Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears just released a new mixtape called “Livin in the Jungle” curated by DJA of Mad Decent. It’s a collection, that, in their description: “combines our music with some of the most-buzzing rappers and producers out now. Even President Obama makes an appearance!”

Download: Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears :: Livin’ In The Jungle

I highly recommend you download the Turquoise Wisdom: Heavy Summer Nights that’s up over at Aquarium Drunkard. Fantastic stuff.

NPR’s World Cafe has a great interview with Roger Waters.

Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears perform live in The Current studio. Perhaps it’s the fresh Austin connection, but I’ve really been enjoying their new album, Scandalous.

I’d never listened to Chad VanGaalen until a friend recently recommended his stuff. I love the new animated video for “Peace on the Rise,” which appears on the equally great new album Diaper Island. Download the track below:
MP3: Chad VanGaalen – “Peace on the Rise”

One of the albums I’m most excited about this year is Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.’s debut full-length, “It’s A Corporate World“. Spin gives you a listen to “Skeletons,” which is a great introduction until the album arrives on June 7th.

I lost touch with Joseph Arthur’s recorded output several years ago, but his new album, The Graduation Ceremony sounds like a return to form. NPR is streaming the record in full, so take a listen and judge for yourself.

Bon Iver has released the lyrics for the forthcoming self-titled album, which is now available for pre-order.

Aquarium Drunkard interviews the filmmakers behind the new Morphine documentary, Cure For Pain: The Mark Sandman Story. I miss that band so much.

Gorilla vs. Bear has James Blake’s video for “Lindisfarne” as well as details on an upcoming festival they’re curating in Dallas this summer. We’ll be there.

Vinyl Deals: I pulled some amazing deals on vinyl here. It takes some digging, but trust me you’ll be rewarded. It’s also the last time I’ll link to or visit said site.

Two MoB favorites played Madison last night. Sadly, I missed both of them. Drop a comment and let me know if you caught The Hold Steady or Black Joe Lewis. What were the highlights of the show you saw?

Myspace: The Hold Steady
Myspace: Black Joe Lewis

I’ve seen Black Joe Lewis in concert, under the Austin sun, and I can testify to the power of his live performance. His playing, part-time foul mouth, and backing band, are simply some of the best cats playing out these days.

Our friends at the WUD Music Committee continue to bring some amazing acts to Madison, this show is right up there at the top as far as I’m concerned. Don’t miss Black Joe Lewis on the Terrace in Madison on Friday, July 10th.

Buy: Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears – Tell ‘Em What Your Name Is!
++
Myspace: Black Joe Lewis

Daytrotter is always great, but sometimes I like to highlight sessions that really mean a lot to me. Today is one of those days. I caught Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears at Austin City Limits last year on the recommendation of a friend. It turned out to be one of my favorite sets of the entire festival, and I picked up a copy of the self-tilted Black Joe Lewis record at the Waterloo Records tent afterwords.

Black Joe Lewis works to be this generations James Brown, strapped with an electric guitar, a sometimes frequent dirty mouth/mind, and a stage presence that is as confidant as the music is good. Don’t miss his wonderful 5-song Daytrotter Session that can be downloaded, as usual, for free.

Myspace: Black Joe Lewis