Jemina Pearl, she of rage, rock and radness, recently swung by the offices of Spin to perform a handful of songs...acoustically. Gone is the riotous frontwoman persona, and we're privy to a sneak peek of her performance in a much tamer tone.


When she's not hanging with Iggy, or being lauded as the protege of Thurston Moore, Pearl has been touring the states, keeping track of her journey on her personal blog. While the latest trek has recently come to an end, she made time to jump over to the music magazine's headquarters and dish out 4 acoustic takes of songs from her debut album, Break It Up.

Watch an acoustic rendition of I Hate People, with boyfriend/accompanyist John Eatherly on guitar.

Acoustic takes on D is for Danger, Heartbeats and Undesirable can be viewed here.

mp3: Jemina Pearl - After Hours

Friday, December 4 sees the return of Ian McCulloch, the iconic frontman of Echo and the Bunnymen, to New York City. After a smashing show at Mercury Lounge earlier this fall, many an avid fan were left wanting more. Now, thanks to the fine folks over at East Village Radio, along with The Culture of Me, and well me, Sheena Beaston, we are pleased to announce the following.


As described above, Mac will be performing a solo set at The Studio at Webster Hall. Prior to his performance, the Liverpoolian lad will be kicking it with Mark Ronson during his Authenti Sh*t slot at EVR. Both Jeff (TCoM) and msyelf will be covering the pre-show radio set, complete with this Beast working the mic for on-camera footage to air after the haps take place.

Here's the deal. The after party/show is a closed event, by invitation only. "But Beast...how do I get in then?" THAT, my dear readers, is where my generosity comes in.

On Monday, November 30, I will be announcing an exclusive contest, in which a handful of you lucky souls will be my personal guests to the event. More details to follow after the holiday.

Until then, get excited and stay rad!

mp3: Echo and the Bunnymen - Lips Like Sugar

Our favorite rockin' chick, Juliette Lewis, was recently in Berlin, both to hit up Europe with her Terra Incognita tour, as well as to attend and present a statue at the MTV EMA Awards earlier this month.


As a special supplement to the awards, Lewis did a brief interview with the German constituents pre-show host, complete with an acoustic performance of Fantasy Bar, from her latest album.

Oh, did we mention that this rendition takes place in the back of a car? Check it out!

Reminder for all you European friends and readers: Juliette Lewis powers on through your towns, continuing on tour for the next month. All remaining dates can be found here.

And for even more goodness, check our interview with Ms. Lewis here, in case you missed our incessant swoonings.

mp3: Juliette and The Licks - Sticky Honey (Endo DandB Remix)

If anything makes me feel better on the crappiest of days like today, it's one of our favorite bands ever, Metric. So with a new EP being tomorrow, we've had the Toronto quartet on repeat for most of the afternoon.


This Tuesday, October 27, Metric will release a brand new acoustic EP, Plug In Plug Out, exclusively at Amazon. The EP includes acoustic recordings (some never-before-heard) of Gimme Sympathy, Gold Guns Girls, Help I'm Alive, Satellite Mind and Twilight Galaxy.

You can check out some of the acoustic videos that accompany the EP in the nifty little widget below.

Alos, Metric is continuing on in their North American tour. Unfortunately not coming through NYC though.

mp3: Metric - Gold Guns Girls (Acoustic)

Upon first glance at the post title, you might be saying to yourself, "Sheena Beaston, have you lost your mind? Since WHEN do you like and write about folky acoustic bands!" Let it be known, that while I do favor writing on beat and bass heavy dancers, there is a softer side to this lil' gal; and that version of me is nourished by acts like Port O'Brien.


The Oakland via Alaska set are ready to follow 2008's acclaimed All We Could Do Was Sing, with their new offereing, threadbare, on October 6. Working as somewhat of a two sided record with haunting and meditative songs, the dark tracks are paired with the untiring, aggressive and punchy anthems.

Naturally, I simply couldn't chat about something so indie without mention of a remix. It's the beastly way! Boston's heathens of sweaty dance, Bodega Girls, laid their afro-beat style all over POB's My Will is Good. It's a footstomper that'll make ya feel feelings!

And be sure to listen carefully at the 2:31 mark, when Hall and Oates jump in for a special cochlear surprise. Stellar!

Port O'Brien just kicked off a massive tour with Sea Wolf last night in Seattle. Hit up their 'Space for the full list of dates.

mp3: Port O'Brien - My Will is Good (Bodega Girls Remix)

Are you ready for some beauty in the form of unpluggedness? Well you better be, because Marina and the Diamonds has you covered!


I've posted nearly every iteration/remix/mash/fix/blend of Marina's powerful anthem, I Am Not a Robot, and while those have all gone and blown my mind, sometimes we need to take a breather and soak in the glory that is the world of acoustic wonders. The strings in this unplugged version take center stage as they soar throughout the course of this most pretty arrangement.

From August 6-9, The Big Chill festival will be taking place at Eastnor Castle Deer Park in Herefordshire. And if you're lucky enough to be there on August 7, well then, you can catch Marina live! Get a ticket here.

mp3: Marina and the Diamonds - I Am Not a Robot (Unplugged)