Scotch Sampler

HecticArt said:
Cool. I'll have to catch up later. As soon as I started to watch them, the Mrs. walked into the room and started chatting. They always know when you're trying to pay attention to something else.....
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OMG! THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
scotchandcigar said:
Cage the Elephant
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I liked "Ain't No Rest" and also "In One Ear" from that album. Their stuff since that album is snootier, I don't like it as much. But "Come A Little Closer" and "Ready To Let Go" are alright.
scotchandcigar said:
Young the Giant
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I love "Cough Syrup" but everything else I've heard from them does nuttin' for me. I keep wanting to like more from them but alas no.
 
Once again, it's time for everyone's favorite Scotch Sampler segment: one-offs! In this installment, we're covering 2009 to 2012.

"Portugal. The Man" is a pretty big name in contemporary music. They're from Wasilla Alaska - You betcha! I'm gonna cheat here, and post an early one-off here, and then a recent one later. This is one of those instant epic drinking songs from 2009

Portugal. The Man – People Say



L.A. band Local Natives has gotten mainstream radio airplay for quite some time now. They're kind of a folky contemporary soft rocker, with a distinctive style. This is my favorite tune from them, from 2010

2010 Local Natives – Wide Eyes (live)



The Soft Pack was a San Diego band that revived garage punk, and then they faded away. I was very much into the album this song was on in 2010

The Soft Pack – Answer To Yourself (live on Letterman)



And another San Diego band! Wavves is pure retro-punk. Here's their big hit from 2010

Wavves – Post Acid
 
The School of Seven Bells is a NYC band that put out several popular albums in the style of Enya and Clannad. Two of their members are identical twin sisters, plus members of the former Secret Machines (another band I was into, they used to open for U2). This is from their middle album release in 2010

School of Seven Bells – Windstorm (live, starts at 2:00)



If you had any doubts about Eddie Vedder as a musician, he did a complete album of ukulele songs, and it was awesome. Here he does an amazing live performance of the most popular tune from that 2011 album

2011 Eddie Vedder – Can’t Keep (live)



Yuck was a British retro-punk band, putting some nice grooves and guitar licks in their music. This was their big hit from 2011

Yuck – Get Away (live)



We'll end with some funky electronica from 2012. The British band Django Django put out some very infectious tunes

Django Django – Default
 
Sometimes, religiously dedicating oneself to the new indie music channels can seem like a chore. You sacrifice the familiarity of singing along to songs you know, so you can keep current with what's happening today. To quote another DRC member:
Jon said:
I've been listening to a lot of new music lately, some of it I'm taking a real liking to, some of it is crap!
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But every once in a while, you get a big payoff, by getting-in on the ground floor of a great new artist, way before anyone else has even heard of them. Such is the case with Australian Courtney Barnett. She's the real deal - a raw talent. She's a unique songwriter and natural musician. And she's also as down-to-earth, honest, and approachable as can be. Her modestly masks her great humor, wit, and musical ability.

Her first major release was an album of sorts - actually two collections of songs that found themselves on EPs. So she released 2013's The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas. The big hit from the album was the studio version of this song, which made mainstream radio, and got her on the late-night TV tour. It's an autobiographical story-song about a panic attack

Courtney Barnett – Avant Gardener (live, Halloween edition)



And here's a great garage rocker from the album

Courtney Barnett - History Eraser (live)



2015 brought us her first formal LP album, Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit. The songs covered a wider array of styles, better production, and some fairly professional videos. But before we get to that, this solo version of the opening track really showcases her talents.

Courtney Barnett – Elevator Operator (live solo)
 
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It's also worth posting the official video for the song, with appearances by the members of Sleater-Kinney (during Carrie Brownstein's Portlandia days)

Courtney Barnett – Elevator Operator



This was the highest charting hit off the album, it's sort of a bipolar anthem

Courtney Barnett – Pedestrian at Best



Not only is this a nice, change-of-pace tune, but the house-hunting story is very relatable

Courtney Barnett – Depreston (live)



A fun tune and video, showcasing her great sense of observational humor

Courtney Barnett – Dead Fox



And my favorite track from the album, a fun rocker

Courtney Barnett – Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go to the Party (live, Halloween)



The album also contains the intense long-form Kim's Caravan. Following this album and tour, she did some collaborations (with Kurt Vile, among others), and released a recent album.
 
scotchandcigar said:
But every once in a while, you get a big payoff, by getting-in on the ground floor of a great new artist, way before anyone else has even heard of them. Such is the case with Australian Courtney Barnett. She's the real deal - a raw talent. She's a unique songwriter and natural musician. And she's also as down-to-earth, honest, and approachable as can be. Her modestly masks her great humor, wit, and musical ability.
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All of this. She's pure cool.
Natural is a perfect description. I'll add refreshing to the list.
She's the best new music I've heard in a long time.
 
New York duo Phantogram is perhaps the slickest, catchiest, coolest electronic pop band out there. Their first release was in 2010, getting a bit of airplay. But they hit it big in late 2013, introducing the first singles from 2014's Voices. The album kicks-off with this ethereal, atmospheric raver

Phantogram – Nothing But Trouble



One of the songs getting the most airplay is this dark, smoky, and groovy track, here with added personnel for a live performance

Phantogram – Black Out Days (live)



This funky dance tune was the highest charter of the album

Phantogram – Fall in Love (live)



They followed Voices with 2016's Three, which brought us this awesomely catchy hit

Phantogram – You Don’t Get Me High Anymore



They've put out more music in the last couple of years.
 
I like those kids, but have only heard the couple that have played on the radio.
You Don't Get Me High was what I noticed first with it's gritty hook, but the 'smokier' ones are good too.
 
I thought their biggest song was "Don't Move" but I was wrong. I love that song, but haven't gotten into any of their other stuff - despite trying to.



But I did just find this cover and I'm digging it, because I tend to like that harder edged sh*t

 
Queens of the Stone Age released ...Like Clockwork after a 6 year hiatus, and it shows they've still got it. There are several good tunes on the album, but these two singles are my favorites

Queens of the Stone Age - I Sat By the Ocean (live)



Queens of the Stone Age - My God is the Sun (live on Letterman)



Other good songs include Fairweather Friends and Smooth Sailing. In 2017 they released Villains, with The Way You Used to Do.
 
I like those guys. They have a great quirky thing going on and still keep a solid rock band attitude. I saw them open for Red Hot Chili Peppers in the early 2000s.
 
sadchild said:
Because I played some of her music on YouTube, she showed up on my YT home page. Saw she has a brand new video so I'm dropping it here for ya

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Thanks. Because I'm going chronologically, I'm trying to stick close to my base year at any given time. Right now, I'm at 2013-2014, so I'll cover out to 2016-2017, but leave 2018-present for later. But it's nice to see the new video here.
 
I know this is supposed to be a list of my favorite artists, but let's face it: I'll always rank Yes over Young the Giant, or Elbow, or almost anyone. So really it's a collection of favorites-of-the-year. With that in mind, I'm presenting my favorite songs from a former member of The War on Drugs (coming up very soon), Kurt Vile. The Philadelphia artist is a go-to name in indie music circles. He's got that low-key, independent, I-don't-care attitude. He's actually a very pleasant guy, but he gives the impression of distance.

Not surprisingly, his music is similar to that of TWoD; unobtrusive guitar jams with subtle melodies and mysterious lyrics. The first song of his that got widespread radio airplay is the (almost) title track from the 2013 album Wakin' on a Pretty Daze. It's a good ten minutes of "sit back and light one up"

Kurt Vile – Wakin’ on a Pretty Day (live)



In 2015, he received even more radio exposure, with this cleverly worded tune about addiction

Kurt Vile – Pretty Pimpin’



And then in 2018, he continued to stay relevant with this tune

Kurt Vile – Loading Zones



He's still putting out new music, and collaborating with artists such as Courtney Barnett.
 
Parquet Courts, from NYC, are another top name in the indie world. They're pretty much pure garage rock, but they do it well, and put the music to some good lyrical imagery. There's an honesty about their music - so much so, that over the course of their 4 charting album releases (under this name), they haven't strayed from being a bare-bones garage band. I'll cover their first 3 releases, and save their excellent 2018 album for later.

2012's Light Up Gold brought us these two

Parquet Courts – Borrowed Time (live)



This is their big breakthrough hit

Parquet Courts – Stoned and Starving



They followed with 2014's Sunbathing Animal, and this rocker

Parquet Courts – Black & White (live)



After putting out an album under the name Parkay Quarts, they released Human Performance in 2016. This one did move in a more developed direction; the title track is almost a ballad, with harmonies

Parquet Courts – Human Performance



And this track is more danceable than the typical garage-chord tune

Parquet Courts – Berlin Got Blurry (live)



But when I get to their 2018 album, you'll see that they stuck to their roots.
 
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