What A Friday For A Song(s)!

Vacation time!!! We'll still be around doing our best to bring you the music we all know you want to hear. Make sure these songs make into your balmy nights this long weekend; crack one open and have a smile on me. Happy birthday America, thank you for your crystal pools & your delicious hotdogs. [MP3] Peter Bjorn & John - Young Folks [MP3] The Rosewood Thieves - Diamond Ring [MP3] Big Search - You'll Often Change [MP3] Black Lips - Gentle Violence [MP3] Howlin' Rain - In Sand And Dirt [MP3] The Little Killers - I'm In Love With You

Forget Cassettes

Strong female guitar players never get the credit they deserve. Often belittled or cast off as being "good for a girl," their efforts don't always amount to what they should. Vocalist/ Guitarist Beth Cameron could contend with many rock guitarists these days quite ably. She reminds me of Mary Timony during her years in Helium, before she softened for her solo career. Forget Cassettes play tense, emotional songs that teter on the edge of release and then let go with the full force of Cameron's fury. The album isn't out until August but you can grab the single for 'The Catch' over at their site.

Download:
[MP3] Forget Cassettes - The Catch
[MP3] Forget Cassettes - Venison

Things In Herds

Acoustic indie folk from the UK lays the mourn on thick, and with such a beautifully delicate and reassuring hand. A few clicks, knob turns and stray drums keep the emotion rolling up a hill of sadness so green and dew saturated you might as well let your clothes surrender to the soil and enjoy the darkening clouds as they pass above. The animals will march around you as they make their way through pasture, wildebeest, geese, and cattle; all things in herds. [MP3] Things In Herds - Everything Has To End Somewhere [MP3] Things In Herds - So Vist them at Myspace or at their Website.

Jeff Hanson

	Jeff Hanson's self titled album from early last year didn't get as much recognition as it should have. It's an intricate and purposeful work of music. People will comment on his high vocal range; on my first listen I would have
bet money Jeff was a lady. At times his guitar work and vocal melodies are reminiscent of Kill Rock Stars legend and hero to independent music, Elliott Smith. He has a new song featured on the Kill Rock Stars singer/songwriter comp. What The Hare Heard, and is currently working on a new album for later this year. Hopefully the next one will get the praise that I’m sure it’ll deserve.
Download Losing A Year.mp3 Welcome Home.mp3

Rereleased into the Wild

The last few of these posts have involved artists with a heavier guitar sound, but I'd be remiss if I was to claim that this sound made up the majority of overlooked elder bands. Many fine bands formed what became known as the West Coast Psychedelic Sound. Mostly based in and around California, these bands had a brighter sound that reflected the California climate they sprang from. The two most obvious bands cited from this scene are The Grateful Dead and The Jefferson Airplane, however they merely represented a fraction of the talent this scene had to offer. Here are two other excellent examples of West Coast Psych.

	KaK - KaK It's both unbelievable and sad that this group never received the acclaim they were due. Their 1969 debut doesn't have a single bum track on it. It's a prime example of the sunny west coast sound but still retains a nice rock edge that is evident on
numbers such as Disbelievin' and Everything's Changing. The album also contains the monster of a medely, Trieulogy that although it could've sunk into 60's self indulgence, actually comes off as a highlight of the album. A couple of nice reissues of this exist; a vinyl version was available for a time and can still be found used and an extended CD version retitled KaK-Ola. I'd go so far as to say this is a necessity for those interested in great bands of the 60's. Download: Disbelievin'.mp3 Lemonaide Kid.mp3 Buy KaK
	The Wizards From Kansas- The Wizards From Kansas Just as many great Surf bands had never seen the ocean, not all of the great bands that reflected the West Coast Sound were actually from the west coast. Originally called Pig Newton and the Wizards from
Kansas, this group actually was from the plains of Kansas. Signed after an opening spot at the Filmore East to Mercury Records, the band unfortunately disbanded shortly after their record was released due to some members of the band choosing to pursue jazz as a more meaningful career. Any doubt that they couldn't hold their own on the coast is quickly quashed after a listen to Country Dawn which sounds like a lost Grateful Dead track and their cover of Codine is a dark and diparaging take on the original. Download: Country Dawn.mp3 Codine.mp3 Buy The Wizards From Kansas

Winter Flowers

Folk music has the ability to either be really great and moving or ridiculously self indulgent. Thankfully the songs crafted by San Fransisco Trio Winter Flowers is of the former variety. They craft beautiful melodies that are bittesweet and mostly lighthearted but with this feelinng of darkness just at the edges. Male and femal vocal lead both echo great artists, 'Hey Ho' has the wearied sound of a great lost Neil Young track and 'Too Young to Marry' could fit right in with any of the Pentangle catalog. Another great SF folk group. Unfortunatly no album yet but it looks like one is in the works over at AttackNine records home to RSTB faves Women & Children.

Download:
Hey Ho.mp3
Too Young To Marry.mp3
County Fair.mp3

Canasta

Chicago sextet Canasta play heartfelt songs of life and loss that convey emotion without seeming sappy or trite. True to their "six is the new four," proclamation, which seems to be a feeling shared by many newer indie bands, they give the term ochestral pop an apt meaning. Hey why rent strings or horns when you've already got friends that play them just sitting at home, right? They've aparently (according to their myspace page) opened for just about every indie band on the planet that rolls through Chicago all without the help of a label. From the songs on their debut We Were Set Up they sound like seasoned veterens. I've been missing out on the Chicago scene now that I'm out on the east coast and if this is what the city's currently producing I really need to be paying more attention.

Download:
Slow Down Chicago.mp3
Shadowcat.mp3
Chance For Greatness.mp3 (from Find The Time EP)

Checkout their site to buy the album

Our Brother The Native

Just signed to FatCat Records with a stunning debut set to be released in the US, July 25. There's only a few mp3s floating around out there and some audio clips at the FatCat site. They also have some streaming tracks at their Myspace page. Really beautiful, tragic and textured songs. Octopodidae.mp3

Elvis Lives

Elvis Perkins has been getting a lot of well deserved attention recently on the blogs. This is why: Download While You Were Sleeping.mp3(This may be the prettiest song I've heard in years) Without Love.mp3

Unlove

This band recently played at a benefit I was running sound for and they completely blew away all of the other bands on the list; except maybe M1 from Dead Prez who even though he showed up and hour and a half late still managed to pull out a great 20 minute set to the 30 or so who stuck it out. Despite the rather lacking sound setup they were able to fill a Prospect Heights loft space with a wall of controlled distortion and fuzz. It seems like shoegaze is making a bit of a return lately and Unlove's sound fits right in with other critical faves like Asobi Seksu (you know minus the Japanese). Their music simply radiates warmth and intensity, and singer Kristina Zubkova's vocals float above the clamor with a hushed beauty.
Download:
Duet
If I Could

Unlove: Site - Myspace

Tapes N' Tapes Debut Music Video

It's for "Insistor", and it's set to premier on MTV2 tomorrow.

Blood Meridian

Rooted in classic Rock n' Roll and Motown sounds, Blood Meridian are another great Vancouverian (sp?) band, whose debut will be released August 8th on V2 Records. Led by Black Mountain bassist Matt Camarind, these guys have a smoothed out rock n' b feel, with a country twang. While that seems a pretty popular and often tiresome combo these days, Blood Meridian do not disappoint. "Most Days" is more or less a cross between "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" and "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", while "Kick Up The Dust" has the ironic sagacity of a barfly anthem. Download Most Days.mp3 Kick Up The Dust.mp3

Fresh Linens

Some bands project feelings through their music that you can sense without ever seeing them live. The members of San Francisco's White White Quilt radiate a sense of ease and something that would almost be aloof but stops just short and comes off as intelligence with out pretense. They are like the older friends you felt privilaged to hang around in high school. The ones who never made you feel like there was an age difference. At the same time they also conjur a sense of rural living. These are campfire drinking songs, Sunday evening back porch cool down songs, songs for late August. Though their output is sill limited, these three tracks exeplify their unmistakeable style. The vocals warble just below that range that Devendra seems burrow into but its much more restrained and for lack of a better word, calm here. No album yet but keep an eye out for one because if you miss it I have a feeling you're going to regret it.

Download:
Easy Pain
Evenin' Low
Light Up The Night

White White Quilt at Myspace

Who Is King Tuff?!

I'm not sure exactly what the connection is, but judging from their Myspace profile, King Tuff is some relation to RSTB favorites Feathers and Witch. Again, I really know nothing about these guys; if they're planning an album, if there already is one? Judging by the music which is jangly early '70s punk pop (sort of) it could all just be for fun, but there is no denying these are great songs and extremely catchy. I've got my ear to the ground for any more developments. Download Dancing On You.mp3 Connection.mp3 I Don't Feel So Desperate.mp3 UPDATE: Caleb, KT's drummer was kind enough to fill me in on the details of the band. King Tuff is in fact Kyle's (of Feathers and Witch fame) solo music project. These songs are old but Kyle is at the moment rerecording and writing new music and plans to put out a new CD, which they will be promoting on a tour later this year.

Rereleased into the Wild

It's Tuesday, which means I've dug into the crates for another lesson in musical history.

	Flower Travellin' Band - Satori Contrary to what their name might suggest, the Flower Travellin' Band are no free-love-hippy-commune-sunny-day-rockers. The deceptively named group has much more in common with hard hitting groups like
Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and King Crimson. This Japanese Band perfectly blends dark eastern influenced guitar with powerfully soul crushing rifs and the wailing vocals of Akira Joe Yamanaka. Satori is a bit of a conceptual song cycle. The tracks are simply labeled Satori I-V, but very little apart from the overall sound seems to tie the tracks together. A definite classic worth picking up. Download: Satori Part I.mp3 Satori Part V.mp3 Buy Satori
	Zior- Zior While not quite as heavy as anything produced by Flower Travellin' Band, this 1971 album from Zior contains its fair share of heavy guitar laced tracks. Sharing not only a love of occult lyrics with Black Sabbath but also an album photographer,
the cover for this album was shot by Marcus Keef who also shot the now iconic debut cover for Sabbath. Tracks on this album shift from bluesy rockers to darkly psychedelic pieces, all undershot with a highly rhythmic drum style that paces the album. Download: I Really Do.mp3 Za Za Za Zilda.mp3 Buy Zior

Hymns Of Bedlam

A Texas transplant temporarily finding himself in California with a background in Gospel, Blues and the Baptist Church writing beautiful songs about youth and manhood, akin to Iron & Wine. Folk untouched by superfluous modern tweaks in order to create a neo niche. These songs are truly striking; perhaps they just remind me of being home. I know who I’ll look to now when I miss the fields and the long stretches of parched highway. Download The Revelation of Saint John the Divine.mp3 The First Book of Moses.mp3 In Ink and Strings.mp3 Visit the Hymns of Bedlam - Myspace & Website

Shogun Kunitoki

"I haven't been able to stop listening to this album. I'm not usually a fan of electronic music, I think that sometimes the emotion and sincerity that is the fundamental core of music can get lost in a tangle of wires. Shogun Kunitoki are a 4-piece post rock electronic group from Helsinki, and the sounds they make are both epic and organic, never losing site of the raw emotion of sound. Download Montezuma.mp3 1918 - 1926.mp3

What A Friday For A Song(s)!

"Summer is the time when one sheds one’s tensions with one’s clothes, and the right kind of day is jeweled balm for the battered spirit. A few of those days and you can become drunk with the belief that all’s right with the world." ~Ada Louise Huxtable~ Download Red Hunter - Couches By The Sea.mp3 The Prototypes - Ici Ou Peut-Etre Demain.mp3 The Weird Weeds - Broken Arm.mp3 Papercuts - Pan American Blues.mp3 Timber - Criminals.mp3 The Legends - Everything You Say.mp3 Cold War Kids - We Used To Vacation.mp3

I Give Two Sheds

Two Sheds are Rusty, John & Caitlin; friends from Sacramento, California, making thoughtful, legs crossed under the table, twirling the loose thread of your sleeve, counting the days, indie Americana. It's as moody and seductive as it is innocent. Caitlin's voice, subtle and sultry, and the clever songwriting are what set Two Sheds apart; these songs are effortless and memorable.

Download Perfect.mp3 Momma.mp3 Different View.mp3 Visit them at their website or at Myspace.

Theo Angell

A slight departure from his other musings, this is a dusty blues-folk album creaking on the floorboards in an Appalachian hideout. I found it pretty difficult to find any information on this guy, but I was really impressed by his new album, Dearly Beloved; and I've always been a big fan of his other projects: Jackie O'Motherfucker and Hall Of Fame. Aside from a few electro-tainted missteps, this record is not to be missed. Out now on Amish Records. Download Born To Burn.mp3 A Backdoor.mp3 Thread Of Grace.mp3

Blue Cheer On Tour

Blue Cheer Tour '06 starts tomorrow and they'll be hitting NYC with 3 shows. The first one is with RSTB favorite, Dead Meadow at Maxwell's in NJ. They'll be playing at North6 with Soldiers of Fortune and at CBGBs with The Black Hollies. Can't wait! Download Blue Cheer - Rock Me Baby.mp3 Blue Cheer - 2nd Time Around.mp3 Dead Meadow - Get Up On Down.mp3 Dead Meadow - Good Moanin'.mp3 Tour Dates Jun 16 2006 The Black Cat WASHINGTON, DC Jun 17 2006 Northstar Bar Philadelphia, PA Jun 18 2006 Maxwell's Hoboken, NJ Jun 20 2006 CBGBs New York City, NY Jun 21 2006 BAR Nightclub New Haven, CT Jun 23 2006 Northsix Brooklyn, NY Jun 24 2006 Middle East Boston, MA Jun 25 2006 Intonation Music Festival Chicago, IL Jun 29 2006 La Sala Rossa Montreal, QC Jul 3 2006 Vamps Toledo, OH Jul 5 2006 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland, OH Jul 6 2006 Magic Stick Detroit, MI Jul 15 2006 Walter's On Washington Houston, TX Jul 16 2006 Emo's Austin, TX Jul 21 2006 The Casbah San Diego, CA Jul 22 2006 8:00P The Key Club Los Angeles, CA Jul 23 2006 The Galaxy Theatre Santa Ana, CA Jul 27 2006 Aladdin Theatre Portland, OR Jul 28 2006 El Corazon Seattle, WA

De Novo Dahl

I've been listening to these new tracks from Nashville band De Novo Dahl for something like 5 days straight and I never seem to tire of them. The band is currently hard at work on their second album and from these few tastes it appears that it is going to be a pretty great offering indeed. Pure pop without any frills. De Novo Dahl, whose name is derrived from a love of childrens author Roald Dahl, occupy a space somewhere between David Bowie, Super Furry Animals and New Pornographers. Their song Shout is so damn catchy, I think its permanantly etched in my brain. It makes me want to get up and scream the lyrics across an all too quiet office. A perfect youth anthem, no matter how old you are.

Download:
Shout.mp3
Subject of the Kill.mp3 .

De Novo Dahl Site - Myspace

It Wasn't Wolfmother.

Speaking of Power Of Zeus, the other day I was totally taken by surprise when I heard "It Couldn't Be Me" (possibly a remix of it) on the commercial for the 3rd Season of HBO's The Entourage. Anyone else that saw it and was wondering, it wasn't Wolfmother! If you missed it, watch it here.

Rereleased into the Wild

This is an introduction to a new weekly feature here at Raven. Though I love exciting new music I admittedly have a penchant for second tier bands from the 60's and 70's. Classic rock radio constanly shovels in hits from this generation but just as with our own, the hits are not always the most interesting music of a decade. How many times can you hear 20th Century Fox in one day before you give up on these influential generations altogether. Hopefully you haven't and RSTB is here to help. Every Tuesday I'll dig a few nuggets out of my collection and post them along with a short description of the band. If you like them go search them out. Originals are sometimes hard to find but their are many fine reissue companies out there now such as Akarma and Radioactive. The first two bands both come from Motown's rock imprint Rare Earth.

	Power of Zeus - The Gospel According to Zeus Power of Zeus hail from the Motor City. An unfortunately shortlived group, they left behind only this album. After signing to Rare Earth they were put into the studio with Motown producers used to cranking out soul hits, not
rock records. This caused the band's recordings to acquire an interestingly crisp sound that at the time the band was unhappy with. This, however, is one of the most captivating aspects of the record. Tight rhythms shot through with hard edged guitar, "The Gospel According to Zeus" is truly a lost gem of the era. Download: It Couldn't Be Me.mp3 The Sorcerer of Isis.mp3 Buy The Gospel According to Zeus
	The Crystal Mansion The Crystal Mansion Crystal Mansion were signed to Rare Earth in 1972 to compliment their already growing stable of Soul inflected rock outfits. The band adds a touch of funk to their sound that is heard in few of their lable mates.
Ultimately the band only produced one subsequent album. A reissue is available on Collectables Records. Download: Somebody Oughta' Turn Your Head Around.mp3 Buy The Crystal Mansion

The Donkeys

The Donkey's are a 4-piece from San Diego, California. The influences are abundant, but what I noticed most is that on the whole it's a unexpectedly dark collection of songs. There are several defining moments that highlight the album; tracks ranging from an almost danceable post punk instrumental to a midnight waltzing dirge. It’s '60’s psych shimmer pop with a dark country twang and it’s a treat, because it’s not often you get a beat up promo with a name like The Donkeys that sounds this good.

Download Try To Get By.mp3 She's A wolf.mp3 Another track from last week's What A Friday For A Song(s)!. They have some tracks available at their Myspace page too.

What A Friday For A Song(s)!

"The sun was like a huge 50-cent piece that someone had poured kerosene on and then had lit with a match, and said, "Here, hold this while I go get a newspaper," and put the coin in my hand, but never came back." -Richard Brautigan Summer is almost here. I can nearly smell the salt of the sea and feel the foam gathering at my feet and the sand polishing my arches as the tide rushes back out. There are things that we remember as kids that we will carry with us forever. Sometimes its the memory of racing up hill with the hot sun on your back, the sound of a car crash, or the braided diamonds left on your arm from the backyard hammock. Music can be the genesis and the keepsake of our memories, and I guess that's the point of this whole thing.

Download Micah P. Hinson - For Your Eyes.mp3 TV on the Radio - Playhouses.mp3 Stephen Brodsky - Stolen Echoes Won't Return.mp3 The War On Drugs - Arms Like Boulders.mp3 The Cuts - Stop Asking.mp3 The Donkeys - In the Morning.mp3 M. Ward - To Go Home.mp3 (from the forthcoming Post-War)

Bears

Honestly I've never been the biggest fan of Twee. I can dig the scarfpop set in their hornrims and all, but honestly beyond Belle and Sebastian much of its cutesy innocence is lost on me. Cleveland, Ohio duo Bears definitely have some Twee leanings but something about them totally works for me. Maybe its just that they aren't as sunny. There's a great bittersweet quality to their debut album, even when the melodies brighten Bears keep just a hint of weariness in the lyrics that I can relate to. Simple and intimate, its probably the best bedroom pop album I've heard in quite a while. You can purchase Bears' self titled album at their site.

Download:
Never Have to Guess
Everywhere

Bears at Myspace

Strung Out

I love this band, The High Strung. Now, I know their album has been out for awhile, and to be completely honest it wasn't until my last few listens that I really got into them. Maybe I was a little disenchanted by music in general at the time of their release, or I may have just lumped them in with all the other garage rawkers; I don't know. The High Strung are different though my friends. Their album Moxie Bravo has so much depth and deliberation while retaining the impulsive nature of great rock and roll with a twist of ’60’s nerd pop. Remember when a band didn't just have a solitary sound; when an album would come out that had the highs and lows that life does; that one slow song you’d put on a mixtape for your new girlfriend, and the loud ones you'd drive too fast to...well, they're sort of like that, man.

Download Seems It's One Thing.mp3 Never Saw It As Union.mp3 They've also been working on a new album (it may be finished actually), but they were awesome enough to hit the WOXY Lounge Act Studio to record a small set of their new material. Download their WOXY Session WOXY Studio Session.mp3 Tracklisting: 1. The Curator 2. The Meddler 3. We're Banging It Out 4. - interview - 5. There Was No One Before You, 6. There Was No One Before Me 7. I Recognize That Voice 8. So Dry

The High Strung Website: Here The Obligatory Mypace: Here

Flying

The crew over at Good Hodgkins turned me on to this one. Real off kilter pop with a great sense of fun. Flying use any means at their disposal to create sounds, often recording out doors and in unconventional spaces. Their album "Just-One-Second-Ago Broken Eggshell" is full of creaky accordion, beautifully fingerpicked guitar, electronic squeals and a great inerplay of male/female vocals but its the way that they put it alltogether that really stands out. Flying have a great way of taking familier sounds and using them in ways you wouldn't quite expect. If you're in the NYC area you should check them out at Northsix Sat June 10th. You can buy their album at Mill Pond Records. Download these tracks from the new album Minors Alice Falling Leaves

Hey Hey My My

They're called Hey Hey My My. They come from France, and I assume their namesake is that of the classic Neil Young song of idyllic rock and roll mortality. Juliens Garnier and Juliens Gaulier make up this binary musical experience (two guys, two guitars, two hey's and two my's.) Like Young they dig their roots deep into a country twang but with spirited melodies, unexpected electronics and key & tempo changes so pleasant that the irrationality of the arrangement is made insubstantial in the wake of the beautiful song.

Download Too Much Space Christmas Day For more info. check them out at Sober And Gentle

Mystic Chords of Devendra?

Nobody & Mystic Chords of Memory have a new EP coming out that features some excellent remixes and covers on it. DNTL turns in a great remix of 'Feet Upon the Sand,' and Banhart and The Long Last pay the group homage via exceptional covers. Emusic has a pre-release of the EP, entitled "Broaden A New Sound" available here. Devendra's cover is a spanish reworking of the song 'The Seed.' Check it out for yourself below. Dowload: La Semilla (The Seed)

New Comets On Fire Track

I couldn't be more excited about this album coming out. Comets On Fire's talent and ingenuity compound markedly with every new offering. I remember my first listen the Field Records From The Sun and how the unending fuzz and catastrophic cadence played out merciless into moments of folk grandeur and impetuous metal dabblings. The Blue Cathedral toned down the noise and brought blues and psych into the mix, forming a considerably more accessible album, denser with lyrics and folk undertones, making it one of the great albums (in my opinion) of the last decade. I may be getting ahead of myself, but after one breakneck listen (due to my excitement) Avatar surpasses the musical conquests that were their preceding albums. There have been quite a few revival bands out there trying the recreate the machismo, swagger and arduous talent of metal and psych predecessors like Led Zeppelin, The Power of Zeus, or Black Sabbath. I hesitate to even group Comets On Fire into that category of cheeky rock & roll revival contenders, but with this new album they pretty much lay waste to any competition. Please, please buy this album. It will be released by Sub Pop, but not until 8/8/06.

Lucifer's Memory.mp3 Everything Is Fire has another track as well.

What A Friday For A Song(s)!

This is the first installment of what we'll be calling What A Friday For A Song(s)!, and basically I'll be posting a few of the best songs that I came across during the week. This doesn't mean it's necessarily a new song and you may not find it to be all that good but who doesn't like Friday, and who doesn't like a song(s)? By the way, a friend of mine took the picture above and I think it's pretty amazing; thanks Graham. I have a feeling I'll be stealing more photos from his Flickr page in the future.

Download The Foundry Field Recordings - Broken Strings Arthur & Yu - Afterglow Think About Life - Money Hey Willpower - Hundredaire Sambassadeur - Between The Lines Hell On Wheels - Alexandr Port O'Brian - A Bird Flies By Oneida - Happy New Year

Six Organs Of Admittance

Ben Chasney's back with another collection of sunburnt ragas and campfire drones entitled "The Sun Awakens." Chasney is a busy man these days what with his name being on the roster of countless projects, but his true calling seems to be in the guise of Six Organs. Much in the same full bodied vein as "School of the Flower," the new album is packed with the intricate figerpicking and dusted vocals we've come to love. Check out all things in the works over at the Six Organs Site and though Ben scoffs at "listening to some rinky-dink compressed versions of the songs through headphones," download a couple of tracks from the new album below. Download: Black Wall Wolve's Pup

Darker My Love

Darker My Love's debut record has all the drone, psych, 90's shoegaze grunge and fuzz that you want. (And one of the best press photos I've ever seen).The Black Angels (among many others) revived this sound successfully with their debut and DML are doing just the same, but with a little more swagger and ingenuity. Their new album is out on Dangerbird Records with likely labelmates, The Silversun Pickups.

Download Hello Traveler.mp3 Summer Is Here.mp3 Post Mortem, Post Bordem.mp3 From the Silversun Pickups new album: Little Lovers.mp3 Waste It On.mp3