Oceans Will Rise

I finally got a taste of the new Stills album, Oceans Will Rise. The first two songs I heard have a close resemblance to both of their previous albums Logic Will Break Your Heart and Without Feathers, the former being my favorite out of the two. The single sounding like it was plucked (yea i had to) from Without Feathers and Rooibos/Palm Wine Drinkard out of their debut LWBYH.

The Stills - Being There

The Stills - Rooibos/Palm Wine Drinkard

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the perfect human voice.

Researchers say they have worked out a mathematical formula to find the perfect human voice. -- BBC News

Click to hear the perfect human voice.

bonus:

7L & Esoteric - Imperfect Person (808 Version) (2)

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MGMT - Electric Feel video

Still pushing that psychedelic vibe. They have some other interesting videos including their first trip to London here.

MGMT - Destrokk

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Rain

Monday night was St. Patrick's day and I wasn't going to do much since it was a Monday and I thought I celebrated enough on the weekend but I got a call from one of my friends and he thought it would be worth while to see what was going on at the local bars. Somehow he convinced me and couple of bars later I'm sitting at my house wondering where my cell phone went. It rained a lot here the next day, for about 16 hours straight, my phone got about 3 hours of that. Here is what I have now:



I have a spare phone I'm using but going from a Windows Mobile PDA/phone to a nearly decade old samsung gets irritating. Today I have been working on recovering my T-Mobile Dash, I read couple of articles and I have the pieces under a heat lamp. I am 73% sure I can recover the phone. Any tips?

Ellen Allien - Naked Rain

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Animal Collectives Water Curses

I've been listening to the title track to Animal Collectives newest EP Water Curses repeatedly. I think I irritated few people at work listening to it so much, everyone already thinks I listen to weirdest music and I don't think this helped at all. There is just so much going on, its like a soundtrack to a carnival montage. What would the world be without insanity laced with beauty beautiful insanity. As a whole its a great EP, the title track stands out a lot but the supporting tracks all have their own merits. The first three tracks on the ep were from the same sessions that gave us Strawberry Jam and the last track recorded later. Its definitely worth picking up on May 6th on 12" and CD.

Animal Collective - Water Curse (-)

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New home

After much movement and rearranging I am settled into my new dwelling, what does that mean?

• I have cable television for the first time in 3 years which is good I suppose

• I have a blazing fast internet connection.

• I am living by myself without any roommates for the first time ever, I was living with my brother but now I'm in a house by myself.

I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to setup surround sound and perfect my media center/home theater.

So thats my excuse for only one post this month, not an excuse but my reason. How can I tied this into a musical entry, take it away Chris Walla:

Chris Walla - Everyone needs a home



Not bad of an album...well one or two strong tracks, with some great production throughout the whole album. Recommended for fans of Death Cab for Cutie or was that obvious.

I am going to try to work in some consistency and do a post a week, its just that I think my readership is nonexistent so I am not very motivated and I am not very motivated so my readership is nonexistent.

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Valentines Day covers

Yesterday the Mobius Band put up on their web site a free valentines day covers EP for download titled Love Will Reign Supreme. If you read previously on Think Tank, we have much love for the Mobius Band (they had a spot on the favorite albums of the year post).

Mobius Band - Hallie

Love Will Reign Supreme EP

1 Razor Love (Neil Young)
2 Baby We'll Be Fine (The National)
3 True Love Will Find You In The End (Daniel Johnston)
4 Mobius Band In A Green Cotton Sweater (Casiotone For The Painfully Alone)
5 I'll Keep It With Mine (Bob Dylan)
6 Digital Love (Daft Punk)

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best of 2007

After some very enjoyable lazying around Think Tank has finally put together the annual best of list which consists of our my favorite releases of the year, it was created a little more than 3 weeks ago but I wanted to marinate on my selections. The two weeks after that I was just busy.


Andrew Bird - armchair apocrypha
Mr. Birds Armchair Apocrypha straight on in is a winner but after a number of listens I realized this was going to be an album that I would come back to often.

Andrew Bird - Heretics


Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Winner of best church organ moments of the year.

Arcade Fire - Black Mirror


Kevin Drew - Spirit If
Its weird, I'm a BSS fan and have clocked in hours with all their albums but this solo release by one of their key songwriters has gotten more listens than all the BSS albums combined.



The National - Boxer
I think the National should release all their album in the Fall because it just seems to suit the weather best.

The National - Mistaken For Strangers (youtube video)


Okkervil River - the Stage Names
Follow ups to great albums always get heavily scrutinized by Think Tank, I had to get over this album not being Black Sheep Boy 2. But after I listened past that I heard a wonderful album with very moving lyrics.

Okkervil River - Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe


Panda Bear - Person Pitch
Person Pitch has this mysterious vibe that just tells me that no matter how many times I listen to this I will never completely get it and that makes me want to listen to it again.

Panda Bear - Comfy Nautica


Spoon - GaGaGaGaGa
These guys rarely let me down. Should I expect a Britt Daniel solo album in 2008 because I expected it this year based on what he said.
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Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam

Beirut - the flying club cup

Born Ruffians - Born Ruffians
One very promising debut and this release contains one of my favorite instrumental interludes.

Busdriver - Roadkillovercoat
Favorite hip hop album of the year, there are a few other notable hip hop releases this year but this is the only one that I still listen to. Plus Sun shower is one my favorite tracks of the year.

Clear Tigers - ep
Not a bad song on this EP.

Deer Tick - War Elephant

Gruff Rhys - candylion
I never really listened to Super Furry Animals but I do like what I hear on this solo release. This reminds me of something but I just can't put my finger on it.

Gruff Rhys - Cycle Of Violence

Iron and Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
Leaked on the internet very early and because of that the momentum of this album wasn't as strong as it should of been. Some of Iron and Wines most interesting moments can be heard on this album.

LCD Soundsystem - Sound Of Silver

MGMT - MGMT
Lot more people need to listen to this album, there are a lot of good things going on here. Officially this album doesn't physically release until next year but its available as a download purchase. If thats not enough Kevin Barnes ranked it on his top 10 of the year.

Mobius Band - Heaven
A nice handful of good singles.

Mobius Band - Friends Like These

Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna Are You The Destroyer

St. Vincent - Marry Me

St. Vincent - Now, Now

Two Gallants - Two Gallants
Their best album so far, the sound fits perfectly in Texas, especially in the summer.

Two Gallants - Despite What You've Been Told

Vampire Weekend (Blue CD-R)
Those hooks just glue themselves onto my brain.

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This year Think Tank was not as active as the previous years mostly because my lack of free time. I have few plans for the blog for next year, mostly appearance and a set schedule for posts nothing too big. I don't really have many people who visit TT anymore but its a fun hobby and thats why I do it and continue to do so in 2008. Its gonna be lots more fun because it an election year.

Catch up

I can't tell you how many times I sat to create a post and got distracted. Its a slow time of the year for new releases so I'm starting to revisit some of my favorite albums from years back. What have I been up to you ask, I got a new car and in a few weeks I'm moving to a new place. Other than that just working.

Single Frame - New Car Smell



New Cadence Weapon album Afterparty Babies is coming out soon, there are some live tracks floating around and one album cut,

Cadence Weapon - In Search Of The Youth Crew

What ever happen to Urban Sprawl in North Texas, I liked that concept.

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Weekend Wars

I've been listening to lots of debuts recently, right now its the MGMT's debut Oracular Spectacular. I missed them last weekend at the Granada in Dallas, I caught the end of the last song and was in disbelief that I missed it. Grand Buffet and Of Montreal were great and I'll catch the MGMT when they come around next time, most preferably headlining.

Their album has some great tracks and shows lots of potential for future releases, they really can go two different direction with their musical progression as a band on a major record label (Columbia Records). Hopefully creativity wins over the dull.

Not my favorite debut of the year but damn are those tunes catchy. I can't believe Indie Rokkers didn't make the album cut.

MGMT - Weekend Wars

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My plate

I just finished making my Halloween mix cd, something I've done for about 5 years around Halloween time. I thought I'd offer up some of my favorites and essentials. On top of that I've only posted 2x this month, thats insane. Lately I've had a lot on my plate but on the up side it looks like my efforts are paying off.

Nada Surf - See these bones
I just like this track and the anticipation for the new Nada Surf factors in.

Flaming Lips - Halloween on the Barbary Coast
This song is a reoccurring track on my Halloween mixes.

Starlight Mints - Pumpkin
This was just random, didn't include it in the mix just saw it and thought why not.

John Vanderslice - Lifeboat
This is the perfect soundtrack to a haunted house, everyone loves the mood it creates.



I have a lively night planned and I'm sure this will get me and perhaps you, by.

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Clear Tigers

I've been obsessing over the songs on the Catbird Records released EP of Clear Tigers, and wait in anticipation for their debut full-length. I used to have a fairly long commute from place to place ranging from 4 hrs to 45 minutes. That was my favorite time to listen to albums, now years have passed and my commutes average 15 minutes, about 3 songs. I got trapped in rush hour traffic in West Plano last week and went through some important listening material and it was then I realized how much I liked this EP. Thanks to Catbirdseat, for the heads up on this gem. Too bad this release is out of print.

Clear Tigers - Igloo

Some tiger related tracks:

The Comas - Tiger in a Tower
Luna - Tiger Lily (live)

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Missed opportunity

I don't keep up with the online music scene as much as I used to, the weird thing is that I doubt I really missed anything. I keep up with the important stuff and I'll read a review or two daily but my daily reads have been cut down dramatically to just a handful of sites.

I wanted to see Mobius Band last night at the Granada with Matthew Dear but I had too many things to do last night, if they were to headliners or played an hour later I would of most definitely been there. The new album, Heaven, rocks.



Mobius Band - Friends Like These
Mobius Band - Hallie

Of course the big release this week is the new Radiohead album, In Rainbows in glorious 160kbps. The site was pretty bogged down earlier but it looks freed up now. I ended up getting it elsewhere but I still plan of downloading from there and I might get that physical release if the packaging is worthwhile which more that likely it will be. They did win a Grammy for the Amnesiac packaging.

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Aceyalone...Lightning Strikes

Aceyalone, one of the most underrated voices in hip-hop, is about to release his newest album Lightning Strikes, a dancehall inspired album. His last album, Magnificent City was entirely produced by RJD2, this his 8th(?) album is entirely produced by Bionik, "who’s known for crafting dub, dancehall, and reggae inspired tracks".

The first single features someone who I have noticed has been "featured" a lot lately, Chali 2na, formerly of J5.

Aceyalone - Easy feat Chali 2na

Aceyalone - Shango

Look for this release on Oct, 2 on Decon.

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Two Gallants

I've been listening to the Two Gallants self titled album, their second for Saddle Creek, for about a week or so. After hearing this years The Scenery Of Farewell EP I was expecting a more stripped down Two Gallants sound on this album based on the EPs prominence of acoustic guitars and piano on the last track, not their best release but I knew they could build on the sound. I guess I was wrong. As a whole, its probably my favorite from these guys. Go pick up the Two Gallants self-titled album when it comes out next Tuesday (9-25) or get it now at the online store (where you can stream the entire album).

Two Gallants - The Hand That Held Me Down

Two Gallants - Despite What You've Been Told

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Beat Konducta vs Oh No

Beat Konducta Vol 3-4: Beat Konducta in India is Madlibs newest instrumental album under the alias of Beat Konducta. In my opinion it is his most inspired Beat Konducta album. I just can't help but to wonder if Madlib just used this material for a new Madvillain album, what would the outcome be. I'm sure it would be something crazy, wild and one of many highlights of his career. The samples are great and as usual Madlib works his magic to bring it all together in to a cohesive album. If you enjoy hip hop instrumentals or some vintage Indian music this is definitely worth checking out.

Beat Konducta - Masala




Oh No, another Stones Throw records artist (and Madlibs younger brother) has an album that just recently dropped Dr. Oh No's Oxperiment and it is also an instrumental album. I've been enjoying his albums since he put out Disrupt, his first on Stones throw few years back. His new album is described as "an audio tour of Turkish, Lebanese, Greek & Italian psyche funk: chopped, flipped & ripped." Thats sounds about right. The album puts Oh No in a whole new terrain of music, the terrain of instrumental hip hop that his brother Madlib has championed many times over. The album is getting some much deserved hype and some great reviews but we have all known that the praise was well overdue.

Oh No - Action (rap version)

Who wins in the battle of the eastern Euasia sample heavy album: Madlib of course. I didn't really have to put much thought into it, that guy fucking owns.

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New Calexico with Notorious B.I.G. mash

Everyones favorite indie/alt country band Calexico is touring Europe with a new tour album in tow titled Toolbox. The album is an instrumental affair which is something that Calexico does very well.

"The instrumentation on the album features a wide range of instruments John and I have collected over the years including acoustic/electric guitars, drums, upright bass, cello, vibes, accordion, glockenspiel, cuatro, banjo and a new addition to the guitar collection, a waylacho from Mexico. For the recording process John and I ping-ponged parts and popped out the album in three days. We wanted to go back to basics and see what we could do with just a handful of instruments played between the two of us."

Toolbox comes highly recommended (by me) and is available in the Calexico Store and at their upcoming shows.

The first track off the album:

• Calexico - Above the Branch

Bonus mash of the song above and the Notorious B.I.G.'s Party and Bullshit:

• The Notorious B.I.G. vs Calexico - Above the Bullshit (zshare)

I think Calexico recorded this song with the intent of Notorious B.I.G. rapping over it. word.

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Oracular Spectacular

Hey MGMT got some p-fork love today. Its about time, even though it was only really two sentences. They have lots of potential, wait for this debut album to drop I tells ya. But if you want a taste go to the Cantora Records page and order a copy of the Time to Pretend EP for $9 (well worth it) or go to Amazon and spend $64 for the same thing if you are in the mood to throw down some cash. There is still a short wait (September?) for their debut album, Oracular Spectacular to drop on Columbia. Also worth mentioning is that the legendary David Fridmann produced the new album.

They have tour dates with Of Montreal which happens to have a stop in Dallas, check the tour dates here.

From the Time to Pretend EP:

The MGMT - Time To Pretend
The MGMT - Destrokk

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Spoon video

I'm not sure if I mentioned Spoons new album, I figured that every other blog out there did already so I had no need to. Great album none the less, I'd say it would rank #2 in their incredible discography. Anyway check out the new video for Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga album highlight, The Underdog. Is that Jason Reece from Trail of Dead playing the bottles? Sure looks like him.

Also there is a limited edition bonus EP you get with the album, pre-order from Merge Records. Or go to Target on Tuesday and get it for $8? When did Target start to matter? Here's a track from that ep.

Spoon - Mean Mad Margaret [zshare]

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Eef

I'm a big fan of the Daytrotter sessions and Eef Barzelay is one of the better artists that they have had featured on the site lately, at least in my opinion. I started listening to Eef Barzelay on his solo album and worked my way back to his band, Clem Snides' albums. This session features songs from his solo and Clem Snide work.

Four Eef Barzelay tracks at Daytrotter here.

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