Guardian Music — As the tiny Wisconsin studio that recorded every major band of the grunge era prepares to shut up shop, its proprietor reminisces"Suddenly everybody wanted a remix with that edge, or Butch and/or Smart's name on it," says Steve Marker, ­talking ab... more info

WFMU's Beware of the Blog — After having recently seen my first Guy Maddin film, the wonderful and disturbing Brand Upon The Brain!, I stumbled upon this music video he did for the Sparklehorse song It's A Wonderful Life, as part of the Sundance Channel's Sonic... more info

L.A. Times - Pop & Hiss — Best collaboration by anthropomorphic studio whizzes embargoed from release by record-label mumbo jumbo: When Danger Mouse (producer/multi-instrumentalist Brian Burton of Gnarls Barkley) reached out to Sparklehorse (the reclusive musical soundscape-i... more info

Bridging The Atlantic — With attention to flow rather than order of preference, my absolute favourite songs of 2009.1. Happy Up Here - Röyksopp2. 1901 - Phoenix3. Osaka Loop Line - Discovery4. Lovesick Teenagers - Bear in Heaven5. Blood Pt 2 - Buck 65 Remix ft Sufjan Ste... more info

The Good, The Bad and The Unknown — Here is the 11 Best Albums of 2009: 12-22 (Part 4):12. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest13. Deer Tick - Born On Flag Day14. The Black Crowes - Before The Frost...Until the Freeze15. The Dead Weather - Horehound16. White Rabbits - It's Frightening17. T... more info

Stereogum — As mentioned, Norwegian rocker Ida Maria recently re-released her catchy Fortress Round My Heart opener "Oh My God" with additional vocals courtesy of Iggy Pop, aka the new Tony Bennett. (In the last few months Pop's placed his baritone on songs b... more info

Guardian Music — The Shins frontman has formed a new project, Broken Bells, with DJ producer Danger Mouse, with a debut album expected next yearJames Mercer has announced a new project, twinning the Shins' gentle frontman with New York producer, DJ and mash-up artis... more info

Altsounds — Al started the band in late 2007 in Cambridge then drifted to London picking up members along the way with the continual support of his friend Thomas McCann. Their first real break came when Sparklehorse heard their demos on Myspace.com and offered t... more info

Spinner.com — Location: Orange Yard, Manette St, London WC2Capacity: 275Come to see: Hotly-tipped stars of tomorrow, the odd industry showcase, a wealth of singer-songwriters and alt-country notables and just occasionally a secret gig by bands whose dressing rooms... more info

Spinner.com — Filed under: Down the Front!Location: Orange Yard, Manette St., London WC2Capacity: 275Come to see: Hotly-tipped stars of tomorrow, the odd industry showcase, a wealth of singer-songwriters and alt-country notables and just occasionally a secret gig ... more info