New Blitzen Trapper Video: "Devil's a Go-Go"

From their recent Wild Mountain Nation onslaught.

New Menomena Video: "Rotten Hell"

From this year's friend & foe release. This pretty much rules.

Wilco Live From AOL: "You Are My Face"

Enjoy.

Harvey Danger's "Flagpole Sitta" Off Broadway

Oh my.

I want to work here:

M. Ward (with Jim James & Neko Case) Plays Conan

Portland, Oregon troubadour M. Ward delivered a stellar version of "Chinese Translation," on Friday night's episode of Late Night with Conan O' Brien. Enjoy (until NBC has it removed).

In House #1855: Cloud Cult's Meaning of 8; New Britt Daniel

It's one thing to be prolific but another entirely to be prolific and brilliant. Our occasional tendencies to engage in hyperbole aside, Minneapolis' Cloud Cult has been something close to both for the better part of the decade now, while still somehow managing to be kept under wraps like a special secret. With the release of Meaning of 8, the band's fifth full-length in the past seven years, their underground darling days may soon be at an end. The nineteen-track collection is a sprawling, stuffed to the gills festival of pop, at times so lyrically and musically dense that it's impossible to believe that it doesn't fall right over on its face. But no, Craig Minowa and friends succeed where so many have failed, and their pop pastiche brings to mind the best (and long-lost) moments of the Flaming Lips, the tribal righteousness of the Arcade Fire, the nearly unhinged lunacy of Modest Mouse. Songs like "Chemicals Collide," perhaps the best example of a pure pop song in 2007 this side of Peter, Bjorn & John's "Young Folks," literally beam with...we'll call it hope (and that's OK); "Please Remain Calm," meanwhile, suggests a Beta Band heir in the land of Sinclair Lewis. Meaning of 8 is a lot to take in at once, but it's a varied and captivating lot-- what more can you ask than that? The band that passes out environmentally-minded fact sheets at their gigs and looks like your college drama troupe just might be the emerging face of American indie-pop, and it's about time. Cloud Cult play two Montana dates this week, tonight in Bozeman and tomorrow night in Missoula, before heading for the west coast.

Cloud Cult

In House #1855.
Airdate: 4/24/07
Focus: New release from Cloud Cult, Meaning of 8, playing Montana shows tonight and tomorrow night, plus new music from Britt Daniel, The National, Pela, Modest Mouse, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Cloud Cult, from Meaning of 8:

"Take Your Medicine" (MP3)

Spoon's Britt Daniel, from Bridging the Distance: A Portland Covers Compilation:

"Bring It On Home To Me" (MP3) (Sam Cooke cover)

BONUS Vid- Cloud Cult's "Chemicals Collide":


PLAYLIST

Video: John Vanderslice & St. Vincent Together, Unplugged

A live, un-amped version of Vanderslice's "Nikki Oh Nikki" from Monday night's performance at Kilby Court in Salt Lake City.


As you may recall from Monday's show, the pair are currently out on tour together. Plenty more to come from that night's festivities here, including photos and a (hopefully) upgraded video of this song. Edit- So this version is a little better, but not much, thus beginning in earnest the Buy In House a New Camera Pledge Drive. Any little bit helps. Thanks in advance.

In House #1845: The Asylum Street Spankers Play Boise Tonight

The irreverence of the Asylum Street Spankers makes a rare appearance in the region tonight, as they play The Neurolux in beautiful downtown Boise. The Austin, TX-based outfit has been bringing their unique and varied sound (marked by instances of political smart-aleckry, blue humor, and assorted strains of retro) to the people since 1994. Their seventh and latest studio full-length, Mommy Says No!, is a bit more "child-oriented," shall we say, than we've heard from The Spankers in the past, but still manages to come across like they might sound if Shel Silverstein joined the group. Still, for a band whose past catalog includes EPs with titles like Naughty Novelties and Dirty Ditties, not to mention the full-length ode to substance use Spanker Madness, the new release represents uncharted territory.

Asylum Street Spankers

In House #1845.
Airdate: 4/10/07
Focus: The Asylum Street Spankers in Boise tonight, plus new music from Asleep at the Wheel, Jon Rauhouse, John Doe, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Asylum Street Spankers, from Spanker Madness (2000):

"Winning the War On Drugs" (MP3)
...and recorded live in Rochester, NY (2004):

"Asylum Street Blues" (MP3)

John Doe, from A Year In the Wilderness (due 6/12):

"The Golden State" (MP3) (with Kathleen Edwards)

The Linemen, from Through Side One:

"Through Side One" (MP3)

BONUS Vid-
Asylum Street Spankers' "Stick Magnetic Ribbons On Your SUV":


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #291

In House #1838: Ted Leo's Living With the Living; Apples in Stereo in Boise, SLC

The fifth full-length from the consistently interesting, always passionate Ted Leo and his band The Pharmacists dropped last week on Touch & Go, marking the band's initial release for the label. Living With the Living once again puts Leo's fiery delivery and heart-on-his-sleeve politics on display, this go around with an unexpected element or two. "Bottle of Buckie," is pure pop jaunt, bouncing along to a vaguely Irish beat before breaking out the pennywhistle for a Lord of the Dance midsong solo that actually works well. Elsewhere the band mines the dub-tones of The Clash or The Jam on "The Unwanted Things," and even brings early Springsteen into the mix on "La Costa Brava." This being a Ted Leo album, there are politics to be had as well, and Leo's been given plenty of ammunition to work with over the past few years. "Bomb. Repeat. Bomb.," as the title might suggest, is an absolute in your face to the current American government and its war, while similar themes pop up amongst the tunes "Army Bound," (which also features a mean guitar solo) and "Annunciation Day/ Born On Christmas Day." In short, the album exudes everything Leo has become known for over the years. It's passionate and diverse. It's thoughtful and indignant. In the end, it's these qualities in the music that will reward upon repeated listens, and forgive Leo the occasional tendency to overreach. Touring in support of the new release, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists play The Venue in Boise on April 20th and Club Sound in Salt Lake City on the 21st.

Also today, music from the Apples in Stereo, currently touring in support of their recent triumphant return, New Magnetic Wonder. Robert Schneider and friends showed no signs of rust after five years between albums with their new work standing amongst some of the best from their late 90's hey day. The band plays with opening act Casper & the Cookies tonight at The Neurolux in Boise before moving on to The Depot in Salt Lake City tomorrow night.




In House #1838.
Airdate: 3/30/07
Focus: New release from Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, Living With the Living, plus the Apples in Stereo play Boise and Salt Lake City this weekend, and new music from Cloud Cult, The Eames Era, Arcade Fire, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, from Living With the Living:

"A Bottle of Buckie" (MP3)

"The Sons of Cain" (MP3)

Apples in Stereo, from New Magnetic Wonder:

"Energy" (MP3)

Casper & the Cookies, from Oh!:

"Take It Away, Kathy" (MP3)

BONUS Vids-
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists' "Bomb.Repeat.Bomb.":


Apples in Stereo's "Same Old Drag":


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #285

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 #1833: Low's Drums & Guns; New Blonde Redhead

Duluth, Minnesota trio Low emerged from the annual thaw this week with a new creation, their eighth studio full-length, entitled Drums & Guns. For a band once content with a steady and consistent sound that made them known as a slo-core act back in the 90's, they've shown a restless streak over the past two or three albums now. The new one is no different, exhibiting an entirely stripped bare sound that can only be described as skeletal, and in the process making an about face from the uncharacteristically loud, crunchy tunes found on 2005's The Great Destroyer. In fact, perhaps the only thing Drums & Guns has in common with that album is producer Dave Fridmann-- whose work here is truly astonishing considering that he was the guy responsible for the layers and lushness found on albums like the Flaming Lips' Soft Bulletin and Mercury Rev's Deserter's Songs, among others. Despite the sparse tones, Low still manage to cover complex territory, with the world's current war serving as the centerpiece for songs with titles like "Hatchet," "Murderer," and "Violent Past." In other words, it plays out how an album that begins with the lines, "All the soldiers/ They're all gonna die/ All the babies/ They're all gonna die," might be expected to, somehow without battering the listener over the head with the heavy subject matter. By reinventing their sound once again, this go around employing loops and electronic blips like they never have before, the band simply takes a different route to a similar result: a creation that is at once dark AND beautiful-- and unmistakably Low.

Low

In House #1833.
Airdate: 3/22/07
Focus: New release from Low, Drums & Guns, plus new music from Blonde Redhead, Elk City, Archives (featuring Carissa's Wierd's Mat Brooke), and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Low, from Drums & Guns:

"Breaker" (MP3)

"Murderer" (MP3)

Archives, (new band feat. ex-Carissa's Wierd/Band of Horses' Mat Brooke):

"Sleepdriving" (MP3)

BONUS Vid-
Low's "Breaker":


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #281

In House #1826: Neil Young's Live at Massey Hall; New Graham Parker

Following last year's release of a 1970 recording with Crazy Horse at the Fillmore East, Neil Young issues the second in his new archives series with the release today of Live at Massey Hall. The 1971 recording captures Young solo and acoustic in his hometown at a point between the classic full-lengths After the Goldrush and Harvest, the latter of which would propel him into full-on star status. The perspective here is the important thing. This is Young at just 25, having already enjoyed much success with Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young, as well as Crazy Horse, and much of what would make his legend was still to come. Plenty of songs here make debut appearances, some with slight alterations. As he tells the audience at the outset, he plays mostly "new stuff," including Harvest heavyweights like "Old Man," and "A Man Needs a Maid," which is played as a medley with "Heart of Gold." One of the real revelations here is "Dance Dance Dance," a song that appears on Crazy Horse's 1971 self-titled release. In other words, it's not an oft-heard song, but Young's stage stomping version here, easily the most energetic number of the night, unearths a forgotten gem. Other songs from future recordings include "Love In Mind," and "See the Sky About to Rain,"; "Bad Fog of Loneliness" appears for the first time anywhere. Live at Massey Hall is a wonderfully-recorded, intimate portrait of the artist as a young man.

Neil Young, 1971


In House #1826.
Airdate: 3/13/07
Focus: Neil Young's newly released Live at Massey Hall, plus a new album from Graham Parker, Don't Tell Columbus, as well as new music from Son Volt, Wilco, Willy Mason, and more.

BONUS MP3-
Neil Young, froom Live at Massey Hall:

"Dance Dance Dance" (MP3)

Graham Parker, from Don't Tell Columbus:

"Stick to the Plan" (MP3)

BONUS Vid-
Official trailer for Live at Massey Hall:


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #274

R.E.M., Patti Smith Enter Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Grandmaster Flash, The Ronettes, and, umm, Van Halen were also inducted in an evening that featured everyone from Keith Richards to Eddie Vedder to Zach de la Rocha. Oh, and Velvet Revolver.

On a related note, brand new from R.E.M. is a version of John Lennon's "#9 Dream," to be included on the upcoming benefit comp Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur.


...and Patti Smith with an updated take on an old tune:

In House #1820: Son Volt's The Search Out Tomorrow; New Wilco

Marking two albums into Jay Farrar's resurrection of Son Volt, the band releases The Search tomorrow. As you may recall, it was just a few short months ago that we were talking about Farrar's collaboration with Anders Parker known as Gob Iron. On the heels of finishing off a tour supporting that act's Death Songs For the Living, the ever-prolific Farrar returns with another set of songs for the new Son Volt line-up that follow along the lines of 2005's rather electrified Okemah & the Melody of Riot at the same time that they occasionally hearken back to to early efforts like Trace. On the one hand, the band rocks out with its politics out on the brief but charged "Satellite." On the other, they're joined by songstress Shannon McNally on the outstanding "Highway & Cigarettes," a road-weary tune that brings to mind Farrar's mid '90's duets with Kelly Willis on Lowell George's "Truckstop Girl," and Townes Van Zandt's "Rex's Blues" (VIDEO). Most surprising, though, is the Memphis-riffing horn section on the album's most immediately enjoyable track, "The Picture," a piece that sounds wholly unlike anything Farrar has done before. Son Volt begins an extensive tour later this month with the Magnolia Electric Co., beginning March 26th in Bellingham, Washington.

Son Volt circa 2007

In House #1820.
Airdate: 3/5/07
Focus: New release out tomorrow from Son Volt, The Search, plus new music from Wilco, Bright Eyes, The Silos, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
Son Volt, from The Search:

"The Picture" (MP3)

Wilco, from Sky Blue Sky (due 5/15):

"What Light" (MP3)

Bright Eyes, from the Four Winds EP (due tomorrow):

"Four Winds" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #269

In House #1816: Rickie Lee Jones in Salt Lake City Tonight

In a career marked by idiosyncrasies and a flat refusal to resort to the formulaic, singer-songwriter Rickie Lee Jones' latest is at once a suitable addition to that tradition and a departure of sorts away from it. The Sermon On Exposition Boulevard is certainly no less fluid and occasionally challenging than that which has come before from Jones, but its origins are somewhere else entirely. It was Jesus that was the inspiration this time around-- but not in the way one usually sees. Jones based the collection on The Words, a translation of sorts of the words of Jesus Christ done by artist and writer Lee Cantelon. The result? The Beat chanteuse becomes a Beat mystic, spiritual but not dogmatic, riffing on a character that is rarely presented as Jones does here. It's a searching, passionate, and sincere collection, one many are calling her strongest output since the classic 1979 debut. Touring in the new album's support, Rickie Lee Jones plays The Depot tonight in Salt Lake City.

Rickie Lee Jones

In House #1816.
Airdate: 2/27/07
Focus: Rickie Lee Jones in Salt Lake City tonight, plus new music from Patty Griffin, John Hammond, Graham Parker, and more. Plus, a new live track from Grace Potter & the Nocturnals.

BONUS MP3s-
Rickie Lee Jones, from The Sermon On Exposition Boulevard:

"Elvis Cadillac" (MP3)

Graham Parker, from Don't Tell Columbus (due 3/13):

"Stick to the Plan" (MP3)

BONUS Video-
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals:
"Mystery Train" (Live at the 8x10, Baltimore, Sept. 2006)



PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #266

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 #1801: New Releases From Sondre Lerche, Loney Dear

Call it the day the northern Europeans took over, as no fewer than three promising releases out today hail from the region also responsible for the greatest socio-political structures human society currently has to offer. Coincidence? Anyway, the strong output over the past few years from places like Oslo and Stockholm is hardly a secret at this point. Artists as diverse as The Cardigans, The Hives, Kings of Convenience, Nicolai Dunger, and St. Thomas have helped to put the region on the musical map in the early part of this century, and an inordinate amount of fine work continues to come forth. Today's releases include the fourth full-length from Norwegian and former wunderkind Sondre Lerche, who releases Phantom Punch as a seasoned 26 year-old. Lerche and his band, The Faces Down, return to the crisply-produced pop-rock stylings of his first couple of releases (albeit with unprecedented blasts of guitar) after issuing the classic jazz-pop album The Duper Sessions last February. Lerche's ability to move between genres continues to impress, and like the vast differences between last year's effort and Phantom Punch, songs like "The Tape," and "Tragic Mirror," strike a huge contrast. Lerche will be touring the U.S. beginning in mid-March, playing several dates including this year's SXSW Festival in Austin, TX.

Also today comes the U.S. and Sub Pop debut of one-man-band Loney, Dear. Swedish multi-instrumentalist Emil Svanängen is the bedroom pop mastermind behind Loney, Dear, having recorded four previous albums full of songs built with the sonic layers he stacks using a "modest home studio set-up." Loney, Noir is the latest in this string, out today before U.S appearances beginning on March 10th in New York City.

Finally, the third album from Swedish trio Peter Bjorn & John gets a domestic release on Almost Gold after being out in most of the rest of the world since June. Writer's Block is a '60's-inspired batch of indie pop tunes that has been drawing raves from all over. The generally simple song structures are augmented nicely by small, unorthodox touches like a whistled melody or a bongo solo. The gem here is undoubtedly "Young Folks," which finds the band joined by ex-Concretes frontwoman Victoria Bergsman.

In House #1801.
Airdate: 2/6/07
Focus: New releases from Sondre Lerche, Phantom Punch, Loney Dear, Loney, Noir, and Peter, Bjorn & John, Writers' Block. Plus, new music from Field Music, The Church, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Sondre Lerche, from Phantom Punch:

"Say It All" (MP3)

Loney, Dear, from Loney, Noir:

"Saturday Waits" (MP3)

"I Am John" (MP3)

BONUS Vid-
Peter Bjorn & John with Victoria Bergsman performing "Young Folks," recently on Late Night with Conan O'Brien:


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #252

The Shins Play Letterman

The band celebrated Tuesday's new release by stopping by Late Night with David Letterman and offering up this version of (surprise!) not "Phantom Limb," but "Turn On Me." Oh, and James Mercer shaved the beard.

In House #1791: Field Music's Tones of Town; New Dean & Britta

Among the myriad of new releases out today is Field Music's Tones of Town, available on Memphis Industries. The Sunderland, UK trio, made up of Andrew Moore and the brothers Brewis, Peter & David, revel in schizophrenic tempos and retro textures, evoking thirty-five years of British pop, McCartney's Wings to XTC to contemporaries like The Futureheads (who hail from the same hometown and once called Peter Brewis their drummer). Already lauded by critics as a cosmic jump forward over Field Music's 2005 debut, Tones of Town represents the pop end of the spectrum opposite peers like Bloc Party on the post-punk end with layers of piano, strings, and guitar swirling in and out of occasionally unpredictable changes in time signature. Opener "Give It Lose It Take It," sounds downright prog-like, while "Working to Work," apes some of the better instances of McCartney's mid-70's output and also gives a slight nod to... is that Hall & Oates? Cookie-cutter Brit-pop this isn't, and while 2007 may have begun with Field Music taking a backseat to more well-known acts like the Kaiser Chiefs or the aforementioned Bloc Party (each of whom has new albums on the way), if enough people hear Tones of Town it won't end that way. (Edit: In this time of digital downloads, not to mention domestic vs. international release dates, there appears to be some confusion about when it is exactly that Tones of Town will be receiving a U.S. release. Some sources have pinned it as late as March 20th, while Amazon claims it's the 13th of February. Memphis Industries, meanwhile, has it as February 20th. Draw your own conclusions, in any case, it's not today. Sorry for the mislead.)

Field Music

In House #1791.
Airdate: 1/23/07
Focus: New release out today from Field Music, Tones of Town, plus new music from Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips, Loney Dear, David Kilgour, The Postmarks, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Field Music, from Tones of Town:
"Give It Lose It Take It" (MP3)
"Sit Tight" (MP3)

The Postmarks, from The Postmarks (due 2/6): "Goodbye" (MP3)

The High Llamas, from Can Cladders (due 2/20): "Winter's Day" (MP3)

Memphis, from a little place in the wilderness:
"Incredibly Drunk On Whiskey" (MP3)

BONUS Vid- Field Music: "A House Is Not a Home"



PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #243