It’s mid-July, and here come the tomatoes! Little grape tomatoes, pear-shaped yellow tomatoes, and gobs of the most ginormous tomatoes I have ever grown. The big one above is almost the size of a softball. This is only what I picked yesterday. A lot more are on the way. Soon we will be eating them for lunch and dinner and on our breakfast cereal and giving them away to neighbors and co-workers. Sadly, I cannot figure out how to make them available to you for download. This photo is the only way they digitize.

Kate Campbell is a good ol’ girl from Nashville who has a Lucinda Williams-like voice.

Kate Campbell - Jesus and Tomatoes from Sing Me Out (2007)
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I am trying to get back in the posting groove, but I don’t know how much blogging I am going to be able to do in the next several days. I can see actual, paying work looming on the near horizon, and since it is rare, I have to prioritize it when it comes.

It All Started With Carbon Monoxide has a post on the Hotest Songs of All Time that features some of the Aussie artists who made the list. I know Powderfinger, Augie March, and Crowded House, but a couple of the others are new to me.

Local Vertical has some extremely funny commentary on the Endeavor launch using photo stills from Flash Gordon. Take a look! And keep scrolling down for the real photos and some good tunes.

This week’s Contrast Podcast is one of the rare editions of musicians introducing their own songs. These podcasts are always particularly rich, and the current one is no exception.

There’s honey at Muzzle of Bees: look for Grand Archives’ “Torn Blue Foam Couch” (don’t you like it just from the title?), Deer Tick, and southern-rockers Bloodkin, just for starters.

Captain Obvious has a review and a couple of tracks from the new album by the latest Scottish invasion, We Were Promised Jetpacks. This album is on my list to listen to because I loved their “Quiet Little Voices,” but I still haven’t gotten around to it. So much music, so little time. Thanks, Captain Obvious!

Today John at Side One Track One features Shonen Knife. It’s been a while since I have thought of them. Scroll down for a video by new band The Blakes.

Just a bit of the new stuff that is coming at me like a tidal wave:

It’s no fluke that this song by Norwegian artist Datarock has a title identical to a Talking Heads song. It’s a tribute to David Byrne, and a good one, that captures the spirit and flavor of the original band. It contains a running stream of other Talking Heads’ titles and lyrics.

Datarock - True Stories from Red (2009)
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This is the first band I have listened to that bears an obvious resemblance to my favorite Canadians, Wolf Parade. I just received this album, and this song and the first one on the album (”Kitchen Party”) make me want to hear the rest. Black Hat Brigade are also on the long list for the Polaris Prize I mentioned last Sunday in regards to Woodpigeon.

Black Hat Brigade - Zombie City Shake from Fathers (2009)
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Excellent new single from the Dodos’ third album, set for release on July 28. Preorder at Insound.

The Dodos - Fables from Time To Die (2009)
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San Francisco foursome Sir Salvatore have just released their third EP, also available on iTunes, and here’s a jangly single from it.

Sir Salvatore - Fireflies, Reading Books from Good Luck Charm EP (2009)
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Filed under: blogs, finally friday, personal lives, Black Hat Brigade, Datarock, Kate Campell, Sir Salvatore, The Dodos

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