A Weekend in the Big Easy

So, as Kendall pointed out, its been a bit quiet around here the past couple days. Well, one of those reasons is I spent the weekend in New Orleans. Sorry to take off and leave ya hanging, but i don't regret it. It was a fantastic time. I had a great time wandering both Bourbon St. and the rest of the French Quarter. One of the things I noticed is they've come a long ways since Katrina. But its definitely obvious there's a long ways to go still. For example, skyscraper hotels in downtown New Orleans still are unoccupied with broken windows and empty rooms. Spraypainted X's still can be seen on houses from where search and rescue crews marked the homes as they searched for any survivers. Water lines can still be seen upwards of 8 feet high on some houses. It blew me away and the the storm was 2 DAMN YEARS AGO!! I mean, I don't think its possible for me to even begin to fathom the devastation that must have occured directly after the storm.

But there's hope. They're slowly rebuilding, which is amazing to see. One of the best things I saw is that Preservation Hall is back open for business. Preservation Hall is one of the oldest and premier jazz clubs in New Orleans. And I was extremely disappointed to hear that it had to close its doors back in 2005. I just read that it reopened its doors back in April of 2006, so this isn't exactly groundbreaking news, but I had no idea it had reopened until I saw it this weekend.

Looks like a dump from the outside, but its definitely one of the cooler spots in New Orleans

Needless to say, it was a pleasant site. I didn't actually get to go to a show there, but fear not, I got to hear plenty of New Orleans jazz and blues while I was there. Its impossible to escape when you visit. It was very comforting to see New Orleans slowly making its way back to some sort of normalcy now almost 2 years later. New Orleans really is a one-of-a-kind city. Its an amazing place and I am glad to see it still surviving.

So, I don't have too much to add, so I'll just add a song or two to finish up my post. Here's a couple of songs that remind me of New Orleans whenever I hear them.

The Preservation Hall Jazz Band - When the Saint's Go Marching In: Just bought this and a couple other PH jazz band songs and they're exactly what you expect of a band from New Orleans. This is just a classic song, but its still great to hear. You can buy the Preservation Hall Jazz Band album here.

Dr. John - It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing): The king of New Orleans music. Borrowed this CD from my boss. Its Dr. John performing Duke Ellington songs and whereas I'm not particularly a fan of every song on the album, some are pretty damn good. This is one of the good ones. You can purchase the album here.

Radiohead - Life in a Glass House: This song has a New Orleans march sound to it. It's always reminded me of N'awlins. So I'll post it too. (Buy Radiohead here).

RR

Six Pack

It's been real slow 'round here these last few days. Reckon everyone is busy with school and things much less important than music. The dog days of August are almost upon us, meaning that we have passed the midpoint for the year. Since I love making lists, I figured this Six Pack would include my favorite 6 songs of the year thus far. Yes, some of them are songs I've previously posted but that's why they're up again -- they rock.

1. Spoon -- Black Like Me from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga :: I've really been digging the new Spoon album and I probably could pick three songs from it that would be in contention. For the moment, this is the song. Love the intro with the weaving piano!
[Buy Spoon here]

2. Wilco -- You Are My Face from Sky Blue Sky :: Still not sure about this album, but You Are My Face is crunchy guitar goodness. This shows the power that is Nels on guitar -- see around 1:28.
[Buy Wilco here]

3. Centro-matic -- Atlanta from Operation Motorcide :: I've posted about this song already. Will Johnson is the man and this song is catchy as hell. I'm constantly humming this song throughout the day.
[Buy Centro-matic here]

4. John Doe -- Hotel Ghost from A Year In The Wilderness :: Built on a soaring guitar rift, this song is. It starts a little soft, but as we hear about caressing skeletons, guitar takes off and is oh so good. Me fail english thats unpossible.
[Buy John Doe here]

5. Dinosaur Jr -- Back To Your Heart from Beyond :: Another repost -- a love song only as Dino Jr can write. Of course the guitar hook is nice, but I dig the subtle harmonies late in the song just as much. Go figure?
[Buy Dino Jr here]

6. The National -- Ada from The Boxer :: Yet another repost. The Boxer is probably in my top 3 for albums at the moment and this is my favorite on the disc. I like the story in the song and how the instruments contribute to that story, especially the bittersweet piano throughout.
[Buy The National here]

Welp, that's it for now. Just like a preseason college football poll, this shit is useless until we reach the end of the season. Please feel free to pimp songs for me.

BK

Top 5 Songs of the Great Outdoors

What would these guys be listening to while enjoying some lips and assholes?

It's summer-time (though fading fast), so strap the kayak on top of the car, lace up those hiking boots, and double back that climbing harness. It's time to head out into the Great Outdoors! The summer breeze and Bryan's apt description of King Harvest got me thinking about some other great songs that put me in the mood to get my hands dirty and get out into nature. I know you feel the same way, so what are you listening to as you cruise down the highway in the Winnebago? What do you listen to in the office to take your mind off fluorescent lights and back on sun tans? What makes you yearn for the sweet nectar of Mother Earth? What are your

TOP 5 Song of the Great Outdoors

I can't think of too many stipulations (anything by John Denver is marginally uncreative), so have it. Give us all some songs to put us in the spirit.

AG

A slightly more inspiring image for your musings

Working into the night......

As the title of this post suggests, I'm working late into the night tonight. And, in my humble opinion, one of the only things worse than working during the day, is working at night. But, alas, sometimes it cannot be helped.

One advantage, however, to getting my nocturnal work on is the ability to listen to whatever the hell I want, and not have anyone around me complain. So, I just figured I'd post a couple of songs that are helping me get through the evening.

I googled the word bored and then clicked images, and this was the third image that came up. Note: Views expressed on our site by cartoon frogs do not necessarily reflect the views of website owners.

1. Coldplay - Sparks: Just to show that cartoon frog who's boss. (Stick it to the frog: Buy Coldplay here.)

2. Ryan Adams - Oh My Sweet Carolina: Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE Heartbreaker?? Well, I do. Emmylou Harris has never sounded sweeter. (get it here)

3. Radiohead - Bulletproof.....i wish i was: I can't remember, but I think the one time I saw Radiohead they played this song in concert, and if that's true, then I consider myself extremely lucky. (Radiohead has put out a few CDs......you can get them numerous places, but I recommend here)

4. Sufjan Stevens - Casimir Pulaski Day: I sure have been listening to a damn lot of Sooofjan lately. This is off of the Illinoise album, but you don't have to be in Illinois to buy it. I promise. Go here.

5. Pete Yorn - All At Once:I realize Pete Yorn's 'all the rage' now, but I saw the man back when I was one of like 8 people in a parking lot. Not that it makes me cooler or anything, i'm just sayin....You should jump on the bandwagon too and get his CD here.

Wow, on second glance its amazing I haven't fallen asleep listening to these "jams". Oh well, my experiment is calling. I hope you enjoy these songs.

Holla

RR

Randommm catchiness

I like the minimalist approach around here the last couple of days, so for your enjoyment, catchy motherfucking songs:

Spoon -- The Underdog from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga [buy Spoon here]
Mike Doughty -- American Car from Haughty Melodic [buy Mike Doughty here]
Freakwater -- Great Potential from Dancing Under Water [buy Freakwater here]

BK

Yummy...Wilco

What the fuck are they de-constructing this time?

This week's Six Pack is an all Wilco affair. I've been inundated with these guys this week, as I just finished reading Greg Kot's book Wilco Learning How To Die [buy here] and I saw the VW commercials a ton while watching The British Open. Hey, I can't complain about that. These Wilco cuts come from the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot demos. Enjoy!

Kamera (alternate version)
Poor Places
Magazine Called Sunset
I'm The Man Who Loves You
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
Nothing Up My Sleeve


BK

Surrender

Right on Rutledge. Just for the hell of it - I can't get this song off my play list or out of my head. I've been diggin on it a lot lately. It's a cover of Cheap Trick's Surrender and its damn good stuff.

Ox - Surrender
[buy and download Ox here]

AG

Just for the heck of it......

No shallow analysis, no comments, just a song. Listen to it. It's good.

Sufjan Stevens - To Be Alone With You

and while we're at it......

Cold War Kids - We Used to Vacation

RR

Nashville Pickers

Tony Watt with Alecia Nugent at the Opry

Now that I've left Nashville I seem to be hearing about all kinds of great bluegrass news and events taking place back in Tennessee. Here's some news from KGB-buddy, Tony Watt. He's still working on that PhD, but is also finishing up a record with Cages Bend and has just recently been taken on to play guitar for Alecia Nugent and her band. Furthermore, to kick the whole thing off Tony stepped up on stage at the Grand Ole Opry for the first time last weekend. I hear the whole thing went pretty well, so congrats to Tony.

In addition, Tony and roommate Andy Falco were recently interviewed by Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and featured in their most recent webcast. The webcast includes a little discussion, a little jam between Tony, Andy, and third roommate Noam Pikelny (pretty smokin), then a unreleased track off Andy's up and coming record. Check out Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and the webcast here!

You can keep up with everybody at myspace too:

Tony Watt
Alecia Nugent
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine
Andy Falco

AG

HATER!

So apparently I'm a hater. Curious to know why?? Check this out and scroll to the last bit about the Neutral Milk Hotel sing-a-long. Who knew, huh? Well, obviously I don't know the backstory behind such an idea, but I stand behind my initial opinion on the issue. (For those too lazy to click the link, my opinions are stated as follows: a capella singings of Neutral Milk Hotel's The Aeroplane Over the Sea - Against. Free pudding Snack Packs - For.) That being said, I'd like to issue a formal apology to the creator's of the idea....

"Sorry I made fun of your bad idea."

There. Now all is well.

Two things I'd like to mention today.

#1. The new Smashing Pumpkins album. I'd absolutely love to post two of my favorite songs from the album, but if you ask me Billy Corgan seems like the kind of guy that would stay up all night googling his name just so he could report us to the RIAA. So, i'll just tell you about the songs. If you could only download two I'd go with Doomsday Clock and United States. They both sound like old Smashing Pumpkins. And honestly, is there anything else we would've wanted out of this album? I didn't expect it to break down any musical barriers or unite us all together in one love and appreciation for music. I expected (read: wanted) it to sound like an old Smashing Pumpkins album. These songs are the most old-Pumpkinesque.

I had a mini-argument with a friend of mine this past weekend about why we should even bother to care about this album, "Its not even the Smashing Pumpkins, its only one guy." Well, actually its two. Billy and the drummer. But I was always under the impression that BC never let anyone else do anything in the studio. Its not like the Pumpkins lost anything with D'arcy left and they replaced her with Auf der Maur before Machina. Same thing here. Still sounds like the Pumpkins, and because of that I will recommend it. If you liked the Pumpkins before, you will like this album. If you never liked them before, don't waste your time.

#2. Heard the new Ben Harper single called "In the Colors" and I really like it. Here's the video:



Finally, we've been bombarded recently with emails of groups we're supposed to listen to and attempt to distribute to the masses (i use the term very liberally). Well, i've been busy as can be recently so I've never actually managed to get around to those. I suppose I'll spend an evening here soon and give some a listen. I have a feeling its going to be a needle in a haystack kinda thing, but if one good band comes out of it, then so be it.

Take care everyone.

RR

Introducing...my favorite song

The Band, bitches.

Picking a favorite song is pretty difficult for most of us. If you're anything like me, your favorite will change based on various things ranging from your mood, the people surrounding you, or even the weather outside. Well, I am bucking the trend. I have found my all time favorite version of a song. If I had one song to listen to before I died, it would be The Band's King Harvest (Has Surely Come) from their live album Rock of Ages. I love this song and I think you should too.

Here is the song: The Band -- King Harvest (Has Surely Come) from Rock of Ages [buy here]

Here is why I love this song so much.

1. Musically :: First, I love the strength in Richard Manuel's voice as he belts this tune out. Towards the end of his run with The Band, his addictions got the best of him, both in his songwriting and in his singing. Here, he's as soulful and as strong as I've ever heard. Second, the addition of the horns is fantastic. They add a layer to the song and that fosters the tone and the imagery running rampant throughout. For example, as the narrator describes his pleas for the rainmaker at around 1:23, the lead trumpet and background horn arrangements (created by none other than Allen Toussaint) add to the sense of desparation. Another example to me is around 2:47 when the horns sweep through, helping me to hear the wind blow through the cornfields. These are just two examples of how the horns set the mood. Finally, Robby Robertson and Rick Danko team up to play some killer licks at the end of the song. I've always considered Robertson's playing a little overshadowed because of his superior songwriting acumen. At the end of King Harvest, he's at his best. He's not doing anything complicated, at least to my non-musically trained ears, but the (apparent) simplicity of the rift sounds appropriate for the humble, down and out sort of vibe throughout the song.

2. Lyrically :: Robby Robertson, the genius behind this song (and many other The Band songs) writes a very compelling story in the span of four minutes. We, the listener, get abundant details of the narrator's tough luck over the last year, ranging from his barn burning down to his horse going crazy, and how he has some renewed hope in the future thanks to organized labor. However, the narrator also knows that none of that matters if the weather doesn't cooperate, thus his plea for the rainmaker to provide rain. The Band is often considered one of the forefathers of Americana music. King Harvest is, in my mind, the quissiessential reason why many critics often bestow that title on this band full of Canadians.

3. Personally :: I've talked before about my love of imagery in a song and this one is no different. For any Hanoverians that read this, the reference to wind blowing through the cornfields reminds me of the field of corn directly south of Hanover's scenic entrance. For whatever reason, I've always associated the image of that cornfield with this line from the song. It's always cool to think back to the fun times of college every time I hear this song. Moreover, the lyrics describing yellow moons and carnivals on the edge of town are direct experiences I had while at Hanover. In addition, the midwest offers plenty of driving routes with corn flanking both sides of two lane road. Playing this song on one of my trips to Oxford led to an epiphany one day that continues to this day.

So anyway, those are some of my reasons why I love King Harvest. While we're at it, here's a YouTube video of The Band rehearsing this killer song at Woodstock in 1970 (followed by Danko doing an abbreviated Long Black Veil).




Finally, we mentioned Richard Manuel, who died in 1986. Since his passing, he's taken a kind of legendary status and many bands have paid homage to him, including The Drive-By Truckers and The Counting Crows. Check out the following from their live album, New Amsterdam, Live at Heineken Hall [buy here].

Counting Crows -- Richard Manuel Is Dead



BK

Sunday Six Pack

Man, dem some sweet wheels.

A wise man once said, "Public transportation is for jerks and lesbians." Now, Homer Simpson has said many a true thing in his day, but he clearly was not as lucky as guys like Paul Westerberg, who were hooking up with girls on the defining symbol of American public transportation, the bus. Another reason Westerberg is the man! On the contrary, Michael Stipe watched his significant other leave town on the bus. Ah, who knew that lumbering, rectangular chariot of the people could create romantic rollercoasters? The bus is relevant in the first two songs of this week's six pack; it has nothing to do with the other 4 killer songs.

The Replacements -- Kiss Me On The Bus from Tim :: Westerberg's song of teenage love and rejection gives me thoughts of a long lost High Fidelity scene. Ya know, at the beginning where Rob Gordon makes out with a girl on the bleachers then she's making out with someone else later. This bus scene woulda fit nicely somewhere here. Although not applicable to the aforementioned scene, I can't help it:: "Charlie, you fucking bitch, let's work it out."
[Buy The Replacements here]

REM -- (Don't Go Back To) Rockville from The Best of the IRS Years :: Hey, I love the country of this song. Some of my favorite REM is when they're not doing the typical REM thing (but I still like that too).
[Buy REM here]

HEM -- South Central Rain from No Word from Tom :: Hey, it's only appropriate that a band named HEM would cover a song by REM. Besides, Sally Ellyson's lead vocals sound great.
[Buy HEM here]

Spoon -- My Little Japanese Cigarette Case from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga :: Man, talk about some catchy shit, this is it. In fact, the new Spoon album, which dropped last Tuesday, is bursting with catchy hooks. In other words, Spoon being Spoon.
[Buy Spoon here]

Centro-matic -- Strahan Has Corralled The Freaks from Love You Just The Same :: Love this song, particularly the contrast created by the crunchy guitars paired with the strings. Also can't get enough of the sha la la las....
[Buy Centro-matic here]

Dinosaur Jr -- They Always Come from Bug :: This is the hard chaser after the 5 previous beers (we'll go with whiskey). I'm not usually one to get off on drumming, but Murph's drumming is hypnotic on this song, especially in the beginning. I don't know if this is even considered "good" drumming technically speaking, but damn it reeled me in.
[Buy Dino Jr here]

BK

Pink Is My Favorite Color

This KGB site is a nucular.

Well dammit...Rutledge went and done it. He introduced the Daytrotter website to me and now I am checking it pretty damn frequently -- another way to waste time at work. Anyway, two bands I am very interested in have been featured as of late. The latest is The National, which I've mentioned before. I can't stop listening to Boxer, their newest album. Check out their cover of the Psychedelic Furs, Pretty In Pink here. The site also features some other tunes from Boxer, which you can access from here. The second guy is Will Johnson, the head honcho of Centr0-matic. This cat is always writing and this Daytrotter session features a few tunes, including the previously unreleased Emma Jane. Check it out, along with three other song, here. After reading the article, I love this guy even more -- he's a bigtime Cardinals' guy!

BK

IBMA Music Festival - Nashville, TN

Howdy folks, Nashville has yet another treat lined up for all you bluegrass fans out there. The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) will hold their World of Bluegrass festival on October 1-7th some where round the convention center (downtown). There looks to be some great acts taking stage, including Emmylou Harris, Doyle Lawson, Larry Sparks, Mountain Heart, and many many more. And let's not forget the load of pickin that bound to be taking place in every dark corner of that place. Ah, to be back in Nashville. So, if you live in the area, check it out and report back to make me jealous!

Here are a few links:
Paste Magazine Announcement
IBMA Website
IBMA Myspace Page

And here's a tune or two to get you warmed up:
Emmylou Harris - Sister's Coming Home [buy]
Mountain Heart - I Want To Live Beyond the Grave [buy]

AG

National Smashing Pumpkins Day!!!!!

Let's try this again......

Go out and get it and let me know what you think.....I just got mine like two hours ago. I've really enjoyed listening to the 10 min. United States so far. Its much better than many of their other extended song attempts. So, get it and let's discuss.....

By the way, here's the video for Tarantula:



And for those that caught the Pumpkins during their LiveEarth performance (they played United States, Bullet with Butterfly Wings, Tarantula, and Today) here's what Billy looked like:

And i was wondering, did he possibly remind you of anyone else......


just a little, maybe???

RR

AG Webcast: Episode 6

HORNS!

Maceo Parker (not featured in this webcast, oddly) holding the horn

I love horns. It's just that simple, folks. And, so is this webcast. No crazy discourses on music here, just songs that I dig. Why do I dig em? Well, horns. They really bring a piece together for me, so I thought I'd try to share that with all you fine folks. Enjoy!

>>> AG Webcast - July 2007 - E6 <<<

1. Al Green - I Can't Get Next To You from Al Green Gets Next To You (1971)

2. Sly and the Family Stone - Thank You (flmbme)

3. Us3 - Cantaloupe Island (Flip Fantasia) from Hand On the Torch (1993)

4. Bob Marley - I'm Hurting Inside (Alternate Mix) from Song of Freedom (1971)

5. Van Morrison - Caravan from Moondance (1970)

6. Steely Dan - Home At Last from Aja (1977)

7. JJ Cale - Chains of Love from To Tulsa and Back (2004)

8. Taj Mahal - You're Gonna Need Somebody On Your Bond (live) from The Best of (2000)

9. The Band - Don't Do It from Rock of Ages (1972)

10. Morphine - Scratch from Yes (1995)

11. Yo La Tengo - Black Flowers from I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass (2006)

12. Yo La Tengo - Beanbag Chair from I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass (2006)

AG

Sunday Six Pack returns

Come on now, Billy Beer that bad?

After a week off, I am back with an updated six songs that have kept me staggering. These feature some of the new ones from Ryan Adams, Centro-matic, and Jason Isbell, along with some classics from Uncle Tupelo, John Doe, and Joni Mitchell.

Uncle Tupelo -- Whiskey Bottle from No Depression :: Don't pay attention to my Last.fm chart, UT is my most played band with this song being my most listened to. I've always been a big Still Feel Gone fan, but No Depression is quickly catching up.
[Buy UT here]

John Doe -- Burning House of Love from Live From The Living Room :: John Doe, mostly known as the leader of LA punk band X, has always dabbled in alt-country music. He's reflected that through the years with various side projects and solo efforts, including a band called The Knitters. Originally from the album, The Modern Sounds of The Knitters, this live version was recently featured on Emusic. Oh yeah, he's got a great new solo album that just hit.
[Buy Live From The Living Room at Emusic]
[Buy X here]
[Buy The Knitters here]
[Buy John Doe here]

Joni Mitchell -- You Turn Me On (I'm A Radio) from For The Roses :: I love this song for Joni's voice and the witty lyrics. I walk around singing this song all fucking day. Could be worse, eh?
[Buy Joni Mitchell here]


Centro-matic -- Atlanta from Operation Motorcide :: Released this year, this EP is apparently leftover songs from Centro-matic's great album from 2006, Fort Recovery.


Will Johnson has a lot of hair.

Although these songs didn't make the original cut, I can't help but think it was a way for WIll Johnson to garner even more accolades. The dude is the man and this EP does nothing to dispel that truth.
[Buy Centro-matic here]

Jason Isbell -- Dress Blues from Sirens OF The Ditch :: On the drawing board for over two years, Jason Isbell, formerly of The Drive-By Truckers, has his solo album drop this Tuesday, July 10th. He performed this with the Truckers frequently over the last year, but it's still good to get a studio take, especially with the sweet pedal steel. Oh yeah, Isbell is on the road with Centro-matic for a few shows this summer.
[Buy Jason Isbell here and check out the dates below]

NEW SHOWS/NEW TOUR:
Fri. July 13 - Dallas, TX/Granada Theater w/ Pleasant Grove, Dovehunter, Sarah Jaffe.
Fri. July July 27 - Kansas City, MO/Record Bar w/ The String and Return, OK Jones.
Sat. July 28 - Chicago, IL/Wicker Park Festival w/ Man Man, many others.
Thurs. Aug. 9 - Denver, CO/Larimer Lounge w/ Jason Isbell.
Fri. Aug. 10 - Lincoln, NE/Knickerbockers w/ Jason Isbell.
Sat. Aug. 11 - Lawrence, KS/Bottleneck w/ Jason Isbell.
Tues. Aug. 14 - Austin, TX/Mohawk w/ Jason Isbell.
Wed. Aug. 15 - Houston, TX/Walter's on Washington w/ Jason Isbell.
Thurs. Aug. 16 - Baton Rouge, LA/Chelsea's w/ Jason Isbell.
Fri. Aug. 17 - Orlando, FL/The Social w/ Jason Isbell.
Sat. Aug 18 - Tampa, FL/The Crowbar w/ Jason Isbell.
Mon. Aug. 20 - Charlotte, NC/Amos' Southend w/ Jason Isbell.
Wed. Aug. 22 - Asheville, NC/Grey Eagle w/ Jason Isbell.
Thurs. Aug. 23 - Louisville, KY/Phoenix Hill w/ Jason Isbell.
Fri. Aug. 24 - Nashville, TN/Mercy Lounge w/ Jason Isbell.
Sat. Aug 25 - Macon, GA/The Hummingbird

Ryan Adams -- Pearls On A String from Easy Tiger :: This is one of my favorite tracks on his newest and to think, it almost didn't make the cut. Love the old timeyness, ya know?
[Buy RA here]

Drink up!

BK

Let's make some new friends....

So, by now you've maybe heard us talk about, write about, or saw us post a chart from last.fm. If not, there's a link at the bottom of the left toolbar that will take you to their site.

What's cool about last.fm is that it keeps total track of everything you listen to on your computer. It talley's everything up and tells you how many times you listen to a song or artist and keeps this talley over both the course of the week and forever....

Kinda like this.....here's my overall top artists list....it includes everything I've listened to on my computer since I joined the site





What's also cool is that it will recommend other potential listening interests based on everything you currently listen to.

And what's still even cooler is the fact that you can add friends and see what you're friends are listening to. For instance.....Gerdon just listed to some Neil Diamond......seriously.

So, what I'm proposing is that our radio.kgb readership add themselves to the ol' last.fm (its extremely easy, all you do is download one program that constantly runs in your toolbar at the bottom right of your computer). Then after you do this, come to radio.kgb and post their username so we can add you as "friends". I'm really curious as to what everyone listens to on a regular basis, and I bet I'm not the only one. So, its easy to do, takes only like 10 minutes, and is fun....you should give it a try.

And by the way......what the hell is this??????

If my eyes aren't deceiving me, it looks like a bunch of people are getting together here in Nashville at Centennial Park to sing Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (an album with I LOVE). Am I the only one who thinks this is a stupid idea??? That can't possibly be true.

Oooh!! And there's even free pudding snack packs!!! And if the creator of this idea just so happens to be a regular reader here.......well, i apologize. I may just go for the snack pack.

RR

Happy Independence Day, Bitches!!!

That's right, 231 years ago today our country was birthed. I still remember it like it was yesterday. She was so cute, but just wouldn't stop crying. Damn near kept me up every night that first week. But that's ok, ya know, because I loved her. And here we are today, a-celebratin' again. So, have a safe holiday, eat some good food (I'm ironically having German food tonight, is that even allowed???), drink some good beer, watch some fireworks and listen to these few songs about (or by a group named) America. Take care.

Elliott Smith - Independence Day
Simon and Garfunkel - America (live)
America - Ventura Highway

And you know what.....I wasn't going to do it. But here goes.....just to piss Kendall off:

Neil Diamond - America

Goodnight everybody.

RR

Back from Vacation

Hello again, RadioKGB. This is my first post in a couple of weeks and I'd like to apologize for my inactivity. But I just got back from an extremely relaxing vacation to the Atlantic coast, so I'm not too terribly sorry about my absence. That said, however, I would like to talk for a bit about a band I spent most of my time on the beach listening to. That band is a little pop group called Bishop Allen. You can check out their website here. To date, Bishop Allen has released one LP, Charm School, and 12 different EPs (one for each month of 2006). All of these can be purchased either digitally or in some physical sense (i.e. CD) on their website, and the January and February EPs are available from eMusic.


So far what I enjoy the most about Bishop Allen is very simple to understand, they write extremely good pop songs. So, I suppose in Gerdon's mind this makes them equal to The Beatles....HEY-O! I'm just kidding, my friend. In all seriousness though, these are some damn good songs. They've got a new album coming out July 24 called The Broken String, and based on everything I've heard so far, you can bet I'll be picking it up. So, I'm going to post a few songs that I've collected, the first three of which are available free on their website. Nothing complicated here, just some damn good songs.

Bishop Allen - Click Click Click Click (from the upcoming The Broken String)
Bishop Allen - Rain (ditto)
Bishop Allen - Things are What You Make of Them (from Charm School)
Bishop Allen - Butterfly Nets (from their Daytrotter session)

And while I'm at it there's a lot of good stuff available now over at the Daytrotter website, which I previously mentioned in this post. Here's a few examples of what I'm talking about...

The Long Winters - Scared Straight (from their Daytrotter session)
David Bazan (of Pedro the Lion fame) - Harmless Sparks/God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (from his Daytrotter session)

Keep an eye on the site, they've always got new stuff coming in.

RR

Where's the Love for Ryan Adams?

Well hey, Ryan Adams' new one, Easy Tiger, dropped last Tuesday and despite some of the buzz we contributed to on this site, none of us have mentioned it. I've had a week to digest it and it's hitting me much like the newest Wilco. There are some really great songs on here, including the first single Two, along with Everybody Knows, Tears of Gold, Pearls of A String; there are some duds as well (don't get me started on Off Broadway...yawner).

Anyway, this post isn't intended to review the album; I'm not any good at that. I was initially poking around on Youtube to catch the Letterman performance that I missed last week. The version of Two is posted below and is quite good. What really struck me is Ryan and his appearance. He looks so much better than this time two years ago. Check out the next clip of Let It Ride from Cold Roses, which was released in May 2005. It's good to see that he is apparently cleaned up as has been reported in the media. Both of these performances are sweet though, crack or no crack.

Ryan today:




Ryan two years ago:




BK