Covered In Bears

So this week I got an email from those fine folks at Insound telling me that because I have previously purchased something by The Shins and/or Belle And Sebastian I should check out the album by The Bears and because I'm open to subtle marketing of this ilk (by the way have you clicked on the twix link up there to your left??) I did and discovered that their self titled debut album is a pop gem sitting there in the jewelry shop of mediocrity waiting to be plucked and cherished or something. Working in a similar way to The Boy least Likely To two friends in Cleveland, Craig and Charlie, recorded the album but live are joined by other people for a full band experience. There's a sixties pop influence cruising through the songs and mixed in with the aforementioned Shins, Belle & Sebastian and some happy go lucky folk leanings and you have an album that is going to be on repeat play this summer. As an added bonus you can get a nice 15% off at Insound just follow the link below.

Bears - Everywhere

Bears - Walk Away

The Bears website is here

If You Say Jump, I Will Say No

Irving feel like a band of the cusp of bigger and brighter things, each of their releases has been a leap forward from the last and their latest album "Death In The Garden, Blood On The Flowers" is the perfect highlight of the fact the band consists of several songwriters. This meana only their best work ends up being featured, and its not a case of a couple of songs that feel like they're just making up the numbers. The band effectively cherry pick influences from throughout the sixties to the present and come up with a wonderful blend of new wave psych-pop. The video for their single "Situation" has been getting some MTV2 play and while this album may not propel them into the charts, it could be the one people buy later and pretend they loved the band before they were huge. Here are two songs from the new album and videos of an instore performance by the band including a Springsteen cover.

- Irving - The Gentle Preservation Of Children

- Irving - I'll Write The Song, You Sing For Me

The Irving webpage is here

Buy Irving here

Suspended From Class

Here's another recent Camera Obscura radio session, this one was aired on BBC Radio 2 at the start of June and is interesting as it's not the whole band playing and so the arrangements of the songs are quite different. In case you haven't already done so you can also get three other sessions at the excellant Perfumed Garden blog at the link below.


Camera Obscura - Dermot OLeary radio session

Three other Camera Obscura sessions can be found here

Eighties Fan -Camera Obscura

Andy's Babies

As meantioned in the Luna post the soundtrack to the film "I Shot Andy Warhol" is one which far eclipses the average film it was released with. A mixture of classics from the likes of The Lovin' Spoonful, Love, and the MC5 it also features the likes of R.E.M., Luna and Bettie Serveert covering songs of the era. It also features Jewel but you can't have everything I guess. So today here are Wilco covering Buffalo Springfield and Ben Lee with one of the Small Faces' classics. Plus a video bonus of the MC5 showing how sad the new Primal Scream album really is.

Wilco - Burned

Ben Lee - Itchycoo Park


Kick Out the Jams - MC5

Jim Noir 1, Chickens 0

I was quite shocked to hear Jim Noir's "Eanie Meaney" being used for the Addidas World Cup ads but I hope he's making plenty of money from it. Sadly the album from which the song comes from, "Tower Of Love" has not been released in the US yet, but if you like Brian Wilson influenced, psychedelic folk this collection of previously limited EPs is something to consider even as an import. In much the same way as the Boy Least Likely To album still feels like an album because the songs are so good the same can be said here. To download today here is that song which has brightened up several dull group games at half time, the remix of "My Patch" by Hot Chip and so you can compare and contrast the very cool video for "My Patch".

Jim Noir - Eanie Meaney

Jim Noir - My Patch Hot Chip remix





Buy Jim Noir's "Tower Of Love" here

Jim Noir's webpage is here and his mypsace page is here

Ride Into The Sun

This week has probably been the busiest week in the history of Luna, kind of ironic seeing the band split some time back. Luna were always one of those bands that I would hear a song by love, but never get round to buying an album by, well if you're like me the release of a Best Of this week, entitled "The Best Of Luna" so as not to confuse you is a great place to start as its a fine overview of the bands albums. The one thing it does illustrate is that the band was consistently good, no peaks or troughs just a constant stream of classic songwriting. The only complaint I would have with the album is that the band throughout their career released some great cover versions, most popular being their take on "Bonnie & Clyde" and there are none of these featured on the album. Well fear not, also out this week is "Lunafied" a download-only album that collects together lots of covers and some of the bands rarer tracks. Available from iTunes in the US and maybe elsewhere you can purchase it as a whole album or cherry pick the songs you want.
Finally, this week also saw the DVD release of "Tell Me Do You Miss Me" a documentary following the bands final US tour and sheds some light on the reasons the band split, what sounds like it could be rather downbeat is actually revealing, at times funny and includes a whole bunch of live performances. To download today are two covers from Lunafied, "Season Of The Witch" which appeared on the excellent "I Shot Andy Warhol" soundtrack and the band's take on "Indian Summer" by Beat Happening. On an unrelated note be sure to click on the link to your left for the twix sweepstakes as we're only too pleased to whore ourselves out for the promise of Twix bars!

Luna - Indian Summer

Luna - The Season Of The Witch

Buy Lunafied here
Luna's webspace and documentary trailer is here

Pulaski Heights

Camera Obscura Live on Radio Scotland June 12, 2006.

Camera Obscura - Lloyd, I'm Ready To Be Heartbroken

Camera Obscura - Come Back Margaret

Camera Obscura - Modern Girl

Camera Obscura's website is here

Buy their albums in the US here