Zee Avi- I already posted her brilliant Morrissey cover.  Here’s her single and another great cover (Interpol).  Amazing voice proving you don’t have to be loud to move me, despite what you’ve been saying about me.

Phoenix- Their new album is terrific and this band will certainly make the transition live.

BrakesBrakesBrakes- For those about to fall asleep, we salute you…

Alberta Cross- They ignore my plaintive cries for an interview, but I still love them.  I could post a video of every song they’ve ever recorded and you’d be impressed.  I’ve chosen my favorite song despite it not being a true “video”.  It might be the most heartbreakingly beautiful song I’ve ever heard.  What a joy it would be to see them live.

White Rabbits-The kind of band that ought to be blogged about every single day by the cool kids.  I was on the fence until I saw this performance on Letterman.  What do we learn from this?  They must be amazing live, hence our Bonnaroo recomendation.

The Knux- Silly?  Yep.  Fits the mold of most of the bands we like? Nope.  Breaking news: I don’t listen to alternative 24/7.  Love this song and I’m not apologizing for it.

St. Vincent- Oh the hype.  But in this case, it’s justified.  Check out this rehersal video and realize that this is how good they are when they aren’t even really trying.  Imagine the Bonnaroo-goodness!  Annie Clark is an amazing talent, worthy of the adulation.

Jenny Lewis- She is the lead singer of one of my favorite bands and as you can see from this Coachella video, she is amazing on her own.  Another of the great singers at the festival this weekend.

Gomez- Why isn’t this band one of the top 5 biggest alternative bands in the blogosphere?  Did they pass on going bowling with Stereogum?  I saw them in Dallas last night and was blown away.  Technical ability- A+, Songwriting- A+.

Bon Iver- As I progress through this post, my heart continues to sink as I look at this amazing roster that I’m missing.  I envision walking the grounds carrying a box of kleenex, crying at the beauty and the majesty.  Bon Iver, you’d make me weep with joy.

Tremendous video from Jools Holland’s show

Band of Horses- I’m going to stop here, although their are bigger names on the top of the bill.  For me, this would be the perfect way to end the weekend.  A band who’s music I hear everywhere (commercials, movies, tv shows, the soundtrack of my dreams) and who really should be running their own country by now by virtue of their amazing ability to craft songs.  Dude, we elected an actor and a cowboy.  Could BOH do any worse?

Some people don’t remember Letterman’s NBC days when his show was frequently chaotic and defined comedy in many ways during the 80′s.  Since he moved to the 11:30 slot on CBS (I’m worried about you, Conan) he mellowed out.  We’ve talked about the great Andy Kaufman appearances on Letterman.  Here are some other great chaotic clips from NBC Letterman.

Here’s the Cripin Glover on acid appearance where Dave walked off the show for the first and only time.

The great Brother Theodore.  He was a frequent guest and it’s worth hunting down his other appearances on youtube.

and here’s Joaquin Phoenix’s appearance last night.

Phoenix is a wildly talented actor (Walk The Line anyone?) and this is clearly a put-on.  The discussion this morning should be about how brilliant the two were last night.  Letterman was as quick as I’ve seen him in years and was clearly inspired by Phoenix’s performance.  Bravo!