Desaparecidos release new single and b-side, 'Anonymous' and 'The Left is Right'

Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes and solo-artist fame's rock outfit, Desaparecidos, are putting out two new songs in the form of a seven-inch single. 'Anonymous' -- an ode to the hacker group of the same name -- and 'The Left is Right' -- about the Occupy Movement -- should be available for pre-order on their webstore tomorrow.

This makes four-new songs from the recently-reunited band, following their last single release of MariKKKopa and Backsell. No announcement yet of a proper follow-up to their only full-length, 'Read Music/Speak Spanish, but surely they're building towards that. Right? RIGHT!?

You can listen to both new songs on Rolling Stone's site now, or hit the jump to check out their last two new songs.

Unoriginal Soundtracks #42: Civilization 5 Gods and Kings

Every other Wednesday, I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for relevant terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and uncover hidden gems. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

Religion adds a surprising new incentive for war in Civilization 5. Newly founded religions grant the civilization of its origin perks worth defending from gentiles, heretics, and infidels. And espionage adds nuance to diplomacy with other leaders, with big risks and rewards for spying on them. All of that allows for a playlist of sneering post-punk, pious funk, and more great music.

February Music Wrap-Up

The Music Wrap-Up is a monthly summary of my favorite and other notable new releases. Having trouble keeping up with all the new music? Need some music suggestions? Then the Music Wrap-Up is for you. And please support these musicians as that's the reason I'm featuring them in the first place.
The music onslaught of 2011 is beginning, so hold on tight! With surprises like a brand new Radiohead album out of the blue -- on top of the line-up of releases we already had -- there is a ton of great music coming out. I dug into some of these releases and found bands I'd never listened to before but will likely become some of my favorites.

Mogwai seem like a great post-rock type of band that I've all but ignored until now, Adele is a wonderfully talented woman that deserves the attention she's getting, and The Dears are another great act out of Montreal that have, until now, I've let be eclipsed by the bigger-name bands. Plus, new music from Trail of Dead, The Dirtbombs, and Bright Eyes. It was a good month for music, and March is only looking better. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let's enjoy what February had to offer right now.

Unoriginal Soundtracks: Alan Wake Edition

Every other Wednesday I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, songs about world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for random terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and rediscover old classics.

Alan Wake, like Max Payne before it, is simultaneously great and trash. It embraces King-Koontz thriller novels and exaggerates them like Payne did to noir cinema and comics. It's a guilty pleasure -- its melodrama is laughable at times, but Alan is a nuanced character I cared for more than enough to help find his wife. It's derivative, but that's what Remedy do best -- they grind popular culture into a brilliant condensed pulp.

Shuffled: Reagan Edition

Every other Wednesday I hit the shuffle button on my 90 gigabytes of music and post the results. I might have to justify some of the stuff in my library, but hopefully it will help inform you of new music -- Or at least be entertaining.

Sometimes I wonder if iTunes' shuffle mode knows more than it is letting on. Maybe it is really a sentient robot programmed to provide an enjoyable mix of tunes. I mean, how else can you explain the fact that I ended up with a Reagan themed song to begin and end this Shuffled? Well, technically the first one is a Reagan themed band, not song. Also, I more frequently end up with the middle of an audiobook thrown into my mix, so maybe there aren't any sentient robots. Still, Reagan theme is crazy!