December 24, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

Three solo acoustic shows by Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy are the gems in today's Bittorent Brunch. One of my favorite live recordings, Tweedy at Harper College in 1999, starts things off.

Jeff Tweedy: 1999-03-05, Harper College [flac]*
Jeff Tweedy: 1999-06-15, Chicago [flac]*
Jeff Tweedy: 1997-11-25, Cambridge [flac]*
Uncle Tupelo: 1994-05-01, St. Louis [flac]*
Decemberists: 2004-09-22, Champaign [shn]*
The Music: 2004-12-11, Los Angeles [flac]*
Camper Van Beethoven: 2004-12-20, Colorado Springs [flac]*
Kings of Leon: 2004-06-25, Glastonbury [flac]*
The Darkness: 2004-03-03, Cologne [flac]*
Neil Young: 1971-02-27, London [shn]*
Flaming Lips: 2004-11-18, Late Night with Conan O'Brien [dvd]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
Daily Downloads

Camper Van Bethoven: 2004-12-07, Hamburg [mp3,ogg,flac]
Camper Van Beethoven: 2004-11-22, London [mp3,ogg,flac]
Decemberists: several tracks [mp3]
Keane: audio & video [mp3,mov,midi]
Audio Is a War: two tracks [mp3]
Yage: several tracks [mp3]
Chromelodeon: several tracks [mp3]
Dead Girls Ruin Everything: two tracks [mp3]
Various Artists: tracks from Lilac Sky records [mp3]
Various Artists: Cactus Island recordings compilation [zipped mp3]
Various Superheroes: Exciting Christmas Stories [mp3]

Posted by david permalink
December 23, 2004
December 22, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

In honor of his birthday yesterday, a 1974 Frank Zappa show highlights today's Bittorrent Brunch.

Frank Zappa: 1974-09-08, Bologna [flac]*
The Shins: 2004-12-11, Los Angeles [flac]*
Green Day: 2001-04-26, New York [flac]*
The Cure: 2004-10-15, Black session [flac]*
Brian Wilson: 2004-02-20, London [flac]*
Neil Young: 1999-10-30, Bridge School Benefit [flac]*
Van Morrison: 1971-09-11, Marin [shn]*
Paul McCartney & Wings: 1976-05-03, Fort Worth [shn]*
Bob Dylan and others: 1975-12-08, New York [dvd]*
Beck: 2003-04-28, London [dvd]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 21, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

Recent shows by the Drive-By Truckers, Polyphonic Spree, Guided By Voices and Patty Griffin highlight today's Bittorrent Brunch.

Drive-By Truckers: 2004-12-16, Towson [shn]
Polyphonic Spree: 2004-12-18, Grand Prairie [shn]
Guided By Voices: 2004-11-03, Athens [flac]*
Patty Griffin: 2004-12-03, KGSR [flac]*
Tori Amos: 1998-09-11, KNDD [flac]*
The Clash: 1982-01-24, Tokyo [flac]*
White Stripes: 2002-07-12, Chicago [flac]*
Radiohead: 2000-07-04, Berlin [shn]
Bob Dylan: 1978-11-10, Seattle [flac]*
Thom Yorke: 1996-04-10, Rockville [shn]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 20, 2004
Streaming Holiday Music

No Love For Ned offers his annual holiday music show, with additional links to his 2002 and 2003 shows. That's six hours of holiday jingles, brought to you by the man who makes internet radio listenable, No Love For Ned.

Also recommended: SomaFM's Xmas in Frisco.

Posted by david permalink
Tomorrow's Shopping Bag

With the end of year approaching and hardly any music being released, I'll be passing on the one interesting CD release this week, The Adored's debut ep.

The Simpsons' 5th season and Napoleon Dynamite will be in my shopping bag at the end of the day, though, both will make excellent holiday gifts for family and friends, and the Simpsons discs will be a great addition to our DVD library. Is there anything I'm missing?

The Adored: EP [cd]

The 4400 - The Complete First Season [dvd]
De-Lovely [dvd]
Drawing the Line - Portrait of Keith Haring [dvd]
King Arthur (Unrated Widescreen Director's Cut) [dvd]
The Manchurian Candidate (Widescreen Edition) [dvd]
Napoleon Dynamite [dvd]
Shaun of the Dead [dvd]
The Simpsons - The Complete Fifth Season [dvd]
The Simpsons - The Complete First Five Seasons [dvd]
Star Trek Voyager - The Complete Seasons 1-7 [dvd]
Star Trek Voyager - The Complete Seventh Season [dvd]
Surviving Christmas [dvd]
Thunderbirds (Full Screen Edition) [dvd]
Vincent Van Gogh - A Dutchman [dvd]

Posted by david permalink
December 19, 2004
December 18, 2004
December 17, 2004
December 16, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

The stripped-down demo recordings you can find online are some of my favorite downloads. Today's Bittorrent Brunch features two sets of REM demos and an amazing Jonathan Richman demo recording from 1973. Recent shows by Snow Patrol, Franz Ferdinand and The Delgados are also featured.

REM: Green demos [flac]*
REM: Life's Rich pageant demos (and more) [flac]*
Jonathan Richman: 1973 Living Room Demos [shn]*
Green Day: 2004-12-12, Los Angeles [flac]*
Franz Ferdinand: 2004-12-11, Los Angeles [flac]*
Pearl Jam: 2004-10-01, Reading [flac]
Delgados: 2004-12-13, Paris [flac]*
Snow Patrol: 2004-09-22, Minneapolis [flac]*
Chris Whitley: 1999-05-20, Philadelphia [flac]*
Golden Smog, Minus 5, Uncle Tupelo, Wilco: videos [dvd]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
Daily Downloads

Lotus: 2004-03-06, Richmond [mp3]
Old Crow Medicine Show: several tracks [mp3,wma,real]
minipop: several tracks [mp3]
The Bright Black Morning Light: several tracks [mp3]
Phenomenauts: audio & video [mp3,ogg,mpg]
Queen: rarities [mp3]
Various Artists: tracks from Oh! Map Records [mp3]
Various Artists: tracks from Turn Records [mp3]

Wilco: "Don't Fear the Reaper" (Blue Oyster Cult Cover) [mp3]*
Dead Ghosts: "Make Me" [mp3] from Exfoliation

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 15, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

Two Pavement shows start today's Bittorrent Brunch, with recent shows by the Drive-By Truckers, the Darkness, and a television appearance by the Pixies rounding things out.

Pavement: 1994-04-21, Missoula [shn]*
Pavement: 1994-04-07, Atlanta [shn]*
Drive-By Truckers: 2004-12-10, Charlotte [flac]*
Death Cab for Cutie: 2004-11-09, Seattle [flac]*
Led Zeppelin: 1980-07-07 [flac]*
Doug Martsch: 2002-03-24, Portland [shn]*
PiL: 1979-06-18, Manchester [shn]*
Sex Pistols: 1978-01-10, Dallas [flac]*
The Darkness: 2004-12-10, London [flac]*
Cat Power: 1999-09-06, Seattle [flac]*
Pixies: 2004-12-14, live on Letterman [mpg]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 14, 2004
December 13, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

Indietorrents is a great resource for live shows served in mp3 format. Here's a small sample of the shows available:

Ben Gibbard: 2002-07-13, Seattle [mp3]*
The Postal Service: 2003-05-06, KCRW [mp3]*
James Mercer (of The Shins): 2004-01-07, KBOO [mp3]*
James Mercer (of The Shins): 2004-10-10, Moonshine Festival [mp3]*
The Shins: 2004-02-08, Mission Beach [mp3]*
The Shins: 2002-07-13, Austin [mp3]*
The Decemberists: 2004-09-22, Champaign [mp3]*
The Arcade Fire: 2004-11-27, Minneapolis [mp3]*
Neutral Milk Hotel: 1998-03-04, Carrboro [mp3]*
Desaparecidos: 2001, Omaha [mp3]*
Devendra Banhart: 2004-05-05, KCRW [mp3]*
Pavement: 1999 BBC Evening Session and three Glastonbury tracks [mp3]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
Tomorrow's Shopping Bag

Import singles by Morrissey (x2), the Black Keys, the Zutons, the Twilight Singers, and Damien Rice are the gems in this week's record releases, as well as a domestic single by Bonnie Prince Billy. I'll probably put off picking up any of these, though, and concentrate on my holiday shopping tomorrow. Is there anything worth making an extra trip to the record store?

On the DVD front, I'll probably pick up The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition Collector's Gift Set), the first two seasons of Everybody Loves Raymond, and possibly a couple of other presents for friends and family.

This week's interesting releases:

Anouk: Girl [cd]
The Black Keys: Till I Get My Way/Girl Is on My Mind (import single) [cd]
Bonnie Prince Billy: No More Workhorse Blues (single) [cd]
Damien Rice: Blower's Daughter (import single) [cd]
Flunk: Morning Star [cd]
Marah: Let's Cut the Crap & Hook Up Later on Tonight [cd]
Merle Haggard: Unforgettable [cd]
Morrissey: I Have Forgiven Jesus Pt.1 (import single) [cd]
Morrissey: I Have Forgiven Jesus Pt.1 (2 track import single) [cd]
Twilight Singers: Too Tough to Die (import single) [cd]
Various Artists: ABBAlicious [cd]
Zutons: Confusion (import single) [cd]

24 - Seasons 1-3 [dvd]
American Icon (Johnny Cash) [dvd]
Collateral (Widescreen Two-Disc Edition) [dvd]
Everybody Loves Raymond - The Complete First And Second Seasons [dvd]
Everybody Loves Raymond - The Complete Second Season [dvd]
Faith Rewarded: The Historic Season of the 2004 Boston Red Sox [dvd]
Family Guy - The Freakin' Sweet Collection [dvd]
Futurama Volumes 1-4 [dvd]
Godzilla Box Set [dvd]
I, Robot (Widescreen Edition) [dvd]
Joss Stone - Mind, Body & Soul Sessions [dvd]
Julia Child! America's Favorite Chef [dvd]
The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition) [dvd]
The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition Collector's Gift Set) [dvd]
The Lord of the Rings - The Motion Picture Trilogy (Special Extended DVD Edition) [dvd]
Lost in Space Seasons 1-2 [dvd]
Mary Poppins (40th Anniversary Edition) [dvd]
M*A*S*H Seasons 1-7 [dvd]
Meet the Parents (Widescreen Special Edition) [dvd]
Newlyweds - Nick & Jessica - The First Season [dvd]
Paris, Texas [dvd]
Piaf [dvd]
The Princess Diaries 2 - Royal Engagement (Widescreen Edition) [dvd]
Rocky Anthology [dvd]
Star Trek The Original Series - The Complete Seasons 1-3 [dvd]
Star Trek The Original Series - The Complete Third Season [dvd]

Posted by david permalink
December 12, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

With the unfortunate demise of Sharing the Groove, several sites have stepped forward to try and fill its shoes. The most promising new site is Purelivegigs, a forum-based bittorrent community that has already seeded many interesting shows in its short life. The first four shows of today's Bittorrent Brunch come from this excellent resource.

The Hives: 2004-12-10, Los Angeles [flac]*
Neil Young: 1999-10-30, Bridge School Benefit (acoustic) [flac]*
PJ Harvey: 2001-09-04, New York [flac]*
The Who: 1989-06-27, New York [flac]*
Pearl Jam: 1992-05-05, Boulder [flac]
Kevin Coyne: 2003-09-13, Germany [flac]*
Stan Ridgway: 2004-12-08, San Francisco [flac]*
Kings of Leon: 2004-06-25, Glastonbury Festival [shn]*
Modest Mouse: 1997-04-27, California [flac]*
Wilco: 2004-07-10, Chicago [flac]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 11, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

I am constantly amazed that shows are taped, transferred, encoded and seeded so quickly. Today, Thursday evening shows by the Drive-By Truckers and Muse are available in the Bittorrent Brunch.

Drive-By Truckers: 2004-12-09, Wilmington [shn]
Muse: 2004-12-09, Los Angeles [flac]*
Kings of Leon: 2004-12-10, Friday Night with Jonathon Ross [mpg]*
Flaming Lips: 2000-04-14, Baltimore [shn]
Uncle Tupelo: 1992-12-02, Munich [shn]*
Neil Young: early demos & outtakes, 1965-1967 [shn]*
Public Image Ltd: 1988, Estonia [flac]*
The Black Keys: 2004-10-12, Late Night with Conan O'Brien [mpg]*
Devo: television appearances 1978-1981 [dvd]*
Morrissey: "The Importance of Being Morrissey" documentary [mpg]*

Posted by david permalink
December 10, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

In honor of Dimebag Darrell, today's Bittorrent Brunch begins with two Pantera shows.

Pantera: 1998-06-09, Buenos Aires [flac]*
Pantera: 1994-05-05, San Antonio [shn]*
Loose Fur: 2000-05-14, Chicago [flac]*
Bloc Party: 2004-11-07, Paris [shn]*
Radiohead: 1995-02-27, 2 Meter sessions [shn]
Wilco: 2004-11-06, Denver [flac]
Paul McCartney: 2004-10-24, Bridge School Benefit [flac]*
Morrissey: 2000-03-28, Santiago [flac]*
Eagles of Death Metal: 2004-12-07, Detroit [flac]*
Red House Painters: 1997-06-14, Hulstfreds Festival [flac]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 09, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

Bittorrent downloads of live shows are not always just audio, as the first two offerings of today's Bittorrent Brunch show. With DVD burners and high speed internet becoming even more commonplace, expect more live show videos to be available in the future.

Sonic Youth: 2004-07-15, Portland [dvd]*
Miles Davis: two shows [dvd]*
Miles Davis: 1983-04-25, Brussels [shn]*
North Mississippi Allstars: 2004-10-16, Philadelphia [flac]
Be Good Tanyas: 2002-11-04 [flac]*
GWAR: 1985, Richmond (first show) [flac]
They Might Be Giants: 1999-10-23, New York [flac]
Radiohead: 2003-11-27, London [shn
David Byrne: 2004-06-13, Bonnaroo [flac]]

Posted by david permalink
December 08, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

I am a huge fan of songwriters, and especially love to hear their songs stripped bare and performed acoustically. Today's Bittorrent Brunch offers acoustic performances by Rufus Wainwright, John Lennon and George Harrison, along with several other interesting shows.

Drive-By Truckers: 2004-07-30, Winston-Salem [flac]
Rufus Wainwright: 2004-12-01, KCRW acoustic [flac]*
Gillian Welch: 1999 UK radio session [flac]*
Smog: 2001-12-04, Malmö [wav]*
The Feelies: 1986-03-14, Cambridge [flac]*
REM: 2004-09-15, London [flac]*
John Lennon: Acoustic Masterpieces [flac]*
George Harrison: Acoustic Masterpieces [flac]*
Various Artists: 1999 Bridge School Benefit [shn]*
Bob Dylan: 1990-08-27, Merrillville [shn]*

Posted by david permalink
December 07, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

There are plenty of download-worthy shows in today's Bittorrent Brunch, but I am always partial to Jeff Tweedy solo shows. This performance from January of 2003 is remarkable (as are most of his solo shows).

Jeff Tweedy: 2003-01-08, Chicago [flac]
Wilco: 2003-09-04, Eugene [shn]*
Yo La Tengo: 2004-10-10, Carrboro [flac]
Paul McCartney: 2004-10-24, Bridge School Benefit [shn]*
Beatles: White album sessions [shn]*
Vic Chesnutt: 2002-02-15, Atlanta [flac]*
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings: 1994-05-19, Nashville [shn]
Interpol: 2003-09-17, Toronto [flac]*
The Feelies: 1991-05-02, Chicago [flac]*
Pixies: 2004-12-05, Camden [flac]*
Bauhaus: 1979, live in the studio [shn]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
Shorties

The New York Times reviews Sunday night's Guided By Voices Irving Plaza show.

Keith (of TTIKTDA) waxes poetic about the upcoming Fiery Furnaces singles and b-sides compilation (as well as posting a couple of tracks). After one listen, this EP (titled "EP," of course) ranks with Low's The Great Destroyer as an early 2005 personal favorite.

Our kitten Neko wants the Coconut Palm Cat Tree for Christmas.

Rough Trade lists their top ten 2004 compilations, top ten 2004 reissues and collections, and top 100 2004 albums.

Store a list of wifi hotspots on your iPod with wiPod.

Sloan is offering their tourdates as an RSS feed.

iPodlounge offers its "iPod Year in Review."

Donutmuse lists their top 25 albums of 2004.

Stripwax is "the world's only comic strip record review."

Salon names their top ten books of the year.

Popmatters' Zeth Lundy lists his best music of 2004.

Time asks, "When authors as highbrow as Michael Chabon write pulp fiction, what defines a good read?"

TV shows are tuning out theme songs.

USA Today lists recent and upcoming music DVD's, as well as 2004's best-selling music DVD's.

The Globe and Mail covers Marqui Inc.'s paid blogger marketing scheme.

Wired News previews videocasting, the inevitable followup to podcasting.

Investor's Business Daily has an iPod, a Blackberry and a mini PC on it's Christmas wish list.

The Philadelphia Daily News offers music gift suggestions.

Mozilla releases Thunderbird 1.0PR, its e-mail client.

Has the internet caused the extinction of plagiarism?

Posted by david permalink
December 06, 2004
46 Down, 6 To Go

A Very Southern Christmas is not your typical collection of holiday yarns. All ten of the short stories are well-written and thought-provoking, but there is not one happy elf or Tiny Tim to be found. The holiday theme is portrayed with all its frazzled edges, and this makes the book welcome when the holidays have become so sanitized and sugared. I'm immensely thankful to my sister for giving me this autographed copy.

iPod Fan Book, by Yasukuni Notomi, is my next book. This book is almost too cute to read, I'd give it an A+ for design without even cracking the spine.

Posted by david permalink
Bittorrent Brunch

Today's Bittorrent Brunch is filled with singer/songwriters. from Patterson Hood to Rufus Wainwright to Ray Charles. Enjoy.

Patterson Hood: 2004-12-02, Chicago (2 shows) [flac]*
Drive-By Truckers: 2002-03-02, Atlanta [flac]*
Rufus Wainwright: 2004-05-30, Manchester [flac]*
Damien Rice: 2004-12-04, Los Angeles [flac]*
Hope Sandoval: 2002-08-11, Portland [shn]*
Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks: 2001-02-05, Paris [shn]*
Bob Dylan: 1998-02-14, Cleveland [flac]*
Echo And The Bunnymen: 1984-08-28, New Orleans [flac]*
Ray Charles: 1995-09-09, New York [flac]*
The Cure: 2000-02-04, The Hotel Konrad Sessions [flac]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
Tomorrow's Shopping Bag

This week's album releases are a slim crop, with Morrissey's repackaged You Are the Quarry easily the highlight for me. This new issue includes b-sides from the singles as well as a DVD including live video.

The DVD releases are far more promising. I'll be picking up season two of the Gilmore Girls, The White Stripes - Under Blackpool Lights, and Neil Gaiman's A Short Film About John Bolton.

Anything I'm missing?

This week's interesting CD & DVD relations:

Devendra Banhart: At the Hop (import single) [cd]
Lindsay Lohan: Speak [cd]
Ludacris: Red Light District [cd]
Morrissey: You Are the Quarry (Bonus Dvd) [cd]
Simon & Garfunkel: Old Friends Live on Stage (Deluxe Edition) (2 CD/1 DVD) [cd]
Various Artists: Do They Know It's Xmas (import single) [cd]
Various Artists: Do They Know It's Christmas (two track import single) [cd]

24 - Season Three [dvd]
Abba - Super Troopers [dvd]
The Bourne Supremacy (Widescreen Edition) [dvd]
Buster Keaton Collection [dvd]
Carnivale - The Complete First Season [dvd]
Elephant [dvd]
Eminem - AKA [dvd]
Erasure - The Tank, The Swan, and The Balloon Live [dvd]
The Flintstones - The Complete First and Second Seasons [dvd]
The Flintstones - The Complete Second Season [dvd]
Gilmore Girls - The Complete Second Season [dvd]
Gilmore Girls - The Complete First & Second Seasons [dvd]
The King of Kings - Criterion Collection [dvd]
M - Criterion Collection [dvd]
M*A*S*H - Season Seven (Collector's Edition) [dvd]
Neil Gaiman's A Short Film About John Bolton [dvd]
Rodney Dangerfield - The Ultimate No Respect Collection [dvd]
Star Trek Voyager - The Complete Sixth Season [dvd]
The Ultimate Matrix Collection (The Matrix / Reloaded / Revolutions / Revisited / The Animatrix) [dvd]
The Ultimate Matrix Collection Limited Edition Collector's Set (The Matrix / Reloaded / Revolutions / Revisited / The Animatrix) [dvd]
The White Stripes - Under Blackpool Lights [dvd]

Posted by david permalink
Daily Downloads

Acid Mothers Temple: 2004-06-18, Philadelphia [mp3,ogg,flac]
Camper Van Beethoven: 2004-11-12, Atlanta [flac]
Cracker: 2003-05-22, Indianapolis [mp3,ogg,shn]
Black Moth Super Rainbow: several tracks [mp3]*
Ugress: several tracks [mp3]
Various Artists: tracks from Rednetic Records [mp3]
Various Artists: tracks from Carbon Records [mp3]
Various Artists: tracks from The Agriculture Records [mp3]
Various Artists: "Bootmixed" [mp3]
Khavi Collective Audio Sculptors: Khavi Audio Release 63 [ogg]

*updated since last post

Posted by david permalink
December 05, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

From the Beatles to Interpol, you're sure to find an interesting download in today's Bittorrent Brunch.

Guided By Voices: 1999-03-20, Austin [flac]*
Pearl Jam: 1998-06-23, Englewood [flac]
Gillian Welch: 1997-09-27, Hickory [flac]*
Gilian Welch: 2001-08-19, Lyons [flac]*
Interpol: 2004-12-09, Lyon [flac]*
Beatles: Revolver outtakes [flac]*
Jeff Tweedy: 2003-01-09, Chicago [flac]*
Warren Zevon: two shows, March 1978 [shn]*
The Clash: two 1978 shows [shn]*
Super Furry Animals: 2004-02-04, San Francisco [flac]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 04, 2004
December 03, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

A last week show by the Dears and a 1978 television performance bookend today's Bittorrent Brunch.

The Dears: 2004-11-30 & 2004-03-11, Los Angeles [flac]*
They Might Be Giants: 1997-12-03, Newark [shn]
Travis Morrison: 2004-07-06, Orlando [flac]
Sebadoh: 1994 Peel session [flac]*
Tishamingo, Drive By Truckers, & North Mississippi Allstars: 2004-11-26, Birmingham [flac]*
Morrissey: 2002-09-30, Paris [flac]*
Built To Spill: 2003-07-23, Seattle [flac]*
Pavement: 1994-04-23, San Francisco [shn]*
Uncle Tupelo: 1993-11-11, San Francisco [flac]*
Television: 1978-06-09, Roslyn [flac]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
Daily Downloads

Various Artists: vinyl holiday gems from Basichip Digital Oddio (rotated every four days) [mp3]
Pedro The Lion: 2004, Omaha & other tracks [mp3]
Led Zeppelin: live tracks [mp3]
David Bowie: 2002-09-18, BBC [mp3]
David Bowie: 1983-07-13, Montreal [mp3]
Moxie Motive: several tracks [mp3] (thx)

Thanks to the prolific and always interesting Brooklynvegan for the following two tracks:

Final Fantasy: "Peach Plum Pear" (Joanna Newsom cover) [mp3]
Decemberists: "Bandit Queen" (from their forthcoming album) [mp3]

Explosions in the Sky: "Your Hand in Mine (w/strings)" [mp3] from Friday Night Lights
Willie Nelson: "Whatever Happened To Peace on Earth" [mp3]

Posted by david permalink
December 02, 2004
Bittorrent Brunch

My Morning Jacket's 2001 Christmas radio show appearance highlights today's Bittorrent Brunch.

My Morning Jacket: 2001-12-25, Louisville (Christmas radio show) [shn]*
Conor Oberst: 2004-11-15, Munich [flac]
Drive-By Truckers: 2004-11-07, Chattanooga [flac]
The Fall: 2004-10-13, Munich [flac]*
OOIOO: 2004-11-06, Hollywood [flac]*
The Frames: 2004-03-27, San Francisco [shn]*
Interpol: 2004-11-19, Paris [flac]*
The Strokes: 2001-07-05, Stockholm [shn]*
Beastie Boys: 1992-05-22, New Jersey [flac]*
Various Artists: Santa's Boots (Christmas Compilation) [flac]*

*registration required

Posted by david permalink
December 01, 2004
2004's Best Albums or Davey Goes To Eleven

With the music year heading to a close, the time has come to reflect on the year's releases and my annual list of favorite albums. This year has been another great harvest of interesting music, and these albums represent what has graced my iPod the most. Included are legal downloads from the discs where available, so please give these artists a chance (if you haven't already).

The Milk-Eyed Mender

The Milk-Eyed Mender
Joanna Newsom

Joanna Newsom's Milk-Eyed Mender is my favorite album of the past several years. The classically-trained harpist's sparse arrangements and strong songwriting combine to produce otherworldly music with hints of her bluegrass and folk backgrounds. Her unique and strong voice is the final part of the wonderful puzzle that is her music.

"Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie" [mp3]


Blueberry Boat
Blueberry Boat
Fiery Furnaces

The Fiery Furnaces skip the sophomore slump with Blueberry Boat. Wonderfully diverse and quirky, this album challenges the listener.

"Straight Street" [mp3]
"Chris Michaels" [mp3]


A Grand Don't Come For Free
A Grand Don't Come For Free
The Streets

Mike Skinner follows up Original Pirate Material with a concept album, and the results are amazing. He takes chances (like the guitar-driven first single, "Fit But You Know It), and always wins.


We Shall All Be Healed
We Shall All Be Healed
The Mountain Goats

John Darnielle's second studio album offers the best songwriting yet from America's best tunesmith. John Vanderslice's production is a perfect match.

"Palmcorder Yajna" [mp3]
"Your Belgian Things" (live version) [mp3]
"The Young Thousands" (live version) [mp3]
"Slow West Vultures" (live version) [mp3]
"Mole" (live version) [mp3]
"Pigs That Ran Straightaway Into The water, Triumph of" (live version) [mp3]
"Linda Blair Was Born Innocent" (live version) [mp3]
"Cotton" (live version) [mp3]
"Quito" (live version) [mp3]


Let It Die
Let It Die
Feist

Leslie Feist of Broken Social Scene breaks out with a solo album that runs the gamut of genres, but is filled with memorable lyrics and her soft, silky voice.

"Mushaboom" [mp3]
"Gatekeeper" [mp3]


Faded Seaside Glamour
Faded Seaside Glamour
Delays

The best hooks of the year belong to the Delays on this album. The "feel good" album of the year, hands down.


Cat Spectacular
Cat Spectacular
Bearsuit

A friend gave me this album early this year, saying it would change my life. His exact words were that Bearsuit was like "Deerhoof crossed with Belle & Sebastian." My life didn't change, but my wallet did, as I tracked down as much Bearsuit as I could after the first couple of listens to Cat Spectacular.

"Itsuko Got Married" [mp3]


Madvillainy
Madvillainy
Madvillain

When MF Doom and Madlib combined for this project, my expectations were high. The resulting album is simply an amazing concept album, filled with Madlib's beats and the gravelly wonder that is MF Doom's rhymes.

"Money Folder" [mp3]
"Curls" [mp3]


Sung Tongs
Sung Tongs
Animal Collective

Though adventurous and experimental, the Animal Collective has made its most accessible album without compromising its artistic integrity. Combining folk and pop influences with acoustic guitars, this album is stellar.

"Leaf House" [mp3]


Get Away From Me
Get Away From Me
Nellie McKay

Newcomer Nellie McKay's solo album brims with talent and promise. Her energy and witty songwriting carry the album high, and her willingness to take artistic chances bode well for a successful and interesting career ahead.

"David" (live version) [mp3]
"Manhattan Avenue" (live version) [mp3]
"Sari" (live version) [mp3]
"Ding Dong" (live version) [mp3]
"Baby Watch Your Back" (live version) [mp3]
"Dog Song" (live version) [mp3]
"I Wanna Get Married" (live version) [mp3]
"Change The World" (live version) [mp3]
"It's a Pose" (live version) [mp3]
"Toto Dies" (live version) [mp3]
"Won't U Please B Nice" (live version) [mp3]
"Inner Peace" (live version) [mp3]
"Suitcase Song" (live version) [mp3]
"Work Song" (live version) [mp3]
"Clonie" (live version) [mp3]
"Respectable" (live version) [mp3]
"Really" (live version) [mp3]


Blue Cathedral
Blue Cathedral
Comets on Fire

A bit more polished than the band's last effort, Field Recording From the Sun, but that doesn't stop this record from still being the most rocking album of the year.

"Whiskey River" [mp3]

Posted by david permalink
November 30, 2004
Da