Lee Hazlewood, 1929-2007

The legendary singer-songwriter-composer-character died Saturday after an extended battle with terminal cancer. His most recent effort, Cake or Death, (out in the U.S. early this year) saw Hazlewood going out on his own terms, including appearances from Tommy Parsons, Bela B., and his grand-daughter, Phaedra. He was 78.

In House #1769 (Originally aired last December, featuring Hazlewood's Cake or Death)

In House #1870: New Releases From Feist, Rufus Wainwright

The music of Canadian singer Leslie Feist is a study in contrasts, much like the musical path she's taken since she was a teenager. The Reminder, her third release as simply Feist, jumps and mixes genres, wrapping her smooth vocals around pop, jazz, bossa nova, and indie forms, as well as hybrids thereof. With such versatility on display, it shouldn't necessarily surprise that she got her start fronting a Calgary punk band before going on to serve as one of the essential ingredients in the Toronto-based musical collective Broken Social Scene. New songs like "So Sorry," and "The Water," testify to her strength as a torch song singer, while she appropriates Nina Simone's own appropriation of "Sea Lion Woman," into something synth-tinged and glorious. For months prior to its release, the buzz was that The Reminder would be the effort that announced Feist to the world at large. It seems that it's succeeded in that capacity, and then some.



Also today, out this week is Rufus Wainwright's fifth studio full-length, entitled Release the Stars. The album once again finds Wainwright's recognizable voice skirting over lushly orchestrated, at times almost operatic, pop. As has been the case with recent efforts, he delves further into socio-political commentary in new songs like "Going to a Town," (with its refrain of "I'm so tired of America") and "Do I Disappoint You," both at least partially addressing a society that seems obsessed with topics like gay marriage, gay adoption, etc. Recorded in Berlin and London with Pet Shop Boy Neil Tennant, Release the Stars and its theatrics do nothing to diminish the reputation of an increasingly outspoken, if occasionally over-reaching, talent.

In House #1870.
Airdate: 5/15/07
Focus: New releases from Feist, The Reminder, and Rufus Wainwright, Release the Stars, plus new music from Ferraby Lionheart, Grant-Lee Phillips, The Sea & Cake, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Feist, from The Reminder:

"Sea Lion Woman" (MP3)

Rufus Wainwright, from Release the Stars:

"Between My Legs" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House #1869: Wilco's Sky Blue Sky; New Track a Tiger

Once upon a time, with efforts like A.M. and Being There under their belts, Wilco was considered at the forefront of the alt-country movement. That began to change a bit with 1999's Summerteeth, with nods to the lushly orchestrated pop of Brian Wilson in the mix, before the band excused themselves almost entirely from the genre on their two 21st-century releases, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and A Ghost Is Born. It's ironic then that the tweak to Wilco's formula this time around, the flavor switch that differentiates their new Sky Blue Sky from their previously recent work, is at the very least a nod to the rootsy beginnings they strove so hard to get away from. The band's sixth studio album (or eighth is you count the Mermaid Ave. volumes they released with Billy Bragg) is a creation culled largely from the influence of folk-leaning material from the 1970's, The Band to The Dead to Neil Young. Which is not to say there aren't some gloriously experimental moments here: "Walken," "Impossible Germany," and "Hate It Here," all have their moments of enjoyable difficulty, though it's generally tempered with warmer tones than you'll find on most of A Ghost Is Born. Whether one takes this as a creative step backward, or more of a coming full circle, the results are once again consistently great, unpretentious pop. In short, more distinctly American music from this most American of bands, which, in the context of this discussion at least, is the ultimate compliment.

Wilco

In House #1869.
Airdate: 5/14/07
Focus: New release from Wilco, Sky Blue Sky, out tomorrow, plus new music from Track a Tiger, Ian Hunter, Nick Lowe, The Mother Hips, and more.


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #309

In House #1865: The Clientele's God Save the Clientele; Morrissey in Salt Lake City





In House #1865.
Airdate: 5/8/07
Focus: New release out today from The Clientele, God Save the Clientele, plus Morrissey in Salt Lake City tonight and new music from Travis, Ladybug Transistor, and more.



PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #306

In House #1857: Laura Veirs' Saltbreakers; Richard Swift in Salt Lake City This Weekend

It's been a busy four years or so for Laura Veirs. The singer-songwriter has released three excellently-crafted and well-received albums, each more high profile than the last, toured exhaustively in their support, endured a failed relationship (which is well-documented in her new material), and made the move from Seattle to Portland. Of course, it's just such a schedule that has allowed her to go so far so quickly as she has organically grown her fan-base one at a time. Her latest effort, Saltbreakers, is also the third album with her current backing band (also called, you guessed it, The Saltbreakers), and a lineup that includes Tucker Martine, who also produced the album. Understandably, the band is close and it tends to come through in the music as they flesh out Veirs' whip-smart songs to great effect. Most impressive on the new release are the instances of new sonic exploration, sounding far more removed from 2005's Year of Meteors than a mere two years. "To the Country," features Veirs' ghostly call and response with the Cedar Hill Choir, with flourishes of solo fiddle further removing the song from Veirs' past repertoire. Elsewhere, "Phantom Mountain," rocks out like she never has before, adding garage-fuzz guitars and bombast. Following a string of European dates, Veirs begins a US tour May 8th in Chicago.



Also today, music from Richard Swift, who plays Kilby Court in Salt Lake City this Saturday night in what will be his final U.S. performance before he heads to the U.K. for a series of dates in early June. As his sound indicates, Swift is a true throwback, a pure pop songwriter that finds common ground amongst the likes of Paul McCartney (the good, 70's, songwriting version) and Tom Waits, among other artists of yesteryear. Maybe it's that circular taste thing working, but he somehow channels those retro leanings into a finished product that sounds entirely fresh and intriguing. Not one to be pigeon-holed into one decade, Swift broke ground on the 1980's earlier this year when his version of Prince's "Paisley Park," appeared as the B-side to his "Kisses For the Misses" single. His most recent full-length is this year's excellent Dressed Up For the Letdown.

In House #1857.
Airdate: 4/26/07
Focus: New release from Laura Veirs, Saltbreakers, plus Richard Swift plays Salt Lake City this weekend. Also, new music from Elliott Smith, Chrisopher Blue, Winterpills, Andrew Bird, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Laura Veirs, from Saltbreakers:

"Saltbreakers" (MP3)

Richard Swift, from The Novelist/Walking Without Effort:

"As I Go" (MP3)
...from the Kisses For the Misses 7":

"Paisley Park" (MP3) (Prince cover)

Elliott Smith, from New Moon (due 5/8):

"Pretty Mary K (Other Version)" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #300

In House #1854: New Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen Reissues

A busy show today features two legends of pop music, each of whom never really seems to get their full due. Fresh off of her induction this year into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Patti Smith returns with a covers album, entitled Twelve. Smith tackles a vast range of styles and artists, covering nearly forty years of musical output in the process. Versions of the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter," and Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit," might almost be said to be expected, and Smith rather nails them accordingly. Also in the mix, though, are eyebrow-raising takes on Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," and Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," given a six-minute, banjo-backed treatment the reverence of which is the yin to the original's unruly yang. Interestingly, Smith almost exclusively chooses to cover songs sung originally by male leads, trying her hand at numbers by The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Neil Young, and Stevie Wonder, among others. Twelve is out tomorrow on Columbia.

Also today, music from the first three releases from the legendary French-Candian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, each of which gets a deluxe reissue treatment tomorrow courtesy of Sony Legacy. On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the release of Cohen's debut, the label will issue remastered, deluxe versions of Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967), Songs From a Room (1969), and Songs of Love & Hate (1971), each including bonus tracks. A true giant amongst both musical and literary circles, Cohen's artistic influence has been incalculable on many of those that have come after him. This initial trio of releases shows him in top form as it includes such staples of his catalog as "Suzanne," "So Long, Marianne," "Bird On a Wire," and "Famous Blue Raincoat," among others. Still going strong at 72, Cohen's most recent release, his eleventh, was 2004's Dear Heather.

In House #1854.
Airdate: 4/23/07
Focus: New covers album from Patti Smith, Twelve, plus music from three new Leonard Cohen reissues out tomorrow, as well as from the new Nonesuch release, A Tribute to Joni Micthell.

BONUS MP3s-
Patti Smith, from Twelve:

"Everybody Wants to Rule the World" (MP3)

Leonard Cohen, from the reissued version of Songs of Leonard Cohen:

"Blessed Is the Memory" (MP3) (bonus track)
...and from Songs of Love & Hate:

"Famous Blue Raincoat" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #298

In House #1852: New Cowboy Junkies, Playing Boise Tonight

Twenty-one years ago, the Cowboy Junkies issued a fairly unassuming debut made up almost entirely of covers, featuring songs by the likes of John Lee Hooker, Bruce Springsteen, Robert Johnson, and others. Whites Off Earth Now!! was marked in its hazy, almost drugged-out take on classic country and blues, the beginnings of a signature sound from a band that has been called "country on valium." Low meets Neil Young might have been an apt descriptor if the band hadn't predated the former. The Junkies released their twelfth studio album earlier this week, entitled At the End of Paths Taken, and while they've certainly branched out and expanded their sound over the past two decades to include rock, pop, and folk, the deliberate pace remains in many cases, not to mention the cool coo of Margo Timmins. The album, however, also continues a recent trend with the band's music to eschew traditional song structure resulting in the kind of extended jams and meditations that are the anti-3-minute-pop songs. One need look no further than the 7-minute plus "Mountain," for proof, as it spreads an atmospheric soundscape over a recording of the Timmins' (Margo and Peter, who are both in the band) father reading from what sounds like it could a personal history piece. It's a long way from Robert Johnson, to be sure, but there are plenty of more traditional moments here, including the electric blues dirge "Cutting Board Blues," and the stunning "Spiral Down." The Cowboy Junkies play the Egyptian Theatre in Boise tonight.

Cowboy Junkies

In House #1852.
Airdate: 4/19/07
Focus: New release from the Cowboy Junkies, At the End of Paths Taken, also playing Boise tonight. Plus, new music from the Golden Smog, Ian Hunter, Grant-Lee Phillips, Patti Smith, and more.

BONUS MP3-
Cowboy Junkies, from At the End of Paths Taken:

"Spiral Down" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #296

In House #1851: The Rosebuds' Night of the Furies; Elk City's New Believers

United in love and music, the married duo that make up North Carolina's Rosebuds returned last week with their third full-length for Merge records, entitled Night of the Furies. To hear it, though, you'd hardly know it was them. After two albums of sometimes blissful, sometimes wistful indie pop laden with hooks, Ivan Howard and Kelly Crisp perform a musical about-face with a collection of songs glossed over by synths, drum machines, and dance beats. They've traded in their Go-Betweens records for New Order and even the Pet Shop Boys, in other words, and once one gets over that shock it works quite well. Often dark and occasionally deliberately kitschy, anthemic choruses abound on Furies, notably on both the title track and the dancefloor leaning, "Get Up Get Out." Elsewhere, "Silja Line," rides the only naked guitar passage on the album to a slow burn and eventual choral climax with guest vocals from the Shout Out Louds. The Rosebuds begin an extensive U.S. tour in mid-May.

Also today, the first new release in five years from Elk City, New Believers, which came out yesterday on Friendly Fire. The band announced their arrival back in 2000 with the promising if uneven status, and returned a couple of years later on Touch & Go with Hold Tight the Ropes. A few line-up changes later, including the addition of Luna's Sean Eden, and Elk City sounds better than ever. Renee LoBue's siren vocals continue to lead the charge, as she makes more than good on the "female Bowie" comparisons she's enjoyed over the years. Look no further than one of this year's best singles, "Los Cruzados," for definitive proof of Elk City's rebirth.














In House #1851.
Airdate: 4/18/07
Focus: New releases from The Rosebuds, Night of the Furies, and Elk City, New Believers. Plus, new music from The Concretes, Feist, Blonde Redhead, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
The Rosebuds, from Night of the Furies:

"Get Up Get Out" (MP3)

Elk City, from New Believers:

"Los Cruzados" (MP3)

"Cherries In the Snow" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #295

In House #1841: Fountains of Wayne's Traffic & Weather

The Fountains of Wayne returned this week with their first album in four years, entitled Traffic & Weather. The release is once again the kind of schizophrenic but catchy pop pastiche the band has become known for over the years, in other words meaning you're in luck if hooks and harmonies are your thing, but don't come around here looking for an album that plays out well as a cohesive whole. That said, there's plenty to like here, even if the band will probably never equal the quality of their first couple of releases. Adam Schlesinger once again turns an observant, sometimes critical, often hilarious eye on the current cultural milieu of the middle class, peppering his songs with pop culture references and name-checking everything from Guns & Roses to The Gap to King of Queens. Such content has in the past helped the band nail one-liners like, "I saw you talkin'/ To Christopher Walken/ On my TV screen," and "The Buick's in the drive/ It's great to be alive," and it continues to set the band apart here, though it doesn't necessarily make for content that is relevant past next week. Still, despite a misstep here and there and an album that is four songs too long, it's hard to resist the countryish pop of "Fire In the Canyon," and the lovesong (with truckstop commentary) "I-95." The Fountains of Wayne still make pleasurably if slightly nerdy pop music, it just feels a little more guilty than it has in the past.

Fountains of Wayne

In House #1841.
Airdate: 4/4/07
Focus: New release from the Fountains of Wayne, Traffic & Weather, plus new music from Feist, TigerCity, Albert Hammond Jr., and more.

BONUS MP3-
Joseph Arthur & the Lonely Astronauts, from Let's Just Be (due 4/17):

"Diamond Ring" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #288

In House #1839: Jarvis Cocker's Jarvis Out In the U.S.; New BRMC

After months of state-side hand-wringing, the solo debut from former Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker finally gets a proper U.S. release tomorrow thanks to World's Fair. Already made available to most of the rest of the world last November, Jarvis finds Cocker in classically wry form, with plenty of the kind of social commentary that made Pulp's 90's output stand out alongside their Brit-pop contemporaries. Most notable in this for its direct lyrical approach, "Running the World," included as an album-closing hidden track, calls the international powers that be on the carpet, scolding them with the only words most of them deserve. Elsewhere, Cocker's critical eye is more metaphorical, slicing up corporate culture and its residuals in the scathing "Fat Children." Other highlights here, and there are plenty, include "Heavy Weather," "Baby's Coming Back to Me," and "Black Magic," the latter of which samples Tommy James & the Shondells' "Crimson & Clover," to surprisingly great effect. It's not necessarily surprising to get such a fresh-sounding album from Cocker, though it's never clear what one might hear from an artist who's over a decade removed from his best work with his former band. Jarvis, however, shows Cocker to have aged at least as well as Blur's Damon Albarn, and certainly better than the likes of Oasis. Indeed, Jarvis has returned.

Jarvis Cocker

In House #1839.
Airdate: 4/2/07
Focus: New release from Jarvis Cocker, Jarvis, finally out in the U.S. tomorrow, plus new music from the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, the Kaiser Chiefs, Band of Bees, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Jarvis Cocker, from Jarvis:

"Running the World" (MP3)

"Don't Let Him Waste Your Time" (MP3)

"Baby's Coming Back to Me" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #286

In House #1835: Grant-Lee Phillips' Strangelet; New Laura Veirs

Back in the halcyon 90' s, once could still occasionally catch an actual music video from an actual band worth hearing on MTV. This is not to say the popular music scene was much better than it is now-- one still had to wait 10 or 15 videos before coming across something that didn't sound like everything else. It wasn't difficult, then, for Grant Lee Buffalo's "Mockingbirds," (from their 1994 release Mighty Joe Moon) to stand out amongst the Candleboxes and Lives of the time, as it somehow garnered moderate play on the channel. It was, of course, Grant-Lee Phillips' unique croon that drove the vehicle, rising to falsetto on the despondent but strangely comforting chorus, "And I thought/ If I toed/ The right lines/ But these mockingbirds won't/ Let me shine..." These days Phillips is still at it but taking the troubadour route, and his television appearances tend more towards his recurring role on The Gilmore Girls or the odd late night show appearance than they do MTV. Strangelet, the singer-songwriter's fifth solo release in the past seven years, drops today on Zoe, and finds him splitting the difference between the pop shine of 2001's Mobilize and the sepia-toned roots of 2004's Virginia Creeper. It's another engaging and melodic set from Phillips, who engineered, produced, and performed the album almost entirely on his own, save a little help from his band and friends like R.E.M.'s Peter Buck. Aside from his regular Los Angeles gigs, Phillips will be playing major U.S. cities here and there throughout the spring before heading to Europe this summer.

Grant-Lee Phillips

In House #1835.
Airdate: 3/27/07
Focus: New release out today from Grant-Lee Phillips, Strangelet, plus new music from Andrew Bird, Laura Veirs, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Grant-Lee Phillips, from Strangelet:

"Hidden Hand" (MP3)

"Johnny Guitar" (MP3)

Chrisopher Blue, from room tones (due 4/17):

"Ghost In the Night" (MP3)

BONUS vid-
Grant Lee Phillips, from Strangelet: "Raise the Spirit"


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #282

In House #1832: Andrew Bird's Armchair Apocrypha; New Beirut

Not to gush, but this is getting ridiculous. Fresh off of setting the world a'fire (ours, anyway, we named The Mysterious Production of Eggs one of our top five releases of 2005), Andrew Bird returned this week with Armchair Apocrypha, an album that expands Bird's scope to include the odd electronic texture (thanks to collaborator Martin Dosh) and legendary blues label Fat Possum. "Simple X," is a rather astounding number included here, taking on a second life after originally appearing as a Dosh instrumental. It's notable for its drum loop, almost certainly a first in Bird's catalog, later to be joined by a bit of Hammond organ, theremin, and Bird's prodigious whistling talents. It's not the album's lead track, or even its lead single, but its haunting and rather unlikely combinations provide a nice summary of the new ground Bird covers. One other number enjoying a second life, and living it to its fullest, is the infectious "Imitosis," a revitalized take on the song, "I," from Bird's 2003 release Weather Systems. One of the rare head-bobbers in the collection, the song is built upon the vaguely eastern European folk rhythms recognizable in much of Bird's previous work-- though its dark theme ("we're all basically alone") is more than at home with the unsettled and unsettling subjects on the rest of this album. Armchair Apocrypha represents the next step up for Bird, whose ascension from Squirrel Nut Zippers sideman to revered musical swashbuckler has been nothing short of astounding. To paraphrase the Bird himself, thank god it's (not) fatal.

Andrew Bird

In House #1832.
Airdate: 3/21/07
Focus: New release from Andrew Bird, Armchair Apocrypha, plus new music from Beirut, Winterpills, Bill Callahan, Arthur & Yu, and more.

BONUS MP3-
Andrew Bird, from Armchair Apocrypha:

"Heretics" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #280

In House #1831: Patty Griffin in Boise Tonight; New Grant-Lee Phillips

In many ways, Children Running Through, the fifth and latest full-length from Patty Griffin, is an album that finally gets her completely right. It's certainly her most accomplished and confident sounding release, serving as a statement of absolute arrival just over a decade since her debut appeared. Not to discount her past work or suggest that it hasn't won her a dedicated following along the way, but there's something different, something more going on this time out. Immediately noticeable is the classic R&B vibe, as in Aretha Franklin and Sam Cooke, that appears over the course of the album. "Stay On the Ride," is a horn-fortified slice of soul that sounds born of Washington, D.C. street marches, while "Heavenly Day," a song borrowed to R&B great Solomon Burke for last year's Nashville, sounds like a companion piece to Sam Cooke's endlessly moving "A Change Is Gonna Come." Elsewhere Griffin brings a gospel flair to "Up to the Mountain (MLK Song)," a gorgeous number based in part on Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. It's here that Griffin might be said to achieve a level that is spiritual, but not religious-- a line similar to the one that she walks in the rollicking "No Bad News," a song that clearly addresses a political situation without becoming polarizing. Another highlight finds Griffin joined by Emmylou Harris as she mines her Americana roots (also done on "I'm Getting Ready," but at a much faster speed) on "Trapeze," which sounds as good as one might expect given the duo joining forces. It all adds up to what can really only be summed up as a moment that is "career-defining" for Griffin, who clearly deserves to be mentioned in the same circles as contemporaries like Lucinda Williams, among others. In the latest in an impressive string of artists to grace its stage so far this year, Patty Griffin plays the Egyptian Theatre in Boise tonight.

Patty Griffin

In House #1831.
Airdate: 3/20/07
Focus: Patty Griffin in Boise tonight, plus new music from Arthur Dodge, Grant-Lee Phillips, Cowboy Junkies, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
Patty Griffin, from Children Running Through:

"Stay On the Ride" (MP3)

Grant-Lee Phillips, from Strangelet (due 3/27):

"Hidden Hand" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #279

In House #1829: St. Patrick's Day Special: The Gorgeous Hussies/ The Wailin' O'Sheas Live

We celebrate St. Patrick's Day one day early this year with two bands in one. Salt Lake City's Gorgeous Hussies miraculously transform themselves into Irish tunesmiths The Wailin' O'Sheas in the studio today, gracing us with material from both acts. In either case, the trio has been playing together for a mere eight months with an EP, last year's Oh! Hello, already to their credit. They're in the area for performances from each of their personas tomorrow night at Pocatello's First National Bar.

The Gorgeous Hussies AND The Wailin' O'Sheas

In House #1829.
Airdate: 3/16/07
Focus: St. Patrick's Day Special with a live in-studio visit from The Gorgeous Hussies and The Wailin' O'Sheas, plus music from The Pogues, The Waterboys, The Dubliners, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's live in-studio set-
The Wailin' O'Sheas:

"The Kilborn Highroad" (MP3) (Flogging Molly cover)

"Whiskey In the Jar" (MP3)

"That Woman's Got Me Drinkin'" (MP3) (Shane McGowan & The Popes cover)

The Gorgeous Hussies:

"On the Phone" (MP3)

"Dangerously Similar" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #277

In House #1825: Bryan Ferry's Dylanesque; New Patti Smith

Aside from his beginnings fronting art-pop pioneers Roxy Music, Bryan Ferry has, over the years, also made a name for himself with his solo work. His cool, sophisticated delivery has almost always resulted in interesting and engaging work, a major part of which has been his ability as a song interpreter. From the beginning of his solo career, 1973's These Foolish Things, Ferry has shown a consistent flare for repackaging, rearranging, and reimagining compositions by everyone from The Beatles to Smokey Robinson & the Miracles to Great American Songbook standards by Cole Porter and Jerome Kern, among others. Indeed, a glance through his back catalog shows a body of work made up almost exclusively of covers, with the odd original thrown in here and there.

Dylanesque, Ferry's latest effort and first since 2002's excellent Frantic, should come as no surprise then, particularly since there has been no single artist he's sung more than Bob Dylan. Given the track record, it's also no surprise that the eleven versions here are anything but karaoke takes-- Ferry speeds up "Simple Twist of Fate," and slows down "Positively 4th Street," to gist-altering results. The selections span roughly thirty years of Dylan's output, 1964's The Times They Are A-Changin' to 1997's Time Out of Mind, with a surprising emphasis on well-known tunes like "Knockin' On Heaven's Door," and "All Along the Watchtower," the latter of which is as much a nod to Jimi Hendrix as it is Dylan with the impeccably cool Ferry rocking out like he rarely has. Underrated yet iconic at 61, Ferry turns in another collection that fulfills the intrigue it suggests on paper.

In House #1825.
Airdate: 3/12/07
Focus: New release from Bryan Ferry, Dylanesque, plus Richard Swift covers Prince, and Patti Smith and R.E.M. get inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame tonight.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
Bryan Ferry, from Dylanesque:

"Simple Twist of Fate" (MP3)

Patti Smith, from Twelve (due 4/24):

"Gimme Shelter" (MP3) (Rolling Stones cover)

Richard Swift, from the "Kisses For the Misses" 7" single:

"Paisley Park" (MP3) (Prince cover)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #273

In House #1815: Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips' Back Numbers; New Feist

Former Luna lovebirds Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips return tomorrow with their second full-length effort, and first since their old band packed it in. Wareham, of course, spent thirteen years as frontman of Luna following time as part of slowgazers Galaxie 500, while Phillips was, among other things, the voice of cartoon pop star Jem back in the '80's before hopping aboard the Luna ship for the band's final two releases. Back Numbers drops on Zoe, and features the duo adapting a kind of Lee Hazlewood & Nancy Sinatra for the 21st century guise, even going so far as to cover one of Hazlewood's tunes ("You Turned My Head Around"). Elsewhere are idiosyncratic versions of two Troggs tunes, "White Horses," and "Our Love Will Still Be There," as well as a Donovan B-side ("Teen Angel"). It's a decidedly languorous and romantic set, all cooed vocals and sunshine daze. We haven't heard what the rest of Luna is doing these days, but Dean & Britta seem more than content to waltz off into the sun.

Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips

In House #1815.
Airdate: 2/26/07
Focus: New release out tomorrow from Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips, Back Numbers, plus new music from Josh Rouse & Paz Suay, Feist, Jill Cunniff, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Dean & Britta, from Back Numbers:

"The Sun Is Still Sunny" (MP3)

Jill Cunniff, from City Beach:

"Lazy Girls" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #265

In House #1814: The Autumn Defense, Gomez In the Area This Weekend




In House #1814.
Airdate: 2/23/07
Focus: The Autumn Defense with Ferraby Lionheart tonight in Provo, plus Gomez plays Park City. Also, new music from Paul Duncan, Winterpills, and more.


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #264

In House #1812: Elvis Perkins' Ash Wednesday; Erin McKeown Plays Missoula

On the actual Ash Wednesday, today we get to the debut album of the same title from singer-songwriter Elvis Perkins and his band, Elvis Perkins in Dearland. After a self-released version last year, Perkins' Ash Wednesday got a label issue yesterday on XL and for good reason. Perkins operates in the mode of greats like Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan, occasionally coming across like a less melodramatic Jeff Buckley. Much of the material on the album comes directly from lived experience-- Perkins, as has been well documented at this point, is the son of actor Anthony Perkins (who died of AIDS in 1992) and photographer Berry Berenson (who was killed aboard one of the hijacked September 11th airliners). There's a lot of emotion to go around here, in other words, but Perkins plays it subtly on reflective, meditative pieces like the powerful title track. As tough as these experiences no doubt were for Perkins, they've certainly informed his ability as a songwriter, ensuring that he's known as something more than offspring of the famous. Perkins tours with Clap Your Hands Say Yeah this spring before playing Bonnaroo in June.


Also today, music from Erin McKeown, who plays the University of Montana in Missoula tonight. McKeown is currently touring in support of her most recent full-length Sing You Sinners, on which she covers Tin Pan Alley and golden age of pop tunes written by the likes of Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen and others. The album was issued to high acclaim in January on Nettwerk.



In House #1812.
Airdate: 2/21/07
Focus: Debut release from Elvis Perkins, Ash Wednesday, plus Erin McKeown plays the University of Montana in Missoula tonight, and we get to new music from Andrew Bird, Eleni Mandell, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Elvis Perkins, from Ash Wednesday:

"Ash Wednesday" (MP3)

"All the Night Without Love" (MP3)

Erin McKeown, from Sing You Sinners:

"Melody" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #262

In House #1810: Richard Swift's Dressed Up For the Letdown; New Laura Veirs

The second full-length from singer-songwriter Richard Swift, entitled Dressed Up For the Letdown, drops tomorrow on Secretly Canadian. Swift charmed a couple of years back with the double release The Novelist/Walking Without Effort, which gathered his first two independently released efforts into one wonderfully-sounding package. This go around, he once again spins a flavor steeped heavily in retro pop influences, George Harrison to Tin Pan Alley. The thing is, it feels a bit disingenuous to slap a "retro" label on Swift-- there's no kitsch intended and none to be taken. Still, it's hard to shake the feeling that the music isn't coming from some long-lost, ahead of his time singer-songwriter, ala Nick Drake or, more recently, Karen Dalton. Songs like "Kisses For the Misses," and "The Songs of National Freedom," are instantly comfortable, inspiring false nostalgia even while sounding unique and based in the present. It's music that deserves to be lauded in its own time-- luckily Swift will be around to enjoy it. He tours the UK with labelmate David Vandervelde beginning in early March.

Richard Swift

In House #1810.
Airdate: 2/19/07
Focus: New release out tomorrow from Richard Swift, Dressed Up For the Letdown, plus new music from Laura Veirs, Bryan Ferry, Julie Doiron, and more.

BONUS MP3 and video-
Richard Swift, from Dressed Up For the Letdown:

"Kisses For the Misses" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #260

In House #1803: Eleni Mandell's Miracle of Five; New Elvis Perkins

Singer-songwriter Eleni Mandell has for the last few years been one of L.A.'s little secrets. Sure, her string of five albums in five years beginning in 1999 saw her being mentored by Chuck E. Weiss, produced by Jon Brion, and compared to Tom Waits and PJ Harvey (not to mention sharing L.A.'s Best Songwriter award with the late Elliott Smith), but her exposure was slow-going outside of Hollywoodland. Mandell returned this week with her sixth full-length, Miracle of Five, an album that once again mixes up the elements she's always explored in her music: lounge-born torch songs, intelligent pop, and the occasional twang. Whatever she's been doing in the three years since her previous release, it suits her; the vocal performaces on this collection are easily the best of her career. The spooky rock-vamp of "My Twin," and the hushed tones of "Moonglow, Lamp Low," are equally stunning in her hands, revealing a diva's polish where there were previously rough edges. Helping Mandell out in her pursuit this go around are Wilco guitarist Nels Cline and X/Knitters drummer DJ Bonebrake, among others, seasoned musicians who no doubt brought a lot of their own ideas to the music. In short, it's a release more than worthy of her quickly growing discography, and another gem in what has been an impressive showing for female singer-songwriters thus far in 2007. Mandell plays a series of west coast/northwest dates this month before embarking on a European tour in March.

Eleni Mandell

In House #1803.
Airdate: 2/8/07
Focus: New release from Eleni Mandell, Miracle of Five, plus new music from Elvis Perkins, Rickie Lee Jones, Jesse Malin, and more.

BONUS MP3-
Eleni Mandell, from Miracle of Five:

"Girls" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #253