Salon's Wed A.M. Downloads • 7/28/04

[DudeAsInCool]

In this week's Wednesday Morning Download column at Salon.com, musician and critic Thomas Bartlett recommends two legal MP3 blogs, and offer some free downloads from

National, Faithless, Macha, the Black Keys, and an obsure band from the 70s, Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & DurrHere. Here are some excerpts from his column:

MP3 Blogs

"My favorite of all the MP3 blogs is Lacunae, maintained by the excellent music critic Douglas Wolk. He posts songs from his collection of 7-inch records from the '80s and '90s, always getting permission from the original artist. The range of music he's drawing from is relatively small, but it's obscure stuff that I'd never encounter otherwise, and Wolk's comments on the tracks are always interesting and entertaining.....Largehearted Boy is a wonderful resource in the search for free music online. I'm amazed by the amount of free music this guy tracks down every day, and while not all of it is worth hearing, this Web site is a great way to start exploring.

Free Dowloads

  "Wasp Nest," the National, from "Cherry Tree" EP

This song is built around a beautiful, harmonically static guitar part, simplicity itself aside from a subtle but crucial anticipation of the beat, which gives a disjointed, fragmentary feel, never allowing any momentum to build up..... I heard this song for the first time a little more than a week ago, and I've been listening to it obsessively ever since, finding it more powerfully moving on each repeat play. The rest of the National's "Cherry Tree," released on the excellent Brassland label, is just as good, some of the best stuff I've heard this year. Free Download: "Wasp Nest"

"Mass Destruction," Faithless, from "No Roots"

It's been noted many times that the war in which we are embroiled has lacked for memorable or, more to the point, popular protest songs. There's nothing quite that inflammatory in Faithless' "Mass Destruction," but it does contain a measured, logical and humane response to the current global crisis -- set, happily, to a propulsive, radio-friendly beat. The song has already been a hit in the U.K., and if you close your eyes and pretend that Clear Channel doesn't exist, you can almost imagine its being a hit here as well.

"Smash & Grab," Macha, from "Forget Tomorrow"

Most of the reviews I've read of Athens, Ga.-based Macha's upcoming "Forget Tomorrow" have been of the "I liked their old stuff better" variety. Never having heard the band's other records, I had no expectations for this one and found it enjoyable, if not particularly unusual.

"The Lengths," Black Keys, from "Rubber Factory"

The guitar sound on the Black Keys' upcoming "Rubber Factory" is spectacular: a filthy, seething keen that's always, ominously, just on the edge of feeding back. Despite my distinct aversion to blues-rock of the "Yeah man, this f---ing rocks so hard!" variety, it's hard not to appreciate the visceral energy of this music and to admit that maybe it does kind of f---ing rock so hard, man.

"You Can't Blame Me," Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr, from "Eccentric Soul: The Capsoul Label" This song was recorded in 1971 for Capsoul, a small label based in Columbus, Ohio, by the awkwardly named Johnson, Hawkins, Tatum & Durr. (Capsoul's owner, Bill Moss, apparently thought it would roll off the tongue like Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.) "You Can't Blame Me" was a regional hit, but soon after soon after its release the band split up, the label folded, and it was just another out-of-print 45, of interest only to collectors. That's unfortunate, because this is a spectacular song, of searing intensity. Luckily we're able to hear this song now, thanks to a beautifully packaged compilation of 19 Capsoul singles by the Numero Group, my vote for the most exciting new label of the year.

You can read Bartlett's full review and download the free songs at Salon.com after viewing a short ad for NARAL on women's rights:

http://www.salon.com/ent/music/review/wmd/...logs/index.html