The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Cover Dionne Warwick

Well, those are words I never thought I'd ever type. Boston's ska-core heroes The Mighty Mighty Bosstones have covered Dionne Warwick's easy listening classic "What the World Needs Now is Love." Bosstones frontman Dicky Barrett has this to say about their choice of covers:

"It's a message and/or a reminder that we would like to share with the world for the holidays during these seemingly difficult and trying times. The song doesn't take a side but it definitely takes a stance." 

The weirdest part of the song is how well it actually works. It's a shockingly true rendition of the song, unlike their old school covers that hardcore up every song. It's quite beautiful, and has more of a reggae swing to it than anything else. What could have been just a silly throwaway song is actually a beautiful, heartfelt attempt to heal all the hurt so many of us are feeling as this shitty year comes to an end.

You can get your own free copy of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones' version of "What the World Needs Now is Love" over at Nimbit. If you happen to be in the Boston area, next week marks the Bosstones' once again annual Hometown Throwdown at the House of Blues on December 28-30. For more on the Bosstones', check out their website.

Sallie Ford Covers "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"

In part two of our accidental "People Cover the Perfect Holiday Song for Them" feature today, we have Sallie Ford covering Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree." Originally recorded back in 2010 with her old band The Sound Outside, Ford's enthusiasm for the song shines through. You can tell she's having an absolute rockin' [editor's note: Ugh. Sorry. I hate myself for that one] time with this one, and it features one of the greatest scat solos of all time. It's everything you want in a cover: Well chosen, perfectly true to the original, and just altered enough to make the song her own.

You can get your own free download of Sallie Ford covering "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" at her PledgeMusic page (which is where you can also pre-order her forthcoming album, Soul Sick, due February 10. For more information on Sallie Ford, check out her website.

The Secret Sisters Cover "Little Drummer Boy"

Seeing how much we love covers and the current retro country thing going on in music right now, we're pretty big fans of The Secret Sisters, who do classic country covers like no one else in music today. With Sunday being Christmas and all, they've given their fans a free download of their version of "Little Drummer Boy." "Little Drummer Boy" is one of the most traditional of all Christmas songs, and it might be the perfect choice for The Secret Sisters. It's all just harmony and just the slightest hint of guitar. 

You can download a free copy of "Little Drummer Boy" over at Noisetrade. For more information on The Secret Sisters (who are currently taking pre-orders for their new album on PledgeMusic) head on over to their website.

Jessi Zazu (aka Jessi Darlin) is Battling Cancer

2016 sucks. It sucks to the point that everyone seems to agree that it sucks. And just to drive that point home, yesterday Jessi Zazu (aka Jessi Darlin formerly of Those Darlins) announced that she is fighting cancer with a tweet that said "Ya'll, I got the cancer...." She was diagnosed with stage 2 cervical cancer right after Those Darlins wrapped up their final tour, and tried fighting it in private. Last month she discovered the cancer had spread to her lymphatic system, which is typically a "no cure scenario." Jessi is determined to keep fighting, but she does need our help. There is a YouCaring page set up to help with the insane costs associated with a cancer battle, and Jessi is selling "Ain't Afraid" shirts to also help with the costs. As huge fans of Jessi and Those Darlins, we wish her the best and hope you can help out in her time of need.

In good news, Jessi is currently working with Those Darlins drummer Linwood Regensburg on new music. To read her full statement, and find an address for well wishes and cards, check out the story on Nashville Scene.

Jake McKelvie & The Countertops - "Rhinestone Busboy"

Hailing from somewhere in Massachusetts, Jake McKelvie & The Countertops are releasing a brand new EP, The Rhinestone Busboy EP, and have made the EP's closer, also called "Rhinestone Busboy," available to listen. "Rhinestone Busboy," the song, is much quieter than some previous songs I've heard from the band. In fact, it's almost a folk ballad, losing a lot of Jake McKelvie & The Countertops normal almost pop-punk meets The Dismemberment Plan and Pavement sound. But, the wit and 90s indie vibe are still there, making this a must listen.

You can listen to "Rhinestone Busboy" below. The Rhinestone Busboy EP is out today. You can get your copy over at Jake McKelvie & The Countertops' Bandcamp. For more information on the band, check out their website and Facebook. They'll be playing December 23 at the Gardner Ale House in Gardner, MA, December 29 at The Shaskeen in Manchester, NH, and December 31 at Union Coffee Company in Milford, NH.

First Listen: New-ish Releases for December 16

Another short week, but some stuff landed on Spotify so we'll cover a few.

Artist: Kristen Hersh
Album: Wyatt at the Coyote Palace
Quick Description: Kristen Hersh's latest double-album-length affair.
Why You Should Listen: Kristen Hersh is a must-listen even in a busy week.
Overall Thoughts: Kristen Hersh's new album sounds a lot like solo Kristen Hersh in a lot of ways. That's not a bad thing at all, but it means there might not be a standout track on the album for a lot of listeners, either. As someone who has been a fan for well over 20 years, though, this felt like a solid, albeit long, listen.
Recommendation: Still worth the time.

Artist: You People
Album: Dropouts
Quick Description: Local noisy indie rock.
Why You Should Listen: This is an interesting listen...
Overall Thoughts: ...except that it's all over the place. I thought I liked it in the first track, I felt like I was sick of it by the last, and everything in between is equal parts kind of cool and kind of exhausting. At the end of the day, this isn't something I recommend, but if your tastes run the gamut there might be stuff here to like.
Recommendation: I say skip, but in a short week...

Artist: Kid Cudi
Album: Passion, Pain, and Demon Slayin'
Quick Description: Latest from the hip hop/alt-rock chameleon.
Why You Should Listen: Kid Cudi is always interesting, even if it's not always good.
Overall Thoughts: Kid Cudi had three amazing albums early on. He's been following his muse ever since, often to questionable results, and this latest album is absolutely better than his last few efforts but still doesn't come close to some of his better early work. His best songs on this one are the collaborations (most notably "By Design") but the album feels more like a miss than a hit.
Recommendation: Listen to it for the parts rather than the whole.

Also worth noting:

* Callum Easter - Get Don't Want
* Weep and Willow - Weep and Willow

Monday Mix: If It's Too Loud... 2016 Holiday Playlist

I prefer Halloween over Christmas. Christmas music is pretty much unavoidable, and most of it is pretty awful. It's either the same songs over and over every year or just top 40 pop crap you'll hopefully forget next year. That's why we bring you the If It's Too Loud... 2016 Holiday playlist. This is the second we've done (for some reason we skipped last year), and we've tried hard to not repeat from the last one. We tried to include a wide mix of everything we cover from classic country (Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn), 90s favorites (Jennifer Trynin, Letters to Cleo), classic punk (The Ramones, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Bad Religion), classic rockers (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Chuck Berry), soul (James Brown, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings), current favorites (Courtney Barnett, Matt Pond PA, Sallie Ford), and, of course, "Christmas in Hollis" from Run DMC. No Christmas playlist is complete without it.

Jennifer Clavin (Bleached) Covers The Ramones and Barry McGuire (Plus Socks!)

We've been digging Bleached here at If It's Too Loud..., so we're pretty excited that Jennifer from Bleached has released two acoustic covers to benefit Planned Parenthood. Here is Jennifer's explanation of her idea behind the covers from a Facebook post:

After the election, I went to the desert with an overwhelming feeling of hopelessness, sadness, and anger. I decided to record covers of 2 songs that perfectly capture my feelings regarding our political state. Barry McGuire's ‘Eve of Destruction’ was written in 1965, and 50 years later could not be more relevant. It’s a warning of the fascist, racist, violent and unjust world we were living in then, and are living in now. Ramones' ‘Bonzo Goes To Bitburg’ shares the embarrassed, offended, and disgusted feeling a lot of us have every time we see Trump on our television. We are living in a time where we can anticipate federal funding to public health resources terminated. I have been using Planned Parenthood’s services for 10 years. And hope to continue to. It is on us to ensure their services continue through public funding and donation. All the proceeds of this digital 7” will go towards Planned Parenthood, for a future of accessible pap smears, breast and cervical cancer screening, pregnancy testing, pregnancy option counseling, STD screening, colposcopies, birth control, sex education, LGBT services, and other necessary health services. F!CK TRUMP. F*CK PENCE. LONG LIVE RUTH BADER GINSBERG. - Jennifer

Her cover of The Ramones' "Bonzo Goes to Bitburg" is a bit of a trainwreck, but in the best possible way. The Ramones are a bit of a trainwreck themselves, and anytime you make an acoustic version of a Ramones' song it's going to be imperfect, but that's the fun of the cover. Surprisingly, her cover of Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" is my favorite of the two. It's just about perfect, and it's just a great rendition of a classic.

You can listen to Jennifer Clavin's versions of "Bonzo Goes to Bitburg" and Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" below. You can get your own copy of these two songs for a $2.00 donation to Planned Parenthood on Bleached's Bandcamp. They are also selling limited edition Bleached socks to benefit Planned Parenthood here. For more info on Bleached, check out their Facebook.

Friday Freebie: Sallie Ford, Vic Chesnutt, and Funeral Advantage

Friday Freebie is back this week with our very first triple header. We'll start off with the smallest of the three, but one we're really excited about. Absolute blog favorite Sallie Ford is offering up two songs from her upcoming album, Soul Sick, along with a previously unreleased B-side, "You're On My Mind." We've previously covered "Get Out," so we'll stick with the two newer songs. "Failure" is doo-woppy as hell, and "You're On My Mind" is an absolute treasure. It sounds like an old blues song being played on the slowest, creepiest Victrola. You can get your copy of Sallie Ford's Soul Sick Sampler + Unreleased B-Side over on Noisetrade.

For those of you not familiar with Vic Chesnutt, you owe it to yourself to check him out. He recorded a total of 17 albums in his far too short and hard life. I guess you'd call him a singer/songwriter, but his style transcended the genre. I saw him once back in 2003 opening up for Evan Dando at the Paradise. The stage isn't even remotely handicap-accessible, so he had to be lifted in his wheelchair onto the stage. Watching him sing these beautiful and painful songs close enough to make eye contact was a powerful and uncomfortable experience I'll never forget. Six of Chesnutt's albums (his first four on Texas Hotel and two on New West Records) are being reissued on vinyl. To celebrate this, there is a 12 song sampler being offered for free, also on Noisetrade. You can pre-order the reissues on PledgeMusic.

No strangers to Friday Freebie, Boston's own Funeral Advantage are hinting at a new album on Facebook. What's as exciting as new music from our favorite local disciples of 80s softer college rock (I legitimately thought most of their songs were Smiths covers the first time I saw them, and I mean that as the highest compliment)? This week they're offering their entire back catalog for free on their Bandcamp! This includes their fantastic 2015 album Body Is Dead, their album of the demos for Body Is Dead, and a bunch of singles. This offer is only for "this week," and since they announced it on Tuesday you'll want to act now.

Ken's Top 10 of 2016 - #1: David Bowie - Blackstar

We'll never really know how Blackstar would have been received if David Bowie had not died mere days after its release. The reviews were glowing (as usual for a David Bowie album), but hardly spectacular. I can't honestly say if it would have made my top 10, let alone been my #1 album of 2016. That's how art works, though. In the context of Bowie's shocking death at the age of 69, Blackstar takes on a whole new significance and meaning. There were a ton of stories asking if Bowie predicted his death in the album. Such a question is absurd considering he had been battling cancer for 18 months and lyrics like "Look up here, I'm in heaven" from a song called "Lazarus" aren't exactly being subtle. On first listen, we all just assumed Bowie was playing another character in Blackstar. Maybe he was, but if he was, it was one he related to more than anyone would have ever wanted him to. Even if there are the rumored unreleased albums planned, Blackstar will be the album that cements Bowie's legacy.