Album Review: The Midnight Organ Fight

If you found yourself disappointed by this year's offering from Counting Crows then you should perhaps check out Frightened Rabbit.

The CC comparison is obvious in some circles and fightin' words in others. The important distinction is that Counting Crow's best stuff is waiting patiently for that inevitable '90's revival that's on the the horizon, and Frightened Rabbit is currently outputting the good stuff.

The Midnight Organ Fight is another article in the massive tome of morose men who try to make everyone else as morose as they are. So, if you like that sort of thing, jump in, and we'll consider my job complete.

Frightened Rabbit - Floating in the Fourth

Still not into it? Then let me mention that FR is from Glassgow, and while this is certainly not the only Scottish game in town, I think you'll find Scott Hutchison's accent pleasant, and even though his voice frequently cracks and is full of emotion, it is not at all overbearing.

Frightened Rabbit - Old Old Fashioned

8 is Enough

Chiptunes have been around since the mid 80s and are unique because they use actual sound chips from computers and video games instead of sampled synthesized sounds. This post focuses on the Gameboy seen, which, as its name implies, is music mostly composed and performed on Nintendo Gameboys. The sounds are familiar to anyone who grew up in the 80s, or who has ever held a Nintendo controller in their hands. The music is extremely bright and fun, and is sure to lift the most dour of spirits.

Bitshifter is a great intro to the genre. He’s a member of 8-bit Peoples, which is a netlabel in New York City that offers a lot of this kind of music for free.

Bitshifter - Reformat the Planet

While a lot of Gameboy music takes cues from gabber-dance tracks, there are others who take handheld game systems to entirely different places. NYC’s Haeyoung Kim is a classically trained pianist who publishes 8-bit music under the name Bubblyfish. Her tracks are much more sparse and reflective, and you’ll hear that on “Shadow.”

Bubbly Fish - Shadow

Paza is Paza Rahm from Stockholm Sweden. He started out by playing bass as a teenager and got into electronic music by making tracks to accompany him.

Paza - Teenage Hipster

You could easily fill up an iPod Nano with the free music that's out there. Check out the following links to get started.

8bitpeoples

8bitcollective

It's Getting Easier to be Green

Maybe you're the kind of person who holds the values of Earth Day all year long. Or, you might be kind of tired of hearing about climate change every time you listen to NPR. Either way, you should check out Cloud Cult.

They are the most environmentally friendly band touring today, but they are not at all about using your ears as a vessel to push an environmental agenda into your brain. This is merciful, for the tunes are catchy enough for this plan to work.

Craig Minowa, the brains and voice behind Cloud Cult, writes indie-pop tunes that are delightful and sometimes devastatingly melancholy. He also happens to have rejected numerous offers from record labels in favor of his own eco-friendly label, Earthology. Every CD that he sells is in a recycled jewel case and sealed in a corn-based shrink wrap.

You can find out more through a profile produced by Public Radio International's Studio 360 called "Creative Minds Go Green".

You should also check out The Elliot Potter Show, where tracks from Cloud Cult's latest album Feel Good Ghosts (Teapartying Through Tornadoes) is getting crazy spins, as they say in the business.

Cloud Cult - Story of the Grandson of Jesus from Feel Good Ghosts (Teapartying Through Tornadoes)

Cloud Cult - Breakfast with my Shadow from Aurora Borealis