Watch: She & Him - "Thieves"

She & Him, continuing with their momentum from their latest album release in March and constant touring and festival appearances, are releasing their second single from Volume Two, "Thieves". The video for "Thieves" unlike the vibrant colors for "In the Sun" is in black and white but still features Zooey Deschanel being overal adorable, and even throws in some adorable kids for good measure. In the video, Zooey pines for her childhood friend (played by M. Ward) who being some sort of ne'erdowell has gone missing. The two possess the uncanny ability to send messages to each other through time (Young Zooey send Old M. Ward a letter asking where he is, and Young M. Ward send Old Zooey a map to his location). It's a pretty interesting and has numerous references to the album itself in it.
Enjoy!

Tomas Kalnoky to play acoustic show

Tomas Kalnoky, the songwriter and bandleader of ska/punk Streetlight Manifesto, is playing an intimate solo acoustic show in LA on July 14th at the Hotel Cafe. It will be the second of his 21+ acoustic shows, the first occuring in NYC's Joe's Pub on June 25th. Currently it is unknown if Kalnoky will play more of these shows but the Streetlight official website says that if these two shows have a good turn out, there will most likely be more. So if you're in the LA area, go see Tomas Kalnoky sing/play guitar/be overall witty, charming, and awesome at his Hotel Cafe show.

And if you can't, you can hear his as part of Streetlight Manifesto on their current summer tour, coming to a city near you.

Streetlight Manifesto to resume touring

After nearly a six month hiatus, New Jersey ska/punk troubadours Streetlight Manifesto is packing up their trumpets, trombones, saxophones, and sardonic wit and hitting the road once again. On their new summer tour titled the "Ship of Fools" tour, they will be hitting pretty much every major US city, several in Canada before heading off to play several shows in Europe. The tour already started in June but there's still tons of dates remaining so check the tour poster and see if they're playing a city near you.

Andrew Belle premieres debut music video

So I recently did a little spotlight on singer/songwriter Andrew Belle but it was actually inspired by the release of his debut music video for the track "Static Waves" featuring Katie Herzig (a talented singer/songwriter in her own right). Unfortunately I can't embed the video like I usually do but if you follow the link here, I guarantee you'll be pleasantly rewarded.

Pitstop: Andrew Belle

Meet Andrew Belle. Chances are you haven't heard of him but you should. The young singer-songwriter and Chicago area transplant recently released his debut full-length album The Ladder earlier this year but that is only one of his many achievements. A member of the Ten Out of Tenn, a collective of singer songwriters in Nashville, Tennessee, being named Chicago's Best Breakout Artist by MTV in 2009, and winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in addition to having his songs regularly featured on several primetime television shows like Grey's Anatomy, 90210, Ghost Whisperer, and Pretty Little Liars. One listen to Belle's music and it's not hard to understand all the awards and accolades. Unlike some songwriters with throw-away lyrics, Andrew Belle's vocals and lyrics are the lifeblood of his songs. His songs are catchy and memorable and combined with his smart lyrics show an ingenuity and musicianship you rarely see in pop music nowadays. Here's hoping we hear a lot more from Belle as he seemingly enjoys more and more commercial success. Give Andrew Belle a listen with this video of him performing "The Ladder":


Andrew Belle is currently on tour. You can see his tour dates as well as check out more of his music on his MySpace here.

Maps & Atlases - Perch Patchwork (2010)

Just several days ago Chicago-based technical pop/math rock band Maps & Atlases released their debut full-length album Perch Patchwork on Barsuk. Featuring several fan favorites from their live shows ("Pigeon" and "Israeli Caves"), the album is the latest in the band's efforts to provide more accessible and poppy songs though its not without uniqueness. The first two tracks on the album "Will", "The Charm", and have a sort of experimental vibe due to some sonic distortion. "Will" opens the album with a sort of hazy, wispy feel with Dave Davison's vocals floating over top before segue into "The Charm" with its military-like drumbeats, aforementioned distortion, and Davison repeatedly crooning "I don't think there is a sound that I hate more than the sound of your voice when you say I don't love you anymore". "Living Decorations" contrasts with its high energy, claps (or drums that sound super similar), and overall brighter sound. "Solid Ground", which the band premiered a couple months ago, wouldn't have been out of place on the band's previous release You, Me, and The Mountain and marks the band's first use (at least that I can think of) of instruments outside their normal guitar, bass, drums, an random percussion with the use of flutes. Instrumental track "Is" is, unsurprisingly, the shortest track on the album and is minimalistic in its approach: each instrument entering sequentially with its own short obstinato before fading out. "Israeli Caves" is similar to earlier track "Living Decorations" in that it shifts the album in a more upbeat direction. "Banished Be Cavalier" follows in the same vein, "Carrying the Wet Wood" builds up from just two/three quickly played guitar notes and might best represent what the band was trying to achieve on the album. Complex but not distractingly so but also memorable and catchy. "Pigeon", one of the band's encores, finds its way on the album and gets a bit of a revamp with some additional instruments added to the middle of the song but other than that remains pretty much the same. "If This Is" adds some strings, shifts mood, tempo, and intensity, and manages to remind the listener of summer, beaches, and surfing (despite not being about any of those things) due to the characteristic surf rock jangle guitar. "Was" is another instrumental track like "Will" and "Is" and mellows out the album before leading into the lilting title track "Perch Patchwork" which pretty much combines every "odd" thing done on the album. The longest track on the album, nearly double the length of all the other tracks, starts with cello pizzicatos accompaning acoustic guitar and Davison's vocals with occasional string and flute flourishes before the strings become more involved melodically complimenting Davison. The track is the most uncharacteristic song from the band but is actually where the bandmembers' musicianship gets a chance to shine. Not only are they proficient on their instruments but they can also compose, arrange, and perform songs in a style they typically don't play in.

When I heard that the band would be employing a more pop-oriented sound on this album, I got a bit nervous that it wouldn't be the same trademark sound but Perch Patchwork manages to add in new qualities like strings while at same keeping the virtuosity and musicianship that drew me to them in the first place. Fans of the band have nothing to fear as the several of the songs would've fit on the other EPs now problem and the new songs that wouldn't are still good. Those new to the band will no doubt be captivated and hunger for more. For those in need of aural convincing, the album is currently streaming on the band's MySpace here.

Watch: Left With Pictures - "June"

June ended earlier this week and Left with Pictures has been going strong, offering up their sixth In Time song/video titled "June". The song has a bright sunny feel similar to the season they're trying to invoke and the superb string arrangement Left with Pictures is known for. Unlike their previous videos that feature the band and friends, this new video consists of clips from various black and white era movies. Though that in no way detracts from the band's efforts. Here's hoping the band continues it's song-a-month project. Enjoy "June":