The Courage of Others opens with “Acts of Man” which, in many ways, is representative of the album. The song is British folksy with intricate classical guitar arpeggios and steady drumming. Soft, monotone vocals serve to darken the landscape while the lyrics force the listener away to another sphere — one where the earth and all that grows and runs upon it have been forgotten. A flute appears as the work builds somewhat just before its completion. The influences of Fleetwood Mac and Jethro Tull are unmistakable here. But although the track is solid, it has a strange dullness and throughout it and others on the album, the intended intensity simply doesn’t come through. No significant depth, so important to a piece such as this, ever seems to emerge.
Another song, “Rulers, Ruling All Things” is a case in point. The quiet verse gives way to a thumping, epic chorus: “I only want to be left to my own ways, The rulers of one leaving all things undone, I stood in awe of the whole creations, Gathered among them was the morning, Giving all its rays.” The work is a technically sound bit of prog-rock but one has the sense that the reserved passion found in the vocals is not quite authentic. This makes the buzzing guitar seem more remote than piercing. Midlake frontman Tim Smith has claimed that “Small Mountain” is his favorite. And although its woodsy melody is intriguing, it also has an energy which is far too distant for the listener.
For me, the title track (originally to be a B-side for Van Occupanther) is probably the highlight. Here, the sentiment is haunting but close: “I was always taught to worry about things, All the many things you can’t control.” Intensity slowly assembles as the hypnotic melody transitions, as one of the many uncontrollable things mentioned, into thick layers of sound. It is a good piece. But like the record itself, it would be a stretch to call it first-rate. On the other hand, I will say that the collection of songs on The Courage of Others do seem to evolve somewhat with each listen. And for this this reason alone, I believe the album deserves some attention.
Tracklist:
Acts of Man
Winter Dies
Small Mountain
Core of Nature
Fortune
Rulers, Ruling All Things
Children of the Grounds
Bring Down
The Horn
The Courage of Others
In The Ground
Alas, there is so much music these days. How is one to sift through all the seemingly endless amount of bands out there? Here’s the answer – you don’t have to because we do it for you. Each week we post the best new songs to download with only the click of a mouse and voila…. they show up on your desktop. You’re welcome.
Songs featured on this weeks MP3 Grab Bag: Aloha – Moonless March
Communipaw – Take Over
Communipaw – 23
Hooray For Earth – Surrounded By Your Friends
Karnivool – Set Fire To The Hive
Lawrence Arabia – Apple Pie Bed
Ted Leo – The Mighty Sparrow
Via Audio – Babies
“Telephone” by Los Angeles’ own Horse Stories is the bands latest video for their new album November, November. After you watch the video head on over for our exclusive stream of their entire new album that came out Tuesday, January 19th.
A bit more on Horse Stories:
Although it’s been four years now since the last Horse Stories record (the critically lauded Everyone’s A Photographer), it’s hard to say that Toby Burke hasn’t been busy – with two offerings of experimental instrumental music (via Perfect Black Swan, one accompanied by a photographic exhibition), two collections of short stories, score work, record producing and a major gallery installation, all to his name in that time.
Ever the nomad, Toby’s been on the move again too. In 2007, after two years back in his birthplace, Melbourne and largely out of the music scene, Toby relocated to his adopted home of Los Angeles (his third international relocation in four years). It was there, holed-up in a windowless garage under his house in the Silverlake neighborhood, that the material for November, November was arduously crafted. Day by day, verse by verse, for nearly two years.
Doing what he could to make the dark and dingy garage space as hospitable a studio as possible – including painting one wall “monster” green to brighten things up and rolling in an old piano – Toby set out to write 10 undeniably well-crafted songs, demo’ing each numerous times. All-the-while sharpening not only the songs, but his guitar playing, new piano skills and fresh way of approaching singing.
The result is November, November, Horse Stories’ most assured, mature and consistent album to date. Recorded mostly live-to-tape with producer/multi-instrumentalist Luther Russell and engineer/bassist Jason Hiller. With help from old friend Beth Balmer, they conjured up an album that touches upon the Holy Grail of record making; something that is both classic and original.
Horse Stories is the brain child of Los Angeles singer-songwriter Toby Burke and his miraculous work as a multi-instrumentalist. His old-timey soul stirring fourth album, November, November was released this past January 19th on Perfect Black Swan records.
We are not the only fans of Horse Stories library of work:
“Expertly judged chamber-pop, twang swapped for painstaking production… Burke’s vocals evoke Joe Pernice, gentle, wracked, velvety exhalations that sweeten his powerfully bleak pieces.” – MOJO
“The painterly approach and fragile harmonies have served them well… the quieter moments could raise gooseflesh.” – UNCUT
“Projected via a quietly commanding voice, songs emerge paine and mysterious, but not without hope.” – Q
“Wonderful… Reference points are that lonely, slow-motion American indie rock-of-ages, from early REM to Galaxie 500.” – The Age (Melbourne)
“Three albums in, the unfettered melancholy bliss of the man from Melbourne’s electronica-tinged, dust-clouded tales are surely going to find themselves a wider audience… recall(s) Wilco’s recent awesome studio-bound experimentation and REM at their most countrified respectively. Really, there’s no higher praise than that.” – NME
Bloomington, Indiana’s MURDER BY DEATH will release their fifth full-length studio album, Good Morning, Magpie, on April 6, 2010 on Vagrant Records. The quartet self-produced the album which was recorded at Bloomington-based Farm Fresh Studios and the resulting ten tracks were mixed by Trina Shoemaker.
“Good Morning, Magpie is some of the darkest and brightest material we have ever written,” commented Adam Turla, MBD’s singer, songwriter and guitarist. “While it’s not a concept album, it embodies the struggle between light and dark that has defined our previous work.”
Turla wrote most of the new material during two weeks he spent alone deep in the woods of Appalachia with just “a tent, a fishing pole, a guitar, and a lot of paper.”
Good Morning, Magpie follows 2008’s Red of Tooth and Claw which was universally acclaimed for it’s cinematic storytelling and as Paste Magazine noted of their performance on record – “every one of them a swirling, unapologetic tours-de-force.” Performing Songwriter declared the album “a more personal, impactful and engaging record than the stellar offerings they’ve released thus far… MBD kick up a storm of dirty, killer American rock” and The Tripwire summed it up by saying, “label it whatever you want, isn’t “great” just great?”
A US tour is being planned and dates will be announced in the coming weeks.
Murder By Death is: Adam Turla- vocals, guitars, keys, Sarah Balliet- cello and keys, Matt Armstrong- bass and noises, and Dagan Thogerson- drums and percussion.
A note from our friends at Northplatte:
Happy Holidays everyone! We wanted to thank you so much for your support by giving you this Free Christmas Album. You can download the album by clicking on the picture link of the album art cover Glory Glory Glory. Feel free to share it with all your friends.
Featuring these great new songs: Alvin Band “Mantis Preying Ate Single”
Beach House “Norway”
CFCF “Monolith”
The Dead Trees “Rayna (demo)”
Fredrik “Locked in the Basement”
Furcast “Greyls Old”
Holly Miranda “Forest Green Oh Forest Green”
Letting Up Despite Our Faults “In Steps”
Mean Creek “(OrTheUnderground)”
Midnight Masses “Walk On Water”
Miracles of Modern Science “Bossa Supernova”
Summer Dregs “Bones”
Tape Deck Mountain “On My Honor”
Tape Deck Mountain “Scantron (remix)
Technoir MA “Roundabout”
The New Loud “Dont Dance”
Toro Y Moi “Blessa”
Noah and the Whalereleased their new album ‘The First Day Of Spring’ on October 6th of this year. Already the album has become our go-to-album (you know when you have an album that somehow finds itself in every cd player you have? Exactly.). And now we would like to offer you a first viewingof their video for their song with the same name as the album “The First Day Of Spring”. Filmed live at Cafe De La Danse.
Mixed in Brooklyn, NY by Joel Hamilton (The Black Keys, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, Sparklehorse, and Nina Simone), ‘Over The Stones, Under The Stars’ finds new depth of sound, digging its claws firmly into the emotively penned Collette lyrics. While purposefully stripped of the orchestration that marked previous releases, the album conveys more of the fiery live experience of this unique band. Collette also adds piano, organ and mellotron to his usual axe slinging.
In recent years Ned Collette’s music has led him around the globe, touring with such artists as Camera Obscura, Joanna Newsom, The National, Bill Callahan and St. Vincent. In the later half of 2008 Ned Collette + Wirewalker embarked on 22 shows throughout Europe in which filmmaker Natalie van den Dungen captured the trek in three film clips for the new album and a short documentary/live film to be released soon.
Bloomington, Indiana quartet MURDER BY DEATH will begin recording their fifth full-length studio album in December at Bloomington-based Farm Fresh Studios. The forthcoming as-yet-untitled disc will be mixed by Trina Shoemaker (who produced 2008’s Red of Tooth and Claw, Vagrant) and is scheduled for release next spring. Read the full story
Featuring these great new songs:
A Sunny Day In Glasgow “Failure”
Atlas Sound “Doctor (Five Discs Cover)”
Bluebrain “Bring Out Your Dead”
Jasone Boesel “Hand Of God”
Joan Of Arc “Friend In Common”
Josh Ottum “Like the Season, it’s Alright Single”
LoneLady “Immaterial”
Midnight Masses “Walk On Water”
Mother Hips “Third Floor Story”
Mother Hips “White Falcon Fuzz”
Pants Yell “Cold Hands”
Princeton “Sadie And Andy”
The Bravery “The Spectator”
The Wooden Sky “Something Hiding For Us in the Night”
The Mercury Program “Arrived Departed”
New bad-ass Grab Bag songs:
ARMS “Kids Aflame”
ARMS “Tiger Tamer”
Atlas Sound (Feat Noah Lennox) “Walkabout”
Bluebrain “Ten by Ten”
Cat Party “Rhapsody In Black” (from their Bionic Ear session)
Fitz and The Tantrums “Winds of Change”
Matt Pond PA “Halloween”
Mr. Gnome “Slow Slide”
Mr. Gnome “Vampires”
PJ Bond “You Too”
Radiohead “These Are My Twisted Words”
The Soft Pack “Answer To Yourself”
Thomas Function “Belly of the Beast”
- Every week we will be stuffing our little grab bag full of the best new free music from bands you may or may not know. Oh what a surprise you are in store for.
