Janelle Monae dazzles on Letterman

So earlier this week Janelle Monae made her late night television debut performing her latest single "Tightrope" from the recently released debut album The Arch-Android. Her performance was probably one of the most energetic I've seen on any late night show and reminded me of Michael Jackson (watch her feet as she glides across the stage) and James Brown (an assistant bring her a cape). Enjoy Janelle Monae's performance of "Tightrope" on Letterman here:

Good Old War Ustream show on 5/19

Lots of Good Old War love today. The indie folk pop trio from Philly have their sophomore album coming out on June 1st and in support of that the band has been doing little live concerts on Ustream. The first of which happened on May 10th and can be viewed here:
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/6826282

Their second and hopefully not last live show was originally scheduled for this past Monday but when one of the band members took ill, they moved the date to this Wednesday May 19th at 7pm Eastern. Viewers get will the opportunity to listen to a relaxed live concert as well as hear a bit about what the band is up to and ask them questions. So if that sounds like your cup of tee you can check it out tommorrow at the following link: http://www.ustream.tv/goodoldwar

The trio has also been slowly (I think weekly) been adding songs off their new album to their Purevolume to preview. You can listen to "My Own Sinking Ship", "I Should Go", and "That's Some Dream" as well as some older songs/acoustic sessions here:
http://www.purevolume.com/goodoldwar

Also the band embarks on their tour this week so make sure to catch a show if they're anywhere near you.

Watch: Good Old War - "My Own Sinking Ship" live

Good Old War's new album comes out June 1st, and so to ease the wait a bit they played an acoustic set for Sargent House. It features the three-part vocal harmonies fans have come to love and features, instead of on drums, drummer Tim Arnold on accordion. Enjoy "My Own Sinking Ship":

Fanfarlo to be featured on latest Twilight Saga soundtrack

As much as I hate the Twilight franchise, more and more of my favorite musicians keep getting involved in it. This time it's British chamber pop group Fanfarlo. Fanfarlo has just announced that it will be contributing the track "Atlas" to the Eclipse soundtrack. The track will be sixth on the album alongside artists like Bat for Lashes, Beck, Metric, The Black Keys, and The Dead Weather. The soundtrack, available June 8th, is available for preorder now if it strikes your fancy.

Here's a preview of their album contribution performed by Simon and Cathy for Spin:

Jonsi brings "Go Do" to Craig Ferguson

Last night on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Jonsi stopped by to play "Go Do" from his debut album Go. The Icelandic singer with falsetto and ukelele in hand augmented the captivating song with eyecatching colorful wings. Watch the performance here:

Now Streaing: Hot Club de Paris - The Rise and Inevitable Fall of the High School Suicide Cluster Band EP

In an earlier post I mentioned London technical pop rockers Hot Club de Paris were releasing a new EP on May 24 titled The Rise and Inevitable Fall of the High School Suicide Cluster Band were accepting preorders. Well now the band has posted the full 6 song EP to their myspace page along with a slew of UK tour dates.
You can listen to it here: http://www.myspace.com/hotclubdeparis

Also don't forget if you order the EP, you have the chance to win lifelong free releases from Moshi Moshi Records.

Pitstop: Joshua Sturm

Usually while the obscurity of my artist spotlights varies, the one link is that they're usually fairly successful touring or album selling musicians. Until now. You may remember me mentioning Joshua Sturm (albeit briefly) in my review of the Horse Feathers concert as Vassar College. Noting how awestruck I was with his guitar skills, what I didn't mention was that his playing and singing style reminded me of The Tallest Man of Earth, which I can only guess is one of his influences. I say guess because his Myspace has relatively little information on it. But while his Myspace has only about two songs on it, what I heard at the concert was an artist who shows great promise. So even though he's a student, I certain hope he plans on creating more guitar-driven folk and also that he posts more songs to his Myspace soon.

You can hear Joshua Sturm's music on his Myspace page here:
http://www.myspace.com/joshsturm