Swan Lake has a Blog and New Music

"Spanish Gold 2044"
"Spider"
"A Hand at Dusk"

After all the exclusives have been given out, we, the common blogs, are here to bring you three excellent new tracks from Swan Lake. Swan Lake is the super-group (sans Hanson member) featuring, man-of-many-bands Dan Bejar (Destroyer and New Pronos,) Carey Mercer, and Spencer Krug. Even in the midst of our 3:00 p.m. blood-sugar low, it's hard for these songs not to provide a pick me up. These three Canadian writers remain fiercely creative, crafting intricate songs wrapped around subtle melodies and entwined with jagged drums and dark, brooding guitars. Swan Lake release Enemy Mine March 24 via Jagjaguwar. If you pre-order the record here (starting tomorrow), you will receive immediate gratification in the form of a free album download. Pretty excellent deal we think.

Just as exciting (maybe) is another blog for all of our google readers --that of Carey Mercer. Clouds of Evil is long, wordy, and at times, quite awesome. We give you an excerpt. Just think about it.

"It's one of those holes: as soon as you step into it, you never get out. It sucks, but once mired in the muck, one cannot seem to break clean. I've been thinking about it all day--I woke up with a fever about it last night.

Why didn't the eagles just fly Frodo into Mordor?... It just seems easier to me than all that climbing and soot and orc-breath."

New Blackout Beach Album & Mp3

[mp3s]

Blackout Beach: "Nineteen, One God, One Dull Star"

"Cloud of Evil"

Carey Mercer, he of Frog Eyes and the indie supergroup Swan Lake, is dropping his second release under the name of Blackout Beach today. It's ridiculously lavish but unquestinonably stunning. Skin of Evil is a concept album in the best sense of the word: Mercer picks his story and sticks with it the entire way, dedicating himself to seeing the thing through. "Donna" is the subject of the story, and each of her lovers (past & present) say their peace in song (Donna gets her song, too). Mercer based the album loosely upon the classic Greek notion of the ideal woman. Destroyer's Dan Bejar, who coincidentally enough plays with Mercer in Swan Lake, is glowing about the album. He describes it much better than we can:

"A frame of reference for something like this might be: 

Goofy American babbler (Jerry Lee Lewis/Dennis Quaid) meets the highest, the most harrowing of modernist Euro nightmare (The Drift ) -- By this I guess I mean that there can be no frame of reference, for these two things have never met before, and external forces work hard to make sure they never do, but somehow the sonic space created for this set of singing happened, and feels familiar, doesn't give me the willies.  Maybe it's 'cause Scott Walker has never hinted at expressing an interest in the traditions of rocknroll guitar (neither does Carey but it can really sound like he must when he plays.) ...I believe Skin of Evil is the best record I will hear all year."

If that doesn't want to make you check this out, nothing will. Grab the two mp3s above, and then buy the whole thing via Soft Abuse. You're welcome.