Brad Matthew

Photo: Max Adolfsson

Kings of Leon’s Because of the Times is one of my fav albums of all time.  Yes, all time.  The ballsy 7 minute opening track “Knocked Up” is golden.  Capiche?!  Looks like Swedish sex kitten Lykke Li digs the song too, so much that she done up a version of her own.  It is a pretty interesting take on the song to say the least.  I love it.  There is something about her lust-drenched voice that gets me “rock hard”, er… I mean… Uh…  I like her lovely voice!

Both the Kings and Li will be making stops through Chicago in the next month.  You can catch KOL at the House of Blues this Saturday, January 24, if you were/are willing to pay over $200 a ticket!?  Yah, it’s for charity, but for fuck sake man.  For a more reasonable price ($17) you can catch Lykke Li at Metro, February 7th. What a woman!

UPDATE: Kings of Leon have released a “Use Somebody” EP on itunes, which consists of the single “Use Somebody” and Lykke Li’s cover of “Knocked Up”.  Buy it is you please.

Knocked Up (Kings of Leon cover) - Lykke Li

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Here are my top albums of 2008.  Fleet Foxes ran away with the album of year.  Their self-titled debut is a beautiful mix of Beach Boy harmonies and roots folk in the vein of My Morning Jacket.  Give this album a listen, it is truly a spiritual experience.

1. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
2. Sigur Rós - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
3. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
4. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
5. Beck - Modern Guilt
6. The Whigs - Mission Control
7. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Cardinology
8. Lykke Li - Youth Novels
9. Raphael Saadiq - The Way I See It
10. Death Cab for Cutie - Narrow Stairs
11. Liam Finn - I’ll Be Lightning
12. The Raconteurs - Consolers Of The Lonely
13. Okkervil River - The Stand Ins
    
14. Kings of Leon - Only By The Night
15. My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges

What are your top albums of 2008?

The whimsical Swedish songstress, Lykke Li, will be heading back to the US for a string of dates that start in DC at the end of January and wraps up in Austin, TX, February 19.  Her last stop through Chicago, she played a sold out show at Empy Bottle, which i unfortunately missed.  This time around she will be gracing the Metro stage, February 7.

A Swedish beauty I know got me hip to Ms. Li earlier this year and I have been enchanted by her music ever since.  Her debut album, Youth Novels, was released stateside in May and is quite delicious.  The first single of the album, “Little Bit”, is a sexy little number, which could probably be said for most of her music. Bon appetit!

01-31 Washington, DC - Sixth and I
02-02 New York, NY - Webster Hall
02-04 Montreal, Quebec - Club Soda
02-06 Toronto, Ontario - Phoenix
02-07 Chicago, IL - Metro
02-08 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity
02-11 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore
02-12 Portland, OR - Hawthorne
02-13 Seattle, WA - Showbox
02-15 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
02-17 Pomona, CA - Glass House
02-18 Dallas, TX - Granada
02-19 Austin, TX - Antone’s

Both Lykke Li and Bon Iver have graced my “Current Listenings” list over the past year and recently collaborated for an impromptu version of Lykee Li’s tune “Dance Dance Dance”.  Li has some pretty awesome dance moves and the harmonies are sweet as sugar.  Ms. Li will be making a stop through Chicago October 25 at the Empty Bottle.