The Gabe! Doin' Covers!

"And it feels so unnatural, to sing your own name."

Peter Gabriel's career is illustrious. His time spent with Genesis was magical, to say the least, way back in the 70's. Truly an innovator of prog rock ... and rock stage theatrics. His solo career brought him much success. Songs like "Sledgehammer", "Red Rain", "In Your Eyes", and "Solsbury Hill" are timeless. Things have since settled down for Mr. Gabriel. He hasn't put out much material in this decade, unless you count his Hot Chip collaboration cover for Vampire Weekend's "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" last year or his tune for Wall-E two summers ago. But coming in 2010, The Gabe will release a cover record. Believe it! It's going to be called Scratch My Back. Fitting, because some of the artist he's covering, will in favor cover HIS songs. I don't know anything about THAT release, though. Here's the track-listing. And it is so good:

1. Heroes (David Bowie Cover)
2. The Boy in the Bubble (Paul Simon Cover)
3. Mirrorball (Elbow Cover)
4. Flume (Bon Iver Cover)
5. Listening Wind (Talking Heads Cover)
6. The Power of the Heart (Lou Reed Cover)
7. My Body Is a Cage (Arcade Fire Cover)
8. The Book of Love (Magnetic Fields Cover)
9. I Think It's Going to Rain Today (Randy Newman Cover)
10. Après Moi (Regina Spektor Cover)
11. Philadelphia (Neil Young Cover)
12. Street Spirit (Radiohead Cover)

Scratch My Back will be released on January 25th, 2010. You can bet your bottom dollar that we'll be using some of these as our "Allen Reed Memorial Cover Of The Week" for many shows in the Spring.

Peter Gabriel & Hot Chip - "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Vampire Weekend Cover)"

Weezer - The 8-Bit Album

Hey, remember when Weezer was good? Yeah, that was a long time ago, all the way back in 1997. But do you remember when Weezer was even listenable? That'll only take you back a few years. But in all seriousness here, Weezer constantly gives me pains and sadness. Many of you may not know how it feels to have your #2 favorite album of all time be put out by a band who is now writing songs called "The Girl Got Hot" and "I'm Your Daddy". Ouch. But either way, Pinkerton was a stone cold classic and a better 30-minute album you will not be able to find.

However, this is not a Pinkerton post, this is about something pretty damn cool. Do you remember when you first heard Weezer and thought, "Hmm, I bet this would sound pretty cool as video game music." No? Well luckily someone else thought that for you and they came up with this. The 8-Bit Album brings together up and coming 8-Bit artists who used their talents to cover Weezer songs. The whole catalog is touched upon too, from the glory days of The Blue Album and Pinkerton, to everything after, and even a good amount of B-Sides from in between. And what's the best part? It's free.

Pterodactyl Squad has put the album up on their website for free download to anyone who wants it, and believe me, you will not regret downloading this. The whole album is a blast, but especially "El Scorcho", "Buddy Holly", and "You Gave Your Love To Me Softly". This may sound crazy, but this is starting to creep up on Dark Was The Night for the year's best compilation so far. Don't miss out. Download it here.

More On Upcoming Mulcahy Tribute

Awhile back, I posted about the magnificent news of a Mark Mulcahy tribute compilation being produced by many a-great artists/friends and released on September 29th this year. I am a huge Mulcahy fan and this whole project is being done in the hope that he can continue to create great music after the sudden and tragic death of his wife last year, leaving him to raise his young family all by himself. It totally sucks and couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. Here's the old post. Now there is an update: some songs are now on the interwebs! Want to hear 'em? Keep reading.

Stereogum posted Thom Yorke's rendition of "All For The Best", a track released by MM's original jangly rock 80's band, Miracle Legion (well worth getting to know). It's a great tune and the cover is what you would expect from Yorke; AKA: electro-gloom. Here it is.

On MM's MySpace, you can hear two additional tracks from the compilation, one from Josh Rouse, and the other from The National. The National covers "Ashamed Of The Story I Told", a prime Polaris song. It's surprisingly upbeat for such a mournful song. Take a listen here.

Ciao My Shining Star: The Songs of Mark Mulcahy is out 9/29 via Shout! Factory.

Big Names In For Mulcahy Tribute

Right off the bat: this man is so underrated.

This news comes from the grandfather music blog of all music blogs, Stereogum. Here's the scoop: the picture you see above is of Mark Mulcahy. Singer, guitarist, jangle rock God, nostaglia bearer, and one of the few people I respect from Massachusetts. He's been playing in bands since the 80's, most notably Miracle Legion and Polaris (but that last one was just for Nickelodeon's "The Adventures Of Pete And Pete"). This awesome dude has put out a few solo records, but not any since 2005, a year that was tragic for his family and himself, as they lost Mark's wife in a sudden accident. He hasn't been putting out records since; I think it's because he's been focusing on raising his family now. Totally understandable. But God do I miss hearing new MM material. And I'm not alone. Michael Stipe, Thom Yorke, the boys of The National and many others are putting together a tribute record to Mr. Mulcahy titled "Caio My Shining Star: The Songs Of Mark Mulcahy". The goal: to help Mark get back on his feet and continue to make great music. (I'm starting to believe that Michael Stipe might be God by helping so many people: Cobain, UNICEF, the planet, and the list goes on and on). I've played a number of his tunes on the show, just check out the playlist. Needless to say, I'm very excited for this compilation. A lot of these songs are going to sound different, but different isn't always bad and I'm ready to experience this. Also, twenty or so bonus tracks will be released digitally! Cross your fingers for early work and/or Polaris tunes. Here's the track list:

1. Thom Yorke - "All For The Best"
2. The National - "Ashamed Of The Story I Told"
3. Michael Stipe - "Everything's Coming Undone"
4. David Berkeley - "Loves The Only Thing That Shuts Me Up"
5. Dinosaur Jr. - "The Backyard"
6. Chris Harford & Mr. Ray Neal - "Micon The Icon"
7. Frank Black - "Bill Jocko"
8. Vic Chesnutt - "Little Man"
9. Unbelievable Truth - "Ciao My Shining Star"
10. Butterflies Of Love - "I Have Patience"
11. Chris Collingwood (Fountains Of Wayne) - "Cookie Jar"
12. Frank Turner - "The Quiet One"
13. Rocket From The Tombs - "In Pursuit Of Your Happiness"
14. Ben Kweller - "Wake Up Whispering"
15. Josh Rouse - "I Woke Up In The Mayflower"
16. Autumn Defense - "Paradise"
17. Hayden -"Happy Birthday Yesterday"
18. Juliana Hatfield - "We're Not In Charleston Anymore"
19. Mercury Rev - "Sailors And Animals"
20. Elvis Perkins - "She Watches Over Me"
21. Sean Watkins - "A World Away From This One"

Caio My Shining Star: The Songs Of Mark Mulcahy comes out September 29th, on Shout! Records. Pick it up, you will not be dissappointed.

A personal favorite right here (and the only music video I can find):