Artist of the Month, Black Kids is set to release a new, full-length album (albeit for Columbia Records) called Partie Traumatic on July 22.
With danceable, catchy songs reminiscent of a mix between The Cure and Arcade Fire, Jacksonville, Florida’s indie outfit Black Kids have received a heavy dose of critical acclaim, blogger buzz, and the inevitable backlash over the past year.
The band, who made it on to the indie music map with the singles “I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You” and “Hurricane Jane” (see link below) is now under enormous pressure with the upcoming release of their debut album, and fans and critics will be expecting more than just a hurried release containing a set of mediocre songs.
However, it is important to note that the band’s ‘debut’ only contains three new songs. That is not something that works in the band’s favor or will necessarily sell more records than an album that contains a full set of new songs.
It’s always amusing, and somehow pretentious, for the naysayers of indie rock ‘sensations’ – as Black Kids have become – to conveniently praise a talented new band and then turn around and bash them for becoming popular, which is sort of what I’m doing here, but not really, because overall, their music speaks for itself – and does a fine job at that.
If they were pretentious and in-your-face about their indie stardom, as some musicians are, that would be a different story. So far, all indications point to an amazingly creative and exciting band with catchy sound and name.
If you are not familiar with Black Kids, you can listen to this free MP3 from Black Kids and also following some of the music links to stream their music, get more information about the band and access their playlists on various social networking sites.
MP3: Hurricane Jane by Black Kids from the upcoming debut album, Partie Traumatic
The following is the song and video – “I Don’t Want To Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You” – that put the band into the spotlight (especially in the U.K., where the band has a large, loyal following):
