Friday, March 30, 2007

Roberta Flack

I cannot remember what it was that I was watching the other day. I really cannot recall what it was. Granted it was some form of entertainment, but whether it was a television program, a miniseries, or a movie I just cannot remember. And the following situation occurs in my life more than could be deemed simple random occurrences. I'm sitting around, absorbed in some form of entertainment, and yet at the end of the night all I can remember is this one song that I really wanted to listen to again.

And here, with Roberta Flack, is one of those songs. She's a classic singer and an amazingly talented songwriter. Here though I've posted a song written by other legends, Simon and Garfunkel. I'm not sure why Roberta decided to cover this song, but it is gorgeous.

Enjoy the music.

mp3 : Roberta Flack - Bridge Over Troubled Water

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Children of Men

Every so often a movie comes along that requires our attention. We feel the need to pass it on to every single person we meet. And with this movie, directed by Alfonso Cuaron, starring Clive Owen, we feel that we are compelled to tell you about it. We thought it was brilliant, and we think you'll like it as well. So get a group of your mates together, pop some corn, and enjoy a glimpse at what our future might well become.

IMDB page
Official DVD page
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Thursday, March 29, 2007

What's New, What's Forgotten

Sometimes when we post here at The World Forgot we do so for no reason other than that we were all bored and couldn't think of anything more entertaining to do. In fact it was this boredom that led us to the new site design. We hope you like it.

Lately we've been reading a lot of magazines. Loads of them really. Spin still holds a place dear to our hearts. It's the magazine that we grew up on musically and it helped us realize, during university, that there are other niches outside of our own. Then of course there's RollingStone, the music magazine that we all love to hate, and hate to admit that we still read. We here have relegated reading RollingStone to bathroom time only as it seems most appropriate in that setting. Then there's relative newcomer to the music magazine scene, Paste. Sure they've been around as long as Norah Jones, but that's a touch less ancient than other publications. Easily the more literary of the magazine trifecta it's a great place to discover music and enjoy literature. In fact, to quote them, they're a magazine that has realized "that people don't stop caring about music after they graduate from college." Kudos to your magazine and your sampler discs, Paste, they really are something special.

Then there's all the work we've done around here. If you take a minute and notice we've changed our template a little, tweaked the coloration, and in a few days we might even throw a graphic up there in our header. We also finally caught on to the social bookmarking craze that has spread like wildfire across the new internet. And although we chose not to include the entire ridiculous list of such sites in our sidebar [look right] we did select those with whom we felt the most beneficence. We might change our minds in the future, but for now we've elected to keep the bookmarking links out of individual posts. Most posts here are scattered and random enough without a billion little links cluttering up the lower portion.

Finally it comes time to include all the blogs that are now in our list of Friends and Lovers [see left bar]. These are a list of blogs that we read regularly, sometimes discuss, and frequently enthusiastically agree with. Chances are, if you're reading this entire post, you probably read their posts as well. Here's to those blogs who have lent us inspiration and good music along the way. An Aquarium Drunkard, Bows + Arrows, Cable and Tweed, Crown Dozen, Good Weather for Airstrikes, Gorilla vs. Bear, I Guess I'm Floating, The Late Greats, My Old Kentucky Blog, Songs:Illinois, Stereogum, You Ain't No Picasso, and Who Killed the Mixtape.

Well, that's enough blathering to erase at least ten minutes of boredom. Now it's off for a group viewing of Sergio Leone's classic "Once Upon a Time in America." Which is about four hours of wonderful.

More music is coming, fear not.

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Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Wilco and Billy Bragg


So just the other night, in fact almost immediately after posting about how terribly sad Joni Mitchell is, a friend left me a comment which led me to listening to this older song by Wilco and Billy Bragg. She had this to say about the song. "Okay, now listen to me and don't, I repeat DO NOT, go read the lyrics before you hear the song I am going to tell you to listen to. It will ruin the experience for you. But it's amazing. It will make you fall in love and you won't even know with what. You'll love it."

And she was right, I do love the song. So after some careful searching here it is, for you to enjoy. Maybe you'll fall in love with something too.

mp3 : Wilco and Billy Bragg - One by One

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Monday, March 26, 2007

Joni Mitchell


I was going to get some sleep, I really was. But good old Joni Mitchell, and I do mean old, wouldn't quite let go of my heart or my ears. And even if this could technically be filed as a Christmas song I really can't leave it in December. As with almost every song Joni sings I almost cry just listening to her voice. The lyrics and the tone are gorgeous on this track and I hope you too will come to enjoy it as much more than just a simple cold weather song.

mp3 : Joni Mitchell - River

Tonight is one of those nights that I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

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Sunday, March 25, 2007

The Killers


I found this picture/poster of The Killers on some random website, and then I found a random live recording of their old[er] hit Mr. Brightside and I decided that it was just too serendipitous not to post about them.

So this track isn't an amazing find, in fact it sounds surprisingly similar to their studio release of the song. But it is a live track, I seem to think that it's fairly rare, and most of the blogging world is still mad crazy about The Killers. Enjoy the song, more music coming soon [as is par for the course].

mp3 : The Killers - Mr. Brightside (Live)

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Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Technocrati Update

Just doing a little bit of updating on the site. Carry on.

Technorati Profile

Arcade Fire


You might think that with this post I'll be talking about the new disc, Neon Bible, which has taken over the blogging world lately. Well, you are wrong. Everyone knows about that disc and every other blogger has already tried, largely unsuccessfully, to post songs from the album. So instead I would like to remind us all of a simpler time, when A&R people didn't troll the internet looking for blog postings, when music came on a tangible form of media you could hold, smell, and break, and where a little indie band from any part of the world would only gain notoriety in their neck of the woods due to word of mouth and insane live shows.

Those days are gone, but music from then is still around, even music from bands now made famous by this entirely too convoluted process. And so with this post I bring you back to when Arcade Fire was just hitting the tipping point, with the first track, and then to when most of the world was just starting to realize they were something special, with the second track taken from their performance at KCRW.

Enjoy the music everyone, and keep supporting your favorite bands.

www.arcadefire.com

mp3 : Arcade Fire - Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)

mp3 : Arcade Fire - Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles) (live at KCRW)

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Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Whistling

We here at The World Forgot are currently working on revamping the experience you get when you somehow wander into our webspace. If you'll notice on the left bar there are a few new blogs listed in "Friends and Lovers" and we finally have an email contact posted, even if it's only a freebie. Hopefully loads of new things will be popping up periodically over the next few days but you'll have to cut us some slack as we've been busy celebrating St. Patty's Day, birthdays, and the now worldwide phenomenon of March Madness.

Business will continue to carry on even while we take a moment to collect ourselves and reshape this little place we call home.

Until next time make sure you listen to the newest Arcade Fire disc. It's brilliant and the songs "Keep the Car Running," "(Antichrist Television Blues)," and "The Well and The Lighthouse" are tunes we all seem to love over here.

Cheers.

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Sunday, March 11, 2007

The Weakerthans

I might have a love/love relationship going with this little band from Winnipeg, aptly named The Weakerthans. And I guess what I mean by love/love is that my relationship with them is just like a love/hate relationship, just without anything I can ever find to hate about them. From their release, Fallow, in 1999 through their latest album, Reconstruction Site, they've done nothing but impress me and I honestly cannot say why they haven't exploded with popularity yet. I guess I'll file them away with Shout Out Louds as yet another wonderful band, making great music, who just doesn't seem to get to the tipping point.

mp3 : The Weakerthans - The Last Last One

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Saturday, March 10, 2007

EA Mix vol 9 - Leftovers


Well the EA series of mixes is finally back. I know you were all holding your breath, eagerly anticipating this volume of tunes, and now you can simply indulge in great music. The wait is over. I present to you vol 9, titled Leftovers because I began compiling these thirteen songs at the beginning of December, or right after the American celebration of Thanksgiving.

If you want to download all the songs at once you can just follow the link below. Please note that this is not a direct link so you'll either need to left click or choose to open the link in a new tab or window. From there you should be able to download the archive.

zip: EA Mix vol 9 - Leftovers

Below are each of the tracks available as single song downloads. Let us all hope this doesn't serve to crash any servers [like these mixes have in the past]. These songs should be available for direct downloading. Just right click and save target/link as a file.

01 : The Postal Service - Be Still My Heart : Let's be honest, I think almost everything Ben Gibbard touches is made out of pure gold. Especially when he teams up with Jimmy Tamborello, of Dntel fame, and makes quirky poptronica tunes with great lyrics and fun melodies. This track is no deviation from their now famous formula. Wait for the half way point in the song for the pure bliss that Gibbard brings to most of his work to become undeniably yours as well.

02 : Superdrag - Sucked Out : This song was huge back when I was attending university, but since then I fear it has largely disappeared. The chorus, which consists of the plea "who sucked out the feeling?" repeated multiple times, is the epitomy of teenage angst and the rage we all have against this post modern, stereotyped, white-washed world. Ok, so that might be giving Superdrag more credit than this song actually deserves, but I do feel like we all identify with this song in some way.

03 : They Might Be Giants - Am I Awake : Normally I don't really get into music that They Might Be Giants makes. There's something about their music that reminds of all things awkward in my life and it's frustrating to listen to songs that to me are without rhyme or reason. Just as with many other fringe artists, though, there occasionally arises a song that grabs my attention and demands that I share it's infectious joy with everyone I know. This is one of those moments.

04 : Fields - Charming the Flames : If there was one band in the world worthy of being compared to the brilliant sound of Arcade Fire then this would be the band. I'm sick of everyone labelling anything new, interesting, or original as "the next Arcade Fire" so I won't go that far. What I will say is that they have a wonderful sound and their EP, 7 From the City, is amazing. If these kids put forth this same sort of creative effort on their full album they will be famous. Or at least famous amongst the blogger generation.

05 : Colour Revolt - Mattresses Underwater : I cannot recall where I first heard of this band, or if I've heard of any song other than this one, but in the end none of that information really matters. If I was forced to categorize this band I would say they easily fall into the same vein as Modest Mouse. But in a good way, not in a way that makes them seem like another knock-off album from Wolf Parade. Whatever happened to Wolf Parade anyway? Hopefully they went the way of The Vines and just stopped the atrocity.

06 : Get Cape Wear Cape Fly - Once More With Feeling : I apparently have somewhat of a soft spot for bands with long names. Or with comical names. Luckily for Get Cape Wear Cape Fly their name fits into both categories. Luckily for you their name isn't some small gimmick designed to get people to listen to their music. They actually have talent, and just over halfway through the song they also have trumpets. And talent and trumpets are always a good combination.

07 : Beirut - Elephant Gun : I've heard people label Beirut as a new gypsy music, ethnic folk, new folk, eastern European revivalist, ad naseum. Let's just put Beirut up on the shelf with other such talented acts like Page France, Asher Lev, or Sufjan Stevens. Combining a lot of instruments, most of them admittedly associated with folk and ethnic music, and a lot of voices into one track makes for an intricate sound that is as original as it is familiar. And the song continues to build one layer on top of another until you can't help but smile.

08 : Foo Fighters - Times Like These (Acoustic) : Every once in awhile I sneak back a couple of years, you know, before blogging was where teenagers found their music, and I pick out an outstanding track from an outstanding band. For those of you who aren't old enough to remember here's a quick history lesson. The Foo Fighters are helmed by the very talented Dave Grohl, who used to play drums for a little band called Nirvana, and at certain points in his career he has wavered between the electronic and the acoustic side of rock. For this track he deliciously decided to record it both ways and this acoustic rendition is amazing.

09 : Jimmy Eat World - Drugs Or Me (styrofoam remix) : Just the other day I was talking to a good buddy of mine when I suddenly realized he was wearing a Jimmy Eat World shirt. I was quite amazed and I asked him the question "whatever happened to those guys?" I love their sound and the last I had heard of them was a couple of years ago with the album Futures. Which, by the way, I thought was very good. Apparently they released an EP almost two years ago, from which this track hails, and they're working on recording a new full length which could allegedly be out soon.

10 : Paolo Nutini - Jenny Don't Be Hasty : You can tell Mr. Nutini is a young rock star in the making. He has the swagger, the panache, and even the sound of a budding rock star. And the best part is that he doesn't come across as just another band ripping off the sixties and the seventies. Granted, some of his tracks do get a little guitar solo happy, but he's young, he's supposed to be indulgent. Anyway, this track is great, simply great music.

11 : The Fratellis - Ole Black'n'Blue Eyes : Most of the music I've heard from The Fratellis is horrible. I can't endorse them as a band, I can't stand behind their album, I can't even say that I really like their sound much at all. I do, however, like this one song. And that's really the brilliance of a mix album. I don't have to like a band, I just have to like one song. I will warn you as you listen to this track; you might really like this song, just as I did, but be warned that this song is almost nothing like the rest of their debut album.

12 : Thom Yorke - Videotape : Alright, I'll admit that the album, Eraser, was like listening to Radiohead without any diversity or depth. But that doesn't mean that Thom Yorke needs the rest of Radiohead to make great music, it just means that if he wants to do a solo album he should make music in a completely different style than what him and his mates usually turn out. This is one of those instances where Thom's brilliance shines through. It's just him, a piano, and his very distinct voice.

13 : The Long Winters - The Commander Thinks Aloud : This is easily one of the best concept songs I have ever heard. John Roderick wrote this song as a reaction to the Challenger space shuttle disaster and I cannot imagine a more heart wrenching piece of music ever being written about a tragedy. The imagery is gorgeous, the music is moving, and the last repeated line will leave your heart filled to the brim with the terrible injustice that happened that day. "The crew compartment is breaking up."

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Friday, March 09, 2007

Andrew Bird

photo by cameron wittig

As most of us know Andrew Bird makes slightly out of the mainstream pop music that at times can sound chaotic, sloppy, awkward, and occasionally bad. There are some songs, though, on which Mr. Bird's creativity and poise shine through in sparkling clarity. The song Tables and Chairs immediately comes to mind as a quick example. It's as if Andrew has such a load of influences and ideas for songs that if he isn't careful they all compete with his sound and muddy up his songs.

Posted below is one song that defies the trappings that Mr. Bird can fall into on his albums and shines through as a true example of the genius that he is capable of. Here it is my friends, enjoy.

mp3 : Andrew Bird - A Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left

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Thursday, March 08, 2007

repost of audible

So, apparently Hype isn't recognizing files posted on the new Yousendit. Nor can they use files posted on the free file site Snapdrive.

So I'm just reposting a song on a new filehost to see if this one works. The host is called Eggdisk, and I'm crossing my fingers.

mp3: [repost!] Audible - The Fireman

I guess from here on out, until I find a host that works with Hype, I'll be posting haphazardly at best. Which is a shame because I have the next two editions of EA Mix ready for distribution.

Cheerio.

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Audible


What do you get when you take the ex-drummer of Philly band Matt Pond PA, throw in two ladies that he's dated and some other guys? You get a band named after an American Football term, Audible. They're a Philly based band and you can hear the Matt Pond PA influence come through their sound. Audible isn't as fluid, or as melodic, as their old counterparts, but they come across with a certain panache, a sort of awkward swagger, that is both comforting and unique.

Try a song of theirs on for size, you won't be disappointed. And to sweeten the deal they're currently working on their second full length project. Kudos to Audible.

mp3: Audible - The Fireman

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Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Let's Start with The Comeback


I've been tired lately. Consequently I've been sleeping a lot. But in between sleeping times I was travelling all over the great country of Thailand. During that time I crashed my fileserver [thanks for the vote of popularity folks], I've listened to loads of new music via the quick internet down there, and apparently Hype Machine and Yousendit stopped working well together.

This leaves me in a bit of a conundrum. I'll continue posting music, but as we all know most people won't find it unless it gets listed on Hype. I'm working on a solution to this problem and hopefully tomorrow I'll be back up and running with no more problems. [and maybe I'll end up crashing yet another free filehost. haha]

Cheers

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Monday, March 05, 2007

Brendan Losch

I found and was consequently friended by Brendan on myspace and I still dig his sound over a year later. A bit in the vein of Josh Ritter or Damien Jurado he sits on the edge of the new folk movement and uses it all to his advantage.

Here's a little song you could snag from his Purevolume account or his myspace page, but it's here for your convenience. You'll have to left click the links until I can start hosting files again on my old fileserver.

Brendan Losch - I Can't Stand
[above link hosted on yousendit for seven days]

Brendan Losch - I Can't Stand
[above link hosted on gigasize for at least ninety days]

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Well, We're Back

After touring the land of smiles, Thailand, for the entire month of February The World Forgot is finally back at a place where internet is easy to come by and uploading of songs won't cost three or four dollars each.

In other news I think I might be part of the reason my fileserver crashed. After uploading multiple copies of new and live versions of Arcade Fire songs my fileserver bombed out and has been down for over a month now. Hilarious yes, pain in the neck yes, do I care, no.

Anyway, expect new music to start showing up here. Especially form Paolo Nutini, Jamie T, The Good The Bad & The Queen, and various other artists. Who knows, maybe even some Take That, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, or Simon Webbe will make their mark upon this page.

Let's hope everything gets running smoothly again. And as always you can reach me at the_worldforgot@yahoo.com