Contrast Podcast: Musicians introduce their own songs (5)

I’ve contributed a few times in the past to Tim Young’s excellent Contrast Podcast, a podcast that Tim hosts but that relies on submissions by people from around the blogosphere. The idea is simple – every week Tim tosses out a theme (example: “Songs about Monkeys”, “Songs that start with the letter A”, “Covers that are better than the original”) and then opens it up for people to submit songs along with 30 to 60 second intros for the song. Once he’s collected 60 minutes worth of music and intros, he stops taking submissions and puts everything together into a handy dandy lil’ podcast that he posts every Tuesday.

The theme he threw out last week was “Musicians introduce their own songs” (this was the 5th time he’s opened up this podcast to musicians) and the latest Contrast Podcast has been posted.

DOWNLOAD: Contrast Podcast – Musicians Introduce Their Own Songs

While I can’t guarantee there is still room on next week’s podcast (theme – “Kings and Queens”), I plan to submit a song later this week and if it gets used, I’ll post a link when it’s put up on Tim’s site (hell, I’ll put up a link even if my song doesn’t make it).

Concert to Combat Global Warming to feature big name talent


Following in the tradition of big concerts like Live AID and Live 8, Live Earth has revealed a list of artists scheduled to perform at Live Earth concerts to be held around the world on July 7. Locations for this massive concert include Giants Stadium in New Jersey, Wembley Stadium in London, Aussie Stadium in Sydney, Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janerio, Tokyo Stadium in Tokyo, and Cradle of Human Kind in Johannesburg.Among the big names scheduled to perform in the U.S. are The Police, The Smashing Pumpkins, Roger Waters and Kanye West.

Tickets go on sale for the U.S. show on Monday, April 16 at 10 a.m. (EDT).

Continue reading to see the complete lineups for New Jersey and London.

Continue reading “Concert to Combat Global Warming to feature big name talent”

What are you buying this week?

On my radar …

Army of Me – Citizen (Doghouse Records) – Don’t know much about these guys other than they toured with The Damnwells and my friend Gilly loves ’em. I wasn’t sold on the one performance of theirs that I saw, a little bit too bland for my tastes, but maybe I’ll give them another shot.

Bright Eyes – Cassadaga (Saddle Creek) – Conor’s voice usually drives me nuts to the point where I can’t listen to more than a song or two in a row, but something about this CD has captured my interest. The hints of twangy alt.country will sucker me in just about every time. Will I listen to this more than half a dozen times? I’m not sure yet.

Cloud Cult – The Meaning of 8 (Rebel Group) – Cloud Cult’s last album Advice from the Happy Hippopomatus came out of nowhere in 2005 and kicked my ass with it’s quirky-pop (ala Flaming Lips, Granddaddy) goodness. Can’t wait to hear this one.

Cocorosie – The Adventures Of Ghosthorse And Stillborn (Touch & Go) – Sure to be as strange as their previous material. The video for “Noah’s Ark” creeped me out and made me a believer at the same time.

Continue reading “What are you buying this week?”

Pumpkins, Puppets, Police

Buddyhead.com’s gossip section is always a fun read and most of the time the gossip turns out to be right on the mark. The site is reporting that Billy Corgan is rounding out the Smashing Pumpkins with bassist Ginger Reyes, formerly of female pop-rockers Halo Friendlies, and guitarist Jeff Schroeder of The Lassie Foundation. Of the two, Reyes seems to be the most interesting choice as her solo work leans towards the MTV reality-show soundtrack side which doesn’t seem like it would be a good fit for the Pumpkins but I guess we’ll have to wait and see what the ol’ chrome dome announces with regards to who really will be in the band when they start playing live shows. I had heard a rumor that Scott Lucas (Local H) had been asked to join the Pumpkins and was mulling the offer over but I guess that goes to show how much credibility you should put into rumors.

Not only did Curt and Cris Kirkwood play their first Meat Puppets show in years at this year’s SXSW festival in Austin, but now Billboard is reporting that the brothers have finished a new record which will be released by Anodyne Records on July 17.

Tankboy points to news on the NME site that The Police are considering working on a new record once the reunion tour is wrapped up. While Tankboy’s not too excited at this prospect, I think it would be a great idea and I’d be the first in line to buy the CD. Of course, I also said I’d be the first in line to buy concert tickets should the trio ever get back together (and went so far as saying that I’d drive however far I’d have to and sell a kidney to pay for a good seat) and here I am, ticketless for the band’s upcoming tour even though they’ve got $50 tickets still available for the Cleveland date (a 2-hour drive from AtomicNed.com headquarters) on July 16.

Download Fig Dish’s previously unreleased 3rd album

After two albums, with a combined sales of 16,000 copies, Chicago rockers Fig Dish severed their relationship with A&M Records in 1998. The band, consisting of Blake Smith (vocals/guitar), Rick Ness (vocals/guitar), Mike Willison (bass), and Bill Swarz (drums), went back into the studio to record demos to shop to other labels. RollingStone.com wrote a feature about Fig Dish’s departure and their subsequent record in which Smith said Fig Dish had no intention of breaking up and had recorded a double album worth of new material. Less than a year later Smith and Willison had started a new project, Caviar, while Ness started his own solo band, bringing Swarz along with him.

So whatever became of those 2 CDs worth of material Fig Dish recorded?

After being locked away in the Fig Dish vault for nearly 10 years, we’re happy to unleash the cracken and offer you the 19 track demo that Fig Dish recorded and used in an attempt to find a new label. For fun, we’ve tossed in 2 songs that were on the hard-to-find “Quiet Storm King” CD-single released in 1995, “Eyesore” and “Spit the Part”.

David Cobb, college roommate of Mike Willison, and longtime Fig Dish fan/friend/supporter dubbed this double CD, Onanism, so that’s the name we’ve given this collection of songs.

DOWNLOAD NOW: Fig Dish – Onanism

Track listing following the jump.

Continue reading “Download Fig Dish’s previously unreleased 3rd album”