Music Tuesday: Now Now, Martina Topley-Bird, Everything Everything & More...

As I prep a write-up of this past weekend's DragonCon adventure, I need music to keep my pulse going long enough to finish the deed. And so here we are. And like most weeks where the Monday's a holiday, Tuesday turns out to be Monday in disguise, so this post is still very valid.

More music picks for your Monday. If you like what you hear, use the links provided to snag it for yourself from Amazon. Doing so through us gives us kickbacks, and those help pay for stuff like more bandwidth. And also so we can buy more music.

Just note: any prices we quote are accurate as of when this post goes up.

We start with the simple live fun of "Neighbors" by Now, Now--this recorded in Birmingham, Alabama last year, apparently. I'm also impressed that anybody can play two instruments at once (not to mention singing), since I can barely sing. So. Enjoy.

That's the title track from last year's EP, which is actually cheaper as a CD. Go figure.

If you ever need an example of how a song can be stripped completely down to the bare essentials, try this live in-store performance by Martina Topley-Bird, backed only by a rain stick, a guitar and a ninja. No, honest. Watch it.

She did a different version, close to this one, of "Sandpaper Kisses" on the most recent album, Some Place Simple. However, I'm still sort of attached to the versions of the songs that appeared on her 2003 album, Quixotic. The album on this side of the pond was called Anything and completely reordered...to the thing's detriment, I believe. However, for $9.99 you can get an MP3 of the original album. Recommended. I listened to the hell out of it. And Some Place Simple can be snagged here.

The theme of repetitious band names is unintentional, I promise. But here we have the new song by Everything Everything, which, of course, keeping with the theme, is called "Cough Cough."

This is the first single from their album Arc, due out in January.

After hearing about Two Door Cinema Club in at least one panel that I shared with Music Ministers Rob Levy and Tuffley this weekend at DragonCon--and I think hearing the vote seconded or thirded by Aaron Poole (the weekend's a bit of a blur--we record these panels not only to provide podcast opportunities but also because I'm not kidding when I talk about having a Memento Head)--I decided to check them out. And yes, this is fairly tasty. Here's a live version of the first single from their latest album: the song is "Sleep Alone" and the album is Beacon.

The CD and MP3 of the album are both $9.99 at present. Lovely.

Next, from the badasses that brought you the genius of Dub Side of the Moon, Radiodread and the like...The Easy Star All-Stars--their Michael Jackson cover album, Thrillah, is more awesome than the one line pitch of "reggae cover album of X (solve for X)" would paint it as. But, no, it works and works fantastically. Here's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'."

And following that, it's "No. 2" by Rec Center, from their recent release, Tin Year.

Thrillah is just $6.99 at present as an MP3. You save about $6 grabbing Tin Year as an MP3 download.

Some of this music and more forms the basis for this new playlist, inspired by this past weekend's musical shenanigans.