Better late than never

Ok, yes... I am a year late to jump on the Regina Spektor bandwagon. Yes, her album Begin to Hope was on the top of all the year-end, best-of lists LAST year. So I wasn't exactly ahead of that wave. But if you're in a similar boat, now is the perfect time to get into Spektor's music, which sounds like a Russian winter in music form. Seriously, what Tchaikovsky was to classical music, Spektor is to modern indie. There are elements of everything from traditional Russian waltzes to the Beatles (remember how the Russians used to go nuts for them?) to modern post-Soviet techno. And it all blends together seamlessly, tied up with Spektor's fascinating and accented soprano. (She comes from Moscow originally, by way of New York.)

A stunning album with too many highlights to mention. The album's ubiquitous single "Fidelity" is just the beginning. Ballad "Samson" is a current favorite of mine, but I have a feeling this is an album from which every song will be a favorite at some point.

Here's the video for "Fidelity":



And here she is performing "Samson" on the BBC's Culture Show:

Bonnaroo Radio

If, like me, you missed music festival Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tenn., last weekend, fret not. AT&T's Blue Room is currently streaming "Bonaroo radio" featuring live performances recorded backstage at Bonnaroo. (Click on "Listen Now" to the left and then toggle to "Bonnaroo."

There were TONS of great bands at the festival, including Wilco, Kings of Leon, Regina Spektor, Spoon, Fountains of Wayne, Feist, and Mavis Staples. The Police headlined.

I'm not seeing any archived video up on the Blue Room site yet, but I'll keep you updated. In the meantime, enjoy the stream.