The Untitled Playlist (Episode 3)

Some of my favorite and most played tracks over the past few weeks. Roll the windows down and drive slow with this one.

Episode 3

Being that I put the playlist together, these are all obvious favorites of mine, but I'm curious as to what some of your favorites are. Let me know!


Download 'em.

1.) B.o.B. - "Airplanes (pt. 2)" Feat. Eminem and Hayley Williams
2.) Sleigh Bells - "Tell 'Em"
3.) Happy Birthday - "Subliminal Message"
4.) oOoOO - "Hearts"
5.) Hula Hoop - "Ladies (Let's Go)"
6.) jj - "CEO Birthday"
7.) Eminem - "Despicable" (Freestyle)
8.) All The Damn Kids - "The Books Stop Here"
9.) Best Coast - "When I'm With You"
10.) B.o.B. - "Not Lost" Feat. T.I.
11.) The Joy Formidable - "Whirring" (BRAHMS Remix)

NEW: Eminem - "Not Afraid"

After hearing that ridiculous freestyle the other day, I was psyched to learn that the first track off his upcoming album was unleashed on the world today. We're definitely getting back to the Eminem of old. He even goes so far as to diss his own album Relapse. I can feel the nostalgia.

Eminem - "Not Afraid"



Download it.

Loosies

Wanted to throw out some loose ends that I didn't have room for on the upcoming playlist. Trying to keep the playlists limited to original songs from here on out, but these songs definitely deserve their own post.

covers / remixes

Download 'em.

1.) Two Door Cinema Club - "Poker Face" (Lady Gaga Cover)
2.) The Antlers - "VCR" (The xx Cover)
3.) Lil Wayne x Passion Pit - "Ambien (Sleepy Trip)"

VIDEO: Gauntlet Hair - "I Was Thinking..."

Watched this yesterday and forgot to post it up. Some kid, let's call him Tits McGee, put together a pretty creative unofficial fan video for "I Was Thinking...". Gauntlet Hair's 7" that includes this song, will be out shortly on Forest Family Records. My advice is to get it soon, because I was one of the people who waited to long to buy the Cults 7" from Forest Family and was disappointed when it sold out in days.





Grab the mp3 version from the playlist.

NEW: Eminem - "Despicable" Freestyle

This is one of the best Eminem freestyles I've heard in years. I'm actually getting really excited to hear the new album. Something I haven't been able to say for a few albums now. If Lebron really WANTED a scoring title, he would go out and get it. If Eminem really WANTED everyone hanging on his every word, he would make you.

Eminem - "Despicable" Freestyle




Download it.

VIDEO: M.I.A. "Born Free"

The last time I attempted to watch a 9 minute music video, I made it about 49 seconds into Lady Gaga and Beyonce trying to sell me a telephone. This one's a tad more sophisticated. A true work of art.

Music Journalist Delivers Anti-Music Blog Rant

Christopher Weingarten is a freelance music writer for Spin, Rolling Stone, and many other popular publications. He recently delivered a 10 minute speech that hit on the lack of authenticity in the blog/indie rock world. He attacks Hype Machine, Pitchfork, low-level blogs, the list goes on. I agree with everything he said in his speech, but I'll just choose to write about it on my low-level blog and hope for some Google hits instead of try to do anything to fix the situation.

Watch the rant here.

MP3: B.o.B. - "Not Lost" (Feat. T.I.)

I'm trying to limit the amount of B.o.B. posts I make, as it seems like everyday I turn on my computer there's another song off his upcoming album that hit the web. I decided to put this one up because it DIDN'T make the album due to clearance issues with the Coldplay sample from "Lost". It's actually a really good song and it's too bad it wasn't cleared.

B.o.B. - "Not Lost" (Feat. T.I.)

VIDEO: MGMT play SNL

Kind of upset that I bought MGMT tickets before the new album came out. Probably still would have bought them anyway, but now I'm just 87% less excited. The band stopped by SNL to play "Flash Delirium" and "Brian Eno".

Two-A-Days: All The Damn Kids and Hula Hoop

U.K. five-piece All The Damn Kids offered up their debut single "The Books Stop Here" FO' FREE download recently and it's impossible not to enjoy after the first listen. Some of the best female harmonies I've heard in a really long time and the instrumentation is spot on. This looks like a really exciting young band that is definitely going to keep me interested for a while.

All The Damn Kids - "The Books Stop Here"


Download it.


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Hula Hoop repeat the words "I wanna get ya movin'" in their song "Ladies (Let's Go). And that's exactly what they do. File this song in your iTunes playlist titled "Pool Party" or "Summertime" because that's all you think of listening to this gem. A simple, effortless, catchy pop tune that will have you running to the closest drug store for a fresh pair of neon faux wayfarers. Look for this tune on their upcoming album due out this summer.

Hula Hoop - "Ladies (Let's Go)



Download it and get jiggy.

VIDEO: Chiddy Bang - "Truth"

A standout track from the recently released Air Swell Mixtape, the Passion Pit sampled song "Truth" gets the video treatment.

NEW: M.I.A. - "Born Free"

All winter long we heard about M.I.A.'s new album being worked on. In January, we heard a song that might be one the album, but it wasn't anything different than the old M.I.A. But now we've got an inspired punk rock anthem that sounds completely fresh from what we've heard from her in the past. Look for this song on the still untitled album, due out June 29. And because I'd rather not get sued, or booted off the net, this one's a stream only.

VIDEO: The xx - "Islands"

The dissolution of a relationship by way of conceptual movements. In what seems to be an incredibly repetitive video at first glance, "Islands" replays a short snippet of choreography, each time changing just so slightly on each new take.

Spin Vs. Rolling Stone: Dueling Pointless Lists

Saw this post over at Music Snobbery and just had to share.

Spin Vs. Rolling Stone: Dueling Pointless Lists

VIDEO: Axis of Awesome - "Four Chord Song"

In case you were ever wondering how to become famous. Just write a recycled pop song using four chord progression.




Saw it at YANP

NEW: jj- "CEO Birthday"

Sincerely Yours offered up a new song by jj today for free download. "CEO Birthday" is another solid studio effort by the Swedish duo, taking Jeremih's song "Birthday Sex", stripping it down to it's basic melody, and making it completely their own.

jj- "CEO Birthday"




How can jj continue to put out such great studio work, but be so dreadful live?

VIDEO: DOM - "Living In America"

This song will undoubtedly make it on my top songs list at the end of this year. DOM created a video for their ridiculously danceable song "Living In America". I'll probably just have this video projected on the side of my apartment building playing at full blast all July 4th long. Watch the video below and grab the song from my last playlist post.

The As-Of-Now Untitled Playlist Brought To You By The Whipping Post (Episode 2)

Seriously, if anyone thinks they have a name for this playlist HELP ME OUT! For the record, this is one hell of a playlist. Maybe my favorite thus far.

Episode 2

THE DOWNLOADS
1.) DOM - "Living in America"
2.) Gayngs - "The Gaudy Side of Town"
3.) B.o.B. - "Nothin' on You" (remix feat. Big Boi)
4.) Weekends - "Raingirls"
5.) Gauntlet Hair - "I Was Thinking"
6.) Chiddy Bang - "Stylo" Remix
7.) GROUP - "Colours"
8.) The xx - "You've Got the Love" (Florence and the Machine Cover)
9.) B.o.B. Feat. Hayley Williams - "airplanes" removed due to impending threats.
10.) Hot Chip - "She Wolf" (Shakira Cover)

Stream Coachella NOW!

Facebook and 5 Gum have joined forces to give all those who couldn't make it to this year's festival the chance to watch the entire 3 day event right from your computer. I know I'm late, being Saturday night, but if you've spent the past week wishing you could have taken vacation from work and road tripped it to Cali, here's your next best option. Just head to 5 Gum's facebook page and you can watch the entire Sunday lineup. They have 3 different feeds covering the various performance stages so you're sure not to miss out on anyone. Here's Sunday's lineup. My standouts: B.o.B., Delphic, Florence and the Machine, Miike Snow, Phoenix, Gorillaz. Sunday is so stacked with great performances, I just might be sitting in front of my laptop all day.

Get streaming tonight and still be able to catch Hot Chip, MGMT, Muse, and Dead Weather!

Record Store Day!!!!

It's Christmas it's Christmas!

Tomorrow morning indie music lovers will line the streets outside their local independent music store to grab some of the most limited edition vinyl and Cd's out there. Hipsters rejoice! as Record Store Day shines a spotlight on mom and pop shops around the country. Both bands and labels put forth a ton of effort to make this a special day, with hundreds of limited releases available - some a little too limited. Seriously, some releases are 500, 300, even 250 copies to go nationwide? There's no way I'll be able to grab everything on my Christmas list, but here are a few of the ones I'm hoping to grab:

Beastie Boys "Super Surprise" 12"
Coco Rosie "Lemonade"/"Surfer Girl" 7"
Weezer "Ratitude Happy Record Store Day"
White Rabbits/Antlers Daytrotter Sessions 7"
Phoenix "Fences" 12"
Modest Mouse "The Moon and Antarctica" 10th Anniversary LP
The Doors "People Are Strange" 7"
Flaming Lips "Dark Side of the Moon" 12"

Record Store Day 2010 Full Release List

There's no way I'll even be able to pull all of the above off, let alone my entire list. But those are some of the "must haves" in my book. Be sure to check out the full list of releases at the link above and if you're in my area, you'll know where to find me tomorrow morning!

VIDEO: Titus Andronicus and Cassie Ramone - "Undone (The Sweater Song)"

Last night in Philly, Titus Andronicus with Cassie Ramone of Vivian Girls covered the classic Weezer tune.

NEW: Band of Horses - "Loredo"

I have a feeling this is going to be one of those albums that we get to listen to track by track leading up to the release date when we can finally put it all together. "Loredo" is another uptempo track from the band, but definitely has it's dark spots in the lyrics. Slow this down a little and it fits right in on Cease To Begin.

Infinite Arms will be released May 18th.

Two-A-Days: DOM and Zoey Van Goey

More New England music! Gotta love the sounds coming from King Charles' Rebel Revolt Country lately. Worcester, Mass young guns DOM may have just released the soundtrack to my Spring with "Living In America". A catchy chorus like this is all you need to be rollin' top down rockin' those Wayfarer's. DOM just played their first ever live show not 2 weeks ago, and their EP, Sun Bronzed Greek Gods, will be available on vinyl May 1st.

DOM - "Living In America"




Download it and play it alllll Spring long.


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I don't remember how I stumbled upon Glasgow trio Zoey Van Goey, but thanks to whoever turned me on to them. The trip recently released their debut full-length The Cage Was Unlocked All Along here in the U.S. after dropping eargasms on everyone across the Atlantic with it earlier last year. "We Don't Have That Kind of Bread" is a fantastic pop song about staying inside and not leaving home for the fears of being kidnapped or hit by a car. Peep the mega cheap video below. Clearly these guys don't have that kind of major label bread, but who needs it with a song like this.

NEW: B.o.B. ft. Hayley Williams - "Airplanes"

Another track from B.o.B.'s upcoming album The Adventures of Bobby Ray has surfaced. This one's a curious collaboration with pint-sized Paramore lead singer Hayley Williams. B.o.B.'s verses remain great and to the point, but it's beginning to sound like every track on this upcoming album could be a pop radio smash.

B.o.B. ft. Hayley Williams - "Airplanes"
Song removed to appease The Man.


Does such an inherent change to pure pop sound change your opinion of B.o.B.?
Does this collaboration with the spokesperson for Tween Girl Angst help or hurt?
Will there be anything on this album that sounds like the 6 mixtapes we've heard?

WTF?!

THIS COMPLETELY MADE MY WEEK. ONLY IN JAPAN.

NEW: Chiddy Bang - Air Swell Mixtape

Earlier today Chiddy Bang released their Air Swell mixtape. Swelly Express continues to be one of my favorites, and I've been waiting to hear what the duo had in the works for a follow up. To be honest I thought the guys would have broken out big already, but this release will surely send them over the top. Chiddy Bang shows great improvement here, especially in production, challenging themselves more than ever. And as they did with MGMT's "Kids" on Swelly Express, they take Gorillaz' "Stylo" and out their own twist on things. Listen below and download the entire mixtape FO' FREE ----- (link removed).

"Stylo" Chiddy Bang Remix
Removed by request

VIDEO: Freelance Whales - "Generator 2nd Floor"

FINALLY! The official video release for the band's oh so catchy tune.


Freelance Whales - Generator 2nd Floor

Freelance Whales


On another note, FADER gave the world a detailed interview with Yeasayer. And if you're a fan of Yeasayer and don't know much about the band besides their music (like me), this is a great insightful piece.

Two-A-Days: Gayngs and Gauntlet Hair

I could make sweet sweet brown sugar love to "The Gaudy Side of Town" by Gayngs every night for the rest of my life. Think George Michael meets Bone Thugs N' Harmony meets Prince. There are about 37 contributing members of Gayngs, but the three founders are Ryan Olsen with Zack Coulter and Adam Hurlburt of the band Solid Gold. The Groups debut album Relayted will be released May 11th.

Gayngs - "The Gaudy Side of Town"


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Gauntlet Hair is a Denver, CO duo who have been making music together since the age of 15 and are in love in a platonic BFF sort of way. That's what their myspace gives us and that is all. There's enough reverb in "I Was Thinking..." to drive a crazy person crazier. The unsigned duo is currently writing their debut album now.

Gauntlet Hair - "I Was Thinking..."

The as-of-now Unnamed Weekly Playlist Brought to You By The Whipping Post

It's a working title.

In the past I've posted monthly playlists that incorporated my favorite tracks of that entire month. The list would always begin with 30 or so tracks that I felt I NEEDED to share with everyone to end the month. Obviously, nobody's going to sit around on my blog listening to 40 songs. People have much better things to do I'm sure. Like watch the grass grow, or learn Chinese Mandarin. It would take a lot of debating each song and sacrificing those that I felt weren't the absolute greatest (even though I felt all needed to be heard). So rather than posting one monthly playlist, I've decided to give you the weekly best. Much easier for me, not having to choose between so many great songs released throughout the entire month, and easier for you, getting to hear that great music the week or day it's released instead of hearing something on the 30th that came out on the 2nd. So without further adoo-do.

The Whipping Post Presents: The as-of-now Unnamed Weekly Best Music Playlist Episode 1.

Episode 1

The Downloads:

1.) Sleigh Bells - "Crown on the Ground"
2.) The Black Keys - "Next Girl"
3.) Leisure - "It's Alright (On The Suez Canal)"
4.) Das Racist - "You Oughta Know"
5.) White Stripes vs. Eurythmics - "Sweet Dreams Are Made of Seven Nation Army"
6.) Harlem - "Someday Soon"
7.) Phantogram - "Mouthful of Diamonds"
8.) Cocorosie - "Lemonade"
9.) B.o.B. - "Don't Break My Heart"
10.) Tegan & Sara - "Alligator" (Toro Y Moi Remix)
11.) Avi Buffalo - "Remember Last Time"

NEW: Bobby Ray - "Don't Let Me Fall" and "Don't Break My Heart"

The time has almost come. Bobby Ray will be a household name on April 27th when The Adventures of Bobby Ray finally drops. Produced by Bobby himself, is there a better musical rapper out there right now? Drake is the only one who comes to mind, but he can't hold a candle to this shit. Undeniably the whole package. Unforgettable R&B singing voice, lightning fast rhymes, and a self-taught guitar player. I also threw in "Don't Break My Heart" because that sample is infectious!

songs

Mos Def + Dub Reggae Mashtape

Max Tannone, the brains behind the brilliant Jaydiohead mashtape has struck again. This time combining Mos Def vocals and classic reggae instrumentals. The two halves fit perfectly together and flows seamlessly beginning to end. Listen to all the tracks below, and download the entire mashtape FO' FREE here.







And if you don't already have it, download the entire (superior) Jaydiohead mashtape here. And listen to the entire thing below.

LIVE: The xx and Nosaj Thing at Paradise in Boston 4/2/10

I finally had the chance to check out The xx live for the first time this past weekend when the band visited Boston on their first ever U.S. headlining tour. The xx pulled double duty at the sold out paradise this past Friday, playing a 7pm show with L.A. based DJ Nosaj Thing and a 9pm show with jj. I opted for the early show, basing this solely on the disastrous reviews jj have been accumulating lately.

Nosaj Thing took the stage to about a 3/4 capacity crowd wielding only his laptop, and mixer, and one spotlight. His set started off great with some tricks I haven't seen done before with his mixer and he definitely got everyone's head bobbing. The first 10 minutes of his 30 minute set was great, but after the novelty wore off it was basically repetitive. The underlying beat remained mostly the same throughout and while his skills on the mixing board were a treat to see at the start, he did a lot of recycling and toward the end of the set was borderline boring.
Wasting no time, The xx took the stage about 20 minutes after Nosaj Thing left and proceeded to put on one hell of a show for their first headlining tour. To a packed audience, the band played a 45 minute set that got better with each song. Romy Croft and Oliver Sim played perfectly off each other the entire night, creating an excitingly creative dialogue within their performance. The smooth, slow motion slither of Sim on bass was a treat to see. What a great front man on bass, angling himself and instrument perfectly off the light show, keeping the crowd mesmerized. And every time Croft stepped the mic all eyes were on her. It's amazing how captivating a person can be, while coming off so effortlessly. One of the best shows of the year.

SETLIST:
Intro
Crystalised
Islands
Heart Skipped A Beat
Fantasy
Shelter
VCR
Do You Mind (Kyla Cover)
Basic Space
Night Time
Infinity

VIDEO: 30 Seconds to Mars cover Gaga's "Bad Romance"

30 Seconds to Mars are so good at taking dancy pop songs and exposing their dark and dreary lyrics. I've despised this song since the day it came out, but to hear it in a new way makes me kind of appreciate it. After watching this video I was immediately reminded of the great job 30 Seconds to Mars did on their cover of Kanye West's "Stronger".



(Via Pigeons and Planes)



30 Seconds to Mars - "Stronger" Kanye West Cover


Download it for keepsies.

Two-A-Days: The American Fiction and Leisure

Finally a band from the old home state of NH! With a little help from Paul Leavitt (All Time Low, Circa Survive) The American Fiction just wrapped recording for their debut EP The Dreamers, and will be releasing it to the music loving world late spring. The guys have yet to play a set live, but that will change April 24th when they take the stage for the first time together. Unfortunately I don't yet have the mp3's for the EP, but head to The American Fiction's myspace to hear "All Too Honest" I love that song so much I want to take it behind a middle school cafeteria and get it pregnant.


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With only a few tracks under their belt, Cambridge Mass boys Leisure scored the slot opening up for Girls on their Right Coast tour, which kicked off last night at Paradise. With folky/orchestral touches and a sweeping pop sound, it reminds me of something I would hear on The White Album from that kind of popular British band from the 60's. Unsigned (for now) Leisure is giving away their 7" FO' FREE over at their bandcamp. If you're a fan of Freelance Whales, you'll love the instantly catchy "It's Alright (On The Suez Canal)."

Leisure - "It's Alright (On The Suez Canal)"

VIDEO: Phantogram - "Mouthful of Diamonds"

One of my favorite bands of this young year, Phantogram, released a video for their song "Mouthful of Diamonds."



Listen to more Phantogram in my previous posts here and here.

VIDEO: Band of Horses - "Compliments"

Band of Horses released a video for the first single off their new album Infinite Arms. Definitely a more upbeat feel from the band this time around. While I love everything Band of Horses has ever done, it's nice to hear a not-so-sad side to their music.

Infinite Arms is due out May 18th.

MP3: Black Keys - "Next Girl"

These guys can seriously do no wrong. This is the old school Keys I was hoping to hear with their new album Brothers. Garage-rock-soul-blues amazingness.

The Black Keys - "Next Girl"



Brothers is out May 18th.