Listen Up, Can You hear the Stars?

This evening has led me meandering through the interwebs, bouncing from one blog to the next, trolling through a wealth of new indie garble that I don't possibly have enough time to process. It is flabergasting how much one can learn given the time and pointer finger to scroll. And it's funny how far out you can get, listening to the most mind numbing knob tweadling that sends you darting for the nearest easy listening streaming radio.
This evenings soundscape scavenger hunt began with some casual viewing of the Sigur Ros DVD, Heima. I picked it up at the end of last week after feeling my spirit animal wince at it's continued claustrophobia, realizing that I haven't ventured to anything resembling the true outdoors in...god, I don't even fucking remember. I longed for the vast rolling nothingness that I'm sure the movie was sure to capture in the landscapes of Iceland. Popped it in and I was off. It was exactly what I was expecting and as I had great expectations, it did not disappoint. The music- as harrowing and heartbreaking as always- and the North Atlantic landmass vibrated with an untouched virginity.
With my head already enveloped in a musical disposition, I wrangled myself into one website that invariably led me to a myriad of other sites, all uniquely exciting in their uncovering. I felt like an 8 year at a birthday party held at one of those places where they hide precious (but not that precious) rocks in some sand and you sift them out and keep them. Every time I came across a new page I hadn't seen or even heard of, only to find a thriving community, I was elated but left thinking, "where the hell have I been"? Perhaps my surprise is a sign to stop spending most internet time masturbating. Doubtful.
In any event, I came across a number of sites that I'd like to visit again. So as a log to myself and any unfortunate soul who might read this blog mistaking it for a music pedophiles' page, I will list those websites:

NPR Music (actually houses some contemporary music, NPR ceases to impress): Check it out here

last.fm. I've known about this site for a while but have always poopooed it, opting rather to spend my time scrolling through the myspace-esque pages of imeem

But I've found that last.fm has it's perks- like pre-release whole albums! Listen to the whole new Sigur Ros album, með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust here:
last.fm free Sigur Ros


The Daily Swarm Great music playlists (check out the Van She song, "Strangers") and articles, both music based and media focused (check the great article about the new Myspace facelift due June 16th).

Pitchfork Media An old go to when I'm feeling abnormally pretentious, but very rarely do I visit and not learn something new.

NME.com Juries still out on this one, didn't really dive into this site, but it looks like it might be pretty rounded.

Myspace.com. Joke ROFL LOL JESUS FUCKING CHRIST SUPERLOL

Vimeo.com I know this site was created by the crew and by association I should love it. But I've always shied away from it going mainstream with Youtube. But I gotta say, I like the little community they got going, I thinks it's definitely worth while exploring this site more.

Muxtape this shit is cool. It's essentially like any other music site that allows you to make and save your playlists, but something about the simplicity (read: sloppy sheik) of this design is endearing and intriguing. And the music housed therein seems to be more personalized- can you upload your own tracks? One reason to return for more answers...

At the end of this hodgepodge hike, I happened across and decided to end my day with Stars on last.fm. The Stars have a quality in their songs that i can't put my finger on. I'd say it brings back nostalgia of listening to them in my car in high school, except I didn't listen to them in high school. Maybe that's the quality- it sounds like something you heard when shit used to mean something. When a moment used to hover and you'd hold your breathe, trying to stay in that moment as long as you could; soak in the sadness or breathe in the happiness. In any event, that's Stars. I first heard them drinking one of my first legal beers at Bukowski's in Boston. Over a Sam Adams and a $2 burger, I heard the "Set Yourself on Fire" album and was immediately hooked. And I'm so glad I was, they continue to bring me back to a time that never happened and let me enjoy all those feelings I could have felt all over again.

So with no further adieu, here is a link to some newer (I think) versions of their classics:

Stars