Music on TV - Week of 03.28.11: Duran Duran

These weeks must be running together because I swear I just featured Duran Duran and The Strokes for last week's calendar. Since we had The Strokes up top last week, let's give it a switcheroo, change the places/times (Duran Duran on Kimmel Wed., on Fallon Thu. / Strokes on Fallon Wed) and call it a (late) night (/early morning).

Catch ya next week...

Picks for the week
Monday, March 28
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Sounds
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: FaR*eAst Movement
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Asking Alexandria
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Los Lonely Boys
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Vanilla Fudge
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Two Door Cinema Club (REPEAT)
TBS: Lopez Tonight: Seether
TBS: Conan: Little Big Town
Tuesday, March 29
ABC: Good Morning America: Britney Spears
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Snoop Dogg
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Asking Alexandria
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Freddie Gibbs, Death
SYNDICATION: The Ellen DeGeneres Show: Heart
TBS: Lopez Tonight: Sergio Mendes
TBS: Conan: Panic at the Disco!
Wednesday, March 30
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Duran Duran
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Mos Def
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Willie Nelson, Norah Jones, Wynton Marsalis
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: The Strokes
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Goldheart Assembly
Thursday, March 31
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Funeral Party
FUEL: The Daily Habit: The Airborne Toxic Event
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Duran Duran
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Grouplove
TBS: Lopez Tonight: Snoop Dogg
Friday, April 1
CBS: The Early Show: Miranda Lambert
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Royal Bangs
FUEL: The Daily Habit: The Airborne Toxic Event
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Scissor Sisters
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Ted Leo, The Greenhornes
SYNDICATION: The Ellen DeGeneres Show: OneRepublic
Saturday, April 2
BBCAMERICA: The Graham Norton Show: Rihanna (REPEAT)
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Elton John & Leon Russell
PBS: Austin City Limits: Jimmy Cliff (REPEAT)

Music on TV - Week of 03.21.11: The Strokes

The Strokes return from a near five-year hiatus as a slightly different beast. Singer Julian Casablancas has relinquished some control of the band, allowing all the members of the band to contribute, which sounds to these ears more like the frontman's concessions to keep the band together than a conscious choice to push the band forward.

Angles is an improvement on the head scratcher that was 2006's First Impressions of Earth, but one can't help but wish for the iron-fisted controlling sound of their first two releases, Is This It? (2001) and Room on Fire (2003). The Strokes storm Ed Sullivan theater for a performance on Letterman, Wednesday.

Speaking of returns, those new wave giants Duran Duran are back to being relevant again with their new Mark Ronson-produced (and 14th) release All You Need is Now. Oddly enough, it's also the first release from the D-Squared that's not on a major label. By going small, Simon LeBon & co. have mostly returned to their roots, even copping a Niles Rodgers-like groove at times. The album has been digitally available since December, but now the physical copy is getting the expanded treatment, with six more tracks and a bonus DVD (digital releases will also have all 15 tracks as well). Duran Duran make two appearances this week, performing on Leno Tuesday night, and making Ellen dance on Friday.

Elsewhere, there's lots of ear candy on this post's undercard, including British Sea Power (Monday) and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (Tuesday) on Letterman, Peter Bjorn & John on Leno Thursday and Cut Copy on Fallon Friday night.

Picks for the week
Monday, March 21
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Brett Dennen
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: British Sea Power
COMEDY CENTRAL: The Colbert Report: Steve Martin
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Raphael Saadiq
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Little Dragon
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (REPEAT)
Tuesday, March 22
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Gaslight Anthem
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Duran Duran
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Richard Ashcroft
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: The Morning Benders
TBS: Conan: Teddy Thompson
Wednesday, March 23
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: The Strokes
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Bootsy Collins, Friendly Fires
TBS: Conan: Grace Potter & the Nocturnals
Thursday, March 24
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Oh Land
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Mountain Goats (REPEAT)
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Peter Bjorn & John
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Tres Mts
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Ra Ra Riot
TBS: Conan: Wanda Jackson (REPEAT)
Friday, March 25
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Oh Land (REPEAT)
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Cut Copy
SYNDICATION: The Ellen DeGeneres Show: Duran Duran
Saturday, March 26
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Chris Brown
PBS: Austin City Limits: Foo Fighters (REPEAT)

Music on TV - Week of 02.21.11: Destroyer

Dan Bejar and Destroyer to be on Fallon Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Merge Records is already having a great 2011, thanks largely to Arcade Fire's Grammy hardware pull, but also because of new releases from Destroyer and the label debut for The Mountain Goats, both bands of which make appearances this week.

Dan Bejar has assembled an 8-piece version of Destroyer to tour in support of the effervescent Kaputt which starts on St. Patrick's Day in the place of the band's birth, Vancouver B.C. (at the Crocodile here in Seattle, the next day, March 18, 2011). Before then, this edition of Bejar's Destroyer will give us a preview Tuesday night on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

Besides Merge acts Destroyer and The Mountain Goats (on Letterman Wednesday), the week is also highlighted by appearances from Greg Dulli's Twilight Singers (on Kimmel Wednesday), Bright Eyes (on Letterman Thursday) and The Strokes on Saturday Night Live.

Picks for the week
Monday, February 21
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Pitbull (REPEAT)
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Adele
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Screaming Females (REPEAT)
TBS: Conan: Chromeo
Tuesday, February 22
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Cake
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Destroyer
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Menomena
PBS: Independent Lens: William S. Burroughs -- A Man Within: Patti Smith, Iggy Pop, Laurie Anderson, Sonic Youth, William S. Burroughs
Wednesday, February 23
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Twilight Singers
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: The Mountain Goats
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Liza Minelli
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Lucero
TBS: Conan: G. Love
Thursday, February 24
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Adele
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Bright Eyes
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Broken Bells
SYNDICATION: The Ellen DeGeneres Show: Adele
Friday, February 25
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Janelle Monae
PBS: Tavis Smiley: Kem
Saturday, February 26
BBCAMERICA: The Graham Norton Show: Hurts
NBC: Saturday Night Live: The Strokes
PBS: Austin City Limits: Aimee Mann, Iron and Wine (REPEAT)

Ear on TV: Week of April 2

I mentioned before that the UK has a habit of overhyping acts, so I find it surprising that there's such 'little noise' from across the pond about the wonders of The Noisettes. The soulful (yet ruckus) punk trio make their US television debut tonight on Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson, and are worth seeing purely to watch singer/bassist Shingai Shoniwa work the stage in her short short skirt (see video.) The UK act is currently supporting another Drake fave TV on the Radio on tour through Texas and parts East (enter to win free tickets.)

Elsewhere, Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond, Jr. has made a very pleasant sounding solo release (Yours To Keep,) and makes his (Strokes-less) tv debut on Late Night With Conan O'Brien. Also check out appearances from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (Conan on Wednesday,) and a second week in a row for Bloc Party (this time on Last Call With Carson Daly on Friday.)

Playlist: Picks for the week of April 2
Monday, December 4
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: The Noisettes
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Regina Spektor (REPEAT)
Tuesday,
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Nas (REPEAT - Video)
Wednesday,
NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Brandi Carlile
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Thursday,
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Kaiser Chiefs
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Redman
Friday,
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Aqualung (REPEAT - Video)
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Redman
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Albert Hammond, Jr.
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Bloc Party
Saturday,
PBS: Austin City Limits: Elvis Costello (REPEAT)

tags: music, television, soundtrack, talk shows, the noisettes, tv on the radio, tvotr, bloc party, albert hammond, indie rock, rhapsody

Now Downloading: New Releases 03.06.07

Today marks another big release day, and I've already covered my two favorites making their way on to the shelves this week (Arcade Fire's Neon Bible and Apostle of Hustle's National Anthem of Nowhere which both came in early.)

Here's the best of the rest:

Playlist: New Releases 03.06.2007

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Album: Neil Young - Live at Massey Hall 1971

Recorded between After the Goldrush (1970) and Harvest (1972), this live performance captures that moment in time beautifully, with Young stripped down and in storyteller mode. He'd just moved to the ranch in Laurel Canyon, and much of the new songs that would appear on Harvest are reflective of that change in location. Highlights include an early rendition of "Heart of Gold" snuck in as an interlude in the song "A Man Needs a Maid." Recorded in Toronto, Canada, it marks a sort of homecoming for Young, as he'd just recently hit the big time and was returning as the conquering hero, and the love between audience and performer is clearly felt.

Live at Massey Hall 1971 doesn't come out until next week (March 13, along with a simultaneous release of concert DVD) but we get it in Rhapsody a week early, so enjoy.

Video: "Old Man" , "Ohio" , "The Needle and the Damage Done"

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Album: Son Volt - The Search

Appropriate to follow Neil Young with a follower in Son Volt. This, the second release of Son Volt 2.0 (Okemah and the Melody of Riot being the first,) the band reformed following lead singer Jay Farrar's sketchy solo outputs, finds the band stretching from it's friendly alt-country surroundings. Horn arrangements, phase-effected and backward looped guitars and distorted vocals distract the songs from being as direct as they could - airing frustrations about the current administration. Farrar hasn't sounded this confident since their 1995 debut Trace, and while it doesn't measure up to that gem, it's a worthy followup to Okemah and the Melody of Riot.

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Album: Albert Hammond, Jr - Yours To Keep

The Strokes rhythm guitarist Albert Hammond Jr. steps out for a relaxed mix of pop gems. When I say relaxed, I'm talking a Robert Pollard Sunday afternoon of recording... kicking back with some beers and friends and cranking out some melodies. It's not a whole lot more then that, but do we really need much more. Kudos for the Guided By Voices cover of "Postal Blowfish" (another Pollard Sunday afternoon gem) buried towards the end of the album.

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Other picks from this week downloaded into the Sansa:
Arcade Fire Neon Bible
Apostle of Hustle National Anthem of Nowhere
Air Pocket Symphony
The Cinematics A Strange Education
RJD2 The Third Hand
Ry Cooder My Name is Buddy
Wolf & Club Vessels
Maria Taylor Lynn Teeter Flower

And because I missed last week (due to technical difficulties) here's that playlist as well.
Playlist: New Releases 02.27.07
Tracklisting

tags: music, album review, son volt, air, arcade fire, neil young, apostle of hustle, albert hammond, the strokes, indie rock, album review, new releases, rhapsody