April 10, 2010 (Playlist)

April 10, 2010 (Playlist)
"Our Forty-Third Show!"

Belle & Sebastian – Another Sunny Day
Death Cab For Cutie – Photobooth
The New Pornographers – Your Hands (Together)
Bloc Party – Rhododendrons
*"Punk Trunk!": Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers – Chinese Rocks
*"Punk Trunk!": Hüsker Dü – Celebrated Summer
R.E.M. – So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)
Modest Mouse – Breakthrough
The Boat People – Born In The 80s
Dr. Dog – Unbearable Why

*"Allen Reed Memorial Cover Of The Week": Nada Surf – Electrocution (Bill Fox Cover)
*"The Mighty Mighty Boss-Tune": Bruce Springsteen – Crush On You
Doves – There Goes The Fear
The Elected – Would You Come With Me?
The Strange Boys – Be Brave
Harlem – Gay Human Bones
Local Natives – Sun Hands
Manchester Orchestra – I've Got Friends
Vampire Weekend – Holiday
Pixies – Debaser

*Background music consisted of various instrumental alternative rock tunes from the 1980s and 1990s. The list features acts the likes of The Meat Puppets, New Order, Pixies, R.E.M., and Sonic Youth.

This weekend marked the first ever Never Mind the Mainstream Saturday edition and Jim and I could not have been more pleased with how this landmark show turned out. The reason this was held on Saturday from 2-4 PM ET was because Friday night from 4-9:30 PM was 88.3 FM KUR's 5th Anniversary Party, in which alumni, young and old, came together to celebrate KUR's success. It was a great experience and we want to personally thank all of those who came out to support us. The cake was delicious, by the way. Onto the show. This week featured a handful of new tunes from the likes of The New Pornographers, The Boat People, Dr. Dog, The Strange Boys, and more. The "Punk Trunk!" came in early with The Heartbreakers and Hüsker Dü and two of their greatest tunes ever. "Boss-Tune" crushed it and "The Cover" showcased Nada Surf's ability to create epic covers. Jim and I were graced with some of our closest friends who were eager to get on the airwaves and talk about anything and everything from obtaining teaching degrees to bar advice. And we closed out the show with a scrambled sing-a-long to "Debaser" and left the station with a great feeling of accomplishment. A big thanks to all our listeners, callers, and messengers. Our fans make the show what it is. Tune in next week as we'll be back on Friday nights (6-8 PM ET). Tune in next week for another great set (and a report on the live The Thermals concert the preceding night in Philadelphia!).

Death Cab For Cutie - "Photobooth"


R.E.M. - "So. Central Rain"


Local Natives - "Sun Hands"

New Music Video: Death Cab - "Meet Me On The Equinox"

For all those Twilight fans out there, this is the music video you've been waiting for. With clips from the new movie, New Moon, Death Cab For Cutie's latest video for "Meet Me On The Equinox" matches performance with cinema. The band plays in their cliched eerie, haunting room. The video displays a fair amount of Vampire snippets, too. It's a simple soundtrack concept, but the Real Deal Holyfield is the song itself. It's such a strong track, musical and lyrically: "Everything, Everything ends". Draws me in every time. For me, Death Cab has a standard guitar sound made famous by Chris Walla and it's well expressed throughout this one. Here's the video:

Death Cab For Cutie - "Meet Me On The Equinox"

You can pre-order theTwilight Saga: New Moon soundtrack on their website here.

New Moon OST Tracklist Revealed

This may be the most anticipated soundtrack of all time, let alone, 2009. It may have (500) Days Of Summer beat. I like to think it's because some of the biggest names in alternative rock are releasing brand new, never-heard-before music on this CD. And it points out what a pivotal moment we're in for indie rock. Our favorite artists are once again on the fence, teetering over the edge, and potentially falling into the dreaded mainstream, where haters will swarm every blog and bash them with their posts. This will be a very commercial CD, no doubt about that, but it's already facing some with pitchforks and torches for certain artists touring Hot Topic outlets around the nation, promoting the release. However, though there is a need to fret a tad, there's so much to be excited about. The music is promising by roll call alone: Death Cab For Cutie, Thom Yorke, Lykke Li, The Killers, Muse, Bon Iver & St. Vincent, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Sea Wolf, Grizzly Bear, and Editors. Now that's a star-studded cast. Those working behind the soundtrack must have really persuaded these artists to get them to agree to such a thing; or maybe they all just really like the books, movies, and the subject of vampires in general? (We know Death Cab does).

We've talked about Death Cab's song before (they've been popping up on our blog in one form or another for quite some time now, with weddings and whatnot), but all this other new music is starting to make my head spin. It's a good kind of motion sickness, like being on an amusement park ride. I'm sure you can all find the music somewhere on the web and/or download the torrent someplace, but for me, I'm going wait and purchase this CD when it's physical release hits the shelf. I'm really going think about it. Really, really think about it. I guess my main concern is, what does such a commercial compilation mean for alternative rock in 2009? It's a decently-sized query. The music will do half the answering, I'm sure. The rest is up to how we handle it.

Here's the tracklist:

1. Death Cab For Cutie - "Meet Me On The Equinox"
2. Band Of Skulls - "Friends"
3. Thom Yorke- "Hearing Damage"
4. Lykke Li - "Possibility"
5. The Killers - "A White Demon Love Song"
6. Anya Marina - "Satellite Heart"
7. Muse - "I Belong To You (New Moon Remix)"
8. Bon Iver & St. Vincent - "Rosyln"
9. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - "Done All Wrong"
10. Hurricane Bells - "Monsters"
11. Sea Wolf - "The Violet Hour"
12. OK Go - "Shooting The Moon"
13. Grizzly Bear (Feat. Victoria Legrand) - "Slow Life"
14. Editors - "No Sound But The Wind"
15. Alexandre Desplat - "New Moon (The Meadow)"

The Twilight Saga: New Moon soundtrack is out 10/20 via Atlantic.

ClevverTV sheds some light on the OST...and then fans sing

Ben & Zooey: Argh! They Be Married Now

Yup. Somewhere in Washington. Sometime yesterday. Death Cab band mate Chris Walla tweeted it. And now every lovestruck fan-boy of Miss Zooey Deschanel, or should I say, Mrs. Zooey Gibbard, is now heartbroken, and holding onto his favorite She & Him record tightly, as if it could bring about Zooey's divine intervention to assure you, "It's not real, we can still be together!". But it is. And life sucks. Okay: end scenario. Congratulations to the new couple. Best of luck in your new lives together, you awesome newlyweds.

Do you think it was anything like this?

Death Cab For Cutie - "Cath..."

New Death Cab - "Meet Me On The Equinox"

We've talked about this one not too long ago. But now you're actually excited. Like, really excited. "I am?" - Yes, you are. Because Death Cab is finally giving the world a listen to their Twilight soundtrack bound tune. It's called "Meet Me On The Equinox". How science-fiction-y. If you give it a quick listen like I did, you'll understand it's about two people coming together. And luckily for us, it doesn't mention Dracula or any other vampires. The chorus is the mighty force of the song, and it packs a punch. But then, all of a sudden, the 3:39 track ends abruptly. Truth be told: "everything, everything ends." I just thought some instrumentals would linger. And I hope Ben Gibbard's talking about the Twilight saga itself. Oh shit - even I know there's one more movie to be made.

Death Cab For Cutie - "Meet Me On The Equinox"

It premiered last night on MTV.com while Kanye "Gayfish" West scaled to the top of the Twitter searches when he stole Taylor Swift's puppy. And speaking of whatever the hell we witnessed last night, how about that Muse? Pretty amazing. Here's the video of that:

Muse - "Uprising"

You can pre-order theTwilight Saga: New Moon soundtrack on their website here. And Muse's The Resistance is out tomorrow, via Warner Bros.

Death Cab Preview; Johnny Lydon News

Hey guys, just two quick notes here that are buzz-worthy and deserving of a post. I've been awake for too long so I'm making this quick. (Update on college life: senior year is ROUGH).

Note #1: Death Cab For Cutie is doing a song for the new film in the Twilight saga, New Moon, which we've briefly covered here before. Are vampires uncool yet? Anyway, you can preview the song for 40 seconds at the soundtrack's website, here. Likes this! Enjoy.

Clip from South Park

Note #2: Johnny Lydon/Johnny Rotten/ex-Sex Pistols front man/hater of Kele (Bloc Party) has revived Pubic Image Limited, with some new members (apparently), for a number of Christmas shows in jolly, old England. They had a popular run in the early 80's post-punk scene, so I guess it makes sense for the band to come back into the lime light after 17 years of not performing... I wonder how this will play out. Bullocks.

Public Image Ltd. - "Public Image"

That's all for now, folks.

Death Cab Confirms Track For "New Moon"

I'll level with you: I'm not a big reader. I don't like literature or poetry. Throw in self-help books, computer manuals, or gravestones. The one exception: blogs. Because they are flashy and have pictures, unlike boring novels. Speaking of novels, have you read this Twilight stuff? I sure haven't. But if it's about teenagers and vampires, then I know for sure it's garbage. Anyway, they made a movie out of the first book in the series, and with the second movie on it's way, Seattle's Death Cab For Cutie have confirmed that they will be releasing a single for the new flick (New Moon). So you can now put them up there with Radiohead and Bon Iver as contributors to the OST. Death Cab's song is called "Meet Me On The Equinox" and not me, nor anyone else, knows what it will sound like. I, for one, enjoy the darker side of Death Cab, so I think I'll accept this one with open arms. One can only hope. Here's a classic moody number:

Death Cab For Cutie - "I'll Follow You Into The Dark"

I'll Follow You Into The Dark

They will premiere the it on MTV.com during the Video Music Awards, September 13th. I guess we'll get our answers then.

Songs That Make A Splash

If you're ever fortune enough to fall upon this glorious situation, I bid you a great time. For you see, a close friend of mine has recently been offered to house-sit a home with a pool. Downside: it's a tiny pool. Upside: it's a pool. And it's finally consistently sunny here in the Northeast. We had a few ideas to make the next 10 days phenomenal: house party, beer olympics, rave, 4th grade style sleepover with endless soda and Doritos, etc. For now, our plans are just to enjoy an open house, with 3 very cool pups, a fully stocked fridge, and an aquatic wonderland.

Here are some tunes that really get me in the mood to swim:

Broken Social Scene - "Swimmers"

Death Cab For Cutie - "Underwater"

The Stone Roses - "Waterfall"
R.E.M. - Nightswimming

And just because it'd be the best thing ever: The Planet Smashers - "Super Orgy Porno Party"

Indie 101 Segment: Top 5 Favorite Death Cab Videos

You know these guys. They're basically the welcoming mat for all those who wish to journey into the independent music circuit. Yes, they are a springboard. Yes, they are from Seattle. Yes, they have had their major label battles. And yes, they're a hit with the ladies (chicks dig the sensitive and shy indie nerds). They've been around for awhile, since '97 to be exact. Since then, they've made some really interesting music videos - some released officially, others released on limited edition DVDs. With all that being said, the videos are worthy of a NMTM countdown. Let's start, shall we?

5. The Sound Of Settling

One of their first major successes. A really unique video, haven't seen much like these around. Got some Subterranean airplay back in the day. Deserving of the number five spot.

4. Cath...

You know where's a cool place to hang out, sit indian-style, and sing along? A forest-esque dressing room. Let's tell stories of a sour romance that leads to a dooming marriage. The second most recent and pretty well done.

3. What Sarah Said
death cab for cutie: what sarah said[directions]

Featured on "Directions", the DVD of profound music videos for "Plans", this was a very moving video. Watch for yourself. We've all been in these types of situations, just maybe not to the theatrical extent of this one.

2. Your Heart Is An Empty Room

One of my favorite animated music videos. I consider it up there with Radiohead's "Paranoid Android". This song brings me back to my freshman year of college when I was interested in this one girl who really dug this video. I kind of pictured us as the two characters in this one. One of the strongest messages in all of the Death Cab music library.

1. A Movie Script Ending

This was kind of the reason for making a list in the first place. I always go back to this song. It's the song I want to be played at my funeral, among others (sick thought, right? I'm too young for that). It takes me back to the final months of high school. It's a call to a conclusion. The video itself is the typical American teenage relationship, or atleast what most kids aspire. See for yourself. It's one of my favorite records of all time and it's my number one.

Agree or disagree?