humpday track

the gorgeous lykki li

if you know of swedish singer lykke li then you probably remember her awesome debut, youth novels, from 2008. in the past few years she's gathered a big following and now she's back with a brand new album, wounded rhymes, released yesterday.

this week's humpday track is "i follow rivers," which is my favorite from the album so far. it's got lykke's smooth vocals, a tribal beat, and a chorus that pulls you in.

for more lykke li, check out "dance, dance, dance" and "i'm good, i'm gone" from her last album.

LYKKE LI, "I FOLLOW RIVERS": (song starts at about :30)

enjoy.

sunday quickie

yeasayer

so, yeasayer's got a new music video for their awesome song "i remember" from their album Odd Blood. 

get this: it's a bizarre combination of an old dude with a confederate bandana riding his motorcycle through the desert plus crazy, glittery pink smoke with a strange, porn-like ending. there's also a clay head sculpture mixed in. 

and even if you hate it, it's a great song! 
watch the craziness. 

YEASAYER, "I REMEMBER":

humpday track

Chazwick Bundick aka toro y moi

everyone loves toro y moi! released monday, his latest album is called underneath the pine. "still sound" is my favorite track so far, and its fun electro-dance beat (and killer music video) will have you dancing towards friday. take a listen and go here to find out all the latest on toro y moi's latest album.

TORO Y MOI - "STILL SOUND":

enjoy!

coverage.

i love the way that a good cover of a song can infuse it with all new life. sometimes they don't work out too well, but if they're good, they're REALLY good. 

here are some of my absolute favorite covers by indie artists:

1. local natives - simon & garfunkel's "cecilia":

2. the watson twins - the cure's "just like heaven":

4. jose gonzales - joy division's "love will tear us apart":

3. bat for lashes - kings of leon's "use somebody":

4. she & him - ricky nelson's "fools rush in":

5. fanfarlo - neutral milk hotel's "aeroplane over the sea":

enjoy! what are your favorite covers?

humpday track

alex winston

alex winston is a classically-trained opera singer from detroit. her first release, Sister Wife, was released last week...and i'm unabashedly obsessed with this girl! so, this week's humpday track is the title track from alex's EP. all the songs on the 6-track EP are fresh, happy pop, but "sister wife" is my absolute favorite. once you get to the first chorus, i promise you won't be able to stop listening. so, make it to the weekend on this one! 

xo.

ALEX WINSTON, "SISTER WIFE":

love for the grammys

shockingly, the grammys were pretty enjoyable last night! normally filled with performances that elicit a resounding "eh" from viewers, the musicians definitely impressed this time around and the indie world had some big wins. here are the big ones:

1. arcade fire won ALBUM OF THE YEAR!

arcade fire and their well-deserved grammy

talk about a serious accomplishment to get this kind of mainstream recognition. the canadian band's album the suburbs topped just about every "best of" list for 2010, but who knew that the grammys would pay attention?

2. mumford & sons were nominated, didn't win, but put on an AMAZING performance.

mumford & sons

nominated for Best New Artist and Best Rock Song for "little lion man," (they were robbed!), mumford & sons performed and demonstrated the fact that they SHOULD have won! check out the gorgeous foursome's epic performance below: 

3. the black keys' album Brothers won Best Alternative Album (!!!), and their bluesy-pop tune "tighten up" won Best Performance By A Duo/Group.

the black keys

lots of love for the indie world at the Grammys this year, hopefully next year will bring more of the same.

xo.

born this way

lady gaga

so, as of today, our reigning princess lady gaga's newest single "born this way," has been released to the world. i have yet to read any reviews of it, but (and this will probably be considered blasphemy) i'm just not feeling it! maybe it'll grow on me, but i've listened to it several times now and all i can think is mid-80's-remixed madonna. 

what do you think?

UPDATE: perhaps i should eat my words? as of this afternoon, "born this way" broke iTunes history to become iTunes' fastest-selling single ever (in 5 hours) and is currently #1 in 21 countries! wow.