Vocals are kinda buried, but you get the idea. Plus you get “The Great Gravitron Massacre” as a bonus after the new tune.

Also, the solo release from Micah Schnabel (that bespectacled guy singing up there), When the Stage Lights Go Dim, is out now, and you can stream the whole thing over at Spinner. SXSW info for Micah and Two Cow’s Saturday shows, along with Schnabel’s solo acoustic take on “Bastards & Bridesmaids,” after the jump. (more…)

MP3: Micah Schnabel – American Static

This record started out as something Micah pressed himself and sold out shows, but Suburban Home is giving When the Stage Lights Go Dim a proper release on March 9. And proper, it is — you can pre-order six different packages. There’s digital (mp3 and flac), CD, black vinyl, green-and-white vinyl, plus coozies, buttons, pint glasses, posters and so on.

I also got a pleasant surprise when I pulled the trigger on the green vinyl pre-order: The mp3 download for the record (which is e-mailed immediately) also included a digital album called “Two Cow Garage – Live @ 3 Kings,” which presumably is from one of the band’s shows at the 3 Kings Tavern in Denver. Nice!

After a cursory listen, the record is pretty much all I would want from a Micah Schnabel solo album — no frills, very few overdubs or collaborators (lil’ piano here, lil’ fiddle there). Just the man’s tobacco-stained voice and acoustic guitar. Not slick, not quite lo-fi. And I can’t imagine a more perfect song for him to cover than the Replacements’ “Can’t Hardly Wait.”

If you want to give it a test run before pulling the trigger yourself, you can grab that mp3 up there and stream the whole album here.

“American Static” is on Schnabel’s solo release, When the Stage Lights Go Dim, which had a soft release this year and will supposedly be re-pressed with a bigger release in 2010.