Kanye West – Coachella 2011

When Kanye mentioned during his Coachella-ending set that he “may not be the best singer in the world,” it sounds like the understatement of the century. Just like we’ve had to excuse Mr. West’s stupidity in the past for the sake of his artistry and the realization that he might just be crazy, so too here: we’re forced to excuse his wince-inducing attempts at singing (see the end of Runaway and all the songs off “808s and Heartbreak”) for the sake of the rest of his performance.

Because beyond the ego, the insanity, and the weak pipes, is an artist who not only put out one of the best albums of 2010 but also happens to be one of the most intense performers out there.

So, grab the show as as a zip file or stream/grab the individual files below.

Dispatch – Melon Blend

In case you missed it, Dispatch debuted their first new song in over a decade on last night’s Fallon. It’s nice to hear them back together doing what they do best. If you’re not seeing them this summer, get your act together and grab some tickets to the few shows that haven’t yet sold out.

Check out the new track below, or trade your email address for it on the band’s site.

Dispatch – Melon Blend

Let my people go

I know that this post doesn’t properly describe the awesomeness of this band, but this song just fit too well with the current holiday of Passover. Much thanks to Akiva for bugging me until I actually gave this awesome band a chance. I will most certainly be sharing a bunch more of their stuff within the next few days/weeks, but I wanted to get a head start with this teaser track which fits well with the Passover theme of ‘Let my people go.’

Hoots and Hellmouth – Known For Possession

Britney Spears + Morning Benders – Till The World Ends

I am not ashamed. This is not a guilty pleasure. I will go out on a limb and say that this is a genuinely good dance song. If you don’t like it, then at least check out the Morning Benders’ (who are apparently Britney fans, as per the sticker on Chris Chu’s guitar) remix of it, which is pretty cool stuff.

Britney Spears – Till The World Ends

Morning Benders – Till The World Ends

The 10 Plagues In Song: Part II

Based on the enormous success that last year’s 10 Plagues In Song post was, I figured I’d do it all again. This is not an easy task. Finding one song about the death of livestock was hard enough. Searching for a second took some serious digging. But here you have it – the 10 Plauges in Song, Part II.

Update: My blogging protege Aaron has come up with his own indie version of the 10 plagues over at the Sound Co-Op. Check it out. And then check mine below.

1. Blood: The Black Angels – River Of Blood
2. Frogs: Flaming Lips – I Can Be A Frog
3. Lice: Mogwai – Killing All The Flies
4. Wild Animals: James Vincent McMorrow – The Sparrow And The Wolf
5. Livestock Death: Slim Cessna’s Auto Club – That Fierce Cow Is Common Sense In A Country Dress
6. Boils: Frightened Rabbit – The Modern Leper
7. Hail: Mastodon – Hail To Fire
8. Locusts: The Avett Brothers – Pretty Girl From Locust
9. Darkness: Johnny Cash – I See A Darkness
10. Death of Firstborn: J. Tillman – Firstborn

Enjoy the music, and have a happy Passover. 

Neil Young – Live in Worcester (5-21-10)

I know I haven’t posted anything in a few days, and I haven’t really posted any bootlegs since the final LCD Soundsystem show. So when a friend asked if I wanted a solo Neil Young bootleg featuring material from his most recent album “Le Noise,” I happily accepted his offer.

So on this last Sunday before Passover, enjoy eating those remaining crumbs of bread and that final piece of pizza as you crank this solid boot.

Download the entire boot here or stream/grab the individual tracks below.

My Morning Jacket – Circuital

My Morning Jacket just released the title track from their forthcoming album “Circuital” as a free download on their website. I’m just listening to it for the first time right now, but so far I’m quite enjoying.

You can pre-order the album in a bunch of different forms and all that info can also be found on their site.

My Morning Jacket – Circuital

Springtime without Gilad

As spring begins, so continues the impossible task of entering a new season without Gilad for the first time. And for some reason, this season is more difficult to handle. Maybe it’s the promise that it usually brings with it. The excitement that each day brings, and the inexplicable happiness that this season lends to each day. For us, some of that is missing.

Gilad isn’t here to talk about the Orioles and is unable to enjoy their surprisingly successful start. He’s not here to talk Fantasy Baseball. We can’t talk about possibly making the trek to Bonnaroo this year. He won’t be coming to any summer concerts; neither Eddie Vedder nor Dispatch. We won’t see him sporting those electric blue pants, his boat shoes, or his ironically old school sunglasses. He won’t be hanging out on our front porch sporting his bong. There’s no World Cup for us to pretend to be soccer fans for and no USA jerseys to wear. Spring has arrived, and yet Gilad is still gone.

My company recently moved and my new commute passes by the place I sat as I got the phone call. The phone call which told me, through my mother’s choked sobs, that Gilad took his final breath. The corner where I stood waiting for that cab; the sharp pain of loss, the numbing feelings of disbelief, and the constant throbbing in my chest. Things are different now; feelings are more muted but no less sad, my heart isn’t in constant pain but it still aches. My life is wonderful and my wife makes it amazing, but there is and always will be someone missing from that, and the Springtime somehow makes us more painfully aware of that fact.

I wanted to share something my mother wrote on her blog yesterday.

It has been seven months, and fifteen days since Gilad passed from this world. I go to sleep, I wake up, and Gilad is not here. The laundry piles up, the clothes get washed, folded and worn again, but Gilad’s pile is gone. I cook meals and shop but I don’t buy his favorite foods anymore; once he stopped eating I started to forget what he liked…

… Another Shabbat comes and goes, another week passes without Gilad. Time slips through our fingers as we move farther away from Gilad’s last day on earth, his last breath. Another season is here, the trees and flowers are blooming, the grass is turning green, life is returning to the earth. Things are growing, but not Gilad. I go to sleep, I wake up, and Gilad is still not here. He is not here and he will never be with us again in our world.

We miss you Gilad.

Eddie Vedder – My City of Ruins

Explosions In The Sky – Radio City Music Hall

[Editor’s Note: This guest post is written by a longtime friend Yishai. When he mentioned to me that he was heading to the Explosions’ show, I asked him to do a review, and that’s what you’re about to read. Enjoy]

To give you a sense of Explosions live show, the last time I saw them back in 2008 at Terminal 5, after they finished an incredibly intense set, the audience stayed and cheered, hoping for an encore. After a few minutes, guitarist Munaf Rayani came out and said something along the lines of “Thank you so much for cheering, but we really leave everything we have on the stage, so we have nothing left to offer but we hope to see you again soon.” And honestly, it made complete sense. Nobody grumbled or cursed him out. Because everyone in the room had just been transported to another place watching this band literally throw themselves in their music, playing every note of their intricate compositions perfectly while thrashing in place on stage. And though we all wanted to go back there one last time, we really did get the feeling that the band just gave us everything they had, leaving the stage dripping with sweat as our ears still rung with feedback.

Beastie Boys – Make Some Noise

Hey – remember the Beastie Boys? So, a track just leaked from their forthcoming album “Hot Sauce Committee Pt. 2.” Apparently, leaking Make Some Noise “wasn’t part of the plan,” but the band has embraced the internet age and has posted the song on their own site as well.

Like it or hate it, it’s nice to know these guys are healthy again and ready to roll.

Beastie Boys – Make Some Noise