The Bickett Residency by DeYarmond Edison

Musically, I'm in a lull. I want to blame the early months of the year, as the releases I'm anticipating most aren't quite rolling out. In these periods, I like to seek out rare or under-appreciated music from my favorite artists. Sometimes, I find something new to me that I love, or sometimes I just enjoy listening to an album I don't constantly have streaming in my life. Also, it's Thursday and we all know that means one thing: Throwback time.

A little over a year ago, I became intrigued by Justin Vernon's other projects despite never being a huge fan of Bon Iver. DeYarmond Edison, a predecessor band to Megafaun/ Bon Iver/ Field Report/ The Shouting Matches were right up my alley. With only their youngest release, Silent Signs, on Spotify, I was desperate to hear more of their americana, heavy-leaning-country sound. Their self-titled album, released in 2004, is one of my favorite releases involving Vernon.

Shortly after that first album, in 2005, DeYarmond Edison, was invited by The Bickett Gallery, in Raleigh, North Carolina to be an "Artist In Residency". Using the time to reinvent themselves and the band by honing in on their individual strengths and weaknesses, one of the results was a two-hundred CD pressing of their recordings at the gallery. The Bickett Residency is a true gem: absolutely raw and brilliant but nearly impossible to track down a physical copy. Luckily for Vernon and DeYarmond Edison fans alike, between the tracks being on Grooveshark and the kind upload by tallestfoxes to Youtube, the documentation of those four sessions in Spring 2005 is accessible to nearly everyone.

I have a feeling I'll end up covering most of Justin Vernon's other projects as time goes on. Check out my first JV-related entry on J.D. Vernon's Home Is here.

The Songs of 2013

I want to thank this year for being the year that threw me back into music. When I reflect upon how I became invested in music in the first place, 2006 and 2008 have always been the defining years. I need to add 2013 to that list.

While I've been sharing my favorite songs and albums that were released in 2013, I have a few honorable mentions from prior years that I feel obligated to mention: A New Kind of House EP by Typhoon; The Match by The Eastern Sea; everything Lord Huron; So Far We Are by The French Kicks; The Midnight Organ Fight by Frightened Rabbit; Valley Maker's Self Titled album; Prison Boxing by Cataldo; all of Justin Vernon's prior projects, Counting Sheep by The Crane Wives and Through The Deep, Dark Valley by The Oh Hello's. As always, Rilo Kiley and The Format will always be significant, no matter the year.

Back to the present, this year is the year. Bastille's Pompeii was the most played song, according to my last.fm account. I still can't get sick of it, despite the radio play. r/comeonandslam reminded me that regardless of my folk or music-snobbery leanings, sometimes one of my favorite songs will end up being a Space Jam/ Radioactive mash-up. Whatever. Jumper Cables by Widower, complete with bloodsugar references, was written about me (or, in reality, a girl who could be my best friend). I rarely have a song fit me to a tee that well. When I first heard Hannah Hunt, courtesy of Vampire Weekend, I actually cried.

Pop and mainstream music were also constants and I'm not ashamed. I loved the new Gavin DeGraw singles and drove four hours to my alma mater to see him in concert back in February. J. Cole's Crooked Smile brought back TLC with a bang. I devoured the new Ron Pope song and fully intend to see his show at DC9, even though I'll be surrounded by teenage girls. I am sort of ashamed over having Pitbull and Ke$ha's Timber on this list but I can't stop dancing in my car when I hear it on the radio. 

If I could, I would add every song released this year from Typhoon, Valley Maker, Folly and The Hunter, Volcano Choir, Hey Marseilles and Pickwick to this list. Did I just give away my top 6 albums? Yes.

I tried narrowing this down to just one-hundred and I couldn't make it happen. There's no order - throw these on shuffle and enjoy the ride.

Round I:

Opportunist by Miyazaki

Love Lost by Roo and the Howl**
Gallup, MN by The Shouting Matches
Chicago by Fort Frances**
Best I Ever Had by Gavin DeGraw
Braving the Wind by The Sun Kite
Prom Night by Anamanaguchi
Moonless by Blatant Neon Ion**
Watch for Deer at Dawn by Folly and the Hunter
Well, You Left by Rilo Kiley
Foreign Bodies by Radiation City
Radioactive Slam by MuhLurs**
I Dreamt Blues by Vikesh Kapoor
Something to Get You By by Genders
Somebody to Love by Valerie June
Hannah Hunt by Vampire Weekend (<3)
Halls of Columbia by Pickwick
Burn by Ellie Goulding
If I Could Change Your Mind by HAIM
The Mission by Valley Maker**
Song For Zula by Phosphorescent
Tiff (feat. Justin Vernon) by POLIÇA
Casino (Bad Things) by Houndmouth
Comrade by Volcano Choir
Royals by Lorde
Bird Balloons by Lady Lamb the Beekeeper
Thinking About You by Typhoon
Step Out by Jose Gonzalez
Change by Churchill
Bad Kingdom by Moderat
Hurricane by MS MR
Young Fathers by Typhoon
I Have Been Lost by The Petticoat Tearoom

Round II
City By The Sea by Fort Frances
Byegone by Volcano Choir
I Remember You by Rilo Kiley
100 Years by Typhoon
East Coast Girl by Cayucas
Ivory Black by Seryn
Brother by Swear and Shake
Chain My Name by POLIÇA
Inside Out by Andrew Austin
Still by Daughter
Bang by Elin Ruth
The Round by Pickwick
Only Time by Valley Maker**
Tall Tall Shadow by Basia Balut
When We Fall by Timshel
Good Times by The Changing Colors
Everlasting Arms by Vampire Weekend
Promise of Lakes by Luray
Stay Awake by Ellie Goulding, Madeon
Dead Man's Dance by Bradford Loomis
Science/Visions by CHVRCHES
Jumper Cable by Widower
Blankets by Matthew Fowler
Modern Jesus by Portugal. The Man
Hey Stranger by Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers
Move by Mausi
A Clear Mind, A Better Time by Del Water Gap**
Blood & Bones by Paper Bird
Bright Stars Burning by Hey Marseilles
Agape by Bear's Den
Sex by The 1975
Step Into My Life (Restless) by Marshall Lewis**
Wake Me Up by Avicii

Round III
Possible Deaths by Typhoon
Little Too Late by Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers
Lick My Wounds by Ron Pope
Drop The Game by Flume, Chet Faker
Line of Fire by Junip
Crooked Smile by J. Cole, TLC
Bagel Girl by Black Checker
Put On, Cologne by Donovan Woods
Recovery by Frank Turner
Obey Your Guns by Matrimony
Ever Loved Once by Blitzen Trapper
Island by Wyatt Overman
Sask by Donovan Woods
Wildewoman by Lucius
Inside My Head by The Parkington Sisters
Play It Right by Sylvan Esso
Abandon by Modern Kin
Wyoming by Water Liars
Cherry Blossoms by Night Beds
The Fold by Ivan & Alyosha
Call Me In The Afternoon by Half Moon Run
You Don't Love Me Like You Used To by The Lone Bellow
The Breach by Dustin Tebbutt
Little Numbers by BOY
Sonsick by San Fermin
Heart Beats by Hey Marseilles
Acetate by Volcano Choir
Love of a Life by Kelijet, X Ambassadors
The Wire by HAIM

Round IV
Ships Pass by Paul Cook and the Chronicles
Wax & Wane by Alana Henderson
Dreaming by Smallpools
Low Wishes by Air Review
Never Wanted Your Love by She & Him
Fifth In Line to the Throne by Camera Obscura
Fireworks at Night by Campfire Ok
San Francisco by The Mowgli's
Timber by Pitbull, Ke$ha
The Great Northwest by Mighty Oaks
Of Space and Time by City and Colour
Dreams of Cannilbalism by Typhoon
Bad Habit by Foals
Out of My League by Fitz and the Tantrums
Weight by Mikal Cronin
Tides by Hey Marseilles
Closed Hand, Full of Friends by Foy Vance
Jack and Jill by Jon Morgan**
Ghost by Folly and the Hunter
Dear Pressure by Miracles of Modern Science
From This Valley by The Civil Wars
Moth In The Porch Light by Folly and the Hunter
Pompeii by Bastille
Wait Up For You by The Belle Game
North Carolina by Little Chief
Thunder Clatter by Wild Cub
Need The Sun To Break by James Bay
Summer Jam by Twinsmith
Grace For Saints and Ramblers by Iron & Wine
Riptide by Vance Joy
Faultlines by Field Division**

** Not Available on Spotify, therefore linked.

Big River/ The Next One/ When That Day Comes by Red River Outlaws

There's something so intriguing about the Red River Outlaws and I can't entirely wrap my finger around what it is. Late night browsing on r/indiefolk is occasionally fruitful. However, last night, I couldn't decide if their songs were good because it was dark out or good just in general. Considering it's morning and I still can't stop listening, I'm convinced this is some solid work of folk. Dark, and occasionally sinister but keen.

Big River starts out with the narrator confessing all of his reasons for wanting to live outside of the law. At first, I'm not aware of what the motives are behind this desire or what the crime he's confessing to really will be. On one hand, the narrator is indubitably wise - if you make anything out of yourself, attention will be drawn to you and not everyone wishes for that fate. However, I find him less wise and far less charming when he further discusses, in vivid detail, his conversations with the devil. Conversations which likely motivated his crime of shooting the mayor. By the end of the song, I can't figure out if the narrator is evil or just mentally estranged, with the admission: "I've never found a single institution that could deal with my mind's confusion and I'll have to live in this delusion until the day that I die".

The Next One regales a fleeting lust story that ends with betrayal, death and supposed revenge. The narrator begins the tale prefacing the story will end with his death by the gallows. The story actually begins with a girl coming into town where she and the narrator make love, get caught and she sells him out to her father and the local sheriff, claiming she was forced into the situation. It's an unfortunate death sentence for our narrator. He continues in the song on how he'd rather leave his body behind than live without her and that he'll catch her in the next life. Except, he'll catch her in the next life... with a loaded gun. While revenge makes enough sense in this story, it's almost unexpected. By the end of the song, with the apt descriptions of how he'll never forget her betrayal and the painting of all these grim pictures, I'm floored with the story-telling and how the song makes my skin crawl.

When That Day Comes doesn't quite continue with the themes of the prior songs - the tale here is much more legend-based and folklore. The narrator is trying to escape the cruel hands of the earth, a seemingly-immortal who cannot convince a god to send him peacefully on. The gods here are interesting choices, a mountain god, an ocean god and a city god, each with their own excuses for keeping the narrator around.

Surprisingly enough, there's a lot to process with this project thus far. I am hoping whatever this ends up being stays true to the campfire tale/ folklore/ classic blues storytelling - it's a subset of folk music that is largely under appreciated, in my opinion. This aspect of folk music isn't always the easiest to pull off and the Red River Outlaws can execute it well. I'm also completely enamored with artwork that accompanies the videos and it adds a whole 'nother layer to the eerie vibe. The third video, while a different artistic direction than the first two, makes a wonderful use of videos in public domain.

What do we know about the Red River Outlaws? Not much. It's a project spearheaded by Seth Cronin with Sarah Rothert contributing vocals and gorgeous violin strings. We're supposed to see a new song posted about every week in September and a record is apparently on the way. I really need more of this in my life.

Listen to Big River, The Next One and When That Day Comes on Seth Cronin's Youtube channel.

I Can by the Dancing Hats

It's Friday. I didn't take the day off of work, per se, but I did decide to forgo my miserable car commute for a walking commute to the DC office. I'm almost regretting this decision entirely. I barely have any work to do, it's a perfect day outside and I'm in the dreariest office of all time. No windows. No company. The lights keep turning off because no one acknowledges my presence.

On the upside, I have plenty of privacy to jam out to I Can by the Dancing Hats all afternoon. The Dancing Hats, from what I can find out, appear to be a fun-party-sort band out of Portland, Oregon, with varying numbers of individuals contributing. Are they the next big folk super-group (ala upbeat Typhoon)? Who knows? But, I think there's a lot of potential for something.

The track is catchy and multi-dimensional. There's truly a lot going on, both lyrically and aurally. I'm not one-hundred percent sure what this song is about, but my guess is rebellion against a stereotypical life and shooting down everyone who tells you you can't live extraordinarily. At first I wasn't sold on how slightly jarring the lead male's voice sounded, but as the song goes on and he experiments with different styles, it's highly enjoyable. The female vocalist is equally fantastic and provides the balance the song needs. The random, instrumental portions prove that the band can rock out and have fun while doing so.

I don't think there's a better song to capture the end of summer.

You can listen to and download I Can on the Dancing Hats' bandcamp page (for name your price!). If you do, please rebel against office culture with me and participate in some Friday cubicle dancing.

[Local] Moonless EP by Blatant Neon Ion

Once upon a time, an ex-boyfriend of mine declared he was working on a theory that coming to age exists on the spectrum between Frightened Rabbit's Midnight Organ Fight and Neutral Milk Hotel's In The Aeroplane Over the Sea. I sometimes hate how brilliant this sentiment is.

I'm convinced that the Moonless EP by Blatant Neon Ion should be a milepost somewhere on the same spectrum.

With rough vocals that are reminiscent to me of Frightened Rabbit and Foals, Moonless EP is an acquired taste that is quick to acquire to.

The exact lyrics aren't readily available, but this is my interpretation. The album tells a story of a young man going through many of life's themes and downturns and how those themes and downturns continue to exist when a love ends.

Marianna is rooted deep with this theme of time passing regardless of a relationship's existence [didn't feel any time pass at all/ not ready yet/ too scared/ give us our dreams/ don't leave me/ crash]. Moonless delves into a similar theme with the monotony of every day life [fresh pot of coffee/ save me a pot, okay/ it's 7am and I'm leaving/ let me take you to the movies/ tell me you love me again]. Restless Ashes discusses the life cycle in general and possibly how we fit in with the rest of the earth [from here this is all I know/ scatter my restless ashes/ return me back to where I came]. Rocket Summer seems to be a flashback to a nice, simple summer with a lovely lady and the aftermath of trying to not only hold onto the memory but repress it from every day thoughts. I adore the dreamy, softer backup vocals here. Alone spends equal parts of time reflecting on how to exist while alone but also the struggle to navigate back home. This is the perfect ending song -- despite how emotional the whole album is, it still feels like there's a build up that ends here.

I'm sold. This may be my new go-to when things feel particularly rough with life and love.

You can download Moonless EP (for free, or pay as you wish) on Blatant Neon Ion's bandcamp page. 

Letter to My Lover by The Local Strangers

I think I should miss Seattle more than I do. It's home by way of North Bend, Washington but the city lost it's charm after I graduated college. I felt the pull to flee and I've never looked back. As I've gotten more into music again, in the past year, I find myself overwhelmingly drawn to Seattle bands. Some days, I long for free posters from Silver Platters, house shows in the University District, and listening to Emerald City with the windows rolled down. A band that gives me major Seattle-lust on a regular basis is The Local Strangers. Their release late last year, Left for Better, has been a staple of mine over the past few months.

Their new track, Letter to My Lover, is absolutely heart wrenching.

Aubrey Zoli strongly showcases her vocal capabilities in a way where the emotion bleeds from her voice, through my headphones, and into my brain. Coupled with the lyrics, in particular, "you light the dark inside/ in so little time/ and I want to stay and fight this out with you", I'm left with a song that is highly reminiscent of my latest breakup. The song strikes the right chord between therapeutic and overtly damaging. The other high points include Andrew Joslyn on the violin and Ethan Eade on the trumpet. The violin is omnipresent-ly gorgeous but the unexpected trumpet is truly the aurally intriguing part of the song.

You can download Letter to My Lover (for free or pay as you wish) on The Local Stranger's bandcamp page.