File this under: Too Damn Good Not To Post. Seth Avett graces the world with an acoustic version of Billy Joel's classic "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)". You know, the heart attack-ack-ack-ack-ack one. As always with the brothers Avett, it's filled with heart, soul, and little to no irony.
(Big cheers to When You Awake)
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Mining the back catalogue of The A.V. Club's excellent Undercover series I came across this gem that I somehow missed. The final song remaining in the last round of covers was R.E.M's "Driver 8" and it fell by default to The Walkmen. For not actually choosing the song, Hamilton Leithauser and Co. crank out one hell of a cover. They inject just enough of The Walkmen sound to make it feel like it could easily be placed on any of their albums while staying very true to the original. Leithauser even lets the spirit of Stipe inhabit him with a little shoulder dancing action.
Warren Zevon rocking the shit out of "Poor Poor Pitiful Me" and "Cadillac Ranch" in Jers in 1982. Great audio on this one. Sometimes I forget how possessed and energetic Zevon was. This video clears that right up.
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Those Who Dig favorites Dawes played a show recently in LA as the backing band for the legendary Jackson Browne. It seems inevitable that this would happen, since Browne is such a huge influence on the band. In this fan-captured video, the boys kill a version of the trucker anthem "Shaky Town" from Browne's Running On Empty.
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Tom Waits gives a particularly possessed performance of "Red Shoes By The Drugstore" from the underrated 1978 album Blue Valentine.
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This is what a prodigy looks and sounds like. Chris Thile and Michael Daves perform the bluegrass traditional Rabbit in the Log as good as anyone is performing any music, in any genre, anywhere on the planet – and I mean this pretty much without hyperbole. Their new album Sleep With One Eye Open is the professional debut of the duo and was recorded in a staggeringly short four days. Aside from the violent and breathtaking virtuosity of their instrumental performance, what I enjoy most about this video is the way that the duo interact on stage.
They are performing around a single microphone for both instrumental and vocal amplification and yet their balance is always spot on. This is allowed to happen because the musicians are watching and reading each other while performing. You can even see that their eyes are locked during the verses because they are watching each other place their diction in order to make their words as crisp and as clean as their harmonies. Their interactions on stage are more conversational than performance based because their preparedness to be there supercedes any technical musical demand. The nail in the coffin is of course the final chord. This gesture is both coy and hilarious because after the previous several minutes of voracious music making the artists are in control enough to pull way back on the reins and place the final gesture with a smile.
I tend to get obsessive when Chris Thile presents a new project, and his new work with the enviable Michael Daves is no exception. The interwebs is currently saturated with surfacing videos of the new duo and this means that I am currently losing my mind watching it all and cheering at my computer screen. You should be too. Enjoy.
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The Wood Brothers are back with the release of their official video for "Shoefly Pie" off their forthcoming album, Smoke Ring Halo. The Wood Brothers have long been a favorite here at TWD and we're all very excited for the new album which can be pre-ordered here. The video is a total throw back and has a very Soundgarden Black Hole Sun quality to it. It also showcases a bitchin' astronaut drummer! If this song is any indication the new album promises to bring a little harder edge sound to the Wood Brothers traditional sense of harmony and musicality.
If this teaser has got your taste buds workin' and you want more you can find all the Wood Brothers work available via itunes here or follow their Twitter account for frequent updates.
Read More..."I'm pretty sure this is the coolest thing we've ever done behind the Tiny Desk." – Bob Boilen
Booker T. Jones was recently featured on his Hammond B3 organ for NPR's Tiny Desk concert series. This stripped down video series is a personal favorite of mine for its raw and personal qualities, but it also should be commended for its focus on all music – no genre withstanding. What I enjoy most about Booker T. is the look of sheer joy that he exudes while performing his opening piece "Green Onions." The man wrote this song when he was seventeen and he is still in love with it. We are all lucky to be able to share in his passion. The set list continues on with performances of Born Under a Bad Sign, and Down in Memphis. If you're not already obsessed with this concert series, reset your priorities and dig the archives, you'll like what you find.
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The boys of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. know how to do a cover. Last year, they made a name for themselves with their take on the previously un-fuck-with-able Beach Boys love song "God Only Knows". Now, they're taking care of business with that Steve Winwood tune that you always hear on 80's radio stations and gradually turn up louder as the song goes on while looking around cautiously to make sure no one's watching you. Don't lie to me, we all do this.
(Cheers to MOKB and MonkeyEatsMonkey)
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After seeing Jonny Corndawg open up for J Roddy Walston and the Business a couple months back he has become the surprise hit of my summer listening so far.
I was immediately enamored by this bearded, country singing, leather working, marathon running, self-proclaimed "big drinker of little juices". His album I'm Not Ready to Be a Daddy has been on perpetual spin on my turntable, his ode to fitness, Exercise, his become my adopted running theme, and the documentary film Stray Dawg about his marathon quest is a unique component to a clearly multilateral man.
Enjoy the film.
Jonny Corndawg: Exercise
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