Category: John the Conqueror

Wednesday Morning Music Shuffle – Regression: As a Path to Progress Mix

I haven’t counted in a while, but I believe there are over 50 bands/artists that we have featured here at Ear to the Ground.  This includes spin-off bands, solo projects etc. As we mentioned the other day, once we feature a band or artist here, we consider them family and try our dead-level best to keep up with their progress and new projects.  So far in 2013, the projects seem to be coming faster than our ability to keep up with them, but we’re trying… This week, we received an invite to the release party for the new (and long anticipated) solo CD by The Alternates front-man Spencer Livingston. Now we get word that preorders for Christopher Paul Stelling’s new album are underway. Not only that, but none other than Spin.com has the first single up…

Listen, I pick the songs which go into my MP3 player (duh), and so I get the credit and/or the blame for the Shuffles that some up (even if it is the Shuffle Monster than actually selects the order and timing of the songs).  All I can say, is today we have a damn good selection of songs – new music from old friends, a rock and roll classic and other cool tunes to help brighten your mid-week.  

As always, the You Tube playlist embedded at the bottom of the post includes the songs from the Pre-Shuffle and Shuffle (if possible) or at least a close representation from the same artist.

Pre-shuffle:   Another track from the Self-titled John the Conqueror album – brought to our attention by The End Men (there I said it – again).  We also have another great song from Ben de la Cour.  We have a track from Nashville band Kopecky Family Band’s 2010 album The Disaster. Special Note to the person who keeps donating KFB albums to Goodwill: 1. You obviously are either dying or lack good sense and 2. Please keep it up.  Our good friend, the audaciously talented Elwood Kuddles (aka Killing Kuddles) just released a new EP called Odd Man Out.  We have our first taste in a track called Save Me a Seat.  Finally, we close out the Pre-Shuffle with one of the two older songs released by The Danbury Lie just ahead of their new album ‘?’ – Rhode Island Summer is a great song that sounds nothing like the other music we’ve heard from this band.

On with the Shuffle – click on to read

  

  • “Buried in Leather” by Tex Railer’s Doomtown from The Battle of Bunker Hillbilly (2011)/The Appetizer (Build4BBQ sampler) (2013)

We continue to dig deeper into The Appetizer, the new Sampler from the Build4BBQ collective.  This time, we have the Albany-based Outlaw-Billy band with a track originally released on their 2011 album.

  • “Cruisin'” by Booker T and the MGs from That’s the Way it Should Be (1994)

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     A Grammy winning rock instrumental from last studio album from the Memphis Rhythm and Blues legends.

  • “Polka De Nalgas” by The Imperial Rooster from Cluckaphony (2013)
http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/v=2/album=2203717135/size=venti/bgcol=FFFFFF/linkcol=4285BB/

New Mexico-based The Imperial Rooster are pretty insane, and they are insanely talented, too.  The band just dropped their new album Cluckaphony and it’s pretty intensely great.  Check it out above.  Polka De Nalgas is our first taste of the album.  If you’re too lazy to translate the title, let’s just say, Baby Got Back….

  • “Summertime” by Langhorne Slim and The Law from Summertime EP (Noisetrade – 2013)

Langhorne Slim and the Law just dropped a five song EP on the Noisetrade site (widget above).  The EP features three songs from the band’s awesome album The Way We Move, an acoustic version of another song and the title track which appears for the firs time.  The video included in the playlist features Langhorne Slim and the Law with The Lumineers doing one of my favorite Violent Femme songs.  Side note: The Law features drummer Malachi DeLorenzo who is the son of Femme’s drummer Victor DeLorenzo who was a student of the uncle of my pal, Rex Silo.  So there.

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Friday Morning Music Shuffle – Beggars Caterer Mix

 Hey ho!  It’s Friday, and the sun is shining here in Nashville.  Due to time constraints, I usually only post the 3-5 songs which I shuffle during my walk from the parking lot to the office. I usually also shuffle up some songs on my drive in. Even though I don’t have time to do a full post on these “extra” songs, I’ve decided to include those songs in today’s YouTube playlist which is posted at the bottom of the post.  As always, I try to find the exact song on YouTube and when I can’t I try to find an interesting or relevant video by the same artist.  

Today’s pre-shuffle shuffle includes music from:  Lambchop, Al Jolson, Chad VanGaalen, Owen Pallet, and Radiohead (covering Tim Buckley).

The Shuffle Shuffle is after the JUMP:

  • “AnnaRexia – Bill Laswell Dubmix” by Marla Mase from Speak Deluxe (2013) 

This is the second Marla Mase appearance in a Morning Shuffle.  This time, we have one of the extra tracks from the Deluxe edition of Mase’s album Speak.  AnnaRexia has a pretty awesome reggae sound, and this Dubmix by the legendary Bill Laswell is amazing.  If you don’t know the name Bill Laswell, you would do well to educate yourself.  He has been involved in about every crucial musical movement since the 70s. He is a bassist and producer extraordinaire.  Unfortunately, we could not find a video for either version of AnnaRexia, but we have another track from Speak Deluxe in the Video playlist.

  •  “Come Home With Me” by John the Conqueror from John the Conqueror (2012)

It was our friend’s The End Men who turned us on to Philadelphia-based John the Conqueror. The band name comes from an African prince sold into slavery.  The band plays some well-grounded “dirty” blues music. The video included in the playlist is a live version of a JtheC song from the same album.

  • “Second Hand News” by Fleetwood Mac from Rumours (1977)

I decided to use part of an Amazon gift card I received to pick up some classic music that had never made it’s way into my digital collection.  When Rumours came up at a sizable discount (that sale is now over), I jumped on it.  I don’t think it is overstating to say that this is one of the best albums of it’s time.  It’s funny (not ha-ha funny but interesting) that once I dug into this album I realized a “knew” almost all of these songs. It’s fair to say that 70s soft rock is not my favorite type of music, but it’s hard to dispute that Fleetwood Mac were very good at what they do.
  • “Nothing to Say” by Hayden Coleman featuring The Skeleton at the Feast from a Bandcamp download (2013)

http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/v=2/track=4290271453/size=venti/bgcol=FFFFFF/linkcol=4285BB/

I love being able to spread the word about the music my friends are making. It’s another great thing about writing a music blog.  It’s like gravy when your friend is really, really good at what he does.  I really dig this song by Nashville underground hip-hop poets H.C. and his friend Levi.  Check out and download the song above.  Unfortunately, I could not find a video of this song, so I included a live performance by The Skeleton at the Feast and a spoken word performance by Hayden Coleman.

Peace out – yo! (I know, I know it sounds stupid when I say it).

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Thursday Morning Music Shuffle – 18 Years Too Late Mix

The subtitle of this post references a comment made by my friend Rex Silo regarding the fact that the reconstituted Black Flag is headlining a music festival in our hometown.  By the way, Ear to the Ground favorites Black Jake and the Carnies as well as newly discovered FOTEM (friends of  The End Men) John the Conqueror are also playing that festival.  More details on all that later.

I decided today to add all the songs from my morning listening that I could into the Amazon Widget.  Therefore, you will find music from George Gershwin, The Black Keys, + Shane MacGowan covering Townes Van Zandt.  In addition, the pre-walk portion of the morning music featured some early period Hayden Coleman with a chunky, cool beat called “Vans (Down by the River)” which you can check out here:

The official Shuffle is after the jump and after the widget:

  • “Pride (In the Name of Love)” by U2 from The Unforgettable Fire (1984)

Seen at the time as a radical departure, U2 worked with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois for the first time on The Unforgettable Fire. The song, a stirring tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. contains a historical inaccuracy – “Early Morning April 4, shot rings out in the Memphis sky…”. King was shot in the late afternoon of April 4.  Chalk it up as poetic license.

  • “For the Summer” by Ray Lamontagne and the Pariah Dogs from God Willin’ and The Creek Don’t Rise (2010)



“Rollin’ through these hills I’ve known I’d be comin’ Ain’t a man alive that likes to be alone?” The New England based singer-songwriter with a cool song from his most recent studio album.

  • “Neanderthal” by Willie Ames from Night Owl (2011)
 

More great music from the San Diego based singer-songwriter.  There more I listen, the more I love this album.  

  • “It’s a Drag” by Tommy Stinson from It’s a Drag/Spork My Ears single (2012)


 

“Just another poor bastard born under a bloodshot moon” – a track from Stinson’s 2011 One Man Mutiny. Stinson was in his early teens when he started playing with the bands that would become the legendary Replacements. Lately, he’s been hanging out with Axl Rose in the current incarnation of G’n’R.

Sometimes, just when I get to my morning destination, a song will start up but I won’t hear enough to include it in the Morning Shuffle (unless it’s a really cool song that will majorly impress you all).  Today, the next song in my random shuffle happened to be “Photo” a Studio Demo from the Expanded Edition of Pleased to Meet Me.  Go figure.

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