Radiohead :: “Tell Me Why” (neil young cover) from gorilla vs. bear on Vimeo.

It’s interesting that Radiohead (or at least Greenwood and Yorke) should perform Neil Young’s ‘Tell Me Why?’ at the Hollywood Bowl. This generations musical mavericks pay homage to one of rock’s elder statesmen who was himself a serious musical maverick. He recorded the album ‘Trans‘ to escape his record deal with Geffen, turning in to the company an album they deemed “unfit” to release. His latest album ‘Living With War’ is considered a critique on the Bush administration and the war in Iraq. It includes the song ‘Let’s Impeach The President’ just in case there was any doubt… check out Neil’s Wiki, it’s a fascinating overview of a fascinating career of someone who was never afraid to speak his mind or bend the rules, long may he reign.

Radiohead - Tell Me Why (Neil Young Cover)

Video found on Gorilla Vs Bear.

Seattle’s The Saturday Knights are adding yet another twist to the “get our album for free” idea. This isn’t one of those “pay what you like” deals, no they are just giving away the entire album….Read the message from their press crew- Howdy Ladies and Gentlemen! Wanted to get a hold of you and let you know about a little, er, promotion thing we’re doing: we are giving away, for absolutely nothing, the new album by The Saturday Knights’ - Mingle. Yup, not a cent to be paid, just plop in your email (honestly it doesn’t even have to be a real email as we’re not doing anything with them) and you’ll be able to download the entire album. All we want to know is what people, the world, are thinking about it - good or bad. I’m attaching the ad we placed in The Fader this month to better explain the whole “take our record for free” concept. Also, here’s the single “Dog Park” if you haven’t had a chance to check it out yet. So, grab the album for free here.

The Saturday Knights - Dog Park

Loxsly - Lamprey Eels from Garrett Johnston on Vimeo.

Related Post: Free MP3s From The Promo Pile - Loxsly

Jon Wilde has some hilarious insights into why artists fail to talk about their shitty albums until it’s time to release a new one. His best example is Joss Stone talking about her album -

She waited until the release of her third album before conceding that its predecessor, Mind Body & Soul, had been “half-assed”. But she was wrong about that. Her offending second album didn’t have any kind of ass at all.

In the age of the web and digital youth it would be refreshing if artists understood that there is no escape. If your fans think that your album is half-assed as Stone says then they will let everyone and their grandmother know. Labels and artists must put their heads together and ask themselves the deep and philosophical question - “Does this album change the game or are we just followers?” 90% of the new albums that hit the Moose desk or email inbox are from bands who are simply rehashing old and tired genres and no amount of free MP3s will help. In fact you might argue that free MP3s would actually harm sales once people hear how dull some of the music is.

There is so much great music currently available in the world today so hold off on releasing that CD unless it is truly amazing. And if you must release it then be sure to have your publicist include lines like this in your press release - [real quotes follow] “We recorded in a warehouse in a run-down industrial part of town. It sat right against the train tracks and you could feel the trains in the floor as they passed” Wow! “We cut Fault that night and I think you can hear it in the energy of that track, everyone was working really hard to find the right place, getting to know each other musically through recording was really special.” Special!

WHITE DENIM - Shake Shake Shake from ACIDBIRD on Vimeo.

Related Post: White Denim Mess Your Hair Up [MP3]

New Music Hour from 94.7 and a locals-only HD channel

I was chatting with 94.7FM Program Director, Mark Hamilton, the other day about FM radio and how it used to be the place for everyone to discover new music. It’s no exaggeration to say that today music fans have many ways to hear the latest and greatest and not necessarily via radio. The internet and satellite radio are just two new mediums that have carved out slices of the traditional radio listening audience, and Hamilton is one of many station PD’s who have learned that in recent polls the numbers of young people who say they listen to terrestrial radio stations to discover new music has dropped to about 50%.

Hamilton is passionate about music and radio and it’s not in his nature to sit back and watch things slide. He recently had the station begin broadcasting in HD, a radio technology that enables AM and FM radio stations to broadcast their programs digitally. 94/7 Too is KNRK’s digital HD channel that plays music from Northwest bands only which is a pretty bold move and given how many indie bands there are in the NW there should be plenty of choice for any indie music lover.

And now, as of Monday this week, Hamilton has set aside a whole hour each evening that is hosted by 94.7 DJ, Squid, and has given him the freedom to play any new music that comes across his desk or drops in his email box. It’s simply called The New Music Hour. A quick look at one evening’s playlist shows tracks from Santogold, M83, Tokyo Police Club, MGMT, Shiny Toy Guns, Ulrich Schnauss, Ra Ra Riot and Brazilian Girls to name a few which is not a bad start.

Big Mike Sullivan proving that the Genie is out of the bottle…

Ok, more promo MP3s for your listening and downloading pleasure. The Moose is transitioning servers but things seem to have gone smoothly. The reason for the transition is that our traffic has grown exponentially thanks to you our readers and listeners. The one piece of the puzzle that we have to put back up is the MP3 Top Ten Box that has been removed for an update. It will return ASAP with more functionality and ease of use. Thanks for listening.

Enjoy the promos below and as always, if you’re loving any of these tracks run on over to iTunes or Amazon’s download area and buy some more.

The Shondes - Don’t Look Down
Thao - Bag Of Hammers
Audrye Sessions - Turn me Off
Department Of Eagles - No One Does It Like You
The Shaky Hands - We Are Young
Stars Like Fleas - I Was Only Dancing
Jeff Hanson - If Only I Knew
Corey Chisel - Home In The Woods

In a mashup culture all manner of digital and graphic goodies get mashed. Mashup artists run along a tightrope that is pinned at one end by copyright law and the other by fair use doctrines. There is no safety net not even under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act [DMCA]. If a copyright holder feels her work has been infringed then out go the takedown letters followed by legal action if the perp doesn’t roll over and submit. See the news about Muxtape being taken down by the RIAA.

Given the RIAA’s jackboot tactics it is heartening to hear that Jim Davis the creator of the popular comic strip Garfield did not automatically send out cease and desist letters to Dan Walsh who created a knock off of the strip called Garfield Minus Garfield. As Walsh has posted in his site’s header “Garfield Minus Garfield is a site dedicated to removing Garfield from the Garfield comic strips in order to reveal the existential angst of a certain young Mr. Jon Arbuckle. It is a journey deep into the mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness and depression in a quiet American suburb.”

So what did Jim Davis of Garfield fame do? Not only did he embrace the spirit of Garfield Minus Garfield but he reached out to Dan Walsh and together they have signed a book deal.

Epic. RIAA, record labels and artists please wise up.