The Weather Underground | When I was a Soldier (EP)
I cannot stop listening to this band. Number one favorite new find of the year, pyched to see them in Austin this week. They've just got "it" (not that I can define what "it" is, but you know what I mean). The tracks are great, and even better, this band is great live. I'm telling you every song had the right mix of genres old and new, every kid in the band has a different cultural background, the band mixes well together, they really had charisma on stage. They were part Otis Redding, part young Elvis with rock and roll influences from the Who to the Beatles, but it doesn't sound regurgitated like so many wanna be indie rockers. Get into it. - TK
One Track To Start: "When I Was a Soldier"

Labels: los+angeles, rhapsody

Stephen Malkmus | Real Emotional Trash
The beauty of a Malkmus album is that you always know what you're getting: clever rhyming digressions, guitars that meander as much as the lyrics and more than occasional sloppy swells. Nor is there ever a bad song; merely a few that are less good than others. Real Emotional Trash might surprise you, at least a little: It's as psychedelic as he's ever been with the Jicks ("Hopscotch Willie" and "Dragonfly Pie"), and there are even a couple Pavement-esque moments ("Out Of Reaches" and "We Can't Help You") to break up the six- to 10-minute jam sessions ("Real Emotional Trash"). - Dan Shumate

Labels: Malkmus, matador, Pavement, rhapsody

Cat Power | Jukebox
In her own personal Jukebox of favorites, Cat Power pays tribute to her inspirations by covering tunes from James Brown, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, Joni Mitchell, Billie Holliday, and in honor of Dylan and Aretha Franklin. Time will tell if Cat Power will continue to rise, but Chan Marshall already ranks with the most memorable female singers of this generation. This record moves beyond the Memphis soul of The Greatest, the band is looser and Dirtier, but they hang back a little more, underplaying so that Chan must stand up taller, and the result is a more confident Cat Power. Out of the darkness, into the light, perhaps. Nick D says she'll break your heart on the country number "Silver Stallion," and she'll turn Sinatra's "New York, New York" into a slinky penthouse jaunt. It's painful and beautiful, makes me nervous and calms at the same time. The lady's legend grows. -TK
Jukebox comes out Tuesday, but your peoples at Rhapsody delivered it to you yesterday. Pow!

Labels: catpower, jukebox, rhapsody

Edgar Winter | Roadwork
Instead of a fresh new album, today I'd like you to turn your attention to a gospel/rock classic from 35 years ago that cousin Jerry turned me onto last night. Click this and check out this live record by Edgar Winter's White Trash. It will be a much better experience then you are probably thinking it will be as you read this now. It's somehow timely, in a yacht-rock-meets-gospel-tent kind of way, with it's chorus of "Save the Planet! Who will save my planet?" and the always funky refrains about "shuckin and jivin." It's got to be ok to go back to the 70's for one mo' time, old school, and listen to songs like "Rock n Roll Hoochie Koo" and feel what it was like to play it on stage. They take a tight spin on Otis Redding's "Can't Turn You Loose," what a kickin horn section! You will be impressed with the bassline mingling with the lead guitar work of the inimitable Rick Derringer on "Tobacco Road" and "Back in the USA." Listen all the way through, for there is about the Gospel preachinest "Lovelight" around, soul claps and all. I'd put it up against most Dead versions from Pigpen's era. Take out the White Trash for a spin, get a feel for what Edgar brought to the world beyond just the overplayed classic "Frankenstein." - TK

Labels: classicrock, edgarwinter, lovelight, rhapsody, savetheplanet, whitetrash, yachtrock

Band of Horses | Cease to Begin
At some point, I'm gonna have to stop listening to this record. Or at least switch it up for a while. Cease to Begin picks up where Everything All The Time left off; its dark and morbid, yet simple chorded and jangly and harmonius.
At first, I wasn't floored with the album as a complete piece. Maybe it was the sequencing? Kayceman said be patient, I kept it in the rotation and started to listen to it on random, and it grew like a weed party.

The album is filled with so many internal struggles, "No One's Gonna Love You" is the perfect example of this. You can understand where the struggles come from, as the Horses lost a founding member "looking like a limb torn off" and moved back to South Carolina "wheeling through an endless fall" and tried to figure out where this quick trajectory of success left them "the ever living ghost of what once was." Then its pretty again ("Anything to make you smile...") and then the hook comes at you with "Things start splittin at the seams and now the whole thing comes tumbling down." Yet it's sung with such beautiful harmonies that its a perfect song. The harmonies from this band give me chills, and while they didn't deliver it live last year, the new incarnation is much better, so go check 'em out live. We know you can't have the darkness without the light and when you can mix them together correctly it creates something akin to the sum of the parts being greater than the whole. The rapid fire geetar strumming is sorta like "running the blender in a lightning storm" - kinda like mixing vinegar and baking soda and getting the volcano to erupt. Even the lines about nothing - "run to the general store for nothing specific" resonate so perfectly. They will have their detractors who will claim BoH is trying to be this or that, or the albums are short, but their formula works for me. I'd rather have one short album a year than a shitty record any day. Hey Bridwell&Co, not sure why, but "no one's gonna love you more than I do." - TK

One Track Recommendation: If you do one thing today, listen to "No One's Gonna Love You" three times and try to tell me that is not a great f-ckin song! Song of the Year nomination from me.

Labels: BandOfHorses, harmony, rhapsody, SubPop

Soulive | Rhapsody Celebrity Mixtape
I wanted to share this interview with you, I sat down with Soulive in the Rhapsody studios to celebrate their release of No Place Like Soul. This was hands down the best, most captivating, most dynamic interview that I have ever done. Since forming in 1999, the trio, now a quartet with singer Toussaint, has developed a reputation as one of the most sought after soul-funk units on the scene. Listen to the band members sing some of their selections and
talk about their musical history, it's a great listen. These fellas eat, drink, sleep, breathe and LIVE their music. Checkout the recommendations from out the mouths of Eric, Neal, Alan and Toussaint. Click + listen to the words and the music. - Ted K

Labels: interview, rhapsody, soulive, soulmusic

I am officially obsessed with the new Rilo Kiley album, Under The Blacklight. After each listen, I come back with a new favorite song, I just can't decide! My first love on this album was "Breakin' Up" - an upbeat melody and tempo but it's totally heartbreaking at the same time. "Are we breakin' up? Did my heart break enough?" My next favorite is "Dejalo" with Latino beats that remind me of Gloria Estefan (in a good way, if that's possible) and great lines like "I got a tail if you wanna chase it." Jenny Lewis's voice is pristine and innocent, devilish and fun. This is a great album to play really loud and dance around your room. Rock it! -SuperD

Labels: indiepop, JennyLewis, rhapsody, RiloKiley

Stevie Wonder | 08.27.07 | concord, ca
the legend of legends. the master of music. the godfather of gospelrock. he wrote the songs in the key of life. he's a talking book. if you start to look back, just every band you ever liked was influenced by stevie in some way. from kiedis to kanye, mariah to michael, he's the musician's musician. i am beside myself with fulfillingness that i got to sing his songs with him tonight. hafty said one he heard "love's in need of love today," he knew it was gonna be on. almost three hours straight. practically every song he ran through is a classic. who else could you go see on tour today that has more than thirty top ten hits? [check the charts] the bumpin-est parties you ever went to had stevie funkin up the soundtrack. boogie on reggae woman! sir duke! i wish!

when he dropped into "signed, sealed, delivered" the place just exploded - people of all ages and races were dancing in the aisles. when his all grown up daughter aisha morris came to sit with him for "isn't she lovely," tears were shed - by stevie and anyone who remembers her voice from the original version. he is so tapped in musically, i mean he has no sight and lost his sense of smell in a car accident in 1973, but his hearing and voice are perfect.

everything stevie does is right in rhythm, from instructing the band to counting off the songs to simply the way he talks. he dropped in and out of covered classics like "billie jean" and "heard it through the grapevine" and he had us turn the mother out, p-funk style. a whole lotta rhythm was indeed goin down. you could indeed feel it all over. and if you listen deeper, the lessons are simple, and they're based in love: "his parents give him love and affection, to keep him strong, movin in the right direction." if you ever get the chance, do yourself a favor and tap it to the wisdom of stevland morris for a few hours. it'll set you so right, it's never wrong. - TK

Labels: concord, fulfillingness, legend, rhapsody, steviewonder, wondersummersnight

New Pornographers | Challengers
This Vancouver supergroup's third album, Twin Cinema got me interested in their smileyindiepop sound, I listened to that album a lot back in 2005. The new record, Challengers, has got me hooked, line and many singers. The hooks are there, the harmonies are always gorgeous, and a heaping dose of strings and keyboards hold together the collectively written songs. I've been listening to "All the Old Showstoppers" pretty much non-stop this week. Did you know that Neko Case and Dan Bejar from Destroyer were in the New Pornographers, as well as AC Newman and Todd Fancey? Of course you did. That's why I knew I liked you. - TK

Labels: indiepop, matador, newpornographers, rhapsody

Bedouin Soundclash | Street Gospels
Bedouin Soundclash bring the most reverent respect of reggae roots to the Warped Tour people, and even if Street Gospels leans on heavier punk influences ("Gunships," "Walls Fall Down"), the opening "Until We Burn in the Sun" starts things off right with a hearty, dub-influenced groove. The production of Bad Brains bassist Darryl Jenifer only makes this Kingston quality stronger. If for only the name, the relaxed "Nico on the Night Train" is another favorite. - Nate C.

Labels: BedouinSoundclash, dub, rhapsody, side1dummy

Flight Of The Conchords | The Distant Future
The year's funniest TV show results in 2007's best EP. What makes the Flight of the Conchords so special is that Jemaine and Brett are dead-on with their parodies, but their songs actually stand up on their own. This pairs three of the New Zealand duo's studio creations with three live renditions. The brilliant, Prince-worthy "The Most Beautiful Girl in the Room" is here, as is the inquisitive "If You're Into It." The Mick Jagger parody "Business Time" is so painfully true-to-life that it may result in a catastrophic rise in the global divorce rate. - Nick D.

Labels: Brett, Britt, Flight of the Conchords, Jemaine, Murray, New Zealand, rhapsody, SubPop

Endless Highway: A Tribute to the Band
Here's why tribute albums usually suck: Seldom do new artists record better versions of original versions. Most tributes are compiled by indie labels who put their friends' unknown, sucky bands on just to give them exposure. Now here's why this tribute album doesn't suck. Jack Johnson (with ALO) can woo more women than all five members of The Band combined with his perfect rendition of "I Shall Be Released." Jim James & MMJ will make you weep if you listen to "It Makes No Difference." The Band's songs are so stellar that not even Blues Traveler can ruin "Rag Mama Rag." For the first time in his recording career, Jakob Dylan doesn't sound bored on "Whispering Pines." That kid from Gomez with the glasses still sings like Eddie Vedder, as heard "Up on Cripple Creek." Plus, "Acadian Driftwood" is the finest song ever written about the forcible displacement of the Acadian people with Cajun roots from eastern Canada. The Band were storytellers of the highest order, these are the same great stories told by some new faces, give it a whirl. - E. Shea (plus two cents from TK)

Labels: Allman Brothers, Blues Traveler, cover album, Guster, Jack Johnson, Jakob Dylan, MMJ, rhapsody, the band, Trevor Hall

Two Gallants | The Scenery of Farewell (EP)
A pithy precursor to Two Gallants' forthcoming third album, this acoustic EP is the duo's first release since the October 2006 onstage incident that led to drummer Tyson Vogel's night in a Houston jail. The opener "Seems Like Home To Me" establishes the album's mournfully exposed spirit, while Adam Stephens' harmonica adds an introspective reflection to their somber formula of heavyhearted poetry and lonesome folk melodies. With less wavering agitation, The Scenery of Farewell hints at the frustration of last fall's tour: "Days get so dark/ I can hardly see/ I've been gone so long/ It seems like home to me" - Sabrina S.

Labels: houston jail, rhapsody, san francisco, two gallants

Wilco | Sky Blue Sky
If you prefer songcraft to sonic exploration, you'll fall for Wilco's Sky Blue Sky like you did for Being There. They wrote it in the studio as a band, and like any good album, the magic unfolds with repeated listens. In moments where Wilco settle back into the subtlety of their Americana roots, guitar phenomenon Nels Cline lets loose with something jazzy and proggy, but tasteful. "Either Way" is a simple, sunny song that sets the tone with a warm George Harrison feel. Doubled leads on "Impossible Germany" recall '70s soft-rock obscurities like the cosmic, countrified Krautrock of Sand. - E.Shea

I forgot to mention that Rhapsody got the Premiere stream of the album last Tuesday, I was so busy listening to it that I forgot to blog about it. The Young Wiseman Dan K mentioned that he thought there were riffs on SBS which reminded him of some old Steely Dan riffs. I think there's something to it, give it a stream and tell me what you think. - TK

Labels: jazzprog, krautrock, rhapsody, tweedy, wilco

ALO | Roses and Clover
Local boys done great! It's so heartwarming to watch the maturation of ALO from California college band to local jam band to scene stalwart, and knowing that they are still on the rise you wonder just how big they can go. In order to keep climbing the heart charts, a band must put out a solid studio album to add to the infectious live show. This new album makes it two in a row for ALO. Roses and Clover sees the SF foursome playfully collaborating with the veteran producer Robert Carranza (Beck, Ozomatli), freely knitting sun-soaked funk and gritty jam with uplifting lyrics, infectious hooks and rootsy rhythms. The album opens with first single "Maria," a summery, groove-heavy testament to love that makes ya feel like I'm ridin in a convertible down the coast. "Plastic Bubble" showcases a campy ukulele while "Lady Loop" bursts with lusty bass licks and oodles of keyboard twists. To quoth the Tan Man, "People just have a tendency to gravitate towards this band. The energy they put out is infectious, and they always seem to be able to maintain their roots while further expanding their fanbase. If ALO was a TV show, they would be 'Cheers'." - SS+TK, w/TW quote

Labels: ALO, happiness, maria, rhapsody

Pela | Anytown Graffiti
Pela's full-length debut abounds with blistering, reverent anthems. Influenced by the sounds of the Pixies, the Hold Steady and Hüsker Dü, as well as the writings of Raymond Carver, these four Brooklyn beatniks craft a kind of pastoral punk, fraught with vigilant instrumentation and zealous lyrics. "The Trouble with River Cities" masterfully weaves yearning guitar and bass melodies, while the anti-war ballad "Cavalry" embraces a rueful awakening amidst an unyielding horn section. - Sabrina Sutherland
A Top 10 Album for 2007. Listen now and later. - TK

Labels: indie_rock, Pela, rhapsody

Greyboy Allstars | What Happened to TV?
This may be the Greyboy Allstars' first studio set in a decade, but they still serve up snapping chicken-shack jazz-funk grooves simmered with saucy bits of New Orleans R&B. In spite of sporadic touring during the 00's, they still sound like an old, grizzled touring band that is still tearing up the countryside. Zak Najor and Chris Stillwell are still slammin' as a rhythm section, perfect for Karl D, Robert Walter and Elgin Park to solo over. Ditties like "Deck Shoes, "Left Coast Boogaloo" and "Pigeons Under Water" play like different scenes from the same great party. - Nick D.

Labels: greyboy, rhapsody

Land of Talk | Applause, Cheer, Boo, Hiss
The first creatures you meet when entering the Land of Talk are fuzzy, buzzed-out indie rock guitars -- the kind that leave music critics scrambling for adjectives with z's in them (hazy? gauzy? zitty? Wait -- that's not right) and then, once we've found them, using them like an uncontrollable tic. Ze guitarz' partners in crime are -- mais oui -- ze drums, keeping the tormented current crackling and rippling. But the talk of the Land, the most magnificent creature is singer/guitarist Elizabeth Powell, who whinnies and wails with Montreal's prettiest, girliest, angstiest je ne sais quoi. - Rachel Devitt
This is chick rock that I can get down with. - TK

Labels: canadian, indie_rock, landoftalk, rhapsody

Kings Of Leon | Because Of The Times
The brothers from southern mothers return with a third album that carries nary a hint of their heartland sound. Leaning hard on heady, proggy arrangements pays off with lengthy opener "Knocked Up," a tune that exemplifies drummer Nathan Followill's Harp mag quote about brother Caleb's penchant for transforming inner demons into melodic poetry. "On Call" works the same subtle magic as 2005's "The Bucket." The melody takes its time to burrow into your memory, strengthening its staying power. With echoes of Springsteen, the panoramically soundscaped "Arizona" should have been titled "Nebraska." - Eric Shea

Labels: followill, kings of leon, rhapsody

Panda Bear | Person Pitch
What if some of the Beach Boys were on drugs when they made Pet Sounds? Wait a second... OK, pretend Brian Wilson was really mentally imbalanced while -- hang on, that doesn't work either. But you get the point -- Panda Bear (a.k.a. Noah Lennox) is a big fan of the Beach Boys. On Person Pitch, he aspires to be something of a bizarro Boy, emulating and exacerbating their wall of sound and pairing sweet melodies about good times with weird electro-industrial loops. "I'm Not," with its watery Gregorian chant, is especially pretty. - Rachel Devitt
     file under: sonic freakout alert. - TK

Labels: animal collective, panda bear, rachel devitt, rhapsody, sonic freakout