Movin' on Up: The Long Winters
I've liked these guys for a while (you can check out some of their tunes at Barsuk's website). Lead singer John Roderick successfully straddles the line between plaintive and whiny, and he also seems to be quite a personality, as well. Not one you necessarily want to work with (check out the preview of "Through With Love," a forthcoming documentary on the band, below), but Roderick has a fascinating story, which includes a cross-continental walk across Europe.
And it seems they're finally getting some mainstream attention, in the form of the commercial for "In the Land of Women" (starring indie rock snob Seth Cohen, aka Adam Brody). "New Girl" plays over the last 10 or so seconds. That's no guarantee that the song will be in the movie (it's not on the soundtrack), but it's still hitting millions of new ears. (Check out a live version at Bradley's Almanac.)
The band played New York quite recently, but I didn't get to go. Did anyone see them? Any good?
-eh, www.amNY.com
