Free WFMU @ Primavera MP3s

Those who tuned in to WFMU's live coverage of the 2009 Primavera Sound Festival a couple weekends ago were no doubt a bit disappointed by some of the technical difficulties that interrupted a lot of the broadcasts. However, there are several reasons not to hold such bummers against WFMU, the most obvious being that it's just a jerky attitude to have, but the most wonderful reason not to bear a grudge against the greatest radio station in the world for cutting out during your favorite Vaselines song is that they're posting some of the sets for free download on their Free Music Archive!

Stuff just started going up today, and I'm not sure how much of what was on the air will make it to the internet, but so far FMA has posted sets by Dan Deacon, Throwing Muses and the aforementioned Vaselines! Get on it, people!

WFMU live from Barcelona @ Primavera Sound 2009

You Get the Feeling and It Feels Alright

He lives in New York, he's buddies with Vampire Weekend and Dirty Projectors, and he plays funky, African-influenced pop, but it would be unwise to dismiss Sam Buck Rosen as just another bandwagon rider at a time when more and more white boys seem to be looking to West Africa (or Paul Simon's impression of it) for their musical inspiration. While his songs certainly bear a resemblance to the aforementioned bands, Sam has two big things going for him.

The first is his voice, a rich, sonorous tenor as agile as that of main Dirty Projector Dave Longstreth, but with a warm, honeyed quality often lacking in the more academic approaches of his peers. And all this from a young man not yet old enough to buy his own beer!

Second is his music's sheer rawness. Now, maybe I'm just a sucker for the lo-fi, but it seems to me that if you're going to bite a few African grooves, it would serve you well to play them fuzzy and loose, like you're jamming on the street in the middle of summer, with tape hum standing in for the buzz of a crowded outdoor market. This is how Sam Buck Rosen brings it, plenty rough around the edges and completely unmastered, but you can tell he's having a blast, and let me tell you, the good vibes are infectious!

[mp3] Sam Buck Rosen - "Just Jealous" (unreleased)
[mp3] Sam Buck Rosen - "Trenchtown" (from Get the Motion, buy it here)

For more free and legal Sam Rosen mp3s, I suggest checking out his website, which has lots of songs for download, including his excellent 2008 EP, Hold Me. He also recorded as session last summer for Daytrotter, which can be had here.

You Should Already Know

I forget exactly what breadcrumb trail of links led me to discover the music of Brilliant Colors, but a few months ago I found myself staring slack-jawed at their MySpace, utterly entranced by the shambly, jangly, girl-fronted indie pop pouring out of my speakers as though 1992 never ended. Hailing from San Francisco (and not to be confused with Portland's Explode into Colors, whom I also dig and plan to post about very soon), Brilliant Colors have already released two 7-inches this year on Make-a-Mess and Captured Tracks, both of which sound like they could have come out 15 years ago on K or maybe Sarah Records (oh, how I yearn for the days of Tiger Trap!). Needless to say, these guys hit all my lo-fi pop pleasure points, and their singles have spent a lot of time on my turntable this spring.

Unfortunately, it looks as though both releases have gone permanently out of print, but with the good news that they're being compiled onto a 12" with an exclusive extra track (that's a total of seven tracks, for those of you keeping count) scheduled for release later this summer. Until then, why not wet your whistle with a track from each single right here? After that, I suggest you head over to the band's MySpace page to hear two new songs, "Motherland" and "I Start With Your Name". You know you want to...

[mp3] Brilliant Colors - "Should I Tell You"
[mp3] Brilliant Colors - "Highly Evolved"

Splitting Ions in the Ether

Wow, it's Monday and I've actually managed to get the podcast out on time! Will wonders never cease? By my count, this is the 20th episode of SCnP, an appropriate number considering the selections on this week's playlist span 20 years of indie rock'n'roll history (give or take a Big Dipper track). There's also a mini-set honoring the great Merge Records, which turns 20 this year, in case you hadn't heard. Enjoy!


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PLAYLIST

Vomit Launch - "Block of Wood" (buy)
Charlie McAlister - "Suburban Beachtown" (buy)
Yo La Tengo - "Periodically Double or Triple" (pre-order)
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Polvo - "Sure Shot" (buy)
Portastatic - "St. Elmo's Fire" (buy)
The Clean - "In the Dreamlife You Need a Rubber Soul" (pre-order)
Big Dipper - "Man o' War" (buy)
Jay Reatard - "It Ain't Gonna Save Me" (pre-order)
Cap'n Jazz - "Yes, I Am Talking to You" (buy)
Pere Ubu - "Breath" (buy)
Reading Rainbow - "Totem Pole"
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Matthew Alexander - "Top of the Stairs" (buy)
Ear Pwr - "Super Animal Bros. III" (buy)
Bird Names - "Defined Stijls" (buy)
Circulatory System - "Overjoyed" (pre-order)
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Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - "Where Was My Brain?"

I Can Fly Twice as High

Okay folks, the SCnP Better Blogging Campaign starts now! From here on out, I'm gonna try my hardest-est to post at least once a day about new bands I'm digging, old faves I've rediscovered, and (slightly) more in-depth posts about Charleston-related musical happenings.

Today, let's focus on Philly lo-fi duo Reading Rainbow, who first came to my attention via a short, mysterious post on Said the Gramphone. Further research revealed that RR is comprised of Rob Garcia and Sarah Everton and was formed when another band they were in had to play a show without their drummer, forcing Everton behind the kit. The resulting sounds definitely fit in with the current lo-fi/no-fi revival, but rather than strictly toe the surf/garage line drawn by the likes of Vivian Girls or Wavves, Reading Rainbow practice a more thoughtful variety of minimalism that brings to mind a more-distorted Beat Happening or a less-busy Bird Names.

The band hasn't quite got any releases under its belt yet, but that should change real soon with the impending releases of a split 7" with Eternal Summers on Chimney Sweep Records due out any day now and a full-length LP on Slipshod Mucus Kiss coming later this summer. Until then, you can check out a few tunes on the band's myspace, and in the spirit of instant gratification, here's a couple of mp3s:

Reading Rainbow - "In the City"
Reading Rainbow - "Totem Pole"
(mp3s via StG)

I Am Fighting the Good Fight

...And the tardiness continues. Sorry for the delay again, loyal listeners, but this week I was thwarted by an internet outage that turned out to be caused by my bed being jammed up against the cable hookup on my wall. Whoops. Well, now that that's taken care of, I can podcast at you without hindrance! Here's this week's episode:



Update: It has come to my attention that there are all sorts of skips and digital artifacts on the Don Cab song. I have fixed this.
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PLAYLIST

Bill Callahan - "My Friend" (buy)
Versus - "Double Suicide (Mercy Killing)" (buy)
Japandroids - "Crazy/Forever" (buy)
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Nothing Painted Blue - "Undeserving" (buy)
Pill Wonder - "Wishing Whale" (download)
Tortoise - "Yinxianghechengqi" (buy)
The Intelligence - "Debt & E.S.P." (buy)
Jeffrey Lewis - "Anxiety Attack" (download)
The Books - "Motherless Bastard" (buy)
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Summer Hymns - "Mr. Brewer (Cackle, Cackle)" (buy)
Mandarin Dynasty - "A Good Fight" (buy)
Trumans Water - "Speeds Exceeding" (buy)
Circus Devils - "Apparent the Red Angus" (buy)
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Don Caballero - "June Is Finally Here" (buy)

255 Brings You the Heaviest Mondays in Town

Sorry for the terrible title/image pun, but I had to think up some sort of snappy way to mention that there are a lot of Monday shows at 255 Ashley this June. Now I know Mondays are rough on most people, but what better way to ease your way into the week than by unwinding with your friends at a super fun house show? Here's a rundown of all the fun this month at 255, plus a few other SCnP-approved shows around town.

Sunday, June 7th @ The Pour House - 9pm
Garage Cuban Band
Oicho Kabu
Your Bad Self

Monday, June 8th @ 255 - 8pm
The Ocean Floor
Church
Brook Pridemore
Vikesh Kapoor

Saturday, June 13th @ 88 Columbus St. - 7pm
Best Friends Forever
Oicho Kabu
Bookjaw
Sundowners
Fussy Anal

Monday, June 15th @ 255 - 8pm
St. Anthony
The Kicker Knot

Thursday, June 18th @ The Communications Museum - 8pm
Followed By Ghosts
Puberty
The Huspa Concept

Monday, June 22nd @ 255 - 8pm
Lonnie Walker
Motel Motel
Will Pittman

Friday, June 26th @ 255 - 8pm
Chicken & Whiskey
Heavy Flow

Saturday, June 27th @ Halligan's (???) - 8pm
Southern Culture on the Skids
Hypnosquad!

Monday, June 29th @ 255 - 8pm
Blastoids
The Huspa Concept