Monday Mailbox Melange: Megan McCormick, Harper Simon, Neighbors, and Small Sur

Things Change mp3 Megan McCormick ….. pre-order here

If there’s one thing I like about female vocals in a song it’s sass. There’s a little bit of Bonnie Raitt sass to this young girl and it’s not a bad thing at all. Watch out for Megan McCormick, she’s about to take us by storm. It’s a shame she’s being marketed as a Country singer, I think she’s much, much more. But then that might say more about my attitude toward Country music than her talent, now right? This song ends on that sudden, abrupt note. You’re not quite sure why. But I think the sharp guitar twang and the jab of the snare drum compliments her voice well.

Tour Dates
07.02.10 Iowa City, IA Gabe’s Oasis
07.03.10 Milwaukee, WI The Bremen Cafe
07.04.10 Chicago, IL Private Fundraiser
07.19.10 Nashville, TN BMI 8 Off 8th @ Mercury Lounge
07.28.10 Evanston, IL SPACE
07.30.10 Roanoke, VA Mill Mountain Zoo
08.03.10 Fort Collins, CO Avos
08.14.10 Nashville, TN The Basement
09.14.10 Grand Rapids, MI The Intersection
09.15.10 Ann Arbor, MI The Ark
09.17.10 Newark, OH Midland Theater
09.18.10 Newport, KY The Southgate House
09.19.10 Indianapolis, IN The Vogue Theater

Harper Simon … “Wishes And Stars” from Harper Simon… buy here!

Well, this is fun. I pondered whether or not it was too fun. But fuck it, it’s Monday and we need some fun. Did you grow up with Simon & Garfunkle like I did? You’ll love this then. It’s sweet, it’s a sing-a-long song. And yet “Wishes and Stars” is so goddamned pleasant you want to hear it over and over, even if you imagine it in some chick flick every time.

Tour Dates
Jul 24 2010 5:00P Port Eliot Festival Cornwall, UNITED KINGDOM
Aug 1 2010 8:00P Cambridge Folk Festival – Harper Simon Cambridge, UK
Aug 6 2010 8:00P Belladrum Festival Belladrum, UNITED KINGDOM
Aug 8 2010 8:30P Pocklington Arts Festival UNITED KINGDOM
Aug 14 2010 8:00P Leicester Summer Sundae – Harper Simon Leicester, UK
Aug 19 2010 8:00P City Winery New York

Hooligans mp3 Hooligans Neighbors…. buy it here Purchase the White Vinyl 7″ (with free instant MP3 download) at the Paper Brigade Store.
Download the Digital EP at Amazon, and Bandcamp

This is one of those quintessential Tart songs. Deadpan delivery, synthesizer-heavy, just a twinge of distortion to the vocals, and a little bit of Magical Mystery Tour to it for good measure. If the rest of this EP is like this single, I’m SOLD! I’m guessing it is, so I’m gonna pitch it at you all. They’re from Brooklyn, of course, where they’re obviously growing good bands in petri dishes these days. Stream the whole thing at their bandcamp.com page (listed above) and let me know what you think. I love this single so much!

Upcoming Shows
Jul 3 2010 9:00P CoCo66 Brooklyn, New York
Jul 28 2010 8:00P Public Assembly Brooklyn, NY
Aug 18 2010 8:00P The Bell House Brooklyn

Weeds mp3 Bare Black Small Sur …. look for purchase information here

And lastly, I was gonna call it quits on this post and then I hit this little gem of a folk song and had to end it on this beautiful note. This is the stuff that folk bloggers drool over. It’s no accident that they are touring with Strand of Oaks and The Wailing Wall, two other wonderfully talented artists. Starting out singularly slow and lonely, “Weeds” just never picks up speed and that’s the thing to enjoy about it. The lazy, soothing, swaying of it will just pierce you with it’s prettiness. Sigh… xoxo

Tour Dates
JULY 9 2010 BALTIMORE MARYLAND BARE BLACK EP RELEASE PARTY @ WINDUP SPACE WITH GHOST LIFE, MOSS OF AURA, LOW MODA
AUGUST 5 2010 BALTIMORE MARYLAND @ METRO GALLERY WITH STRAND OF OAKS
AUGUST 6 2010 PHILADELPHIA PENNSYLVANIA @ TBA WITH STRAND OF OAKS
AUGUST 7 2010 LEHIGH VALLEY PENNSYLVANIA @ TBA WITH STRAND OF OAKS
AUGUST 8 2010 BROOKLYN NEW YORK @ CAMEO GALLERY WITH STRAND OF OAKS, THE WAILING WALL, TBA
AUGUST 9 2010 PORTSMOUTH NEW HAMPSHIRE @ THE RED DOOR WITH BELL AND THE BEES
AUGUST 11 2010 MONHEGAN ISLAND MAINE @ THE CHURCH WITH THE WAILING WALL
AUGUST 12 2010 PORTLAND MAINE @ THE APOHADION WITH TIN CEILINGS, THE WAILING WALL, +1 MORE TBA
AUGUST 13 2010 PROVIDENCE RHODE ISLAND @ TBA WITH THE WAILING WALL
AUGUST 14 2010 BOSTON MASSACHUSETTS @ TBA WITH THE WAILING WALL
SEPTEMBER 10 2010 CHARLOTTESVILLE VIRGINIA @ TBA
SEPTEMBER 11 2010 HARRISONBURG VIRGINIA @ CLEMENTINE WITH TBA
SEPTEMBER 12 2010 WASHINGTON DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA @ TBA