All Things Go Presents Heypenny: The Interview

Ok, so I have gotten plenty of emails and IMs about a band I posted on a few weeks back, Heypenny. I wrote a little bio about these guys and gave some sample songs, but you people just couldn't be satisfied. Thusly, I have asked Ben Elkins, the creater and mastermind behind Heypenny, if he would kindly grant us an in-depth interview. Being the good guy he is, Ben accepted. Without further ado, I present to you Heypenny: The Interview. Zack: So first start off by letting all of your readers know a little bit about you. Where are you from? Where did you get that beautiful voice? Ben: I come from fayetteville, arKANsas, like i said. Weird, I always thought I didn't have a beautiful voice. When you're unsure about your hypothesis, you say it softly, or sarcastically. I guess that's like my singing, but not the sarcastic part. Both my mom and dad have really good singing voices. They used to play folk clubs together before they got divorced and tore my life to shreds. thanks for bringing it up! Zack: Ouch. Anyways, lets move on. You live now in Nashville, which many consider the home of country music. Has that infulenced Heypenny's style of music? What other bands have influenced your sound? Ben: Nashville is definitely the home of country music, but there's a ton of other music that goes on here. there's some really good indie stuff going on here, not only really good, but really popular. It's a good scene. (i.e. a band called brother sister and she lived in Nashville for a year last year and they're great). Also Be Your Own Pet and The Spinto Band are up-and-coming bands from here, not to mention the Features. Anyways, enough about other people! As for Heypenny, I'm not thinking that the country music that goes on here is going to influence what we do musically. I do love going down to the honkey-tonks and hearing the real deal country music though. Robert's is by far the best one if anyone's interested. Old-style. But a good song is a good song no matter what genre. I'm fascinated by good songs. I love Kanye West's new album, a few really good songs on that. And I'll go to these "songwriters in the round" deals here (of which there are tons) and a few of those songs will be really good songs. For "Use These Spoons" (Heypenny's debut album) the main influeces were the obvious ones: Wilco, Coldplay, The Beatles, and Iron & Wine. But these days oddly enough I'm liking more raw stuff, like The Arcade Fire, live Wilco, The White Stripes and the Jackson 5 or any motown stuff. I don't know, stuff that seems like they put a mic up in the middle of the room and caught a moment. You should here how off-beat some of that motown stuff is, like"wrong" by today's recording standards. Zack: Yeah, I've been to one of those songwriter things in Nashville, and it's quite an experience. It was at the bluebird cafe (which you're probably familiar with). So, to go in a different direction, do you have any plans for touring? Ben: Yes definitely. Actually I just wrote a guy an email about this. It was pretty long. I'll try and get the important stuff. I've been working on some other music projects, co-producing, which has been taking up most of my time, but now that's over and we're starting to play again. We're actually playing tonight. But as for the show itself, I don't know what I should say. Come see us. Zack: I know every band has a strange story about how they got their name, so I have to ask. How did you come up with Heypenny? Ben: Sing along now..."If you haven't got a penny a ha'penny (pronounced heypenny) will do, if you haven't got a ha'penny, God bless you." Zack: It all makes sense now. So what do you see for Heypenny in the future? Is this a serious project or something you do for fun, or both? Do you see yourself doing serious touring and promotion? Pretty much, what can we expect to see from Heypenny in the future? Ben: Hmmm. Really, all we want is to take over the world. And well, we're going to start by figuring out how to get instant messager (Zack's Note: this interview was done over gmail due to incredible technical difficulties, A.K.A. AIM sucks) . No, really, I'm not sure what's in the future. I'm Just looking forward to playing a lot, and well I guess the result depends on fine folks like yourself there Zack. you're definitely helping us along. Sorry, I hate giving lame answers like that. Zack: How flattering, thank you. Well I can't think of anything else to ask you. Thanks again for granting us the interview, and all of us here at All Things Go wish you the best of luck in the future. We also hope you come up and play a show here in Washington. Maybe we could set something up. Before we go, do you have any last words? Shoutouts? Hollas? Ben: Yeah, I just thought of what to say about touring that's a little more informative. Hopefully you all like watching these two things on TV: Mr. Roger's Neighborhood on PBS and Avalanches on the Discovery Channel. I hope you like these two things cause if you do, you'll like our show. Good talking with you Zack. A great man, a great band, and a great interview. We here wish nothing but the best for Heypenny. Warning, everyone get ready, because Heypenny is ready to take over the world. Also, if you didn't read our previous post on Heypenny (or click the link at the top of the post), you can find it here. I hope you all enjoyed the interview. I am reposting the tracks just to make sure you download them. I also HIGHLY recommend you buy the album, as these are by no means the only strong tracks on the album. Heypenny Let It Rain [download or die] Walnut St. Bridge [download or die] Parade [download or die] -Zack

ISLANDS!

It’s very clear that the world misses The Unicorns. In fact every day I wake up and shed a tear of regret for missing the opportunity of seeing them play live years ago at The Black Cat. However, I never gave up hope on Nick “Neil” Diamonds and Alden “Ginger” Penner and J’aime Tambeur. If there are any other fans of The Unicorns, or any of Alden’s and or Neil’s side project work reading this, you all know how painfully hard it is to find their music. For example, Islands never actually released their album “Return to the Sea” in the good ol’ USA. Instead thanks to Rough Trade Records (who have supported other Canadian Acts such as The Arcade Fire, and Metric) Islands recorded a wonderful CD, and in my opinion “Return to the Sea” is in many ways better than “Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone? ” Although The Unicorns gained some serious success in their quirky lo-fi (or “gay” according to itunes at one point) genre, Islands brings the unicorns to another level. An array of instruments (think face melting saxophone and violin solos…ya I know crazy) join the beeps, whines, and all around lively keyboard/organ/synth work that was already established in “Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?” Also Islands have opened for many fellow Canadian artists/friends/indie gods, most notably Broken Social Scene, Metric, The Arcade Fire (who have collaborated with some of Alden’s other smaller side projects), Wolf Parade, Of Montreal, etc., Unfortunately Islands will not be playing a show in the D.C. area anytime soon thanks to The Pogues who stole away their tour date. This is very sad in my opinion. I know there are a lot of crazy Pogues fans out there, but I guess I’m just selfish and don’t see the appeal in seeing some washed up heroin addicts take another crack at it. Besides they didn’t have to add a second show just because the first Pogues show sold out. Then there is Th’ Corn Gangg, yet another amazing product of the Unicorns break up. The Unicorns always claimed that hip-hop influenced their music, and Th’ Corn Gangg shows just how serious they are about it. Th’ Corn Gangg adds some amazing hip hop to the Unicorns lo-fi equation. Featuring L.A. hip-hop gods Subtitle, Busdriver, Vick Booz, and Ontario’s own Noah23, Th’ Corn Gangg is clearly legit. I always knew there was a reason why The Unicorns had rappers to open their shows. Anyway enough of my ranting and disappointment. Now your thinking…what’s the point? We’ve known about Islands for months! The point of this post (besides it being an excuse for me pour some out for my homies who aint with us no more, The Unicorns) is, I am going to create a torrent that consists of all the Islands, Th’ Corn Gangg, and other side projects/songs featured with Alden, Neil, and J'aime. Putting a very thorough torrent archive of all this music is no easy task, and because I want it to be as complete of an archive as possible, the whole process may take some time. So look for the archive coming within the next month or so.

Here’s a little taste.

Islands - Rough Gem [download or die]

Islands - Don't Call Me Whitney, Bobby [download or die]

Islands - Abominable Snow [download or die]

-Austin

P.S. I <3 Canada .... and Derek my bad

Atreyu - A Death Grip On Yesterday

So this weekend I managed to get my hands on Atreyu's latest release, A Death Grip On Yesterday, due out in stores late March. Let me start off by saying that if you weren't a fan of Atreyu beforehand, you probably still won't be. As for those who enjoy the band, I'd suggest getting your hands on this album. I wouldn't say ADGOY is drastically different from Atreyu's previous release, The Curse (an album I highly recommend at least listening to if you haven't done so yet). However, those of you familiar with Atreyu's sound will feel something different when listening to this album. Firstly, I find Death Grip to be less melodic than The Curse. That is to say, you won't find the "friendly" chorus lines seen scattered through The Curse on the new album. I found Death Grip to be a darker album, focusing more on making more metal oriented songs rather than creating another "Right Side of the Bed." Another thing that's different are the vocals. As with their previous albums, Alex Varkatzas does the screaming while drummer Brandon Saller focuses on the melody. However, in some of the songs on Death Grip, there is another voice present. I'm not sure as to whether that's Varkatzas singing or perhaps another member of the band or a guest vocalist. I'd be both surprised and pleased if it is indeed Alex singing; it'd be pretty amazing if someone with such a deep, throat-wrenching scream could also produce an on-pitch melodic voice. The only problem I have with the album is that there are only nine tracks, clocking in at only a little above thirty-two minutes. Nevertheless, if you're a fan of The Curse, then I recommend giving Death Grip a listen. The song "Ex's and Oh's" will be the first single off of the album. If you'd like to give the unposted songs a listen let me know (AIM: OnearmedScizzer). Atreyu - Creature
Atreyu - Ex's and Oh's
Atreyu - My Fork In The Road (Your Knife In My Back)
Atreyu - Untitled Finale






-Adrian

New Ted Leo/Rx Demos

My husband and favorite musician of all time, Mr. Theodore Leo, has released two demo tracks on his official site. If you know me, you know how excited I am. Ted Leo makes me all hot and bothered, and he could honestly record himself walking a dog and reading the newspaper and I'd still enjoy it, so take these demos with a grain of salt. I haven't really given them a good hard listen yet, but Ted Leo can do no wrong in my book. Here is the excerpt from their official site; "Hey, so we're going on tour next week, and new stuff isn't as far along as I was dreaming it would be, but we have a few new ones that we'll be playing, and I think that I got some good recordings of rough versions of two of them (especially ignore the guitar solos -- they'll get better) from yesterday's practice, so I thought I'd share them wif yiz. I can't get them both to load properly in the AUDIO section, so I put these two, "Army Bound" and "Some Beginner's Mind" up on the TSS server. Hope you enjoy." On first listen, Army Bound seems to be the cleaner and all-around better song. The bass part is more defined in Army Bound than in most of Ted's songs, and it works here. "Some Beginner's Mind" is definitely a diamond in the rough, and will probably be one of the better tracks when it is polished and put on their upcoming album. Both are worth the download and definitely worth the [download or die] tag, if only because Ted made them. Ted Leo/Rx - Army Bound [download or die] Ted Leo/Rx - Some Beginner's Mind [download or die] -Zack (Note: You Ain't No Picasso has also posted on these demos, with a longer description of each song. You can find the post here)

Cleveland (figuratively) Rocks!

UPDATE: Our adorable asian friend Nicole has found Jekarte's (not Jakarta) myspace page, and you can find it here. Enjoy. Finally, some inspiration for a post... Last week, instead of going to Mexico, like some people I know, I went on a two night road-trip to Cleveland. No, Drew Carey was not running around in the streets with hundreds of disenfranchised office workers. In fact, it seemed like no one was there. Anywhere. At all. But that's besides the point. In between checking out local record stores and the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame (they have the actual bass from the cover of London Calling!) (Zack's Note: Ryan has a hard-on for the Clash), I got a chance to check out a show at a local venue, The Beachland Ballroom and Tavern. At first glance, I thought I was going to be one out of, let's say, ten people there for the show, but it filled up pretty nicely, and I was pleasantly surprised by the two bands that played. First up was Jakarta (spelling?). To be honest, I haven't been able to find any information about them, even though they apparently have a myspace account, but their mid-tempo melodic style, when combined with their feminine voices (both the bass and guitar were women), produced a really great sound. The second band, Harlem Airshaft, who do actually have a myspace, caught my attention even more. With slightly growly vocals, a simple yet effective layering of two guitars, and a solid drum section, their faster sounds appealed more to my taste. Check both of these bands out and help them spread out of Cleveland! I wish I could find mp3's for you to download, but alas, unlike EVERYONE ELSE ON THIS GODDAMN BLOG (Love, Zack) I can't find songs to bands I do writeups about. You can listen to Harlem Airshaft on their myspace HERE, and I'll keep an eye out for any Jakarta tracks. If you have any please send them to us at allthingsgoblog@gmail.com Thanks. -Ryan (Note: Ryan isn't a basketball fan, but the picture of LeBron James was added to give this post some extra pizzazz. And also because King James is the only thing in Cleveland. Literally.)

More Mash-Up Madness!: The Legion of Doom

And just when you thought mash-ups were only for indie hipsters... The Legion of Doom do what nobody has done before (at least from what I know) and release Incorporated, a 14-track album comprised of mash-ups of your favorite emo jams! This duo has worked and produced for the likes of influential bands such as Saves the Day and Face to Face. Well, they technically didn't release it. Just about every band used on the cd has bitched and complained about having their material used in such a manner and distributed on the internet. No worries though. TLoD leaked their own album to P2P networks (that means you can find these songs on Limewire and other similar programs), ensuring that listeners across the country get there hands on these songs. What I like about Incorporated is that it includes artists from several different genres, including "emo" bands such as the Get Up Kids and Dashboard Confessional, more postmodern groups like Senses Fail, more aggressive bands such as Every Time I Die and Atreyu, and even a little hip-hop with Sage Francis. The majority of the mash-ups work out nicely. You can feel the prescence of each of the two artists in each track while also noticing the unique touch of the Legion of Doom. That is not to say the album is flawless. Song combinations such as Alkaline Trio's "Stupid Kid" and Thrice's "Kill Me Quickly" don't work out to well and end up clashing with each other. Nevertheless, I encourage all of you to get your hands on this album. You can find it anywhere: file sharing programs, torrent search engines, and if that doesn't work you can just ask me for it (AIM: OnearmedScizzer). Incorporated is a unique take on the modern phenomenon known as the "mash-up" that you should not miss out on. Here are a few tracks I enjoyed... The Legion of Doom - Hands Down Gandhi (Dashboard Confessional vs Sage Francis) The Legion of Doom - My Holiday Burn (Get Up Kids vs Matchbook Romance) The Legion of Doom - Dangerous Business Since 1979 (Mewithoutyou vs Underoath) The Legion of Doom - At Your Funeral for a Friend (Saves the Day vs Funeral for a Friend) And in other mash-up/remix related news, here's is the winner of that Thrice "Image of the Invisible" remix contest held a little while back. It's pretty damn good. (Note: I just grabbed this off Absolutepunk.net, so go there if you'd like to know more about the contest, winner, etc.) Smile Future - Bombs Over Vheissu Matter -Adrian

The Acorn

The Acorn is the brain child of Rolf Klausener’s solo project which is simply known as Mr. Computer. Starting on one of Canada’s first “indie” labels, Kelp, Mr. Computer’s folktronica sound found a safe spot with other experimental artist such as Professor Undressor. The Acorn was formed a year after Mr. Computer's production, when the blips, bleeps, and acoustic guitar wasn’t enough for Rolf. The band struggled at first to break away from the tone set by Mr. Computer but within a short time were able to put together a few instrumental tracks that incorporated the whole band, and weren't full of overbearing computer produced filler. Their debut full length album, The Pink Ghosts, hit Canada’s underground in the summer of 2004, not even a year after the band was formed. After this release, The Acorn toured pretty much only in Canada, and have since wrote their follow up EP titled Blankets. The Acorn's music mixes subtle uplifting melodies, with refreshing break-downs. Their sound is perfectly delicate, without being too tame. I’m calling it officially right now, it is only a matter of time before The Acorn take over and spark a much needed change in the folk-indie royalty that is brainwashing America. Go buy The Pink Ghosts and Blankets now, or else you will just be jumping on the bandwagon later….and I will be there to say…”I told you so”.

The Acorn is: Rolf Klausener, Howie Tsui, Jeffrey Malecki, Jeff DeButte

Also you can Download a Zip file of The Acorn live at the Royal Albert, here

Blankets – (Nov. 2005) Plates & Saucers – (Nov. 2005) Darcy– (July 2004) Evidence – (July 2004)

Also be sure to check out Howie Tsui’s super cool website, www.howietsui.com

-Austin

Since You've Been Gone : Zack we dont know what to do with out you!

Since Zack is gone.....and the rest of us are bad at "blogging!" i've compiled a list of a typical day in the ATG member world 1. Wake up early and check the chartz! 2. Listen to Jessie Mcartney 3. Masturbate 4. Write poetry ;( 5. Compare pants size 6. COMPUTER GAMES! 7. Masturbate 8. Clean keyboard 9. Spend a good hour editing our very intelectually stimulating ATG post 10. Share and explosive high five 11. Cry ourselves to sleep 12. repeat (Brian McNight "Back at One" Style) I am also very aware, this post is terrible. signing off....drunk me and adrian *note* im sorry

Another Unreleased Angels and Airwaves Track: Good Day

Update: Alright, so I've talked to several people and they've told me that this is a demo that will not appear on the cd. Regardless, just listen to the song and hopefully you'll enjoy it. I'm sure it'll be similar to what the rest of the songs on the album sound like. With the help of my good friend the internet, I managed to find another AVA track (original post here) that you will all hopefully like. I'm more of a fan of the somewhat more-agressive song "The Adventure," but "Good Day" is still another great track. I know I've said it before, but I have to say again that this album will be nothing short of amazing and I'm really excited to listen to more of what's been playing in Tom Delonge's head for the past year or so. This will be one of 2006's top albums you have to buy. Enough talk, listen to the song yourself. Enjoy! Angels and Airwaves - Good Day -Adrian

Heypenny

Thanks to David for introducing these guys to me. I love that now that I have a blog, people send me music. I get CDs in the mail. People e-mail me with new bands. I get handjobs from strangers. It's just great. Heypenny is a quartet that hails from Nashville, Tennessee, and it seems as though just a little bit of that country music vibe has rubbed off on them, though not too much. Their first album, Use These Spoons, is much more mature than most debuts of bands in their genre. The lead singer, Ben Elkins, has an absolutely beautiful voice, and the backup vocals, especially on "Let It Rain" are right on par with Ben's. I have not bought the album yet, but I have scoured the internets, and with the help of a new reader, David, I now have five of their tracks. Given the fact that there are only 10 songs on Heypenny's album, and that they probably want to make some money, I'll only post 3 songs. These three are quite good, and I am expecting to see these guys ALL over the blogs in the coming weeks. I can't believe I might've beaten anyone to the punch on these guys. I must say that "Let It Rain" and "Walnut St. Bridge" are the gems of the album. Both have a very laid back feel and, while the instrumentals are quite stripped down, the vocals are absolutely phenominal. Also, the organ in "Let It Rain" is so gorgeous it makes me wish I owned an organ (or at least a piano. Fuck you mom and dad.) "Parade" is a much more energetic and danceable track, and has even more interesting vocals, as if that was possible. I can't say enough about these guys. Every one of these songs is upbeat, and definitely deserving of the [download or die] tag. Heypenny Let It Rain [download or die] Walnut St. Bridge [download or die] Parade [download or die] Be their myspace friend -Zack

All Things Go Valentines Day Mixtape

First off I would like to wish everyone who stumbles across this site a Valentine's Day full of love and chocolate. So yesterday I was thinking about my girlfriend and realized that I would be a really shitty boyfriend if I didn't do something even remotely romantic for Valentine's Day, so i recruited my good friend Everett (of GWFAS) to help me create the ultimate V-Day Mixtape. We both compiled a list of songs that could work for the mixtape, and we met up to finalize the album. I brought chips and salsa and Everett brought the KY, and let's just say I had an unforgettable Monday. Anyways, our passion created the love-child that is the All Things Go Valentine's Day Mixtape. Derek (also of GWFAS) quickly became jealous of our brokeback style love and created his own valentine mix, which you can see here. Anyways, I have created a cover (above) and tracklist (below) for the mix so feel free to print it out and take advantage of a blognorant (yeah, I made it up) lady or gentleman by giving them this medley of love. On with the music. Note: We decided that 14 songs would be perfect since V-Day falls on February 14th. 1) Outkast - Happy Valentine's Day Zack: One of the sexiest, hippest, funkiest, jazziest, freshiest, songs ever created. Andre 3000 released a double album, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, with fellow Outkaster Big Boi in late 2004, though Andre definetely stole the show. Andre speaks over the track much like Barry White did on his songs, using his vocals as a background to the beat of the song, which features a simple bassline, claps, and a catchy, yet quite simple, guitar riff. This song perfectly exemplifies the sexy feeling one gets on this day of love. 2) The Postal Service - Be Still My Heart Zack: Honestly any Postal Service song could work here, but BSMH is just to damn beautiful to pass up. Released on the We Will Become Silhouettes EP, "Be Still My Heart" mixes an innocent childhood crushlike vibe while still sounding mature and complex. The military drums during the verse really complete an epic, yet also cute, song. 3) Brendan Benson - Cold Hands (Warm Heart) Everett: Some may see this song title, listen carefully to the lyrics, and come to the relatively evident conclusion that this song is about a relationship that is ENDING, rather than the normal Valentines Day-celebrated "blossoming relationship" ideal. The rationale for this is that, to be honest, not everyone's Valentines Day is perfect, and there are plenty of people out there who put on a brave face in light of all the lovey-doveyness Valentines Day brings. This song reflects that perfectly by telling the story of the ending relationship in such an adorably uplifting manner that you almost forget for a minute what Mr. Benson is talking about and embrace the idea of love with all its ups and downs. 4) Bloc Party - So Here We Are Zack: Kele Okereke and his fun loving bandmates are primarily known for making dance-ready, hip-swayin', rump-shakin', head-rockin' jams but for "So Here We Are", the boys from Bloc Party slow it down a bit. They still display their usual catchy guitar riffs and perfect drums, though Kele brings his voice down an octave for most of the song and shows some versatility. This is one of those songs that will never get out of your head. The lyrics may seem slightly depressing, but the final message ("I figured it out, I can see again") is incredibly uplifting, and really puts the exclamation point on a wonderful song. 5) The Streets - Could Well Be In Everett: Mike Skinner has a knack for writing emotional songs with words that flow perfectly over his minimalistic approach to production. His storytelling is always in the forefront of his more pensive songs, and "Could Well Be In" tells one of the more compelling stories on Skinner's sophomore album, A Grand Don't Come For Free. The lyrics are basically Skinner explaining how his conversation with a girl he fancies went, punctuated by a simple chorus in which he starts to realize that the girl he's with may like him as well. 6) Snow Patrol - Chocolate Zack: Snow Patrol is awesome. Like, really awesome. This song is so immature and innocent, it is impossible not to enjoy. Literally, if you don't enjoy this song, you might not have a soul. I really cannot say enough about Snow Patrol. These guys are so incredibly versatile, being able to create Radioheadesque hits ("Somewhere a Clock is Ticking"), upbeat love songs ("Spitting Games"), and ballads such as this one. So pretty much what I'm trying to say is Snow Patrol is awesome. 7) The Long Winters - Cinnamon Zack: This song, featured on the Wedding Crashers soundtrack, was introduced to me by my girlfriend, Sabrina. On first listen, I thought that the non-rhyming chorus was a little cheesy but I went home and listened again, and came away feeling stupid that I could ever hate on a song this beautiful. The clear and passionate vocals, teamed with the cute acoustic guitar and a simple drum beat, create a perfect valentine's day song. When the italian guitar comes in and lead singer John Roderick begins speaking of gondolas, I want to make love to the closest animate object. This has caused many lawsuits. 8) The Elected - It Was Love Everett: The side project of Rilo Kiley's Blake Sennett, The Elected play a very pop-oriented brand of alt-country. I am really enjoying their sophomore album, Sun, Sun, Sun, which I reviewed HERE for Good Weather for Airstrikes; the one knock I've read about in regards to the album is that Sennett's lyrics are often too simplistic, "It Was Love" is a perfect and, in my opinion, wonderfully topical, example of this. The chorus features this very Valentines Day-related line: "When I loved, it was love". I think we can all relate to that, I know that when I love, it is love! 9) Death Cab For Cutie - Love Song (Cure Cover) Everett: The Cure's Robert Smith always preferred darker lyrical content, but often felt the need to prove himself as a songwriting genius. "Love Song" is one example of Smith's conscious decision to write a song that would hit the Top 40 charts (which it did, hitting #1 in the U.S. in 1989). Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard needs no excuse to write perfect pop songs, and he knows a perfect one when he sees it (Gibbard has been known to cover other such perfect pop songs as Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in concert). Death Cab for Cutie admittedly takes few creative liberties in this cover, but the addition of Gibbards vocals to this undeniably excellent song make it worth having. 10) Rogue Wave - Kicking the Heart Out Everett: I first encountered this song when it was an iTunes free download a couple years ago (for my money, this is still the second best iTunes free download ever). One line that has especially stuck with me (that I still can't entirely figure out) is, "If music is my lover, you are just a tease." Overall, this is just a pretty darn cute power-pop song that just seems to work nicely on a Valentines Day mix. 11) Badly Drawn Boy - The Shining Zack: This is one of my mom's favorite songs, and before you let that turn you off, understand that my mom's favorite musicians are Sufjan Stevens, The Flaming Lips, and Belle & Sebatasian (Yes my mom is awesome). This song, off their 2000 release The Hour of Bewilderbeast, starts with a violin solo and slowly adds a few other instruments to create a unique and somewhat old-fashioned love song sound. Another reason I love the song is the change at the 1:19 point, when the song goes from violin solo to the acoustic guitar chorus, all the while keeping the same melody. 12) Sufjan Stevens - To Be Alone With You Zack: What can be said about Sufjan Stevens that hasn't already been said 500 times? Nothing. That's why I am not giving you a description, just a demand: Listen. 13) Jose Gonzalez - Heartbeats Everett: Jose Gonzalez is very talented and very addictive. "Crosses" was the song that made me fall in love with his music for the first time, but this song, the second cover on this mix, keeps me coming back to him. Gonzalez completely changes the dynamic of The Knife's electro-pop romp, turning it in to a stripped-down, acoustic masterpiece. Many of the songs on this mixtape have been described as 'cute', but this song takes it to the next level, well in to the territory of 'beautiful'. As any girl can tell you, being called beautiful is far and away a better compliment than being called cute, and to tie this back to the music, if you thought all the 'cute' songs were fantastic, think of how unbelievable "Heartbeats" will be! 14) The Decemberists - Of Angels and Angles Everett: The closing song on our Valentines Day mix, closing song on The Decemberists Picaresque, and often the closing song of Decemberists shows, this is just a beautiful, bare, acoustic love song. Colin Meloy has always been renowned for complicated language in his songs; The Decemberists have always been talked about, both positively and negatively, for the fact that owning a thesaurus is a prerequisite of enjoying their music. On this song, however, simplicity abounds: the song is carried by Meloy's gorgeous refrain, "there are angels in your angles." Bonus Track! 15) Final Fantasy - Your Light is Spent Zack: "Your Light is Spent" is one of the more stripped down songs in this mix, yet somehow the most enthralling. Owen Pallet, the violinist who donates his genious to The Arcade Fire, plucks on his love-instrument (Note: not his penis) and provides timid vocals to create a masterpiece of emotion. The song is featured on Pallet's solo debut, Has A Good Home, and while "Your Light is Spent" may not be the best song on the album, it certainly is the most powerful lyrically and emotionally. Lyrics like "All I ask for is a warm body, to keep this winter from killing me" really convey Pallet's message perfectly. So there it is. I hope you all have/had a great Valentine's Day. Remember to go home and kiss the man/woman/inflatable sex sheep you love. -Zack & Everett

Show Review: The Academy Is..., Panic! at the Disco, Acceptance, Hellogoodbye

This past Sunday I had the pleasure of attending the Academy Is tour at their 9:30 Club stop. Despite the hordes of brace-faced fourteen year olds swarming the venue, I have to say it was an amazing show. What better band to open a show than Hellogoodbye? If you've seen either of this band's videos, you know they're hilarious and know how to have a good time. I walked in the club to see a stage adorned with full-size cardboard figures of Darth Vader, Paris Hilton, and Beyonce. I think there was a piñata or two also. Kind of weird, but just the thing I'd expect the band to do. My prayers were answered when they came on stage and opened with "Call and Return," quite possibly the most adorable song ever created. Then the band began to go throuh their set, which included an interesting new song. It's not what you'd expect of a typical Hellogoodbye. I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but it mostly consists of Forrest Kline on guitar, singing a (for lack of a better word) bluesy love song. Unfortunately, due to techincal difficulties, Hellogoodbye's set had to be cut short, leaving songs like "Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn" unplayed. Regardless, Hellogoodbye was entertaining for the short time they were on the stage. I don't really have much to say about Acceptance. By no means is this band horrible; they played a solid set. Also, Vocalist Jason Vena has an amazing voice, giving the band the edge that distinguishes them from others in the same genre. However, musical creativity is the band's main problem. I've heard the guitar riffs used in many of their song played by countless other rock bands in the past. Overall, I'd say Acceptance is a good band to bring on tour, but I wouldn't listen to them otherwise if you wanted to hear something new and original. Their bassist also unexpectedly launched himself into the crowd at the end of the set, leaving several middle school girls dead. Alright, now onto the reason many of the kids went to the show: Panic! at the Disco. I was really excited to see this band, considering the success of their album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. There is nothing negative I can say about any song on the album. I just hoped they would be able to maintain the energy of their album during their live show. Fortunately, Panic! didn't disappoint anyone. The Las Vegas quartet opened with "Only Difference Between Martrydom and Suicide Is Press Coverage," to which the crowd went wild. But the great thing about Panic! is that they created an album from which any song would make the crowd go wild. Just about every kid in the room knew the word to every song the band played. The set was near perfect, except they didn't play what I saw to be favorites such as 'London Beckoned Songs About Money Written By Machines," "Nails for Breakfast, Tacks for Snacks," and surprisingly they didn't play the ever-so popular "Time to Dance." Nevertheless, I was very pleased with my first Panic! performance ever and I'll be sure to catch 'em next time they're in town. Now time for the main act: The Academy Is... To be honest, I came to the show thinking Panic! would steal the show. The moment TAI took the stage, I knew I was wrong. This being the second time I've seen TAI, I thought they would give a similar performance to their last tour. But they played with twice as much the energy and enthusiasm as last time. I couldn't stop smiling and screaming the words to every song through their entire set. Vocalist William Beckett knew exactly how to connect with the crowd, getting them to sing along with every word of every song. The band also played some new material, including a song called "The Fever" (which will be released on iTunes, along with an acoustic EP, on Feb. 21st) which sounded amazing. Based on this song, I'm quite sure that anything TAI releases in the future will be nothing short of impressive. They also played every song off their full-length Almost Here (one of 2005's best releases), opening with the steady rock-track "Checkmarks" and ending with another crowd favorite, "Black Mamba." For those of you who already have tickets to the rest of the stops on this tour, you are sure to be pleased. If any of you live in a town where for some reason the show isn't sold out yet, I suggest you buy a ticket immediately! You won't be disappointed, I promise. ...and for those of you haven't learned, it still isn't cool to yell "freebird" at a concert. Here are a few songs from each band. Enjoy. Hellogoodbye: Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn Call and Return Acceptance: Take Cover Panic! At The Disco: But It's Better If You Do [download or die] The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage The Academy Is...: Almost Here Skeptics and True Believers The Phrase That Pays [download or die] -Adrian

Ryan's Top 10 (Finally)

Hey, this is Ryan bringing to you what are some of my favorite songs. Unlike my counterparts at All Things Go, I tend to have a more retrospective taste in music, focusing mostly on the roots of Rock, Punk, and Hardcore, along with a little world music thrown in here and there. If it’s hard, aggressive, and fast, chances are I’ll like it. That doesn’t mean that I don’t listen to any contemporary music, though. So here is my list of top ten songs (and I made a promise to Zack to only put 1 Clash song on, but I just can’t get enough of them). 1. The Clash - Groovy Times I’ve been listening to The Clash for a few years now, and for those of you who aren’t familiar with them, they did more for music in a few years than most bands dream of doing. Here’s one of the rarer single releases that I think epitomizes the high-point in their career. 2. Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros - Cool’n’Out OK! I know I said that I would do only one Clash song, but I can’t pass up putting other Joe Strummer songs on my list. His post-Clash material packs a more global sound, and this up-beat track showcases some of his catchiest, funkiest riffs. 3. Toots & the Maytals - Pressure Drop There’s nothing like simple reggae, especially when it comes from one of its originators. Pure and purposeful. 4. Gang of Four - Guns before Butter Any dance-rock fans out there? Well, chances are that you’re listening to the continuation of what Gang of Four started. With emphasis on the beat, and minimalist guitar and vocals, Gang of Four were pioneers in the music industry. 5. The Kinks - You Really Got Me (Live) It may be only three or four chords, but this song never fails at getting me pumped up. For anyone who thinks that the Sex Pistols “invented” punk, listen to this. 6. Mano Negra - Mala Vida I don’t know what they’re saying, but it’s a much better alternative to reggaeton, or should I say, the one beat that is in every Latin song. 7. Graham Coxon - No Good Time This track comes right off Graham Coxon’s latest CD, Happiness in Magazine, released in 2004. For those of you who don’t know, Coxon was guitarist for band Blur (you all know the words to Song 2), and this solo work is an example of just plain good indie song writing. 8. Radio 4 - Dance to the Underground I saw this band open for Ted Leo this past summer, and I was struck by their mid-tempo, yet energetic, style of music. (Note: This is one of those bands influenced by Gang of Four). 9. Q and Not U - Wet Work Coming from the DC area, it’s hard enough getting by without this group on the scene anymore. Austin and Adrian picked their favorite Q and Not U songs, so here’s mine. 10. Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Six Months in a Leaky Boat From his iTunes-only release, Sharkbite Sessions, this song compiles all of his prior writing styles into one song while still showing what he has in store for us in the future. Just great. (Zack's note: this is the original version of the song released on Ted Leo's early EP, Tell Balgeary, Bulgury Is Dead. If you want the new version, you have to download it yourself from itunes because our version is .m4p. Sorry.) Bonus Track! Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros - Burning Streets This is one of the best songs from Strummer’s post-mortem release, Streetcore. Just check out the whole album, I can’t put how much I love it into words. -Ryan (Zack's note: The rest of Ryan's songs will be in .mp3 format, I was just entirely too lazy to convert all of these. My bad.)

The Spill Canvas: Rare Demos

First off, let me give mad props to my buddy Matt who sent me these demos. Thanks dude! The Spill Canvas has come a long way since their beginning. The band has released two albums off of indie label One Eleven Records. The first, Sunsets & Car Crashes, was a beautiful acoustic album pretty much all from the mind of 19-year old front-man Nick Thomas. TSC's sophomore album, One Fell Swoop, is in my opinion one of the best albums of 2005. Instead of creating another entirely acoustic album, Thomas decided to add a band: drums, bass, et al (whatever that means). This album still managed to capture all the emotion of S&CC while also adding an edge which could not be done solely with acoustic guitars. The majority of these demos are acoustic (except for Rock Bottom which adds some percussion), but still good. Fans of S&CC will be sure to enjoy these tracks. If you are interested in listening to the other four which are not posted, IM me (AIM: onearmedscizzer) and I'll be happy to get them to you. For those of you who haven't listened to the Spill Canvas before, here are two essential tracks you must listen to, one from each of their albums... The Spill Canvas - Lust At Prima Vista [download or die] The Spill Canvas - The Tide Rare Demos (Zack's Note: like, as rare as Mew, the pokemon, which is pretty rare. If you didn't notice i love pokemon): The Spill Canvas - Rock Bottom The Spill Canvas - If I Could Write it In Blood The Spill Canvas - Catching Sparks -Adrian

We Are the Fury / Leaked Angels & Airwaves Track

UPDATE: We have uploaded the full version of The Adventure, the A&A Track and you can dowload it here, or below. Thanks to Matt for hooking us up with the full track. To put it most simply, if Hot Hot Heat and Head Automatica made sweet unprotected passionate love and Ima Robot's Alex Ebert was filming...the result would be We Are the Fury? Well, there's more to it than that, but you can definetly see similarities with the aforementioned musicians in the Toledo, Ohio quintet's EP, Infinite Jest. In continuation of the new-wave-revival dance-rock trend, WAtF have a more aggresive feel than their colleagues. If you are a fan of Hot Hot Heat or any other bands of the sort but are looking for a more raw, energetic tone, then listen to these three tracks. We Are The Fury - Better Off This Way [download or die] We Are The Fury - Nation, Forgive Us We Are The Fury - Parody at the Masquerade Also, for those of you who haven't heard of Angels & Airwaves, it is the new project of Blink-182 guitarist Tom Delonge. Now, don't let that scare you. No, A&A is not another Box Car Racer. Although no tracks have been officially released by the band, Tom Delonge has made it clear that his new project is to be epic. Later this year the band will be releasing a ten-track album/film combination which should be sure to grab lots of attention. If you're interested in learning more, I encourage you to check out the band's website. But for now, I will leave you with a leaked track, "The Adventure," I found the other day. Unfortunately, the song cuts off with a little more than a minute to spare, but I figured I might as well give you a taste of what is to come. Enjoy! Angels & Airwaves - The Adventure -Adrian Also, we just got on myspace, so check us out here

David & The Citizens

I don't know much about these guys, other than that the Swedish sextet (sixtet?) has released a ridiculous amount of EPs and such and have been making sweet sweet music since 1999. Lead singer David Fridlund and his merry band of citizens have released 12 EPs, most with only 2 songs, and have been featured in over 20 mixtapes. Their latest, and in my opinion most refined, EP comes out on March 7th, and is really only cleaner versions of their older tracks. The self-titled EP features 6 songs; two new and four old. I was turned on to these guys by a friend of mine who happens to be a constant source of new music, though while I was searching for old D&TC songs to put up here, I found that *sixeyes had already posted on these guys like, 5 times, thus making me feel completely unoriginal (thanks alot blogosphere). Anyways, here are 2 tracks off the album that are completely adorable and quite melodious. "Graycoated Morning" reminds me of that Counting Crows song "Mr. Jones" though the D&TC can be listened to without having to admit that you own Counting Crows albums. Shutup. David & The Citizens - Graycoated Morning [Download or Die] David & The Citizens - The Big Chill Visit their official site here Be D&TC's myspace friend -Zack

Andrew Vincent

Andrew Vincent is the man. If you like The Boy Least Likely To, Dead Milkmen, or All-Time Quarterback you will probably like this little ditty entitled 2000!. A.V. just writes the most adorable songs ever. Also download "Help Me Fall Apart (Hey 1)", my personal favorite of his. Lastly, be sure to check out his full band Andrew Vincent & The Pirates. Yes, they are equally as goofy and adorable. Thank you Canada for A.V. Andrew Vincent - 2000! Andrew Vincent - Help Me Fall Apart (Hey 1) also check out Andrew Vincent - Grade 4 [He uses the chorus from Quiet Riot's Cum On Feel the Noize, so naturally Download or Die] Andrew Vincent & The Pirates - One, Two, Three Buy his album here -Austin (Note: Since our template doesn't show who is posting each post, we will be adding signatures to the bottom of each post.)

Mashup Madness!!!

Let me start off-topic by saying that I hope everyone is watching the Super Bowl today. Everyone also better be rooting for the Steelers and the Bus because Matt Hasselbeck and the Seahawks suck. (Note: I am bitter because they beat my Redskins in the divisional playoffs. Then again, at least the 'Skins QB has a full, blooming, gorgeous mane of hair. Matt Hasselbeck doesn't.) But I digress.. Who doesn't like mashups? Honestly? I mean, hearing Marvin Gaye sing to Eminem's Lose Yourself has to be at least worth laughing at. But every once in a while, a DJ realizes that two songs can actually blend well together and combines them, creating a love child that is properly known as a mashup. I have been searching the web for months trying to organize a list of hundreds of mashups. Most of them are complete garbage but I have searched through all of them for you and pulled out the gems. I share them with you today. Note: I will be organizing the songs in two categories: actually good mashups and ridiculously absurd mashups. Enjoy. Quality Mashups: Golden Peace Frog - Jurassic 5 vs. The Doors Can I Kick it Like That? - A Tribe Called Quest vs. Pharrell [download or die] Somebody Stole Your Beat - Divide & Kreate (Bloc Party vs. The Killers) Decepta-Freak-On - Missy Elliott vs. Le Tigre Yoshimi Battles Snoop Dogg - The Flaming Lips vs. Snoop Dogg Ridiculous Mashups: Kanye Mahna - Kanye West vs. Mahna Mahna (from the Muppets) [download or die] Beethoven's Fifth Gold Digger - Kanye West vs. Beethoven's Fifth Let's Dance With Me - David Bowie vs. Hot Hot Heat Paranoid Teeth Attack - The Faint vs. Obie Trice If you enjoyed any of these songs and would like to hear the other couple hundred I've got, just leave a comment or send me an e-mail (allthingsgoblog@gmail.com). Also, if you are the creator of one of these mashups and don't want them up here, let me know and I will take them down. -Zack

Assorted Death Cab

I recently came across an unreleased song that Ben Gibbard has been known to play at some of his solo shows. As far as I know there is no studio recording of the song. The track is untitled, though most fans refer to it as “A Lovely Affair”, “Beginning to Begin”, or simply “New Song”. Also I’ve posted a cover of Daniel Johnston’s haunting ballad “Dream Scream” performed by Death Cab, as well as a live version of “State Street Residential”, that I really like. I also uploaded the demo version of “Lightness” that is featured on Drive Well, Sleep Carefully (DVD). I will be putting together an archive of all Death Cab related unreleased tracks, demos, live recordings and so on....get excited! Now right click save as and get your cry on. Death Cab For Cutie - A Lovely Affair Death Cab For Cutie - Dream Scream (Daniel Johnston Cover) Death Cab For Cutie - State Street Residential (Live) Death Cab For Cutie - Lightness (demo) [download or die] Also make sure you check out Death Cab's Directions project. They are releasing a video for every song on their latest album, Plans. A new video will be released every week, and each video features a different director.

Kyle Andrews

So I was looking through the archives of *sixeyes, a MP3 heavy blog that has given me plenty of new bands, and I stumbled upon this gem. Kyle Andrews is from Chicago and is flying under most indie radars (I went overboard on the links. My bad). He uses only keyboards, guitars, and drum loops but somehow creates a full and complete sound. Andrews has been described as a milder Bright Eyes, but his songs are full of hooks and seem slightly catchier than Obersts'. I first listened to Sushi, off of Amos in Ohio, his latest album, and was caught completely off-guard. I was expecting another badly recorded acoustic guitarist who thinks his music is somehow unique, but I could not be more wrong. Kyle is of a completely different mold, and I am unable to get his songs out of my head. I only have 4 songs, but I like what I hear and can't wait for his CD to arrive at my front door. Here are two songs from Kyle's first full album, Amos in Ohio. The title track is a more subdued, emotional song, but still has a unique touch to it. The chorus, complete with awesome bird-chirping noises, ties the whole song together and keeps the track flowing. Sushi is a more upbeat track with more hooks and catches, somewhat in the style of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, but with a better voice (Sorry Alex). When the little beeps come in right in the beginning of the song, I can't help but picture a Dr. Suess book and super-bouncy balls. I'll let you draw your own conclusions. Kyle Andrews - Amos in Ohio Kyle Andrews - Sushi [download or die] Catch the *sixeyes interview with Kyle Andrews Download 4 more Kyle Andrews tracks on his Myspace