9/29/11- The Spill Canvas- "Our Song"

Thank heavens, this is NOT a cover of the Taylor Swift song.

The Spill Canvas are on...um... indefinite hiatus, or they broke up. Who knows which. But while they were together, they put out some good songs.

In 2010, they released "Our Song," which was... remarkably more happy than past Spill Canvas songs. Hardcore fans of the band weren't too thrilled with it, but it is a very well written, catchy pop-rock song.

The video? Pretty damn good to. Sure, it seems like a typical love song video at the start, but as you roll through it, you'll realize that it really isn't. And it'll make you chuckle a little.

Enjoy "Our Song" by the Spill Canvas!

Of course, embedding this video isn't allowed. So check it out HERE!

9/28/11- Augustana- "Boston"

I found out yesterday that one of my favorite bands, Augustana, broke up. (Info via my buddy Andrew. Check out his blog "Sonic Overlook."

Augustana never really had any big budget music videos over their three major label albums, and they had better songs than their biggest hit "Boston," but this video I chose, only because... I would hate to be the intern who would have to clean up a shitload of pianos from a beach.

So enjoy what Coldplay's "Yellow" would have looked like if pianos were involved. It's "Boston" by Augustana.

9/27/11- Stone Temple Pilots- "Lady Picture Show"

Today's video looks like it was pretty easy to make, with pretty good results.

Take (1) Band. Film them and heavily filter it to give it an "old" feel.

Add in public domain film of ladies.

And you have STP's video for "Lady Picture Show."

Since Atlantic Records doesn't let you embed videos, you'll have to CLICK HERE to watch it.

9/22/11- R.E.M.- "The One I Love"

A big name band called it quits yesterday.

After 31 years of being a band (how's THAT for job security?), R.E.M. decided to part ways yesterday, in a statement released on the band's website. (Check it here). They've had an amazing career, and quite the influence on the music world in their time.

So I decided to dig up an R.E.M. video for today. One that (if I remember correctly), was shot in Ithaca, NY, where I went to college.

So as R.E.M. calls it a day, enjoy "The One I Love"

9/21/11- White Town- "Your Woman"

I still find it odd that a dude is singing "I could never be your woman."

Anywho.

Today's video is a pretty cheaply made, but solid video. It's a clever way of showing a love story and all of it's steps, even if it doesn't end in a happy marriage.

Check out "Your Woman" by White Town (And yes, the picture on this blog IS of the dude from White Town.

9/20/11- The Decemberists- "This is Why We Fight"

Sometimes, the best music videos don't have the artist in them at all. Just give us visuals and music to tell the story.

That's what the Decemberists did with the video to "This is Why We Fight." Stunning visuals for a great song, and the band is nowhere to be found.

Enjoy.

9/19/11- My Morning Jacket- "Holdin' On to Black Metal"

Can't. Get. Singing. Ghosts. Out. Of. My. Head.

Plus, I find it weird that VH1 is actually playing this video. Are they out of "Rock of Love" reruns?

9/16/11- Adele- "Chasing Pavements"

I LIKED HER BEFORE SHE WAS POPULAR!

OK, seriously, I only knew one or two songs, but her voice blew me away well before "Rolling in the Deep" became the most beaten to death by radio song of 2011.

But in 2008, she busted onto the scene with a great song and very clever, well-choreographed music video.

Oh... and contrary to Urban Dictionary.. "Chasing Pavements" is not slang for taking it up the bum.

Enjoy

9/15/11- Lenny Kravitz- "Stand"

So. I'm not really a Lenny Kravitz fan. At all. I haven't liked anything he's released since... well... Fly Away? Maybe?

This song isn't anything special at all, but for the video? Lenny channels his inner Dave Grohl and plays multiple characters, and plays them fairly well.

It's definitely a rip off of "Let's Make a Deal," and the prize of 6 days and 6 nights in lovely Detroit is a nice touch.

Enjoy a decent video from Lenny Kravitz. It's "Stand"

Of course, since Warner Brothers Records won't let you embed their videos (asshats), you have to click HERE! to go watch it.

9/5/11- Live- "Freaks"

So, now that I have internet back in my apartment, I can actually get back to updating the blog! Woo!

So since it's Labor Day, how about the one song I can think about that includes LABOR LABOR LABOR.

So it's "Freaks" by Live!

8/23/11- East Coast Earthquake Special

Sorry I haven't updated this in, well, forever. I had a perfect storm of moving, then Verzion going on strike the day before Fios was going to get installed at my apartment. AWESOME. So I've been without internet at home and haven't posted anything while at work.

Well tonight, it's a slow night, AND it was a big day on the East Coast, as a magnitude 5.8 Earthquake struck in Virginia. In the Philly burbs, we felt about 15 seconds of light shaking, that I first mistook for my neighbors stomping up the stairs.

Either way, I tried to dig up as many earthquake-ish videos for today... so let's enjoy...

Manchester Orchestra- "Shake It Out"




Metro Station- "Shake It"




Rooney- "I'm Shakin"



Wreckx-N-Effect- "Rump Shaker"



Cage The Elephant- "Shake Me Down"

8/5/11- Blink 182- "Up All Night"

Holy hell I've been busy. Sorry blog, ol' buddy. I've been neglecting you.

Let's get back on track with Blink 182. They have released their first new song in 8 years, the "meh" "Up All Night." The VIDEO though, is anything BUT "meh." The band teamed up with AT&T to scour YouTube and take clips of people who had used their music without their permission. They weren't angry. They wanted to take those clips and turn them into a music video.

The result? A Music video in which the starts don't even know they're starring.

7/28/11- American Hi-Fi- "Another Perfect Day"

American Hi-Fi hit their stride in the early 2000's with a sound like Bowling For Soup... fun rock with an occasional serious side. This song, was their serious side. The video? Still fun.

The video is a touching story of a Corn Dog who had it all, and lost it all. Enjoy
"Another Perfect Day" by American Hi-Fi!

7/27/11- Fastball- "Fire Escape"

"Fire Escape" was Fastball's follow up single to their #1 smash "The Way," but this song got the better video. It's a cleverly done "One Shot" style video that's creepy as hell, and at the end, kind of funny with the "behind the scenes" look.

Enjoy "Fire Escape" by Fastball!

7/26/11- Bruno Mars- "The Lazy Song"

Yeah, I know I'm a little behind on the buzz for this song and video(s). But today, I literally didn't do anything before going to work. I sat on the couch, watched crappy daytime TV, and played with the dog I'm dogsitting. A perfect lazy day.

So how about the Lazy song?

There are two versions of this video. The first, a low-budget version with Bruno Mars and some uh... apes... dancing in front of what is supposed to be a webcam. This is actually nominated for an MTV VMA (they still exist?) for "Best Choreography."



Now, the alternate version that came out, I still don't know how they scored Leonard Nemoy for it. But it pretty much sums up a Lazy Day perfectly.

7/25/11- Dog's Eye View- "Everything Falls Apart"

I'm house and dog-sitting for my buddy this week, so let's take the opportunity to play a "dog" video. And it's NOT "Who Let the Dogs Out."

Dog's Eye View formed in 1994 and struck it big in 1996 with their song "Everything Falls Apart" being all over radio and VH1. The video is simple, with the Good storyline and the bad storyline, but even in the end, the bad storyline is somewhat good.

Enjoy "Everything Falls Apart" by Dog's Eye View!

7/22/11- Hot Chip- "Ready For The Floor"

Let's continue with this heat wave thing, mmmmkay?

Hot Chip have been banging out music since 2000, and in 2008, released "Ready For The Floor." They based the music video off of the first Tim Burton "Batman" movie. The characters go through different "games" and as they correctly complete them, their clothes get brighter and brighter. Or... well, they're um... out.

Check it out. "Ready For The Floor" by Hot Chip.

7/21/11- Hot Hot Heat "Middle of Nowhere"

So. It's hot as balls outside. Simply put. And pretty much if you're reading this from somewhere within the United States, it's hot where you are too.

That being said, it seemed appropriate that I dig up a "Hot" video.

Hot Hot Heat have had their indie success for years now, with a splash of mainstream exposure here and there. In 2005, they released "Middle of Nowhere," which had this video. It's kind of "Lost"-esque. Is the lead singer in the same "time" as the rest of the people? Or did he go back in time, like half of the people on the island? Hmm.

Check it for yourself. Although since Warner Brothers Records doesn't allow embedding of their videos (asshats), you will have to CLICK HERE to watch the video.

7/20/11- Hot Rod Circuit- "The Pharmicist"

Sure, iTunes and Amazon MP3 took over in sales when record stores only sold one album at a time, like in this video. HA!

7/19/11- Company of Thieves- "Death of Communication"

What happened to high production music videos? It seems these days we get fewer and fewer. Probably rightly so, as the only real place you see music videos are online, because MTV, MTV2, VH1 and all the other "music" TV channels" barely play any music.

Company of Thieves made a mostly performance video for their latest song "Death of Communication," although lead singer Genevieve Schatz has some interesting wardrobe choices. Non of the Lady Gaga nature though.

Enjoy "Death of Communication" by Company of Thieves!

7/15/11- Young the Giant- "Cough Syrup"

I've had this song stuck in my head for a few days, and finally got around to checking out the video.

It seems like the record label wasn't giving much money to help out, so the band did the best with what they got. Ironically, it's the second video to be focused on a swimming pool and colors in the past few weeks. (See "Upon Returning" by Dredg.

Enjoy "Cough Syrup" by Young the Giant

7/14/11- Poi Dog Pondering- "Complicated"

I always admit that I am a radio geek, and today is no different. Today, both New York City and Chicago are losing their Alternative radio stations to format flips. In NYC, 101.9 RXP is flipping from a quasi-Alternative format and in Chicago, Q101 is flipped from an Alternative/Hard Rock Mix. RXP has only been around for a handful of years, but Q101 has had the "heritage" sticker slapped on it has been around since 1988, and has been Alternative since 1992.

I went online and looked at some of Q101's old playlists, and jumped back to 1998, where I saw today's song pop up. I had never heard of the band, so a little digging on Wiki, and I found out they had Chicago ties.

Poi Dog Pondering is actually still around, after 25+ years. They are a diverse group that mixes many different sounds together (and many band members apparently.) They have released 8 studio albums, including 2011's "Audio Love Letter." We go back to 1998 and their song "Complicated," which includes one GOD-AWFUL green-screen special of a video.

7/13/11- The White Stripes- "Seven Nation Army"

Eight years ago, you had this bassline stuck in your head

Eight years ago, you wondered how the hell Meg White got any job drumming.

Eight years ago, this song was spending it's 3rd week at #1 on the Alternative charts, amidst a sea of crap as Alternative was mired in it's "Hard Rock" phase.

The video was a cool visual at the time, the neverending stream of Jack and Meg. So enjoy, eight years after it hit #1, it's "Seven Nation Army"

7/12/11- Onelinedrawing- "We Had a Deal"

When you're signed to a small record label, chances are, you're not going to get a huge budget to promote your music. Case in point- OneLineDrawing. The solo side-project of Jonah Matranga, he released a handful of EPs and LPs, also under "New End Original" and as a member of the short-lived band "Gratitude."

In 2004, as Onelinedrawing, he released the album "The Volunteers" and had a music video made for the song "We Had a Deal." As you can see, it's um... low budget, but still effective.

7/8/11- William Shatner- "Rocket Man"

The final NASA Space shuttle launched today, shortly after it's intended 11:26AM EDT launch time. Other than a tiny glitch that delayed the launch by a minute or two, everything else went swimmingly.

So for today's video... it's not an OFFICIAL music video, but I feel like it suits the day.

7/7/11- The Crystal Method- "Murder"

You can always count on The Crystal Method for a good music video. In 2001, they released the song "Murder" (With Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots helping on the vocals), but the video is awesome. What better way to capture "Murder" than a killer blow-up doll?

Start to finish the video is great, and make sure you look for the Rivers Cuomo cameo too.

7-6-11- Cake- "Sick of You"

Wooooo. Busy day today. Almost didn't have time to post something. So uh.. how about you enjoy a slice of Cake?

7/5/11- Daniel Merriweather- "Change" (feat. Wale)

I was first introduced to the music of Australia's Daniel Merriweather when he had a minor hit with "Red," which sounded like your typical singer-songwriter fare. Instead, I found a soulful R&B singer with a pretty unique sound. His debut album "Love & War" hit stores in 2009 and featured this song. Enjoy "Change."

7/4/11- Better Than Ezra- "Good"

Instead of some patriotic country song today, how about a song that simply mentions the 4th of July?

Listen for it in "Good" by Better Than Ezra!


Trailer provided by Video Detective

7/1/11- Matt Nathanson- "Faster"

There's nothing really special about the new video for Matt Nathanson's new single "Faster." Guy loves girl. Director shows both smiling. But it simply gets the job done.

Enjoy it for today's music video of the day!

6/30/11- Dredg- "Upon Returning"

Ready for one weird ass video?

Take an alternative band, add a swimming pool, lots of colors, and an old man pissing.

Seriously.

That's what makes up Dredg's new video for "Upon Returning"

Enjoy!

6/29/11- Simian- "La Breeze"

Back in... um.. .2004, I think, I used this song as a stunt on the college radio station I ran. We ran a pop-alternative format, but for April Fools day, we flipped to super lite-rock "The Breeze." so for the day before, we played this song... on repeat. Over and over. "Here comes La Breeze. Get it?

Radio humor.

Either way, I found the video, and it's downright bizarre. Enjoy!

6/28/11- Jamiroquai- "Virtual Insanity"

After the crapfest that was Sugarland yesterday, how about a good video today?

Remember in 1997 when this blew our minds?

6/27/11- Sugarland- "Stuck Like Glue"

The first time I ever heard this song, I thought that it was pure and utter crap. After the second time I heard it, and third etc. I still think that it's crap. I have friends who work in Country radio, and while they say the song was huge, it's also everything that is wrong with Country music today.

Then I realized who wrote it.

My favorite band is Better Than Ezra. You know their big hits like "Good" and "Desperately Wanting," and they have written some amazing songs over their 20 year career. Lead singer Kevin Griffin has been tagged recently to help other artists in their songwriting, and he has co-written for Blondie, Meatloaf, James Blunt, Missy Higgins, and more. He also co-wrote Howie Day's biggest hit "Collide."

Now we connect the dots. Better Than Ezra's former drummer Travis Aaron McNabb now drums for Sugarland, and he set up a meeting between the band and Kevin Griffin to see about writing a song or two for their new album.

The result? "Stuck Like Glue." A horrible, pop laden country abortion. Kevin Griffin writes some GREAT pop rock songs, but this... is crap. The video too? Jennifer Nettles is just creepy, which does kind of go with the idea of the song.

So enjoy... if you can, "Stuck Like Glue" by Sugarland.

6/24/11- Black Lab- "This Ship Goes Down Deep" and "Say Goodbye"

A while back, I had posted about how the band Black Lab had posted a contest for fans to create a music video for their song "This Ship Goes Down Deep." Well, entries were received, and Paul their lead singer, songwriter, recorder, head honcho, musical genuis, posted the winner, this video:



There is your winner! Although, I hate to admit, I think I like this video better:




And if THAT wasn't enough, Paul also posted a video for their song "Say Goodbye," which was recently featured in an episode of "Pretty Little Liars." A local univeristy's film class was making videos for some Black Lab songs, and he posted some of the best, which EASILY includes this one:




Enjoy a nice block of Black Lab today!

6/23/11- Weird Al Yankovic- "Perform This Way"

It's the buzz video. The one that has been making the rounds over the past few days. And it almost never came to be.

Weird Al came up with the idea to "Perform This Way" and pitched it to Lady Gaga. Her camp of people said "we want to hear it before we approve it." OK. So Weird Al rushed, recorded it, and sent it again to Lady Gaga's people.

They said no.

So Al took to the internet, posted the song on YouTube, and said he would not release it commercially since he wasn't given permission, which was a shame, since all the money earned from it would have gone to charity.

Well whattaya know. Lady Gaga's people said ok. Release it.

So a music video was made. And the world rejoiced. And was creeped out simultaneously. Am I the only one that thinks Weird Al looks better as a chick than Lady Gaga?

6/22/11- Motion City Soundtrack- "L.G. Fuad"

This song COULD have been used during "profanity week" if I wanted to bring it up, but I never did. Instead, I use it as it's stuck in my head today.

The song is technically called "L.G. Fuad" but that stands for "Let's Get Fucked Up And Die." Surprisingly, this song is more upbeat-ish than it's title leads on to.

6/21/11- DJ Jazzy Jeff & theFresh Prince- "Summertime"

Happy first day of summer everyone! So which cliche "Summer" song did I go with today? "Summertime" by the Sundays? Something by Donna Summer? A Christmas song just to b a pain in the ass?

Nah... let's go with the one everyone was expecting.

Crank it up and piss off the people in the cubicles around you. It's DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, driving around Philly!

6/16/11- Yeah Yeah Yeah's- "Y Control"

Today's video is just a quick shout out to my buddy Josh and the station he runs that I help out with, Y-Not Radio. It's a GREAT source for all of your Alternative music needs.

So why not celebrate Y-Not with Y Control from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and a weirdly creepy video?

6/15/11- Dexter Freebish- "Leaving Town"

In 2000, Dexter Freebish (a band, not a solo artist, named after a Roller Coaster) broke onto the scene with their debut album "Life of Saturdays" and broke the Top 20 with this catchy song "Leaving Town." They also released another album in 2004 called "Tripped Into Devine" which featured the MUCH MUCH catchier song "Prozak," but unfortunately, only "Leaving Town" got a music video made for it. Enjoy!

6/14/11- Harvey Danger- "Flagpole Sitta"

Happy Flag Day!

I have nothing witty for today, other than digging up the easiest "Flag" song I could think of.

Enjoy the one-hit-wonderness of Harvey Danger! It's Flagpole Sitta!

6/13/11- Anberlin- "Ready Fuels"

Busy day today. Spent hours sitting at the mechanic's shop... for a two week old car. Fun.

So quick and dirty, picking a song at random. Today, it's a shitty music video for a great song. Anberlin debuted in 2003 with their album "Blueprints for the Black Market" and this awful video.

Enjoy "Ready Fuels"

6/10/11- Saves the Day- "At Your Funeral"

I picked today's video for three reasons.

First, a college buddy of mine mentioned the song and how he hadn't heard it in forever.

Second, because I had re-stumbled across this AWESOME video from 5 Second Films.



And third, because it's a GREAT video, running the story of one character from birth to death in motion control. Even if you don't like emo music or the song, it's still a solid video.

Enjoy "At your Funeral" by Saves the Day!

6/9/11- Steve Winwood- "Valerie"

Todays video is posted mainly because, this song got stuck in my head again, and I couldn't tell you the last time I heard it. It's your typical 80s fare. Synth. Big hair, and what looks like a color rip off of A-Ha's "Take On Me."

There IS another video for this song, as it was originally released in 1982 on his album "Talking Back to the Night." It was remixed and re-released in 1987 on his compilation album "Chronicles." The remix version got this music video, and it shot up to #9 on the US Charts. 1987 was also the year Steve Winwood won the Record of the Year Grammy for his song "Higher Love." In 2004, Eric Prydz sampled "Valerie" in his house mix song "Call on Me."

Enjoy the 1987 mix of "Valerie" by Steve Winwood.

6/8/11- NeverShoutNever- "Time Travel"

It has been over two weeks since Joplin, Missouri was basically cut in half by an EF-5 Tornado. 142 people died, and thousands upon thousands lost their homes and businesses. A recent post on Facebook from one of the Joplin tornado information groups pointed out that "the media is gone, the first round of volunteers are exhausted, but the work must go on."

Just because it's not in the news anymore doesn't mean you don't have to help. A while back, I posted a video from Joplin's own NeverShoutNever. He posted a brief video of the devastation in Joplin mixed with his song "Time Travel" in hopes to raise more money for the recovery of Joplin.

6/7/11- Fall Out Boy- "Beat It"

I'm not political at all, and I rarely follow news that involve politics, but my brother-in-law suggested today's video, and it was too good to pass up.

The Anthony Weiner scandal is all over the news, so why not jump on board and poke a little fun, with "Beat It"?

My brother in law suggested the Michael Jackson version, but I decided to dig up the pretty-good cover Fall Out Boy released in 2008, chock full of some fun cameos.

Enjoy!

6/6/11- Chalk Farm- "Lie on Lie"

Had this one randomly come up on my iPod a while back. The band from L.A. got their major label break in 1996 with "Notwithstanding." It spawned the Top 20 rock hit "Lie on Lie", but really didn't do much else. The band plodded on until 2000. They were the band playing at the end of the movie "Coyote Ugly" then broke up later in the year. On the band's MySpace and Youtube channel, they announced they are back together and working on new material for a possible new album, which would be their first since 2000's "Three 2's"

Enjoy the one music video they got out of Columbia Records. It's "Lie on Lie"

6/3/11- The Gaslight Anthem- "Bring it On"

Jersey's The Gaslight Anthem released their latest album "American Slang" almost a year ago, but they're still promoting it like it's new. They recently released a music video for the track "Bring it On" which chronicles the story of divorce from the eyes of the man in the relationship, when it's the female who is being unfaithful. The video hits the nail squarely on the head, and features Dave Hause, of the Loved Ones as the husband.

Enjoy this well done video. "Bring it On" by the Gaslight Anthem.

6/2/11- Toto- "Africa"

Everyone gets a song randomly stuck in their head for no reason. This is the song currently stuck in my head.

The song hit #1 in 1983, and has been described as "... a white boy is trying to write a song on Africa, but since he's never been there, he can only tell what he's seen on TV or remembers in the past."

The music video is a typical Early-80s video. Done on a soundstage and looking NOTHING like Africa. Either way, for its time, it wasn't a bad video.

Enjoy "Africa" by Toto!

6/1/11- Junior Senior- "Move Your Feet"

How do you make a video awesome? Make it in 8-Bit Graphics.

That's what Junior Senior did in 2003. Their debut album "D-D-Don't Don't Stop the Beat" hit stores, and the danc-y lead single "Move Your Feet" was shipped with this trippy, 8-Bit video, chock full of innuendo. Check it out for yourself. And enjoy having the song stuck in your head for the rest of the day!

5/31/11- Estelle- "American Boy" (featuring Kanye West)

Memorial Day Weekend was a busy weekend for me, as I ran around hit up some awesome parties, and oh yeah. Bought a new car. My friends, of course, decided it was THEIR task to name my car, so, in an effort to make it sound like an old lady, they attempted to name it "Estelle" and tried to get it to stick.

In an effort to prove Estelle isn't an old lady name, let's dig up this black and white video (for effect, not because it's old.) Estelle in 2008 scored a top 10 hit in several countries, including the USA with her song "American Boy."

Enjoy! But you'll have to CLICK HERE to view it, because of Warner Brothers Records' idiotic policy of not letting you embed videos.

5/27/11- Bryan Adams- "Summer of '69"

Today is the unofficial kick off of summer 2011, and mother nature is making it feel like summer in Philly with temps hovering around 90. So let's start summer with a summer song.

Since I already used "Boys of Summer" for the start of baseball season, how about a different classic? Bryan Adams, reliving the Summer of '69?