Tune In Saturdays: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin

In a move that could be dubbed the third most pompous thing to ever happen on Weller Street in Springfield, Missouri, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin has announced on their website that they are the third best band on Weller Street in Springfield, Missouri.  Crazy, I know.

And the review from Pitchfork:

"Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin are four Missourians who sound like every strummy bunch of white boys from the 1990s who homaged even strummier white boys from the 60s, but damn if their pop chops aren't convincing."

Damn straight. A review that makes sense. I'm in!

They've got the sleepy pop thing down to a T, so I wouldn't be surprised to see them show up on some Sub Pop-ian west coast label sometime in the near future. Think Matt Pond PA meshed with Death Cab for Cutie, but playing in my backyard.

I especially like their website design here and here. It's damn perrtty. And here's the MySpace.

Below is the most hifi video ever made (of pangea, by sslyby).

Tune In Saturdays: Field Music

Yup, Field Music, the British three-piece including the former drummer from the Futureheads, sounds like every other European critic-whore band in the world, which is probably why I like 'em.

It's just nice, minimalist and clean, without being dumb or boring. And they've got enough la la's and da da's to satisfy any Beatles fan.

From Stylus Magazine:
"Brothers David and Peter Brewis, along with third player Andrew Moore, craft songs that are complex in their simplicity. The ambition comes in the musical arrangements. These are songs that veer to and fro, frequently sounding as if they’re nearly about to run off the rails."

Complex in their simplicity? Well, music writer, your writing sounds non-sensical in it's intelligence. How bout that!

Alright, here's the video called A House is Not a Home, from their upcoming record, Tones of Town. More on MySpace.

Tune In Saturdays: Malajube

What happens when you cross the Flaming Lips with Mercury Rev and the Polyphonic Spree, then gorge them all on french toast, french fries and Labat Blue?

You get the confusingly named Malajube, pronounced as best as I can tell, Mal - uh - zhoob.

Pitchfork says,

"the inventive arrangements and zealous intensity of their second album make it difficult to countenance any suspicions of opportunistic hit-knitting. But their approach to indie rock is so resolutely of-the-moment that it seems filled with hyper-modern allusions. Malajube's music is labyrinthine, filled with multi-directional trapdoors-- some drop down to lower landings of the songs; some let out into realms recently conquered by other indie heroes (particularly of the Polaris Prize-nominated variety)."

To which I say,"huh?" Not that they're wrong, but it's just a long way of saying, "Hey man, I like those guys' music. They sound original!"

So, that's what I say. "Hey man, these guys kick ass, in an 'angry frenchmen, fuck you Bill O'reilly' sort of way, but happier."

Now, I must go smoke ze cigarette and put on ze black-and-white striped shirt and beret.  Cause that's how I roll.

Listen to more over at the MySpace page.

A Tune In Saturdays Preview Special

I normally wouldn't do this, but I'm particularly giddy about this girl.

I've made some bold predictions about bands blowing up before, and have since realized it's a better idea to bite my tongue.  There are lots of good bands, and it takes more than just talent to reach some higher echelon.

But then, last night I saw St. Vincent, the first of the Tune In features, and moniker of solo songstress Annie Clark, a fellow Dallasite and former classmate of yours truly.

And, mark my words, book it, and hold me to it, 2007 will be her year. Look out Fiona, there's a new lady crooner on the way, and all you MTVers, keep your sets tuned and ready.

She's simply amazing.   

And, Mack, maybe 100 cds for 100 bloggers?

Here's a couple tunes from her new 3 song ep, Paris is Burning... (available from Good Records)

St. Vincent - What Me Worry.mp3
St. Vincent - Paris is Burning.mp3

Tune In Saturdays: The Christmas Edition

For some reason, Jeff Buckley just seems perfect for this Christmas. It's unfortunate that Jeff died at such a young age, he wrote some of the most beautifully captivating songs I've ever heard, and this one might have been the best of them all. It's the sort of song that stops you in your tracks and knocks you on your ass, all at the same time.

Merry Christmas, boys and girls.  I'm continually astonished by how much our little community has grown, both in size and strength, and for most of us, we haven't even reached the end of year one. I never could have imagined that I would have been able to learn so quickly from people I respect so much.  So, thanks guys, I wish you and your families the best.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLQUdHMFpBQ]

Tune In Saturdays: Centro-matic

Because Tim didn't realize how good the Dallas music scene actually is, I thought I'd continue down that road with this week's Tune In, and feature one of the best and brightest from the Dallas/Denton, Texas area, Centro-matic.

Centro-matic sort of sounds like a warm blanket, made of Texas flags, in a Michel Gondry dream.  Did that make sense?  It does to me, so there you have it.

Here's what some other folks have said:

“What makes (Will Johnson) such a phenomenal lyricist is that he opts for the simplest language when painting an abstract picture.” - Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie

"It's unforgettable in a Neil Young or Jeff Tweedy kind of way… As multifarious as the indie rock canon it's practically everything: from the South, in the basement, smoking pot, on the porch, plugging in, plucking soft and clocking out. It's a hootenanny of sweetly weathered proportions, free-wheeling clap-alongs and perfectly boozy balladry…” – Magnet

“Centro-matic's music comes on like a sound from a distant dream, something new, yet unmistakably familiar. Clear images adding up to something a little vague, but in such a comforting way.” – Patterson Hood of Drive by Truckers

MySpace has more...

Below is the video for Triggers and Trash Heaps.  Just beautiful stuff.

Tune In Saturdays: Salim Nourallah

I thought I'd delve a little deeper into the old Itunes treasure chest with Salim Nourallah, a Dallas musician and producer.

From Maverick Magazine:
"Fans of Wilco, the Frames and Sparklehorse will also be flocking to this set of songs. Nourallah's unhurried softly rasping vocals are laden with a sadness similar to Jeff Tweedy's and the woozy slurring of Thom Yorke while the acoustic arrangements build around his guitar work with drums and strings developing into quiet symphonies of sound."

Salim's been on the scene for years, making quiet gems with the Happiness Factor, the Nourallah Brothers, and now on his own, with the brilliant album, Beautiful Noise and 2004's Polaroid.  He's also produced records for Old 97's, Rhett Miller, and Sorta, among others.

Beautiful Noise was voted the  Best Album of 2006 by the Dallas Observer.  Salim also won Best Song for The World is Full of People Who Want to Hurt You, and Best Producer.

Listen here to 1978, go to the MySpace page for more tunes. Or, you can check out his new ad for Comcast, or his blog.  Get it.

Tune In Saturdays Replay: Robert Gomez

Denton, Texas' own Robert Gomez has released a fucking awesome teaser to his upcoming full-length, Brand New Towns. More importantly, he becomes the first dual-posted artist on Tune In Saturdays.  I'm sure he's very, very excited.

Bella Union, Rob's label, is finally getting smart, maybe a little Zune-ish, and they're offering the Closer Still EP for free for three plays. Unfortunately, you have to listen in Windows Media Player, but if you buy, they also offer it in alternative formats.

To download the tracks, go to his MySpace page, and scroll down a bit. 

Or you can go to his home, or you can watch the video for the title track to Closer Still below.

And, because of the replay, here's a special Tune In Bonus: Jolie Holland with Springtime Can Kill You. More on that gem to come.

Tune In Saturdays: Let's Go Sailing

Let's Go Sailing, the Los Angeles five-piece from the mind of Shana Levy, knows how to do two things well.

1) Make Belle and Sebastian-like gloomy pop music.

2) Name-drop.

From the website:

In November of 2002, Shana Levy left indie pop outfit Irving to pursue Let's Go Sailing. She asked friends Tanya Haden (Haden Triplets), Nikki Monninger (Silversun Pickups), Brent Turner (Irving) and Byron Reynolds (Possum Dixon) to work on an album's worth of material and soon enough they began recording a demo with Chris Chandler (Flaming Lips/Modest Mouse/Elliott Smith) and Rod Cervera (The Rentals/Weezer). The recording process quickly gained momentum and, with the help of Chris and Jim Putnam (Radar Bros.), Shana decided to make a hi-fi record independently. With lots of tweaking and a little tlc from Ben Mumphrey (Frank Black/The Pixies), the record was finally finished!!!!        

Those are some damn good names to associate yourself with, so I'll refrain from judgment.

Head over to the MySpace page and check out 4 songs from the new album, The Chaos in Order.  It's full of little gems that make as much out of the hooks as they do the quiet moments.  And with friends like those, it probably won't take long for Shana and the bunch to make a splash or two in the coming months...

Tune In Saturdays: Grizzly Bear

Oh, Fuck!  I almost forgot about Tune In Saturdays.  What a shame it would have been, and you may have never known the genius of Grizzly Bear.

Forgive me, but this one will be lazy, with one kickass band, and one totally yanked review.

From Pitchfork:

"Grizzly Bear have stepped up their songwriting in every way, assembling melodies that proceed in a logical fashion but never sound overused or overly familiar. Yellow House is a much better record than we could rightfully have expected from these guys, better, even, than we could have imagined them making. And I find myself wondering how much further they might go..."

Couldn't agree more. 

Listen to On a Neck, on a Spit, or clips from the whole record, or check out their myspace.