7" of Separation

On her new Taken by Trees album, East of Eaden, Victoria Bergsman takes on the Animal Collective’s “My Girls,” slightly transforming the song into the bouncy, Euro-pop “My Boys.” Bergsman used to front the Concretes, who had some stellar songs a few years back.

Check out the unofficial video below, and then ignore the lackluster visuals and let the song make you smile:

Guess who’s back? Carter’s back. And attending hipster concerts on the Brooklyn waterfront, to boot.

I’m glad Jay-Z’s back, though. Blueprint 3 leaked, and it’s killer, packed with smart, rapid-fire pop-culture references. It’s also full of Jay’s apparent disrespect for all songs Auto-Tuned, despite featuring Kanye’s heavy production work and guest raps.

And while Jay may be down on the ol’ A-Tune, he’s more than happy to take to the trend of having Rihanna sing the hook.

Also, I’m rather taken by The xx, and their new album, xx. These Londoner, 20-somethings play deliriously hook-based slow-pop.

I’ve listened to the new Antlers album, Hospice, about 100 times in the last three weeks. The Brooklyn-based band fills the same appetite that calls for Arcade Fire, but they mix in a little bit of OK Computer and Low to craft some beautiful slow-core.

Ellyn and I took to top 40 hip-hop on the honeymoon… and now Kid Cudi has come along and crammed all our favorite lines into one self aware video:

The new Modest Mouse ep is one the way in August. I’m a big fan of the Mouse. They capture a hopelessly Pacific Northwest state of being with their tunes. So perfect.

Here’s a video for the first track:

I’ve been absent for over a month, I know. Getting married, honeymooning and getting settled in a new life will do that to one’s blogging schedule.

But now, I’m back, and with somewhat renewed interest. The main site is under a heavy redesign and looks terrible. But, the RSS feed is fine, so if you read through a reader, you shouldn’t notice a difference. Reader who visit the site proper will notice a huge difference in the home page. All this will be sorted out soon. So for now, hang with me.

Lots to come.

Ellyn and I spent a beautiful, 90 degree afternoon in McCarren park watching hipsters and eating ice cream. On the walk home, was stopped for a beer and then we took naps. Today, we fired up the AC for some interior activities: reading, writing and watching the NBA playoffs.