We'll Write, the geeky, end-of-the-world-predicting acoustic duo is back this month with another installment of their serialized album, Songs for the End of the World, with Trampoline Song, the fourth installment of the album. Like the prior two installments, they have two additional B-Sides, Scars and Winter's Dawn, which you can get by signing up for their mailing list.
This song is a lot more optimistic than some of their prior songs. It's not my favorite of all the songs that I've heard from them, but it's not a bad one. Scars is a much better installment, in my opinion. In any case, I can't wait to hear what they have next.
The Post-apocalyptic, quasi-folk indie-folk duo We'll Write have added another installment to their serial album Songs for the End of the World, this one titled Demon. I've written about these guys before, and it's always a pleasure to hear some fun songs that fall squarely within the geek realm. This is the third song to be released from these guys after Bleached Bone Fields and Measure of a Man.
In addition to Demon, they have released two additional b-sides, Self-Made Man (about a Robot) and Old Moon Face. To get them, sign up for their fan section.
These guys sing and play acoustically, with some fantastic tongue-in-cheek lyrics (and go around with signs that say Apocalypse Now [Or Very Soon]). I look forward to their next song about robots, demons, specters or space pirates, or whatever they've got up their sleeves next.
I've been meaning to do a bit of experimenting with some of this coding, trying to get a flash player on here, so people can listen to the song on the page, rather than going through Savefile. Let's see if this works...
From Wikipedia: "The word geek is a slang term, noting individuals as "a peculiar or otherwise odd person, especially one who is perceived to be overly obsessed with one or more things including those of intellectuality, electronics, gaming, etc."
Geek stuff seems to be 'in' right now, which is fine by me. I've been one for years, and a little social acceptance isn't a horrible thing, although I honestly don't care one way or the other. I'm also an unabashed Star Wars fan, and today's release of the Clone Wars is as good an excuse as any to geek out today.
This past month has been a fantastic one for new music. I've come across some fantastic new artists, as well as some older ones who're back for more. Here's what I liked:
Broken- Tift Mirritt I heard this track on the radio (Point FM 104.7), and fell for Mirritt's voice and lyrics. Her rhythm and sound mesh perfectly with one another with a great country-folk-rock feel.
Tu Es Ma Came- Carla Bruni Another radio discovery, this time via NPR, Carla Bruni is probably also the most important person that I've reviewed thus far - she's the first lady (or the equivalent) of France - she's married to Nicolas Sarkozy, and has just released her second album, Comme Si De Rein N'etait, which has a great acoustic feel.
Freeze Ray- Neil Patrick Harris The first song off of Joss Whedon's brilliant internet geek musical, Freeze Ray is a fun little romance that bubbles with optimism and shyness.
Flame- Bell X1 Bell X1 is an interesting Irish group that has a lot in common with Snow Patrol. Flame is a really fun introduction to them.
Jacqueline- James Hunter James Hunter is back with his fantastic 50s/60s retro sound with this track, Jacqueline.
Back in Black (AC/DC) > Indecision- Carbon Leaf Carbon Leaf is one of my favorite bands of all time, and they've been working on new material. This is one of their latest songs, and a good cover to boot. Crossroads (Robert Johnson)- John Mayer I came across this track via Archive.org from one of Mayer's latest concerts, which really fits with his blues style. It's a fantastic cover of Robert Johnson's song, with a good dose of Eric Clapton's version thrown in for good measure. Arms of a Thief- Iron & Wine Serpent Charmer- Iron & Wine Iron and Wine's latest single, Love Song for a Buzzard, which has these two songs as B-Sides, are perfect additions to one of my favorite albums from last year, The Shepherd's Dog. These two songs are two additions to an already perfect album. Something Is Not Right With Me- Cold War Kids The Cold War Kids are back with their second album, Loyalty to Loyalty. This track captures their sound once again nicely, with a lot of energy and enthusiasm.
Many Lessons- Bantu Feat Ayuba Mighty Intelligence- Dread Skeezo feat Dream Maximum These two songs are from an album who's review is forthcoming - African/Islamic hiphop/rap, which is utterly fantastic. These two songs are two of the best tracks of a stellar album.
Slipping Away- Cory Woodward I'm not entirely sure how I came across Cory Woodward, but I'm really enjoying his laid back and interesting sound with this song, Slipping Away. I particularly like the guitarwork here - it's simple and elegant and flows nicely.
Evil is Alive and Well- Jakob Dylan Something Good This Way Comes- Jakob Dylan Bob Dylan's son Jakob has become a musician in his own right, first with the band The Wallflowers, whom I fondly remember from my high school years with hits such as OneHeadlight and 6th Ave Heartbeak. These two songs are reminiscent of some of the elder Dylan's music, but different. Both of these are fantastic. My review for this is also forthcoming.
Measure of a Man- We'll Write We'll Write is one of my favorite 'Geek Bands'. This one's about the end of humanity by robotic enslavement. It doesn't get better than that.
On My Way- Kara Grainger & Amos Lee Amos Lee has had a good year this year, with the release of his latest album. I came across this girl, Kara Grainger, and was surprised to find that the two collaborated on this song. She's got a fantastic new album out now, with a nice country-folk feel to it, and this song is a good representation of that. Put On Your Sunday Clothes- Michael Crawford This track was from the Wall-E soundtrack, one of my favorite movies of the year. It's old school, quaint and perfect for the movie. If you haven't seen it yet, I'd highly recommend it.
So, it's that time of the month again, and it's a new year with a bunch of really good songs to start off the month. It's been an interesting year so far, with the markets going all wacky and a Presidential primary that's really heating up, so here's something to distract you:
The Alternate Routes released a limited CD that took many of the songs off of their first album and turned them acoustic. The result is spectacular - the songs here are plunky and take on a life of their own.
British Sea Power released their latest album, Do You Like Rock Music?, recently, with this as the first track - which has a good beat, sound and feel to it - this one's a winner. And it just builds and builds, and does it well, which is always fantastic to hear with a song.
Here's a live song from Coldplay that's new - something that might be on the upcoming album, which is due out sometime in the first half of the year. This feels like classic Coldplay - it's nice to hear that they haven't lost their touch.
Goodtimes Goodtimes is a band that released their first album last year, and which I've since picked up from a couple of music blogs. They have a fantastic guitar groove and vocals. Vocally, they sound a little like Josh Ritter and Paolo Nutini. These are some songs that really get me up, which I like.
Sia, whom Zero 7 fans might know from her collaborating work with them, as well as her prior solo albums, is back with problems. Some Real Problems, and this album is no sweat - light, tight and a fantastic listen. Sorry, did that sound corny?
One of the biggest bands from last year before they even released their first album, A-Punk is a fantastic example from these guys. Great guitars, drums and vocals here.
These guys have a good feel for rhythm and sound, one that takes me back to some nostalgic college days before I began to worry too much about things. It's a refreshing sound and one that I'll be keeping my eyes on.
One band that's come to my attention is We'll Write, who hail out of London, England. These guys are a duo who's sound goes right into the acoustic guitar sound that's quite good. Listening to their music, they've got some interesting songs, particularly with their lyrics. Among some of their songs, they write about "vengeful deities, dancing zombie girls, old men with moon shaped faces and sleeping all day", which is more than enough to get me interested. Two songs in particular stuck out for me, both off of their first EP, called Old Moon Face: Lying for the Song and Never Seems to Rain, both which seemed very reminiscent of some of the music that I listened to in college, when we'd get an indie band in for a coffeehouse performance. These guys fit the tone and feel perfectly. While their first EP isn't perfect - these two songs are the best on there - they have a good sound that's well on it's way towards refinement to something better in the future. Lying for the Song - We'll Write Never Seems To Rain - We'll Write
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