Utne Reader Music Sampler November 2009

Every month, Utne Reader presents free, downloadable music gleaned from current releases on independent labels, curated by senior editor Keith Goetzman.

Rickie Lee Jones
There’s less of the jazzy boho and more of the soulful, sky-gazing wanderer in Rickie Lee Jones on Balm in Gilead (Fantasy). Look for a review in the January-February Utne Reader.

Listen now:
“The Gospel of Carlos, Norman and Smith” by Rickie Lee Jones (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

Comfusoes 1
Put on your headphones, literal or metaphorical, and groove to ’70s Angolan pop remixed and reimagined by contemporary Brazilian DJs on Comfusoes 1 (Out Here). The original version of this track, "Kapakiao," is by Bonga on the album Kaxexe. Read the review of Comfusoes 1 in the November-December Utne Reader.

Listen now:
“Kapakiao” by Kassin and Berna Ceppas (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

Elliott Brood
“Concept album” is too highfalutin a term for Mountain Meadows, the bracing folk-rock album by Canadian band Elliott Brood—but yes, there’s a storyline behind this raw, vital music. Read the review in the November-December Utne Reader.

Listen now:
“Fingers and Tongues” by Elliott Brood (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

Taken by Trees
When a Swedish pop songstress makes an album with a bunch of Pakistani musicians, as Victoria Bergsman did for East of Eden (Rough Trade), a rare sort of cross-cultural magic happens. Read the review in the November-December Utne Reader.

Listen now:
“Watch the Waves” by Taken by Trees (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

Curtis Harvey
Harvey is a rock and roll refugee who’s found a home in acoustic folk with a throwback feel on Box of Stones (Fat Cat).

Listen now:
“Oldertoo” by Curtis Harvey (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

Caroline Herring
Herring’s songs on Golden Apples of the Sun (Signature Sounds) are spare but powerful singer-songwriter gems, full of rich and evocative imagery. In “The Dozens” she turns an insult into artistry.

Listen now:
“The Dozens” by Caroline Herring (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

Tsuumi Sound System
There’s a little classical, a little folk, and even a little prog rock in the exuberant neotraditional string music of Finland’s Tsuumi Sound System. “Northling” is from their album Growing Up (Sibelius Academy/Folk Music Department Recordings), which has been released in Europe but not yet in the U.S.
Listen now:
“Northling” by Tsuumi Sound System (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)

El Perro Del Mar
The travails of Sarah Assbring’s heart would be tragic if they didn’t result in such dreamy
electro-pop on Love Is Not Pop (Sonic Boom).

Listen now:
“Change of Heart” by El Perro Del Mar (To download, right click on the link and “Save Target As.”)