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For those of you who missed Daniel Bjarason’s gig on March 3, 2010 at LPR; or for those who want to re-experience what was widely touted as a humdinger of a show, WQXR is streaming it in its entirety online. Isn’t the internet grand?

The Music Matters campaign is enlisting artists to help inform listeners about legitimate avenues for digital music distribution. Here’s the first video, by one of our favorite Icelandic post-rock collectives!

Music Matters – Sigur Ros (22-3-10) from Music Matters on Vimeo.

Serena Maneesh
Abyss in B Minor
4AD CD

On their sophomore release, Serena Maneesh retains the shoegaze feel of their debut, but tweaks the soundworld to encompass both ambient passages and buzz-toned metal-tinged digressions.

Serena Maneesh picked an unusual locale in which to record. The initial cuts were recorded in a cave on the outskirts of Oslo; later, the band fine-tuned things with Nick Terry (Klaxons, Primal Scream), and René Tinner (Can). The result combines oases of delicacy with potent swaths of distortion laden alt-rock. Fans of groups ranging from Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine to Sleepy Sun and Bardo Pond are likely to find much to savor here.

Apologies for posting this a bit late, but Pierre Boulez turned 85 on 26 March 2010.

Happy Birthday, Maestro Boulez!

Pierre Boulez is 85!

I’m really enjoying the new Clogs LP Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton. Its their first release that focuses on songwriting rather than instrumental compositions.

Clogs has been at the forefront of the Indie Classical crossover movement, bringing together pop sensibilities in sophisticated concert music arrangements. This time out, Padma Newsome’s voice and songs are featured, resulting in a frequent and fetching pastoral folk ambience.

A teaser track from the LP, “On the Edge,” is below. I’ll be interviewing the band for the site later this month.

Clogs: On the Edge

Jamie Lidell’s new CD, Compass, is slated for May release on Warp. He released a sneak peek today: a video for “The Ring.”