HOW DID I MISS THIS?

As you all know, I have an affection for Colin Meloy and The Decemberists, and yesterday at work (during my "downtime"), I was googling around and found something quite surprising to me and I became very excited. I, being the music follower I am, am shocked and surprised that I missed this completely. "The Crane Wife" is not only the title of The Decemberist's 2006 release, but it is a three part lyrical story documented on this album, and is simply genius! So, back to my discovery. I found that the legendary Rocker/Singer/Songwriter Marianne Faithfull did a cover of 'The Crane Wife pt. 3' and not only recorded it with Nick Drake on her latest album "Easy Come, Easy Go", but performed it live on David Letterman. Check out the live performance below and go download it on iTunes!

KCRW WELCOMES THE CHURCH

Listen to The Church live on Morning Becomes Eclectic. Untitled #23 is the latest project from The Church.

NOT SO SICK OF SARAH!

Last Friday @ The Roxy in Hollywood, Minneapolis' all girl rock -n- roller's "Sick of Sarah" but on an electrifying performance; promoting their latest EP 'The Best Thing' which dropped May 18th. This was just one stop on their US tour, hitting several cities, so keep your eyes peeled! Working in music and art, I have to say that Minneapolis is becoming a hub of great things, so we should be prepared to see some amazing things coming from this progressive city!

Not only did this quintet of scenesters rock the stage themselves, but brought on stage special guest Susanna Hoffs known for her work as vocalist and guitarist for the Bangles, her solo career, and involvement in working with many artists as a songwriter, so it was definitely a treat for those that attended this packed show!

If you have yet to hear the sounds of "Sick of Sarah", do so by checking them out at www.myspace.com/sickofsarah

BAT FOR LASHES.....FREE SHOW!!!!!

Are you a fan of "Bat for Lashes"? Would you like to see them for FREE?? Go to www.TheScenestar.com NOW and RSVP for a free show in Santa Monica this Sunday! They are also performing next Tuesday at the Wiltern! Check them out... www.myspace.com/batforlashes

TIS THE SEASON

Just a few more weeks until summer, but its beginning to feel a lot like it now! Hollywood Bowl season has kicked off its 88th season and there are some really great shows. Check it out and mark your calendars...it's gonna be a HOT summer!

SUNDAY, JUNE 21 - FEMI KUTI - SANTIGOLD - RAPHAEL SAADIQNigerian Afrobeat superstar, Femi Kuti (www.myspace.com/femikuti), returns to the Hollywood Bowl in support of his first studio album in 7 years, Day by Day. Santigold(www.myspace.com/santigold), who stunned the music community with her genrebusting debut, emerging as one of 2008’s biggest break-out stars, makes her Bowl debut. Five-time Grammy-nominated R&B crooner Raphael Saadiq (www.myspace.com/raphaelsaadiq) to open the show. Garth Trinidad (www.garthtrinidad.biz/) hosts.Tickets available: http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance_detail.cfm?id=4166

SUNDAY, JUNE 28 - ADELE - ETTA JAMES - JANELLE MONAE Singing sensation Adele (www.myspace.com/adelelondon), winner of 2009’s Best New Artist Grammy, makes her Hollywood Bowl debut joined by the Bowl Orchestra strings. Legendary Etta James (www.etta-james.com/), from whom Adele draws both inspiration and comparisons, joins the bill with eclectic chanteuse, Janelle Monáe(www.myspace.com/janellemonae). Jason Bentley (http://www.kcrw.com/music/programs/mt) hosts.Tickets available: http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance_detail.cfm?id=4161


SUNDAY, JULY 5 - DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE - TEGAN AND SARA - THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERSSeattle’s Grammy-nominated indie-rock superstars, Death Cab for Cutie (www.myspace.com/deathcabforcutie), collaborate with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for their long-awaited orchestral performance. Canadian twin songbirds, Tegan and Sara (www.myspace.com/teganandsara), share the bill with fellow canadians The New Pornographers(www.myspace.com/thenewpornographers).Tickets available: http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance_detail.cfm?id=4162

AND STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS: SUNDAY JULY 12TH - RAY LAMONTAGNE - JENNY LEWIS - BLITZEN TRAPPER http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance_detail.cfm?id=4165

SUNDAY JULY 26TH - GRACE JONES - OF MONTREAL - DENGUE FEVER http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance_detail.cfm?id=4151

THURSDAY SEPT, 24TH - BEASTIE BOYS http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance_detail.cfm?id=4154

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - ANYA MARINA

Premiere week continues here on musicbleep.com with the latest from one of my favorite SoCal girls.

California singer/songwriter Anya Marina just debuted the video for her new single, "All The Same To Me" from her Chop Shop Records debut album, "Slow & Steady Seduction: Phase II." Directed by Josh Forbes and filmed at the California Institute of Abnormal Arts (CIA), the video features all kinds of contortionists and fire dancers in a burlesque/circus theme. As Anya explains, the CIA "had all sorts of bizarre things like a mummy of something called Alligator Boy and also a 2-headed baby." Fun fact: Anya had a sprained foot while shooting the video. "Betcha can't tell (thank you, Ibuprofen!)." For more on Anya Marina, visit www.anyamarina.com.

Anya Marina on tour:
7/15 - Slim's - San Francisco, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
7/16 - The Catalyst - Santa Cruz, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
7/17 - The Boardwalk - Sacramento, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
7/19 - House of Blues - San Diego, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
7/21 - Velvet Jones - Santa Barbara, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
7/22 - House of Blues - Anaheim, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
7/23 - El Rey - Los Angeles, CA (w/ Eric Hutchinson)
8/13 - Cabaret du Musee Pour Ri - Montreal (w/ Emiliana Torrini)
8/14 - Highline Ballroom - New York, NY (w/ Emiliana Torrini)
8/15 - Paradise - Boston, MA (w/ Emiliana Torrini)
8/17 - Crocodile Cafe - Seattle, WA (w/ Emiliana Torrini)

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - THE KILLERS

Another new vid from The Killers! "A Dustland Fairy Tale" is the latest smash from the Vegas boys.

SCARLETT JOHANSSON AND PETE YORN DUET

She couldn't carry an album herself, so she's giving it another shot. This time she's doing it with Singer-Songwriter, Pete Yorn.

I've heard the single, and I must say it's better than her solo project; however, it feels a bit She & Him (band with Zooey Deschanel & M. Ward), so it may lack originality.

I do however think she might have hit this one on the nose - I like it!

You can listen here www.breakupalbum.com

KCRW WELCOMES BAND OF SKULLS

Not only did Band of Skulls open up for Metric on Monday, they also stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic. If you missed em at the show like I did, check out their session!

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - JENNY OWEN YOUNGS

Jenny Owen Youngs new music video for "If I Didn't Know" has just been released. Jenny will be playing the Troubadour in L.A. on June 25th for a special show, opening for Amanda Palmer of The Dresden Dolls.

KCRW WELCOMES METRIC

Metric was LA for their big show on Monday night and found time in between their busy schedule to stop by KCRW to perform tracks off their latest album. WE went to the show and will have a full review shortly. It was amazing!!

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - CHAIRLIFT

Chairlift just released a video for the song that can be heard in the Apple iPod commercial. It's called "Bruises" and it's such a great song!

THE PRESENT TO EMBARK ON US TOUR

NYC experimental group The Present, aka producer Rusty Santos joined by Jesse Lee (White Magic/Gang Gang Dance) and Mina, will be heading out on a cross-contry US tour (starting in NYC today!) in support of their forthcoming sophomore release, The Way We Are, the followup to the band's abstract debut, The World I See, both on Lo Recordings/LOAF.

The Present returns with a new album that delves ever deeper into the human psyche. Like an audio equivalent of Apocalypse Now, and with artwork once again by the very talented Andrew Kuo, The Way We Are is by turns terrifying, enchanting, hallucinatory and sharply focused. Like a psychedelic power trio from a mythical dimension, The Present create a music that seems somehow familiar.

Touchstones include the music of La Monte Young, Dmitri Shostakovich, Wolfgang Voigt, Cluster, Black Dice, Claude Debussy, Aphex Twin, Can, Arthur Russell, Boredoms and Brian Eno and yet it sounds like none of these. What it is: a kaleidoscopic trip influenced by New York City, The Ocean, Mountains, The Sun and the Trees, Andy Warhol, Yukio Mishima, David Lynch, Friedrich Nietzsche, Buddhist Mantra, Mass Transit, Cats, Birds and life. Life in all its myriad complexity and confusions, in all it's transcendent beauty and it's horrendous brutality.

The Present's live show has been described as 'more of a sensory experience than a mere matter of listening' and it's the title track, a thirty five minute epic the like of which has not been heard since the glory days of Popul Vuh that best captures the bands extraordinary intensity.

The Present On Tour:
05.27 Brooklyn, NY @ The Bell House w/BLK JKS
06.04 Baltimore, MD @ Talking Head
06.05 Richmond, VA @ The Triple
06.06 Athens, GA @ Farm 255
06.07 Memphis, TN @ Murphy's
06.08 Hot Springs, AR @ The Exchange
06.09 Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
06.10 Austin, TX @ Mohawk
06.12 Phoenix, AZ @ Modified Arts
06.14 Los Angeles, CA @ Spaceland
06.15 Bakersfield, CA @ TBA
06.17 Stockton, CA @ TBA
06.18 San Francisco, CA @ The Knockout
06.22 Portland, OR @ East End
06.23 Seattle, WA @ Comet Tavern
06.24 Missoula, MT @ The Basement
06.26 Minneapolis, MN @ TBA
06.27 Dekalb, IL @ Nutty's North
06.28 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
06.29 Detroit, MI @ Garden Bowl
07.01 Rochester, NY @ TBA

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - MGMT

OMG...I'm laughing my ass of right now. I think this is the best video I've seen in such a long time...maybe cuz I'm demented, so I think it's hilarious that the kid in the video is being harassed by a number of monsters.

This is the new video for MGMT, and it's called "Kids."