Free Videos From Beirut

I love Beirut. They're by far the best thing i've discovered this year in music. Zach Condon lives in a different world that most. A world where music isn't made to be bought or sold but to bring out all of the emotion that living life can bring. His woozy Balkan-Gypsy music is more suited for the faded romance of a victrola player rather than a CD or MP3 player.

He and his band have a new record out now called The Flying Club Cup. They made a video for each song that you can watch for free on their website flyingclubcup.com. Filmed in Brooklyn just a few months ago, the videos capture a glimpse of Beirut's special free flowing form.

John Mayer releases new song

John Mayer has a new song out called "Say" for the movie The Bucket List. For the next few days you can download the music video on iTunes. It's not his best work, especially lyrically, but the stripped down acoustic guitar approach is actually refreshing to hear again after a few plugged in albums. A solid B+.

Emmy Rossum A Way Distant Second

This is some what related to my last post about The Bird and The Bee. While clicking through iTunes I stumbled across another version of Carol of the Bells. This time from Emmy Rossum. The star of The Phantom of The Opera uses her breathy but clear voice to the best of her ability here but comes up short. It sounds like a Bjork cover if Bjork didn't have taste or restraint. A good cover adds focus and hopefully a new interpretation to the original. Somehow Emmy has given this holiday classic a cold reptilian feel. How much do I dislike it? Enough to actually post this.

The Bird and The Bee are free on iTunes

Head over to iTunes for the Single of the Week which just happens to be from the fabulous The Bird and The Bee. Most Christmas songs don't benefit from the cold sterilization of layered vocals and minimalistic instrumentation that electro-pop can sometimes bring but their reinterpretation of Carol of the Bells works surprisingly well here. It helps when the song is already a choir favorite that comes close to sounding like electro-pop in its traditional form. It's not going to become a holiday favorite but it's a "cool" take on a classic.

While you're there check out their new Please Clap Your Hands EP. It's a small cache of brand new material and one cover that serves as an appetizer for the the full coarse album soon to be released. By the by, that cover (a personal favorite of mine) is the Bee Gees' How Deep Is Your Love. That song alone is worth the price of admission.

A New White Stripes Music Video

On their latest record Icky Thump, the White Stripes covered Conquest; a tune popular somewhere back in the 50s. You might have heard the Patti Page version on a recent ebay commercial. Although it's a great cover and a highlight on the album, it's still a bit of an unusual choice for a single. Here's some photos from the upcoming video for Conquest found on their website.

'Apartment Story' The National

If you haven't heard of The National, slap yourself in the face and go pick up their amazing new album Boxer. It's one of this years most surprising and exciting releases. It might take a couple of listens to penetrate the ambiguous lyrics and the pushing rhythm section but you'll be rewarded with the sound, depth, and beauty of a young band just entering their prime. This is modern poetry.

Free EP From Wilco

Those of you who were smart enough to recognize a great album and bought Wilco's Sky Blue Sky earlier this year are in for a treat. Wilco has just released a new double disc edition of Sky Blue Sky with a 5 track EP attached. They're making it a free download for those of you who already bought the record. Just pop the disc in your computer and download.

Track Listing:
1. The Thanks I Get
2. Let's Not Get Carried Away
3. One True Vine
4. Impossible Germany (Live)
5. Hate It Here (Live)

A new Weezer album this year? Almost.

Since 2005's Make Believe, its been pretty quiet in Weezerland. That'll change soon, sort of. As Weezer's frontman and primary songwriter, Rivers Cuomo has acrued quite a large back catalog of unreleased songs. Most of these exist as demos in his own personal collection, until now. Alone - The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo will be released on December 11th. Set to contain 18 tracks from various demos from 1992-2007 including an early demo of Buddy Holly and a couple of covers to boot, it will also contain extensive notes from Rivers on each song and his songwriting process. Coming from a man who has created a book he calls The Encyclopedia of Pop, these insights should be interesting.

As for Weezer, their sixth album is finished and is currently being mixed. It should see the light of day in the first part of next year.

I'm Not There

November 21st.