Don’t Wake the Scarecrow

Finally, after months of speculation, The Felice Brothers newest effort The Mixtape will be available starting October 12th. It can be ordered from the bands online store or purchased at live shows. This mini-album of 9 songs is astounding and beautiful work from one of the best live rock bands touring.

This album was recorded a little while ago when the band was on a break. They had a lot of new songs that they wanted to put on a CD and distribute at shows. Songs like White Limo and Old Song have a little more history then the other tracks. White Limo has been played at live shows for a few years now, and just hasn’t been recorded. Old Song is apparently a tune that Ian wrote when he was seventeen years old (hence the reason for the original tracklist of The Mixtape having it called 17). Supposedly he wrote this around the time of The Big Empty - the band that featured Ian, Simone, Robert “Chicken” Burke, and others.

Other songs showcase Ian’s talent for writing some of the most spiritual lyrics of any new music being released today. Forever Green is sung from the first person perspective, with Ian telling an anonymous female “May you stay forever green / Like the country between us / Far after our hands unfold“. One highlight for many fans will be the song called Marie which features each member of the band taking a turn on the mic. Ian, Christmas, Farley, and James all take turns singing a verse.

Personally, the song Indian Massacre is my current favorite. It is a dark and eerie number that features James on lead vocals. A lot of talk about the Devil in this brooding tale that has a guest appearance from a chorus of crickets in the background. Ian’s subtle back-up vocals also add another layer to this soulful song. Just an amazing track. Be sure to get your copy of the Mixtape.

Click here to purchase the album.

That’s right, the Felice Brothers already at work on another album of new material. Yonder is the Clock was just released in April of this year but the brothers from the Catskills had so many unreleased songs that they felt compelled to record them. Apparently right before embarking on the Big Surprise Tour with Old Crow Medicine Show, Dave Rawlings Machine, and Justin Townes Earle, the boys went recorded 9 new tracks and began burning them onto CD-R’s to sell at shows. A few of the tunes could be heard at their live shows for a little while before what was dubbed “The Mixtape” was made.

Now the story of the Mixtape is pretty interesting. It turns out that the Felice Brothers were selling copies of CDs at some of their live shows and as soon as word spread about a new CD the demand was pretty high. I know I tried to snag a copy at The Big Surprise’s stop in NY at the Beacon Theater. When talking to James at the intermission he thought they were available at the merch counter but no such luck. Anyway, the band had to stop selling the CD for the time being.

According to our good friend Digger, management wanted the album to be more official and they are currently pressing the CDs and artwork now. For fans of the Felice Brothers, they will just have to stay tuned here and I will update when I hear more of a release. It’s assumed that it will be available at live shows, with a possibility of it being released on iTunes.

The Mixtape tracklist:

1.) Forever Green
2.) Ahab (Christmas sings this one)
3.) White Limo
4.) Let Me Come Home
5.) Captain’s Wife
6.) New Mexico
7.) 17 Years
8.) Marie
9.) Marlboro Man

Some of the songs can be heard by attending live Felice Brothers concerts! Below are a few examples.

White Limo

Marie

Marlboro Man

TheFeliceBrothers.com

Quick post here……today the Dead Weather’s first album Horehound was released. You can buy it in many different formats from thedeadweather.com. If you want to try out the album….listen to it for free below. (Note: Click “Songs” to see the tracklisting)

Really good work from Jack White. Can’t wait to see them live.

Jim James, lead singer and mastermind of My Morning Jacket, will be releasing a solo EP under the new name Yim Yames. The EP, titled “Tribute to” was recorded in 2001 and is a collection of six songs written by George Harrison. This news has created quite the buzz around James’s solo career and has many fans interested. The album, which was recorded just a few days after Harrison’s death, is set for release on July 7th.

Listen to the song Behind that Locked Door:

OR

Download the song below. YimYames.com is offering the song in mp3 format for FREE. You just have to enter your e-mail address below and click the link they send you.

Yimyames.com also says to expect a full length solo album soon. James is obviously a busy man, taking on his solo career and also his side project Monsters of Folk with M. Ward, Conor Oberst, and Mike Mogis. That’s right, while My Morning Jacket is taking a break from touring, Jim James is continuing on with a new band that formed out of friendship and respect following a 2004 collaborative tour. The debut album for Monsters of Folk will be released September 22 of this year.

Tracklist for “Tribute to”:
1.) Long Long Long
2.) Behind That Locked Door
3.) Love You To
4.) My Sweet Lord
5.) Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)
6.) All Things Must Pass

Tracklist for Monsters of Folk:
1.) Dear God (sincerely M.O.F.)
2.) Say Please
3.) Whole Lotta Losin’
4.) Temazcal
5.) The Right Place
6.) Baby Boomer
7.) Man Named Truth
8.) Goodway
9.) Ahead of the Curve
10.) Slow Down Jo
11.) Losin Yo Head
12.) Magic Marker
13.) Map Of The World
14.) The Sandman, the Brakeman and Me
15.)His Master’s Voice

What’s that? A NEW Phish song? That’s right. Phish just released a new track titled “Time turns elastic” which is set to appear on their new studio album. The song was recorded in NY and produced by Steve Lillywhite (producer of Billy Breathes). It’s currently available on iTunes.

This is the second new track that Phish has debuted since reuniting this year for a new tour. The first is called “Backwards down the Number Line” and can be viewed below:

Phish - Backwards down the Number Line

A whole lot of updates about a band that you probably haven’t heard much about lately. Wolfmother exploded onto the scene with a solid debut album that had people comparing them to Led Zeppelin and praising their live shows. The energy that Andrew Stockdale, Myles Heskett, and Chris Ross brought to their concerts seemed endless. I saw them play in a small theater in Cleveland, Ohio that proved to me how hard the band can rock. Just as the band reached a high level of success and was reported to be recording a second album…..news of a breakup surfaced.

After only one album the band split up, with lead singer/guitarist Andrew Stockdale going one way while Myles and Chris went the other. Andrew held onto the Wolfmother name however and rumors of a new lineup made it’s way through the internet. For months fans wondered what would happen with Wolfmother. There was talk of Stockdale changing the name to “White Feather” when the band’s website displayed that name on it’s home page. It turned out that the name was a cover up for some practice-run concerts for the new Wolfmother lineup.

Now a 4-man group instead of a power trio, the band has announced some live tour dates as well as information about new songs and an album. Joining the band are Aiden Nemeth on guitar, Ian Peres as a bassist/keyboardist (filling the gap that Chris Ross left) and Dave Atkins on drums. The new album which is set to be called “Cosmic Egg” is scheduled for a September release as of now. The new group played a few gigs, one including a spot on the MTV Australia Music Awards and debuting the new song “Back Round”. [Note: You can download the song for FREE at Wolfmother.com]

Named after a yoga pose, Cosmic Egg is said to be “heavy and riff driven” with somewhere around 18 tracks. Of course, this could change between now and then but if the information released so far is accurate, be sure to get Cosmic Egg when it hits shelves in September. Below are some
tour dates in Australia where the band is supporting AC/DC:

- Thu 11 February – Melbourne – Etihad Stadium (formerly Telstra Dome)
- Thu 18 February – Sydney – ANZ Stadium
- Thu 25 February – Brisbane – QSAC
- Tues 2 March – Adelaide – Adelaide Oval
- Sat 6 March – Perth – Subiaco Oval

Wolfmother - Back Round (NEW song)

Andrew Stockdale - Juniper (NEW song - possibly on the album?)

Wolfmother - White Unicorn (with the new Lineup)

The Dead Weather just recently announced a full tour of North America for this upcoming Summer. These will be the first major shows for the band after their live debut at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. The band also released information about the debut album, titled Horehound. The record is set to be released in Europe on July 13th and in North America on July 14th. You can see the album cover by clicking on the title image above.

Tickets go on sale to the public tomorrow, May 15th. Be sure to get yours fast as they will most likely sell out quickly. Full tour dates below:

06.24.2009 The Forum, London, UK
06.29.2009 La Cigale, Paris, FR
07.13.2009 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
07.14.2009 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
07.16.2009 Terminal 5, New York, NY
07.18.2009 House of Blues, Boston, MA
07.19.2009 Ottawa Blues Festival (Rogers Stage), Ottawa, Canada
07.21.2009 Olympia De Montreal, Montreal, Canada
07.22.2009 Kool Haus, Toronto, Canada
07.24.2009 The Fillmore, Detroit, MI
07.25.2009 The LC Pavilion, Columbus, OH
07.27.2009 First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN
07.28.2009 Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL
07.29.2009 Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL
07.30.2009 War Memorial Auditorium, Nashville, TN
08.17.2009 Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO
08.18.2009 The Depot, Salt Lake City, UT
08.20.2009 Paramount Theatre, Seattle, WA
08.21.2009 Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Canada
08.22.2009 Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Canada
08.23.2009 Roseland Theater, Portland, OR
08.25.2009 Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
08.27.2009 Glasshouse, Pomona, CA
08.29.2009 Street Scene, San Diego, CA
08.28-30.2009 Outside Lands Music Festival, San Francisco, CA
10.2-4.2009 Austin City Limits Music Festival, Austin, TX
 

Download the Dead Weather song “I Cut Like a Buffalo” - Live performance from The Bowery Ballroom.  Be sure to buy Horehound when it’s in stores.

NOTE: The mp3 Download above is the audio from a Youtube video so that explains the quality. If you need some album-quality Dead Weather to hold you over til July you can get singles either from TheDeadWeather.com, iTunes, or Amazon.com. 

Simone Felice, one of the most animated stage presences i’ve ever seen, is set to release some new music in his new band The Duke and the King. There will be a limited edition four song 7″ EP out in the UK in May, one week before their London Debut. Then the full length album is set to hit shelves in July for the UK and in August for the US. The debut album, Nothing Gold can Stay is sure to be a must-have for music fans. The group’s Myspace page states the following:

These bitter-sweet songs speak of a time just out of arm’s reach. Days when kids rocked to We Are The World on a new thing called the Walkman, shooting BB guns into the sky only to see The Challenger come crashing down, tweaking bunny-ears cause boy do I want my MTV. A time when pop wasn’t a dirty word, when the golden era of 60’s and 70’s radio still sailed from the boom-box, still echoed in people’s heart.

You can read the whole text here. I’ve been a fan of the Felice brothers for close to two years now, and I will forever follow the works of Simone Felice after watching the man perform “The Devil is Real” at the 2008 Bonnaroo Music festival. The spectacle of seeing the band take 5 while Simone and brother Ian captivated a tent full of audience members for the chillingly beautiful tune was too much for me to handle. I was hooked and will support anything the man (and his brothers) do in the future.

So far the information about this new group has begun leaking out here and there. Simone, taking a break from The Felice Brothers to pursue a group where he has more of a leadership role, is baring his soul with these songs. Thankfully, his participation in the Felice Brothers band isn’t completely over, as he will join the band here and there for shows. Soon after the announcement of Simone’s partial departure, songs appeared online from the band. Simone released the news that the Duke & the King is made up of himself and friend Robert ‘Chicken’ Burke.

The band set a few tour dates (one in New York that has already sold out) to introduce the new outfit and songs, so be sure to go see them if possible. Recently they appeared on 100.1 FM WDST - Radio Woodstock to promote the tour dates and their upcoming album. While there they talked about where the album name came from and played the first track off the record. You can watch the full video below and download an mp3 of the performance underneath that.

The Duke and the King - Live at WDST

Download this performance in mp3 format by clicking here.

Tour dates and other news can be found on their Myspace

May 5th (Cinco de Mayo!) is right around the corner and it’s going to be a day of new releases. Two notable albums being released on Tuesday are Outer South from Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band and White Lies for Dark Times by Ben Haper and Relentless7. What’s interesting about these two group’s album’s is that the frontmen are entering different territory than what they’ve been used to.

Both Conor Oberst and Ben Harper are known for other bands they’ve played in/fronted. Conor Oberst first gained fame in Bright Eyes, the band he formed in 1995. He released many albums under that name until 2007 when he began working with some different musicians on a new album. This album would become Conor Oberst and would be the debut album under Conor’s real name. It would be considered his first solo effort, but the truth is that a new band formed when recording the album. Dubbed “The Mystic Valley Band” because of a location in Tepoztlan, Mexico where they wrote and recorded between January and February of 2008. By the time they were touring they had written enough songs for a second album, which is what is about to be released on May 5th. The new album from Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band will be called Outer South...listen to it below.

Ben Harper is no stranger to the music scene. He’s released 12 albums, 3 dvds, and has jammed with the best around. There’s something refreshing about seeing an artist take a new direction and try something different out. Harper planted the seeds for his new band back in the 1990’s when Jason Mozersky (guitarist for Relentless7) showed him a demo from his band. Harper was impressed and first worked with Mozersky on the 2006 album Both Sides of the Gun. Soon after a drummer and bassist were recruited (Jordan Richardson and Jesse INgalls respectively) and Relentless7 was formed. While he isn’t killing off the Innocent Criminals….Harper has stated that for now he will be focusing on this new group and their debut album White Lies for Dark Times. The album promises to show off a little bit of a harder rock sound from Harper who has been known for soulful acoustic sets.

It’s great to see two artists trying new bands and exploring different sounds. What’s even better is that both bands are currently streaming their full albums FOR FREE on different websites! Be sure to check it out and if you like it…..buy it.

Listen to Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Outer South

Listen to Ben Harper and Relentless7 - White Lies for Dark Times

Coming out June 30th, Wilco’s newest album will be titled Wilco (the Album). This album will be featuring the song called “Wilco the Song” which the band premiered on The Colbert Report a few months back. The band retreated to the loft in Chicago to record this one, which hopes to be as solid as their last few efforts. It’s hard not to love the far out soundscapes created on Yankee Hotel Foxtrot or the beautiful melodies and intense guitar playing of Sky Blue Sky but the two efforts sound so different. For any Wilco fan, it will be interesting to see how Wilco (the Album) ends up sounding.

Tracklist for the Wilco (the Album) 

 Wilco The Song

 
 

Personally, i’m looking forward to the song Bull Black Nova which Rolling Stone describes as a “nearly-six-minute jam that starts with rollicking drums, stacatto keys and guitars before exploding into a killer solo from guitarist Nels Cline”.