We’re just over a month away from Paul Weller’s new album 22 Dreams (on Yep Roc), which I really look forward to hearing. I thought I’d take a trip back to his great blue-eyed British soul band of the 80’s, The Style Council. Wanting to incorporate R&B, soul, and jazz into his songwriting, Weller had [...]

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Here’s a cool cover of Massive Attack’s “Teardrop”, courtesy of 23-year old Brit-folk-popster Newton Faulkner. Good ol’ Newt will see the release of his U.S. debut album, Hand Built by Robots, on April 29th. But a 3-song iTunes exclusive EP is available right now, featuring the first single, “Dream Catch Me”.
Faulkner has a cool [...]

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When you start seeing and hearing this young lady everywhere you can tell your friends that you heard it here first. And while there is an overwhelming urge to call Duffy ‘the next Amy Winehouse’ I’d rather like to think of her without the comparison. Sure, there is the whole 60’s inspired soul singer thing [...]

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If you haven’t heard them yet, here’s your introduction to England’s The Holloways. The first group on my “new to me” list for ‘08, the group is bratty brit-pop at it’s best. They’ve been kicking around in their native UK since 2006 and their debut So This Is Great Britain? was released in the US [...]

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Battle of Trafalgar, by J.M.W. Turner (1824) Link
As far as cool band names go, I think British Sea Power ranks right up there as one of my favorites. British $&@ Sea Power!! Maybe it’s the imagery it evokes: 18th century-era Royal Navy 100-gun ships, cannon blasts… in fact, I was just inspired to add Mutiny [...]

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Let’s give one away, eh mates?
In my inherently lazy way, I’ve been sitting on a copy of Paul McCartney’s new CD, Memory Almost Full, for a good month now. High time I give it away to one of you fine folks, yeah?
You know, I’m one of those people who reveres the Beatles as one of [...]

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Add Paul Weller’s three night February stand at the Avalon in Hollywood to my “shows I would have driven 6 hours to if I was still a bachelor” list. The former Jam and Style Council frontman has been a very successful solo artist in the years since, and still puts on a great show, as [...]

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Thanks to old buddy and Anglophile Mark for mentioning this song by the Rumble Strips, a UK band. Currently, they’re in L.A. making a debut album with Tony Hoffer, known for his work with Beck, The Kooks, and Air.
The Rumble Strips: Motorcycle
Listen:

Check out their releases so far (a couple singles and an EP).
Their Official [...]

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My seven month old daughter has mastered the art of the “walker”, as we call it. You know, the little wheeled seats you can plop your infant in so they can scramble around the house with wild abandon. My daughter’s getting pretty good: 360’s, circling the kitchen island at lightning speeds, and now selecting music [...]

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Stuart over at A Cultured Left Foot has been kind enough to bestow upon the blogosphere an additional live Jam show, from the Warfield in San Francisco, March 15th, 1980.
The Jam: Live at the Warfield (from A Cultured Left Foot). Stuart knows his football too (soccer to us Yanks), as you’ll see on his blog. [...]

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