Pitchfork: TV is running The Life of the World to Come, a film directed by Rian Johnson (Brick), as part of its One Week Only series. The film features The Mountain Goats‘ John Darnielle playing the album of the same name in its entirety at Pomona College. And as you would expect, it’s pure awesome. Just follow me, and you can see for yourself!
Continue reading “News: Mountain Goats Documentary via Pitchfork: TV”
In the vein of other sites we’ve mentioned – Luxury Wafers, Daytrotter, and Black Cab Sessions – They Shoot Music – Don’t They is a Viennese site dedicated to bringing high-quality, impromptu performances by new and established artists to the masses. Their mission, as they describe it, is a pretty simple one:
Why are you doing this?
1) We all feel strongly connected to sub culture in one way or another and we enjoy being productive.
2) We all agree with the fact that Vienna is a great town but also lacks fresh representation platforms when it comes to music scenes and media projects. So we will tag the urban space of Vienna with soundscapes from indie artists and document that on our website. The combination of act and location is also meant as a guide for people who want to know more about relevant subcultural spots in Vienna.
The site features a wide-range of artists (see some after the cut), who are all chosen through a simple mechanism: “We have no strict guidelines for that [choosing]. If we like an artist we contact him or her. If the artist likes the idea of working with us we seal the deal and schedule a session.” The site features videos in Flash. However, if you sign-up for a free account, you can view things in higher-quality divx. And I highly recommend you do. You can also visit them on Twitter and Last.fm. But for now, let’s look at some of their excellent handiwork around Vienna:
Continue reading “Other Stuff You Might Like: They Shoot Music – Don’t They”
Laura Veirs visited the fine folks at Daytrotter back in March to lay down some beautiful, acoustic tracks. The tracks are lush, gentle, and reminiscent of Summer evenings past. The more I listen, the more I am captivated by them – and it seems I’m not alone. Colin Meloy has described her most recent album – July Flame – as “the best album of 2010.” (It’s worth noting that he said this in January, which I take to be a sign of confidence rather than sarcasm.) As her site describes it:
[July Flame] explores the emotion of mid-summer. Drenched in wood smoke, sunlight, pollinators, pastoral dales, fireworks and warm nights, her lyrics explore the dichotomy between one’s desire for permanence and security and the realization that such things rarely exist.
And there is a sense in all of these Daytrotter tracks that things are both beginning and ending at once… that the world is both waking and sleeping, and that you are, indeed, caught between the two. Follow me for 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!”