Video: Ryan Adams - "Chains Of Love" (acoustic in-studio)

We've been given several acoustic in-studio videos of Ryan Adams performing tracks from his upcoming album Ashes & Fire by now and today we got a new one for the track "Chains Of Love". The video was posted on The Guardian's website together with a great interview with Adams himself that I'd highly recommend. "Chains Of Love" is another very good song from Adams and, I've said this before, Ashes & Fire are looking like it'll be his best album in a long time. Watch the video below.

Live review + Photos: The War On Drugs, Live at Lilla Hotellbaren, Stockholm, Sweden 2011.09.21

words by Johan Alm / photos by Louise Strandendahl

Video: Chris Cornell perform "The Keeper" on Letterman 22/9

I used to be a big fan of both Soundgarden and Audioslave when I was younger as well as Chris Cornell's first solo record Euphoria Morning, but his last two records have been decidedly lacklustre. In late August Cornell released a new song called "The Keeper" which he wrote for the soundtrack of Marc Forster's Machine Gun Preacher and last night he performed the track on Late Show with David Letterman - and judging by this one it might be time to start paying attention to Cornell again.

Watch the Letterman performance below and listen to the studio version of "The Keeper" under the video.

Stream: Tyler Ramsey - "The Nightbird"

In late August I posted a stream of Tyler Ramsey's "The Valley Wind", the title track from his upcoming solo album that will be released on September 27 via Fat Possum. Ramsey is normally the lead guitarist of indie giants Band Of Horses but his solo work takes on a quieter, more singer-songwriter-ish, hue with Neil Young and Mark Kozelek being obvious reference points.

Earlier today Spinner premiered a second track from The Valley Wind called "The Nightbird", which draws heavily on the Neil Young influence, especially from Young's quieter acoustic moments on, say, After The Gold Rush. Give it a listen yourselves below.

Video: My Morning Jacket at Austin City Limits (four songs)

During the past weekend, on September 17, My Morning Jacket performed at the Austin City Limits Festival and four songs from their performance have been uploaded to the official Austin City Limits YouTube page. The four songs are "Circuital", "I'm Amazed", "Outta My System" and "Smokin' From Shootin'" and as anyone familiar with My Morning Jacket will know already, they're one hell of a live band. Sadly there's no videos of any of their older tracks, but enjoy these four in all their pro-shot HD glory below.

MP3: Big K.R.I.T. - "Money On The Floor" (feat. 8ball & MJG, & 2 Chainz)

Southern hip-hop artist Big K.R.I.T. is definitely one of the most exciting hip-hop acts around at the moment and earlier today he shared a new track online called "Money On The Floor" which features 8ball & MJG, & 2 Chainz. The track is an excellent showcase of Big K.R.I.T.'s skills as both a producer and rapper and definitely makes me more excited for his upcoming album Live From The Underground which was originally scheduled for a September release but now won't see the light of the day until early 2012. In the meantime you should give "Money On The Floor" a listen below.

R.E.M. break up after 32 years

R.E.M announced yesterday that the band are now splitting after 32 years together. Here's the announcement that they published on their website yesterday, September 21.

Download The Felice Brothers' new ep Poughkeepsie Princess for free

Every Tuesday for the past five weeks The Felice Brothers have shared a new track in exchange for an e-mail address at their website and together these five tracks make up the Poughkeepsie Princess EP, and this Tuesday it was completed. On August 25 I posted the first track from the ep, "Among The Missing", here on Birds Need Feet but the other tracks haven't gotten their due because of real life interfering and I haven't given them a listen until tonight.

On their newest full-length, Celebration, Florida which was released in May by Fat Possum, The Felice Brothers incorporated a heavy use of electronics into their folk rock sound, something that left the fans divided although I personally thought they were successful. On Poughkeepsie Princess the band has mostly left the electronics behind for a more organic sound, although that's not saying that it sounds just like their older records.

Video: Mastodon - "Curl Of The Burl" (official music video)

Mastodon's new record The Hunter will be released on Reprise Records next week but since this Tuesday you can stream the full album ahead of release, and today the band unveiled the video for the album's lead single "Curl Of The Burl". The video is directed by Robert Schober and it's really good, although slightly disturbing. Watch it below.

Video: Samling - "Dra Täcket Över Huvudet"

I just discovered the Swedish psychedelic rock band Samling who are releasing their debut record När Mullret Dövar Våra Öron Blir Vi Rädda on October 26 via Sony Music in Sweden, and so far they've already released the first single from the album; "Dra Täcket Över Huvudet".

Samling plays psychedelic folk rock in the vein of fellow Swedes Dungen and should be able to follow in Dungen's footsteps as long as their full-length is as good as "Dra Täcket Över Huvudet" makes me hope. Check out the video for "Dra Täcket Över Huvudet" below, and if you live in Stockholm you can see them live with Skull Defects at Hornstull Strand on October 29.

MP3: Smith Westerns - "End Of The Night" (Peaking Lights remix)

Smith Westerns' latest record Dye It Blonde is a favourite here at Birds Need Feet and Peaking Lights' 936 is a personal favourite of mine, making a Peaking Lights remix of Smith Westerns especially appealing even if I'm not a big fan of remixes. The track in question, "End Of The Night", is a poppy and upbeat glam rock track on Dye It Blonde but Peaking Lights definitely transforms it into something else. Give it a listen below.

Thåström signs to Razzia, new album due early 2012

This may not mean much to anyone non-Swedish (or maybe non-Scandinavian) but around here Joakim Thåström is a pretty big deal so the fact that he's got a new album coming out is definitely exciting. Thåström began his career in what's without a doubt Sweden's most famous punk band Ebba Grön in the late '70s and has since then continued to make critically acclaimed music with post-punk band Imperiet and as a solo artist, and his two newest records (released '05 and '09) are up there with his finest work.

Full album stream: Veronica Falls - Veronica Falls

London indie pop-rock band Veronica Falls are finally releasing their debut self-titled lp and today it was released in the US on Slumberland Records, and it's also available digitally in Europe and the UK with a physical release on October 17 via Bella Union. Veronica Falls has been highly anticipated and it shouldn't leave anyone disappointed being a very good listen all the way through, but don't trust me - give it a listen yourself below.

Video: Washed Out - "Amor Fati"

Washed Out's debut lp Within And Without surprised many by being as good as it was and actually managing to live up to the hype that preceded it when it was released on Sub Pop in July. Washed Out aka Ernest Greene just released a new video for "Amor Fati" from the album and it was directed by Yoonha Park and it features said Ernest Greene in a bunch of scenic and non-scenic locations doing a bit of travelling. Watch it below.

Jason Molina (Songs:Ohia/Magnolia Electric Co.) needs your help

If you've only read this blog you probably don't know that I'm a huge fan of Jason Molina and his work with both Songs:Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co. during the past decade or so, penning several of the strongest tracks of the '00s and releasing several great albums. The reason that you don't know about my appreciation of Molina's work is that he's been remarkably quiet since cancelling his tour with Will Johnson in support of their collaboration album in 2009, and nobody has really known why. Yesterday we got an answer and explanation from his label Secretly Canadian, and it's not happy news. Read what they wrote below:

Where Is Jason Molina?

Many of you have inquired as to Jason’s whereabouts and well-being since he canceled his tours with Will Johnson in 2009. Over the last two years Jason has been in and out of rehab facilities and hospitals in England, Chicago, Indianapolis, and New Orleans. It has been a very trying time for Jason, his friends, and his family. Although no one can be sure what the future holds, we feel very encouraged by the recent steps Jason has taken on the road towards becoming healthy and productive once again. Unfortunately, because he has no medical insurance, he has accrued substantial medical bills. We are asking all friends of Jason’s music to come together with a showing of financial support for him.

Please consider a contribution to his medical fund (via Paypal). Feel free to forward this to any and all appropriate parties. We are hoping to raise whatever funds we possibly can for Jason. He is currently working on a farm in West Virginia raising goats and chickens for the next year or so, and is looking forward to making great music again. Please also show your support and well wishes by sending letters and postcards to:
Jason Molina
P.O. Box 423
Beaver, WV 25813
If you do not wish to use Paypal, please make donations out to Ashley Lawson at the same address.
With our sincere thanks,
The Molina Family

Hope everything will turn out okay for Jason, and if you've got some change to spare please donate.

Video: Manic Street Preachers - "This Is The Day"

Manic Street Preachers are releasing a compilation called National Treasures - The Complete Singles on October 31 and it features all of the band's 37 singles from their entire career, plus a new single called "This Is The Day". "This Is The Day" is a cover of The The's 1983 track and yesterday they released the video for the single.

The video features some vintage footage of the Manics, and is in many ways a celebration of the band's career and definitely something for the fans. Plus, the cover is really good and shows just how good a pop-rock band they really are when they decide to focus on that side of their music. Watch the video below.

Video: The Felice Brothers - "Fire At The Pageant"

The Felice Brothers' latest album Celebration, Florida was released in May this year via Fat Possum, and it remains one of the better albums released this year, seeing the band expand their sound. Today Rolling Stone premiered their new video for "Fire At The Pageant" and it was directed by the band members themselves and it's pretty much a very freaky home video. Check it out below.

Video: Fenech-Soler - "Golden Sun"

Here's the new video from the British electro-pop band Fenech-Soler for the track "Golden Sun". The video takes place in a photo-booth with a great mixture of people behaving in all kinds of ways in front of the camera.

Video: Ryan Adams - "Let It Ride" (live in-studio)

During the past few weeks we've been treated with videos of Ryan Adams performing new tracks "Ashes & Fire" and "Dirty Rain" acoustic live in PAX AM's studio, plus a stream of an in-studio performance of "Invisible Riverside", also from his new album. Now he has decided to share another in-studio video, but this time of him performing one of his strongest tracks; "Let It Ride" from 2005's excellent Cold Roses album, which was recorded with his backing band The Cardinals. Check out the video below.

Video: Girls - "Honey Bunny" (official music video)

Last week Girls released their second full-length Father, Son, Holy Ghost via True Panther Records and they also guested Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to perform an excellent version of album opener "Honey Bunny", and today they released the official video for the song. The video was directed by Ivan Shumaker and Girls bassist/producer Chet JR White, and features Girls songwriter/vocalist Christopher Owens. Watch the video below and listen to Father, Son, Holy Ghost in full here.

Stream: Korallreven - "As Young As Yesterday" (Panda Bear remix)

Last week I posted Korallreven's new single "As Young As Yesterday" which features Taken By Trees vocalist Victoria Bergsman, and today we've got a remix of the track by Panda Bear. Personally I'm usually not a huge fan of remixes and find most to be mere curiosities, and this one isn't an expection; it's interesting and different from the original but not nearly as good. Give it a listen yourselves below and form your own opinion.

Video: The Horrible Crowes - "Behold The Hurricane" (official music video)

The Horrible Crowes released their debut album Elsie on September 6 via SideOneDummy and today they premiered the video for the first single from the album; "Behold The Hurricane". The video was directed by Corin Hardy and isn't what you'd call positive, but definitely a good watch although I'm doubtful as to how well "the shadow" works (you'll understand what I mean when you've watched it). Watch the video below and if you haven't heard Elsie you can listen to it here, plus check out my review of it here.

Full album stream: Mastodon - The Hunter

Mastodon's new album The Hunter will be released next Tuesday, on September 27, via Reprise Records but you can stream the entire album right now on Mastodon's own YouTube page. The album is certainly one of my most anticipated right now and while I haven't been able to give it a listen yet I'm certain it'll be worth your time. Stream the full album, plus check out the album tracklist, below.

Introducing... S.C.U.M.

One of my absolute favourite bands right now is S.C.U.M. a London-based band, who are occasionally compared with psychedelic The Horrors. They have some similarities that I think are pretty obvious, but still, they are two completely different bands and in my opinion S.C.U.M. do not deserve to be overshadowed - mostly because what they have made is simply too good not to be heard. Again Into Eyes is an album you definitely need to hear this year!

Photos: Kurt Vile & The Violators + Woods, Live at Stereo, Glasgow 2011.09.06

A couple of weeks ago two of the bloggers from birdsneedfeet went to see Kurt Vile and The Violators, supported by Woods at Stereo in Glasgow. The idea was for there to be a full review of the show but life got in the way, so instead we've decided to just upload the photos for your pleasure. In short, it was a great show, both bands were great but Woods in particular. Go see both if you can. And yeah, Kurt Vile really did look like a smurf due to the lighting. Here's the photos from the gig, hope you'll enjoy them!

Video: Swimming - "Neutron Wireless Crystal"

I have been writing about Swimming before and I honestly did not think I would write about them again in a year or two. Not because they are bad, because they are definitely not. I just did not think they were that productive, but clearly, I was wrong. On October 17th their new single "Neutron Wireless Crystal" will be released in the UK and it will appear on their debut album Ecstatics International due on November 7th this year. Below you can watch the new video for "Neutron Wireless Crystal". Enjoy!

Stream: Yuck - "Cousin Corona"

Well this has been out for almost two weeks now but I completely missed it back when it was announced so maybe someone else did too, anyway; Yuck are releasing a deluxe version of their self-titled debut album on October 10 via Fat Possum. The album will be released as a double disc cd and gatefold vinyl and features the original twelve-track album plus six b-sides, although two of them haven't been released earlier.

The new tracks are "Cousin Corona" and "Soothe Me" and the band were kind enough to share "Cousin Corona" early, so you can stream it below, and like all their other b-sides it's good enough to have been on the regular album. Check out the full tracklist below the Soundcloud widget.

Album Review: The Horrible Crowes - Elsie

I wrote a review of this album for One Thirty BPM that went up a few days ago, check it out here or there.