The Walkmen - Heaven

I've always heard of The Walkmen, but never gotten into them. This song and video has changed that:

Also be sure to check out the AV Club's glowing review of their new album.

"Dancing On Our Graves" by The Cave Singers (Music Video)

I've always wanted to dance with a rattlesnake.

The Palma Violets

For a live clip, recorded from the audience, the Palma Violets sound pretty good. I'm looking forward to hearing more from 'em.  

JD McPherson - Playing in Santa Ana in June

Signs & Signifiers

JD McPherson will be playing at the Galaxy Thea...I mean the Rhythm Cafe....I mean the Observatory (or is it the Constellation Room?) on June 10th.

Steve Albini on Why He Hates Jazz

Legendary music recording engineer Steve Albini gave redditors the chance to ask him anything, and while it is fascinating to read all the questions, I thought this was worth sharing. As someone who likes jazz, I don't agree with Albini, but I find his reasoning for hating jazz interesting:

Because it sucks and I'm tired of hearing about it. Believe me I've tried. I just hate the parts I hate about it more than I like the little things there are to like. The batting average is just so low I can't bear the dead time between highlights being filled with all that noodling. It's vain music.  

Having recorded bands such as John Spencer Blues Explosion and Jesus Lizard, you'd think he'd have more appreciation for jazz. Afterall, getting through some of John Spencer's work can take as much patience as getting through some of Charles Mingus' stuff.

R.I.P. MCA

Totally sucks to hear the new that Adam Yauch (aka MCA from the Beastie Boys) passed away today. I remember getting Licensed to Ill on tape as a 13 year old and thinking it was the coolest thing ever. I have an old VHS recording of the Beastie Boys performing on a MTV New Years' Eve show, completely hammered out of their minds. I also went through the "it isn't cool to like the Beastie Boys" phase until I heard Check Your Head - and I was hooked again. The band, and MCA, seemed to actually mature, grow, and expand rather than turning into caricatures of themselves or doing the break-up get back together routine that other bands from the 80s. I can't imagine many people back in '84 thought we'd still be talking about three white rappers from Brooklyn almost 30 years later, but they proved a lot of people wrong. It's a sad day for music.

They also had some of the best videos of all time.

Flaming Lips Cover Kundalini Express by Love & Rockets

While I am not, and probably never will be, a big fan of The Flaming Lips - this song I kinda like. It isn't new, just new to me and from a Love & Rockets tribute album, but it take the original in a new direction without getting too over the top weird.