I Can Lift A Car: free

Showing posts with label free. Show all posts

Friday, August 2, 2013

Christopher The Conquered & H.D. Harmsen @ Bullhorn Creative

The NoLi Friday Concert series continues tonight at Bullhorn Creative tonight at 5PM. Come out and enjoy some BBQ from J. Renders. Some beer courtesy of the peeps at Bullhorn. And some tunes from Christopher The Conquered and H.D. Harmsen. The show is completely and entirely free.

If you'll remember, I've written about Christopher The Conquered and his album, The Fate Of A Good Man, before. As a reminder, here's his tune "Life Is Not Always Easy." Tonight, he'll be playing solo.

Opening for Christopher The Conquered, we have his buddy H.D. Harmsen. A fellow popsmith from Iowa, he and H.D. have been traveling and playing together for a while. Here's the titular tune off his new album Papoose.

The show starts around 5PM in the Bullhorn backlot, which is located at 804 N. Limestone (corner of Loudon and N. Limestone). See you there.

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

All I wanna do is live in ecstasy.

When John Gourley, the man behind indie-rock powerhouse Portugal. The Man, was asked how he wanted his next album to feel, he said:

"We just wanted to make something that was The Beatles meets Wu-Tang." (Pigeons & Planes)

Well, they accomplished something close to their goal with Evil Friends, a wholly amazing album. Their most pop-centric album to date, Evil Friends was the product of the band working with producer extraordinaire Brian Burton AKA Danger Mouse. This is important because Danger Mouse has done amazing work on albums for Gnarls Barkley (which he was half of, by the way), The Black Keys, Gorillaz, and Beck. With his feet firmly planted in both the indie rock and hip-hop worlds, Danger Mouse was the perfect man to lead PTM down this road. The most potent pop concoction they created in the lab was their "let's get famous so we don't have to work" anthem, "Purple, Yellow, Red, and Blue."

Considering Portugal. The Man's hip-hop sensibilities, producer/mash-up artist Terry Urban decided to bridge the gap with a mash-up album called Portugal. The Man & Friends combining PTM and some of his favorite rappers (Jay-Z, Kanye, Biggie, and J. Cole). The entire five-track album is up for free download on his soundcloud.

My personal favorite is "Purple Night," which mashes up "Purple, Yellow, Red, and Blue" with Jay-Z's "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" off his Dynasty: Roc La Familia album. It manages to keep the essence of the PTM track while adding the swagger of a younger pre-Bey Hova.

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Cocaine 80's

Cocaine 80's, a hip-hop collective, was started by No I.D. and regularly features the awesomeness of Common, James Fauntleroy, Rob Kinelski, Kevin Randolph, Steve Wyreman, and Makeba. It's understandable that this isn't a super recognizable list of names, but you really should familiarize yourself with this group because of the following reasons:

1. All of their EP's (there's four) are available as free downloads. That particular link has all of the downloads bundled.

2. They make feel-good chilled out alt-R&B when led by James Fauntleroy. Check out "Unchain Me/Love 3x".

3. Do I have to say that everything they've ever released is free again?

Monday, July 8, 2013

Everything I do I do in slow motion.

PHOX is a seven-piece folk-pop group coming out of Madison, WI. Powered by the stellar vocals of Monica Martin, PHOX has found a way to somehow mix the magic of the cup scene from Pitch Perfect with all of your favorite indie pop in their song "Slow Motion." It's catchy, mysterious, quirky, and curiously inviting.

That song, "Slow Motion," is off their Confetti - EP, which is available as a free download on their bandcamp (HERE). They also released the EP as a full 30-minute video (HERE).

The rest of their EP flutters in between smoky and soulful numbers like "Barside" and adorable piano-fueled pop ("Noble Heart"). No matter what your taste, you should definitely download this EP. It's amazing.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Guns hidden under our petticoats.

Okay, so I found out about The 1975 back in October when they released the video for "Sex". I was enraptured by them. I listened to both of their EP's nonstop for weeks. Then came their "Music For Cars" - EP and that was the end of the story. They had solidified themselves as one of my favorite bands. Their uniquely British brand of indie pop wavers between airy, ethereal, spacey tunes and the occasional ridiculously perfectly crafted pop song.

The "Sex" - EP is practically flawless. While "Sex" is what caught my initial attention, the slow jam "You" is definitely my favorite track.

The 1975 have since released another EP (IV) in anticipation of a full album, likely made up of tracks from each of the EP's they've released, in September. The point of this post is to promote the song "Chocolate", whose lyrics grace the title of this post. It's the iTunes FREE single of the week, and you should totally download it.

CLICK HERE for the iTunes single link.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Bring me one good love.

Mike Clark is a sensation. He's a living, breathing, blue-eyed, soulful sensation. The first time I encountered the music of Mr. Clark, it was through the amazingness that is Heather Browne's Fuel/Friends blog, in the form of a gorgeous Chapel Session. You see, Mike Clark is 34 years old and he works as a land surveyor in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He is not a professional, but he is a natural. He didn't start playing tunes until he was 27. A late bloomer, he's now played in several bands in his local scene on his way to perfecting his solo sound with his current project: Mike Clark & The Sugar Sounds.

He has a voice for the blues and a flair for soul. He finds his home in the neighborhood near Otis Redding and Ray LaMontagne, and he fits right in. The first time I heard him, I knew I had to have his album: Round & Round. It's pretty much perfect. You can purchase that HERE. You can listen to and download his entire Fuel/Friends Chapel Session, right HERE, and find the rest of his stuff via his website HERE. But, before you go, remember to try and check out his Daytrotter session that just came out today. It's what spurred on this post and it is entirely worth your time.

DAYTROTTER. GO NOW!

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Introducing: BODYWORK

BODYWORK is kind of mysterious. There's not a lot of information out there. All I know is that they're from England, they have a free album up for download on their website, and they sound kind of like Yeasayer. I found out about them through I Guess I'm Floating, who posted about them this last week.

I recommend checking out their music video for "The Grind," the title track to their recently released free album. It sounds like classic Yeasayer, the voice, the synths, everything, and I'm certainly not complaining.

Their album is up for download RIGHT HERE and you can check out their website HERE. Also, here's their sadly underappreciated FACEBOOK PAGE. You can also follow them on Twitter HERE.

Check these dudes out. You can't turn down free music, can you? Is that a thing you do? THIS IS A GIFT.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Introducing: Jackson Breit

I went through a phase with post-R&B where I would scour websites looking for stuff that sounded like smoke, sex, and horns. Too bad I never found Jackson Breit during that phase. I did find him last week though, after seeing a post about him on The Burning Ear. The post was about his new song "It's On Tonight", which wouldn't really be out of place on JT's 20/20 Experience or any Robin Thicke album.

All of Breit's stuff is available for F-R-E-E on his Soundcloud. Some of his tunes lean even more towards alt-R&B, with remixed versions of other artists going underneath his voice, and others still have a more classic soul feel. Him being from New Orleans puts him in an outstanding creative community and allows for him to draw influence from his life for songs like "Sunny Days & Hurricanes". My personal favorite original is "Pistol Girl."

Look into Jackson Breit. You won't be sorry.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

If You're Looking Back, You'll Never Move Your Feet

I've been a fan of Hey Marseilles since their first album To Travels & Trunks dropped in 2009. Ever since then, I've wanted to see them perform their string-powered folk/pop live...and I would have had that opportunity in Cincinnati on June 25th. Except that that's the same day as Fall Out Boy's St. Louis show. And there's no way I'm missing the comeback tour. Anyways, for the newcomer to Hey Marseilles, you should listen to "Rio". The stand-out track off their first full-length.

And also be sure to check out their second album, Lines We Trace, to see how much they've matured. My personal favorite track is "Looking Back", whose lyrics are featured in the post title.

That particular version of "Looking Back" was recorded at Fuel/Friends Chapel Session in Denver, Colorado. Fuel/Friends is run by the great Heather Browne, who is awesome enough to curate these sessions and then put them up for a free download, the link to which I've provided below. To Download Hey Marseilles' Fuel/Friends Chapel Session, click HERE!

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Introducing: Teen Sensations

Talk about old school. The Australians of Teen Sensations are making waves with their retro sounding surf pop.

"Surf And Sway" caught my ear and won't let it go. The same is true of their other song ("Get Fit For Summer"), which I'm currently living out. Both of their songs are available for a free download on their bandcamp. You should show these Brisbane boys some summer love.

Friday, May 24, 2013

Introducing: Sombear

I love a good side project. Sometimes when band members split off and do their own thing they can produce magical goodness, which is exactly what Brad Hale, the drummer for Now, Now, is doing under the guise of Sombear. He made the jump from stripped down post-rock sounding music to electropop reminiscent of Electric Guest and The Postal Service.

His upcoming debut album is being released by Trans- Records, the imprint of Chris Walla AKA The King AKA the drummer for Death Cab For Cutie, and will be out this summer. The album, out 7/23, will be called Love You In The Dark, and the title track (A FREE DOWNLOAD) is absolutely fantastic.

The rest of his Soundcloud is definitely worth checking out for his short electro compositions, like "how my head sounds when you ask me a question". Some of them are free and all of them are worth a listen.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Introducing: Boxed Wine

Boxed Wine makes perfectly portable pop music. Great for your jogging playlist and awesome at parties. These Jersey boys sound like a lot of bands that I really like mixed together: Foals, Two Door Cinema Club, Phoenix, Surfer Blood. It's a bit more obscure, but they also kind of sound like local boys The Pass and Wild Party (not so local).

I found these guys last summer when Speakers In Code posted "Feral" as their Jam of the Day and instantly downloaded their eponymous EP. With lyrics about werewolves and silver bullets, this song is a wild trip that reminds me of when I used to read Goosebumps on summer vacation. SO GREAT. ------------------------------------------------------------------------>

Anyways, Boxed Wine just released their debut LP Cheap, Fun on their bandcamp for FREE. It's amazing and summery and fully deserving of your attention. In fact, all of their stuff is free at the moment. You should give a thorough listen to these dudes. They deserve it.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Introducing: Fast Screens

Fast Screens manufactures a specific brand of ridiculously summery music that's good all year round. I think it's best described as technicolor electropop. It's easy to see why Neon Gold, one of my personal favorite blogs, is in their corner.

"One Summer" is just one example of how these guys make some of the most driver friendly music around. The track is available on their bandcamp for a free download. I highly recommend downloading it. Their debut EP, however, is what hooked me. Particularly their song "Don't Stop".

That whole EP is well worth the $4 they're asking. It's a go-to jog EP, coming in at just over 15 minutes. These dudes have shared a bill or two with the first group I ever wrote about on here (Junior Prom) and I bet that show was the bomb.com.

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Introducing: Magic Man

Okay. Stop. Drop everything. Listen. Magic Man is this amazing band from Rhode Island. They are an absolute synth-pop dream boat if ever there was one. They sound like The Killers, but with way more synthesizers. They sound like Passion Pit, but without the crazy high falsetto. Basically, they're bound for greatness. They are, like their chosen descriptor, "triumphant synth rock."

I found out about Magic Man from Neon Gold Beat Company whenever they dropped "Paris" earlier this year. And then they dropped "Texas". And then an absolutely killer remix of Pacific Air. Nothing I've heard from these guys has been less than fantastic.

They dropped another new tune, "Nova Scotia," today and it is equally amazing. Yesterday, my favorite band Walk The Moon announced Magic Man would be accompanying them on part of their fall tour. And today Neon Gold released their free EP with all three of their singles on it. One thing is definite: Magic Man is going places.

Do yourself a favor and download this EP. It's perfect for summer. It's great music. IT'S FREE.