David Bowie On David Bowie: “I’m Still Enamoured Of This Song And Would Give You Two ‘Modern Loves’ For It Any Time.”

We’ve spoken about that recent electro-tinged Bowie covers album Life Beyond Mars. Well, the man himself one-upped the comp with a free CD that appeared with the Sunday Daily Mail. Bowie selected his favorite Bowie. As he put it in the accompanying liner notes:
For this CD compilation I’ve selected 12 of my songs that I don’t seem to tire of. Few of them are well known, but many of them are still sung at my concerts. Usually by me. I’ll start off with the hit.
Any ideas?

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Dark Meat Break Ear Drums, Get Shut Down

To celebrate the unveiling of their new fall collection of music-inspired watches and accessories, Vestal Vestal Headquarters in Costa Mesa, CA hosted a parking lot bohemian bacchanalia on June 27 featuring Athens, GA 17-piece Dark Meat. Flanked by a giant digital clock counting up, the fete had the feeling of a reverse New Year’s Eve. Revelers lined up in front of big balloons floating in the night sky marked “beer,” “vodka,” and “absinthe” acting as roadmaps to particular poisons (the latter served by nurses with tongue-depressors used as cocktail stirrers).
Long before the band took the stage, its members had infiltrated the mingling masses with face paint and beads, and, by 10 P.M., the tent filled with the piercing sounds of their horn section, as they launched into “Well Fuck You Then,” from their debut, Universal Indians. Noticing that some intrepid attendees covered their ears, Jim McHugh asked at song’s end, [...]

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Jean Grae

What? After toiling in obscurity for nearly a decade, indie hip-hop B-girl Jean Grae is ready for her close-up with Jeanius, her long-delayed fourth full-length and fifth release overall, set to drop next week via Talib Kweli’s Blacksmith Records. With the help of beat wizard 9th Wonder on production duties, Grae creates her most accessible release to date; the MC’s unstoppable flow and packed cadences are combined with Wonder’s heavenly soul soundscapes, as on the stuttering, Wu-Tang-esque “#8″ and the ghostly “Love Thirst.”

More on SPIN.com:
>> Review: Jean Grae,
This Week (Orchestral/Babygrande)

Who? Born Tsidi Ibrahim in Cape Town, South Africa and raised in New York City, Grae began her hip-hop career in the little-known collective Natural Resource under the stage name What? What? After Natural Resource split in 1998, the rapper adopted her current moniker and released her solo debut, Attack of the Attacking Things, in 2002. Since signing with [...]

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Sunday Spin: Blondie [JamBase]

OUR WEEKLY SPOTLIGHT ON GREAT ALBUMSBREAKS YOUR HEART OF GLASS

Every tough, charismatic woman to front a band of boys since 1974 owes a little something to Deborah Harry and her band Blondie, one of the shining lights of what became known as New Wave. A video age group long before the cameras were rolling for most, they were capable of unadulterated weirdness like “Kung Fu Girls” and swooning updates of ’60s Phil Spector girl group moves like “(I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence Dear.” Blondie was equal measures punk and purring sex kitten (yes, that includes the nattily dressed boys), growling and scratching in a way that made one simultaneously excited and a little wary. Pretty, weird, volatile, rough in the right places, bad in a way that you don’t wanna be right and completely committed in every aspect, Blondie babbled with amphetamine confidence and by [...]

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Jay-Z Covers “Wonderwall” At Glastonbury

Last night Jay-Z kicked off his Glastonbury headline set with what we hope will be the final word in this ongoing Oasis feud. A few months back, Noel Gallagher claimed it was “wrong” to feature hip-hop at the fest. Jay-Z responded by defending the legitimacy of his art form. The Sun pointed out that Oasis are UK festival royalty and Jay-Z is a former New York drug dealer. Wha?
Pre-show, Jay spoke to Radio 1, saying, “If Noel Gallagher saw me perform … he wouldn’t say that.”
Then, the moment of truth. Jay strapped on a guitar and mockingly sang (sort of) and strummed (not really) along to Oasis’s biggest hit.

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Titus Andronicus @ East River Amphitheater 6/28 (video) [Pop Tarts Suck Toasted]

Two from in the rain with Titus Andronicus!!!
Titus Andronicus @ East River Amphitheater (2) - Pop Tarts Suck Toasted
Titus Andronicus @ East River Amphitheater - Pop Tarts Suck Toasted

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Around The Twin Cities (06/28/2008) [Culture Bully]

Hexagon Bar: 9:00
Strut and Shock - MySpace Site
France Has The Bomb - MySpace Site
The Chambermaids “Park” (mp3)
The Chambermaids - Official Site
The Chambermaids - MySpace Site
The Chambermaids - Minnewiki Site
Black Audience - MySpace Site

Triple Rock Social Club: 9:00, $7, 21+
Kid Dakota “10,000 Lakes” (mp3)
Kid Dakota - Official Site
Kid Dakota - Wikipedia Site
Kid Dakota - MySpace Site
Aviette - Official Site
Aviette - MySpace Site
The Alarmists - Official Site
The Alarmists - MySpace Site
The Glad Version - Official Site
The Glad Version - MySpace Site

Lee’s Liquor Lounge: 9:00, $6, 21+
E.L.No - MySpace Site

331 Club: 9:00, FREE
The Evening Rig - MySpace Site
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New No Age Video - “Eraser”

Last time we wrote about No Age, John Norris was interviewing them about the lo-fi scene. So not all that surprising the LA duo were invited to MTV to chat with Pete Wentz and debut the Andy Bruntel-directed clip for “Eraser.” It features lots of slo-mo running, balloons, and those colorful t-shirts everyone loves. FNMTV guest panelist Kid Sister gave it a thumbs up! Watch this way…

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Calvin Johnson Spins in Seattle

He’s a revered college-rock icon as a musician, producer, DJ and label head. His deadpan monotone voice and blues-mired guitar elicits a nostalgic assault upon the listener. He’s unleashed the lo-fi in Beat Happening, brought the funk in Dub Narcotic Sound System and spun softly swirling melodies in the Halo Benders.

So it should come as no surprise that Calvin Johnson took his Selector Dub Narcotic project out for a spin last night — DJ style – for Club Pop at Chop Suey. Is there anything this guy can’t do?

Despite a few rough transitions between songs and a somewhat unforgiving all-ages crowd that wasn’t entirely into his vibe, Calvin confidently, and blissfully, held his own. He seemed pretty impervious to any crowd ambivalence, and just kept spinning and dancing away.

And for the most part, it was indeed a pleasure last night to see the creator at work. On a dance [...]

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Earlimart

What? Since the lo-fi eclecticism of 2003’s breakthrough effort Everyone Down Here, Los Angeles-based outfit Earlimart have developed a gloriously depressing sound that has become more polished with each successive release. And Hymn and Her, their latest full-length set to drop July 1, continues in the same vein: “For the Birds” features Motown-esque drumbeats and dreamy cooing, while “God Loves You the Best” is the closest lead singer Aaron Espinoza has come to sounding like the late Elliott Smith yet.
Who? Earlimart is comprised of core members and multi-instrumentalists Aaron Espinoza and Ariana Murray, who recruit musically-inclined pals to contribute to their records and play on tour. Since the project’s inception in 1999, Earlimart have received critical acclaim, notably with 2007’s Mentor Tormentor, as well as many comparisons to Elliott Smith and Sparklehorse, largely due to Espinoza’s hushed, aching singing voice. Hymn and Her will be the band’s second release [...]

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