Month: December 2013

Monday Morning Music Shuffle – Band of the Year and More Mix

You have before you, the FINAL Ear to the Ground of 2013, so let’s blow this thing out!

First order of business:  As promised, it is time to unveil our 2013 Band of the Year. As announced, for the first time in E2TG history, the Band of the Year will be selected by me, myself, and I.  Back in 2011, I came up with the idea of a Band of the Year, and frankly, I didn’t want the pressure/guilt in picking one band over others. So, I created a Readers’ Poll, and with a massive last minute push, UK band The Mobbs stormed to a narrow victory over underdogs Ubiquity Machine.

Following the success of that initial poll, I began running Band of the Month polls beginning with December 2011, although initially successful, the concept of pitting bands against each other began to stale.  We carried on, and at the end of last year, we had another successfully Band of the Year Readers’ Poll wherein Skeletons in the Piano were selected by popular election.

Since that time, I decided to focus on featuring as much new music as I could, and I dropped the Band of the Month and related features. Although I briefly considered another year-end poll, I came to the conclusion that I wasn’t willing to give that power away this time…. oh yeah, and the thing about bands working together for their common good….

So…. after all that background and unsolicited explanation, I am very excited to announce the 2013 Ear to the Ground Band of the Year.

The 2013 Band of the Year were selected for the following reasons:

1. They are among the coolest, most bad ass people I’ve had the good fortune to get to know as the result of writing this blog.

2. They are extremely generous and supportive of other bands and artists.

3. They released on of the best albums of 2013.

4. I got to meet them and see them blaze through an all too brief set back in early Spring.

5. They had a successful tour in the US and in Europe.

6. The followed up their amazing 2013 album with a brand new single which was accompanied by an incredible video that visually depicted their total bad-assery.

7.  Because I said so……

The 2013 E2TG Band of the Year is…..  THE END MEN from Brooklyn, New York!!!!!!

 






Congrats kids!  Here’s to an even better 2014!


Okay, we have unfinished business as we continue to feature some of our favorite music of 2013… let’s do it!



I’ll forgo a whole bunch of commentary, but I will see this extended shuffle does show off the variety of music you hear here at Ear to the Ground:


“We Got Soul” by Christian Robins (prod. Jazz Logic)
“Dropped the Pop” by Killing Kuddles
“Four Flame Candle” by Sturgill Simpson
“The Truth” by Dr. Dog
“You Can Have the Crown” by Sturgill Simpson
“Rock and Roll is Dead” by Killing Kuddles
“Black Eyes and White Lies” by Don Ryan and the Blank Canvas Movement
“From this Valley” by The Civil Wars
“Flying Over Water” by Jason Isbell
“Lost Innocent World” by Gogol Bordello
“Cleaning Your Mind” by The End Men
“Dromedary” by Dog Without Warning
“Long Way to the Ground” by The End Men
“From Afar” by Vance Joy
“Hell’s Kitchen” by The Westies
“Lollygagging” by Less Love
“Stack Chips” by The End Men
“Baby Loves It” by Penicillin Baby
“Your Dreams Will Always Follow” by prattle on, rick
“Permanent/Impermanent_1213” by Peck
“Ratking” by The End Men
“Winged Victory” by Lys Guillorn
“I Had Me a Girl” by The Civil Wars
“Clark Gable” (Postal Service Cover) by Mr. Kind + holychild
“The Lost Art of Idle/Entitled” by Peck
“Cool Kids” by Christian Robins (feat. Lord of the Fly) (prod. 5Star)
“Mercy” by prattle on, rick

NOTES:

Americana told Sturgill Simpson he was too Country for Americana.  His reply, I made a country album.

Peck is Chris Peck who we first met as part of the Brooklyn-based The Disappointment. He is releasing his new album one song at a time, at we have two of those songs in today’s shuffle.

Confession: I didn’t think I liked Dr. Dog. I lumped them in with a bunch of “Jam” bands that just weren’t my cup of tea (actually tea isn’t my cup of tea either, but that is another story). Anyway, so I got the chance to actually listen to some of Dr. Dog’s new music this year, and believe it or not, I dug it.  Go figure.

Penicillin Baby are part of the growing and impressive Jeffery Drag Records family and like the other Jeffery Drag artists they offer a nice counter argument to any one who says all Nashville indie bands sound alike. 

I don’t know if The Civil Wars are finished. I hope they aren’t, but if their 2013 self-titled album is the swan song, it’s a hell of a swan song.

In addition to their new EP, Mr. Kind released a series of cover songs wherein they teamed up with other indie artists to cover indie rock classics.  Here they team up with fellow California band holychild to cover The Postal Service classic.

SHOP
 
WATCH

 



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Monday Morning Music Shuffle – A Few of My Favorite Things 2013 Mix – Part Five

Stupid winter bugs…. well, I was out sick Friday – so no shuffle.  But, today’s shuffle includes music I would have featured on that day – plus a few more.   I’m actually going to be away for the rest of the week.  Ear to the Ground will return Monday December 30 to present the 3rd Annual Band of the Year award (for the first time not based upon a poll).

Let’s get to the music…



“I Guess That’s True” by Calicocat
“Lincoln” by EdTang
“Hey Grace, Hey Tony” by Grace and Tony
“May the Road Rise to Meet Your Face” by James Crawford
“Afraid to Die” by Monks of Mellonwah
“Screwdriver” by Prince
“Arrival in a Distant Land” by The Gabriel Construct
“Patience” by Mr. Kind
“Halo Day (4 ‘Drew)” by Tim Lee 3
“Bill, I Believe This is Killing Me” by EdTang
“Davey Jones” by The Blind Owl Band
“I’d Rather be High” by David Bowie
“Lonesome Street” by The Blind Owl Band
“Knocking on Heavens Door” by You and Me
“Divine Restlessness” by Marla Mase
“On the Watch (Parts V- XII)” by The Gypsy West
“Tennessee” by The Coal Men
“New Jerusalem” by Valued Customer
“Saint” by Mission South

NOTES:

Sadly, Nashville’s Calicocat called it quits this year, but first, they dropped their brilliant Mighty Superfluous.

Look for Grace and Tony to continue to light things up in 2014. Their debut album November dropped in… well November. 

Reuniting with old classmates on social media can be a hit or miss endeavor. From acrimonious political rankling to endless game requests, there can definitely be a downside.  On the other hand, there are people I didn’t know too well in school who I’ve gotten to know and like through the web.  And then there is James Crawford who just happened to make one of my favorite albums of the year.

Prince and David Bowie released excellent new music in 2013. Go figure.

The Gypsy West kicked off 2013 with the release of the final part of their Accomplices trilogy. We loved it.

Valued Customer.

I saw Mission South at the Basement when I went out to see my friends Miss Shevaughn and Yuma Wray. They are from D.C. and pretty freakin’ awesome.

SHOP
WATCH
(all of our 2013 favorites)
 
 


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Thursday Morning Music Shuffle – A Few of My Favorite Things 2013 Mix Part Four

And on we go… 

Just in case you  joined us late, we are looking back on some of our favorite music from 2013, and doing it as only Ear to the Ground would…  I created a Playlist with favorites released in 2013.  2013 was a great year for music.  Many of your favorite E2TG artists released new music this year, some new favorites were “discovered”, and there was even some notable releases from artists you frequently read about on those “Brand X” music blogs.  All of those and maybe even more are included in the Playlist.  We’ve been shuffling through that playlist all week, and we will continue until the end of the year (and maybe a day or two more).

Let’s get to it, and see what Mr. Shuffle has brought up today… shall we?

“Open the Door” (Magnapop cover) by Tim Lee 3

“Play With Your Toys Pt. II” by The End Men

“Ankle Biters” by The Great American Novel

“Save Me a Seat” by Killing Kuddles

“Rain On” by The Blind Owl Band

“Silver” by Lys Guillorn

“Stockholm” by Jason Isbell

“Dance the Tango” by Marla Mase

“KidGrownUp” by Christian Robins (feat. JD) (Prod. G Money)

“Ain’t No Grave” by Black Jake and the Carnies

“Just Two Old Friends” by EdTang

“Rhythm Doctor” by Mark Robinson (from Have Axe – Will Groove)

“Any Day Now” by Tim Lee 3 (from Devil’s Rope)

“Loose Kites in Harbor” by Skeletons in the Piano (from Please Don’t Die)

“Crow Till We Croak” by EdTang (from Goodbye, Zen5, Sushi Dinner)

“Maliced Hearts” by Mr. Kind (from Mr. Kind)

Some notes:

I claim 2013 as a victory because I got to know Tim and Susan of Tim Lee 3. Whether you are interested in Bassett Hound Rescue, BBQ, or just some awesome tunes, they are your source. When I heard their 2013 album Devil’s Rope, I honestly didn’t know much about them – other than that they were from Knoxville, Tennessee and participated in CXCW. Devil’s Rope seemed like this near perfect distillation of  all the music I love tied up in a unique and original sound. Turns out, the heart of the band has direct links to many of the people who I grew up listening to in my smaller market eastern middle Tennessee youth.  I had the great chance to meet them in October and see them play an all-to rare Nashville show.

The album Play With Your Toys  by The End Men of Brooklyn contains two instrumentals which true to the titles demonstrates the great things that can happen when talented people play.

His name is Elwood and he performs under the moniker Killing Kuddles. If that alone doesn’t get your attention, then give a listen to his music. “”He brings a grungy, punk spirit to a folk troubadours’ heart (or maybe it’s the other way around).”  Some genius music blogger said that.  He released Odd Man Out this year, and it was one of my favorites of 2013 – which is why it’s represented here. Duh!

The Blind Owl Band play contemporary music on traditional instruments, and the result is well… nothing short of greatness. In my dream E2TG Festival, these guys will play back to back to back sets with The Imperial Rooster and Black Jake and the Carnies.

Lys Guillorn came to our attention via The Grimm Generation for which she often plays.  This year, she released her first solo album in a decade.  The wait was worth it. Winged Victory is flawless music that twangs and twists in all the right places. It’s pretty much unlike anything we’ve heard, and I hope more and more people will check it out.

Ex-Drive-by-Truckers (which is now more of a trivia item than a necessary introduction) Jason Isbell just keeps making great albums that push the American/Folk/Alt-Country/Country labels forward. He doesn’t need any help from me, but hey, I love listening to his music, and in case you haven’t heard him….

I’m not sure what most people will think when a 40 something white guy from Tennessee tells them to listen to a 20 year old Hip-Hop/Rapper/Poet from the Midwest that he heard about from another 40 something white guy who grew up in the same Tennessee town.  I just hope they listen. By the way, neither of us are anywhere close to typical 40 something white guys from Tennessee. Also, Christian Robins is not any close to a typical Mid-West Hip-Hop artist.  He dropped his debut KidGrownUp this year.

EdTang is from Asbury Park, New Jersey. He dropped one of the most interestingly titled albums of the year, Goodbye, Zen 5, Sushi Dinner.  I don’t know what that means, but the album is filled with some of the best folk/Americanaish rock, I’ve heard. The songs are amazing.

So, can I confess something, I don’t really know much about the Blues. I’ve listened to a lot of the greats of the early to mid 20th Century, and several bands we regularly feature have a strong foundation in the Blues. I’ve heard a lot of Blues music that really didn’t do anything for me.  So, when I was asked to give a listen to Mark Robinson‘s new album, I was worried that it would be really good Blues music, but that I just wouldn’t get it. Boy, talk about unfounded fears.  I’ll leave it to the true Blues aficionados to explain why they love Mark Robinson (and judging my many, many awards and accolades they do love him), and I will just speak from the heart as a music fan. Oh my God this is incredible stuff. I mean, I could listen to him play guitar for hours, and being a non-musician that is saying something. Robinson is a prominent Nashville musician, and he recruits some amazing players for his second solo album. The only thing I’m left wondering is how did I miss out on this guy until 2013?

Besides their team-up cover EP, Mr. Kind also dropped an EP of original songs in 2013 which are notable for pushing the band’s sound forward and for the heretofore (at least from my perspective) clean-up Brian Bergeron singing about heavy drinking and even dropping an f-bomb as he does on the EP opening song which we feature today.  Well played, Mr. Bergeron, well played.

SHOP 

http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=4201000188/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/
http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=5244004/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/
http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=998121910/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/

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WATCH*
*A Video playlist featuring many of our 2013 favorites plus a few related videos. The second day, I moved the newer songs to the top, but then I got lazy so the newer songs are at the end of the list
 

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Wednesday Morning Music Shuffle – A Few of My Favorite Things 2013 Mix – Part Three

We continue our 2013 Year in Review via shuffle with another great mix of music.  Today, I thought I would focus on the various ways that new music comes to my attention.  Why? Because inquiring minds want to know even if they do not know that they want to know.

Shuffle ho!

Today 3 of the artists featured came to me from a particular music promoter who has a great track record in terms of the music he sends my way.

6 artists came to me directly or indirectly from the awesome Popatunes.  Of those, at least 1 was from a Popatunes compilation, at least 2 were from Couch by Couchwest, 2 were found via artists who were directly recommended by Popa, and 1 was a direct recommendation from the man himself.

2 artists approached me directly at some point.

1 was long ago a Twitter follow.

and I met one at an unofficial Americana Fest event this past September.

Can you match the artist to the categories above?

“Scream” by Marla Mase

“Sinners, You Better Get Ready” by Black Jake and the Carnies

“Chili” by Dog Without Warning

“Pine Box Hell” by The Imperial Rooster

“Driving Toward the Sun” by Susan James

“Better Than” by The Coal Men

“Vices” by The Quick and the Dead

“Languishing in Lower Chakras” by The Gabriel Construct

“R U Thinking What I’m Thinking” by The Great American Novel

“Silence” by Beijing

“Long Pig” by Skeletons in the Piano (from Please Don’t Die)

“The Sun Will Set” by Beijing (from Night)

“Mental Trapeze” by The End Men (from Play With Your Toys)

“Exit Me” by The Imperial Rooster (from Cluckaphony)

“Out of Time” (Blur cover) by Mr. Kind and Tektite (from Mr. Kind and…*)

*the title of the Mr. Kind album actually has the ampersand, but that symbol messes with the formatting on Blogger so…)

Notes:

Marla Mase is freaking awesome.  Her album Speak was released in 2012, but a Deluxe version was reissued in 2013 making eligible for inclusion in this Shuffle. Plus it’s my shuffle so whatever I say is eligible is eligible. (I’ll try not to let that power go to my head) (Oh who am I kidding… it’s gone)

Reason number 724 why I love using the “shuffle” function: Black Jake and the Carnies, “Chili” by Dog Without Warning, and The Imperial Rooster back to back to back. 

Susan James had X drummer D.J. Bonebrake emcee the album release party for her previous album. This gives here a million cool points in my book.  Driving Toward the Sun is a great album of amazing California-style mellow folk – think Joni Mitchell and Kate Wolf if it’s helpful to have a reference point.

The Coal Men: It’s still inconceivable to me that it took 4 albums for me to catch hold of this band.  Thanks to the blogger Too Much Country for the introduction.

The Quick and the Dead is the new band from ex- Cosmonauts – Joe Mansman.  I was pleasantly surprised and heartened by the sound of this band.

The Gabriel Construct is a project I was so happy to have the opportunity to feature. It is a complex, progressive, and evocative interior journey. At times sparse, at times discordant it is an amazing musical achievement. It is music unlike most you are likely to hear (on this blog or anywhere else).

I’ve written quite a bit recently about 😦  the latest album from The Great American Novel. The album was recorded at Mama Coco’s Funky Kitchen – a definite hot bed of amazing music.  Side note: for some reason Amazon was okay with 😦 as an album title, but seemed to not like The Danbury Lies title ‘?’.

Representing Connecticut in today’s mix is a great hard rock band called beijing  whose strong and consistent album Night is one of my faves from the year.

Skeletons in the Piano were the 2012 Ear to the Ground Band of the Year.  They sealed the deal with their truly amazing Please Don’t Die album which was released by Magnetic Eye Records. Recommended for fans of awesome music.   They are from Saratoga Springs, New York. I’m just a guy from Nashville so I don’t know much about Saratoga Springs except there must be a ton of great musicians there and at least half of them are in SITP. Seriously, how many people are in this band? 🙂

The End Men. Boom!  Brownies on the house!

Mr. Kind is the newish band from Brian Bergeron.  This year they teamed up with other indie artists to record a series of covers of classic indie tracks.  Here they team with Extraterrestrial Hip-Hop artist Tektite to cover a song made famous by 90s British band Blur.

 
SHOP

http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2288291027/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/
http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2203717135/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/
http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=998121910/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/
http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=4145160940/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/

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WATCH
 
 

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Tuesday Morning Music Shuffle – A Few of Favorite Things 2013 Mix – Part Two

First of all… Tuesday? Really? Just Tuesday?

Second… how about a couple of my favorite Christmas songs…

http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/CjaPXihbORk&source=uds
http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/RXCEdrnaFlY&source=uds
 
 
 
Third… Rest in Peace to Mr. Ray Price. In seeing some of the news reports, I was most struck at how his voice held up into his late 70s/early 80s. So smooth…  Thanks for the music.
 
http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Pn4kmPTul44&source=uds
 
 
 
Now… to today’s music…

 
Our journey back through some favorites from the year that will soon enough be ending…  Shuffle style…
 
 
“It’s All Wrong” by The End Men
 
“I Should Have Listened” and “Today is Gonna Be a Better Day” by You and Me
 
“Stuck” by The Coal Men
 
“Double Brahma” by Valued Customer
 
“The Flame” by prattle on, rick
 
“Bloodhound” by Jeanette Lynne
 
“Muskegon Harbor” by Taco Land
 
“Sailing Stones” by Monks of Mellonwah
 
“Daddy Fool (Svelt Mix)” by Tipi Valley (from Rock ‘n Roll Lives On)
 
“Love Doesn’t Mind” by Taco Land (from Pancakes and Pizza)
 
“Two Weeks on the Ocean” by James the Giant (from James the Giant)
 
“Broken Heartland” by The Coal Men (from Escalator)
 
“Onward” by The Danbury Lie (from ?)
 
“Modern Lives” by Taco Land (from Pancakes and Pizza)
 
“The Hoover Farm Exorcism” by The Imperial Rooster (from Cluckaphony)
 
 
Highlights:
 
The End Men – of course.
 
 
You and Me (glad to receive some music this year from one of the bands we’ve been following for a long time.  Also glad to have two songs in a row from that album in today’s shuffle)
 
I feel like I was late to the party with The Coal Men. If, like me, you are just now discovering this great Nashville band, Escalator is a great place to start.
 
Before 2013, I knew I liked Valued Customer, but I wasn’t completely sure why.  This year with the release of their truly mind-blowing/expanding Kalpa, I have become convinced that this wacky kids from Toronto are nothing short of musical geniuses…maybe just geniuses.
 
prattle on, rick is another Nashville-based “discovery” from 2013. Looks like I caught on just in-time for his fan-only release A Decade Begins and the album from which this track is taken, his extraordinary Some Quiet Majesty.
 
Likely, Taco Land and Tipi Valley have very little in common.  One is from south Texas and the other from coastal Wales. They have both been featured prominently on this blog for some time. And they both had impressive releases in 2013. In listening today, I heard something (subtle) to connect these two great artists/bands.  Always good to have long time blog friends/supporters in the shuffle.


 


Monks of Mellonwah are releasing their debut album as a series of EPs.  The first two parts – Ghost Stories and Afraid to Die were released in 2013.  The final part will be released in 2014.  Some awesome hard rock from down under.

James the Giant released one of the most beautiful/painfully touching records of the year.  The song featured today is dedicated to his brother who was killed in Afghanistan.

The Danbury Lie and The Imperial Rooster have just about nothing in common except that they both released incredible music in 2013 that I have thoroughly enjoyed hearing and sharing.  There will be much more on both of these bands forthcoming.

SHOP


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Monday Morning Music Shuffle – A Few of My Favorite Things 2013 Mix – Pt. One

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It’s here… time to begin our look back at the year which was 2013.  In true E2TG style, for the remainder of 2013 we will shuffling up a special playlist which includes some of our favorite songs from the past year.  I’ll let the song speak for themselves, but we will be highlighting some of our favorite E2TG related albums of the year as we move along.

About Band of the Year.  After two successful Band of the Year polls (by page view numbers, Band of the Year and Band of the Month polls dominate our statistics page for most viewed), so it is only after careful consideration that I’ve decided to forgo the Band of the Year poll for 2013.  Basically, it comes down to the fact that I would rather see independent bands cooperating and collaborating than competing.  We had some memorably good fun with some of our polls – especially the first annual Band of the Year poll and the legendary February 2012 Band of the Month poll that came down to a dogfight between MAKAR and The End Men.  As time went by, and I began featuring more and more bands, the idea no longer seemed to be in the spirit of this site.  

I will be naming the third annual Band of the Year within the next couple of weeks.  Meanwhile, enjoy yourself as we relive this year that almost was.  If you feel so inclined, share some of these posts with your friends near and far.


Before we jump into the first of our Favorites’ shuffles for 2013, I need to rectify something….


#E2TG Hall of Fame (Notable Omissions):

More names will be added to the Hall of Fame in early 2014 – and my progress on the completion of the Hall of Fame page has hit some unexpected delays, but I’ve became increasingly uncomfortable knowing that two of my favorite E2TG artists have not been added to the Hall as of yet. 

1.  Ubiquity Machine/Howard Rabach  – In using the tagging feature to determine our Hall of Fame, one thing I failed to take into account were the many fine bands/artists you came to prominence in the months when E2TG was still housed on the now defunct Posterous site.  Howard Rabach was one of the first readers of the blog to step out of the shadows.  His band, Ubiquity Machine, was one of our early Bands of the Week. The band finished second in our first annual Band of the Year poll, and he has remained a good friend of Ear to the Ground ever since.  UM has been kind of dormant of late, as Howard has been doing some freelance stuff.  Check out his Facebook page here. So it is with great pleasure, that I usher in UM/HR to a spot of honor in our Hall of Fame.




2. The Grimm Generation – Another thing I failed to take into account in my tagging system of Hall of Fame eligibility is the variant tagging which sometimes occurs. Blogger places a 200 character limit on tagging so sometimes I have to shorten band names – like leaving the “The” off.  That is the only explanation I have for The Grimm Generation not being in our top 20 tagged artists. Still this unique and frankly awesome collective from Connecticut (headed up by the amazing Jason Krug and Carmen Champagne), are well deserving of a prime spot in our Hall of Fame.  Hell their latest album, The Big Fame even has “fame” in the title. They have consistently made music which I love and which seems timeless in its wonderfulness.




Now… let the 2013 Shuffles begin


“When I Cry” by Jeanette Lynne (from You’ve Got Me)


“Infatuation” by Dog Without Warning (from Bark)


“Temporary Thought Exchange (AKT A Cappella) by Its Teeth (from Divided)


“Goodbye Summer” by Jonny Fritz (from Dad Country)


“Spittin’ Lies” by Nikki Sue and the Bad News (from Nothing Gold)


Highlights:  Of note, in our first shuffle of the year end playlist, we have a couple of talented female artists from the Northeast who came my way directly or indirectly via the visionary music guru Popatunes.  Jeanette Lynne is from Philly and Nikki Sue is from New Jersey.  They both write great songs that fall into the Americana/Countryish/Folk-like genres (if you are into genres).  The important thing is that make great music and they both had releases which were among my favorites for 2013. 

Dog Without Warning hail from the greater bay area of California.  They came to my attention via CXCW and I featured some music off their indie flavored concept? album Go Girl.  The follow up was released as an EP earlier this year, and it was a revelation. Bark uses acoustic arrangements which serve to highlight the songwriting skills and humor of this band.  Bark quickly moved into my favorites category and has stayed there as the year has progressed.

We recently featured the Its Teeth track which features Gabriel from The Gabriel Construct as well as the Jonny Fritz track from the fantastic Dad Country album.

SHOP

 
 


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Friday Morning Music Shuffle – Ex-Eye-Aye-I Mix

Happy Friday the 13th to all you triskaidekaphiles out there.

Monday starts our march to 2014 by highlighting some of our favorite music of 2013. Culminating in the Third Annual Band of the Year unveiling ceremony blog post.  Who will join The Mobbs and Skeletons in the Piano in this super exclusive category?  You better tune in to find out.  It’s all soooo exciting!

Anyway to close out a great year of Shuffles, we have another shuffle with some songs and stuff…

#E2TGWorthy… it started as a simple blog post, but everything got turned upside down. What happened next will change the way you look at simple blog posts for at least a couple of minutes…

EXTRAS:  “Light Years” by The Quick and the Dead    “When the Dawn Becomes The Day” by Humming House    “Made to be Blue” by Adam Hill   “A Song About Making Out in Cars” by Joseph Mooradian (either an earlier version of a song we featured a couple of weeks ago or an earlier song about the same thing.)   “Happy With Me” by holychild   “Under The Big Black Sun” by X   “Heaven Underfoot” by Damfino (another great track off of the fourth Mama Coco’s Funky Kitchen comp)    “One Reporters Opinion” by Minutemen    “Skulldiggin'” by Black Joe Lewis    “Carry Me Home” by Carolina Story   “Going Down to Liverpool” by The Bangles    “The Hawk” (Kris Kristofferson cover) by Tom Verlaine  

Transition Track of the Day:
“Ginger Ale” by Adam Hill (from Little Time.)

http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2983219457/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/

SHUFFLE:

“Shit from Old Notebook” by Minutemen (from Double Nickels on the Dime. “Let the products sell themselves”)

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“Cover Me Up” by Jason Isbell (from Southeastern.  Southeastern has deservedly ended up on many year end “best of” lists.  Who knows, you may even here some tracks from the album during our 2013 wrap up…)

“Ziggy Stardust” by David Bowie (from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.  “but boy could he play guitar…”)

“Like Shaking Hands” by Less Love and Wondernaut (from Paradigms in the Design.  Formal thank you to Gina Sigillito for introducing to this great music from Oklahoma City.)

http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3618790823/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/



WATCH


 

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Thursday Morning Music Shuffle – Freaks Mix

Busy, busy… A few things before we jump into the shuffle…

First, a reminder that next week we begin our very #E2TG approach to The Best of 2013.  Stay tuned for that.

A couple of live videos hit our inbox this week and wanted to share…  The Mad Doctors are from Brooklyn and they kick some major butt.  Check out this performance from 11/30/2013.

 

This next video is from our Nashville friends Year of October.  We are looking forward to a new album (fingers crossed) for 2014.  Meanwhile, this past weekend, they did a mini-tour which included a stop in Louisville which is where this next video was filmed.  Check it out!

 



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On to today’s mixture of mixed musical melodies….

EXTRA BITS:  “The Remainder” by Andrew Ferris    “Freaks” by The Hawk in Paris   “Jealousy” by Chamberlin  (note: read the band’s Facebook Page Biography)    “Sunday Morning” by The Velvet Underground (and Nico)     “Hold Tight” by Fats Waller   “Cold Chicago” by Humming House   “Refuse to Hide” by Jenny Leigh   “Viet Nam” by Minutemen   “R*A*M*O*N*E*S” by Motorhead   “Sweet Head” by David Bowie  “The Wheels of Love” by Terminal Gods 

Our twofer Thursday Tracks (okay I made that up and I know twofer should be on  Tuesday but whatever):

“Nothing Indeed” and “Take 5, D.” by the Minutemen (from Double Nickels on the Dime.)

SHUFFLE:

“Sex” by The 1975 (from The 1975.  A band and album that made some year end lists.  I like what I’ve heard so far.)

“Cold Blooded” by American Babies (from Knives and Teeth.  A Philadelphia band.  Another band that I’m just getting acquainted with, and I like what I hear)

“Fox” by Cloud Gavin (from Posture.  This song has become a world-wide sensation and it’s dance inspiring video  has become an internet hit.  This is a really cool Rock song by a band from Illinois.  No silly dances were inspired by this song.)

“Whatevering” by The Great American Novel (from 😦  . A stand-out track and a great introduction to the musical and humorous style of this New York band.)

“Fallen” by The Westies (from West Side Stories.  This album is rapidly becoming a favorite of mine.  Just pure honest songwriting, well played and sung.  Really… that’s all it takes.)

 
 
 
WATCH
 


“Nothing Indeed”

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Wednesday Morning Music Shuffle – A Mix Among Mixes Mix

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It’s mid-week.  Nashville is still digging out from our massive 1/2 snowfall yesterday morning (which by the way was mostly melted by noon yesterday)  (note for non-Nashville readers: Nashville really freaks out over winter weather).  Anyway, it was a frosty morning, and we have a great mix of songs to warm your hearts and minds and… I don’t really know what I’m saying at this point, but I’m trying to use words that sound like they belong in the introduction to a blog post. Whew!

It’s that time of year… everyone is releasing they best of 2013 lists.  Here at #E2TG, we will kick off our Best of 2013 posts Monday morning.  Of course, we will be doing it in a manner befitting Ear to the Ground… stay tuned.   By the way, for the first time since this blog began, we will not be having a Band of the Year Readers Poll.  More on the reasoning behind this later.  However, we will be unveiling our 3rd Annual Band of the Year in a special post later this month.  Tune in!

To today’s music…

EXTRA EXTRA:

“Hold On” by Sad Robot    “Too Weak to Ramble”  by Dr. Dog    “Badman”  by Cory Branan    “Prequel Lullaby” (Home Demo) by Black Doctor Jr.    “From This Valley” by The Civil Wars    “Bad Things” by Rayland Baxter    “Strangers” by Elephant Stone   “This Time” by Jenny Leigh   “I Fall in Love Every Summer” by Adam Hill   “Champagne Halloween” by St. Paul and the Broken Bone

IN-BETWEEN TRACK OF THE DAY:  (I don’t know what to call this so I keep changing the name)

“Humming to a Sea Snail” by Swear and Shake (from Maple Ridge.  Dig this band, and what a great song title.)

CLASSIC #E2TG SHUFFLE:

“We are One in the Spirit” by Annie Sellick (from Let’s Make a Christmas Memory.)

“Dear Pressure” by Miracles of Modern Science (from MEEMS. Indie/Chamber Pop band that formed at Princeton University in 2005.  Yes, my random shuffle function has a rather twisted sense of humor –  putting a spiritual/religious song alongside a song by a band called Miracles of Modern Science. Did I mention, I love my phone’s twisted random shuffle function?)

“The Wheel” by Katey Laurel  (from From Here. I’ve grown rather fund of the music by this Colorado based singer-songwriter)

“From Afar” (acoustic) and “Snaggletooth” (acoustic) by Vance Joy (both from his recent Noisetrade releaser “Riptide” and more.  Both songs are on his latest album God Loves You When You are Dancing. Pop Folk from Melbourne)

 
 
WATCH
 
 


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Tuesday Morning Music Shuffle – My Body is a Dumb Question Mix

A whopping 25 songs to get to, and not much time…  Jump to it

EXTRA:   “Wish You Were Beer” by The Great American Novel    “My Body’s a Question” by Telepathic Teddy Bear     “I Love You” by Said the Whale    “Fuego” by Shake Jack    “Part One: The End” by Dylan Leblanc    “My Body is Dumb” by The Great American Novel   “San Francisco” by Foxygen   “Amped Up”  by Robert Randolph  and the Family Band   “Fine Tooth Comb” by Lys Guillorn   “Jacks Soup of the Day” by Darrin Bradbury    “Maliced Hearts” by Mr. Kind   

Transition Song of the Day
“Walk of Life” by Bhi Bhiman (Dire Straits cover)  (from Substitute Preacher.  This song was the inspiration for this whole covers album.  Side note unrelated to this cover: The Dire Straits’ video for this song – with  the sports clips almost ruined this song for me.  End of side note…)

“The Old Black Hole” by Dr. Dog (from their Eastside Manor Session. A song from their 2012 album Be the Void.)

“Cock of the Walk” by Stoney (from More Than Animals.)

“Hopscotch (and Tumbling)”  and “Whispers” by No Shoes (both from Cow Drawings EP. From a bandcamp recommendation by Black Doctor Jr.)

“The Fixer” by Mark Robinson (from Quit Your Job – Play Guitar.)

“Devastate” by Amanda Shires (from Down Feel the Doves.  One of the best albums of 2013 by one of Nashville’s finest.)

“Light On (Mage the Blackheart Remix)” by Bad Cop (from Jeffery Drag Records – Summer Sampler 2013.)

“October” by prattle on, rick (from A Decade Begins.)

“The Place I Love” by The Jam (from All Mod Cons.)

“Lady Day” by Lou Reed  (from 1974-05-14 Stockholm.  Sweet Lou…)

“Don’t Be The Last One In” by Mr. Kind (from Mr. Kind.  Brian Bergeron – one of our earliest featured artists – his new project Mr. Kind has been around a year or so – maybe more – and this is their new EP.  We had another song from this EP in the Bonus Tracks section earlier.)

“The Globe” by Ben Sollee (from Inclusions)

“Little Bird” by Andrew Ferris (from Yellow Lorry.)

“Fire Ants” by Darrin Bradbury (from NEW!!!!The Almost Great Crepe’s (Demos).  Seems like we’ve had one or two Darrin Bradbury songs every day lately.  Do you hear me complaining?  We have the newest song from Darrin in the video playlist)

I didn’t have time to update the Amazon powered web store.  I will update hopefully when I have time to update it.  Meantime – enjoy the videos…

WATCH
 
 


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