I mocked up a new playlist on the weekend to soundtrack our adventures and I was sure to include what new Frightened Rabbit music was out there.
Their new record is called Painting of a Panic Attack and comes out on April 8th from Rough Trade. The Scottish band went to the Ditmas Park area of Brooklyn to record the album with Aaron Dessner of The National.
I have this song on repeat!
***
Back from a whirlwind tour of Victoria. I went for the day yesterday to do some work on our rental apartment….met up with my brother. Had a lunch at Spinnakers, met a wedding couple, a few other chores and back to the ferry. Too fast! Gunna have to make a time for a proper visit.
New Frightened Rabbit will be available in February. The record is called Pedestrian Verse and you can pre-order by hitting the website. The Scottish emotive types have a song for us to check out and a new video. I follow Scott Hutchinson on Instagram (@owljon) he takes lots of pictures of crazy & vintage signs, recording, and generally life on the road. The music video seems to reflect that aesthetic.
Solid Frighten Rabbit single. Might need some repeat listens to rise up in the pantheon of great FR songs.
I was walking around Edmonton’s Blackbyrd Record store on Whyte the week Purity Ring‘s record Shrines came out. The clerk was playing it and I liked hearing the album while shopping. I wanted to get the record then, but they hadn’t received stock. Back home in Victoria, I finally made it down to Ditch for my latest album.
Beautiful sounding and looking record. Its a blue-ish marble vinyl with songs that I think are basically about lead singer Megan James’ vagina? Sure.
Lots of good stuff available on the internet as a free download, if your record player is in the shop, download this jam, the latest single “Fineshrine.”
Frightened Rabbit continues to be one of my favourite bands. The Scottish emotive types have a new ep in September called State Hospital. 4 songs and a single called… “State Hospital.”
Today twitter earned its keep….a tweet from Band of Horses got me very excited for yet another September release. September 18th will feature the release of Band of Horses’ forth studio record, Mirage Rock.
In the pantheon of BoH records…their latest, Infinite Arms is my least favourite (but I love the album cover the most?…sure). Already, just a couple listens in, and I jive on “Knock Knock.” So here’s to hoping.
Local homeboy and all-about-man-about-town Simon Ogden was telling me to check out the new Dirty Projectors record Swing Lo Magellan. So weird but so hypnotic. I am not saying this is an everyday kinda record… but there are a couple jams on this album that turn the brain crank in new and interesting ways. My first time through I went, WTF? I thought maybe Simon was experimenting with the bath salts… but the second time through (or third, or forth) the album made more sense (kinda). I clearly don;t have it figured out. Who knows, maybe its bad? But so bad it tricks you into thinking its high art?
I heard a couple songs I enjoyed and one of them was the title track.
The Dirty Projectors – “Swing Lo Magellan”
That song has a real cool retro vibe. And I do feel it fitting in at Veneto Lounge. And seeing as Simon is the head bartender/manager there…I can understand how he heard it and maybe thought…. cocktails!
The guitars on the whole album are so pleasantly jangly. Everything is a little off-kilter and unsettling. If you are turned off by traditional pop and want to weird the fuck out for awhile… headphones, low-light and this album.
I don’t follow Dirty Projectors on twitter… so I don’t have a tweet form them, but I do have one from Cloud Nothings that caught me eye…
Yesterday it was Robbie Burns Day. A day to celebrate the life of the great Scottish 18th century poet. Today is Australia Day… like Canada Day but backwards and upside down… less snow, more Vegemite. (is there anywhere to buy Vegemite in Victoria? huh.)
I have been listening to a few bands form both Australia and Scotland lately and thought… if ever there was time to merge a playlist of these two geographically opposite Nations… its today.
When you listen to a Frightened Rabbit song… you believe, “these guys must live in a cottage.” It was reassuring to read on their blog for the new song “Scotting Winds,” that it was in fact written on the bus to their cottage in the Borders.
My favourite Scottish sad rockers have a new extended play and glorious news, its a free download. That’s the best.
Waking up, trollingStereogum and discovering a new FREE Frightened Rabbit really made this Thursday a superior Thursday… compared to say, last Thursday.
Frightened Rabbit – “Scottish Winds”
Frightened Rabbit – “Fuck This Place”
Frightened Rabbit – “The Work”
I hope to take a second to download the EP… then maybe go back in time and listen to the older stuff. Its all pretty magical.
*** I helped Ceri over at Vintage Spirits with some music related stuff for her business… and so she set me up with a bottle of Baker’s Bourbon. Thank you Ceri!
My bourbon collection is slowly growing (like hockey jersey’s, its a hard thing to spend money on as it isn’t the most practical use of my limited funds) so barter seems to work well. My Maker’s is all gone, but I still have my Buffalo Trace, Bulleit and Woodford Reserve (that is what I used for my Bourbon Whip Cream on Thanksgiving).
I haven’t had a chance to taste the Baker’s… seriously I got it for the label. Same name as me! SWA?
The third studio record from Band of Horses didn’t get the mad crush of love that their previous two records received but I ended up playing at home and during my lounge sets. I will always love the song “Laredo” and so much of what I perceive to be a Old Western?Mexico/Desert vibe.
Band of Horses – “Laredo”
09) Vampire Weekend – Contra
We’ll need to stretch our memory back to one of the first big hyped releases of the year for this LP. Vampire Weekend’s anticipated follow-up Contra is number nine on my list.
VW never had huge traction on the radio with their quirky blend of world beats filtered through privileged Brooklyn/Hipster/Ivy Leaguers. I loved Vampire Weekends first album but I enjoyed this one so much more.
A monster number 1 record and grammy nominated album from the Arcade Fire. When this disc came out, we had it on pretty steady at the Veneto and the single “Ready to Start” enjoyed a residency at number one on The Zone’s Modern Rock Countdown. There was a lot I loved about this record. Mostly the nostalgic story lines of growing up in the suburbs, because hey, I grew up in the suburbs. For a feature song, I will chose one of Simon’s faves off the record.
Arcade Fire – “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)”
06) Frightened Rabbit – The Winter of Mixed Drinks
Another record that didn’t receive wide-spread praise or seem to do a whole lot onto further push FR onto the mainstream conciseness.
Being a heavy user of their previous music, I was hungry for a new disc. I was downloading anything that leaked or squeeked out leading up to this record so maybe I was little too primed, but they are one of my fave bands period, this disc got jammed out. It might not have changed my world like the first time I heard Frightened Rabbit, but it is still a great record of melodramatic rock and roll.
My favourite cut was the first single and it remains so today.
Frightened Rabbit – “Swim Until You Can’t See Land”
06) Broken Bells – Broken Bells
The dude from the Shins, that dude named Danger Mouse… joined forces like the Dinobots to create one sexy masterpiece. I don’t even want to speculate how many babies were conceived this because of this record.
Lots doesn’t seem like an adequate word.
Listening to a randomized playlist on my iTunes one time, this song came up and it has become on my favourites off the record. maybe sounds a little more Shins and little less Danger Mouse, but that’s cool. I believe this song made it on Coral and my one year anniversary mixtape.
Broken Bells – “October”
05) Jimmy Eat World – Invented
Another band that does no wrong by me. Since I’ve been with Coral, JEW has held a special place in my heart and they earn that chance to make a record and I immediately go out and buy it.
I like their 7th studio record because I found it enjoyable outta the box much sooner than it too me to get into their previous Chase This Light.
Chase would grow on me but I liked how there were more than a couple song son this disc that I liked right away one listen in. And others that I would grow to love with repeated listens.
My feature cut is a romantic song (but hey, aren’t all JEW songs sappy?) that I believe also made it on the 1 Year Anniversary mixtape.
Jimmy Eat World – “Littlething”
04) Four Tet – There is Love In You
No record had a bigger influence on me from outside my normal perspective than this electronic disc from the UK’s Kieran Hebden… aka Four Tet.
Around this time last year I bought my DJ rig and by January I was experimenting with DJing simple beats. Right around the time this record came out.
A very modern, simple, and relaxing record to put on to soundtrack my days events. Coral bought this record on vinyl and when I do fire up the record player, The is Love In You is a go to.
Its four sides so I almost go right to side D track one so I can hear the most wonderful song on the record.
Four Tet – “She Just Likes to Fight”
I could listen to that song forever on repeat and never go fully insane. Shit, I might get smarter.
03) The Black Keys – Brothers
I was late to The Black Keys party, but when I finally got the invite, I dived in hard.
The whole swampy bluesy core styled rock music happening right now seems to originating from Akron, Ohio.
To pick a single feature is impossible. Pol likes “Howling For You” and Allie likes “Everlasting Light”
I’m gunna go with the more blue-collar dirge.
The Black Keys – “Too Afraid to Love You”
02) Middle Class Rut – No Name No Color
Rock and Roll has returned. For me, the Renaissance was felt with Japandroids. But there are only so many fuzzy retro rocker songs to hear. The Black Keys kept me marching to the beat locked in. Then Dave Sawchuk lighted up Sacramento’s Middle Class Rut during our weekly music meeting… and became evangelical.
Rarely do I hear a song that captures my imagination so completely and immediately. I felt like a little kid with excitement to hear “New Low.” Downloaded it and then the record. And since then, it has become such a huge record in my life.
It is a bit of a grinder and lyrically it can be depressing. but I do find something uplifting to their tales of the working man’s lows. My ultimate fave is the lead off cut from their record. Sometimes I go for drives in the Cruze just so I can play this song at maximum volume.
Middle Class Rut – “Busy Being Born”
01) The National – High Violet
We all have favourite bands and The National is my favourite.
The day this record came out and they had a vinyl copy down at Ditch I went to get it. I remember that day. I rode my bike and it was really nice out. Then I went to Canoe Club to meet with Don about some music stuff. While waiting for him I was chatting with the waitress… she had never heard of The National. WTF?
So I cracked open the record and gave her the free download MP3 card so she could check it out. I hope she did.
The first single “Bloodbuzz Ohio” to me is masterpiece song. But after repeated plays of this album I do have a few key cuts. A song that always stuck out for me has a weird military theme.
The National – “Lemonworld”
Thank you for reading my Top 10 and checking out some new music.
Alrighty friends my first experiment with a podcast mix. I uploaded it to Mixcloud for your streaming pleasure as I have not upgraded my blog for audio yet and likely won’t for a bit as I still decide… uhhh stuff.
I figured out how to record a Serato Itch mix and set my Numark NS7 up in my living room on the coffee table. I plugged in to my home stereo for a monitor. A little dance party at Casa La Corj while everyone is asleep.
Then I imported the file into Garageband and fooled around in there adding a little voice intro and bed. I still had troubles getting around Garageband. It feels very awkward to me to edit with this software, but I’m sure with time and practise it’ll come.
Lets talk about the music.
***
DJ Notes
01) Neon Indian – “Should Have Taken Acid With You”
02) Millionyoung – “Cynthia”
03) Kleerup – “Until We Bleed (Feat. Lykke Li)”
04) Winter Gloves – “Invisible”
05) Memory Cassette – “Surfin”
06) Frightened Rabbit – “Things”
I downloaded her commercial last week to hear her great work writing and Sheldon’s production. As I sat down today to draft up a mix and practise, I punched up the commercial (I am such a procrastinator) and played it through my rig. It changed the whole direction and I needed to kick off with Neon Indian’s tale of regret… man he really should have taken acid with you then removed this clothes and jumped in the swimming pool. Funny story… that exact same thing happened to me many moons ago in another life.
Millionyoung is pretty hot right now, I read about his style of chillwave on Pitchfork and downloaded the ep. I love it, its like the emo of electronic beats.
I don’t hate this presentation until my final mix from Winter Gloves into Memory Cassette which I fuck up pretty good. What can you do? The whole set is basically 120 beats per minute, give or take, until Frightened Rabbit.
Well didn’t this playlist turn out sorta neat? I was thinking about the Jack’s Mannequin song oddly tonight. Uplifting track. Too me it has a similar vibe of theme to Frightened Rabbit or the new Surfer Blood. Kinda interesting to think about the “swimming” metaphor.
The “swim” search brought up a bunch of songs but 9 different bands. I just included one Great Lake Swimmers cut. My favourite oldie.
I left the list in alphabetical order too… seems to fit. spooky. Starts with the Brand New song “Jaws Theme Swimming.” I like that the playlist has an intro or theme song to start. and sharks man, sharks. Deje Entendu does not get enough love. Very cool record.
I think the BSS song “Swimmers” is the one that includes Miss Emily Hains of Metric? yes/no? Sounds like her and i’m too lazy to look it up. But when I searched on wiki it had some tid-bit about how the original art was going to use a cartoon of Pangaea? SWA? My next playlist should be about Pangaea! Reminds me of the songs from Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, “Pangea.” They spell it different. hey nerds, if you’re gunna be super nerdy, figure it out already.
“Pangea, we used to be together/why did we have to drift apart?” lovely.
Alyx requested Bush tonight at the Clubhouse. weirdo.
I guess Sixteen Stone was a big deal in like 1900 and something.
Frightened Rabbit is my favourite band and they have a song for all occasions!
Great Lake Swimmers are a band that you might know, you might love, but you might not be aware that this cut was recorded in a barn grain silo in Ontario one summer. Listen, really really listen and you’ll hear all the nature buzzing around the mics. OK, you don’t have to listen to hard, I’m half deaf from all my years in radio and being a hipster and I can hear it pretty easy like.
Iron & Wine is really just one dude, Sam Beam. He was a University professor before deciding to becomes a folk star.
Turns out I’m super cool and got the limited press of Endless Summer Nights as ‘Swans and Swimming” was on the bonus CD. If I were less cool, I might get Iron & Wines odds and sods comp, Around the Well.
OK, its the honest segment of today’s playlist… I heard Jack’s Mannequin’s “Swim” during a promo for Grey’s Anatomy or something just as sickening. I heard it one time, it burrowed into my brain and I downloaded it that night. The chick that brought us Twilight likes these guys and directed a music video?… so hmmm, I’m a 12 year girl for this song. I’m not proud but I like it.
R.E.M. might give me some redemption, but “Nightswimming” is from Automatic for the People… so you can make the call of its redeemness. “Nightswimming” is one of the better songs from the record, does that help? no? oh.
The final cut is a new one and that how I like it. Fugly dudes from Florida called Surfer Blood. Pitchfork creamed themselves over their debut album Astro Coast the other day. I bought into the hype partially and downloaded one song, “Swim.” Its good.
“Buying Records in Record Stores is Cool.” aww, thank you Spoon, you’re cool too.
Spoon’s new one, Transference, is out today and I’m holding the 33 in my hot little hand right now (oh, I mean I’m typing, its beside me). Funny, I am not listening to the record, I got it going on electronically because Coral is watching TV, so I got to enjoy this music best with headphones on.
No problem, the record is spooky good. Lots of sounds. Lots of sounds? Swa? Its a record, it better have sounds. But what I mean is, its weird and mystical sounding in that jangly Spoon “ga ga ga ga ga” kinda way. Headphones works.
I was excited to get this record today. I didn’t have time before my radio show to swing by Ditch, so I had to get on my horse after the program to race down to Johnson and sneak in just before the bell.
Holy moly, how many records has this Austin, Texas band put out since the early/mid 90s? 7 LPs and a bunch of eps? I have only the most recent three, Transference, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, and Gimme Fiction. Plus the eps Got Nuffin and Don’t Cha Evah. One of the reasons I was excited for Transference was because I have so extensively enjoyed previous work. I was hard not to reckon that anything new would be great.
First listen in, and sure enough… its a good Spoon record. On the Zone, you might have heard Dave feature “Got Nuffin” and now he is trying out “Written in Reverse.” If you’re thinking of downloading a couple you might want to start there. I am also jiving on “Out Go The Lights” which is a bit more ballady for a Spoon cut. “Mystery Zone” is a good one too.
Today was a big day for all the indie rocking hipsters. It was the day that the tight panted gods wearing their godly ironic fluorescent yellow sunglasses announced the line-up for this years Coachella Music Festival. Now really, how many of will be taking off to the desert of California for a weekend in April? I wish (and fingers crossed some sort of miracle will happen). But this is a great bellwether for the festival circuit as a whole. These are the bands that want to be active this summer, in front of you, melting your face with sweet licks. And Spoon is on the list. SO! Will Spoon be at Sasquatch this year? Oh god I hope so… and I hope a lot of other things. Frightened Rabbit? SWA? They are my favourite band of the NOW and they’ll be at Coachella. Sasquatch is only a month later so I hope that means they could be there too.
Sasquatch is smaller, so all these bands won’t be there. But some will. Some is good. Frightened Rabbit and Spoon? best! Last year I died when I experienced Explosions in the Sky. It would be the cherry on my life sundae to witness a few more all-time faves.
This talk of Sasquatch reminds me that I should book the days off. Last weekend of May. The plan on paper has me trying to finagle some media passes. Coral and I walk on the ferry over to Vancouver. That is a considerable savings… which we plow into a tank of gas for my old man’s RV and south along the I5 we go… a good full day in advance of the festival. Some fine cheap US shopping in Bellingham to fill our stocks and then through Seattle. Maybe a pause to be tourists for a bit, then south-east to Ellensburg then the Gorge.
God smiles, and its sunny and hot like last year.
Coral and I are having a bit of a debate about whether we bring Madelyn of not. She’ll be over two which is good. She will be strong like ox. RV will really help. There were many kids last year at Sasquatch and when I am away from Madelyn for a few days, regardless of how drunk I am, when I see the families… I think, aw that would be fun. Coral thought we could get a little inflatable pool for the camp. Then I thought? What about bringing a pool into the venue? Could you imagine? Madelyn would make a lot of hippy friends if the temperature is in the 90s like last year.
Jury is out on Madelyn. Nana or Grandma might want to take advantage of a weekend with her, so then we’ll leave her. maybe they won’t. We bring her. I talk a mean game about getting drunk, but the truth is I might enjoy my weekend more if I keep it under control. So staying sober won’t be a big deal if my baby comes. And I think she’ll get a kick outta the carnival atmosphere, plus huge savings if I lay off the $9 US Daddy Pops. Anyways, its cool either way. We’ll see who wants to be part of the adventure and see what everyone thinks, cuz as they say… it takes a village to raise a kid and if it’ll be more buzz kill than cute attack I’ll beg Nana to have a sleepover for the weekend.
The other thought is pack down my DJ rig and some speakers and generator and fire up a dance party in the camp? That is an ambitious thought, but would be hugely popular after a day of rock & roll. The music is king but camp is like… not the king, but really good and with boobs. Queen? sure.
I better get off the computer now, Coral wants to play and she’s not supposed to use her cell phone to cruise the net! Silly Bell and their overage charges.
I helped Ceri over at Vintage Spirits with some music related stuff for her business… and so she set me up with a bottle of 
The Morning After 