New Explorer 23 for July 20

We're back! After a summer of World Cup, Tour De France jobhunting and more things like that there's finally a new Top 23. As you can imagine a lot of new songs and the ones that remained were all released in the last two months (May and June).
Australians take note!


01 03 02 Vampire Weekend - Holiday
02 01 03 The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio
03 02 03 Blood Red Shoes - Don't Ask
04 16 02 Local Natives - World News
05 -- 01 The New Pornographers - Crash Years
06 -- 01 Archie Bronson Outfit - Hoola
07 19 02 The Drums - Forever And Ever Amen
08 23 02 Band of Horses - Laredo
09 -- 01 Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip - Sick Tonight
10 -- 01 She & Him - Thieves
11 -- 01 Washington - Rich Kids
12 -- 01 The Lodger - Have A Little Faith In People
13 -- 01 Hungry Kids of Hungary - Wristwatch
14 -- 01 The Black Keys - Tighten Up
15 -- 01 Darren Hanlon - All These Things
16 -- 01 Lola Kite - Different Story
17 -- 01 Kate Nash - Kiss That Girl
18 -- 01 The Jezabels - Easy To Love
19 -- 01 British India - Avalanche
20 -- 01 Clare Bowditch - Bigger Than The Money
21 -- 01 Dennis Ferrer - Hey Hey
22 -- 01 Mystery Jets - Dreaming Of Another World
23 -- 01 Rox - I Don't Believe

Roll Over Beethoven, It's Matt and Zooey!

She & Him in the Melkweg, May 6th 2010

I could start this piece by talking about her acting career and how it might have helped her musical career. It’s a topic a lot of people would start talking about. I won’t. Fact is that she was already playing and writing music from a young age. An actress who sings or a singer who acts? It’s not really important. The only things to remember about the movies is that she was in Almost Famous (yes, that movie that made singing Elton John songs cool again) and also in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Anyone slightly connected with whatever form of the HHGTTG is automatically on my coolwall. If she had never acted however she would still have a fine career as a musician. And oh, being married to a member of Death Cab will bring you even more cred.

My biggest concern before the show was Zooey’s voice. On some of the live YouTube clips her voice wasn’t exactly powerful and she looked shy and ill at ease most of the time. But nothing like that on the Melkweg Max stage. With a powerful stage presence and a voice that was better than on record it was a great show that has to shut up any nitwit thinking it’s that cute actress who also sings. Cute she definitely is. Most striking are her eyes and hair that glow even at the people in the back. Her incredibly lowcut summer dress was stylish and some of the girls in the audience have seem to taken to the Zooey-look, a down-to-earth yet classy way of dress. But with a woolen sweater the songs would still be great.

On "Volume 1" Deschanel has proven to know how to write a timeless song and on "Volume 2" it is no different. Actors making a CD will usually sing a selection of covers or songs written for them. Deschanel writes all the songs herself and can really hold her own as a songwriter. From perfect Brill Building Pop (‘I Was Made For You’), Beatles pop to Nashville country (‘Got Me’), she can do it all. The true genius is in how the songs sound from that era and not like songs that are supposed to sound like from that era but with a distinct modern flavor. The chosen covers fit neatly into the set and the albums and she could have written them herself like the funny and coy ‘Gonna Get Along Without You Now’.

Responsible for this great sound is M. Ward. The songwriter, producer, member of Monsters of Folk and Conor Oberst’ choice for president. That singer from Death Cab is the luckiest guy on earth. Not only has he married one of the most beautiful people in Hollywood, his wife also gets to hang out with M. Ward! His trebly guitar, with sometimes a slide, adds a perfect warm sound to the songs. If Zooey is the ultimate cool for the girls, Ward seems to be that for the guys with his calm and easy stage presence in which he let’s Zooey get all the attention.

Highlight was halfway through the show where as a brief interlude just the two of them played a small acoustic set that included ‘Brand New Shoes’ and Smokey Robinson’s ‘You Really Got A Hold On Me’ that was greeted by an extended applause. Another cover was played as the last song, a rocking version of Chuck Berry’s “Roll Over Beethoven”.

Let Zooey make more movies and let M. Ward make more great albums but I hope they get together more often to produce some fine music and some fine live shows.

Thanks again StartBeginning for the great footage

Explorer 23 For April 10

OK, OK! It's two days late. Winers... be happy it's spring!

01 01 02 These New Puritans - Attack Music
02 05 03 Mumford & Sons - The Cave
03 07 03 She & Him - In The Sun
04 08 04 The Twilight Sad - The Room
05 11 03 Frightened Rabbit - Nothing Like You
06 02 06 Surfer Blood - Swim
07 06 04 Wild Beasts - We Still Got The Taste
08 03 04 The Soft Pack - C'mon
09 17 02 Hold Your Horses - 70 Million
10 -- 01 Titus Andronicus - A More Perfect Union
11 04 05 The XX - VCR
12 18 02 Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip - Get Better
13 09 04 Field Music - Them That Do Nothing
14 -- 01 Fang Island - Life Coach
15 10 05 The Antlers - Bear
16 16 03 Tegan & Sara - Alligator
17 23 02 Fanfarlo - Harold T. Wilkins
18 -- 01 Fixkes - Rock 'n Roll
19 -- 01 Stornoway - I Saw You Blink
20 12 06 Blood Red Shoes - Light It Up
21 19 02 Local Natives - Airplanes
22 13 06 OK Go - This Too Shall Pass
23 -- 01 Kate Nash - Do Wah Doosh