New The Silt- "No Twig" mp3

[mp3]

The Silt "No Twig" mp3

Great to be back after a nice layover, and it's even better to be sharing with you a brand new mp3 from Toronto's The Silt. (I still need to correct myself each time after thinking their name is The Slit. And I may or may not have seen a porn with that title before.) Anywho, we've got an exclusive taste of the folk trio's upcoming LP Cat's Peak, which will be released a week from now via Fire Records. "No Twig" is a slice of slow-moving country that sounds like it's about to collapse any second, channeling the dilapidated structure of many Bonnie "Prince" Billy songs. Come to think of it, frontman Ryan Driver has a bit of a Will Oldham thing going on in his voice, which is never a bad thing. You can currently stream two other songs from Cat's Peak on the band's Myspace, including the funky "Come Back To The Willow." Silt. Not Slit. Silt, silt, silt....

The Avett Brothers Go Major

The Avett Brothers, everyone's favorite bluegrass punks, have ditched their long-time home, Ramseur Records, in favor of greener pastures (read: makin' dem duckets) In a surprising move, the North Carolina act has signed to American Recordings/Columbia. A letter to fans via their Web site also reveals that the Avett boys are recording their next full length with none other than this man:

Rick Rubin.

The choice is appropriate in the sense that Rubin is the big kahuna at Columbia, but I hope their music doesn't suffer because of it. Look, the dude's a legend, and he's done some brilliant things (revitalize Johnny Cash, help bring the world hip hop) but he also has a knack for sometimes ruining records (here's looking at you, Weezer.) Let's hope this all works out, because The Avetts' raw Emotionalism was in my top five of last year, and the follow-up is on my shortlist for most anticipated. I'm trusting you, Rick. Leave the banjos be, and please, no breakbeats.

Meanwhile, the band's new EP, The Second Gleam, will be their last release for Ramseur and is in stores July 22.

-Andrew Daniels