The Little Willies

Forget the jazz facade, Norah Jones is really a country singer at heart. Case in point-Feels Like Home. Which of course invites the question, why was Come Away With Me so damn good? Anyway, her forays into country are becoming all too steady for us to regard this as a passing fad. Which isn't saying it is not the right choice for her, it's her voice and she can sing whatever she pleases with it. Anyway, her side project band, The Little Willies just put out a likeable eponymous country album. EMI has graciously and quite wisely put the entire album up for free preview here. I recommend a full listen accordingly, if only to hear Nora and Richard Julian trading greatness on a cover of Kris Kristofferson's Best of All Possible Worlds.

Hot Female Leads #1 - Nirmala Basnayake

Leading off my "Hot Female Leads" series (yes, I threatened I would!), is Nirmala Basnayake from Toronto based Controller.Controller. Now this band was introduced to me by a colleague just this morning as we were contemplating Metric's upcoming live show at the Shaw. So I quickly googled, pitchforked, wikipediad, and even bloggered them. I dug up some pretty good stuff too, so I guess that's one more for the loving. Anyway, this is really about NB, our hot female lead #1. Supple, ain't she? And quite the X-explainer, as she explains in the following explanation:

“’X’ is a placeholder for so much, from things dirty and forbidden to
things that run along a straight edge. can a kiss but it
can also symbolize poison. can resistance as well as
crossing paths and crossroads. ‘X’ stands out and ‘X’ marks the
spot. is a letter that can express the sound of a group of letters,
like a phonetic union. is our common chromosome. can
even something that has been eliminated, something of the
past, but this is not the case us. future of this band the
undetermined ‘X’; precisely because it is so, we can make it whatever
we want.”

Damn, I say.

Free songs from their latest, X-Amounts, and the previous History are available here. After grabbing, head here and here to buy and to their official site for some cool pics.

Blondie: Label Compiles Again

Being a die-hard fan or an "ontheroadtolalaland" completist is an expensive life. Here's another Blondie greatest hits collection, this time with the very "unique" (sarcasm intended) sound and vision spin. Hard as that sucks, this one has to come home, if only for the sake of DH. Oh, DH, the prototype of the female lead! Hmnn...Blog Idea: The "hot female lead" series...
Buy yet another Blondie here.

Blogwatch

A number of Neil Young postings today.

AAD has his 1971 London live set and Volume 1 of A Perfect Echo.
The Perm and The Skullet has some songs from a 1971 Massey Hall, Toronto show.
If you like what you heard over at the P&S then head over to BigO and get the entire Massey Hall set. This site also has troves of live recordings that would make you weep shamelessly.

New Moz

5.47pm, Mountain time. A glass of water to quench an evil thirst. Some honest netsurfing. Stumble on some godknowshowtheygotit new Moz. Cover art says it all-Moz is one cool bloke. Note to self-must buy. Heard this one is full of Moz-style politicking and bile. FBI on alert, the Bigmouth strikes again!

Pavement Covers Others

Anyone who reads this blog regularly (and I'm beginning to think no one does):, will have noticed a certain reverence to Pavement and Stephen Malkmus. Not because of all the indie world hype, but simply because these guys played and SM still plays the music you and your cool friends always wanted to make if only you were talented. The reason I tell you this is to explain the Pavement/SM related posts on this blog. Infact, P/SM is my default plan.

Anyway, here's a collection of Pavement covers. Before you run amok with joy and kick your dog, consider this-Pavement interpreting "Wonderwall" (Oasis) is a good reason to kick your dog. Enjoy.

Playlist #2

Today, some good old indie rock.

The Spaceshots: Siren Sounds (Boston based band, hardworking lads)
Soulwax: Much Against Everyone's Advice
And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes

Streaming here, all day long.

Music for the Insomniac

Anyone music-loving weirdo with a "can't sleep again tonight" problem probably already knows everybody's fav indie folkie, Will Oldham (a.k.a. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy). For those of you who haven't, here's some stuff from his discography. However, I suggest you quickly get yourself a copy of I See A Darkness to ensure a mind-blowing excursion into the joyfully sombre confusion that dear B'P'B invokes in his music.