beefmonth (electric guitar, vocals), Missy Thangs (keyboard, vocals), Joshua Pope (bass guitar), Kate Thompson (organ) and Thomas Simpson (drum kit). website | myspace | The Love Language review  Photo: Nathan Pazsint – Fight Like Apes Despite not being a free mp3 to download, Fight Like Apes‘ “Digifucker” is too good not to share. Rated R for strong language. – Marvin Gaye In case you missed our earlier announcement, Amazon is celebrating the Motown 50th anniversary by giving away the most amazing "mood" song in the history of music. Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" is available for free download (just not through us directly) today only on Amazon.com!  – And last but not least, a few more free songs not directly from us, though you actually have to wait until tomorrow.
Happy Valentine’s Day! <3 (and happy birthday, Patience!) Related Posts |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 01:15 PM CST Asa. Just three tiny letters to represent the powerful, soulful voice of the Paris/Nigerian singer Asa (pronounced “asha”) on her self-titled album. This album is brim with diverse musical influences mirroring Asa’s own history. Her music entwines modern music with traditional Nigerian styles echoing Asa’s move from industrialized Paris to revisit her ethnic roots. Asa’s pointed lyrics show deep reflection of her historical background. Album single “Jailer” layers Asa’s jazzy croon over steel drum beats as she sings, “So you treat me like a modern slave, Mr. Jailer.” Though playful in tone, the lyrics are more serious. This sort of juxtaposition is common throughout the album where tumultuous lyrics are countered with her soothing voice. There were a few songs I felt at odds with. With a rhythm creating tension, “Awe” did not strike me with awe. Then there was “No One Knows”, which is a radio-friendly song that is really quite enjoyable. However, it sounds more like a hip hop remix, so the style is a bit shocking when listening to the album as a whole. Asa often sings in Yoruba, her Nigerian language. The beauty of the music is that even when she is singing in a language that few probably understand, her voice continues to demand attention and be quite pleasurable like the hymn-styled “Eye Adaba” or the Corinne Bailey Rae-like “Bi’ban Ke”. Asa’s Asa is available now. Tracklisting: [asa]B001N6FPPK[/asa] Related Posts |
| Today only - download “Let’s Get It On” for free! Posted: 13 Feb 2009 12:52 PM CST Amazon is celebrating the Motown 50th anniversary by giving away the most amazing "mood" song in the history of music, just in time for Valentine’s Day. Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" is available for free download today only on Amazon.com! Go here Related Posts |
| Posted: 13 Feb 2009 11:45 AM CST The Weight play the kind of country music I like listening to. The kind that pairs well with beer or bourbon, and follows in the footsteps of the 70s outlaws. The Weight take the traditional country twang and infuse it with some solid southern rock guitar licks. It has neither the pop sheen of current country, nor the self-seriousness of some alt. country. The songs are scuffed and Joseph Plunket’s voice is rough and a perfect fit for a lively night out at the bar or while out hauling ass down Highway 5. If that all sounds a little too Nashville for you, then you are missing the point. Are Men kicks off with sad sack lost-love country rock on “Like Me Better” and then switches on the heat during “Had It Made”, lifting a Chuck Berry riff in the process. The songs rarely veer from the topics of girls they love and girls that have done them wrong, but the music keeps the mood upbeat. The sadness is drowned out by a rolling piano, a lonesome slide and some soaring fret work. This isn’t music for wallowing. The regular infusion of band singalongs, like on “Man Alone,” keeps the album boisterous. If you are in the mood for honky-tonk country rock, you could do a lot worse than putting on “Closer Than A Friend” and embracing the good times. The Weight’s Are Men is available now on Tee Pee Records.  Written by: Jesse Gelwicks Related Posts |
| Let your Valentine know you make me “Jizz In My Pants” Posted: 13 Feb 2009 10:15 AM CST If “Bitch, I love you!” just doesn’t quite capture your feelings for that special someone, let the fellas of The Lonely Island help you make Valentine’s Day perfect with their own e-card letting your sweetie know they make you jizz in your pants. You can choose the recipient of a beautiful pink e-rose and a music e-card featuring the video for The Lonely Island’s “Jizz In My Pants”. “Jizz In My Pants” = Flight of the Conchords - New Zealand accents + premature ejaculation x synth^2. Earlier this week, The Lonely Island released their debut album, Incredibad, available now on iTunes. In addition to “Jizz In My Pants”, the fellas recruited T. Pain for their single “I’m On A Boat”. Watch the video now: The Lonely Island released their debut album, Incredibad earlier this week, available now on iTunes. The Lonely Island: website | myspace | incredibad | “Jizz In My Pants” Valentine’s card Related Posts |
| Company of Thieves - Ordinary Riches Posted: 13 Feb 2009 08:45 AM CST Company of Thieves isn't a bad band. They've got the whole writing hooks, lyrics and catchy choruses bit down, but the fatal flaw is the band's radio-friendly sound…or really, their lack of any distinct sound at all. While the band is world's ahead of the vast majority of major label bands pushed on the airwaves, the indistinctive vocals, conventional production and lack of any real edge in the compositions keeps this band from qualifying as anything to really pay attention to. Competent, but not quite compelling is the best way to define Company of Thieves and their album Ordinary Riches. In a way, it's a little harsh on the band to call their sound bland, but Company of Thieves never really indulge in anything that would give the band some kind of character: the guitars are suitably distorted, the melodies are rarely notable, rhythm section is basically standard, and no quirks or idiosyncrasies ever seem to make themselves apparent. Singer Genevieve Schatz' voice doesn't help the situation either, sounding, again, competent but just not compelling. The closest comparison I could think of to her smoky warble was Emily Haines' lithe trill, but really that isn't even a fair comparison. Even so, someone who listens to the radio (I'd rather suffer Chinese water torture) could probably name a dozen or so sound-a-likes. At times, the band admittedly comes close to escaping mediocrity with a showing of surprisingly intelligent lyrics and sharply written melodies. In "Oscar Wilde", Schatz quotes the legendary playwright for the song's chorus, singing, "We are all our own devils / and we make this world our hell." She may not deserve any credit for originality, but the fact that she manages to create and place the quote in such a fitting context wins her some credit. "Quiet On The Front" also shows some promise in the form of a bouncy pre-chorus section in which Schatz sings, "I swear to G-d, if you don't get that letter / I will kill myself before they kill me on the line." It sounds almost like an excerpt from a Brecht musical. "Around The Block" also has some surprisingly nimble melodic twists which almost help it overcome its Disney Channel arrangements. Unfortunately, the rest of Ordinary Riches is just that: ordinary. Schatz and company should've gone by another Wilde quote - "Talent borrows. Genius steals." -and stolen a little more personality. Ordinary Riches is out February 24th on Wind-Up Records. Tracklisting: Company of Thieves: website | myspace  Written by: Marc Z. Grub Related Posts |
The Love Language
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