OMFG. Radiohead's new album, In Rainbows, out on October 10th.

So I was expecting to have to wait another few months for the new radiohead album to drop. Imagine my surprise when I went to their web site and found it available for preorder RIGHT F*CKING NOW. How about that.

Currently the album is only being released as a download through their web site. The deal is you can pay now, and reserve some bandwidth for october 10th, when the downloading begins. I'm a bit concerned with what sorts of elaborate Digital Rights Management bullshit they'll undoubtedly choose to include with it, but we'll all cross that bridge when we come to it.

A physical CD is also available for preorder and is being produced for release in early December.

Either way, go ahead and preorder the album here. I did. Sure hope it doesn't suck.

Preorder In Rainbows online

Tracklist from said website:

In Rainbows:

CD 1
15 STEP
BODYSNATCHERS
NUDE
WEIRD FISHES/ARPEGGI
ALL I NEED
FAUST ARP
RECKONER
HOUSE OF CARDS
JIGSAW FALLING INTO PLACE
VIDEOTAPE

CD 2
MK 1
DOWN IS THE NEW UP
GO SLOWLY
MK 2
LAST FLOWERS
UP ON THE LADDER
BANGERS AND MASH
4 MINUTE WARNING

Oh, and I should mention that it appears you can... um... choose your own price for the download. So if you're an asshole, the album can be close to free.

The Roots Concert Tomorrow Night. Fug Yes.

I'll be posting pictures and a review this sober affair on sunday.

Firesign Theater

If you were wondering what the title of this blog meant, it's an oblique reference to a skit done by the Firesign theater, who were responsible for some of the greatest and most hysterical spoken word albums of the last century. Check out these clips for a sample of their work.

MP3 clip from All Hail Marx and Lennon

MP3 clip from Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliars

MP3 clip from I think We're All Bozos on this Bus

I own all three of these albums (plus two more), and I reccomend each one. They are incredible, especially 'Don't Crush that Dwarf" (both Rolling Stone and All Music give this record 5/5 Stars.)

All Music Guide Bio:
By fusing the high-concept comic vision of Stan Freberg with the expansive studio experimentation of the Beatles, the Firesign Theatre singlehandedly dragged the comedy album into the psychedelic era. Creating densely layered montages of improvisational routines, overheard dialogue, media manipulation, commercial parodies and sound effects, the four-man troupe devised a hallucinatory brand of surrealist comic performance and Joycean satire laced with puns, metaphors and obscure literary allusions which redefined the very concept of recorded comedy.

Wasted Time

Some art I did.

Good Music: Jarvis Cocker

The video from one of the singles from the eponymous album that you should probably own.

Jarvis - Dont Let Him Waste Your Time


Listen to the former Pulp frontman's new material on his myspace. Trust me, it's pretty awesome.
Jarvis on Myspace

And go buy some Pulp while you're at it (Different Class and This Is Hardcore are highly reccomended).

Radiohead Covers — A Shitstorm of Them

Check out this compilation of Indie bands covering tracks from OK Computer while you're waiting for Radiohead to get their act together.

"To celebrate the anniversary we've asked some of our favorite musicians to participate in a song-by-song OK Computer covers compilation. Indicative of the album's continued importance, each invitee jumped at the chance; the results are personal, intense, tellingly various." — Stereogum.com

Stereogum Presents... OKX: A Tribute To OK Computer

Classic comment from the post:

Hmmmm.... never been much of a fan of "OK Computer" myself. It always just seemed like a necessary stop-gap that allowed them to reach the majestic heights of "Kid A" and "Amnesiac."

Thanks Gary.

New Flaming Lips...

I'm a little torn about the new Lips track that's circulating the interwebs of late. Honestly, I'll pretty much take anything they dish out and love it, and this is no exception. Sonic wierdness and nonsensical saccharine lyrics. I Dig it.

Here, Listen:

I Was Zapped by a Lucky Super Rainbow
(via The Hype Machine)

However there is a problem: It was recorded specifically for the Good Luck Chuck soundtrack. Yes, Good Luck Chuck: the upcoming film starring the spastic-joke-thieving-king-of-all-douchebags Dane Cook. Placing something so awesome as the Flaming Lips anywhere near this asshole is extremely disconcerting indeed.



In fact, I think I'll just pretend it's a lost B-side track and forget about the Dane Cook-connection alltogether. There. I feel better already.

Myspace Whores: Stereoscope Jerk Explosion & Cucumber

When I'm not recieving myspace friend requests from hot 25 year-old models soliciting pornography, I'm getting the occasional friend request from a music group. Most of them are not so great. Some are. Including two French Electronica outfits by the names of Stereoscope Jerk Explosion and Cucumber. Visit their respective Myspace pages for some psychedelic European awesomeness.

Myspace: Stereoscope Jerk Explosion
Myspace: Cucumber

Radiohead finished recording. So new album soon. Maybe.

Oh boy.

---

From Paste Magazine, 9/7/07

Radiohead fans waiting patiently for the band’s next album may not have to wait too much longer – or they may.

First, the good news: Guitarist Jonny Greenwood confirmed to Paste that the album is done. The not-so-good news is that the band has no idea when fans will be able to hear it.

“We just had a meeting about that today,” said Greenwood on September 7. “We’re very relieved to have finished recording, now we have to decide what we should do with it.”

Radiohead completed its six-album contract with EMI with 2003’s Hail to the Thief and is currently unsigned. Can anyone say bidding war?

---

That's cool I guess. I'd probably be more excited if I hadn't already been waiting five years for this new album to drop.

In the meantime, here's a live recording of a new Radiohead song which may or may not be on the album that may or may not be out soon.(via The Rawking Refuses to Stop)

Radiohead - Down is the New Up.mp3

Band Of Horses - Is There a Ghost?

src: brooklyn vegan


Download "Is There a Ghost" off of their new Album Cease to Begin. It's on the Myspace. Along with some other songs. Do it.
Myspace: Band of Horses

Preorder Cease to Begin Here. Signs point to awesome.
Official Website

Album Recommendation: Explosions in the Sky - The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place

Casting off the invisible chains which bind you to the Earth, you let yourself float upwards into the beckoning sky, painted hues of orange, purple, green and red by the setting of the sun. There is no noise but the faint rustling of leaves which move with the passing of a summer's breeze below you as you soar effortlessly towards the coming night. You glide over rolling hills of soft grass, sometimes close enough to reach out your hand and touch the green blur which flows beneath you. Feelings of hope, awe, joy and sadness crest over you as the horizon peels away and you fire into the quiet emptiness of space. That is how one could describe the experience of listening to the beautifully cinematic album "The Earth is Not A Cold Dead Place" by Explosions in the Sky

Lonely guitar licks building to layered duets, punctuated by the fierce marching of drums are the elements which define this album. It ebbs and flows with moments of passionate energy followed by sad interludes which build again to joyful climax, only to fall away once more. There are no vocals to speak of —this effort is entirely instrumental —yet the complexity of emotion which is presented here without the benefit of lyrics is astonishing.

Having experienced a recent tragedy in my own life, I can say that The Earth is not a Cold Dead Place is the perfect companion for even the bleakest of outlooks. It is a recording which reflects the inherent beauty in the world, even when it seems all hope is lost. This may all sound like pretentious bullshit to someone who hasn't had the good fortune of listening to Explosions in the Sky, but I promise you: to listen to this album is to fall in love with it.

Explosions in the Sky on Myspace:

Lucy, Daughter Of The Devil

Adult Swim is finally producing episodes for Lucy, Daughter Of The Devil, a sendup of such films as the Excorcist, Angel Heart, and Rosemary's Baby. Featuring the voice talent of the always great H. Jon Benjamin as The Devil himself.

At once extremely disturbing, absurd, and completely hilarious.



New episodes are available weekly at adultswim.com

Live: The Roots

src: MTV.com

In honor of my going to see The Roots featuring Big Daddy Kane on the 25th at the 9:30 Club, Here's some live Roots courtesy of the Youtubes and some asshole with a camera:

Culver City Dub Collective

More swell reggae from some folks you've never heard of. Go to their site, listen to the available tracks, download "Big Long Gun", and bask in more positive vibes. Man.

Culver City Dub Collective

New Hotness: Ticklah vs. Axlerod

Just ran across some supremely dank dub reggae from this artist signed with Easy Star Records. Check out their myspace page for a taste:
Myspace.com/ticklah

Bio: from easy star records web site


TICKLAH VS. AXELROD is an epic soundclash between two sides of a musical personality: the studio wizardry and dub experimentation of Ticklah vs. the keyboard prowess and genre restlessness of Victor Axelrod. In this case, the battle rages in the head of one person: Ticklah and Victor Axelrod are one and the same person. You might know him from co-producing Dub Side of the Moon. Or as the keyboardist for Antibalas. Or as a founding member of Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. Even if you know him, you've never heard a record like this before.

Look for a review of this record soon, when I have the money to buy it.

New Hotness: St. Vincent

I hadn't heard of St. Vincent before downloading a few tracks off of their new album MARRY ME. Generally, I'm not the biggest fan of this kind of light, Rilo Keilyish/Feistish airy indie-pop. However, something about lead singer Annie Clarke's vocals just works for me, and I dig it. Plus she's cute and plays guitar. Peep this vid:

...Then download this track:(via loadsafun.blogspot.com)

St. Vincent - Now, Now.

The Start of Something Mediocre

Here's my first post. It's really something special.

This blog is a collection of things which I happen to find interesting on the interwebs, interspersed with my opinions on music film and other media.

Reviews of music, links to MP3's, TV shows on the youtube. art, news and other useless bullshit can be found here.

Thank you for question. Exit left to Funway.