If any of you have read a music blog, you may have noticed I take after my predecessors. I've got some favorite links on the right side, a way to contact me, and now my second weekly theme. These are by no means new features I came up with. I ripped them off, but we all know that nothing is new these days. Cynical much?

Anyway, here is the newest old at this moment. I'm sure you've all discovered a band and simply couldn't go without carving out some time in your day to sit down and listen. [convoluted analogy warning!] I imagine this feeling is much like what Cortez felt when he got to Mexico. He wasn't the first to set foot in this foreign place, but it must've felt good to know he was a conquistador.

The first band I've chosen to highlight are the Fleet Foxes. They've got a sound dependent upon the interwoven harmonies between or among the vocalists -- I'm not sure how many there are. Their sound is very much akin to a Grizzly Bear or My Morning Jacket. Just look at the track list for their second EP: "English House", "Yellow House" and "Mykonos", "Okonos". Coincidence, or secret assembly of the world's first superband? Either way I can't listen without conflating the three bands together. I love it! It's an all-star indie band without the hassle of stuffing fourteen people in a cramped studio.

While I kick myself for not going to their show in nearby Omaha earlier this month, revel with me in the magic of Fleet Foxes with these two songs.



These gems are off their debut album with Sub Pop. Although I've never been there, they feel like what I think Northern California would feel like: or perhaps, how it would feel for a transplant from Tennessee. They describe their music as "baroque harmonic pop jams". What are your thoughts?
Fleet Foxes--Ragged Wood
Fleet Foxes--Drops In The River

Ah, jeez, why not? If Neil's voice grates your nerves, I apologize, but I couldn't stop myself from adding this one, a live track from a 1978 show in San Fran.
Neil Young--Cortez The Killer