YOU KNOW IT'S SO HARD TO LOVE SOMEONE THAT DON'T LOVE YOU

The White Stripes I "Death Letter" I De Stijl
Jack White covering Son House = Brilliance. This White Stripes performance is outstanding. You can just see his passion for the blues coming out of each note. I love how they take it into "Grinnin' in You're Face" at the end, Jack White has said that the a capella Son House song is his favourite song of all time and has had the greatest influence on his music.  Had a chance encounter with him last week before The Dead Weather concert and it was truly an amazing dream come true to meet him in the flesh. He is at the top of my list of musician from this generation too have such a profound impact on me and he is the reason I started learning to play guitar. I will never forget that wonderful day.

PUFFY LIPS GLISTENING SKIN AND EVERYTHING COMES RUSHING IN...

We don't go to hell
memories of us do
I get a sense of connectedness
Exclusive tight but nothing dangerous
We don't go to hell memories of us do
And if you go to hell
I'll still remember you
But I thought you beat the death of
inevitability
to death just a little bit
Terry's gift is forever green
It got me up and back on the scene
we don't go to hell
just our memories do
Fantastic gap common space
Open concept in your smiling face
we don't go to hell memories of us do
And if you go to hell I'll still remember you
The Tragically Hip I "Inevitability of Death" I Day for Night

I LOVE THE WALLS YOU SHINE THROUGH

Detroit Social Club I "Rivers and Rainbows" I Existence
Big things to come from these guys, you can just feel it. This song was released with the single "Silver" in 2008 followed by "Sunshine People", which were two other amazing tracks that had me waiting on their first album release ever since. Hailing from Britain, the bands debut album was released in the UK this May but still has yet to be released in North America. Come on, dying over here! In the meantime I am loving the singles and their self described "Retro-big beat-gospel influenced-junkie folk" sound, couldn't have put it better myself. Don't you just love all the crazy genre descriptions of music these days? haha

OH RECKLESS ABANDON, LIKE NO ONE'S WATCHING YOU

Temper Trap I "Sweet Disposition" I ConditionsOne hell of a feel good song. Was great in 500 Days of Summer.

CAN'T STAND YOU'RE FACE UNTIL IT TOOK...OFF

The Kills I "Cat Claw" I Black Rooster EP
Back in the days of VV and Hotel. I can still remember the day I stumbled upon the Keep On You're Mean Side album and couldn't believe what I heard, musical gold. These two were doing it right, from the start, pure soul pouring out of them.
Not much has changed with Mosshart doing her thing in The Dead Weather, still a chain smoking animal on stage giving the audience everything she has in her and mesmerizing them with her presence. Seeing her preform live, whether with The Kills or The Dead Weather, is a must. She is truly a gift to 21st century rock and roll.

YOU KNOW ALOT CAN HAPPEN AFTER EVERYBODY FALLS ASLEEP...

Ask the forest fire, ask the cop walking on the beat
And do right by them, work a little in your dreams
Don't let time rob you, hold onto your memories
In the glass houses, in the pages of the Rolling Stone
I get a sick feeling, like I'm rocking in a little boat
Hear the big church bell, it's ringing like a mobile phone
Such a long Sunday drive, and I'm taking it all alone
In the last hard drive in the satellites that kick and spin
You'll find that old footage so everything can live again
Pretty pink roses, the ostrich and the elephant
It's the next Noah's ark, everything's got to fit
In the creased pages of a letter I've been trying to send
To a young widow who is desperate for some kind of friend
You'll find a long list of eligible, handsome men
Who want to lay with her, upon the table of the elements
They're going to hold strong to a reason
And cut a new key to the kingdom
And if anybody asks them, say they're going to belong
And if anybody asks them, say that it won't take long now
And if anybody asks them, say they're going to get this done
And if anybody asks them, say they've got a reason

Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band I "I Got The Reason #2" I Outer South

I'D FUCK CRIME IN THE HOUSE OF LOVE

The Raveonettes I "Black / White" I Beauty Dies EP
The Danish duo just keep growing on me more and more. This fantastic song and video from their last EP has become one of my favourite tracks from the band.

ALL YOUR DREAMS ARE CHERRY RED INSIDE YOUR HEAD

One sick song. Two amazing versions. Originally done by Jonathan Fire Eater then brilliantly covered by the Kills. I really can't decide which version I like better. Both are exceptional in their own right, from playfully offbeat to mysteriously haunting.

Jonathan Fire Eater I "The Search For Cherry Red" I Tremble Under Boom Lights
The Kills I "The Search For Cherry Red" I Pull A U (Single)

WE EXPECTED SOMETHING, SOMETHING BETTER THAN BEFORE...

We expected something more
do you really think you can just put it in a safe behind a painting, lock it up and leave
walk away now and you’re gonna start a war
Whatever went away I’ll get it over now. 
I’ll get money, I’ll get funny again
walk away now and you’re gonna start a war
We expected something, something better than before. 
We expected something more
we were always weird but I never had to hold you by the edges like I do now
Walk away now and you’re gonna start a war
Whatever went away I’ll get it over now. 
I’ll get money, I’ll get funny again
walk away now and you’re gonna start a war.
The National I "Start A War" I Boxer

RUBBER FACTORY

The Black Keys I "Rubber Factory" I 2004
This is the album that made me fall in love with the blues. I would have been about sixteen at the time of first listening to this album and I was dying to find more music of its kind which led me to start discovering some of the classic masters like Albert King, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, and Son House. From there it just opened up whole new world of music to me that wasn't being played on the radio but fit so true to my soul more then any other style of sound. This eventually led to my love for the modern masters of blues rock from Jimi Hendrix, to Led Zeppelin, The Doors, The White Stripes, and of course The Black Keys amazing body of work. For that I owe so much to these guys and their third (and best!) of many great albums from the band. It's one of those albums I love just as much as the first moment I heard it no matter how many times its played.
Highlights...
"10am Automatic" - love the magnitude of energy that comes from just the guitar and drums of the band and this song is the best example of the power they have.
"When The Lights Go Out" -words can not describe how much I love this song. Sensual, sexy and soulful to the core. Rachel you know what I mean. haha
"Girl Is On My Mind" -this is a great one to dance and sing to.
"Aeroplane Blues" -the guitars rising and falling in such riveting wave of intensity. This is blues at its sexiest.
"Just Couldn't Tie Me Down" -you can really feel the soul in this one.

NEVER LET THEM TELL YOU THAT YOU'RE ALL THE SAME

Led Zeppelin I "Going To California" I Led Zeppelin IVI'm in love with Jimmy Paige and his sweet sweet mandolin. Something about the summer air that just makes me want to listen to this song over and over.

PENNILESS AND TIRED WITH YOUR HAIR GROWN LONG...

I was looking at you there and your face looked wrong
memory is a fickle siren's song I didn't understand
In the gentle light as the morning nears
You don't say a single word of the last two years
Where you were or when you reached the frontier
I didn't understand
See you rugged hands and a silver knife
Twenty dollars in your hand that you hold so tight
All the evidence of your vagrant life
My brother you were gone
And you will try to do what you did before
Pull the wool over your eyes for a week or more
Let your family take you back to your original mind
There is nothing I can do
There is nothing I can say
Fleet Foxes I "He Doesn't Know Why" I Fleet Foxes

CRIPPLE CROW

Devendra Banhart I "Cripple Crow" I 2005
It's hard to find the words to describe this bizarre talent of a man. Never failing to amuse with his curious quirky nature, Banhart creates irresistible folk music for the twenty first century hippie in us all. I can always count on him and his music to leave a smile on my face. Cripple Crow was the album that made me fall in love with Devendra and all his wonder. 
Highlights...
Now That I Know - quiet, calming, bliss. A gentle beauty of song.
Long Haired Child - the kind of informal subject matter Banhart does best with simple charm and jubilance.
Cripple Crow - a free spirited hymn of magnetic proportion.
Just Like A Child - tapping into the pristine wisdom, simple absurdity, and pure exuberance of childhood with lyrics that strangely ring so true. "I need you to please explain the war" haha

OH TO BE NOT ANYONE ...

gone
this maze of being
skin
oh to cry
not any cry
so mournful that
the dove just laughs
the steadfast gasps
oh to owe
not anyone
nothing
to be
not here
but here
forsaking
equatorial bliss
who walked through
the callow mist
dressed in scraps
who walked
the curve of the world
whose bone scraped
whose flesh unfurled
who grieves not
anyone gone
to greet lame
the inspired sky
amazed to stumble
where gods get lost
beneath
the southern cross 
Patti Smith I "Beneath The Southern Cross" I Gone Again

MUSIC YOU CAN FEEL DOWN TO THE BONE

Buddy Guy I "Baby Please Don't Leave" I Sweet Tea
The blues at its finest. The pure soul of rock; raw power, true emotion, surrendered to the guitar. Music you can feel down to the bone.
Loved hearing this song blasted at the opening of a BRMC concert last month before they came on stage. It set the tone for a great night.

IT'S BLITZ!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs I It's Blitz! I 2009
Karen O and the boys took a surprising turn on their latest album. Dance floor friendly tracks, that are guaranteed to put you in great mood, are beautifully melded in with gentle rock lullabies. From start to finish this album is full of songs that are to be cherished for all their poetic splendour and melodic joy. Though I still love the harder edge of their previous albums, I cannot praise the band enough for departing into this brilliant new territory.
Highlights...
Zero - "shake it like a latter to the sun" says it all.
Heads Will Roll - new age goth rock meets electro dance brilliance.
Soft Shock - the vocals, the beat, the lyrics...magnificent.
Dull Life - the bands hard edge comes shining through, picking the pace of the album up a notch
Shame and Fortune - down and dirty guitar anthem with a pulsating sound
Hysteric - this song is on a level of its own, a whimsical rock ballad of a new generation. 

ABOUT AS SUBTLE AS AN EARTHQUAKE...

I know, my mistakes were made for you
And in the back room of a bad dream she came
And whisked me away, enthused
And it's as solid as a rock rolling down a hill
The fact is that it probably will hit something
On the hazardous terrain
And we're just following the flock,
'Round and in between, before we're smashed to smithereens
Like they were, and we scramble from the blame
And it's the fame that put words in her mouth
She couldn't help but spit 'em out
Innocence and arrogance entwined
In the filthiest of minds
She was bitten on her birthday and now
A face in the crowd she's not
And I suspect that now forever the shape
She came to escape is forgot
And it's a lot to ask her not to sting
And give her less than everything
Around your crooked conscience she will wind
'Cause we're just following the flock,
'Round and in between, before we're smashed to smithereens
Like they were, and we scramble from the blame
And it's the fame that put words in her mouth
She couldn't help but spit 'em out
Around your crooked conscience she will wind
And it's a lot to ask her not to sting
And give her less than everything
Innocence and arrogance entwined.
The Last Shadow Puppets I "My Mistakes Were Made For You" I The Age Of The Understatement

FATE UP AGAINST YOU'RE WILL

Echo and The Bunnymen I "The Killing Moon" I Ocean Rain
On the topic of Donnie Darko, love this Echo & the Bunnymen song that the movie open's with. The track couldn't be more perfect for the feel of the film.

MY BAT LIGHTNING HEART

Bat For Lashes I "What's A Girl To Do" I Fur & Gold
Such a cool idea. This video makes you want to recruit a creepy animal head helmut biker gang to ride around with late at night. 
Also makes me want to watch Donnie Darko again for the 2876th time.

SHOTTER'S NATION

Baby Shambles I "Shotter's Nation" I 2007
The band definitely hit their mark with this album, surpassing anything Pete Doherty did with the Libertines. Putting aside Doherty's heroine antics and infamous relationship with Kate Moss, you've got to give it to the guy for making fantastic music through it all. His wildly outlandish character is what drives the band's sound and his unmistakable persona makes each song on this record a brilliantly eccentric masterpiece that perhaps could only have been conceived from the mind of a tragically dysfunctional drug addict.
Highlights...
UnBiloTitled - beautiful song, honest and infectious, there is just something about the guitars in between the chorus that is simply magnificent.
Baddie's Boogie - an overall cheerful & carefree song juxtaposed with the bridge of "lousy life for the washed up wife of a permanently plastered pissed off bastard". Brilliant.
There She Goes - jazzed out base rhythms with Doherty's vocals some how managing to be delicate and brute all at once.
Side Of The Road - put this song on, and dance like mad in you're room to let loose some steam.

The Lost Art Of Murder - hauntingly beautiful.