I really could use a new graphic for Best of the Month. I’ll get on that right after I kick my addiction to video games on xbox live. Honestly, it’s been hitting me hard the last week or so. I apologize for the lack of new and brilliant posts, but you need to check out the live tracks I posted last week by Zach Williams. Honestly.
For those of you who are just stumbling by this little blog today let me explain what the BOTM series of posts is. Every month I use my considerable amount of free time {I’m pretty much a good for nothing grown up kid} to scour the web, the albums, the emails, and the blogs for the best thirteen tracks I can find in any one calendar month. Then I put them all together in one simple post and allow you to enjoy them at your leisure. And as a special added bonus I’ve now begun adding my own witty commentary with the tracks. Get excited. If you’d like to check out all the previous volumes you can do that just by clicking here. And now, in the words of Freddie, on with the show.
All the tracks in one zip file : here {zshare = left click}
mp3 : Bishop Allen - Middle Management
I love this track as it just never seems to quit. The lyrics are spit fire, the phrase “the end is coming soon” is chanted a few times, and the music drives along in a jangly bouncy mess of fun from start to finish. I seem to gravitate towards music that sounds as if they’re having a ton of fun making it, and this is just such a track.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Collections of Colonies of Bees - Flocks III
There are some songs, like the previous Bishop Allen track, that reach out and grab you on the first note. There are other songs that build and grow. They start slow and morph from one movement to the next in a way that is intense, lackadaisical, fluid, and abrupt. This sprawling eleven minute track is one of the latter. It careens from soundscape to colonial army drumbeats, from fluid guitar work to soaring melodies.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Death Cab for Cutie - I Will Possess Your Heart
To be fair my heart is still in the air on this track. I feel as if it’s a legitimate fifty fifty chance that I won’t like their new album {due May 13}. And that’s quite possibly what Gibbard, Walla, and crew were aiming for on this album. They’ve offered many a disclaimer stating that this album won’t be for everyone and quite possibly will alienate a large portion of their fan base. The truth is that this track just isn’t enough to decide yet how the rest of the album will fare.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : John Mayer - Kid A (Radiohead Cover)
I really don’t like John Mayer all that much. His guitar work is amazing, his jazz trio was inventive and original, and his talent as a musician is pretty much on par with any contemporary guitar player out there today. On the other hand his lyrics are abysmal. Always. That’s why I can boldly state my love for his cover of one of the best lyricists out there, that being Thom Yorke and his pals that some people refer to as Radiohead. Kudos to you Mr. Mayer for choosing a great song to cover.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Kara Keith - Kick This City
I got this track in an email {one that I actually read apparently} and I loved the smooth and smoky vocals that Kara features on this track. The music is comparable to a lot of indie rock/pop that’s been floating around festivals and EP’s lately and it’s executed very well. It serves as a perfect jaunting backdrop to her subdued vocals.
for more : myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Lismore - 1979 (Smashing Pumpkins Cover)
This was easily one of my favorite tracks ever layed down by Chicago based Smashing Pumpkins and I was a little leery upon hearing a cover of it. It’s not every day that a band can take a song and pay adequate homage to the song’s heritage {witness the total destruction of Landslide by the Dixie Chicks}. I must say that Lismore did a great job at both recreating 1979 while still honoring where the song originally came from. It’s just a great cover.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Mgmt - Time To Pretend
It seems as if my BOTM this time around is filled with slightly melancholic indie rock songs. I love this track for the verse that talks about missing, quite literally, everything in the world. Unfortunately there’s nothing Mgmt can figure to do about this situation. Fortunately for us, if all else fails, we can simply put this song on repeat and let them sing us to sleep.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Modest Mouse - Fly Trapped In a Jar
This song appeared as the second single to Modest Mouse’s latest album We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank and I think it’s a good example of the dichotomy of the band. On one hand they can be wildly and infectiously melodic {see Float On} and on the other hand their music can be filled with harsh, even grating, dischord, guitar work, and flat out screamed lyrics. The great thing about Isaac Brock and company is that no matter which way they’re swinging it’s all excellent.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Over the Rhine - If a Song Could Be President
I’ve been a closet fan of Over the Rhine ever since a college roomie of mine turned me onto this husband wife duo out of Ohio. Although I’m not a huge fan of the overt country style tones available on this track it’s always fun to hear a new song by a band that you really enjoy. And seeing as how overly dramatic the coverage of the presidential primaries are in the States right now this track only seemed appropriate.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Peter Moren - Social Competence
I never was a huge fan of Peter’s other group {Peter Bjorn & John} for various and sundry reasons. I guess it just boiled down to the fact that I just wasn’t that into them. But here it’s just Mr. Moren on his own {with some almost whimsical hand claps} and it’s a whole new beast for my heart to love. I dig it.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Rilo Kiley - Let My Love Open The Door (Pete Townshend Cover)
Rilo Kiley was the first band featuring mainly female vocals that I genuinely liked listening to. I remember that moment clearly. To hear them cover a Pete Townshend classic is, well, classic. Although it’s a live track and it takes a bit to actually get started it’s worth every wonderful second. And who would’ve thought that ukelele would be perfect on a Pete Townshend song?
for more : site myspace amazaonmp3 itunes
mp3 : Sons and Daughters - Johnny Cash
I’m a huge fan of the Man in Black and consequently this track title caught my eye. Fortunately the song kept my attention from start to end as a title is only clever enough to keep me stationary for about seventeen seconds. What you’ll find here is a healthy dose of southern rock with a salting of driving rockabilly. And to be honest, it just wouldn’t be a song called Johnny Cash without a nice baritone voice singing over the brooding music.
for more : site myspace amazonmp3 itunes
mp3 : The Joy Formidable - Cradle
I posted about this new band just a few days ago {you can read that post here} and I must say that their music has the infectious staying power that all musicians strive for. Well at least all musicians who wish to be loved by their fans. Although this track by The Joy Formidable is easily the one most likely to be overplayed on popular radio it’s also the one that you will be begging to hear again and again. Yes, it is that good.
for more : myspace
That wraps up the sixth volume of Best of the Month. I really can’t believe it’s been going on this long. Quite a lot of fun this little adventure has been. As always, enjoy the music.
+ twf hype elbows amazonmp3 itunes
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