I love the post-school quiet. The cap-and-gown thing is behind me, but I still eagerly anticipate the calm that comes over my home of Norman when college students leave town for their summer abodes. Since musicians work pretty much on college schedules, too (note the blast of shows that corresponded with the end of finals), this week is a welcome respite from the manic months of spring-release season.

But for musicians, it’s merely a pause, as summer touring/festival season soon will be upon us. Seeing as Zoo Amphitheatre is already open for business, in some regards, it’s already upon us. But I think Third Eye Blind at Diamond Ballroom this Friday will really be the kick-off.

Is there any better summer music than 3EB? I heard that if you play “Semi-Charmed Life” backward, there’s a sunshiny voice that tells you to roll down your windows and sing. Yeah. It’s that good. I’ve heard that 3EB also released some new music recently, but is anyone going to hear that? No. Let’s hear some “Jumper”! “Motorcycle Drive-By”! “Semi-Charmed Life” again!

Whether or not Third Eye Blind is up your alley, grab these free MP3s while you’re here:
1.    “Grandfather’s Gun” — Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey. Unsurprisingly, vintage jazz and big-band sounds play in this first taste of new album “Tulsa Race Riot Suite” by the post-everything melodic masters. (Stream only)
2.    “Milkman” — EMA. Weird, uneasy, interesting electro-pop cut from the excellently titled “Past Life Martyred Saints.”
3.    “Lost Cause” — Bird Call. This stark cover of a Beck tune is a surprisingly calm take from the usually excitable Chiara Angelicola (pictured).
4.    “My Heart’s a Cannonball” — Lelia Broussard. A shuffling, neo-country take on her singer/songwriter pop.
5.    “The Greeks” — Is Tropica. You know when bands sometimes put up a big huge sign that says “MASSIVE TECHNO BREAK COMING,” and then it happens, and it’s awesome?

But not really. Name’s Matt. Stephen’s off to graduate school on full scholarship, so I’m the new blogger ‘round these here parts.

Quick hits: Leo. Favorite non-Flaming Lips local band is Colourmusic. I know the lyrics to“Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” back-to-front. Random fun fact: My brother is on a first-name basis with Dan Marino. I’m still looking to replace a big LCD Soundsystem-shaped hole in my heart. Taylor Swift’s first and second albums have been known to rattle the speakers in the privacy of my car, on occasion. Big supporter of dance rock.

Underrated: The Drive-By Truckers’ “Brighter Than Creation’s Dark”, dance rock in general, post-“Girls Can Tell” Spoon, Lost in the Trees, and the Rolling Stones’ “Some Girls.”

Overrated: Passion Pit, Animal Collective, My Morning Jacket’s “Z,” and probably James Blake, too, but you’d have to put a gun to my head to make me admit it. Also, everything U2's recorded since “The Joshua Tree”. Though let it be known that “The Joshua Tree” is so unbelievably good that you can’t possibly overstate how good it is.

Let’s get on with the vids, then.

Broncho rapidly ascended to the near-top of my fictional All-Okie Festival bill when I bought their debut album a few months back. Caught them at the Soundpony in Tulsa a little while ago and, sure enough, the Internet warlocks at Delo Creative were there with a butt-ton of camera equipment in tow. I think I speak for the entirety of this state when I say these guys are gonna make it big. And soon:

Novak Djokovic’s appearance in this hilarious video probably had at least a little something to do with his recent #1 ATP ranking:



Freaky, psychedelic, synthy chicks glow in the dark:



Like Stephen, I’m a proud Tulsa native and, save for Hanson, nobody’s name’s better-recognized in Tulsa than Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey. Their new “Race Riot Suite” received standing ovations at the Tulsa PAC last month:



Not unlike most of the planet, I really didn’t care much for Radiohead’s latest. I do, however, dig Nigel Godrich’s intimate “From the Basement” series and this frenetic, dual-drummer performance of “Staircase” is intense:  



Everything about Mastodon is massively awesome right now. Album art, track titles, and this puppet-stomping video for “Deathbound”:

Written by Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey lap steel guitarist Chris Combs, the band’s new long-form LP, “Race Riot Suite,” debuted live back in May to blissful reviews from critics. Now the Tulsa act has announced a new single and a 29-date tour, including several stops in the 918 and 405.

The single, “Black Wall Street,” opens with Brian Haas’s always-excellent grand piano tinkering and builds into a full-on zig-zagging lap steel party, backed by an all-star brass lineup recruited to paint a picture of the once-populous Greenwood district, one of the most successful black communities in American history.

Unfortunately, most of Greenwood was destroyed during the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot, an oft-neglected and particularly ugly chapter of our state’s history, which JFJO depicts with awe-inspiring detail and clarity in the “Race Riot Suite.”

You can catch the group in their hometown of Tulsa performing at 11 p.m. July 30 at the FreeTulsa Music Festival; Aug. 13 at Simmer Fest in Tahlequah; or Aug. 26 at The Deli in Norman. They’ll set out for dates in the Pacific Northwest, Northeast and South before returning to Tahlequah on Nov. 18.

Click below to watch the band’s May 20 performance of “Black Wall Street” at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center.

Ah, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey. One of my hometown’s finest treasures. It’s the QuikTrip of eclectic, often improvisational fusion jazz.

The band recently headed out to the Greenwood District in Tulsa with This Land Press to shoot an impromptu performance of one of the songs on its most excellent, most recent LP, “The Race Riot Suite,” which tells the mostly untold story of the Tulsa Race Riot in 12 songs.

Also of note is pianist Brian Haas’ melodica, which is much more convenient than lugging a piano around the streets of Tulsa. Watch:

While it’s old news that Portugal. The Man and Hayes Carll are headlining the fifth installment of Norman Music Festival, the festival’s publicity committee announced the lineups for the Main Stage and Jack Daniels Stage last week (sorry I’m late to the game, but I was out of the office covering SXSW like a madman all last week). Here they are, alphabetically:

Main Stage
• Portugal. The Man
• Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey
• Weekend Hustler
• Rainbows Are Free
• Crown Imperial
• Modern Rock Diaries
• Other Lives (pictured)

Jack Daniels Stage
• Hayes Carll
• The Giving Tree
• Parker Millsap
• The Damn Quails
• Alejandro Escovedo
• Krystal Keith
• Possum Posse
• Camille Harp
• John Calvin

Scheduled performance times and the full lineup of NMF bands will be announced in early April. NMF5 will take place April 26-28.

Also, set for April 19 at the Southwestern Oklahoma State University Wellness Center in Weatherford is SWOSUPalooza 13: “Raps and Chaps.” It’ll feature the following artists.

• Stoney LaRue
• Josh Sallee
• Curtis & Luckey
• Delvin Sirleaf

Tickets to SWOSUPalooza are $15.