It’s been a busy week for music on IRC. As a supplemental to this past week’s Best New Music Releases playlist, this post features spill-over and additional releases for the week of Oct. 9th. Black Marble are a new-to-us band with a dark, goth, Cure-like current running through their music, which is also marked by a constant, rhythmic beat and haunting synths, similar to Depeche Mode. We like Black Marble’s sounds so much that we had to include a double-shot of songs via Hardly Art, the band’s label.
In the first volume of this past week’s top releases was the new track from A.C. Newman, featuring his bandmate Neko Case on back-up vocals. We got our hands on a second single, “I’m Not Talking,” from his brilliant new album, which New Pornographers and solo Newman fans will likely enjoy. The lead singles from METZ and Caviare Days‘ self-titled debut albums are worth noting for this week as well.
“Static” – Black Marble from A Different Arrangement
Double-shot: “A Great Design” – Black Marble from A Different Arrangement
“I’m Not Talking” – A.C Newman from Shut Down The Streets
“Headache” – METZ from METZ on Sub Pop
“You’ll Qualify” – Caviare Days from Caviare Days
“Versions” – Martin Eden from Dedicate Function on Lefse Records
Swedish Radar Band, Turn Off Your Television
Turn Off Your Television is a Swedish music trio. Their sound is built on soft, melodic folk rock compositions comprised of simple, memorable hooks, harmonica playing, strong vocal harmonies and guitar-driven acoustic Americana. But it doesn’t end there, as the band contends, stating that their music also “blends some Swedish depression [with] songs that spill across your ears like a gentle stream, much like the soothing tones of nature itself. Some people might call it gentle Seattle rock, while others rather refer to the music as cool slow-wave or even alt-country.”
The songs are their debut album are heartfelt, sentimental and beautiful, wrapped in memorable melodies. You can tell these songs weren’t just thrown together to fill up an album – but instead deliberately crafted, meaningful – songs that are intimately lyrical, and musically intriguing. As the band revealed to IRC, their style and sound are largely influenced by music from the 1960s, 70s, and 90s. Assumingly, they are not impressed with the music of the 80’s. In fact, the 80’s were critical to the indie movement’s evolution, not because of what was being played on mainstream radio, but instead what was happening on college radio, alternative radio, and the post punk scene, especially within the U.K. and the U.S.
Turn Off Your Television also refer to particular artists (which is evident in their music) that have inspired them, like Sparklehorse, Grand Archives, Luna, Belle and Sebastian, Cheif, Woods, and Jimi Hendrix, to name a few. We have to give kudos to the band for having such diverse and stellar musical influences. More importantly, it comes across in their music.
We actually like, and have posted, many Swedish artists and bands over the years, and one of our favorite labels is the small, independent Swedish label, Labador Records, home of bands like Radio Dept., Acid House Kings, Club 8, to name just a few. By the way, we like the name of the band, and agree with the sentiment. Too much TV will rot the brain. But we live in a culture where millions of people need their fix of what’s going on with Snooky, the Kardasians and Honey Boo-Boo.
“Blanket of Shame” – Turn Off Your Television from Humble Waves
Husband and Wife Duo, KidCity, Drop Sophomore EP
KidCity is husband and wife music duo, Kelly and Caleb Ellis. The couple employ a gritty sound which they dub as “clip-hop” – dark, melodic pop songs with an overloaded signal. KidCity’s self-titled EP, dropped in May of 2011, features the single “Bloody Face.” The duo have also written songs for various mixtapes and compilations and were featured in NME’s Radar Scene in July of of this year. Their second EP, MRDR BRDNS, draws on heavier and darker themes. Meanwhile, they’re also working on a project called Miserable Singers with Canadian poet Victor Coleman, due out in 2013.
“Call Mom” – KidCity from MRDR BRDNS EP
Winnipeg Band, Departures, Debut LP Gets Howard Bilerman and Bob Weston Touch
Still and Moving Lines, the warm, autumnal post-punk/shoegazer hybrid debut from Winnipeg rock band Departures, is out today on Canadian indie imprint Borana Records. The album, yet another debut this week, was recorded with famed engineer Howard Bilerman (Godspeed You Black Emperor, Arcade Fire) at his Hotel2Tango studio in Montreal and mastered by Shellac bassist Bob Weston in Chicago. The band kicked off an eight-city Canadian tour in Winnipeg this weekend.
“Being There” – Departures from Still and Moving Lines