Archives for May 2012

Your MPFree today is a new one on us. It comes from the band Trails And Ways who are a four piece from Oakland, California.

This track was "inspired by a hot June day in São Paulo listening to Drake and Jorge Ben" and features on their EP Trilingual due for release in September.

Trails And Ways - Nunca

Today's MPFree comes courtesy of Triple J (6 Music's Australian cousin).

The band are called Battleships and are a four-piece from Sydney who, at present, are still unsigned. They cite their influences as The National, Doves, Elbow; see if you can hear them when you download the track below...

Battleships - In Retrospect

We have another brand new band for you today, and they wouldn't sound out of place on the soundtrack to Drive.

They are Future Of What and are a Brooklyn four-piece who release their debut EP, Moonstruck, on June 26. The EP was recorded with Daniel Schlett who also worked with Here We Go Magic and Diiv. It was recorded in Brooklyn earlier this spring.

Future Of What - I Wait For You

Your MPFree today comes from LA trio Torches.

They've recently self-released the album Heads Full Of Rust which was co-produced by Raymond Richards of Local Natives.

Torches - I Want Something

There are some big names on the MPFree EP this week, and the final addition is just as big. It comes from Sebastien Tellier and is a remix by The Magician of his current single Cochon Ville which you'll find on his new album My God Is Blue.

You'll find the link below with the others from this week:

Perfume Genius - Rusty Chains

The Afghan Whigs - See And Don't See

The Sufis - Sri Sai Flora

Yeasayer - Henrietta

Sebastien Tellier - Cochon Ville (The Magician Remix)

Some tracks may no longer be available for download.

This week's Memory Tape comes from Katie Anderson, and is another story of an inspirational friend/influence as Katie explains...

"I, like many others, was introduced and inspired by (probably illegal) mix tapes compiled by my friends.

"My transforming mix tape - lovingly covered in Laura Ashley type pre-Raphaelite paper hiding the hideous C60 paper they used to wrap them in was called 'Some Music for Katie' and was made my trendy friend Mandy, at the time an art student.

I reckon around 1988? Oh it brings back such good memories. I still treasure the tape - and Pixies are still my favourite ever band now."

The track list is:

House of Love - Christine

Stone Roses - Fools Gold

Pixies - Velouria & Make Believe

Biff Bang Pow - She paints

The Jazz Butcher - Lot 49

Faith No More - We Care a Lot

Throwing Muses - Soul Soldier

The Chameleons - Sun, sea and Silence

Lush - Deluxe

Pixies - Alison

Sugercubes - Regina

The The - The Uncertain Smile

The Breeders - Fortunately Gone

Felt - Ballad of the Band

Inspired? Email Lauren your Memory Tape.

Your MPFree today sees the return of Yeasayer. The band will release the album Fragrant World in August which is the follow up to Odd Blood.

Frontman Chris Keatings has cited inspiration ranging from R&B Records to Blade Runner, so who knows what it'll sound like. The first taste of the album is Henrietta which will be available digitally to buy from next Monday, or, you could just download it for free from their website:

Yeasayer - Henrietta

We have a slice of garage psych for you as the MPFree today. The Sufis are a Tennessee three-piece led by Calvin Laporte.

Your MPFree today is the first new song from The Afghan Whigs in five years; it is a cover though...

It's a dark and brooding take on Marie "Queenie" Lyons' 1970 soul song See And Don't See. The band have reformed for some festival dates over the summer starting with ATP at Alexander Palace this weekend. Enjoy:

The Afghan Whigs - See And Don't See

I'm sorry to have to do this to you on a Monday, but today's MPFree is a sad one.

It comes from Perfume Genius and is a track that has been part of his live set but doesn't feature on his second album Put Your Back N 2 It. It's called Rusty Chains and is an ode to to a former lover who has died.

Perfume Genius - Rusty Chains

A lovely old week of tracks again on the MPFree EP this week, and toping it off is two minutes of Californian sunshine pop couresty of Too Many Wizards. They're a quartet from the L.A DIY scene and are set to release their debut album this summer through Jaxart. You'll find the link for download below...

The Very Best - Yoshua Alikuti (Nadastrom Remix)

Sleep Party People - Heavy Burden (Young Midnight Remix)

Oddisee - Paralyzed

The Tallest Man On Earth - 1904

Too Many Wizards - Happy Birthday

Some tracks may no longer be available for download.

Today's story for Memory Tapes is all about the guiding musical hand of a stranger, as Becky Warren explains...

"At the ripe old age of 12, way back when in the summer of 2003, I was given a mixtape that pretty much set the musical path of my teenage and now adult life.

"A lady colleague of my Dad heard word that I was really into Korn, Cradle of Filth and Murderdolls and presumably saw, as a Convent girl who liked 'satanic' music, they should create a playlist to help me along the path of evil/righteousness (depending which way you look at it).

"I never met this wonderful woman, only received the fruits of her labours, and I have no idea what she's doing now. All I know is that I think my life changed for the better after having pressed play as an innocent Year 7 on the first side of my first ever mixtape and had the wind taken out of my lungs by an onslaught of The Jesus & Mary Chain...

Here are le tracks...

Side 1

1. Never Understand - The Jesus & Mary Chain

2. Immigrant Song - Led Zeppelin

3. Satan - Orbital

4. Jesus Built My Hot Rod - Ministry

5. Muscle Museum - Muse

6. Monkey Gone To Heaven - Pixies

7. Sliver - Nirvana

8. Higher Ground - RHCP

9. Bombtrack - Rage Against The Machine

10. I Had Too Much To Dream - Electric Prunes

11. I Wanna Be Your Dog - Iggy & The Stooges

12. Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins

13. Chelsea Girl - Ride

Side 2

1. You Made Me Realise - My Bloody Valentine

2. Touch Me I'm Sick - Mudhoney

3. The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret - Queens of the Stone Age

4. Godstar - Psychic TV

5. Sheela-Na-Gia - PJ Harvey

6. Atmosphere - Joy Division

7. Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley

8. Teethgrinder - Therapy

9. Mildred Pierce - Sonic Youth

10. The Mercy Seat - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

11. New York City Cops - The Strokes

12. 1/1 - Brian Eno

Wanna send Loz your Memory Tape? I would if I were you...

Your MPFree today comes for show favourite The Tallest Man On Earth.

It comes from his new album There's No Leaving Now which was recorded at his home in Sweden and is due out on June 12th. It, of course, follows the album The Wild Hunt which we all loved on the show, so are excited about the new material.

The Tallest Man On Earth - 1904

Your MPFree today comes from Washington rapper/producer Oddisee and is an EP of remixes and reworkings.

It's called Odd Renditions and features bits of Bon Iver, Marvin Gaye, Metronomy and Oddisee himself all beautifully complimenting each other. The whole EP is free, but we picked out Paralyzed which features some Aretha, Bon Iver and the man himself.

Oddisee - Paralyzed

Your MPFree on this fine Tuesday is a remix of a Sleep Party People track.

The remix of Heavy Burdon comes courtesy of Young Midnight (Russell from Twin Shadow). You'll find the original version on the album We Were Drifting On a Sad Song, but you'll find the remix, for free, below...

Sleep Party People - Heavy Burden (Young Midnight Remix)

NEWS:

Spotify dating apps

Spotify doesn't just stream you music any more - it might find you a mate. Two new dating apps have been launched for Spotify - Tastebuds.fm and Fellody.fm. Both dig into your playlists and listening history, then suggest people you might fancy - letting you exchange messages if they fancy you back.

Facebook launches its own App Store

Facebook is launching app stores within its apps, to help people find the best social apps - games, music and so on. The social network is the latest company trying to cut through the app store clutter.

Music iBooks - George Harrison and The Streets

Two brand new e-books on Apple's iBooks store have a music focus. George Harrison: Living In the Material World has photos, letters, sketches, video and audio of George himself. The Story of The Streets is Mike Skinner's autobiography, with videos and audio.

REVIEWS:

Uniqlo Wake Up (Android / iPhone - Free)

This is billed as a 'social alarm app'. It wakes you up with music customised depending on the weather, time and day of the week, with a button to then share that on Twitter and Facebook.

ShoeBox (Android / iPhone - Free)

This is a great app for anyone who's digging old photos out of the loft and wants a way to store and share them. The app helps you scan them in, then save them in themed collections, and share them out to Facebook, Twitter etc.

Today's MPFree sees the return of The Very Best.

Their new single Yoshua Alikuti surfaced last month, and now, the Washington DJ duo Nadastrom have remixed the track and made it available for free.

The original comes from the new album by The Very Best which is called MTMTMK and is out 17th July via Moshi Moshi.

The Very Best - Yoshua Alikuti (Nadastrom Remix)

Your final MPFree of the week comes from two Manchester bands who've teamed up to record and give away a song.

Luckily, we like both Stay+ and No Ceremony so this one was a no brainer for us. You'll find the track linked below along with the rest of the tracks which were...

Fort Romeau - Jack Rollin'

The Shutes - She Said

Marissa Nadler - Apostle

Lower Dens - Brains

Stay+ Feat. No Ceremony - Eyes

Some tracks may no longer be available for download.

Today's MPFree comes from Baltimore dream-rockers Lower Dens. This band have been on our radar for some time now, and their album Nootropics was released at the start of this month.

They're currently on these shores for The Great Escape Festival in Brighton this weekend before a couple of London dates next week.

Lower Dens - Brains

We're back to normal this week for Memory Tapes following Shaun's special birthday celebration last week.

This week is the turn of Julian Leighton who writes...

"We got married back in 2006 and by far the most difficult thing to agree on were the songs to go on our mix, every guest got a copy and the tunes were all important to us as a couple.

"We're both big fans of Sigur Ros and we walked out of the wedding to Hoppipolla so that clearly features but there's a nice variety of stuff on there, hope you like it."

Here are the tracks...

1. Hoppipolla - Sigur Ros

2. Neighborhood #2 (Laika) - The Arcade Fire

3. California Soul - Marlene Shaw

4. 93 Til Infinity - Marlena Shaw

5. Lost without You - Stephen Fretwell

6. Which Will - Nick Drake

7. Only Love Can Break Heart - Saint Ettiene

8. The Pounding (Live) - Doves

9. I feel Love - Donna Summer

10. Picture This - Blondie

11. Dreaming Of You - The Coral

12. Blowing Up My Mind - The Exciters

13. All You Need Is Love - The Beatles

14. What The World Is Waiting For - The Stone Roses

15. All I Need - Air

16. Heartbeats - Jose Gonzalez

17. Is This Love - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

18. Your So Cool - Hans Zimmer

19. Your Love - Frankie Knuckles

20. (Hidden Track) Onions & Goujons - Turnipwagon (a friend of ours who mixed the CD for us)

If you'd like to take part in Memory Tapes, email Lauren your details.

Your MPFree today comes from Marissa Nadler. She's a Boston-based singer songwriter who's about tio release her sixth studio album.

The Sister comes out later this month and follows last year self titled and self released album.

Marissa Nadler - Apostle

Today's MPFree comes from Isle Of Wight band The Shutes.

They have a new EP 'Echo Of Love' which is out this week, and one of the tracks that features on said EP is being given away for free. Help yourselves:

The Shutes - She Said

It's a Bank Holiday Monday however normal service continues here on Lauren's show, which means it's the first of five Mpfree giveaways this week.

Today it's 'Jack Rollin' from La Roux's keyboardist Fort Romeau, aka Mike Norris.

The track is from his eight track EP 'Kingdoms' out now on 100% Silk.

Listen to the track below for free..

Fort Romeau - Jack Rollin'

It is, as you'd expect, another fine collection of free downloads on the MPFree EP this week.

The quintet is completed by Sweet Lights whose self-titled debut album is out now. This track comes from said album, and is called Balland Of Kurt Vile #2. You'll find the link below.

Your tracks this week are:

Egypt - Doldrums

Sun Kill Moon - That Bird Has A Broken Wing

Chet Faker - No Diggity

XXXChange - Panic Panic

Sweet Lights - Ballad Of Kurt Vile

Some tracks may no longer be available for download.

Memory Tapes this week is a special one. We're celebrating the man of the hour - birthday boy Shaun Keaveny.

Shaun celebrated 5 years of presenting the 6 Music Breakfast Show this morning, so we asked him to put together a list of tracks that best represent his time at BBC 6 Music. The songs have been chosen for a variety of reasons, ranging from the time he met Jimmy Page, when Joe Brown played a song for him and personal and show favourites.

Here's the tracks, and happy birthday Shaun:

Loneliness Shines - Malcolm Middleton

I'll See You in My Dreams - Joe Brown

Litigation - Mariachi El Bronx

Do I Love You - Frank Wilson

Head Home - Midlake

Too Young - Phoenix

Led Zeppelin - The Song Remains The Same

Earth Wind & Fire - Magic Mind

Albert King - Born Under a Bad Sign

Jeff Buckley - Eternal life

Passion Pit - The Reeling

Do Yourself a Favour - Stevie Wonder

Rage Against the Machine - Born of a Broken Man

Superstition- Jeff Beck

Paris - Friendly Fires

Damn Vandals - Beautiful Mind

You can email Lauren your Memory Tapes too.

We've played XXXChange a fair bit over the recent weeks, and now this track has emerged from his current EP Bounce.

XXXChange has worked with Spank Rock, Kele Bloc Party), Amanda Blank and remixed Bjork, Thom Yorke, TV on the Radio and Santigold; that's some list!

Bounce was released back in April, but here one of the tracks for free:

XXXChange - Panic Panic

Today's MPFree is a track that we've played on the show a couple of times, and is now being given away for free.

It comes from Melbourne's Chet Faker aka Nick Murphy and is taken from the 7-track EP Thinking In Textures which was released at the end of March. Oh yeah, did I mention it was a cover of Blackstreet's No Diggity? It's a cover of Blackstreet's No Diggity, look....

Chet Faker - No Diggity

Today's MPFree is a little acoustic number from the new Sun Kil Moon album, 'Among The Leaves', released the 29th May.

'That Bird Has A Broken Wing' is the fourth single to be released from the upcoming album.

Have a listen below..

Sun Kill Moon - That Bird Has A Broken Wing