Hickensian by Tag: 'podcast'

A couple of weeks ago, I recorded an interview with Kevin Yank for the Sitepoint Podcast, part of a new series of interview casts. We had a lovely chat about various topics, such as print designers moving to the web, working for Opera and the new Firefox icon. I always tend to get a bit waffly, giggly and veer of course with interviews, but it sounds like Kevin has done a grand job of editing it into a listenable mp3!

Listen to the interview over at Sitepoint.com, which also has a full transcript.

Here’s an album that feels like it’s release is timed to perfection. Fleet Foxes really suit the unusually summery weather we’re having in the UK. For an idea of the sound, I’d start with Band of Horses, and make it mellower and folkier, and well, a little more baroque. White Winter Hymnal is an ideal introduction, but don’t stop there, because the self-titled album is a blinder. A definite contender for favourite record this year, but then again, I’m always a sucker for harmonies.

Download Fleet Foxes – White Winter Hymnal. There’s also a session on Daytrotter for further free enjoyment.

Last August, I was in a pub near Lindisfarne (The Lindisfarne Inn no less) when Richard Hawley and two members of his band came in for a drink. At that time, I had never seen a photo of him, and had only downloaded a few tracks from 3hive. All I knew was that he looked very cool, and that I kicked myself a few weeks later when I saw him perform on Jonathan Ross and realised it was him.

It became the catalyst for discovering his wonderful music. Echoes of Scott Walker, Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash often make his songs seem suited to late nights and rain soaked streets, much like this title track from his previous album Coles Corner. I’m guessing not everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s most definitely mine!

Download Richard Hawley – Coles Corner. In addition to the tracks available from 3hive, there are more at Last.fm.

It’s been a while since I posted a foundsound (which by the way, for ease of updating is now integrated with the journal – I know it makes the RSS redundant – sorry!). Just when I feel I’ve exhausted the free downloads out there, along come Jens Lekman. I bought ‘Night Falls Over Kortedala’ last year after a Last.fm recommendation, and it took me a few listens to get hooked (but hooked good and proper). Jens is a superb songwriter in the vein of Pelle Carlberg – retro sound with contemporary lyrics.

My favourite off that album is “A postcard to Nina” the tale of being made to ‘meet the parents’ and pretend to be the boyfriend, but ‘The Opposite of Hallelujah’ is a close second, and gives a good flavour of the album.

Download Jens Lekman – The Opposite of Hallelujah. There’s more available on Jens’ site

Mr Oxton and I have decided that sharing an office isn’t enough, and that we need to share a podcast too. Broadcasting from the ex-RAF base in Upper Rissington, think of it as a geek version of Gardeners Question Time. We will take your questions, be they concerning semantic HTML, CSS, cheese, cookery or whatever is on your minds. We are your expert panellists, agony aunts and general life-gurus. Email us your questions!

We will also have regular spots – jokes from a 1940’s RAF magazine, the typeface of the ‘week’ and any geek/technology thing we care to talk about.

Its our pilot episode, so it can only get better from here!

Alligator was my favourite album of last year, and after managing to hear a promo copy, Boxer is set to become this years. Listen to this opening track “Fake Empire” a few times, and let it simmer in your head. I just can’t get enough of The National.

Download: The National – ‘Fake Empire’

Arcade Fire are the only band I’ve ever managed to discover before the world caught up. “No Cars Go” was one of the free demo songs available from their website, long before “Funeral” saw the light of day. I loved the song, so I was really chuffed to see that it made it on to their new album, Neon Bible. This is that original version, and while the quality isn’t tip top, it shows a band that would rightfully become very popular indeed!

Download: Arcade Fire – “No Cars Go”

Along with The National, Swedish singer/songwriter Pelle Carlberg is the second of my favourite finds this year.

The bitter tale of responding to a bad review, “Go to hell, Miss Rydell” makes great listening for those with a Belle and Sebastian or Kings of Convenience bent. The album “Everything. Now!” is just superb – while the music may sound light, the lyrics are far from lightweight. There’s some real sadness/venom/longing in there. Powerful stuff.

Download: Pelle Carlberg – “Go to hell, Miss Rydell”

Alligator should’ve been on my list of best albums of last year, its just that I’ve only just heard it. Its an album that hits the spot in all the right areas for me.

Secret Meeting isn’t my favourite track of that album, but it was the one offered as a free download, so here it is!

Download: The National – “Secret Meeting”

Being my favourite band and all, I’ve been desperate to find evidence of a Starflyer 59 song released for free, and finally I got one! There are different sides to Starflyer, the earlier white-noise shoegazing sound gave way to dabblings into Electronica and even a New Order style sound on the last album.

“Wake up Early” is the opening track from “I Am The Portuguese Blues” (the album before the current one) and its a reet belter. I wanted a track that would demonstrate their noisier sound, and I got it.

Download: Starflyer 59 – Wake up Early

Oakland California’s The Very Hush Hush use something in their music that’s always a winner for me – white noise. In this standout track from the album Mourir C’est Facile, I love the way the instruments all build up to one loud orgasm. Its the core sound of the shoegazing bands like My Bloody Valentine that I loved when I was at college. Its still a fresh sound to me.

Whoops, I’ve gone all wanky muso journalist by using ‘orgasm’.

Download: The Very Hush Hush – “Love, Like Love”

While I have a fair sized collection ready for Found Sounds, I always like hearing suggestions. Props got to Dalasie Michaelis for telling me about Lavender Diamond

There are two free downloads available on their site at the moment, but my favourite was the delicate “Rise in the Springtime”, which evokes those time-lapse documentaries of buds and shoots springing forth. Enjoy.

Download: Lavender Diamond – Rise in the Springtime

Being named after a character from Kafka’s novel Metamorphosis, would make you expect something of a gothic flavour from Gregor Samsa. Not so. Think more ‘ambient indie’.

Taken from the 27:36 EP, this song is perfect for late night listening. Add a glass of Bowmore, and you’re done.

Download: Gregor Samsa – Three

Here’s another of those small steps.

I’ve been wanting to dip my toes in the podcast pool for such a long time now, not to bring my droning about OS X browsers to an audio format, but to share music that I’m into. Podcasts are too much like hard work, but I loved the way that Buzz Anderson has done his – ad-hoc linking to single track mp3’s in de.licio.us. So Found Sounds is in effect, a complete and utter steal of his idea, sorry Buzz.

Whereas Buzz looks like he’s going to be using Odeo in the future, I wanted to use Textpattern for mine, with Feedburner converting the feed, providing the support for enclosures. I just add a rel=”enclosure” attribute to the mp3 link and away we go. Thanks go to Tom Martin for the method.

The criteria of Found Sounds is simple. If a band or record company has provided an mp3 free on their site, and I love it, it goes in. Occasionally, there may be crossover with those provided by 3hive, but I hope to avoid repetition if possible.

So, here’s the first post, here’s the second post, and here’s the feed to grab for it. Feel free to use the comment fields on each post to tell me what you thought.

P.S – I also got around to adding tags to posts, thanks to this wonderful plugin

Opinion seems divided over Wolf Parade, but I’m very much in love with this song. Perhaps coming from Montreal doesn’t help comparisons with The Arcade Fire (Wolf Parade are also supporting them on the current tour).

Download: Wolf Parade – “I’ll Believe In Anything”

To kick off the inaugural ‘Found Sounds’ podcast, how about some Jenny Lewis? Known for her work in Rilo Kiley and The Postal Service, Jenny teams up the Watson Twins for her solo debut (does it still count as a solo album? hmmm) for a mellow country flavoured affair. Dreamy!

Download: Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins: “Melt Your Heart”