Paul Westerberg - 49:00

Paul Westerberg just released a bunch of songs recorded in his basement, all jumbled together on one 49 minute mp3 (actually it doesn't run quite that long) for the grand price of .49 cents.  Get it here.  Love the cover art (shown above)

Sarah Borges - 'Daniel Lee' (at Sun Studios)

Seems to be a steady stream of great albums from talented alternative-country women over the past few years (Kathleen Edwards, Shannon McNally, Tift Merritt, etc.)... or maybe I'm just more receptive to this kinda music than I would have been when I was younger. Lately, I've been listening to Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles a lot. If you're not allergic to a bit of country, definitely check out her two albums, "Silver City" and "Diamonds in the Dark".

Clinic - 'The Witch'

Caught Clinic the other night. They started by playing their new album "Do It!" in its entirety. Their sound hasn't changed all that much since their first album, 2000's "Internal Wrangler", but that sound was so eclectic and distinct from the get-go (they're about the last band I'd expect to have come out of Liverpool, England) that they can easily keep exploring it for another eight years. Their mix of eerie 60's psychedelica, garage rock, dub and the kitchen sink came off pretty well live, especially when they starting getting into some choice songs from previous albums. Loved the surgical masks and Hawaiian shirts get-up they had on too...

John Schooley - 'Drive You Faster'

So this is one of the 96 (!) bands at the Deep Blues Festival, former Revelator John Schooley.

Deep Blues Festival

Man, do I wish I was able to go to this. They have an unbelievable lineup-- pretty much anyone who's anyone in the blues-punk underground.

Polvo - 'Tragic Carpet Ride'

From the 9:30 show last month. Horrible sound quality, but the volume level of this show was deafening. Thank god I had earplugs!

Polvo easily surpassed any expectations I had of them as a live band. I couldn't believe how tight they were for a band that hasn't played together in ten years. Even the extended jams that many of the songs morphed into were riveting, rather than boring (as those type of things usually are).

Sons and Daughters - 'Johnny Cash'

Recently stumbled on this Scottish band and their 2003 EP "Love the Cup", from which this song comes. Also worth listening to is their new self-described 'pop album', "This Gift".