Make wuv, not war.

Listening to Moby's new album at the moment, which I am, somewhat surprisingly, digging.
When I first started working at Wieden + Kennedy in January 2000, Moby's album, Play, was massively over-referenced in meetings and creative ideas at the time, and accordingly, I had a very intense & adverse reaction to it.
That said, and what's kind of funny to me, is that he seems to keep putting out some fairly lovely, weird, washy music, which if I can put bad advertising ideas aside for the moment, I actually kind of like what I'm hearing.
And this new album is no exception.
Have a listen to this jam:

Plus, you can stream the whole album here: http://www.moby.com/

How come everything you want is just out of reach?

Two great things already today.
1. I quickly hustled over to Sotheby's to catch the last glimpse of the Polaroid collection before it went to auction.
http://www.sothebys.com/minisite/polaroid/slide.html
Really interesting/historical work there.

2. E*Rock sent me this super awesome (& huge) print that now resides on my office wall (until I get it framed):

Plus, I'm finally getting more into Jason Collett's most recent solo album "Rat a Tat Tat".
Parts of it remind me of Joseph Arthur a bit.
Check this track:

http://www.arts-crafts.ca/jasoncollett
http://e--rock.com/

I'm taking over/into the light.

As it goes, I liked Bloc Party for about a nanosecond when I first heard them, and then, not so much.
At all.
They were too emo for me (and boring) in a way that I couldn't jive with.
So it was with some surprise that I found myself kind of digging the new Kele album,
the singer's new solo effort, which is pretty all over the place, sounding at various and simultaneous times like Depeche Mode, rave, B-Pitch Records and indie R&B.
Far, far better than his old band, in my opinion.
Give it a listen.

http://www.iamkele.com/

You've got such a psychic life to live.

I picked up Roky Erickson's album "Never Say Goodbye" back in 1999 from Ozone Records in Portland, Oregon.
Though I was just starting to familiarize myself with him as an artist back then, this album in it's stark, vulnerable tone caught my attention immediately and never let go.
I've always envisioned this particular track to be playing during the end credits of a film:

Many of these tracks were actually recorded during a stint in a mental hospital, and it's rawness is both heartbreaking and beautiful.
Read a little bit about the story of the album here:
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:0jfpxqtjldde

Also, I think it's a pretty hard album to come by these days, so if you'd like, you can download the whole thing here:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=40di1zpk

http://www.emperorjones.com/roky.html

Youth is not wasted on the young.

The Sleigh Bells album is finally out today and I have to say, it's pretty damn awesome.
Lots of hype, for sure, but just ignore that and listen to what they're up to, which is some serious new-species-pop-music.
Just ask Sasha Frere-Jones.
He's with us.
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/sashafrerejones/2009/10/set-list-sleigh...

http://www.neetrecordings.com/sleighbells/

Oh, to see it with my own eyes.

Listening to the Local Natives album again right now.
Overall, I have to say that it's a solid record.
Lots of similarities to Fleet Foxes, Band Of Horses and Grizzly Bear, for sure, but they're on their own trip too.
The only sore spot for me is their cover of the Talking Heads "Warning Sign".
That's a tough one to take on, in my opinion.
And then it kind of ends breaking up the album in a weird way.
That said, it's a good as a whole and I really love this song.

http://www.thelocalnatives.com/
http://frenchkissrecords.com/bands/profile/local_natives/

I said I could rise from the harness of our goals.

I've got the promo of this and it's already well ahead in the running for top albums of 2010.
Seriously, seriously.
Is anyone else talking about how musicians like this are carrying the Bob Dylan torch?
Love this. The whole album kills it.

Also, check out his beautiful La Blogotheque performance:
http://www.blogotheque.net/The-Tallest-Man-on-Earth,4817

http://www.deadoceans.com/onesheet.php?cat=DOC040
http://www.deadoceans.com/artist.php?name=tallestmanonearth

We went out walking in the early morning.

While cooking last night, I was listening to Spinning On Air on WNYC and Trembling Bells were the guests.
Carbeth is an album of theirs that I have had for sometime, but for whatever reason had overlooked.
Today I've gone back to revisit it and am happy to have done so.
It's an amazing record.
Just read this great review on Allmusic about it:
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:wxfexz90ld6e
Dead on.
They have the FIRE. The folk fire.

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/spinning/episodes/2010/03/28
http://www.myspace.com/tremblingbells
http://new.honestjons.com/label.php?pid=34151&Labe