Issue #70- Double Flashback Friday!

Since uh... I totally shafted you guys on Flashback Friday last week, I guess I could definitely double up this week to make up for it... and I'm going to tie it into two of this week's artists.

Imogen Heap has a new album out as reported earlier this week. She used to be in a duet called Frou Frou, which was actually pretty mainstream and catchy at times. Here's their song that was featured on the Garden State Soundtrack, "Let Go"



And, we also reported that John Hampson of Nine Days is releasing a solo album. Back in 2002, the band was set to release their sophomore album "So Happily Unsatisfied," but got dropped from their label two weeks before it hit stores. Nice. This song was released to radio with minor results. It could have been bigger if... you know... the record label cared. It was called "Good Friend"



Enjoy the weekend!

Issue #69- Graham Colton- "Twenty Something"

Here's a singer-songwriter that deserves much more mainstream attention than what he is currently getting.

Graham Colton got his start in Oklahoma City, and could have been a football player. (His buddy is Wes Walker of the Patriots. Together they won the Oklahoma 2A State Championship back in 1998.) Graham decided to pursue music though, and quickly worked on some demos and EPs. In 2002, one of his EPs fell into the hands of Counting Crows lead singer Adam Duritz, who invited Graham to open on their tour. In 2004, Graham teamed up with a band, and released his major label debut, "Drive." The Graham Colton Band toured extensively behind the singles "Don't Give Up On Me," "First Week," and "Cigarette." The band toured with Kelly Clarkson (with whom Graham briefly dated). In October 2007, he released his solo follow-up album, "Here Right Now." His single "Best Days" was featured on American Idol, iTunes, ABC, and HBO.

Now, Graham has recorded an acoustic EP on his own in some studios in Norman, Oklahoma, and released it through his website. Entitled, "Twenty Something EP," he released the title track as a single. Enjoy "Twenty Something" by Graham Colton.

Click HERE to hear Graham Colton's new single.

Issue #68- John Hampson- "How Much"

Remember the band Nine Days? They had that one hit "Absolutely (Story of a Girl)" then kind of fell off the face of the earth? Their lead singer is back with a solo album.

John Hampson is his name, and what has he been doing since Nine Days had a Top 10 hit in 2000? Well, the band actually released three full length albums. There was 2000's "The Madding Crowd" which featured "Absolutely," and the follow-up hit "If I Am." They recorded the follow-up album, "So Happily Unsatisfied," but found themselves dropped by their record label mere weeks before it was released. After a ton of legal wrangling, they wrenched the album free of their old record label, and released it themselves. They also released "Flying the Corporate Jet" in 2003, and a six song EP entitled "Slow Motion Life (Part One)" in 2007.

Lead singer John Hampson toyed with the idea of writing a solo album, while working his new job, teaching English at a Long Island high school. He finally released "Shiny New Album" in June. This is the first single off the album. It's called "How Much." Enjoy.

How Much (Demo) - John Hampson

Issue #67- Imogen Heap- "First Train Home"

I don't quite know how Imogen Heap isn't bigger in the United States. Her music is mainstream sounding enough to fit in with the Pop world, but still indie enough to qualify as "Alternative." Yet neither has truly latched onto her music.

She started out in 1998 releasing a solo album "I Megaphone," to critical acclaim. She fell victim to record label douchebaggery though, and went through a rough stretch of years where her career was in limbo.

In 2001, she had teamed up with Guy Sigsworth, who had produced a track on her debut album, and formed the duo Frou Frou. They released an album entitled "Details" in 2002, and led it off with the single "Breathe In." They gathered more attention with their song "Let Go" from the "Garden State" soundtrack. Imogen Heap decided to pursue a second solo album after this.

In 2005, she released "Speak For Yourself," first in the UK, and eventually in the US, to more critical acclaim, and some better public recognition. She has finally followed this up with the album "Ellipse," to be released on August 25th.

We feature the first single off her new album. Enjoy "First Train Home" by Imogen Heap.

Issue #66- The Temper Trap- "Sweet Disposition"

G'Day mates! Today we head to Australia for our blog entry. You may have heard this song featured in commercials for the movie "500 Days of Summer," and you'll find the song on the movie's soundtrack.

So far in their career, they've only released one EP (The Temper Trap EP) in 2006, and their debut full-length "Conditions" which is available in Australia, soon to be available in England, and I don't believe has a release date for the US yet. (You could probably find it online though.) It's been getting some GREAT reviews though... averaging at least 4 out of 5 stars in nearly all it's reviews.

Check it out, and enjoy The Temper Trap, with "Sweet Disposition"

Issue #65- Better Than Ezra- "Black Light"

So yeah, I didn't give Better Than Ezra's latest album, "Paper Empire" a very favorable review when it came out, and now, two months and one live show later, it still hasn't grown on me very much. But there are standout tracks that deserve some attention, and the band has released two of them as singles off the album.

They led off with "Absolutely Still," and self-produced a video that actually looks pretty damn good (see the official video HERE). The song didn't do that well at radio, peaking right around #40 on the charts, but the band is releasing it on their own label, with help from Sony Red. So without big label backing, good songs can easily fall way short. That may be the case with their new single too. It hasn't had an official release date, but a few stations have picked up on it and given it some spins. (Props to 102.7 EQX!)

It's catchy, and sounds a little bit more alternative than their most recent poppier stuff. Check it out. It's Better Than Ezra with "Black Light."

Issue #64- Phoenix- "1901"

Yeah yeah. I'm a little behind on this one. Sue me!

Phoenix is a French band started out as a backing band for the band Air before branching out themselves in 2000. They released their debut album "United," following it up in 2004 with "Alphabetical" and in 2006 with "It's Never Been Like That." They've had minor stateside success through the time, but are breaking through now with their latest album "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix." The band performed on SNL back in April... perhaps you saw that episode?

Enjoy their first single from "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix." It's "1901"

Issue #63- Owl City- "Fireflies"

Props to a few people who have already heard of this one.

They'll remind you of the Postal Service, both musically and vocally, with slightly more cheesy lyrics. Well, the lyrics can sound cheesy, but they also sound really happy, which can seem rare sometimes anymore.

Adam Young is the one man in Owl City, "formed" in Owatonna, Minnesota. He started playing music in his parents basement while suffering from insomnia. This led to a self-released EP (2007's "Of June"), and a full-length album (2008's "Maybe I'm Dreaming.) Universal Records took notice of him, signed him to the label, and he just released his major-label debut, "Ocean Eyes." (It's available on iTunes currently, the physical CD doesn't hit stores until the 28th)

You can also check out two different side projects Adam Young maintains, Swimming With Dolphins, and Port Blue.

PS- You can download this song for FREE on iTunes... but I'm not sure for how much longer. Jump on it!

Enjoy Owl City... here's "Fireflies"

Issue #62B- BONUS VIDEO!

I'm sorry. There is entirely too much awesome in this video for me to wait a day to post it. Just... enjoy!

Issue #62- Meg and Dia- "Black Wedding"

So... I'm not right on top of this one; apparently it's been out there for a little while, I just didn't find it until now.

Meg & Dia are a sister-duo (now with a full band surrounding them) formed out of St. George, UT. They've released an acoustic EP (2005's "Our Home is Gone"). They followed this up with the full-band infused "Something Real" in 2006, and are now signed to Warner Brothers/Sire Records, where they released "Here, Here and Here" back in April. The album debuted at #103 on the Top 200 Albums Chart, and today's song, "Black Wedding" shot to #25 on the Hot 100 Chart. They might remind you of the Veronicas musically, but with more credibility.

While you may never have heard of them, (if you listened to BZI, you heard their song "Monster" and we had them in for an interview), they have had success in the past as well. The video for their song "Monster" was nominated for an MTVu Woodie Award for "Viral Woodie." They have also toured with Angels & Airwaves, The Spill Canvas, Cute is What We Aim For and more.

Let's give you their latest song. It's Meg & Dia, with "Black Wedding"

Issue #61- Friday Flashback- The Nixons- "Sister"

Normally when you think "Oklahoma," you think Country or Western. But the great state of Oklahoma has produced some good rock bands in it's time, such as The All-American Rejects, Caroline's Spine, Molly's Yes, and today's blog entry, The Nixons.

Formed in Oklahoma City in 1990, the band found it's footing in the 90's Alternative Scene with their 1995 album "Foma" thanks to the popularity of their single "Sister." It climbed to #6 on the Mainstream Rock chart, and #11 on the Modern Rock Chart. Unfortunately, their follow-ups failed to capture the attention of the rock audience. Their self-titled 1997 album barely cracked into the Top 200, and their final release, 2000's "The Latest Thing" sadly, barely made a blip on the radar (even though "First Trip" off of said album was pretty damn good, in this blogger's opinion.)

Lead singer Zac Malloy has had a respectable independent solo career, releasing two solo albums and an EP. He has also done a ton of songwriting and producing, helping out artists like Hanson (yes... THAT Hanson), Daughtry, Bowling for Soup, and he co-wrote Our Lady Peace's latest single "All You Did Was Save My Life."

We'll go back to 1995, with the song you probably heard, but also probably forgot all about. It's the Nixons, with "Sister."

Issue #60- The Killer And The Star- "Starts When You Fall"

Usually I try to read up on bands before I give the song a listen, just so I know a back story... but I hadn't gotten around to it for today's band, and when I did, it kind of surprised me.

Scooter Ward, the frontman from the band Cold is the man behind The Killer and the Star, a project started as a solo side-project. I haven't heard the entire album yet, but the song I had come across my computer is slightly different than the music usually heard in Cold. (It sounds more like "No One" than "Stupid Girl" or "Just Got Wicked.")

It's a slower, but still dark side. I'm personally not 100% sold on this song yet.. it sounds like it still needs something... but I'll throw it on the blog for today. Enjoy The Killer and the Star, and "Starts When You Fall"

Issue #59- Sister Hazel- "Take a Bow"

It's been 12 years since "All For You" all but consumed radio airwaves and became an anthem for the year 1997, and Sister Hazel's popularity has faded since, but give them credit, they are still cranking out amazing music. Whether it's 2000's "Change Your Mind" or "Champagne High" or their cover of the Cars classic "Just What I Needed

Their 7th album, titled "Release" is set to hit stores August 18th on their own Croakin' Poets record label. Just because they don't have a major label promoting them, it probably won't be a #1 hit... but give it a listen... it's good music. Here's their latest single, "Take a Bow"

You gotta CLICK HERE to check the song out.

Issue #58B- Third Eye Blind- "Don't Believe a Word"

You know what's rare in music?

When a band hasn't released an album for six years, and hasn't had a hit in 9 years, shows back up, and people pay attention. Most times, bands are forgotten if they are out of the spotlight for that long. Not Third Eye Blind.

We first started hearing trickles of new music from 3EB in late 2008, as they digitally released an EP, gearing up for the full-album release (coming in August.) Their song "Non-Dairy Creamer" sparked some radio airplay, amidst curiosity, and some controversy over it's lyrics. Now the band prepares to release "Ursa Major" on August 18th, and says an album "Ursa Minor" will also hit stores eventually.

If I read the info correctly, the band is on their own label, with distribution through Sony RED, much like how Better Than Ezra released their last album, "Paper Empire."

From "Ursa Major," it's Third Eye Blind, with "Don't Believe a Word."

Issue #58A- WORST. COVER. EVER.

I've received this video a couple of times this past week, and decided I just HAD to share.

Christian scream-core band Confide have decided to release a cover of The Postal Service's 2003 hit "Such Great Heights." The beginning starts out pretty close to the original...then...uh... it all goes to hell. Give it a listen yourself.



Well... I'm torn... I think it ties this song as "worst cover ever."

Issue #57- Bleu- "Come 'N Go"

WACKY WAVING INFLATABLE ARM FLAILING TUBE MAN!
WACKY WAVING INFLATABLE ARM FLAILING TUBE MAN!

Hi! I'm Beej from Beej's Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man Music Video Emporium and Warehouse! Thanks to some internet searching, I have a music video with Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Men in them, and I'm passing the savings on to YOUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!

His name is Bleu, (the first person to shout "YOU'RE MY BOY BLEU!" gets castrated), and he's actually been around since 1999, first as a member of a band called "L.E.O." and then going out solo on his own. He broke into the mainstream slightly in 2003 with the release of his album "Redhead" which sparked the semi-hit "I Won't Go Hollywood." It's taken him a while, but tomorrow we see the release of his follow-up album, "A Watched Pot." Check it out if you like.

Enjoy his lead-off single, "Come 'N Go". You can find it in a record store on Route 2 in WEEEEKOPOGGGGGGGGG!



PS- If you don't get the reference.... you need to watch more TV... specifically this:

Issue #56- Flashback Week- Crystal Method- "Murder"

Flashback week (at least this edition) has come to an end, so let's finish it up on a more upbeat note.

I'm not a huge Crystal Method fan... I couldn't tell you any of their songs other than the ones that dotted Alternative radio through the 90s, but when we played this song on the Music Video show I worked on in college, it stood out pretty well to me. Why? First, it features Scott Weiland on vocals. Secondly... it's a music video with a murderous blow-up doll. How can it NOT be good.

Enjoy the video, but you'll have to click on it to see it, since again, Universal Music doesn't allow people to embed their videos. Bastards. So go ahead and CLICK HERE to check out the video.

Issue #55- Flashback Week- Further Seems Forever- "Light Up Ahead"

Further Seems Forever is to the 2000's as what Van Halen was to the 1980's and 1990's. I'm not talking about being a big-ass arena rock band. Both bands have gone through three lead singers. (Of course for Van Halen that would be David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar, and Gary Cherone.)

Further Seems Forever started in 1998, with Chris Carrabba leading the way. He held down the vocals for their 2001 album "The Moon is Down" before departing to start his semi-solo brainchild Dashboard Confessional. The band scurried and found Jason Gleason t be their next lead singer, who did vocals for 2003's "How To Start a Fire," which had the semi-hit "The Sound." He came from the band Affinity, but quit in 2004 for "interpersonal reasons." Once again left to look, the band took on former Sense Field singer Jon Bunch for their 2004 album "Hide Nothing." The band decided to split afterward, citing family as their reason for calling it quits. There has been a best-of compilation including songs from all three singers.

We'll take a song off their 2004 album "Hide Nothing," when Jon Bunch was fronting them. Sadly, Tooth And Nail records won't let me embed the video, so you'll have to click over to it. It's a very well done animated video for the song "Light Up Ahead."

CLICK HERE to watch the video for "Light Up Ahead" by Further Seems Forever!

Issue #54- Flashback Week- Touch & Go- "Would You...?"

If there's one thing I love, it's bizarre-ass 90's music videos. The 90s were a time where Grunge and Alternative videos took "weird" to a new level, and today's song/video is no different.

Touch and Go is a UK ensemble, being labeled as "Jazz-Pop." They were much bigger in Europe than here in the US, scoring hits with "Would You...?", "Straight...To Number One" and "Tango in Harlem." I actually can't find any evidence of them hitting the charts in the US, but somehow I stumbled upon their MP3. The vocals, I don't believe, are actually any of the band members themselves, and the lyrics, according to the always-accurate Wikipedia, are from a 1978 Psychological study.

Either way, it makes for an interesting song, and a weird ass video. Enjoy Touch and Go, with "Would You...?"

Issue #53- Flashback Week- The Shore

I, for the longest time, thought this band was from England, just judging by the sound of the music they make. They are actually from Silver Lake, California, and are just heavily influenced by the Britpop sound.


The band came together in 2002, mainly by frontman Ben Ashley. He brought together the rest of the band, and they were signed just a few months after recording their first demos.

The band released their self-titled debut album in 2004, with a few minor hits, such as "The Long Road" and "Firefly." They attempted to cross over to pop with their song "Waiting for The Sun" with little results.

The band seems to have been dropped from their record label, and released an album, 2008's "Light Years" by themselves. They're touring too, but sticking close to their home-base in California.

Check out today's Flashback Week entry, from 2002, it's The Shore, and "Waiting For The Sun."

Issue #52- Flashback Week- Sponge

I sat down this week and sifted through some new music and realized something... I'm not very impressed with what I have in front of me. There are a couple of new songs I have ready to go for the blog, but the quality of music out there just isn't great at the moment. So... in order to go through some more music, I've decided to throw together a full Flashback week here on the blog.

We'll kick it off with a band that IS still kicking around new music, their latest album being 2007's "Galore Galore." They made their debut back in 1995, as they broke onto the scene with their debut album "Rotting Pinata." and followed it up with 1997's "Wax Ecstatic." All total, they have six albums to their name, and three Top-10 songs.

We'll give you two of them:

From 1995, here's the one everyone knows... it's Sponge and "Plowed"





And from 1997, their slower side... with "Have You Seen Mary"


Sponge - Have You Seen Mary (Official Music Video) - More free videos are here

Issue #51- Friday Flashback- Motion City Soundtrack- "L.G. Fuad"

This week's Friday Flashback isn't flashing back too far at all... only back to 2005, when Motion City Soundtrack was seeing their fame rise. They've been around since 1997, blasting from the musical hotbed of Minneapolis. In 2005, they released their sophomore disc, "Commit This To Memory," which was produced by Mark Hoppus of Blink 182. The band saw minor hits with "Everything is Alright," and "Better Open The Door," but found cult classic status with their song about coping with some shitty situation by getting completely wasted (or at least that's how I hear it.)

The song title is short for "Let's Get Fucked Up and Die," but I guess the record label wanted a more, uh... sellable title... so it got shortened. Enjoy today's Friday Flashback, Motion City Soundtrack's "LG. Fuad."

Issue #50- Cobra Starship- "Good Girls Go Bad"

From the ashes of one band comes the start of another.

You may have heard of Cobra Starship before. They did the song "Snakes on a Plane" for the movie... well... "Snakes on a Plane," and have been churning out some pretty good dance-rock since.

Cobra Startship was founded by former Midtown bassit/vocalist Gabe Saporta, and have cranked out three albums, 2006's "While The City Sleeps, We Rule The Streets," 2007's, "Viva La Cobra!" and their latest, 2009's "Hot Mess," to be released on August 11th. For the leadoff single, they team up with actress Leighton Meester, who can sing surprisingly well. The only negative on this song... the stupid cheerleader-esque breakdown in the middle. Gwen Stefani tried it as an entire song (I don't know what a Hollaback Girl is... I just know I want her dead), and failed miserably.

Either way.. enjoy today's entry... Cobra Starship featuring Leighton Meester, with "Good Girls Go Bad."

Issue #49- Anberlin- "Breaking"

I've been sitting on this song, waiting to use it for a while... only because it's release date kept getting pushed back.

Anberlin is on their 4 major release (5th if you include their B-Sides album) and are finally finding major commercial success... which is rare, since most record labels won't keep putting money into you if you don't sell like gangbusters on your first album or two. The band released their first 3 albums on indie label Tooth & Nail, then moved to major label Universal. Under Universal's umbrella of uh... having more money than Tooth & Nail to promote them, they've taken off.

"The Feel Good Drag," the lead-off single to their latest album, "New Surrender" was a slow climber, and looked to be fading off, so back in January, the label announced "Breaking" as the next single. But "The Feel Good Drag" kept climbing...and climbing, so "Breaking" kept getting pushed back. Finally "The Feel Good Drag" hit #1, so it was time for it to fade...but the song continues to hand around in the Top 10 of the Alternative chart. Finally, "Breaking" has another radio release date, and I don't feel like sitting on this great track already.

Today's best music blog entry is from Anberlin. Here's "Breaking."