Best Indie 2008 – INDIE ROCK CAFE

Vampire Weekend’s Free 40 Minute Studio Session on KCRW

Posted on 03/19/200812/18/2019 by Max Hammer

Even before their ‘big time’ appearance on Saturday Night Live earlier this month, Vampire Weekend was one of the biggest new bands of 2008, if not the biggest new band of the year, at least as far as the ‘buzz factor’ goes.

Weeks leading up to the February release of their debut self-titled album on Beggar’s Banquet, VW had captured the attention of bloggers, music critics and ‘indie’ fans, mostly due to their performances last year in concert, at music festivals and their Feb. 1st U.S. network debut on the David Letterman Show.

Vampire Weekend – Boston
Vampire Weekend – Walcott
Vampire Weekend – A-Punk

(Watch and listen to Vampire Weekend play a 40-minute session clicking the video further down the page)

Many fans were disappointed by VW’s performance on SNL (the string section wasn’t synced with the band). Even the full-length clips of Vampire Weekend performing on SNL have been removed from YouTube; however, they have reappeared on Stereogum.

But, really, you can forget about the SNL show. Without question, it is the band’s 40-minute studio session on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic this past Valentine’s Day that shows Vampire Weekend at their best. Not only that, but everyone watch it. This is one of the best things about the Internet.

Die-hard fans all around the world who have been unable to see Vampire Weekend in concert should really enjoy this session. It may be the closest many come to see the band in concert, and in some cases, even better.

During the 40-minute studio performance, Vampire Weekend’s band members play almost every song from their debut album. The video and audio quality, and camera work, are superb (unlike most videos on YouTube) – no screaming, background noise or shakiness. See the set list below and some lyrics.

The first set of VW’s KCRW February 14, 2008 studio session features, in order played, Mansun Roof, Oxford Comma, A-Punk, Cape Cod Kawassa Kawassa and Boston. Following the first set, there is a brief and wonderfully conducted interview with the band.

During the second set the guys play Bryn, Campus, I Stand Corrected, The Kids Don’t Stand and M79.

View more Vampire Weekend lyrics at their official website.

Tokyo Police Club On Tour to Promote Second Album Due Out April 22 on Saddlecreek Records

Posted on 02/21/200812/18/2019 by Max Hammer

One of the notable indie label Saddlecreek Record’s (home to Bright Eyes, Two Gallants, The Faint) hottest artists right now is the Toronto band Tokyo Police Club.

The band’s 2006 debut album, A Lesson in Crime, was well received by music critics and indie rock bloggers. The album was so popular that it has nearly carried the band for the past 18 months while they have been touring and working on their sophomore release.

The new album, which the band’s official website has announced will be released on April 22, is called Elephant Shell. In Europe, it will the new TPC release will be available May 5th on Memphis Industries.

Here is the reported track listing for the new album:

01 Centennial
02 In A Cave
03 Graves
04 Juno
05 Tessellate
06 Sixties Remake
07 The Harrowing Adventures Of…
08 Nursery Academy
09 Your English Is Good
10 Listen To The Math
11 The Baskervilles

TCP concert and show listings (by date, location and venue) are listed below.

Tokyo Police Club Tour Dates

03-18 – Call The Office – London, ONT
03-19 – Birdy’s Bar and Grill – Indianapolis, IN
03-20 – Jackpot Saloon – Lawrence, KS
03-22 – Kilby Court – Salt Lake City, UT
03-24 – The Independent – San Francisco, CA
03-25 – The Glass House – Pomona, CA
03-26 – Troubadour – Hollywood, CA
03-27 – Troubadour – Hollywood, CA
03-28 – Soma – San Diego, CA
03-29 – The Clubhouse – Tempe, AZ
03-31 – Meridian Red Room – Houston, TX
04-01 – House of Blues – Dallas, TX
04-03 – Club Downunder – Tallahassee, FL
04-04 – Studio A – Miami, FL
04-05 – Backbooth – Orlando, FL
04-08 – Exit/In – Nashville, TN
04-09 – The Spot – Cleveland, OH
04-18 – Barrymore’s Music Hall – Ottawa, ON
04-19 – Cabaret du Musee Juste Pour Rire – Montreal, QC
04-20 – Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY
04-21 – Music Hall of Williamsburg – Brooklyn, NY
04-22 – Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY
04-24 – Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA
04-26 – Pearl Street Night Club – Northampton, MA
04-28 – First Unitarian Church – Philadelphia, PA
04-29 – Black Cat – Washington, DC
04-30 – Big Orbit’s Soundlab – Buffalo, NY
05-04 – Magic Stick – Detroit, MI
05-05 – Metro – Chicago, IL
05-06 – Varsity Theatre – Minneapolis, MN
05-08 – Garrick Theatre – Winnipeg, MB
05-09 – Louis’ Pub – Saskatoon, SK
05-10 – The Warehouse – Calgary, AB
05-11 – The Warehouse – Calgary, AB
05-12 – Starlite Room – Edmonton, AB
05-16 – Plaza Club – Vancouver, BC
05-17 – Sugar Nightclub – Victoria, BC
05-18 – Neumos – Seattle, WA
05-19 – Hawthorne Theatre – Portland, OR
05-22 – Bluebird Theatre – Denver, CO
05-23 – Slowdown – Omaha, NE

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Cat Power’s Newest Release "Jukebox", MP3s, Concert Dates and Videos

Posted on 02/11/200812/18/2019 by Kate Stevens

Have Cat Power fans been let down by the band’s newest release, Jukebox? Some have been, but the honest music critic has to appreciate the bold step, especially since, in my opinion, the final result is that it’s another step-up in the career of the mysterious Chan Marshall (aka Cat Power).

For starters, Jukebox, officially released on Jan. 28, 2008, is a bland title for such an inspiration work, but it makes sense in the end because the tracks represent a cross-section and blend of music genres from blues to jazz and soul to country.

The feel of the album is much more like a tour de musique of Americana than the hauntingly anguished sound that made Chan (pronounced “Shawn”) so beloved in the alternative and indie music community. Moreso, Jukebox demonstrates Chan’s maturation musically, lyrically and spiritually.

With a set of songs ready to go, Chan marshaled together some of the finest musicians in soul, blues, jazz and country music, coralling folks like Jim White, drummer for The Dirty Dozen, Matt Sweeney of Chavez, Judah Bauer of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, members of the Dirty Delta Blues Band, and others.

The biggest question of all may have been answered when Gregg Foreman, who played piano and organ on Jukebox with Chan, and is currently on tour with Cat Power, was asked by the Philadelphia City Paper to shed some light on the “grittiness” of the sound on Jukebox compared to their previous works.

Foreman acknowledged a shift in sound from the brilliant release MoonPix – an album filled with hearting-wrenching, melancholic songs of failed love – and put it this way:

Yeah, well, we’ve had a few complaints from fans that want to hear [more of the sound found on Moon Pix]…It’ll take time.”

As for Chan’s feelings about the “new” sound, Foreman said:

“She’s happy. There hasn’t been one show where she’s left the stage. She’s smiling. The “old sad Chan” is nowhere to be found. And this album’s the biggest-selling CD in Matador history. She’s blessed.”

Download, listen and upload to any MP3 player the following free and legal MP3s off of Jukebox, curiousity of the great Matador Records:

MP3: Cat Power – “Song to Bobby”
MP3: Cat Power – “Metal Heart”

– Cat Power’s official website (I think this is the official site)
– Matador Record’s Cat Power profile
– All Music Guide’s profile of Cat Power

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