Deck The Oakley Halls

Brooklyn sextet Oakley Hall is an American acid cowboy folk rock band. The group prominently features male-female vocal harmonies and its group's melodies closely recall old American folk songs and ballads, though often supported by a driving rock beat. This is what country might sound like if Nashville didn't suck. Lazy Susan Living in Sin in the USA Landlord Eyes, Lock & Steel

Wide Awake It's Morning

As you probably already know, Bright Eyes is an indie rock band consisting of singer-songwriter Conor Oberst, multi-instrumentalist and producer Mike Mogis, and a rotating lineup of collaborators drawn mainly from Omaha's indie music scene. Oberst songwriting has been compared to Bob Dylan, although his themes are often darker, dealing with depression, anxiety, and alcoholism. Bright Eyes has remained signed to the independent label Saddle Creek Records, although the band has enjoyed popularity that rivals that of their major label contemporaries. Amy in the White Coat I Will Be Grateful for This Day Lua We Are Nowhere and It's Now Gold Mine Gutted From a Balance Beam Blue Christmas

Racking Up High Scores

There’s something to be said for environment and the unique creative product that it spawns. The High Score is Southern, all snarls and sass and wit and will. The band hails from Tennessee, and just like the state’s diverse musical legacies in blues, early rock and roll, and country, The High Score’s sound is simultaneously nostalgic and new. If people around there ever used the term “blue-collar,” Knoxville could be described this way, and the honesty and grit that breeds in mid-sized, unaffected towns like this can be heard in each drumbeat and rock riff off of The High Score’s new release, We Showed Up To Leave. The High Score don’t claim to be saving rock and roll, but they sure are having a helluva time representing it. Blown Out Radio Laid Up Ringing in Our Ears Back Tonight

Free Album Friday: The Soft Drugs

T.W. Walsh aka The Soft Drugs has made his The Soft Drugs in Moderation 5-song EP available as a free download. Get it here.

Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark

Via Brooklyn Vegan, it's an archive of mp3s recorded from Halloween records*. And, strangely, a few Spider-man records. Gorge yourself. *Yes, the snaps, crackles and pops are still intact.

Haikus And Senryus

Senryu came pretty close to breaking up before releasing its last album, its crowning achievement to date. You can kind of understand why. It’s got to be hard being in a band when no one gets what you’re doing. And I can’t imagine that many people get Wil Wright’s musical hodgepodge. Their loss. Blending influences like Brian Wilson, The Zombies, Smashing Pumpkins and The Pixies, Senryu is quirky Knoxville pop meets the circus, parades, magicians and sunny days. The Morning After 3-Rings Be Still

Scout's Honor

England's Scout Niblett is the sort of performer who makes you fall in love with music all over again. She wears a blonde wig onstage, records with Steve Albini, tours with Cat Power, and has the voice of an enthusiastic child. She wails over drum-heavy songs so gleefully that you wouldn't be surprised to see her rush off to catch fireflies with her friends. She's like a female version of Calvin from the Calvin & Hobbes comic strip: imaginative, hyperactive and unpredictable. Drummer Boy Fireflies Uptown Top Ranking

Midweek Music Roundup

• Experimental jazz and hip-hop group Soul-Junk have new songs up on their MySpace page. • Three words: Ludacris samples He-Man. • The Accident Experiment is on tour. • Leigh Nash (Sixpence None the Richer) will be releasing a Christmas EP in the coming months. Nash also recently stopped by Gibson Entertainment Relations in New York City to perform a few songs from the new album as well as some old. You can view the performance from The Blue Room by clicking here (then click "live performances" on the left side of the page, and then "Leigh Nash." • Danielson has unveiled a Christiaan Palladino-directed video for "Did I Step On Your Trumpet?" which you can watch from your web browser here. Or, see it with a bonus audio introduction by Daniel Smith as the second installment of the new Secretly Canadian podcast. You can subscribe to the podcast through a few different companies depending on your preference: ITUNES - pcast://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast YAHOO - http://e.my.yahoo.com/config/cstore?.opt=content&.url=http%3a//feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast GOOGLE - http://www.google.com/ig/add?feedurl=http://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast FEEDBURNER - feed://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast Danielson has also announced a European tour starting late November. They will be playing with Jeffrey Lewis for a majority of the month-long tour. For a complete and up-to-date listing of tourdates go here. • Part 2 of the Sojourners audio interview with Moby.

I Heart Kamikazes

Albany's The Kamikaze Hearts make what has been described as upstate porch rock, that is intricately crafted stories told in song. The band appeals to disparate musical tastes, combining four part harmonies with acoustic guitar, snare drum and floor tom, acoustic bass, mandolin, banjo and dobro. The band's latest record, "Oneida Road," came out last month on Collar City Records, nearly three years in the making. Beverly Hills Five Point Turn War Horse No One Called You A Failure Weekend In Western New York C'mon Baby Let's Go Downtown

O Canada

Folk-tinged Ann Arbor natives Canada make music in the tradition of other Michigan acts like Sufjan Stevens, Anathallo, Wolf Eyes, and Thunderbirds Are Now. The band's multi-instrumented songs that even include non-traditional sounds like pots, pans and stomping on the floor. Beige Stationwagon Hexenhaus Hooray for Shipwreck

For The Birds

Daylight's for the Birds started in Winter 2005 when Jay and Phillip started writing wistful soundtracks to the cinematic imagery in their heads. The songs came fast, and they recruited Claudia Deheza to sing on the first batch and Brad Conroy to hold down the epic swirliness with his fantastically bombastic drumming. There were some shows, with a whole host of friends lending their various talents on record and stage, but always, always songs. Through the wonders of chance and all that is good fortune, Amanda Garrett came into their lives in early 2006, and immediately started creating new sonic dreamscapes with them! In May, Dave serendipitously waded out of the rubble of his previous band, The Black Spoons, and right into Daylight's to complete the lineup and play bass. Daylight's debut record will be available October 31 on This Generation Tapes. To No One Worlds Away

Free Album Friday: Swearing At Motorists

Swearing At Motorists' publicist notes that there's a free Web-only album of unreleased songs available: We're really excited to announce the exclusive web-only release of Swearing At Motorists' "Exile On Gipsstraße" a 10 song collection of unreleased songs recorded by Dave Doughman live in an underground train station in Berlin during the making of Last Night Becomes This Morning. These tracks will be available as free downloads for a limited time during the month of October while Swearing At Motorists tour the States. Doughman had the following to say about these songs: "It was late February 2005, and I had just moved from Philadelphia to Berlin. I was in the process of mixing the album Last Night Becomes This Morning (released February 2006 on Secretly Canadian). To keep myself from going insane spending all my time at the mixing console (and to make a little money instead of only spending it), I started taking my guitar to the Ubahnhof - an underground train station - at the end of my street to busk. The first night I didn't make much money, but was floored by the huge sound created in the tube by my unamplified acoustic guitar and voice. So the next night I returned with my tape machine and 2 microphones, set them up, got good levels, and just let the tape roll as I busked. I made a little more money that night, but upon returning home and giving the tape a listen, realized that the trains and passengers were too distracting from the overall recording. So I started going to the station later, near closing time (12:30 am), when there are less passengers and 15 minute pauses between trains. After a few days of this, I was so excited about the sound I was getting, but losing patience with trying to get as much done as possible in 15 minutes, hoping that passengers coming and going would be quiet. By this time, I was playing facing the wall with no hat out, to discourage people from stopping to listen or give me money. I was obsessed with replacing the studio versions of 3 songs on the album, with versions recorded in the Ubahnhof, as I felt they better fit into my concept of the record as a film soundtrack. One night I finally got the courage to wait until the station closed, then climbed over the entrance gate and hurried down into the tube. I got about an hour of uninterrupted recording in before the Polizei politely informed me I had to leave. I ended up getting the versions of "This Is Not How Forever Begins", "Lost Your Wig", and "Ten Dollars" I needed for the album, and was thrilled at how well they worked in the context of the record. Since Last Night Becomes This Morning was released, many folks have commented about how much they love the sound of those 3 songs. That got me thinking it would be interesting to hear how a whole record culled from all those sessions would sound. I like it and I hope you do, too." -Dave Doughman Get the album here. This album is available for free only while Swearing At Motorists is on the road. You only have until Election Day. Tour Dates: 10/13/06 Columbus, OH - Little Brothers w/ The Wrens 10/14/06 Newport, KY - Southgate House w/ The Wrens 10/15/06 Bloomington, IN - Landlocked Music 10/16/06 Chattanooga, TN - LaMar's 10/18/06 Tampa, FL - New World Brewery w/ New Roman Times 10/19/06 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds w/ Holopaw 10/20/06 Orlando, FL - AKA Lounge 10/21/06 St. Augustine, FL - Cafe Eleven w/ Holopaw 10/22/06 Mt. Pleasant, SC - Village Tavern 10/24/06 Nashville, TN - Exit / In 10/26/06 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 w/ Hudson Bell + Dodo Bird 10/27/06 Philadelphia, PA - North Star Bar 10/28/06 Allston, MA - Great Scott 10/29/06 Providence, RI - The Century 11/01/06 New York, NY - Fotana's w/ CMJ Showcase Fields of Gaffney 11/02/06 Dayton, OH - Pearl Nite Club

Suffering Withdrawal

Fullerton, California quintet Withdrawal has been described as "an intriguing cross-pollination of elements of Broken Social Scene and The Mars Volta, as well as Built To Spill crossed with Mogwai." That might be an apt description for this band, which sashays from dreamy, ethereal sounds to prog-rock. Plus, guitarist Jared Rushton starred as a child in the films Big and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Don't hold that against them. Decompresssion Nova Breeze Stalker

Midweek Music Roundup

• Josh Dooley from Starflyer 59 is in a new band called Map. Check them out here and grab four free songs. Speaking of Starfyler 59, the band's new album, My Island, drops September 12. • Dixie Dirt is officially back together and will be going to Nashville to record in November. • David Bazan (AKA Pedro the Lion & Headphones) delivers another Christmas single, this time with renditions of "Away In A Manger" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem". This is the fourth in a series of limited edition Christmas singles for Suicide Squeeze Records. Shipping October 25th! Not in stores until November 7th. On marble vinyl! Relevant Status Quo Magazine also has a two-part interview with Bazan (part one here; part two here). It's semi-insightful. • Sojourners has an interview with Moby about his religious faith. Check it out here. • On October 21, 2006, New York City's underground legends Alice Donut will play its 20th anniversary/record release show at the city's famed Knitting Factory. The band will provide a free live webcast of the show at its web site. • Babygrande Records announced the September 19th release of Jedi Mind Tricks’ fifth album, Servants In Heaven, Kings In Hell. Two tracks were recorded with Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond. Check them out here.

One Man Banjo Band

Phillip Roebuck is, quite simply, a one man banjo band that will blow your mind. Monkey Fist Little Bo Peep (demo) Movement (demo) Summons Song Wheatback Penny Kings County Breakdown Ball Turrett Blues

Goodies Goodies Gumdrops

Part rock and roll circus, part 30s cabaret theatre, part stylistic Mad Libs, The Goodies are a Southeastern musical whirlwind of deviance, musical styles and bizarre themes. Cranberry Lips Smash Your Glasses the Castrato Car Driving Killer Tango Madame Devillia Panola Gravity Big Dragon (live) Pusherman (live) Mr. Francisco (live) Cranberry Lips (live) Devil Went Down to Georgia (live) Plastic (live)

These Arms Are Snakes On A Plane

Born of the ashes of seminal art thrashers Botch and Minneapolis punk heroes Kill Sadie, Seattle's These Arms are Snakes are fast-becoming an integral part of the Pacific Northwest's ever-dynamic musical fabric. Employing sinister guitar licks mixed with equal parts snarly vocals and a pension for spaced out musical long form - has painted the buzz heavy Snakes as anything but conventional. The band has toured endlessly, plastering both coasts with their livid live shows and with their eyes squarely focused on progressing and challenging all the current notions of hardcore, These Arms are Snakes are now poised to take their game to the next level – bringing all the passion and promise of their previous endeavors to splendid completion. Riding the Grape Dragon Horse Girl Big News Also check out these tour dates.

Free Album Friday: Balboa

Balboa is the Big Kahuna of local indie rock, the founding fathers who blazed the trail for all Knoxville rock bands of any importance to follow. The group is universally revered by all longtime Knoxville scenesters, and rightly so. The brainchild of local mad scientist guitar guru Terry Hill, Balboa also featured the guitar artistry of Hector Qirko, bassist Richard Battaglia and drummer Steve Housewright. The combination of Qirko's blues and country swing techniques with Hill's more avant garde guitar mangling created a unique mix, and the rhythm section hammered it all down into a precise and even logical sound. It made perfect sense, and still does. Back in the day, Balboa was considered to fall somewhere under the nebulous umbrella of punk rock, a genre that wasn't nearly as stilted and regimented in the late '70s as it is now. The band's independence, idealism and freeform artistry definitely fit into the punk aesthetic, which was—at the time—about creative and political freedom. The first wave of punk was inextricably linked with the art world (see the Velvet Underground, Patti Smith, Television, et. al.) and Balboa was an art-rock band that purposely steered clear of pretension. What makes the tunes on Live Like This (plus) sound so classic is that they are not bound within a time-specific context. To this day, the songs sound urgent and modern. Get Live Like This (plus) here.

I See London, I See Page France

Page France is Daytrotter’s featured artist this week. Stop by for two tracks off their recent Suicide Squeeze release, Hello, Dear Wind, and two as of now unreleased songs, "The Ruby Ring Man" and "Antartica." The Ruby Ring Man Chariot Dogs Antartica Also check out these tour dates.

Midweek Music Roundup

• Live mp3s of David Bazan performing "Silent Night" and "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", with a few added lyrics for good measure. • Brooklyn Vegan has a better video of Sufjan Stevens performing new song "Her Majesty Songbird." Check it out here. And here’s Sufjan’s full September 29 show from Town Hall in New York. • Recorded last summer, check out this podcast featuring Damien Jurado. Jurado talks about his new record, his new band and his love for Dio. There’s also a special rendition of Holy Diver. From I-Tunes: pcast://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast From Yahoo: http://add.my.yahoo.com/rss?url=http://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast From Google: http://www.google.com/ig/add?feedurl=http://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast From Feedburner: http://feeds.feedburner.com/SCPodcast • Unwed Sailor has a new song on their MySpace page. • Copper has a new unreleased song up on their MySpace page.

Cowboy Baby

Lead man and maestro, Daniel Schwartz, has a dream and he is making it a reality with his thrilling original songs. The music is versatile, showcasing elements and influence from all genres. Self-categorized as “urban country,” Unlikely Cowboy incorporates the sometimes feel good, sometimes heartbreaking twang of traditional country, and adapts to appeal to audiences of all ages and demographics. You're The First The Sound the Darkness Makes You Steal All Our Wine Back to Brooklyn

All Heart

Baltimore-based Metal Hearts is made up of 18-year old Anar Badalov and 19-year old Flora Wolpert-Checknoff (alongside drummer and recording engineer Sam Leiber). The band manages to harness the misery and pain of the young adult years, turning it into something both raw and beautiful. Originally from Azerbaijan and Greece, respectively, Badalov and Wolpert-Checknoff met through a mutual friend/girlfriend. Before long the two were collaborating on songs by e-mail from their respective university campuses. Metal Hearts fuses Badalov and Wolpert-Checknoff’s male and female voices over layers of moody guitar melodies, drifting cello and saxophones, and the ever-present pulsations of the drum machine. At times the duo sounds a bit distant, forgoing mellow for melancholy. But somehow that makes these frail and seductive tunes all the more compelling. If you didn’t know any better, you’d swear Metal Hearts had been making these quiet hymns of unhappiness for decades. This album is every high school kids’ dreary bedroom diary. Foothills Socialize