iTunes: Free Wednesday
Once again, TUAW is pleased to present you with a selection of free songs and videos from around the world. Many of these iTMS items won't be free for long — in fact, yesterday, many of them weren't updated to be free yet — so grab your copies before the week is up. And don't forget: If you want to buy these on your iPhone or iPod touch, make sure to sign into your account in iTunes before you sync.
US Music
US: Graham Colton, Best Days
Single of the Week: Let's take a minute to judge a man by the company he keeps. As the leader of the Graham Colton Band, Colton has performed with people like John Mayer, Dave Matthews, and Maroon 5. It's fair to assume that there's a mixture of earnest, smart, and well-played pop-rock in his arsenal. "Best Days" confirms this but also ups the ante by being a sweeping, romantic epic.
US: Anita Tijoux, Despabilate
Artist on the cusp: Canción de la Semana. Anita Tijoux spent her early years going between France and Chile, but it's been the Latin American audience who has given her the most attention. Early on in her musical career, she ran the stage as a hip-hop MC, but it was her crossover hit with Julieta Venegas from this year ("Eres Para Mí") that had people asking for more. "Despabilate" is a track from her solo debut. It's electro-dance pop at its most rumbling and pulsating, while Tijoux shows her mic skills, but proves she can coo like a songbird on the chorus.
US: Sara Groves, When the Saints
Discovery Download: Contemporary Christian songwriter Sara Groves has been recording remarkably tuneful folk-pop since the late '90s. This new single is easily one of her most emotional tunes. "When the Saints" takes its inspiration from the lyrics to the gospel hymn classic "When the Saints Go Marching In" but turns it on its ear, adding Groves' own lyrical twists and pop arrangements.
International Music
Japan 今週のシングル: Harlem Shakes, Sickos
ブルックリンから現れた超新星、Harlem Shakes。結成当初は、シンプルでクールなガレージサウンドでポスト・ストロークスと騒がれていたが、2007年に自主リリースしたデビュー音源では、素晴らしいメロディと入念なアレンジ、奔放なアンサンブルとヴォーカルのユニークな存在感で、完全に新境地を開いている。2008年前半には初のアルバム・リリースも予定しており、これからが本当に楽しみな5人組。またDeerhoof、Beirutらと親交があり、Arctic MonkeysやClap Your Hands Say Yeahとも共演。"Sickos"をフリーダウンロード。
Australia: Euphonic, Yeah No
Australian Single of the Week. This Sydney quartet has already released two new singles in 2007 – "Yeah No" is the third. Now the group is readying its debut. Why the rush? Well, in the case of "Yeah No", it just doesn't seem right to keep this song away from public consumption. The track rushes forward with a mix of electric guitar leads and acoustic rhythm guitar – a power-pop guitar onslaught that's like the sound of classic Dinosaur Jr. with the harmonies of Teenage Fanclub and some of the vocal expressiveness of Jeff Buckley. Enough name dropping for you? Now check it out!
New Zealand: Euphonic, Yeah No
NZ Single of the Week. This Sydney quartet has already released two new singles in 2007 – "Yeah No" is the third. Now the group is readying its debut. Why the rush? Well, in the case of "Yeah No", it just doesn't seem right to keep this song away from public consumption. The track rushes forward with a mix of electric guitar leads and acoustic rhythm guitar – a power-pop guitar onslaught that's like the sound of classic Dinosaur Jr. with the harmonies of Teenage Fanclub and some of the vocal expressiveness of Jeff Buckley. Enough name dropping for you? Now check it out!
Canada: Major Maker, Last Goodbye
Canadian Single of the Week. This Toronto duo have been getting a little bit of love thanks to the use of their track "Rollercoaster" in a candy commercial earlier this year. You'll have to enjoy this song sans any visions of sugarplums. Luckily, the track itself is pretty sweet. Okay, let's skip the well-worn metaphors. Big brassy horns? Yep. Jubilant piano fills? Yep. Scratchy, Brit Invasion-style pop keeping all the pieces together? Yep. But is it free? Oh yes.
France: Gravenhurst, Saints
Chaque semaine, nous trouvons un morceau d'un artiste ou d'un groupe que nous avons apprécié et nous vous le faisons partager.Gravenhurst est le groupe fondé par un certain Nick Talbot. Ses enregistrements précédents nous ont présentés une voix de choriste qui trouve son inspiration autant dans les sons fuyants de la folk britannique des années 60 que dans le son chuchotant, froidement atténué, des groupes des années 90 qui se regardaient les pieds. " Saints " est le titre qui ouvre leur dernier album, The Western Lands, et c'est un morceau empreint de mystère, de guitares acoustiques et d'atmosphères subtiles.Si vous aimez ce morceau, obtenez l'album ici.
UK: King Creosote, Cowardly Custard
UK Single of the Week. Ragged and roughly hewn, charming and twisted in a gentle way, King Creosote's music comes out of the speakers like campfire sing-alongs beamed down from the cosmos. The Scottish singer-songwriter has been turning out home-recordings on CDRs for a few years and hanging out with a Fife-based group of psychedelic troubadours, artists, and assorted creative types known as the Fence Collective. "Cowardly Custard" is the type of jaunty folk-pop tune that becomes your new favorite song before it's even ended
US Video
US: Everybody Hates Chris, Everybody Hates the Bachelor Pad
The show inspired by comedian Chris Rock's childhood experiences is back for a third season. Rock narrates the hilarious, touching story of a teenager growing up as the eldest of three children in Brooklyn, New York, during the early 1980s. Uprooted to a new neighborhood and bused into a predominantly white middle school two-hours away by his strict, hard-working parents, Chris struggles to find his place while keeping his siblings in line at home and surmounting the challenges of junior high. This responsible, resilient adolescent brings a distinct, funny spin to his everyday trials and traumas, in the critically acclaimed comedy
US: Kaya: Music Video, Behind the Scenes, and "Walk This Way"
MTV's scripted show, Kaya, is a stylized single-camera drama exposing a rock star on the brink of destruction, and the underbelly of the music industry. Watch as Kaya navigates her way through the minefield of celebrity and the pressures of superstardom in today's media-crazed society. Being a young, beautiful rock star has its perks. She's buying fancy cars, clothes, and expensive gifts for her friends; she's out clubbing where she over-indulges in the rock 'n roll buffet. But fame has its price. For every perk, there are sacrifices, and consequences. Will she survive the pressures of being in the limelight? The failed friendships? The passionate but short-lived love affairs? Most important of all, will she have the strength to be true to her art and not sell out? Stay tuned.