Hi, everyone! Welcome to the first entry in our very own “news round-up” series. A lot of things seem to happen that are difficult to expand into a full-on article, but remain worth pointing out just the same. And seeing as my rapidly ending Ph.D. program really intensifies the problem, I thought that this might be a nice way to capture some of those stray articles that seem to be piling up. So, follow me, and I’ll show you news from Stars, The Vaselines, David Byrne, and more!
Most of the time, I’m inclined to say: “Ugh! These cooking shows are getting out hand!” I’m also fond of saying: “Goats are the worst topic for a podcast ever! Listen to this…” So, imagine my chagrin when The Mountain Goats and a cooking show teamed up for something awesome! Such is IFC’s “Dinner with the Band.” The basic conceit is this: A band arrives to play some tracks in-studio (surrounded by, I’m guessing, some of the most awkward/lucky people the producers could find), and is served food by chef/host Sam Mason. And for something that screams vanity project, we get some pretty intimate performances from bands that seem a little bit disarmed by the whole thing.
The Mountain Goats ate a vegetarian meal of Death Metal Steaks (cauliflower steaks), Cotton Puree (cauliflower puree), Sunset Fries (chickpea fries), and Moon Over Sazerac cocktails. They performed The Life Of The World to Come’s “Isaiah 45:23,” We Shall All Be Healed’s “Cotton,” The Sunset Tree’s “Love Love Love,” and The Life of the World to Come’s “Psalms 40:2.” Follow the link to see video of the first three.
Continue reading “The Mountain Goats: Live on “Dinner with the Band””
Today, June 1st, How to Destroy Angels is releasing its debut EP for free download. We’ve mentioned them here before, but now we’ve got “The Believers” (which, hey, is automatically awesome for sampling Galaga) for immediate download. And just below this sentence, you can sign-up to download the whole EP for free. So, get to it, and enjoy!
See the video for “The Space in Between” after the jump:
Continue reading “New Music: How to Destroy Angels – Free EP!”
From Peter Gabriel’s website comes word that Peter’s cover of the song “Mirrorball” by Elbow is now available as a single. Also, Elbow’s Guy Garvey has put together a lovely, faithfully tender version of Peter’s excellent “Mercy Street.” This is all part of the Scratch My Back work that Peter has been doing – and, about which, you can read our previous entry (the album’s there for preview, as well!). So, follow me for a listen to these two covers, and to find some more useful information about the songs’ creation:
A little bit behind on this, but I wanted to share the new How to Destroy Angels single – “A Drowning” – with you. How to Destroy Angels is the new project from Trent Reznor, in collaboration with his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and represents the first post-NIN music he has produced. In fact, the duo have produced an eponymous EP that will be out this Summer. As for “A Drowning,” the Alan Moulder-produced track reminds me of the best moments of The Downward Spiral (mixed, in fact, by Moulder), or earlier NIN work, in that it has a tightness of focus and composition that seems to reflect a genuine, hungering sense of purpose. Personally, I’m very excited for the EP, as I can feel that this track is just a ripple of thunder before the real storm begins…
Also, courtesy of TwentyFourBit, here’s a possible track listing:
01 The Space In Between (3:34)
02 Parasite (5:04)
03 Fur-Lined (4:00)
04 BBB (3:31)
05 The Believers (5:35)
06 A Drowning (7:13)
You can check out How to Destroy Angels on their website and myspace. Come have a listen!
Continue reading “New Music: How to Destroy Angels – “A Drowning””