A Really Cool Opotamus

So, yeah, Cigarette Tricks is a music blog, but this seems like a pretty good occasion to go a little off topic. Yesterday was the seventh anniversary of the death of comedian Mitch Hedberg. As a way of commemorating the occasion Laugh Spin has posted a series of radio spots that Hedberg did for Midwest U.S. sandwich chain, Jimmy Johns Gourmet Sandwiches, in the year or so before he died. While Hedberg clearly did the spots because he needed some extra money (in some of the ads he jokes about being under "contractual obligation"), his sense of humor remains as sharp as ever, as he riffs on the topics of sandwiches, the sandwich shop competition, and a whole lot of other related/unrelated crap. It's very funny stuff; and lines like "if the bread is not sold in four hours we toss it -- life is cruel and them fellas gotta go" wouldn't have sounded out of place in his standup routines, which included many jokes about food (including, but not limited to, waffles, bananas, refried beans, yoghurt, candy bars, etc.). In fact, one of my favorite Hedberg jokes is about a sandwich: "I order the club sandwich all the time, but I'm not even a member, man. I don't know how I get away with it" -- funny, but it's better when he tells it. Anyway, the Jimmy Johns spots are below, and once you're done with those head on over to Slate to read Sam Anderson's 2005 obituary for Hedberg. The Anderson piece also includes some video clips of Hedberg doing standup that you can download.

Ty Segall & White Fence - "I Am Not A Game"

Do people treat you as though you are a game? And do you take exception to this? You're goddamn right you take exception to this: You're no game. You're a real, living person. Go on, tell 'em. Well actually, thanks to Rock 'n' Roll you no longer have to tell them yourself. Instead, you can put on the new song by Ty Segall and White Fence and it will tell them for you. The conveniently titled "I Am Not A Game" should send the message home quite clearly. Some background on this message conveying track: it's our first taste of Hair, an eight song LP that marks the first time that the prolific Bay-area garage rocker Segall (responsible for 2011 highlight Goodbye Bread) has teamed with White Fence (the solo moniker of fellow prolific San Fran garage rocker Tim Presley, who is also a member of the the garage-soul band Darker My Love, who played with The Fall on their 2007 LP Reformation Post TLC, and who is now also a full-time member of the very excellent Austin band, The Strange Boys).  "I Am Not A Game" is our first listen to this collaboration, and it is pure ragged glory: four minutes of primal and erratic rock 'n' roll fun that is driven along by a lurching two-chord progression and a Hammond organ, and which ends in a foot-to-the-floor surge of garage-rock magnificence. The primary thing to learn from it all, don't take guff from no one. Hair will be out April 24 on Drag City.

PS I Love You - "Princess Towers"

Here's two minutes of sunshine: "Princess Towers," our second taste of the upcoming sophomore album Death Dreams from Kingston Ont. rockers PS I Love You. The first single, "Sentimental Dishes," was out at the end of February and has quickly become my favorite song about not doing the dishes (if you're wondering, Pulp's "Dishes" is my favorite song about doing the dishes). Anyway, "Princess Towers" offers more of the same: an exceptionally awesome two minute and twenty two second crunchy guitar blast, with a great melody and hand-claps to-boot. Death Dreams is due out May 8 on Paper Bag Records. "Princess Towers" is below. "Sentimental Dishes" and, just for fun, a video of Pulp doing "Dishes" on Jools Holland in 1998 are after the jump.

What To Download Tuesday: Chromatics

Not unlike the band behind our pick for album of the week last week, Tanlines, this week's album of choice was crafted by a band that specializes in a minimalist and highly stylized approached to electronic pop music. But where Tanlines finds inspiration in the sunny sounds of mid-1980s Afro- and Latin-pop, Chromatics draw from the smokey late-night world of 1970s Italo-disco. Indeed, the group's producer and multi-instrumentalist, Johnny Jewel, is arguably pop music's leading Italo-disco revivalist, playing in two other Italo-pop groups, Glass Candy and Desire, as well as co-founding the Italians Do It Better record label. It has been five years since the last Chromatics' record, their 2007 breakthrough Night Drive, which was not only their first foray into Italo-disco, but it was the first record to feature the current line-up of the band, including the additions of Jewel and singer Ruth Badelet (guitarist Adam Miller is the only original member). That album was great, and since then the legend of the Italians Do It Better scene has only grown. Most notably, after being inspired by Night Drive, director Nicholas Winding Refn and Ryan Gosling commissioned Jewel in 2010 to write the score for their film Drive -- perhaps the best of 2011 for my money. While a number of tracks that had Jewel's fingerprints on them were used in the film (including Chromatics' "Tick of the Clock"), the score that he and Chromatics' bandmate Nat Walker composed was ultimately rejected by the studio and Cliff Martinez was enlisted to take over the project. The score that Martinez produced, however, remains heavily indebted to the Italians Do It Better aesthetic. "That's Hollywood," Jewel said in an interview with Louis Pattison of The Guardian, "all the cliches are there, and they're even worse than you already think... I know it's not a nice thing to say, but my score was superior. It was the director's choice, Ryan's choice... but in movie production there's a money side and a creative side and they don't always meet in the middle."

Every review that you read of Chromatics' Kill for Love -- their long awaited follow-up to Night Drive, made available this week for download on Itunes -- is likely going to reference how the band sounds energized in the wake of the whole Drive experience. And it's true. At 17 songs, and over 91 minutes, Kill for Love is the most ambitious record to-date in the Italo-disco genre. It's probably safe to say that Kill for Love will go down as "the White Album" of Italo-disco. That said, the record is infinitely more diverse stylistically than anything yet attempted in the genre. Opening with a melancholic cover of Neil Young's rock anthem "Hey Hey My My (Into the Black)" and closing with the 14-minute ambient instrumental, "No Escape," and then peppering the in-between with New Order-style pop songs, extended instrumentals, and traditional Italo-disco fare, Kill for Love is nothing if not ambitious. And like Night Drive, it's fair to say that Kill for Love works best as background music. It's not something you're going to sit and listen to over and over again, but it's something you might put on over and over again to set a mood. It works like a soundtrack in that way, and it's one of those records that is perhaps best enjoyed knowing it's back story. The record can't help but call-to-mind the noirish loneliness and exhilarating '80s glam of driving through a fictionalized version of L.A. Not that you need to have seen Drive to enjoy this record, and not that this record is a direct response to that world or that it doesn't stand on it's own as great. But some of the best records of the modern era are best enjoyed knowing their back stories -- Highway 61 Revisited, Let it Be, Exile on Main Street, to name just three. Heck, all records (all paintings, all books, etc.) are best enjoyed knowing their back stories. And if the album Night Drive influenced the movie Drive which in turn shaped the making of the album Kill for Love, then, well, good to know. But regardless of whether or not this record makes you feel like you're in a movie or suddenly makes you want to go for a drive late at night, at it's heart it's just an odd, interesting, and ultimately enjoyable record. Tracks like "The River," "Kill for Love," and "Back From The Grave" standout, but it's a collection best enjoyed as a whole. No word yet on the physical release date, but the record label is promising it will be available on double vinyl at that time. Will keep you posted.

Other new releases this week include Justin Town Earle's Nothings Going To Change The Way You Feel About Me Now, the self-titled debut of the Damon Albarn/Flea/Tony Allen collaboration, Rocket Juice and the Moon, and Le Sera's (the solo moniker of Vivian Girl Katy Goodman) Sees the Light. See the full list after the jump.

Moonface - "Headed For The Door"

One of my early front runners for best track of 2012 thus far has been "Teary Eyes and Bloody Lips," the krautrockin' first single from Spencer Krug's new Moonface album, With Siinai: Heartbreaking Bravery. Yes, as if things weren't already crowded enough when introducing a Krug record, this time around the Wolf Parade/Sunset Rubdown/Swan Lake/Moonface singer/songwriter/keyboardist is backed under his newest moniker by Finnish krautrockers Siinai. While our first taste of this collaboration was the aforementioned 2:47 pop-rock nugget, the second single (out today) "Headed For The Door," sounds more akin to previous Moonface tracks. At 7:39 in length, it slowly builds from an arrangement of 80's style synthesizers and a heavy four-on-the-floor military-style beat reminiscent of Wolf Parade standout "I'll Believe in Anything." Carried along by Krug's shaky baritone and lyrics that seem to address a relationship unraveling, the track swells and then itself unravels in beautiful mess of brass and keyboard improvisation, with some spoken word poetry just barley audible beneath it all. It's not nearly as rockin' as the first Moonface/Siinai single, but it nonetheless sounds like classic Spencer Krug. Give it a listen below. With Siinai: Heartbreaking Bravery is out April 17th on Jagjaguwar.

Lower Dens - "Propagation"

The Jana Hunter fronted quartet, Lower Dens, are back to give Beach House a run for their money as Baltimore's best atmospheric dream-rock band. The first Lower Dens record, Twin Hand Movement, was one of the best of 2010. The follow-up to that record, Nootropics, is due out May 1st, and so far it is sounding like a record we all need to get excited about. We had our first taste of Nootropics back in January, with the excellent kraut-rock inspired chug-a-long, "Brains." And now we have single number two, "Propagation" -- a gorgeous, lingering ditty built upon a simple bass line, ghostly vocals, and chiming guitars and synths. It's another Lower Dens goody. Give it a listen below below. And check out the video for "Brains" after the jump.

Record Store Day 2012

Only twenty nine more days until Record Store Day 2012! Is everyone getting ready? For my part, I've started an advent calendar of sorts for the occasion --  something I've taken to calling a "radvent" (groan) calendar -- with twenty one windows for each day in April leading up to April 21. And because I'm not a big fan of the waxy chocolate you typically find in those types of calendars, I'm placing a shot of vodka behind each window instead. You see, much like Ralph Chadwick of The Onion, I'm a bit of a chocoholic but for booze. And I'm also a chocoholic but for music too, and this year's Record Store Day is gearing up to a music lover's Christmas, Easter, and St. Jean Baptiste Day all rolled into one, with special releases planned by just about every musician and group you've ever loved. There are simply too many releases planned to list them all here, so click below to see the full list. However, some of my most anticipated RSD releases are

• The White Stripes, "Hand Springs/Red Death at 6:12" 7"
• The Tallest Man on Earth, King of Spain EP (which will includes his cover of Paul Simon's "Graceland")
• The Flaming Lips, The Flaming Lips and Heavy Fwends EP
• Nobunny, The MaximumRockNRoll EP
• Buck Owens, Original Buck Owens Colouring Book (a colouring book issued by Owens in 1970 with a new 4-track flexidisc and download card.

Read the full list of RSD releases here.

Let's All Hope Jack White Goes Bankrupt???

No, I jest. Please don't hope that Jack White goes bankrupt. That would be terrible. That is, unless you are completely devastated by the breakup of the White Stripes, and the only reason you carry on in the wake of the band's demise is the hope that some day -- say Coachella 2025 -- you might again stand in a field with fifteen thousand others and fist-pump along as Jack and Meg perform "Seven-Nation Army" together. In that case, go ahead, wish bankruptcy on the man. Because apparently that's the only way we're going to see a White Stripes reunion. Asked in an interview with NME what the chances are he and Meg might reunite someday, White replied "I would probably say absolutely not. Absolutely no chance. I couldn't see any reason to ever do that. I'm not the kind of person that would retire from baseball and come out of retirement the next year. I mean, if we went to all the trouble of telling people we're done, we meant it you know?" 

Okay, so it doesn't sound good at this point, I know. And every other music writer has fixated upon the "Absolutely no chance" part of White remarks. But I'm not every other music writer. So let's keep on reading White's statement, and pluck out that glimmer of hope: "If we were forced to change our mind about that, I can only imagine the reason being if we went bankrupt or really needed the cash, which would be a really sad thing. I would probably be issuing an apology along with the announcement of the show dates." That's right, White Stripe fans, turn those frowns upside down. From "absolutely no chance" to "if we declare bankruptcy" in one short statement sounds like a chance to me. So, as I've been saying from the start, while we shouldn't wish bankruptcy on the guy, bankruptcy is nevertheless your only chance for a White Stripes reunion. And take it from Lloyd Christmas, as long as there's a chance there's hope.

Beck - "Looking for a Sign"

A new Beck song! Which is great, except for the fact that if it wasn't for movie soundtracks, this guy wouldn't really be recording any new music of his own these days. It's been four years since his last full-length, Modern Guilt, and the last original Beck compositions that we've had were the handful of songs he wrote for the Scott Pilgrim movie back in 2010. And since then it's just been the Record Club covers project -- which itself has been pretty quiet lately -- and his roles as producer in 2011 for Thurston Moore and Stephen Malkmus. Yes, it's been a little too quiet from the Beck camp lately. Well there are finally some rumblings of activity: a new Beck song, this time a contribution to the soundtrack to Jeff Who Lives at Home, the new film directed by Jay and Mark Duplass and starring Jason Segel (yeah, I know, another post that references Jason Segel -- weird). The new track is called "Looking for a Sign," and apparently Beck has been looking for that sign somewhere in Neil Young's Harvest and in his own seminal 2002 breakup record Sea Change, because this song sounds like those two records had a baby. And normally I don't like babies, but this baby I like. Let's hope this is a glimpse of full-length Beck record to-come later this year. It certainly sounds like the Beck we've all been missing.

What to Download Tuesday: Tanlines

Tanlines are Eric Emm (guitar, vocals) and Jesse Cohen (drums, music). The band formed in Brooklyn in 2008, following the demise of Cohen's band, Professor Murder. Since then, the pair have released an EP, a compilation of new songs and compiled singles, Volume On, and they've worked on numerous remixes for groups such as Telepathe, Au Revoir Simone, and The Tough Alliance. And they opened some dates in 2009 for Julian Casablancas. Despite this high profile and their fairly prolific output, it seemed the band's official full-length debut would never come. First slated for release in 2010, the project saw its share of mishaps and delays -- the most significant of which was Emm and Cohen getting evicted from the building they had set their recording studio up in. However, without further ado, Mixed Emotions is out today -- and, thankfully, it is the record we've been waiting for. With songs structured around house drum beats, and adorned with flourishes of hand claps, bright synthesizers and fuzzy bass lines, Mixed Emotions is pure summertime electro-pop. Musically, the album's influences seem to run the gamut from contemporary electronic bands like The Presets and Cut Copy to Afropop Paul Simon and the Miami Sound Machine. But even when dabbling in brighter, tropical sounds, Mixed Emotions remains a thoroughly moody, mid-tempo affair. While the album's peppiest songs, "All of Me" and "Green Grass," could feasibly get folks moving on the dance floor, the rest of the album is a more patient style of dance-pop. Lyrically the songs dwell on sophisticated questions of growing up and identity in a way that recalls artists like Bruce Springsteen and R.E.M. The affecting and anthemic "Not the Same" slowly builds from a pulsating and urgent piano/keyboard riff, while the lyrics in the chorus repeatedly address a melancholic disillusionment with growing older, "tell everyone we haven't changed/tell everyone we're not the same." A similar melancholy towards identity and age haunts opener "Brothers" as well, with Emm singing "I'm just the same as I ever been/but I'm the only one who hasn't noticed it." Throughout, the songs on Mixed Emotions remain fixated on questions of, well, mixed emotions, addressing feelings of nostalgia, confusion, indecision, and failure but doing do so in neon rhythms and radiant melodies that make this something more than a mopey or melancholic affair. At its heart, Mixed Emotions is a collection of finely crafted pop tunes that seems perfect for that long, bittersweet ride home from the beach this summer.

In addition to the Tanlines record, it is a good week for new releases. The slightly retooled lineup of The Shins are dropping Port of Morrow. The Antone Newcombe approved psych-rockers Magic Castles are releasing their self-titled debut. We have the physical release of a record that was out on mp3 last week, and which I haven't stopped listening to since then, Gentleman Jesse with his early-Elvis Costello conjuring Leaving Atlanta. There's also beautiful new solo EPs from Daniel Rossen and Ben Browning (of Grizzly Bear and Cut Copy respectively). And, similarly, two indie vets also associated with larger acts have solo efforts out today. Robert Pollard's Mouseman Cloud and Lee Ranaldo's Between the Time and Tides, arguably the most accomplished solo outing to-date from the Sonic Youth axeman. Full list after the jump.

Spiritualized, "Hey Jane" Video

We love the song, now we can love the video too. Jason Pierce and company have just released a clip for "Hey Jane," the first single from their upcoming Sweet Heart Sweet Light, and it is a heart-wrenching thing to watch. Directed by AG Rojas, the video follows a drag queen as she struggles through day-to-day life, scrapping to provide for her children. These struggles culminate in one heck of a disturbing fight scene, which itself climaxes in an act of violence that is simultaneously upsetting (for many reasons) and touching. It is quite riveting stuff. And the video also features what has to be the longest single take shot in a music video since "Nothing Compares 2U." Watch it below. Sweet Heart Sweet Light is out April 19th on Fat Possum.

White House Declares GBV Rock's Greatest Band

A key member of the Obama White House has made great strides in shoring up the lucrative Guided By Voices vote for November. Last week Jay Carney, the White House Press secretary and James Spader lookalike, used the announcement of a trip to Dayton Ohio by President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron as an occasion to declare his love for Dayton's finest lo-fi rock squad. After announcing that Obama and Cameron were headed to Dayton for an NCAA tournament game, Carney added, "As you probably know, Dayton is home of the Wright Brothers, the Dayton Peace Accords, and Guided by Voices, the greatest rock 'n' roll band of the modern era, in my humble opinion." F-yeah. No need to be humble, Mr. Carney. That is hands-down the most reasonable thing I've heard a politician say in quite some time.

Carney's love for the band has surfaced in the past, but in this heated election season his endorsement could be more beneficial than ever. I mean, first Obama wins over legions of The Wire fans by declaring the show one of the best of all time, and giving it up for Omar Little in particular, and now Carney has the GBV fans on side. If they can just get Joe Biden to call for Netflix to bring Firefly back, and Michelle Obama to observe a moment of silence for Elliott Smith the next time she's in Portland, then the Democrats should have Obama's reelection wrapped up before the election itself has even begun. At least as far as the hip kids are concerned. But I guess the hip kids are going to go with Obama regardless, given that the GOP are a bunch of morally corrupt racist homophobes. But the fact that the Obama White House has good taste in music and television can only help, right? Anyway, watch Carney's comments below (the GBV remark comes early, in the first minute), and don't forget that we have some new GBV music to look forward to in the months ahead.

Hot Chip - "Flutes"

Been thinking there's not enough popular music nowadays that draws inspiration from samples of flutes? Me too. And so have Hot Chip. But unlike you and me Hot Chip have actually done something about it. While you and I have been sitting around, moaning and bitching about the lack of music inspired by other music that samples flutes, Hot Chip said "no, we're not going to get all negative about it. We're not going to be part of the problem. That's what's wrong with this world: too many problem-people. Us, we're solutions-people!" And so they put their minds to it, they did something about it, and that something is "Flutes," track #7 from their soon-to-be-released fifth record, In Our Heads (out June 12th via Domino). According to a Pitchfork interview with band member Joe Goddard, "Flutes" drew its inspiration from a two-note flute melody buried somewhere in James Holden's remix of Nathan Fake's "The Sky Was Pink." Okalee dokalee then. But while that's all well-and-good, the main thing to draw from all this is that my inspiring plug about Hot Chip's inspiring approach to dealing with lack was inspired by their own inspiration of the James Holden remix. Simple. Easy Peasy. Don't muddy the waters. Take a simple story and tell it simply by simply telling it. That's, like, the first rule of writing about music. And, yeah, mission accomplished here, thank-you very much.

The other thing to take from all this is that an in-studio video for "Flutes" is below and, well, the track sounds great -- just under eight minutes of what can only be described as classic Hot Chip. Well, I guess that's not the only way to describe it, but for the sake of time, you know? And while the track is great, the video will make you want to vomit. No joke. Lots of spinning -- you'll see. So without futher ado, pop a Gravol or two and enjoy "Flutes."

The One We Love: Peter Buck at Work on Solo LP

I have a confession to make: I am a long-time R.E.M. fan, but when news broke last November that Michael Stipe had no plans to pursue a solo career in the wake of the band's demise, I was super relieved. I mean, I still love the guy and all -- he's been with me through so much -- it's just that he's seen better days as a lyricist; and without the attitude and musical prowess of Peter Buck to keep him in check I fear a Stipe solo record could just devolve into a series of self-help slogans repeated ad nauseum. But a Peter Buck solo record, now that's something I could get interested in. According to Seattle Weekly, when Scott McCaughey (longtime R.E.M. contributor and mastermind behind legendary college rockers Young Fresh Fellows and the equally great The Minus 5) was on Seattle radio yesterday he mentioned that he was in town helping Buck on some solo material. He apparently didn't give-up any details as to when the record might be completed or what the expected release date might be, but McCaughey did mention that it would be vinyl only release -- that's right, no mp3 download -- and that Buck would likely sing on the record. He also mentioned that the sound of Buck's new solo material was pretty "out," but I don't know what that means so we'll just move on.

The only R.E.M. track I can think of where Buck can actually be heard doing anything close to singing is on is their 1990 cover of Roky Erickson's "I Walked with a Zombie." Give it a listen after the jump. Buck can be heard just as the track fades, doing what I guess is supposed to be a Dracula impression. Is that what McCaughey meant by pretty "out," i.e., that Buck would be singing the entire album in Dracula style à la Jason Segel's character in Forgetting Sarah Marshall? Because that is pretty "out," I won't argue with that.

Good, Pinsent, & Keelor Unveil Album Details

More news this week of yet another interesting collaboration involving a member of the The Sadies. Travis Good from the band has teamed up with his band-mate from The Unintended, Greg Keelor (also getting known for his work in up-and-coming Canadian band Blue Rodeo, aka your mom and dad's favorite band) to compose music for lyrics and poetry written by golden voiced Canadian acting legend Gordon Pinsent. Who saw that coming? Filmmaker Mike Bolland, that's who. After working with Pinsent in 2010 on a bio-pic about the actor's life, and becoming acquainted with some of his poetry, Bolland used his connection to Good (their wives are friends) to bring the actor and musician together. Keelor became involved because he and Good are buds, and you can read an essay by Keelor here about the full genesis of the project. The finished product of the Good, Pinsent and Keelor collaboration is an album called Down and Out In Upalong, creatively billed to Good, Pinsent, & Keelor -- I might have gone with a more accurate title like "King Babar & the Long Hairs," but whatever. Good and Keelor share vocal duties on the melodic numbers, and Pinsent steps to the mic on the spoken word pieces. The three are backed by Sadies drummer Mike Belitsky, Blue Rodeo keyboardist Michael Boguski, and trumpeter Bryden Baird. Down and Out in Upalong is due out April 10th on Rhino Records

What to Download Tuesday: Shooter Jennings

For whatever reason (SXSW perhaps), it's an especially quiet week in new releases. It doesn't really matter, though, as my pick for album of the week is a solid one and it could easily have held its own on past Tuesdays when the new release lists were a little more filled out. Even before its release, we knew that Shooter Jennings' fifth studio album, Family Man, was going to be an interesting one simply in terms of how it would fit into his career trajectory. His last record, 2010's Black Ribbons, was on all counts an odd duck: a concept album about a governmental takeover of radio that proved to be just a little too overwrought in terms of its concept and execution. Musically, Black Ribbons saw Jennings abandoning his outlaw-country roots for what can best be described as a mash-up of southern and industrial rock. While it had its interesting moments, the record was, for the most part, unlistenable. Prior to Black Ribbons, though, Jennings had released three of the finest country records of the decade -- Put the "O" Back in Country (2005), Electric Rodeo (2006), and The Wolf (2007), a trilogy that left little doubt that Shooter was up to the challenge of taking over the family business.

And because he had become the best of hope in this new century for the style of country music that his father helped pioneer, there was some anxiety about whether he would return to the family business with the followup to Black Ribbons. Such anxieties were pretty much laid to rest when title for that album was announced late last summer. Family Man is indeed a return to the straight up outlaw-country/country-rock that we've come to associate with the Jennings name. If anything, it is the leanest, most polished, most radio friendly record that Shooter has produced. Even before Black Ribbons, Shooter's records (The Wolf especially) had contained a mishmash of styles, combining elements of country, southern rock, and radio-AOR. Family Man, by contrast, is straight-up outlaw country. With an equal balance of upbeat country-rockers and acoustic ballads (and one late-night honky-tonk barroom stomper, "The Family Tree), and lyrics that focus on themes of musical heritage, domesticity, and -- for good measure -- misbehaving, there's nothing on Family Man that would sound out of place on commercial country radio. Of course, commercial radio being what it is -- i.e., terrible -- this remains unlikely. Shooter's music continues to be too interesting, exuding too much authenticity and edge, to fit in with the stylized likes of Keith Urban and Kenny Chesney. But just because he doesn't get played on the radio doesn't mean he shouldn't. With Family Man Shooter has proven he can trim his excesses without sacrificing his creative edge. It might not be the best record of his career, but it's certainly his most thoughtful and accessible.

The full list of new releases is after the jump, but as I said it's a pretty slow week. Of the few standouts, though, be sure to check out old-school soul-man Lee Fields' Faithful Man -- especially his cover of the Stones' "Moonlight Mile." And British singer Holly Golightly -- whose voice you'll recognize from The White Stripes Elephant closer "It's True That We Love One Another" -- has a new record out with her band The Brokeoffs called Long Distance. Also, Pitchfork has just reviewed Phedre's self-titled debut, which actually came out February 14th, but it's a strange genre mash-up that is certainly worth taking a look at if you haven't already. And given that the weeks preceding this have been ridiculously abundant, this Tuesday's calm is a good opportunity to go back and really delve into some new releases from previous weeks that you may have missed. Links for the full lists of my picks are here, here and here.

New Father John Misty (J. Tillman) Videos

J. Tillman left the Fleet Foxes just about two months ago to return to a solo career that goes back to 2004 and that to my mind was always more interesting than anything the Foxes were up to. And whether or not you agree with the latter opinion, you have to agree that Tillman's new videos for his Father John Misty project are pretty damn interesting. Indeed, in anticipation of Fear Fun -- the first first album that he is releasing under the Father John moniker -- Tillman has now released two videos, and they're both quite good.

The first, directed by Noel Paul for the song "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings," came out at the end of January and it features Parks and Rec cutie Aubrey Plaza crashing a funeral and looking by turns upset, sexy, disturbed, seductive, mad, evil, sexy, and then, by the end, a little beaten up. And now today Tillman has released another Father John video, this time for the track "Nancy From Now On." Tillman helped direct the clip along with Amy Cargill, and it is shot in a cinematic feel similar to the "Hollywood Forever..." video. It features scenes of Tillman at a spicy hotel-room party with a dominatrix, where he gets a much needed haircut and beard trim. Afterwards, there are drinks at the bar. In other words, the video documents what must be a pretty typical Tuesday night in the life of your average rocker.

And, hey, apart from how much fun the videos are, the songs themselves are great too. "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings" is a dirty dirge reminiscent of '70s rock revivalists like Black Mountain and The Warlocks. And "Nancy From Now On" goes the soft rock route, with '70s am sound that recalls the harmonies of the Bee Gees. Watch the video featuring Aubrey Plaza below. The clip for "Nancy From Now On" is unlisted at the moment on YouTube, so I can't post it here, but you can click here to watch it over at YouTube. "Nancy From Now On" is now up after the jump. Fear Fun is out May 1 on Sub Pop.

Guided by Voices "Keep it in Motion" with New Album

Well, okay, I'm still enjoying all there is to enjoy on Let's Go Eat the Factory, which was just officially released on January 1 of this year, but classic lineup Guided by Voices have just announced album number two of 2012: Class Clown Spots a UFO will be out in June via Fire Records, and the first single from that record, "Keep it in Motion," is available to stream right here via Soundcloud. With some tradeoff vocals between Robert Pollard and Tobin Sprout, an urgent and melancholic refrain, and an all around sense of it being a playful, beautiful mess, "Keep it in Motion" sounds like, well, classic GBV. The single will be available to purchase March 19th with b-sides "Pink Wings" and "White World." And Fire Records says that "Keep it in Motion" will be followed by two additional singles, "Jon the Croc" on April 21 (Record Store Day) and title track, "Class Clown Spots a UFO," on May 15.

Very exciting stuff. It's nice that the guys are making up for lost time: after making us wait eight years since the last proper GBV album, and sixteen years since the last "classic" lineup record, we only have to wait five months for the follow up to Let's Go Eat the Factory! And, hey, if that's not enough -- if what your life needs is even more new Robert Pollard music -- Pollard has a new solo record, Mouseman Cloud, coming out April 3. Get ready for a weird one there, as the press release stresses that the record emphasizes "wordplay rather than melody." Yikes! Nevertheless, the press release for that record goes on to characterize Pollard's process and fecundity in a fairly eloquent way: "He [Pollard] cares deeply about each and every part of every song he records. That he seems to do so frequently and effortlessly is not his fault. It's a unique and unparalleled talent...the work of a consummate craftsman as well as a crazy genius, and proof that these two traits are not incompatible." Rock on, you crazy genius, rock on.

Andre Williams & The Sadies, "One Eyed Jack"

Here's some exciting news via Twitter and the A.V. Club: blues/R&B/soul musician Andre Williams has once again teamed up with Canada's most dangerous alt-country/garage-rock/surf-guitar band, The Sadies, for his new album, Night and Day (due out May 15th). Dubbed the "Father of Rap" by some for his style of talk-singing, and dubbed the "Master of Sleazy R&B" by others for the punk and garage elements of his music, Williams' career in music goes back to the '50s, when he scored Billboard R&B chart hits with the songs "Jail bait" and Bacon Fat." In the '60s artists such as Stevie Wonder, Ike & Tina Turner, and Edwin Starr recorded songs he had written, and in the '70s he wrote music for the likes Parliament and Funkadelic. Williams struggled with drug addiction, alcohol and poverty throughout the '80s, but he rebounded in the 90's, recording Mr. Rhythm in 1996, Silky in 1998, and his first record with The Sadies, Red Dirt, in 1999. While Williams has continued to struggle with drug and legal issues in recent years, he has also remained prolific as a musician, touring regularly and releasing upwards of ten records in various genres throughout the last decade. Night and Day sees him returning to the garage rock sound he helped pioneer, and doing so with one of the best garage rock bands in the business today. Jump over to the A.V. Club here to listen to "One Eyed Jack."

New York I Love You, But Your List Is Bringing Me Down

Okay, so the title of this post isn't exactly accurate, but I paraphrased a lyric from James Murphy in an earlier post from this week, and I figured the title was there, why not? Keep the Murphy thing going -- maybe make it a theme for the week. I don't know. We'll have to wait and see. Anyway, Time Out New York has compiled a list of the 100 best songs about New York, and while the list doesn't actually bring me down, there are some unfortunate omissions that we need to address. But before we do, just to be clear, overall this list is really great: it's very diverse, with music from various genres and tunes from all eras stretching back to the '40s. And any list that includes both Andrew W.K. and Jerry Orbach is all right with me. But we blog writers are a pissy, parasitic bunch. Any chance we get to point out holes in other peoples' lists we have to take. It's who we are, it's what we do. Without this we'd have nothing -- certainly no basis for our smug, superior attitudes about culture. But, hey, I better save some of this for my therapist. Without further ado, let's look at some songs about the Big Apple that I would add to the list. You'll find those songs after the jump. And be sure to check out Time Out New York's list here.

What to Download Tuesday: Todd Snider

I'm recommending Todd Snider's Agnostic Hymns & Stoner Fables as the record to get your hands on this Tuesday. It's Snider's 12th studio album since 1994, and it's easily his best record since East Nashville Skyline (2004), which was easily the best country-folk record of the aughts. Agnostic Hymns... has all of the lyrical/storytelling brilliance of earlier Snider records, though here the subject matter is largely focused on issues of working class angst. Songs like "New York Banker," "In Between Jobs," and "How Soon to Tell" offer little by way of redemption for current economic struggles, but the songwriting somehow retains Snider's signature wry sense of humor. "Good things happen to bad people" is the cold refrain for those who have lost their retirement funds to a crooked banker in "New York Banker" and "In Between Jobs" has the poverty stricken narrator wonder what's keeping him from killing his well-to-do neighbor and "taking his shit." Indeed, what separates this record from other works that tread similar grounds -- say, for instance, Bruce Springsteen's Wrecking Ball, also out today -- is how Snider never preaches about issues of poverty, nor does he color them in black-and-white terms. Instead he uses wit and scenes of great imagination, sorrow, humor and tragedy to help bring understanding and perspective to the lives that he sings about -- an approach that has prompted one writer to refer to Snider as a "folk-singer redux of The Wire." And even when he is simply covering Jimmy Buffett, as he does on his excellent take on "West Nashville Grand Ballroom Gown," or re-envisioning Mick Jagger and Keith Richards' relationship as a love relationship, as he does on "Brenda" (yes, apparently he has read Life), Snider remains a raconteur of the highest degree -- a guy, like John Prine before him, that you want to just sit and spend time with because he's likeable and knows how to spin a yarn.

In addition to the lyrical content of the album, the production on Agnostic Hymns... is as good as any record in Snider's catalog. It has a loose, unpolished feel that benefits Snider's ramblin', almost spoken word delivery. And there is also a female counterpart to Snider's voice -- something previous records have lacked -- with Amanda Shire providing backing vocals on almost all the album's tracks. Agnostic Hymns & Stoner Fables: it's not only a great album, but in a week of unbelievable new release riches -- there are a few "Best-of-the-Year" contenders in this week's cohort for sure -- it is my record of the week. See the full list of my new release recommendations after the jump.

Free Energy - "Electric Fever"

Borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered '70s anyone? Because Free Energy are serving it up in spades -- and it's a very good thing. Their 2010 debut, Stuck on Nothing -- produced by none other than James Murphy -- was a criminally underrated, hook-filled affair that sounded like a lost gem from AOR-era Rock. And while their follow up, Love Sign, doesn't have a release date just yet, we have our first glimpse of it today via first single "Electric Fever." Like some kind of Frankenstein creation combining all of the catchiest parts of Badfinger, Thin Lizzy and Big Star, "Electric Fever" brings the cowbell, piles on some "whoa-oh" backing vocals, adds some lyrics about dancing all night to your favorite song, and tops it all off with some classic-rock guitar riffage. It's a fist pumpin' good way to spend four minutes. Love Sign was produced by John Angello (Drive-By Truckers, Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth). Give "Electric Fever" a listen over at Exclaim -- you'll be glad you did!

Cass McCombs, "Robin Egg Blue" Video

One of my most listened to tracks from 2011 has been given a video in the form of a collection of images that at first appear to be home movie clips from a recent tropical vacation. But don't be fooled by the serene glimpses of flowers, ocean-views and sliced mangoes. Much like the anti-pastoral movement of the song itself, the video for Cass McCombs' "Robin Egg Blue" -- the fifth track from Humor Risk, McCombs' second LP of 2011 -- quickly evolves into something more ominous. The tropical scenes give way to a series of collages involving, among other things, weird Santa Claus automatons, a pile of what appears to be dog shit, an extended close up of a snake, and finally a tiny rocket blowing up a keyboard. I don't pretend to know what it all means, but it somehow suits the song well, whose breezy strum seems incongruous with a lyrical tale about a paradise lost.

Gene Ween Gets Crazy New Name, Releases Solo Album

Gene Ween is getting set to release his first solo album, Marvelous Clouds -- a collection that interprets 13 songs from prolific but now all-but-forgotten American songwriter Rod McKuen. For some reason, though, Gener has adopted the ridiculous solo moniker "Aaron Freeman" for the project. I mean, if you have a name as awesome as "Gene Ween" -- a name, need I remind you, that rhymes and that contains two words that ain't too shabby all on their own, "Gene" and "Ween" -- why do you go and adopt some pretentious show-biz name like "Aaron Freeman"? I'm not going to try to tell the guy how to live his life, but if he expects to sell records, make friends and meet women with a mug like his then he needs to follow the Ringo Starr-Elvis Costello-Bob Dylan model and stick with his real name. It's what his mom and dad, Maureen and Eugene, would want and it's certainly working for Deaner. Anyway, Slate's culture blog, "Brow Beat," has posted an interview with "Freeman" in which he discusses the new album, McKuen, going solo, and getting sober -- yes, he addresses the on-stage melt down in Vancouver last year. Marvelous Clouds is out May 8, and while you're over at Slate reading the interview you can also stream the album's first track, "As I Love My Own." Check it out here.

Bez "an old man now," Out of Mondays' Reunion

Cigarette Tricks started exactly one month ago today with an enthusiastic post announcing the news of an upcoming reunion tour of '80s Manchester ravers, The Happy Mondays -- the first time all seven original members of the band were to have performed together since 1992. Well as it turns out it won't be the entire original lineup. We have the sad news today that the band's "freaky" dancer, maraca player and all-around stage-presence-extraordinaire, Mark Berry -- better known by his stage name, Bez -- has pulled out of the reunion. "Unfortunately age has caught up with me," the BBC quotes Bez as saying, "I'm an old man now...Sometimes you've got to hang up your boots gracefully." Yes, "gracefully": this from a man who became famous by dancing like a jackass, who has declared bankruptcy twice in the last ten years -- once after winning Celebrity Big Brother UK in 2005 -- and who was arrested in August of 2010 for assaulting his ex-girlfriend, Monica Ward (of the UK band Domino Bones), and again in November 2010 for breaching a restraining order Ward was granted in the wake of the assault. So, yeah, Bez, the image of grace. Regardless, along with Shaun Ryder, Bez is the face of the Mondays, and their upcoming tour dates won't quite be a proper reunion without him. Read more about his decision to sit the tour out over at The Guardian.