PandoraJam, a must have app for Pandora.com fans
By chris | July 23, 2008
“PandoraJam enables fans of the fantastic Pandora.com music service to easily listen, record and stream tunes to an Airport Express. With support for scrobbling tracks to Last.fm and Twitter, PandoraJam is essential software for net music lovers everywhere.”
Features include:
- Stream music wirelessly to a sound system (requires Airport Express)
- Record music for iPod or iPhone playback
- Apple Remote support
- Tag recordings with album artwork
- Submit songs to Last.fm (known as Audioscrobbling)
- Native, Cocoa application.
- Growl notifications
- Keyboard shortcuts
- Instant Messaging status updates (Adium, iChat, Skype)
- Twitter support
I’ve been using this off and on for about a year now… and I’m a bit late posting about this. I’ve never been a dedicated Pandora user because there are so many options and many of them have their limitations. However, using PandoraJam to listen to Pandora provides the huge majority of features and flexibility that tech savy music lovers desire. A custom designed station (add your artists), smart new artists recommendations, audioscrobbling, Instant Messenger status updates…
listen to my custom Pandora station here
Topics: apple, music, tech | No Comments »
NME interviews My Bloody Valentine
By chris | July 21, 2008
The first half of the interview is a bit too Spinal Tap nonsense
Topics: music | No Comments »
musicovery.com
By chris | July 18, 2008
another music discovery tool
Topics: music, tech | No Comments »
Blackstrap
By chris | July 17, 2008
“Hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, Blackstrap is one of Europe’s most exciting new bands. They play blissful rock and roll drenched in the warm rays of fuzzed out guitars. Their Tee Pee Records debut “Steal My Horses and Run” conjures up a lush atmosphere that is equal parts hypnotic rock, dream pop, and shoegaze. These sonic landscapes stretch over twelve tracks, drawing upon the inspirations of genre pioneers Spiritualized, Primal Scream, and The Jesus and Mary Chain.
Formed in 2001 by primary songwriters Jonatan Westh and Maria Lindén, Blackstrap delivered their debut album “Ghost Children” in 2003. The album quickly gained international attention upon release, gathering substantial airplay, including an exclusive live performance on P3, a Swedish national radio show.
Intent on encapsulating their energetic live sound for their next record, Blackstrap recorded “Steal My Horses And Run” in a bunker in Amsterdam during frigid cold weather. The only way to keep warm was to play. Environmental and personal conditions clearly play a role in the evolution of the sound developed on “Steal My Horses and Run”. The album sonically and conceptually captivates the melodic and amorphous world of Blackstrap.
Lyrically, the album speaks of loss and pleasure, sin and virtue, lust and love, and the rest of life’s most compelling dichotomies. This album is nothing but personal to the members of Blackstrap, even the production and mixing was shared by Jonatan Westh and his old friend, Sebastian Forslund.
The result of “Steal My Horses and Run” is that it is clearly one of those timeless albums that will put Blackstrap on the map and in the ears of thousands of listeners for years to come.
Blackstrap is Jonatan Westh (vocals and guitar), Maria Lindén (vocals and organ), David Karlsson (drums), Patrick Alvarsson (guitars) and Filiph Antonsson (bass).”
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Darker My Love, Thursday night (7/17/08) at Popscene (330 Ritch)
By chris | July 15, 2008
myspace.com/darkermylove
http://darkermylovemusic.com/
“Darker My Love is a psychedelic rock band based in Los Angeles, California. The band consists of 5 members. Tim Presley, a former member of the band The Nerve Agents, contributes vocals and guitar. Andy Granelli, formerly a member of both The Nerve Agents and The Distillers, plays the drums. They are accompanied by Rob Barbato, who plays bass and shares lead vocal duties with Presley, and Jared “The Sandwich” Everett on rhythm guitar. As of late 2006, Will Canzoneri joined the band on organ and clavinet.
The band has released two EP’s and one LP. Their debut LP was released on 22 August 2006 on Dangerbird Records. On 28 August 2007, the band released a 12” 45 rpm split record with Denver-based rock group Moccassin. Darker My Love’s contribution is a song called “Hair Decisions,” which was recorded at San Francisco’s Hyde Street Studios in October 2006. The record was the first release on L.A.-based label IHATEROCKNROLL. The group’s style is often compared to bands such as Can and My Bloody Valentine. In Spring 2006, Presley and Barbato became members of Manchester (U.K.)-based group The Fall. They both are featured prominently on The Fall’s most recent album, Reformation Post TLC”
Topics: music | 2 Comments »
San Francisco’s ‘Direction’
By chris | July 6, 2008
http://www.myspace.com/directionband
Recommended if you like: Jesus and Mary Chain, Magnetic Fields
From their myspace bio:
“mainly a studio project at the moment. i write, perform and record the songs with guest musicians. credits: “a wind” (vocals - anna black, s. christy) (bass, drums, theremin - s. christy) (guitar - john stewartz, s. christy) “my new heaven” (vocals, bass, guitar, drums - s. christy) “yestrday’s boy” (vocals - s. christy) (piano - mike aldax) (bass, drums, guitar - s. christy) (trumpet - steve kennedy) (cello - sonia carrard, s. christy) “urban ghost (demo)” (vocals, guitar, bass, drums - s. christy) (backing vocals - francis morgan)”
thanks to The Last Pop Song for this
Topics: music | No Comments »
banshee-project.org
By chris | July 2, 2008
“Import, organize, play, and share your music and videos using Banshee’s simple but powerful interface.
Rip CDs, play and sync your iPod, create playlists, and burn audio and MP3 CDs. Most portable media devices are supported (iPods, MTP, and Mass Storage) - including video and album art support!
Stream or download your podcasts and video podcasts. Discover new music with Last.fm streaming radio.”
Topics: music, tech | 1 Comment »
Rob Dickinson (of The Catherine Wheel) with full band at Cafe Du Nord
By chris | June 19, 2008
Rob Dickinson (Of the Catherine Wheel) with full band
Cafe du Nord
2170 Market Street, San Francisco, CA
Friday, July 25th, 2008
9:30 PM
The Catherine Wheel - ‘Black Metallic’
Rob Dickinson - ‘My Name Is Love’
an excerpt from a previous post:
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http://www.thestar.com/artsentertainment/article/176393
from an interview with The Catherine Wheel’s singer, rob dickinson, regarding feedback while touring for his solo album:
“It was a surprise, Dickinson says, to see audiences going berserk for Catherine Wheel standards like “Black Metallic” during his initial run of live dates for Fresh Wine for the Horses.
That, combined with recent conversations with fannish members of Death Cab for Cutie and Interpol, who told an awed Dickinson that “without Chrome, our second record, their band wouldn’t exist” ‘ has given him a renewed appreciation for his time in Catherine Wheel.”
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The Twilight Sad
By chris | June 12, 2008
The Twilight Sad put out one of my favorite releases of 2007. They’ve released a new EP called ‘Here, it never snowed. Afterwards it did’.
This is reworking of four songs from “Fourteen autumns fifteen winters”, an unreleased song and a cover of “Some things last a long time” by Daniel Johnston and Jad Fair.
release date: June 9th, 2008
1. and she would darken the memory
2. cold days from the birdhouse
3. here, it never snowed. afterwards it did.
4. mapped by what surrounded them
5. walking for two hours
6. some things last a long time
www.myspace.com/thetwilightsad
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Carney
By chris | June 6, 2008
myspace.com/carneytheband
carneyband.com
Carney is a 4-piece Los Angeles musical phenomenon, who despite their young age (all 4 members are in their early 20’s), have years of musical experience behind them. The band itself is fronted by siblings Reeve Carney; lead vocals & guitar & Zane Carney; lead guitar, along with John David Lipscomb on bass and Jon Epcar on drums.
So what is Carney? “We try to make music that’s timeless,” says Reeve , “Our music is an array of various styles drawn from rock, folk, reggae to blues”. So true; their songs can evoke thoughts of anything from Jeff Buckley, The White Stripes, Led Zeppelin to John Lennon and even Pink Floyd.
Carney’s live shows have become something of an event in LA. Their weekly packed shows at Molly Malone’s draw a crowd of fans that range from eager college students to trend-setting hipsters and industry heavyweights. The word-of-mouth is such that the room now systematically spills beyond its capacity.
Carney is playing at Bonnaroo on June 14th.
Recommended if you like: The White Stripes, The Black Keys, Jeff Buckley
Topics: music | No Comments »