Boot: The Head & The Heart - Moody Theatre - 9/16/11

One of the bands I'm most excited to see at this summer's Firefly Music Festival is The Head & The Heart.  Here's a performance from their trip to Austin City Limits last Fall. 
The Head And The Heart - Down In The Valley - Moody Theatre 9/16/11 by Ledjam311
Setlist:
1 - Cats and Dogs >
2 - Coeur D'Alene
3 - Winter Song
4 - Lost In My Mind
5 - Down In The Valley
6 - Rivers And Roads
7 - Interview
Download: The Head & The Heart - Moody Theatre 9/16/11

Firefly Approaches...

On April 1 rumors started swirling about a 3 day music festival coming to Delaware of all places.  Some, including myself, suspected it to be a cruel April fools joke.  It turned out to be legit and I bought my festival and camping pass as soon as they went on sale.  We're about 2 months away from the festival (July 20-22) and I'm getting more and more excited the further I explore the artists on the bill.  The folks at Firefly announced additional artists this week (Polica, Silversun Pickups, and Fitz & The Tantrums among others) that join an already stellar lineup.  Hopefully the festival will be a big hit and become a summer standard in years to come.

New Albums from Beach House & Best Coast

Just in time for summer come some new tunes to guide you through the warming days.  Beach House follows up the acclaimed album "Teen Dreams" with their 4th release titled "Bloom".  The lead single 'Myth' has already created a lot of buzz among eager fans.  Best Coast offers their sophomore effort titled "The Only Place" hoping to capture and build upon the magic of 2010's "Crazy For You".  Leading up to their release dates you can preview these albums at NPR's Exclusive First Listen:
Beach House - Bloom - NPR First Listen
Best Coast - The Only Place - NPR First Listen

Recent Concert Round-up

It's been a busy couple weeks for me which included taking in a handful of shows.  Here's a quick follow-up with some show notes.

• March 26 - My recent string of shows started off with Youth Lagoon at Union Transfer in Philly.  The man behind the music, Trevor Powers, had a simple set-up including him and one guitarist.  His vocals were a lot clearer then I expected based on the reverb-drenched sound on the album.  One downside was the size of the crowd at the show.  It would have been more appropriate in a smaller venue like Johnny Brendas.
• April 3 - A group that was new to me, Friends, opened the show with a erratic yet entertaining set.  A highlight of headliner Neon Indian's set was the light display centered around a monolith-like light machine in the center of the stage.  My problem with this show though wasn't the artist's performance so much as the sound quality.  Whether it's the sound guy or just the system at the venue, the vocals were covered up by bass/synths and nearly inaudible.
• April 5 - This evening brought me to Northstar Bar to see Frankie Rose.  The set seemed short for what you'd expect from a headliner but her performance definitely did justice to her most recent album which I enjoy a lot.  Opening act East Hundred was a pleasant surprise also, although I just found out that after 8 years together the members have decided to go their separate ways.  East Hundred, I hardly knew ye.
• April 7 - Alabama Shakes completely blew me away at Ramshead Live in Baltimore.  Fresh off the release of their debut album they're making a big splash in the music world anchored by amazing live performances.  They concluded the show with a Led Zeppelin cover (How Many More Times) which was a pleasant surprise.
• April 12 - It was a spur of the moment decision to go see Diego Garcia at World Cafe Live-The Queen when a friend offered me an extra ticket.  The decision paid off as I witnessed an intimate acoustic show.  Diego shared stories behind the songs and interacted with the crowed throughout the show, at one point even playing an improvised version of 'Happy Birthday' for one of the attendees.  The set also included a cover of one of my favorites, 'Harvest Moon' by Neil Young.  My concert-buddy Erin even snagged an autograph from Diego after the show.

Boot: Passion Pit - WXPN Free at Noon 8-15-09

I've been on a Passion Pit kick since hearing some rumblings about a new album coming out early this summer.  Here's a short set they played back in 2009 that I just rediscovered in my music catalog.  It includes stripped-down versions of 'Sleepyhead' and 'The Reeling' that give the otherwise expansive songs a very intimate feel.
 Passion Pit - Little Secrets 8-15-09 by Ledjam311
Setlist:
1 - Sleepyhead
2 - To Kingdom Come
3 - I've Got Your Number
4 - Little Secrets
5 - The Reeling
Download:  Passion Pit - Live 8-15-09

In Case You Missed It.....SXSW edition

In case you weren't lucky enough to travel to SXSW this year you can listen to several performances at the Live In Concert page on NPR's website.  Notable performances include: Andrew Bird, Alabama Shakes, Lower Dens, and Polica. 

You can also find some good show analysis on Pitchfork's Best & Worst of SXSW, and Spin's Top 10 Shows at SXSW.

New To Me: Tanlines

Although they've worked on a number of projects since 2008, Tanlines will release their debut album "Mixed Emotions" later this month.  I stumbled onto them via NPR's Exclusive First Listen and was drawn in instantaneously.  Listen to the album HERE at NPR's website until March 20th.