Last Night: John Mayer


I went to see John Mayer play at Madison Square Garden last Thursday. It's a tradition for me really, since I've been listening to his music for about 10 years. Even though I don't really like him that much any more, I do enjoy his live shows.

Michael Franti & Spearhead (above) opened with forty minutes of reggae-pop tunes. Lot of fun, pretty solid set.


(Is this why that VW show sold out instantly?)


JM came on twenty minutes late and played for a little less than two hours. Not much to say. He's a great live performer. The set was mostly comprised of songs from his back catalogue (of, em, higher quality albums than the newest addition). And to top it off, he ran Half of my Heart in a cover of Fleetwood Mac's Dreams.

Setlist

Heartbreak Warfare
Crossroads (Eric Clapton cover)
Vultures
No Such Thing
Perfectly Lonely
Slow Dancing In A Burning Room
Assassin
My Stupid Mouth/Daughters/3x5
Ain't No Sunshine (Whens She's Gone) (Bill Withers cover)
Waiting On The World To Change
Bigger Than My Body
Half of My Heart / Dreams (Fleetwood Mac cover)
Why Georgia
Gravity
Encore:
Who Says
Friends, Lovers or Nothing

Born Ruffians Announce Sophomore LP Details


Born Ruffians will release their second LP Say It on June 1, 2010!
A free download of Sole Brother can be found at Filter Magazine.

TRACKLISTING
1. Oh Man
2. Retard Canard
3. Sole Brother
4. What To Say
5. The Ballad Of Moose Bruce
6. Higher And Higher
7. Come Back
8. Nova-Leigh
9. Blood, The Sun & Water
10. At Home Now

Vampire Weekend to Join Zach Galifianakis on SNL


Adding to the anticipation of Zach Galifianakis hosting Saturday Night Live on March 6th, Vampire Weekend has been confirmed as the musical guest for the show. This is the band's second appearance on SNL.

Here's hoping for the Vamps in a digital short!

Surfer Blood


In the mood for another surf rock album?

Check out Surfer Blood's debut LP Astro Coast.
They're out on a big tour right now - all dates at myspace.com/surferblood

VIDEO: Vampire Weekend - "Giving Up the Gun"


As promised, VW's video for Giving Up the Gun.

It's a great comfort to know that every Jonas Brothers fan in the world now knows about "a great, new underground band" called Vampire Weekend.

VW's 'Giving Up the Gun' Video Debut


Vampire Weekend will debut their video for Giving Up the Gun tomorrow, which will include Jake Gyllenhaal, Joe Jonas, Lil John and RZA participating in what director Emmett Molloy calls "a bizarre-o tennis match".

Look for it here or on Spinner tomorrow.

MGMT Reveals Art


Continuing with the MGMT coverage, here's the art for their sophomore release Congratulations. Erm, ok.

The preorder comes with some very strange incentives.

White Stripes Take "Strong Action" Against USAF


The White Stripes have announced that they will be taking action against the US Air Force for using a song with striking similarity to Fell in Love with a Girl on a Superbowl spot. The commercial was aimed at recruiting new troops.

"The White Stripes take strong insult and objection to the Air Force Reserve presenting this advertisement with the implication that we licensed one of our songs to encourage recruitment during a war that we do not support."


VIDEO: The Strokes - In the Studio pt. 1


A very cool video from The Strokes doing the tracking for their fourth album.
You can listen to Nikolai Broke the Zoom here.

Neon Indian TV Debut


Austin's electro blog favorite Neon Indian will make their TV debut tonight on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Be sure to tune in!

Show starts at 12:37 pm, Gold Coast time.

MGMT Confirms Details for Sophomore Album


It's only been a short time since MGMT announced they wouldn't be releasing singles for their sophomore LP Congratulations, but they've already confirmed further details.

The nine-song album is slated for April 13th. Promising a track listing that flows with "sonic and thematic coherence", the duo insists that Congratulations will "definitely shock people and that they "dropped any sort of irony that was on the first record."

Track Listing:

01 - It’s Working
02 - Song for Dan Treacy
03 - Someone’s Missing
04 - Flash Delirium
05 - I Found a Whistle
06 - Siberian Breaks
07 - Brian Eno
08 - Lady Dada’s Nightmare
09 - Congratulations

Review: Good Shoes - "No Hope, No Future"


London's Good Shoes prove that history does repeat itself.

If one was to examine how aspects of recorded music as we know it came to be, they would certainly come across the history of the LP - the long play release. In the middle of the last century, there was a great shift in recording style. Instead of releasing a few tracks, record companies thought that charging more for longer records could bring in more profit, and the LP was born. However, the quality of the 'additional' songs were low. Essentially, they were filler tracks.

With the recent release of the second Good Shoes album No Hope, No Future, I can't help but wonder if the past has repeated and manifested itself through their record. Please add it to the pile of recent disappointments. It's a very dark work, especially for following their first album Think Before You Speak, which was catchy, fun and really pretty good.

But don't get me wrong, there are a couple of really nice tracks on there. Closing cut City By the Sea is probably the best on the album and arguably the most complex in the whole discography. With its minor chord progressions and glimmer-of-hope lead guitar part, the band did manage to pull it together for the last track. With any luck it is the prequel to a better and brighter third album.

The Strokes: In the Studio (for real!)

Guitarist Nick Valensi & Gus Oberg at Avatar in between takes.

A news update from The Strokes has confirmed that they are
currently working away on the fourth album at Avatar Studios in New York.
The album is being produced by Joe Chiccarelli (White Stripes, U2, Shins, Counting Crows) and engineered by long time friend Gus Oberg. Both are GRAMMY winning in their respective fields.

The album is expected to be released this year.

Phoenix Wins GRAMMY


Congratulations to Phoenix for winning the Best Alternative Album GRAMMY for Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix!
This is the first win and nomination for both the band and their label Glassnote.