Now Streaming: New CDs from the Mountain Goats, Freelance Whales, Matt & Kim, & More

There's not a huge selection of new albums streaming online this week, but the quality of the offerings more than makes up for the lack of quantity. There are new albums from indie artists such as Freelance Whales, Tame Impala, and Lord Huron—and those are just the ones NPR Music is offering. (Speaking of NPR Music, they're live streaming Wednesday's Tori Amos concert in New York.)


"Sycamore Trees" from Sarah Fimm's new EP.
 
Elsewhere, Spinner has the new releases from other much-loved indie musicians, including Mountain Goats, The Vaccines, Matt and Kim, and Tristan Prettyman, as well as those ageless rockers Heart (I posted the video for their new song "Rock Deep (Vancouver)" last week). I'm also looking forward to listening to Lindi Ortega, an artist I hadn't heard of until a couple of weeks ago, when she won the "shadow Polaris Prize" poll by readers of North by East West, a group blog covering Canadian music and arts.

AOL Music has the latest release from longtime favorites Drivin N Cryin, as well as a five-song EP from the singer-songwriter known as Sarah Fimm, who I'd previously heard of through the now-defunct CD Baby podcasts (she's got more than half a dozen albums that are available through CD Baby and other outlets).

And The New Yorker (yes, The New Yorker) even has an album preview this week. It's streaming the debut collection from the Canadian band Metz and featuring a Q&A with the band by Sasha Frere-Jones.

It's a solid lineup this week, fire up your speakers and enjoy.

[Update: CBC is now streaming A.C. Newman's new album, below.]


NPR First Listen:
"Lonerism" by Tame Impala
"Diluvia" by Freelance Whales
"Lonesome Dreams" by Lord Huron

CBC Music:
"Shut Down the Streets" by A.C. Newman

The New Yorker: 
"Metz" by Metz

Spinner.com's Listening Party:
"Come of Age" by The Vaccines
"Lightning" by Matt and Kim
"Transcendental Youth" by the Mountain Goats
"Cedar + Gold" by Tristan Prettyman
"Cigarettes & Truck Stops" by Lindi Ortega
"Boredom and Joy" by Jets Overhead
"Fanatic" by Heart

AOL Music Listening Party:
"Vacilador" by The Giving Tree Band
"Songs About Fast Cars, Space and Ramones" by Drivin N Cryin
"Insignificant Fire" by James Arlowe & the Ruffian Circus
"Barn Sessions" EP by Sarah Fimm
"One Year of Songs" by Heather Mae

Concert Notes: Jack White, Matt & Kim, Aimee Mann, Brandi Carlile, & More on Sale Friday

There's another big slate of concert tickets going on sale Friday, including Jack White coming back to the New York area and the return of a number of veteran bands: New Order, Public Image Ltd.,  and Primus and, going back even further, folk-rock veterans Crosby, Stills, & Nash.


Jack White's video for "Freedom at 21."

[UPDATE: The Sept. 29th Jack White show sold out quickly  (no surprise there), but a second show has been added for the next night. Tickets for that show are on sale now, and are likely to be snapped up just as quickly. Link to Sept. 30th Jack White tickets.]

Other shows of interest going on sale tomorrow: Matt & Kim, The Mountain Goats, Brandi Carlile, Aimee Mann, Yeasayer,  and more. And one band that I loved seeing live when they opened for The Baseball Project earlier this year: Lee Bains III and The Glory Fires.

On Sale Friday, August 3 at 10 a.m.:
* Sat., 9/29 - Jack White at Radio City Music Hall
* Thurs., Oct. 18 - New Order at Roseland Ballroom
* Sun., 10/28 - Brandi Carlile at Beacon Theatre
* Mon., 10/29 - Brandi Carlile at Beacon Theatre
On Sale Friday at 11 a.m.:
* Tues. and Wed., Oct. 16th & 17th - Crosby, Stills, & Nash at the Beacon Theatre
* Sat., 10/27 - Aimee Mann at Town Hall
On Sale Friday at 12 p.m.:
* Fri., 10/19 - An Evening with Primus in 3D at Hammerstein Ballroom
* Wed., 8/15 - Yeasayer at Music Hall of Williamsburg (will be streamed live on YouTube)
* Sat., 9/1 - (Early Show) The Mynabirds at Mercury Lounge
* Sun., 9/9 - Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires at Mercury Lounge
* Tues., 9/11 - Lianne La Havas at Bowery Ballroom
* Tues., 10/9 - Public Image Ltd. at Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Sat., 10/13 - Public Image Ltd. at Hammerstein Ballroom
* Sun., 10/14 - The Mountains Goats at Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Mon., 10/15 - The Mountains Goats at Bowery Ballroom
* Thurs., 11/15 - Matt & Kim at Terminal 5
* Sat., 11/17 - Matt & Kim at Wellmont Theatre

This Weekend: Black Keys, Snoop Dogg, Girl Talk, & Many More at Catalpa NYC Festival

The inaugural Catalpa NYC festival takes place this weekend.

There's a new festival in town, and it takes place this weekend: the Catalpa NYC Music Festival, featuring The Black Keys, Snoop Dogg, TV on the Radio, Matisyahu, Umphrey's McGee, Matt & Kim, and many more. The event takes place on Randall's Island, site of many other multi-day music events. And as you'll see from the lineup, Catalpa NYC blends rock, hip-hop, reggae, blues, and electronic music into one festival.

There are four stages, including a reggae stage that offers live music throughout the day. See the Catalpa NYC event info page for FAQs, full lineup, directions, venue map, and much more. Here's the lineup for the three main stages of Catalpa NYC:

Saturday, July 28th:
The Black Keys - 9:30 to 11 p.m.
Felix Da Housecat - 9:30 to 11
Umphrey's McGee - 8:30 to 9:30
TV on the Radio - 7:45 to 8:45
JDH+Dave P - 7:30 to 8:30
Umphrey's McGee - 6:45 to 7:45
Hercules and Love Affair - 6 to 7
Paul Favretti - 6 to 6:45
The Sheepdogs - 5 to 6
DJ Paul C - 4:15 to 5
Zola Jesus - 4 to 5
The Demos - 3:30 to 4:15
The Aviation Orange - 3 to 3:30
My Pet Dragon - 2:15 to 3
Q1043 winner - 1:30 to 2:15
The Rebel Light - 1 to 1:30

Sunday, July 29th:
Snoop Dogg (performing "Doggystyle") - 9:45 to 11 p.m.
Hellfire Machina - 9:45 to 11
A$AP Rocky - 8:45 to 9:45
Polish Ambassador - 7:45 to 8:45
Girl Talk - 7:45 to 9
AraabMusik - 6:45 to 7:45
Matt & Kim - 6 to 7
Hook N'Sling - 6 to 7
Matisyahu - 5:15 to 6:15
Cold War Kids - 4:30 to 5:30
Alex English - 4:15 to 5:15
Dirty Heads - 3:45 to 4:45
Paul Raffaele - 3 to 4
City and Colour - 3 to 4
The Big Pink - 2:15 to 3
Aunt Martha - 2 to 2:30
The Airplane Boys - 1:30 to 2
Bury Me a Lion - 1 to 1:30

Tickets are $100 for each day, or $180 for both. There are additional fees for ferry and parking options, but you can also take an MTA bus there (the X80 special event bus, $5.50 roundtrip, or less if you transfer from subway or bus with a pay-per-ride MetroCard). You can also walk or ride your bike across the bridge to Randall's Island.

I'll be going at least one of the days, thanks to the folks at the Village Voice (I won a Twitter contest about the Voice-sponsored 4 Knots festival). There are no heat waves, hail storms, or tornadoes forecast for this weekend, so the weather should be good to go. (Might be a little rain, but that's nothing compared to the stuff we've had to deal with so far this summer in the NYC area.)

If you're going to Catalpa NYC, enjoy and leave your comments below on how you liked it.