Conor Oberst - Souled Out!!!

A great new solo album from the man behind Bright Eyes. If you love those albums his solo album should be a natural extension of your collection.

Charlie Louvin - Ira

Charlie and Ira Louvin were a top act back in the 50's and 60's. They made close harmonies popular. Back in 1965 Ira passed away in a car accident. Now Charlie carries on without him. He has a great new album out called "Charlie Louvin Sings Ballads and Disaster Songs". This is a song about his brother and how much he misses him.

Retreat Retreat - 65 Days of Static

This band is great! They are messy and dirty but at the same time oh so clear! They are out of Sheffield, England.

Los Campesinos - You! Me! Dancing!

This is the best track of 2008 in my opinion! Great animation and a song that just keeps growing on itself until it is this full monster!

CAVALERA CONSPIRACY - Sanctuary (UN-censored)

Should these guys be making music or horror movies?! This is so cool!! In case you dont know Cavalera Conspiracy is the founding brothers of Sepultura.

Erykah Badu - Honey

This is off her brand new album entitled New Amerykah Part One (4th World War). In this video she envisions herself in every classic hip hop record you can think of!

Under the Pines - Bodies of Water

Bodies of Water are fairly new. But if they keep making videos like this it wont be long before they dominate MTV!

Ronnie Milsap Live in Branson - Smokey Mountain Rain

Was there ever a better country artist when it came to crafting stories! he started out as Elvis's piano player in his Vegas days. Then went on to craft 15+ number one hits as a solo artist. Got to love that hair!

Movie Etiquette - Mastadon

This was the beginning of the Aqua Teen Hinger Force movie! Mastadon shows us why they are the hardest rockers in the industry!

Wu-Tang Clan - Protect Ya Neck

This is the song that made me a life long fan. I love how all these guys can come together and create such a classic track!

Glas Vegas - Daddy's Gone

This band out of Scotland have a great self titled debut album! From his quaint Scottish accent to the great lyrics, this band has it all going on now. This is a sad song involving missing his dad.

Saul Williams - Niggy Tardust

This fan generated video for the title track off of William's "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!" A perfect visual to go with the lyrics of the song.

Randy Newman - Sail Away

Never been a huge fan. But lately I am realizing his genius for writing music. He is like a Billy Joel!

Brian Wilson - Black Cab Sessions

Black Cab Sessions has a real treat this week. A Brian Wilson visit! Check out the classic at 2:15

ONCE July 2008 Mixtape

For the first time in two months I am getting this mix out during the actual month I am representing and not the last day of. Summer’s are crazy here at Trinity University. We host all kinds of events that basically turns our beautiful higher education university into a glorified hotel. This adds an entirely new dynamic to the job. But no matter what I have going on, I always have my trusty headphones on making sure I am picking the right tracks for the next months mix. So this month we have some fun stuff. This is an energized listen with very few slow songs. New stuff from Jack White’s Raconteurs, Coldplay delivers another epic album, Emmure with some real heavy dirty stuff, Brooklyn’s own Santogold and Lita Ford. That’s right, the Lita that wondered what would happen if she closed her eyes forever.

Make no mistake this mix is fun, fast and exciting. A great album to throw on for working out, cooking in the kitchen or just drinking a glass of wine on the back porch. Enjoy!

I'm sitting on the roof of my house
With a shotgun and a six pack of beer
The newscaster say's "the enemy is among us!"
As bombs explode on the 30 bus
Kill that middle class indecision
Now is not the time for liberal thought

-Bloc Party (Hunting For Witches)

COMPLETE ALBUM LISTING http://treyminator.com/albumindex.htm


_________________________________________________________________________



Track #1
Mates of State
Re-Arrange Us
“Get Better”

This group is a husband\wife team from Kansas. They were in different bands until an three month long email exchange brought them together as a marriage and a band. They now have two daughters and four albums. There newest album continues their brand of music that includes interesting instruments and whimsical male\female harmonies. If you enjoy a good duet, this album is full of them.


Featured Lyrics : “Forget your politics for a while, Let the color schemes arrive.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=kdoYK9jOltQ – A official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________




Track #2
The Raconteurs
Consolers of the Lonely
“Salute Your Solution”

Holy crap when did the Raconteurs get so good? I mean granted they do have Jack White in their fold. But their first album had a couple of good songs and the rest seemed like filler. The White Stripes put out another solid album and somewhere between that release and this album they got some fire on their pants. Suddenly each song on this new album is a firecracker of crunchy guitars and quirky lyrics. Whatever the change was, it worked and I am liking it. So if you did pick up their first album (with the single “Steady As She Goes” and didn’t have a good feeling about it then maybe try this one. It is quite different and you might be surprised.

Featured Lyrics : “I find myself just looking worthy of my best intentions, Ignoring any kinda pause I might receive at all, And all the others seem to find myself a satisfaction, I find a ridicule that isn't cool for me at all.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=7lL1CW140FQ – Official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________




Track #3
The Teenagers
Reality Check
“Streets of Paris”

This French band is a fun little band. They made their name off a song that was all about Scarlett Johansson. The band comes off as a dirty grimy band with clever lyrics about Facebook and dating. But underneath it all is a very slick and smart outfit that crafts beautiful songs with sweeping choruses. In this song you are instantly transported to the Streets of Paris where you can run around all night hanging out in coffee shops and harassing street vendors. The band takes an interesting approach to the lyrics where one front man almost narrates the songs while other singers belt out the choruses.

Featured Lyrics : “We have no shame 'cause we're alone, We're teenagers, we don't care, No one's around, so it seems, No one's around no so it seems.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=JshkoBVFy3Y&feature=related – Official video for the song “Scarlett Johansson”

_________________________________________________________________________




Track #4
Elton John
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
“Roy Rogers”

Elton John invokes the wrong images for most people. The casual dropping of his name invokes images of the Lion King, pianos and Princess Diana as a Candle In the Wind. But in actuality he was pretty influential in the 1970’s when it came to rock that was original and rebellious. Take the album “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” for instance. A double album of some of his greatest hits is a classic album in every sense of the word. Flowing string arrangements, Elton’s classic piano work and the eloquent lyrics of Bernie Taupin. There isn’t a bad song on here. On this track we have him lamenting the days of his youth spent carefree watching Roy Roger save the day.

Featured Lyrics – “Oh the great sequin cowboy who sings of the plains, Of roundups and rustlers and home on the range, Turn on the t.v., shut out the lights, Roy Rogers is riding tonight.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ObVwcVcYpqM&feature=related – Live video for the song from March, 2008

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #5
N.E.R.D.
Seeing Sounds
“You Know What”

I have always been a fan of this band. They combine live instrumentation with hip\hop (much like the Roots). Then you add Pharrell Williams falsetto and you got a great band. Of course the band is the child of The Neptunes. That alone should cause you to pick up their albums. With this new album they decided to create a type of sonic landscape that is visible if you close your eyes. While that may be a neat idea, for me it does seem lacking in that department. But that is only because they have slightly changed their formula from their original mission with the first two albums. With this album the live elements of the music take more of a backseat and the more electronic elements seem to take over. Which doesn’t make for a bad album, it just forces you to readjust the way you look at the band. Which can be good or bad depending on how you look at it. With this song they combine their catchy harmonies with a excellent guitar crafted beat.

Featured Lyrics : “And so the tension slowly build, you got them slanted eye, ya kills, all systems go, then you kiss my cheek, my knees get weak, my heart just skipped a beat, so I just froze.”


http://youtube.com/watch?v=arZMBKbqs4k – Official video for the song “Everyone Nose (All The Girls Standing In The Line For The Bathroom)”.

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #6
Coldplay
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends
“Lost”

Coldplay is one of those bands that seem to just turn every song they touch into gold. That says a lot coming from me because I am not a die-hard fan. But I can recognize when what they are trying to do is actually working. They create epic tracks full of lush melodies that seem to creep up on you, take you on a trip and then drop you back off again at the end of the song. For the fourth album they have recreated the look and feel of the French Revolution. Songs about triumphing over evil, romantic interludes and finding a cause carry this album from start to finish. There are lots of stand-out tracks including the ITunes commissioned “Viva la Vida”. But this track really gets me because of the gothic organ and hand claps. It kind of moves the song into a stompable number that creates a sense of hope.

Featured Lyrics : “You might be a big fish, In a little pond, Doesn't mean you've won, 'Cause along may come, A bigger one, And you'll be lost.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IakDItZ7f7Q&feature=related – Official video for the lead single off the album “Violet Hill”

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #7
Foals
Antidotes
“Big Big Love (Fig. 2)”

This band is out of Oxford, England. Their debut album came out last month. Originally it was produced by TV On the Radio’s, Dave Sitek. But after they didn’t like the final mix they did it themselves. The result is a 11 track album that mixes the sounds of Vampire Weekend with Radiohead for a sound that is quite its own. They are getting quite a following at European Festivals this summer. This particular track has a flow to it that is quite nice. Starting out with a typical guitar work and slowly evolving into a one sentence chant that really gets you jumping.

Featured Lyrics : “see how the skulls we build, see how these towers we fill, crash down fury red, the cracks in our hearts and heads”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PGrZkUQ6_r8 – Official video for lead single off the album “Balloons”. I love the raven!

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #8
The Futureheads
This Is Not the World
“The Beginning of the Twist”

I have been a fan of The Futureheads since their first album. With the third album from the English band has them following the same tried and true mission of providing quick dittys full of catchy lyrics and choppy guitars. This track has a great sing-a-long quality to it. The song is fast and you will be singing to yourself for hours afterwards, “I can feel it!” They are a little bit punk, tiny bit pop and a whole lot Futureheads!

Featured Lyrics : “If memory serves, Then why am I still waiting for it to return?, My head feels like it’s just about to slip, This morning is just a blur, Today lingers on like a bad year”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7eOGf0mnYg – The official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #9
Lita Ford
Lita
“Kiss Me Deadly”

Welcome back to 1988 when Lita ruled the radio. This was the year she had 4 billboard hits and made sure everyone knew she was for real. Starting out as the guitarist for The Runaways, with fellow “chick” rockers Joan Jett (The Blackhearts) and Micki Steele (The Bangles) among others, she quickly made a name for herself. In this track she laments on how life can deal you some pretty crappy cards. But as long as you have someone you love to dance with, that is all you need. This song has been covered numerous times. Most know her more for her hit single with Ozzy Osbourne, “Close My Eyes Forever” (a song she doesn’t particularly like anymore). But this song seems to connect on so many levels that you can’t help but want to….. well, Dance!

Featured Lyrics : “But I know what I like, I know I like dancin' with you, And I know what you like, I know you like dancin' with me.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=6sa-4A7RrP8 – Official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #10
Emmure
The Respect Issue
“Chicago’s Finest”

Ok this is going to scare some people. If you follow my ONCE mixes on a regular basis you know that I am sucker for hard stuff. I am able to sneak it in every once in a while. Well this is one of those times. This band hails from Connecticut. Not the place you would expect an outfit of this type to come from. This band is harsh! The music they create is beautiful but at the same time incredibly intense. This song is an excellent example. Such beautiful mournful lyrics that show a real remorse for decisions made and the music illustrates the pain felt by those decisions. But at the same time they are moving on and recognizing that mistakes give way to opportunity.

Featured Lyrics : “There's a million things that I could say, If you're down for listening, I never thought I'd feel so alone, I never thought I'd want to come back home, But I chose my path 9 years ago”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=KRmJJe7p-k0 – Great live video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #11
Santogold
Santogold
“I’m a Lady (ft. Trouble Andrew)”

This singer out of Brooklyn is quite a catch musically. Her album includes dance, electronic, rock and trance. Every song on the track is like a new artist all together. Her album is perfect for those A.D.D. souls out there who don’t want 12 tracks of the same type of music. Deep down she is a songwriter at heart having written for people like Lily Allen. While she might remind you of M.I.A. (who I featured back in February), she quickly jumps out of the trance\electronic boat to establish her own wake. This is one of those great summer albums. This track includes a really cool verse from Trouble Andrew. It perfectly augments the song to establish the feel that the song is going for.

Featured Lyrics – “Now won't you run and tell your boyfriend, Tell him don't hold his breath for me, I've got some money I was saving, Got some hearts that I'll be breaking.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Y9JI0GXkARQ - The official video for the first single off the album, “L.E.S. Artistes”

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #12
Patti Smith
Horses
“Free Money”

Patti Smith is one of those artists that everyone should have a little of in their collection. Her music is so personal and beautiful. A child of New Jersey she began her career during the great Jersey years of Springsteen and The Misfits. While commercial success of the album was modest, it peaked at #47 on the Billboard 200 in 1975, its impact has been far greater. Horses frequently appears on lists of the greatest rock albums. This song was all about what is was to be raised without money and what you could do for yourself and others if you could have it.

Featured Lyrics : “Every night before I rest my head, See those dollar bills go swirling round my bed. I know they’re stolen, but I don’t feel bad. I take that money, buy you things you never had.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=iPVMYDrbrCo – Awesome live version of the song from 1976

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #13
Everclear
Song from an American Movie, Vol. 1 : Learning How To Smile
“Unemployed Boyfriend”

Everclear and I go way back. All the way to my first apartment. All the way back to that small club with 50 people in it. All the way back to the pinball machines that they played and we laughed at. All the way back to those two cans of food that it cost me to see and talk to one of my favorite bands. The year was 1995 and this little band from Portland had a song on the radio, Heroine Girl. The music was painful and personal and emoted angst for the lonely and misunderstood. For a few years it was all about looking forward to their next album. This song dropped in 2000 and was a shiny stand-out on an already great album. The song starts with a classic voicemail from a girl who is excited about a guy she had just met at the unemployment office. Enter lead singer Art Alexakis to explain how his unique approach might have won him the girl of his dreams. For feel good music that makes you think things are always going to get better, you can’t beat Everclear.

Featured Lyrics : “"I'm not a woman, I'm not a man/I am something that you'll never understand, I'm not human, I am a dove/I'm your conscience, I am love"

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qAh5esiyQ8I – Official video for their first video “Heroin Girl”

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #14
Lil’ Mama
VYP (Voice of the Young People)
“L.I.F.E.”

This female MC from Brooklyn is taking over big time. She had a huge hit this year with “Lip Gloss”. She has been featured on several different remixes for various artists. But until she dropped her album in April no one was sure if she get put together a solid album. Turns out she can! The biggest song for me is her autobiographical look at her mother and the relationship that they had. It has a kicking sample that keeps the track moving along. The video features her playing a foster child, a teenage mother and an abusive teenage boyfriend. She has been praised for showing intelligent diversity. If you have been looking for another Lauryn Hill or Jean Grae look no further!

Featured Lyrics : “L - is for the liars that have surrounded me, I - insecurities my head down in these streets, F - my future there isn't 1, E - Eternal hope
This is my life.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r23cm7bL9E – Official video for the song “Shut Up and Let Me Go”




“To me, making a tape is like writing a letter — there's a lot of erasing and rethinking and starting again. A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do. You've got to kick off with a corker, to hold the attention (I started with "Got to Get You Off My Mind", but then realized that she might not get any further than track one, side one if I delivered what she wanted straightaway, so I buried it in the middle of side two), and then you've got to up it a notch, or cool it a notch, and you can't have white music and black music together, unless the white music sounds like black music, and you can't have two tracks by the same artist side by side, unless you've done the whole thing in pairs and...oh, there are loads of rules.”
-Nick Hornsby

Snoop Does Country

Whitey Ford (Everlast) on guitar, and Snoop wearing a cowboy hat! Doesnt get any better than this. How many cameos can you spot? I think I saw Brad Paisley?

RIP Bo Diddley (December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008)

ONCE May 2008 Mixtape

Almost didn’t make this month! I had good reasons for the delay though. My daughter turned one year old. This required family to fly in from all over the country for the big party. Which meant turning our house from a personal dwelling into a public meeting space. It was worth it but took most of the month to get ready for. So it is May 30, but it is still May! Think of it this way, in two weeks or so you will have June’s mix so the wait won’t be as long! Better late than never.

May is an interesting month. The weather starts to heat up giving us an indication if we are in for a hot or mild summer. Here in Texas it is clear that it will be a scorcher. Which is ironic since this month’s mix is a real hot one as well! We got classic Bowie from 1971, a sweet serenade from Alison Krauss, modern blues from The Black Keys and much more! See you next month!

"A little Madness in the Spring
Is wholesome even for the King."
- Emily Dickinson

COMPLETE ALBUM LISTING http://treyminator.com/albumindex.htm


_________________________________________________________________________



Track #1
David Bowie
Hunky Dory
“Life On Mars?”

You could put this song on the radio today and it would be a hit all over again. The album Hunky Dory from David Bowie has this timeless quality that holds up to today’s standards just as well as it did when it was released in 1971. The album was the third album Bowie would release before his alter ego, Ziggy Stardust, would take over the world sending him into the upper echelons of fame and legend. Life On Mars has its origins from an occurrence when Bowie was asked to write English lyrics to a French song ("Comme d'habitude"), the song he came up with was titled "Even a Fool Learns to Love". The Canadian songwriter Paul Anka bought the rights to the original French version, and rewrote it into an English song called "My Way," later made famous by Frank Sinatra. Bowie's version was never released. "Life on Mars?” was Bowie waxing about losing out on a fortune; it has a similar chord progression to "My Way," and as Bowie explained in an interview with the BBC, it is a "modernistic take" on the Anka/Sinatra song.


Featured Lyrics : “Snorting Sailors, Fighting in the dance hall. Oh man! Look at those cavemen go. It's the freakiest show. Take a look at the lawman, Beating up the wrong guy. Oh man! Wonder if he'll ever know
He's in the best selling show. Is there life on Mars?”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ueUOTImKp0k – A official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________




Track #2
Amplive
Rainydayz Remixes
“Video Tapez (ft. Del the Funky Homosapien”

When Radiohead released “In Rainbows” last year it inspired lots of artists to do something new and original. Some released their albums for free. Amplive, one half of the hip hop duo Zion I, decided to remix the album and bring in some of his rapper friends to add some personal touches to it. The result was RainyDayz Remixes. It was released for free to anyone who forwarded him a receipt verifying that you had purchased the original Radiohead album. The released was delayed about a month when Radiohead found out and called him to the table for negotiations. They went well apparently because a month later he released the album with the full blessing of the band. It really reinvents the tracks in a unique refreshing way with some great guest rappers like Too $hort, MC Zumbi and Charli2na. On this track he pulled in a legend of his own, Del the Funky Homosapien. Del had already proved himself many times over with his many unusual collaborations including Dan the Automator’s futuristic outing with Deltron 3030. This song, which is arguably the saddest song on the In Rainbows, is transformed from a sad song to a more upbeat number with a sense of hope fleeting in and out.

Featured Lyrics : “When I'm at the pearly gates, This'll be on my videotape, my videotape”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BlKdf31T298 – Fan made video for Nude (Amplive remix) featuring Too $hort and MC Zumbi

_________________________________________________________________________




Track #3
All That Remains
The Fall of Ideals
“Not Alone”

I will freely admit that I have a very soft spot for hard metal\rock. I have certain bands that bring out that rocker in me. And Massachusetts metal band All That Remains is one of those. The music is blistering with hardcore elements of the best metal has to offer but at the same time reigning it on every once in a while to show you their talent. This includes amazing guitar solos and soaring choruses. Great driving music, great cleaning music, great jogging music. It picks you up by your ears and slams you to the ground. In this song we have the band lamenting about their inspirations. The solo at 1:38 is the best reason the stick through this song! They have a new album dropping this year with a great producer that promises to take everything good about this album and make it even better!

Featured Lyrics : “I'm not alone, With the touch of your hand, I am whole again”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=mnDEFyV88Qs – Official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________




Track #4
We the Kings
We the Kings
“Check Yes Juliet”

A couple of months ago I was watching MTV and these guys came on. The video is a clever take on 80’s movies with the hip rocker who the parents hate trying to find time to hang with his favorite girl. The chorus is also a great hook that won’t let you go. The kids in high school are surely eating this one up. I may be getting older but I can still enjoy pop rock in all its sappy goodness. Plus the lead singers hair do is one for the records!

Featured Lyrics – “Check yes Juliet, I'll be waiting, Wishing, wanting, Yours for the taking, Just sneak out, And don't tell a soul goodbye, Check yes Juliet, Here's the countdown 3... 2... 1... you'll fall in my arms now,
They can't change the locks, Don't let them change your mind

http://youtube.com/watch?v=s1R_txIuuio – Official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #5
Goldie Lookin’ Chain
Guns Don’t Kill People, Rappers Do
“Greatest Hits”

This rap collective out of South Wales had some early success with this song back in 2004. It is a satirical look at rappers in the Unites States. The group has made a name for themselves composing songs that are often humorous, controversial and explicit. Kind of like the silly British version of the Wu-Tang Clan. In 2004 they released their first official release on a major label simply titles “Greatest Hits”. This song took them all the way to #4 in Britain. This year is going to be a big year for them if they stick to their self imposed plans of releasing three albums this year.

Featured Lyrics : “Guns don’t kill people rappers do, From Bristol Zoo to B&Q,, I wanna rap, I wanna rhyme, Heard it in a song now I’m into gun crime, It’s a sign of the times like Prince changin his name.”


http://youtube.com/watch?v=xv-2XYOtgCg – Official video for the song

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #6
Ill Nino
The Undercover Sessions
“Red Rain”

This Latino tinged Metal band from LA have always walked the fine line between fame and obscurity. They take cues from metal bands such as Sepultura and Suicidal Tendencies’ by forging the Latin sounds of South America with the crunching guitars of Metal’s elite. The result is like a fresh rain, or maybe a Red Rain? In this case the “Red Rain” is the remake of the classic Peter Gabriel track. This comes from the 5 song EP, The Undercover Sessions that was released last year. A new album just dropped this year from them, but I am stuck on this great song. Listen for the great congos pounding the beat this song.

Featured Lyrics : “Well I’ve seen them buried in a sheltered place in this town, They tell you that this rain can sting, and look down, There is no blood around see no sign of pain, Hay ay ay no pain, Seeing no red at all, see no rain.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=mmlqmnuPDqg – Ill Nino’s official video for the newest single “The Alibi of Tyrants”
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ynr8R9G2e9w&feature=related – Peter Gabriel performing the song live on Letterman in 1994.

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #7
Ca$his
The County Hound EP
“Just Like Me”

This rapper hails from Orange County in California. His rap group sent Shady Records (Eminem’s record label) a demo. They didn’t get signed but Ca$his did. He is working on a full length debut due this summer. But in the meantime he cut a track on Eminem’s The Re-Up and put out a six track EP. This song details the relationship he has with his seven kids.

Featured Lyrics : “You hear the stories 'bout your daddy floatin 'round town? But you call me up like, ‘Daddy I been findin out, that you caught Rico slippin, beat him up and stomped him out’, So when you go to school, you wanna do it too? You just like me, how can I be mad at you?”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=iGcKiVZrFdc – Official video for “You Don’t Know” featuring Eminem, 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks and Ca$his.

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #8
Puscifer
V Is For V**ina
“Momma Sed”

Everyone knows I love Tool. Therefore anything that Maynard does, I must have. Following his success with Perfect Circle, he continues his lucrative sound projects with this perceived solo project. He is the only permanent member to the band. The album was mixed by the legendary Alan Moulder. The album features the work of members of NIN. Rage Against the Machine, Slipknot, Black Light Burns and others. This song is a creepy ode from a mother to her son where she teaches him about the harsh realities of the life he is facing.

Featured Lyrics : “momma said like the rain, (this too shall pass), like a kidney stone, (this too shall pass), it's just a broken heart, son, this pain will pass away”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8Pcr05C5ppM – A great fan made video mixing scenes from the movie “The Fountain” with the song.

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #9
Alison Krauss and Union Station
Live
“Ghost In the House”

The first time I heard this song I thought to myself, this has to be the saddest song ever written. At first listen it seems to be a women living by herself, her lover gone long ago. Everything reminds her of a past that is no longer. But the song is really about a couple that has grown apart. The lover still lives in the house, the ghost is the lover who she doesn’t recognize anymore. The fact that they let the relationship linger even when the fire is gone is what makes it even sadder than the typical “lover who left her” story. Alison Krauss has a great solo career but also performs vocal duties for the Bluegrass band, Union Station. This is the live version of the song. I picked this over the studio version because it shows you just how great her vocals are and the exceptional camaraderie that she has with her band. The song was originally written and made a hit by the country house band, Shenandoah. But their version is just way too country for me while Alison’s version is more like a sad movie.

Featured Lyrics : “I'm just a ghost in this house, I'm just a shadow upon these walls, As quietly as a mouse I haunt these halls, I'm just a whisper of smoke, I'm all that's left of two hearts on fire, That once burned out of control, You took my body and soul, I'm just a ghost in this house.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=nqyWgGgIe8w&feature=related – Official video for her remake of the John Waite classic, “Missing You”

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #10
Neon Neon
Stainless Style
“I Told Her On Alderaan”

1985 is back! Producer Boom Bip got together with Gruff Rhys the singer for Super Furry Animals and formed a band called Delorean in 2006. It was later changed to Neon Neon. And this year they released their debut effort full of all the 80’s flashbacks you can take. The album is a concept of sorts attempting to tell the story of John Delorean the guy who invented the car famous for being the time machine traveler in Back to the Future. The album follows him through his rise and eventual fall due to smuggling cocaine in the cars he created. It is full of fun synth pop beats that want to make you pull out your old VHS copy of Sweet Sixteen.

Featured Lyrics : “I told her on Alderaan, That there was nothing going on.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=z4lZqDmCO9c&feature=related – Official video for “I Lust U” featuring Cate La Bon

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #11
The Black Keys
Attack and Release
“All You Ever Wanted”

This blues rock duo want you to know they mean business on the third album. The last two albums were spent living in the exciting, yet sometimes monotonous, world of pain and heartache of the old South. But this Ohio band has decided on the third album to show those who doubt that they have the ability to be innovative. It all started with Ike Turner two years ago. The producer behind Jay-Z’s Grey Album, Gorillaz and Gnarls Barkley, Danger Mouse, contacted Ike about making an album with him using The Black Keys as his backing band. Both sides agreed to the venture and it was on track until Ike died suddenly last year. So with no legend to produce he turned his eye to producing a new album by The Black Keys. The fruit of the collaboration is this album. A blues album smartly mixed with dance nuances that suddenly make them come alive like they haven’t been able to do previously. The lead track on the album is “All You Ever Wanted”. It is a slow ramble of a song until the 30 seconds when you get the church blast of the organ. Just a super way to start the album. If you love blues but also like more contemporary music, this album might be just for you.

Featured Lyrics – “I'll be your black bird darlin', Hanging on your telephone wire, Flap my wings, oh yeah, And set your heart to fly .”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=tRKeCNqycE8 - The official video for “Strange Times” the first single off the album

_________________________________________________________________________





Track #12
Portishead
Third
“Machine Gun”

Ten years after putting out their last album that changed trip hop as we know it and then dropping off the face of the earth we have the return of Portishead! Not that they ever broke up, they just were dormant. Each doing their side projects, they finally reunited for the third album simply entitled Third. This is a album that promises to be a breath of fresh air this year. Beth Gibbons the singer won’t do interviews and the other two make for confusing interviews. So the mystery of Portishead continues on this haunting album. The electronic stuttering of “Machine Gun” shows just how far they have come from where they were ten years ago. It is a dark and raw song full of emotion. It is a great way to reintroduce you to their sound.

Featured Lyrics : “but now I realize, that I'm only for me, if only I could see, return myself to me, and recognize the poison in my heart, there is no other place, no one else I face.”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BKm-OkHj-VM – Official video for the song





“To me, making a tape is like writing a letter — there's a lot of erasing and rethinking and starting again. A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do. You've got to kick off with a corker, to hold the attention (I started with "Got to Get You Off My Mind", but then realized that she might not get any further than track one, side one if I delivered what she wanted straightaway, so I buried it in the middle of side two), and then you've got to up it a notch, or cool it a notch, and you can't have white music and black music together, unless the white music sounds like black music, and you can't have two tracks by the same artist side by side, unless you've done the whole thing in pairs and...oh, there are loads of rules.”
-Nick Hornsby

NOTE
**All mp3's contained in this mix are posted for a short time and are for promotional purposes only. This is music I love and think you will too, so if you hear something you like, please support the artists. Buy their albums and go see them in concert. If you represent an artist featured on this mix and would like your songs removed, please contact me via email.**

Everlast - Letters Home From the Garden of Stone

From the new album due out in September!

Gutter Twins - God's Children