Ambrose Akinmusire - launchpad, 2023

"Ambrose Akinmusire’s musical gifts developed rapidly. He grew up in Oakland, California, and while in high school he caught the attention of saxophonist Steve Coleman. Akinmusire joined Coleman’s Five Elements at age nineteen, touring while also a student at Manhattan School of Music. He then pursued further study—earning a master’s degree at the University of Southern California, then attending the Thelonius Monk Institute in Los Angeles, where his mentors included Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock. He is currently the Artistic Director of the Hancock Institute."

The Mary Onettes - what i feel in some places, 2022

“What I Feel In Some Places” was one of the first songs we experimented with when we wanted to explore the direction for the new album. We had some idea to take inspiration from Peter Gabriel”s typical 80s rhythms and let it blend with the more dreamy The Mary Onettes landscapes. The song is about always being a bit unsure about your surroundings. Having the feeling that you take in everything. That the room eats you up. Buildings fall over you. That the world constantly points at you like a spear.”

Beach House - myth, 2012

"On a surface level, there's no mistaking Myth for a Beach House song. All the sonic elements that have travelled with the Baltimore dream-pop duo during their steady ascent over the last five years are intact: Alex Scally's narcotic guitar, a steady backbeat, and Victoria Legrand's smoky ache of a voice. What sets 'Myth' as another sonic evolution for Beach House, then, is all in the details."

Outros olhares: Tailândia, Bangkok, 7 de Março de 2024

The Triffids - falling over you, 1989

"often been considered a stylistic mess but we thought it just our kind of mess. What's the matter with mess anyway? I've gone out on a limb with this one, at Dave's request. He had hoped this record could be a double album when it was recorded - he knew it was so varied that it sounded like nothing else anyone was doing at the time and he thought you shouldn't do things by halves."

Sufjan Stevens - john my beloved, 2015

“It's something that was necessary for me to do in the wake of my mother's death—to pursue a sense of peace and serenity in spite of suffering. It's not really trying to say anything new, or prove anything, or innovate. It feels artless, which is a good thing. This is not my art project; this is my life.”

The National - the system only dreams in total darkness, 2017

“We’re in a different kind of thing now,” Matt Berninger notes in the chorus of the National’s new song, “The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness.” It could be his way of addressing the dark turn things have taken in the four years since the band’s last album, Trouble Will Find Me. But “The System” is also a different kind of thing for the National. While many of their songs, records, and even the trajectory of their nearly 20-year career could be described as a slow build, now they’re not wasting any time. “The System” sounds heavy and urgent and surprisingly aggressive—and not just because of Aaron Dessner’s gnarly guitar solo in the middle."

Bob Dylan And Johnny Cash - girl from the north country, 1969

"Girl from the North Country" (occasionally known as "Girl of the North Country") is a song written by Bob Dylan. It was recorded at Columbia Recording Studios in New York City in April 1963, and released the following month as the second track on Dylan's second studio album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan. Dylan re-recorded the song as a duet with Johnny Cash in February 1969. That recording became the opening track on Nashville Skyline, Dylan's ninth studio album."

Poolside - harvest moon cover, 2012

"Was this quintessential summertime record really a celebration of Autumnal Ecliptic Longitudes?"

REM - leaving new york, 2004

"It’s tempting to say that R.E.M. lost their focus after Bill Berry quit the band in 1996 and they never made another great album, but it’s simply not true. They may have ceased to be a commercial force, but records like Accelerate, Reveal, Collapse Into Now and even Up are stellar albums even if they fail to reach the absurd highs of their earlier works. The only time the group really stumbled was on 2004’s Around the Sun. “The Outsiders,” featuring Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest, aims to replicate their KRS-One collaboration from 1991’s Out of Time, but it feels forced. “Final Straw” is a noble, if boring, protest against the Iraq War. The rest of the album simply feels lazy. And if you don’t believe us, listen to the band. “[It] just wasn’t really listenable,” Peter Buck said in 2008, “because it sounds like what it is: a bunch of people that are so bored with the material that they can’t stand it anymore.”

 Such a great song! In such a great album!

Wilco - california stars live, 2015

"Forty years later, these lyrics would fall into the hands of Billy Bragg and the group Wilco and they would put melodies to them, bring them to full life and record them. It was all done under the direction of Woody's daughter Nora. These performers probably weren't even born when I had made that trip to Brooklyn."

The Mountain Goats - autoclave, 2008

"I was in Alaska when I read about the discovery of a life-form that can not only survive an autoclave (The instrument used for sterilizing surgical instruments; It's supposed to kill any and all bacteria on the tools), but which seems to really enjoy the whole autoclave scene: at temperatures fatal to all other life forms, this bacteria would begin to breed. Naturally this got me to thinking about people whose hearts involuntarily pulverize any good feelings that come within a city block of them."

Jackson Browne - these days live, 2020

"A man who long claimed to be the son of French film star Alain Delon through his relationship with the iconic German singer Nico was found dead in Paris on Saturday"

Johnny Marr - hi hello, 2018

"it’s got a unifying theme going through it about the Earth welcoming a different intelligence from the cosmos to save us from our own plight"

Chumbawamba - one by one, 1997

"Everyone remembers where they were when they learned that Chumbawamba was more than a ‘90s one-hit-wonder and actually a long-running anarcho-communist punk band with a loyal following in jolly ol’ England; it may even be happening to you right now! Mel Magazine is marking the 25th anniversary of 1997 and wrote about the alcohol-propelled Trojan horse that was “Tubthumping,” a song that brought the band’s subversive politics to the top of the Billboard Alternative charts and provided the pop culture zeitgeist with one of the most memorable choruses of the decade."

 

Pontius Pilate came to our town

Up to the dockyards to see the

picket line

We asked him to help but he just

turned around

He's the leader of the union now

Leader of the union

All of our questions he ignored

He washed his hands and he

dreamed of his reward

A seat in the House of Lords

One by one

The ships come sailing in

One by one

The ships go sailing out

We live for words and die for words

Principles we can afford

When all our Brothers turn to Lords

Whose side are you on?

You tell the world your hands are

tied

History three times denied

A sea of changes three miles wide

Whose side are you on?

One by one

The ships come sailing in

One by one

The ships go sailing out

This conspiracy of shame

Murder by some other name

Play up and play the game

Whose side are you on?

If any ask us why we died

We tell them that our leaders lied

Sold us out down the riverside

Whose side are you on?

One by one

The ships come sailing in

One by one

The ships go sailing out

 

Slade - far far away, 1974

"Far Far Away" originated with Holder. While on tour in America, he came up with the opening line while sitting on a balcony overlooking the Mississippi river in Memphis. Manager Chas Chandler urged him to go away and write the song immediately. Holder went to his hotel room and returned half an hour later having completed a basic version of the song, with the title "Letting Loose Around the World". Lea later developed the song further, in particular the chorus. In the band's 1984 biography Feel the Noize!, Lea recalled: ""Far Far Away" was a real collaboration between Nod and myself. The verse was Nod's and the chorus was mine. I wanted to record it like a barrelhouse song with a very airy feel for us but Chas wasn't keen."

The Waterboys - the three day man, 1983

"With the help of a drum machine, Scott sang, played the piano and guitar on each of five songs. Two recordings from this studio demo session would eventually make their way onto the first Waterboys album, "December" and "The Three Day Man". The quality of the session convinced Scott to leave Funhouse. Scott made further series' of recordings on his own at Redshop in February, April and August 1982, which yielded the following tracks: "Savage Earth Heart", "It Should Have Been You", "Gala" and "Where Are You Now When I Need You?"

Simon And Garfunkel - a heart in new york live, 1982

"The Concert in Central Park is the first live album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, released on February 16, 1982, by Warner Bros. Records. It was recorded on September 19, 1981, at a free benefit concert on the Great Lawn in Central Park, New York City, where the pair performed in front of 500,000 people. A film of the event was shown on TV and released on video. Proceeds went toward the redevelopment and maintenance of the park, which had deteriorated due to lack of municipal funding. The concert and album marked the start of a three-year reunion of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel."

Lee Scratch Perry - blackboard jungle dub version one, 1981

"Black Board Jungle, often called Blackboard Jungle Dub, is a studio album by The Upsetters. The album, originally released in 1973 under artist name "Upsetters 14 Dub", was pressed in only 300 copies and only issued in Jamaica. It was one of the first dub albums."

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - dig up, 2017

"Cries of guitar bands going the way of the pterodactyls may be a bit premature as long as Australian groups like Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever are flitting about. Steeped in the rich tradition of six string slingers like Belle & Sebastian or Teenage Fanclub, they also have taken studious notes from seminal bands closer to their environs. I can’t imagine they don’t have handfuls of records from Flying Nun in their collective possession and certainly Australian bands such as The Go-Betweens, Died Pretty and The Church must have made an impression on them."

Wilderado - sometimes, 2024

"Wilderado just goes down easy. The new four-piece melds americana and alt-rock with explosive pop choruses and just enough twang, courtesy of the boys’ Texas and Oklahoma roots."

Ford Chastain - do it anyway, 2024

"Indie bedroom pop artist based in Oklahoma City"

The Radio Dept - the absence of birds, 2020

"Swedish dream-pop heroes The Radio Dept. are low-key masters of restraint. Whether soundtracking Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette in 2006 or sampling a classic Thurston Moore manifesto on 2010’s U.S. breakout Clinging to a Scheme, their gauzy, often-bittersweet songs tend to hint at a mood and leave listeners just enough space to bring their own meanings. And with four albums spread out between 2003 and 2016, the band’s intermittent release schedule has ensured they always felt like furtive, welcome strangers."

I love Elon Musk because he loves The Radio Dept.

Blocked this fucking idiot pic.twitter.com/AWgbVrqFWe

— The Radio Dept. (@theradiodept) April 30, 2022

The Radio Dept - pulling our weight, 2003

"It’s a lovely album, and a fine piece of dream pop that varies from song to song without changing its ambience. The Radio Dept. paid a great deal of attention to the recording process. It’s lulling and pleasing and nice in a complimentary way. You won’t find much innovation on Pulling Our Weight, but you will find five very listenable songs and a good example of the craft involved in pop writing. You’d be best served listening to it through headphones, while sitting in a tree, close to napping." 

 Such a great song!

The Cure - pictures of you, 1989

"the inspiration of the song came when a fire broke loose in Robert Smith's home. After that day, Smith was going through the remains and came across his wallet which had pictures of his wife, Mary. The cover of the single is one of the pictures."

Letting Up Despite Great Faults - mixtape receipt, 2006

"Despite its ponderous name, Letting Up Despite Great Faults makes music that’s light as a feather and ephemeral as a dream."

U2 - pride in the name of love, 1984

"Slane Castle had some great rooms. When I first went there I had it in mind to record everything in the ballroom, which was this beautiful very tall room with big mirrors, chandeliers and windows overlooking the river. As it turned out, it was just a little too 'splashy' sounding. It was good for tracks that had an openness but not good for tracks that were quick and required punch. So we used what they called the library for most of the sessions. It was just a rectangular room but we could achieve a denser more powerful sound. We had The Edge's amp outside on this balcony; like there is this long balcony going around the castle and we had him out there for a little while. Initially, it was for the purpose of isolation but it turned out to be a good sound."

Tilly And The Wall - coughing colors, 2006

"Tilly and the Wall's music is childlike in the sense that it celebrates the tactile and emotional world with the verve of unjaded perception; organs of pure sense probe the enticing recesses of the night. Their music is a prism that refracts the wonder of the human pageant from various angles, making familiar colors bend fantastically."

Gabriel's Dawn - loose canyon, 2022

“The song is about escapism, this year more than any we’ve all probably felt the need to escape. As a band we love the 1960s Laurel canyon Scene and would have loved to be have been part of it. It was a time where it felt like anything could happen both socially and musically and as a band it’s a big influence on us”.

Easterhouse - nineteen sixty-nine,1986

"Named after the Easterhouse area of Glasgow, the band was formed in Stretford, near Manchester by Ivor Perry and Andy Perry (...). Perry's political stance reflected the perspectives of the then active Revolutionary Communist Party, with particular regard to Irish politics."

 

"It seem that I remember
Scattered Shreds of far off days
The savage beat of Soliders fume
On streets of broken glass
That crashed the lie of justice
England brings to foreign lands
The truth came out
Without a doubt
In Nineteen Sixty Nine

[Verse 2]
How many must have thought
That things would work out differently
With Labor men in government
"The workers Own Party"
Who brought out their true colours
And nailed them to the mast
Served the Union Jack
As they always have
In Nineteen Sixty Nine

[Chorus]
You have to draw the Line
Sometimes
And I drew mine
At Laborers home trained "socialists"
The lowest form of hypocrite
Who talk best when the chips are down
Stay Loyal to their King and Crown

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Cargo of Souls

Easterhouse

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Easterhouse

Get Back to Russia

Easterhouse

[Interlude]

[Verse 3]
How desperately they try though
Schemes of treachery and lies
To hide their hands stained
Red with Blood
Of Countless Irish Lives
They talk of "dangerous gunmen"
'The sectarian divide'
And they try to kill the truth behind
Nineteen Sixty Nine

[Chorus]
You have to draw the Line
Sometimes
And I drew mine

As this machine of murder
This system of brutality
At H-Block cells; a concrete fell
To bury the truth alive

[Bridge]

[Verse 4]
No man can serve two masters
This surely is the truth
Your country or your class
When it comes down our kind
Must choose
From Dark chains of Oppression
We must forge ourselves a lesson;
While we are part of this
Then we cannot make ourselves free

[Chorus]
You have to draw the Line
Sometimes
And I drew mine
At Laborers home trained "socialists"
The lowest form of hypocrite
Who talk best when the chips are down
Stay Loyal to their King and Crown

You have to draw the Line
Sometimes
And I drew mine
At Laborers home trained "socialists"
The lowest form of hypocrite"

 

Hollow Coves - coastline acoustic, 2016

"Hollow Coves is an independent band from Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The band consists of two members, Ryan Henderson and Matt Carins, who sing and play guitar in folk style."

Charlie Haden - spiritual cover, 2008

"Josh Haden, the composer of "Spiritual" is best known for fronting Spain, a low-key down-tempo rock ensemble. They have recorded the song on their album The Blue Moods of Spain."

Absolutely Yours - field of nothing, 2024

"Absolutely Yours would delight the type of fans who are secretly holding out for that Rae Jepson/Malkmus duet series. Beautifully airy, reverb-packed tracks might hypnotize a listener, but it’s certainly not all sunshine and rainbows."

The Doors - touch me live, 1968

"We had done three albums of the Doors, and John and I, being the jazzers, we always wanted to bring in some horns and strings," Manzarek espoused. "On 'Touch Me' is the great Los Angeles, Southern California jazz saxophone player, Curtis Amy, who does that fabulous solo at the end. So that's why we did it – jazz and classical, the Doors bring it all together, man!"

Tigran Hamasyan - love song live, 2009

"Even on his most overt jazz compositions and renditions of well-known jazz pieces, his improvisations often contain embellishments based on scales from Middle Eastern/Southwest Asian traditions."

Vampire Weekend - this life, 2019

"The upbeat pop and pop rock song incorporates bright guitars, handclaps and brushed percussion with a Latin shuffle. The bright music is contrasted against Koenig's lyrics, which explore spiritual uncertainty and inevitable suffering."

The Innocence Mission - stars that fall away from us, 2020

"Stereogum said themes of "Love, connection, community and understanding" are "at the core of the album, one that is steeped in awe and wonder, intense longing, sadness and joy; a rich sequence of songs that attempt to describe the essence of what makes us human."

The Montgolfier Brothers - the world is flat live, 2002

"Revered instrumentalist Mark Turner and vocalist Roger Quigley have worked together in the past, as well as putting together strong efforts on several artistic solo projects. This excursion, entitled The World is Flat is a beautiful concept album, complete with spirally guitars, a little touch of piano spice, and lush string and orchestral arrangements. A dreamy, ethereal piece of art, this album is indebted to the producer for bringing to the listener the state of the art sound we hear from this duet who hail themselves The Montgolfier Brothers."

The Lightning Seeds - what if, 1996

"What If..." was released October 1996 in the UK. It peaked at No. 14 in the charts and, continuing in the vein of the previous single, included a cover of The Beach Boys' "Here Today" as a cassette-only B-side. The single's title track, co-written by Terry Hall and Broudie, featured a poppy sound reminiscent of The Turtles' "Happy Together".The song is regarded as a stand-out track of the album by Broudie himself, who cites The Beach Boys and The Turtles as influences behind the song."

Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - foi na cruz, 1990

"Cave has now suffered the death of two of his four sons, after his son Arthur died aged 15 after falling from a cliff near Brighton. In a statement announcing his death, he was described as a “beautiful, happy, loving boy”, and the impact of his death on Cave was explored in the documentary One More Time With Feeling, which focused on the making of the album Skeleton Tree."

Yot Club - dog song, 2019

"The song "Dog Song" by Yot Club is a playful look at life from the perspective of a dog. The artist suggests that life as a dog is much simpler than humans' lives are, and that the obligations and expectations we face in the human world do not exist for the dog. The lyrics suggest that life as a dog would be peaceful and carefree, with no pressure to meet anyone's expectations or succeed. The chorus asks the listener to consider how this life would feel, while the rest of the song paints a picture of what life could be like if one were a dog."

Jeff Buckley - hallelujah, 1994

"Buckley played guitar in a variety of styles, ranging from the distorted rock of "Sky is a Landfill", the jazz of "Strange Fruit", the country styling of "Lost Highway", and the guitar fingerpicking style in "Hallelujah". He occasionally used a slide guitar in live performances as a solo act, as well as for the introduction of "Last Goodbye", when playing with a full band. His songs were written in various guitar tunings which, apart from the EADGBE standard tuning, included Drop D tuning and an Open G tuning. His guitar playing style varied from highly melodic songs, such as "The Twelfth of Never", to more percussive ones, such as "New Year's Prayer"."

Stormzy - blinded by your grace pt two ft mnek, 2017

"Blinded by Your Grace, Pt. 2" is a song by English rapper Stormzy featuring British singer MNEK. It was released on 27 October 2017 as the fourth single from his debut studio album, Gang Signs & Prayer, where its first part is placed in the track listing. It was written by the rapper himself, and produced by Fraser T. Smith. Peaking at number seven on the UK Singles Chart, it became his second-highest-charting single, behind "Big for Your Boots", the lead single from the LP released back in February 2017."

Spector - all the sad young men, 2015

“We spurred each other on to write, what I think are, some really good lyrics, really honest lyrics. I wanted to write something that sounded anthemic but wasn’t one of those life-affirming, ‘Everything’s gonna be fine’ affairs. It’s something for a slightly apathetic generation of people who’d rather hide and look at their phones, and aren’t very romantic or confident about the future.”

Absolutely Yours - walked in the garden, 2024

"Absolutely Yours is an indie band based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Helmed by Bridget Collins, they take sonic inspiration from shoegaze and dreampop, but as you can hear on the ambrosia tones of Walked in the Garden, their sound is very much their own. The light and hushed tones of the vocals intertwine with a heavenly, shoegaze-influenced guitar melody, drawing out the emotional turmoil hinted at in the lyrics and the darker tones of the rhythm section. The song has a message, but brings the listener along on that journey, like a close friend or confidante. It’s a wonderful introduction to a sublime album that will appeal to fans of Alvvays, Cocteau Twins, and Broadcast."

The Coral - miss fortune live, 2016

"In 1996, school-friends Ian Skelly and Paul Duffy began jamming together in the basement of Flat Foot Sams pub in Hoylake. Over the following months they were joined by Bill Ryder-Jones on lead guitar, Ian's older brother James Skelly on vocals and main songwriting duties, and then Lee Southall on rhythm guitar. The band were known briefly as Hive before choosing the name "The Coral", and the line-up was completed with the addition of Nick Power, who joined as keyboard player in 1998."

The Strokes - at the door, 2020

"Lyrically, the album explores unease, inaction and alienation. “I want new friends, but they don’t want me/They’re making plans while I watch TV” is the chorus to one song. On “At the Door,” Casablancas knows he is a lost soul, but offers hope: “Use me like an oar/Get yourself to shore.”

Toquinho+Maria Bethânia+Vinicius De Moraes - tarde em itapoã live, 1971

"The beach at Itapuã was originally a small fishing village and fishermen can still be seen there today. It’s said the Vinicius’ inspiration for the song was given to him while watching these men at work. Another version is that the great poet hated Itapuã beach and was actually inspired by the nearby Praia dos Coqueiros (although, this beach’s name doesn’t quite have the same musical ring to it)."

Thomas Dybdahl - man on a wire, 2013

"That Thomas Dybdahl isn't more well known outside his native Norway, where he boasts multi-platinum status and Norwegian Grammy awards aplenty, could well be down to the fact he's the kind of artist that fans want to keep to - and for - themselves. Hailed by the NME as 'Norway's answer to Nick Drake', he certainly inspires the same kind of quasi-religious devotion, very much in evidence among the reverent crowd at his spellbinding Communion showcase at St Pancras Old Church recently."

Electronic - get the message, 1991

"Writing in the NME, Andrew Collins called the song "draught genius" and concluded that "New Order can now split up", while David Quantick stated that "nothing anyone has ever done has sounded even vaguely like 'Get the Message'" in the same publication a month later."

God Help The Girl - come monday night, 2009

"A few years back, Murdoch found himself in a unique situation: he had a set of songs but no proper performers for them. Through a series of auditions that date back to 2006, he found three girls - Brittany Stallings and Dina Bankole from the States, and Catherine Ireton, an Irish girl who'd recently moved to Glasgow. Ireton was tabbed to be the star of the album (and soon, film), and she duly gets center stage on "Monday Night". Her voice is a bit stronger than, say, Isobel Campbell's, but it still hovers within that angelic range that Murdoch has always preferred. She sounds precious and poised, in other words, but importantly, she's also not averse to daydreaming."

The Radio Dept - never follow suit one, 2010

"Never Follow Suit" is the second track we've heard from the Radio Dept.'s upcoming album Clinging to a Scheme. More deliberate and relaxed than its predecessor, the mighty "Heaven's on Fire", "Never" combines a mutant electro beat and keyboard stabs with a delicate, classically Swedish pop vocal."

Such a great song! 

The Bilinda Butchers - tulips, 2011

"Though we tend to throw the word around so frequently it risks losing meaning, I admit that the idea I most associate with The Bilinda Butchers is nostalgia. I’ve experienced my fair share of it over the years, but the exact definition of the word has always eluded me, despite my ongoing penchant for sentimentality and of course, my perpetual fascination with music’s ability to administer the feeling in beautifully inexplicable ways."

Alice On The Roof - easy come easy go, 2016

"Alice Dutoit, known professionally as Alice on the Roof (born 23 January 1995 in Soignies, Hainaut) is a Belgian singer."

The Beatles - octopus's garden, 1969

"The idea for the song came about when Starr was on a boat belonging to comedian Peter Sellers in Sardinia in 1968. He ordered fish and chips for lunch, but instead of fish he got squid (it was the first time he had eaten squid, and he said, "It was OK. A bit rubbery. Tasted like chicken.") The boat's captain then told Starr about how octopuses travel along the sea bed picking up stones and shiny objects with which to build gardens. Starr's songwriting was further inspired by his desire to escape mounting hostility among the Beatles; he would later admit that he had "just wanted to be under the sea, too". Uncredited assistance in developing the song's chord changes was provided by Harrison, who can be seen helping Starr work the song out on piano, with Lennon later joining in with drums, in the documentaries Let It Be (1970) and The Beatles: Get Back (2021), both using the same footage."

The Walkmen - angela surf city live, 2010

"it's not characteristic of these guys to show their cards right off the bat, so Hamilton Leithauser starts off sharing his concerns in that elegantly dour, slightly burnished croon of his: "Angela/ What's the difference?/ Today's a day like any other."

Disturbed - the sound of silence cover, 2015

"This is a new version with so much more depth. I felt it pulling me into the hopelessness and helplessness of someone struggling against the cruelties of life."

Shout Out Louds - blue ice, 2012

"Formed in Stockholm by childhood friends Adam Olenius (vocals), Ted Malmros (bass), and Carl von Arbin (guitars), Shout Out Louds found an international audience during the early 2000s with their peppy Swedish pop. The lineup began taking shape in 2001, with drummer Eric Edman and keyboardist Bebban Stenborg climbing aboard shortly thereafter. Shout Out Louds wasted little time writing songs, the first three of which formed the basis of their first demo tape."

Jaguar Sun - broken record, 2022

"Since its origins in 2018, Chris Minielly has been creating Jaguar Sun’s music entirely from his bedroom in Ontario, Canada. You could call it alt-pop, or indie dream pop with a sentimental folksy flair. The music’s airy, upbeat, and nostalgic sound abounds with reverb guitars and sincere lyricism."

William Tyler - man in a hurry, 2019

"Before he became a solo artist, Tyler was a member of Lambchop and Silver Jews beginning in 1998. Tyler first joined Lambchop at the age of 19 because Kurt Wagner approached him about playing the organ in the band. However, it turned out that he got to play guitar because he admittedly said "I couldn't really play" the organ. Before releasing music under his own name, Tyler used The Paper Hats as working title for his solo music."

Outros olhares: Tailândia, Koh Nang Yuan, 29 graus centígrados, 75% humidade

Beach House - take care, 2010

"Beach House singer Victoria Legrand must be bored rigid with reviewers continually mentioning that her music sounds like the ethereal lovechild of gauzy indie forebears Galaxie 500 and Mazzy Star. Granted, reiterating the platitude won’t help, but consider this a valediction; a way of drawing a line in the sand outside the Beach House of old, perhaps. For this, the third album from the Baltimore-based duo – singer/keyboardist Legrand and guitarist Alex Scally – proffers a bold evolution in sound and compositional ambition that renders comparison with those touchstones of yore immaterial."

Chumbawamba - enough is enough, 1994

"Enough Is Enough is an anti-fascist single from Chumbawamba and Credit to the Nation, on Chumbawamba's album Anarchy."

Yo La Tengo - friday i'm in love cover, 2015

"YLT’s rendition of the classic track is carefully stripped back acoustic take, focused largely on gentle guitar strums and a steady, spares drum that never encroaches on the lighter notes of singer Georgia Hubley."

Toy Cities - digital waves, 2020

“Digital Waves” is a rousing electro-pop success that highlights the Brooklyn-based act’s melodic strengths. Infusing a fondness for post-punk with ’90s indie-pop, Toy Cities navigate through hypnotic, suave verses into a chorus that pops with ample replay value."

Postiljonen - the open road, 2016

"This is summery dream pop at its best; made for lazy days and dreamy nights."

Thelonious Monk - round midnight, 1943

"'Round Midnight" (sometimes titled "'Round About Midnight") is a 1943 composition by American jazz pianist Thelonious Monk that quickly became a jazz standard and has been recorded by a wide variety of artists."

Jens Lekman - friday night at the drive-in bingo, 2007

"I have a new single on its way. It's called 'Friday Night at the Drive-in Bingo' and it sounds a lot like its title. Like the blood red sun in the horizon. Like the best slash worst slash best again night of your life. Like a pair of jeans you love but would never wear in public. Like a coverband playing Walk of Life in someones backyard. Like the point where sheer boredom pushes you into the great unknown. Like the country when the country wasn't cool. Like the peanuts in your coke. It's one of my finest popsongs ever in my opinion, but quite different from the other songs on my forthcoming record. Love it or hate it, regardless you're still welcome to drop by for a glass of applecider."

The Pigeon Detectives - you better not look my way, 2007

"Wait for Me is debut album of Leeds band The Pigeon Detectives. The album was released for CD, 12" and digital download on 28 May 2007 and charted in the UK Albums Chart at number three in its first week of release. The album sold around 227,000 copies in 2007, reaching No. 70 in the end of year chart. It was certified platinum in June 2008. Upon the album's release, it received generally positive reviews from most critics."

Sufjan Stevens - chicago, 2005

"There's so much pedantic subterfuge on this record, and historical two-stepping, cross-referencing, cultural theory, Marxist criticism, and on and on, that I just wanted to give the reader a little bit of comic relief here and there."

Counting Crows - chelsea live, 1997

"I have dissociative mental disorder -- it makes the world seem like it's not really there. You need familiar surroundings: family, friends, girlfriends. They ground you. When you're on tour all the time, it's hard to maintain those things. The tours were bringing me down. I hit rock bottom."

The Mary Onettes - explosions, 2007

"the Golden Age they're conjuring comes back through their melodies and song structures, not just the superficial business of synth settings and production styles"

Charles Bradley - dusty blue, 2013

"Victim of Love is a more optimistic record, from the Motown-inspired catchy pop-soul number “You Put the Flame on It” to the gorgeous “Through the Storm”, a quiet elegy to bury his past traumas. But these fuzzy moments are offset by new forays into more coarse instrumentation."

Scott Matthews - drifter, 2016

"Scott Matthews is launching his career for the second time. When he started out, eight years ago, the Wolverhampton singer-songwriter found himself acclaimed as the most exciting musician from the West Midlands since his admirer Robert Plant, with whom he recorded and toured; and his first single, Elusive, won an Ivor Novello award."

Pet Shop Boys - i didn't get where i am today, 2004

"The track features a sample from an obscure 1967 pop record titled "Father's Name Is Dad" by the band Fire. This explains the authoring co-credit for Dave Lambert, the writer of that song."

Frankie Cosmos - being alive, 2018

"Kline’s vocabulary is anything but limited, which is exactly how her band has built such a solid, sparkling catalog of meta-narratives and self-referencing vignettes. Frankie Cosmos songs are always focused on the spirals and intricacies of language, and “Being Alive,” from their forthcoming album Vessel, is no exception."

Franz Ferdinand - eleanor put your boots on, 2005

"The 'Eleanor' in the title is thought to refer to Eleanor Friedberger, lead singer of indie rock band The Fiery Furnaces who supported Franz Ferdinand during their 2004 tour."

 Such a great song!

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - french press, 2017

"Just as Rolling Blackouts’ music provides an instant sense of comfort through its ’80s indie-pop signifiers, lyrically, they make you feel right at home by dropping you in the middle of intimate scenes populated by first-name-basis characters."

Headlights - love song for buddy, 2009

"Wildlife is the third full-length studio album by the indie rock band Headlights."

Alvvays - dreams tonite, 2017

"For every song that asks the question, “What might have been?” there exists an equally stark reality, of “What wasn’t.” Alvvays’ new song “Dreams Tonite” looks at the liminal space between those two frames of mind, questioning the forces that separate lovers, be they self-made or circumstantial."

Thomas Dybdahl - one day you'll dance for me new york city, 2004

"Thomas Dybdahl grew up in Sandnes, Norway. His musical career started off as the guitarist in the band Quadraphonics."

Charlie Parker - scrapple from the apple, 1947

"Scrapple from the Apple" is a bebop composition by Charlie Parker written in 1947, commonly recognized today as a jazz standard, written in F major. The song borrows its chord progression from "Honeysuckle Rose", a common practice for Parker, as he based many of his successful tunes over already well-known chord changes."

Bright Eyes - at the bottom of everything, 2005

 

"Oberst is a man on a mission, battling with urgency against the cynicism and indifference he sees. The opening song, “At the Bottom of Everything,” underscores his belief in taking a stand on issues of the day: 

We must take all of the medicines too expensive now to sell.

Set fire to the preacher who is promising us hell.

Into the ear of every anarchist that sleeps but doesn’t dream

We must sing, we must sing, we must sing."

Big Thief - not, 2019

"No song in 2019 felt more searing, more perfect, than "Not." It's a song of anguish. You can hear it in Adrianne Lenker's voice and her words. As the song builds to its climax, she sings a series of denials, circling a description of something essential that remains just out of her grasp"

Boat Club - nowhere, 2007

"Nearly five minutes of Balearic perfection that acts as the unintentional centrepiece on one of the most criminally overlooked records of the past decade."

Saturday Looks Good To Me - until the world stops spinning, 2004

"Over the course of its career, Saturday Looks Good to Me hasn't tampered much with its mix of artful lo-fi haze, winsome melodies, and pithy lyrics. Change comes with Every Night, but fortunately the band doesn't try to fix what wasn't broken in the first place. Most immediately different is the album's sound: although head Saturday honcho Fred Thomas and Warn Defever reteamed on Every Night's production, this time they use a polished approach that sounds as if it's already been remastered."

They Live By Night - endless summer, 2008

"They Live by Night are Christofer Byström, Joel Sjöö and Martin Andersson. The group formed in Gothenburg in late 2004. They were signed by Razzia Records a few months later and released their first recordings as a 5-track Ep. The debut album Art and Wealth was released in 2007. (...) They Live by Night used to be a quartet, until Robin Danielsson left the group in the summer of 2007. Since then They Live by Night have been a trio. They will continue to work in that format as songwriters and producers, but the group will grow bigger on stage."

Sufjan Stevens - a little lost cover, 2014

"Arthur’s music is all over the place, but most of it seems to be about embracing darkness (loneliness) and ambiguity (confusion) with the biggest bear hug in the world. Catharsis! He didn’t give a shit about fads or fashion even as he was influenced by popular music, club music, and all that shitty art music at the Kitchen. He kind of cobbled it all together to create his own diverse musical language, He was funny as shit (a wordsmith, a master of the innuendo), but also dead serious (and blunt) about the deepness of his feelings, unafraid to express affection in his songs, without pandering or cliche. Arthur was real as shit. You can’t fake realness."

Guillemots - never went to church cover, 2006

"Guillemots (stylized as gUiLLeMoTs) are a British indie rock band formed in November 2004, comprising three members: Fyfe Dangerfield, Aristazabal Hawkes and Greig Stewart."

Bear's Den - crow, 2019

"Crow" by Bear's Den is a nostalgic elegy remembering the loss of a father figure. Full of bittersweet gratitude, the harmonic aspects of the track are a beautiful complement to the melody and lyrics sung by Andrew Davie with such pure emotion."

The Digital Age - galaxies, 2016

"What I can hear and feel in Galaxies is a band that is searching a bit for a new identity. There are some risks and creative choices taken that definitely work, and some that don't. But the times when it is really dragged down are when the band elects to make safe, accessible musical choices rather than ones that add to the intended experience."

Vini Reilly - home recording live, 2020

"There is YouTube footage from 2020 of Reilly playing in his living room and it’s not the work of a three-time stroke victim you may expect. But it’s still not good enough for Reilly. “I carried on and on after my strokes and I got to a level, but it’s not even close [to where I was],”

Horsebeach - pure shores, 2024

"Tried my best to do this absolute banger some justice. Here's my 3rd single from the upcoming LP, it's a cover of the track 'Pure Shores. Streaming on all the usual places and link in bio ofc. Hope you like it x"

Fancy Animals - circles, 2024

"a sound with ample entrancement, hypnotic and dreamy while still retaining a punchy melodic fervency — especially apparent in the gorgeously shoegaze-y “get inside,” closing plea."

The Jesus And Mary Chain - girl seventy-one, 2024

"Our creative approach is the same as in 1984, just come to the studio and see what happens. We came in with a lot of songs and let them run their course. There are no rules, it’s a sort of telepathy, we’re those strange twins who finish each other’s sentences."

Still Corners - crystal blue, 2024

"The genesis for several of these songs comes from dreams. Every night she wrote down the dreams she could remember. During the recording, I would pull out my dream journal and sing over various music loops that Greg had prepared. This repetitive nature felt like a trance."

Crosby Stills Nash And Young - teach your children, 1969

"In 1971, "Teach Your Children" was the final song in the movie Melody."

Dave Matthews Band - mercy, 2012

"Dave Matthews Band’s video for “Mercy” embraces the song’s themes of unity and harmony (...). According to the band, 14,334 people provided original photos and videos for the inspirational clip, a James Frost-directed mash-up video that features only glimpses of the band and focuses on the fans."

My Sad Captains - don't listen to your heart, 2017

"since i started the blog, i've got to know some great bands and from time to time we talk through email or myspace or facebook... i like to call them friends because i'm an easygoing person and it's not very hard for me to make friends (through virtual medias. face to face i tend to be a bit shy). i like to think my sad captains is a band-friend of the blog. so i'm more than happy when i get news from them... they're releasing a free song taken from their album here and elsewhere, (released on stolen recordings) called 'you talk all night'. a very mellow and soothing tune. there' also a video for the song that is so simple but so well filmed that you can let your imagination flow with the images and build a story from it."