Apartment Story: David Berkeley

Singer/songwriter David Berkeley recently treated us to an afternoon performance in a Brooklyn apartment, in the midst of a series of shows along the East Coast. On January 25, Berkeley will release his fourth album, "Some Kind of Cure," along with a collection of 13 stories, "140 Goats and a Guitar," each of which explains the inspiration for one of the album's tracks. Most of the songs on the record were written while Berkeley and his family were living in a tiny village in the mountains of Corsica.

Here, Berkeley debuts the track "Homesick," and offers insight into the "140 Goats" reference in the book's title. It's clear that Berkeley has a knack for storytelling, whether or not his tales are accompanied by music.

David Berkeley Apartment Story from Soldout Music Dot Com on Vimeo.

Apartment Story: Tracy Bonham

 

photo courtesy of Sarah Be Photography

For our latest installment of Apartment Stories, the amiable and charming Tracy Bonham modeled through a smashed thumb to treat us to renditions of songs new and old during a morning of near-hilarity in her Brooklyn apartment — a session that yielded the first Apartment Story with a blooper reel at the end.

Bonham, who hit it big in the 1990s and early aughts with songs including radio smash "Mother, Mother," is enjoying a career resurgence on the heels of her latest effort, "Masts of Manhatta," which was recorded in Woodstock and Brooklyn and released earlier this summer. Longtime fans will recognize the songwriter's knack for witty, tongue-in-cheek lyrics over hook-y piano- and guitar-driven melodies.

This stripped-down rendition of "Reciprocal Feelings" from the new record shows that it will take a lot more than a bruised thumb to keep Tracy Bonham down.

Apartment Story: Hesta Prynn

For our latest installment of Apartment Stories, electro/hip-hop queen, art rocker and all-around wicked dancer Hesta Prynn entertained us with wine, a lesson in spontaneous human combustion, and an acoustic version of her song "Whoa Whoa," featuring beat master Chuck Brody.

The full band version of "Whoa Whoa" can be found on Hesta's recently released EP, "Can We Go Wrong." Get on it.

The Bloodsugars Tease New Videos

The Bloodsugars, whom we here at Soldout adore and who are headlining our showcase at Santos Party House this Wednesday, have been busy in recent weeks. Most notably, they filmed a double video for the songs "I Want it Back" and "Falling Makes You Blue," off of their 2009 album "I Can't Go On, I'll Go On." This teaser from the band indicates that they spared no expense on these short films, which seem like they'll tread into bizarro territory in an exploration of corporate culture.

Look for the final cut of the videos in early October, and if you're in NYC, catch The Bloodsugars live at Santos this week!

Ukulelehead, Or Why Amanda Palmer Represents the Future of the Music Industry

Last week, Amanda Palmer released an EP entitled "Amanda Palmer Performs The Popular Hits Of Radiohead On Her Magical Ukulele." Which, aside from the reputed yet unverified mystical powers of her instrument, is exactly what the title suggests. The seven-song collection includes renditions of singles "Idioteque" and "No Surprises," two live versions of "Creep," and more. It is Palmer's first fully independent release since her very public split with Roadrunner Records earlier this year.

She's emulating Radiohead in more ways than one, offering the record through her website and giving fans the option to pay as little as 84 cents for a digital version (to recoup licensing and other costs), and more if they choose. My guess is that most buyers will at least round up to a dollar.

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