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Minneapolis' Cloud Cult, whose most recent album Feel Good Ghosts (Tea-Partying Through Tornadoes) tore up the CMJ charts, is a band on a mission. The band, formed in 1995, features a cellist, violinists, and two painters, all of whom perform live. Cloud Cult is active on Facebook, MySpace, and all of the usual important places (including Simple, Good, and Tasty, as of now). The music is excellent, intelligent indie rock with impassioned vocals and strings. But here's what caught my eye on YouTube:

Minneapolis, Minnesota's Cloud Cult continues to take a unique path to success in the indie rock world... money never seems to be the focus for Cloud Cult. In all that they do, they attempt to go as green as possible. It is as important to them as the actual music they create. Maintaining a minimal ecological footprint is always the first focus of lead singer Craig Minowa. He runs an organic farm, where from his basement, he records much of Cloud Cult's music - the recording studio is built from recycled and salvaged materials and all parts of the farm are powered by geothermal power and wind energy.

His label, Earthology Records, is also attempting to take all their album sales digital to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Minowa foresees show patrons simply bringing their iPods to the merch table at shows and downloading the latest Cloud Cult record straight to it. While touring in support of their The Meaning of 8 album, the band planted ten trees for every 1,000 records sold. All their CDs are made from hand-cleaned reused jewel cases with recycled cardboard and paper. Their tour van even has solar panels.

So there you have it. Cloud Cult is officially the coolest band in the universe. Listen to this great song for more proof: