Free Album Streaming: New CDs from Sharon Van Etten, Paul McCartney, K'Naan, Heartless Bastards, & More

Paul McCartney's new album, "Kisses on the Bottom," is one of the notable new releases streaming online this week, but the album I'm most interested is "Tramp," the latest from Sharon Van Etten (which I've written about before).

Sharon Van Etten's "Tramp" is streaming online this week; hear a live set she performed at WNYC below.

Granted, I pre-ordered "Tramp" and have had the digital version of the album for a couple of weeks, although it doesn't formally come out until February 7th. It's a solid progression from her breakthrough album, "Epic," and was produced by Aaron Dessner of The National, with whom Van Etten has worked with and toured.

(You can listen above to a live performance she did at WNYC a couple of weeks ago, or download the audio here.)

Paul McCartney's new album will no doubt be the most-streamed release this week. I can't say I've really been a fan of McCartney's work in recent years, and cute titles like "Kisses on the Bottom" and "Memory Almost Full" haven't gotten me enthusiastic about him. But I'll probably check this new album out anyway.

Other notable releases streaming online this week: the new album from Heartless Bastards, the follow-up to "The Mountain" ...  an EP from Somali-Canadian rapper K'Naan (best known for the rousing anthem "Wavin' Flag,") ... the new album by Kami Thompson, daughter of British folk legends Richard and Linda Thompson ... and a collection of unreleased recordings by the late folk singer Karen Dalton, who counted Bob Dylan among her many fans.

And if you missed Leonard Cohen's new album on NPR Music or KCRW last week, it's streaming on AOL Music this week.

KCRW Album Preview:  (also streaming at NPR First Listen)
"Kisses on the Bottom" by Paul McCartney
"Tramp" by Sharon Van Etten
"Arrow" by Heartless Bastards

Spinner.com's Listening Party:
"More Beautiful Than Silence" (EP) by K'Naan
"Knew You Were Waiting: The Best of Aretha Franklin" by Aretha Franklin
"Out of Frequency" by The Asteroids Galaxy Tour
"Nature Experiments" by The Big Sleep
"1966" by Karen Dalton
"Love Lies" by Kami Thompson
"sami.the.great." by sami.the.great.

AOL Music Listening Party: 
"Old Ideas" by Leonard Cohen
"Idiot Heart" by Carsie Blanton
"Golden Gate Groove: The Sound of Philadelphia Live 1973" by Various Artists
"Putumayo - Brazilian Beat" by Various Artists

Free Summer Concerts: Aretha Franklin (Tonight); Ra Ra Riot, Mission of Burma, Friendly Fires, & More this Weekend

 Above: Ra Ra Riot's video for "Boy," from their 2010 album "The Orchard."

The blitz of free summer concerts continues, and after last night's rainouts the skies look clear for the much-anticipated Aretha Franklin make-up show at Coney Island tonight. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. at West 21st St. and Surf Ave., next to the Brooklyn Cyclones baseball stadium. See directions at the Seaside Summer Concerts home page.

The action continues on Friday night when Ra Ra Riot, Delicate Steve, and Buke & Gass (pronounced "byuke" and "gace") play Celebrate Brooklyn in Prospect Park.

Hailing from Syracuse, Ra Ra Riot made a big splash a few years ago with their album "The Rhumb Line," combining catchy pop accented with a violin and viola. Their latest album, "The Orchard," came out last summer.

The most interesting band on Friday's Celebrate Brooklyn bill is Buke and Gass, a duo that plays an mix of modified steampunk-style instruments, including the "buke" (baritone ukelele) and "gass" (a combination of a guitar and bass).


Above: Cults play "Abducted" live at the WFUV studios. 

On Sunday you've got to choose between two free rock shows in Manhattan happening at the same time. Summerstage's Central Park Mainstage (directions) presents Friendly Fires, The Naked and Famous, and Cults at 3 p.m. I'm not too familiar with the first two bands, but have been enjoying the music of the male-female duo Cults the last month or so. You can read an interview they did with WFUV's The Alternate Side here (which includes the video above).

Also at 3 p.m. Sunday, the influential late '70s/early '80s band Mission of Burma plays the Beekman Beer Garden (at South and Beekman Sts., on the north side of Pier 17). Bands ranging from R.E.M., Nirvana, and Throwing Muses has cited Mission of Burma as an inspiration to their own work. As of now the Beekman gig is the only date on their tour schedule, so if you want to see them you'll want to get to this show. Mission of Burma's latest album is "The Sound, The Speed, The Light." (directions to Beekman Beer Garden.)

Free Concerts: Aretha Franklin Next Week; Taj Mahal Tonight; Eugene Mirman/They Might Be Giants Tomorrow

Aretha Franklin is confirmed for a free show in Coney Island next Thursday.

The Seaside concert series today announced its "mystery guest" for its show next Thursday, August 4th: Aretha Franklin. Some people had speculated that the performer might be Peter Frampton, but the Queen of Soul has been confirmed and is featured on the Seaside website (above).

Franklin had been scheduled to play the Coney Island free concert series last summer, but had to cancel it and a number of other shows due to illness. For a while there were rumors that Aretha had some kind of fatal disease, but happily those were just speculation and the soul pioneer is back on the road.

Other news in free summer concerts in New York City in the next couple of days:

* the inaugural Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival starts tonight at the World Financial Center with the legendary Taj Mahal and his trio, singer-songwriter Amy LaVere, and the new band featuring Mike Farris, who was the frontman of Double Trouble and the Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies. 6 to 9:30 p.m., WFC Plaza, outside the Winter Garden, near West & Vesey Sts. (see maps of WFC area)

Friday night the festival continues with James Blood Ulmer and the Memphis Blood Blues (featuring Vernon Reid of Living Color); The Growers, and The Beauties. 6 to 9:30 p.m., WFC Plaza.

The Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival concludes Saturday with Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra and Henry Butler featuring Dean Bowman and Sandra St. Victor; Hazmat Modine, Ryan Shaw; Danny Kalb; and Citigrass

* Actor and comedian Eugene Mirman will be doing a free show Friday at the Williamsburg Waterfront with special guests, including They Might Be Giants, who will be playing a full-length concert. The show, called Eugene Mirman and Pretty Good Friends, featuring Todd Barry, Patton Oswalt, and Kristen Schaal. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.; no ticket needed, but admission is first come, first served. Williamsburg Waterfront, East River State Park, 110 Kent St. (map of Williamsburg Waterfront with link to get directions)

They Might Be Giants says that the show will span their entire career, including their new album, "Join Us." And the band notes that the show is a homecoming of sorts, since the Williamsburg waterfront is where they filmed their very first video 25 years ago.

Music & Tech News: Cheap iTunes Movies, Gmail Video Chat, Live Nation to Sell MP3s

Lots of news already this week in the world of tech and music....

* iTunes has launched a digital bargain bin for movies, says Ars Technica, offering a set of movies that will be offered for download each week for $5.

* Google has packed some more features into Gmail, launching on Tuesday video and voice chat functions for the ubiquitous free Web mail service. The features are embedded in the interface. Cnet takes it for a test drive, and notes that while it's no Skype, it's simple to use and a good addition to Gmail.

* Mega concert promoter Live Nation has confirmed that it will begin selling DRM-free music MP3s from three of the four major music labels. But it won't be using a store or database like Apple's iTunes; instead, buyers will be taken to artist pages that than an iTunes-style database, Live Nation's MP3 store will route fans to artist pages that are "somewhat similar to the ones found on MySpace," says Wired.com.

* and finally, Aretha Franklin has been named the greatest singer of the rock era in a poll conducted by Rolling Stone. She was already the Queen of Soul; now I guess we can just call her the queen of all genres.