"Johnny and Mary" by Todd Terje

Song: Johnny and Mary feat. Bryan Ferry
Artist: Todd Terje
Album: It's Album Time
Commentary: This is the stand-out track on a decent album. It’s the best and it’s pretty different than the rest of the disco tracks. Not sure what kind of radio station would play the “radio edit” though, ha.

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"In the Beginning" by Daughn Gibson

Song: In the Beginning
Artist: Daughn Gibson
Album: All Hell
Also try:  Calvin Johnson, Headphones (with David Bazan), Bill Callahan, Kurt Vile
Commentary: I don't know what to say about this one; made my 2012 album list. This song is nice: some electronic sounds, folk influences, deep male voice crooning over pop melodies... Very late 2000s/early 2010s.

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"Hi-Five" by Angel Olsen

Song: Hi-Five
Artist: Angel Olsen
Album: Burn Your Fire For No Witness
Also try:  PJ Harvey, Joni Mitchell, Liz Phair, Julie Doiron, Hank Williams, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy
Commentary: I decided that Angel Olsen sounds alternately like PJ Harvey, Joni Mitchell, an extra in the Carter Family, Liz Phair, what’s-her-name in Portishead…, and Julie Doiron. In the spectac opener to the album, she does all this marvelous stuff with her voice and I definitely intend to practice singing like her. Her first album's great too. Hoping for more great stuff from Angel Olsen. Her Will Oldham collab is encouraging.

Also, great album title, no?

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"track 2" by Dean Blunt

Song: track 2 (feat. Inga Copeland)
Artist: Dean Blunt
Album: The Narcissist II
Commentary: Real easy to just nod your head and chill with this song. Every piece seems carefully placed and not overdone.

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"Jesus was a Crossmaker" by Frida Hyvönen

Song: "Jesus was a Crossmaker" (Judee Sill cover)
Artist: Frida Hyvönen
Album: Crayon Angel: A Tribute to the Music of Judee Sill
Commentary: The original by Judee Sill is also pretty good; she seems like a fairly interesting musician. Frida Hyvönen does a good job with it and is pretty cool herself.

Frida Hyvönen cover Version:


original Judee Sill version:

"Chidori no kyoku" by Yoshida and Kyoko Seifu

Song: 千鳥の曲 (Chidori's songs)
Artist: 吉田 晴風 and Kyoko
Commentary: I thought I had posted a song from my old Japanese song collection. This is one of my favorites. To me, they sound very... non-Western. I get the feeling it's from a different musical tradition, at least (it is). See this site on koto music for details about this recording and other nice koto and gagaku 78s.

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