I'm a bit late with this, but I never worry too much about being late with new music, this time it's Uncle Rock, who posted some new tracks on his Myspace page. Uncle Rock is more willing to throw out his musical experiments for your enjoyment than a lot of kids artists, and here they're demos he's recording for tracks on his next album. "There Is No Away" is an atmospheric story song, "Buddy Holly Has the Hiccups" is about as silly/historical as you'd expect, an updated "Garbage Barge," and more. I'm guessing a more environmental vibe and more of a explicit tip of the cap to his musical predecessors on the next go-round.
Also, there's some more music at Uncle Rock's ReverbNation page I haven't before heard "A Very Good Question," which that poses the question "What if I woke up with purple skin?" It is indeed a very good question. And a very good song.
Itty-Bitty Review: Cave Baby - The Mudcakes
It's pretty easy to think of one kids music band from Australia, but once you get past the multicolored gents in the Wiggles, naming a second gets a lot harder if you're here in the Northern Hemisphere. But Australian Sherry Rich and American-born partner Rick Plant make the case for The Mudcakes being a perfectly acceptable alternative. The two of them lived in Nashville for a while and unsurprisingly their band's sound has a very rootsy, Americana vibe to it.
Their second album Cave Baby ranges far along the gamut of Americana, from the shuffling train sound of "Baby's Gonna Crawl" to the roots rock of the title track (with excellent guitar work from Plant) even to a little polka on "Please Don't Polka the Baby." Their rendition of "Shortnin' Bread" might just be my favorite on record. The songs (mostly originals from Rich) are mostly geared at ages 2 through 6, but the melodies and arrangements will appeal to a broader range of folks. You can hear samples of tracks from the 40-minute album at its CDBaby page or a few tracks at their Myspace page.
It might not reach the inspired heights of The Bottle Let Me Down or Session Americana's Table Top People Vol. 1 and 2, but Cave Baby will fit the bill for a sweet little set of Americana. Who would've thought the best kids Americana album in recent memory would come out of Australia? Recommended.Lunch Money Blogs Every Bit As Well As They Write Songs
"I highly recommend having an established cookie policy and communicating it to your friends and loved ones."Would that be before or after I've established my living will and emergency readiness plan, Molly? Yes, the fine folks at Lunch Money have started up a blog. It's worth visiting just for the picture of Molly behind a cookie larger than her head. Oh, I'd seen this video before, but could never find it literally on YouTube to embed for you, loyal readers. But check out the big brain on Stefan: Lunch Money - "Roller Coaster," "Dizzy," "Tiny Dinosaurs" (Live at ImaginOn) Check out more after the jump!
SXSW 2009 For Kids
Seeing as the 2009 edition of South By Southwest's Music Festival starts tomorrow, I thought I'd summarize some of the kids music-related activities going on.
In terms of showcasing bands, the highlight is the free show Saturday afternoon at Auditorium Shores:
Astrograss 12:30 p.m.
Joe McDermott 1:05 p.m.
Daddy a Go-Go 1:45 p.m.
Biscuit Brothers 2:25 p.m.
Jambo 3:20 p.m.
The Telephone Company 4:00 p.m.
That's a nice mix of out-of-town and local shows. But wait, there's more!
New Sippy Cups Album "The Time Machine" Out June 16
Word from the Bay Area band The Sippy Cups that their next full-length album, The Time Machine, will be out June 16. That's, like, exactly three months from today. Unfortunately there is no time machine you can use to transport yourself forward to that date, but according to the press materials, the title is more, well metaphorical than my cheap joke:"What kid doesn't love the idea of a time machine? But in the case of The Sippy Cups, the time machine they are referring to is not some tricked-out Delorean, but our own bodies, which are constantly growing and changing and moving us through time. They wanted to convey to children and parents how magical that journey through time can be, and how precious the milestones are along the way. "Of course, I've read enough PR material to know how overblown that can all be, but still, sounds like it might be cool. Track listing for The Time Machine is as follows:
One Grammy Window Closes, Another (Shorter) One Opens
No sooner do I stop talking about the 51st Annual Grammys than I start talking about the 52nd Annual Grammys. The Recording Academy announced yesterday that next year's awards will air on January 31st, 2010.
Which means that the award window will be just 11 months long, from Oct. 1, 2008 through Aug. 31, 2009. We're halfway through the award window right now! Oh. My. Goodness.
Anyway, what that means for the rest of the awards process is as follows:
