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Jam of the Day | The War On Drugs – Baby Missiles

Photo by Graham Tolbert “Baby Missiles” perfectly illustrates everything I adore about musical juxtaposition. ’80s synth pop mixed with country-rock? Yes, please. I’ll have that. The War On Drugs frontman, Adam Granduciel, has a purposefully wobbly delivery on “Baby Missiles” that reminds me a little bit of Mark Knopfler on Dire Straits’ “Walk of Life.” … Read more

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MP3 | Neil Young – Looking Forward (Live)

I’m want to live Like a free-roamin’ soul On the highway of our love Happy Memorial Day, everybody! Sometimes you have to look back to look forward. Here’s a song taken from the best concert I’ve ever been to: “Looking Forward” from Neil Young’s solo acoustic performance at The Fox Theater on April 14, 1999. … Read more

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10 to Spin | Lauren Pritchard

Singer-songwriter Lauren Pritchard is a hard one to label, and that’s a good thing. She’s been compared to Adele, Norah Jones, and Carole King, but I’m not sure if any of those fit. I wish I could offer up a better comparison (in my mind, at least), but maybe Lauren Pritchard is sort of on … Read more

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Margo Timmins of Cowboy Junkies (The Extended Interview)

I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Margo Timmins a few times, but there was one conversation that really stood out. It was a few years ago, at The Sheldon in Saint Louis. She and the Cowboy Junkies had just finished their sold-out show. They had played most of Trinity Session, and even covered Neil Young’s … Read more

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Jam of the Day | Gaby Moreno – Mess A Good Thing

With horns, electric guitars, and a voice with swagger like no other, Gaby Moreno accomplishes just about everything I like about music in about three-and-a-half minutes. She sort of has a Calexico/Mavis Staples/Neil Young Prairie Wind/Are You Passionate-era thing going on here, and it’s sort of intimidating how good and catchy it is (in a … Read more

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Pajammy Jam of the Day | Act As If – There’s a Light

I don’t know how you’re moving forwardWhen you look frozen to me There’s a song on Neil Young’s self-titled debut solo album called “Here We Are In The Years,” and in it, Young basically questions everything that he’s observed around him. I’ve always thought it was a song about the transient nature of life—that the … Read more

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The 100 Best Songs of 2012

Artwork credit: Alyssa Shapkoff Well, here we are again. To say we’ve listened to every release in 2012 would be a lie. We probably haven’t even listened to every genre. But, still, we feel lists are important because of discovery, and not because of what we think is best, or what you think is better. … Read more

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The 100 Best Albums of 2012

Vinyl, CD, MP3, Spotify, etc. Take your pick, bust most of us around here prefer vinyl whenever possible, only because when we listen to a song like Brandi Carlile’s “Hard Way Home,” we can really feel it via our turntables. What’s important, though, is that you find music that suits you. And here are the … Read more

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Jam of the Day | A City On A Lake – Always Something Better

There are several very good moments on A City On A Lake’s self-titled debut, but its longest song, “Always Something Better,” is important, because it shows Alex Wong’s ability to arrange and create something that warrants to be over five minutes. And for the music I listen to and enjoy, the five minute mark is … Read more

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Contest | Win a Neil Young ‘Journeys’ Movie Poster

It’s better to burn out than to fade away Jonathan Demme’s new film, Journeys, which focuses on Neil Young and his 2010 solo tour, will be coming to the Tivoli in Saint Louis on Friday, July 27th. Young didn’t perform in Saint Louis on that tour, but we did catch him at The Ryman in … Read more

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Video | Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Walk Like A Giant

Whenever I see the big fire comingcoming to burn down all my ideasI try to hold onto my thinkingremember how it feels I think Neil Young is searching for something in this new song, something that has passed him by. Not something he’s missed out on — he’s experienced enough. I think the world where … Read more

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Album Review | Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Americana

How I missed her! How I missed her How I missed my Clementine, So I kissed her little sister, And forgot my Clementine. “Clementine, Clementine!” Neil Young howls on Americana, his long-awaited reunion album with Crazy Horse. These are beloved songs of American heritage, many that you already know and can sing along to, and … Read more

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Video | Lissie – Go Your Own Way (Fleetwood Mac)

There are cover records, beautiful ones, filled with songs by Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Lucinda Williams, you name it. And then there are cover records by Lissie, who has chosen songs by Kid Cudi, Lady Gaga, Joe South, Metallica, Nick Cave, and Fleetwood Mac. The video below is Lissie cranking out “Go Your … Read more

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Jam of the Day | Sugar & The Hi Lows – See It For Yourself

I’m not very good at comparing artists with other artists, or creating new genres like shoegaze-art-rock-hippie-angst-folk, so I won’t start now. But Nashville singer-songwriters Trent Dabbs and Amy Stroup, the duo who perform as Sugar & The Hi Lows, do deserve to be called something, and it ain’t country. It’s not pop, either. But you … Read more

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10 to Spin | Animal Parts – 10 Best Animal Songs

[Editor’s Note – The below text is written by Joshua Cockerill, a.k.a Animal Parts, who will be playing a show for SIC on October 20th at Local 506 in Chapel Hill, NC. Now shhhh…read cautiously…I hear footsteps…] Be quiet and listen. There is a gorilla in the mangroves. I’ve laid out a trail of pogo … Read more

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Pegi Young (The Interview)

I’m sure there are many of you out there who know part of Pegi Young’s story. Sure, she’s the wife of Neil Young, and you won’t find many tours of his where she’s not singing with him or opening for him. She also co-founded the Bridge School in 1986, giving children like her son, Ben, … Read more

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Neil Young Solo Album ‘Le Noise’ Due September 28th

Just a quick announcement, coming direct from Neil Young’s Facebook page. The album is done! ““Le Noise” is complete. It is a solo record. Playbacks are happening now. Release date is September 28th. It will be available in Vinyl, CD and I tunes in the first edition, followed by Blu-Ray, and an APP for I-Phone … Read more

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Jam of the Day | Cowboy Junkies – My Fall

I could list thousands of reasons why I love Cowboy Junkies: their wonderful live show, Michael Timmins’ lyrics, Margo Timmins’ voice, their ability to challenge me with every album, etc. If you don’t consider Neil Young a band, then they are, unequivocally, my favorite Canadian band. And sometimes, you get a great little pop song … Read more

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Neil Young Launches Solo Tour

Rust Never Sleeps, right? Neil Young began his “Twisted Road” solo tour on Tuesday evening with “My My, Hey Hey,” the opening song off 1979’s Rust Never Sleeps. We weren’t at the opener, but we’ll be at The Ryman on June 2nd with a full report. For now, check out the opening night’s setlist! (FYI: … Read more

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Tift Merritt (The Interview)

I adored Tift Merritt’s last studio effort, Another Country, so much that I recently called it one of the best singer-songwriter albums of the last decade. Her album clearly spoke to me with tunes like “Keep You Happy,” “Broken,” and “Hopes Too High,” and it reminded me so much of Neil Young’s Comes a Time, … Read more

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Jam of the Day | Dawn Landes – Young Girl

Dawn Landes may live in Brooklyn these days, where she has built her own recording studio, but she was raised in Branson, Missouri, and Louisville, Kentucky. I mention this because when I listen to today’s JOTD, “Young Girl,” off Landes’ newest record, Sweet Heart Rodeo, I think of the Midwest like I do when I … Read more