Cougar Microbes

The Legendary Bob Marley is celebrated this year in the documentary ‘Marley‘ directed by Academy winner Kevin Macdonald (“One Day In September,” “The Last King Of Scotland,”). The film shows the rise of “the Third World’s first superstar” through unseen footage and intimate interviews with the people who knew him best.

The official soundtrack is also a real treat featuring previously unheard studio recordings and legendary live performances offering 24 tracks carefully hand-picked by the Marley family and Island Records founder Chris Blackwell.

COMPETITION: We have a copy of the official soundtrack 2-CD collection to give away. To enter simply list your top three Bob Marley tracks on this post on our Facebook page.  Winners will be selected at random and notified on the 18th of June. Good luck!

‘Marley‘ Tracklisting 

CD 1
1. Corner Stone
2. Judge Not
3. Simmer Down
4. Small Axe
5. Mellow Mood
6. Stir It Up
7. Concrete Jungle
8. Crazy Baldheads
9. Natty Dread
10. Trenchtown Rock (Live at the Roxy Theatre)
11. Get Up Stand Up
12. Work
CD 2
1. Jammin (Live at One Love Peace Concert)
2. Exodus Dub (Kindred Spirit Dub mix)
3. No Woman, No Cry (Live at the Lyceum Show)
4. War – Live! At the Rainbow
5. I Shot The Sheriff (Live from the Lyceum)
6. Roots Rock Reggae
7. Three Little Birds
8. Real Situation
9. Could You Be Loved
10. One Love / People Get Ready
11. Redemption Song
12. High Tide, Low Tide

TRACKS:

Bob Marley – Jamming

My love for CAKE has been well documented on these pages which made me naturally curious when Kodacrome unleashed their cover of the excellent track ‘Frank Sinatra‘.

The Brooklyn trio took what was already a fairly quirky track and lent it a positively eerie minimalist feel. The outcome is compelling.

Kodacrome‘s debut EP ‘Perla‘ is available now.

TRACKS:

“Frank Sinatra” (Cake cover) by KODACROME

In the shadowy backstage of London’s hipster venue XOYO, an accordion drones it’s familiar nasal honk, whilst a far sillhoette energetically slugs a floor tom.

The four sassy, vintage clad beauties of Katzenjammer confidently take to the stage and break into the eastern european mystery of ‘A Kiss Before You Go‘.

Katzenjammer mix gypsy folk and pop melodies with infectious harmonies and a rather large pair of brass ones. the girls boisterous and sexy demeanor perfectly mesh with tales of morals gone ascue and dancing like a mentalist, whilst their instrumentation; utilizing mandolins, ukelele, keyboards, banjo, modulated acoustic bass and fiddles, back up the fact that they can both produce modern sounding tunes in their own fantastic bohemian style or dabble in styles of yester year such as 50′s doo-wop, a raucous take on skiffle and 30′s Jazz without it ever feeling forced or awkward.

Katzenjammer‘s set felt like a show in the traditional sense of the word. Well picked songs and their well rehearsed and professional ethic is almost overlooked as they look like they are just having so much fun.

‘Cherry Pie‘ sounded flawless, whilst ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors‘ is given a new lease of life when played live, the musical breaks shaking the rafters and the understated vocal melodies lingering with a poignancy and an unshakable air of confidence.

Where some bands fall short of energy mid way through a show and start dropping quieter or mellow numbers in, Katzenjammer‘s addictively upbeat rhythms never let up and are totally unpretentious. They deserve every success they get.

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Post by T.R. Wicks

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TRACKS:

Katzenjammer – Rock-Paper-Scissors

Katzenjammer – God’s Great Dust Storm

As a fairly mediocre musician myself, Andrew Bird is typically the kind of performer I love to hate— he was a talented violinist at the precocious age of four; he plays every instrument under the sun with perfect ease; he has headed successful bands that easily stride the gamut from pre-war jazz, to zydeco, to blue grass infused folk. Oh, and he’s a virtuoso whistler. And yet I find myself completely disarmed by his March 2012 release, “Break It Yourself“.

I think it must be the bare sincerity of Bird’s songwriting that makes this folk rock album so irresistibly charming; it is ingenuous and whimsical, free from rigidity or any reliable conventions. Much like the most recent Bon Iver album, several of the songs flout the structures of modern songwriting—stretching into expansive vocal swells, or else swooping into low orchestral waves. I can almost see my music theory professors shaking their heads in amazed confusion.

And how to achieve all this without the appearance of pretension? Bird punctuates the track listing with simple, stripped down ballads, or friendly, upbeat jaunts. Apart from guitar, he uses a variety of instruments, from lap steel to violin, and even his impressive whistling abilities, to buoy the songs from classic folk to something newer and infinitely more fun. After completely failing to narrow the tracks down to a few favourites, I can only offer up a few which I think typify the varied talents and imagination that appear in every song.

“Lusitania” is what I imagined Andrew Bird’s album would sound like when I first heard of him—sweeping, simple melodies, lifted more by pleasing harmonies than by any bold instrumentation. “Danse Carribe” is the type of track that would kill at a festival, picking up from a slow, bare opening to a frisky full-band hoedown, complete with fiddle. “Near Death Experience Experience” is a haunting and unusual song (it floats somewhere between sensual and dark), helped along by a female vocalist who appears on several tracks. And “Sifters” is the perfect example of Bird’s ability to craft a love song so heartbreakingly sweet that it is almost a lullaby.

The album as a whole is a lesson in perfect sequencing. The variety in “Break it Yourself” could be almost chaotic; but the record is arranged so that each song feels like both a respite and a continuation of the previous track. Bird even added a prelude (vocal), interlude (strings), and postlude (bells, and a few cheeky crickets), which draw attention to the album as a collective work rather than a jumble of individual tracks.

At a time when many bands add layer upon layer to a track until it is bursting with instruments and vocal effects, Bird’s restraint and pared down simplicity is refreshingly modest. In the end, I am willing to overlook his disgusting monopoly on musical talent because he doesn’t rely on it to lift his work above the usual standard—it is the newness and ingenuity of every track that sets them apart.

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Post by Emily /@public_emily

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TRACKS:

Eyeoneye by Andrew Bird

Andrew Bird – Near Death Experience Experience

Having just featured Passion Pit‘s long awaited return it feels right to post Peking Duk remix.

The Australian DJ duo have stayed pretty faithful to the original while adding an allmighty crescendo to the chorus. Good job boys!

TRACKS:

Passion Pit – Take A Walk (Peking Duk Remix)

Three years after their debut, Passion Pit will release their sophomore LP, “Gossamer“. The lead single, “Take a Walk”, marks a continuation of what their fans have come to know and love: big, expansive sound marked by a feeling of exaltation.

At their core, Passion Pit is euphoric. They offer a modern, one-of-a-kind take on pop, by drenching it in feelings of pure bliss. Sure, other bands make you feel happy, because they get you dancing or you like their songs – but Passion Pit‘s music sounds happy. It’s an important distinction.

The beauty of it is: it’s feel-good music, but with substance! This is not bubblegum pop; upon closer listening these sugar-coated songs have a dark side. As front man, Michael Angelakos, put it, “[that's] typical of me in terms of taking a very uplifting sound and weighing it down with really personal, candid material…’A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down.’ That’s exactly what Passion Pit is to me.”

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Post by Nicole / @nikki_redhead

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Take a Walk by passionpit

Tour Dates

05/01 – Geneva, NY – Smith Opera House
05/04 – West Palm Beach, FL – SunFest
06/02 – Dallas, TX – Meltdown Music Festival
06/22 – Boston, MA – Bank Of America Pavilion
06/23 – New York, NY – Governors Ball Music Festival
07/15 – Cincinnati, OH – Bunbury Music Festival
07/20-22 – Dover, DE – Firefly Music Festival
08/03-05 – Chicago, IL – Lollapalooza
08/05 – Montreal, QC – Osheaga Music Festival
08/07 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheater *
08/10 – 12 – San Francisco, CA – Outside Lands Music Festival
09/09 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl #
* with Justice
# with Hot Chip

 I’ve had a (not so secret) crush on Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros ever since their wonderful début ‘Up From Below‘ was first released in the summer of 2009 and became the soundtrack to my summer.

Since then I’ve caught the band play differing venues such as the brilliantly intimate Lexington, a chilled day in Victoria Park, a webcast at the Bowery Ballroom as well as last year’s mystical performances at The Old Vic Tunnels.

Three year on from when they burst on the scene and the Zeros are back with new album ‘Here‘. Continuing with the hippie-tinged indie nostalgia they have accustomed us to this album threatens to be as ever-present as its predecessor. Best still it’s been announced that ‘Here‘ is the first of two albums due out this year.

‘Here‘ is due out later this month on Rough Trade Records in the UK and Community Music/Vagrant in the US.

TRACKS:

That’s What’s Up by Edward Sharpe Mag Zeros

Man On Fire by Edward Sharpe Mag Zeros

I am guessing things in the Cohen household are pretty rosy at the moment. Living legend Leonard was recently in the news as his former business manager Kelley Lynch was sentenced to jail after a prolonged harassment campaign. Cohen himself handled himself remarkably releasing a typically poetic statement.

Meanwhile his eldest son Adam Cohen released the album ‘Like A Man‘ in the US delivering a highly personal set of songs. While his voice is quite detached from the deep echo his dad is infamous for there is a lyrical bond that is felt throughout this album. There’s a lot to take away from the recording with the younger Cohen in as intimate a mood as he has ever been.

Adam heads out on tour with Rufus Wainwright this summer taking in venues throughout the East Coast over July and August. Check out his site for exact dates.

‘Like A Man‘ is out now on Decca/Universal

TRACKS:

Adam Cohen – What Other Guy