Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean

Honestly, I've never listened to an Iron & Wine album before. I actually thought Iron & Wine was a 80s rock group until one day a random Google search informed me of my grievous error. And there was no time like the present (what with the new album streaming) to check out his music. For those unaware, Iron & Wine is the moniker of Sam Beam whose been making music since the early '00s. His latest album, Kiss Each Other Clean is his first after about 3 years. A Google search will tell anyone that. But what they won't tell you is how amazing the new album is. I'm not exactly sure what I expected but I had my expectations shattered in a matter of seconds. Some might classify Iron & Wine as a folk artist but that'll leave you massive unprepared for what you're going to hear. The album plays with some funky grooves and electronics.

Kiss Each Other Clean is in many ways catchy like a pop album, but has the earnestness and lyricism of folk, with some jazz grooves and sound experimentation that really distinguishes it from your standard pop or folktronica record. Give the album a listen here.

Now Streaming: Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean

Iron & Wine has made his new album Kiss Each Other Clean available for streaming. What's surprising is not that he's elected to do this but where you can stream it from: Conan O'Brien's website. Then again, not really if you take into the account that Conan's got impeccable music taste as evidenced in who he gets to perform on his show (and the fact that he's good friends with Jack White).

The album will be released January 25th, but until then you can listen to the full album here.

She & Him release video for "Don't Look Back"

She & Him continue their disarmingly cute domination of music as we know it, this time with the release of a video for "Don't Look Back" off last year's Volume Two. The video is pretty much made of awesome, featuring Zooey Deschannel lounging around her futuristic and yet retro-styled apartment, M. Ward inflating a guitar and then playing it, a robot playing the piano, some Zooey clones, and a M. Ward hologram. Enjoy the video for "Don't Look Back":

She & Him - Don't Look Back from Merge Records on Vimeo.

Beep! release album and premiere video

What seems like ages ago I mentioned that Beep!, an experimental jazz trio for Oakland California, were releasing an album. Well yesterday was the day that City of the Future became available virtually everywhere (but mostly on Amazon). To celebrate the release of their new album, the trio also offered up a video for "Today is Your Birthday". The video, created by Marina Valentina, is almost as quirky as the band's wonderfully off-kilter sound. Featuring the band, toothbrushes, and morphing pictures of Victorian women; the video is pretty hard to explain. Instead, you should just watch it and try and make sense of it yourself. Enjoy the video for Beep!'s "Today is Your Birthday":

Noah and the Whale release video for new album

Noah and the Whale continue to give fans a peek at their upcoming third album Last Night on Earth, this time releasing a video for the album's first single "L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N", It's both quintessentially Noah and the Whale and something delightfully new. Though the song has some rather melancholy subjects like a promiscuous nightclub worker and yet it sounds like a celebration of life. With a catchy harmony-laden chorus and a general upbeat sound. The video features several of the tragic characters described in the song while showing the various members of the band hanging out and eventually playing in the nightclub. Enjoy the oddly upbeat video for "L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N" by Noah and the Whale:

Freelance Whales reveal second GLS single

Almost a week after releasing a video for "Enzymes", Freelance Whales' first single for Green Label Sound, the spunky quintet offers up a brand new song called "Day Off". Unlike their much darker sounding first single, "Day Off" is brighter and far more upbeat and yet still features the more nuanced sound developed since their album. And yet the dreamy aspects that made their album great are still there enhanced by a renewed clarity of ideas. The track, influenced by their experience as a touring band, is about "wanting to come home and reclaim your own possessions" according to lead singer Judah Dadone. Enjoy "Day Off" from Freelance Whales and if you like it, it's available for free download.

S, Carey gets music video for "In the Dirt"

Wow what timing. Yesterday, I talked about how incredible S. Carey's album was and today, S. Carey released his first official music video. Crafted by two Swedish filmmaker brothers, Nils and Axel Byrfors, during the Christmas season; the video was actually purely a bonding experience for the two brothers who live on two different continents. After making the video, the brother then emailed it to Carey's manager who showed it to him. Well, Mr. Carey loved it and decided to make it the official video for the song. The video revolves around a little girl leaving home in the middle of the might, only to be tailed by her little brother. They end up having all sorts of adventures in the snow way into the morning time when they suddenly seem to realize the consequences of their actions and wait for their parents to pick them up. Enjoy the video for "In the Dirt":

"In The Dirt" - Official Music Video from S. Carey on Vimeo.