WRIB? Wye Oak vs Rod Lee - Dance My Pain Away

It's not often that you get the chance to hear an indie artist cover a hip hop artist, but such is the case when Baltimore natives Wye Oak covered fellow B-More native Rod Lee.

Wye Oak - Dance My Pain Away
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The song is called Dance My Pain Away and it was a hit in east coast clubs early last year. It wasn't until recently that I heard it though, and credit @wyeoak with the assist. Their take on it is much more melancholy, forcing you to take notice of the sadness in the lyrics that sometimes escape you when you hear @DJRODLEE sing.

DJ Rod Lee - Dance My Pain Away
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It's not that the emotion isn't fully apparent in the original, it is. It's just masked slightly better by the catchiness of the instrumental surrounding it.

All in all, I'd say it's everything you could hope for in a cover. A different, equally great rendition, that shines light on an artist that Wye Oak fans might not have otherwise known about, while also paying homage to a fellow artist from the same town. #Bmore

Great job guys!

As a bonus, check out one of Wye Oak's other tracks I'm a fan of, My Neighbor...

Wye Oak - My Neighbor
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Local Natives...I Want You Back

So, friends, I'm sure many of you are dying to know what I plan to do on my birthday at the end of this month. I know that's what I'd be wondering if I were you. Well, I'll be in Los Angeles, spending an evening with the Local Natives, attending their homecoming show at the most magnificent Walt Disney Concert Hall.

The @LOCALNATIVES are a band I've been in love with ever since I heard their music for the first time in the form of Airplanes.

Local Natives - Airplanes

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It's a song about losing a loved one before you're ready to see them go. It can take on a variety of meanings, depending on the listener, but in this instance, it's about losing a Grandfather who was both a good friend and a great role model- a feeling I can most definitely relate to.

It wasn't until I heard their song, World News, that I knew this was a band I was destined to fall in love with. Everything about this song makes me bob my head and smile. I have to restrain myself from singing along at the top of my lungs- a battle I know I'll lose when I see these guys in person.

Local Natives - World News

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The last song I want you to hear is their song Eyes Wide, which is a remix done by @foolsgoldrecs, featuring rapper Ken Kaniff Aristotle. It's a vastly different take on the original, Wide Eyes, and the artists couldn't be any more different, but this song amazes me in that it never feels out of place.

Local Natives - Wide Eyes (Fools Gold remix)

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James Blake - "I Don't Know About My Lovin' Anymore"

When you start talking about the most anticipated Indie albums of 2011, James Blake's self-titled debut, due out next Tuesday, is at, or near, the top of the list.

The 21 year old from London has been picking up steam for a while now, first as a composer, and more recently as a solo-artist. I had heard his remixes previously, but it wasn't until I heard his cover of Feist's, Limit to Your Love, that I was truly blown away.

James Blake - Limit to Your Love
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In late September, Limit to your Love was named "the hottest record in the world" by famed BBC radio personality @zanelowe, and it has since become a mainstay on radio playlists throughout Europe.

The Second single is even better people! You can see footage below of @jamesblake performing the song live in studio. What can I say? This song begs to be played over and over again.

I haven't been this excited about an artist in some time, and if you check the blogosphere, you can see I'm not alone. Listed among his current tour dates is a stop in Austin for SXSW. I'll be there ready and waiting to hear these songs in person...

James Blake - Wilhelm Scream
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Pre-Order his album on iTunes or Amazon

Dreaming of the Coast of Carolina

It's that time of year where every music critic is getting high on their own end-of-the-year lists, meticulously fretting over rankings and determining whose album provided the most meaning over these last 12 months.

Well, not here at the Indie-corner folks, I stick to the facts.

You want to know which songs created the most lasting impact on you?? Head straight to your iTunes Top 25 (@iTunes_Top_25) most played songs list. Now this isn't the end-all be-all, but it provides a mighty honest measure of which songs meant the most to you.

In looking at my list, there are only a handful of surprises. Apparently I love Drake way more than I care to admit to my hipster friends, and the Beach Boys, Pet Sounds still leaves me in awe, 44 years after it's release. (Holy crap! It's been 44 years already??)

But on to the key players, where 3 songs stood out head and shoulders above the rest.

My most played song of the year goes to Telekinesis, whose Coast of Carolina provided one of the single strongest knockout punches I've ever experienced with a debut single. Michael Benjamin Lerner magically crafts this hit, playing almost every instrument on the record. When they play live, he actually heads the drums and still sings lead vocals, an impressive feat that I haven't seen replicated in quite some time.

Telekinesis - Coast of Carolina

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Number 2 on this list belongs to Bombay Bicycle Club (@bombaybicycle), with their hit Always Like This. These young men from Britain seamlessly create emotion-driven indie pop. This song for instance, though catchy and melodically upbeat, details an unrequited love, where what he has to offer his leading lady will never be enough.

Bombay Bicycle Club - Always Like This

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And 3rd place goes to the boys from Austrailia, Temper Trap (@thetempertrap), with their song, Sweet Disposition. It was prominently featured in the film, 500 Days of Summer, so you might have heard of it. Well written, and catchy as hell, Doug Mandagi's vocals beg you to sing along, and I always abide.

Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition

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So there it is folks. The 3 songs that I was most obsessed with in 2010; I hope they captivate you like they did me.

Who is Justin Vernon?

As many of you know by now, Kanye's album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, is set to be released later this month, November 22nd to be exact.

The guest appearances read like a who's who in hip hop: Kid Cudi, Raekwon, Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Swizz Beatz, Pusha T, and Nicki Minaj. The one name that you might not recognize is that of Justin Vernon, (or Bon Iver).

Justin appears on the song Monster, (which features Jay-Z, Rick Ross, and Nicki), kicking off the song with the lead in "I shoot the lights out", and finishing it off with "I'm heading home". Press play below, lyrics on the YouTube video...

That wasn't his only contribution, as Justin plays a much stronger role on the song Lost in the World. This song is a sample of his previously released, Woods which appeared on the Blood Bank EP. It's song #12 on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy's final tracklist, give it a listen...

To those of you unfamiliar, Justin is a major star in the indie-world. His For Emma, Forever Ago album was record of the year in 2008 for many fans and critics alike.

I first took note of him when I heard the track Skinny Love...

Bon Iver - Skinny Love

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It's an emotion packed song, capturing the very essence of a difficult break-up. As a whole, the record encapsulates every emotion one can feel once love is lost, ending with the realization that, as bad as it hurts, the future offers the opportunity to pick up the pieces and start anew.

Justin's not your typical star; he's a humble dude from Wisconsin, most comfortable with a plaid shirt and a dirty beard. That's what makes this collaboration with Kanye all the more surprising. The guy goes back to his hometown to play concerts with his high school jazz band. He plays epic sunrise shows in cemeteries and he's just as comfortable playing Radio City Music Hall as he is playing with his side project during the middle of a massive kickball tournament. The point is, he's everything we hope we'd be if we were famous...

As a bonus, give his track Blood Bank a listen to get a little more acclimated...

Bon Iver - Blood Bank

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MMIMC: Phoenix - "From A Mess To The Masses"

Phoenix started in 1995, as a garage-band in Versailles, a famous suburb of Paris. The band lineup was finalized when the older brother of guitarist Christian Mazzalai joined the group, following the dissolution of his previous band Darlin', which featured the two men who would go on to become the world-renowned Daft Punk. (The relationship is still alive and well, as @daft_punk made a surprise appearance, performing live for the first time in 3 years at Phoenix's Madison Square Garden concert earlier this week).

Phoenix's first signs of success in The States came when earlier songs were featured in the movies Shallow Hal and Lost in Translation. It wasn't until the release of their album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, in 2009, that they really took the world by storm. What's neat about their massive success is that it all started with their inclusion of the song, 1901 as a free download.

Phoenix - 1901

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They've since been featured on just about everything, from trailers for Where the Wild Things Are and Alice in Wonderland, to episodes of Entourage (Season 5 Episode 2 and Season 6 Finale Episode 12) and Cadillac SRX commercials.

Their electronic-infused indie stylings came at just the right time too, sparking a meteoric rise in popularity, culminating in their winning of the 2010 Grammy for Best Alternative Album.

You can tell the band's music translates to the masses when you have a children's choir from Staten Island PS22 cover one of your songs, and it reaches over 800,000 hits on YouTube. When asked about the video in a recent interview, guitarist Laurent Brancowitz said that it had brought him to tears, and that seeing the kids sing so passionately left him knowing that he was definitely doing something right. Check out the video below...

As a bonus, here's a remix of the song above 1901 with a little heavier bass and upbeat rhythm to it. Not too different than the original, but it has a little bouncier vibe to it. Give it a listen...

Phoenix - 1901 (sayCent remix)

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