Blah Blah Blah has released a new video for the second single from their latest ep, Thank You Thank You, called "Soon As I Get Home Tonight". The video was directed by Benjamin Fingerhut ("Breaking and Entering") and features a cameo from Chuck Inglish of The Cool Kids.

This Thursday, Feb. 2nd, Briar Rabbit will be releasing a "suite of songs" called The Great Routine. The collection of tunes attempts to take look back at the turn of the century and the generally accepted entertainment affects of African American artist through history.

Check out the introduction video below.

With "Break It Yourself" coming on March 6th,  Andrew Bird is starting to release a couple of samples of what the new album might sound like. The current sample is a track called "Eyeoneye". This is a fun single with a driving beat, that is a way combines everything "Bird". Yes, there is a whistling, but also a vintage sound that you might not expect.

Eyeoneye by Andrew Bird

Company of Thieves have a new live session up with Lightbox.

Rockie Fresh has released a new mixtape called "Driving 88". The mixtape has been for a week, and already has over 20,000 downloads. Rockie is on his way, and is giving you some beats to make you drive down 88 or any hectic highway a little more enjoyable.

The Traveler is polished debut from Champions, and the band celebrated the release earlier this month at Beat Kitchen. Recorded at Gallery of Carpet, this album filled with blistering and passionate indie pop. It is perfect balance of fuzz and polish that makes this radiate right now. There is a solid node to the ’90’s, but a few tricks that keep them fresh and modern. You can stream and purchase their debut through bandcamp.

2012 is going to be another great year for Chicago music, but one of the releases that I am most excited about is the debut release from the local blues-man Willis Earl Beal. The hype surrounding Beal has slowly been building since the summer and his recent signing to XL Records has added greatly to the swell. Earlies this month, Beal released a new track called "Evening Kiss" that can be streamed below.

Willis Earl Beal’s Acousmatic Sorcery is due via XL/Hot Charity on 19 March.

Willis Earl Beal – Evening’s Kiss by HotCharity

Evan Weiss (aka Into It. Over It.) has released a video for his track "No Good Before Noon". The track comes from his recent release Proper. He will be touring the country, coast to coast, from now until spring and will be performing here at The Bottom Lounge on March 17th.

On the one year anniversary of the release of Moon Furies’ debut album Mercury, the band has released a new track called "Survival". The track comes from their new ep Not Earth which will be released later this year.

Survival by Moon Furies

Andrew Belle’s debut LP The Ladder was released back in 2010, and since that time each track has been featured somehow or somewhere in film or television. From "In My Veins" to "Static Waves" to "Open Your Eyes", the album was extremely well received. The downside to that is the challenge of following that up. On Feb. 28th Belle is releasing his follow-up EP, The Daylight. It is a three song ep and below you can see how excited Belle is about this release.

You can catch Andrew Belle at SPACE in Evanston on Feb. 14th.

These days Hidden Hospitals are anything but while they the kick the promotion for their debut ep "EP 001" in overdrive. The band, containing former members of Damiera and Kiss Kiss, brings a crisp and effective brand of rock oozing with blaring guitars and driving baselines. The band’s first single "Swan Dive" is a soaring anthem that has turned more than a few heads. The four piece band is guided by the wide range in the vocals of David Raymond. His vocals shift effortlessly from hush swoon to forcefully scream through the ep. For a band that only played their first live show in September of last year, "EP 001" is an extremely polished effort.

You can catch Hidden Hospitals at Panchos on Feb 3 with Channel Four, Black Arrow, and Dari.