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The lovely Marissa Nadler has just released a new album called Little Hells. With that, she gives us some insight into what she’s been enjoying lately.

• Tulsa. Carter Tanton is an amazing songwriter, who is following up his debut Tulsa release with a new record which should be out soon. He has a great voice and writes beautiful sincere songs. myspace.com/tulsamusic Until his new record comes out, everyone should get I Was Submerged.
• Josephine Foster. I met Josephine Foster years ago when I was first starting to tour, and we did my very first tour together. She is one of the most sincere artists I have ever met and writes gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous songs. For me, she transcends categorization. An opera school dropout, I believe she now lives in Spain. I would recommend hunting down her CDr releases or some of her rock operas. Hazel Eyes, I will Lead You is a lovely full length record and great one to start with.
• James Blackshaw. He is a great guitar player/ minimalist composer. His instrumental pieces encapsulate extreme beauty. O True Believers is a good one to start with.
• Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter- One of my favorite singers out there right now. Favorite songs include Dora Lee, Reckless Burning, and the Air is Thin. I recommend as must haves the albums Reckless Burning, and Like, Love, Lust, and the Open Halls of the Soul.
• Orion Rigel Dommisse - She plays the cello fingerstyle, and writes amazing songs sung in a lovely voice.  She has a new record coming out on Drag City imprint Language of Stone, which is run by Greg Weeks of the Espers. Until that comes out, get All I want from you is sweet.

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On May 5th, Waxploitation will release Causes 2, the second album in the label’s ongoing benefit series for the crisis in Darfur. 100% of the profits from the release go to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam America.

The album includes rare and exclusive songs from some of the most compelling artists in the indie and alternative worlds: Black Moth Super Rainbow, The Decemberists, Devendra Banhart, Diplo, Federico Aubele, Gnarls Barkley, LCD Soundsystem, My Morning Jacket, Matthew Dear, Mum, Neon Neon, RJD2, and Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, as well as a contribution from Adult Swim’s Tim & Eric. Read more

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Released barely four months after Beck’s 1994 debut, Mellow Gold, the minimalist mutant folk collection One Foot in the Grave was a curveball that temporarily threw casual “Loser” fans off Beck’s scent while presaging myriad musical adventures to come in the form of 1996′s multi-platinum breakthrough Odelay. On May 19, One Foot in the Grave will be reissued by Universal Music Canada (UMC), the country’s leading music company, in a deluxe format that includes 13 previously unreleased tracks from the original sessions and three more from an out of print 7″ only release, including an early version of “It’s All In Your Mind” from 2002′s Sea Change.

One Foot in the Grave was released in June 1994 on K Records, and was recorded by Calvin Johnson, founder of the label and proprietor of Dub Narcotic Studios. Sessions began in the fall of 1993, a few months into the existence of Calvin’s Olympia, Washington, basement studio on a reel to reel 8 track. Musicians from local bands such as Built to Spill, Spinanes and Love As Laughter made appearances backing up Beck on half of the original album’s 16 tracks. Released with little to no initial promotion or fanfare, the record has grown from a cult favourite to one of the most highly regarded releases of the extensive Beck oeuvre, with tracks like “Hollow Log”, “He’s A Mighty Good Leader” and “Asshole”, which was covered by Tom Petty on his She’s The One album.

“I’d never worked with anyone so focused, or whose creativity flowed so freely,” Johnson recently recalled. “Songs altered structure and lyrics take to take, a fascinating process to witness.” The deluxe reissue of One Foot in the Grave yields additional insight into the process by including the above-mentioned never before released originals and alternate mixes from these sessions.

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It’s a slow starter, but be patient and you’ll witness two of the best freestylers in hip hop playfully ripping each other up.

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John Van Deusen’s (vocals, guitar, piano) of The Lonely Forest (www.myspace.com/thelonelyforest) is getting all set for the release of  We Sing The Body Electric. In the meantime, here are some artists that this talented musician is loving at the moment.

• Karl Blau: There is nothing I can say about Karl, except, that he’s the shit.
• The Globes: In my opinion, they are the best young band in Seattle.
• The Gift Machine: I saw The Gift Machine play at the Department of Safety when I was 15…. it changed my life because before that moment, I had not seen a local band play such good pop music and still keep it so heavy.
• Bobby Birdman: Every time I listen to Bobby Birdman I find myself wishing I owned a pet giraffe. Why you ask? Honestly, I have no clue.
• Christopher Rabbit (Edwards): has written more hit songs than anyone I know of…which is why we should hunt him down, get him high, and make him play them for us.

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This week we take a break from music discovery and make you use your mind a bit.
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FMQB.com reports

Tool’s Maynard James Keenan and Chester Bennington of Linkin Park both have cameos in the new film Crank: . According to reports, Bennington (who appeared in the first Crank film) has a run-in with Jason Statham’s Chev at a horse track, while Keenan plays a dog walker who also encounters Chev. Mike Patton of Faith No More fame produced the soundtrack for the flick.

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We are going to head back to the archives for this week’s VOW. This time around it’s the very cool Girls Against Boys and their song Basstation. Enjoy and have a great weekend Y’all!

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Welcome students old and new…every Thursday until the sun blazes the Earth, the staff shall pay homage to the most classic indie albums of all time. No countdowns, or top 100 lists, just a weekly gaze into the Music Emissions vault. Let the education begin…

Arguably Sublime's best untainted release.

Sublime is an American reggae punk band that originated in Long Beach, California. Formed in 1988 they truly only released three studio albums before the untimely death of lead vocalist Bradley Nowell. Having built their fan base on pure touring efforts and word of mouth record sales, this talented trio and their dog (Lou Dog) rose quickly to the top of American mainstream charts with a blend of Punk/Rock/Reggae Hop still not quite mirrored by any artist to this day.

Though touring and recording ceased after Nowell’s death (1996), projects like Long Beach Dub All Stars, and constant rumors unfold year after year. From Snoop Dogg associations to whispers as recent as March of 2009, when bare reports in regards to a recent show have now Nowell being replaced vocally by “Rome, 20 of Northern California”

Here is Brian Rutherford’s review of 40 Oz.

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The gentle pop group Great Lake Swimmers are set to release Lost Channels this year. We caught up with Tony Dekker and got some great input on artists that he is enjoying.

• Timber Timbre – “Timber Timbre”: my favorite record at the moment; great new band from Toronto.
• Sandro Perri – “Tiny Mirrors”: formerly known as the wonderfully organic ‘Polmo Polpo,’ this is some solid songwriting.
• Basia Bulat – “Oh My Darling”: beautiful hooks and such a lovely voice.
• Bahamas: not to get too Toronto-centric, but this is a really great band.  New record this year I think.
• Picastro – “Whore Luck”: beautifully swirling, moody and dark in the right ways, with a haunting voice.