BDWPS Podcast #37

In this month’s podcast we check out new music from Jim O’Rourke, Thee Oh Sees, Sun Kil Moon, and A$AP Rocky. We also discuss Colin Stetson’s latest collaboration with Sarah Neufeld, review the Brian Wilson biopic “Love & Mercy,” and take a look at Bob Dylan’s highly underrated classic, “New Morning.” You can check it HERE, or even better yet, go subscribe to the podcast over at iTunes or Stitcher (search key term: BDWPS).

Tracklist:
Jim O’Rourke “Last Year”
Thee Oh Sees “Web”
Sun Kil Moon “The Possum”
A$AP Rocky “LSD”
Colin Stetson & Sarah Neufeld “Won’t Be A Thing To Become”
Beach Boys “God Only Knows”
Bob Dylan “The Man In Me”

Top 20 Songs of 2013

This list was once a big deal around here at BDWPS. Back in 2010, it was comprised of a top 100 list with an audio clip for each.  Not only was this a lot of work, it also never got nearly the attention that our Top Albums list always receives. I’ve also found that since starting the BDWPS Podcast that majority of the songs listed have been played and discussed at some point during the year.  By the time this list arrives, my discussion of the track seems a bit stale.  Below you’ll find 20 of my favorite songs of 2013.  Although it’s not much in comparison to what it once was, it’s still a solid playlist of memorable hooks that may have went under radar this past year.

The Best Album Covers of 2013

In the age of digital media, the idea of album artwork seems a bit archaic, but if you’re anything like me, you still hold the intrinsic connection between music and  art to be sacrosanct. Below you will find what I deem the 20 best images to be seen on the cover of albums in 2013. You can go get a closer look at that place your parents used to go to called the record store.

BDWPS Podcast: Episode #15

On this month’s podcast we take a look at some of the albums that didn’t make the cut for my “Top Albums of 2013 (So Far..)” that I will be posting next week. Here are some of the songs you’ll be hearing:

Low “The Plastic Cup” 
The Men “Half Angel, Half Light” 
Sam Amidon “My Old Friend” 
Windhand “Amaranth” 
Thee Oh Sees “Minotaur” 
Wire “Doubles and Trebles” 
Roky Erickson “Goodbye Sweet Dreams” 
Bob Dylan “On the Road”

Listen here (don’t forget to subscribe on iTunes, keyword- BDWPS):

http://bdwps.podomatic.com/entry/2013-06-07T19_16_36-07_00

SXSW 2013

Just moments before sitting down to write about the best and worst of the South By Southwest music festival of last week, I found out about the death of Jason Molina, the troubled genius behind folk-blues outfits like Songs/Ohia and Magnolia Electric Company.  This news would have been unsettling and heartbreaking regardless of what I was about to embark on, but sitting here trying to write about my 10^th year at the music festival, I can’t help but think back to my first year in attendance and how I got to see Magnolia Electric Company perform at The Parish. 

A lot has changed since that night a decade ago when Molina first enchanted me with his fragile, somber voice. Over the years I’ve seen SXSW grow along with my understanding of the festival and all its nuances.  I think back to those performances from the first few years and wonder where the festival’s one time luster has gone. Don’t get me wrong, I still had a great week, seeing dozens of bands each day, but along with the growth of social media, SXSW has become more about the hype and less about discovering unpolished gems like my friends and I did 10 years ago with Jason Molina and his band.  Yes, Dave Grohl, Stevie Nicks, and John Fogerty played a surprise set together, as well as Prince and Green Day (badge only shows), but due to the influx of speculation and misinformation within the Twitter world, I was unable to see several shows I would have in years past due to the miles of sheep lined up in hopes of seeing MTV TRL darlings like of Usher and Justin Timberlake.

Yet as much as these moments of frustration tainted my week, I still relished my chance to see up-and-coming artists pour their hearts out on the stage.  Within the past ten years I’ve seen unknown artists perform at SXSW that went on to big time success (Bon Iver, The Fleet Foxes, and TV On the Radio), and I expect that many of the artists seen this week will go on to do just the same. Who knows? Maybe in ten years folks will be lining up for miles to see some of my favorites from this past week while I roam 6^th street, 10 years older and wiser, in search of that next great unearthed treasure.

In memory of Jason Molina, I present to you my list of the best and worst of SXSW 2013.

Worst Album Covers of 2012

And the nominees are…