Rubin Recommends

(If they have a STAR by them, it means I’ve heard it and I like it. Album title links go to Amazon. If I miss any good releases, please add them in the comments.)

For all your MP3 needs purchase from iTunes.

Preview a lot of these releases at Spinner.

MUSIC:
BOAT: Setting the Paces
Broadcast & The Focus Group: Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age
Bryan Scary: Mad Valentines EP
Cub Country: Stretch That Skull Cover and Smile (vinyl)
Devendra Banhart: What Will Be
Echo and the Bunnymen: The Fountain
Glass Ghost: Idol Omen (vinyl)
Gov’t Mule: By A Thread
Holy Sons: Criminal’s Return
Horse Feathers: Cascades
Jesu: Opiate Sun
Lightning Bolt: Earthly Delights
Merzbow: Bird Series Volume Ten
Morrissey: Hmv/Parlophone Singles ‘88-’95 (3-CD box set)
Pelican: What We All Come To Need
Pyramids w/ Nadja: Pyramids w/ Nadj
Seven Storey Mountain: Seven Storey Mountain EP
Sole and the Skyrider Band: Plastique (vinyl)
Stephen Stills: Live at Shepherd’s Bush
The Swell Season: Strict Joy (2-CD & DVD)
Talking Heads: Little Creatures (reissue with bonus tracks)
Tegan and Sara: Sainthood
U2: The Unforgettable Fire (remastered) (3-CD) (2-CD & DVD)
Wilco: Being There (2-LP vinyl & CD reissue)
Wolfmother: Cosmic Egg

DVD:
Whatever Works (wasn’t amazing but I liked it.)

(Part of The Weekly Check In series)

Here is the Weekly Check In with Mark Harrison. It’s probably one of the longest ones ever.

Mark plays many instruments in the band Capybara (who I’ve talked about a lot lately and if you haven’t listened yet, you should right now.) He lives in Kansas City, MO and he’s a very talented guy. I recently got to meet him in person when Capybara played in San Francisco last week and it was great. How good is that photo of him?

(Here’s a video of the first song of their show in SF shot terribly on my digital camera)

Find out more about them at http://capybaramusic.com and here’s a new video they just put up yesterday.

Rubin: What are you currently working on or just finished that you’re excited about?

Harrison: Excitement is weird.  Being on my first tour with our band Capybara for the past 8 weeks – booking, managing, and performing – provides confusing amounts of excitement.  As I stop momentarily to search for instances of this one feeling, I am conflicted.  Every day provides exciting new challenges, and when I speak about my life on the road to friends, family, and strangers, I hear excitement in my voice that contrasts my old routine, working a 40 or 60 or 70 hour a week job in NYC, and I know: My life is exciting.  But as I sit here at 4:17, surrounded by 8 timid cats in the living room of an acquaintance’s house in Pasadena, CA with Gattaca playing as a soundtrack to this e-mail, and this is the first time this week I have been able to sit down to collect my thoughts, I am definitely caught off guard by this question.

Opportunity brings excitement, and tour equals constant opportunity.  Tourpportunity.  Therefore, I am full of excitement, excitement is my life, and I smile.  A lot, everyday.

Between recording in the beautiful mountains of Taos, NM, releasing our debut album Try Brother, establishing relationships with friends like The Record Machine, Mushpot, and Team Clermont to help broaden our base of support, traveling with Range Life Entertainment’s amazing films, playing in old funeral homes, waffle carts, and potluck parties live-on-air in the middle of a forest, or staying up all night to get on the Price is Right, my mind still wanders to what is next for Capybara.  And I can’t wait to see what happens – more music, more friends, more opportunities to learn about music as a career, the list goes on.  And yeah, I am excited.

More…

Ladies and gentleman, one of my favorite bands growing up, that were on Doghouse Records, and buddies of mine, Split Lip / Chamberlain are playing a reunion show on Dec 7th, 2009 at Bowery Ball Room in NYC.

Tickets are on sale starting today Oct 22nd 12pm (EST) Go here to purchase.

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MP3 >> Chamberlain – Magnetic 62nd

Find out more at Facebook.

View the collage/collection artwork by Andreas Banderas. (via I heart photograph)

More…

Atlas Sound – Logos

(If they have a STAR by them, it means I’ve heard it and I like it. Album title links go to Amazon. If I miss any good releases, please add them in the comments.)

For all your MP3 needs purchase from iTunes.

Preview a lot of these releases at Spinner.

Music:
Atlas Sound: Logos (vinyl) *
Bear in Heaven: Beast Rest Forth Mouth *
Converge: Axe to Fall *
Do Make Say Think: Other Truths (vinyl) *
Editors: In This Light & On This Evening
El Perro Del Mar: Love Is Not Pop (vinyl)
Elvis Perkins in Dearland: The Doomsday EP (vinyl
Espers: The Pear
Fela Kuti: The Best of the Black President (2-CDs & DVD)
Flight of the Conchords: I Told You I Was Freaky (vinyl)
Former Ghosts: Fleurs
Fuck Buttons: Tarot Sport (vinyl)
Get Up Kids: Four Minute Mile (remastered) *
Get Up Kids: Red Letter Day/Woodson (remastered) *
Islands: Vapours (vinyl)
Jay Farrar and Benjamin Gibbard: One Fast Move or I’m Gone: Music From Kerouac’s Big
Jello Biafra: The Audacity of Hype
Kings of Convenience: Declaration of Dependance (vinyl)
Leonard Cohen: Live At The Isle of Wight (CD & DVD) (Blu-ray DVD) (2-LP vinyl)
Little Dragon: Machine Dreams (vinyl)
Maps: Turning the Mind
Michael Jackson: This Is It
Old Canes: Feral Harmonic (vinyl) *
OOIOO: Armonico Hewa (vinyl)
Parlour Steps: The Hidden Names
Pelican: What We All Come to Need *
Portraits Of Past: Cypress Dust Witch
Russian Circles: Geneva
Snow Patrol: Late Night Tales
Spiral Stairs: The Real Free
Sufjan Stevens: The BQE (vinyl)
Weird Al Yankovic: The Essential Weird Al Yankovic
White Rainbow: New Clouds
Yo Gabba Gabba!: Music Is Awesome

DVD:
Yo Gabba Gabba!: Meet My Family

Go Daytripping with Bon Iver at the Oya Festival – Oslo, Norwa on Pitchfork TV.

Purchase Bon Iver’s records at Amazon.

I’m really into artist Jeff Carter’s sculptures and installations. I also like that he uses things like the modified Ikea flooring pictured above.

(via OK Great)

http://www.jeff-carter.net

Check out Vice’s Where The Wild Things Are site where they asked 24 of their favorite artists to tap into their earliest memories of how Maurice Sendak’s celebrated book affected their youth and interpret these recollections via pen, pencil, and brush.

Also there you will see videos of five individuals from Spike Jonze’s creative team on the VBS show Art Talk! in which you will gain a deeper understanding of the film’s production. Check out the interviews and exclusive behind the scenes footage with K.K. Barrett (production designer) up, and then we will have Sonny Gerasimowicz (art director) Eric Zumbrunnen (editor), Lance Accord (cinematographer) and Casey Storm (costume designer).

http://wherethewildthingsare.viceland.com

(If they have a STAR by them, it means I’ve heard it and I like it. Album title links go to Amazon. If I miss any good releases, please add them in the comments.)

For all your MP3 needs purchase from iTunes.

Preview a lot of these releases at Spinner.

MUSIC:
Andrew Jackson Jihad: Can’t Maintain (vinyl)
Devendra Banhart: Baby (vinyl)
Engineers: Three Fact Fader
Grant Lee Phillips: Little Moon (vinyl)
Har Mar Superstar: Dark Touches
Imaad Wasif: The Voidist (vinyl)
Lightning Bolt: Earthly Delights (vinyl)
Little Girls: Concepts (vinyl)
Nick Cave: Nick Cave’s Jukebox
Snoop Dogg: The Lost Sessions, Vol. 1
Sole and the Skyrider Band: Plastique
The Temper Trap: Conditions
Thao With the Get Down Stay Down: Know Better Learn Faster (vinyl)

DVD:

Objectified
Drag Me to Hell
The Mighty Boosh Special Edition DVD (Seasons 1-3)

Tell Them Anything You Want a documentary on Maurice Sendak premieres Wednesday October 14th on HBO.

Two days later Where The Wild Things Are will be released in theaters. It’s going to be a great week.  Go here for more info.