Sixeyes Test Drive

Check out these full album streams at spinner.com

Jay Brannan Goddamned
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Golden Animals Free Your Mind And Win A Pony
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Alkaline Trio Agony And Irony
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Damiera Quietmouthloudhands
BUY

Sigur Ros Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust
BUY | Download @ eMusic

RZA as Bobby Digital Digi Snax
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Liz Phair Exile in Guyville
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Electric President Sleep Well
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Mugison Mugiboogie
BUY | Download @ eMusic

Doveman's Thomas Bartlett does 'Footloose'

Thomas Bartlett (Doveman) has a voice which many will turn away from, not unlike the way many turn from a couple of heroes of his, Nick Drake and Tom Waits. It's as if half of Bartlett wants to sing out, but the other half doesn't want to be heard. A voice thrown so high up in his throat his heart is caught there flush against his neuroses and it all comes out in a whispered plea. I can't help but feel sorry for anyone who dismisses talents like these three because they don't fit into what major labels and their partners in crime, mainstream radio, dictate as the acceptable way of singing. Although I suppose all the blame can't be laid at their feet, it's a two way street and half the traffic is what the majority want to hear, it's a boring and sad give and take, BUT you can break free by opening yourself to what singer/songwriters such as Waits, Drake and Bartlett can do with their musical talents and honest voices (don't take my word for it, read Kenny Loggins sage lyrical advice below). Bartlett has recently been inspired by an old friend, Gabriel Greenberg, to record covers of the soundtrack, Footloose. Bartlett is a great improviser and fosters that creativity within his band Doveman, and no doubt has brought that open and giving form of playing to his interpretations of the soundtrack.

Learn more about the impetuous behind the project, musician Thomas Bartlett, and download the nine songs individually, by visiting this page.

You can find a few of his Footloose songs here in a new post.

"Footloose"
You're playing so cool
Obeying every rule
Dig way down in your heart
You're yearning, burning for some
Somebody to tell you
That life ain't passing you by
I'm trying to tell you
It will if you don't even try

BUY Doveman music here.

Doveman Tour Dates (further tour dates as a supporting player are here)
08-14 Seattle, WA - Triple Door
08-15 Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
08-16 Vancouver, British Columbia - Media Club
08-18 San Francisco, CA - Swedish American Hall
08-19 Los Angeles, CA - The Hotel Cafe
08-21 Alexandria, VA - The Birchmere
08-22 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
08-23 New York, NY - (Le) Poisson Rouge
08-24 Boston, MA - Museum of Fine Arts
08-26 Montreal, Quebec - La Sala Rossa
08-27 Toronto, Ontario - Danforth Music Hall
08-28 Chicago, IL - Lakeshore Theater

The Notwist Announce North American Tour Dates

The Notwist have announced their North American tour dates. Currently rehearsing for their Euro tour, the band will bring their latest record, The Devil, You + Me, to eager fans beginning early July. Check Euro dates here.

good lies [mp3]

Buy the new album from insound.
The Notwist can be found at emusic... look into a free trial here.

TOUR DATES
10-10 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
10-11 Montreal, Quebec - Le National
10-12 Boston, MA - Roxy Theater
10-13 New York, NY - Webster Hall
10-14 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
10-15 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
10-16 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
10-17 Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium
10-18 Milwaukee, WI - Turner Hall
10-20 Denver, CO - Bluebird
10-21 Salt Lake City, UT - In the Venue
10-22 Seattle, WA - Neumo's
10-24 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
10-25 Portland, OR - Berbati's Pan
10-27 San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's
10-29 Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theater

Radiohead @ The BBC April 1/08

These mp3s have been re-posted here on August 28th, 2008.

Sandro Perri: Polaris Music Prize Nominee

The Polaris Music Prize is an award acknowledging the best Canadian album released in the past year with regards to artistic merit. I was very pleased to see songwriter/performer/producer Sandro Perri nominated for his album, Tiny Mirrors, when the prize's long list was recently announced. Funnily enough, I've been mesmerized over the past week with a song done by Perri and fellow Canadian Andre Ethier during a live in-studio session for CBC last year... a song called "Circles", which can be found on a record released by Perri under the name Polmo Polpo in 2006. The album (actually an EP) is called Plays Polmo Polpo and includes three re-workings of songs from Perri's Polmo Polpo debut.

The song benefits in this live performance by the lovely contrast of Ethier's fantastic voice; rootsy, vibrant, as pleasing to hear as grainy wood is to touch and smell, against the improvisatory skill of Perri on guitar, not to mention his own vocal appeal, fragile as a choir boy's with a confident wire-like strength at it's core.

Sandro Perri and Andre Ethier
circles (CBC fuse - 2007)

Sandro Perri
circles from Sandro Perri Plays Polmo Polpo
city of museums from Tiny Mirrors

Andre Ethier
pride of egypt from On Blue Fog
little saddy from Andre Ethier with Christopher Sandes featuring Pickles and Price

* * * * *

Here's the long list of Polaris nominees:
The Acorn - Glory Hope Mountain
Attack In Black - Marriage
Black Mountain - In The Future
Born Ruffians - Red, Yellow and Blue
Buck 65 - Situation
Basia Bulat - Oh, My Darling
Cadence Weapon - Afterparty Babies
Cancer Bats - Hail Destroyer
Caribou - Andorra
City And Colour - Bring Me Your Love
Constantines - Kensington Heights
Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
Destroyer - Trouble In Dreams
Fred Eaglesmith - Tinderbox
Kathleen Edwards - Asking For Flowers
Christine Fellows - Nevertheless
Gatineau - Gatineau
Hayden - In Field And Town
Veda Hille - This Riot Life
HILOTRONS - Happymatic
Holy Fuck - LP
Islands - Arm's Way
Karkwa - Le volume du vent
Corb Lund - Horse Solider! Horse Soldier!
The New Pornographers - Challengers
Pas Chic Chic - Au Contraire
Sandro Perri - Tiny Mirrors
Plants And Animals - Parc Avenue
Ghislain Poirier - No Ground Under
Protest The Hero - Fortress
Justin Rutledge - Man Descending
Sadies - New Seasons
Shad - The Old Prince
Socalled - Ghetto Blaster
Stars - In Our Bedroom After The War
Tegan And Sara - The Con
Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-La-La Band – 13 Blues for Thirteen Moons
Two Hours Traffic - Little Jabs
The Weakerthans - Reunion Tour
Wintersleep - Welcome To The Night Sky

Sixeyes Test Drive

[Streams available through Sunday 6/29, links subject to change]

Sigur Ros, 'Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust' full album stream
The Notwist, 'The Devil, You and Me' full album stream
Mugison, 'Mugiboogie' full album stream

Motley Crue, 'Saints of Los Angeles' full album stream on Spinner
RZA as Bobby Digital, 'Digi Snax' full album stream
Hercules and Love Affair, 'Hercules and Love Affair' full album stream
Blondie, 'Parallel Lines' full album stream
Liz Phair, 'Exile in Guyville' full album stream
G. Love and Special Sauce, 'Superhero Brother' full album stream
Smoking Popes, 'Stay Down' full album stream on Spinner
Sam Sparro, 'Sam Sparro' full album stream
Billy Idol, 'The Very Best of Billy Idol: Idolize Yourself' full album stream
Amos Lee, 'Last Days at the Lodge' full album stream

Shins To Release Next Album on Mercer's Label

Yeah, I got a little excited the other morning when I saw this story on Billboard, but there's no news about a new record, just the fact that the band are seeking a better deal and will likely release the next record on frontman James Mercer's label, Aural Apothecary. This isn't good news for their current label, Sub Pop, the band's most recent effort, Wincing The Night Away, sold over half a million copies, so far. Seeing how this year hasn't been very exciting, musicwise, this news deserves to be celebrated with some Shins music, a Shin Bones Mix!

kissing the lipless (album version)
girl on the wing
split needles (alternate version)

The Shins - live at paradiso amsterdam 2007
sleeping lessons
kissing the lipless
turn a square
a comet appears
caring is creepy

Tom Waits: Glitter And Doom Tour 2008

Tonight Tom Waits will begin yet another tour which fails to bring him anywhere near where I happen to be living. Ah, well, I've been lucky in so many other ways I'm not going to let this get me down. BUT, if you've got a couple of spare tickets and access to a private jet, let me know... ok? Thanks.

06-17 Phoenix, AZ - Orpheum
06-18 Phoenix, AZ - Orpheum
06-20 El Paso, TX - Plaza Theatre
06-22 Houston, TX - Jones Hall
06-23 Dallas, TX - Palladium
06-25 Tulsa, OK - Brady Theatre
06-26 St. Louis, MO - Fox Theatre
06-28 Columbus, OH - Ohio Theatre
06-29 Knoxville, TN - Civic Theatre
07-01 Jacksonville, FL - Moran Theatre
07-02 Mobile, AL - Saenger Theatre
07-03 Birmingham, AL - Alabama Theatre
07-05 Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre
07-12 San Sebastián, Spain - Auditorium Kursaal
07-14 Barcelona, Spain - Auditorium Forum
07-15 Barcelona, Spain - Auditorium Forum
07-17 Milan, Italy - Teatro Degli Arcimboldi
07-18 Milan, Italy - Teatro Degli Arcimboldi
07-19 Milan, Italy - Teatro Degli Arcimboldi
07-21 Prague, Czech Republic - KCP
07-22 Prague, Czech Republic - KCP
07-24 Paris, France - Grand Rex
07-25 Paris, France - Grand Rex
07-27 Edinburgh, Scotland - Playhouse
07-28 Edinburgh, Scotland - Playhouse
07-30 Dublin, Ireland - The Ratcellar at Phoenix Park
07-31 Dublin, Ireland - The Ratcellar at Phoenix Park
08-01 Dublin, Ireland - The Ratcellar at Phoenix Park

August 6th 2008: Tom Waits July 5th show in Atlanta has just been posted here at Sixeyes.

Released: June 17th

These are tomorrow's releases at insound.com. You can find all of these at insound through the links or by visiting the website and searching.

June
06/17/08 Adem Takes Domino
06/17/08 Benjamin Wetherill Laura Ba Da Bing
06/17/08 Bowerbirds Hymns for a Dark Horse Dead Oceans
06/17/08 Butter 08 Butter 08 (Reissue) GR2 Classics
06/17/08 Children of the Sixth Root Race Songs From the Source Drag City
06/17/08 Chromeo Fancy Footwork: Deluxe Edition Vice
06/17/08 Clouds We Are Above You Hydra Head
06/17/08 Current 93 Black Ships Heat the Dancefloor Durtro/ Jnana
06/17/08 Gridlink Amber Gray Hydra Head
06/17/08 Head Like a Kite There Is Loud Laughter Everywhere Mush
06/17/08 IAMX Kiss + Swallow Metropolis
06/17/08 Impossible Shapes The Impossible Shapes Secretly Canadian
06/17/08 Interiors The Interiors 54-40 or Fight!
06/17/08 James Blackshaw Litany of Echoes Tompkins Square
06/17/08 Jay Reatard Always Wanting More / You Mean Nothing To Me 7" Matador
06/17/08 Jay Reatard Singles 06-07 In The Red
06/17/08 Jeremy Jay Alpharhythm 7" K Records
06/17/08 King Khan and the Shrines The Supreme Genius of King Khan Vice
06/17/08 Liquid Liquid Liquid Liquid (Reissue) GR2 Classics
06/17/08 Low Lows Shining Violence Misra
06/17/08 M's Real Close Ones Polyvinyl
06/17/08 Mogwai Young Team (Deluxe Edition) Chemikal Underground
06/17/08 Mount Analog feat. Karl Blau That's How I Got To Memphis 7" K Records
06/17/08 My Brightest Diamond A Thousand Shark's Teeth Asthmatic Kitty
06/17/08 Nomo Ghost Rock Ubiquity
06/17/08 Notwist The Devil, You + Me Domino
06/17/08 Pelt Dauphin Elegies VHF
06/17/08 Plastique De Reve Lost in the City 12" Death From Abroad
06/17/08 Ponytail Ice Cream Spiritual We Are Free
06/17/08 Reggie and the Full Effect Last Stop: Crappy Town Vagrant
06/17/08 Sally Shapiro Remix Romance Vol. 2 Paper Bag
06/17/08 Sebadoh Bubble and Scrape Domino
06/17/08 Sian Alice Group The Dusk Line EP The Social Registry
06/17/08 Silver Jews Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea Drag City
06/17/08 SJ Esau Small Vessel Anticon
06/17/08 Tilly and the Wall O Team Love
06/17/08 Twine Violets Ghostly International
06/17/08 Valient Thorr Immortalizer Volcom
06/17/08 War on Drugs Wagonwheel Blues Secretly Canadian
06/17/08 Wolf Parade At Mount Zoomer Sub Pop

Sixeyes: Test Drive

Wolf Parade At Mount Zoomer
Tilly and The Wall O
Dennis Wilson Pacific Blue Ocean (Legacy Edition)
The Offspring Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
Chicago Stone of Sisyphus: XXXII
Smoking Popes Stay Down
Hans York, 'Young Amelia'
Dan Tyminski, 'Wheels'
Mick Hucknall, Tribute to Bobby
Flying Lotus Los Angeles
James Blackshaw Litany of Echoes
Derby Posters Fade
Adele 19

The National: White Sessions

Summer's almost here, my back is royally screwed (i can't sit, so i'm kneeling on a blanket to work at the computer right now), and good music is in the air.

The National, based in Brooklyn and originally from Cincinnati, are getting some fantastic exposure this spring opening for major label heavyweights REM and Modest Mouse. Here's a great live performance the band did a year ago for France's Inter Radio, it features, almost exclusively, tracks from the latest record, Boxer. The band has a few more dates with those two, but will continue to tour hitting every spot in Europe, check the schedule here.

07/05/28 - White Session - Radio France
01. start a war
02. brainy
03. slow show
04. squalor victoria
05. apartment story
06. racing like a pro
07. ada
08. you've done it again virginia
09. mistaken for strangers
10. fake empire
11. about today

You can download The National's Boxer and Alligator (plus earlier albums) at eMusic with their free trial offer.

Sixeyes: Test Drive

Test drive the latest releases, full album streams found through the links.

Sloan Parallel Play
My Morning Jacket Evil Urges
Martha Wainwright I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings, Too
Supergrass Diamond Hoo Ha
The Beach Boys US Singles Collection Box
Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes
Adele 19
Jakob Dylan Seeing Things
Solomon Burke Like A Fire
The Awkward Stage Slimming Mirrors, Flattering Lights

Sixeyes: 'Reruns'

There haven't been many posts here for a couple of reasons, or more, but the one which actually saddens me is the fact that I haven't heard anything new which has remotely excited me. I've even found myself listening to songs from bands that roamed the earth years ago, decades ago. This isn't typical of me at all, I'm always seeking something new, a new favourite song, or artist, and when I find something which I like I often share it with Sixeyes readers, hoping against hope that that one little post by little old me will start an internet brushfire à la Beirut and rocket the artist onto the pages of much worthier reads. So, while sitting here in an non-air conditioned attic of an 80 year old house during an obnoxious early June heatwave with humidex readings of 40°C (104 degrees Fahrenheit), once again I bring you music by artists that, at one time, I felt excited enough to put up here at Sixeyes... these musicians still deliver the goods and still deserve a wider audience. There are obviously many artists that I can't recall right now, perhaps I'll have to do this rerun 'thing' again in the future... and having just spent a very disheartening few minutes on the hype machine and very nearly feeling the bile rise into my throat as I scanned the page to find major label dreck littering the page. What the hell happened? It's a sure sign of how desperate major labels are right now to see artists like Madonna and Coldplay on an aggregator which points us all in the direction of free mp3 downloads. The times are changing, but I preferred when indie acts ruled that little corner of the internet, I'm just not mainstream material, not in most aspects of my life... oops, I'm getting way off track... Where was I? Oh, yeah, I'll have to do this rerun thing again, that is if I can't find some new music that really excites me... soon. Long live the independent!

Well... I wrote the above a couple of days ago and I've been waiting for some free time to wrap it up and upload the songs, but guess what happens, I get contacted by the main man from Via Violenta about his new musical project called Young Hunting (Via Violenta were featured on Sixeyes something like a year ago) and now along comes a new song from a new band and I like it straight off.... so, this post is still titled 'Reruns', but the first track is a premiere of sorts.

Young Hunting
man working his maze

Via Violenta
long black lashes
always looking back

David Fridlund
with every new day
tonight the walls are closing

Wooly Leaves
soft place to call home
people and the planets

Lionel Neykov
i need you
freeze my senses

Between The Pine
robbie, brute of the brawlers
please sit down

The Broken West
down in the valley

Harlem Shakes
sickos
felt wings

The Scourge of The Sea
waterwings
out of the trash

The Little Ones
cha cha cha
high on a hill

Novi Split
you got served
california skies

Golden Gram
new start (enjoy yourself)

What's New (and free) at eMusic?

If you didn't already know, eMusic is the digital download site of choice here at Sixeyes. I was a subscriber well before I became a blogger and the site has only grown better over the years. Here's a sampling of some music new to the site and some tried and true stuff that if you haven't got already you should change that soon. Look into the site's free offer of 25 mp3 downloads (no strings) right here.

stephen malkmus
radiohead
sparks
santogold
ladytron
joan as policewoman
my morning jacket
the french kicks
the national
ted leo
the black angels
maceo parker
joan jett and the blackhearts
mogwai
sufjan stevens

... AND a lot more.

Sixeyes is back!

I apologize to all my regulars readers, visitors, downloaders, etc. Finally, finally, FINALLY... I've got internet access at my new residence. So, when I find the time I'll be posting music once again here at Sixeyes. Thanks to all for your patience.

AW