The Listening Room Vol. II review featured on The Richmond Scene

Last month's Listening Room show with Luke Saunders, Jack Meet The Giant and Zac Hryciak and the Jungle Beat was, once again, amazing. Even the massive amounts of snow falling didn't stop people from going.

The guys over at The Richmond Scene asked me to do a write up on the show. It's posted here for your viewing pleasure:

"Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow--the Listening Room is ON for tonight. Come on over and enjoy a cozy evening of lovely music and hot cider."

As the first snow of winter fell, people started piling into the Michaux House for December’s Listening Room. The cozy, intimate atmosphere was inviting with talented musicians, hot cider and even fresh homemade gingerbread cookies.

Read more on The Richmond Scene...

Tim Be Told announce tour and free song

Pop rock group Tim Be Told are embarking on a audacious national tour and are hitting everywhere they can.

Tour dates:
Jan 12 2010 White Rock Coffee Dallas, Texas
Jan 14 2010 Kick Butt Coffee Austin, Texas
Jan 15 2010 Fort Bend Community Church Missouri City, Texas
Jan 16 2010 Houston Chinese Church Houston, Texas
Jan 17 2010 Fort Bend Community Church Missouri City, Texas
Jan 18 2010 Private Show Los Angeles, California
Jan 19 2010 The Living Room Los Angeles, California
Jan 20 2010 University of California Irvine Irvine, California
Jan 22 2010 Hollow Body @ TRiP Santa Monica, California
Jan 23 2010 Stanford University Palo Alto, California
Jan 24 2010 South Bay Sa Rang Community Church Torrance, California
Jan 28 2010 Livingwater Church Berkeley, California
Jan 31 2010 Bay Area Chinese Bible Church San Leandro, California
Feb 3 2010 Oregon State University Corvallis, Oregon
Feb 4 2010 Skagit Valley College Oak Harbor, Washington
Feb 5 2010 Ethnic Cultural Theatre w/New Heights Seattle, Washington
Feb 6 2010 Evangelical Chinese Church Seattle, Washington
Feb 9 2010 University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Colorado Springs, Colorado
Feb 10 2010 Chinese Evangelical Church of Denver Denver, Colorado
Feb 12 2010 The Chapel w/Fundamental Elements St. Louis, Missouri
Feb 15 2010 Elbo Room w/Lucrezio Chicago, Illinois
Feb 17 2010 The Canopy Club w/ guests Urbana, Illinois
Feb 18 2010 Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio
Feb 20 2010 Ishan Gala Benefit Concert Charlottesville, Virginia

Download the band's song "Analyze" here:

Meet Conshafter

Paper The Operator: Best music of 2010 (so far)

It's January 1 and I already have a new artist I enjoy listening to.

North Carolina indie-pop group Paper The Operator released Goodbye God today and it's full of the jangly pop goodness I've grown to love.

From their bio:

This concept drives the album which quickly powers through twelve immediately gratifying songs that don't give up their secrets till a few listens in. In “Days Of Thunder”, a sing-along synth-pop melody all but covers a lyrical mess of divorce and car wrecks. “The Pendulum” with its throbbing bass and heavy beat, the quiet acoustic-and-piano “It's A Miracle”, and the buzzing lo-fi of “Buddy Baby II” not only explore a creative theme of veiled meaning, but prove Sebastian's dedication to the craft of song-writing.

Listen to "The Pendulum"

[DOWNLOAD]

Happy New Year (Goodbye 2009)

And 2009 comes to a close. Another notch in the calendar and a time to look back and reminisce on the year and look forward to what's coming next.

This year started off on the highest note ever. I was on top of the world and I knew that 2009 would be my year. Two days later, I got a harsh dropkick from reality and over the course of the year, slowly worked my way back up.

What followed included making new friends, falling for someone, losing friends, making friends with musicians, realizing that love makes you do stupid things, realizing that I should not change myself to fit in with people who don't care about me, too many drunken nights to remember, finding someone who means the world to you and a lot more in between.

But I do believe all those things, whether I liked them or not, made me stronger and forced me to grow up.

But one of the best things about the end of the year is looking back on all the music that your life memorable.

I’d like to thank the following artists for making this year a solid one for me:

The Raveonettes, At The Stars, Plushgun, (Pretty) Girls and Lasers, Jonathan Vassar and the Speckled Bird, Passenger, Jay Brannan, mae, Conshafter, Louisiana Territory, Greg Laswell, Against Grace, The Low Branches, Searider Falcon, Elevation, The Undeserving, Pretty Lights, Englishman, the group behind Video Games Live, Vibelicious, Prabir and the Substitutes, Death Cab For Cutie, Colton Ford, Jer Coons, Super700, the Little Heroes, Owl City, Party Ben, fun, Pete Yorn, Safetysuit, Gret Northern, The Richmond Scene and all the others I can’t remember but have made me and my ears happy.

Let's see what 2010 brings.

Best EPs of 2009

Let's not forget the EPs of the year too. Some of these packed just as much punch as their full-length counterparts.

DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE - THE OPEN DOOR
There are some things in life that will always be contstant. One of those being the fact that I will love anything Death Cab For Cutie releases. This EP released earlier this year reminded me why I like them in the first place and I can forgive them for having a song on the New Moon soundtrack. "Little Bribes" was by far my favorite track.

PRABIR AND THE SUBSTITUTES - HELLO
As of a few weeks ago, Prabir and the Substitutes are no more. It's very sad because this was a band that could actually make it. Prabir is an incredible talented musician and I'm sure we haven't seen the last of him. "Hello" was a nice cap to end a group's work.
Listen to "Who's Going To Love You?"

[DOWNLOAD]

GREG LASWELL - COVERS
I'm a sucker for Greg Laswell and his latest EP, a covers album simply titled "Covers" gives me more of what I want. His choices of artists to cover (Kristen Hersh, Echo and the Bunnymen) are interesting but he puts his own spin on things to create a nice little EP. Too bad "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" is not on here.

AT THE STARS - OXYGEN & RUST
I was eagerly waiting for what seemed like forever for this EP. The band kept facing delays in production, pushing the release back further and further. As soon as I heard the opening notes on "Needed," I knew I would be hooked.
Listen to "Oxygen & Rust"

[DOWNLOAD]

MAE - (M)ORNING, (A)FTERNOON, (E)VENING EPs
Mae actually released three EPs this year (the 3rd one is nearly complete) named after the times of the day, which the tone of each being different. The band also recorded and released a new song every month for the past year with proceeds going to charity. This kept them in my line of sight the entire year as I waited to see what the guys would have in store for the following month.

JONATHAN VASSAR AND THE SPECKLED BIRD - THE FIRE NEXT TIME
I couldn't mention 2009 in music without mentioning Jonathan Vassar. He and the Speckled Bird's latest release "The Fire Next Time" is a bit darker tone than his previous work but one that I welcome.
Listen to "Hole in the Ground"

[DOWNLOAD]

Best Albums of 2009 part 2

And the counting down continues...

5. FUN. - AIM AND IGNITE
The new project from ex-Format singer Nate Ruess and members of Steel Train and Anthallo mix indie pop flavor of The Format with folk sound and take it to a summer carnival sideshow event with lights and animals, you get what fun. is all about.

4. THE RAVEONETTES - IN AND OUT OF CONTROL
I heard the first note of this album and I was hooked. The Danish duo has the most amazing two-part harmonies and I love the sheer amount of noise they make. The melodies coupled with dark lyrics leave me wanting to hear more.

3. THE UNDESERVING
Techincally speaking, The Undeserving haven't released their album yet. Why is it on the 2009 list then? I heard these guys live back in January and I found myself loving every note they played. I can't mention 2009 in music without mentioning them. Most of their songs are up on their Myspace page and hopefully they will have a physical release very soon.

2. PETE YORN AND SCARLETT JOHANSSON - BREAK UP
Honestly, I always hated Scarlett Johansson's voice. I found it grating and annoying. I was also disappointed with Yorn's solo release this year too. But thankfully, both of these problems were solved with their collaboration album "Break Up," which is nothing less than amazing. The two of them together sound beautiful.

1. PASSENGER - WIDE EYES BLIND LOVE
I didn't think Passenger could top last year's "Wicked Man's Rest." But with the release of "Wide Eyes Blind Love," they come pretty close. Their sophomore release is a simplistic, all acoustic album full of songs about love, regret, hope and suffering. The album has been on repeat for the past two months and I'm still not sick on it.