CATEGORY: MP3

Music! Get it while it’s hot!
[mp3] The Eames Era - When You Were a Millionaire

Every female-fronted pop band reminds me of Rilo Kiley so naturally The Eames Era remind me of Rilo Kiley. This track is off their latest record Heroes + Sheroes. I have no idea what that title means but I guess you can google it if you’re that interested.

[mp3] Iron & Wine - The Boy with the Coin

Sam Beam a.k.a. Iron & Wine has a name that reminds me of Samuel L. Jackson and Jim Beam. Probably because his first name is Sam and his last name is Beam. Probably. Did you know he used to be a film teacher? Well, you should because it’s mentioned in every feature, review, and interview that has ever been written about him. He used to teach film and now he plays folk music and has a giant beard.

[mp3] Kinski - Punching Goodbye Out Front

I don’t do drugs nor am I starring in a movie that involves a high speed boat chase so this song doesn’t really affect me in any way.

[mp3] Lavender Diamond - You Broke MyHeart

Yeah I know this song is months old. Doesn’t mean you got to give me attitude. You don’t know me. Stop judging me by the freshness of my mp3 blog. I do things in timely fashion in real life, like laundry and buying groceries. I wish I had the time or brown nosing staff needed to scour the entire internet looking for exclusive, unreleased mp3s to make me look cool in your eyes but I don’t, so here is a late Lavender Diamond mp3. She reminds me of Jenny Lewis from Rilo Kiley because Rilo Kiley is my only point of reference when it comes to female singers.

CATEGORY: Editor's Pick - Music Reviews

Before he became known as the less familiar half of the Postal Service, electronic songwriter Jimmy Tamborello was arranging his bleeps and clicks under the name Dntel.

His first album, 2001’s Life is Full of Possibilities, featured Tamborello’s electronic glitch-pop layered underneath several guest vocals from artists such as Mia Doi Todd, Strictly Ballroom guitarist Chris Gunst, and the more familiar half of the Postal Service, Ben Gibbard. This collaborative element added an interesting variety to his textured landscapes and is featured once again on his latest album, Dumb Luck.

Almost six years in the making, Dumb Luck is filled to the top with indie rock’s brightest young stars: Rilo Kiley’s Jenny Lewis, Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst, Grizzly Bear’s Edward Drost. Even Mia Doi Todd returns for another go round. Add to that appearances from Fog’s Andrew Broder, Lali Puna’s Valerie Trebeljahr and Markus Acher, Arthur & You’s Grant Olsen and Sonya Westcott, and Mystic Chords of Memory’s Christopher and Jennifer Gunst, and you have a record that works simultaneously as an electronic pop album, a killer who’s who compilation, and a reminder that before ‘Such Great Heights’ Jimmy Tamborello was very much alive and making some great music.

The immediate stand out tracks are Jenny Lewis’ ‘Roll On’ and Conor Oberst’s ‘Breakfast in Bed’, however this may vary according to the listener’s familiarity with each vocalist. In the end Dumb Luck’s strong suit lies in its ability to draw all the different vocals into one cohesive whole. The bleeps and glitches float beautifully behind Jenny Lewis’ country drawl, Conor Oberst’s wavering and fragile storytelling, and Edward Drost’s airy voice.

The marraige between Tamborello and his friends works so well you may start confusing your favorite vocalist as ‘the singer for Dntel’.

MP3
Dntel - Dumb Luck