Morning Music Notes – Plenty of Streaming and Even Some News

Good morning faithful readers and internet spam bots. Step right this way for an abundance of streaming that is available to you this fine morning, and then skim some news while you sip your tea or coffee.

Mercury Prize Unveiled Later Today

This afternoon in North America (and weirdly the evening in the UK), the Mercury Prize for best album in the UK and Ireland will be awarded. The odds makers have PJ Harvey winning her second award (via NME).

“William Hill is offering odds of 6/4 on the (PJ Harvey) album, with James Blake’s debut the second favourite at 5/1. Adele’s ’21’ is trailing in third at 6/1, followed by Anna Calvi’s debut and Metronomy’s ‘The English Riviera’ both at 7/1.”

Run to the bookies now and try and make some cash.

Lil Wayne Destroys the Throne

All we’ve heard about the past month (especially on this blog), is The Throne this and The Throne that. Well, I guess Kanye and Jay-Z didn’t ‘watch the throne’ as much as they claimed to have. Lil Wayne’s new album, Tha Carter IV (Roman numerals add instant credibility), has broken the US iTunes Store’s single-week album sales record (via The Hollywood Reporter).

“Tha Carter IV has sold over 300,000 downloads via iTunes in only its first four days of release, according to Cash Money/Universal Republic Records. That outpaces the 290,000 that Throne moved through iTunes in its entire first week. Carter’s achievement is all the more impressive because it’s available through all digital and physical retailers, not just iTunes. Comparatively, Throne was sold exclusively through iTunes for its first four days of release.”

“Further, Carter IV is on its way to an overall first-week start of more than 850,000 copies — digital and physical sales combined – according to industry prognosticators. If Carter IV shifts 850,000 or more, it will instantly mark the biggest sales week for a hip-hop album (or one by a male artist), since his own Carter III bowed with 1.01 million on the June 28, 2008 chart according to Nielsen SoundScan.”

Seems like The Throne had better come back with an even more impressive album and marketing campaign. Apparently the trick is to spend time in jail.

PJ20 Weekend Wrap Up

Pearl Jam just had a special 20th anniversary show in East Troy, Wisconsin (um, where?!). They pulled out all the stops, including a Temple of the Dog reunion, tons of guest spots, and lots of encores. Check out Billboard’s review of the weekend.

Make Your Ears Happy: Justice – Audio, Video, Disco.

Still loving the title of the new Justice album. A new song was posted on Facebook. It is being reported as a legit song, but some commenters think it is a fake. Either way, take a listen below to the title track of the new album.

Justice – Audio, Video, Disco
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Make Your Ears Happy (again!): Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – AKA…What A Life!

Okay, so this song title isn’t as cool as the Justice song/album title, but who cares – it’s a new Noel Gallagher single. This is the follow up single to The Death of You and Me.

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – AKA…What A Life!
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Stream the Entire Album: Laura Marling – A Creature I Don’t Know

Previous Mercury Prize nominee Laura Marling is coming out with her third album next week. But she (or her label) kindly let the world stream the album in its entirity a full week in advance. It’s like it’s Christmas mixed with some other gift-giving holiday! Check out the album via the NY Times website, and post any thoughts in the comment section.