When your first introduction to a band is a cover song an initial opinion is typically made pretty quick, and there was no exception with Pure Ecstasy.

Winter time is the time of year, oddly enough, when I gravitate towards reggae…I bust out my Mystic Revelation of Rastafari, Soul Jazz and Pressure Sounds comps, Scientist LPs, and The Abyssinians…but I honestly don’t own anything by Toots & The Maytals…that didn’t mean I wasn’t familiar with “Pressure Drop.”

“Pressure Drop” is one of those songs that if you have the slightest interest in reggae as a genre you have probably heard(or maybe you have heard one of the many covers of it), and to hear a cover coming from a fuzzy indie band I can say at the very least I was skeptical, but I shouldn’t have been.

But Austin, Texas’ Pure Ecstasy hit this one right on.  Pure Ecstasy manages to stay true to both the song itself, and to their own sound.  While it’s not clean cut that it is a cover of a reggae classic, but the tone and vibe manage to remain true to the original.  On top of this Pure Ecstasy manage to incorporate their lightly fuzzed out mellow pop into it, and let both sides shine.  In my opinion they accomplish everything that should be present in a good cover song.

[mp3] Pure Ecstasy- “Pressure Drop”

• originally appeared on Friendship Bracelet Club Vol 2. (get that here)

Bringing Pure Ecstasy back to their own tunes is the track “Easy”  the A Side off of their 7″ on Light Lodge Records.  I was able to pick this 7″ up when I saw them play at Bruar Falls with Twin Sister last month (which is also where these pictures were taken).  “Easy” showcases Pure Ecstasy’s laid back indie pop, and has been playing on my iPod way before I got the 7″.  I’m so used to short songs these days, and everytime I play “Easy” I forget that it is a four minute jam…mellow, and long enough to let you truly get into it and relax.  Just when you think the track is over it goes into a ambient drone with just a vocal melody…and the then the guitar kicks back in to finish out the song… a perfect end to the track.

[mp3] Pure Ecstasy- “Easy”

• Buy the Easy from Light Lodge Records here.
  • buy their the very limited repress of their Future Nostalgia 7″ here.
  • pre-order their new 7″ Voices here.

After listening to “Easy” you can really see that Pure Ecstasy’s sound really does shine in “Pressure Drop.”  Looking forward to more from these dudes.  I know their trip to NYC wasn’t the best…some asshole had to steal their guitar.  I really hope they will be back.

Pure Ecstasy tour dates can be found here.

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The photos of Pure Ecstasy were taken on January 29th, 2010 at Bruar Falls.  These photos are from the White Lodge.

• more posts featuring photos from the White Lodge can be found here.

For those of you who haven’t already decided which So Cow show you are going to on their 2010 North American tour I thought I would remind you of those dates one last time before it starts.  Tomorrow is the first day of their almost three month long American tour! Starting at Asbury Lanes in Asbury park (I’m guessing the Asbury Park and Philly shows are tentative due to the blizzard, but those are just my thoughts) .  So Cow is playing pretty much the entire country so there is no excuse to miss them this time around:

• Feb 11 Asbury Lanes Asbury Park, New Jersey
• Feb 12 Kung Fu Necktie Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Feb 13 Monster Island Basement Brooklyn, New York %
• Feb 14 Cake Shop New York, New York +
• Feb 17 O’Brien’s Boston, Massachusetts
• Feb 19 AS220 Providence, Rhode Island
• Feb 20 Casa Del Popolo Montreal, Quebec
• Feb 21 Rancho Relaxo Toronto, Ontario
• Feb 22 The Casbah Lounge W Hamilton, Ontario
• Feb 23 The Bug Jar Rochester, New York
• Feb 24 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland, Ohio
• Feb 25 Cafe Bourbon Street Columbus, Ohio
• Feb 26 Lager House Detroit, Michigan
• Feb 28 Eagle’s Nest Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Mar 01 7th St. Entry Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Mar 03 Badlander Missoula, Montana
• Mar 04 Empyrean Spokane, Washington
• Mar 05 East End Portland, Oregon
• Mar 06 Comet Tavern Seattle, Washington
• Mar 08 Mama Buzz Cafe Oakland, California
• Mar 09 The Crepe Place Santa Cruz, California
• Mar 10 The Hemlock Tavern San Francisco, California
• Mar 11 The Smell Los Angeles, California
• Mar 12 Bar Pink Elephant San Diego, California
• Mar 13 Trunk Space Phoenix, Arizona *
• Mar 14 El Paso Block Party El Paso, Texas
• Mar 16 The Mohawk Austin, Texas
• Mar 17 – Mar 20 SXSW Austin, Texas
• Mar 22 The Conservatory Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Mar 23 Record Bar Kansas City, Missouri
• Mar 25 Hi-Tone Cafe Memphis, Tennessee
• Mar 26 The Belafonte Hattiesburg, Mississippi
• Mar 27 529 Atlanta, Georgia
• Mar 30 Snug Harbor Charlotte, North Carolina
• Mar 31 2702 Lawndale Durham, North Carolina
• Apr 01 Black Cat Washington DC #
• Apr 02 Ruintown Baltimore, Maryland
• Apr 03 Terrace Club Princeton, New Jersey
  • % = w/ Blank Dogs, Frankie Rose and the Outs, Sisters
  • + = w/ Preacher and the Knife, White Blue Yellow and Clouds, Babies
  • * = w/ Nobunny
  • # = w/ Smith Westerns

I’m looking forward to catching these guys at Cake Shop, one of Manhattan’s finest venues.  If you are in the city is a great way to spend Valentines Day.

So Cow has also announced that their second LP Meaningless Friendly this year on Tic Tac Totally and it is due out sometime in the next couple weeks! I can’t wait to hear it…and if you haven’t heard So Cow’s So Cow yet I highly recommend picking it up…it was my favorite album of 2009.  Here is another one of my favorite tracks from last year’s amazing LP…just one of the many reasons you should be catching this tour:

[mp3] So Cow- “Shackleton”

• buy the self titled album  here.

not to mention So Cow always comes packing a wonderful array of cover songs…this is one they rocked while they were in the states last year:

[mp3] So Cow- “Mess Me Up (Nobunny cover)” via the FMA

• get the whole set here.

So which show will you be at?

Links:

• much more on So Cow can be found here.
• more on Nobunny here.

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FMA credits:

It’s been almost two months since Chocolate Bobka took over the basement of the Lutheran Church of the Messiah, and brought the sweet un-amplified sounds of Mountain Man and Alex Bleeker to this holy place.  It was a truly surreal experience to see so many people sitting quietly while these bands played their music in such a  peaceful setting.  It was the type of thing that can only happen when the people at an event want to be there, and aren’t just there because it was the cool thing to do…and that is what made this night so special.

While I had heard “Animal Tracks” before this was my first real experience with Mountain Man.  If you didn’t already know Mountain Man is actually three ladies from Bennington, Vermont who make mostly acapella folk music with the occasional use of acoustic guitar.  Their performance at the Church was nothing short of magical. From Singing with Alex Bleeker and performing a cover of “Oh, Boy” by Girls , covering  “My Roots are Strong and Deep” by Phil Elverum’s The Microphones, and even Tom Waits….

Mountain Man- “Green Grass (Tom Waits cover)” into “Animal Tracks”

Ray Concepcioñ always does an amazing job capturing Chocolate Bobka’s events.  I also recorded their cover of “Green Grass,” and while I’m not a magician with a camera like Ray is (nor do I have that type of equipment) I feel that this video captures the setting and vibe of the church.  The complete lack of light, the politeness of the audience, and what it felt like to be at such a unique event.

Mountain Man- “Green Grass (Tom Waits cover)”

I’m honestly not a Tom Waits fan, but this version can make even a person that hates Tom Waits like this song. These covers were in addition to their own beautiful musical creations.

Mountain Man was selling limited edition copies of their self titled cd-r at the show.  The cd-r’s that Mountain Man had at the Church were all made by hand out of paper bags, sewn together, and then decorated.  Every copy was different.  This version, from my understanding, is different than what they released earlier in 2009 because it has two additional songs: “Loon Song” and “Buffalo.”  I’m really happy to have been able to get a copy of one of their releases after reading about them non-stop for for so long.

If I had just heard this record without seeing them live I would have thought the music came from another time.  It’s oldtime-y in a way that feels classic, and if knew nothing about these ladies I would not be able to guess when it was released.  If you haven’t experienced them yet I’m happy to share a couple tracks with you now…  “Animal Tracks” is already a classic:

[mp3] Mountain Man- “Animal Tracks”

“Buffalo” is one of the newest tracks to emerge from these ladies, and while it still keeps the same vibe as the rest it brings us much closer to the plains than the mountains.  An ode to this glorious beast, and so short and sweet at that.  I’ve listened to this track probably a dozen times today…. follow the buffalo:

[mp3] Mountain Man- “Buffalo”

If you are interested in hearing more Mountain Man and don’t mind having a digital copy you can buy their 7 song EP directly from the band here.   This website also allows you to stream the entire album, and has a complete list of their West Coast tour…which is currently going on.  If you are in San Francisco this weekend I highly recommend checking them out.

Many of these tracks will be seeing proper release on one of my new favorite record labels…the magnificent Underwater Peoples.  Keep an eye out…it’s going to be a 10″, and is sure to be a must have.

Previously posted mp3s featuring Mountain Man:

[mp3] Alex Bleeker w/ Molly Searle of Mountain Man- “Oh, Boy (Girls cover)”

[mp3] Alex Bleeker and the Freaks- “Animal Tracks (Mountain Man cover)”

• Buy Alex Bleeker’s self titled LP here.

Mountain Man is just one of the many reasons why Vermont is such a wonderful state…maybe I will live there one day.

Links:

• the photo above was taken by Rez Avissar at the Lutheran Church of the Messiah.  More photos taken by Rez from this show can be found here.
• more on Underwater Peoples can be found here.
• more on Alex Bleeker can be found here.

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I was going to a Best Of Limited Releases for 2009, and figured my energy would be better spent making this post.  Mountain Man’s cd-r is everything I look for in a limited release…amazing music, and packaging made with loving care.

There were several other releases that have made my shortlist of Best Limited Releases of 2009, and all of those have been previously covered in my posts called This Week In Mail Order.  Here is that list, and links to the original posts:

• Mount Eerie- White Stag
• Karl Blau- Baby Nettles
• Karl Blau- 96
• Cloud Nothings- Turning On

more of my best of lists can be found here.

So the holidays are looking pretty dismal this year for me…car broken, car fixed, car broken 30 minutes after being fixed…so it looks like Brooklyn is where I’ll be for the holidays.  Since I’m trying to kill time until I go check on the car again (which is already back at the mechanic) I thought I would put up a couple not so holiday themed Christmas songs…and why are they not so holiday themed?  Well I’m not feeling in the spirit enough to listen to my favorite album, Vince Guaraldi Trio’s Charlie Brown Christmas (BUY IT HERE!!!), so these are doing ok to keep my mind on and off the season, as well as being slightly related to the time of year.

Parenthetical Girls is a band I have been meaning to check out, whether it is a blog or Gareth from LC! talking about them I feel like their name has been floating around for far too long for me not to have heard them yet. No Conclusion posted a couple tracks from their self released Christmas 7″, and the original (the other is a cover) titled “Flowers For Albion” is pretty amazing.  It mentions Christmas, but doesn’t give a holiday vibe.  Parenthetical Girls sound like they could be from somewhere in Europe, but in actuality they hail from Portland, Oregon. Their sound makes me think it should be called cinematic pop, something that should be in a movie but has not been found yet. If this Christmas single is anything like their other albums (which apparently they have a lot of them) I should be checking them out soon.

[mp3] Parenthetical Girls- “Flowers in Albion”
buy the Christmas Creeps 7″ here.

Candy Claws is a band that I have been hearing about for months from Weekly Tape Deck, Chocolate Bobka, and Mimi at Made A Blog.  While studying for the GRE I downloaded the Glacial Prey EP, and found exactly what people have been talking about.  Candy Claws make music that is both pop and ambient, tropical and chilly, and that makes you wonder if they come from outer space or from deep below the sea.  ”Christmas Love” is a track off of Glacial Prey, and just so happens to fit the season.  Candy Claws also released In the Dream of Sea Life a full length that has worked it’s way into my regular listening too…I wish I had found out about them earlier in the year…very dreamy.

[mp3] Candy Claws- “Christmas Love”
download Glacial Prey for free here.
there is another ep for download, and information on how to buy In the Dream Of Sea Life here.

When Karl Blau was in town a couple months back I picked up a copy of The Coconutcracker Suite, his re-interpretation of the Nutcracker but adapted to reggae.  Coming from Karl Blau it is no surprise that this album is phenomenal, and has already become a holiday staple in my house.  While it might not appear to be holiday themed, click play…you will be pleasantly surprised.  I’ve written extensively on Karl Blau this year…read it all here.

[mp3] Karl Blau- “Trepak”
buy the Coconutcracker Suite here.

The next song was recorded for the Ear Farm Christmas album (lots of good stuff on there too!).  Shark? is a newish Brooklyn band that has been playing with Liam the Younger, Family Portrait, and the like…and that is a good thing.  I’m pretty sure they are loosely related to the wonderful Quiet Color blog too.  Shark? make distorted grungy rock and roll, and have several eps for free download here (downloaded both of them the other day, thanks Shark?!). They covered one of my favorites for the Ear Farm x-mas album, and I have for you to hear right now:

[mp3] Shark?- “Christmas (Beat Happening cover)”
Buy Do You Ear What I Ear here.

Last but not least is a 90’s classic, and a tribute kind of to Christmas. Archers Of Loaf for me are right up there with Pavement, and “Assassination of X-Mas Eve” is one of those songs that hits you a little bit of the wrong way the first time you hear it, but you come to love it. When are Archers of Loaf going to get back together for a reunion?  I might be more into that than the Pavement reunion?

[mp3] Archers Of Loaf- “Assassination on X-Mas Eve”
from All the Nations Airports. Buy it here.

I know it’s been a while since the last Speed Dating post, but I’m half way done with the next one…so maybe next week…until then keep your loved ones close and have a happy holiday…I’ll be trying to do the same.  cheers.

It’s been a while since we heard from one of my favorite artists of 2009, but Brian Kelly and So Cow are back with a new set of cover songs!  This time it includes:  The Soft Boys, The Go- Betweens, Del Shannon, Tall Dwarfs, Local Living Guy,  Amature Amplifier, I Love JH, and Shonen Knife.

here is a sample:

[mp3] So Cow- “Jenny (I Love JH cover)”

[mp3] So Cow- “Lee Remick (The Go-Betweens cover)”

get the whole thing here:

[free album download] So Cow- In The Sitting Room

Rumor has it tours and a new LP (maybe some singles) in 2009 (so excited)!  If you are in Europe you might be able to catch So Cow before the end of the year…check out the tour dates on his myspace.

I’ve written about So Cow many times this year, including a This Week In Mail Order post, you can read all of those here.

If you haven’t purchased So Cow’s amazing self titled (American) debut I highly recommend it.

Buy it from Tic Tac Totally here, or if you need to buy other things too…at Insound! (It makes a great Christmas present)

as a bonus here is the video from I Love JH with the original of “Jenny”:

Links:

• more on So Cow here.
• So Cow website/myspace
• buy So Cow releases here
• I Love JH myspace

XX Merge is long gone…but the memories came flooding back today when Pitchfork posted Lambchop performing “Give It” which bridged into a cover of “Once In a Life Time.” Even though I had been told to listen to Lambchop many times in the past seeing him play at XX Merge was my first experience, and I can say I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.  Now you get a little taste of this magic too:

Lambchop’s performance from the XX Merge Festival will be released both digitally and physically later this month, and here are the details:

• Limited Edition CD + high definition QuickTime download (1280×720) of the concert film. – $12.98 (CD preorders before November 24 will also receive an MP3 download code via email on November 17)

• MP3 + high definition QuickTime download (1280×720) of the concert film – $12.99 (Available November 17)

• MP3 + standard definition QuickTime download (400 × 225) of the concert film – $9.99 (Available November 17)

This will be available at the Merge Store!

Lambchop was by far one of the highlights of the festival for me, and I can’t wait to own that recording.  I knew there was a reason why that didn’t pop up on the Merge site with the rest of the videos from the festival….and now we know.

Links:

• more on XX Merge can be found here.

It’s not often you hear two three bands cover the same song with in a week of each other, but with Halloween quickly approaching I guess it’s not a surprise that the Misfits are out in various forms.

I’m actually really happy to be hearing covers of the Misfits, because although I hadn’t thought about it until recently the Misfits are one of those punk bands, especially down south, that gets embraced by frat boys.  Where you might be walking past a Frat house, and hear it blasting loudly out of the windows.  Nothing wrong with this, but not the punk rock mentality I had when I was rocking it in eighth grade…and after all the Misfits weren’t all that great after Walk Among Us.

The first cover was a little more out of left field, and came from the pop group A Sunny Day in Glasgow, who are headed by Ben Daniels.  I haven’t put on a Misfits’ album in years, but this cover seems to be popping up on my iPod quite a bit these days.   It’s an interesting more upbeat take on the goth punk classic, and in my opinion done really well.

[mp3] A Sunny Day In Glasgow- “Hybrid Moments”

During all of the CMJ craziness I was fortunate enough to make it into the Matador/True Panther showcase at the Suffolk last Friday night.  The Suffolk was a weird space with a lobby area that felt like a warehouse,  a tiny little bar, a theatre that had random bleacher seats on the side, and a smoking area that wasn’t much bigger than my living room which had formerly been covered in sand.  The space was pretty empty, but the owner of the space (not Matador) was freaking out, and said it was at capacity.  People got let in slowly, but friends of mine waited in line for well over an hour.

It was all worth it for Cold Cave (more to come on them later), and Ted Leo. This was my first time seeing Ted Leo, and while I have known about his music for a long time this year is the first time that I have really gotten into it.  I knew that Ted Leo had been associated with the punk scene, and put out numerous albums on the new defunct Lookout! Records, but when listening to his unique voice and great guitar on your stereo you don’t necessarily realize that his shows are very much punk rock.

Ted Leo played an amazing set, and the second to last song was…you guessed it:

Ted Leo- “Hybrid Moments” live at the Matador/True Panther Party at The Suffolk

Please excuse the shakiness…I got a little bit moshed, and as you can see by the end of the video security wasn’t so happy about the moshing/stage diving…I guess they deserved it for being so up tight about letting people in.  Ted Leo really knows how to bring it.

And while I’m at it…the original:

This puts me in the mood for pumpkin carving… tonight.

UPDATE:

Ryan over at Catbird Seat just posted another version of “Hybrid Moments” in the comments.  This time it is the Minus Story.

[mp3] Minus Story- “Hybrid Moments”

this version appears on the Minus Story’s Heaven and Hell.  Buy it here. This is the most mellow of the four versions, and makes me think that I should probably be checking out more music by the Minus Story…a great introduction! Thanks again Ryan.

Links:

• Buy releases by A Sunny Day In Glasgow here.
• Buy releases by Ted Leo here.
• Buy the Misfits’ Static Age here.
• Buy releases by Minus Story here.

This is going to be a new feature (again irregular feature) here on the Great Pumpkin, and I think this edition is going to be one of the most unique from the series, and it is only the first.  When I find a unique cover song I will be posting it along with the original (if possible), and in this case both versions are unique, and wonderful.

The original version of “This Blackest Purse” was written and recorded by Why?, and was released on the album Eskimo Snow this year (actually recorded during the Alopecia sessions).  Why? is one of those artist that I know from the early days of Anticon (see below), and have occasionally caught part of his sets over the years (when playing with Islands or Mount Eerie) but haven’t followed his career that closely… no reason really either. “This Blackest Purse” is an experimental piano pop song, a little Ben Folds-esque, but definitely with the bizarre twists, and lyrics, that Why? is known for.

[mp3] Why?- “This Blackest Purse” (buy Eskimo Snow here)

Recently P4k posted a cover of this track that Karl Blau did, and while it is no surprise to see Blau doing cover songs… I was really intrigued by him covering Why?.  Blau’s contrasts Why?’s piano pop with mostly minimalist electronics, almost atmospheric,  rendition of the track (not unexpected):

[mp3] Karl Blau- “This Blackest Purse (Why? cover)”

I agree with p4k’s observation that what makes the cover unique is the difference in the delivery of the lyrics.  Why? is known for his out there lyrics, but Blau’s minimalistic rendition of the track really brings them down to a more human level, and rather than bizarre they come off slightly awkward with Blau’s soft spoken abnormal cadence.  Musically when hearing the tracks separately they seem very different, but if you play each section by section the notes of electronics almost match perfectly with Why?’s piano.  Blau’s  Overall I’m pretty impressed with both versions, and in the end Karl Blau probably just made me listen to Eskimo Snow.

While I’m talking about Blau and Why? I thought I would add some bonuses on to the post too (afterall it is Friday!).

Lots of people have been finding my blog searching for Karl Blau’s Baby Nettles, and I haven’t had a chance to post any of it here, and thought this is as good a time as any.  I present to you “Song For Kevin” a fuzzy distorted electronic slow grooving dance number that bridges into a heavy psych jam…something only Blau can do.

[mp3] Karl Blau- “Song for Kevin”

When ever I hear Why? I always think of one particular song, and that comes from Sole’s album titled Bottle Of Humans that came out on Anticon in 2000.  This happens to be one of my favorite hip hop albums of all time, and Why? collaborates with Sole on the track “Center City.”  For me this has always been a quintessential subway song.  When I first moved to the city I have fond memories of listening to this on the subway, and even memories of thinking about listening to this song on the subway far before I moved here.

[mp3] Sole ft. Why?- “Center City” (buy Bottle Of Humans here).

If you have a chance download it and listen to it on the subway this weekend…I would love to hear your feedback.

Links:

• more on Karl Blau here.
• buy albums by Karl Blau here.
• buy albums by Why?  here.
• buy albums by Sole  here.