Category: pick your poison Page 103 of 141

Seeing as how it’s Friday, I feel like now’s a good time to tell you that I’m taking a “vacation” next week. At least I think I am. See, I volunteered to help a friend take a road trip down the East Coast for a week, mostly so he wouldn’t have to do it alone. Where the “think” part comes in is that while he told me last week that he was working on a full map and plan for this trip, I haven’t heard back from him with any details. The original word was I’d fly out and meet up with him this weekend, and we’d start driving on Monday. I don’t have a plane ticket booked because I haven’t gotten the additional details yet. For all I know, I’ll get a call on Saturday telling me to be on the first flight out Sunday morning and I’ll have to throw caution to the wind and just do it. Either that, or with the current radio silence I won’t hear anything and will simply go on with life as usual. So the reason why I’m telling you this is because if I do go out of town and hit the road, there won’t be much in the way of posts next week. I’m not sure what sort of internet access I’ll have, making it tough to predict posting frequency and whether I’ll have time to check my email or do some writing. One thing I will tell you is that I’ll have a Monday edition of Pick Your Poison, which will confirm whether I’m on “vacation” or not. Consider this your early warning. Now let’s have a look at this Friday edition of Pick Your Poison. Keep an eye out below for tracks from Balmorhea, DaVinci, Great Caesar, Half Film, Jealov and Nebula Dogs. In the Soundcloud section, stream good stuff from Harouki Zombi (a new project of Orenda Fink of Azure Ray and Nina Barnes, wife of Kevin Barnes from of Montreal), Rubblebucket and Teen Daze. Have a great weekend!

Atlas Genius – Trojans (Lenno Remix)

Balmorhea – Days

B.Fleischmann – I’m Not Ready for the Grave Yet

DaVinci – Paper, Power, Pussy

Devereaux – Capri

Dragonette – Live in This City (Davey Badiuk Remix)

Great Caesar – Rearview

G R E A T W A V E S – Into the Blue

Half Film – Machine Hawks and The Perfect Equation

Jealov – AATO

Life in Film – Needles & Pins

Lili Haydn – Tyrant

The Linus Pauling Quartet – She Did Not Know

Nebula Dogs – The Ballad of Cosmic Jack

The Parson Red Heads – Another Chance

Seeing Eye Dog – Intricate Splatter Art

SOUNDCLOUD

De Montevert – Jag vill ha mer

Harouki Zombi – Objet Petit A

House Of Wolves – There She Goes

Rubblebucket – Oooh Wa

Teen Daze – New Life

Vex Ruffin – Take It

Are you on a constant “Thom Yorke Watch”? That is to say, are you always hungry and looking for the latest happenings with Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke? If that’s not a priority for you, perhaps it should be. Even the most mundane things the man does are entertaining. Of course the problem is information pretty much only leaks out when he allows it to. He’ll post something on Dead Air Space or let a juicy tidbit slip in a rare interview. It’s radio silence otherwise. Well, today there was movement. As you may be aware, Yorke put out a solo album called The Eraser back in 2006. He never toured in support of it until a couple years ago. He recruited a band to help him perform the songs, the members of which included Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and long time Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich. Because they were now a band and not just one man, they chose Atoms For Peace as their new name. There have been a couple Atoms For Peace songs released, but things have been pretty quiet for the last year or so. Word on the street is that the guys actually wrote and recorded an album together, but nothing was really official on that…until today. First iTunes listed a song by Atoms For Peace called “Default.” After people started to notice, Yorke posted about the song online. You can buy “Default” from iTunes on Monday. If you don’t want to wait that long to hear it, YouTube has you covered. Expect at 12″ vinyl version to come out next month, and a full length Atoms For Peace record next year, Yorke said. Does the new song get you excited? Personally I’ve yet to hear a bad song with Thom Yorke on it, so it’s a super easy sell for me. Beyond that new song though, there’s plenty more new stuff from people not named Thom Yorke. Today’s Pick Your Poison recommendations include tracks from The Album Leaf, Crooked Cowboy and the Freshwater Indians (with Becky Stark), Floating Action, Machine Birds, Psychobuildings and Red Wanting Blue. In the Soundcloud section you’ll also want to stream tracks from Field Music, of Montreal and The Postelles.

The Album Leaf – Descent

The Bohannons – Goodbye Bill

Crooked Cowboy and the Freshwater Indians – Bed Bugs (ft. Becky Stark)

Floating Action – Not What I Came For

Goldhouse – Everything

Holy Ghost Tent Revival – Alpha Dogs

Jason Karaban – Devil That I Know

Jonquil – Mexico

Los Jardines de Bruselas – Why Are We Here

Machine Birds – The Way It’s Meant to Be

Night Fruit – Human Touch

Private ft. Genasis – Everywhere (Its Overture Remix)

Psychobuildings – Hearts

Red Wanting Blue – Audition

Tara Simmons – Weekend of Hearts

The xx – Angels (Case & Point Bootleg)

SOUNDCLOUD

Blood Command – Cult Of The New Beat

Field Music – If There Is Something

of Montreal – Sails, Hermaphroditic

The Postelles – Running Red Lights

Room Full of Strangers – Lets Build An Idol

For my fellow Chicagoans, let me tell you for a brief moment about a worthwhile show happening in town. It’s happening tomorrow (Thursday), so take note that if you’re reading this after 9/6/12, you’re already too late. For those that aren’t though, there’s a strong triple bill happening at Township. Noise FM, Birds & Batteries and Moritat will all be performing at this 21+ show. It starts at 9pm and tickets are only $8. If you ask me, it’s definitely worth it. A small bit of background on these bands. The Noise FM are one of Chicago’s hardest working bands. They always seem like they’re touring and playing shows either nationally or in and around Chicago. If you go to enough shows in the city, you’ve probably seen them once or twice or a bunch more than that. Their sound is bouncy and fun rock that’s both danceable and intelligent. Listen to their music at Bandcamp. I’ve featured Birds & Batteries on this site a few times, but if you missed those tracks and want to know what they’re all about, stream their new EP Stray Light on Soundcloud. They’re a really high energy synth pop band, which really meshes well on a bill with The Noise FM. As for Moritat, they’re a pretty hotly rising Chicago band whose sound is challenging to define. That’s a good thing though, because one minute they’re awash in ethereal synths and the next they’re driving hard with guitars. Above all though they’re impressive musicians with a bunch of catchy songs that are quickly gaining them attention from all the right places. Their new album Clill Blanzin is the perfect 10-track example of what they do best. Stream or buy the whole thing at Bandcamp, or for a quick taste download the mp3 for their song “Cats” with a simple click. So yeah, a great bill at a small venue for a small cost which I’m recommending you go and see. It’d be nice to claim that you saw them before they became big. Buy tickets to the show via this link. Okay, now let’s tackle today’s Pick Your Poison. Track recommendations? I’ve got those covered. Don’t miss downloads from Cajsa Siik, Easy Lover, Erin Costelo, Midnight Magic, Swim and The Valery Trails. In the Soundcloud section, stream good stuff from Prince Sunarawma (the collaboration between Sun Araw and Prince Rama) and Savoir Adore.

Cajsa Siik – Was I Supposed To

Cheval Sombre – Couldn’t Do

Easy Lover – End of the Season
Easy Lover – New Maggie

EP’s Trailer Park – Another Sun

Erin Costelo – Oh Me Oh My

Florence and the Machine – Falling (From Jupiter Remix)

Glitches – No Prisoners

Jo Mango – Cordelia

Le Roi Crocodile – Youth Decay

Midnight Magic – Same Way I Feel

Russell M. Harmon – Without You, I’d Cease

Sudakistan – El Movimiento (Teenhaze Edit)

Swim – Hold On

Theatre of Delays – Alpha (Vangelis cover)

Tidy Street – Love is a Verb (Rough Mix)

The Valery Trails – Too Soon Forgotten

XOV – Black & White

SOUNDCLOUD

Mock & Toof – My Head

Prince Sunarawma – Irene

Savoir Adore – Regalia

Ummagma – Lama

Vices – Dying Day

If you spent your Monday celebrating Labor Day like I did, I hope you had a great time. As we’ve now hit Tuesday and it’s no longer a holiday, let’s get back to business as usual. It certainly is business as usual for new music releases this week. Lots of great stuff coming out from Animal Collective, Azure Ray, Bob Mould, California Wives, Cat Power, Cult of Youth, Dave Stewart, Deerhoof, The Fresh and Onlys, Holy Other, Ian Hunter, Imagine Dragons, Jens Lekman, Lovedrug, Mono, Mount Eerie, The Music Tapes, Raymond Byron & The White Freighter (see below for an mp3 from them!), The Sheepdogs, Sondre Lerche, Stars, Two Door Cinema Club, Two Gallants and Young Guns. Wow. Check any or all of those out if you’re looking to explore some new music. Another way to explore new music is via Pick Your Poison. Today’s load of downloads includes ones from The Bergamot, Gilded, Jason Collett, Maria Minerva, Martin Eden (aka Eluvium), and Slam Donahue. Fort Romeau’s remix of Frankie Rose is worth a download too. In the Soundcloud section don’t miss streaming songs from Generationals and The Shilohs.

Ambassadeurs – My World

The Bergamot – In Between

End of August – Shadow Growth

Frankie Rose – The Fall (Fort Romeau Remix)

Frank Rabeyrolles – Cycling (Benoit Pioulard Version)

Gilded – Cluttered Room

Jamie Bendell – Five Little Minutes

Jason Collett – Where Things Go Wrong

Jeremiah Castelo – And Still I Fell

Macatier – Let’s Ride

Maria Minerva – Fire (ft. Chase Royal)

Martin Eden – Verions

Meridian – Stadium

Michelle Karmin – Six Years

Raymond Byron & The White Freighter – You’ll Never Surf Again

Slam Donahue – C’mon C’mon

Team Genius – Everything’s Alright

SOUNDCLOUD

Becoming Real ft. Alice – Slow Memory (Sunless 97)

Generationals – Lucky Numbers

Sam Flax – Child Of Glass

The Shilohs – Private Lives

Back in high school, I was pretty into a series of Japanese music games that all fell under the category that game maker Konami classified as Bemani. This was in the days before Guitar Hero and all that became a sensation, and there were Bemani games called Guitar Freaks and Drum Mania that were arcade versions of the same thing, but with all Japanese pop music instead of popular American rock. It was actually pretty rare to find a Guitar Freaks or Drum Mania game in an arcade in the U.S., as were other Bemani titles like Pop’n Music and Beatmania. The most popular of the Bemani series was one that eventually rose to a fair degree of popularity in America, and that was Dance Dance Revolution. It even worked its way into a few TV shows and movies (see: Yes Man and Malcolm in the Middle). There were about a dozen DDR machines in and around the Chicagoland area in the early ’00s, and my friends and I would often drive 30-40 minutes to play on one for hours. These days, you can find one in almost every legitimate arcade, getting far less use than they did 10 years ago. The point I’m getting to, and there is a point here, is that I did learn to like a lot of the J-pop songs they put on these games. In fact, you might say that I still carry a slight fondness for that genre of music, even if I don’t really ever listen to it (or play Bemani games) anymore. Enter the new video from Chairlift. I think their latest album Something is one of 2012’s finest so far, and while I like their particular brand of ’80s inspired synth pop, it didn’t exactly become clear to me why until I saw the video for “I Belong in Your Arms (Japanese Version).” Yes, the band recorded a version in Japanese, and made the video to celebrate the release of their album in Japan. It’s essentially a green screen video with computer generated backgrounds and the words at the bottom for karaoke purposes. In essence, it’s a slice right out of the J-pop playbook, and I kind of love it for exactly that reason. Do I like the Japanese version of the song better than the English version? Well, I can sing along with the English version, so that’s a plus. Anyways, that was a long-winded story to a very shallow point. I encourage you to watch the video though, which can be viewed here. That, plus this edition of Pick Your Poison should set you up for a grand holiday (if you’re celebrating) weekend. Please enjoy downloads from Charley Bickers, The Demos, Kate Miller-Heidke, Mighty Quinn, Shipbuilding Co., and Thrive. Have a great weekend!

Ball of Flame Shoot Fire – The Curse

Charley Bickers – Three Little Words (ft. Si Jones)

Crushed Out – Weigh You Down

The Demos – Neon

Electra – Charge!
Electra – Starve

Kate Miller-Heidke – Ride This Feeling

KOAN Sound – Sly Fox

Main Attrakionz – Do It For the Bay (ft. DaVinci)

Mighty Quinn – Vacation

Qualms – Love

The Shamefaced Sparrows – Ride That Seastorm! (Demo)

Shipbuilding Co. – Salt Creek
Shipbuilding Co. – St. Elizabeth

Shysweet Leaves – House in Dreamwing Color Hour

Steel Trees – Stoner Zombie Killer Kids

Thrive – Yeti

Visitor – Coming Home (Viceroy Remix)

SOUNDCLOUD

Jethro Fox – Blinding Light

Kaleidophone – Gogglebox

Luciar – Deadly Precious

New Animal – Falling Up

Passion Pit – Take A Walk (Chew Lips Remix)

When I first heard that Dan Deacon had developed an iPhone/Android app that allowed you to “control the lighting” during his live shows, my first assumption was that you could control the stage lights while he performed. It’s not quite that innovative, and if a couple hundred people are using it at the same time during a show, it’d turn the stage lighting controls into a strobe light sort of mess. What it actually does is it turns your phone into its own stage light of sorts, flashing and changing colors in time with the music and such. It also apparently changes depending on your location within the venue. You don’t even need to have wi-fi on your phone for it to work. One would assume that if you’ve got a bunch of people holding their phones up in the air during the show, certain sections of the crowd would all be in sync color-wise and pulsating-wise. It’s got to look pretty cool from the stage, but I wonder how it looks from the crowd. Anyways, if you go see Dan Deacon soon (he’ll be a North Coast Fest in Chicago this weekend), download the app for free in your smartphone’s app store and try it out. Report back and let me know how good it is. For now, please enjoy this edition of Pick Your Poison. Worthwhile tracks today include ones from At Sea, Ben Gibbard, Dalton, I/O, King of Spain and State Broadcasters. In the Soundcloud section you might be interested in streaming songs from D/R/U/G/S and Pure Bathing Culture, while Teen Daze’s remix of GRMLN and Todd Rundgren’s remix of Tame Impala are standouts as well.

Amplicity & Chucky Charmz – Anita

Astronauts, etc. – You Can Yell

At Sea – The Past Is a Drug

Ben Gibbard – Teardrop Windows

Cave Painting – So Calm (Daughn Gibson Remix)

The Cringe – String You Along So Long

Dalton – Wood Frames

Disco Fries – BassOff

Eight Belles – Buried Child

I/O – You Slay Me

Johan Reinhold – Heart in a Jar

King of Spain – Basement Fires

Ronnie Fauss – The Night Before the War

State Broadcasters – Kittiwake

Zulus – Death in the Current

SOUNDCLOUD

D/R/U/G/S – Hemisphere

GRMLN – Coral (Teen Daze Remix)

Harts – Back To The Shore

Pure Bathing Culture – Gainesville

Tame Impala – Elephant (Todd Rundgren Remix)

Another week, and another Chicago show coming up that I’d like to tell you about. I try to help out bands that could use a little extra promotion to get the word out that they’re coming to town, and today I’m talking about The Rocketboys. The Texas band have established themselves pretty well the last few years, and their newest album Build Anyway has been getting very strong reviews. Let me encourage you to listen to their song “Bloodless” and judge for yourself. Anyways, they’ll be rolling through Chicago in support of the new record, playing at Ace Bar on Tuesday, Sept. 4th with Bearcat opening. The show starts at 8pm and tickets are $8. You can buy them in advance here. Check these guys out before they’re playing big venues with poor sight lines. Now let’s tackle today’s Pick Your Poison. I’ll advise you to download songs from Courtship, Exquisite Corps, Jets Overhead, Pan, A Shoreline Dream, Why? and Wovenhand. In the Soundcloud section, don’t miss streaming songs from Flock of Dimes, Parenthetical Girls and Win Win.

Angie Atkinson – Taste

Courtship – Like This

Exquisite Corps – Tyger Wine

Honey Mustard – Wire

JAN – Work for the City

Jets Overhead – Boredom and Joy

Klarka Weinwurm – Pictures

Padraig Whelan – What I Know, I Know With You

Pan – Joe Frazier

Rob Cantor – Why Bother (Weezer cover)

A Shoreline Dream – February Truths

Starlings, TN – You Will Heal

WALL – No Secrets

Why? – Jonathan’s Hope

Wovenhand – In the Temple

Zula – Make Contact

SOUNDCLOUD

Angelica’s Elegy – When You’re Asleep

Flock of Dimes – Curtain

Le Roi Crocodile – Ghost Speak

Parenthetical Girls – Curtains

Thunders – MagicSick

Win Win – Salt Days +

Are there some great new records out this week? You bet your ass there are. Here’s a list of artists you can choose from: Abandoned Pools, Alanis Morrissette, Dan Deacon, Divine Fits, Flatlanders, Houndmouth, John Zorn, Juliana Hatfield, King of Spain, Lightning Love, Mad Planet, Maria Minerva, Matthew Dear, Maximo Park, Minus the Bear, Poor Moon, Richard Hawley, Swans, TEEN and Wild Nothing. I’m pleased to say I’ll be reviewing a couple of those albums this week, so be on the lookout for that. As far as today’s Pick Your Poison goes, let me throw out some recommendations for tracks from Damon Moon and the Whispering Drifters, Ellie Lawson, Eric Harvey, Life Size Maps, Miniature Cities, Steven A. Clark, and The Sweet Serenades. I’d also like to give a special shout out to The Handsome Family (mp3 below), who will be playing a show in Chicago at Mayne Stage on September 14th. They’re a great band and are great to see live, and if you’re in the area and have the means please go to the show. You can buy tickets here.

Aniki & K Theory – Thou Shall Not Touch

Clubfeet – City of Light (Softwar Remix)

Damon Moon and the Whispering Drifters – Gild the Lily

Easy Star All-Stars – Human Nature (Michael Jackson cover)

Ellie Goulding – Lights (Cannonhead Remix)

Ellie Lawson – Learn

Eric Harvey – Tried and True

The Handsome Family – Darling, My Darling

K’naan – Hurt Me Tomorrow (Parag Remix)

Ladyhawke – Blue Eyes (Ron Flieger Remix)

Mike Dillon – Leather On

Miniature Cities – Just to Keep Me Awake

Steven A. Clark – Seashore

The Sweet Serenades – Can’t Get Enough

Vague-à-bonde – Evolved

SOUNDCLOUD

The 1975 – The City (No Ceremony Remix///)

Kjartan Bue – Man Riding Backwards

Night Moves – Country Queen

ON AN ON – Ghosts

Skye – Featherlight

SURES – Stars

If you’re a reader of this site then I hope you’re familiar with New Zealand’s fourth most popular band, Flight of the Conchords. In what were ultimately tragic circumstances, the duo of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement chose to end their HBO show in 2009 after only two seasons. I secretly suspect they failed to realize how popular it would make them and the sort of pressure that would be forced on them to continue making a high quality music-intensive show like theirs. The second season had some small issues and the songs weren’t quite as good either. By pushing them to do a season a year, they were essentially writing scripts and a dozen brand new songs each time, which for even an ordinary band or artist is a lot. That the songs had to be funny probably made it even tougher. But they were a band before the TV show ever happened, and while they’ve done a fair share of touring, we have heard little to nothing from them these last couple years. They are, in essence, retired. Jemaine has gone on to a relatively lucrative acting career, and Bret won an Academy Award earlier this year for one of the many songs he wrote for the soundtrack to The Muppets movie. Great to see them both doing well, but it’d be even better if they got back together for some Flight of the Conchords stuff. Well, wish somewhat granted. The fellas got back together recently to do a video and song for charity. It starts with a classic “band meeting” and ends with the “We Are the World”-type song with much funnier lyrics and featuring a bunch of New Zealand celebrities. As far as charity songs and videos go, it’s actually pretty good. And of course it’s great to see Flight of the Conchords doing anything. Okay, onto today’s Pick Your Poison. Pay attention to mp3s from Chomp (members of Cloud Nothings and Total Babes), Daughn Gibson, Dum Dum Girls, Neil Halstead, and Slow Hands. The Soundcloud section today is stellar, and you should absolutely stream new songs from Chad Valley (ft. Glasser), El Perro Del Mar, Future Islands, Twerps and Ultraista (Nigel Godrich’s band).

Andre Williams – Blame It On Obama

Cara Mitchell – Passing Sun

Chomp – Fresh Wounds

Chrystian Rawk – False Ghost

Daughn Gibson – Reach Into the Fire

Dominic Lord – Old English

Dum Dum Girls – Lord Knows

finite_infinity – Club Values

Marian Call – Dear Mister Darcy

Michael Zapruder – Florida

Neil Halstead – Digging Shelters

Nerd Revolt – Fallen

Pair of Arrows – Vestige

Qualms – Pressure

Slow Hands – Rhabarbarum

SOUNDCLOUD

Chad Valley – Fall 4 U (Feat. Glasser)

El Perro Del Mar – Walk On By

Future Islands – Tomorrow

Smoke & Jackal – No Tell

Twerps – He’s In Stock

Ultraista – Bad Insect

One thing that very few people know about me is that the band …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead are responsible for one of the greatest live show experiences I’ve ever had the privilege of seeing. It was at the Bowery Ballroom in New York in October of 2004. After what proved to be a fascinating bill that included indie pop from Mates of State, hip hop from Aesop Rock and blisteringly loud noise rock from SUNN O))), ..AYWKUBTTOD came out to play at 2:30AM. They were pretty drunk because they’d been forced to sit through a bunch of other acts, keeping in mind this was also in the wake of their 10.0 review for their 2002 record Source Tags and Codes. I was right up against the stage with no barricade providing one of those notorious gaps between a band and the crowd. Anyways, not only was the performance extremely visceral and thrilling on a minute-by-minute basis, but they were trashed to the point where they didn’t particularly care what happened. So they completely destroyed their instruments and everything on stage. Guitars, amps and drum kits were obliterated. Pieces of the stage were coming up because microphone stands were being slammed into them. At one point security pulled me away mere seconds before I would have been struck in the head with a microphone stand. Then the band invited everyone up on stage for one last song with whatever instruments they had left. Security tried to hold people back, but it was a gigantic rush and most of us were up there singing into the remaining microphones with the band. It was a true triumph, and one that I’ve never seen repeated in the handful of times I’ve seen the band perform since. They’ve mellowed, gotten rid of a few members, and turned in a few not-so-great albums. Their last one Tao of the Dead was actually strikingly good, even if many failed to recognize it as such. I’m pleased to announce though that Trail of Dead are back yet again with their eighth full length album, titled Lost Songs. It will be out on October 23rd. Along with that announcement comes a new single called “Up to Infinity.” The song is about the tragedy occuring in the Syrian Civil War, however the band also wants to dedicate it to Russian punk band Pussy Riot, because of the injustices they’ve suffered at the hands of the Russian government. You can stream the song here. The band will be on tour supporting the new album this November. Go see them, even though they refuse to trash stages and start riots at venues anymore. Okay, let’s get through this Friday edition of Pick Your Poison so your weekend can get started right. Great songs today coming from Bella Darling, The Men, Pet Lions, Pipers, Solos and Something Fierce. The Soundcloud section features some excellent stuff from chris e pants (aka Chrissy Murderbot), Lightning Bolt, Michna and Pinback. Have a great weekend!

Adian Coker – Angels & Demons

AG – I Wanna Be Your Man (The Beatles cover)

Bella Darling – Pharaohs

Brim Liski – Supermassive

Central – Beat 4

Driving Cassady – You Ain’t the One

Indyns – Fields Lie Fallow

The Men – Candy

Nick Stefanacci – Fly Away

OMBRE – Tormentas

Pet Lions – Lightning Bolt

Pipers – Edge of Nowhere

Saint Lou Lou – Maybe You (Lauer Remix)

Solos – All My Tribulations

Something Fierce – Warlords of Information

SOUNDCLOUD

chris e pants – Doggy Style

James Cook – Arts & Sciences

Joshua Michael Robinson – Broken Sling

Lightning Bolt – King Candy

Michna – Through The City On The Edge Of Forever

Pinback – Proceed To Memory

It’s been a short bit, so let’s do a quick Class of 2012 update. Let’s start with A$AP Rocky. His first full length album LongLiveA$AP will be out on Sept. 11th, but in advance of that he’s making the media rounds which included a stop at Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday. You can go here to see him perform “Goldie” with The Roots. It’s a pretty subdued performance, perhaps because he had to do his best to censor his language for TV. Even then I think a swear or two got past the censors. While we wait for Lana Del Rey to actually start touring in support of her album Born to Die that was released earlier this year, it’s been announced that she’ll be the new face of Jaguar automobiles. Yes, starting next month you’ll see her in ads for Jaguars. See some details about that here. Del Rey will also be appearing in ads for H&M this fall. In other words, you’ll be seeing her on TV and in print quite a bit, but music will have little to nothing to do with it. In sadder news, while she’s made plenty of waves so far in 2012, Azealia Banks has announced that her debut album Broke With Expensive Taste has been pushed back from this fall to February 12, 2013. Between her changing management and getting a lot of other exciting opportunities going, I guess she really wants to take the time to ensure everything about that record is as great as it can possibly be. One of the better things to happen with Azealia Banks in recent weeks though is that she’s stopped fighting with her 2012 Classmate Kreayshawn. They got into a bit of an argument at the start of the year, but they’ve since talked out their problems and after some apologies are now friends. I’m always happy when my Artists to Watch get along. By the way Kreayshawn’s album Somethin’ Bout Kreay was also pushed back, but only by about a month. It will be out officially on September 18th, and I’ll be reviewing it right around then. Last but certainly not least, Grimes released her music video for “Genesis” yesterday, and it’s pretty awesome. If you like weird dancing, girls in floor-length dreadlocks wearing silver suits of armor, swordplay (and swords on fire!), snakes and much more, it’s pretty much a visual feast. Hell yes it’s amusing and hell yes you should watch it. Like, now. Pick Your Poison can wait. When you get back though, you’ll want to keep an eye on mp3s from Animal Parts, Crybaby, Happy New Year, Southern Shores, Soviet, and Teen Daze’s remix of White Arrows. In the Soundcloud section, stream delights from Dark Dark Dark, Princess Music and TE Morris.

Animal Parts – What Our Love Is

Bailterspace – Blue Star

Chasing Kings – Do It To My Self

Comtron – Fraud

Crybaby – True Love Will Find You in the End

Diva – Wanna Get to Know You

Dog Society – The Fuse Before

Glitches – Dust & Shadow

Happy New Year – Summer

Nervous Curtains – Wired to Make Waves

Pravada – Someone Else

Rich E Rheu – Don’t Like Freestyle

Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside – Like A Drug

Seamonster – Parasol (Monster Rally Remix)

Southern Shores – New Love

Soviet – Lost When Found

Van She – Jamaica (Unicorn Kid Remix)

White Arrows – Roll Forever (Teen Daze Remix)

SOUNDCLOUD

Dark Dark Dark – How It Went Down

Marilyn Manson – Slo-Mo-Tion (Dirtyphonics Remix)

Princess Music – White Wave

TE Morris – The Long Distance Runner

Tes Elations – May She

Ungdomskulen – Askefast

On occasion I like to try and do some good in the world and for my Chicago readers by pointing out a good or exciting show happening in town sometime in the near future. Today I’m happy to talk about the band Videotape. I wish I could tell you they got their name from the classic film American Psycho, however I’m almost positive that’s not the case. What is the case though is that they’re a pretty good band, and they’ll be playing a show on Friday at Township that you should attend if you’ve got the time and $6. Love and Radiation, along with Pool Holograph, are opening. Take Videotape’s Between Me and You as a sample mp3 to perhaps entice you into going. You can buy tickets for the show by clicking this link. Simple enough, right? Well, so is today’s Pick Your Poison. Good tracks today from Beaten By Them, Cave Painting, Dan Friel, Minarets and Ted Morris. Stream new things in the Soundcloud section from California Wives and Mount Eerie.

Bass Science – Psychedelic American Boyhood

Beaten By Them – Salvador Divinorum

Blessed Feathers & Peter Wolf Crier – Porcelain (Red Hot Chili Peppers cover)

Cave Painting – Light Show

Chris McFarland – Simple Selfish Plan

Dan Friel – Valedictorian

Kalipo – Bierchucks

King Fantastic ft. Awolnation – Surf’s Up

Makoto – Hurts So Much

Malka – Electropicalia

The Marquee – First Time

Meklit Hadero & Quinn Deveaux – Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) (Arcade Fire cover)

Minarets – Feeling Foolish

Mist Glider & Heart Tricks – Mermaid

Ted Morris – God Knows

Titanics – Beacons

SOUNDCLOUD

California Wives – Blood Red Youth

The Invincible Summer – Runaway

Les Sins – Fetch

Mount Eerie – World Heaves

OurGuys – Famous Last Words

Silver Medallion – Hey Cinderella

This week is a relatively high profile week for new music releases, especially compared to the last couple weeks. Be on the lookout for new stuff from Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, Bailterspace, Bill Fay, Bloc Party, Call of the Wild, Careful, Cate Le Bon, Carol Kleyn, Chris McFarland, The Darkness, Dots Will Echo, Dylan LeBlanc, The Heavy, The Kinks, Lee Hazlewood, Owl City, Reverend Horton Heat, Ry Cooder, Six Organs of Admittance, Teengirl Fantasy, Van She and Yeasayer. In case you missed them, I’ve already reviewed the new albums from Bloc Party and Yeasayer in case you’d like to learn more about either one of those. As for today’s Pick Your Poison, let me give you some guidance on what is a pretty strong set of downloads. Don’t miss tracks from AC Newman, Baby Baby, Hero Jr., The Reflections, Robert Pollard, Schoolboy Q and Woodsman. Also, if you’re intrigued by the Stükenberg mp3 below, you may be interested to know that they’ll be playing a show in Chicago on Sept. 15th at Ultra Lounge with Popular Tongues, Kelroy and Viaducts. You can buy tickets ($8) for that show here. In the Soundcloud section you can stream new gems from AlunaGeorge, Mount Eerie, and Weekend.

AC Newman – I’m Not Talking

AppleTree – Hi!

Baby Baby – Wah Uh! Uh Oh!

The Cyrillic Typewriter – Boxing Arenas

Gottfried Beyer – Ménage

Hero Jr. – Naked

Kyler England – Take These Things to Heart (Acoustic String Remix)

Let’s Go Safari – Oh Jane Doe (Your Pretend Boyfriend Remix)

Letterist – Under Volcanoes (The Golden Pony Remix)

One In A Googolplex – Grow Towards the Sun
One In A Googolplex – Every Star is a Thought

The Reflections – Summer Days

Robert Pollard – Who’s Running My Ranch

Schoolboy Q – Party

Shy Hunters – Stained Glass House

Stükenberg – Better Off Alone

Woodsman – All Tangled Up

SOUNDCLOUD

AlunaGeorge – Your Drums, Your Love

Jethro Fox – Lonely Sound

Mount Eerie – Ocean Roar

Weekend – Your Own Nothing

Wet Nuns – Why You So Cold?

Yuno – Sunlight

Last Thursday I talked briefly about the Russian punk band Pussy Riot and the legal situation they were facing in court. Well as you may have heard, on Friday the band was found guilty of “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred,” and all three members were sentenced to two years in prison. While many artists, celebrities and important figures have gone on record supporting the band and their actions, the Russian government isn’t about to change their minds. In fact, word today is that they’re busy searching for other members of the band, hoping to arrest them and charge them with the same crime. There are apparently 10 total members of Pussy Riot, so the three that have been convicted and sentenced are only a small part of their whole. In fact, after the sentencing on Friday, the band released a new song called “Putin Lights Up the Fires”. There were also “Free Pussy Riot” rallys held around the globe on Friday to show support for the band. While none of this will probably help the three women whose sentences have already been decided, hopefully such an outpouring of support and protest can help bring about some real changes and discussion about the topics of freedom and religion and feminism across the globe. Okay, I’ve gone over this enough for now, and it’s a heavier topic than I’d like for these Pick Your Poison posts. This is about discovering new music, not incarcerating someone because of it. So please enjoy tracks from Ab-Soul, DaVinci (with Freddie Gibbs), Holmes, The Pauses and Silent Rider. In the Soundcloud section Amateur Best and Deerhoof have new tracks up for streaming, and Peter Bjorn & John’s remix of Norah Jones is a surprising delight for many reasons.

Ab-Soul – Nibiru

Bjork – Mutual Core (The Adamski Kid Remix)

DaVinci – MYOB (ft. Freddie Gibbs)

Dinowalrus – Grounded

Donnis – Absolutely (ft. IAMSU & Jay Ant)

Eli & Fur – Tonight (Jimmy Edgar Remix)

Four Rounds & The Sound – Nothing But Time

Holmes – Stereo

How to Dress Well – Again (Janet Jackson cover)

Jaggery – No Sympathy

Natural Child – B$G P$MP$N

The Pauses – The Beginning of Things

Qualms – Pressure

Silent Rider – Beggar

Zucchini Drive – Howler Than Thou

SOUNDCLOUD

Amateur Best – Ready For The Good Life

Deerhoof – Fête d’Adieu

I Am Giant – Purple Heart

Milkman – Neon Eyes (Original Mix)

The National Rifle – Coke Beat

Norah Jones – Miriam (Peter Bjorn & John Remix)

Every now and then you need one of those weekends where you can just spend some quiet times with friends and not have to worry about going places or doing much. Sit back and relax on the couch with a beverage and enjoy shutting the world out. That sounds like a great idea to me, and so I think that’s what I’ll be doing all weekend. You should join me in doing the same. I’m not inviting you all over to my place, but we’ll each spend time in our respective places without a care in the world. If you have a second and are so inclined though, a quick click of the “Like” button on this site’s Facebook page would be very much appreciated. I promise not to spam you at all or clog up your Facebook News Feed. I’m a respectful Facebook user and I hope you are too. Now let me get to today’s Pick Your Poison. Solid set of songs today, in particular from The Dandelion War, Dan Melchior, Franz Nicolay (formerly of The Hold Steady), GRMLN, Karlie Bruce, Lonely Drifter Karen, More Amor and TEEN. In the Soundcloud section there’s streaming goodness from He’s My Brother She’s My Sister, King Krule and Neon Hitch. Have a great weekend!

The Dandelion War – Drifters

Dan Melchior – All the Clocks

Delicate Steve – Afria Talks to You (Oorutaichi Remix)

Franz Nicolay – Did Your Broken Heart Make You Who You Are?

GRMLN – Coral

Jay Rock – YOLA

Karlie Bruce – Paperback Lover

Lonely Drifter Karen – Comet

Marenberg Kollektiv – Sun Goes Down

Minta & the Brook Trout – From the Ground

More Amor – Heart

Nick Ferrio & His Feelings – Popular Flower

Squadda B – Love U

TEEN – Unable

Tesla Boy – Fantasy (SoundSAM Remix)

Tilly & the Wall – Love Riot (Cycad Remix)

SOUNDCLOUD

AJ Edwards – Let Down Your Guard

Dan Croll – From Nowhere

The Fades – Be Your Man

He’s My Brother She’s My Sister – Electric Love

King Krule – Rock Bottom

Neon Hitch ft. Tyga – Gold