Nye fra the Billies

Nå, Billie the Vision & the Dancers, et stort, fint band fra Sverige, skal have et ny album -- deres fjerde -- ud 4. juni. Jeg syntes, det var meget snart -- men det er vist 14 måneder siden deres sidst album. Og jeg glæder mig til høre det nyt. Sit navnet er I Used to Wander These Streets. For et par (lidt mere) dage, de har haft tre for at spille på myspace. To af dem er (ligesom) om Lilly, som jeg foretrække over Pablo. Min yndling er Someday Somehow, og jeg synes, det lyder de fleste lige med deres ældre sange. Men de andre er også gode. Hvis du bor i Sverige, de skal spille fire releasekoncerter fra 5.-7. juni.

Der er ingen nye sange du måtte downloade, men alle af deres ældre er på musiksiden af deres webside. Der er mange, som have mig glad (eller deprimeret), men lige nu, jeg kan især lide Summercat, fra første albumet. Senere skal jeg måske sige hvorfor.

--

So -- Billie the Vision & the Dancers will release a new album -- their fourth -- on 4 June. At first I was surprised to learn this, as it seemed very soon after their last album, but I guess it’s been fourteen months. (Not that I’d be complaining if it were sooner.)

The new album title is I Used to Wander These Streets, and three of its tracks can be streamed on myspace. None of the new songs are downloadable; however, all of the songs from the previous three albums are available free on the music page of the Billies' website. I like almost all of them, but right now, I really like Summercat. Maybe later I’ll explain why…

--DL--
Summercat (Billie the Vision & the Dancers)

Nå, jeg køber ikke CDs

A couple days ago, Stytzer over at Hits in the Car asked readers about their CD-buying habits (or lack thereof). I wrote a response, but decided it was too long to post as a comment; then, characteristically, in trying to condense it, I made it longer. But if anyone wants my take on the issue, well, first look at Stytzer’s original post, then come back and read my (essentially irrelevant) response:

Funny this should come up now. Less than a week ago, I finished ripping all my CDs onto my computer, then gave them all to my sister. They took up too much space, and I only ever listened to them on the computer anyway.

I’m not a fan of mp3s, and I’ve never bought a digital album. Overall, I don’t buy very much music. I stopped buying CDs primarily because I couldn’t afford to -- even buying used. Furthermore, many of the artists I like are young, unsigned, or (for whatever reason) don’t have physical releases on CD; downloading their mp3s is often the only option. I do still buy vinyl, and ideally, I’d own all the music I currently listen to on vinyl, but logically, this will never happen. If many of my favored artists don’t have CDs, even fewer have vinyl.

In my mind, the record, be it an LP or 7”, is a format far superior to the CD. Yes, vinyl is outdated; yes, it can take up an excessive amount of space; yes, I know it’s not transferable to digital (i.e. the computer). However, record album liner notes are nearly always more complex and well-done than CD liners, an oversized vinyl disc is more aesthetically pleasing than a shiny compact one, and vinyl has that intangible (or tangible, if we’re comparing to mp3s) quality… nothing beats the sound or sensation of a vinyl record.

As far as buying or not buying CDs, again, I stopped because I couldn’t afford it. I’ve actually never participated in online file sharing, although I’m sure I’ve acquired music in ways that are illegal (example: ripping radio promo CDs onto my personal computer). I know the record industry is in a downward spiral, and I feel bad, but -- even if I were to discontinue the aforementioned practice - there’s really nothing I can do to save it. The majority of the population seems not to care very much about sound quality or ethics, and downloads are through the roof.

If I were really dedicated, I would have kept my CDs -- and I would have more of them, because I would have kept buying them -- and I would probably also have a CD player to play them in. But I’ve never even had a proper CD player. Before my computer, I had a discman and a lot of wires. Then, it never seemed necessary to upgrade, and now, the possibility of (almost anyone) buying a CD player only seems foolish – just think how shocked you would be if you were out walking and saw someone listening to music on a discman instead of an ipod.

The record industry, musicians, listeners, everyone, need to face facts: the CD is a dying medium. Eventually, CDs will be phased out entirely, replaced with the even more versatile mp3s. I’m not looking forward to this, but it’s true. Working at a college radio station, I’m appalled by the number of people who are entirely reliant on their mp3 players to broadcast their shows -- because these, along with the increasingly rare indie record store clerks, are the people who are supposed to be arbiters of taste, musical experts. If even disc jockeys are giving up and switching to mp3s, I can’t see that the CD has much of a future.

Even burning CDs for external use is increasingly irrelevant -- mp3 players are becoming less and less expensive, are compatible with both speakers and headphones, incredibly portable, and, with a cheap adaptor, can be used in the car, too. Basically, the mp3 can do everything the CD can – but without the risk of becoming scratched or broken, or taking up (physical) space. To most people, the difference in sound quality is negligible. Did I say CDs were dying? Essentially, they’re already dead.

Vinyl, on the other hand, will despite its many 'flaws' nevertheless be around as long as there are hipsters with credit cards. Maybe half the novelty and desire is in having a bigger or better collection than next door -- but at least that means vinyl is something people really care about. CDs, sadly enough, aren’t. To be honest, I don’t know if they ever were.

Feel free to leave comments regarding your own CD/vinyl/mp3 ideas, too.

Hemmeligheden er ud

I’ve been trying for the past hour to get these to download. My internet connection is really horrible.

The opposite of horrible: the new Oliver North Boy Choir single, Weekender, is at last out! Also available is the b-side (if it can properly be called that), Lovesong. The two sound very different from each other, but both can be described in quite positive terms. Weekender is somewhat guitar-driven (the first time I heard it, I thought of early Raveonettes), unlike other ONBC songs. It’s a bit different, but not so different that you won’t recognize the things you like about the band.

Weekender is really neat, and a step in a different direction that works well, but I’ll admit it -- I’ve always been one of those people who often winds up liking B-sides better than singles, and this case I do. Maybe I just hear what I want to hear, but Lovesong, in my opinion, sounds much more reminiscent of early ONBC -- think Cobra, or Something New… Ethereal pop with a bit of a shoegazey influence toward the end. I like it very, very much. It’s the right kind of love song -- one for the broken-hearted. I guess nearly all (good) love songs are somewhat broken-hearted, but this one seems even more so. It’s perhaps what happens when you’re still in love, but don’t want to be, kind of; the lie that you need to tell yourself, even though you know it’s not true. Again, maybe I just hear what I want to hear -- but maybe not. I guess you’ll have to listen to it to know what I mean.

Anyway. In addition to the main two, ONBC has also released a third bonus track, New Folder, and a new remix, by Danish electro-ist Limboasyoulikeit, of an old ONBC song (Cobra, actually). These last two are what I’ve been trying to download -- and you can download them as well. (Weekender and Lovesong are through iTunes.)

If your internet is better than mine, all six songs -- the aforementioned, as well as two previously released affiliated tracks, Bonnie and Clyde’s Serbia’s on Fire remix and Bakers at Dawn’s Something New cover -- can be streamed in full at the special little Weekender web page. This is also where you should go to download the latter four -- or to watch the Weekender video. A few words about that: it’s black and white, and features two men playing chess and somehow managing to lip-sync the song, despite having been filmed in fast motion. And there’s a cameo from a Rationell cutlery tray -- the medium-sized one -- from IKEA. (Isn’t it sad how well I know these things?)

I guess I should also talk about the song I’m putting up to download here -- New Folder. It’s a spacey pop song just like (maybe even more so than) the rest. But toward the middle, something about it makes me think of math. Perhaps it’s very measured or even or something. Perhaps I just wanted to think of math. Whatever the case, I like it. It’s got a lot of different instruments and a nice sonic buildup. Last night, when I initially wrote this, toward the end I thought it sounded kind of like a funnel looks -- you know, the kind water makes when going down a drain. That was probably more the influence of really needing to go to sleep -- but I still can't think of any better way to describe the song. Perhaps you'd just better listen to it, too.

--DL--
New Folder (Oliver North Boy Choir)

Vampyrer og El Perro del Mar

Those two don’t really go together, but that's what I did.

Today I stuck a sort of mini theme inside the regular show: vampires. Why? I’d been listening a lot to this song, Blah Blah Blah, by Say Hi to Your Mom (now, somewhat lamely, just Say Hi) and it talks about drinking blood. Okay -- it’s far better than it sounds. Anyway, after a while it occurred to me that there were several other vampire-related songs I liked. And, since the answer to the question ‘Who doesn’t love vampires?’ is clearly ‘Nobody,’ I decided to make a little vampire set. It actually wound up being seven somewhat vampiric songs mixed in with the rest.

I probably won't do anything like this again -- at least not for a while -- but it does make things interesting.

Her er spillelisten:

1. Blah Blah Blah – Say Hi to Your Mom
2. Ghost vs. Vampire – Quasi
3. Slide Song – the Afghan Whigs
4. Lisa Could Die for Elvis – Yellowish (DK)
5. VVVampyre! – Saint Jude’s Infirmary
6. Glory to the World – El Perro del Mar (SV)
7. Love and Nostalgia – Friday Bridge (SV)
8. We Move in Silence – Club 8 (SV)
9. Come on Rainbow – Cake on Cake (SV)
10. From the Devil Himself – Viva Voce
11. Werewolf – CocoRosie
12. From Off to On – the Knife (SV)
13. Take Me Home (Johan Agebjörn remix feat. Sally Shapiro) – Don Juan Dracula (SV, SV, NW)

Just to clarify -- not all of the songs follow the theme. For example, El Perro del Mar has absolutely nothing to do with vampires; nor has Club 8. I’m not, however, so sure about the Knife…

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (25. april 2008)

Elskov

Oh, wow, look at this! I was supposed to be watching a video of Club 8 singing a song in a church, but I forgot what song it was, and I found this instead. It's Pelle Carlberg playing I Love You, You Imbecile onstage with Karolina and Johan from Club 8 in, of all places, Kuala Lumpur. It was the last song of their last show on the Asian tour in January of this year -- and what a way to end it.

The quality of the video (and sound) is terrible, although it's still worth playing at least once. The vocal harmonizing between Pelle and Karolina near the end is really pretty. And, with all due respect to Ida Maria (the original female vocalist), the studio version -- while endearing -- also sounds kind of snotty at times. It's nice to hear a different take, and this live version is sweet... sentimental... unconditional. Love.

There's another version (of the live performance) too. The official studio version with Ida Maria is here.

Ligesom lige heldig

I was really happy all day today, until about six thirty, when it all evaporated. I’d like to blame my international relations textbook, but I didn’t start reading that until later.

Anyway, here is the playlist. Part of it was me wanting to play poppy, happy songs, part of it was chosen at the tail end of the night and rather… less happy, and most of the show is stuff that I initially thought was upbeat but later realized was actually depressed, depressing, or both. Men spillelisten:

1. Sha Sha (How It Should Be) – Ben Kweller
2. We’re Here – Guillemots
3. I Love You, You Imbecile – Pelle Carlberg feat. Ida Maria (SV, NW)
4. Not Enough – Maria Timm (DK)
5. Tell No One About Tonight – Le Sport (SV)
6. Hip – Marybell Katastrophy (DK)
7. I’m Your Matador – Anamia (DK)
8. Quietly (Demo) – Mew (DK)
9. Artboy Meets Artgirl – moi Caprice (DK)
10. Everybody But Me – Lykke Li (SV)
11. Play it for Today – the Legends (SV)
12. Nerves – Citizens Here and Abroad
13. I Always Know I’m Right – Bakers at Dawn (SV)
14. Sweet Bills – Kristoffer Ragnstam (SV)
15. Hyperschlieb – epo-555 (DK)

Several of these songs are quite new (at least to me) meaning you can probably find and download them pretty easily. I was going to put up the Lykke Li one -- Everybody But Me -- for download from here tonight, but I then I realized I have absolutely no idea where this song came from (nor do I know how I managed to wind up with it, rather than one of the singles). In short, I don’t know if it’s legal. But I’ll talk about it anyway.

So… this is interesting. While I’ve been hearing about Lykke Li for some time (who hasn’t?), somehow I have managed to not ever actually hear any of her music until now. Now that I finally have, however, I’m definitely looking forward to hearing more -- at least if this song is any indication of what the rest is like. You can stream Everybody But Me on myspace -- or get it with all the others in the podcast.

Also -- for those of you not already in the know, Lykke Li plays the Doug Fir (in Portland) with fellow Swedes El Perro del Mar and Anna Ternheim on 16. may. Too bad I won’t be 21 for three more weeks. Always everybody but me...

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (23. april 2008)

Grammofonpladebutikkers dag

I bet that even in Danish, which has some of the longest words I have ever encountered, there is a shorter word than 'grammofonpladebutik' for 'record store.' I don't know it, though, so that will do. The word's not so important, anyway. What's important is this -- Satuday (19. april) was record store day. This was the first year it took place, so of course I did not find out until after the fact -- Sunday morning, to be exact. To be honest, this is probably a good thing; otherwise I would have used the occasion as an excuse to actually go to a record store, meaning I would inevitably wind up buying a couple records, something that a person of my delicate financial situation should not be doing. However, I will take this (albeit belated) opportunity to remind everyone to buy records -- from the musicians themselves, or local indie retailers, if you can.

Also of interest -- I have updated the blog links list a bit. Among the additions is One Weekly Gun, which is I guess not really a blog, but close enough. For those of you unfamiliar with the project, he writes and posts one song every week about a world news event. The song for week 16, We Will Happily Sedate You, was posted yesterday. It's about China, and all that...

--DL--
We Will Happily Sedate You (One Weekly Gun)

Heldig (to gange -- to gange)

This is luck: yesterday, 18. april, the OLCC approved changes to Oregon’s minor posting rules, meaning that traditionally 21+ venues will now have the option to create liquor control plans and, if all goes well, finally(!) allow underage concertgoers inside. This means that Portlanders who have not yet attained 21 years of age will soon be able to get into more than four places in a city that (until now) has had a reputation of being great for music if you’re over 21 and horrible if you aren’t. (More info here.)

So… great news -- and coming soon! How soon? About six weeks -- the new ruling should go into effect 1. june. Five days before my twenty-first birthday. Annoyed as I am by the timing of things, I’m actually quite excited and pleased about this. There are lots and lots and lots of other people who will benefit from this rules change, and I hope it works out great for them. Super great.

Anyway, I spent the morning writing about this and otherwise fixing up the Modern Age website -- and completely forgot about updating things here. Sorry about that.

Spillelisten fra 18. april:

1. Scene I – Just Like You Don’t – Blue Swan (DK)
2. Lucky – The Tough Alliance (SV)
3. Something Nice – Stina Nordenstam (SV)
4. The Lucky One – Au Revoir Simone
5. Damsel – Typhoon
6. Take My Advice – Wet Confetti
7. Burning Ball – the Vonneguts
8. I Might Need You to Kill – the Thermals
9. Tammie – the Dø (FN)
10. Sneak – Rumskib (DK)
11. Rye Fields – Northern Fields (SV)
12. I No Longer Know Anything – Trembling Blue Stars
13. On the Radio – the Concretes (SV)

The show itself is kind of… distracted, as I was doing a pre-record of the Live Friday band (oxymoron, I know) at the time, and being a good sound tech kind of took priority over talking at regular intervals in order to maintain the regular format of my show. I mean, all the songs got played, and I think it was a good list. For those who are curious, songs five through eight are all Portland bands, all of whom (in various incarnations) played at the Modern Age later that night. I guess it was only yesterday, actually. And it was quite good.

Anyway. I wanted to talk about the Tough Alliance’s latest -- Lucky. Yes, I know everyone else has already written a glowing review of it. But I am in love too, okay?

So. Lucky. It’s a cover. The original, which is only two years old, is by a pair of really girly Swedish teenage girls called Lucky Twice. While it’s attractive, I think I like the Tough Alliance’s version better. Actually, I know I like it better. The only reason I’m confused is that the Lucky Twice version has been stuck in my head since I (unwisely) decided to listen to it for comparison. It’s just that kind of song. It’s not bad -- but it also sounds like an almost-underground pop staple -- the kind of song they would have played at the skating rink when I was in fifth grade. Under a disco ball. Or maybe a strobe light. With Andy Austin hitting on me by the back wall. Actually, I think that was in third grade… God. Anyway, all that is not to say that the Lucky Twice version is not good. It’s just that the Tough Alliance’s take is better.

The first time I heard the song, I listened to the sound, which is gorgeous. Gradually, as I continued to repeat it at least fifteen times in a row, I began to comprehend the lyrics. They’re not the most brilliant (and TTA cannot be blamed for that) and to be quite honest, I’m not entirely sure what the song is about. Compounding the confusion is the fact that TTA takes what was originally a very peppy and upbeat thing, slows it down, and makes it sad. Sounding as if they’re shouted down a long tunnel, the vocals are echo-y, far away, perhaps almost all the way gone… To me, it sounds kinda like a memory.

It’s a melancholy song, more suited to morosely sitting, post-break-up, in a sea of candles, moving only enough to hit repeat every two minutes and fifty-five seconds, than to dancing -- or even being very happy. It’s not what I expected from the Tough Alliance, and I don’t think it’s what anyone would have expected to have been released as the b-side of a song called Neo Violence. (To be fair, I have not actually heard Neo Violence. My relationship to the music of the Tough Alliance is still somewhat bizarre.) But -- especially considering the fact that it is a b-side -- it’s a real gem. No wonder everyone is so excited about this.

Unfortunately, since I think TTA would like you to actually pay for this, I cannot offer a direct download here (although you can hear it on the podcast (or probably find it quite easily through the Hype Machine)). You can purchase Lucky, along with its a-side, through Sincerely Yours, on mp3 or 7”. I am quite inclined to think the vinyl will be worth it.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (18. april 2008)

Gudskelov for Island

Første, her er spillelisten fra programmet i aftes:

1. Baby Cool – Oliver North Boy Choir (DK)
2. Too Little Too Late – Metric
3. AM 180 – Grandaddy
4. The Comeback – Shout Out Louds (SV)
5. Hey Messy Queen – Death Valley Sleepers (DK)
6. Moon Pulls – Múm (IS)
7. Tindrer – Under Byen (DK)
8. Hands Remember – Seabear (IS)
9. Alive and Well – Shooting Spires
10. Down the Line – José González (SV)
11. My Man – the Sad Lovers (DK)
12. Disappearing Act – the Bear Quartet (SV)
13. Subtle Changes – Sambassadeur (SV)

And now I must talk about that post header: thank god for Iceland, indeed.

Here’s the story. A couple weeks ago, I discovered Seabear. (Discovered is not the right word, because the band existed before, and I had even heard of them before -- I’d just never paid much attention until picking up the CD, looking at the composer’s name, and realizing they came from Iceland. But anyway.) I was, to put it most honestly, enchanted.

About a day later, my computer screen died, I put Electrelane’s No Shouts No Calls on my record player, and listened to essentially nothing else for the next two weeks. In other words, I forgot about Seabear. Until the day before yesterday. I was planning my show, and remembered I had this new album by a band from Iceland. I revisited the album -- Seabear’s official debut, The Ghost that Carried Us Away -- and was soon re-enchanted.

I don’t know what it is about Iceland. Granted, I haven’t heard a vast number of Icelandic musicians, but of those I’ve heard, every one has had that little something. I can’t quite describe it -- sort of an ethereal quality, a secret sound just under the surface… Each band is unique and distinct, but at the same time, there’s this similarity -- they’re all connected. And it’s so beautiful. It is my personal belief that Iceland secretly exists on a plane apart from the rest of the world, in a place where things like wormholes, fantastical beings, and (best of all) eternal childhood really do exist.

As for Seabear -- if songbirds learned how to play toy pianos and were asked to play the soundtrack for the last chapter of Martin Page’s excellent book ‘How I Became Stupid,’ this is what it would sound like. I realize this isn’t a very good description, but I really can’t think of anything better. It’s orchestral -- but without orchestra instruments? I don’t know. But Sindri, the frontman, admits on the band’s myspace that he doesn’t know what kind of music the band plays, either, so I guess it’s okay. And by okay, I really mean almost perfect.

Unfortunately, you cannot download any songs from the newer album; however, you can stream several at the Morr Music (label) website. Seabear’s cover of Teenage Kicks, which was released on 7”, is there also. And finally -- what you can download: Seabear’s entire first album, or rather the Singing Arc EP. It’s from 2004, it’s Sindri solo (without the other six members of the band, who were added later), and it’s admittedly not quite as good as The Ghost that Carried Us Away. However, that’s a lot to match up to, and if I had heard the EP first, I would probably be raving – the songs are still very good.

It’s hard to pick a favorite of these eight (and absolutely impossible to do so for the full album) so, instead, here are two nice ones. Drunk Song is a bit more energetic, with vocals vaguely reminiscent of (I think?) Jens Lekman, while We Like Winterclothes is sad and quiet -- but also, in my opinion at least, comes closest to the sound you’ll hear on the full album. The remaining tracks are available through the sound page of Seabear’s website, and I’d advise listening to them all.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (16. april 2008)
Drunk Song (Seabear)
We Like Winterclothes (Seabear)

To hundred fire og halvtreds

I was going to catch up on my homework and write something (good) for the blog and return emails yesterday, but instead I got all passionate and spent the day writing pseudo legal briefs and not getting anything else done. See, we’re having a bit of a capacity issue at the Modern Age… which reminds me -- show this Friday. It’s already all over the internet, but anyway. Five bands: the Vonneguts, Typhoon, Hutch & Kathy from the Thermals (in their first public performance in six years), Reporter, and Strength. It starts at seven, it’s going to be awesome, and if you’re planning on coming, plan on coming really early, due to the aforementioned capacity issue.

Um, here’s an mp3, though. For those of you who haven’t already gotten it via Hits in the Car, Emodreng & Indiepige, or some other place, here’s the Bonnie and Clyde remix of Oliver North Boy Choir’s Serbia on Fire (one of the B-sides with Blizzard, their most recent single). I don’t have much to say about it; sorry.

Ivan (from the band) promises a few more remixes next week to accompany the release of the new ONBC single. Very soon.

--DL--
Serbia on Fire – Bonnie and Clyde remix (Oliver North Boy Choir)

Solen skinner og ja....

The weather today is almost perfect. I wish it would stay like this forever. I’m such a better person when it’s sunny and not raining all the time.

Her er i gårses spilleliste:

1. Whatever You Want – Club 8 (SV)
2. Marine Thing – the Bridal Shop (SV)
3. Current Acids – Shout Wellington Air Force (DK)
4. Bachelor Kisses – the Radio Dept. (SV)
5. Disco 2000 – Pulp
6. Brass Ring Lionheart Child – the Vonneguts
7. She’s Broken – the Ponys
8. Hotel Room – Richard Hawley
9. Cheat Death – Dirty on Purpose
10. Something New – Oliver North Boy Choir (DK)
11. Something New – Bakers at Dawn (SV)
12. Inside – Bang Gang (IS)
13. From the Valley to the Stars – El Perro del Mar (SV)

Once again, I will draw attention to the fact that, in addition to downloading the podcast, you may also download Bakers at Dawn’s excellent cover of ONBC’s Something New, as well as read more on what I think about it in the post immediately below this one.

And now I am going outside to enjoy the weather for a few more minutes before I have to go to work.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (11. april 2008)

Noget nyt

And now I have this nice new thing...

Something New has always been one of my favorite Oliver North Boy Choir songs, if not my very favorite. Why? I think it was the line ‘I hope I dream of you’ and the longing of it -- yet something about the delivery reassured me, told me it was all going to be okay.

There was always something optimistic -- it’s a sad song, but I never particularly thought of it as such. While I’ve listened to the words dozens, probably hundreds, of times, I’ve never thought of them as being upset or desperate; ONBC’s Something New strikes me as more of a paean to a perhaps errant lover; a song written not in doubt or desperation, but more of a happy reminisce. Yes, there’s longing, but it’s a longing for something that she knows will soon come to be. He’ll call her in the morning, the sentimentalist in me always thought. If he’s not there already.

And now there’s this cover, by Swedish soloist Bakers at Dawn. I didn’t like it when I listened to it first, because it destroyed the little safety net of 'oh, it's only temporarily delayed gratification' I’d allowed ONBC to build for me. I felt let down, not only by a less-than-stellar version of a song I loved, but because this new version very bluntly announced -- hey, everything you thought would be okay? It’s not.

ONBC sound hopeful, whereas the Bakers at Dawn version, on the other hand, sounds more like a suicide note, a last-ditch effort from a rejected, dejected lover. This guy has hit bottom. He knows she’s never going to call him again. The song is a wish, a dream, a hope, yes -- but he’s come to accept that it’s not coming true.

Lately, just as it’s starting to finally get sunny in Portland, people have been talking a lot about listening to the rain. I can picture staring out the window of a darkened room into a rainy night with Bakers at Dawn’s Something New in the background. But, paradoxically, it’s also Bakers’ almost-dead version, rather than ONBC’s more optimistic one, that I picture the knock on the door coming to.

I like this song more every time I hear it.

Listen for yourself -- I’m allowed to offer you a download of the Bakers at Dawn version, and you can preview ONBC’s at last.fm. Both songs will also be played (in full) on the radio show this afternoon.

--DL--
Something New (Bakers at Dawn)

Syg

There are more artful ways I could put this, but here’s the short version -- I’m sick. I still did last night’s show -- albeit in a somewhat less-than-usual fashion -- and, by employing my both my illness and infinite persuasive power, I also forced Darren, the station manager, to co-host the majority of the show with me. Really quite fun.

Her er spillelisten:
1. To the East – Electrelane
Then Darren played some stuff I don’t know
4. Migration – Sambassadeur (SV)
5. Trying Something New – the Honeydrips (SV)
6. Open Up Your Eyes – One Weekly Gun (DK)
7. This Moment – Under Electric Light
8. A New Chance – The Tough Alliance (SV)
9. Shy – Tiger Baby (DK)
10. Icecold Kisses – Ostrich (SV)
11. Blush – the Raveonettes (DK)
12. Want to Cannot Help But Dance – Billie the Vision and the Dancers (SV)

You can download the podcast here. You can send me get well wishes here.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (9. april 2008)

Du dør, når du er ung

If you hadn’t heard already, last Sunday, Anders Göthberg, guitarist for the gorgeous Swedish indie-rock-power-pop-ish band Broder Daniel, jumped off a bridge and killed himself. 32. And play me a sad song…

And since I am sure you are all eager to know this as well, here is Friday’s spilleliste, which I’m told was quite nice:

1. Sunbeams – the Concretes (SV)
2. Shoreline – Broder Daniel (SV)
3. Footsteps – Bye Bye Bicycle (SV)
4. Ten Years Younger – Bubblegum Lemonade
5. Lush (What Becomes You) – Soundpool
6. Your Sweet Voice – the Reindeer Section
7. En Hund Som Jag (feat. Mattias Alkberg) – Bröderna Lindgren (SV, SV)
8. Platonic Rate – Parsley Sound
9. From Off to On – the Knife (SV)
10. Pieces – Evil Death Machine (DK)
11. Mission to the Moon – Harmony Boys (DK)
12. Comforting Sounds (live acoustic) – Mew (DK)

I also hosted Babylon Radio again. (Playlist) (Podcast)

Also, something you should note -- KPSU has now entered pledge drive week. Feel free to send in donations and things; here is more info. And please keep in mind, depending on several factors, Wednesday’s show may or may not be in the form of pledge drive karaoke. Just so you know.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (4. april 2008)

Fjerde april

Et år siden var en af de bedste nætter af mit liv.

Men jeg elsker den forkert ord...

Whoa. I have a computer again. Here’s Wednesday’s (2. april) playlist:

1. Act of the Apostle – Belle and Sebastian
2. Blue Straggler – Electrelane
3. Don’t Let It Slip Away (Oliver North Boy Choir remix) –
Attention Now! (DK, NW)
4. Worker Bee #7438-F87904 – Kind of Like Spitting
5. Needs vs. Facts – the Bear Quartet (SV)
6. Whatever Was – Ulf Ljusberg (SV)
7. So You Want Me to Bleed – Billie the Vision & the Dancers (SV)
8. Mouse – Le Fiasko (DK)
9. Just About Ready for Bed – the Morningside (DK)
10. We Want to be Happy – Cake on Cake (SV)
11. La Strada nel Bosco – Jens Lekman (SV)
12. Everything Goes – Club 8 (SV)
13. Hey Då Karolin – the Honeydrips (SV)
14. Saintly Friend – Said the Shark (DK)

And here is last Wednesday’s (26. march) playlist:

1. Oh My Stars – A Weather
2. Suddenly Electric – the Rainy States
3. Party – El Perro del Mar (SV)
4. Girl Got Lost – Death Valley Sleepers (DK)
5. Do Your Sister – the Floor is Made of Lava (DK)
6. Objects of My Affection – Peter Bjorn and John (SV)
7. Avec – Dazzle Ships (DK)
8. Coming Down the Hill – El Perro del Mar (SV)
9. Your Brother Is My Only Hope – Le Sport (SV)
10. These Eyes Are Berries – Múm (IS)
11. A Man of Happy Solutions – My Friend George (DK)
12. Baby Cool Backwards – Oliver North Boy Choir (DK)
13. Underwear – Pulp
14. Stay Golden – Au Revoir Simone
15. Take Me Home (Johan Agebjörn remix featuring Sally Shapiro) –
Don Juan Dracula (SV, SV, NW)

I may have messed up the order around the end, but that’s the gist of it. And those are all the songs we played. I say we because Becca (who originally wanted not just two but three EPdM tracks) picked all the songs for this show (except the first two, which both come from Portland bands) and announced most of them, too. If you didn’t get it last week, the podcast is still available.

So, anyway, I have my computer back -- and with a screen on which things are visible. Unfortunately, my internet has been rather spotty -- actually, that’s a huge understatement -- so I’m still way behind. Until I catch up again, here are three nice things I learned this week:

Said the Shark’s wonderful song Shaky Heart (from the new album Silly Killings) is number one on the Electric Barometer list. Yay! Listen to or vote for it here.

Oliver North Boy Choir will release their next single soon. It sounds good, but I can’t say anything more than that, because it’s all top secret.

The Danish word for playlist is playlist. But over the past year, I’ve grown so fond of spilleliste (that’s what it is in Swedish, anyway -- or at least something close) that I think I’ll keep using it anyway.

Also -- for those who are interested, in addition to my regular Friday show, I'll be hosting Babylon Radio again tomorrow (it's on immediately after Ashtrays). The planned theme is early '90s rock, a la Nirvana... maybe some Stone Temple Pilots... and I'll definitely throw on that Mew track with J Mascis.

--DL--
Ashtrays Podcast (2. april 2008)
La Strada nel Bosco (Jens Lekman) -- Jens på spansk italiensk!