The Lucky Thirteen: 3/28/10 - 4/3/10

Here's my standard disclaimer which I've forgotten the past two weeks (fortunately no lawsuits have come my way): any artists, record labels, etc. who do not wish to be on the playlist for any reason whatsoever, email me at ghostofblindlemon@gmail.com and I will gladly remove the track. And if you'd actually like to be on the playlist, you can use the same email addy to email me mp3's, and if I like the song then odds are it'll wind up on a playlist.

So I have one question for you, my readers? Are you ready to rock? I can't hear you, I said, are you ready to RAWK?!?!?

Sorry to disappoint you then, because I've decided to go a more mellow route with this week's playlist. The rock will resume next week, but for now enjoy this more subdued yet lovely playlist.

1. "D Street", Luna Matto
   Here's another of the tracks that I received from Luna Matto, and I've always enjoyed the sparse arrangement of this song. I'm sure she'll be performing it Saturday night at City Tavern, along with Darktown Strutters and Binary Sunrise.


2. "The Sticking Place", Most
   Art festival season is upon us, and this weekend will be the Deep Ellum Arts Festival, and there are several bands worth checking out. While I still haven't seen Most's live set, I'm convinced that their set (Saturday, 5:00 pm at the Main Stage) will be quite captivating.


3. "Three", The Timeline Post
   I suppose it's kinda cheesy to place this song as number three on the list. What can I say? I'm not feeling all that original today. Sue me.
   
4. "...And Again", Hendrick
   Hendrick was originally scheduled to perform at the Arts Festival, but they're no longer on the lineup. That leaves only one show on their agenda this week, and that would be the Thursday night show at Trees. You know the show I'm talking about. This is the show that determines which band opens Edgefest. There is no online voting for the last round, so the only way to make certain your favorite band makes it to Edgefest is to attend Thursday night. I don't know the order of the lineup, but Bridges & Blinking Lights, Ishi, Andrew Tinker, and Criminal Shift round out the top five.


5. "The Moon", Elkhart
   How could I do a mellow playlist without adding an Elkhart song? Their CD, The Moon, is nothing less than a classic in terms of dreamy ethereal alt-country pop. It's also a rare CD that never compels me to press the skip button, and that's a true rarity in this day and age.


6. "Somebody Else", Smile Smile
   Here's yet another good track from Truth on Tape. They'll be performing Wednesday at City Tavern as part of the Home Sessions series. If you're not familiar with the Home Sessions series, the way it works is that artists perform stripped down, and then many of the tracks will later be available to stream or even download for free. Pretty cool, isn't it?


7. "The Regulator", Nicholas Altobelli
   Mr. Altobelli will be performing next Sunday at the Deep Ellum Arts Festival, and I'm sure he'll be playing several songs from his next album, which shares its name with the posted song.


8. "Red in the Morning", Menkena
   Yo Jimmy, when we gonna meet up so you can give me the new CD? Okay, so my Brooklyn accent doesn't even come close to that of Mr. Menkena. Still, Jimmy's promised me a mastered copy of the new CD, and I'm seriously ready to listen to it.


9. "Acts of Man", Midlake
   This is an obvious choice for this mellow thirteen.


10. "Fly", GaydenLee
    I received the duo's CD, Songs for Thursday, this past week and I must say that there is a definite charm to the six songs. There's something in the songs that reminds me of the Once soundtrack, not so much because of their writing style but in spirit. When I first saw that film, I was struck by the simple sincerity of the performances and the obvious love the two felt for the music. I sense a certain amount of that admittedly intangible quality with GaydenLee. If this has you curious, check them out next Sunday at the Deep Ellum Arts Festival. They play at 3:00 at the ArtLoveMagic Artist Alley.


11. "Rivers into Rum", Carter Albrecht
    I think this is the first time I've posted a track from Mr. Albrecht's solo album on a playlist. Admittedly, I couldn't do that with the MySpace playlists, but I should have addressed this problem much sooner. Still, better late than never, and this song fits in to the playlist perfectly.


12. "Together", The O's
    I'm sure than John Pedigo and Taylor Young are just having a blast over in Europe, but I'll be glad when they return and do some shows closer to Paris, Texas than Paris, France.


13. "After All Is Done", Iris Leu
    This is one of my favorites from Hushaboo that I've only seen Ms. Leu perform one time, and that was at the CD release show. I doubt she'll change that trend this Saturday when she performs at the Kessler Theater. For the record, if you haven't been there yet, change that... like, now.