eureka gold: belly full of wine.

dl: EUREKA GOLD - Belly Full Of Wine (YSI)
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I began to have a total music crush on Eureka Gold in January 2007. This was back in the days when bands could only have four songs on their space pages, and I decided that they were "one of my favorite new bands" based solely on those four songs ("Just North", "Over Mountain", "Lovely Lovely", and "Peter Oh"). It's quite possible that this decision was made because I have always had this odd desire to run away to Nashville, TN. I've never been this fond of any other Nashville band, so it's likely that this isn't the case.

For the longest time, there was no digital method of getting a copy of their self-titled debut(?) album. In hopes of obtaining a physical copy, a few attempts were made to message the band asking for one. They failed miserably. Good things come to those who wait? The album is now available on Amie Street, currently priced at $2.30. If you're unfamiliar with Amie Street, songs are initially offered as free and rise in price up to 98 cents based on their popularity. It's a rather lovely system, and my only complaint is that I have trouble finding new tunes (recommendations would be appreciated). Okay. So that's not my only complaint. Ashley Alexandra Dupre somehow holds the number one and two spots on the All Time R&B charts. That's just the opposite of cute.

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- BUY IT - SITE IT - SPACE IT - HYPE IT -

brothers and sisters: brothers and sisters

BROTHERS AND SISTERS is such a damn charming band.

Their album came to me through my IRL inbox*. I listened to it, and I remember thinking, “Wow, this is an incredibly charming band.” Somehow, it wound up buried on my desk under a package from Black Nasty, Pink Nasty's not-so-charming brother. Months later I rediscovered it, popped it into my computer, and “New Life” sang the song in my heart.

A week or two after that, I was making a “bad day” playlist. I found myself immediately choosing “One Night” to be on this, not because it’s the type of song that conveys having a bad day…but because it’s such a simple, genuine song. It’s not over-contemplated or overproduced, and personally that’s what I need on a bad day.

Also, the video for “One Night” is TFC—Totally Fucking Charming. At two minutes and forty-eight seconds, it tells the love story of our generation. Basically, two slightly awkward people run into one another a few times and then they make out. You’re left to assume that they do a couple’s skate a few minutes later to *NSYNC’s “This I Promise You”. Or at least I did.

However, I was at that roller-rink after a rough day at work. I watch this romance happen firsthand, while sitting on the sideline drinking a few beers. After the band finishes their song, they sit down near me and start chatting. I awkwardly eavesdrop on their conversation and eventually one of them says something so funny that I start snorting. Clearly they notice this, and then they invite me over to sit with them and we share a few beers. Eventually we get drunk enough to think it’d be a good idea to hijack the jukebox and play “November Rain” by Guns N Roses five times in a row.

The fact that I can imagine this scenario says something about this band, though I’m not really sure what that something is.

dl: BROTHERS AND SISTERS – New Life (YSI)
dl: BROTHERS AND SISTERS – One Night (YSI)
(pop-country-indie lovable band)
- buy it - space it - hype it -

* Mailbox. I love getting real mail.

that's gay. literally.

Homosexuality is really gay. No seriously. It literally is.

I'm not sure how I feel about "pride" and what is interpreted as "gay culture". You wouldn't have seen me marching around in NYC today, but don't get me wrong...My people can do some okay things. However, gay men often misinterpret the meaning of "pride". Before we celebrate and dance around in man-thongs, I think we need to solve a few problems and tensions within the community, ok? Before we make others repect us, I think we need to respect one another. That's all I'm saying.

With that off my chest, let me continue with some music. In honor of gay pride, I will be bringing you some music from gay/lesbian/queer artists. They span across genres from hip-hop to country. Each song isn't necessarily about being gay. Does it really need to be?

• MATTHEW HEATH-FITZGERALD- Whiskey Lullaby: Mr. Heath-Fitzgerald is a family-lovin' man from Oklahoma who sings country music for a group of adoring fans. Only he's gay-married. It's like Brokeback Mountain only less depressing, less idealized, a lot cuter, a lot realer, and obviously more musical. Seriously though, if you don't believe it's cute, check out the photo of the married couple on his husband Jason Heath-Fitzgerald's page. CUTE. For country lovers, check out more of his music on the space. If you like what you hear, support the artist!!
• JONTE'- Make Up (video): Jonte' is essentially the polar opposite of Matthew Heath-Fitzgerald. He's campy. He's flexible. He's electro. He's...um, FABULOUS! Also, he's a gay black male semi-drag queen from New York. That's what I call opposites. Check him out on the space.
• GOD-DES & SHE- Mr. President: Everyone from Pink to Tupac Shakur to Bright Eyes have done songs for the president, but that's not the point. I found a copy of "Lick It" (available on iTunes), but I respect these ladies too much to post it. God-des is an out lesbian, and She just recently ventured into bisexuality. Honestly, I don't care what their orientations are. These ladies are talented. Unfortunately, "She" does not appear on this track, so I encourage you to head to the space and watch their video for the infectiously catchy "Love You Better" (which reached #1 on LOGO's Click List). She has an amazing voice.
• MIRROR BOIYZ vs. LEIF- I.R.L. (Leif remix): This is a brand new remix by the insanely gifted Leif. Leif is still in high school, and once I discovered this fact...I was floored. He is applying to my school, and if they don't accept him they are idiots. You may remember Leif from the first mixtape on this blog. If you liked what you heard back then, you should check out the full Arular Gone Glam project here. You should also friend him on the space before he gets more famous than your mom. OH, also The Mirror Boiyz are pretty good too, but I guess I'm biased. You can friend us here.
• NELLIE McKAY f/ K.D. LANG- We Had It Right: Nellie McKay is not a lesbian, but she's a gay-friendly vegetarian. That counts for something, right? Her album Pretty Little Head was presumably great. I say "presumably" because fucking Sony never released it! Sixteen of the 23 tracks have leaked including a duet with out lesbian performer K.D. Lang. The album also featured an amazing duet with Cyndi Lauper, her co-star in The Threepenny Opera. You should go see that if you're the kind of person who is into musicals. It also has Alan Cumming, who is gay and once hit on my friend. Since I can't recommend that you buy the album, either go see the play...or check out this live version of the gay marriage themed "Cupcake" (MP3). It includes a dedication to New Jersey's ex-governor Jim McGreevey. Word on the street is that Nellie is incredible live.
• JANIS IAN- My Tennessee Hills: Why does that name look familiar? That's right. Janis Ian = DYKE. (Mean Girls) The joke that most watchers of Tina Fey's theatrical masterpiece don't get is that the actual Janis Ian IS a dyke. If you listen hard enough, you can even hear Janis Ian's "At Seventeen" (MP3) playing in the background at some point in the movie. In other news, Ms. Ian was happily married to her domestic partner Patricia Snyder in 2003.
  

Honorable Mention:

• New Jersey rocker Josh Zuckerman
• "Bear pride" midwest rapper Bigg Nugg
• Internet superstar Jonny McGovern
• Overly raunchy Hirsute Pursuit
• American Idol contestant Jim Verarros
  
• Melissa Etheridge, Elton John, RuPaul, The Village People, Lesley Gore, Sinead O'Connor, Boy George, George Michael, Tegan & Sara, Michael Stipe, Liberace, Rufus Wainwright, and all the other obvious ones...

BLOGWATCH: Get the new Jessica Simpson "A Public Affair" at stars are blind. Check out some live tracks of new Radiohead material at i guess i'm floating, as well as a rare Modest Mouse track. Speaking of gays, ANTM's Kim Stolz is now a VJ on MTVU and has her own blog (link thanks to shitparade). Listen to acoustic tunes by We Are Scientists over at You Ain't No Picasso. Cop a b-side of The Go! Team covering Sonic Youth at i was there. Note that there's a remix of The Knife over at indiechristoph.