Ice age heat wave, cant complain...

Modest Mouse is a seven part Indie Rock band from Washington. They released their debut album, "This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About", in 1996. Since then, Modest Mouse has released five total studio albums as well as five EPs. They gained mainstream success in 2004 with their fourth album, "Good News for People Who Love Bad News" due to songs such as "Float On" and 'World at Large".

This past August they released their newest EP, "No One's First and You're Next" which is available in vinyl and digital form. The new single on this album is "Satelite Skin", which they performed on Late Night With David Letterman on March 19th 2009.




Modest Mouse has seen several members come and go over the last few years. In 2004, founding member Dann Gallucci was replaced by Johnny Marr, formerly of "The Smiths". This had a notacable impact on their 2006 CD, "We Were Dead Before This Ship Even Sank".

As of now, Modest Mouse is still touring for their newest EP, and is currently in the United Kingdom through mid December.

Noah and the Whale

Alright - for those who enjoyed last years Noah and the Whale album (Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down), you will definitely enjoy their new album, "The First Days of Spring". It has the same musical quality as their first album, but the band takes it to the next level by combining it with a film. Below is a video of their new single, "Blue Skies", with clips from the trailer in the background.



Noah and the Whale are an Indie/Folk group from England. In the past they have performed with Laura Marling, a well known Pop singer who aside from her solo career, also tours with several bands. Their debut album, "Peaceful the World Lays Me Down", has increased in popularity since its release in 2008 (especially in England). This is mainly thanks to the single "Five Years Time", a very catchy and lively song combining Charlie Fink's unique vocals with ukulele strumming, whistling, drumming, hand clapping, violins, flutes, and a mix of backing vocals. This song peaked at number 7 in the United Kingdom's Singles Chart.

"The First Days of Spring" was released in Europe on August 31st and in North America on October 6th of this year, and has already received terrific reviews from some of the most respected newspapers and magazines. (i.e. The Times, Spin Magazine, The Observer).

If you enjoy Noah and the Whale, you should also give The Coral a listen. Their music is similar but is more upbeat.

She & Him

This next duo, She & Him is the combination of two very successful solo artists. M Ward has been a notable folk singer since 1999 when he released his first studio album, "Duet for Guitars's #2". Since then he has gone on and produced seven studio albums, in addition to the two albums released by She & Him.

The second member of She & Him, Zooey Deschanel, is a very well known actress who has starred in many films, examples being Elf and Almost Famous. In addition to acting, she has also released a couple solo albums, and is also known for singing in a couple of the movies she stars in.

She and Him formed in 2006 and has released one studio album, "Volume 1". This album was voted best album of 2008 by Paste Magazine. "Volume 2" is scheduled for release in 2010.

"Volume 1" has a terrific variety of songs written by Ward and Deschanel, as well as several covers including "You Really Got A Hold On Me" by Smokey Robinson and "I Should Have Known Better" by The Beatles.

"Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?" is the bands first single, and can be heard in the Youtube Video below.

Fleet Foxes

Fleet Foxes are a Seattle based Folk/Indie band with a twist of Bluegrass. They have released two EPs ("Fleet Foxes" and "Sun Giant") and one major studion album, "Fleet Foxes" which was released in 2008. Rolling Stone Magazine gave their debut album 4 stars, and shortly following that, The Fleet Foxes performed on the "Late Show With David Letterman".



That was one of the tracks from their first album, and was one of their first major performances. I have not heard news about a new album yet, but hopefully one will be on the way soon!

The Spring Standards

The Spring Standards are a folk band from New York City. As of now, they have released one album, "No One Will Know", which contains eight folk soungs that have many similarities to folk bands of the 1960's -- most noticably Peter Paul and Mary as well as Crosby Stills and Nash.

As with Peter Paul and Mary, The Spring Standards are also a trio composed of two men and one woman (James Cleare, Heather Robb, & James Smith). "They willingly embrace dissonance, and their execution is impeccable, from their tight, CSN-worthy vocal harmonies to their wickedly intense percussive power." John Norris (MTV).

Below is one of their better known songs, "Reply", which they recorded live for Paste Magazine.





The Spring Standards are approaching the end of their "No One Will Know" tour, with only five more concerts on the East Coast.


*John Norris quote from a Spring Standards site* *http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Spring-Standards/22313881085?v=wall#/pages/The-Spring-Standards/22313881085?v=info*