unpiano: music

Keith Zarriello’s band The Shivers just released their first proper full length album titled Beaks To The Moon back in June. Combined with their albums Charades and Phone Calls, it makes for quite an impressive catalog. You can hear them play some shows if you live in New York and can find one, or check out the subway where you can hear Jo and Keith play on their minimal set up (usually on the Downtown/Brooklyn “F” train line at 14th St). Anyways, good stuff. Far too many good songs to pick from but here’s a few. Also to read the Keith’s bio on their website.. It’s pretty funny.

The Shivers - Beauty
The Shivers - SoHo Party
The Shivers - Love Is Good

Bonus:
The Shivers - Beauty (video)

I have been debating posting this band since it came out over a year ago. I think it’s way too poppy and overly cheesy, yet I can’t stop listening to this song. I think it has something to do with the video which is all Cheryl Dunn footage of Mark Gonzales skating in a Museum back in 1998. Basically Jason Schwartzman (who started the band) used an amazing video to bring his song up a couple notches. Umm, yeah. Whatever. I know I lose points for posting such tripe, but just watch the video okay?

Coconut Records - West Coast (video)
Coconut Records - West Coast

I don’t think I really have to talk too much about Lil’ Wayne at this point. So I won’t. The new album is ridiculous and it’s been number one for like a month now. The singles (which I threw down into the bonus area) are great but the real gems are the Kayne produced tracks that are listed below.

Lil’ Wayne - Shoot Me Down
Lil’ Wayne - Let The Beat Build

Bonus:
Lil’ Wayne - Mr. Carter
Lil’ Wayne - Comfortable

Karl Blau is one of those guys that is constantly putting out albums and EPs. He also only seems to release his work through his online subscription service Kelp Lunacy. It’s rad, but also sort of challenging because you have to track his old work down, like really try and find that new 4 song collaboration or something. Either way.. Yay for treasure hunting! I’m still collection songs so I’m sure this cross section of stuff I posted isn’t near as representative as it should be. I’m still trying to find the work he did with Phil Elverum of The Microphones. And check out that Myspace video at the bottom, that song with Hospitality is amazing! But I have no idea where to find it and it was probably only played that night. Oh well, such is life right?

Karl Blau - Into the Nada
Karl Blau - Lake King’s Daughter
Karl Blau - Spring Morning

Bonus:
Karl Blau with Hospitality at Piano’s in NYC (video)

Well, the new Beck is pretty good but I have a hard time not thinking of it as Gnarls Barkley without Cee-Lo. The beats are pretty much the same and it has a similar feel, although I should point out that Beck does a great job with the material. I also kept thinking of Luscious Jackson for some reason that I can’t figure out (perhaps it’s just a pop sensibility). Am I turning in to that annoying old man who compares all new bands with their influences? I hate that old guy, which is why I’ll stop talking like that. The record is catchy as hell and you’ll probably like it a lot.

Beck - Modern Guilt
Beck - Youthless
Beck - Volcano

Bonus:
Beck - Gamma Ray (video)

Damn I need to get these posts out quicker before they become old news. If you haven’t heard it by now, the new Girl Talk album is pure fire. Just like always you either hate him or love him, but by this point you should have already made up your mind. It’s still crazy to me that in 2008, Greg Gillis can make mash-ups sound fresh and listenable. Plus I just discovered that it’s the best biking music for those nights when the hills are looking bigger and bigger. True, it does make me think of that movie Bring It On sometimes, and when I’m biking up those big hills I can’t help but draw the comparison to being at an aerobics class. However, if you have ever seen one of his live shows you’d know that sometimes to get to the party you need to get a little cheesy first. Also, all through the last album I wished that I could have a track listing to consult with. Luckily, you can find the complete track listing for the new album on the Wikipedia page. I tired to figure out what tracks to post, but it was pretty hard. I think you should just go to the Feed The Animals page (on the Illegal Art website) and download the whole album for free instead.

Girl Talk - Play Your Part (pt. 1)
Girl Talk - Hands In The Air
Girl Talk - Like This
Girl Talk - What It’s All About
Girl Talk - Set It Off

JUST INSTALLED SOME CODE TO PREVENT HOT-LINKING (OR DIRECT LINKING) OF THE SONGS ON THE SITE. HOPEFULLY THIS WILL SLOW THE TRAFFIC DOWN A BIT AND KEEP ME UNDER THE RADAR LONGER. I’M STILL WORKING OUT SOME KINKS THOUGH, SO IF A SONG ISN’T WORKING, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. YOU CAN ALSO TRY REFRESHING YOUR BROWSER.

Thanks,
Jesse

I know very little about this band other than it hails from Richmond VA and is the brainchild of one Jason Boyer, whose warped sense of pop is one of my big finds for 2008. Noise, reverby Psychocandy era Jesus And Mary Chain sentiments mix with the destitute jangle of Americana. So far all that’s available are a handful of very limited cassette releases, from which these tracks were lifted, with their debut 7″ on the way.

Nerve City - The Creek
Nerve City - Junkyard
Nerve City - Living Wage

I was complaining about Sweden a minute ago, saying that I feel bad about liking all their terrible pop music. While I’m still working on that issue with myself, The Radio Department comes along and blows my mind. They’re a safe bet because the songs are sometimes soft and and gazy, but never in a cheesy way. They just released the new EP Freddie and the Trojan Horse in anticipation of their new full length which comes out in September and it’s pretty damn good. Four solid songs that make you want more (which is what an EP should do) with the title track absolutely killing it. Feels like sort of an 80’s throwback but in a good way.. does that make sense? Also for the hidden track, they took track 2, which was a little soft for my taste, and washed it out with a bunch of distortion so that it was more enjoyable. Thanks guys!

The Radio Department - Freddie and the Trojan Horse
The Radio Department - Hidden Track

Here’s some awesome amped-up power-pop from Atlanta, two songs off what’s definitely one of my favorite 7″s from this year. Somewhere between the Exploding Hearts and early Joe Jackson (especially on the 2nd track below), Jesse Smith (also of garage punk faves The Carbonas) delivers.

Gentleman Jesse - I Don’t Wanna Know
Gentleman Jesse - No Rest (For The Wicked)