The Strokes New Single: Undercover of Darkness

To say that I used to be completely, utterly obsessed with The Strokes is a bit of an understatement. As a 16 year-old high school girl in 2002, once I heard "Hard To Explain" and "Last Nite", I never looked back.

I joined their official fan club. I went to as many of their concerts as I could. I posted on their music forum. I bought every single music magazine that featured articles on them. I devoted nearly every single blog post to them. I proudly wore their t-shirts. They were even the muses for my high school art assignments:

But, like many young bands on the scene, nothing is permanent. As I grew out of my teeny bopper Strokes-obsessed phase, the band produced two more albums, before pretty much disappearing over the last 5 years.

They never officially split up, but most of the band members were busy with side projects, and it seemed like The Strokes might not ever produce music together again.

Undercover Of Darkness

That is, until today. For the first time in 5 years, The Strokes have released a new song: "Undercover Of Darkness."

This is the first single off of their forthcoming album, Angles, which will be released on March 22nd.

While I was waiting for the song to download (it's available for free for the next 48 hours on their official website), all of those giddy, 16 year-old teeny bopper feelings came bubbling to the surface again.

Even upon listening to the first few notes of the song, and to Julian's distinct, yearning-yet-gritty voice, crooning away ambiguous lyrics, little goosebumps actually formed on my arms.

"Undercover Of Darkness" has the classic, Is This It?-era Strokes sound: upbeat, jangly guitars and a feeling that is simultaneously nostalgic and melancholic.

You know that feeling that you get when you meet someone new, but you feel like you've known them forever? Yet, you're still excited about what they're going to bring to your life, so you want to hang out with them as much as possible to soak up their awesomeness.

"Undercover Of Darkness" is like that new person, and my iTunes is getting a very hefty dose of it--repeatedly!

Hopefully the rest of Angles will live up to the expectations set by "Undercover Of Darkness." In the meantime, "I'll wait for you!"

The Postelles unedited audio interview

Wordpress has a fancy new feature where you can use your cell phone to directly post audio content to your blog. I interviewed The Postelles last night at their debut San Francisco show. The following is the full, unedited (albeit questionable audio quality) interview: [audio http://amandavanwest.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/audio-post-2011-01-28-04-32-12.mp3|titles=Audio Post]

Christmas Crooning: Top 5 Indie Christmas Songs

Alongside dodging crowds of shoppers at the mall, and elderly family member's long-winded, eggnog-induced stories, one of the most traditional aspects of Christmas is the music. Sure, we have the traditional Christmas songs that have been around since the early 20th century. We have the songs that you'll hear on every radio station, at every party, and in every shop in the days leading up to Christmas.

I have to admit, I have a soft spot in my heart for Christmas music. Maybe it's because I never worked in the retail sector, and never had to endure the same songs on loop for hours on end.

Or maybe it's the copious amounts of Who Hash.

Whatever the reason, I can't help but get the warm fuzzies when I hear something like Nat King Cole's rendition of "The Christmas Song."

Or when I watch the deliciously cheesy music video of "Jingle Bell Rock", by everyone's favorite half-mustachioed duo, Hall and Oates: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQXMT_QhguI&hl=en_GB&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b]

Over-the-top grins, gleeful head-bopping, and Santa popping out of thin air like magic?? Oh yes, Hall and Oates have the ability to make even the Grinchiest of hearts grow thrice its size!

A Very Indie Christmas

In recent years, it's become common for indie bands to cover classic Christmas carols, or to even put out their own original Christmas songs.

The following are my top 5 'Indie Christmas Songs.' Some have been around for awhile, and some have just been released this year.

5. allo, darlin'-Baby, It's Cold Outside

Originally written in 1944 by Frank Loesser, this song has become a pop standard duet that has been sung by, well, just about everyone.

One of my favorite versions of this song is from the movie "Elf", when Zooey Deschanel's character sings it with Will Ferrell's goofy Elf character. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp3UoqOkFJo&hl=en_GB&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b]

This version by British artist Elizabeth Morris, a.k.a allo, darlin', was done in 2008. It's very lo-fi, and is noticeably missing the male part of the duet. However, this stripped-down rendition is still subtly beautiful in its own right.

Scroll down about halfway down the page, and you can listen to it here.

4. The Raveonettes-The Christmas Song

It may share the same title as the aforementioned Nat King Cole tune, but the similarities end there.

Although the Danish duo released this song a few years ago, like the most overly rum-soaked fruitcake, it's still just as fresh today.

They take aspects of 50s/60s, Phil Spector-esque music, and put a darker twist on it. Listen here.

And if that tickles your tinsel, you might also enjoy their cover of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)."

3. Coldplay-Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

Although I've never been a huge fan of Coldplay, there are certain songs of theirs that I can't help but love.

This cover of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" is one of those songs.

It's very simple, with just a piano accompaniment to Chris Martin's vocals, but it's emotional and sweet nonetheless.

2. Julian Casablancas-I Wish It Was Christmas Today

Lead singer of one of my favorite bands of all time, The Strokes, Julian Casablancas released a solo album this year: Phrazes For The Young.

Alongside putting out his own album, he decided to cover this comedic Christmas song from Saturday Night Live, a famous sketch show from the U.S.

The song was originally performed as part of a Christmas skit by Jimmy Fallon, Horatio Sanz, Chris Kataan, and Tracy Morgan. In the original skit, the comedic value lies in the intentionally silly lyrics, and out-of-tune singing. However, Casablancas manages to put a cool and sultry spin on it, that oozes his New York attitude.

Here is Julian's version, and here is the original, for comparison.

1. Jomel-Untitled Christmas Song, 2009

Today, I logged onto Facebook to find a notification that I had been tagged in a video.

Curious, I clicked 'play' and found that it was an impromptu song by one of my best friends, Jomel, written and performed in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve.

The song is filled with inside jokes, over a background of acoustic guitar playing. It definitely put a huge smile on my face when I watched it!

I have to say, there is no better Christmas present than something that comes from the heart; something unique and not mass-produced.

And that's exactly why this is my number 1 indie Christmas tune of 2009!

What are your favorite Christmas songs of this year? Leave a comment with your top tunes, the reasons why, and links!

Merry Christmas to all!

Good Shoes at ULU

Somehow I’ve developed a habit of taking people to their first concerts in foreign countries. Back in San Francisco, I remember taking a Japanese friend to see Late of the Pier and The Whip. I also took a Mexican friend to see Spinto Band.

Now, in London, I took two of my classmates (Richa, from India, and Junjie, from China) to their first concert in the UK: Good Shoes, at ULU.

Music is something that can be enjoyed by anyone around the world, no matter where you come from.

It’s one of those things that spans every different type of culture. You don’t even have to understand the language to appreciate music. It’s more about the feelings that are evoked when you hear music.

Since music is such a big part of my life, I was happy to be able to share this concert experience with my new friends.

Thanks to TFL’s weekend ‘upgrades’, we had to take the long way to get to central London, and ended up missing the opening bands.

We did make it in time for Good Shoes, luckily. Good Shoes are a band that I’ve been a fan of for a number of years, but never had the chance to see them in concert.

They’re from London, and they have never toured in San Francisco. Because of this, I was especially excited to finally get to see them.

At concerts, it is not uncommon for audience members to take pictures of the band during the show. You can’t go to a concert today without seeing people pull out their digital cameras or cell phones, trying to capture every moment.

In an unusual role reversal, the lead singer of Good Shoes came out and decided to take pictures of us, the audience.

It felt weird to be on the other side of the lens, but it was nice to see that even band members enjoy capturing these moments.

A ROWDY CROWD

I don’t know if it was the median age of the crowd (perhaps 17 years old), or the amount of beer being consumed, but the audience was particularly raucous for this show.

We started out in the middle, near the stage—for the first song, anyway. Then, the moshing started.

I usually associate moshing with more hardcore punk shows, and not with a band like Good Shoes. I’d like to think that, at least for a short while, we put up a good effort to keep up with the crowd.

However, we eventually got pushed out to the side, on the outskirts of the pit.

Despite the rowdy crowd, the show was a lot of fun. The band exuded energy and excitement, and played a good mix of old and new songs.

More than anything, it was nice to be able to share this experience with my new friends.

Music is a great way to connect with people, and I hope to continue to explore and share London’s music scene with anyone who wants to take part!