All Things Go

WE HAVE MOVED

2008-02-28T16:35:00.000-05:00

Catch us over at www.allthingsgo.wordpress.com

We've Moved

2006-11-20T00:24:00.000-05:00

Some people are having problems with the formatting of the last post (or just can't read). WE'VE MOVED! WE ARE NOW AT www.allthingsgo.wordpress.com. You can also reach us at www.all-things-go.com. Please change your links and join us at the new site.

It's Not Goodbye, It's ATG 2.0!

2006-11-17T13:16:00.000-05:00

This is not the end of All Things Go. Adrian and I have had serious talks of ending ATG due to many issues (lack of excitement, weakening readership, copyright issues) but in the end, we decided that what we really needed was a totally fabulous makeover! All Things Go is moved! We've finally solved our webhosting issues (god bless Dreamhost), moving to a more professional hosting company as well as a new blogging service (hello wordpress). For this reason, we are moving links too! We are working on having this URL (www.all-things-go.blogspot.com) redirect over to the new URL, but for now we ask that you update all your links, as we are moving to a new URL THE NEW URL IS www.allthingsgo.wordpress.com! If this is inconvenient to remember, we have purchased a few extra domains so you can also reach us at www.allthingsgoblog.com or www.all-things-go.com (which used to redirect to this version of ATG). I know that this will lose us some readership as many lazy readers will be unwilling to update their links or make the transition, but we hope that if you care, you stay with us in this transition. AGAIN: WE ARE MOVED! We can now be reached at any of the following URLS: www.allthingsgo.wordpress.com or www.all-things-go.com Please update your links and feeds to the new site, and we hope to see you over there! (By the way, we are still working on updating all of the old .mp3s onto our new FTP so you can still download music from our archives. Bear with us.) And some music to help you move: Tom Vek - I Ain't Saying My Goodbyes -Zack

All Things Go Hip-Hop Mixtape

2006-11-13T20:45:00.000-05:00

Note: The Borat contest is still going on, and it's ridiculously easy. Just leave your favorite Washington Wizard or Redskin in the comment along with your name and email. Please don't make me beg. It's been a while since I've posted a mixtape, but I've been working on perfecting the All Things Go Hip-Hop Mixtape for about a month-and-a-half. This mixtape blends more mainstream acts (Outkast, Jay-Z, Ludacris, T.I.) with lesser known artists (The Coup, Dizzee Rascal), and while it may feature more well known artists, it's still a refreshing mixtape full of tracks you might not have heard before. I do love hip-hop even though I write for a pretentious indie music blog. So here is the All Things Go Hip-Hop Mixtape. You can download the .zip file below or download each song separately. All Things Go Hip-Hop Mixtape (.zip) [follow link] 1. Outkast ft. Sleepy Brown - Morris Brown This song, off of the Idlewild soundtrack, may be all over the radio, but that doesn't mean I can't love it. I have a soft spot for songs that feature marching bands, especially ridiculous drumline-style marching bands like the one featured here. "Morris Brown" also allows one of my favorites, Sleepy Brown, to demonstrate his soothingly smooth verbal skills. 2. Dizzee Rascal - Fix Up, Look Sharp Grime at it's finest, Dizzee Rascal is pretty much the king of the up-and-coming British rap scene. Not only do I love badass people with British accents, but I also love fairly simple rap beats that don't get old. The simple drum pattern in this song has very little variation, but somehow doesn't come off as monotonous. 3. The High & Mighty ft. Mos Def & Skillz - B-Boy Document This song is for all the lovers of Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 who remember all the songs on the soundtrack (probably because they played the game WAY too much). This song goes in many different directions, with a layered beat and numerous different rappers contributing a verse each. If you recognize the chorus, it's because Will Smith copied it for Willenium. Now that I'm writing this, I feel very stupid for not putting any Will Smith on this mixtape. 4. Clipse - Ma, I Don't Love Her I know what critics will say; that Clipse is not only mainstream, but also lacking in substance and original style. The twosome from Virginia Beach (what?) are obviously smart because anyone that hires Pharell and the Neptunes to produce their work is guarunteed to be sucessful. If you listen to the lyrics, you're probably jealous that Clipse can have sex with other girls and be smooth enough to keep his main-squeeze from leaving him. The beat is so fun and infectious, it's hard not to feel good. 5. Aesop Rock ft. Del Tha Funky Homosapien - Preservation I thought I'd fit two of my favorite hip-hop artists here in one song. Aesop is a great producer and lyricist in the vein of Atmosphere. Del, formerly from hip-hop supergroup Hieroglyphics, is most famous for his work with Gorillaz but here he truly demonstrates his lyrical talents. The piano loop in this song is so simple yet works nicely as a backdrop for these two talented musicians to showcase their first-class ability. 6. Jurassic 5 - Jurassic Finish First Let me start by saying that I love literally everything Jurassic 5 has ever done (up until that collabo with Dave Mathews on their newest album, Feedback). "Jurassic Finish First" was hard to choose because J5 is one of those groups that releases albums I can listen to from start to finish and love everything in between. I chose this song because it's a good introduction to J5: ridiculous Cut Chemist beats; back-and-forth vocals from Chali 2na, Soup, and Marc 7; and a fun-loving, positive nature. 7. The Coup ft. Black Thought and Talib Kweli - My Favorite Mutiny This song sounds like a call for revolution (or mutiny?), what with the epic, slowly building beat. Black Thought (vocalist for The Roots) lays down the best verse here, but Talib and The Coup are no slouches, each contributing fast-paced, politically-charged verses. Any rapper that says "I'm off the chain like Kunta Kinte with a Mack10" is alright by me. 8. Talib Kweli - Listen More Talib, this time from his newest release, Ear Drum, which will be the first album released on Talib's own label, Blacksmith Music. Just like the song says, Talib "spits rounds like a 9mm". This beat is fast-paced and bouncy, and features Talib's signature socially relevant lyrics. 9. Kanye West ft. Consequence & Cam'ron - Gone Kanye, the king of sampling, borrows Otis Reddings soulful voice here on "Gone", with positive results. Cam'ron's verse may be horrible ("you ever heard of the dealer, well here's the deal ma we goin' to the dealer"), but this track was my favorite on Late Registration because of an infectious beat and bouncy vibe. 10. Murphy Lee - Wat Da Hook Gon Be I love Murphy Lee. 11. Blackstar - Definition Blackstar (AKA Talib Kweli & Mos Def) was one of the most formidable hip-hop duo's in history, and this song is the highlight of their incredible album. My brother introduced me to this song 3 years ago, and I've been listening to it religiously ever since. 12. The Roots - Don't Feel Right The Roots put on probably the best live show I've ever been to a few years ago on New Year's Day in DC. This song, off of their latest effort, Game Theory, is a good introduction to a group with a unique feel and staying power. 13. Dangerdoom ft. Cee-Lo - Benzie Box DJ Danger Mouse and MF Doom are Dangerdoom, and Cee-Lo jumps in on this track to provide his typical smooth vocals. MF Doom has a very one-dimensional style, but it works well here as well as throughout the whole album, The Mouse and the Mask. 14. Blackalicious - Deception Every time Blackalicious releases an album, hip-hop critics expect it to catapult them into the upper echelon of artists, and every time they seem to dissapoint, through no fault of their own. They may be over-hyped, but with songs like "Deception", it's easy to see why some people get excited about these guys. 15. Ludacris ft. Sleepy Brown - Blueberry Yum Yum I know I'll be criticized for this pick, as many people write off Ludacris as mainstream, uncomplicated garbage but I have a soft spot for Luda. He loves his weed, women, and most of all, he loves life. I love him because he can make fun of himself and because he doesn't pretend to be something he's not (*cough* Lloyd Banks/G-Unit/Jeezy/Houston rap scene *cough*). 16. Lupe Fiasco ft. Jill Scott - Daydreamin' Lupe is taking over with his debut album, Food & Liquor. While "Kick Push" is the first single and his verse in Kanye's "Touch the Sky" was his big break, this song is his most polished and finest work. 17. Wu-Tang Clan - Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off) What can I say about Wu-Tang that hasn't already been said? Just listen. 18. Lil' Wayne - Shooter I can't resist putting Weezy on this mix. "Shooter" is quite possibly the sexiest hip-hop song in the past few years. From the sensual bassline to the chopped up vocals, this song has quickly risen to the top of my most played songs on itunes. This is also the song of choice for power hours, and for (obviously) taking some shots. 19. Jay-Z ft. Chrissette Michelle - Lost Ones I already mentioned how much I love pianos, and this song coincidentally prominently features them as the melody that holds this whole track together. Jay-Z is much more relaxed and reflective on this track off of his newest release, Kingdom Come. This may be another mainstream rapper on the mixtape, but I figured I'd give you guys a taste of the new album (since "Show Me What You Got" sucks so much). 20. T.I. - What You Know I love this song for so many reasons, but mainly because of the blaring, badass synth line and epic beat. T.I. may be a little too serious sometimes for my tastes, but this song is just too monumental to leave off and perfectly ends the mixtape. So there's the All Things Go Hip-Hop Mixtape. Let me know what you think of the choices in the comments (songs I forgot/bad choices/etc...). Thanks for checking it out, and enjoy some quality hip-hop. -Zack

Some New Music

2006-11-13T00:13:00.000-05:00

It snowed in Madison yesterday. Awh yeah. Contest Update: some people (namely Claire "I can't take a challenge" Cafritz) have commented that the Borat contest is difficult, and that, teaming with the fact that we've gotten 3 submissions in 4 days, has led me to amend the contest. If you still want to come up with a movie plot, that is greatly encouraged, but as of now, all you have to do is leave a comment with your favorite Washington Redskin and/or Washington Wizard and your name and email address and ill pick 3 of them as winners. Maybe this will help me get over the fact that my 'Skins were emasculated by Philly 27-3 today. For those of you that already came up with a plot, you're awesome and I'll find a special prize for you guys. Now some music! Jim Noir - Key of C This song is just so damn infectiously catchy and simple. Perfect for walking the dog in the middle of a sunny day, "Key of C" is just too soft and adorable to be taken very seriously. But some music can be uncomplicated and unserious while still sounding quality and thoughtful. This song is just that. Damien Jurado - Denton, TX Damien Jurado has become my perfect study-partner this semester. His whole new album, And Now that I'm in Your Shadow, is a masterpiece, blending upbeat acoustic tracks with more mellow, thoughtful, ethereal ones. "Denton, TX" is definitely the album's highlight, and I definitely recommend this song to lovers of Iron & Wine, Sufjan. Also make sure you check out Damien's older work, including the song "Ohio", featured on Derek's M3 Volume 5 Andrew Bird - Tables and Chairs (Black Session 3/21/05) The original version of this song was featured on the All Things Go Sleep Mixtape and is, in my opinion, Andrew's best work to date. This Black Session version brings a whole new perspective on the song, featuring more varied vocals and rhythm. I've been listening to this one for a while, but I realized I hadn't posted it yet, so enjoy. Hellogoodbye - I Saw it on Your Keyboard Call me whatever you want, but I absolutely love Hellogoodbye. "Call and Return" popped my Hellogoodbye cherry, and I have been in love with their borderline ridiculous cute cuddlyness. This song borrows the melody of "Ode to Joy" in hilariously poppy fashion and, although it is completely unlike most other ATG music, I had to put it up. Page France - Chariot and Antarctica (Daytrotter Sessions) These more rough versions of two quality Page France tracks (much like Andrew Bird with "Tables and Chairs" above) take an already great song and approach it quite differently. I like these songs because I find it interesting when a band tweaks a song a little bit without fully remixing it, and I like comparing the new to the original. Definitely let this new version of "Chariot" put you to sleep tonight. Anyways, more updates on the way. Enjoy this tracks until then. And remember, the Borat contest is still going on (see top of post) so make sure you read the contest and comment either in that post or this post. -Zack

Borat Contest + Updates Galore

2006-11-06T18:04:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone. I know, it's been over a week since we made a post (with the exception of Adrian's Brand New post today). I'd like to blame it all on the fact that Ezarchive is fairly incompetent but I must shoulder most of the blame. Basically I've been unmotivated and exhausted this past week, and that, teamed with the fact that everything here has been crazy this weekend (see: beer pong with my dad at 10am before the football game) has led to the lack of posts. I promise a more motivated Zack in the coming weeks. We have to switch away from Ezarchive now since they have totally ruined everything for us. This means we have to re-host all of the files previously linked to on All Things Go, which is a long and tedious process, so bear with us. We have made the switch, temporarily, over to FileDen, though their 10GB bandwidth limit is incredibly small and probably will force us to move again, maybe to DreamHost or maybe to some real webhosting (www.AllThingsGo.com anyone?), but for now, its FileDen. If anyone has any suggestions or a super-server sitting around shout us a holler so we can get this thing going. Also, we've been working on some new webdesigns, but since our budget is small (we're broke college kids after all), we haven't been able to come up with anything exciting. Our most professional new look (with a test post) can be seen over here. If anyone thinks they can make an awesome design for our site, please please please contact me at allthingsgoblog@gmail.com or at SmootIsMyIdol on AIM and I can discuss with you what we're looking for. Who knows, maybe a big surprise prize will go to the best design, if we get enough submissions! Anyways, the real reason for this post is to introduce the first of many All Things Go contests! I went to see the Borat movie last night, and I must say, it's the single most offensive and racist movie I've ever seen (besides most all Spike Lee joints), which in no way means I did not enjoy it. In fact, I was worried the other people in the theater were getting annoyed at how often I burst into laughter. I, along with pretty much all of America, have been a huge fan of Sacha Baron Cohen for years, and was slightly skeptical of a full-length movie about a character in a skit (see: all SNL-themed movies), but I was very pleasantly surprised. Highlights of the movie include the "Running of the Jew", Linnel the prostitute, and Borat referring to presidential candidate Alan Keyes as a "real genuine chocolate face". Our awesome friend Rosemary over at Cornerstone Promotion has hooked us up with some free stuff, and it's contest time bitches! In honor of the fact that Borat was originally a skit in Da Ali G show, the contest is as follows: In 2-4 sentences (please no more than that), pick a character from any TV show or skit from a TV show and give me a plot summary of a movie based on that character. For example, I believe that Wilson from Home Improvement should have his own movie where he has his own talk show along the lines of Oprah, Dr. Phil, etc... and at the end of the movie you end up seeing his face. Ok, that wasn't funny, but you guys get the picture. The Grand Prize Winner (AKA the person who makes me laugh the most) will receive a copy of the Borat soundtrack, Borat: Stereophonic Musical Listenings That Have Been Origin In Moving Film, along with a promotional Borat poster. I have a copy of the soundtrack, and this prize is well worth it. Also, if we get enough submissions, two runner-ups will receive the poster and a Borat sticker (also super-cool!) Just leave your summary in the comments along with your email address. I'll announce the winners sometime this week, assuming you people actually leave submissions unlike every other time I ask you to comment and you don't (it kills me inside). This should a fun contest, be creative and please actually participate! For those of you unfamiliar with Borat's style, check out this clip of Sacha (aka Borat) on The Daily Show last week: By the way, I had my horns surgically removed too. I look forward to readng the submissions. Welcome back readers, All Things Go is active again. -Zack

More Tracks From Brand New's The Devil and God Are Raging Inside of Me

2006-11-06T16:00:00.000-05:00

UPDATE: The links to the music in this post had to be removed at both the author and the RIAA's request. We sincerely apologize and did not mean any harm, we only wanted to get people even more excited about an album we can't wait for. If you wish to hear the tracks, buy the album when it is released. We know we will. Sorry for the inconvenience. Sorry for the downtime everybody. But as a gift to you, here's a bunch of new tracks from Brand New's The Devil and God Are Raging Inside of Me. I am so psyched for this new album - there's nothing bad I can say about any of these tracks. After listening to them, I can say that Brand New has moved even further from their Your Favorite Weapon past. Although they may fall into the greater realm of rock music, these songs are epic to say the least. I'm not going to delve into the specifics of the songs, other than I love how Jesse Lacey's is stretching his vocal boundaries for this album - although I find nothing wrong with his voice on Deja Entendu, I'm glad that the frontman ventures into different singing styles, including some falsetto here and there. Alright, enough talking - behold the musical goliath that is Brand New! Update: The links had to be removed, sorry :( -Adrian P.S. Again, if there is a problem with the posting of these tracks, let us know and we will gladly take them down

Be Patient

2006-10-25T13:36:00.000-04:00

As you may or may not know, ezarchive (our file host) is undergoing a serious makeover and will not be operational fully until either October 27th or November 1st (It's not clear from the e-mail i received). Anyways, we're sorry that this means you cannot download anything previously posted for a little while until we update all of the links. we might try to host some of our songs on sendspace or yousendit until the new ezarchive is ready to roll, but until then, stay with us while we undergo this change. Love Management

Of Montreal Live 9/28/06

2006-10-22T16:25:00.000-04:00

I'm still astounded by the number of great bands that stop in Virginia. UVA has a reputation, a deserved reputation for being Dave Matthew's perpetual jock itch. He's already played at least 3 times here in a matter of months. But enough about Dave. The latest of the live line up that I looked upon was Of Montreal. I know, we here at ATG have hard on's for certain bands (TED LEO), and Of Montreal is no exception. How could we not when their live performances include band members in dresses, hot pants, and are half naked. The make-up was a nice touch. Other theatrics included coming out hiding behind gigantic masks, use of nunchuks and a katana, and what appeared to be a murder. I couldn't see very well, but of course these were accessory elements to the show. Instead of relying on their airy, 60's pop-esque music, Of Montreal devoted a large portion of their set to playing material off their new record. The whimsicality has been replaced with an almost sexual, electronic element. Of course, their new album is planned for a release in the near future (sorry I can't be specific).

Brand New - Sowing Season (Yeah)

2006-10-20T17:22:00.000-04:00

Update: Thanks for Derek of GWFAS letting us temporarily link to the song. Finally - the world's first taste of Brand New's upcoming album, The Devil and God Are Raging Inside of Me. "Sowing Season (Yeah)" has proven to be a hit on the band's recent strings of shows with crowds instantly singing along the simple driving refrain of "Yeah!" The album version of the song blew me away upon first listen. Words need not describe the glory of Brand New, so without further ado, here is what you all have been waiting for... Updated link via Good Weather For Airstrikes: Brand New - Sowing Season (Yeah) -Adrian

PJ Hill + Some New Enjoyable Music

2006-10-19T19:35:00.000-04:00

In more Wisconsin football-related news, PJ Hill was featured in an article on ESPN.com and compared to former Badger star and Heisman winner Ron Dayne. This worries me because Dayne has had quite possibly the most disappointing pro-career of any Heisman winner. PJ is quoted in the article, saying: "I don't like to be compared to other backs," Hill said. "Don't get me wrong, it's an honor to be compared to a back like Ron Dayne. But I just want to be P.J. I have my own style. I like to be patient and I like to be as physical as I can. I like to wait for my opening and then deliver the blow, not take them. That wears down a defense. Just keep hitting them and hitting them and hitting them. That changes their approach to how they play you." What a man. Anways, onto the music. I'm thinking about making this a (bi)weekly thing, just giving you all anywhere from 3-8 songs that I love right now and just doing a little description rather than doing more artist profiles. Let me know what you guys think/prefer. Anyways, here are some more songs for your listening pleasure. Takka Takka - We Feel Safer at Night My friend Sabrina actually told me about these guys because she went to see Architecture in Helsinki in concert and Takka Takka was one of the opening bands. This song is very soft and enjoyable, with airy noises and vocals. In other words, if this song was a blanket, I'd cuddle with it alot and feel all warm and fuzzy. I feel like former writer Alex would absolutely love this adorable track. T.I - Why You Wanna I know this isn't a typical All Things Go track, but I can't get enough of T.I. Call me a sellout for liking mainstream hip-hop but I can't help my love for this song. The beat reminds me of the times I used to ride around on jetskis in the Caribbean with my bitches riding on back. The Rapture - Whoo! Alright - Yeah...Uh Huh (WAYUH) I know Austin has been loving The Rapture for quite a while now, and with all the buzz surrounding them recently, I figured I'd give them a listen. I first heard this song on the Madden 2007 soundtrack, which always seems to feature some quality music (Spank Rock, Hot Hot Heat, etc..). "WAYUH" is one of those songs that requires the listener to move around and or shake his junk. Plus it features a cowbell. Brett Dennen - When You Feel it Expect a massive writeup on this guy in the near future. Brett is normally classified in a category with Jack Johnson, John Mayer, Michael Franti, and other singer/songwriters with a relaxed vibe. Brett takes this genre to a whole different level with his new album, So Much More. I never thought I'd be a fan of this type of music, but Brett's vocals and beautiful guitar-playing are so infectious and addictive. I really can't describe in words how much I love Brett Dennen, or how surprised I am that I enjoy this style of music. Jens Lekman - Maple Leaves (7" Version) This song perfectly exemplifies my mood in Autumn. I'm one of the few people who love Jens' voice, and this song's unorthodox melody really catches me. To me, Jens can be very hit-or-miss, but here he definitely scores a direct hit. If you can get over the awkwardness of Jens vocals and the off-beat style, this song is quite enjoyable. That's it for now. Remember, leave me some comments and let me know if you guys like this set-up. Also, just leave comments because it boosts my struggling ego. -Zack

Brand New Cover Art

2006-10-16T15:39:00.000-04:00

Behold, the album cover for Brand New's upcoming full length, The Devil and God Are Raging Inside of Me. As you can tell, it bears few similarities to the cover art for their previous releases. Thoughts? Unfortunately, no new material by the band has yet surfaced. Until it does, here's a repost of the demos I wrote about a while back... Brand New - Untitled Track 1 Brand New - Untitled Track 2 Brand New - Untitled Track 3 Brand New - Untitled Track 4 Brand New - Untitled Track 5 Brand New - Untitled Track 6 Brand New - Untitled Track 7 Brand New - Untitled Track 8 Brand New - Untitled Track 9 The Devil and God Are Raging Inside of Me hits stores November 21st. Pre-order the album here. -Adrian

Another Great Weekend/The Bishops!

2006-10-16T14:29:00.000-04:00

So my brother comes to visit me here in Madison for this homecoming weekend. My Badgers split a series with North Dakota in hockey, and the football team CRUSHES the Minnesota Gophers 48-12 to keep Paul Bunyan's Axe, the prize for the victor of the storied rivalry. People are wearing shirts that say "Fuck Em Bucky" with a picture our mascot, Bucky Badger, throwing a football into the ass of Goldy the Golden Gopher. Other shirts simply say "Minnesota Golden Gophuck Yourselves". Add in some heavy drinking, Chipotle burritos, sleeping on floors and sofas and you have the ingredients to a perfect weekend. Now onto some music: The Bishops must be from the 1960s, because not many bands since have been able to almost perfectly emulate the feel and style of music that The Beatles and The Kinks developed in the golden age of simple pop music quite like these guys. They've already created some buzz for their debut EP "The Only Place I Can Look is Down" and will release the album on California's I Am Sound Records in November. With 2 to 2 and a half minute long pop gems, these guys have brought the 1960s BBC pop back in a big way. The first single and title track, "The Only Place I Can Look is Down" features harmonies similar to The Beatles and Kinks, and for some reason this song reminds me of Super Furry Animals. "In The Night" is more dancy and much more of a throwback. With drum rhythms almost identical to those played by Ringo Starr and layered harmonies, a signature of the 1960s brit-pop, The Bishops have turned back the clock. I played these two songs for my mom (who grew up in the 1960s and idolized The Beatles) and she fell in love with both. I'm pretty much repeating myself in different ways so why not just give you the music and let you draw your own conclusions. Jump on the bandwagon now, because soon it'll be full. The Bishops - The Only Place I Can Look is Down [download or die] The Bishops - In The Night [download or die] -Zack

College Update/Songs I Can't Get Out of My Head

2006-10-11T11:24:00.000-04:00

So I haven't spoken to you guys much about my college experience thus far. And I wont. You guys dont read this blog to hear about me and my escapades, but instead to hear about our incredibly refined, often sexy music choices. Before I get to the music, I must make one plug for my school. The University of Wisconsin-Madison Badgers are now, according to the AP Poll, ranked 25th in the nation in college football, after thouroughly trouncing Northwestern, 41-9. The team, led by senior QB John Stocco, and freshman stud RB PJ Hill (who, by the way, is second in rushing yards in all D-I), are now 5-1 heading into this weekend's homecoming game against rival Minnesota. Not only that, but our men's and women's hockey team (both of whom won the national championship last year) are both ranked #1 in the nation. And as if that weren't enough, our men's basketball team has a preseason ranking as #8 in the nation, led by Big-Ten Player of the Year candidate Alando Tucker and senior point guard/Chris Rock lookalike Kammron Taylor. We also have some creative cheers for our student section (one half of the section yells "Eat shit", the other responds with "Fuck you"). But enough about our dominant sports, lets get on to the music... I've had a few songs completely stuck in my head the last week or so and I have no idea how to get them out. I thought maybe sharing them here with you would help, so here goes. +/- (plus-minus) - Summer Dress 2 [Iodine] This song is ironically named, because in my opinion, this song is very fitting for Fall. Airy, sweet vocals and gorgeous piano-ing make for a perfect song to listen to on your porch while watching leaves fall and curling up to your favorite book. I can only assume that would be perfect because, alas, me and books don't exactly get along. Definitely check out this whole album, Let's Build a Fire, and pretty much anything else +/- has put out. Tap Tap - Way to Go, Boy I know these guys have been blogged to death recently, but I'd like to think that I jumped on the bandwagon early. This summer, I was in love with Tap Tap's other single "100,000 Thoughts", but never really got around to writing anything about it (surprise surprise). This song reminds me of a somewhat more upbeat, less refined Arcade Fire, and it's definitely completely stuck in my head. The Blow - True Affection Another band that's been getting lots of blog love recently. I picked up this song in my first week here in Madison and it's been on heavy rotation since. The beat reminds me of D4L or Dem Franchize Boyz with the goofy, deep synth and snaps, but the song couldn't be any less hip-hop. I must warn you before you download. You will be snapping your fingers and imitating a girls voice for the next 2 weeks if you listen to this song. The Decemberists - The Crane Wife 3 The Decemberists need no introduction, so I'll cut to the chase. My favorite song off of their newest effort, The Crane Wife, this song is absolutely stunning both vocally and musically. Colin Meloy perfectly blends feelings of nostalgia and melancholy into this track, while somehow coming out with a finished product that cheers me up every time I listen to it. Teddybears - Cobrastyle Now here's a song that's been blogged to death. I picked up this song after I heard it on Entourage, and I've come to the conclusion that this song will NEVER get out of my head. It's Swedish/Rasta/Hip-Hop/Awesomeness, and i've put it on at every Badger tailgate party so far. Voxtrot - Trouble We here at ATG love Voxtrot, and this song just reaffirms our love. A little more upbeat than most of their work, it's definitely got the catchy chorus that will make it difficult to forget. The Whigs - Technology I'd never heard of these guys before someone sent me the song a few weeks ago. It's definitely got that catchy, upbeat vibe. Recommended for those unwilling to give up the fact that it's no longer Summer. These are the songs stuck in my head. Hopefully now you can all share my agony (or joy). Meh. On Wisconsin. -Zack

My Chemical Romance - Heaven Help Us

2006-10-10T17:58:00.000-04:00

There's no question that My Chemical Romance's upcoming release, Welcome to the Black Parade, will eclipse their major-label debut, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge in grandeur. While their earlier release received high-acclaim for its infectious yet aggressive punk-revival attitude, it has been stated that their next album will carry with it a much more epic sound. Some have gone far enough to liken Black Parade to operatic-rock legends Queen and Meatloaf. Although that may be too extreme of a statement, you can definetly notice the change in the album's already released single/title-track. The reason I post this is because of the release of the album's single in the UK, which comes with a non-album track, "Heaven Help Us". The best way to describe this is, as alluded to earlier, a tame yet grand version of TCfSR's "Thank You For the Venom". My Chemical Romance - Heaven Help Us -Adrian

Happy Columbus Day!

2006-10-09T17:30:00.000-04:00

Today (and last weekend) we celebrate a glorious event in 1492 when Columbus indeed sailed the ocean blue. We don't exactly celebrate the fact that Columbus cut off natives fingers if they didn't give him what he wanted, but really that's not important. What's important is that America (fuck yeah) wouldn't be here without this guy. Well, it would be here. Whatever. On with some themed music. Weezer - Across the Sea The Format - Oceans Air - Universal Traveler The Roots - Livin' in a New World The Album Leaf - Into the Sea The Weakerthans - Our Retired Explorer (Dines with Michel Foucault in Paris, 1961) So go eat a hot dog and sit on your La-Z-Boy. It's Columbus day, so be patriotic. Buy one of those mini American flags if possible too. -Zack

Ane Brun

2006-10-07T22:44:00.000-04:00

Ane Brun had a lot of success with her release in May of this year with the extended version of 'A Temporary Drive.' She has an album 'Duets' out for everyone to purchase. As the title would suggest, the album is simply duets with a number of artists. I was unfamiliar with many of the artists she performed with on this album, but a few I knew included Syd Matters and Ron Sexmith. Other artists include Madrugada, Liv Widwell, and Tobias Froberg. Hands down, the best song I've heard on the record is "Love and Misery" which is a duet of Ane Brune and Tobias Froberg. It's flawless and beautiful. Ane Brun is from Norway, but since 2000 has lived in Sweden, where she runs her label DetErMine Records. Ane Brun - Love and Misery [Featuring Tobias Froberg] Ane Brun - Headphone Silence -Samantha

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists A to Z

2006-10-05T19:58:00.000-04:00

Yes, I do have an unhealthy obsession with Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. In our second installment of A to Z (See Sufjan here), we take a look at Ted Leo and his fantastic crew, from Me and Mia to Kelly Clarkson. Note: Due to the large volume of songs in this post, I am only making the songs available for download for 1 week. Please go buy the albums if you haven't already. A is for "Army Bound", a demo track that Ted made available for download on the band website back in late February. This song, along with "Some Beginners Mind", was reviewed here in February. B is for "Biomusicology", off of The Tyranny of Distance. This is possibly my favorite song by my favorite artist off my favorite album, and it was featured on the All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape Two. C is for Concerts. Ted Leo is widely renowned for his incredible, passionate live performances. I am lucky enough to have seen him 6 times in person, and each show reaffirms my feeling that nobody puts on a show like Ted and his merry band of Pharmacists. C is also for "Counting Down the Hours" and "Criminal Piece", both off of Shake the Sheets (but I didn't make them available for download because I'm trying to let Ted sell some records.) D is for Washington, DC (the Dirty District), Ted's hometown, and the hometown of yours truly. Ted worked at a Potomac Video near my house and lived in Mount Pleasant, a neighborhood only five minutes from me. My brother actually met Ted in the bathroom of Spices, a thai-fusion restaurant in DC. If Ted reads this, he might be a bit creeped out. E is for EP's. Ted Leo & the Pharmacists have released 3 EP's; Treble in Trouble, Tell Balgeary, Bulgary is Dead, and Sharkbite Sessions. F is for Fort Reno. For those of you unfamiliar with Washington, DC, Fort Reno is a park right next to Wilson High School where local artists play free shows every Monday and Thursday during the summer. Artists such as Q and not U and Ris Paul Ric have played at Fort Reno, and Ted Leo has blessed the stage with his presence a handful of times. G is for "The Gold Finch and the Red Oak", off of The Tyranny of Distance, and also featured on the All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape. H is for Hearts of Oak, the Pharmacists 2003 LP, and also one of the best songs on that album. I is for Intelligent, Insightful, and Intellectual, all words used to describe Ted's lyrics. Many of his songs (My Vein Ilin, The One Who Got Us Out) have strong political messages. Others (Heart Problems, Me and Mia) discuss social and societal issues. All of his songs have some sort of message, and all the lyrics to the songs are well thought out and meaningful, something that is rare in today's music. J is for teJ leo(?) Rx/Pharmacists. This was the band's first official album, although Chris Wilson (drummer) and Dave Lerner (guitar) were not on the album. K is for Kelly Clarkson. Ted Leo has made an acoustic cover of Kelly's breakthrough hit "Since U Been Gone", which turns into a cover of the Yeah Yeah Yeah's "Maps". Download the song here. L is for "Looking Through You", a cover of The Beatles hit, which was featured on This Bird Has Flown: A 40th Anniversary Tribute to The Beatles Rubber Soul. L is also for "Little Dawn", another of my select few favorite Ted songs. AND, L is for Lookout! Records, the label that TL/Rx now release their music on. M is for "Me and Mia", the first single off of Ted's 2004 release, Shake the Sheets, and also probably the most popular and well-known TL/Rx song to date. The song sounds upbeat and dancy, but the lyrics are quite disparaging, as Ted addresses the controversial issues surrounding eating disorders. N is for Notre Dame. Ted graduated from the prestigious university in 1993 with a degree in English. That's right, Ted was, and still is, a Fighting Irish. O is for Octaves. Ted has the ability to sing in octaves so high I am completely humiliated when I try to sing along to his music in front of anyone. Ted has the amazing ability to prevent this high, at times falsetto, voice from sounding whiny, something that many artists these days fail to do. P is for "Parallel or Together", one of my favorite songs off of The Tyranny of Distance. I know I keep saying that every song is my favorite, but I truly feel that all of Ted's music is worth listening to and I really truly am in love with all of it. Every time I listen to a TL/Rx song, I feel as though that particular song is my favorite, until I put another TL/Rx song, which then becomes my favorite (does that make sense?). Q is for "sQueaky Fingers", off of The Tyranny of Distance, which features as gorgeous guitar line that takes the song out (ok ok, it's a stretch. You try finding something relevant with the letter Q). R is for Rx, the abbreviation for Pharmacy/ist/s. Hence Ted Leo & the Pharmacists becomes TL/Rx. S is for Shake the Sheets, Ted's most recent full-length release (2004), which is, in my opinion, his most upbeat and refined work to date. T is for "Timorous Me", off of Tyranny of Distance. "Timorous Me" features one of the coolest breakdowns in a song. EVER. Also, Timorous Me is the name of the fanblog for TL/Rx. (T is also for Ted Leo, but I figured you guys were smart enough to make that connection without me). U is for Updates. Ted constantly updates the band's website with his thoughts and critiques of contemporary issues (such as My Super Sweet Sixteen). V is for "My Vein Ilin", off of The Tyranny of Distance. This song has a very strong political message, and also is structured very interestingly, featuring only one long verse and building guitars and drums until an instrumental climax at the end. W is for "Walking to Do", by far Ted's most upbeat and positive track. This song also features a DC shoutout ("Rock Creek Park to the Ave., and on past the Zoo..."), making this song a favorite of me and my fellow chocolate city compatriots (alliteration!). X is for X-treme, an awesome adjective used to describe Ted in any situation. Y is for "You Could Die (Or This Might End)", off of The Tyranny of Distance. This song sounds like a demo, but to me it truly displays Ted's passion and emotion in a quick one minute and thirty seconds. Z is "Yo Zack! Love, Ted", which was what Mr. Leo wrote on the back of my t-shirt after a concert at the 9:30 club in DC. As you can see from this incredibly long post, I love pretty much everything about Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. I hope you enjoyed this mini-anthology. Again, due to the large volume of songs I'm putting up, I am only making these songs available for download for one week. Please please go out and buy all of Ted's albums. If anyone deserves the money, it's these guys. Here are the links to buy all the albums: Buy Shake the Sheets here Buy Tell Balgeary, Bulgary is Dead here Buy Hearts of Oak here Buy The Tyranny of Distance here -Zack

Redskins 36, Jaguars 30 (OT)

2006-10-01T20:47:00.000-04:00

Best....weekend...ever. Music will return next week. -Zack

Look Mexico - The Crucial EP

2006-09-26T18:12:00.000-04:00

I found this little gem of a band when I heard that Lujo Records (Drugstore Cowboys, Roy) had some new signees. Florida's Look Mexico is the closest any band has come to in recreating the sound of American Football - they pull it off phenomenally. However, I would hardly say they're the same. Firstly, the obvious difference in the production quality of both band's material - rather than possessing a rough, atmospheric sound, Look Mexico's recordings are more lush and vibrant. Look Mexico also demonstrates difference from its harbinger in style - while the band at times may share the same post-emo sound of American Football's "Honestly?", the guitarwork also falls into a more arpeggiated landscape, sometimes resembling the intricate yet driving hooks of Minus the Bear. Comparisons aside, Look Mexico's The Crucial EP makes me feel warm inside. It's feel-good music that should appeal to pretty much anybody. Look Mexico - Call Off Your Lap Dog Look Mexico - Guys I Need a Helicopter -Adrian

Ben Folds - Such Great Heights

2006-09-23T02:22:00.000-04:00

This is pretty nifty, why not post it? I'm not sure whether this has been floating around the internet for a long time, but this is the first time I've ever seen it, so here you go. -Adrian

The Dear Hunter - Act I: The Lake South, the River North

2006-09-19T22:36:00.000-04:00

The Dear Hunter is the opus of Casey Cresenzo, former vocalist, guitarist, and creative force behind Boston electro-posthardcore outfit, The Receiving End of Sirens. Cresenzo impressed many with his work in TREOS; their combination of traditional instruments with carefully synchronized electronic segments and anthemic hooks brought the band much acclaim from critics as well as establishing a dedicated fan base. But now all that is past and frankly, without Cresenzo, the band will never be the same. Fortunately he has decided to keep pursuing his musical endeavors through the Dear Hunter. Act I: The Lake South, the River North is the most well-orchestrated music I've heard in a long time. Each song, save for the short ones, is comprised of so many different segments. Within each song Cresenzo brings an amalgam of instruments together, including traditional, electronic, and orchestral (at times it seems like an entire symphony is backing him up). Cresenzo deservingly earns himself the title of maestro with Act I; it takes an advanced, musical mind to even begin constructing a mental image of the epic songs found on this EP. It's hard to fit the Dear Hunter into one genre, but I can tell you this: if you don't like Cresenzo's sound (which you honestly must be crazy not to) then you'll at least respect the music immensely for its intricate arrangments. That's something that can't be said for most artists today. The Dear Hunter - City Escape The Dear Hunter - The Inquiry of Ms. Terri The Dear Hunter - 1878 -Adrian

Georgetown Radio

2006-09-18T22:18:00.000-04:00

If any of you remember, I took over my friend's radio show for a little bit last year. Well this time I've managed to snag my own slot, Tuesdays from 12-2pm on Georgetown Radio. So if you've got nothing else to do tomorrow why not listen to my first show? I haven't decided on a title yet, which I have to do at some point soon, so if anybody has any suggestions leave them in the comments. If you have any requests feel free to IM them to me (AIM: WGTB Requests). Thanks everybody! Click here to listen to Georgetown Radio -Adrian

The Flaming Lips in Charlottesville- 9/12/06

2006-09-17T21:20:00.000-04:00

I experienced history. This past week, the Flaming Lips made their first stop ever in Charlottesville, VA, playing at the outdoor Charlottesville Pavillion and was without a doubt, one of my most memorable concert experiences ever. I was surprised to find only one opening band, Deerhoof. A three piece from San Francisco, Deerhoof's surprising combination of manic drumming, experimental art-rock, noise, and an adorable japanese singer caught my attention, but it was too difficult for me to appreciate the music, which I had never heard before. Also, considering how it was still light outside, Deerhoof had to play without the benefit of a serious lightshow. Interesting music, yes. Interesting live music, not quite. Putting Deerhoof behind though, I didn't know what to expect from the Lips. I have to say that I wasn't sure what to expect until after the girls in alien and santa claus costumes came out on stage. The band quickly followed them, without Wayne Coynes. Suddenly a huge plastic ball rolls out onto the crowd, containing Wayne inside. Then it all started. Wayne assumed his position on stage, the lights flared, and countless huge, blue balloons appeared out of thin air. I've never seen a show quite like it. Confetti cannons aimed out of the crowd at either end of the stage, while all manner of LED, strobe, and conventional lighting illuminated the stage from both the front and behind the band. The biggest eye catcher was the huge screen used as a backdrop for the show. They used the screen to project a wide variety of synchronized videos, from music videos, to pseudo-psychedelic images, to clips of japanese game shows. The most unique images, however, happened to come from a small camera attached to the microphone point up to Wayne's face, letting the crowd really see the emotion in his face as he adressed the crowd. They played all of their hit songs, and a few more that I had never heard, making a total set list of around 12 songs, including a double-encore. Like many bands, they encouraged crowd participation through sing-alongs, but I've never before heard a louder "YEAH-YEAH-YEAH...." You get the idea. Just to wrap up, there's no possible way that I can package the Flaming Lips' live experience in words, so I'd like to thank my friend Corrine for helping me capture the concert on video and putting it online.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ht06amGM2gU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEhonskAIvs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=442adhGh_b0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaNIvqs0T88

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHxbkog_QfE

-Ryan (finally writing again)

The Matches - Decomposer

2006-09-17T00:32:00.000-04:00

What made the Matches' E. Von Dahl Killed the Locals stand out from the rest of their pop-punk compatriots was their spin on the genre. There was something about their sound that was raw and uncontained. Obviously something had to stand out in order to get signed to punk-pioneering label, Epitaph. This time around the band tweaks their sound a bit and tries to show that they're capable of more. Their sophomore effort, Decomposer, demonstrates efforts to play around with keyboards and electronics. Although it doesn't sound bad, it's difficult to see how the band will play some of these songs live unless there's a) an extra guy on stage or b) they simply press a button a la Panic! at the Disco to get the desired results. The band also takes it a lot easier on the pop-punk on their second album and takes an artsier approach to their music. As a result, they end up with a solid, refined rock album. Although this may not be their catchiest collection of songs, Decomposer is definetly a showcase of the band's maturing abilities as songwriters. The Matches - Salty Eyes The Matches - Sunburn vs. the Rhinovirus The Matches - Didi (My Doe Part 2) The Matches - Drive -Adrian

Finest Dearest

2006-09-16T15:37:00.000-04:00

I can remember roughly a year ago downloading ‘Idaho’ by Finest Dearest and it playing in my iPod over and over… and over. Now, one member short, the five-piece group from San Francisco is mixing together a lovely little 7-inch that will come out at some point (though nowhere have I been able to find out when). Accompanying the release will be a tour through the northeast, so if you want to groove and you’re in the Seattle-Portland area, check them out, and then report back to me what you think of them live. From ‘Idaho’ to their new song off their 7-inch, ‘Making a Sound 1,’ the change in sound shows quite a leap in musical growth and maturity for them. Their sound has a bit more edge and everything sounds a lot more alternative. Though the instrumentals are noisier, Carly’s vocals remain wonderful as ever. You can befriend them on MySpace here, where you can find tour dates and listen to older songs. Finest Dearest - Making a Sound 1 Finest Dearest - March into Flames -Samantha

Samantha's Mix

2006-09-13T18:29:00.000-04:00

Hey, I’m Samantha and I’m new to writing for All Things Go, and I’m pretty excited to be doing so. I’m 16 and a junior in high school in the city of Laurel, Maryland, a lovely suburb of DC. I enjoy the simple things in life, like waking up and walking around the house naked while drinking coffee (Fair trade coffee). It would be helpful to give readers some insight into my musical tastes, so naturally, I’m posting a ten song mix that represents my tastes. The music I like tends to be more on the eclectic side, rather than something that I could simply define in a few words. Karate – With Age Karate is just one of the few bands that can pull off guitar solos in every single song that I can actually enjoy. Karate broke up late last year (or early this year) and Geoff Farina is off doing his own solo thing that I haven’t been able to get into yet. The Decemberists – Los Angeles, I’m Yours This song has sentimental value, as it was the first “indie” song I ever heard. They also happen to be one of my favourite bands to see live, and I’ll be seeing them yet again when they come to DC in late October. Kings of Convenience – I’d Rather Dance With You All songs with anything orchestrated are always a great idea. Piano can also upgrade a song as well. Anything different then the simple guitar, bass, drum pattern is willing accepted in my book. Spoon – The Way We Get By (The Devil’s Dishes Rarities) The Way We Get By is hands down my absolute favourite Spoon song, and since the original version of The Way We Get By has already been posted, I’ll just post this [much better] version. It's a rough version, but the more rough, the better it is. Interpol – Slow Hands (Britt Daniel’s remix) I’m probably partial to this song because of a. Britt Daniel; b. added in piano made this song infinitely better; and c. there is a killer bass solo. I think 'a.' explains it all, but, who knows. Jose Gonzalez and The Knife – Heartbeats This is most likely the greatest idea for a mix ever. This song is stunning with either the Knife's version or Jose's. Jose has a talent like no other musician I've ever heard to take any song and make it even better than the original. Swan Lake – All Fires Essentially this song ties together my love for Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown, and Swan Lake all in one lovely piece. Jason Anderson - So Long Lo-fi or die? Jason Anderson is an amazing musician who used to bang the drums for Microphones and then went solo. Personally, I think it was a brilliant idea, because his lyrics are so simple, yet moving. Animal Collective – We Tigers May I bang like this? We Tigers is the song most likely to be heard in my car, and the most likely to annoy whichever car is next to me at a red light. Animal Collective is a band I couldn’t stand for the longest time, and now I am obsessed with everything they do. I try not to be close-minded when it comes to music, but it will sometimes take more than a push to get myself to like something. Sufjan Stevens - Borderline (Live at Judson College 11-19-03) It's Soof! 'Nuff said. Ennnnjooyyy. -Samantha

Fear Before the March of Flames - The Always Open Mouth

2006-09-12T13:09:00.000-04:00

Colorado's Fear Before the March of Flames are back with a record that is sure to surprise awaiting fans. The Always Open Mouth, the much anticipated follow-up to 2004's Art Damage is the band's third Equal Vision Records release. What separates TAOM from their previous material is their expanded roster; with the induction of second guitarist Zach Hutchings and Billy Johnson on keys, the band has been able to add a new level of sound to their music. You can sense a certain "epicness" in every song. The guitar work is phenomenal; rather than constantly using distinct math-riffs in most of their songs (as it was in AD), the guitars experiment with other sounds, at times sounding ambient while at others uncharacteristically melodic and catchy. The keyboards go a long way as well, adding a well-placed electronic vibe to their music. Another thing I find great is the change in vocals. One complaint that I've had with the band in the past is the raspiness of David Marion's vocals. It's not that they're bad or anything, but at times it seems so inaudible that there really doesn't seem to be any use in writing actual lyrics. TAOM changes that; as well as tweaking the aforementioned problem, Marion switches it up more often, either speaking or giving a shot at singing himself (at least I think he does). There's still plenty of singing on guitarist Adam Fisher's part; his voice has always gone well with the band's music and only gets better this time around. Fear Before the March of Flames - Taking Cassandra to the End of the World Party Fear Before the March of Flames - Of Horses and Medicine Fear Before the March of Flames - Complete and Utter Confusion... Fear Before the March of Flames - ...As a Result of Signals Being Crossed All in all, this is a damn good album and was definetly worth the wait. Fans should be please once The Always Open Mouth hits shelves September 19th. -Adrian

Single: Plus 44 - When Your Heart Stops Beating

2006-09-07T22:55:00.000-04:00

Word on the street is that the title track is going to the first single of Plus 44's debut album. "When Your Heart Stops Beating" has a very different vibe than the rest of their released material; it's a lot poppier than "Lycanthrope," even sounding 80's-ish at times. I'm still really excited to listen to the entire album. So far Hoppus has demonstrated that no track sounds the same. Hopefully the same can be said when When Your Heart Stops Beating hits stores in November. Plus 44 - When Your Heart Stops Beating -Adrian

Technology

2006-09-06T13:11:00.000-04:00

I've meant to post on Chris Tsagakis' side project, Technology, for quite some time now. Tsagakis is more commonly known as the drummer for the Rx Bandits. In his spare time however, as well as being an accomplished artist on canvas, he also records electronic music of his own. I've only been able to find a couple of songs online, but I'm planning on ordering a copy of his cd in the near future. I suggest you all do the same (it's only six bucks, why not?). Until then, here's one of his tracks for download. "1337" is a fabulous, instrumental combination of electronic music with Tsagakis' innovative drumwork. Be warned though: the song clocks in at over thirteen minutes long. Technology - 1337 -Adrian

Plus 44

2006-09-05T11:58:00.000-04:00

Now that the hype over Angels and Airwaves has settled, it's now time for the second of two Blink182 side projects to fully emerge. Plus 44 (Mark Hoppus, Travis Barker, Shane Gallagher of the Nervous Return, Craig Fairbaugh of The Mercy Killers), contrary to Mr. Delonge, have taken a more modest approach to their music. Everything's been kept pretty much under wraps until recently. Only now are we getting glimpses into what the album may sound like, as well as Mark's insight into the Blink breakup. Although only two songs have been released (one of which is only demo quality), I've got a feeling that Plus 44's debut album, When Your Heart Stops Beating, will be better than AVA's We Don't Need to Whisper. P44's two released songs, "No It Isn't" and "Lycanthrope," are both great yet completely different. Fortunately, Hoppus says we should expect a very diverse album, which should come as a sigh of relief for those of us who have become bored with AVA. As much as I enjoy Delonge's latest efforts, every track feels like some toyshop rendition of a U2 song. P44's WYHSB should be a well-rounded effort, containing plenty of electronic tracks as well as standard band tracks. Plus 44 - Lycanthrope Plus 44 - No It Isn't Dates for the band's first tour have been released. I suggest buying tickets for these show once they're on sale. It may be the first and last time they'll be playing club shows. -Adrian

Labor Day (It's a Holiday)

2006-09-04T19:22:00.000-04:00

Cheers to a holiday that every child laments. Labor Day signals the start of a new school year, and while some old folks might be getting a day off from work, every child across America is pained to hear these two simple words. Here are a couple Labor Day-related songs to get you young chilluns ready for another year. You'll notice "Labor Day (It's a Holiday)" by Black Eyed Peas isn't available for download here. That was intentional. The Format - If Work Permits Hanalei - Nothing Works J Dilla - Workinonit Modest Mouse - The Devil's Workday Talib Kweli - Work it Out Aesop Rock - Labor Have a good Lazy, er Labor Day. Also, be sure to check out the Instrumental Mixtape below this post. It took me a while to put together, so you better appreciate it. bitch. AND, I'm still looking for an invite to Oink so someone help me out please. -Zack

All Things Go Instrumental Mixtape

2006-09-04T00:08:00.000-04:00

Am I alone in thinking that sometimes lyrics or singing can get in the way of a beautiful song? I appreciate artists that can form a mood and feeling of a song without having lyrics to help listeners understand. I also hate songs that have no body but just monotonous "background" music and a voice to carry the song (see: Dave Matthews). Anyways, I thought it was about time that some bands that create excellent instrumental tracks get a chance to shine here at All Things Go. These may not be the best of the best, but these are songs that either I am into completely right now or that really capture a mood perfectly without lyrics. With that being said, here is the All Things Go Instrumental Mixtape. Enjoy. As usual, you can download the Mixtape as a whole directly below or download each song individually. All Things Go Instrumental Mixtape (.zip) (follow link and instructions) 1. Ratatat - Lex I am completely and totally in love with anything that Ratatat does so it comes as no surprise that this song, off their latest release, Classics, made it onto the mixtape. When the album first leaked, I had only had a chance to listen to "Wildcat" and "Tacobel Canon" (which I posted on earlier), but, on my trip to Martha's Vineyard, Derek of GWFAS informed me that "Lex" was the real gem of the album. With powerful drums, overdriven guitars and helicopter noises (yes, fucking helicopter noises), this song might just give "Seventeen Years" a run for it's money as the best that Ratatat has to offer. 2. Air - Alpha Beta Gaga Air is another one of those bands that puts out alot of instrumental music, but they aren't completely one-dimensional and do occasionally add lyrics to their work. This track, however, substitutes lyrics for whimsical whistling (alliteration!) and adorable synths. I can't tell if the melody towards the end of the song is a guitar, banjo, mandolin, uekelele, or whatever but I can tell that it makes me quite happy. 3. Royksopp - Eple I originally heard this song on Derek's Dance Dance...Dance M3, and immediately fell in love with the catchy, upbeat vibe. I am completely unashamed to say that "Eple" is actually my cellphone's ringtone and I double dog dare you readers to listen to this song and not get the whistling melody stuck in your head. When intoxicated, a listener of "Eple" might feel as though they are actually inside the song. True story. 4. DJ Shadow - Organ Donor I was first introduced to DJ Shadow by my brother Alex, and "Organ Donor" was the first song I heard. I wrote it off as semi-techno and forgot about the song altogether. I then listened to all of DJ Shadow's finest album, Endtroducing, including another Shadow favorite of mine, "Building Steam With A Grain of Salt", and I listened to "Organ Donor" again, this time with a more open mind. I took the song in a completely different way that time, so here it is on the mixtape. 5. Mountains in the Sky - Noah's Arkestra I wrote a post a few months back asking you guys to help me find the song from the NBA Playoffs commercial (no, not Remember the Name by Fort Minor). It turns out others were looking for it too, and we eventually found it. The creaky, almost spooky beginning segues perfectly into the drum beat, much like "Ghostwriter" (the next track on this mix), and climaxes quite nicely. 6. RJD2 - Ghostwriter This song is far and away my favorite song in this mixtape, and has been in heavy rotation for me all summer. Structured very similarly to "Noah's Arkestra, "Ghostwriter" is the creation of one of many beat-making white guys that have done some serious work with hip-hop artists, such as DJ Shadow, Keiran Hebden, and Cut Chemist. This song has that ability that I talked about of changing a mood and setting a tone, and, in my opinion, is the ideal summer chill song. 7. Four Tet - Everything is Alright I'm not going to pull a Derek and use words (or in this case, compound words) like demi-god to describe Keiran Hebden AKA Four Tet, even though I'm pretty sure that's the most fitting description. Four Tet was featured on the second edition of the Night Drive Mixtape, and he appears here again with his masterpiece "Everything is Alright". I don't know how to put into words how much I love this song, but I can say that when I listen to it, I picture myself in an indie film driving at night through the rain, possibly in a high speed chase. PS: I love you Derek. 8. A Small Good Thing - Saloon Dreams Another track that I discovered through on of Lizzy's sweet mixes, "Saloon Dreams" is a quiet, unobtrusive lullabye that's perfect for a relaxing night of reading or something (note: I don't read, so thats just a guess). While it is fairly monotonous, it's perfect background music in my opinion and really holds up without lyrics. 9. The Album Leaf - Twentytwofourteen I know I know. It's an unwritten rule that you can't feature the same song on two separate mixtapes. Well I say fuck unwritten rules. This song is too good to not be featured again. I'll be posting a little piece on these guys in the very near future as I just came across the advance for their newest album, Into the Blue Again. 10. Dntel - Your Hill Let's do some math. 1/2 Postal Service + Dntel + James Figurine = Jimmy Tamborello. While Jimmy is best known for his work with Ben Gibbard on The Postal Service, he does have a few projects of his own, including Dntel and James Figurine (who's been going around the blogs recently). Dntel is a favorite of ATG writer Austin, and he's the reason I first heard these guys. This song features an accordian and, even though this is the Instrumental Mixtape, Jimmy's quivering voice towards the end of the song. "Last Songs", another Dntel track from Jimmy's 2001 release, Life is Full of Possibilities, was featured on the ATG Sleep Mixtape. Bonus: Sebastian Tellier - La Ritournelle Only because I love you did I include a bonus track. I can't say I know much of anything about Tellier, other than that Derek and Everett are absolutely and completely in love with this song. I made this track a bonus because there are lyrics towards the end of the song, and because it needs to be heard. An incredible beautiful song beginning to end, and a great ending to the Instrumental Mixtape. I hope you all enjoyed this as much, if not more, than the previous mixtapes. As always, hit me up with some feedback in the comments. Let me know what songs you like most or songs that you think should be on the mix (for example, ask me why there is no Explosions in the Sky on this mix. Except don't. The answer is I forgot to put it on.). I'm interested to see how you guys feel about this mix in particular. Just remember, lyrics are nothing without the music behind them. Also, on a completely different note, I am desperately looking for an invite to Oink or even to borrow someone else's username. I'm willing to pay and it'd really help fuel my writing to get even more advances and singles and whatnot. So if you have an account or invite, please help me out and e-mail me at allthingsgoblog@gmail.com. Thanks. -Zack

Young Widows

2006-09-01T01:13:00.000-04:00

Young Widows was brought to my attention after reading today's ap.net review of their upcoming release, Settle Down City. Born from the remnants of Louisville's Breather Resist, Young Widows digresses from BR's harder sound to that of more familiar indie-core bands such as These Arms Are Snakes. YW finds a nice medium between the two, calmer than their previous work but more raw and uninhibited than TAAS. Their sound's a bit too eerie at times, making it something I can't listen to over and over. Nevertheless, the music's great, original, and definetly worth checking out. Young Widows - The Charmers Listen to "Mirrorfucker", "Small Talk", and "Almost Deadbeat" here... Also, I haven't been able to find much new music lately that's worth writing about. Any recommendations? -Adrian [photosource: ryanrussell.net]

Panic! at the DiscOWNED

2006-08-31T01:15:00.000-04:00

Bottle to the face. -Adrian

A Static Lullaby

2006-08-30T17:15:00.000-04:00

They've returned which much to make up for. Their last album, Faso Latido, was a trainwreck; it was a strong departure from the aggresive sound many came to love with their Ferret release, ...And Don't Forget to Breathe. But now the band is back in a new form. Since the release of FS, the band has lost and replaced three members (vocalist Joe Brown and guitarist Dan Arnold are the only original members). With that has come a somewhat new sound. From what I've listened to so far, the band hasn't returned to their roots but is taking a different approach to FS post-hardcore sound. It's better, but still far from ADFTB. A Static Lullaby - Hang 'Em High Stream other tracks at ASL's official website... -Adrian

The Sound of Animals Fighting - Show Clips

2006-08-29T22:22:00.000-04:00

Four clips have appeared for the bands only shows ever, the above one being the best. If any of you lucky few who went to the shows (meaning you Chris) managed to snag any other pictures or videos, please share them with us. Also, feel free to leave impressions on the shows in the comments. -Adrian

Updates!

2006-08-24T15:51:00.000-04:00

Hey. I'm back from the Vineyard! I've actually been back for a good week or so but I've honestly just been too lazy and busy to do anything All Things Go related. Austin, Ryan, and Alex have already headed off to college at U-San Francisco, UVa, and Bard, respectively. I myself am off to Wisconsin this Tuesday, and Adrian's classes will resume at Georgetown in the next week, so we have quite a full plate. I apologize for the lack of updates, but my mind has been everywhere else the past week. I missed all of you terribly. Anyways, on to the music. I didn't want to write a bunch of detailed posts about specific bands so I'm just going to put down some songs I haven't been able to turn off in the past week. Here goes: Canasta - Slow Down Chicago Anyone who reads ATG knows that I get wet when I hear organs, and no song in the past year or so has better utilized them then on "Slow Down Chicago", by (surprise) Chicagoans Canasta. I originally found these guys over at one of my favorite blogs, 3hive. The upbeat, muted hornline is so my genre of music it's a bit ridiculous. This is the most poorly written description of a song ever. My bad. Regina Spektor - On the Radio Another incredibly upbeat track, this time from my favorite adorable Russian, Regina Spektor (sorry Putin). Regina's soft, almost whispery vocals, teamed with a bouncy piano and bassline make for one of my favorite songs of the year. Plus, the part where Regina goes "bum-buh-buh-bum-buh" and the piano answers her call might just be cuter than Alex's dimples. Gnarls Barkley - Smiley Faces Gnarls Barkley is not a one hit wonder, though everyone is bound to write them off as such. While I can't deny that "Crazy" is my favorite song on Cee-Lo and Dangermouse's debut, St. Elsewhere, "Smiley Faces" is a very close second. A more danceable track, "Smiley Faces" better exemplifies Cee-Lo's soulful, sometimes gospel-y voice, and, while not a good fit for radio play, definitely deserves a good listen. Plus, Adrian pointed out that Dangermouse samples Boohbah noises on this track. Awesome. Justice Vs. Simian - Never Be Alone Derek introduced me to this song, then introduced it to the whole world over at GWFAS. This song definitely will turn some people off, but for those who can get over the high-pitched, monotonous vocals, I cannot reccomend a better dance song at the moment. Try getting this song out of your head. Just try. Well that's all for now. Expect more updates and a new layout in the not so distant future, including an album review of The Long Winters latest, Putting the Days to Bed, teamed with an interview with the band and a CD giveaway. I hope you didn't miss me too much. -Zack

The Hills Have Eyes

2006-08-19T19:55:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure how much of you readers are fans of the whole prog-hardcore genre (Fall of Troy, The Number 12 Looks Like You, HeavyHeavyLowLow, etc). If some of you are, then hopefully this post will appeal to you. Born from the ashes of Seattle's A Kiss Farewell, The Hills Have Eyes features members of the now-defunct band as well as Thomas Erak, vocalist/guitarist of the Fall of Troy. But Erak, being the guitar-whiz he is, sets his ax down and only assumes vocal duties this time around. That's not necessarily a bad thing; Erak is able to demonstrate a vocal range that goes farther than the usually high-pitched screams seen in his work under TFOT. Although THHE's music may not demonstrate any mindblowing guitarwork, the music is still great. So far, the band has only posted three untitled demos on their MySpace. They may not be of the best quality, but they sure sound promising. The band plans to release a four-song EP some time in the near future, after which they will begin touring. Click here to stream tracks by The Hills Have Eyes -Adrian

Gatsby's American Dream

2006-08-13T20:09:00.000-04:00

With their previous efforts, Gatsby's American Dream have taken on creating musical interpretations of grand concepts; 2003's Ribbons & Sugar's lyrical content was largely based around George Orwell's Animal Farm, while the band's last masterpiece, Volcano, was meant to chronicle the story of Pompeii, referring to several literary works along the way. On their most recent self-titled effort, Gatsbys decides to travel down a less metaphorical road and make the theme of their record a little more apparent. After listening to only the first few tracks, it's clear that vocalist Nic Newsham's words are expressions of disdain towards the music industry. The only problem is that it's too clear, throughout the entire album. The band leaves no room for guessing, making the obvious repetition of disgust for greedy record labels and fake scenesters a bit irritating. But you know what? I don't give a shit! The music on this album kicks ass! Screw what the shallow reviews say about Gatsby's American Dream's lyrics. The fact is, they sound better than ever. And last time I checked, that's the reason why I listen to music in the first place. The groove and rhythm of Volcano returns in full-force for this record; guitarist Bobby Darling's guitar riffs are dancey as ever, and bassist Kirk Huffman's back-up gang vocals and Rudy Gajadhar's fantastic drumming accompany it all perfectly. The official addition of Kyle O'Quin as keyboardist is also a welcome change. The cohesion of all five guys shows best on the album's second track, "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" (my personal favorite). Fans of Gatsby's will stay fans after listening to this record. And for those of you who aren't yet familiar with the band, then this album (as well as any other) is a perfect first listen. The only big problem I have with the band is what seems to be a grim outlook on their future. After reading For The Sound's recent interview with Bobby, I'm scared that we won't be seeing much more of the band in the future. I hope for everybody's sake that the band stays together for as long as possible. These guys have demonstrated their capabilities as an album-producing powerhouse, creating three amazing full-lengths that just get better every time. Gatsby's American Dream - You All Everybody Gatsby's American Dream - We Can Remember It For You Wholesale Gatsby's American Dream - Badd Beat Gatsby's American Dream - My Name Is Ozymandias -Adrian

New Saosin Songs

2006-08-12T23:02:00.000-04:00

Once again, sorry for the lack of updates recently everybody! Like Zack, I too am on vacation and haven't been able to write much. But with the few minutes I have on this computer, I decided I'd just remind you all of the two songs Saosin have posted on their Myspace off their highly-anticipated major label debut/first full-length album. I'd say "Voices" and "Follow and Feel" are both solid songs that follow the post-hardcore sound demonstrated by "Bury Your Head." Yet they lack that special something that made songs like "Seven Years" and "They Perch On Their Stilts..." And no, that special something is not Anthony Green. I have to hand it to them; they could have found no better replacement than Cove Reber. Perhaps it's the guitar. If you compare the riffs of the aforementioned song pairs, you'll find that those off the newer material are just rapid high-pitched notes which, although they may sound kind of cool, really lack the punch found off nearly every song on the Translating the Name EP. I don't want to sound like a negative nancy, but I'm hoping the rest of the album proves to be better than these two songs. I've been waiting for this album for way too long to be disappointed. Click here to stream "Voices" and "Follow and Feel" My next post'll be better than me just linking to a band's Myspace. Promise! P.S. If the other ATG writers are still alive, write something. It'd be nice. -Adrian

New Music: Novillero + The Consumer Goods

2006-08-07T15:14:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Trent for hooking me up with these two bands. Novillero and The Consumer Goods are from Winnipeg, Manitoba, and both are relatively unknown. Novillero is very upbeat, and features plenty of piano. I definitely see similarities between them and Spoon, as Rod Slaughter (lead vocalist for Novillero) has a voice quite like Britt Daniel and the harmonies are very much like Spoon's. "Hypothesist", my favorite single off of Novillero's 2005 release, Aim Right for the Holes in Their Lives, has a very upbeat dirty rock club feel. It's the kind of music I want to dance to in a poorly lit club while drinking a shitty beer at 3am. Not to mention the fact that at around the 2 minute point of the song, there is a clapping bridge. Nothing is more danceable than claps. The fast-paced guitars and claps of "Hypothesist" are traded in for melodious piano lines and smoky vocals on the groups second single "Aptitude", though the dirty guitars return for the climax of the song, which builds up quite nicely. I know I haven't really written a bad review for any group yet (Note: I'm too afraid to) but believe me, these guys are actually worth a listen. You can choose whether or not you like them, but I think you should at least give them a try. Novillero - Hypothesist [download or die] Novillero - Aptitude Check their website and be their myspace friend. The Consumer Goods are another group that my boy Trent introduced me to. I haven't given them a good long listen, but after hearing their four tracks available for download on myspace and reading their biography, I'm excited to sit down and have a real listen. According to their bio, The Consumer Goods can be described as: "Against a backdrop of shimmering, jangling and sometimes raging guitars and lush, full keys and rhythms, Shipley's vocals range from rich, smoky textures to soaring, powerful melodies and demonstrate the wide variety of emotions that are depicted in this musical call-to-arms." As my good friend Derek would say, color me intrigued. I recommend "Babylong Song" and "Revolution", in my opinion their two strongest tracks. Since they made their songs available for download on their myspace, and since we are running out of room on our ezarchive, I am not posting songs, but here is the link to their myspace page where you can grab all the songs. Also, I will be out of town starting tommorow (Tuesday) until the 14th (next Monday). I'm visiting my ladyfriend Claire and adorkable GWFAS mastermind Derek in Martha's Vineyard. Look for some updates from Adrian, and pray that Austin, Alex, Ryan, or Everett gets their damn shit together and writes SOMETHING. I might be able to get in an update from the Vineyard, but if not, then goodbye for a week. I'll miss you all dearly. -Zack

New Blood Brothers Songs

2006-08-07T11:19:00.000-04:00

I encourage all of you to check out the two amazing tracks the Blood Brothers have posted off their upcoming album, Young Machetes, on their MySpace page. "Set Fire to the Face On Fire" and "Laser Life" are sneak peeks to what seems to be their best (and perhaps most melodic) effort yet. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find the files for download, so streaming them will have to do. Get pumped for Young Machetes, out in stores October 10th. Click here to listen to "Set Fire to the Face On Fire" and "Laser Life" -Adrian

The Colour: Devil's Got a Holda Me EP

2006-08-03T13:58:00.000-04:00

The Colour is rock. Don't let the extra, fancy "u" in their name throw you off. These guys are rock, with a hint of cockiness. This EP feels like these guys spent quite a while on each song, perfected them, and are now making all of us their bitches. The Colour has sort of a Raconteurs/Spoon/ACDC feel (I know those bands have nothing in common), especially on the title track "Devil's Got a Holda Me", a song that features a breakdown with handclaps. The layered guitars, well thought-out vocals and occasional guitar-hero solo's make for one hell of a debut EP. I can't describe them as anything but pure rock, and I'm excited to be able to say I told you so when these guys make it big with their debut LP, Between Earth and Sky. Just listen. The Colour - Devil's Got a Holda Me [download or die] The Colour - Until We're High I've been told the best way to take in The Colour is in a live venue, which seems pretty obvious given their style and sound. The Colour is doing a massive tour, with stops literally everywhere. Check their dates below, and go check them out. 8/22/06 - Los Angeles, CA 8/23/06 - San Francisco, CA 8/24/06 - Portland, OR 8/25/06 - Seattle, WA 8/26/06 - Columbus, OH 8/29/06 - Minneapolis, MN 8/30/06 - Chicago, IL 8/31/06 - Detroit, MI 9/01/06 - Toronto, ON 9/02/06 - Montreal, QC 9/03/06 - Asbury Park, NJ 9/05/06 - Boston, MA 9/06/06 - New York, NY 9/07/06 - Baltimore, MD 9/08/06 - Pittsburgh, PA 9/09/06 - Philadelphia, PA 9/10/06 - Baltimore, MD 9/11/06 - Cleveland, OH 9/12/06 - Indianapolis, IN 9/14/06 - Kansas City, MO 9/15/06 - St. Louis, MO 9/16/06 - Wichita, KS 9/17/06 - Nashville, TN 9/18/06 - Atlanta, GA 9/20/06 - Dallas, TX 9/21/06 - Dallas, TX 9/22/06 - Austin, TX 9/23/06 - Houston, TX -Zack

New Music! Ratatat + The Black Neon

2006-08-01T17:06:00.000-04:00

Imagine my excitement when I open my e-mail to find that one of my favorite artists, Ratatat, will be releasing a new album, Classics, this August 22nd, and that a few MP3's have already been made available for download. Needless to say I was giddy, and I'm glad nobody was there to see me do my happy dance naked in my bedroom. Anyways, the two tracks that I came across, "Tacobel Canon" and "Wildcat" have been featured around the blogs the past few days (including Chris from Gorilla vs. Bear who says "this [Wildcat] is my most played song of the month"), and I figured I needed to get in on the action. Draw your own conclusions about these two. All I'm saying is that if Classics is all like these two songs, I'll be the writing a glowing review in three weeks. Ratatat - Wildcat [highly rec'd] Ratatat - Tacobel Canon [highly rec'd] Elsewhere, a new band, The Black Neon, has been in heavy rotation in my iTunes ever since they found their way onto my computer. Here's what Team Clermont has to say about them: Memphis Industries, probably the UK's hottest small label (The Go! Team, The Pipettes), knocks another one out of the park with The Black Neon's Arts & Crafts. Steven Webster, formerly of St. Lauderdale, has crafted a lovely, gauzy krautrock/britpop hybrid that plays out with the Super Furries jamming with Harmonia '76 or Neu! or something. It's an insanely good record that combines T. Rex swagger with synth-addled atmosphere and Blur-caliber hooks. It's the real deal. I strongly agree, and recommend these guys to all you readers. I can't think of any similar bands off the top of my head, but I love their folky-synth-pop vibe, and can't get enough of the two singles I have. Definitely check them both out, especially "Hollywood 1, 2, & 3" which is more of an instrumental track and builds quite nicely, though both tracks I've made available for download are strong. Look out for The Black Neon. The Black Neon - Ralph & Barbara The Black Neon - Hollywood 1, 2, & 3 [rec'd] -Zack

Sneak Peek: These Arms Are Snakes - Easter

2006-08-01T03:04:00.000-04:00

These Arms Are Snakes - Crazy Woman Dirty Train These Arms Are Snakes - Perpetual Bris These Arms Are Snakes - Horse Girl These Arms Are Snakes - Lady North -Adrian

Ladyhawk

2006-07-30T21:26:00.000-04:00

Dear all marketing and publicity companies that send me e-mails: My bad. I realize I haven't checked my e-mails in a good long time. I have over 150 e-mails on one address, and over 60 at the other. That's alot of music. I didn't know quite where to begin, so I just started from the top of the pile. I've never heard of Ladyhawk, but apparently these guys have (they always beat me to the punch). Ladyhawk is from Vancouver, Canada (yes, that place right above us that seems to keep putting out better music than us despite being handicapped by snow and irrelevance). I came across three songs, all of which have been playing in my iTunes all day. I can sit here and say that these guys sound like Spoon (Ryan at Good Hodgkins described them as a blend of Neil Young, The Replacements, Okkervil River, and Wolf Parade) or some other band, but the truth is I can't put a finger on their sound. They seem to be more classic rock'n'roll then indie-pop, but, to be honest, they sound like a band that doesn't quite care. This is not a bad thing. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Their laid-back approach to production and (judging by their press photos) overall cleanliness makes for a dirty, interestingly unique sound. I recommend checking all these songs out, especially "War", whose beginning sounds eerily close to "Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance!" by Sufjan, but then definitely goes in a different direction. Ladyhawk - War [highly rec'd] Ladyhawk - The Dugout Ladyhawk - My Old Jacknife [rec'd] Also check out their video for "My Old Jacknife", which just seems to be a clip of Kelly "not relevant anymore" Osbourne "dancing" and being interviewed at some club. Strange, but somehow fitting. -Zack PS: I have an opportunity to do an interview with Aberdeen City next week. I wouldn't mind doing it, and I dig their sound, but I want to know if any of you are interested in what they have to say. If you are, leave a note in the comments or feel free to e-mail some questions you want answered by the band to allthingsgoblog@gmail.com and I'll be sure to pass them along.

All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape Two

2006-07-26T15:40:00.000-04:00

This mix took me less than two hours to compile, but somehow the post has taken me almost two months to make. The All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape was so successful and had such positive feedback that I decided to have another go at the theme. As I've said before, I believe that there is no better time to listen to music then a long drive at night with nowhere to go and no place to be. Here is the All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape Two All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape Two (.zip) 1. Band of Horses - The Funeral From the first note to the irregular tempo to the high vocals, this song has everything a masterpiece of a night drive song needs. I haven't listened to much else by Band of Horses, but after hearing this, I'm interested to see if anything else they've put out can match the emotion and originality of this song. 2. Sia - Breathe Me Derek originally introduced me to Sia with this song, featured on his M3 Volume 5. I didn't really give it a chance then, which was a horrible mistake. "Breathe Me" just exudes beauty, and Sia's soft, sometimes quivering voice, teamed with a floaty piano melody make for a perfect night drive song. 3. Slow Runner - Streamlined I recently posted on these guys, and will be doing an interview with them soon if all goes well. If you read the post, you will realize that I have become infatuated with Slow Runner, and while this is not my favorite song of theirs, it is certainly the most fitting for a late night drive. Recommended for lovers of The New Amsterdams/Straylight Run's quieter stuff. 4. Architecture in Helsinki - Maybe You Can Owe Me Architecture in Helsinki may be battling Of Montreal and The Unicorns for indie rock band with the best absurd noises and sound effects in a song, but "Maybe You Can Owe Me" is a more straightforward, yet still beautiful, song. The sing-song, almost whispering vocals, and constant echo usage make for a fantastic night drive song. 5. Z-Trip/Run Run Run - Fade Into You Z-Trip, featured on the Cannabliss Mixtape, is back again, this time with his "remix" of Run Run Run's "Fade Into You". While the original version is more quiet and soft, this version is superior, and puts me in a contemplative mood. Did I mention I love everything about pianos? (Also, this is another song i learned how to play on piano.) 6. Four Tet - Iron Man This is far and away my favorite song on the mixtape, and has been playing constantly in my car for the past month. Keiran Hebden AKA the genius behind Four Tet turns a downright dirty Black Sabbath classic into a beautifully constructed four minute and fourteen second eargasm. Notice how subtle the melody of the acoustic guitar matches the original Iron Man. I listened to this song 6 times in a row on the long bus ride home at night from New York City a few weeks ago. 7. Zero 7 ft. Jose Gonzalez - Left Behind God bless Jose Gonzalez. I know my favorite Mexican Swede was featured on the first Night Drive Mixtape, but his incredible voice (and guitar) had to make another appearance, this time with Zero 7 (who were featured on the Garden State soundtrack, for all you hipsters). The two blend quite nicely on this song, which can be found on Zero 7's newest release, The Garden. This song is perfect for putting your hand out the car window (preferably a Volvo) on a starry night with a scenic backdrop. 8. Ben Harper - Another Lonely Day I know what you're thinking; "Ben Harper is so not cool." Well shutup. Ben Harper is the epitome of cool. He may appeal to a different audience, but anyone who enjoys Iron & Wine or Jose Gonzalez should fall in love with this song. While the message isn't exactly peachy, it still brings back fond memories for me, especially on long night drives. 9. Imogen Heap - Hallelujah This song, featured so gloriously on the season finale of the OC, is Imogen Heap's humble rendition of a classic. While Jeff Buckley's version is more well known, I believe that Immy's voice (a capella) holds up quite nicely. Be sure to keep your eyes open through this one, and keep the tears in. Nobody likes a crybaby. 10. Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Biomusicology I had the incredible privilage of seeing this song played live (5 times), and I can honestly say that this song is one of the best I've ever heard. From the opening chord to the violin-ridden bridge to the unparalleled climax, Ted has created a masterpiece so fitting for this mixtape that I actually hate myself for not putting it on the first mixtape. Once again, I bow down to the beauty that is Theodore Leo. Thanks again for checking out the mixtape and sorry I have been so out of it with updates. Also, keep a look out for future mixtapes, including, but not limited to, hip-hop, instrumentals, and guilty pleasures. Have a nice drive, and buckle up. It's the law. -Zack

All Things Go is not dead...again

2006-07-24T14:17:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the lack of updates recently folks. But as has been said before, All Things Go is not dead...we're just lazy. In all seriousness, the summer has been quite a busy time for the ATG crew, making it more difficult to squeeze in a post here and there during our free time. But no worries, the posting will return to its normal pace soon (most likely tonight). And just to prove to you that we still care dearly about the site, we are currently engaged in discussion over what could be important decisions on how the website looks, functions, etc. So once again, us here at ATG apologize for the lack of fresh material, but keep checking the site for new posts. Thanks everybody! -Adrian

Cutlery

2006-07-17T12:05:00.000-04:00

Recently, the district hasn't been producing any truly impressive nor influental bands (with the exception of Dischord bands, Darkest Hour, Ted Leo...the list only goes on for so long). I haven't been able to go to any local band performance and walk out enlightened. However, there are some exceptions. A couple months ago I attended a small show in the backroom of the Black Cat. Two bands were on the bill: the Drugstore Cowboys (post) and the focus of this post, Cutlery. I hadn't written about these guys after the show only because I hadn't been able to get my hands on all their tracks. Luckily, I was able to get them from my buddy Joey, and now I can pass some on to you. Cutlery brings together different styles of music to create one of the most impressive live performances I've ever seen. As well as the amazing music, they also have film snippets rolling on the back of the stage while they go through their set. But regardless of the visual effects, Cutlery's blend of electronic music with driving rock guitar and passionate vocals were enough to provide me with what I saw as an A+ performance. Some songs focus more on synth and computers while others rely more on the instrumental side of the band. The only somewhat negative thing I have to say about the band is that their online recorded material seems to dwell too much on electronics. That being said, there's all the more reason to check out their live show; Brendan Funkhouser's impressive guitarwork and Ryan Grimes' heartfelt vocals are two things you can only really soak in when the band's playing right in front of you. Cutlery - Johnny Can't Be Dead Cutlery - Karen Cutlery - Never Forgive Action -Adrian

The Amazing Screw On Head

2006-07-15T23:09:00.000-04:00

Once again, another non-music-related post. This show looks so cool that I had to make a post on it. Mike Mignola's (of Hellboy fame) comic "The Amazing Screw On Head" is being transformed into a cartoon for the Sci Fi Channel. Luckily, the pilot episode has been put up for viewing on the channel's website. Watch it! It's about twenty minutes long and kicks ass. Now I have a reason to watch the Sci Fi Channel (other than Stargate of course). The Amazing Screw On Head -Adrian

Guest Blogger - Oliver: They Might Be Giants Venue Songs and Podcast Review

2006-07-11T20:37:00.000-04:00

Hey there ATG readers. My name is Oliver and I’m Zack’s older brother. I know, it’s embarrassing and given his poor hygiene I was hesitant to admit it (Zack’s Note: I actually smell like the dew on a tulip on a fresh Spring day. I haven’t done a Zack’s Note in a while. I should do more). Regardless I was given the latest They Might Be Giants Venue Songs and Podcast by Zack for my last birthday (25) as I am a lifelong fan. Note that it has taken me some time to write this review. I don’t know why it has taken this long, I mean beyond my family’s genetic procrastination gift, but what matters is that I am doing it now. By the way, that is a superb argument to use with your parents or significant others…Really, try it. But now lets get to the music. I have been a fan of TMBG since I first heard them on a road trip when I was 12 or so. I, like so many others, was sucked in by the likes of “Particle Man” and “Istanbul” but over time grew to love the more esoteric riffs, i.e. most of John Henry or Apollo 18, and have faithfully listened to everything since. I once attended a TMBG concert only to discover upon arrival that it was a kids’ show in a theater filled to 8 year olds for the kid’s album. I was the only non-parent there and it ROCKED! The Selected Podcasts are mixed bag. I think John and John (the duo that is TMBG) have either been going to a lot of raves or they just got a new synthesizer and have been mating with it (as exemplified in “E Eats Everything”). Constant low beats drive this track with TMBG almost nonsensical lyrics; Entertaining sure, but halfway through you wonder if anything else is going to happen. “A Boy in Love with You” harkens back to the golden days of Flood and Factory Showroom. A mix of excitement of love, or lust really, and longing for girl who looks at you like you threw up on her shoes (the ATG staff may know this feeling intimately). The remaining tracks are hit and miss, some obviously done up to make a Podcast deadline. Definitely worth the time for a TMBG fan but if you are new to the Giants I suggest going back to Flood or Why Does the Sun Shine. The Venue Songs are a breath of fresh TMBG air. Seriously. In the style of Apollo 18 there are 46 tracks rarely lasting more than 2 minutes. I thought hard about how to talk about this album and finally decided to only single out a few tracks to discuss. Before I get to those I feel I should mention that all the tracks rock. I was pleasantly surprised upon my first listening that I never once had the urge to skip a track or turn it off for a bit (as some people need to). The tracks were written by John and John at the venues they were playing at and that is easily heard with the obvious love TMBG put into them. If you’re fortunate enough to be from a city with its own theme, like Houston, you will no doubt find it intimate and hysterical. Even if your town doesn’t rate (DC didn’t, and that’s a bone I would care to pick with TMBG if given the chance) the tracks are well worth the listen. All of them. Specifically, “Brooklyn” is terrific. As the home of TMBG you might expect some rockout-no-sleep-till-brooklyn-old-block kind of track. The truth is the opposite; a heartfelt, vaguely choral, tribute to that overlooked and up-and-coming borough that birthed TMBG. It almost makes me cry sometimes (but only sometimes) feeling their love for Brooklyn, a longing for home from a band always on the move. “Vancouver” is also a fantastic track. It starts off haunting like “Jesse’s Girl” (if you don’t get that reference than go away and listen to it you inbred and uncultured freak) but rocks out into a purely TMBG lyrical love song. “Love is Eternity” is the best lesson on relationships in song form ever. I am not kidding. “Tippecanoe and Tyler too” is odd and awesome. “Bloodmobile” is TMBG literally making a textbook sound like pop music. Just listen. TMBG also provides live performances of the track at the venue the song was written for. All in all Venue Songs is a highly entertaining compendium of TMBG music and wit. John and John have put together a great package deal here and I urge you to try them on for size. Whether a dyed in the wool TMBGer or a virgin to John and John, you should find this, if nothing else, intellectually stimulating. They Might Be Giants - Brooklyn [download or die] They Might Be Giants - Vancouver They Might Be Giants - Tippecanoe and Tyler Too They Might Be Giants - Bloodmobile They Might Be Giants - Love is Eternity -Oliver

Los Campesinos!

2006-07-11T10:17:00.000-04:00

All I really have to say about this song is that it's fun as fuck. My brother played it for me in the car the other day. I instantly fell in love with it. Don't let the ExplosionsInTheSky-esque intro fool you. After about a minute or so, the song bursts into a jig that makes you wanna dance around your room in your underwear. And the thick british accent makes the song all the more awesome. Usually, heavy accents such as this one don't help the music for me, but the vocals in "You! Me! Dancing!" complement the song perfectly. This is easily one of the happiest songs I've heard in a while and will most likely be one of the defining tracks of this summer. Los Campesinos! - You! Me! Dancing! Seeing as that's pretty much all I wanted to say about the song, here's a clever description the band wrote on their MySpace!: Hold on now youngster, this is a good thing to look into the maw of the void, but let's not be excessive, there is still Los Campesinos!. And one day you will wake in the middle of the night and the water on your face will not be from the cold sweat that your dreams of impending doom have produced but from tears of joy squeezed out by a lingering melody, a droning violin, a haunting mantra or a panic attack brought on by a song so tight and serene and messy and polished and dense that it suffocates you like the fumes of the paint that made your favourite album covers. Actually, it's just pop music. Enjoy! -Adrian

Voicst

2006-07-06T12:14:00.000-04:00

Voicst is a band that I was turned on to by Derek through one of the famous "Lizzy Mixes". I hadn't really given them a chance, but after playing their first single, "Whatever You Want From Life" a few times, I really grew to like it. The trio from Amsterdam have a sound very similar to All Things Go favorite Ted leo & the Pharmacists, with upbeat melodies, singalong vocals, and fast guitar riffs. Their album, 11-11, is set for release in the US on August 1st on their own label, Duurtlang Records. I really enjoy the first single (available for download below) and can't wait for the release of the album, which I will review once it is released. Voicst - Whatever You Want From Life [download or die] -Zack

Happy (Merry?) Fourth of July

2006-07-04T13:14:00.000-04:00

I'm well aware that we really should change our blog name from All Things Go to All Things Adrian due to my complete and total lack of posts in the past month. It's been kinda hectic for me recently what with graduation, beach week, jobs, explosive diarrhea, and saving the world. Anyways, it's time for me to get back on track and get writing. Unless you're a commie bastard, you are aware that today is July 4th, the day of independence of all of us citizens of this fine nation we know as the United States of America, home of cheeseburgers, football, and mullets. With all of the anti-war sentiment and civil unrest, it's easy to jump on the "I hate America" or "I'm moving to Canada" bandwagon, but today is a time to set this all aside and feel just a little bit patriotic. I am going to be watching the Italy vs. Germany World Cup semifinal match, (and pulling for Italy because Germany knocked out my boy Messi and Argentina). I'm also doing some good ole' Amurrican BBQ and kickin' it with some friends. It's July 4th, so everyone get out your firecrackers, coozies, and shitty American beers (Goddamn you High Life Light) and raise your glasses to the finest country on the finest planet. With that in mind, here are some America/Freedom/Independence related songs to get you going. Have a wonderful Independence Day, and make sure to check HBO Family which is showing ID4 back-to-back-to-back (I can't get enough of Will Smith). The Decemeberists - July, July! Jurassic 5 - Freedom Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American Mike Doughty - American Car Simon & Garfunkel - America Dntel - Fireworks Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Loyal to My Sorrowful Country -Zack

New Legion of Doom Song

2006-07-02T22:09:00.000-04:00

Remeber the Legion of Doom? Well they're back with a brand new mash-up. But this one's not as emotastic. Instead, they decided to take two popular songs, Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" and the Raconteurs' "Steady As She Goes" (and throw in a little Grandmaster Flash for kicks), to bring you the aptly-titled "Crazy As She Goes." They pull it off with great success. It's also a nice break from the usual combination of emo and hardcore songs. If you haven't yet heard their older material from Incorporated, check out their MySpace. Or, if you'd like to find download links for the songs, check out the forum on their official website. The Legion of Doom - Crazy As She Goes -Adrian

The Rescue EP: Free Download

2006-07-02T12:50:00.000-04:00

Texas instrumental pioneers Explosions in the Sky have done everybody a favor and posted 2005's somewhat-hard-to-find The Rescue EP up for free download on their website! This is a pretty cool thing for a band of their stature to do so I suggest you all go ahead and grab it while it's still up. For those of you who haven't heard of this release, the idea is that for eight days the band was going to create eight songs, one for each day. Although it's not their best, anything new from the band is always welcome. Look out for their new album in the beginning of 2007.
The Rescue EP -Adrian

Stevie Wonder on Sesame Street

2006-07-01T12:59:00.000-04:00

word. -Adrian

New Outkast Songs

2006-07-01T11:22:00.000-04:00

Obscure Sound, a goodlookin' indie music blog, has posted up two new Outkast songs off their upcoming release, Idlewild, for listening. And as usual, they kick ass. In the first song, "Idlewild Blues," a traditional blues guitar riff is transformed into what can only be an awesome Outkast song. And while Andre sings on that one, "Morris Brown" seems like a track that could have easily appeared as a single off of Big Boi's Speakerboxxx. I'm not going to describe them any further because OS does enough of that. But once again, many thanks to Obscure Sound for posting these two tracks up. Listen to Outkast's "Idlewild Blues" and "Morris Brown" here. -Adrian

Rx Bandits - ...And the Battle Begun

2006-06-26T02:17:00.000-04:00

I'm sure I've made this point before, but Rx Bandits' The Resignation is my favorite album of all time. It's an unbelievable showcase of the band's once-hidden musical capabilities. Originally, they were just some ska-punk band to me; there were only a few tracks off of Halfway Between Here & There and Progress that stuck and impressed me. The Resignation changed everything. The band dropped the poppy get-up and evolved into a surprisingly powerful musical force. When tracks off of earlier records may only have consisted of a few power chords, every song off of The Resignation offered something unique and refreshing. The Bandits brought together punk, ska, reggae, and added their own special touch to bring to us a new experimental style of music of which I (at least) have never seen the likes of before. Now for three years I've had to sit impatiently and wait for the follow-up their 2003 masterpiece. I wasn't sure what to expect. Would they blow my mind with something completely different, or would they elaborate on the sound that they establish on The Resignation? After listening to the album, I suppose I could say yes and no to both questions. But let me begin by saying, ...And the Battle Begun is nothing short of amazing. Once again the band has impressed me with an album that I will be listening to over and over again for the next couple of weeks. I wouldn't say this album is as aggressive as The Resignation. Rather, Battle reveals a more soulful side of the band with cleaner guitars, heavier use of both horns and keyboards, and more passionate vocals. It isn't a movement towards a somewhat reggae sound, but it's more of a sign that the band has more of a grasp on what they're writing. And this definetly shows live; the RX Bandits have become masters of improvisation and put on a unique performance for every show. I'm always impressed by how the band blends every song together with a little jam, giving the show a constant flow (As a side note, I highly suggest going to this show if it comes by your town. Men Women & Children are touring with them, and they're one of the most fun bands I've seen live.) But back to the album! I feel that this is a logical step for the group to move in. I don't recommend going into this album and expecting a sequel to The Resignation. That album marked an evolution for the band. From now on, I don't think we can hold expectations for new material other than it will be nothing but impressive. So enough talk, here are some of my favorite tracks from ...And the Battle Begun... RX Bandits - ...And the Battle Begun RX Bandits - In Her Drawer RX Bandits - On A Lonely Screen RX Bandits - 1980 -Adrian

New These Arms Are Snakes Song

2006-06-24T03:12:00.000-04:00

Hey everybody! I'm not too sure what the rest of the ATG guys are doing, so I figured I might as well post something so you guys aren't too bored. Recently, I found a link to a new These Arms Are Snakes song on AbsolutePunk.net and I think it's pretty kick-ass. Give it a listen, I'm sure all you fans won't be disappointed. These Arms Are Snakes - Horse Girl Also, I encourage all of you to go pick up Underoath's Define the Great Line. As far as I can tell, it's the best album of 2006 so far. Each member of the band takes their musical skills to the next level on this album. It's quite impressive. I promise I'll write a full post tomorrow, sorry to keep you all waiting! -Adrian

Showbread

2006-06-19T10:18:00.000-04:00

I've spent the past ten days making my first trip ever to Detroit. Primarily here to visit my lovely girlfriend, I also wanted to see what the Motor City had to offer music-wise. Luckily, I've been able to see plenty of bands during my stay here, highlights of which include We Are Scientists, AFI, Yeah Yeah Yeah's, Say Anything, the Fall of Troy, and my newfound love, Showbread. I really didn't know what to expect. I stood outside of Alvin's, a sketchy but nonetheless cozy venue, for half an hour or so waiting to catch the Michigan stop for the Black Unicorn Tour featuring He Is Legend, The Fall of Troy, Classic Case, and of course, Showbread. I was surprised at the turnout of the show. I'm pretty sure most people were there for the Fall of Troy; it's great to see how much their fanbase has spread. Anyways, Classic Case began to play pretty much right after the club began to let people in. Once they finished up, five guys clad in black began to prepare the stage for Showbread. I stood there, armed only with the knowledge that the band was signed to Christian label Tooth and Nail. So basically, they could sound like anything. Now let me begin by saying that Showbread screams, a lot. But no, they are not just some hardcore band, far from it. To best describe them, take the vocal insanity of the Blood Brothers, mash that with the punk intensity of Refused, the glory of 80's hair metal, and top it all off with a keytar. Some songs lean towards a southern rock sound, while others take a faster punk approach. Their latest full-length, No Sir, Nihilism is Not Practical also includes tracks of other varieties, such as acoustic and electronic, that were not played at the show. Regardless, I was blown away by the bands performance. Lately I've been getting sick of shitty hardcore bands giving screaming a bad name. But Showbread does it glory and brings something new and original to the table. If you don't enjoy their recorded material, then I highly suggest seeing them live. Vocal duties are split between two people, only fueling the chaos of their set. Be prepared to go crazy. Be prepared to dance. But most importantly, get ready to have a good ol' time. Even if you're not a fan of the whole screaming thing, Showbread put on quite an entertaining show. Showbread - A Llama Eats a Giraffe (and Vice Versa) Showbread - Mouth Like a Magazine Showbread - If You Like Me Check Yes, If You Don't Die Showbread - Dead By Dawn Also, check out their video for "Mouth is Like a Magazine." It's pretty cool. The logo on the bass drum pretty much sums up their music: Raw Rock Kills. -Adrian

The Situation

2006-06-18T16:29:00.000-04:00

Austin and I had the luck to see The Situation at The Black Cat on June 1st, as part of our senior project. To be honest, I had no idea who they were, where they were from, or what they sounded like, but walking into the (very "intimate") back room stage at the club with no expectations, I was very happy with what I was hearing. Formed in 2001 in Philadelphia by singer/guitar player Christopher Tucker and Joe Castro, lead guitarist. After being joined by Laz on bass and John Paul Travis on drums, the band began work on writing and recording material. Both their debut, The Reece Nasty E.P., and their self-titled album showcase their guitar-driven indie with a flair of more traditional rock and folk. I take a particular liking to Castro's skill on guitar and the overall tone of the band. You can find more about The Situation at their website. The Situation- Amoralia The Situation- Modern Dances The Situation- Mocking Fate The Situation- Cherry -Ryan

Fingers Cut Megamachine

2006-06-16T04:53:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the lack of updates on my part recently everybody. I've been up to a lot lately/been lazy, but I've definetly got several posts in the works already. So here's to making up for it all... The boundaries of punk often overlap with those of indie, folk, and even sometimes country. Artists in the scene often drop the usual get-up for an acoustic guitar, revealing different yet refreshing sides of themselves. Years after the band called it quits, Osker frontman Devon Williams has chosen a similar path. Rather than pursuing an endeavor in the same vein as Osker, Williams decided to try something new with his four-piece folk outfit Fingers Cut Megamachine. Five years ago Osker, pioneered by William's masterful songwriting, released what has been one of the most personally influental albums of all time, Idle Will Kill. While remaining faithful to the punk sound associated with their label Epitaph, the record also alluded to changes in the genre to come. It was passionate punk rock. Although his lyrics may not have been poetry, Williams belted out each word with as much soul as the last. The group also managed to keep their own trademark sound; Williams' distinctive style of distortioned guitar made Osker an easily identifiable band. Osker - Motionless Osker - Kinetic Osker - Disconnect Disconnect Williams' now stands at the helm of his new project, Fingers Cut Megamachine. Keep in mind this isn't just Osker going acoustic. Any bias towards Williams' previous band should be dropped; Fingers is a whole different project. You can't mosh to any of these songs. Rather, FCM is more appropriate for relaxing on a sunny day or watching a sunset, depending on the mood of the song. Don't expect anything revolutionary from Fingers; Williams isn't quite ready to bust through the ranks of indie songwriters (had Osker continued, that'd maybe be a different story). However, I still think this is music that would appeal to anybody. Although I am still deeply saddened by the split of one of my favorite bands, Williams has managed to satisfy me with a new effort that, although not as energetic or aggressive as Idle Will Kill, still manages to capture the passion of Osker. Fingers Cut Megamachine - Orange Barrel Fingers Cut Megamachine - Rough Dreams Fingers Cut Megamachine - Backseat -Adrian

06/06/06

2006-06-06T16:35:00.000-04:00

So I was looking at my cell phone today and remembered that today is June 6th, 2006. This may not seem ominous until you realize that the date is 06/06/06, or 6/6/6. In honor of this very evil and devilish day, i have put together a few songs for download. Enjoy the apocalypse! Sufjan Stevens - In the Devil's Territory The Flaming Lips - Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell Kenna - Hell Bent Murder By Death - The Devil Drives TV on the Radio - Let the Devil In Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins - Run Devil Run Modest Mouse - This Devil's Workday I also noticed that Nathaniel over at I Guess I'm Floating has done the same thing, with some overlapping songs. Make sure you check out his tribute to this eerie day. -Zack

John Ralston - Needle Bed

2006-06-05T15:17:00.000-04:00

I recently received Needle Bed, the debut album from Knoxville, Tennessee native John Ralston, in the mail and was pleasantly surprised. John seems to have heavily influences from artists such as Bright Eyes, Wilco, Ryan Adams, and others along those lines, but his voice, which seems to be different in every song, sets him apart from his peers. I haven't listened to this album enough, but a few tracks have stuck out, so I figured I'd share them with you. The first single, "I Believe in Ghosts" has a sort of creepy tone with John's up-and-down vocals, but is a simple, blogger-friendly track. "When We Are Cats" reminds me of a cross between Dashboard Confessional, an emo band playing acoustic material, and, for some reason, Simon & Garfunkel (see for yourself). "Gone Gone Gone" fits this mold as well, minus the Simon & Garfunkel. My favorite track, "It's Not Your Fault" is a blend of these two songs, with simple instrumentals and happy, floaty melodies. I definitely recommend you check out his album, Needle Bed, which was released April 22nd on Vagrant. John Ralston - I Believe in Ghosts John Ralston - When We Are Cats John Ralston - Gone, Gone, Gone [download or die] John Ralston - It's Not Your Fault [download or die] Check out John on Myspace. -Zack

ALL THINGS GO IS NOT DEAD

2006-06-05T15:16:00.000-04:00

ALL THINGS GO IS NOT DEAD. WE ARE JUST LAZY.

The Walkmen Live Recording

2006-06-01T17:53:00.000-04:00

The humid Washington D.C. swamp air filled the dark streets. Trash and bones were scattered across the fragmented sidewalk. I could see the faint outline of crack heads stumbling around barb wire fences and abandoned warehouses. Then suddenly as I turned a corner, a massive line of hipsters appeared, and it was oddly refreshing. “The Walkmen have returned to D.C.” I exclaimed. As part of our ATG two week concert bonanza, the whole crew minus Adrian and + Alex’s little brother, ended up at Chocolate City’s beloved 9:30 club to witness The Walkmen. I’m sure all of you know who The Walkmen are, but there is more to their history than performing on everyone’s favorite drama, the cleverly named “THE OC.” To us ATG/DC people The Walkmen are much more than a cameo appearance. The Walkmen who most assume are from NYC are actually reppin’ DC. In fact Pete Bauer (the sweatiest of the walkmen) went to the same high school as Zack, Ryan, Alex, and yours truly! And if that isn’t enough, the other four members of The Walkmen attended the prestigious St. Albans school in DC, which is oddly enough where Adrian went to high school. The Walkmen even played at the St. Albans battle of the bands last year! In the GYM! Ok, back to the concert. The Walkmen took over the 9:30 club and blew me away. After seeing them this time, it is very clear to me that their music thrives live. The stage was shaking, bending, bleeding, crying, and begging for more by the end of the show. Matt Barrick brought the house down on drums, as he practically picked himself up so he could drop down harder on each snare and cymbal. The vintage Fender amps, and beat up guitars, added to the gritty drunken sound that the Walkmen have seemed to master. Hamilton Leithauser, the voice behind the Walkmen, also brought his top game, and displayed it in full force. Lifting the mic above his head, flexing his neck muscles and spitting out a passion filled performance. The Concert was well worth it, and I suggest everyone go see the Walkmen if you can. You can listen/download the entire concert and interviews with The Walkmen HERE. Thanks to NPR! -Austin

Nathan Asher and the Infantry

2006-05-31T18:41:00.000-04:00

Update: Ok, so I listened to the other songs on their Myspace, and they do indeed kick ass. I highly recommend you go listen to them, especially "Sex Without Love." They're very different from "Turn Off the Faders," so if that song didn't quite click, try the others out. Those of you who check Absolutepunk.net often have no doubt clicked on today's feature, Nathan Asher and the Infantry. I myself usually don't click on every link I see there, seeing how often certain bands are heavily promoted, only to find that they are nothing but ordinary emo (or whatever you'd like to call it) bands. However, the fact that the group nagged the grand prize in both the John Lennon International Songwriting Contest and the Great American Songwriting Competition left me very intrigued and dying to listen. I was quite surprised to find such great material from a band very different to the likes of what the website usually focuses on. Their artist profile features the song "Turn Off the Faders." Now you'd have to be pretty much braindead to dismiss any similarities between the vocals of the band and Conor Oberst. Yet NAATI doesn't have the whine of Oberst, the trait that usually gains him the title of "pussy emo bitch." Unlike Oberst, the vocals in this song sound more direct and strait to the point, more poetic than emotional. And just when Asher's vocals may (although they shouldn't) begin to bore you, they either fall into a more singy style reminiscent of mewithoutYou vocalist Aaron Weiss' wails, or go so fast that you would almost think Asher's about to spit some rhymes. Although the instrumentals of the song may seem layered, I didn't find it much of a bother at all. "Turn Off the Faders" begins with ambient keyboard sounds, after which piano is added, and then a dancey high-hat/bass-drum beat. There isn't anything too surprising about it (except maybe for the piano in the end), but it still works and goes along perfectly with Asher's vocals. I find it very hard not to like this song, simply because of its lyrical beauty. The words are well crafted, and Asher's straightforward voice emphasizes the meaning of each one of them. If spoken word isn't your thing, then maybe this song isn't quite your thing. But nevertheless, give it a chance. It's clear why the band won the aforementioned awards. This song is definetly worthy of, at the very least, one listen. Nathan Asher and the Infantry - Turn Off the Faders I can't really say anything for their other songs, seeing as they didn't work when I tried to play them on their Myspace. But check it out anyways, maybe they'll play for you. -Adrian

New The Long Winters/The Roots Albums + Tracks

2006-05-27T17:47:00.000-04:00

Well one of my favorite hip-hop groups of all time, The Roots, are finally releasing their newest album, Game Theory, on August 29th (which isn't that soon, but the release date was pushed back from February). I came across two tracks off the new album, one being a rough demo. The first, "Don't Feel Right" is a very prototypical Roots song, with Black Thought's poetic flow and ?uestlove's simple yet powerful drum beat. The other song, "Please Don't Go" isn't quite up to their standards, but it's just a demo, so hopefully they'll work out the kinks. I must say though, after listening to these two songs and seeing them in concert a year ago, I could not be more excited for this album to come out. Maybe the indie blogosphere will finally give the Roots the credit they deserve. New songs: The Roots - Don't Feel Right The Roots - Please Don't Go (Demo) Previously posted: The Roots - Boom! The Roots - You Got Me (ft. Jill Scott) On another, completely different note, The Long Winters will be releasing their latest full-length album, Putting the Days to Bed, on July 25th. Their most recent release, Ultimatum EP, featured one of my favorite songs ("The Commander Thinks Aloud") and the first single off Putting the Days to Bed has got me all excited in my special place. "Pushover" is very upbeat, and features John Roderick's interesting and slightly off-beat voice, and is much in the vein of previous Long Winters releases. I have already pre-ordered the album (which you can do here), and am awaiting the release (or another leaked track) with utter excitement. New song: The Long Winters - Pushover Previously posted: The Long Winters - Cinnamon (from the Valentines Day Mixtape) The Long Winters - The Commander Thinks Aloud (from the Night Drive Mixtape) -Zack

Ramblings of an Old Man - Lee "Scratch" Perry Live 5/22

2006-05-24T15:21:00.000-04:00

Last night kicked off ATG's 2 week concert extravaganza with a performance by Lee "Scratch" Perry at Sonar in Baltimore. For those of you who don't know, Perry is a god in the reggae world. He was a pioneer of dub and produced works by acts like Bob Marley & The Wailers, and also a few tracks with The Clash. Needless to say, we were very curious as to what he would be like live. The opening band, Dub is a Weapon, was ok, but extremely formulaic. Every song had only one bass lick, which never changed, a rhythm guitar part, which never changed, and a lead guitar matched with a trombone. Keep in mind that every song had a very similar beat, and with no vocals, it quickly got old. Not only that, but the members of the band were somewhat painful to watch dancing up on stage. As Austin put it, this band was like "they came from the suburbs, and are only a band because they found some rasta who also lives in their neighborhood." Then Scratch came out. All 4' 11'' of him, dressed in a white baseball jersey and wearing a hat topped with incense. Perry was being backed up by Dub is a Weapon, which was disappointing because we were already exhausted by their music. It featured the same repetition and formulas, and awkward dance moves as before, only this time with lyrics, weirds ones, but the music definetly took a backseat to what Perry was saying in between songs. Most of the songs were based around one phrase: "I love you." And his ramblings, too, proclaimed his love for all. He blessed the crowd at one point, using his "foot, the boot and the root," which was strangely reassuring. As the set wound down, and the incense above his head had all but burned up and added to the smoke already in the room, we were happy to leave, but all in all, it was a good time. Here are a few tunes from Lee, though he sounds infinitely more crazy in concert (Tracks via Joe de Vivre) Lee "Scratch" Perry - Yakety Yak (The Coasters cover) Lee "Scratch" Perry - Uncle Desmond Check out some pictures from the concert:

All in all, a sweet concert and great start to senior project.

-Ryan (YES, actually Ryan)

All Things Go on MySpace

2006-05-21T14:47:00.000-04:00

A while back we made a simple MySpace page for All Things Go. Recently, with the help of my good friend Joey of the Formal Media Group (well it was really all him), we gave the page a new look. I encourage you all to check it out. Friend us! Send a message! Leave a comment! We love it when you guys talk to us. Thanks everybody. All Things Go @ MySpace -Adrian

AVA Show @ 9:30 Club

2006-05-21T02:57:00.000-04:00

Yeah, so is anybody going to the Angels and Airwaves show tomorrow night at the 9:30 Club? I've got my own ticket but nobody to go with. Sad, I know. -Adrian

Slow Runner

2006-05-20T16:04:00.000-04:00

Slow Runner is an awesome band. I recently received the advance of their debut LP, No Disassemble, in the mail from my good friend Sonya over at Cornerstone Promotion, and I must say, I was pleasantly surprised. These guys seem to be a fairly unconventional band. I can't exactly describe their sound, so I'll let their bio do it for them: "This is what we hope our music sounds like: interesting, lyrical pop music shot out into space, bouncing around the satellites and getting mixed in with all their beeping and blipping. like if r2-d2 had an aching heart and a love for the noisiest beatles songs. ideally, if you took out the depressing lyrics and substituted in educational stuff about sharing with others and the states and capitals, you could sit down at a piano and have a classroom of kids singing along within minutes." That pretty much sums up these guys. I really recommend Slow Runner to those not easily annoyed with synths, and also those interested in bands that create a diverse range of music all on one cd. Slow Runner draws comparisons to a less whiny Get Up Kids, though only on a few songs. My favorite track, "Break Your Mama's Back" features these poppy synths in action, and is definitely worth a listen. "The Sea Is Never Full" and "Streamlined" are more lullaby type tracks, but both are quite mature and beautiful for a band that has never released a full-length album until now. I also highly recommend "12.19.03", an eeriely pretty song featuring an interesting drum rhythm and falsetto vocals. I know I say that every band is going to get huge, so I wont say it again. But I will say that you wont regret grabbing these few songs, and No Disassemble, out in stores now. Also, make sure to check out their US tour along with The Sam Roberts Band and others, including a stop in Arlington, VA on June 13th which I will be attending. Slow Runner - No Disassemble: 1. no disassemble 2. break your mama's back [download or die] 3. the sea is never full 4. everything is exactly what it seems 5. you're in luck 6. happy 7. streamlined 8. 12.19.03 9. redneck bar 10. class of '86 11. don't let them see me like this 12. moody suburban teenage love song Visit their official site and buy a copy of No Disassemble here -Zack

I Can't Fall Asleep

2006-05-17T04:21:00.000-04:00

I wrote this at four in the morning when I couldn't fall asleep... I'm not usually a fan of piano-oriented pop-rock. Bands like Keane and the Fray haven't really helped my opinion of the style either. But there have been a few bands that have stood out to me, including well-known bands like Straylight Run and Mae. Another one of these bands is the Hush Sound. I've been putting off listening to this band ever since I heard they joined the usually pop-punk roster of Fueled by Ramen/Decaydence records. But this band is nothing like labelmates Panic! at the Disco or The Academy Is... I would compare them more to pre-Prepare to Be Wrong Straylight or softer bands such as Eisley. As I write this I'm listening to "Unsafe Safe," a song of their 2005 release So Sudden, which is helping me get a bit more sleepy. But there's also a peppy, up-beat side to the band. Pretty much everybody should take a liking to "Crawling Towards the Sun." The catchy-as-hell keyboards teamed with equally-timed guitar and drums during the verse of the song should appeal to pretty much anyone. After listening to only a few Hush Sound songs, I've become a happier person. Don't let the FBR stereotype steer you away from them. The Hush Sound - Crawling Towards the Sun The Hush Sound - Momentum Remember the Drugstore Cowboys? I made a post on them a couple months ago. Well since then, they've signed to Lujo Records (once home to the Fall of Troy). And guess what else? They're opening for Depeche Mode, along with She Wants Revenge, on May 21st at Nissan Pavillion! If any of you live in the DC/MD/VA area, I highly suggest checking this show out. If you've already seen the band, then you should know the high-energy show you're in for. For Depeche Mode fans who haven't heard of them, well you're in for quite a treat. For those of you living elsewhere, the Drugstore Cowboys will be embarking on a tour with the Devil Wears Prada that'll probably hit a town near you. The Drugstore Cowboys - Penguin Tuxes at the Disco Bar The Drugstore Cowboys - These Clouds Will Never Catch Us Alright, maybe now I'll fall asleep. Good night everybody. -Adrian

All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape

2006-05-16T15:32:00.000-04:00

I'd been wanting to put together this mixtape since our blog was formed back in January. To me, there is nothing better than the perfect music on a long drive home after a late night. I've compiled a 15 song mixtape to help you find your way back home. With that, here is the All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape. All Things Go Night Drive Mixtape (.rar) 1) Jens Lekman - Black Cab Ok so normally you wouldn't consider a song like this to be night drive-esque, and neither would I, but try it. I was driving home from a party in the suburbs and put this song on, and lets just say it was an experience. Jens is hard not to like. I also used this song as my choice for the Themed Thursday: Colors. 2) Kyle Andrews - Amos in Ohio I posted about Kyle a few months back, but I decided to put "Amos in Ohio" on because I'm afraid some of you overlooked him. Not only is this song laid back and smooth (a perfect combo for a night drive song), but it also features little whistles and beeps, and as I said before, any song with whistles and beeps is alright by me. 3) Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - The Gold Finch and the Red Oak I wanted to put Ted Leo on this mixtape because he is, after all, my favorite musician and somehow he's yet to be featured on a mixtape (though I have no idea how). "The Gold Finch and the Red Oak" exposes Ted's more soft side in an acoustic masterpiece, complete with violins and Ted's signature meaningful lyrics. Possibly the best song on this mixtape. 4) Belle & Sebastian - If You're Feeling Sinister While "Sleep the Clock Around" by these guys might've fit better on the Night Drive mixtape than on the Sleep Mixtape, I made my choice and I'm sticking to it. "If You're Feeling Sinister" is soft, quiet, soothing and beautiful. Those four adjectives could be used to describe most all old B&S work, but I believe this song stands out, for whatever reason. 5) Iron & Wine / Calexico - 16, Maybe Less Much like the previous choice, I could've easily gone with "The Trapeze Swinger" here, but really that could work for anything involving sleep, nighttime, love, or anything even remotely beautiful. "16, Maybe Less", off of Sam Beam's collabo with Calexico In the Reins, has all the typical Sam Beam style with a little twist. The soft drums really make this song night-drivable. 6) Jose Gonzalez - Crosses I know Jose has been blogged to death, and I know this is my third Jose song to be mixtape-ified, but "Crosses" is too perfect to pass up. Stunning vocals and passionate guitar make for, if not the best overall, at least the best night driving song on this mix. 7) The Shins - Pink Bullets I mean, c'mon. It's the Shins. In my mind, these guys can do no wrong. "Pink Bullets" is my absolute favorite Shins song, and couldn't fit the theme more. This song was such an easy decision. 8) Sufjan Stevens - Casimir Pulasky Day I know I should've probably chosen more obscure artists for this mix, but I went with quality over coolness, and took this beautiful gem off of Illinois. This song is just too emotional and powerful to be passed over, and there's always room for Sufjan on a mix. 9) Jimmy Eat World - Cautioners Now I know many of you in the indie community have to hate Jimmy Eat World just because they were on MTV, but you can make an exception here. I happen to love Jimmy, and am completely unashamed to say so. This song, off their 2002 release Bleed American, features an incredibly interesting drum beat with a bassline that sort-of echoes the drums. "Cautioners" is another song I've tested on a long night drive, and it without a doubt passed. 10) Death Cab for Cutie - Brothers on a Hotel Bed Death Cab is night drive music all alone, and "Brothers on a Hotel Bed" definitely fits the bill. Slow, soft, and beautiful. Also features piano's, which is just icing on the cake for me. 11) Electric President - Insomnia I will admit that Derek introduced me to these guys and this song, and I am forever in his debt for that. "Insomnia" sounds like it could've come straight off of Postal Service's Give Up, with the same bleeps and bloops. Something about this song conjures up a long winding road at night and deep thoughts. 12) The New Amsterdams - Idaho I love The New Amsterdams, and while I love their 2004 release, Worse for the Wear, the most, I have a soft spot for the more acoustic Never You Mind. Matt Pryor's almost whiny voice seems to work perfectly here, and the harmony, along with the simple pianos, make for an emotional long drive home. 13) Modest Mouse - Talking Shit About a Pretty Sunset This mixtape was started because of this song. You may not believe it to be a great night drive song, but you have to try it out. The voice, the guitars, the melody, everything. The point where the melody completely changes (at the 3:28 point) may be one of my favorite parts in a song ever. Also, one of my favorite lyrics comes from this song; "change my mind so much I can't even trust it, my mind changed me so much I can't even trust myself." 14) Stars - Celebration Guns Stars are the kings (and queens) of night drive music, with the soft male and female vocals. "Celebration Guns" just flows so elegantly, and the goofy banging noises in the background, teamed with the dramatic violins, make this song one of my absolute favorites. 15) The Long Winters - The Commander Thinks Aloud Did I say that "The Gold Finch and the Red Oak" was the best song on this mixtape, because I lied. "The Commander Thinks Aloud", off the Ultimatum EP, is one hell of a masterpiece. The song is about the Space Shuttle Columbia, and is an incredible mix of depressing and uplifting. The chorus of "the crew compartment's breaking up" take this song out in epic fashion. I hope you all enjoyed our fourth mixtape. I had so many songs to put on this one, so if you all really enjoyed it I would love to put together another Night Drive Mixtape. Also look out for a mixtape coming soon from my girlfriend, the lovely and talented Sabrina. Let me know what you guys think of the mix in the comments, and drive safely. -Zack

Boy Crazy: The Interview

2006-05-16T15:03:00.000-04:00

After the Brand New show at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore a few weekends ago, I was fortunate to be able to sit down with Jordan from Boy Crazy and ask him a few questions in the comfort of his mini-van. I've got the whole interview here for everybody to read. Enjoy! Make sure you've read my short write-up and listened to the band before reading the interview! Boy Crazy - Egyptian Plover and the Crocodile Boy Crazy - I'm Not a Tigress, I'm a Tiger What's your name and what do you do in the band? My name's Jordan and I play drums in Boy Crazy. So the first time I heard about you guys was at the Alexisonfire show at the Ottobar. To be honest, I thought you were just some shitty pop-punk band at first. Obviously I was wrong, but do people get the wrong impression about your band a lot based on your name? A lot of people think it's the New Found Glory thing. And also, a lot of the bands we play with are pop-punk, just because it's the kind of "in thing" now and they draw really well. But it's cool because we get to stand out as an instrumental band playing with all these different bands that aren't like us. But yeah, Boy Crazy, everyone thinks we're gay. It's cool, people remember the name. How's the search for a vocalist going? Very poorly. We have kids come over and it's very American Idol. They'll just stand there and instantly from the first time they touch the mic, the four of us will look at each other and just know it's miserable. And it's so hard not to laugh when kids come over. It's so bad. I think we're kind of at the point where we're happy doing the instrumental thing, especially with putting a CD out and being to start some touring. I think we're not putting so much of an urgency on finding a singer right now because the instrumental thing is working. How many kids do you have wanting to audition for the band? Everyday I get kids online. I put my phone number on MySpace which is the dumbest thing ever, so random people call me saying "Yo, I wanna sing! Fuck yeah!" But yeah, everyday there's people asking. Do you think the way your music is written it's hard to find a vocalist to go along with it? Yeah, everything that's written for the CD we play live. It isn't written with a singer in mind. You know, especially our guitar player, he basically is the voice of the band. When we're writing we want to make sure there are melodies there that are memorable that complete the music without a vocalist. So it's tough. When we talk to singers they're like "Man, I have no idea what to do," just because we didn't really leave space for them to fill in the blanks. How would you describe your music? It's tough. It's rock and roll, I mean, that's the easiest way to say it. It's energetic and it's fun. We do the electronic stuff and a lot of technical guitar. Justin (bass): It's not techie though. It's very ambient. It's a lot of, you know, dancy riffs mixed into a big rock and roll kind of feel that makes it very memorable and a very entertaining live show. That one song on your MySpace reminded me of the Sound of Animals Fighting... We get that a lot. Yeah, so when you make your music do you have any influences? Do you keep any bands in mind? It's really hard to say because we're all into totally into separate things. Brian, our guitarist, he's all into Bjork and Aphex Twin, a lot stuff like that. He also does all the electronic programming. That's where he finds his influences. But at the same time he's into Rod Stewart and that kind of stuff. I'm the biggest Hilary Duff fan and I love Fiona Apple. Them [Justin and Stanley] back there, they're into Every Time I Die and stuff like that, so that's where a lot of the rock and roll stuff comes in. I guess the bands we're into, it's not directly influencing what we write. I don't know, it's really hard to say. We're all everywhere, and that's why I think the music is "out there." So how did you get Emerald Moon's attention? Did you find them? Did they find you? Actually, from what we heard, they were scouting the band Make Your Stand at a show in Bel Air and ended up seeing us. They've heard of us through some other bands. We posted a secret PureVolume page with the unmixed and unmastered songs that we had recorded for the CD just so the singers could listen when they came over and tried out. Somehow people on Emerald Moon got a hold of that and contacted us. We went out to dinner and it was pretty much it from there. It was kind of cool because we had no intentions of releasing the record with the help of a record label. How's it been with them so far? It's been good. Obviously, all the AbsolutePunk stuff and press we've been getting has been all through Emerald Moon. We're self-booking a tour right now. Just by having "We're Boy Crazy on Emerald Moon records" helps a lot. So since you've signed your touring plans having probably changed. Yeah, this summer. We're actually booking it right now. Starting mid-June we're going to go out for five weeks and circle the U.S. completely. I'm not too familiar with it, so what's the Baltimore music scene like? The scene is good. A couple of years ago we were with another band and our friends Adelphi, who signed to Drive-Thru records, they put us on our first show as a band. Through them we met All Time Low who was on Emerald Moon and now moved up to Hopeless. Both of those bands introduced us to the scene and became our friends. It's cool because we stick out a lot from all the pop-punk bands, screamo bands, and that kind of stuff. So when we play with them, we're that band without a singer. We're that band that people might remember the most. But the scene's very strong and there's a lot of good venues that we play constantly and the kids come out every time. How was your record release show at Recher Theatre? It was awesome. It actually sold out before the doors even opened. There were about 800 kids. Everyone responded to it well. We sold a shitload of CD's. Everything worked out perfectly. So I guess you have a pretty big fan base around here? Yeah. We've been Boy Crazy, doing the thing without a singer for a little over a year now, and just playing every single weekend. It's more than music for us. It's making friends with the kids that come out and all the bands. If you're cool to them they'll be cool to you back and support you. It's really good for us. Have you been writing anything new? Any plans for a full-length? The thing is, we really didn't know what we were doing as far as continuing a band without a singer, so we had this music and we decided that we wanted to release something because we've been playing for so long. We put out the EP, we're still working on a DVD, just something to tie us over. If we find a singer then who knows what'll happen. If not, we don't really know. But at practice we're just kind of jamming and not really putting full songs together or having a set goal in mind. I guess, as far as the band right now, it's the DVD we're working on. What's the DVD going to be like? It's just a lot of dumb footage of us doing stupid shit, plus live footage, interviews, and stuff like that. We were going to release it with the EP originally, but we felt like it took away from what we were trying to do as a piece of art with the EP: taking a lot of time with artwork, having a story in mind of what we were trying to express. So we figured, best bet is wait till later in the summer, go on tour for a little bit, get some better footage of the band, and then release the DVD by itself. Who did the artwork for the EP? The artwork was done by a guy called Raymond Clecker. He's a friend of Paul Levitt, who recorded the CD. He did two separate paintings on canvas and then we sent it out to this guy, Mario [Garza] in California. He put it into photoshop, did some magic, and made it look awesome. Did you tell him what you wanted or did you let him do his own thing? We wanted Ray to have his artistic freedom because we felt that was really important, for him to get his idea across. We told him what the CD meant to us and what we had in our minds. He through out ideas and it kind of snowballed from there. But a lot of it was his input, which we liked. That's all I've got to ask, but does anybody else want to say anything? If you're reading this, and we're coming to your town this summer, please check us out. We just ask that everybody gives us one chance (and ten dollars). We pride ourselves on being a really good live band. We feel that we've put out an incredible record. If you can't hold your own live, it's not worth it. We try to make it as much fun as possible for everybody there and try to include everybody whether they're into us or not. So if we're somewhere near you, check us out at least once and hopefully you'll enjoy it. Even if you're not into the music, we'll at least try to give you a fun time. -Adrian

Murder By Death: The Interview

2006-05-14T17:45:00.000-04:00

Some of you may not be familiar with a little band named Murder By Death. The quartet from Indiana, according to their bio, "layers the vocal sounds of an old saloon with the haunting strings of an Hungarian folk dance and the hard driving rhythms of pure rock n' roll, producing what Stuff magazine has called "lush, orchestrated songs," somehow simultaneously reminiscent of Johnny Cash and Radiohead", whatever that means. We were lucky enough to sit down (actually an e-mail interview, but sit down sounded better) with lead singer/guitarist Adam Turla and ask him a few questions that were on our minds. The following took place between the hours of 11-12am on May 11th, 2006.

Let's start off with a cupcake question for our readers who might not be familiar with Murder By Death. Who are you? Where are you from? What's your sign?

My name is Adam Turla. I sing and play the guitar for Murder by Death. We are from Bloomington, Indiana. I am a cancer.

Murder by Death is a fairly memorable name. Who came up with it, and is there any hidden meaning?

It is from the Neil Simon play of the same name. It's a murder mystery spoof, making fun of all the classic mystery novels while being a classic murder mystery story. The idea was to a have a name that sounded dark but was funny when you thought about it, (since it doesn't make sense).

Your newest album, In Bocca al Lupo, is coming out May 23rd. Do you have any big pre-promotion plans?

We are doing a long long tour to support the record, as well as a lot of acoustic in-stores and radio performances of alternate versions of the songs. Right now on our website you can preorder the record and get a free t-shirt if thats what you mean by pre-promotion by the way.

Your previous albums have seemed to have their own unique style and theme. Where were you trying to go with this album? Does it still follow a story or theme like your previous releases?

This album is thematically about sin, redemption, and guilt. The songs are each about a different character who fits the bill. In that sense it is like an anthology of short stories all tied together by the same themes.

Any songs you are particularly proud of?

I like "Sometimes the Line Walks You" and "Shiola" the most.

I personally am a huge fan of everything Murder By Death, and I know you are about to embark on a massive tour showcasing and promoting the new album. Are you as hyped for In Bocca Al Lupo and the tour as your fans, including myself, inevitably are?

We are very very excited. We've never done an entire US headlining tour before so we are very curious to see how it goes. Hopefully people will enjoy it! On the tour we will be projecting a film I pieced together from old 16mm film clips that loosely go with the music we are playing. It has everything from matadors to old fisherman to haitian dance in it and should look pretty awesome projected behind us as we play.

Are there any venues or cities in particular you love playing in? Do you think you will be able to keep up a high energy performance while playing literally every night for 2 months?

We have toured a lot in the past so this is nothing any longer than we've done before. Headlining this much is a different question though, but we hope that people come out! It's an entire US tour so we are hitting alot of great towns. We always love Chicago and the Metro so that will be fun. We like Vino's in Little Rock, the Church in Philly, the Middle-East in Boston, to name a few.

I first fell in love with Murder By Death live. Everytime I've seen you in concert it has been epic. Do you think there is a big difference between your live music and your recorded work?

I think this record does the best job of capturing the live quality, so I am very happy with it. Someday I'd like to do a live dvd if we can get a good enough recording and some cool production.

Who had the idea of starting Tent Show Records, and is there any interesting story behind it?

Tent Show was an opportunity to make all the decisions about how we market Murder by Death and it allowed us to keep doing our own art and have the final say with all decisions concering MBD. So far so good!

What does the future have in store for both MBD and Tent Show? Any big plans?

Touring touring touring. We're just gonna give this record the best push we can.

Anything else you'd like to add? Shoutouts to peeps and whatnot?

Thanks for interviewing us!

Once again we would like to thank Adam and MBD for taking the time to conduct this interview with us. Also, we would like to thank Samantha and Penny of Filter Magazine for hooking us up with the opportunity to do this. In Bocca Al Lupo will be released on May 23rd. For more MBD info check out their website.

PS: Stay tuned for a Murder-By-Death-related contest coming soon to All Things Go.

-Zack & Austin

Daryl Palumbo

2006-05-13T16:40:00.000-04:00

So Dance in my Blood has found its place in my daily bookmark checking routine. Basically, any going-on in the music world related to Daryl Palumbo, you'll find it here. I was brought to DimB after following a link from AbsolutePunk to some new Palumbo material on which he raps under the alias "Brite One."

As many of you have waited, here is an MP3 of Glassjaw / Head Automatica frontman Daryl Palumbo rapping. This is an older track from the 2000. He is rapping over some DJ Planet beats (not DJ Shadow as previously thought since it was labeled that way). His rapping moniker is “Brite One” for those who don’t know. This track is untitled (as most of his demos are). [Source: Dance in my Blood]

It's an interesting listen. Palumbo's voice can adapt to any type of music, whether it's pop, hardcore, or hip-hop. Download the track here. As for other going-on's in the world of Palumbo, a teaser was recently released for one of Palumbo's latest side projects, House of Blow. This time Daryl teams up with Hatebreed's Sean Martin to create what's described as "electronica/experimental" music on their MySpace page. Watch the teaser here. You'll get a clip of Palumbo laying down some of the vocal tracks as well as a rough listen to some of the upcoming material. That's basically all the news I wanted to let you all know about. Here are some more random mp3's featuring Daryl (I had to do some reminiscing)... Glassjaw - Siberian Kiss: off of Glassjaw's older album, Everything You Wanted to Know About Silence. Glassjaw - Tip Your Bartender: first track off of Glassjaw's last release, Worship and Tribute. Every Time I Die - Champing at the Bit: Palumbo joined the band to lay down some vocals on the chorus for this track off of Gutter Phenomenon. Cage - Shoot Frank: Once again Daryl lays down some vocals for somebody else's song, but this time it's with hip-hop artist Cage. And once again, I got all this info from Dance in my Blood. I highly encourage all of you to check it out. -Adrian

Themed Thursday: Cars

2006-05-11T17:15:00.000-04:00

This week's Themed Thursday is a little bit more open then the previous few. Normally, we only choose songs that have the theme in the title of the song, but this week, we are expanding our horizons. These songs are about driving, but don't necessarily reflect that in the title. So fasten your seatbelts, start your engines, and prepare yourself for this weeks Themed Thursday: Cars. Adrian's Pick: (will be up shortly) Alex's Pick: None More Black - With the Transit Coat on Ok so I've already posted this song, but it was the first thing that came to mind when I was told our theme was cars. With the exception of a drive with Ryan yesterday, this has been the only song I've played in my car for the past 4 days. My brother and sister are starting to get a little pissed about it. Everett's Pick: Ima Robot - Black Jettas I chose this song because my car is a Jetta, and even though the lyrics see Alex Ebert bitching about how all his ex-girlfriends drove black Jettas and how they're so common and blah blah blah, my Jetta is silver so I don't care. And, I mean, it's a pretty sweet song. Austin's Pick: Bitchin' Camaro - The Dead Milkmen The Dead Milkmen are brilliant. I picked Bitchin' Camaro because not only do they make fun of Def Leppard, but they do some great improv rambling for two minutes before the song actually starts. I love it Ryan's Pick: Wilco - I'm a Wheel Enough has been said about Wilco by just about everybody. This song was an obvious pick for me because it actually sounds like you're driving when you listen to it. It's also a great song for the spring (and summer's only a couple weeks away). Zack's Pick: The New Amsterdams - Asleep at the Wheel If you haven't noticed, I really love any indie band that uses banjoes. My good friend Nicole introduced me to this cd, Worse for the Wear, about two years ago, and I've been in love since. This song is short and to the point, and is one of my favorites from Matt Pryor's other band not named Get Up Kids. Until next week. -The All Things Go Team (Austin, Adrian, Ryan, Alex, Everett, Zack)

New Jurassic 5 Album Release Date Announced

2006-05-10T14:40:00.000-04:00

So I have been waiting for the new Jurassic 5 album ever since Power in Numbers, arguably the best hip-hop album this side of 2000, was released in 2003. Marc 7 had been promising a new album release in early first quarter 2006, but the album has finally been given a solid date, July 13th. The new album, appropriately titled Feedback (because of the group's open, friendly relationship with the fans) may not, however, feature DJ Cut Chemist, one half of the DJ duo that makes the beats for Chali 2na, Soup (Zaakir), Akil, and Mark 7. If Feedback is anything even close to Power in Numbers, it could end up being one of my all-time favorites. I recently came across a track that I was made to believe is going to be featured on the new album. With the familiar J5 beat, and Chali 2na's deep voice, this song gets me all excited in the pants for July 13th. Enjoy. Jurassic 5 - Long Road to Glory [download or die] -Zack

The Stiletto Formal

2006-05-09T15:34:00.000-04:00

Rarely today do we get to hear bands with a sound completely of their own. I can only think of a handful of bands that accomplish this: The Sound of Animals Fighting, Sigur Ros, Blood Brothers, etc. The list continues but is unfortunately clouded by larger, cluttered music scenes. Generic emo bands plague online communities like PureVolume and MySpace, making it difficult to sift through and find the gems that are truly worth recognition. Luckily, talented bands such as the Stiletto Formal are becoming front-page features of online music communities and getting the attention they deserve. I remember when driving from Zack's house with my best bud Andy a few months ago, he told me to check out this new band he heard online. I had heard the name Stiletto Formal before but chose to ignore it, unaware of the face-melting experience I was passing up. He played for me what is now my favorite track off the Masochism in the Place of Romance EP. I'd describe it as a soundtrack to the dance-hall apocalypse. Imagine a helicopter crash, and then throw in a cello and a sexy bass line. And some cowbell too. The Stiletto Formal sounds cacophonous enough to find place alongside bands such as the Fall of Troy or These Arms Are Snakes, while at the same time keeping a composure that should make them appealing to anybody with a good ear. The same goes for the vocals. Vocalist Kyle Howard is the closest I've ever heard to At the Drive-In/Mars Volta's Cedric Bixler. His voice can range from being sweet to going completely nuts. It's somewhat ironic that the Stiletto Formal has found place on the PureVolume "Far From the Lies" tour, opening for the very generic screamo acts (Greeley Estates, So They Say, et al.) that have stolen the attention of "emo kids." Perhaps it is because of the popularity of these other bands that the Stiletto Formal is still unsigned. Nevertheless, it will only be a matter of time before the band finds its proper home in the hands of a label that is caring and involved with their music. Make sure to get your hands on both the This Is My Boomstick and Masochism in the Place of Romance EP's if you haven't done so already. The Stiletto Formal - Murder at the Stiletto Formal The Stiletto Formal - Black Tar Concubine The Stiletto Formal - The Mistress and the Matador -Adrian

Rahim

2006-05-08T21:05:00.000-04:00

No band will ever be able to fill the hole in my heart that was once Q and Not U. As unfortunate as that is, there are certain bands that carry on the sound of the Dischord pioneers. Rahim has been likened by many to the D.C. band as well as other similar acts such as Gang of Four, Rites of Spring, and Fugazi. I understand where the comparisons come from. The moment I began playing "Forever Love," I thought I was hearing Chris Richards' voice again. The song is very reminiscent of slow-paced Q and Not U songs such as "Air Conditions" and "Snow Patterns." The clapping in "One at a Time," a song off their Jungles EP, instantly brought me back to "No Damage Nocturne" and the Different Damage era. Understandably, Rahim struck a chord with me. But as much as they sound like, dare I say, one of the greatest bands of all time, I could understand how anybody would get fed up with constant comparisons to other musicians. Rahim have their own sound which has brought them quite an amount of indie acclaim. Their latest release, Ideal Lives, will find place with both Dischord punks and Pitchfork elitists. Take the song "10,000 Horses." The track begins with an ambient guitar and keyboard sound leading into a verse that's more comparable to any indie-garage band rather than to the D.C. scene. Regardless of what these guys sound like, listen to them for who they are. Rahim is a refreshing return to years past as well as a promising glint of hope for music to come. Rahim - 10,000 Horses Rahim - Forever Love -Adrian

Adrian's Spring Mix

2006-05-05T14:12:00.000-04:00

Hooray! It's springtime! It's time for sunshine, squirrels, slip'n'slides, swimming pools, alliteration, and so on! I hope this short mix reminds you of all those things. It really pains me to keep this at a five song limit, but rules are rules. Until then, sit back, relax, and welcome springtime with this ever-so-wonderful mix! Also, big thanks to my buddy Joey for making the album cover for me. Check out his work at The Formal Group. Everything there is all his creation. Awesome stuff! The Format - The First Single So it seems like the entire world started listening to this band before I did. I felt like a complete moron when everybody knew the words to their songs at the Motion City Soundtrack show a few weeks back except for me. Naturally I had to catch up and do my research on these guys. Now I can't get enough of them! I love pretty much every song off their album Lullabies and Interventions, but this one is by far the happiest. If you enjoy smiling, I also suggest listening to "Tune Out" off the same album. Devin Davis - Giant Spiders I remember my brother had bought this CD. I had no idea who this guy was and had no intention of listening to him either. But then I heard "Iron Woman" being played in the room across the hall and I fell in love with it. I chose "Giant Spiders" off of Devin Davis' Lonely People of the World Unite! because it seemed much more appropriate for the theme. But if you haven't listened to the album, go do that now please. Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer - Plays Pretty for Baby Anthony Green has never sounded so adorable! At some point in time, Sir Green contributed his vocal abilities to some of the tracks on Zolof's self-titled release. As fun as the music is without him, Green makes their music sound a lot better. It was really hard to choose between this song and "Ode to Madonna," but the cute chorus of "Plays Pretty..." won me over. Brand New - Seventy Times Seven What's a springtime mix without a little pop-punk? And what better way to do that but with some old Brand New? This song could really apply to the summer too, but whatever, I wanted to put this song on the mix. Too bad. Paramore - Here We Go Again Alright, so I guess I'll lose plenty of indie cred for posting this song. But one, 15-year old Hayley is the cutest vocalist I've ever seen. And two, the intro riff to this song is super catchy. Don't deny it, you love it. So there you go! I hope this mix puts smiles on all your faces. Enjoy the remainder of the school year or whatever it is you're doing. Love, Adrian

Themed Thursday: Animals

2006-05-04T17:34:00.000-04:00

This week's theme is quite a doozy. We each had about 30 songs that couldve worked for this theme, but we each had to narrow it down to one, so we bring you only the finest in this week's Themed Thursday: Animals. Thumbs up, let's do this. Austin's Pick: Austins pick will be up in a few hours. Alex's Pick: The Twilight Singers - That's just how the Bird Sings I've started listening to The Twilight Singers for the same reason I've started listening to countless bands: Someone I really admire loves them and so I decided to give them a listen to feel cool. I've got to say, mimicking people really has no down sides when you find out about bands like this... Except for that time I bought a Combat Wounded Veteran album. Holy crap that was a bad call. Ryan's Pick: Q and not U - Ten Thousand Animal Calls Ryan was not available to write this so I (Zack) will write it for him. Ryan loves Q and not U. This song has an animal in it. Tada. Adrian's Pick: Test Icicles - Boa Vs. Python It's a shame these guys broke up, because they had such a promising future. "Boa vs. Python" is one of my favorite songs on their first and only album. Everett's Pick: The Unicorns - I Was Born (A Unicorn) Unicorns may not be my favorite mythological beast (which is the same as an animal), but they are definitely one of my favorite bands. My love for the new defunct Unicorns and their offshoot, Islands, is pretty well documented over at Good Weather for Airstrikes, and this is the song that originally sold me on the group. Zack's Pick: Minus the Bear - Monkey!!! Knife!!! Fight!!! Minus the Bear is one of my girlfriend's absolute favorites and for good reason. These guys mix plenty of genres and are, in my opinion, a really unique and creative band. Not only does "Monkey!!! Knife!!! Fight!!!" fit the theme, it's also my favorite MtB track. I don't have the faintest idea as to why these guys aren't huge. We hope you loved the theme this week. Remember, we need more suggestions, so keep 'em coming, and keep reading. Until next week. -The All Things Go Team (Adrian, Alex, Austin, Everett, Ryan, Zack)

Sufjan Stevens A to Z

2006-05-03T10:24:00.000-04:00

So I was doing another loop around the blogs looking for music when I came across a blog called Berkeley Place, which was featuring a genius idea. The blogger chose an album or a theme and made a post featuring news, music, and other things starting with the letters A through Z. I realized that this would be the perfect excuse to make the mega-Sufjan Stevens post I'd always wanted to make. Naturally I stole the idea and am doing it here, so enjoy. Thanks again to Berkeley Place for the inspiration. A is for The Avalanche: Outtakes and Extras from the Illinois Album, Sufjan's follow up album to Illinois. B is for "Borderline", off of The Dress Looks Nice on You, a promo single released in the UK. C is for "Chicago! To String Remix" by Jongalloway (Thanks to Derek for this one) D is for "Decatur, Or Round of Applause for Your Stepmother" (off Illinois), rapidly becoming one of my all-time favorite Sufjan tracks. E is for one of Sufjan's first albums, Enjoy Your Rabbit, in which every song is titled "Year of the..." F is for "For the Widows in Paradise, For the Fatherless in Ypsilanti", featured on Greetings From Michigan and the All Things Go Sleep Mixtape. (Here is a video of Sufjan playing "For The Widows..." solo) G is for "All Good Naysayers, Speak Up! Or Forever Hold Your Peace!", off of Greetings from Michigan (It's a stretch but I had to find a way to include this song, as it's my most played Sufjan track on iTunes). H is for the "The Henney Buggy Band", off of Sufjan's newest album, The Avalanche: Outtakes and Extras from the Illinois Album (Thanks to Stereogum for the track). I is for "I Can't Even Lift My Head", off of To Spirit Back to the Mews. J is for "Jacksontown", mc DJ's remix of the Illinois track, "Jacksonville". mc DJ remixed almost every track on Illinois for his remixtape, appropriately titled Illin-noise. (Download album here) K is for Asthmatic Kitty, The record label that Sufjan is signed to. L is for "Lo How A Rose E'er Blooming", a holiday classic featured on Sufjan's first Christmas album, Hark! Songs for Christmas Volume 1 (Thanks again to Derek). M is for another one of my favorites from Illinois, "The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts". N is for No more music from Sufjan for a while, according to this story. O is for "The One I Love", Sufjan's live cover of the R.E.M. classic performed at SXSW. P is for "The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out to Get Us!", off of Illinois. Q is for the ridiculous Quantity of Sufjan songs and albums (over 110 songs in under 5 years) R is for Rosie Thomas, who reportedly was carrying Sufjan's baby, according to Pitchfork. Sufjan later dismissed the rumor with a letter. S is for "Dear Mr. Supercomputer", yet another track featured on Sufjan's newest album, The Avalanche: Outtakes and Extras from the Illinois Album (Thanks to I Guess I'm Floating for this one). T is for "To Be Alone With You", featured on Seven Swans as well as the All Things Go Valentines Day Mixtape. U is for "The Upper Peninsula", off of Greetings From Michigan: The Great Lake State. V is for "Vito's Ordination Song", an overlooked but incredibly underrated track off of Greetings From Michigan. W is for "Wolverine", a B-Side from the Michigan album. X is for absolutely nothing! Y is for "Say Yes! To Michigan!" off of (duh) Greetings From Michigan. Z is for Zombies!!!, or, more accurately, "They Are Night Zombies!!! They Are Neighbors!!! They Have Come Back From the Dead!!! Ahhhhh!!!" (off of Illinois) I hope you enjoyed this A to Z post. Let me know if you want me to do more of these featuring other artists or themes. Remember to please buy all of these albums because, honestly, Sufjan deserves your money. I have added links below where you can purchase most all of these albums, so please do so if you haven't already. Buy Greetings From Michigan: The Great Lake State Buy Illinois Buy A Sun Came Buy Enjoy Your Rabbit Buy Seven Swans -Zack

Milestones and Other Assorted Goodness

2006-05-01T16:20:00.000-04:00

So wow, we just hit 70,000 hits today. That's like, alot. I know it's not really a milestone, but it feels good to know that other people actually read this, because I know I cant refresh my computer quick enough to get that many views. I just really wanted to say thanks to everyone who reads this here blog, and everyone who has helped us so far. I really would like to give a special thank you to Derek of GWFAS (and he's going to be surprised that I thanked him because I give him endless shit). He really got me into all sorts of new music, and I owe alot of this to him, even though I never credit him. This post really has no meaning other than to really thank all of you for consistently reading All Things Go and leaving the comments. The comments really help us make decisions about bands to post and what you're interested in, so please leave more of them. It's also nice to see where you all are coming from, so I might add a frappr. If you have any suggestions as to possible changes or additions to this here blog, let me know in the comments or by sending an email to allthingsgoblog@gmail.com. We also need more suggestions for Themed Thursday, so get to brainstorming. Also, since five of the six of us (all but Adrian) are seniors at the same high school, we will all be going on a "senior project" for the last two weeks of school (May 22nd-June 3rd), and our project is All Things Go. We will be going to see as many shows in the DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York area as we can in those two weeks, and will be aggressively writing here at All Things Go. If any of you know of any good shows we can't miss in those areas, please let us know through the comments. Also, we will be having a contest coming up soon, so get excited for that. AND, just in case any of you were interested, we have all made our college decisions! Everett will be attending the fine institution of Williams College. Ryan will join forces with Derek at the University of Virginia. Austin will explore the west coast at USF (San Francisco, not South Florida). Alex will be kickin' it with the indie kids over at Bard, and yours truly will be freezing his ass off at the University of Wisconsin. We will keep the dream alive. Thanks again from all of us at All Things Go, and keep reading. It boosts my ego like none other. -Zack

Everett's Spring Mixtape

2006-04-30T23:18:00.000-04:00

To me, the best part about spring is driving around with all the windows rolled down blasting some hot jams for the world to put up with. This mix was made with precisely that activity in mind, and all of these songs are definitely best enjoyed in good weather at excessive volumes, with excessive speeding optional, but recommended. 1) M.I.A. - Sunshowers This song and Belle & Sebastian's "Another Sunny Day" (found on Zack's Mixtape) on and endless loop is a perfectly serviceable spring mix; the chorus of "Sunshowers" somehow captures that "awh yeah spring is starting" feeling perfectly. 2) The Beach Boys - I Get Around (link removed. Come on, you should have the song already) Though I prefer the Beatles in general, when it comes to spring music I have to respectfully disagree with Zack and say that it is actually the Beach Boys that require inclusion on a spring mix. This might be the best song ever for driving fast with the windows down. 3) Of Montreal - I Was Never Young Of Montreal is firmly entrenched in my holy trinity of springtime indie bands. Since Zack used the other two, Belle & Sebastian and Architecture in Helsinki, in his mix, I'll stick with Of Montreal here, with probably the most spring-ready track from their latest, 2005's fantastic The Sunlandic Twins. 4) Cascada - Everytime We Touch I'm sorry, I am absolutely unashamed for including this song. You know what? I'm not even sorry. Look for this song on my end-of-year best list. 5) Kanye West featuring Lupe Fiasco - Touch The Sky This is a certifiable jam. It's catchy and it's feel-good, the two main prerequisites of a 'springtime song', and this track lyrically offer some insight in to the youthful stages of 'Ye's overwhelming, yet strangely endearing, arrogance. So, thats my five-song contribution. I hope you are all looking forward to Austin, Adrian & Ryan's mixes as much as I am, but until then, I hope you enjoy these songs, and more importantly, I hope you have a fantastic spring. I love you all. Goodbye. -Everett

The Quiet Ones

2006-04-30T13:08:00.000-04:00

Another special thanks to David on this post, as this guy found Heypenny for me. The Quiet Ones are somewhat a family band, with older brother John Totten on vocals and bass and twin brothers David and Chris on guitar and drums, respectively. I must say that I'm not completely stricken with the sound, but these guys definitely seem to be progressing and their newest albums, Your Inner Ear Volumes I&II, have a distinctly unique sound. They really embrace the Lo-Fi sound, and do something a little new with it. I recommend checking out their site, where you can dowload Volume I in it's entirety for free. I've also tossed on a couple tracks below that I think are highlights. With a little more time, these guys can be the next darling of the blogs, but just remember you heard them here first (and I heard them from David first.) I really would love to be able to describe their sound, but I just can't find any similar bands, so just listen and tell me what you think. The Quiet Ones - Missing the Party The Quiet Ones - Something to Listen to Download Your Inner Ear Volume I here -Zack

Zack's Spring Mixtape

2006-04-28T12:42:00.000-04:00

Spring is finally upon us, especially here in DC. I know spring has arrived because I itch my eyes and blow my nose a good 30 times an hour. But with the bad comes the good: Beautiful blooming trees, smiling faces, and, most importantly, upbeat feel-good music. In part two of our five part series, I (Zack) will share with you my five song Spring Mixtape, featuring new bands and old favorites. With that, here are my choices. The Beatles - Good Day Sunshine (Link removed. You should already have this song) I mean, could you really make a Spring mix without The Beatles. Could you really make any mix without them for that matter? Good Day Sunshine is bright, upbeat, and positive. The Beatles are here to provide your daily dose of happiness, in music form. The Little Ones - Cha Cha Cha These guys have been getting love all over the blogs, and rightfully so. I can't stop listening to these guys. Cha Cha Cha sounds like a cross between The Shins, Fruit Bats, and pure joy. After listening to this song, you'll be begging for more from these guys, so expect an artist profile soon. Architecture in Helsinki - The Owls Go Honestly any song by AiH can work for this, but Adrian mentioned earlier how incredibly cute this song is, and to me it just exudes springiness. Especially the bubble noises and whispers. The Arcade Fire - Haiti I don't particularly think this song is super springy, but it just felt right to put it here. Enjoyable for any season, and it will find it's way into heavy rotation on my iPod this spring. Belle & Sebastian - Another Sunny Day This song alone is a spring mixtape. Anything Belle & Sebastian does can be put here, because of the floating, dreamy vocals and the upbeat nature of Stuart and the gang. Plus the title alone deserves a spot on this mixtape. So there you have it. My five song masterpiece of a Spring Mixtape. Stay tuned for episodes 3-6 of the Spring Mixtape Series, and have a good spring. -Zack

Pirate Baby's Cabana Battle Street Fight 2006

2006-04-27T23:12:00.000-04:00

So maybe I did take my time to see Architecture in Helsinki's video for "Do the Whirlwind." It came out last August, and only tonight did I finally see it, let alone discover it existed. I have to say this is one of the coolest videos I've ever seen. I, being the nerd I am and loving anything remotely related to Super Nintendo (but don't we all....right?), find the animations to be really creative and perfect for a music video. But AIH isn't the focus of this post. I don't even really listen to them that much anyways (except for "The Owls Go", one of the most adorable songs I've ever heard). I just used them as justification for making a basically non-music related post. The real reason I mention this at all is because of the mastermind behind the "Do the Whirlwind" video, Paul Robertson. Recently, he posted his latest work, "Pirate Baby's Cabana Battle Street Fight 2006," online. Although it's not in color, its at least fifty times cooler than the AIH video. For those of you who are as dorky as I am, it's like watching a side-scrolling beat 'em up game like Final Fight being played in front of you, except the bad guys in this one include pregnant zombie women whose spawn explode out of their stomachs, hungry for flesh. Sounds exciting, doesn't it? Gruesome description aside, this short movie is quite amazing, capturing my attention after only the first few seconds. I can't express enough how fascinating and original the animations and concept behind this video are. Every character is a product of Robertson's imagination and is not taken from anywhere. I'm really excited to see what this guy comes up with next. If anybody else knows anything else about any other similar works he's released, let me know please! I've embedded a Veoh preview of the video below, but I highly recommend viewing it in its entirety through quicktime either by downloading or streaming. I've posted the links for that too below.
Pirate Baby's Cabana Battle Street Fight 2006 [Follow link to stream or right-click and select "Save Link As..." to download] Enjoy! -Adrian

Boy Crazy

2006-04-26T14:35:00.000-04:00

With a name like Boy Crazy, I would have most likely brushed this band off at first as just another part of the pop-punk bullshit that seems to be appearing everywhere these days. However, after reading that these guys were signed to Emerald Moon Records without a vocalist, I had to see what the deal was. Turns out, Boy Crazy is hardly what the name may suggest. If I were to liken them to any other band, it would be the Sound of Animals Fighting (Tiger and the Duke), but even that doesn't describe their sound accurately. This Towson, Maryland four-piece blends together experimental instrumentals with good ol' rock'n'roll which, although maybe not matching up with the style of TSOAF, is just as innovative and aggressive. Their songs off their debut EP, Whale Songs to Kensington Garden, range from being more rock-oriented ("Egyptian Plover and the Crocodile") to having a more ambient sound ("Cosmo Memory"). I highly recommend getting your hands on the EP. I promise, you won't be disappointed.

Boy Crazy - Egyptian Plover and the Crocodile Boy Crazy - I'm Not a Tigress, I'm a Tiger

Expect an interview with the band to be up soon... -Adrian

Everett's Top 11

2006-04-24T18:58:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone, I'm Everett. I primarily write for Good Weather for Airstrikes, but have recently been offered the opportunity to share some of the less cutting edge, straightfowardly "indie" music I enjoy here on All Things Go. I admit that the eleven songs I'm posting below generally appeal more to indie sensibilities than the left-of-center songs I will be posting here most, but these serve as a fairly effective introduction to my music taste. Without further ado, here are eleven songs that I like a whole hell of a lot: 1) Death Cab for Cutie, We Looked Like Giants "We Looked Like Giants" is my favorite Death Cab song, and nobody will ever be able to convince me that Death Cab has ever topped the majesty of this song. 2) Bright Eyes, Lover I Don't Have To Love It took me well over a year to finally fall for Bright Eyes music, and this was the song that, after repeated listens, eventually did it for me. I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning was my favorite album of 2005 and is one of my favorite albums, period, but I decided for a band like Bright Eyes I had to go back to the point I was finally converted. 3) Bob Dylan, Tangled Up In Blue Blood On The Tracks may very well be my favorite album of all time, and it's first song, "Tangled Up In Blue", is easily my favorite Dylan song. Listening to "Tangled Up In Blue" makes me realize that no matter how much I love Conor Oberst, comparisons between him and Dylan are simply ludicrous. 4) The Beatles, And I Love Her One of my two favorite Beatles songs (the other one being "Something"), I'm one of those people that can't define myself as a music-loving individual without inclusion of The Beatles in something like this. Probably the most influential band ever, and nobody, not even Brian Wilson, can craft perfect pop songs that approach the sheer stick-in-your-head brilliance that much of The Beatles catalogue contains. 5) Iron & Wine, The Trapeze Swinger If somebody put a gun to my head and said that I had to name my absolute favorite song in the world (which, under any other circumstances, I doubt I'd be able to) or he (or she, ladies!) would shoot me, this is the song I would choose. 6) Sigur Ros, Viorar Vel Til Loftarasa If that same person were to then ask me my favorite band, perhaps an even more difficult task, Sigur Ros would be my answer. This is my favorite Sigur Ros song and was easily the highlight of their show when I saw them last year. 7) Explosions In The Sky, First Breath After Coma According to my last.fm, this is the band I listen to most. Granted, this is probably because I've found nothing more condusive to doing homework than the Friday Night Lights Soundtrack, on which Explosions In The Sky has 11 of the 14 tracks. This song, unlike my other favorite, "Your Hand In Mine", does not appear on that soundtrack, but was my first introduction to Explosions In The Sky and remains one of my favorite songs. 8) DJ Shadow, Building Steam With A Grain Of Salt Endtroducing... is an absolutely essential album. I would not be the first to liken listening to the full album a transcendent experience, and though I believe the album as a whole is far greater than the sum of its parts, "Building Steam..." can stand alone as one of the most subtly epic tracks of the nineties. 9) Radiohead, No Surprises Radiohead is just one of those bands that I can't imagine living without. Every once in a while I'll find myself listening to nothing but Radiohead for a good week, and if it weren't for Sigur Ros, I would proclaim Radiohead the best band in the world today. 10) The Shins, Pink Bullets Chutes Too Narrow is another favorite album, and there was definitely a period of time where I would consider "Pink Bullets" my favorite song. I still consider it a near-perfect pop masterpiece, and one of the finest songs written in recent history (recent meaning 'since I entered high school'). 11) Say Anything, Woe This song, and this band in general, is just a whole hell of a lot of fun to listen to. I don't consider myself a particularly angst-ridden person, which is why my pop-punky phase ended years ago, but bands like Max Bemis' Say Anything transcend the genre enough that I don't feel even the least bit lame listening to ...Is A Real Boy. So there you go, an introduction to the music I enjoy. Hip Hop is grossly underrepresented here, and I don't want to give the impression that I dislike the genre. However, there is a collaborative effort in the works between Zack and myself that should fully satiate your hip-hop desires, so keep your eyes out for that. -Everett

It's NBA Playoffs Time

2006-04-24T17:09:00.000-04:00

Ok so I haven't mentioned this before (I don't know how) but I am a ridiculous sports fan, and a homer at that. I love nothing more than the Redskins, Nationals, Orioles, Wizards, Capitals, and even DC United. While football is my first love, I can't help but express my joy that Gilbert "Sexpot" Arenas and the Wizards are in the playoffs for the second year in a row (first streak since 1987-88), and are up against LeBron James' Cavaliers. I know we lost game one and Gilbert struggled, but I'm expecting a bounce back game and a big win in Cleveland. The main reason for this post is that I need you guys' help. The new commercials for the NBA Playoffs on ESPN are absolutely incredible, and i have embedded the commercial into this post if you want to see it. I am trying desperately to figure out the song in the commercial. It sounds like RJD2, but I don't think it is, so if you have any ideas let me know. The commercial is called "To Each His Own Ritual" so watch and enjoy. And find the song for me please. HELP ME! -Zack

All Things Go Cannabliss Mixtape

2006-04-22T14:23:00.000-04:00

NOTE: I am aware that I posted this mixtape a day late. This special holiday was such a cause for celebration that I could not bring myself to write anything. It's fairly ironic that this particular mixtape came out late, but there were extenuating circumstances (pickup basketball/playing with my hair) that made me unable to finish it. It's still ripe, so enjoy. It's Thursday, April 20th, and if you indulge in herbology, this date has a special meaning. Basically April 20th, or 4/20 for short, is national pot-smokers day (and also the day before the day before Earth Day!!!). There is much speculation as to why 4/20 is the date (police code, date of biggest drug bust, etc.) but, whatever the reason, people come together in groups to share their stash and enjoy a good, elevated day. This mixtape molds perfectly to every type of highness, and can be served stone-cold sober with similar effects. There are synthy fast paced jams to get your blood pumping or, in some cases, give you headaches and make you crave nachos. There are beautiful, layered melodies, perfect for a walk through the park with a joint and some friends. This mix has something for everyone, and is gauranteed to trip you out. Please note that neither I nor other members of All Things Go condone the use of marijuana, space cakes, shrooms, or any sort of drug, nor do we use them ourselves. This mix is for everyone to enjoy, even the non-smokers. I have recruited the help of Austin and Everett to jointly write some of the song descriptions, and with that, I present to you the All Things Go Cannabliss Mixtape: All Things Go Cannabliss Mixtape (.rar) 1) The Stills - In the Beginning I have had a craving to post this song somehow, and this mixtape has given me the perfect excuse. From the opening chords to the relaxing melody at the end, this song is a rollercoaster ride of emotion, a must-have in an elevated state. "In the Beginning" eats you up and spits you out a new man. A new, awesome, man. 2) Atom & His Package - I Am Downright Amazed at What I Can Destroy With Just a Hammer I have only two words to describe this song: Slippery Synths. That is all. 3) Of Montreal - So Begins Our Alabee There are more noises in this song than their are hairs on Alex's back (Note: that's alot). It is also the posterchild for making goofy mouth-beat-noises along with choreographed hand motions. With lyrics like "You’re my mousy aesthete, you’re my bouyant cherub, it’s true" this song had to be made with reefer in mind. 4) A.C. Newman - Miracle Drug This song could be put on this list because of it's title alone, but with Carl Newman's unique vocals and a dirty drumline to boot, "Miracle Drug" more than qualifies for the Cannabliss Mixtape. Warning: this song might unlock the junk in your trunk. Consider yourself warned. 5) The Get Up Kids - Close to Me Much like "In the Beginning", this song begins with overpoweringly danceable drums and adds instrument after instrument, coming to a climax near the end. I've torn holes in my steering-wheel cover from hand-drumming the beat every time this song comes on in my car. 6) Ratatat - El Pico Honestly, Ratatat(atatat) is one slick-ass band. The muted guitar part at 3:21 gives your life new meaning and direction, and gives your soul a raging erection. Literally any of these guys' songs would work for this mixtape, but "El Pico" is far and away the best because it has a diverse range of moods, much like Adrian on his period. Mental image! 7) Architecture in Helsinki - Do the Whirlwind I seem to notice a running theme in this mixtape: simple beginnings that slowly add instruments until the climax near the end. "Do the Whirlwind" is no exception, filled with awesome synths, brass instruments, and a sitar. Honestly, what's better than a sitar? Also, make sure you check out the 2:04 part of the song when they drop the beat for a second, and "the beat the beats hanging on." 8) Heypenny - Parade Heypenny is better than you, your grandma, and Karl "The Mailman" Malone combined. "Parade", with it's synthy beginning and ridiculously catchy melody, is the ultimate high song, if not the ultimate anytime jam. You really don't need this whole mixtape to satisfy your musical munchies. Just put this song on repeat, grab a bag of goldfish, and get ready for a mindblowing experience. 9) The Streets - Blinded by the Light If you don't completely and totally lose your mind listening to this song, you might need to remove the stick from your ass. So Mike Skinner AKA The Streets doesn't sing. Get over it. "Blinded by the Light" is an adventure in spoken word of Mike Skinner and his journey into a nightclub while high on something. The chorus of "lights are blinding my eyes" and "and walking off into the night" hold together one of the strongest songs on this mixtape, and my personal favorite Streets track. 10) Royksopp - Triumphant Try focusing while listening to this song, it's just not going to happen. The simple piano riff played over and over (and over) is the perfect background for the drums, beeps, and boops that swirl around this humdinger of a song. Warning: "Triumphant" can and will cause you to forget all of your troubles. Even your little sister. The one who drowned while you were off getting stoned. 11) The Flaming Lips - Do You Realize?? (The Postal Service Remix) This upbeat remix of an already incredibly trippy song will cause a little mini-fiesta in your brain, and possibly all the way down the spine. Jimmy Tamborello incorporates the ultimate video game noises and synths to literally cause an eargasm. With lyrics like "You realize the sun doesn't go down, It's just an illusion caused by the world spinning round" get ready to question everything. 12) Z-Trip - Breakfast Club Yes, Z-Trip is white, but that doesn't stop me from absolutely adoring this song about the best of the old school saturday morning cartoons. The Phoenix, Arizona DJ loops a simple vocal beat, with added snares and drums, to create an incredibly infectious rhythm that's impossible not to sing along to. Not to mention Z-Trip name drops such early morning cartoons as the Smurfs, GI Joe, Wacky Races, Transformers, and the Get Along Gang. 13) Matisyahu - King Without a Crown What can be said about Matisyahu that hasn't already been uttered a million times. Yes he's fully kosher. No he does not smoke, and yes he is anti-drugs. You would think that all of these things combined would prohibit "King Without a Crown" from entering this mixtape, but the song is just too damn good. To truly enjoy Matisyahu in an elevated state, sit down and listen to his whole album Shake off the Dust...Arise through. 14) The Postal Service - This Place is a Prison Honestly any Postal Service song could work for this mix, but "This Place is a Prison" features eerie, unique noises as well as an awesome mood change in the middle. Just find your comfy chair, indulge in the cannibology and tell your friends you'll see them tommorow. Bonus Track: 15) Blackalicious - Alphabet Aerobics Possibly one of hip-hops smoothest rhyme-slingers, Blackalicious puts it all together in "Alphabet Aerobics", a training video should be required listening for aspiring emcees. I cannot even describe the wonder that is "Alphabet Aerobics", so I'll let the lyrics speak for themselves: Artificial amateurs, aren't at all amazing Analytically, I assault, animate things Broken barriers bounded by the bomb beat Buildings are broken, basically I'm bombarding Casually create catastrophes, casualties Cancelling cats got their canopies collapsing Detonate a dime of dank daily doin dough Demonstrations, Don Dada on the down low Eatin other editors with each and every energetic Epileptic episode, elevated etiquette Furious fat fabulous fantastic Flurries of funk felt feeding the fanatics Gift got great global goods gone glorious Gettin godly in his game with the goriest Hit em high, hella height, historical Hey holocaust hints hear 'em holler at your homeboy Imitators idolize, I intimidate In a instant, I'll rise in a irate state Juiced on my jams like jheri curls jockin joints Justly, it's just me, writin my journals Kindly I'm kindling all kinds of ink on Karate kick type brits in my kingdom Let me live a long life, lyrically lessons is Learned lame louses just lose to my livery My mind makes marvelous moves, masses Marvel and move, many mock what I've mastered Niggas nap knowin I'm nice naturally Knack, never lack, make noise nationally Operation, opposition, off, not optional Out of sight, out of mind, wide beaming opticals Perfected poem, powerful punchlines Pummelling petty powder puffs in my prime Quite quaint quotes keep quiet it's Quannum Quarrelers ain't got a quarter of what we got uh Really raw raps, risin up rapidly Riding the rushing radioactivity Super scientifical sound search sought Silencing super fire saps that are soft Tales ten times talented, too tough Take that, challengers, get a tune up Universal, unique untouched Unadulterated, the raw uncut Verb vice lord victorious valid Violate vibes that are vain make em vanished Well would a wise wordsmith just Weaving up words weeded up, I'm a workshift Xerox, my X-ray-diation holes extra large X-height letters, and xylophone tones Yellow back, yak mouth, young ones yaws Yesterday's lawn yards sell our (yawn?) Zig zag zombies, zoomin to the zenith Zero in zen thoughts, overzealous rhyme ZEA-LOTS!... Are you passed out yet? Thanks again for checking out the All Things Go Cannabliss Mixtape. It took me quite a while to compile this mixtape, and I love hearing some feedback. By the way, your little brother is at baseball practice. It looks like it's gonna rain, you might just want to pick him up, or are you too busy getting high? And remember, Gatorade is the ultimate burnout cure, and nobody is judging you. Remember to neuter and spay your pets, and have a good night.

The Sound of Animals Fighting - Lover, the Lord Has Left Us...

2006-04-21T18:54:00.000-04:00

I've been waiting to listen to this album for a very long time. To me, anything involving Matt Embree, or any of the other members of the Rx Bandits for that matter, is definetly worth a listen. Last year's Tiger and the Duke was an amazing, groundbreaking album. Although it consisted of nine tracks, only four of which were actual full band songs, Tiger was an amazing album. Anthony Green's sirenic voice, along with Embree's impeccable and innovative guitarwork, and the assistance of a couple of the creative guys from the now-defunct Finch, came together to form what was one of my favorite listens of 2005. For those of you who haven't heard of The Sound of Animals Fighting, the basic premise is this: an amalgam of musicians from different bands, whose identities are concealed by the masks of different animals, come together to form a progressive, experimental group of which the world has never seen the likes of. So technically I can't say with certainty who is in the band, seeing as their faces are hidden. But listen to TatD and tell me that isn't Anthony Green. Their first album was critically acclaimed for its combination of innovative instrumentals with that alternative, post-hardcore sound seen in bands such as Saosin, Rx Bandits, and others of similar genre. With that said, TSOAF's sophomore effort, Lover, the Lord Has Left Us..., sounds nothing like their debut release. Don't expect any aggressive tracks such as Tiger and the Duke's "Act I: Chasing Suns." If I were to describe Lover in one word, it would have to be...weird. Now let's not get the wrong idea. If anything, the band goes beyond Tiger and further strengthens their status as pioneers in the experimental genre. I find it really hard to even begin comprehending how the writing process of Lover's tracks begin. They use such wide, varying combinations of sounds to build each track on the album. However, there is a greater focus on the technical side of the music and incorporating unconventional sounds rather than on traditional instruments. This is both good and bad. Although the band's music is very (and I emphasize on very) unique, listeners may lose themselves in an ocean of noise; as interesting the sound of bongos and indian chants may be, I often found myself forgetting I was actually listening to the new TSOAF cd. I really miss their defining guitar riffs and drumming. But hey, you still got Anthony Green, as well as Chiodos' Craig Owens and Days Away's Keith Goodwin joining the vocal line-up! Green, as always, does a great job, but unfortunately doesn't strain his voice as much on this record as he did on the previous one with his trademark scream. Owens' voice goes perfectly with the music, especially on "Horses in the Sky" (my favorite track off the album). But now you can't even tell who is behind the mechanics of the album. Because there is seldom any really defined guitar part, you cannot tell, for example, whether Matt Embree is actually helping out on the album or not. So that's my spiel on the album. I'd be interested in listening to what you guys have to say about it, especially those of you who have listened to Tiger and the Duke. Here are a few tracks from the album... The Sound of Animals Fighting - Skullflower The Sound of Animals Fighting - Horses in the Sky The Sound of Animals Fighting - Stockhausen, Es Ist Ihr Gehirn, Das Ich Suche

And what the hell, why not a couple tracks from Tiger and the Duke! The Sound of Animals Fighting - Act I: Chasing Suns The Sound of Animals Fighting - Act II: All Is Ash or the Light Shining Through It

BONUS: And while we're on the topic of Rx Bandits side projects, here's a song by a band called Satori. Led by Rx saxophonist Steven Borth, Satori makes some nice feel-good reggae-like music. This song could've made it on my upcoming spring mix since it always makes me smile, but there's so many others to choose I figured I just might as well slip it in here. Satori - Finding Your Place -Adrian

Themed Wednesday: Body Parts

2006-04-19T13:14:00.000-04:00

This themed thursday is not on a thursday at all. I know you all are saying "But Zack, thats just crazy!" and it is. Crazy as a fox. But this thursday is a special day, and there is a special mix coming that day (tommorow), so get all excited. I'd also like to take this time to mention that Everett, of GWFAS, has been added to the man-stable that is All Things Go, and he will be contributing every week to both the Themed Thursday and any of my (Zack) mixes, much like our collaboration on the Valentine's Day Mixtape. A formal welcome with a taste of Everett's music will be coming on Friday, but everyone welcome Everett into the world of mediocrity, laziness, and sheer unintelligence that is All Things Go. This week our theme is body parts. There must be a mention of body parts in each song title, whether it be limbs or organs. This can go in any direction, so watch out. Themed Wednesday: Body Parts begins now... Everett's Pick: Junior Senior - Move Your Feet If you are in a bad mood and you listen to this song, it will be as if the fog has been lifted and nothing exists in life but pure, unadulterated ecstasy Alex's Pick: The Pixies - Broken Face For a long time (until Christmas this year), I had trouble getting into The Pixies. I didn't really like what I heard, and didn't see any reason to really look into them further. Then I heard this song, and have been hooked since. Adrian's Pick: These Arms are Snakes - Drinking from the Necks of the Ones You Love This band is insane! Really, I can't find anything else that really sounds like them. Born from the ashes of Botch and Kill Sadie, These Arms are Snakes puts on one of the greatest live shows that I've ever seen. It's like having sex, playing video games, and eating Taco Bell at the same time. Awh yeah. Honorable mention to their other songs, "Your Pearly Whites" and "The Shit Sisters" (I'm not sure if that counts or not). Ryan's Pick: The 101er's - Keys to Your Heart (Version 2) And you thought I couldn't post anything else involving Joe Strummer! Guess again. This is from his pre-Clash (gasp) band The 101er's, and was released as a single in the UK after his departure from the band. Austin's Pick: Interpol - Hands Away This is one of Interpols more epic songs. The faint vocals slowly come to life beneath the heart-wrenching build up, creating a sound that digs deep. Zack's Pick: Her Space Holiday - Something To Do With My Hands This was a hard choice because there are so many body parts songs to do. I went with HSH 'cause they have a really unique sound, and don't get enough credit throughout the blogosphere. Special mentions to Ted Leo's "Squeaky Fingers" and The Knife's "Hearbeats". We hope you guys enjoyed our Themed Wednesday this week, and I'm happy to welcome Everett to the All Things Go Team. Until next week... - The All Things Go Team (Ryan, Alex, Austin, Zack, Everett, Adrian)

Lewis + Happy Easter

2006-04-16T14:02:00.000-04:00

Now if you are an old school ATG reader, you may remember the " A Warm Winters Day" post. Well its about time to move out of the cold and into spring. Lewis, The "solid electro pop band from Canada" is really quite good at maintaining a defined tone. They will most likely make it on to my Folktronica Mixtape, which has been in the works for a while now. Here are a few more songs by Lewis, aswell as "A Warm Winters Day." Now you can go get your easter on in style, thanks to Lewis. I hope you like it, and sorry for the weak low content/relevance post. :) Lewis - Citrus Lewis - I'm Going To Punch Your Lights Out Lewis - A Warm Winters Day In other news a new Mixtape is comming this week....can you guess the theme? -Austin!

Maylene and the Sons of Disaster, The New Tragic

2006-04-15T16:25:00.000-04:00

I figured I'd post a little something just so the day doesn't go by post-less... That picture just screams Deep South. Led by ex-Underoath frontman Dallas Taylor, Alabama metalcore outfit Maylene and the Sons of Disaster is anything but similar to his alma mater. What makes these recent Ferret-signees so fun to listen to is their distinct Southern sound. I don't really want to make comparisons between these two bands considering they're very different, but imagine Fight Paris except with a more grassroots feel, a more metal sound, and about fifty times as bad-ass. Maylene doesn't sound like some alcohol-fueled metalcore band that wants to get laid after the show (but don't get me wrong, I like me some Fight Paris too). They've got that extra southern sound, like the slide guitar in "Tough as John Jacobs," that lets you know where they're coming from. A great return by Mr. Taylor. I'm really excited to listen to this band's debut release. See these guys on the road with P.O.D., Pillar, and the Chariot on the Warriors Tour II: Guilty by Association. Stream some songs off of Maylene's MySpace page.
Taylor's resume just keeps on growing. The New Tragic, featuring ex-From First to Last vocalist Phillip Reardon and Dallas on screaming and keyboard duty, are a straight-up good screamo band. It's not that often that you can call a band that these days, but TNT definetly deserve the title. The band's first single, "A Half Cocked Smile and 2 Guns Blazin," has been playing over and over on my iTunes for the past couple weeks. The same vocals Reardon used to launch From First to Last's Aesthetic EP into success return in the New Tragic. And let's not forget Dallas' trademark screams. The two blend perfectly together, as demonstrated in the first few seconds of the band's single. As far as instrumentals go, The New Tragic isn't anything revolutionary, but every member of the band works together to make some awesome music. Fans of Underoath's They're Only Chasing Safety will definetly love this band. Once again, a great return for two great musicians. Keep an eye out for these guys, they're definetly going to get big. The New Tragic - A Half Cocked Smile and 2 Guns Blazin If you want to listen to more songs or watch their video for "A Half Cocked Smile..." check out the band's MySpace page. -Adrian

Guest Blogger: Monica! Jenny Lewis Live!

2006-04-14T09:59:00.000-04:00

We've never done this here at All Things Go before, but there's always a first for everything (like that night with GWFAS and ATG in the hot tub). Loyal reader and, apparently, awesome writer Monica asked if she can post a review and a few pictures of a recent Jenny Lewis show she attended, and being the nice guy I am, I agreed. Let Monica know if you enjoyed the review because she might be just like us here at ATG; insecure little girls who love ego boosts and, of course, My Little Ponies. If you consider yourself to have "exceptional" taste in music, Jenny Lewis should ring a few bells. As most of us know, she fronts an amazing band, Rilo Kiley but she is currently promoting her first solo attempt along with the very folk-y and kind of creepy, Watson Twins. I was able to catch her show at the Birchmere in good ol' Alexandria a few weeks back, along with openers, Whispertown 2000 and Johnathan Rice. Whispertown's set was just fine, I can't say much though, I spent my time smoking cigarettes by the woman's bathroom. Unlike the dull Whispertown kids, Johnathan Rice put on a great set, albeit, short, but nevertheless, I walked away wanting to pick up his album, Trouble Is Real. Fortunately, his opening set wasn't the last we saw of him, he played along with Jenny her entire set, even providing a great duet with Ms. Lewis towards the end of the show. With a great intro song, Jenny along with the Watson Twins, did a beautiful acapella version of "Run Devil Run" before beginning her set. She played a couple new songs, including a "love song" by the name of "Jack Killed Mom". An upbeat song eventually turned into an all-out jam session, complete with Johnathan Rice rockin' hard on his guitar with Jenny on piano. Personal favorites such as, "You Are What You Love", "Big Guns", and "Rise Up With Fists" sounded great live. Our last look at the beautiful Ms. Lewis was the snap-and-sing acapella song along with the Watson Twins. Overall, the show was incredible, Jenny was great and I can vouch for all my friends who were there with me, we'd definitely see her again, and again. Here are a few pictures i took of the show (click to enlarge). Thanks again to Monica for doing this review, and we hope to hear more from her in the near future. -Monica (& Zack)