@AndyShore Today’s matchup pits one of the biggest superstar collaborations of our generation against a band in My Morning Jacket that, despite headlining spots at major festivals like ACL and Lollapalooza, still feels like it hasn’t garnered all of the attention it deserves. Jay Z and Kanye know the power they hold over the music world and put out one of the most talked about albums of the year. Yim Yames also knows his way around a super group (Monster of Folk), yet My Morning Jacket continues to put out albums worthy of the superstar treatment. It’s an interesting matchup. Different strokes for different folks. Who ya got? Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Today is a match-up of a band on the rise and a band standing still. That said, the band standing still is in a good place. I’m talking about Coldplay, who headlined ACL and Lollapalooza among others, and even taped an ACL live taping which wasn’t on New Years, but will appear to be on New Years if you watch on TV. I think Coldplay made a pretty forgettable album, while M83 made a bombastic double LP that seems pretty universally loved. I was surprised that I gave both of these bands the same score for their live show. Actually, I gave Coldplay a 9.5 and I gave M83 a 9.3 or 9.4 depending on which day you asked me. OK, no one asks me. I just rated it twice in two different articles. Caitlin and I own the two latest M83 albums on vinyl, but no Coldplay. Sure, we have all the early CD’s, but they’re treading water, at best, on the new album. “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall” is a bit of a stand-out, and the only new song they played at the Steve Jobs Apple memorial show, but it doesn’t hold up to their classics. M83 is doing their best work to date, and “Midnight City” is perfect any time of day. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Can breakout pop stars Foster the People take down the championship belt wearing Black Keys? I think they’d have a shot with “Pumped up Kicks,” but I’m doubtful that this one can topple the almighty Black Keys. In seeing where both bands are booked, you can get a feel for their careers. The Black Keys are headlining their first stadium tour, selling out MSG and The United Center, while Foster the People get booked in The Backyard. I have a feeling The Black Keys are saving their Austin stop for a headlining ACL slot. It’s not that the Backyard is a terrible venue. We loved Arcade Fire there, but it ensures a very young, immature audience who will celebrate it as their first show of the summer (!).

As for the songs themselves, The Black Keys bring the thunder, with a toe-tapper you can’t help dancing goofily to. I am dying to hear this thing live. I picture throwing myself against the guard rail and belting out the “whoa -oh -oh -oh!’s” as a big grin spreads across my face. I can’t picture seeing Foster the People outside of an over-crowded festival set.  Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Oh, boy. It’s Lady Gaga time. Somehow, Andy still has the veil over his eyes and hasn’t seen that Lady Gaga is crap. Sorry to offend any Gaga fans, I’m glad she makes you feel better about yourself, but I do not get it at all. Andy will tell you she’s catchy, talented and strange and throw out a “what’s good is good” argument and go so far as to say it’s great. He’ll even mention how he was convinced, when he went to the American Idol taping … in person. I’m embarrassed for him. The fact that Bill Simmons was there too doesn’t do much to help his cause. Simmons quotes “The Wiggles” on the reg. Brian May is the only good thing this song has going for it.

I gave Gaga a chance once, and it was the worst headlining show I have ever seen at a festival. It made me sick to my stomach. On the other side, we have Tune-Yards and their beautiful, odd, insightful vocal work that sounds incredible on record, and is even more wonderful live. I’ve seen both. One feels like a new, authentic twist on indie pop. One is a homeless woman’s Madonna that appeals to insecure tweens. Take your pick. Oh, and The Drums snuck out a win over Foo Fighters by one vote. Boosh. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom A good old fashioned rock match-up. I love it. And this time we don’t have one band getting the edge by posting it on their Facebook page. Yup. Not in the Face! overtook Adele. Can’t mess with a strong fan base. Let’s get into today’s match-up. Dave Grohl is learning to walk again? Remember when he was “Learning to Fly”? Seems like a step backwards to me. The Foo Fighters put on an incredible festival-wrapping show in the pouring rain at Lollapalooza, but “Walk” was not the song I’ll remember from that show. I’ll remember singing along to “Hero” and “Everlong” with my arms around Caitlin. I adore Grohl, his thank you letter was touching and I enjoy the raw rock of the new album, but this is nothing new. It’s just more of the same. ”Money” is the break-out smash on The Drums’ odd, but incredibly enjoyable sophomore album. As Caitlin says, it’s a grower. The Foo Fighters are a shower. And as KG and I know, it’s better to be a grower. It’s far more satisfying.  Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom We’re finally into the tournament. Thanks to all of you that turned in a last second bracket. We should have a a good competition here. One contestant has Adele winning the whole tournament. I have her losing right here in round 1. Not in the Face! has staying power. And rabid fans. But I’d never even heard of this Austin band before this contest, and I live in Austin. Everyone knows Adele, and mostly loves her. Adele has all the Grammy’s and the sales and the parody videos on Saturday Night Live and the adoration of every kind of music fan. Will it be enough to move on? I’m excited to find out.  Read the rest of this entry »

@AndyShore I know it’s a few weeks past Thanksgiving at this point, but I can think of one more thing Zack is thankful for: that this is no longer the catchiest song contest. When my brother asked how LMFAO didn’t crack this year’s list, I told him it was because I feared Zack would never speak to me again. He had a hard enough time when I threw Lady Gaga his way, even though it was a song she’d done with Brian May. She landed herself a #1 seed for this year’s contest, along with Adele, M83 and Young the Giant. If you can’t guess which two Zack and I are each responsible for…you clearly don’t frequent these parts often. Without further adieu, I’m am pleased to introduce the brackets for this year’s Best Song of 2011. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom After surviving round one of the play-in games, these four songs are fighting for the final two slots. Ezra Furman blew Florence and the Machine away, while Cut Copy squeaked out a victory over TV on the Radio yesterday. That pits Cut Copy against Stepdad and Ezra Furman against Not in the Face. We’ll give you until 7 p.m. central time tonight to vote, and then Andy’s finalizing the brackets. We’ll give you the weekend to fill them out and walk you threw how it works. Let’s get to the voting. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom What a wild day one of the tournament! I thought Los Camepsinos! and Bright Eyes would cruise against relative unknowns, but both got upset, and handily. There’s something to be said about rabid fan bases who feel a lack of respect. I take full responsibility for turning an innocent G-chat comment and letting it spiral like that. We’ll stick to just praising the bands from now on.

Today, we’ve got four bands that I’ve had the pleasure of seeing live and adored them all. I’ll be starting us off with Ezra Furman, who’s gotten several thousand words on this blog over the past four years, against Andy’s pick, Florence and the Machine. (Mix Master) Laura will represent Australia’s pride and joy, Cut Copy, fresh off a semester down under and battle against uber-music snob and author Courtney, who will tell you you don’t have much soul unless you’re into this TV on the Radio song. Let’s get to the arguments. Read the rest of this entry »

@ZackTeibloom Welcome to the tournament. Are we gonna have a Cinderella from this round keep dancing? Or are these 4 songs just getting us warmed up for the big contenders? Either way, I’ve got tournament fever. I couldn’t sleep last night. I asked Caitlin if she was asleep, so I could tell her I couldn’t believe I left Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. off the list, after we’d discussed them as a good pick on our drive to Dallas this weekend. Then I spent another hour in disbelief that I’d forgotten OK GO’s “This Too Shall Pass.” At 2 a.m., I forced myself to sleep. I was still pissed when my alarm went off at 5:20. I’d e-mailed Andy by 6:30 and then realized OK Go came out last year. I’m a mess.

I know no one cares nearly as much about this as I do, but I’m glad to see a bunch of you have claimed songs. There’s still a ton of good ones left, like The Black Keys, The Joy Formidable, Justice, cough, Lady Gaga, cough, Coldplay, My Morning Jacket and more. As a reminder, if your song wins, we’ll send you an album or something around $20-$25 of value. And, we let you argue on your songs behalf if you’re so inclined. Just post a comment on the main post, ya lazy bum. You’ll notice we have a couple guest writers today (Caitlin did Bright Eyes and Christina did Not in the Face) and we have a couple more guests lined up for tomorrow. Without further ado, your nominees: Read the rest of this entry »