NEW BON IVER: bon iver - naeem

bon iver - naeem (dir: ag rojas)

NEW BON IVER!: bon iver - 33 "god" / 22 (over s∞∞n) [bob moose extended cab version] / 10 d E A T h b R E a s T ⚄ ⚄ (extended version)

taken from the upcoming '22, a million' album, bon iver's latest collection upon first listen sounds complex and disjointed. but strip away the seemingly random soundscapes, you can hear the same internal exploration of self that we've loved about this man from the very beginning. in fact i'd say that these songs are actually quite lush, but in that avant kind of way. here are 3 beautiful new tracks, trust me, it's worth the listen!

bon iver - 33 "god"


bon iver - 22 (over s∞∞n) [bob moose extended cab version]


bon iver - 10 d E A T h b R E a s T ⚄ ⚄ (extended version)

WONGIE FUTURE SOUL SONG OF THE WEEK: francis and the lights feat kanye west & bon iver - friends

francis and the lights feat kanye west & bon iver - friends
directed by filmmaker jake schreier (paper towns), this minimalist video showcases francis farewell starlite (aka francis and the lights) with his friends bon iver and kanye doing some choice dancing. oh and the song is damn awesome too!

VIDEO PREMIERE!: bon iver - calgary

bon iver - calgary
[our previous indie song of the week gets a video! and it's equally mesmerizing and lush!]

LIVE WONGIE: bon iver - a song for you (donny hathaway)/ i can't make you love me (bonnie raitt) (live @ late night with jimmy fallon)

bon iver - a song for you (donny hathaway) / i can't make you love me (bonnie raitt) (live @ late night with jimmy fallon)
[justin went on jimmy fallon last week to do his version of a mash up of donny hathaway meets bonnie riatt. the end result is simply beautiful!]

for those outside of the US, unfortunately you'll have to make do with the audio version which is below:

bon iver - a song for you (donny hathaway) / i can't make you love me (bonnie raitt) (live @ late night with jimmy fallon)

WONGIE INDIE SONG OF THE WEEK: bon iver - calgary

bon iver - calgary
[he's back!!! justin vernon returns with new material from his upcoming eponymous album. his debut album 'for emma, forever ago' was one of my favorite albums of 2008, so the fact that there's new material makes me giddy to no end. throw in the fact that i find this first single awesome and uplifting (in a weird peter gabriel influenced kind of way) and i cannot wait to hear more!]

WONGIE SONG OF THE MONTH: birdy - skinny love (bon iver cover) (video premiere)

birdy - skinny love (bon iver cover)
[we FINALLY have a video for this smash cover! we fell in love with this song a few weeks back and it's amazing to see how many people have also been taken with this simple heartbreaking somber version (it's one of our most popular clicks for the past few weeks). if you haven't discovered this yet, now is the time!]

WONGIE SONG OF THE MONTH: birdy - skinny love (bon iver cover)

birdy - skinny love (bon iver cover)
[there is very little online about this beautiful cover except that it's by a 14 year old girl named jasmine van den bogaerde and the buzz around her version has led bbc radio 1 to put it on their playlist. throw in the fact that it's one of my favorite bon iver songs ever and you've got our song of the month! enjoy!]

NEW KANYE!: kanye west feat rick ross, jay z, nicki minaj & bon iver - monster

kanye west feat rick ross, jay z, nicki minaj & bon iver - monster
[it's all kind of 'meh' with this over stylized jake nava video as all these rappers step up and wax how awesome they are vs. the fakers out there. then nicki prances up to the mic and pardon my french, fucking rips EVERYONE a new one! insanity how awesome she is when she guests on other people's songs!]

WONGIE COVER OF THE MONTH: bon iver - come talk to me (peter gabriel cover)

bon iver - come talk to me (peter gabriel cover)
[oh my gosh, this cover is just simply blissful. released in conjunction with record store day, bon iver recording was part of a double AA 7" in which peter gabriel did an interpretation of iver's "flume". i can lose myself in this song... sigh!]

WONGIE DISCOVERY: ellie goulding feat frankmusik - wish i stayed / wolves (bon iver cover)

ellie goulding feat frankmusik - wish i stayed
[i discovered this on perez hilton, who i'm sure got the tip off from frankmusik since he is one of the acts on the perez hilton tour. just as long as i can pass it on to you is all i care about]


ellie goulding - wolves (bon iver cover)

lykke li feat bon iver - dance dance dance (live performance)

lykke li feat bon iver - dance dance dance (live) [link 2]
[taking on a certain blogotheque live performance quality, lykke li convinced the boys of bon iver to lend a musical hand while she bounces around a fountain. oh the wacky world of indie music!]

la blogotheque presents: bon iver - lump sum / skinny love

bon iver - lump sum [link 2]


bon iver - skinny love (live) [link 2]
[as you know, i've been quite the fan of bon iver these past few months. the surprising thing is that i discovered his music as a live artist (via live performances on tv and youtube) as opposed to my usual route of hearing the music via myspace/articles/downloads. it's rare to love an artist live and then go back to listen to the studio versions of songs afterwards. anyway, the blogotheque folks continue to perpetuate my live love of justin vernon and his pals as they perform two sessions (a total of 6 performances!) for the website. awesome!]

live wongie: bon iver - skinny lover (live on later with jools holland) / flume (live on later with jools holland website)

bon iver - skinny love [link 2]
[this is a performance by a man who has been heartbroken and found a way to channel it through song. with his album for emma, forever ago garnering some of the best reviews of the year, justin vernon aka bon iver (pronounced like the french "bon hiver") has crafted a raw collection written by a man who disappeared into the woods of wisconsin only to find his soul again. whether it's as poetic as people are making it, bon iver has put out something pretty amazing.]


bon iver - flume [link 2]
[check out this gorgeous performance of yet another gem from his album.]

video of the week: bon iver - wolves (act 1 & 2)

bon iver - wolves (act 1 & 2) [link 2]
[i'll let the press notes explain why i've chosen this as the video of the week:

Directed by Matt Amato for The Masses
Filmed on location in Fall Creek, Wisconsin
January 2008

This is by any description, a project that almost never happened. Rushing to get to Wisconsin for fresh snows and still frozen air, Director Matt Amato arrived in Eau Claire, hometown of Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, in late January. In the midst of warming up after a long journey and excitedly telling Justin about all the projects he had on the horizon, Matt received a phone call. One of his best friends had suddenly and tragically passed away. All logic and reason were thrown out. Nobody knew what to do. Matt didn't know whether to stay or go, or how he would even manage to get back to the airport in his state of shock. Justin just tried to stay calm. Between a flurry of phone calls and attempting to contact some of Matt's family to accompany him home, night fell. Almost by default, Matt remained in Eau Claire in the company of his newest acquaintance. Something about it was safe, and that was enough. The next morning, Matt read the lyrics to "The Wolves" and felt as if those were the exact words he needed to hear from his departed friend. That pretty much sealed it. Matt would stay and work, even as the thought of making a video became the last thing on their minds. They built a bonfire and just let it burn all day and into the night, and Matt filmed. The weight of the circumstances propelled the collaboration to a place these sort of projects don't often go. The cathartic spirit of Bon Iver's music had found its kindred spirit in imagery.
Enjoy.]