Rdio Blog

Though Blink-182 recently made their return to recorded music, Tom Delonge’s other band for the past five years remains quite active. Angels & Airwaves is his creative playground to explore grand, serious musical and lyrical themes.

Their latest endeavor is the Love Project, a pair of albums that provide the musical counterpart to a full-length science-fiction flick of the same name, directed by William Eubank. Love, Pt. 1 was released in 2010, and along with the release of Love, Pt. 2 last week, they also released a box set featuring both albums and the film.

To celebrate the completion of their project, Angels & Airwaves compiled two playlists they enjoy playing before and after gigs, among other "extracurricular" activities. Listen to the aptly-titled, “Foreplay” below, then dial up “Afterglow”. In their own words, "For us, playing a show is much like making love. This is our soundtrack for both."

What do the years 1995, 1998, 2000, and 2004 have in common? They’re the only years Clinton, Oklahoma country music icon Toby Keith hasn’t released an album since he began recording in 1993. This week’s release of new album Clancy’s Tavern, which was named after his grandmother’s bar in Fort Smith, Arkansas, marks Keith’s 15th full-length to date.

To celebrate the release and its accompanying deluxe version, Keith has assembled a playlist of songs he loves, just for Rdio. Hear some of the inspiration for his prolific music career below.

Dance-funk outfit Chromeo are P-Thugg and Dave 1, two Montreal-bred musicians who bonded over a surprising love of Hall & Oates. Since 2004 the duo have been crafting sophisticated and sensuous dance tunes on albums like 2007’s breakout Fancy Footwork and last year’s follow-up, Business Casual.

Just for Rdio, both members of Chromeo created a playlist of Top Sax Solo Songs. Check out the playlist now and read the duo’s extensive and entertaining answers to our Five Questions below.

Five Questions with Chromeo

1. Who do you think is an important musician that most people have never heard of before?
   P-Thugg: For me it’s Roger Troutman. My whole career is based on copying him, whether it’s his guitar playing, his talk box, or playing his songs or his drum sounds. Everything. He is the one who created and produced all the music for Zapp.
   Dave 1: People know about him but not enough people know about him. They know him as the guy in the Tupac song, but they should know him for the real sort of obscure ’70s tragic genius that he is. And I guess another one for me would be Shuggie Otis; again, some people know him, but most people don't. He is still considered obscure. And he was kind of a predecessor to Prince. Somewhere in between Jimi Hendrix and Prince. He was like a virtuoso guitar player and a really young musical prodigy and he kind of sang like Prince. Apparently, at one point, The Rolling Stones asked him to join their band and he said no and he kept doing his own music and he did just a limited number of songs and he stopped. He just quit. And so I like him a lot.
2. If you had access to any record in the world, what would you listen to right now?
   D1: The thing is that we have access to every record in the world. It’s called the internet. So it is not even like a remote possibility.
   P-T: You can go on the internet and listen to anything you want.
   D1: Nowadays, you can even listen to the separated tracks of every record. They have those for some classic records too.
3. Which album or artist do you most associate with your childhood?
   P-T: Michael Jackson - Bad.
   D1: Guns N’ Roses’ Appetite for Destruction Actually, no... I've got earlier ones. Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, but that was from my parents collection and my parents played that for me all the time when I was a baby. But then the first cassette I bought with my own money was Appetite for Destruction.
4. We hope people are ______________ when they listen to our music.
   D1: Smiling.
   P-T: Yeah, or having sex.
5. We were thinking about ______________ when we wrote music for the new album.
   D1: Sunsets.
   P-T: Each other.

DeVotchKa is a gypsy-folk group that's been making consistently great albums for over a decade. Earlier this year the Denver, Colorado quartet released their sixth studio album, 100 Lovers, and spent the rest of 2011 touring it relentlessly.

On October 28th and 29th the band will play a pair of shows in their native state, respectively at Denver’s Ogden Theatre and Boulder’s Boulder Theatre. DeVotchKa have a reputation for their love of Halloween, and the theme of this year’s shows are Zombies vs. Vampires. If it’s even a fraction as good as that sounds, we suggest that area fans grab tickets before it’s too late.

In the meantime, DeVotchka’s drummer Shawn King answered our Five Questions and constructed a playlist of some of his favorite shoegaze tracks with violinist Tom Hagerman, both of which are below.

Five Questions with DeVotchKa

1. Who do you think is an important musician that most people have never heard of before?
   Shawn King: The first person that comes to mind is Alain Johannes, who we did a tour with last year. In my view, he’s a rare combo of sensitive and fierce.
2. If you had access to any record in the world, what would you listen to right now?
   SK: Kraftwerk’s Ralf and Florian. I heard one track and now I’m curious.
3. Which album or artist do you most associate with your childhood?
   SK: Led Zeppelin II. I was spinning that record when the turntable was at eye level. The copy I own has a dedication to my mom from an old neighbor: “When you play it, you can always think of what good friends we have become. Good luck.”
4. We hope people are ______________ when they listen to our music.
   SK: Carelessly outgoing.
5. We were thinking about ______________ when we wrote music for the new album.
   SK: Corruption and lovelorn tycoons.

Having an album already under their belt made it easier for Brighton, England indie-folk trio Peggy Sue to more fully express themselves on their second full-length, Acrobats. The band felt better at their instruments after doing more touring (which they did with Kate Nash and Mumford and Sons), and were ready to channel their influences in a more nuanced way. Acrobats is the band’s most focused album, but it’s also louder and more ferocious than their debut.

The album isn’t out yet in North America, but you can stream Acrobats exclusively on Rdio now. Get to know Peggy Sue better by reading our interview with Peggy Sue's own Katy Klaw:

Five Questions with Peggy Sue

1. Who do you think is an important musician that most people have never heard of before?
   Katy Klaw: Lindsay Powell (formerly know as Cake Bake Betty currently known as Fielded).
2. If you had access to any record in the world, what would you listen to right now?
   KK: The new Two Gallants album that they are making at the moment.
3. Which album or artist do you most associate with your childhood?
   KK: Motown Chartbusters Volumes 1-5.
4. We hope people are ______________ when they listen to our music.
   KK: Patient.
5. We were thinking about ______________ when we wrote music for the new album.
   KK: Whether choruses were completely necessary.

It’s been two years since Kentucky indie-rock duo Phantom Family Halo released their last full-length studio album, Monoliths & These Flowers Never Die, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been busy. The band is currently on tour with Bonnie “Prince” Billy, with whom they’ve also been working on new music. Recently they released a split ten-inch record with the indie-folk idol, titled Mindeater. Listen to the new EP and the band’s “Songs That Make Me Feel Right” playlist, hand-picked by the Phantom Family Halo’s Dominic Cipolla, and don’t forget to check out our Five Questions with the band below.

Five Questions with Phantom Family Halo

1. Who do you think is an important musician that most people have never heard of before?
   Dominic Cipolla: Experimental guitarist Lowe Sutherland from Louisville, KY.
2. If you had access to any record in the world, what would you listen to right now?
   DC: Roxy Music - For Your Pleasure.
3. Which album or artist do you most associate with your childhood?
   DC: The Night Chicago Died by Paper Lace.
4. We hope people are ______________ when they listen to our music.
   DC: Happy.
5. We were thinking about ______________ when we wrote music for the new album.
   DC: Hedonism.

Have you heard of The Drums? The Brooklyn indie guitar-pop group hit it big last year with their ear-worm “Let’s Go Surfing,” which showcased their light-hearted side — their first LP garnered the kind of critical acclaim most bands can only hope for.

Their second album, Portamento, is out now, and is already convincing listeners that the band is here to stay: they're developing a signature sound that sees them seamlessly blending their New Wave and reverb-drenched influences. The Drums' lead singer, Jonathan Pierce, took a moment to curate a playlist of some of his favorite songs and answer our five questions.

Five Questions with The Drums

1. Who do you think is an important musician that most people have never heard of before?
   Jonathan Pierce: Clara Rockmore. Jacob and I have a real soft spot for her. She mastered the Theremin and would often perform with a full orchestra with her in the center playing the instrument perfectly. She has some albums out that I would recommend trying to find.
2. If you had access to any record in the world, what would you listen to right now?
   JP: I feel like we all have access to every record really, with the internet and all. But we can pretend there is no internet for a minute. I'd like to listen to a bootleg compilation of all the Big In Japan stuff.
3. Which album or artist do you most associate with your childhood?
   JP: Joy Electric - Melody. This album is brilliant. Most people hate the sounds, but if you can get past the sounds and listen to the songs, you will find something great.
4. We hope people are ______________ when they listen to our music.
   JP: Blissful and comforted.
5. We were thinking about ______________ when we wrote music for the new album.
   JP: Ourselves.