There’s just something inherently musical about Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Italian. Romance languages, they’re called. The same shouldn’t and couldn't be said of Swedish (or, for that matter, English), and I think that’s why Dungen is just so damned appealing. If you like these tracks off of Dungen’s Ta Det Lugnt (Take It Easy), watch out for Tio Bitar coming up in May.
Dungen – Festival
Dungen – Du
Buy Ta Det Lugt here.
Today is a different kind of summer than last week. Today's summer is the kind where every time you move, you sweat, so you end up sitting still for hours at a time. It's the kind where your brain melts and putting together sentences becomes next to impossible. It's the kind where your friends are somehow having fun outside playing frisbee and are about to go see Peyton Manning speak, but if you leave your fan for a second you think you'll die, or worse. It's the kind of day way too miserable for lyrics, so here's some good (mostly) instrumental music.
Soko – In November Sunlight
Taj Mahal – Ain’t Gwine To Whistle
Don Ross – Michael, Michael, Michael
Hem – Eveningland
Béla Fleck and the Flecktones – Big Country
Nick Drake – Sunday
William Galison & Madeleine Peyroux – Jealous Guy
Rebirth Brass Band – Cassanova
Spiritualized – Cool Waves
Sigur Rós – Untitled 4
Dave Matthews Band – One Sweet World Intro
I just want to call attention to the fact that conservapedia.com has updated their look to include a new logo.
Neil Young -- America the Beautiful
-Benjy
I was a little late catching the Dr. Dog train. Formed in 1999 as a temporary departure from the 
On a promotional tour last month to hype the release of their most recent album, We All Belong, Dr. Dog watched the Canals watch them in concert in the back of AKA Music. I think we were two of six people there not wearing flannel. We felt a little out of place, yet there was something magical about the whole event. Amidst the clamor and jingle-jangle of the riffs and beats, I spotted a long-lost amigo from my
Dr. Dog –
Dr. Dog – Wake Up
Dr. Dog – Die Die Die (Might be surpassing
Campus Crusade for Christ is currently in 3rd place among the top corporate networks on Facebook in the overall NCAA tournament bracket standings. I was surprised at first, but it makes perfect sense. Every player and coach publicly thanks God immediately after winning a big game. Clearly, He has something to do with the outcome. And clearly, if any corporation is going to get its hands on the scoop before the official results are in, it's the CC for C. It’s probably a perk to compensate them for all the late nights they’ve spent crusading. It’s the least He could do.
Anyway, I figured that it couldn’t hurt to get in touch with the big guy up there, if only to help me through the rest of the tournament. I went 4/4 tonight and all 4 of my other elite eight picks are playing tomorrow, but I still need all the help I can get. Here’s my playlist for the rest of the tourney, or at least as long as C3 keeps it up.
Wilco – Jesus, etc.
Everlast – Black Jesus
Beck – Lord Only Knows
Guster – All the Way Up to Heaven
Vusi Mahlasehla – Heaven in my Heart
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals – Nothing But The Water (II)
Dave Matthews Band – Christmas Song
Mike Doughty – Thank You, Lord, For Sending Me the F Train
-danny
Benjy has gone on record saying that if he could go back in time and do one thing, he would be in the ensemble for this ad. I'm not sure what the official title of the song is, but I'm gonna go with "Big Beefy McD," which is in my opinion the most poignant lyric.
Jason Alexander – Big Beefy McD
-danny
As Stephen, the crazy Irishman from Braveheart, taught us, the Scottish and the Irish can get along just fine. Having a bit of Scot in me, I feel that it won’t be overly insulting to have a four day late St. Patrick’s Day post.
Dropkick Murphys – The Auld Triangle
-Benjy
The most recent movie featured in a long string of pre-release screenings here at school, Shooter, with Mark Wahlburg, is not only a fantastic political action thriller, but also a personal musical pleasure. As the opening credits passed over a burning Ethiopian village, my heart skipped a beat as the words “Levon” and “Helm” appeared on screen. I had heard of Levon’s acting career (including The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada), but had never actually seen him act. I completely flipped a wig when I saw his craggy old mug on screen. He was hilarious: a zonked out oracle, singing mystical artillery wisdom in his iconic gravel-tongued voice… and reading palms. Nothing gets better.
The Band – Key to the Highway
- Benjy
Yesterday morning I woke up to the following Facebook message:
From: Bonnie Eisner
To: Danny
Subject: Braddigan in Philly
Message: www.worldcafelive.com (click on april 19)
www.xpn.org/moc/phl
www.braddigan.com (click on Tours and April 19)
There were a few remarkable things about the message. First of all, I was notified of it by email. It always annoyed me that Facebook didn’t send out emails about private messages, and I was happy to see the apparently new feature in action. Second of all, I have no idea who Bonnie Eisner is. The only information on her profile is that she is “UPenn Staff” and that her birthday is February 17, 1953. Third and most importantly, it let me know that Braddigan is coming back to Philly to headline a benefit concert in April. I’d place this information at around #7 on the “best things to wake up to” list, right behind having breakfast in bed served by Hayden Panettiere, and a few spots ahead of being serenaded by Yanik. Needless to say, I immediately bought tickets.
Braddigan is the solo effort of former Dispatch lead singer Brad Corrigan. You can definitely hear some Dispatch influence in his music, but it has a much more laid-back, acoustic vibe. His songs are impressively diverse, especially considering he’s only released one studio album. In his live stuff the bongos are some of the best I’ve heard, and are a constant reminder of what Panama and the Canals could have been.
“Whirlwind” is a Dispatch cover and the other four tracks are his, posted in the order that they were my favorite songs.
Braddigan – Whirlwind
Braddigan – Sailin’
Braddigan – City on a Hill
Braddigan – Pura Vida
Braddigan – Fare Thee Well (live)
Buy his album here. Almost everything Braddigan sells and does is for a good cause.
-danny
It’s the Ides… officially. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. On account of the fact that March is the official month of betrayal, here are a couple songs to commemorate the occasion. (They're both live tracks for no particular reason... don't look too far into it.)
Townes Van Zandt – Pancho & Lefty
Clem Snide – Jews for Jesus Blues (Look out for some more Clem Snide coming up for a Spring Fling post)
-Benjy
It’s official: today is the first day of summer. I know it might seem like I’m jumping the gun a little, but I have to call it like I see it. Today for the first time since September I wasn’t the only person in Dunkin’ Donuts ordering an iced coffee, bikinis reappeared in the Quad courtyards, and I’ve been miserable in my dorm without air conditioning.
The arrival of summer means that summer music is close behind. Summer music is great because guilty pleasures lose their guilt. It’s like it evaporates in the heat and just leaves the pleasure behind. Music like this makes me miss my car.
Smashmouth – All Star
Jurassic 5 – Concrete Schoolyard
Mungo Jerry – In The Summertime
Slightly Stoopid – Mellow Mood
Fatboy Slim – That Old Pair of Jeans
G. Love and the Special Sauce – Don’t Drop It
Wilco – Jesus, etc.
Secondhand Jive – Lemonade (acoustic)
Dave Matthews Band – Best of What’s Around
-Danny
Over spring break I watched City of God in two sittings. I guess it was just too good to watch all the way through without taking a break. Well, anyway, in my off time I tried to figure out why the character “Knockout Ned” looked so familiar. Then it hit me. He was played by the Brazilian singer-songwriter, Seu Jorge, also featured in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Check him out:
Seu Jorge – Team Zissou
And for a sample of what I hear is really popular in Rio today, check out this baile funk track that I heard in the Vice Guide to Travel.
Bonde do Role – Marina Gasolina
As noted by D-Roc below, we saw Hem perform at the World Café Live in October, and it just so happens that another terrific band, Ollabelle, opened for them with a mind-blowing set. They’re best described as of a folksy, gospel-infused, “multitalented, democratic collective” of pure rock.
Ollabelle – Reach for Love
Ollabelle – Fall Back
P.S. Amy Helm, one of the lead singers for Ollabelle, is none other than the daughter of the bourbon-voiced percussion legend Levon Helm, of The Band.
Ollabelle covered this in concert:
Bob Dylan & The Band – Ain’t No More Cane
P.P.S. Here’s another terrific cover of the same song:
John Hiatt and the North Mississippi Allstars – Ain’t No More Cane
Plus- another, unrelated cover:
Little Feat – On Your Way Down (Originally Allen Toussaint)
Buy Ollabelle’s newest release, “Riverside Battle Songs,” here.
-Benjy
I’m a die-hard Tivo loyalist. I’ve been spoiled by commercial-free television and can’t imagine primetime without a fast-forward button. Still, as much as I hate to admit it, commercials have some redeeming qualities. They can be mildly funny, present a new useful product, and sometimes feature some pretty good music. Once in a while I see an ad that ends up introducing me to a new favorite artist. I can think of two off the top of my head, and they’re posted below. I’m going to be watching a lot of ads these next few weeks during March Madness, so I’m hoping this will be a recurring feature that shows up again soon.
Liberty Mutual (Hem – Half Acre)
I saw this ad in September and six months later Hem is my 3rd most listened to artist. We got to see them play at World Café in October and it was one of the best concerts I’ve been too. Here’s one song from each of their first three albums.
Hem – Half Acre
Hem – The Pills Stopped Working
Hem – Pacific Street
Buy Hem albums here
Volkswagen (Nick Drake – Pink Moon)
I actually heard Nick Drake for the first time on the Garden State soundtrack, but this ad was responsible for a huge jump in CD sales. Drake died in 1974 of an apparent suicide and his music went basically unnoticed during his lifetime. All of Drake’s albums are worth listening to, and chances are that he was an inspiration to most of your favorite artists.
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Nick Drake – Fruit Tree
Nick Drake – Way to Blue
Nick Drake – Northern Sky
Buy Nick Drake albums here
Nike (Untitled)
This is just an amazing commercial with a cool song. I also included a fan edit with the original moves that inspired the ad.
Nike – MJ 2nd Generation
-Danny
Greetings future friends,
I recently read in the Southwest Airlines magazine, "Spirit", that the angle between any tree's branch and its trunk is equal to the angle that delineates the veins of that tree's leaf. Such precision had yet to be matched in nature until the immaculate conception of a trio of tenacious young students from across the
The three parted ways in the winter of 2006.
He started by hunting down the man who ruined his life, Panama Lee. Armed with a blowtorch, a broom handle, and a gallon of icy hot, he began to make his way south of the border. Before he could exact his revenge, however, Benjy was arrested and charged on two separate counts of indecent exposure and libel in Gallop,
Listen up y’all- two tracks for where we are… and where we’re going.
Kool Keith- Livin’ Astro
Taj Mahal- Farther On Down The Road
-Benjy
Earlier this year, Benjy and I formed a band with our friend
That’s my take on the history and decline of
First, though, take a minute and listen to these Wood Brothers tracks. Like The Canals, the Wood Brothers continued to pursue music after branching off from a trio (Medeski, Martin, and Wood). We sympathize with them and respect their courage and perseverance. Two interesting facts about the Wood Brothers: First, somehow their debut album (“Ways Not to Lose”) is my 6th most played even though I have no recollection of ever listening to it straight through and only recognize two of the tracks by name. Second, we could have seen them perform at World Café Live earlier this year from front row seats, but we were busy playing our first intramural basketball game (final score-- Ware 3rd Floor: 42, Fisher Delicious Corn: 20, our first of two losses by mercy rule).
The Wood Brothers – Luckiest Man
The Wood Brothers – Atlas
Buy the album here
-Danny
