No Voter Suppression Here!

VOTE NOW!  We're going back to the previous method which means the Band of the Month poll is located on the sidebar.  It also means one vote per computer (you can vote for more than one band).

Also, we're adding a new way to vote.  Please comment below with the name of your selection for Band of the Month. 

As always, be sure to check out all of the bands, even if you're just here to support your favorite band/kid brother/spouse/neighbor.  Here is a condensed voting guide.  Remember details of all of our Featured Artists are located to the left.

Why should I vote for:

Lawrence Welks and Our Bear to Cross:  Because they are doing the Lawd's work...

Justin and the Salty Dogs: Because they are salty.

Brian Bergeron: Because he's Mr. Nice.

Big Wilson River: Because Don Ryan told you to.

The Raindoggs: Because you love Tom Waits and you love Snoop Dogg, and you never thought to put them together.

Francis Bowie:  Because you are intelligent and you love pop music.

The Shake: Because maybe a win will convince them to get back together.

Vinyl Thief: Because they have vinyl in their name.

Wolf and Cub: Because they come from "down under" and probably have those cool accents.

FallsStart: Because they originated in Hawaii, and you've always wanted to go there.

Dean Fields: Because you want to help assuage my guilt for leaving him off the June Band of the Month Poll.

That's it: Go Vote!

Monday Morning Music Shuffle - Calling Mr. Oswald Mix

Back at it with my face set toward the distant horizon, and my mind distracted by bright and shiny objects..

As per usual, we kick-off the week with a stroll down (16G) memory lane with some of the many fine songs in our archives.

First up is a song that takes us all back to 1977, which in and off it's self was an interesting year in music. Bands with debut albums that year include: Television (Marquee Moon), The Clash, The Sex Pistols (Never Mind the Bullocks..), and the album which contains today's song.  Less Than Zero was the first single from Elvis Costello's landmark album My Aim is True. It was the song he was supposed to play on Saturday Night Live on December 17, 1977. The Attractions started playing Less Than Zero, before Elvis stopped them and launched into Radio, Radio which he had been told not to play.

The song was written as an angry response to an appearance by Oswald Mosely, the former leader of the British Union of Fascists on BBC television.  Costello later rewrote the song for American audiences to make it about Lee Harvey Oswald.

Bret Easton Ellis borrowed the title for his debut novel.

 

Next up, is a song by the later folk singer/songwriter, Kate Wolf.  Here in California is off here 1980 album Close to You, and also appears on the posthumous compilation album, Gold in California.  Dave Alvin recorded a cover of this song for his West of the West album in 2006.

Finally, we have another song released in 1980.  It's Skateaway by Dire Straights off  their 3rd album, Making Movies.  I've been in love with this song for a very long time. 

 

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Featured Friday Music Shuffle - Jason Vorhees Mix

Time to offer up our weekly selection of music from our Featured Artists of the Month.  Today the shuffle takes us on a musical journal from Burlington, Vermont to New Jersey by way of Nashville, Tennessee. 

Lawrence Welks and Our Bear to Cross - this band first came to our attention through an Area Code feature on Stereogum.  The song today, is one I download from that article: Psalm 39 from their Lawrence Welks Does God release.  I find it very hard to explain what it is I like so much about this whacked out bunch. So, I try not to think too much about it...

Here is LWandOB2X with a different Psalm....

Vinyl Thief are up with the title-track from their latest release - Rebel Hill. By the way, the name Vinyl Thief makes me think about this theory Rex Silo and I came up with back in the day. After watching Louis Malle's Murmur of the Heart and Jean-Jacques Beineix's Diva is close proximity to each other, and (from my poor memory) both movies are set in France and have scenes where someone steals a jazz album), which lead to our theory that "The French love Jazz, but they don't like to pay for it.) Whew, a long way to go for a connection which is probably not at all what the band had in mind.  Anyway, Rebel Hill! Check it out:

  

And finally, we close with Big Wilson River with the lead off track from their Octopus album which came out late last year. Eighty Dead Armadillos has a impressive mescaline influenced western/rodeo/deserty feel.  Pretty good for a New Jersey band.  Grant it, by now, nothing surprises me about the awesome music coming from the Garden State.

 

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Featured Artists (July) - Did you know? Part B

Did you know....

...that I do not have any formal training in music blogging?  Unlike like all those other Music bloggers you see on the web, I never went to school to become a music blogger... Interesting isn't it?

...that I still get excited when a musician likes my posts or friends me or retweets? I'm still pretty star-struck sometimes, and that includes you - cause, you're a star in my book!

...that featured artist Francis Bowie released a new song yesterday? It's called It's hard to see... and we have it here.








...that featured artist The Shake have broken up... best to them for what comes next.'

...that featured artist Vinyl Thief played the Summer Kick-off for Nashville's best shake and soda food truck - Moovers and Shakers. Cool on so many levels!

...that featured artist Wolf and Cub have two drummers, have been around for about ten years, and are on 4AD Records?  Now you do.

...that featured artist FallsStart posted a new song to their ReverbNation account?  And lo and behold, it is Happy Song which was our first and so far only Ear to the Ground Mystery Song of the Day!

Thursday Morning Music Shuffle - Day after Day Mix

Raining in the city today.  A good steady rain, and I didn't even mind (much) that my poor battered umbrella gave me fits on the walk up the hill this morning...

A good mix of music helped ease my dampness:

First up, we have a song from Ken Stringfellow (Posies, R.E.M., Big Star).  This one is called Any Love (Cassandra Et Lune) and it is on his 2004 album Soft Commands.

Next up, we have the title track from Seattle-based singer/songwriter Damien Jurado's latest album, Maraqopa. I have been a big fan of Damien Jurado for a while, and his unique voice and beautiful songs seem to find a place in my heart and soul.

New York-based Alberta Cross have a brand new album due out next week.  It's called Songs of Patience.  Magnolia is our first listen.

You can get Magnolia and a bunch of other cool songs by downloading a free ATO Records Sampler at Amazon. 

And finally, we close with Nashville Skyline Rag off the classic Bob Dylan album Nashville Skyline. You know sometimes I get down on my city of residence for the past 20+ years, but when you look at the history of great music of all genres which has been recorded here, and the amazing music still be made here, it's actually a good place to be a music blogger. The Nashville Skyline has changed a bit since a much younger Bob Dylan wrote this song... we have the Batman Building and the Pinnacle Tower among others, but it's still a pretty cool sight to see...

Featured Artists (July) - Did you know?

Did you know....

...that sometimes, I obsess over whether a particular band or artist is "too famous" to be a Featured Artist?  (As if! I know, I know Radiohead and Black Keys etc. are dying to be named Featured Artists on Ear to the Ground!)

...that the listed order of the Featured Artists is completely arbitrary!

...that Featured Artists Lawrence Welks and Our Bear to Cross will soon be releasing some music on Moscow, Russia based Singapore Sling Tapes? It's called Binary Execute Now and here's the band's description of what to expect.

Lawrence Welks goes beyond the iron curtain, releasing B.E.N. with comrades in Moscow.  How fitting for an album focused on 9/11, computers, nuclear fall-out, the illuminati, the apocalypse, and mostly with palindromes.  We're so pumped and here's a picture that shows it!

...that Featured Artist Brian Bergeron has a new band called Mr. Kind, and that they are in the running for Band of the Month on the SF edition of Deli Magazine?  You can vote here for Mr. Kind - the poll is on the right sidebar.

...that Featured Artists Justin and the Salty Dogs are from Chicago? And that Chicago apparently has some connection to the Blues? Who knew?

...that Featured Artists Big Wilson River have a quote from Ear to the Ground favorite Don Ryan on their Facebook page?  And that the said quote contains contains the word f**k? Surprising coming from Don Ryan? You bet... ;-)

...that Featured Artists The Raindoggs have a new lead singer.  Kassy Key will be joining the band on an upcoming tour.  Can you say Nashville please?  They also have an awesome podcast that you can download from Itunes.

Wednesday Morning Music Shuffle - Convenience Store Mix

Man, it's been a busy few weeks... Please be sure to check out our Featured Artist for July 2012.  I am going to try to get some more info up about each of the bands.  Also, the Band of the Month Poll will be opening probably on Sunday or Monday so keep an eye out for that.

Shamelessness to follow:  If you like this blog, please spread the word and subscribe.  If you do shopping on Amazon.com, you can use any of the Amazon links (most of the album covers and some links on the right sidebar) and navigate to what you need, and Ear to the Ground gets a percentage of the sale. Does Amazon sell houses?  You could buy a house, that would be cool....

Okay - it's about the music, and we had a neat shuffle today which I would like to share with you:


Last week marked the 25th Anniversary of the seminal Replacement's album, Pleased to Meet Me.  If you keep up with me on Facebook you already knew that.  Well, today we have a cover of one of the great songs from that album.  Micah Schnabel is a singer/songwriter who is also a member of the Alt-Country/Rock band Two Cow Garage.  His minimalistic and ragged cover of Can't Hardly Wait is on his 2010 solo album, When the Stage Lights Go Dim.

A early demo version of Can't Hardly Wait which was recorded around the time of the Tim album.

Adam Carroll is a Texas Singer/Songwriter, and I cannot believe I have missed out on his music for so long.  Blondie and Dagwood comes from his 2000 album Lookin' Out the Screen Door, and Carroll turns the long running comic strip into a John Prine worthy twangy, folk ballad.  I loved every single moment of this song.

  

And finally, the shuffle concluded with another instant classic from Anais Mitchell's Young Man in America. Tailor sounds like a folk standard, and I have the feeling it will be in due time.  Mitchell's unique voice and incredible songs completely blow me away.

 

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HADESTOWN BY MITCHELL,ANAIS (CD) *Artist:  MITCHELL,ANAIS *Genre: Popular Music *Release Date: 9-MAR-2010