Available at Amazon.com!

As a tribute to Brian Eno's seminal 1978 No-Wave Compilation No New York, Chris Dell'Olio has compiled 16 of New York's finest up-and-coming Rock bands for the Musicians On Call charity (an organization that uses music as a healing process in healthcare facilities) and has called it Yes New York.

There's no doubt that the current interest in the New York music scene was fueled by post 9-11 New York obsession but this compilation proves that the bands can indeed deliver and there's more to the praise than just hype. After a decade of silence from New York (Sonic Youth was the last great band to come out of the city) it is once again the place to be for a respected musician/artist. All this aside, the compilation works as a great introduction to the New York/Garage Rock scene. You have a live version of The Strokes' controversial "New York City Cops", "Rue The Day" from The Walkmen, the somber twilight ballad "Next Plateau" by Longwave, the kick-ass disco flame "Olio" by The Rapture, the drone trip "What Used To Be French" by Secret Machines, and of course the excellent and haunting "NYC" by Interpol. The other tracks are far too reminscent of other bands. For example The Roger Sisters sound way too much like Le Tigre who are also on the compilation and Ted Leo/The Pharmacists' "Ballad Of A Sin Eater" is a Velvet Underground White Light/White Heat-era rip off. But believe it or not, it's all so damn good you don't care. At least they could have put the Liars on here instead. The real gem is the last track "Year To Be Hated" by Unitard. Does that song sound familiar? It should -- it is the original acoustic version of The Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Our Time". Unitard was the original group that Karen O and Nick Zinner started before The Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

If you already know about all these bands you may not want this but buy it anyway as it sure beats making a mix disc yourself, and besides, it's for a good cause.

Wilco: More Like The Moon E.P.

Available for free on their website

Wilco as a thank you to all the fans decided to release a free E.P. (after scrapping a retail one) via their site. Anyone who bought Yankee Hotel Foxtrot simply has to type in the numbered code on the back cover and viola! Now, reviewing a free CD may seem kinda ungrateful, especially if it is a bad review, but that doesn't matter because Wilco have naturally given us not a great CD but at least a good one. These are, of course, b-sides and outtakes from the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot sessions so, of course, they are good.

The E.P. opens with a rock-out version of "Camera" before moving on to the excellent "Handshake Drugs", a guitar noodle showcase that echoes the more country-flavored songs of The Allman Brothers. "Woodgrain" is a dusky acoustic ballad with Tweedy singing to a loved one. "A Magazine Called Sunset" is the real surprise here as it probably would have made a hit single, something Wilco hasn't had. It's a sunny pop tune that show that Wilco haven't lost the fun tunes that were so prominent on Summer Teeth. "Bob Dylan's 49th Beard" is exactly what it sounds like--a folksy number with silly lyrics. "More Like The Moon" ends the E.P. on a good note with a flamenco twang and breezy vocals.

More Like The Moon, like most E.Ps, is simply good, but because of Wilco's excellent songwriting it is above most, and the best thing is that it's free. Yeah, I'll say it again, "free". It just sounds so damn good.