Monthly Archive for November, 2008

The World Forgot is Moving

Published
by
billy
on November 30, 2008
in 317, billy, moving, the world forgot and twf
. 9 Comments

Hello dear readers.  I apologize for the lack of wit filled pithy posts this past week.  I really wish I had the time and the gumption to post new and amazing music for you each and every day {especially considering this past week saw new albums by The Killers, Kanye, and a new Coldplay EP}, but I’ve been super busy moving my life to a new city.  In the past two weeks I’ve bought a new mobile phone, a new car, and have accepted a job which will plant me within easy driving distance of the 317 area code.

Due to all this commotion, what with the packing and the planning and the phone calls and the goodbyes, not to mention the lovely American tradition of Thanksgiving, I haven’t been able to sit down and write a proper post in over a week.  Most unfortunate is the fact that it might yet be another week before I have a chance to pound out some words, upload a track, and fill you all in on what is awesome.  I’m leaving in about ten minutes for the three hour drive to my new home and, as of yet, I’m still transferring files from the computer I’ve been using for a year to a portable hard drive.  I’m hoping the first pay check will allow me the freedom of renting my own pad {right now I’ll be crashing with an old friend from university}, snagging a new notebook {or at least a netbook, MSI Wind anyone?}, and getting my game back on track.

Until then make sure you check out my sidebar as there are plenty of blogs I recommend with all my heart.  Seriously.  Enjoy the run up to the Christmas season.  I’ll bring you musical presents as soon as I can.

Peace out, stay sweet, and wait with bated breath for my return.

Blitzen Trapper - Furr

Published
by
billy
on November 20, 2008
in blitzen trapper, indie, mp3 and music
. 7 Comments

A few days back I finally snagged a copy of Blitzen Trapper’s latest effort Furr (amazon) (itunes) and amongst other things this album has made me realize that my blog is capable of time travel.  You see, just two days ago I wrote a post concerning another Blitzen Trapper album, and I mentioned that I hoped their 2008 release, Furr, would find a cohesion that had previously been lacking.  Well after hitting publish that little post apparently went back in time, talked to these six kids from Portland, and encouraged them to make exactly the album I wanted.  So to all of you who have been enjoying Furr up until now, you are welcome.

Furr finds Blitzen Trapper putting their best foot forward.  And by best foot forward I mean they clearly draw from some legendary acts in creating their new trademark sound.  There are pieces of The Beatles, The Kinks, Simon and Garfunkel, and most definitely Tom Petty peppered throughout this entire album.  Granted there area a few moments where previous incarnations of Blitzen Trapper scream out {most notably the opening yelp of track nine Love U}.  Even with these little gear changes the album as a whole is cohesive and entirely coherent.  There doesn’t’ seem to be a single misplaced melody or harmony throughout all thirteen tracks and that, dear reader, should be music to your ears.

mp3 : Blitzen Trapper - Furr
mp3 : Blitzen Trapper - Black River Killer

One album came to mind while I was listening to Furr, and maybe not for any true musical parallels.  That album is the latest disc put out by Nada Surf, Lucky.  I feel as if both bands spent the developmental parts of their careers putting out ho hum albums with a few gems sprinkled amongst largely forgettable albums.  Finally, with the release of Furr and Lucky respectively, both bands seem to have lived up to their potential.

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Vampire Weekend - Where Have You Gone

Published
by
billy
on November 19, 2008
in cover, fleetwood mac, indie, mp3, music, radiohead and vampire weekend
. 24 Comments

Does anyone really know what happened to Vampire Weekend?  Nine months ago a storm of publicity and positive critical and hipster reviews were pouring in upon these ivy league trendsetters.  What happened since then?  Are they like Flight of the Conchords and they just couldn’t come up with any solid new material?  Is there a lingering tease that more goodness is coming?  Ok, to be fair they did do a spot on SNL, they landed a song on Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, but there really hasn’t been enough meat and potatoes to justify the hype.

All that being said I have stumbled upon a few tracks that are definitely worth a listen.  I highly doubt any of these are good enough to make everyone remember just who Vampire Weekend is, but they’re worth a quick download and I’m almost positive they’ll find their way onto at least one mixtape you slap together.

mp3 : Vampire Weekend - Everywhere (Fleetwood Mac Cover)
mp3 : Vampire Weekend - Exit Music (For a Film) (Radiohead Cover)
mp3 : Vampire Weekend - Ottoman

The Radiohead cover is my favorite of these three tracks and, to be honest, I do think their original song Ottoman shows a bit of promise for the future of Vampire Weekend.  I just can’t imagine their album appearing on many year end lists come December.  Seriously, has anyone listened to it, even once, in the last six months?  Does anyone even remember the album title?

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Blitzen Trapper

Published
by
billy
on November 18, 2008
in blitzen trapper, indie, mp3 and music
. 3 Comments

Although Blitzen Trapper has existed in various incarnations since the year 2000 I first heard of them when I traveled down to Florida for this years Langerado Festival roughly six months ago.  They played a solid set back then, but I guess you could say they were lost amongst the festival’s more noteworthy acts.  Part of that can be blamed on the festival planners {seriously, some of the stages had such ridiculous acts back to back it was hard to understand what was going on}, but some of the blame surely must fall upon these six boys from Portland.  Seeing them perform last night on Conan finally convinced me to listen to last year’s album, Wild Mountain Nation (amazon) (itunes), and it’s easy to see how someone planning their lineup could be confused.  They’re a bit punk rock, a bit southern throwback, a bit Simon and Garfunkel, and a bit of drum driven guitar rock as well.

mp3 : Blitzen Trapper - Wild Mountain Nation
mp3 : Blitzen Trapper - Futures & Folly

This album is good, but at times I feel like they just don’t know who they really are as musicians.  It feels like Radiohead on one track and the Simon and Garfunkel on the next and then they adopt a weird Beatles meet Phantom Planet vibe on the next.  They’re all solid songs but there is a cohesive thread that is definitely missing when you listen to the album as a whole.

I haven’t gotten a hold of their latest album just yet, but I hope they’ve decided to stick more to their melodic and harmony filled tracks like these two I’ve selected from their previous effort.  I’ll try to score a copy of Furr sometime this week and give it a spin.  The track they played last night on Conan was brilliant enough that I immediately started listening to the one album I got after seeing them in concert and that gives me high hopes that they’ve ditched some of their awkward teenage dichotomies and have matured more as a band.

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Frightened Rabbit

Published
by
billy
on November 17, 2008
in frightened rabbit, indie, mp3 and music
. 6 Comments

I recently switched out a load of albums I had in my car and I’ve found myself listening to the latest Frightened Rabbit album, The Midnight Organ Fight (amazon) (itunes), almost continually.  I know I mentioned this album just a bit over two months ago, but I do not believe you took my recommendation seriously.  If you are part of the few thousand which access The World Forgot on a daily basis then you certainly know by now that I will not lead you astray.  I am not a corporate entity seeking to stuff myself full of your hard earned cash.  I am a music fan seeking to promote the art that I find to be entertaining.

mp3 : Frightened Rabbit - Poke

Now that I have stolen your attention with my clever banter and obvious intellectual superiority I must encourage you to listen to Frightened Rabbit.  This album is quite brilliant from start to finish and not a single track feels out of place or off message.  After drifting through this disc an almost countless number of times I have come to appreciate this song, Poke, more and more.  The lyrics are stunning, the mood the song and story evoke is simple and elegant, and it might be the best stream of consciousness narrative released this year.

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Over The Rhine

Published
by
billy
on November 13, 2008
in indie, mp3, music and over the rhine
. 2 Comments

Sorry for the slow posting over the last week or so.  Actually I’m sorry that I probably won’t have anything new after this post until next Monday.  I’m leaving in a bit for a weekend out of town, job interview and car test drive included, and I doubt I’ll be able to post something else before I’m back home.  That being said I’m posting a brilliant song that should tide you over until I return.

Born by Over The Rhine is the second song on their 2005 album Drunkard’s Prayer (amazon) (itunes).  The story behind the song is wonderful.  As I understand it Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist, the married couple who make up Over The Rhine, were on tour when they realized that their schedule and the stress of playing live sets and traveling all the time was fraying their relationship.  In order to remedy this problem they stopped their tour, apologized to their close knit fan base, and went home for some long and potentially painful conversations.  At this point they bought a case or two of wine and at night they would sit at their dinner table vowing not to sleep until the conversation, and the bottle of wine, was completely done.

mp3 : Over The Rhine - Born

The song tells the story of those conversations and how their choice to take a break, sit down, and actually learn to communicate with each other again saved not just the band but their marriage as well.  Maybe it can serve to save your weekend.

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Modern Skirts

Published
by
billy
on November 12, 2008
in indie, modern skirts, mp3 and music
. 1 Comment

I’m not entirely sure how to sum up Modern Skirts latest album All Of Us In Our Night.  In short it is a delightful journey through what modern indie pop rock should be.  This isn’t glam, this isn’t eighties revival, this isn’t something that immediately calls to mind some bygone era.  This is modern music as it was meant to be heard.  For those of you still trying to imagine what this album sounds like let me take another crack at it.  If you took your favorite bits of The Beatles, Mumpsy, and the vulnerable side of The Strokes,  blended those three together with all the squandered talent from every Weezer album since Pinkerton, then you might be getting close to understanding the complex nature of this album.

mp3 : Modern Skirts - Face Down
mp3 : Modern Skirts - Eveready

Seriously now dear reader, these two tracks are amazing and they are but a taste of what awaits you on the full ten song album.  Every single song on this album is worth listening to both for their individual merit as well as what they become when spread over thirty two minutes of glorious pop.

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Keane

Published
by
billy
on November 6, 2008
in album, keane, mp3 and music
. 2 Comments

Keane’s latest album, Perfect Symmetry (itunes) (amazon), quietly slipped onto the music scene awhile back and it hasn’t really had an overwhelming impact.  In fact I listened to it a good five or six times before it finally started to stick in my head.  And I think that’s because I was focusing on all the things that this album isn’t;  this isn’t stadium ready, anthem filled, power pop/rock in the vein of Snow Patrol, Coldplay, or U2.  In all reality that isn’t what Keane is.  Yes they’ve given us a few soaring melodies in the past, but the core of Keane isn’t in those songs.  Keane is a band that’s best heard in long quiet moments where the music can sink into your head and heart.

mp3 : Keane - Spiralling
mp3 : Keane - Lovers Are Losing

Once I realized what this album really is I appreciated it so much more.  This is a perfect, unblemished, Keane album.  The music, the lyrics, and the melodies are unapologetically one hundred percent Keane.  Once you realize these three mates put together eleven solid songs, and you realize they’re not reaching for places that they didn’t really belong, you’ll understand that Perfect Symmetry is the perfect album for Keane.

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BOTR vol 11

Published
by
billy
on November 5, 2008
in bang gang deejanys, best of the remix, botr, chark mu, chewy chocolate cookies, colldplay, daft punk, eastar, franz ferdinand, grafton primary, grum, indie, james rutledge, junkie xl, justice, kap10kurt, kills, kris menace, lillica libertine, lupe fiasco, mgmt, mmmathias, moby, mp3, music, peace fire, pharrell, q tip, radiohead, remix, sarah green, snow patrol and theives like us
. 8 Comments

Alright, enough of my hollow words.  No matter how clever I aim to be you’re just here for the music.  I’ve got you figured out, especially all you who read via my feed.  Scalawags.  This is the Best of the Remix series.  Each month I scour the interwebs for what I think are the best remixes.  Here they are presented in an easy to read and easy to listen to format.  If you’d like to check out the entire BOTR series you simply click here.  Enjoy the music.

All the tracks in one zip file : here {zshare = left click)

mp3 : Coldplay - Talk (Junkie XL Remix)
This is an epic elongation of a fine Coldplay track.  Before you download and listen be warned that this baby stretches past eleven minutes.  It’s worth it, but plan accordingly.  This is my favorite remix of the bunch.

mp3 : Daft Punk - Something About Us (EASTAR Remix)
This remix, which I believe hails from about five years ago, reminds me a lot of seventies funk smashed up against standard Daft Punk.  Interested?

mp3 : Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out (Remix)
Who made this remix?  This is an official request for the hyper informed and well connected bloggers and blog readers alike to give me an answer.  Until I get it I’ll just keep listening to this destructive mix.

mp3 : Grafton Primary - She Knows It (Kap10Kurt Remix)
Simply gorgeous.  If you’re looking for a chilled out remix in this bunch of fun then look no further than what Kap10Kurt has come up with on this remix.

mp3 : Justice - Genensis (Chewy Chocolate Cookies Remix)
I think I prefer chocolate chip to chewy chocolate when it comes to selecting an afternoon snack, but when it comes to remix heaven I’ll stick with Chewy Chocolate Cookies.  I think a futuristic robot ate this song.

mp3 : Lupe Fiasco, Pharrell, Q-Tip, Sarah Green - Paris Tokyo (Remix)
This is yet another anonymous remix.  Anyone got the name of the remixer?  Anyway, if we were playing “one of these things is not like the others” this would be the track you should choose.  Where the rest of this month is filled with typical dance/electric/minimalist styles, this track is as smooth and fluid as we allthought Boyz II Men used to be.

mp3 : MGMT - The Youth (MMMathias Remix)
If you’ve been reading blogs over the past six months, or if you’ve ever stopped by to check out a past volume in the BOTR series, then you know that MMMathtias hits it out of the park each and every time.

mp3 : Moby - Ooh Yeah (Kris Menace Remix)
It’s a slow build for the first minute of this track but then it hits exactly the place you were all hoping this track would get to.  To be honest I’m not sure how much of the Moby original survives inside this new home, but it’s good.

mp3 : p e a c e FIRE - Sapphire (GRUM Remix)
Does the opening minute of this track remind anyone else of every single Final Fantasy game ever made?  There’s just something so overbearingly uplifting about the opening segment.  In a good way.

mp3 : Radiohead - Reckoner (Chark Mu Remix)
Radiohead + Chark Mu = enough said.  Download away.

mp3 : Snow Patrol - Take Back The City (Lillica Libertine Remix)
This remix takes a fairly solid single and mods it until it’s something not of this world.  It’s a brilliant reimagining of what Snow Patrol originally made.  Forget any acoustic guitar, this is poptronica.

mp3 : The Kills - Last Day of Magic (James Rutledge Remix)
If you’re stingy on filling up your harddrive this is the only track you should download and listen to.  This is exactly what a minimalistic atmospheric remix should sound like.

mp3 : Thieves Like Us - Drugs In My Body (The Bang Gang Deejays Remix)
The louder you listen to this remix the more you’ll like it.  Trust me, it’s meant to be moved to.  Even if you can’t dance this track will make you want to try.  And just wait until the vocals start.  Easily the best vocal effect I’ve ever heard in a remix.  Hands down.

Peace out home skillets.  That’s all I have for you this time around.  Tell your friends, check back often, and keep searching out great music.  {This concludes the regularly scheduled BOTR broadcast, thanks for reading}.

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BOTM vol 12

Published
by
billy
on November 4, 2008
in amie miriello, arcade fire, ben lee, best of the month, bob, bossonova, botm, chark mu, coldplay, cover, decemberists, digital leather, gnarls barkley, goodtimes goodtimes, indie, jay z, kooks, lily allen, live, mgmt, modest mouse, mp3, music, nirvana, of montreal, raveonettes, smashing pumpkins and sufjan stevens
. 4 Comments

Welcome back to The World Forgot.  Welcome back to the Best of the Month series.  Welcome many readers to election day and welcome the rest of you to a wonderful November 4th.  For those that are still unaware what the BOTM series is all about here’s a quick refresher.  I collect songs all month long and the best that I’ve heard in the past thirty days I put together in one easy to find post.  If you’d like to browse through the past eleven volumes click here.  Enjoy the music, and if you live in the Midwest enjoy the glorious sunshine.

All the tracks in one zip file : here {zshare = left click}

mp3 : Amie Miriello - Disarm (Smashing Pumpkins Cover)
This is easily one of my favorite Smashing Pumpkins songs and I think this cover respects the original material while at the same time Amie isn’t afraid to put her own spin on this classic.  It actually sounds a bit like if Stevie Nicks covered the Pumpkins.

mp3 : Arcade Fire - Brazil (Bossonova Cover)
The music in this cover is every bit as cheeky as you’d expect but for some reason Win Butler’s voice adds just the right amount of gravitas to make this cover worth a second, third, or tenth listen.

mp3 : B.o.B. - Left Field Lovely
This track reminds me of all my favorite parts of Outkast.  If that’s not brilliant enough endorsement for this track I’m willing to bet you hate everything I love.

mp3 : Ben Lee - Float On (Modest Mouse Cover)
This is a pretty raw cover of the song that put Modest Mouse on literally every iPod in the world.  Never mind that about two thirds of the way through the song Ben accidentally halts the song and has to count it off again.  It’s wonderful.

mp3 : Chark Mu - Eh Oh
Mr. Mu makes mighty impressive remixes.  Apparently when he’s not splicing together beats and melodies he’s busy making some equally impressive original material.  Clearly Chark Mu is a force to be reckoned with.

mp3 : Coldplay - Lost+ (feat Jay-Z)
After Chris Martin contributed a bit of talent to that Jay-Z track a ways back we all knew that Z would return the favor.  That’s just the type of classy gentleman he is.  The rhymes don’t kick in until after the two minute mark, but they’re worth the wait.

mp3 : Digital Leather - Dead Sound (Raveonettes Cover)
The first two thirds of this track are filled with enough glitches and blips to satisfy anyone with a heart for Fruity Loops or Acid Pro.  The real beauty reveals itself when the music is stripped away for a moment and you realize your heart is crying out for it to begin again.  Don’t worry, it does.

mp3 : Goodtimes Goodtimes - Eloise
If you’re wondering who should be crowned the next Dylan look no further than this track.  Seriously.  It is as if the vocals, the melodies, the whisper of whimsy, the overdose of melancholy, and the guitar strumming are taken right from Bob himself.

mp3 : Lily Allen - Naive (The Kooks Cover)
Lady Sov can kiss Lily’s butt.  If there was any question as to who was the better of these two oft quarrelling ladies this song puts most of that squabble to bed.  Honestly, can anyone imagine Sov pulling off anything like this?

mp3 : Of Montreal - Crazy (Gnarls Barkley Cover)
It’s live, it doesn’t have the best audio quality, but it captures the fun that is infused into every Of Montreal set.  And let’s not forget that Kevin Barnes can actually sing {even if he might be the weirdest performer currently on tour}.

mp3 : Of Montreal and MGMT - Smells Like Teen Spirit (Nirvana Cover)
I’m not sure where this cover comes from.  It’s in a live setting, and it’s decent quality, but what I find more fascinating is that it’s Of Montreal and MGMT paying homage to Nirvana.  And they do it in an appropriate straight up rocking sort of way.  Kudos.

mp3 : Sufjan Stevens - In The Words Of The Governor
Will Suf ever release a new album?  There really hasn’t been much news surrounding the Sufjan camp these days.  It seems as if he’s busy shooting high 8 videos, writing instrumental pieces honoring highways, and signing more talent to his ever growing indie label.  This song is way different than most of what you’ve heard.  And it’s still brilliant.

mp3 : The Decemberists - Valerie Plame
I’m not sure The Decemberists will ever live up to the glorious splendor that was The Crane Wife.  Right now they’re putting out a series of EP’s and performing some songs on late night talk shows.  This happens to be one of those songs.  I like it, so just listen to it and agree with me.

That’s all for volume 12 of the BOTM series.  Come back often and read some of the regular posts where I basically tell you what’s good, what’s bad, and I succeed in convincing you that you’re not cool unless you’re just like me.  Oh, and make sure you check back tomorrow to catch the Best of the Remix series.  Cheers.

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Snow Patrol

Published
by
billy
on November 3, 2008
in album, indie, mp3, music and snow patrol
. 4 Comments

Snow Patrol has continued their ascension into the upper reaches of stadium ready powerpop with their latest album A Hundred Million Suns (itunes) (amazon).  The album kicks off with the double fisted ultimate punch of If There’s A Rocket Tie Me To It and the soothing melodies of Crack The Shutters before the first single, Take Back The City, mellows out a bit and segues into the melancholic middle of the album.  Admittedly a few tracks linger a little too long on the slower edge of pop, but eventually these boys from Northern Ireland ramp up their act for the final three tracks off what proves to be a truly solid album.

mp3 : Snow Patrol - If There’s A Rocket Tie Me To It
mp3 : Snow Patrol - Crack The Shutters

For those looking for a continuation and maturation of the now trademark Snow Patrol album this is the album you have been waiting for.  For those hoping there would be something new to listen to you need not look further than the last track on the album.  Consisting of four separate segments the last track, boasting a mouth full of a title that would put even Sufjan Stevens to shame, clocks in at over sixteen minutes and, in my humble opinion, is the best music Snow Patrol has offered up.  Ever.  Trust me, the last track alone is worth the price of the full album.  While you’re listening to this sprawling landscape of melody you’ll come to appreciate that each of the album’s other ten tracks serve as a sort of aural sorbet, cleansing your palate and preparing you to fully appreciate this masterpiece.

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