Ty Segall - "You Make The Sun Fry"

My experience with bands recording covers records is that the proceeding follow up LP always tends to be much richer from that experience (see Phosphorescent's Here's To Taking It Easy after To Willie and Vetiver's Tight Knit post Thing of the Past). Think of it as a rock & roll masters class. Fresh off his Ty Rex EP of T. Rex covers, Ty Segall is set to return with Goodbye Bread—yes that adorable hound photograph is the actual cover art—on June 21st via Drag City. And yes, that bluesy swagger on the LP's first single, "You Make The Sun Fry," reeks of Marc Bolan—and that's a very good thing.

Ty Segall - "You Make The Sun Fry" (from Goodbye Bread)

Video: Phosphorescent - "My Dove, My Lamb"

Matthew Houck of Phosphorescent recently performed a barefoot Take Away Show in and on the roof of his Brooklyn apartment for Toms' One Day Without Shoes—an annual event held on April 5th to raise awareness of the impact a pair of shoes can have on a child’s life. Houck performed two songs off his 2007 album Pride: "At Death, A Proclamation” and "My Dove, My Lamb." The latter of which is particularly stunning with Houck singing quietly over a plucked and swirling electric guitar. Watch after the jump.

Phosphorescent - "Cocaine Lights" (Daytrotter)

I'm on a big Phosphorescent kick right now. The record Matthew Houck and his band released yesterday on Dead Oceans is without a doubt the best country record I've heard in years. Who knew Houck could handcraft a set of songs so massively appealing? Here's To Taking It Easy isn't simply satisfying a niche in an indie scene; this is the type of album that feels good whoever you are, wherever you are: hipsters, country folks, rockers, and soul fans are all welcome to throw back a few on this storyteller's front porch. If To Willie was meant to draw in a more mainstream audience, then Here's To Taking It Easy is their reward for sticking around.

Phosphorescent - "Cocaine Lights" (Daytrotter)

Phosphorescent delivers an absolute classic

Country music is alive and well in the hands of Matthew Houck. As Phosphorescent, Houck has been writing inspired folk and country songs for 7 years. But after stretching his legs on last year's Willie Nelson covers album To Willie, Houck's music has now suddenly evolved into something even greater. Despite the easygoing nature of Phosphorescent's new record and it's accompanying title, Here's To Taking It Easy is a true reckoning force spilling over with talent and a casually charming electricity. Only 9 songs long, the album is deceptively short and straightforward, but therein lies its greatest strength as every song here is a timelessly constructed classic devoid of anything resembling filler. Remember that thing called an album? This is it.

Phosphorescent - "The Mermaid Parade" (from Here's To Taking It Easy)

Phosphorescent - "It's Hard To Be Humble (When You're From Alabama)" (from Here's To Taking It Easy)