All posts by Concrete Opinions

[new music roundup] 10.25.11

A few of my favorite new releases this week, including the latest addition to my ever growing collection of holiday tunes, She & Him’s A Very She & Him Christmas.  Enjoy.

Ashtar Command//American Sunshine

For fans of: Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Alexander, John Paul White, Kreeps
Key tracks: Save Me [ft. Alex Ebert], (Walking On) Landmines, Mark IV, Let the Sunshine In

 

Deer Tick//Divine Providence

For fans of: Dawes, Delta Spirit, A.A. Bondy, Dr. Dog
Key tracks: Miss K, Main Street, The Bump, Clownin Around

 

honeyhoney//Billy Jack

For fans of: Sick Of Sarah, Lissa, Rosey, Elizabeth & the Catapult
Key tracks: LA River, Ohio, Turn that Finger Around, Thin Line

 

Justice//Auto, Video, Disco.

For fans of: Daft Punk, Deadmau5, The Chemical Brothers, The Avalanches
Key tracks: Audio, Video, Disco., On’n’On, Civilization, Canon

 

She & Him//A Very She & Him Christmas

For fans of: Rilo Kiley, Kate Nash, M. Ward, Jenny and Johnny
Key tracks: The Christmas Waltz, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Baby, It’s Cold Outside, Sleigh Ride

 

Surfer Blood//Tarot Classics

For fans of: The Drums, Smith Westerns, Beach Fossils, Best Coast
Key tracks: Miranda, I’m Not Ready, Voyager Reprise, Drinking Problem

 

The Beets//Let the Poison Out

For fans of: The Mantles, The Babies, Tyvek, White Fence, Nickelodean’s Doug
Key tracks: Friends of Friends, Doing As I Do, You Don’t Want Kids to Be Dead, Now I Live

 

More notable new releases this week:
Brian Wilson//In the Key of Disney
Coldplay//Mylo Xyloto
Hello Electric//Dead Champion EP

[watch] Arcade Fire + Neil Young//Helpless

Arcade Fire & Neil Young performed “Helpless” at the 25th annual Bridge School Benefit concert.  If you’re not familiar, “The Bridge School Benefit is an annual non-profit charity concert held in Mountain View, California, every October at the Shoreline Amphitheatre.  The concerts are all organized by musician Neil Young and his wife, Pegi.

Proceeds benefit the Bridge School, which assists children with severe physical impairments and complex communication needs.  One of the thrusts of the program is the use of advanced augmentative and alternative communication and assistive technology.

The first concert was in October 1986, and, with the exception of 1987, the concert has been held every year since. It is known for having a relatively high-profile lineup and strong performances, primarily due to Neil Young’s extensive connections within the music industry.  Young also performs every year.  As a practice, but not a rule, the performers use acoustic instruments.” [source: wikipedia]

Enjoy the video, then visit the following links:

bridgeschool.org
facebook
bridge school benefit concert

Preorder the Birdge School 25th Anniversary Edition boxset here.

Donate to The Bridge School here.

 

[on the road] Phantogram

NY trip-hop duo Phantogram are on the road this month, and next, in support of their upcoming mini-album, Nightlife.  I love love love Phantogram and can’t wait for Nightlife, which is set to be released 11/1.  If you haven’t already heard the new track “Don’t Move”(grab it below), you better have a darn good excuse.

The duo will be playing shows all over the US and along the way be joined by Exitmusic and Reptar (both great acts, check dates below for specifics).  If you have the chance to catch one of the shows, do it.  I’ve heard nothing but great things about their live sets.

♫ Phantogram – Don’t Move ♫
♫ Exitmusic – The Hours ♫
♫ Reptar – Stuck In My Id ♫

10/21 – Outland on Liberty – Columbus, OH *
10/22 – Blind Pig – Ann Arbor, MI *
10/23 – Metro – Chicago, IL *^
10/24 – High Noon Saloon – Madison, WI ^
10/26 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN ^
10/27 – Waiting Room – Omaha, NE ^
10/28 – Marquis Theater – Denver, CO ^
10/29 – Urban Lounge – Salt Lake City, UT ^
11/01 – Harlow’s – Sacramento, CA ^
11/02 – Fillmore – San Francisco, CA ^
11/03 – SOhO Restaurant and Music Club – Santa Barbara, CA ^
11/04 – Music Box – Los Angeles, CA ^
11/05 – Crescent Ballroom – Phoenix, AZ ^
11/06 – SOL – Santa Fe, NM ^
11/08 – Loft – Dallas, TX ^
11/09 – Mohawk – Austin, TX ^
11/10 – Fitzgerald’s – Houston, TX ^
11/11 – Spanish Moon – Baton Rouge, LA ^
11/12 – Work Play Theatre – Birmingham, AL ^
11/13 – Masquerade – Atlanta, GA ^
11/15 – Cat’s Cradle – Carrboro, NC *
11/16 – Black Cat – Washington, D.C. *
11/17 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA *
11/18 – Maxwell’s – Hoboken, NJ *
11/19 – Royale – Boston, MA *
11/20 – Higher Ground – S. Burlington, VT *

* with Exitmusic
^ with Reptar

More Phantogram:
phantogrammusic.virb.com
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[on the road] The Jezabels

The Australian moody-pop quartet The Jezabels have been all over the world and back. After finishing a sold-out tours of the UK and Australia, the four will be returning to the U.S. and Canada in November to tour with the Canadian indie rock band Hey Rosetta! The tour traverses up the West Coast starting November 8th, and runs across Canada with stops into some Northern U.S. Midwest cities, finishing in Montreal on November 26th. The Jezabels will also make a quick stop in New York to play a headlining show at The Mercury Lounge on November 21st (tickets).

The Jezabels released their debut LP Prisoner in Australia on September 16, 2011, meriting four stars from Rolling Stone in Australia, who heralds that the album is, “a deeper, denser, and darker sound than anything we’ve heard from the four piece, one that requires patience and persistence, but pays off handsomely.” The LP debuted at #2 on the ARIA chart (Australian Recording Industry Association), and after four weeks on the chart is still holding strong, coming in at #18 this week.

Prisoner will be released in Canada on Dine Alone Records on November 8th and the U.S. release is yet to be announced. A preview of the album can be found in their newest track “Endless Summer” (download it below). As proclaimed by The A.V. Club, “Pitched somewhere between The Cranberries’ edge-of-the-world howl and Arcade Fire’s fiery emotional release, (their three EPs) shot the Sydney quartet to the top of the Australian charts; its forthcoming full-length debut seeks to do the same internationally.”

The band’s Dark Storm EP, released late last year and recently certified gold in Australia, has of late earned The Jezabels substantial recognition in their home country. At the AIR Australian Independent Music Awards, The Jezabels were the only band to win multiple awards, winning both for which they were nominated—Best Artist and Best Single/EP. Dark Storm has also garnered them nominations for three ARIA Awards for Single of the Year, Breakthrough Artist, and Best Independent Release.

Catch Hayley Mary, Heather Shannon, Sam Lockwood, and Nik Kaloper on one of their thirteen North American dates in just a few weeks! [source: planetary group]

♫ The Jezabels – Endless Summer ♫
♫ The Jezabels – Mace Spray ♫

11/08 – The Echo – Los Angeles, CA ^
11/09 – The Rickshaw Stop – San Francisco, CA ^
11/11 – The Crocodile – Seattle, WA ^
11/12 – Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC, CAN *
11/14 – MacEwan Ballroom – Calgary, AB, CAN *
11/15 – Myer Horowitz Theatre – Edminton, AB, CAN *
11/17 – The Garrick Centre – Winnipeg, MB, CAN *
11/18 – 7th Street Entry – Minneapolis, MN ^
11/19 – Lincoln Hall – Chicago, IL ^
11/21 – The Mercury Lounge – New York, NY #
11/24 – Phoenix Concert Theatre – Toronto, ON, CAN *
11/25 – Bronson Centre – Ottowa, ON, CAN *
11/26 – Corona Theatre – Montreal, QC, CAN *

^ Co-headline with Hey Rosetta!
* Supporting Hey Rosetta!
# The Jezabels Headline

More Jezabels:
jezabels.com
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[new music roundup] 10.18.11

Some of my favorite new releases this week, including the highly anticipated new 2-disc LP from M83.  Enjoy.

Class Actress//Rapproacher

For fans of: Austra, Phantogram, Summer Camp, Discovery
Key tracks: Keep You, Weekend, Love Me Like You Used To, Missed

 

Gauntlet Hair//Gauntlet Hair


For fans of: Dunes, Dominant Legs, Sleep ∞ Over, Les Sins
Key tracks: Top Bunk, Keep Time, Mop It Up, Lights Out

 

Library Voices//Summer of Lust


For fans of: Rah Rah, The Wooden Sky, Hannah Georgas, Two Hours Traffic
Key tracks: Generation Handclap, If Raymond Carver Was Born In The 90s, Que Sera Sarah, Anthem for a New Canadia

 

M83//Hurry Up We’re Dreaming


For fans of: Washed Out, Active Child, Mogwai, Explosions In The Sky
Key tracks: Intro (feat. Zola Jesus), Midnight City, Wait, My Tears Are Becoming a Sea, Raconte-Moi Une Histoire

 

Niki & The Dove//The Drummer EP


For fans of: Those Dancing Days, Kite, Little Marbles, Young Galaxy
Key tracks: Last Night, Mother Project, Manon, Sundog

 

Penguin Prison//Penguin Prison


For fans of: Feldberg, Human Life, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Holy Ghost!
Key tracks: Don’t Fuck With My Money, The Worse It Gets, Golden Train, A Funny Thing

 

Psychic Ills//Hazed Dream


For fans of: Cave, Oneida, Jackie O Motherfucker, Bardo Pond
Key tracks: Mind Daze, Midnight Moon, That’s Alright, Incense Head

 

Real Estate//Days


For fans of: Beach Fossils, Kurt Vile, Woods, Atlas Sound
Key tracks: Green Aisles, Easy, It’s Real, Out of Tune

 

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin//Tape Club


For fans of: Voxtrot, Headlights, Mates of State, Telekinesis
Key tracks: Yellow Missing Signs, Coming Through, Let’s Get Tired, The Clod and the Pebble

 

Other notable new releases:
Body Language//Social Studies
The Deep Dark Woods//The Place I Left Behind
Four Tet//Fabriclive 59
Forest Fire//Staring At the X
Gigamesh//Gigamesh EP
Kimya Dawson//Thunder Thighs
Kissing Party//Wasters Wall
The Reminding Ideas//House of Weather
States//Room to Run