This Week's Top 11 Playlist - 24 May 2013

Sorry ths is a day late in posting, but I'm so screwed up with time zones here in Sinagpore that I'm not sure what day it is.  Apologies to Mediazoic (the official host for the Top 11 Playlist) for being tardy.

MØ: Tough to Spell on a English Keyboard, But Worth a Google

MØ is a new singer out of Denmark.  Give 'er a look/listen.

Alan Cross | Post a Comment | tagged New Releases in Recommended Music Share Article

An Interesting Cover of the Proclaimers' "500 Miles"

The band is Sun Rai.  News of them comes from their co-producer.  Here's his email to me:

Hey Alan,

 I wanted to drop you a line to let you know about a very exciting project I'm co-producing with Matt Wallace (Faith No More, Maroon 5, O.A.R.) with an astounding artist called Sun Rai.  His real name is Rai Thistlethwayte, and we met him a few years back while recording his band Thirsty Merc.  Rai is an absolute phenom.  A gifted singer, pianist, guitarist, and writer.  When he decided to move to the U.S. from his home in Sydney, AU. last year to pursue new musical challenges, Matt and I knew we had to do something with him.  And we wanted to do something that very obviously featured his amazing talent.

What we settled on was a series of live in-studio videos/recordings.  No edits, no overdubs, no tuning, no timing fixes.  Video and audio shot simultaneously, so that the viewers could experience exactly what went on in the room.  This is the first release from our first session, featuring Victor Indrizzo (Alanis Morissette, Sheryl Crow, Tegan and Sara) on drums.  It's an absolutely fresh take on The Proclaimers' "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)."  Rai plays Wurlitzer with his right hand, keyboard bass with his left, and sings all at the same time.  We'll be releasing more songs from this session in the coming weeks.  We're all very proud and excited about the project!  Hope you get a chance to check it out!

Okay.  Here we go.

REM Covered Pakistani Style

Wes, my correspondent in Lahore, forwarded this beautiful video.  It illustrates again how a great song can transcend culture.

Everybody Hurts (Ya Rab) - Sachal Studios' Orchestra & the Master Musicians of the West from Sachal Music on Vimeo.

I Like This: Boards of Canada

Here's the video for "Reach for the Dead" from the upcoming album, Tomorrow's Harvest, which is coming June 11.