Lightspeed Champion – Devil In Disguise

Because – obviously – it’s the most important day in all of music history, Lightspeed Champion’s gone and done a cover of Elvis’ “Devil In Disguise”, to mark what would have been his 75th birthday earlier this month. I prefer Jarvis’ comment on the whole affair – “he’d have been on his second hip replacement by now” – but everyone’s got their own relationship with The King, right?

Maps – Die Happy, Die Smiling

There was an original version of this up a few months ago, but now there’s a new fuller-length version in which you will still die happy, and you will still die smiling, so no change there.

Adam Green – Give Them A Token

The third in the four-part mini-soap opera of Adam Green kitchen-sink music videos. In this exciting episode, Adam takes his painting for a walk.

Julian Casablancas – The 11th Dimension

Despite the fact that (as of right now, after four days) Rough Trade have uploaded a music video with no sound, this is actually worth watching. I’ve never watched a music video with the sound off, and fuck me – they’re ridiculous. Seriously, Julian Casablanccas weilding a tricorner hat? Er.

Adam Green – Buddy Bradley

It’s been a while since Adam Green popped up with an album proper, way back in March of 2008. So if your anti-folk tastebuds haven’t been whetted enough by Jeff Lewis during 2009, Green’s back with two videos from the new album, that’s due out next Mon 11th Jan, and to accompany the whole hipster shindig, here’s one of four videos that have been done for it (two released so far), for “Buddy Bradley”. It’s one part rollick, one part lackadaisic, and the video’s suitably non-directed. Tatty shoes, far-off gaze, tight jeans, acerbic lyrics all over your face… you know the score by now.

Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson – The Sound

I really like this guy, despite myself. I think it’s the earnest rock thing going on the background, only just drowned out by the Brooklyn cool, the puppy enthusiasm and the swagger that only youth can bring to this sort of tune. I really like his voice though, all Bowie and Neil Young all at the same time. Not going to get his name tattooed on my arm or anything – my arms aren’t that long for one thing – but you can tick me off as a bit of a fan, I reckon.

The Rural Alberta Advantage – Drain The Blood

I’ll happily confess my ignorance on this Canadian outfit, but since they’re signed to the usually-reliable Saddle Creek, and this video’s a little gem, I’ll be exploring these hills for the next little while, I reckon. It’s a bit ragged, a bit upset but a bit hacked off, and all sorts of glorious, really. One of those bands you’ll be happy you crossed paths with. Unless of course, you already have, and I’m the last one to do so, which is fairly likely. In which case, you’ve all made fine choices. Well done.

Blood Red Shoes – Colours Fade

Blimey, BRS seem to be developing musical muscles in all sorts of places, and this (also available as a free mp3, folks), bodes well for the upcoming long-player that’s due out this year. For the elderly amongst you, in parts they sound to me uncannily like my old Edinburgh faves Annie Christian.

Tindersticks – Falling Down A Mountain (Trailer)

Can’t find a full version of this anywhere, with this instead being a short and unnervingly Guy Ritchie-esque trailer for the tune and the new album, due later this month.

Turbo Fruits – Naked With You

Turbo Fruits are playing SXSW this year, and as part of SXSW’s ongoing plan of shouting about bands they like ahead of the event, this week sees the dirty, groovy, Redd-Kross-vs-Dinosaur-Jr fuzzpop of “Naked With You” get another airing, as it plainly deserves. It might be possible that I’ll be at this show in March. Possibly.

Flaming Lips – Silver Trembling Fetus

Coyne’s latest bit of visual daftness is the sales pitch for the new Flaming Lips Object, the Silver Trembling Fetus, where Wayne Coyne does his wild-eyed Charles Manson impression, we all laugh heartily and spend the rest of the day wondering how to make one for ourselves.

Japanther – Easy On The Eyes, by I.Vanek

Another piece of stitched together punk art. This is the second of these I’ve seen now, and each time, they’re just oddly hypnotic. And the bit with the bloke yelling ‘FUCK YOUR WIFE!’ is classic.

Rick Parfitt – Christmas In The Sun (Studio Version)

The cheap bastards have disabled embedding on this, so I can’t show you it below. The link’s there instead, but make sure you take a look at the real thing in all its glory. If nothing else, it will make you wonder how anyone involved kept a straight face, and whether or not this counts as cruelty towards to the elderly and infirm, while the bit where it morphs into the Quo’s ‘Whatever You Want’ towards the end is so meta I want to eat myself.

Marvel at the daftness here

Twilight Sad – Seven Years Of Letters

The second single to be taken from the recent Forget The Night Ahead album, it’s another corker from one of the finer Scottish bands in recent years. It’s the usual riot of darkly rich sonic mucking about, with James’ brogue layered over the top of occasionally squalling noise. And the video’s a bit weird too, bonus.

Frightened Rabbit vs Meursault – Joy (by Desc)

Speaking of fine Scottish bands, here are the singers frmo two more of them – Scott from Frightened Rabbit and Neil from Meursault – who teamed up last month to play together in an Oxfam store in aid of Oxjam Edinburgh. I recorded this forthe other site I co-run called Off The Beaten Tracks, so this is shameless cross-promotion, but since you’ll probably never see this done again, I reckon it’s a fair one.

Phoenix – 1901 (A Takeaway Show)

If you’ve not come across La Blogotheque and their takeaway shows, you’ve simply not been paying attention. This latest one is suitably delightful, with Phoenix camped out in front of the Eiffel Tower, and blazing through a version of 1901 for the faintly bemused tourists. Ooh la la etc.

Delphic – Doubt

Delphic are from Manchester, which presumably has something to do with why – for all its bloopiness – this track has ‘Joy Division’ carved into its face. Still, it’s a mildly jangly and staccato festival of electronic twitching that might amuse, and Delphic seem to be getting a fair bit of attention recently, too. Still and all, my knowledge and enthusiasm for electronic pop starts and stops  with Saint Etienne, so don’t listen to me.

There’s been a fair few ‘major’ videos out there this week – tons from Children In Need, Paramore, Major Lazer etc – but not so much on the fringes – however, new visuals from Simian Mobile Disco and tUnE-yArDs as well as a bit of art from some of Japanther (pictured) goes some way to making up for the quiet stretch.

Japanther – 2 Rivers, Some Drums & Drawings

Okay, sorry, this isn’t actually a song, but an “attempt at art” by Beau Velasco and Ian Vanek of Deathset and Japanther. They explain – “After Beau’s death in 2009 the piece was finalized by Vanek with the help of Chad Von Nau and released to the public as a way of remembering a dear friend”. It’s strangely hypnotic, and a pretty cool tribute. Fairly confident that when I check out no-one will do anything half as cool for me. Which is probably fair.

tUnE-yArDs – Real Live Flesh

Taken from the expanded version of the recently released debut (the equally awkward to type BiRd-BrAiNs), this is a live version done for a 4AD Session. Merrill Garbus takes live vocal loops, mucks about with them quite a lot, and then adds in sparse bass and drums and her own roughnecked throaty voice. It’s a peculiar mix of almost R&B rhythms with folky overtones, all awash in slightly unhinged, almost childlike melodies. It’s not of the usual cloth, and I’m enjoying it a fair bit at the moment. Not wallpaper, that’s for damn sure.

Simian Mobile Disco (feat Beth Ditto) – Cruel Intentions

I’m as much a fan of a nice DX7 as the next geek, but this from Simian Mobile Disco just doesn’t grab me in the way it should. Beth Ditto’s doing the guest warbling here, but neither the music nor the vocal have enough vim and chutzpah in them for me. By rights, this should have been fucking eye-openingly good. Just a bit meh, though, really – still, I’ve always had a soft spot for SMD, so we’ll forgive them.

Nosing around Youtube this last week there’s been a few new videos of note popping up – in particular, Eels‘ latest, ‘Little Bird’. Taken from the new LP End Times (due in Jan, following hot on the heels of this year’s El Hombre Loco), it’s a glorious track of quiet and desparate sadness. The video’s a one-shot affair of E sitting on his porch – I have never wanted a porch so badly in my entire life.

Eels – ‘Little Bird’

Mumford & Sons – ‘Winter Winds’

Elsewhere, Mumford & Sons have put up the (hey, topical!) video for ‘Winter Winds’. Mumford & Sons are one of those bands for me that I really like, but in kind of a peripheral way. If it was a subject at school, I’d get told Must Do Better. Anyway, this track’s been all over the radio, and they seem to be getting a bit more traction, so fingers crossed it all keeps going in the right direction.

The Cribs – ‘We Share The Same Skies’

The Cribs seem to have the succession to Ash’s crown all sewn up these days, with their exuberant pop still fuzzy enough to recall a misspent youth, but getting more and more crafted as they start to get on a bit. The work with Johnny Marr’s clearly been a BIG influence (durrr – also, if you were in a band and Marr told you to do something different, would you say no?), but it’s still a quality product they’ve lashed together from essentially two very different places. This is the new single off of Ignore The Ignorant, and a bit of a pleasure it is too.

Hadouken – ‘Turn The Lights Out’

More enjoyably daft electro-metal nonsense from Hadouken. Let’s face it, you know what this is going to sound like without me pointing out the bleeding obvious, so I won’t dwell on it. I do, however, know a fair few people who absolutely despise Hadouken, but I can never really understand why. Sure, they’re basically Senser, and ok, it’s the Prodigy for people who don’t like computer music, but they’re so full of digital snot and bleepy chutzpah, it seems a little mean-hearted to beat them up just for that. I’ll never buy a record, but I’ll applaud their spirit, every time.

Animal Collective – ‘In The Flowers’

I’ve always been slightly meh about Animal Collective, if only because I’ve already got the Flaming Lips and I don’t need an even druggier version, ta. This is a good ‘un though, all ambient washing machine noise until halfway through when it goes fucking ballistic for a bit, before having a little sit down for the last part. You’ve got to be a truly committed Enemy of The Pop to really like this band though, let’s be honest.