Stranger Dance patron saints Spoon were the musical guests on Letterman last night, supporting their January 2010 release Transference. Britt and company were joined by protégé Stephen Patterson of White Rabbits.

MP3:
Spoon – “Got Nuffin”

Maybe it was because one of America’s musical capitols was represented in the game, but there just seemed to be more music in this Super Bowl. There was the perfunctory opening anthems and halftime show, songs in ads — The Who even managed to be the halftime show act and sneak into an ad. Whatever [...]

She might be better known today for her flamboyant style, plastic surgery excesses and dumb blond stage persona, but before she became a pop-culture caricature, Dolly Parton was a tremendous singer, under-rated songwriter and country music ambassador to the world.
By the age of 13, Parton had already been signed to a label and appeared at [...]

This installment in our Covers Project series is a two-fer. St. Vincent joined up with The National to cover Crooked Fingers‘ “Sleep All Summer” for Merge Records‘ 20th Anniversary compilation.

Everyone’s favorite Alabama gangstabillies are back with their 10th album. The Truckers are set to release The Big To-Do on March 16th, their debut release for Dave Matthews’ ATO Records imprint.
Frontman Patterson Hood explained that his writing process for this album differed from the previous nine Truckers’ releases. “I don’t write a lot of songs [...]

Budweiser’s going indie. The King of Beers tapped indie-troubadour M. Ward for their recent “It’s What We Do” commercials. The ongoing series features “Never Had Nobody Like You” — a duet with Ward’s She & Him partner, actress Zooey Deschanel, off of 2009’s Hold Time.
The syntax-challenged duo are set to returning with an aptly named [...]

Vampire Weekend — Contra
“Horchata”
After dropping last year’s biggest debut, the preppy Manhattanites are back with another batch of Upper West Side Soweto on Contra.
Named for a Mexican rice drink, lead single “Horchata” features faux-marimba and the same sun-shiney harmonies and poly-rhythms that made them the favorite soundtrack to sorority parties across the country.

Final Fantasy / [...]

As the decade comes to close, the album as a medium seems to be disintegrating rapidly. To that end, 2009 will likely be remembered as a year with few classic albums.
But cheer up, there’s a shining light at the end of this dark tunnel. No, we haven’t figured out a way to end the economic [...]

Vermont’s Grace Potter and the Nocturnals brought their brand of high-octane retro-rock to the Fillmore last night. Given their obvious ’60s influences, the historic Fillmore stage served as a perfect setting. Judging by the platoon of videographers filming a live DVD, the band clearly also thought the setting a good fit.
Potter’s career has been an [...]

Spoon – “Written in Reverse”
“Written in Reverse” is the new single from Spoon’s upcoming Transference LP due out January 19th via Merge. And considering our site’s name, you might guess we’re more than just a little bit excited about their seventh full-length effort. In other words, it gives us a nice excuse to post the [...]