FREE MUSIC THURSDAY

Free Music Friday is so eager to return to work after its Caribbean sojourn that for one week only it’s turning into Free Music Thursday. First up this week? Why it's the legendary Mr. Leonard Cohen with promises to be his final ever record...

Kicking us off at [link]www.npr.org/2012/01/22/145340430/first-listen-leonard-cohen-old-ideas[/link] is the stream of Laughing Lennie’s fabulous new album. Now what we want are some live dates!

The lovely National Public Radio are also streaming the new LPs from Australian sensation Gotye and Chile’s Ana Tijoux at [link]www.npr.org/2012/01/22/145476681/first-listen-gotye-making-mirrors[/link] and [link]www.npr.org/2012/01/22/145336538/first-listen-ana-tijoux-la-bala[/link] respectively.

There’s also the gift of the Rodrigo y Gabriela at [link]www.npr.org/2012/01/15/144962952/first-listen-rodrigo-y-gabriela-area-52[/link] and the chance to cop a pre-release earful of Hold Steady man Craig Finn’s debut solo album at [link]www.npr.org/2012/01/15/144960565/first-listen-craig-finn-clear-heart-full-eyes[/link]

Co-produced by Bon Iver, Kathleen Edwards’ Voyageur collection can be listened to at [link]www.rounderartists.com/kathleenedwards/voyageur[/link]
We strongly suspect that superstardom for Ms. Edwards awaits.

Cast Of Cheers step up another gear with their soon-to-be-released new single, ‘Family’. The accompanying video is redolent of Talking Heads – a hugely good thing in our book. The track also gets a Richie Egan makeover at [link]soundcloud.com/thecastofcheers/the-cast-of-cheers-family-jape[/link]

Irish gentleman Holmes Price has a new record coming out on the very fine DFA label. [link]soundcloud.com/holmes-price[/link] includes his previous Adele and Roisin Murphy remixes.

Talking of DFA, you can watch the trailer for LCD Soundsystem's live Madison Square Garden concert film below.

Ed Sheeran is giving away the potty-mouthed ‘You Don’t Know (For Fuck’s Sake)’ at [link]hulkshare.com/5w6269y3edcm[/link]. The bloke doing the rapping is Eminem’s mate Yelawolf who was interviewed in the last issue of Hot Press. Check that out here.

It’s been rave reviews all round for the new Delorentos album, Little Sparks, which is streaming in its entirety at [link]entertainment.ie/Music/feature/Delorentos-Little-Sparks-%20%20-Free-Stream/1/2226.htm[/link]. We have exclusive acoustic takes of three of the tracks as well as an interview here.

Errors, who pay Dublin’s Grand Social a post-Valentine’s Day visit on February, are also streaming their new meisterwork at [link]drownedinsound.com/news/4144367-album-stream--errors-have-some-faith-in-magic[/link]

The remaining members of The Doors feature in the video for the banging new Skrillex tune, ‘Breakn’ A Sweat’. Mr. Moore obviously didn’t win any spelling bees when he was a kid.

Next up we have the vid for ‘This City Tonight’, the new single from hot Irish prospects Valentino Is Dead. There’s also a free download to be had at [link]valentinoisdead.bandcamp.com[/link]

We thoroughly approve of what Matt Corby has done to The Black Keys’ ‘Lonely Boy’. So much so that we’re willing to overlook that Mr. Corby is a former Australian Idol contestant.

Sticking with covers, Ingrid Michaelson performed a very different version of REM’s ‘Nightswimming’ recently on America’s Sirius XM satellite radio channel.

Which brings us to our penultimate Free Music Friday (on a Thursday) offering, a [link]soundcloud.com/the-jane-bradfords/sets/100-miles-of-broken-pavement/s-gHV0X[/link] stream of the new album from Belfast hotshots The Jane Bradfords. Think The National mixed with LCD Soundsystem and you’ll have an idea of how great they are.

Soon to be interviewed in Hot Press, Emeli Sande (who appears to have stolen Celina Murphy’s hair) gives us this nifty sampler version of her debut album, Our Version Of Events.

Which is where, sob, we must leave you for this week. Send your Free Music Friday links to @stuartclark66