Stream: Jamie Lidell - Compass

There's a new Jamie Lidell album coming this year. Not sure when or what it's called yet (we'll find out more), but Pitchfork has put up a teaser track from the album just to get us all in the mood. It's the follow-up to 2008's fantastic Jim, and will be Lidell's third full-length album.

Have a listen to it here:

Download: Los Campesinos - Romance is Boring

'Romance is Boring' is the title track from the new Los Campesinos album, and they've made it available for free download. The album came out last Friday in Ireland and earlier this week in the UK and US. It's easily as upbeat and poppy as their first two, so if you liked either of those, you should definitely check it out.

Tracklist:
1."In Medias Res" 4:42
2. "There Are Listed Buildings" 2:54
3. "Romance Is Boring" 2:35
4. "We’ve Got Your Back (Documented Minor Emotional Breakdown #2)" 4:29
5. "Plan A" 2:02
6. "200-102" 0:53
7. "Straight in at 101" 3:55
8. "Who Fell Asleep In" 4:11
9. "I Warned You: Do Not Make an Enemy of Me" 2:47
10. "Heart Swells/100-1" 0:46
11. "I Just Sighed. I Just Sighed, Just So You Know" 4:38
12. "A Heat Rash in the Shape of the Show Me State; or, Letters from Me to Charlotte" 3:43
13. "The Sea Is a Good Place to Think of the Future" 4:24
14. "This Is a Flag. There Is No Wind" 3:28
15. "Coda: A Burn Scar in the Shape of the Sooner State*" 2:52

Download:
Los Campesinos - 'Romance is Boring'

Download: Joe Pug - The Sharpest Crown

Joe Pug has been fairly busy. He put out two EPs last year, recorded his full-length debut, and has been touring heavily with luminaries such as Justin Townes Earle and Josh Ritter (oh, and Justin's dad, Steve). The full album, Messenger comes out February 16th, but as a little treat, you can download an mp3 of 'The Sharpest Crown' below.

Track listing:
1. Messenger
2. How Good You Are
3. Not So Sure
4. The Sharpest Crown
5. The Door Was Always Open
6. The First Time I Saw You
7. Unsophisticated Heart
8. Disguised as Someone Else
9. Bury Me Far (From My Uniform)
10. Speak Plainly, Diana



Download:
Joe Pug - 'The Sharpest Crown'

Awards: Meteor Music Most Promising Act 2010

Yesterday, the final five for the Meteor Music Awards' Most Promising New Artist 2010 were announced. If you followed the voting at all, you would have seen that there were about ten well-known acts and then a bunch of people you've never heard of. Now, don't get me wrong, this wasn't a bad idea, but the fact that it was a public-voting thing meant that whoever could draw in the most votes on facebook or bebo got through. To make it worse, you could vote once a day from your IP address, so you could repeatedly vote for your buddies - no need to register, and at no cost. For the past few weeks, I've been hounded by people sending me links to groups called "Vote for xxx at the Meteors", so I can't wait for it to be over.

But that said, nothing I can do about the voting, so here's your shortlist:

Amasis
Website



Ever27
Website


Jody Has a Hitlist
MySpace


Colm Lynch
Website


Susie Soho
Website




Vote for your favourite here:
http://meteormusicawards.meteor.ie/competitions/

Live: One Republic at the Academy

When these guys first hit the bigtime with 'Apologize', they surely could've played somewhere like the Point (it wasn't the O2 back then kids...) Anyhow, this is 2010, and OneRepublic are going to play the Academy on April 13th. They'll also be playing the Limelight in Belfast the following night.

Tickets for both shows go on sale tomorrow at 9, with Belfast tickets at £25 and Dublin ones priced €28.

Watch Ryan Tedder singing 'The Look' back in 2007:

Live: Ray Davies at the Grand Canal Theatre

Former Kinks frontman Ray Davies is to play Ireland's newest venue, the Grand Canal Theatre on Saturday May 8th. The theatre looks amazing, check out bngr's post(complete with pics) on culch.ie here.

He's sure to play a mix of his own solo stuff as well as some Kinks classics, so it should be great. Tickets are priced €49.80 to €54.80 and go on sale Monday, 8th of February at 9 a.m.

Watch 'A Long Way From Home' live:

Competition: Win a signed copy of Fionn Regan's The Shadow of an Empire

To celebrate the release of Fionn Regan's astounding second album, The Shadow of an Empire, this Friday the 5th of February, Swear I'm Not Paul has teamed up with Universal Music to offer one lucky reader the chance to win a signed copy of the album.

Entry is simple, all you have to do is click on the link below and enter your Name, Country, and email address. Simple. The competition will run from today until Wednesday 17th of February. Good luck!

Enter here:
http://zaphod.uk.vvhp.net/reg/reg.pl?id=4518-121848

Tracklist:
1. "Coat Hook"
2. "Protection Racket"
3. "Genocide Matinee"
4. "Violent Demeanor"
5. "Catacombs"
6. "Little Nancy"
7. "Lord Help My Poor Soul"
8. "Lines Written In Winter"
9. "House Detective"
10. "The Shadow Of An Empire"

Stream 'Protection Racket':

Live: Haiti Aid Stage Times

Haiti Aid Dublin 2010 takes place in Whelan's tonight, and unlike many other gigs, it begins at 8 sharp. There's a fantastic line-up, so if you haven't snapped up a ticket yet, you should do so now.

Stage times:
10:15 - 11.00 - Ham Sandwich
9:30 - 10:00 - O Emperor
8:45 - 9:15 - Butterfly Explosion
8:00 - 8:30 - The Holy Roman Army
(with Michelle Doherty MC)

More info:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000732571790&ref=nf#!/event.php?eid=258554429454&index=1

Watch: JEdward - Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)

It's finally here. John and Edward Grimes' first ever official video...



Oh the horror, the horror.

Stream: Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - I Learned the Hard Way

Hopefully an mp3 of this will appear in my inbox so I can let you all download it, but Tiny Mix Tapes has posted up the title track from Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings' upcoming album I Learned the Hard Way.

Stream it here:
http://www.tinymixtapes.com/chocolate-grinder/listen-sharon-jones-dap-kings-i-learned-hard-way

Watch: Justin Townes Earle - Mercy Lounge Bootleg

Justin Townes Earle played the Mercy Lounge in Nashville, Tennessee on January 27th, 2010, and jebusfubar4 uploaded the entire show in video format to Youtube. He's also got some Avvett Brothers, Jill Andrews and more. Check out his channel here.

Before then, however, have a look at this Justin Townes Earle gig:

'Poor Fool':


'They Killed John Henry':


'Halfway to Jackson':


'Boy Keep Movin':


'What I Mean to You':


'Someday I'll Be Forgiven For This':


'I Ain't Waitin':


'Lone Pine Hill':


'A Wanderin':


'Do I Ever Cross Your Mind?' ft. Dawn Landes:


'If the River Was Whiskey':


'I Don't Care':


'What Do You Do When You're Lonesome':


'Hard Livin':


'Midnight at the Movies':


'South Georgia Sugar Babe':


'Gold Watch and Chain':


'Can't Hardly Wait':


'Walk Out':


'Chittlin Cookin Time in Cheatham County':

Album News: The Dead Weather - Blue Blood Blues

That's not the confirmed name of the album, but it is the confirmed name of the lead single from the new Dead Weather album (So it'll do for now). In a radio interview with Australia's Triple J, Jack White announced that the new album is due out in April, and that the lead single 'Blue Blood Blues' will have White himself on lead vocals instead of Alison Mosshart.

He said "We're finishing recording the last couple of songs and then I’m going to start mixing in the next two weeks, so yeah it should be out in April", and that the album "is bluesier and heavier than we ever thought we could be."

More news on the second Dead Weather album when I get it - including the official title.

Live: Drop Haiti's Debt at Vicar Street

There's a fine amount of benefit gigs happening around the country, but this one is definitely worth mentioning. Cathy Davey, Julie Feeney, Villagers, The Chapters, The Chakras, and more will be playing Vicar Street for the Drop Haiti's Debt campaign on Thursday 11th of February. Tickets cost €20 and are on sale now.

Today, Haiti still owes some US$890 million, much of it to global financial institutions, and is due to make millions in debt payments in the coming year alone. As a result Trocaire has started the Drop Haiti's Debt campaign. All money from this concert will be going towards that.

Ciara Gaynor, Trócaire’s head of campaigns said ‘It will take decades for Haiti to recover from the earthquake. The country must not be faced with the additional massive burden of debt repayments. Any emergency earthquake assistance must be in the form of grants, not loans, which will only increase Haiti’s debt burden in the long run. The people of Haiti have suffered for too long. Please join the call for debt relief, and help Haiti on the long road to recovery from this devastating disaster. Please support the campaign on www.trocaire.org and join the ‘Drop Haiti’s Debt’ group on Facebook”.

Watch The Chapters - 'Your Voice' live in 2006:

Live: Marina and the Diamonds at Tripod

Marina and her Diamonds will be returning to Dublin to play TriPod on Harcourt Street on the 27th of May. She's one of the most hyped acts around this year, and could well be 2010's Florence and the Machine. The "and the" bit in the middle is my main reason for claiming that. Do they need to have anything else in common?

Tickets cost €19.60, and are on sale now.

Watch Marina and the Diamonds 'Hollywood':

Download: French Horn Rebellion - Free EP

For the price of an email address, you can download a free EP from French Horn Rebellion. If you haven't heard of them yet, you probably will soon, as they're due to support Little Boots. The EP is called The Chart (of Plancus City), and is a nice slice of NYC Disco/dance-pop. The next Hot Chip perhaps?

Tracklist:
1. What I want (demo edit)
2. Up All Night (Might Five Remix)
3. Ancient Lover – Tiger City (French Horn Rebellion remix)
4. The Quatrain

Download:
http://fan.musicglue.com/sale/promoproducts.aspx?ProductId=A8A0C01E-1F6D-46CE-9E61-359938946A1B

Watch: Mumford and Sons - The Cave

Mumford and Sons release another single from their excellent debut album Sigh No More. Following on from 'Winter Winds', the next release is 'The Cave'. The video was recorded in India late last year, when the band was on tour with Laura Marling. The single comes out March 1st on Gentlemen of the Road. They play the Academy on March 18th, but it's fully sold out. No doubt they'll be in a bigger venue next time out.

Watch 'The Cave':

Album Cover: Joanna Newsom - Have One on Me

That simple black and white cover is not the album artwork for Joanna Newsom's upcoming Have One on Me, due February 23rd. This is...

Much more like the Joanna we know and love. Can't wait to hear two hours of harp rock!

Watch: Imelda May at the Grammys

Irish rockabilly/soul singer Imelda May teamed up with Jeff Beck to perform a marvellous tribute to legendary guitarman Les Paul at last night's Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. The performance is sure to raise her profile on the other side of the Atlantic, and was a marvellous showcase of her talents.

Another tribute was also given last night, to the late Michael Jackson. Celine Dion, Jennifer Hudson, Smokey Robinson, Carrie Underwood, and Usher all teamed up to sing his classic 'Earth Song' which also included unseen video footage from his This Is It tour.

Watch 'Earth Song':


Watch Imelda May & Jeff Beck 'How High the Moon':

Live: David Gray at the Olympia

David Gray, who still holds the record for the bestselling album ever in Ireland (White Ladder), will be headlining the second Barretstown Inspirations concert, which raises money for Barretstown House. It's a great cause, as Barretstown House looks after children with serious illnesses.

Not only will David Gray be headlining, but the following acts are also on the bill: Paddy Casey
Mundy
Duckworth Lewis Method
Lír
Gemma Hayes
Jape
Vengence & The Panther Queen
Ham Sandwich
The Dublin Gospel Choir

The fundraiser will take place in Dublin's Olympia Theatre on March 5th. Tickets cost €30 and are on sale now. It's sure to be an amazing night.

Here's Sinead O'Connor and Republic of Loose teaming up to cover the Beatles' 'You Can't Do That' at last year's gig:

Stream: Drive-By Truckers - The Big To-Do

Today the ever excellent All Music put up 30 second clips of the upcoming Drive-By Truckers' album The Big To-Do, and they sound incredible. The album is due on March 16th (and I've heard it in full and it's amazing - even better than these clips).

Tracklist:
1. Daddy Learned to Fly
2. The Fourth Night of My Drinking
3. Birthday Boy
4. Drag the Lake Charlie
5. The Wig He Made Her Wear
6. You Got Another
7. This Fucking Job
8. Get Downtown
9. After the Scene Dies
10. (It’s Gonna Be) I Told You So
11. Santa Fe
12. The Flying Wallendas
13. Eyes Like Glue

Stream:
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:j9fixzesldae