Strand of Oaks - Trap Door

Strand of Oaks' first album from 2010, Pope Killdragon, somehow still grows on me with each listen, which makes me very excited for his upcoming release. The first single released, "Maureen's", jolts you with it's honesty and proves that Timothy Showalter is still the same talented songwriter we know from his first album. The new track, "Trap Door", is a bit more upbeat, and as long as you don't get distracted by the constant cymbals, it's a wonderful showcase of Showalter's warm vocals. Strand of Oaks' sophomore album, Dark Shores, will be available July 24th, and you can pre-order it on bandcamp.

"When you give it all away again, save a little bit for me." 

Wolf Rider - For You (Travelin' Bags)

Wolf Rider is a new band out of California with only this one song to their name, at least according to the internet. But what a song it is, full of whistling, hand claps, and lyrics about an intense dedication to someone else. What's not to love here?

Connect: Site // Soundcloud

Fletcher C Johnson - Send Me Your Love

Hot damn, this song is all kinds of perfect. It's a cheery tune with one hell of  a guitar hook and falsetto voice.  Little by little I felt a smile creeping on my face, which turned into doing the shoulder dance moves in my chair, and before I knew it, I was hitting the play button again and again. The 2 minutes and 12 seconds goes by all too fast  but that doesn't mean you won't be singing along to the catchy "you've got to send me your love" bits by the end of your first listen.


"Send Me Your Love" is from Fletcher C Johnson's latest album, Salutations, out now on Burger Records. Check out previous releases and free downloads on the bandcamp page. Listen to a live performance at KEXP from this past June. Thanks to Everybody Taste for the tip on this one.

Jessie Ware - Wildest Moments

Jessie Ware, a rising UK pop singer has done a tremendous job with her song "Wildest Moments". When you listen to this you might think she's destined to be your typical UK pop star. However, she's been collaborating with all sorts of people from SBTRKT, a well known hip-hop producer, the club scene, getting her songs remixed by big names like Star Slinger, and who knows what else. The reception so far has been warm, but it'll be interesting to hear what type of sound her full length debut will be when it's out later in August.

"Baby, in our wildest moments 

we could be the greatest, 

we could be the greatest.

Baby in our wildest moments 

we could be the worst of all."

Connect: Site // Facebook // Soundcloud

Sea Wolf - Old Friend

Sea Wolf's "Old Friend" is from the upcoming third album, Old World Romance, due out September 11th. This song is sparse, especially in comparison to the previous album that was lush with strings. Not that sparse is a bad thing. I think it makes the lyrics more poignant. That empty space leaves room for your own associations to take hold. The song speaks to vague memories of an old friend, running in the park, standing on rooftops, and distance, and it won't take long until you're thinking about that one friend that you've been meaning to call.

Now we're getting older, and we're growing up, 

so now there's suction in the water and we knew enough.

Stood upon a rooftop on a night so clear, 

that the lights from the city just disappeared. 

I know you don't believe me, when I believe in you. 

I know it'll get much easier if we want it to.

Fort Frances - Summertime (Will Smith Cover)

Hey look, Fort Frances did it again. Another fantastic cover, this one being the most stylisticly different than the other covers they've done. I really could sit back and unwind to this one.

In case you forgot what the original was like--it was released in 1991 after all--check out the classic summer jam below.

Meursault - Flittin'

Meursault was first introduced to me through a lovely in studio session on The Waiting Room radio show a few years back. The Waiting Room is responsible for introducing me to the phrase "new music O face" as well as a tremendous amount of songs and bands that I wouldn't have know about otherwise. Right, I'm actually here to talk about Meursault, an Edinburgh based band about to release their third album, Something For The Weakened, out via Song, By Toad Records.

There's an impressive box set available for purchase (limited 12" colored vinyl, 2 7"s, t-shirt, tote, badges, lyric book) as well as an option to order the vinyl or CD. You can stream the album and read a complete track by track guide from Neil Pennycook of Meursault here. "Flittin'" is the single.

However, what I really want to tell you about is my obsession with the fourth song on the album, "Settling". It's a song you want to play as loudly as possible and it'll make you want to sing along with all your might. I love when he emphasizes the swear in the line "So, ha fucking ha" letting the song succumb to a healthy dose of bitterness. Chris of The Waiting Room played this and called it "a cracking tune". I don't think there is a more fitting adjective than that. Listen to it here (I can't embed the album version) and then check out this acoustic rendition.

Neil Pennycook described this song, saying: This is about finding your use in life despite what you may have wished for yourself. It's about keeping an open mind when it comes to your own potential even if said potential is rather underwhelming. Ha fucking ha.

If you like the acoustic version, be sure to check out this live version which really kicks up the chorus, plus there's a violin.

Sam Cooke

The only music I've listened to was summer mixes and old records this week. Nothing on the new side sounded right. At one bbq, we played the Vampire Weekend Pandora station and I was shocked by how much I enjoyed it. I never use pandora anymore, nor am I really a Vampire Weekend listener, but this made me want to give Pandora another chance. We heard The Lumineers, Of Monsters & Men, The Antlers, and then some Otis Redding and older songs snuck in the mix. The songs that people kept dancing and singing along though were Sam Cooke's. It made me happy. Have a good weekend, I'll be back next week.