Paste Magazine lists their 50 Best Albums of 2011.

Scents & Subtle Sounds points to video of Real Estate’s entire KEXP session.

Class Actress remixes The One AM Radio. Download it at RCRD LBL.

Purchase Joe Pug Live at Lincoln Hall in Chicago for only $5. The show features a duet with Strand of Oaks on “Leave Ruin.”

Watch All Of Bon Iver’s Deluxe Visual Treatments at Stereogum.

The Rosebuds 2011 release, Loud Planes Fly Low, is on sale digitally at Amazon for $5 today.

By Jon Stone | @jwstone

I’m going to take a bit of a different angle for my review of Joe Pug’s fabulous show last night at Canopy Club in Urbana. First, however, I should say that Pug is a CU favorite. He has a large crowd of fiercely loyal fans here who crammed into a sold out, bar-side, “Void Room” concert nook. They sang along, lifted their glasses, and put the tour-weary Pug and Co. at ease. So much so, Joe Pug knew he couldn’t put one over on them and told about how he’d been telling every other city that Andrew Harrison (pedal-steel/guitar/vocals/beard) was “born and raised” in their town. He was especially proud that when he said it in Denver, the Huffington Post printed it as gospel truth. You can’t help but believe everything the guy says, though. Maybe it was just the near-hometown crowd, but it felt like Joe was in a room with 200 of his closest friends. I like that feeling.

Anyway, rather than a rehash of the entire show which blossomed from solo, to duo, to full-band and back to solo over the hour Joe was on stage, I’d like to focus in on a single song and a single performance. The song is “Not So Sure” — the third track on Pug’s recently released and first full-length LP Messenger. “Not So Sure” was the subject of one of our local (and great, I should add before I get critical) blogs, Smile Politely. In the article, the author John Steinbacher praises Pug as a musician and makes sure to elevate the new record for its musical advances — full band, great instrumentation, lovely arrangements. But then he lays into the lyrics saying that “this isn’t music where the words [should be] an afterthought.” “Mostly,” he says “they’re kind of the point. And mostly [on Messenger] they miss.” He then moves through several of the songs on the record, calling the lyrics “cringeworthy,” lacking “full narratives,” and then, misquoting the chorus of “Not So Sure” (I bought expensive cigarettes, I read John Steinbeck’s books), he calls the lyrics “completely unnecessary.”

Now, I mean no quarrel with Steinbacher; surely we have likely stood shoulder to shoulder at previous CU shows. I only mean to completely disagree with him. As my only evidence against each of his claims, here are the lyrics to “Not So Sure”:

There was a time when I heard you calling out my name
But these days I’m not so sure
When the room went dark and your voice was gone, I heard you all the same
But these days I’m not so sure
I knew I could remember your bedroom and your touch
But these days I’m not so sure
Definitely was the word I used far too much
Cause these days I’m not so sure

I bummed expensive cigarettes
I wrote John Steinbeck’s books
I undressed someone’s daughter and then complained about her looks
Stealing was so easy then I wish that it still were
Now as I pick my own pocket I know these days I’m not so sure

The church was my kitchen, the world was my church
But these days I’m not so sure
The choirs I would listen, the briers I would search
But these days I’m not so sure
I sacrificed my sister, I prayed my own soul to keep
I told my dying father that a man should never weep
Breathing was so easy then I wish that it still were
Now as the breeze just makes me colder, I know these days I’m not so sure

So if you see me tripping, I’ve forgotten how to walk
and I spend my days wishing after her
My steps are without rhythm and her name is drawn in chalk
as these days I’m not so sure
I drank my wine for breakfast every morning I was born
in the black electric winter my back was always warm
Sleeping was so easy then I wish that it still were
Now in my sleepless bedroom, I know these days I’m not so sure.

“Not So Sure” was the highlight of the show. It came about halfway in and was the first song Pug played with Andrew Harrison. Something about the simplicity of that Guild acoustic guitar and pedal-steel just bowls me over. Add to that sweet vocals and vocal harmonies singing the lyrics printed above and you have my favorite performance of the year so far.

There were other highlights. I promise. The backing band is a great new element to both the record and the live show. I couldn’t get enough of Andrew Harrison’s playing — he makes country picking look easy when he’s not playing the pedal steel. I will mention that near the end of the show, Joe played Hymn #101 — most of the crowd knew and sang every word. And considering the densely beautiful, repetitive, Dylan-esque nature of that song, it was quite a feat. And wow, I love hearing a whole room singing “I have come to test the timbre of my heart.” Apropos.

Buy: Joe Pug – Messenger

On February 16th Joe Pug will release his new album Messenger. Joe is amongst a handful of songwriters carrying the torch of Bod Dylan, Steve Earle, Neil Young, and Willie Nelson.

Joe Pug is out on the road with Justin Townes Earle this month and have stops scheduled at the Canopy Club in Champaign (2/24), High Noon Saloon in Madison (2/26) and Lincoln Hall in Chicago (2/27). Until then, grab a download of “The Sharpest Crown” from the forthcoming Messenger below:

MP3: Joe Pug – “The Sharpest Crown”

News:

Watch Jill Andrews cover Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” in effort to raise money for Haiti.

The Pitchfork Music Festival returns for its 5th year this summer. It will once again be held at Chicago’s Union Park from July 16-18. Tickets go on sale this Friday at noon Central. Single-day tickets will cost $40, three-day pass for $90.

Sterogum has the details, artwork and track listing for the upcoming sophomore release (Volume Two, Merge, 3/23) from She & Him.

Hats off to the always amazing Largehearted Boy who passed the eight year mark last week!

Spending a night on the Terrace is one of the best ways to pass an evening in Madison come Spring/Summer. Last night was no different, though the cold wind off Lake Mendota was making its presence known. I wouldn’t trade my frozen fingers to have missed last night’s show. It seems like Horse Feathers had become my concert going white whale. Each of their prior stops in the city, I’ve been elsewhere. I was also thrilled that I got to see Joe Pug for the first time. He sounds (and looks) like a young Dylan with his acoustic guitar and harmonica hung round his neck.

Seeing the show last night solidified my decision to put both Horse Feathers records, Words Are Dead (2006) and House With No Home (2008), on their respective year’s best of list. Check out the shots from Ed Oliver and please leave a comment with your thoughts/review of the show.

Myspace: Horse Feathers
Myspace: Joe Pug
MP3: Horse Feathers – “Curs In The Weeds”
MP3: Joe Pug – “Hymn 101″
MP3: Joe Pug – “Call It What You Will”

One of our favorite bands, Horse Feathers return to Madison for a free show at the University of Wisconsin’s der Rathskeller tonight. Joining the fun will be the always great Joe Pug. We’ll see you there.

Previously: Review: Horse Feathers/Jentri Colello – The Frequency
Previously: 5 Questions with Horse Feathers

Myspace: Horse Feathers
Myspace: Joe Pug
MP3: Horse Feathers – “Curs In The Weeds”
MP3: Joe Pug – “Hymn 101″
MP3: Joe Pug – “Call It What You Will”

___________________________________

Elsewhere:

Daytrotter: The Hold Steady (SXSW Session)
Aquarium Drunkard: Codo Fucks Interview
Stereogum: Lewis & Clarke Cover Leonard Cohen
Paste: Wilco Names New Album Wilco (The Album)
The Futurist: The Rosebuds SXSW Session

MoB favorites Horse Feathers return to Madison for a free show at the University of Wisconsin’s der Rathskeller on Thursday, April 30th. Joining the fun will be the always great Joe Pug. It should be a great night.

Myspace: Horse Feathers
Myspace: Joe Pug
MP3: Horse Feathers – “Curs In The Weeds”
MP3: Joe Pug – “Hymn 101″
MP3: Joe Pug – “Call It What You Will”