Song of the day: Lilys/"Will My Lord Be Gardening"

Precollection, the 2003 album by one of my all-time favorite bands, Lilys, was added to Rhapsody today. I'm a fan in particular of the band's early shoegaze-influenced work, but this album is growing on me -- especially the song "Will My Lord Be Gardening," which bridges the band's earlier sound with their growing interest in the paisley tones of the mid- and late-1960s.

The AM radio sounds of Minty Fresh

Over the past few days, Rhapsody has begun adding music from Minty Fresh Records, the Chicago label that first brought the world Veruca Salt and followed it up with a string of albums from bands heavily influenced by the sounds of AM radio's golden age. This playlist, which includes music from Papas Fritas, Ivy, Tahiti 80, The Aluminum Group, and The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group, might not necessarily rock, but it certainly grooves along at its own mellow pace. Enjoy the weekend -- and have a great holiday.

Merge Records: now in Rhapsody (!)

As I mentioned earlier, Rhapsody has begun adding the Merge Records catalogue to Rhapsody. This playlist includes music from some of my favorite Merge bands, old and new, from The Magnetic Fields, Superchunk and Versus to Crooked Fingers, Neutral Milk Hotel and Dinosaur Jr. Enjoy the music!

Song of the day: Superchunk/"Slack Motherfucker"

Yes, kids, Rhapsody has finally inked a deal with Merge Records, home to Superchunk, Arcade Fire, Neutral Milk Hotel, and a gaggle of other bands that make the indie rockers swoon. Over the past few days, we've begun adding records from the Merge catalogue, including Superchunk's debut album -- which this song is taken from. This one goes out to all the slack motherfuckers -- you know who you are.

Song of the day: Say Hi to Your Mom/"Showdown in Goattown"

I went to Amoeba Records last night and spent some quality time shopping. One of the things I picked up was Discosadness, the first album by NYC indie band Say Hi to Your Mom. I've listened to it a bunch in Rhapsody and like the entire thing, but last night the song that jumped out to me was "Showdown in Goattown" -- check out the killer chorus: "...are we ever gonna get back to California...?"