It’s that kind of day and trying to jump back into the swing of things so quickly after vacation is hard work.

I might be alone in saying this, but Eric Johnson and the rest of The Fruit Bats have crafted one of the best albums of 2009.  They also performed the song for Craig Ferguson (quickly becoming the best late night host) last Friday and somehow I missed it.

Also: West Coast Tour in January! Dates here: www.fruitbatsmusic.com . Presale here: https://tix.concertmaps.com The band expects Seattle and Portland to be sellouts, so if you live there, ahem, it’s best to get tickets sooner rather than later.

It was a shame that Elizabeth Powell and Co.’s debut LP, Some Are Lakes came out in the cold days of November in 2008.  At that point, most of the music world has turned their attention to year end lists and weren’t so concerned with discussing new, mostly great, releases.  A shame that this album was one of the one’s ignored by the music cognoscenti.

Regardless, their new video, directed by creative Canadian duo WeWereMonkeys, is an excellent excuse to remind PDXers that Land of Talk is playing the Doug Fir on November 4th.  A show not to be missed!

As a bonus, you can hear a much earlier, though far inferior, version of “It’s Okay,” when Elizabeth Powell recorded under the moniker ele_K*.  There’s also a great back story worth reading.  [via]

Fantastic song from their new album Intuit. The video, directed by Stefan Nadelman, is even better.

Ramona Falls is the solo work of Brent Knopf, one third of Menomena; Nadelman previously worked with Knopf on the similarly dark and fantastic video for ‘Evil Bee’ (from Menomena’s Friend or Foe album) which you can see here.

Mp3: Ramona Falls – “I Say Fever”

[via]

Good lord! Another single, another great song that raises the bar yet again off their upcoming third album Romance is Boring. One would think at some point the band has to slow down, but as long as the quality stays as high as it has, then I’ve got no complaints.  The new LP will be released in February of 2010 (via Arts & Crafts).  Highly anticipated, since the Cardiff, Wales outfit seems to do no wrong.

First single off of their new LP Sainthood, and it’s not entirely different from their effort on The Con. That’s a good thing.  The new record is out now and after streaming it for a few days, I’ve got to say, it’s entirely worth picking up.  [via]

Speaking of Spike Jonze, his short film collaboration with Kanye West leaked over the weekend.  It debuted in June at the Los Angeles Film Festival and is sort of a long-form music video for the Kanye track, “See You in My Nightmares.” If you need incentive (or the opposite) to watch the movie in it’s entirety, here’s The Daily Swarm after it premiered:

In the film, Kanye plays himself drunk at a club acting belligerent and boastful, telling starstruck club-goers that the song playing in the club is his. He wanders into a side room where he encounters a beautiful woman. They start having sex and then he passes out on her leopard print dress. When he comes to, he finds himself in the VIP room with his pants down – he was hallucinating and fucking the pillow. The realization startles him and he rushes to the bathroom where he vomits what look like rose petals.

Then it gets weird.

[via]

Frightened Rabbit has become one of those bands that I’ve just listened to over and over and over and over again and just try to get sick of but can’t.  Their songs are full of great hooks and melodies, but it’s always the clever first lines of their songs that get under my skin.  Here, “Swim Until You Can’t See the Land” is an understated effort for the Scottish trio, but all of the hallmarks of a great Frightened Rabbit song are present.

The new video for the Cardiff, Wales outfit, is also the first single off their new album coming in early 2010 (wait, what? already?!?).  The track is both a caper scheme and a love story, and contains all the charm you’d want out of a Campesinos song — it’s catchy, sing-alongy, and high octane. The video premiered on Pitchfork last week, and can be seen here.

These guys are probably one of my favorite bands from Portland and their new album, Salvation is a Deep Dark Well, only solidified that feeling.  I think they really managed to capture the infectious energy of their live show.  They put so much energy into their performances that it’s akin to a giant tidal wave of euphoria.  “Golden and Green” is the opening track from their new album. 

It’s not the best song, by a long shot, but it gives you a great idea of their sound — a curious amalgamation of bluegrass, the dark Southern Gothic literary tradition, a dash of raucous irish folk, all performed with a punk rock abandon.

According to Rolling Stone, the multitracked harmonies in the cover song aren’t multitracked harmonies at all. Thom sang the song with his brother, Unbelievable Truth singer Andy Yorke. It’s the first time those two have ever appeared on a song together.

The song is part of the benefit album for Mark Mulcahy.  Ciao My Shining Star drops September 29 on Shout! Factory. The single “All For the Best” is out now s a super-limited 7″ single on Mulcahy’s own Mezzotint label.

Let’s start the day off right, shall we?  Red Fang are from around these parts and it’s always nice to listen to a band that’s not afraid to put some oomph into their rock.  I haven’t had much exposure to them, but a friend of a friend passed along this video and I nearly lost it.

Pitchfork.tv just posted this new video for St. Vincent’s standout track “Marrow.”  This is Annie Clark at her finest.