photo by Chad Syme

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Morning Show with John Richards, is “Swim Until You Can’t See Land” by Frightened Rabbit from their 2010 album The Winter of Mixed Drinks on FatCat Records.

Some of you may remember today’s featured artist Frightened Rabbit from their Neumo’s appearance last September as one-third of a Scottish-rock trifecta that also boasted performances from We Were Promised Jetpacks and The Twilight Sad.

About as bare-bones as you can get, Frightened Rabbit began as less of a band and more of a stage name for guitarist and singer Scott Hutchison. After about a year, brother Grant joined up on drums, thus beginning a steady stream of additions culminating with last year’s fifth recruit Gordon Skene (Make Model) and the release of their most successful record to date, The Midnight Organ Fight (2009 on FatCat). This steady stream of new personnel can be attributed to the band’s desire to move in the direction of meatier, more densely layered songs. Arriving hot on the heels of The Midnight Organ Fight, Frightened Rabbit’s third release, The Winter of Mixed Drinks (out now on FatCat), finds the band more in-tune with the potentiality of song structure than ever before. Indeed The Winter of Mixed Drinks takes the next in a long line of steps forward — away from the kind of “simple, straight-forward-pop” that garnered such critical praise for its predecessor. I don’t mean to suggest Frightened Rabbit has eliminated the pop –- never fear, the catchy/anthemic quality that built their fan base remains front and center, accentuated by additional instrumentation, vocal harmonies and increased production value. They’re simply doing more — with more -– and more carefully.

The lead single from The Winter of Mixed Drinks, “Swim Until You Can’t See Land,” mirrors the band’s progression beautifully. The song starts off in familiar but more upbeat territory with softly picked guitars and a gentle tambourine beat supporting Hutchison’s typically emotive Scottish vocals. Soon enough the addition of ghostly vocal tracks, full-fledged brotherly drumming, and a beautiful string arrangement thicken the song into the kind of robust orchestral pop that truly stands tall. From start to finish we experience growth. While The Winter of Mixed Drinks is a new high, it is not the apex. If there’s one thing this band has demonstrated it is that with time comes expansion and change. With that said, Frightened Rabbit has most certainly reached new levels of sonic maturity. Let us now reap the benefits and look forward to the next chapter.

Frightened Rabbit will be LIVE on KEXP tomorrow, during our broadcast from SXSW. Listen to them at 11AM. From Austin, they head to Europe a few dates before beginning a full U.S. tour, which includes a stop at Neumos in Seattle on May 16. You can find all their dates on the band’s MySpace page. For now, here’s the official video for today’s Song of the Day:

photo by Hilary Harris

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection is “Odessa” by Caribou from their 2010 album Swim on Merge.

There’s really nothing in the world better than discovering a new piece of music that moves you. Like a lot of the people probably reading this, an amazing song, album or artist is the quickest way to find yourself on the business end of my good side. You can really mess up and I’d still care -– all because you turned me on to Nick Drake and The Velvet Underground. It’s a bit of a get-out-of-jail-free card with me (it’s a sliding scale though so watch it). I mean, really, friends are easy to come by, but friends with excellent taste? Those are keepers!

A few months ago, I posted my top 10 albums of 2009. Despite my own excellent taste most of these records were brought to me by my tight bro/music provider KEXP SEATTLE –- you know him –- he lives over at 90.3 on the FM dial? Best taste ever and really never lets you down. He is of the firm belief that “the music matters.” Dude, he hooks it up proper! Well, with any good friendship there comes a time to give back –- my friends and fellow KEXP fans, that time is upon us in the form of the Spring Membership Drive. You see, KEXP cannot continue to shower our ears with new music without the proper funding. That funding comes from you and I. In short, I am asking you -– on behalf of the collective talent and stellar taste of KEXP to please MAKE IT RAIN LIKE YOU’VE NEVER MADE IT RAIN BEFORE. Now through March 15th your donation (of any amount) to KEXP will power the station in the months to come and guarantee an abundance of lovely sounds inside your ear-holes.

Perhaps today’s Song of the Day podcast, Caribou’s “Odessa,” from the forthcoming Merge Records release Swim (out 4/20), will instantly transform itself into your soon-to-be favorite artist/album/song of 2010. Stranger things have been known to happen. Caribou is the post-Manitoba project of Canadian born mathematician Dan Snaith. As one might expect Snaith’s music lends itself nicely to descriptors like “dance” and “electronica,” but these genre-specific terms are really just the beginning. On Swim, the highly anticipated follow-up to 2007’s Andorra, Snaith supplements his talent for beat-making and catchy structures with those of a variety of guests, including a Toronto-based free form jazz horn quartet. About the new record, Snaith has said that he imagined musical components as liquid, flowing freely between seemingly mismatched melodies, pitches and timbres. The end result is a freshly contagious psychedelic noise maelstrom that swirls back and forth in the space between your ears. “Odessa” seems to separate itself from the pop-triumphs of Andorra, opting instead to exploit the electronic wizardry of Snaith’s earlier work. The house-y rhythm, warm vocal track and infectious bass line envelopes the listener like a warm bath.

Snaith almost always plays with a live band (often behind one of the two drum kits), accompanied by intricately trippy video projections that add yet another layer to the Caribou experience. Sound fun? Well, an $84/month donation to KEXP gets you a three-day pass to this year’s Sasquatch Festival… and… Caribou plays Sunday!! Find out other dates on their website and check the brand new video for “Odessa” here:

photo by Lydia Daniller

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Midday Show with Cheryl Waters, is “Careful With That Hat” by Citay from the 2010 album Dream Get Together on Dead Oceans.

Citay is a 7-piece band living and working out of my previous home of San Francisco, California. Have you been there? It’s a beautiful city — alive and kicking with every branch of culture you could ever want to hang from. The city as it is affectionately referred to is a musical mecca of past and present, consistently spawning some of the left coast’s most intriguing new voices. Citay, formed in 2004 by Ezra Feinberg (Piano Magic) and Tim Green (The Fucking Champs), is one of these bands. Built up around some of the hipp(y)er moments of the past Citay’s sound harnesses the core tools of pop music (guitars, keyboards, percussion) to create melodic Beach Boys-esque psychedelic rock that lingers on the fringes of the modern day Haight-Ashbury strip mall. Dream Get Together marks the band’s third proper release ( an additional album of remixes appeared last year) and second for the ever expanding Dead Oceans label (Dirty Projectors, Califone, Phosphorescent). Something of a concept album the title refers to a songwriting project in which band members and friends (Jens Lekman, Bishop Allen & Stephen McBean to name a few) concocted fantastical meetings of folks both alive and dead. This creative framework coupled with Citay’s propensity for drug-rock’s mellowed atmosphere boils down to a record that is both diverse and, well, at times kinda trippy.

“Careful With That Hat” jumps to life immediately with boppily pleasant bongos and happily tapped xylophone keys that act as a calm, cool breeze before the storm of guitars you just know are on the way. Before you can pull out your umbrella fuzzy electric guitars hit you sideways with the confidence of a coked up 70’s rock god. Initially grounded in the nearly twee ethereal female/male vocals “Careful With that Hat” eventually cuts the cord, exploding into controlled abandon replete with meandering layers of synth, GUITAR and percussion that flirt with disintegration but never see it come to pass –- and that my friends is what we call the sweet spot.

Citay start a new tour at the end of the month. No Seattle date yet exists on their MySpace page, but according to the band’s website, where you can follow the progression of Dream Get Together and the Remix project, they’ll be in the Pacific Northwest in May. For now, here’s a live clip from ‘08 of their song “Little Kingdom”:

photo by James Bailey

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we offer songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Morning Show with John Richards, is “Director’s Cut” by Head Like a Kite included on the GIVE Seattle 2009 benefit compilation.

Hometown heroes Head Like a Kite is the bombastic electro-pop from the body and mind of Dave Einmo.  I say “from the body and mind” because Einmo is cut from that wonderfully special cloth of electronic music types that plays instruments. You know, like with his arms and feet and stuff.  I mean sure a macbook and turntables are instruments but you know what I’m getting at here.  For me the best, most vibrant , engaging electronic and hip-hop music comes from the minds of musicians rooted in tradition –Jazz, Emo, Pop, R&B or Rock n Roll – and the instruments and song structures of said influences. Head Like A Kite clearly falls into this category.  While he views his work from the perspective of a DJ, Einmo records his own pop tracks live – samples and chops them all to hell – creating unique and danceable melodies along the way.  Like many of his Mush label mates (Her Space Holiday, cLOUDEAD, Clue to Kalo) Einmo – with assistance from countless friends in studio (Boom Bip, Marc Bianchi, Asya of Smoosh) and on stage (drummer Trent Moorman accompanies him live) seamlessly melds a multitude of sounds together to create interesting and fantastic soundscapes that bleed freshness and familiarity.  Unique but accessible.
“Director’s Cut” – from the recently released GIVE Seattle compilation (available at local Vita Coffee shops, Sonic Boom, Easy Street ) benefitting local Arts Corps and Food Banks – is a ridiculously catchy track that begs the listener to dance about like a madman.  Featuring Tilson from the Saturday Nights “Directors Cut, “  (which will also appear on Head Like A Kite’s upcoming album Dreams Suspend Night on Mush May 10) ropes you in from the get go with an immediate introduction to one of Einmo’s sharpest hooks to date – atmospheric synthesizer and blippy keys match the herky-jerk beat beautifully, allowing just enough air-space for Tilson’s lyrics to truly soar.

There’s only one upcoming show listed on Head Like a Kite’s MySpace page for the Someday Lounge in Portland this Friday. Surely, with such prolific performers as Einmo and his touring companion, Trent Moorman, HLAK will be stirring it up in a hometown club soon. For now, here’s the Chase Jarvis-directed video for today’s Song of the Day:

True Devotion marks the 6th full-length record (out tomorrow on Barsuk) from Seattle resident and ex-WaxWing frontman Rocky Votolato. In the decade following the demise of his band Rocky has crafted some of the most beautiful and honest music to ever come out of the Emerald City. After what’s felt like a very long time away, I’m happy to report that Mr. Votolato is indeed back.

In the years following the release of his last album, The Brag and Cuss (2007) Rocky went through a widely publicized dark time, characterized by the arrival our old friend’s self-doubt, depression and anxiety. Trapped within the four walls of his mind, Votolato reportedly stopped writing and touring altogether opting instead to hole up in his apartment for months on end studying existential philosophy, physics and theology.

In much the same way that “Lilly White” opened The Brag and Cuss, True Devotion’s “Lucky Clover Coin” sets the tone for the album to come:

Your eyes are broken glass the shattered light
Shines on everything you see
There’s a world I want to leave behind
Where a sunset in a constant bloody winter
Gives the only light, and with it I hoped I would disappear

In just five lines, Votolato paints a vivid picture of where he’s been for the last three years. Even more important than finding his way through the immediacy of these thoughts is the recognition of their lasting presence and a need to remain vigilant:

You’re keeping me alive
‘Till the sunlight shows spring roses in water
And for the rest of my life
I’ll put your broken pieces back together

Much thinner than the majority of his previous release (barring “Whiskey Straight” and“Silver Trees”) Rocky’s latest effort leans heavily on the minimalist instrumentation and vocal strength of his earlier work. Given the timing, this fresh take on Makers, A Brief History and Suicide Medicine makes perfect sense. Beneath somber strings and delicate strumming True Devotion’s redemptive arc becomes apparent:

I want to spend more time with you
Because you make me happy
It’s something I’d been so little of
But you showed me that I can be

It is the blood of this journey — through life’s loneliest, most desperate moments through discovery, reflection and change — that pumps within the hopeful chambers of True Devotion. One of the album’s highest points comes midway in the form of “Sparklers.” Flawlessly picked and reminiscent of “The Uppers Aren’t Necessary” (from Makers), “Sparklers” examines the finite nature of life’s peaks and valleys. (Listen to a live version here.)

Everything is right, Everything is wrong
Letting go is the best way to hold on
So watch the light dance in the dark until it’s gone
Sparklers only burn for so long

Like on “All Things Must Pass” before it, Votolato reminds us that there can be no good without bad; no flowers without rain; no happy without sad — the knowledge of which allows us to enjoy the individuality of life’s moments without fear or regret.

Through all of this clarity one gets the sense that Rocky is seeing the special people in his life through new eyes. “My Sun Devil” reintroduces us to the muse of “Before You Were Born” (from The Brag and Cuss). To his love of more than a decade Votolato shows his gratitude:

True Devotion and True Virtue will hold you at the center
As the waves crash over
Some things are forever
And your love is an Anchor

As the closing moments of True Devotion’s final track, “Where We Started,” fade into same strings as its first, we are once again reminded of the freedom attained from simply letting go.

Gandhi once said that the most important battle to fight was overcoming one’s own demons, fears, and insecurities. True dat, Mahatma. I thought about starting this off by telling Rocky Votolato how important his work is. How his last two albums have been instrumental in my own discovery of love. How the tone of his voice has been a source of friendship over the last several years –- high-fiving me through the light (Makers) and sitting up with me through the dark (The Brag and Cuss). My first inclination, after finally getting to hear Rocky’s latest masterpiece, is to just say thanks.

So here it is. Thanks, Rocky.

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Afternoon Show with Kevin Cole, is “The Gift” by The Whitefield Brothers from the 2010 album Earthology on Now-Again Records.

The Whitefield Brothers are a “raw-soul” outfit that pulls no punches whatsoever. Formed by Poets of Rhythm founding members Jan and Max Whitefield, this German duo pulls together what equates to a steam engine’s worth of auditory power blending classic 70’s sounding African beats with an onslaught of instrumentation from Eastern influenced horns and flutes to steel drums, pianos and organs. While bands like Vampire Weekend use bits and pieces of this sound as building blocks to their popular structure (not dissing –- I’m a fan), The Whitefield Brothers up the ante in a way that concentrates the funk. It’s like do you want your funk beats on the rocks or neat? From The Tin Hat or Bal Mar? The Whitefield Brothers are serving up Tin Hat soul neat. Okay now that we’re on the same page -– let us move on.

Earthology is the hugely anticipated follow-up to Jan and Max’s debut, In the Raw (originally on Soul Fire in 2001, reissued on Now Again in 2009). Often referred to as a “wear-your-heart-on-your-sleeve” modern funk masterpiece In the Raw cemented the attitude and sound of the Brothers Whitefield. Forceful and unapologetic this initial offering is an eclectic combination of traditional modern. Earthology’s “The Gift (featuring Edan and Mr. Lif)” is a perfect example of this duality -– beginning slowly with the kind of primal (but ominous) jazz sounds that hint at something big just around the bend the song hangs a slow left and ultimately finding a home in fuzzy psychedelic hip-hop with far reaching, signature Whitefield roots.

Currently, there are no plans yet for the Brothers to hit the States, so for now enjoy this “video” for “NTU/Safari Strut”, two songs from Earthology:

photoby Ryan Pfluger

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s selection, featured on the Midday Show with Cheryl Waters, is “Lewis Takes Action” by Owen Pallett from his 2010 album Heartland on Domino Records.

Final Fantasy, one-man band extraordinaire Owen Pallett returns to the pit (orchestra, not mosh) with his latest batch of video game-inspired pop narratives. His third proper album and first for Domino, Heartland, marks Pallett’s first release since dropping the make-believe-band moniker. All copyright infringements and confusion aside, the move to solo status makes perfect sense given the fact that all along Pallett has been more or less composing and performing his music in solitude. Well known for his charismatic and exciting live sets (see “Lewis Takes Off his Shirt” live at the Hillside Festival below), Pallett commands his audience with little more than a violin, keyboard, loop pedal and microphone. And while his tools are indeed minimal, Pallett somehow succeeds in filling all that empty space — avoiding the pitfalls of your typical lone gunman show (dead air, canned vocals, recorded tracks, YAWNING) — with lushly laid loops that mimic the effect of a seasoned string section at his back.

This of course also rings true on Heartland, even more so in fact as his live sets are actually a stripped down version of his records and this latest effort is by far his most ambitious. Heartland is still Final Fantasy: the entire record serving as a backdrop to an imaginary storyline surrounding the exploits of a character named Lewis, and each of the album’s 12 songs serve as a sort of chapter throughout which the story’s protagonist (an “ultra-violent farmer”) examines his relationship with the creator who happens to be… wait for it… Owen Pallette. I must say this album is odd, not hugely accessible to the run of the mill music fan but still quite thought-provoking and, well, lovely to listen to. After all, the character-lines within this alternate world (called Spectrum!) are just fantastical illustrations of humanity, of struggles taking place within hearts and minds of people every day.

“Lewis Takes Action” has got A LOT going on. Pallett’s signature violin work always at play the track also features horns, flutes, marching drums and operatic drama filled vocal hooks. Can you see this as anime, or is it just me?

According to his MySpace page, Owen Pallette is currently on tour in Canada, before he heads overseas to Europe. He’ll be Stateside again this spring and plays what promises to be a unique set at the Crocodile Cafe on May 8th. I’ll be the guy in Catman make-up wearing a cape.

As promised, here’s “Lewis Takes His Shirt Off” live at the Hillside Festival:

photo by Autumn de Wilde

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday, we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Afternoon Show with Kevin Cole, is the previously unreleased song “Cecelia/Amanda” by Elliott Smith, made available by Kill Rock Stars.

Elliott Smith. Well, where to start?

You’d be hard-pressed to find a musician, an artist, a singular voice, that means more to me than Elliott Smith. Like so many others, Elliott’s music affected my insides with the kind of emotional force that made me an instant fan for life. Each of his whispered words a razor-sharp secret, Elliott’s compositions hang between speakers like stories spoken in confidence. I owned everything in his catalogue within weeks. I still remember the first song of his I heard (“Clementine,” from his self-titled release on Kill Rock Stars) and where I was when he died (blowing dust from the lens of an IMAX projector). Even though I’d never met Elliott or even seen him play a complete set (I was late to a show once and caught his encore — it wasn’t my fault, ugh) I used to look forward to his records like a proud best friend or brother. I think a lot of people felt that way about him. I guess the point that I am struggling to hone is that Elliott Smith was a special human being whose contributions to music can not be overstated.

On April 6th, Kill Rock Stars will rerelease Smith’s first and last records, 1994’s Roman Candle (originally on Cavity Search) and 2004’s From a Basement on a Hill (completed posthumously in 2004 by Rob Schnapf and Joanna Bolme for ANTI-). This will in effect bring the majority of his catalog (barring his two Dreamworks albums XO & Figure 8) home to the Northwest.

Often overlooked, Smith’s hushed Roman Candle is one of the most beautiful and telling records of his short career. Smith’s debut offers clues about the artist’s troubled childhood with the transparency of a young man that never expected to get his record made. Among his very best, these first three songs — “Roman Candle,” “Condor Ave,” and “No Name #1” — are the ultimate introduction to themes found throughout Elliott’s entire catalogue (Charlie, mom, withdrawal). Roman Candle is one hell of an honest record that showcases the primordial talents of a brilliant artist to be.

The new Kill Rock Stars version of Roman Candle has been re-mastered by Tape Op Editor and official Elliott Smith archivist Larry Crane. According to Crane, the updated version will be…

“more listenable. I felt that a lot of the guitar ’squeaks’ were jarring and very loud, and that many of the hard consonants and ’s’ sounds were jarring and scratchy sounding. I felt by reducing these noises that the music would become more inviting and the sound would serve the songs better.”

Important to note though is that 2010’s Roman Candle will not deviate from Elliott’s original mixes. Also important to note: this release also marks the first time the album will be available on vinyl.

In celebration of these recent additions, Kill Rock Stars has offered today’s featured song, “Cecelia/Amanda,” as a free MP3 download. The song, recorded by Larry Crane in 1997, is a lovely gift and elegant bridge between Elliott’s debut and final recordings. In 1997, Kill Rock Stars had just released Either/Or and Elliott was in the midst of what would become his highest level of mainstream exposure, beginning with his musical contribution to fellow Portlander Gus Van Sant’s film Good Will Hunting and culminating with an Oscar nomination (and performance) for his song “Miss Misery.” At this time, Elliott was working on the tracks that would become the shining apex of his discography, his Dreamworks debut, XO. It is with this fourth record that Smith’s transformation from thinly produced lo-fi singer-songwriter to multi-instrumentalist baroque pop master would come into full bloom.

Along the way Larry Crane recorded “Cecelia/Amanda,” a near complete lyrical reworking of a track entitled “Time is Ours Now,” originally recorded by Smith’s high school band Stranger Than Fiction. Despite its origins, this rework sounds like middle ground between Either/Or and XO. XO marked the first time Elliott, a proficient pianist since an early age, chose to bring the pop-mainstay of his idols to the forefront of his own compositions. Suddenly, Elliott’s doubled vocals and skillful finger-picking found their perfect counter-part in colorfully upbeat piano arrangements. “Cecilia/Amanda” is a lost example of this musical big bang — a precursor of sorts to the brilliance of “Waltz #2,” “Baby Britain,” and “Independence Day.”

I realize I’ve said very little about From a Basement on a Hill. This may sound completely ridiculous, but I have listened to it very little over the years since its original release. Like most of his other albums, I think I bought it on the first day it was available, on LP, but decided to save it for a time when I really needed some new Elliott. I guess on some level I wasn’t ready for Elliott Smith’s last tracks. Sitting here tonight, listening to “Cecilia/Amanda,” Roman Candle, Elliott Smith, Either/Or, XO, and Figure 8, I think it’s finally time to dust off Elliott’s final gift.

XO

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Morning Show with John Richards, is “Repulsion” by Quasi from the 2010 album American Gong on Kill Rock Stars.

I’m guessing that most of KEXP’s listeners are at least somewhat familiar with Quasi. I’m basing this guess on the fact that founding members Janet Weiss and Sam Coomes are pretty frickin’ well known up here in the Northwest and — well, let’s face it — pretty much everywhere else too. But in case you missed them (I miss so much, so don’t feel bad. Seriously, I discovered The Cure in like 2001. Ouch.), here’s a brief rundown:

Coomes and Weiss both grew up in Southern California, eventually moving to Portland to play music, get married and divorced, possibly not in that order. (I’ve always been foggy on when these two were actually husband and wife — seems like they’ve been amicable ex’s forever.) Between the two of them, Coomes and Weiss took part in a multitude of influential Northwest music projects prior to the formation of Quasi, most notably Heatmiser (late-comer Coomes on bass w/ Elliott Smith, Tony Lash and Neil Gust) and Sleater-Kinney (Weiss on drums, duh, with Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker). In the years since its formation in 1993, Quasi has released eight or so full length albums, a live CD and several singles on a variety of labels including Seattle’s own Up Records, Domino and Touch & Go. If my math is correct, American Gong (out Feb. 23) represents the group’s ninth LP and first for Olympia’s seminal Kill Rock Stars label.

This new album is a clear demarcation for the band, from avant-garde drum-centric keyboard pop with guitars to guitar-centric sludge pop with keyboards. Of the album’s increasingly guitar-heavy sound Coomes points to the addition of bassist Joanna Bolme (Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Calamity Jane, The Minders) as a major influence: “One of the reasons why we did keyboards over the years as a two-piece was to cover the whole sonic spectrum – but now with a bass guitar covering the low-end, playing guitar is just more fun.” Gong’s first single “Repulsion” is a clear indicator of just how much fun Quasi as a three piece is now enjoying. Always unshakeable, Janet Weiss’s beats feel freer with the addition of Bolme’s thick bass. A little less weight on my shoulders? Well, I’m going to hit a little harder now… be a little riskier with my fills, etc. Perhaps it’s the track title, but “Repulsion” reminds me of an early Dinosaur Jr. prior to the departure of Lou Barlow. Messy and dark-sounding sonically — this thickness is a far cry from the delicate busyness of R&B Transmogrification. Thankfully, my favorite part of Quasi, the voices of Weiss and Coomes, which sound lovely together, have remained intact. Even though the band has never really stopped releasing records, American Gong feels like a freshly awakened bear at the business end of a long slumber. Hungry.

After a brief stint in Japan, Quasi will begin their U.S. tour at the beginning of March. Oddly, there’s no Seattle date listed on either the band’s website or MySpace page, but hopefully they’ll drop a spot right after their Portland show on March 27. And if there weren’t a better reason to put your name in now for the new album, KRS is offering a free live DVD of Quasi’s 2009 New Year’s Eve set of Who covers with all American Gong pre-orders. Yay!

For now, here’s a very special moment from over a decade ago: Quasi backed by Elliott Smith covering The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black”:

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Each and every Friday we deliver songs by local artists. Today’s selection, featured on the Midday Show with Cheryl Waters, is “Mansions of Los Feliz” by EELS from the 2010 album End Times (out yesterday!) on Vagrant Records.

Gosh, it seems like just the other day that I was tippy-typing out words about Mr. Mark Oliver Everett – also known as E… aka EELS. Indeed it was just a mere six months ago that Everett dropped the wildly successful LP Hombre Lobo to countless four-star reviews and critics-choice lists, not to mention appearances on Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel Live. Showing up on the back-end of a million-month (okay, 48-month) gap in recording, Hombre Lobo was accompanied by the near-simultaneous publication of Everett’s first book (the autobiographical Things the Grandchildren Should Know) as well as the completion of a BBC/PBS produced documentary about his quantum physicist father titled Parallel Worlds, Parallel Lives.

It makes sense then given the finalization of these monstrous side-projects that E would release this latest volume of heart-wrenching blues-fueled pop so hot on the heels of his previous effort. It would make even more sense, given the dissolution of his marriage, that the aptly titled End Times finds E cutting loose the werewolf character from “Dog Faced Boy,” making an unflinchingly beautiful return to the shirt-sleeve self-examination of his finest works.

I’m pretty sure that when I wrote about EELS last year, I said (or at least hinted) that Everett’s most brilliant work, 1998’s Electro-Shock Blues, would never be matched. While End Times doesn’t quite reach that watermark, the compositions contained here are amongst the strongest Everett has ever penned. The honesty is once again palpable. This is immediately evident in “The Mansions of Los Feliz,” a lean acoustic affair that showcases E’s talent as a crafter of catch. Like most of his best work this one is fueled by a 60’s-era mix of country twang and pop structure. Never allowing itself to get too grim “Mansions” pulls the reigns on desperation and loneliness with a melodic chorus that could cheer up Morrissey.

“Little Bird” is stunning in its simplicity: this is the same starkly strummed Danelectro from Electro-Shock Blues and is by my estimation the masterpiece of this new offering. When E sings “Goddamn, I miss that girl,” watch out because you are going to very clearly recall that uniquely pointed mix of anxiety, regret and emotional ADD that came along with missing the only one that ever mattered.

Like Electro-Shock Blues, the new album may on the surface seem a smidge depressing (this guy has been through a lot) but most fans of EELS will continue to connect to the morsels of hope hiding beneath Everett’s continued catharsis. After all, it is not until life really starts to shit on you does one recognize the simplicity of happiness. Once again, E saves us the trouble.

There are no current plans for EELS to tour. In fact, for Hombre Lobo, E said that he just wasn’t “into” touring, and as of yet his opinion doesn’t seem to be changing. But if it does, you can be sure to find updates on the band’s MySpace page. For now, here’s the video for End Time’s “In My Younger Days”: