Teddy Bears ft. Iggy Pop - Punkrocker

Something about those animal costumes, I can't seem to stay away from. This song seems simple and brilliant enough to be postworthy. Sent to me by a old traveling buddy of mine... I'd never before heard of this band... and barely familiar with Iggy Pop for that matter... but I'm happy to have begun my Iggy education with this catchy song.

The Dodos - Fools

My friend just sent me this and I thought it was pretty, and great, and pretty great. And simple... I like simple... Two guys, guitar and drums, melody. It's hard not to like...

Meet the Dodos.

LEN - If You Steal My Sunshine

This one is very Nastsukashii.

Steal My Sunshine

Jet - Look what you've done

Simply beautiful. The song. The video. The fact that I randomly ran into them coming out of a clothes store in San Francisco, and at the time had no idea who they were, until I went into the store and someone said, "hey that was JET", and then I said, "who?"...

But now, I certainly know who they are (but admittedly would not recognize them from any other emo thirty-somethings.)

This one topping the list of songs I like from JET.

Sugarcult - Bouncing off the walls

It's been ages since I've heard this one. It really brings me back to the days of American Pie and Dane Cook. Glad that's all over now, but I still like the song.
It's really the only song I like from this band. But it's so dang catchy, I can't help but let it bounce off the walls inside my head.

Here's the video...

Ich+ Ich - Du erinnerst mich an Liebe

This is my favorite German song and video of all time, so it's only natural I'd eventually post it here.

Although I'm not too fond of the band name (Ich + Ich sounds like someone just stepped on a cockroach), I love the story of this lost dog and a wandering guitar player. It's emotional and lovely and despite German not being the most romantic sounding language in the world, this video shows some serious melodious compassion and best-friendship-ing.

Check it out.

Creaky Boards - Needles on the Brain

Hey! I was a fan of this band back when it was just Pierson Spec, a local band from nowheresville, America. Andrew Hoephner, the lead singer of Creakyboards, recently posted a comparison video of his band's song with that of a Coldplay song, claiming Coldplay ripped them off. Well, whether or not they did, that's an amazing publicity stunt. And if they become super famous anytime soon, I just want to say... HEY! I knew about them long ago, before any of you! So HA!

Anyways, the lead singer reminds me of my good friend Robin, and I'm not quite sure why. So I'll take it upon myself to log this video in my archival blog, even if it's not my favorite song of theirs.

Amadou and Miriam - Je Pense A Toi

A blind coupe from Africa... I love it.

It may seem to reek of novelty and "ooh, look, they're blind, and a couple, and African, so it's cool to like them," but if you look past that you'll see this is a very talented duo. The music video is alright I guess, a pretty typical montage of scenes from Africa. But there is something in the tune that evokes deep feelings of grooviness and hipness. The title of this number means "I think of you", in French.

Well, I like it a lot.

Dawn Landes - Twilight

I hate to think I'm one of those guys that needs constant action and visual stimulation to keep my interest piqued. But then again, I am certainly one of those guys.

Even with the high-flying, non-stop romantic thrill-ride this music video gave me... I was bored to tears.

But I think my girlfriend would like the song. So I decided to add it to my archive anyhow. Now that's romantic!

What Made Milwakee Famous - Sultan

Well, it's not the greatest music video ever made. And it doesn't help that the music itself is rather unoriginal. The lead's voice isn't amazing. The lyrics aren't great. And the solo is like an old pair of running shoes - you don't really need them, but you keep them around anyway in case you decide to go on the road again, but if that's the case, you should just buy a new pair anyway.

But. I love fencing. So I like the video, despite it's obvious lackability.

Jason Webley, Heya Cover

This cover of the Outcast song "Heya" is inspired. I've never heard a cover quite like this before. And I'm going to continue to enjoy it in the future. I just wish the audio and video guys had done a better job. There's some injustice in the production of this video.

Adam Green - Morning after Midnight

Hey, what can I say... gotta love the drag.

Moldy Peaches - Jorge Regula

Well I've been a fan of Moldy Peaches for a while now, although not an avid listener. This is one of my favorites, and I just came upon the video, so I'll log it here.

Super Furry Animals - Gift that keeps on giving

Again with the furry animals!
Well, It's not the best song ever, but I just have to log it on account of the band's name. The video reminds me of an SNL skit for some odd reason.

Emiliana Torrino - Sunny Road

Alright. She's got a great voice. Stunning musician. Beautiful lyrics. Not anything you can rock out to... but it's still very special. I wish she would do more with her voice though. I get the feeling she could.
But none-the-less... Really glad I stumbled on this one.

Wolfmother - White Unicorn

Never heard of this band before. But I like it. The guitar sounds like a rip of CCR, and the singer reminds me of someone I can't quite put my finger on.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ZajUzLY--iQ&feature=related

The Mint Chick - Walking off a cliff again

It could seem that I'm partial to music videos with animal costumes. But I really think it's just a coincidence that a large number of the actors in the videos I've posted here are sporting them.

Burning Snow - GandG Sindikatas

Have you ever heard of the blossoming genre, "Gothic hip-hop"? I hadn't. Well, here it is. Although, it sounds just about the same as most typical Rap I've heard before... but then again, I'm the least cultured person when it comes to these genres.
It's a well made video though. So I'm throwing it in the mix anyhow.

Kastaneda - Sombrero

Ok, it's not great. It's pretty not great actually. It reminds me of a student film, and sounds like a typical high-end garage band. But, I do have to admit, there is something wonderful about a lithuanian wearing a sombrero. Thus, I present to you this rock/rap... Kastaneda's sombrero.

Captain - Broke

Just came across this song. I enjoy it... Something about bands with female and male lead singers that do something special for me. Probably because it reflects my own band to a degree. The video isn't anything to wonderful, but the song is pleasently beautiful. I'll be coming back to this one and see if it piques my interest again in the future.

The Verve Pipe - the Freshman

This is one from my high-school years. Which is appropriate if you consider the title. I remember those days clearly, despite that common confusion between Verve and Verve Pipe. But, it's a great song, even if it reeks of teenage melodramaticism.

Fuel - Hemmorage, Tonic - If You Could Only See

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=EM6_Jlk6Reg&locale=en_GB&persist_locale=1


http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=l44FI9Pzqxg&feature=related

The Dears - Ticket to Immortality

The Howling Bells - Setting Sun

The Soundtrack of our Lives - Believe I've found

Basia Bulat - In the Night

Hakan Hellstrom - En midsommarnattsdröm

Alf - Grona Linjen

Just Music

I keep coming across some really original and emotional music in my free time. I figure I might as well link them all here in sort of a beautiful music archive. Here goes...



Since I am here in Japan, I thought I'd start with a Japanese singer (although the music is entirely in English.) This is Yukimi Nagano, also known as Little Dragon.

A cappella

Meet Rock 4, an A capella band from the Netherlands. A capella is a beautiful thing, (and Queen is great too), so the combination simply kills. I think Freddie Mercury would be proud.

Here is Rock4's website.

Here's their Radiohead "Paranoid Android" cover:

Origami... of any size

Origami is amazing. Surprisingly, I don't see much while I'm here in Japan. But I found this while traipsing the web. This is one sheet of paper (a very large sheet of paper), made into a beautiful dragon.

Just amazing. The creator is Satoshi Kamiya, and he is my origami hero.