Filed under: 20W Magazine, Free 4 All, XCLUS!VES | Tags: 2009, dorm room labels, download, free, Hipster Runoff, interview, magazine, Peter Bjorn and John, spring
Filed under: Free 4 All | Tags: 2009, Bright Eyes, Conor Oberst, download, leak, Nebraska, Omaha, Outer South
Here we have it, Outer South (Merge 2009), the second album released by Conor Oberst since dropping his Bright Eyes moniker and fully embracing his true identity.
Unlike the unforgivingly emo repertoire you are most likely to associate with this young, heartfelt troubadour, Outer South gives us a refreshing taste of Oberst’s folky Omaha roots.
Replete with pedal steel, brushed drumming and juste a twist of mandolin, this album is ideal for those long, rural summer days, sippin’ chilled whiskey on the porch.
Okay so perhaps that doesn’t sound so appealing after all, but make sure to peep the album regardless.
– Trevor Kiv
Filed under: Free 4 All | Tags: 2009, Athens, Brand New, download, Georgia, indie, leak, manchester orchestra, Mean Everything to Nothing
Apparently this fresh selection of cuts from Athens, GA natives Manchester Orchestra has been on the streets for a minute or two. Still hasn’t hit the stores yet (April 21). The follow-up effort to their debut, I’m Like A Virgin Losing A Child (2006), this album is certain to satisfy fans of Brand New, or any music along that spectrum of the indie rock persuasion. Not exactly my cup of tea, but feel free to drop us a line and tell me how wrong I am!
– Trevor Kiv
Filed under: Free 4 All | Tags: 2009, Black Moth Super Rainbow, download, Eating Us, electropop, leak, psychedelic, retro, Tobacco
At last, we have received Eating Us, the follow-up to Black Moth Super Rainbow’s psychedelic 2007 release, Dandelion Gum. Crafting sticky sweet retro electronica via authentic keyboards and samples straight out of 70’s, BMSR have carved out a comfortable niche in modern electropop. To be honest, I haven’t even given this one a spin yet, but if Dandelion Gum and Fucked Up Friends (by side-project Tobacco) is any guide, this one will be atop many people’s year-end list come December.
–Trevor Kiv
Filed under: Free 4 All | Tags: download, Filckr, Firefox, Google, iTunes, last.fm, software, Songbird, Songkick, YouTube
Welcome to the launch of Ayo Technology, the newest addition to the 20W community. In this segment, resident expert Dan Bagnall will bestow upon us weekly blogs about the hottest music software trends and newest gear to hit the market.
In this installment he introduces a dope new music application (the biggest threat to iTunes) that has finally made it out of beta testing. It’s name: Songbird.
Imagine the power of Mozilla’s Firefox with the music functionality of iTunes and low and behold you have Songbird. Songbird is a cross platform, open-source media player that is under active development. Built upon the Firefox architecture, users can customize their Songbird anyway they like thanks to “add-ons.”
A few key add-ons come bundled with the download such as mashTape, a feature to discover Flickr photos, YouTube videos, last.fm biographies, Google news and more for the currently playing artist. Another favorite feature is “Concert Tickets,” powered by Songkick, where you can discover upcoming shows in your area based on the artists in your library. The consolidation of a web and media browser will have you never switching between windows again!
Download it now at www.getsongbird.com
– Dan Bagnall
Filed under: Emerging Artists, Free 4 All | Tags: Bon Iver, Deastro, Does It Offend You, download, electro, German Pop, Italian Pop, J Pop, Keepers, Kings of Leon, The Airborne Toxic Event, Yeah?
Deastro is officially my new favorite band. They classify themselves on their myspace as “German Pop/Japanese Pop/Italian Pop” but manage to mix a Kings of Leon vocal timbre with electronic loops and instrumental glory. One could call it an identity crisis, but Deastro provides the listener with an incredible variety of music on the album”Keepers.” While some songs remind me of the intense arrangments of “Sometime Around Midnight” by the The Airborne Toxic Event and “Dawn of the Dead” by Does It Offend You, Yeah, the last song could easily be put on a mixtape with Bon Iver.
This band started out as a one man operation, but has grown to be a full band who gives away their music online. I approve. Check out the link below to download the cd “Keepers,” it’s a free download with no repercussions: what’s not to like?
-Kyra Zeller
