The Civil Wars - “Falling (demo)”

The melody is infectious; the emotions expressed are potent.

This duo apparently had this song debut on Grey’s Anatomy last night.  Good for them.  I’ve never seen Grey’s Anatomy, and when I saw them play at Mercy Lounge last night, they admitted the same.  The show was awesome—beautiful, intimate, and a lot of fun to watch.  Their lyrics and harmonies were terrific, and you could tell that they were having a great time on-stage, which always puts you at ease and makes you smile a bit more.

Unfortunately, I still don’t have any mp3’s from this duo, and I can’t find a good link to put them on here.  Some of their great recordings are on their MySpace, however.  You should check that out… it gets much better than this video.  I recommend “20 years,” “Tip of my Tongue,” and “If I Didn’t Know Better.”

Earlier, I posted their live video of “Falling,” which is also an awesome song.

Counting Crows - “Angels of the Silences” (VH1 Storytellers live acoustic)

If you don’t love Counting Crows, I know the reasons why.  But this is one of at least 20 reasons that you should get over it.

Here’s a different take on stealing someone’s soul through love.  Counting Crows take it another step and flesh out the experience—being haunted by angels.  The comparison of the beauty of the Sistine Chapel to beauty of love brings back one of the great scenes in Good Will Hunting.  Damn, Robin Williams is the man:

So if I asked you about art, you’d probably give me the skinny on every art book ever written. Michelangelo, you know a lot about him. Life’s work, political aspirations, him and the pope, sexual orientations, the whole works, right? But I’ll bet you can’t tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. You’ve never actually stood there and looked up at that beautiful ceiling; seen that. If I ask you about women, you’d probably give me a syllabus about your personal favorites. You may have even been laid a few times. But you can’t tell me what it feels like to wake up next to a woman and feel truly happy… But you’ve never looked at a woman and been totally vulnerable. Known someone that could level you with her eyes, feeling like God put an angel on earth just for you. Who could rescue you from the depths of hell.

For great further listening on angels feeding on artists, check out my earlier post:
“Anne” by John Frusciante.

The Young Republic - “The Alchemist”

I recently posted the link to the site for these guys.  They have this song available to listen to, but I thought I’d make it easier and put it on my playlist here.

In addition to this track’s vivid soundscape, the lyrics provide some good food thought—cool images with a familiar theme.

A memorandum in the face of flames:
“Save your symphony before you end up a drone.”

Neil Halstead - “Sometimes the Wheels”

“…and sometimes i just sit and think, and i don’t do too much…and sometimes i just sit and think, and i don’t think much.”

this is a song that makes me forget everything else i’m doing.

these two photos above are both Neil Halstead.  i kind of like him as grizzly adams on the bike, instead of as regular cool, angsty kid in a raincoat.

John Frusciante - “Carvel”

i trimmed off a minute or two of ethereal sounds off the front and back ends of this track, but everything in between holds some of the best stuff in music: introspective lyrics, epic shifts, sweet vocal harmony, and a rhythm to bite your lip and bob to—good things to go to Frusciante for anyday.

For another great tune from the mystic RHCP guitarist posted up here, check out “Anne”.