The Fray – You Found Me

 

One of the biggest songs of 2007 was How to Save a Life by The Fray. The Colorado band shot to stardom when the song blazed the charts across the globe, helped along by its appearance in the hit TV shows Grey’s Anatomy and Scrubs. The Fray have since enjoyed multi-million album sales and are now set to released a brand new record.

 

The Fray’s self-titled second album will be available on the 30^th January, but the new single can be heard and seen already as it’s being used in the promo for the new series of the TV show Lost. Sticking with the winning formula, You Found Me, if it takes off, will dispel any thoughts that The Fray were one hit wonders.

Train – Hey Soul Sister
Together since 1994, and with multi-million album sales under their belt – American band Train have been lying low the last few years. You’ll know them best for their Grammy award winning song Drops of Jupiter, which was a hit back in 2001. Now Train are set to release their 5th album.

The San Francisco band have named their new album after their home city, and Save Me San Francisco will be out here in April. First to come our way though is the new single, which is already a huge hit in America. It’s Hey Soul Sister.

Heathers – Remember When
It’s not easy being 18, doing your Leaving Cert, setting up your own record label and releasing an album – all with your twin sister. But that’s exactly what Ellie and Louise MacNamara did two years ago when they released their debut album Here, Not There. A track from that is our daily download today.

Dubliners Ellie and Louise are now 20 years of age and go by the name Heathers. Our download today is about to get a new lease of life as from Thursday, it will be featured in the new Failte Ireland ad campaign. With just guitar and their fantastic harmonies, it’s called Remember When and you can download it from iTunes or check out their myspace page HERE

Annie Lennox – Shining Light

 

At the peak of her career, Scottish singer and songwriter Annie Lennox was selling millions of records as one half of the Eurythmics. Her distinctive voice has led to critics saying that she’s the greatest white soul singer alive and with numerous BRIT, Academy and Grammy Awards, she hasn’t rested on her laurels either.

 

Annie Lennox’ last solo album was 2 years ago called Songs of Mass Destruction, but she is now set to release a collection of her best songs, which she has recorded some new material for. The political activist is busy at present fronting rallies to highlight the plight of the Palistinians in Gaza, but there’s no doubt there’ll be great interest in the first of her new recordings for her collection – a cover of the Ash song Shining Light.

Henrietta Game – Running Out of Time

Every so often, little gems come out of the massive amount of new Irish music that is being released every week, and one of those is Henrietta Game. An unsigned act, this 4-piece indie folk band have been performing around the country and are gradually getting noticed. Their passion for their music is enough to get them there.

Henrietta Game are a talented bunch, with lovely vocal harmonies, piano, strings and Glockenspiel all thrown into the mix. They sound like Death Cab for Cutie or even an acoustic version of Broken Social Scene and if you like what you hear, they’re supporting Eugene Donegan in Whelan’s tonight. The download today is called Running Out of Time. You can hear more at www.myspace.com/henriettagame

Skunk Anansie – Weak

Disbanded since 2001, Skunk Anansie was one of those rock bands from the 1990s that most rock-loving teenagers had in their record collection. Fronted by the outspoken skinhead Skin, the band was considered to be slightly controversial with their music. However, it was Skin's soaring vocals that gave the band its signature sound and during their 7 years together they racked up a number of hits, including the song recommended by Sarah Durkan in Mayo.

Sarah says, “I see Skunk Anansie is on your download archive over a year ago, but I’d like to suggest another song by the band that I think is well worth a play. Weak is from their debut album Paranoid and Sunburnt and is a great one to shout into the mirror at, especially during the chorus!” From 1996, Weak is probably one of Skunk Anansie’s most famous songs and believe it or not, was covered by Rod Stewart!

Pearl Jam – Better Man
Along with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac and Bob Dylan…1990s grunge rockers Pearl Jam have featured on our download list 4 times already! The band have experienced a new lease of life in recent years, with a brand new album and the re-issue of the classic album Ten this year, but Donal O’Brien from Kerry has suggested one of their greatest songs as a daily download.

Donal says, “I know you guys are fond of a bit of Pearl Jam now and again, so I’m hoping you’ll agree when I say Better Man must be a daily download. It’s a great introduction to the softer side of Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam, in that it’s more of a ballad than a full on rock song. Please consider it?” Absolutely love this song. From 1994’s Vitalogy, nothing better than Pearl Jam on a Monday!

 

Train – Hey Soul Sister
Together since 1994, and with multi-million album sales under their belt – American band Train have been lying low the last few years. You’ll know them best for their Grammy award winning song Drops of Jupiter, which was a hit back in 2001. Now Train are set to release their 5th album.

The San Francisco band have named their new album after their home city, and Save Me San Francisco will be out here in April. First to come our way though is the new single, which is already a huge hit in America. It’s Hey Soul Sister.

Phoenix – 1901

In the late 1990s, the French suburbs produced such great bands as Air and Daft Punk. A bunch of guys who had performed with both of those bands grouped together and formed Phoenix back in 1996. They’ve had massive success in France and with their brand new single, could also see the same on these shores. Tommy Basquille from Mayo has asked for their new song.

Tommy says, “French band Phoenix will be releasing their fourth studio album this May called Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. You can download their new single for free off their website now and if the rest of the album sounds like this, I’ll be a happy man.” Sounding like a mix between Fred, Empire of the Sun and Hot Chip, Phoenix’ new single is called 1901. 

Doves – Jetstream

 

 

With brothers Jez and Andy Williams backing up Jimi Goodwin on vocals, English indie rockers Doves have made quite a good name for themselves over the years. Their second album, The Last Broadcast, went to number one in 2002, spawning such great singles as There Goes the Fear and Pounding, and they followed that up with another number one album in the form of Some Cities. Now Doves are back again.

 

It has just been announced today that Doves’ fourth album, entitled Kingdom of Rust, will be released on 3^rd April. If their track record is anything to go by, we’re in for a treat. The single Kingdom of Rust will be out in March, but the first track off the album, Jetstream, is available to download for 2 weeks for free from the bands website – doves.net.

Kevin Rudolf feat. Lil Wayne – Let it Rock

 

 

All too often musicians work at their music for years on end and never make it to the big time. One thing that may help their cause is getting one of the hottest acts around to feature on their single. So New York guitarist, singer and producer Kevin Rudolf asked rapper Lil Wayne to appear on his song, and it all kicked off from there.

 

Kevin Rudolf has played guitar for the likes of Justin Timberlake, Timbaland and The Black Eyed Peas but when he decided to release his own solo album late last year, he made a wise move in getting a big name on board. Featuring rapper of 2008 Lil Wayne, Let it Rock is not dissimilar to the popular sound of Iglu and Hartley.

Aerosmith – Love in an Elevator

Sometimes referred to as America’s greatest rock’n’roll band, Aerosmith have certainly had a rock’n’roll career to date. They’ve released albums that have sold 150 million copies worldwide, won 4 Grammy Awards and are still touring and making music after 39 years. Jane Williams from Galway has asked for her favourite Aerosmith song.

 

Jane says, “Hi guys, I’d like to put my tuppence worth of a daily download recommendation into the hat. I’ve been a huge Aerosmith fan for years and the one song that is my all time favourite is 1989’s Love in an Elevator. Steve Tyler’s voice is just incredible.” This song is 20 years old this year and is still a live favourite for the band. 

Steve Craddock – Falling Rocks

 

If you’re an Ocean Colour Scene fan, you’ll know the name Steve Craddock, as he has been the band’s guitarist since 1990. Like most bands, however, they like to take breaks and do their own thing, and Steve has just recorded a new solo album for release on 6^th February.

 

Steve Cradock has often said to be one of the greatest British guitarists, and on the album, called The Kundalini Target, he plays not just the guitar, but all of the instruments. Heavily influenced by the likes of The Beatles and Rolling Stones, Steve’s music has a lovely warm vibe to it, illustrated nicely by the song Falling Rocks.

Adele and The Raconteurs – Many Shades of Black

It’s not unusual to see artists from the same record label collaborate on songs, so it wasn’t a surprise when Grammy nominees Adele and The Raconteurs hooked up to record together. Jack White’s and Brendan Benson’s quality songwriting coupled with Adele’s rich voice make a great daily download.

 

Adele’s long been known to be a huge Raconteurs fan and has covered many of their songs, most notably the hit Stead as She Goes. However, when it came to working with the band, Adele provides the vocals on their song Many Shades of Black from their last album Consolers of The Lonely. It’s available to download on The Raconteurs website.

Smashing Pumpkins – Tonight Tonight

 

Formed in Chicago in 1988, The Smashing Pumpkins were in a league of their own, with influences as diverse as heavy metal, dream pop and psychedelic rock all mixed into one big sound. Lead singer Billy Corgan’s voice is unmistakable and during the mid 1990s, The Smashing Pumpkins were selling millions of copies of their hit album, Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness.

 

This double album scored the Smashing Pumpkins 7 Grammy nominations and it was their most accomplished work they ever produced. One particular single off the album was heralded as ‘The Pumpkins at their finest’. It wasn’t as successful as 1979, but it’s just as popular now. Look out for where Arcade Fire may have got some ideas, it’s Tonight Tonight.

Big Audio Dynamite – E=MC2

Fans of The Clash would have had some consolation in 1984 when their ex-singer and guitarist Mick Jones formed a new band called Big Audio Dynamite, or BAD. After the punk era, Big Audio Dynamite channelled a more dance, funk and hip hop sound and were together for 15 years. David Sheehan has recommended a track by the band.

David says, “I’m a bit too young to remember this Big Audio Dynamite song when it was originally out in 1986, but E=MC2 is my download suggestion. The song was inspired by the films of Nicholas Roeg and all the lyrics relate to scenes from the various movies. It’s really catchy and still sounds great today.” On a trivia note – the movie lines you hear in the song are all from the 1970 film Performance….check out the video below!

O Emperor – Po

It’s nice to see new Irish talent constantly emerging and Waterford based band O Emperor are set to release their wares into the world. Being a young band hasn’t affected their confidence and O Emperor have written, arranged and self-produced a brilliant debut single worthy of a daily download nomination.

Hot Press have described O Emperor as ‘sounding a little like the Beach Boys, The Band, and the Smiths being digested by a cannibalistic Lee Mavers from The La’s’. Their debut single will be released on iTunes on 9^th October, and if it’s anything to go by, the debut album should be promising. It’s simply called Po. Check out the lads below performing it live...

Jason Mraz – I’m Yours

Californian singer Jason Mraz has featured on our download list before but as we’re looking for lovely love songs this week, he’s popped up again. He was a nominee at the Grammys last week and was such a lovely guy when he popped into the studio here for a song last year. Sarah Buckley has asked for his most popular song to date

Sarah says, “Please please play I’m Yours by Jason Mraz for the bestest boyfriend in the world, Danny. He’s so good to me and this song just really sums up how I feel about him. Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone too!” I’m Yours was nominated for 3 Grammys this year and it’s from Jason’s album We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things.

Our Little Secrets – Good or Bad Thing
It’s always a good thing when you see a community of musicians working together, and the Irish scene is great for that sense of community. Our Little Secrets is a musical collective led by singer/songwriter Rhob Cunningham, and sees many other artists coming together to make some great music.

Rhob Cunningham has some great songs and a great voice – not unlike Ryan Adams or Fionn Regan – and under the guise of Our Little Secrets, he has teamed up with the likes of Gavin Glass, The Villagers and Cathy Davey to make his debut album. First off, though, is our beautiful daily download, with Lisa Hannigan on harmonising vocals. Good or Bad Thing will be available as a FREE download from 5th March on www.ourlittlesecrets.ie

Razorlight – Boys Don’t Cry (The Cure cover)
Seven years ago, two English guys and two Swedish guys formed a band and were spotted by a record company scout while supporting The Libertines. Today, Razorlight are now one of the biggest British bands around, with a number one album and single. Despite some bust ups within the band, I’d say Johnny Borrell still has some great music up his sleeves for years to come…

Our download today however isn’t a Razorlight original. Back in 2004, the band performed at the MTV Icon ceremony and as a tribute to The Cure, they performed a cover of the 1979 classic Boys Don’t Cry.