New To Me: Middle Brother

I picked up the debut album from Middle Brother earlier this week and instantly became a fan.  If you haven't heard of Middle Brother you may know some of the member's other bands.  John McCauley of Deer Tick, Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes, and Matt Vasquez of Delta Spirit joined forces forming a indie/folk mega-group along the lines of Monsters of Folk.  The result of that collaboration is a remarkable album full of folk/rock songs reminiscent of other 'Brother' acts The Avett Brothers and The Felice Brothers.

Middle Brother are currently out on tour supporting the album, including a stop at the SXSW Music Festival.  A recording of their performance in Boston earlier this month is available to download at Visible Voice.  As with the album I was captivated by their heartfelt and powerful live performance.  Hopefully they'll swing by my way sometime soon.  Take a listen to "Blue Eyes" and "Theater" from their show in Boston below.
 Middle Brother - Blue Eyes - Boston 3/3/11 by Ledjam311


 Middle Brother - Theater - Boston 3/3/11 by Ledjam311

Boot: Two Door Cinema Club - Live at the Wireless - Australia 9/19/2010

I was lucky enough to catch Two Door Cinema Club a few months ago when they played the Troc in Philadelphia.  The trio from Northern Ireland released their debut album "Tourist History" in 2010.  Here's a recording from a show they played last year that was broadcast/recorded on Australian radio station Triple J.
 Two Door Cinema Club - Undercover Martyn - Live At The Wireless 9/19/2010 by Ledjam311
Setlist:
1- Intro
2- Cigarettes In The Theatre
3- Undercover Martyn
4- Hands Off My Cash
5- Do You Want It All
6- Something Good Can Work
7- Costume Party
8- You're Not Stubborn
9- What You Know
10- Eat That Up It's Good For You
11- Come Back Home
12- I Can Talk
13- Back Announcement
Download: Two Door Cinema Club - Live At The Wireless

News & Rumors Galore for Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder

Websites and blogs have been aflutter the past couple days with news and rumors related to Pearl Jam.  Being the mega-fan that I am, it's been rather exciting.  

First off we've got an interview that bassist Jeff Ament gave with Billboard.  In it he reveals that Pearl Jam are heading back into the studio in April to work on a new album that will hopefully be out this year.  He also says to expect an announcement in April about the rumored Pearl Jam Weekend Festival which may take place over Labor Day weekend.  

Now onto front man Eddie Vedder who is currently playing several solo shows in Australia.  The website Antiquiet has posted a song from Ed titled 'Longing To Belong' which is supposedly on his forthcoming solo album due out in June.  During his stint in Australia earlier this week Ed played several new songs that just may be on the new album.  Titles of the new songs include: 'Without You', 'Broken Heart', 'Sleeping By Myself', 'Light Today', and the previously mentioned 'Longing To Belong'.  

Rumblings of some U.S. dates for the Ed solo tour have also been circulating.  Some people have thrown out the possibility of a show at the Tower in Philly on June 25th.  If it happens you can expect to see me there.

Click Here to listen to 'Longing to Belong' at Antiquiet

Click Here to listen to an audience recording of 'Sleeping By Myself'

New to Me: Graffiti Radio

Graffiti Radio is a HD radio station that I stumbled upon a couple days ago.  I've been streaming it at work and like what I hear.  Checking out their Most Played Songs I found quite a few artists I enjoy including: Fleet Foxes, Iron & Wine, Bright Eyes, Wye Oak, and more.  Here's an excerpt from the About section on their website. 

"Graffiti Radio is an HD radio station based out of Wilmington, DE that specializes in new and classic music in the genres of Indie and Alternative Rock, and includes selections from almost every popular music style that has emerged over the course of the last sixty years. Our goal is to provide our listeners with a snapshot of the evolution of popular music while maintaining a solid foundation in offering a venue for new and emerging artists to be heard by the public. We can be found on 93.7 HD-2 in and around Wilmington, DE, on 97.7 HD-3 in and around Milford, DE and all over the world on-line at http://www.graffitiradio.com/. Thanks for stopping by, we hope you enjoy what you hear."

-J.J. Booker (Co-Producer, Co-Program Coordinator & Night-time On-Air Host)

Boot: The Postal Service - Morning Becomes Eclectic 5/6/03

At a recent solo show, Ben Gibbard debuted a new song called "Codes and Keys" which will be featured on the forthcoming Death Cab For Cutie album of the same name.  You can hear it now over at Stereogum.  After going on a Death Cab listening kick I revisited this studio performance of Ben's side project 'The Postal Service'.  It was recorded at KCRW studios back in 2003 near the end of their tour and features Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis on backing vocals.  Rumors of a follow-up Postal Service album seem to swirl around every now and then but are consistently dispelled by Gibbard.
 The Postal Service - Nothing Better - Morning Becomes Eclectic 5/6/03 by Ledjam311
Setlist:
1 - Intro
2 - The District Sleeps Alone Tonight
3 - We Will Become Silhouettes
4 - Nothing Better
5 - Interview
6 - Clark Gable
7 - This Place is a Prison
8 - Such Great Heights
9 - Brand New Colony (Radio Mess Up)
10 - Brand New Colony
Download:  The Postal Service - Morning Becomes Eclectic

Video: Bright Eyes perform on Letterman

Bright Eyes appeared last week on Letterman playing "Jejune Stars" off their most recent album 'The People's Key'.  The album has been on constant rotation since I first got it.  Conor almost seems to take the group back in time to the 'Digital Ash From A Digital Urn' era while maintaining the songwriting maturation he's developed over recent years.  Although I wouldn't call 'The People's Key' a complete change in direction it is a nice detour from what I'd expected to hear from him on his past few albums.