Matt Duke

Another artist from Rykodisc, Matt Duke is a talented singer-songwriter who puts on a killer show. My fellow intern and I had the opportunity to see Matt Duke perform an acoustic show at the Rockwood this summer, and it was incredible. Not only is he an amazing guitarist, but he has a phenomenal voice - one that you only understand the magnitude of when you see him perform. His album Kingdom Underground came on while I was in the car last night, and I'm so happy to have rediscovered it.

[MP3] The Father, The Son And The Harlots Ghost (Acoustic Version) - Matt Duke
[MP3] I've Got Atrophy On The Brain - Matt Duke

And for a sneak peak from his new album One Day Die, here's Needle and Thread.

Official Website
Myspace

Matt White McRib Spot

One of the first posts I ever wrote in this blog was about singer-songwriter Matt White. He is signed to Rykodisc Records, the label I worked at this summer. Now that McDonald's McRib has returned, so has White's commercial spot! His song "Love" is featured in the McRib commercial. As a vegetarian, I can't exactly promote the McRib - but I can promote listening to his song while watching people eat one.

The Posies

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Today marks the album release of one of my favorite Rykodisc artists - The Posies. The band formed almost thirty years ago in Washington, with primary members Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer. A power-pop/alternative band before the genre "power-pop" had todays connotations, The Posies developed a strong following. Auer and Stringfellow even became members of the already established Big Star, a band that took a big hit this past winter with the death of Alex Chilton.

I can tell you, as someone from the inside of this label, that this is a huge album. Radio stations were begging our VP of Promotions to try to get this album first, and their shows have been selling fast. People in the industry are beyond excited for today's release, and with good reason. Ruby Marchand, the head of Rykodisc as the head of A&R, put it well when she said to me that this is a smart record. It revives what was formerly known as power-pop, and combines it with other genres to create what I like to call "Avant Garde Alternative Pop-Punk". The Posies say that this, their seventh release, is the album they have been waiting to make, a work of "Accidental Architecture". Take a listen, and hear why.

Plastic Paperbacks - The Posies
The Glitter Prize - The Posies
She's Coming Down Again! - The Posies

P.S. If you're a Lehigh student and you want to see The Posies live, join me on November 14th for their show with Brendan Benson at The Trocadero in Philly!

Matt White

This past summer I interned at Warner Music Group, at an indie singer-songwriter label called Rykodisc Records. I was the Tour Marketing and Publicity intern, and it was really the experience of a lifetime. It was a laid back atmosphere where it was always Casual Friday, and blasting music as loud as possible was strongly encouraged. This summer, I was definitely living the dream.

Last week, one of our artists, Matt White, released his newest album, "It's the Good Crazy". White used to be on Geffen Records (you would probably recognize his song, "Love"), and was dropped not long ago. It was obviously devastating for him, which he openly admits in interviews, but he's found a great home at Ryko. "It's the Good Crazy" is what Matt considers his debut album, as he finally gets to showcase his piano skills, killer vocals, and witty lyrics. This isn't typically the kind of album you'll find popping up in this blog, but hey! I'm a proud mama. And truthfully, even though I left pop music behind long ago, I secretly rocked out to this record every day at work.

And The Beat Goes On - Matt White
Sunshine - Matt White
"Falling in Love (With My Best Friend)"