I Used to Travel in the Shadows

The Smithereens have a new EP that slipped into the iTunes Store this week, MTV Unplugged. There is very little information as to exactly when this was, etc. But hey, we're Smithereens fans so it's all good.

The EP includes A Girl Like You, Behind the Wall of Sleep, Blood and Roses and a medley of Cupid/Chain Gang.

I haven't heard the tracks yet, but I'm certainly intrigued to hear these songs, er, unplugged.

Cut Me Some Slack

So yeah, this really happened...



McCartney sounded fucking great last night. Excellent song choices proving this is the same man that gave the world Helter Skelter.

12-12-12 The Concert for Sandy Relief will be available via iTunes 12-18-12. Pre-order here.

Maybe Now And Never Again

They've re-released their debut album so why not a new one?! The House of Love will release She Paints Words in Red next March or April (probably) according to their Facebook page.

Glad these guys are still at it. 2005's Days Run Away was quite good.

Facebook | Wiki | iTunes | Amazon MP3

I Will Remember You

Sarah McLachlan and the Students of the School of Music are offering a free song, Find Your Voice, to celebrate the season. The song is free, but they'd really like you to donate what you can to the school. In addition to the free download, you can watch the video below.

Sarah also has a new album coming (finally) in 2013.

I'll Have To Wait To Get The Best Of You

Guster. Live. Acoustic. Tour. Album. Previews. Video...



Me gusta Guster.

Turn My Head Into Sound

My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields revealed the band will finally release a new album later this year. It's only been 21 years since their last album, the mesmerizing Loveless, so, you know, no expectations. We've hard it before so, you know, no expectations.

But holy shit it would be awesome.

via NME News | iTunes | Amazon MP3

It's Weird How You Never Lose

Yesterday Nada Surf premiered their new stop-motion video for Jules and Jim. Check it out below or here.


A tad creepy if you ask me. Nada Surf's tour returns to the US in December and comes tantalizingly close to Iowa. Check out all the dates here.

Official Site | iTunes | Amazon MP3

I Found Meaning In A Tacky Old Guitar

Pop maestro Bleu is prepping his fifth full-length album for release next year and he's sharing a couple new tunes here. It's Not Over sounds like early Bleu through an 80s McCartney filter - very poppy. And Won't Make It Out Alive is a nice folksy tune with some electronic blips and whistles to make it just a bit different.

Bleu is also touring this fall. Check out dates here.

Finally, Bleu stopped by the Daytrotter studio in July to tape a session. Check it out here.

Official Site | iTunes | Amazon

I Feel Just Like Yesterday's Boy

The underrated House of Love is rereleasing their debut album in a loaded 3-disc set on November 26. Crazy that the original album was released way back in 1988. The set is probably worth it for the five different versions of the band's indisputable classic Shine On, but early House of Love is the best House of Love. Can't wait.

Official Announcement | Amazon | iTunes

The News Of The Day

Duncan Sheik is releasing a remix of his 80s covers album in case you didn't get enough the first time around. The painfully-obviously-titled Covers Eighties Remixed is out next week and is now available for pre-order. His voice seems well-suited for the synth-era so it should be interesting. Duncan is also touring. Details below.

Official Site | Amazon MP3 | iTunes | Tour

I Just Need Something To Remember You By

Dada was always unfairly pigeonholed as a one-hit wonder novelty act because their biggest hit happened to dream the dream of flipping "off President George" Bush and celebrating at "Dizz Knee Land." Sure, it's a one-joke, of-its-time tune that evokes a smile every time it shuffles its way out of the iPod, but if you chose to excuse Dada as a result you have been missing out.

Undoubtedly their peak was with their debut album Puzzle, which includes the aforementioned hit. Dada expertly weaved melodic pop, jam, and hard rock into a cohesive and eclectic long-player that stood out among its peers but could never overcome the grunge phenomenon. It's hard to believe it's already been 20 years since its release. The music really sparkles live in concert so I was thrilled to find out they'd be touring in celebration. Starting in January, Dada will hit the hotspots including Park West in Chicago where I saw them - well - 20 years ago.

Tour Dates | iTunes | Amazon MP3

As Much As You Can Stand

Mike Viola is releasing the original version of the Candy Butchers' self-titled album from 1996 in its original form. Here's the crazy backstory on the album along with a couple of samples. Man, the music industry really sucks. Thankfully Viola has his own label that allows him the flexibility to dig deep and release such gems. Man, the music industry sucks a little less.

The album features some tunes you may have heard before, but these are "NOT the ones you’ve heard before. These are raw. These are stripped down and dirty. These are the Candy Butchers."

Pre-order the vinyl and CD here

Yuletide Carols

Here in Iowa the temperature dropped about 40 degrees in the past 24 hours - par for the course this time of year. Good or bad, it reminds me we're perilously close to the holidays. Hear Music embraces that by releasing Holidays Rule on All Hallows' Eve -er - Eve, a new holiday compilation featuring Paul McCartney with a smoooooth version of The Christmas Song and The Shins' version of McCartney's holiday standard Wonderful Christmastime. Fun, Rufus Wainwright, Fruit Bats, and others also contribute to what sounds like a very eclectic yet deferential album that could very well soundtrack the Too Poppy household this holiday season.

Amazon MP3 | Samples | McCartney Stream

Hush

For a band with only two full-length albums, Jellyfish really knows how to milk them (catch that?) However, Jellyfish fans are undeniably voracious consumers in desperate need of anything remotely related to the band. And if you're familiar with those two amazing albums you completely understand.

Omnivore Records is releasing the instrumental versions of Bellybutton and Spilt Milk. Details...

Both albums, start to finish, as they’ve never been heard before. These versions of Bellybutton and Spilt Milk were created in the studio, at the time of their original recording/mixing. These are not “remixes” from the multi-tracks. To do that would have compromised the integrity of what was originally envisioned, potentially eliminating or dismissing elements that are actually there, yet not as audible under the vocals. This is not a “re-imagining” of what these records “might” sound like as instrumentals. They’re the real deal, transferred from the original 1/4″ masters.

This special release called Stack-a-Tracks is limited and will be available on Record Store Day. I guess I know where I'll be on November 23. Amazon also has the pre-order. Cool. Cool. Cool.

I Want To Relive All My Adolescent Dreams

Guster tours on ... acoustically ...

1/04 New Orleans LA @ House of Blues (full rock show -- not acoustic)
1/05 Dallas TX* @ Meyerson Symphony Center (Guster + Dallas Symphony Orchestra)
1/06 Austin TX @ Central Presbyterian Church (acoustic show)
1/08 Birmingham AL @ Workplay Theater (acoustic show)
1/10 Atlanta GA @ Variety Playhouse (acoustic show)
1/11 Atlanta GA @ Variety Playhouse (acoustic show)
1/12 Durham NC @ Carolina Theater of Durham (acoustic show)
1/14 Bloomington IN @ Buskirk Chumley Theater (acoustic show)
1/17 Northampton MA @ Calvin Theater @ PAC (acoustic show)
1/18 Port Chester NY @ Capitol Theater (acoustic show)
1/19 Portsmouth NH @ The Music Hall (acoustic show)

I'm Not Complaining

The great Barsuk Records is streaming the new solo album Former Lives by Death Cab for Cutie's Benjamin Gibbard in its entirety via YouTube. See here or below.



Album is officially released next week.

iTunes | Amazon MP3

Let's All Get Up and Dance to a Song

Grab your intoxicant of choice and hop a ride on the Magical Mystery Tour. Yep, the wacked-out remastered movie by The Beatles teased here is out today. Get the trippy online experience here. The actual movie and soundtrack have been redone and are available exactly where you'd expect them to be.

iTunes | Amazon

And never ones to miss a format, The Beatles have finally decided to honor the renaissance and release their catalog in vinyl - the way they were meant to be heard. Amazon has the box set for a nifty four hundies.

White

Of all the Madchester bands, I'm not quite sure I could've predicted that the Charlatans would be one of the few who would continue to release consistently good music throughout the next 20 years. Charlatans' leader Tim Burgess is releasing his second solo album later this month and it's worthy of a preview...


Indisputably one of the most distinctive voices that ever came out of that scene. Very cool.

Lost Our Way

Brandon Schott has continued his wonderful multimedia web series Defying Gravity with Episode V: The Empire Strike Back, er, Rob Shapiro. Rob is a powerpopper in powerpopperrific Populuxe. Enjoy an exclusive tune, video, and musings here.

It's Noisy Out There

Ben Folds Five's first new album since before my children were born is out this week! Stream plenty of the tracks across the interwidenet by starting here at their official site. Thankfully what I hear is better than Do It Anyway. Fan-funded The Sound of the Life of the Mind is out Tuesday.

iTunes | Amazon MP3

Here I Go, Singing Low

Paul McCartney was recently featured in Kisses-on-the-Bottom mode on Great Performances seen on public television stations across the country. Miss it? Oh the magic of the interwideweb...

Watch Paul McCartney's Live Kisses on PBS. See more from Great Performances.

Macca is also continuing his On the Run tour in North America but has so far only announced four dates. Pre-sale tix for email subscribers sold fast, particularly the cheap ones. In other words, I was too late to get affordable tickets for the St. Louis stop. Good things tickets don't officially go on sale until 9/14!

Nov. 11 at Scottrade Center, St. Louis Nov. 14 at Minute Maid Park, Houston Nov. 25 at BC Place, Vancouver Nov. 28 at Rexall Place, Edmonton

More info here

Another Chance He Takes

We here at Too Poppy jump at every opportunity to revel in the sheer bliss of Matthew Sweet. His latest is a cover of Hombre Secreto (Secret Agent Man) from the Repo Man soundtrack. Can't make this shit up.

Beats the hell outta Flipper.

Amazon MP3

Visible Wind

Band of Horses has released another track from the new album Mirage Rock, which is out next Tuesday. Check out Slow Cruel Hands of Time below. Road trippin' music!



Absolutely lovely. Pre-order here. Stream the whole album here (thanks, JBro!)

...via Paste Magazine

Mystery in Motion

Ben Lee has been messing around with the "Vine of Souls" and has created a "sonic document" called Ayahuasca: Welcome to the Work to commemorate his experiences. Hey man, it's a rock 'n' roll rite of passage, yes? Timothy Leary would be proud. Doesn't sound as poppy as previous efforts, but it's a spiritual journey after all. He needs your help via PledgeMusic.

Get trippy here and see a scruffy Ben Lee describe the new album.

Take It All In Stride

NPR is currently streaming Grizzly Bear's latest album Shields. With its autumnal and slightly psychedelic vibe it seems like a nice seasonal soundtrack that evokes a less accessible Band of Horses. I briefly watched the band at Lollapalooza back in '08, but admittedly I was hot and tired at that point in the long day and was in no mood! I regret that a bit.

Step Right This Way

Few films could be better described as "of its time" than The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour. Released in 1967, it really is as non-sensical as you'd expect. No matter. The Beatles were making some of their best music at this stage. Just go along for the ride.



Out in October on Blu-ray and DVD, MMT is beautifully remastered and loaded with extras including new song edits. Curious. If you're lucky to live in a cool town, you might be able to catch it in theaters late in September! Pre-order here.

Playing Piano for the Children of the King

Nobody does a Beatles cover better than World Party. Check out Cry Baby Cry from Arkeology here. Of course World Party had to tease their Facebook fans with this news...

World Party will be touring America in Sept. Check your local listings for shows

Uh, details please.

Official Site | iTunes | Amazon MP3

Yeah You

Roll down your windows and crank your stereo as high as it goes. Redd Kross is back after a 15-year hiatus!



They had me at sha-la-la. Good luck avoiding noise ordinance violations. Researching the Blues is out this week - a very welcome return.

Official Site | iTunes | Amazon MP3

Holding On For Tomorrow

Now I know what I'm getting brother Way2Poppy for Christmas.
Blur celebrates their 21 long years with a long 21-disc box set called, uh, Blur 21.

• All seven newly expanded two-disc studio albums 
• Four discs of rarities, exclusive to this set. Includes 3½ hours of previously unreleased material 
• Three DVDs including over 2 hours of previously unreleased footage. Includes two pivotal live shows and an exclusive disc of video rarities. 
• Collectable 7" single of the rare and previously unreleased live recording of the Seymour-era track Superman. 
• Deluxe hard-bound book telling the story of Blur's 21 year career with extensive liner notes based on a brand new interviews with the band, illustrated with imagery of the era, including some previously unseen photos.

Blur 21 is an insane project for even the hardest core fans. I'd call myself a casual fan and personally believe they peaked at their second, most Brit-poppiest album, Modern Life Is Rubbish. I think their influence is a bit oversold, but they've certainly had some highlights. Their potentially last performance will appropriately be at the closing ceremony of the London Olympics.



All their albums have also been reissued.

iTunes | Amazon | Official Site

A Whisper Short of Words

Brandon Schott gets personal on the latest episode of Defying Gravity recounting how growing up a military brat has influenced his life. I can't relate to that specifically but Brandon has an uncanny knack for bridging the gap and making the personal universal.



Podcast, video, and download here

Surrender To The Void

Nice to see The Beatles fully embracing this iTunes thing. Today they released a new compilation of their most "powerful" rock songs called Tomorrow Never Knows. Not surprisingly it includes some of my favorites...

Revolution | Paperback Writer | And Your Bird Can Sing | Helter Skelter | Savoy Truffle | I'm Down | I've Got A Feeling | Back In The USSR | You Can't Do That | It's All Too Much | She Said, She Said | Hey Bulldog | Tomorrow Never Knows | The End

iTunes Exclusive

Go Ahead And Laugh All You Want

Ben Folds Five returns after 13 years of being Ben Folds One with The Sound Of The Life Of The Mind - quite a mouthful. It comes after a successful fan-funded PledgeMusic campaign. The album will be released September 18 and carries all the hopes and dreams of 90s pop-loving obsessives like me. No pressure.

Pre-order: Amazon MP3 | PledgeMusic

I Will Hear Your Voice In Three-Part Harmony

Mike Viola's Acousto De Perfecto - the logical follow-up to Electro De Perfecto - is out everywhere this week. Check out the video for Songo De Perfecto aka Soundtrack of My Summer below.



Official Site | iTunes | Amazon MP3

We Can't Wait 'Til Tomorrow

Holy effing 80s. The Killers are back with The Runaways from their new album Battle Born out this fall. There's no hiding it; this is a straight up 80s anthem if I ever heard one, which I've yet to decide is good or bad or meh.



Official Site | iTunes | Amazon MP3

Everything I Want, Everything I Need

Band of Horses released the first full-length tune from their upcoming Mirage Rock due out on September 18. Quite poppy!



Pre-order the new album via iTunes and get an exclusive tune called Ego Nightmare.

I Can Stay For Longer

I was happy to attend the fifth anniversary of Des Moines' 80/35 music festival last weekend, which has brought great headliners like Flaming Lips and Death Cab for Cutie to our midwestern paradise (Death Cab killed this year!) Some of the true treasures and nice surprises are found on the free stages in between the headlining sets. Now, Now (formerly Now, Now Every Children) was my favorite surprise this year. They've been together since 2003 but hardly look a day out of middle school - which is a compliment. I have yet to explore any of their releases, but their female-led indie pop was a blast of fresh coolness on a day topping 100 degrees. Check out an official video below, which doesn't quite live up to the live experience.



Official Site | Facebook | iTunes | Amazon MP3

All the Cuckoo Things You Do

Love hearing anything new from Matthew Sweet especially when he's in power pop mode. Check out his cover of Fever B's This Sea is My Life....



We can always rely on Dan for digging up the sweetest Sweet. Thanks for the tip.

Hit Rock Bottom

Call them a purely American experience, Americana, country-rock, dream-rock, whatthefuckever; Band of Horses is releasing their fourth album this September and has teased us with one whole minute of Dumpster World.

 

Check out previous releases via Amazon or iTunes. You won't be disappointed.

How Predictable

Jeff Litman has released a very familiar new video for Over and Over from his excellent Outside.



Jeff has plenty of shows coming up this summer. Check out the official schedule here.

P.S. Happy birthday, Jeff!

Ride to the Stars

Pretentious as all hell but blissfully dreamy and shoegazey, DIIV has released their full-length debut Oshin this week. It's a sound that is oh-so-difficult to get right, but at first blush DIIV has something special to share. It has built-in indie cred so if that's important to you, here you go. If you're a bit like me and miss the My Bloody Valentines and Chapterhouses that crashed into our lives with shitloads of noise and melody 20+ years ago then check out the stream below and consider the downloads via Amazon or iTunes.
 

More. Thanks, BUG.

Sometimes a Guinness

Brandon Schott has released a domestically blissful video for This Is Home from 13 Satellites...



The video is a lovely reminder that not only is Brandon a great musician, he's good people.

I Couldn't Wait For More

The timeless Fleetwood Mac is getting a tribute album perhaps worthy of their legacy. Digging The New Pornographers' take on Think About Me...



Out 8/14.

via Pitchfork

Elusive Energy

Nada Surf recently released a video for Waiting for Something from their outstanding album The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy. The tune is one of the catchiest on a very catchy album. The video features a beautiful locale, cactus mutilation, sideboob, and pirates. Kinda.



If you want a real treat, check out their wonderfully different version of New Order's Bizarre Love Triangle, the latest entry in AV Club's Undercover series. They have a knack for great covers. If I Had a Hi-Fi remains my favorite covers album to date (even besting Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs - quite an accomplishment if you know what a rabid Sweet fan I am!)

Nada Surf also started their summer tour yesterday. Four shows in Texas, zero in Iowa. Sigh. Here are all the dates. Nada Surf has elegantly risen into my top five favorite bands currently recording and performing. Very few bands consistently make better music.

Despite Your Grand Attempts

Ben Folds Five is getting back together for the first time in 13 years and working on a new album. Holy hell where has the time gone? BFF is also doing the fan-funded thing through PledgeMusic. Not surprisingly they've already met their goal and now some of the excess will be going to charity. The signed CDs and vinyl are gone but there are other price-points to net yourself some BFF exclusives.

Check out the new tune Do It Anyway below, which I'm guessing was their response to people telling them the song isn't that great. "Dude, the new tune is underwhelming." "Fuck it, we'll do it anyway." Ouch. New album tentatively scheduled for release in August.

Times Could Be Much Worse

Don't be fooled. Passion Pit's catchy seemingly cheery new tune Take A Walk is anything but...



New album Gossamer is out July 24. In the meantime check out Manners and my favorite from it Moth's Wings, which I think I heard for the first time in an episode of Big Love. That's kinda weird.

So Please Just Go Do What You Please

TooPoppy favorite Jon Auer of the Posies, Big Star, and some must-have solo artist fame has a new project - Dynamo Royale. This is with his band mate/partner Tiz Aramini.

What makes this interesting is he's reaching out via social funding site Kickstarter.  For as little as $1 you get sincere thanks and a listing on their forthcoming website. For $10 you get that plus what you really want - a digital download of the album.  For $1,250 you get all that plus rights to their first born.  Okay, not really, but you do get some really cool stuff.  They are less than $500 away from their goal of $8,000.  Make it happen people.  Album is due October 2013.  Personal plea from Jon and Tiz below.

Now In the World of Light

Quiet Beatle my ass. George Harrison has had quite a week...

George Harrison: Living in the Material World is now available in a Multi-Touch edition that brings the book alive with audio from Harrison himself, as well as from Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and others. Available exclusively on the iBookstore, this elegant, fully immersive book also includes image galleries and videos from both the Scorsese film and the Harrison archive, giving readers an unparalleled reading experience on iPad.

Also available...

EARLY TAKES Volume 1, a musical companion piece to the George Harrison documentary, features 10 previously unreleased recordings from Harrison... 

And finally...

The critically-acclaimed Martin Scorsese documentary, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, which premiered on HBO last October, is available on home video May 1.

Get the film here or here. Finally.

I'd Like To Play Guitar And Be A Beatle

Well well well...what do we have here?  A new Jellyfish album?  Okay, it's a new album of old stuff, but I'll take anything I can get when it comes to Jellyfish.

This is the first official album of a live concert.  Sure, there are a couple bootlegs out there, but this is on the up & up.

You can preorder Jellyfish Live at the Bogart's from Omnivore records right now for only $15.99 on CD or $29.98 on a double LP (that's Long Play on vinyl for you youngsters out there).

I Am Learning

That was really good.

Brandon Schott's new multimedia effort Defying Gravity starts today with its first episode and includes a stunning cover of The Blue Nile's I Would Never. One of my favorite things about Brandon is his pure love of music both in its creation and appreciation. This cool episode gives up a glimpse of this love that he pours into everything he does.

Hold the Phone It's So State of the Art

Alright. I've been holding this one in for a while. I'm in love with Gotye's Making Mirrors and I have mixed feelings about it. I've been listening to the crazy huge hit Somebody That I Used to Know for months on satellite radio. At first I'd only listen to the first 30 seconds and give up. Then I gave in. It builds and builds through the Sting-like vocals and what I can only call the tinky music until Kimbra nails it with her painfully short guest appearance. While I believe it is a killer tune worthy of all the attention it's getting, I was pleasantly surprised to hear so many other great tunes on the album.

The true surprise of the whole album is how unashamedly reverent it is to many sounds of decades past, particularly the 80s. It's not only about the new wave that seems to rear its head every few years. Eyes Wide Open follows up Somebody with a clear nod to Peter Gabriel at his best. The Depeche Modey Smoke and Mirrors is next and sets up the three most interesting and probably polarizing songs on the album. I Feel Better sounds like Sly and the Family Stone filtered through 30+ years of indie music. In Your Light is the best yacht rock tune I've heard since the subgenre's heyday, although it starts off scarily enough with a George Michael riff. And State of the Art. What can I say about State of the Art? I just can't decide if they're being cheeky or dead serious about it. It sincerely reminds of listening to and making our own goofy shit with my brother (Way2Poppy) and cousin when we were kids.  The album ends with probably two of the strongest songs Save Me and Bronte. Bronte is just lovely and usually makes we want to listen to the whole damn album again.

At its core Making Mirrors is an electro-pop (gack) album and probably the best since The Postal Service's brilliant Give Up. It's definitely of its time but surprisingly the fact that it evokes such strange bedfellows makes it so damn fun. I feel like a fool smiling every time I hear its genius little moments, but isn't that what it's all about?

Previews
iTunes
Amazon

The Butter Wouldn't Melt So I Put It In The Pie

Paul McCartney's Ram is getting remastered "in a variety of formats, from single and double-disc editions to a four-disc box set that includes bonus tracks, a DVD, and a 112-page book." It's out May 22. In the meantime check out the shiny remastered version of intricately silly Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey here.

Pre-order here at Amazon.com

It Calls Your Name

Released well over a year ago, Young the Giant's self-titled debut is quickly becoming one of my favorite albums of the past few years. Of course they're still working it as evidenced by their new video for Apartment, the first song that caught my ear...



The rather understatedly catchy Apartment kicks off an album that can't quite find home with the hipsters or the mainstream yet is quite suitable to the 90s-loving pop enthusiasts that I like to think happen upon this blog on occasion. Turn this one up...



It also doesn't hurt for our readers to know that Jellyfish's own Roger Joseph Manning Jr. played keyboards on Your Side. Bam.

Ignore the rare forays into the trappings of a post-Coldplay musical landscape. They're inevitable and I expect a band of Young the Giant's quality to find a way past them eventually as they realize their own identity. Young the Giant is seemingly worth the early investment.

Official Site
iTunes
Amazon.com

Locked in Orbit

Brandon Schott's up to something...



More soon.

I Just Want To Feel Everything

Fiona Apple returns with another mouthful of an album. June 19 sees the release of The Idler Wheel... with the first single Every Single Night debuting online today.
 

She's not for everybody but that's what makes it work. Here's more of what we know about the new album.

Making Off Like a Lucky Bandit

Download Brendan Benson's new one today!

Get your digital copy What Kind of World 3 days early! Readymade Records is releasing Brendan Benson's What Kind of World by digital copy today: 3 days before it's wider release on April 23rd! 23 April 2012 on Lojinx in UK/Europe and April 24, 2012 on Readymade Records in US


Download here

She Said Someday Soon The Sun Was Going To Shine

There is probably some rule out there about two McCartney related posts in a row, but that's just the way we roll here at TooPoppy.

Macca has a new video for his song "My Valentine" starring the insanely beautiful Natalie Portman and the insanely insane Johnny Depp. It's a lovely video with both actors signing the lyrics.

While they get an 'A' for effort, it appears they need to brush up on their sign language skills.

     

Well the Rain Exploded With a Mighty Crash

Are you kidding me with this?



Tim Christensen and Mike Viola sharing a stage performing Band on the Run?! The level of talent on this one small stage could only be matched by McCartney himself. Wow. And of course for those of you in the right place at the right time speaking the right language can check out a full show June 18, which happens to be Sir Paul's birthday. More here.

But I Know It's Out of Place

Bring the noise! Silversun Pickups' new album Neck of the Woods comes out May 8 but you can preview the new tune Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings) below.



It doesn't disappoint. Of course neither does Carnavas and Swoon. Pre-order Neck of the Woods here.

So I Don't Forget

Brendan Benson releases what will likely be yet another pop masterpiece in April. What Kind of World ships April 23 and is ready for download April 21. Many packages are available here.

Don't forget to check out Bad For Me - not sure if it's still available as a free download but give it a shot! Excellent.

With My Pants Down

The new album from Garbage is called Not Your Kind of People and is set for release on May 15. Check out the first single Blood for Poppies below.



Yep. That sure is Garbage. I'm not hooked yet. It'll be a challenge to top the stellar Version 2.0. Download the single via iTunes here. You can pre-order the album and deluxe version via iTunes here.

Keep It In Line

Guided By Voices' new single Keep It In Motion is out today. You can stream it below. If you've ever tried to write a song, it's ok to hate GBV for how effortless they make it seem. It's hard not to thoroughly enjoy their seemingly unfinished lo-fi gems. Stick around for the last five seconds of the song. They're my favorite five seconds.
 

The new album by the classic lineup is out in June and is called Class Clown Spots a UFO. Naturally. Two new albums within six months - not bad for a band that broke up. Buy the single here or here. Their December release Let's Go Eat the Factory is available for download here.

You're Correct. There's Nobody There

Vinyl? Cassette? CD? MP3? Hell no. Ringtones are the future. Enter The Beatles. All the #1s. Yoko needs some new shoes.

via iTunes

My Heart Beats Responding

Brandon Schott has released the second (!) music video from his newest album 13 Satellites. Beware. There be monsters.



Inspiration?

Chasing The Dream

It's no surprise that I adore new music that respectfully owes plenty to the old greats. There is a fine line (that takes a giant leap to cross) between banging out sound-alike tunes and creating something entirely fresh yet familiar, comfortable, and friendly. Very few cross that line as well as Jeff Litman.

Jeff smacked us hard over the head a few years back with his phenomenal debut Postscript. I heaped praise on it but remarked on the album's not-so-subtle backward nods. I've revisited Postscript countless times since and an interesting thing has happened. No longer do I hear the obvious influences first and Jeff later. Jeff's voice is deliberate and clear. I should have given him more credit.

The first great Too Poppy album of 2012 is Jeff Litman's Outside ... officially released today! Outside embodies balance in many ways. It's a bridge between the sounds of the past and present, thoughtful lyrics and catchy tunes, ballads and rockers, reverence and fresh blood. In an era of party tunes and singing competitions, we deserve a talent like Jeff Litman.

In every good way Outside takes me back to the renaissance of rock/pop in the 90s. First single Over and Over would fit it snugly with Michael Penn's oeurve. The title track is deliciously Jellyfishy and even features Jellyfisher Roger Joseph Manning Jr. on keyboards and backing vocals. Girl Down I-95 evokes sunny roadtrips soundtracked by Gin Blossoms and The Smithereens. Runaway irresistably sounds like Crowded House filtered through Soul Asylum.

What makes Outside break out from the pack though is its diversity that sounds like a carefully crafted and beloved mix-tape. Not content with mere hooks, Jeff fires up our emotions with throwbacks like Back To You that I'm convinced I've either heard on 70s AM radio when I was a kid or recently on a great Mike Viola album. Of course it's all Jeff, which is his genius. I don't name-drop flippantly. Jeff has earned these comparisons and frankly it's the fairest way to describe the album. Jon Brion. Elvis Costello. Wisely. Paul Westerberg. Jeff Litman. It works.

One great album is rare and fleeting. Two great albums are the works of a master.

Jeff Litman - Outside (official site (cheap!) / iTunes / Amazon MP3)

Download first single Over and Over here

Class Divide

Joseph Arthur is one of our generation's lesser-heard voices that most-deservedly needs a wider audience. Joe must agree. He's offering his new double album Redemption City as a FREE download. Free. As in ... free.

Here.
 

Against Strong Odds

Remember Counting Crows? Revisit August and Everything After for one of the best albums of the 90s. Seriously. It holds up beautifully.

Now ... they're back, they're independent, and they're embracing the web. Their new album Underwater Sunshine (or What We Did On Our Summer Vacation) is a typical mid-career jaunt into the world of covers. Call it lazy. Call it reverent. But check out the tracklist and keep an open mind. Teenage Fanclub, Travis, and Big Star? Too Poppy is paying attention.

Underwater Sunshine is out April 10 but will be readily available across the web until then for your streaming pleasure.

Official site

Nothing To Prove

Natalie Portman promised me The Shins would change my life. They haven't. After that adorable overstatement in Garden State, very few tunes would have the power to live up to that hype. Nonetheless The Shins caught on in a big way for a few years in the aughts but never really wowed me.

Fast forward to 2012 and bang, Simple Song achieves what no Shins' song has achieved before ... it wows me. I suppose it's no great departure from their previous tunage and maybe I was turned off from the hype in the first place. Maybe I respected James Mercer's Broken Bells tangent enough to perk up. I should go back and spend quality time with what has come before. In the meantime, Simple Song will be in heavy rotation while I anxiously await their fourth album Port of Morrow out next month.

Pre-order the album and get Simple Song instantly - the magic of the Interwebs.

Get Yourself Another Fool

We're a week away from its official release, but you can stream Paul McCartney's Kisses on the Bottom in its entirety at npr.org.

I've heard and share some concern that this new album of covers is a frightening move too similar to Rod Stewart's career choices. Interesting that Macca addresses this directly in the official EPK for the album...

I'd Use Rocketships, Mine Sweepers, Transister Radio Receivers

Just happened upon the Inspiral Carpets web site over lunch today and noticed they're recording again for the first time in 15 years! They're also talking about a world tour. That would rock. Pun intended.

I know what will be playing on my drive home today...

How Can I Say No?

Still some life to World Party? I'll believe it when I touch it with my own two hands.

Arkeology is a (so far) mythical 5-disc box-set by World Party allegedly being released April 10. The official World Party site says, "New Songs, Live Recordings, Cover Versions, Lots of Pictures and The Amazing Any-Year Diary." No doubt I'm intrigued, but we've heard grand and not-so-grand announcements from the genius Karl Wallinger only to ultimately be disappointed. I recognize he's had health issues and he really owes us nothing (Goodbye Jumbo completes me), but please make this happen - whatever it really is.

More here.

I Will Start To Begin At The End

Now this is how you go viral...



Yep, Wilco's new music video is the first hand-drawn Popeye cartoon in more than 30 years! And guess who gets the girl?

More fun here

My Mouth Says Yes

Brendan Benson's new album What Kind of World is still a few months away from release (April 24), but you can go here to download a brand spanking beaut of a tune called Bad For Me. One listen to this one tune and What Kind of World has become my most anticipated album of the year.

More via Stereogum

Your Presence Dominates The Judgments Made On You

The big news in quality-music-world was the recent Twitter announcement that new music from Fiona Apple will be out soon. It's been seven years since her last album was finally released after much delay. She's an extraordinary talent that will likely always leave us wanting more.

Anybody who works with Jon Brion gets my attention...

We're Too Busy Singing

Beatles Beatles Beatles. It's always about the Beatles. Well, they did set the gold standard and they still continue to milk it.

Paul McCartney's pornographically-named Kisses on the Bottom comes out in two weeks. It's a covers collection featuring tunes that influenced Macca himself as well as a couple new ones. Methinks this one didn't make the cut...


Ringo is quite the prolific cat. The unimaginatively-named Ringo 2012 is out next week. Here's hoping the music is a bit more inspired than the name and artwork (seriously, Ringo, flashing the peace sign again?!)

And finally and perhaps most interestingly, George Harrison('s estate) is releasing an iPad app called The Guitar Collection, which "brings George Harrison's personal guitar collection to life."

The George Harrison Guitar Collection from George Harrison on Vimeo.

The Beatles continue to rock our world. Hallelujah.

John? Hello? Oh, hey, Julian.