Recent Posts from I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Drew Grow and the Pastors’ Wives make their home in Portland, and meld together a scuzzy, squally blend of rebellious gospel/folk that at times possesses the radiant buoyancy of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, and in quieter moments the s... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Back in the freshness of springtime, I came clean before you all with my newfound affection for the TV show Friday Night Lights. Shy as I was about falling for any sort of TV drama, I was converted (to the cult of Tim Riggins, thank you) over Tha... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — There’s a winsome, lonely, rough-hewn folk loveliness to this song from The Roadside Graves. With a violin weaving alongside the ragged vocal croon (actually, in this case, I think we have to call it a fiddle), this song conjures up a moment of w... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Five years since his last traditional release, Sufjan Stevens came out of the blue last Friday (only hours after my birthday waned, so I think it was probably a gift to me) with a new EP, All Delighted People, available on Bandcamp for only five ... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Hands down. And they can’t really play it on the radio, now can they? <iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/14388634?byline=0&amp;portrait=0" width="450" height="253" frameborder="0"></iframe> Fuck You – Cee-Lo Green I am some... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — I’ve spent the last five days immersed in green forests and small cafes, breathing the salty seaside air, and quenching my parched insides in the Pacific Northwest. The dampness clinging to my skin as I stood at the foot of these waterfalls and ha... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Late last night in the tiny Honors Bar, in the converted elementary school hotel in Portland, we got into a conversation with our Ecuadorian bartender who had been trained as a classical guitarist. As he cleaned glasses, we talked about music and ... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Dan Mangan is a Canadian from the fertile Pacific Northwestern coastal city of Vancouver, and makes marvelously crafted, beautifully arranged music. Recommended if you (like me) enjoy Josh Ritter, Luke Doucet, or on this song particularly, the ma... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Joe Pug onstage with the Levon Helm Band and Elvis Costello, swapping jubilant verses on “The Weight” last week in Vancouver. Joe’s face emanates the same pure, unfettered joy I see here. Go kid, go. <object width="450" height="362"><par... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Five months ago, my friend Katie went to see Adam Haworth Stephens (of the San Francisco band Two Gallants) open for Rocky Votolato in Denver. I wasn’t at the show, but was on my computer later that night when an email popped in from her, raving ... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Lollapalooza took over the massive lakeside green of Grant Park last weekend for its sixth year as a stationary festival in Chicago. I was unable to get myself to The Prairie State, and sent two talented writer-photographers to cover it for Fuel/... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Are you aware that Nada Surf has an excellent new album of covers? If I Had A Hi-Fi came out a few months ago, after being first available only on tour at their merch booth, and is now consumable by the general intelligent public. That includes y... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — On Friday afternoon, I got my advance of the forthcoming Lissie album Catching a Tiger (out 8/17 on Fat Possum) and so far I haven’t been able to stop listening to it, happily. I was out on a mini-roadtrip vacation around Colorado these last few ... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — This song came up on my shuffle on this sunny Saturday morning with all the windows open and the sun glinting off the wooden floors. It sounded so, so right that I’ve put it on repeat and it hasn’t stopped looping yet. That harmonica solo at 2:45... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Selkirk, Scotland’s resident gutwrenchers Frightened Rabbit sent a new song out to their mailing list today, complete with an image of the lyrics and a strangely disembodied drawing (which would fit well with Tuesday’s post). Frontman Scott Hutc... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Barely twenty years old, Laura Marling is from England and channels a young and earnest Joni Mitchell, if Joni had Mumford & Sons as her backing band (no, really, Laura does). I just started listening to Laura’s gorgeous folks songs at the be... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — <object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" width="450" height="253" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"/><param... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — There’s a humble little new iTunes EP out from Radical Face, one of the musical projects of Florida’s Ben Cooper (the other one being the equally fantastic Electric President). The six-song Touch The Sky (Welcome Home) EP is a collection of alter... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — Eric Anderson + a rotating cast of friends make up the Seattle band Cataldo. I don’t think the little kids are in the band (but would likely relate to the unjaded spirit of the songs it if they were). If you’ve sampled and enjoyed my summer mix, ... read more »

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS — In a few weeks, the new theatre production of The Last Goodbye will make its highly anticipated world debut at the Williamstown Theatre Festival (August 5th – 20th). As I wrote back in April, this new creation takes Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Jul... read more »