The Shins recently dropped by the Levi’s Pioneer Sessions to unleash some of their indie-pop flavor on Squeeze’s awesome, 1979 pop gem “Goodbye Girl.”

The web series has already provided free tunes from artists like She & Him and Nas covering classic songs. Pitchfork makes note that this is the first, new Shins music since their lineup change last year; the Squeeze covers features James Mercer (taking a break from Broken Bells), who is joined by Shins guitarist Dave Hernandez along with Modest Mouses’ Joe Plummer on drums and producer Sean Flora playing keyboards.

The Shins’ cover of “Goodbye Girl” can be downloaded for free here. You can also check below to watch an in-studio video of the recording session.

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Side projects are always welcome, as long as they are just that – side projects. When side projects become the main project, fans begin to have something to worry about. One of the latest collaborations is Broken Bells with Brian Danger Mouse Burton and James Mercer of The Shins.

Recently, Mercer told NME that he had started Broken Bells because The Shins started to feel heavy. This led many fans to believe that Mercer was pulling the plug on the Shins. To clarify what he meant, Mercer told MTV that he was interested in both projects and that he didn’t plan to quit the Shins:

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Broken Bells, the team-up between The Shins‘ James Mercer and Danger Mouse, have just released a video for their first single, ‘The High Road.” For a song that has the perfect amount of electronic elements that easily melt into the indie and almost soft-rock we’re accustomed to hearing with Mercer’s vocals, the video seems just about right. However, by right, we don’t mean normal either.

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Wasn’t it just yesterday that we mentioned Yo Gabba Gabba!? True story.

Why were we talking about Nickelodeon’s kids show? Probably because we love Chromeo and they are just ONE of the awesome artists who have contributed to the show. Forget Dora the Explorer or silly purple teletubbies. Yo Gabba Gabba! managed to become the coolest show for both kids and adults. Usually teaching kids positive lessons like “lathering up” before dinner time, guest stars always include indie-friendly artists such as of Montreal, The Shins, and The Roots.

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BeatCrave is a music site dedicated to bringing you the latest in music news, but this story transcends the medium. I recently came across a trailer for the upcoming film entitled, Some Days Are Better Than Others. This is no ordinary movie, it features a roster of rock musicians from Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney to The Shins frontman James Mercer, and believe me, there are a lot more than where they came from.

Check out the cameo laced trailer for Some Days Are Better Than Others…

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Whenever I buy a new CD, I feel so powerful because [it] belongs to me. Trust me when I tell you that even when you buy downloads on Amazon, or iTunes, the feeling is not the same because you don’t have the packaging of the music you bought. Although downloading is very convenient, there is no feeling like tearing apart that CD wrapper and looking through the art in the booklet. So dear readers here is another cheap DVDs series to keep you happy and save you time because we know you’re busy.

Take a look at our great finds …

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• Voxhaul Broadcast (and Friends) | Friday, May 8 | 8:00 pm | $8 – $10 | Spaceland, Los Angeles, CA – Map | The Orange County-based band comes  baring a style that is at once tough and mellow, intricate and easy to digest. Seems to us that they’re attempting a subconscious approach at standing out by blending in pseudo-seamlessly with the crowd. Sneaky, much? In either case, it sounds like they’re in this for the long run, like their audible counterparts, the Kings of Leon. They will be playing with Local Natives, Aushua, and Rumspringa. Click here for tickets.
• Fischerspooner | Friday, May 8 | 7:00 pm | 18+ | $27.50 – $32 | Webster Hall, New York, NY – Map | The heavily electric, avant-garde, new wave-esque duo have set their North American tour in motion. By liberally drowning audience members in sick beats and outrageous performance art involving numerous bodies onstage, they will  be promoting their recently released album, “Between Worlds”, and just, well, putting on what sounds like will be one hell of a show.  Click here for tickets.
• The Giraffes | Saturday, May 9 | 10:30 pm | 21+ |  $10 | Mercury Lounge, New York, NY – Map | Wow. If you think you haven’t heard hard rock since Metallica, Soundgarden, or Alice in Chains, think again… long and hard. Do you think the band settled on their name because the animal is notoriously known for not making a sound? For ticket information, call (212) 260-4700.

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No doubt one of your top New Year’s resolutions was to expose yourself to as much new music as possible (everyone is as obsessed with music as me, right?), so check out a few of these new albums that you can get right now and some upcoming releases that are likely to exacerbate your musical addiction (but please, pace yourself).

• Tell it to the Volcano – Miniature Tigers: This new rock quartet from Phoenix released this debut gem in August 2008, but they are finally getting deserved exposure with a recently announced tour accompanying indie-rockers Deer and the Headlights through March. Miniature Tigers sounds like a cross between The Shins and The Fratellis with an occasional Weezer-esque guitar crunch. In other words: pure pop pleasure.
• Brighten the Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition – Pavement: Although it is a remastered re-release (released Dec. 9), Pavement’s new edition of 1997′s Brighten the Corners features a 24-song second disc of B-sides and rarities that some candid moments in the band’s career. Recommended tracks: “Harness Your Hopes” and “Stereo.”

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