SONG OF THE DAY [#320]

'oh my life' | beth rowley

so my beth rowley obsession continues. i'm now on day four. i think she's just great. i'm pretty sure i've listened to her album about twenty times now and i'm just not getting tired of it.

'oh my life' is the new single and it's a great one. it's got 'top ten' written all over it. i think you'll wholeheartedly agree once you hear it. i want to take a nap in her hair. it must be like falling asleep in a cloud.



darn you and your darn dimples, beth. i love you...

→ beth rowley: oh my life

SONG OF THE DAY [#319]

'so sublime' | beth rowley

oh, beth rowley, you impossibly cute, poodle-haired purveyor of poppy piano songs. why must you write such glorious songs that remind of cruising down pacific coast highway with the top down and listening to AM gold radio in 1979? [ok, i would've only been 5 going on 6 in 1979, but a kid can imagine, right?] you make me feel a nostalgia for a time i don't even remember and therefore have no reason to feel nostalgic for it. but alas, i do...

born in lima, peru and reared in the motherland, er, england, beth rowley is quite a talent. her debut, 'little dreamer,' has been floating around for awhile, but i just barely got to hear it today and it is super duper fantastic. it's part pop, part jazz, part r&b, part phil spector. add it all up and it's whole lots of awesome. think carole king meets duffy [even though beth's been around longer than duffy]. i highly recommend you pick it up and enjoy the super duper fantastickness. and while you do that, check out this video clip, too. ***Update*** i totally lied -- her album just came out may 20 of THIS year, not last year. it even cracked the top ten in the u.k. good on her!

i'd just like to get lost in her hair. that'd be r. a. d.

→ beth rowley: so sublime | video
→ beth rowley: you never called me tonight

SONG OF THE DAY [#318]

'it doesn't get much better than this' | helicopter girl

after a mercury-nominated debut album in 2000, and a groovy follow up, 'voodoo chic,' in 2005, scottish artist helicopter girll [a.k.a jackie joyce] is releasing her new one, 'metropolitan,' this month [next month here in the states]. it was preceded by the most excellent 'it doesn't get much better than this,' which itself was a top 10 club hit. y'all know how much i love dance music, and these cuts are some primo examples. and if you're thinking she sounds an awful like eatha kitt, you'd be right. she does. talk about dead sexy.

→ helicopter girl: it doesn't get much better than this | video
→ helicopter girl: ghosts in the machine
→ helicopter girl: white revolving circles

SONG OF THE DAY [#317]

'profit in your poetry' | butcher boy

my first though upon hearing butcher was this: wow, they sounds like they're from glasgow. so i hopped ye olde internet and lo and behold, my predictive powers prove to be very awesome and predictive. that doesn't even make sense.

anyway, i've had this one playing pretty regularly over the last year or so. it's a really great album, which makes me wonder why butcher boy isn't more well known. sure, bands are a dime a dozen these days, but surely the cream rises to the top, don't it? i think it eventually does. it's hard to keep true talent down and butcher boy gots lots of talent, so you can't keep them down.

the facts: butcher boy are seven piece band and they are great. that's all you need to know. i heartily suggest you check 'em out. you can even buy the album here [it'll set you back a bit, but it's totally worth it]. imagine matt johnson from the the fronting belle & sebastian [c'mon, you know i couldn't take about glasgow without mention B&S], only a more melancholy b&s. yeah. their debut, 'profit in your poetry,' is a sublime piece of pastoral pop pie ['i could be in love with anyone' is particularly gorgeous]. hey, that's an alliteration. i love me an alliteration, especially the unintentional ones. i love me some butcher boy, too. check out the songs below and you'll love them, too. that's the spitcake guarantee.

→ butcher boy: profit in your poetry
→ butcher boy: girls make me sick
→ butcher boy: i could be in love with anyone

SONG OF THE DAY [#316]

a bunch of covers | a bunch of artists

not too much time today, but here are a couple of fun covers for your listening enjoyment.

→ the cure: world in my eyes
→ badly drawn boy: come on eileen
→ the shout out louds: man on the moon
→ the oliver north boy's choir: enola gay

for more fun with covers visit here: the covers project

SONG OF THE DAY [#315]

'to be loved' | joan as policewoman

here's another one of the original 'song of the day' artists from about two years ago: joan as policewoman. i really liked some of the songs on her first album [particularly 'eternal flame.' and no, it's not a cover of the bangles 'classic.'] , so i was naturally really excited to learn her new one, 'to survive,' drops the first week of june. it's what you've come to expect from joan--beautiful, piano-driven pop with a hint of the blues. yeah, it's as good as it sounds.

if you don't already know joan as policewoman, here's what you need to know: her name is joan wasser. she's from maine. she's played and sung with lou reed, rufus wainwright, sparklehorse, david gahan, antony and the johnsons, and well, countless others. she even played in the university of boston symphony. girl's got mad skills. check out 'to survive' when it drops. you'll be glad you did.

→ joan as policewoman: to be loved
→ joan as policewoman: eternal flame | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#314]

'help help' | mates of state

it looks like mates of state's winning streak will continue. after the great 'bring it back,' the band is set to release their new album, 're-arrange us,' next tuesday. indeed, it is super. lots of sharp hooks, keen melodies and lovely harmonies. what is it about married couples making great music? alan & mimi, natasha and murray, those kids from the rosebuds, and last but not least, mates of state's very own kori and jason. it's almost enough to make me want to get married...but not quite.

as an added attraction to today's song, i offer you their version of phantom planet's 'california' from one of those OC mixes and 'fraud in the 80s' from the previously mentioned 'bring it back.'

→ mates of state: help help
→ mates of state: fraud in the 80s | video
→ mates of state: california [phantom planet cover]

SONG OF THE DAY [#313]

'institutionalized' | suicidal tendencies & black velvet flag

i was mildly amused to hear suicidal tendencies 'institutionalized' on the iron man soundtrack. [great movie, by the way. and while you're at, check out marvel's new ongoing series, 'invincible iron man.' awesome.] i remember hearing this song back in high school and thinking it was pretty rad even though i didn't really listen to punk or hard and heavy stuff. i think they might have even played it at the ivy tower on occasion. it was always a fun song to go nuts to.

hearing it again for the first time in, like, fifteen years reminded me of black velvet flag's lounge version of the same song. now if you've not heard black velvet flag, they were richard cheese before there was richard cheese. richard cheese basically stole black velvet flag's entire gag. but whatever. that's another story for another day. anyway, i black velvet flag [which just has to be a play on black flag] might have been responsible for the whole loungy cover version craze. i don't really know of anyone else doing it before them, do you? and to think all i wanted was a pepsi.

so put your hands in the air and sing, 'i'm not crazy, you're the one who's crazy....'

→ suicidal tendencies: institutionalized | video
→ black velvet flag: institutionalized

SONG OF THE DAY [#312]

'freddie and the trojan horse' | the radio dept

speaking of the radio dept., here's their new one.

it's been a while since i've posted any swedish, which is kind of strange given that for a while there the swedes had a monopoly on spitcake since, like, the beginning. so welcome back, swedes. you were missed.

the new album, 'clinging to a scheme,' will hit digital shelves on september 10th. 'freddie and the trojan horse' is the lead single. so be sure to check out the album. i'm certain it will be great. after all, they're swedes.

→ the radio dept: freddie and the trojan horse
→ the radio dept: the worst taste in music | video [from 'lesser matters']

SONG OF THE DAY [#311]

'a spell a rebel yell' | coldplay

i'm still not convinced this actually a coldplay song. i've listened to it twice and shoot, i just can't tell. it's just far too interesting to be a coldplay song. it actually kinda songs like a marriage between the jesus and mary chain and the radio dept. if it IS, in fact, a coldplay song, i have to give some credit to chris paltrow and co. it ain't half bad. in fact, it's pretty darn good. it makes me dislike chris paltrow's hair and stubble that much less.

what's interesting is that 'a spell a rebel yell' is actually the b-side to the first single ['violet hill'] from the upcoming, and inexplicably titled, 'viva la vida or death and all his friends.' [i feel discombobulated just writing that. what does that even mean?] c'mon, paltrow! be bold, be daring. oh, wait, this is coldplay we're talking about. nevermind.

and a word to all you salt lake city coldplay groupies: coldplay make their first trip the slc november 22. tickets are going to run you $50-$80 clams. so if you want to go watch the musical equivalent of a thomas kincaide painting, start saving your pennies.

→ coldplay: a spell a rebel yell
→ coldplay: violet hill
→ coldplay & mark ronson: god put a smile upon your face [f. the daptone horns]
→ coldplay: have yourself a merry little christmas

SONG OF THE DAY [#310]

'august & september' | elbow

had enough elbow? tough.

here's elbow version of the the's classic, 'august & september.' as i was listening to this song yesterday, it got me thinking about the the. i hadn't listened to them for quite some time, so i broke out 'soul mining' and 'mind bomb' this morning and gave 'em a listen. one may or may not agree with matt johnson's politics, but dood can write a whale of a tune. just listen to the sample below and you'd be hard pressed to disagree. and yes, that is johnny marr in the 'the beat[en] generation' video. and yes, 'this is the day,' is the m&m's theme song. and yes, it was also featured at the very end of the super awesome 'empire records.' and yes, 'uncertain smile' is one of my favorite songs ever.

→ elbow: august & september
→ the the: august & september
→ the the: the beat[en] generation | video
→ the the: this is the day | video
→ the the: uncertain smile | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#309]

'hide from the cold' | the jane bradfords

coming to live from belfast, ireland, it's the jane bradfords. i don't know who jane bradford is, but she must have been righteous chick considering that she inspired a band name and that bands' most supremely awesome songs. imaginiff echo and the bunnymen hung out with the psychedelic furs and they all took happy pills. yeah, meyer, that's a fine idea.

seriously, kids, this is, as they say, the good stuff.

→ the jane bradfords: hide from the cold
→ the jane bradfords: headache pills

SONG OF THE DAY [#308]

'weather to fly' | elbow

i went to see elbow last saturday night. here i am on tuesday night still basking in the elbow afterglow. i could bore you with details, but there simply aren't the words to describe it. it was one of those rare occasions when you 'just had to be there.' you really did. it was just one of the moments when you fall into the sublime, in the truest sense of the word. i couldn't do it justice even if tried.

i will, however, say this: three minutes into the show my man-crush on guy garvey was in full swing and shows no signs of retreating any time soon. i've never seen a performer so quickly charm the collective pants off a crowd quite the way guy garvey did. and it wasn't a show--the guy [no pun intended] is incredibly genuine. i guess that's why his lyrics are as honest as they are and resonate as well as they do.

if you missed them this time around, i hope you don't miss them next time they come around. what a phenomenal band. and what a phenomenal concert.

→ elbow: weather to fly [from 'the seldom seen kid']
→ elbow: lay down your cross [from the u.s. version of 'cast of thousands.']

SONG OF THE DAY [#307]

'long division' | death cab for cutie

so i wrote this big, long essay on why i thought death cab for cutie's popularity has grown exponentially in the last couple of years. it was kind of funny, actually, but i have a lot of friends who hold DCFC near and dear to their hearts and i didn't want to step on any toes, if you know what i mean. so i'll spare you all my 'analysis' and just post a couple of songs from the upcoming album, 'narrow stairs,' due out may 13. check it out.

→ death cab for cutie: long division [from 'narrow stairs']
→ death cab for cutie: cath... [from 'narrow stairs']

SONG OF THE DAY [#306]

'i know your girlfriend hates me' | annie

it looks like annie's putting the final touches on her new album. this is the best news i've heard all day. with richard x, girls aloud, and alex kapranos on board, it's bound to be another fantastic album.

→ annie: i know your girlfriend hates me | video
→ annie: heartbeat [the field remix] | video