Best new indie rock songs, indie news, best bands, reviews
Chelsea Light Moving, a new band founded and fronted by Sonic Youth‘s iconic songwriter, singer and guitarist, Thurston Moore, will release its debut album via Matador on Sept. 25th. If the rocking single, “Moving Empires,” and poetic “Burroughs,” are any indication of the album itself, it’s likely to be one of the best debuts of 2012.
“Moving Empires” – Chelsea Light Moving from TBD – Sept. 25th
Double-shot: “Burroughs” – Chelsea Light Moving from TBD
Every so often, while sifting through hundreds – thousands since 2008 – of artist and band music submissions, we come upon a DIY artist that stands out from all of the rest.
The great thing about this series has always been that it profiles artists who are clearly talented, and are usually not widely known. Plus, as with all DIY artists, they write, record and distribute their music without the help of a label or a publicist.
This week we have chosen Dalton, the solo-project of Brooklyn singer/songwriter Nate Harar. Prior to embarking on this recent solo-project, Harar sang and played guitar with indie-rock band Sugar, It’s Eli. However, the band broke up when two of the members moved away.
Last year, Harar decided to embark on his first creative-solo project playing bass, guitar, synthesizer and drums while recording in his apartment studio. The result is his debut, self-titled EP, released via Bandcamp on July 24th.
In a year where indie rock seems to have lost some of its luster, Dalton is one new artist that is doing his part to breath new life into the genre.
Dalton’s sound is energetic, raw and exciting, boosted by a hodgepodge of genres, distorted guitars and wild-eyed, lo-fi vocals reminiscent of popular indie bands like Oberhofer.
“Breaker” – Dalton from Dalton EP
“Animal” – Dalton from Dalton EP
Harar has a wide variety of musical influences, but none more than David Bowie. “David Bowie is my favorite artist just based on the quality and longevity of his career,” Harar said. “His string of albums from Aladdin Sane through Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) is unrivaled in my opinion. I really take inspiration from his ability to constantly change his sound from album to album and still put out such amazing music.”
As for his own style, Harar said, “I don’t have any barriers in my songwriting. I don’t sit around and think: ‘I’m going to write a bluesy song today’. I let the music and the song dictate how it turns out. I would get bored limiting myself to one type of musical genre.”
“Hostel” is an earlier track that was not featured on Dalton’s debut EP.
“Hostel” – Dalton
Artists Opened For: None
Top Musical Influences: David Bowie, Nirvana, Gomez, The Pixies, Talking Heads, Arcade Fire, Peter Gabriel, Blur
Official Website: Dalton’s Bandcamp page
Year Formed: 2011
As summer fades, the number of new album releases steadily increases. Last week was one of the best weeks of the summer for new album releases, featuring new singles from the latest albums by bands like Yeasayer, Bloc Party, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, and others. This week, the musical offerings are even better, with singles from new albums by Wild Nothing, Poor Moon, Matthew Dear, Dan Deacon, TEEN, The Bilinda Butchers, Divine Fits and others.
One of our favorite artists of the past few years, Wild Nothing, has released a new album, Nocturne, containing the lead single, “Paradise,” a summery pop track of distorted synths and melodic hooks. Following Wild Nothing is the warm, uptempo love song, “Holiday,” oozing with tropical romanticism. It’s the third single from the self-titled debut by Poor Moon. The party-like cruise boat allure of “Holiday” is a perfect follow-up to the mood-setting “Paradise.”
Next, Matthew Dear explores new territory again on his new LP, Beams, that includes the busy semi-electronic/new wave track, “Headcage,” which has elements of 1980’s Brian Eno. There is also plenty of rock and roll on Beams; in fact, Dear serves up more rock on his latest album than on previous releases. This week’s new releases mix really amps up next with “Lots” (strategically placed) – a blazing, relentless synth rager from Dan Deacon. Get ready to get up and dance on this one – it’s easily one of the best tracks of the summer. This must be synth week because one single after another from new albums this week are synth-driven, including fresh tracks from The Blinda Butchers, Divine Fits, TEEN, and others.
“Paradise” – Wild Nothing from Nocturne on Captured Tracks
“Holiday” – Poor Moon from Poor Moon on Sub Pop
“Headcage” – Matthew Dear from Beams on Ghostly International
“Lots” – Dan Deacon from America on Domino Records
Double-shot: “True Thrush” – Dan Deacon from America on Domino Records
“Would That Not Be Nice” –Divine Fits from A Thing Called Divine Fits on Merge Records
“Hai Bby” – The Bilinda Butchers from Goodbye on discAu
“Electric” – TEEN from In Limbo on Carpark Records
“Apostate (edit)” – Swans from The Seer on Young God
“Steel and Blood” – Minus the Bear from Infinity Overhead on Dangerbird Records
“Love Is The Drug” – Roxy Music from Roxy Music: The Complete Studio Recordings 1972 – 1982 (10-CD box set) on Virgin/EMI
“Motions” – King of Spain from All I Did Was Tell Them The Truth And They Thought It Was Hell on New Granada Records
“Leave Your Body Behind You” – Richard Hawley from Standing At The Sky’s Edge on Mute
“Pieces of You” – Mad Planet from Ghost Notes on Planetary Fro Records
“Downwind” – Sean Rowe from Salesman and The Shark on Anti- Records
Continuing on his latest North American tour, the Brooklyn musician, George Lewis Jr., better known as the synth-pop artist Twin Shadow, stopped in San Francisco this week for two sold-out shows at the American Music Hall.
Lewis is touring with keyboardist Wynne Bennett and a couple of touring band members. Lewis and Bennett collaborated on the recently released sophomore Twin Shadow album, Confess, which Lewis self-produced.
“Five Seconds” – Twin Shadow from Confess*
* MP3 version of Confess is on a special, limited time sale via Amazon for only $5.99. The CD edition is $8.99 and the special vinyl edition is $17.98
Among the biggest crowd pleasers Thursday night were some of Twin Shadow’s newest songs on Confess, like “Golden Light,” “When The Movie’s Over,” and “I Don’t Care,” all of which have a decidedly more pop-driven groove than the songs on his acclaimed 2010 debut, Forget.
Photos by Ryan Holmes
A native of the Dominican Republic by way of Florida, Lewis moved to Boston in 2000 and formed the band, Mad Man Films, with drummer Joseph Ciampini, now of Hooray for Earth. Not satisfied with recording music for theatre and films, Lewis moved to Brooklyn and started the Twin Shadow project.
From San Francisco, Twin Shadow and his touring band, head down to southern California, then throughout the desert west, the central U.S., the south, the northeast, and then all the way back to San Francisco for yet another show at the American Music Hall on October 16th, before taking a two-week break. Twin Shadow will resume its 2012 tour with a sold-out Halloween concert in Manchester, England on Oct 31st. From there, Twin Shadow will tour western Europe for two weeks before wrapping up a 36-city, nearly four-month long tour.
Some people may wonder why a popular, rising artist, who has played many music festivals, including Coachella (2011), Lollapalooza (2012), and Bonnaroo (2011), was not booked for America’s newest big music festival, Outside Lands, which just celebrated its 5th anniversary last week in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. It could be any number of reasons, but Bay Area fans still got to see Twin Shadow in a smaller venue than the Polo Fields, the former which offers more intimacy, and often, better sound quality.
Photographs of Thursday night’s show (Aug. 16th) by San Francisco photographer Ryan Holmes. His personal website is Sixteenth & Broadway.
Last week was one of the thinnest weeks for new releases of the summer. Yet again, there have been many thin weeks for releases this summer when compared to previous years. However, we have almost as many new, notable singles this week from albums by DIY artists who sent them to us, and many of which can be heard only on IRC.
First up is a double-shot of new singles from the band Black Pistol Fire‘s new LP, Big Beat ’59. The rock duo started off in their hometown of Toronto, Canada, but moved to a totally different world, Austin, Texas, a few years ago to further their musical ambitions. As one of the most influential cities in the world where talented bands can get noticed and build a following quickly, BPF, armed with their modernized southern rock meets garage rock sound, have done just that. As these two new tracks show, the duo make a lot of sound for two guys. Recently, they opened for singer/songwriter Bob Schneider. Black Pistol Fire is signed with Rifle Fire Records. Following BPF is the lead single from Wild Cub‘s new album, Youth.
“Crows Feet” – Black Pistol Fire from Big Beat ’59
Double-shot: “Bombs and Bruises” – Black Pistol Fire from Big Beat ’59
“Wild Light” – Wild Cub from Youth
The Australian-English musical partnership of Brendan Perry and collaborator, Lisa Gerrard, have released their first album as Dead Can Dance in 16 years. The widely acclaimed album, Anatasia, is the Greek word for “resurrection” and contains many globally-conscious tracks. Although we haven’t heard the EP yet, the lead single, “Opium,” is a mysterious, dark, semi-industrial track with gloomy keyboard notes and sinister violins playing in the background – a song that would fit perfectly on the soundtrack of a film de noir or thriller movie. Read a review of Anatasia on AudioCred.
“Opium” – Dead Can Dance from Anatasia
The female pop musician, MNDR, released her debut album, Feed Me Diamonds, this past week with the first track, “#1 in Heaven” as the lead single. The track is a dark, pulsating synth track with a chorus based on a quote from Patty Hearst: “Tell them I’m smiling and send my greetings,” which is what the daughter of the wealthy newspaper tycoon said to the FBI after she was arrested for her part in a 1974 armed bank robbery in San Francisco.
“#1 in Heaven” – MNDR from Feed Me Diamonds on Ultra Music
“Alone” – Asteroid Shop from Distance Luxury
“I Can’t Stand to Be Refused” – Height with Friends from Rock and Roll on Friends/Cold Rhymes Records
“If I left Tomorrow” – Simon Joyner from Ghosts on Ba Da Bing
Compared to previous summers over the past five years, the summer of 2012 so far has been somewhat lackluster for break-through albums from established and new bands. However, that’s not to say there haven’t been plenty of notable releases, as you can see from reviewing the archived playlists for the weekly Best New Music Releases posts and the Top Ten Songs playlists. and marks yet another week in the past six weeks where there are not as many notable releases as there were at this time last year, and definitely not compared to the blockbuster year of 2010. That said, there are still plenty of new singles from official album drops this week to listen to, as well as the DIY singles that may be exclusively available on IRC.
Kicking off its fifth year, the Outside Lands Festival 2012 takes place this weekend in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Headliners include a number of music’s biggest names, such as Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Metallica, The Foo Fighters, Stevie Wonder, Jack White, Beck, and Andrew Bird, among others.
There are also plenty of other artists and bands scheduled for OSL, including The Walkmen, Sigur Ros, Of Monsters and Men, Big Boi, Regina Spektor, Justice, and many others.
The following are just some of our picks for Day One of OSL Festival 2012. Stage names are in parenthesis.
If you’re attending Outside Lands for the first time, and you intend on getting up front for the big stages – Lands End and Twin Peaks – it’s recommended to get there early. As the day goes on the front of the main stages will fill with people who are hell bent on being as close as possible for the biggest headliners of the day.
White Denim (Sutro) – 12:05pm – 12:55pm
Sharon Van Etten (Sutro) 1:15pm – 2:05pm
Tanlines (Panhandle) 1:30pm – 2:10pm
Wallpaper (Twin Peaks) – 2:15pm – 3:05pm
Jukebox The Ghost (Panhandle) 3:05 – 3:45pm
The Walkmen (Sutro) 3:55pm – 4:55pm
(Overlapping The Walkmen and Beck? Nooo.)
Beck (Lands End) 4:30pm – 5:40pm
Of Monsters and Men (Sutro) 5:25pm – 6:25pm
Foo Fighters (Lands End) 6:10pm – 7:20pm
Andrew Bird (Sutro) 6:55pm – 8:10pm
Justice (Twin Peaks) – 8:40pm – 9:55pm
Neil Young & Crazy Horse (Lands End) 8:10pm – 9:55pm
“Hey Hey My My” (Live Rust) – Neil Young and Crazy Horse
D.A.N.C.E. – Justice
“Fake Palindromes” – Andrew Bird
“Wheels” – Foo Fighters
“Little Talks” – Of Monsters and Men
“Where It’s At” – Beck
“Angela Surf City” – The Walkmen
Yellow Ostrich (Twin Peaks) 12:45pm – 1:25pm
Tame Impala (Lands End) 1:50pm – 2:40pm
Animal Kingdom (Panhandle) 1:25pm – 2:05pm
Geographer (TwinPeaks) 2:10pm – 2:55pm
Father John Misty (Panhandle) 2:55pm – 3:45pm
Portugal The Man (Lands End) 3:10pm – 4:10pm
Alabama Shakes (Sutro) 3:50pm – 4:40pm
Explosions in the Sky (Lands End) 4:40pm – 5:40pm
Grandaddy (Sutro) 5:10pm – 6:10pm
Big Boi (Twin Peaks) 5:15pm – 6:05pm
The Kills (Lands End) 6:10pm – 7:10pm
Passion Pit (Twin Peaks) 6:50pm – 7:50pm
Dr. Dog (Panhande) 7:50pm – 8:45pm
Metallica (Lands End) 7:55pm – 9:55pm
Sigur Ros (Twin Peaks) 8:40pm – 9:55pm
“Gobbledigook” – Sigur Ros
“Fuel” – Metallica
“Heart It Races” – Dr. Dog
“Sleepy Head” – Passion Pit
“Future Starts Slow” – The Kills
“Gossip” – Big Boi
fun (Lands End) 1:30pm – 2:15pm
Franz Ferdinand (Lands End) 2:40pm – 3:35pm
Amadou & Mariam (Twin Peaks) 3:35pm – 4:35pm
City and Colour (Sutro) 3:45pm – 4:45pm
Regina Spektor (Lands End) 4:00pm – 4:50pm
Electric Guest (Panhandle) 4:25pm – 5:05pm
Santigold (Twin Peaks) 5:10 – 6:05pm
Jack White (Lands End) 5:25pm – 6:25pm
Bloc Party (Twin Peaks) 6:45pm – 7:45pm
Stevie Wonder (Lands End) 7:20pm – 9:30pm
“Superstition” – Stevie Wonder
“Helicopter” – Block Party
“Icky Thump” – The White Stripes
“Disparate Youth” – Santigold
“This Head I Hold” – Electric Guest
“Take Me Out” – Franz Ferdinand
“Saball” – Amadou & Mariam
“We Are Young” (featuring Janelle Monae) – fun
For the full schedule, map and more, check out the official Outside Lands website
Top releases of the week on our list include the newest from Redd Kross, the debut from Niki and the Dove, plus The Orwells, Bear Mountain, Erik Blood, Ape School and others. Short on details this week – getting ready for Outside Lands Festival this weekend – pre-coverage will be posted tomorrow.
“Researching the Blues” – Redd Kross from Researching the Blues on Merge Records
“DJ, Ease My Mind” – Niki and the Dove from Instinct on Sub Pop
“Mallrats (La La La)” – The Orwells from Remember When on Autumn Tone
“Today’s Lover” – Erik Blood from Touch Screens (self-released)
“Two Step” – Bear Mountain from xo (self-released)
“Marijuana’s on the Phone” – Ape School from Junior Violence on Hometapes
“Cherry Blossom” – Ormonde from Machine on Hometapes
“Total Carnage” – Sweet Valley from Stay Calm on Fool’s Gold
“Let The Door Swing” – Birds and Batteries from Stray Light on Eightmaps
“Escape Pod” – Kid Smpl from Escape Pod EP on Hush Hush Records
“Beach Babe” – Koko Beware from Something About the Summer (self-released)
“One Thousand Sins”– Permanent Collection from Newly Wed Nearly Dead on Loglady Records
“Completion” – Willits + Sakamoto from Ancient Future on Ghostly
“Time” – Blonds from The Bad Ones on Gluck Music
10 Years – Minus the Machine | CD Vinyl MP3 Deluxe MP3
The American Scene – Safe For Now | CD Vinyl MP3
Antibalas – Antibalas | CD Vinyl MP3
Antony and the Johnsons – Cut the World | CD Vinyl MP3
Apache Dropout – Bubblegum Graveyard | CD Vinyl MP3
Balsam Range – Papertown | CD MP3
Bear Mountain – xo | MP3
Birds & Batteries – Stray Light | MP3
Birdy – Live in London [Live] | MP3
Blonds – The Bad Ones | MP3
Buffalo Killers – Dig. Sow. Love. Grow. | CD Vinyl MP3
Circle – The Middle | MP3
Coconut Records – Goats [Soundtrack] | MP3
Coed Pageant – The Seasons EPs Vol. 3: Sundry Summer [EP] | MP3
Jim Coleman – Trees | MP3
Ned Collette and Wirewalker – 2 | CD Vinyl MP3
DJ Kentaro – Contrast | CD Vinyl MP3
The Easy Leaves – American Times | CD Vinyl MP3
Nathan Ellis – Nathan Ellis [EP] | MP3
Fergus & Geronimo – Funky Was the State of Affairs | CD Vinyl MP3
Fierce Creatures – Catacomb Party | MP3
Malcolm Holcombe – Down the River | CD MP3
Hungry Ghost – Hungry Ghost | CD Vinyl
Ivan & Alyosha – All the Time We Had | CD
Justin Kline – Cabin Fever Songs | MP3
Lianne La Havas – Is Your Love Big Enough? | CD MP3 Deluxe MP3
Masked Intruder – Masked Intruder | CD MP3
Marcus Miller – Renaissance | CD MP3
Janka Nabay and the Bubu Gang – En Yay Sah | CD Vinyl MP3
Niki & The Dove – Instinct | CD Vinyl MP3
Nu Sensae – Sundowning | CD Vinyl MP3
Ormonde – Machine | CD Vinyl MP3
Opossom – Electric Hawaii | CD Vinyl MP3
The Orwells – Remember When | CD Vinyl MP3
Russ Rankin – Farewell Catalonia | MP3
Redd Kross – Researching the Blues | CD Vinyl MP3
The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band – Between the Ditches | CD Vinyl MP3
Shel – Shel | CD MP3
Sixpence None the Richer – Lost in Transition | CD MP3
So Many Wizards – Warm Nothing | CD MP3
Spider Bags – Shake My Head | CD Vinyl MP3
Los Straitjackets – Jet Set | CD Vinyl MP3
Tidelands – We’ve Got a Map | MP3
Liam Titcomb – Cicada | CD MP3
Toxic Lab Rats – Pandemic Alert | CD MP3
Turbonegro – Sexual Harassment | CD Vinyl MP3
Elle Varner – Perfectly Imperfect | CD MP3
July roared in with explosions of colors and a less impressive batch of new album releases, and almost as quickly, exited with a lackluster finale of releases on Tuesday – although there are still some select singles worth noting, mostly by relatively unknown artists.
For much of the U.S., the end of July 2012 is probably a blessing, considering it has been the hottest summer ever recorded. And yet we seem to hear that every year for the past decade (and the data shows it’s mostly true). Eight of the top ten hottest years on record have occurred in the past decade. Will average daily temperatures in the high 90s and low 100s across most of the continent be the norm rather than the exception in the summers to come? If the climatologist are correct, they will be. We remember a couple decades ago in the northeast when over 80 was considered too hot, and over 90 was a rare, and practically unbearable, phenomenon. So far this summer, it has been anything but rare. Last week came news that more than half of the United States is now in a declared state of emergency due to the worst drought in some 50 years.
To extend that analogy to music, there has been somewhat of a drought of outstanding album releases, and ironically, much less rock and roll sizzle, this summer compared to previous summers. While this week yielded another fairly small crop of new music releases – and pretty much nothing from ‘big name artists,’ there are still some good pickings from relatively unknown bands. To kick off this week’s top singles, we choose Blonde Summer, who blaze through with one of the best singles of the week – “Slow Days, Fast Company.” The song is light and loose – an uptempo indie pop anthem of sorts with jangling guitar riffs, echoey, well pitched vocals, a catchy rhythm and hook and infusions of airy synth layers that accompany the song’s climaxes- one of the finest ‘summery’ singles of the season.
“Slow Days, Fast Company” – Blonde Summer from Slow Daze EP
The Los Angeles band fuse indie pop with California surf-rock. Their sophomore EP, Slow Daze, is steeped deep in melodies and wrapped in an effervescent sunniness that chronicles the vagabond wanderings of a post collegiate guy looking for his place in the world, and having fun in the process.
The following bands are all new to us, and we suspect, to most other music lovers. Nonetheless, the following singles from the N2U bands are worth noting, including two debut singles. Buttonhead‘s new single, “Champion Bread,” is a lo-fi, garage-rocking, post punk blast that puts the band on the radar, and reminds us somewhat of Tokyo Police Club. The jamming continues with the track, “Analog or Digital,” from Brooklyn duo Wildlife Control’s self-titled, debut album.
“Champion Bread” – Buttonhead from 3D Opera Whale
“Analog or Digital” – Wildlife Control from Wildlife Control
Junk Culture adds to the mix “Growing Pains,” an electronic track influenced by West Coast pop sporting a steady paced beat, sound samples and glittering synths. Junk Culture is the side project of Girl Talk’s touring partner Deepak Mantena. His new release, Wild Quiet, is his third album, and first official full-length debut. Next, Sacred Caves‘ “On the Outside” is draped with synths, a disco-like beat, hand-clapping and dance infusions. It’s an OK track, but not one we are likely to remember a month from now. What do you think?
“Growing Pains” – Junk Culture from Wild Quiet
via MusicUnderFire.com
“On The Outside” – Sacred Caves from Sanctuarium EP on hausKat Records
“Sleep” – Allen Stone from Allen Stone on ATO Records
“Broken Seashells” – NIKU from In the Tidelands
“The Longest Walk” – Jason Haywood from A Thousand Miles Since Yesterday
The ‘Other Songs’ section that we sometimes include in playlist posts is to separate singles we recommend from those that we are not so sure about. The reason we do it is to give listeners more music to pick from, and to let them decide what they like.
For example, we were surprised that the Black Swans’ newest single, “Basket of Light,” is a yawner because we like the band’s previous work.
“Basket of Light” – The Black Swans from Occasion For Song on Misra Records
“Birmingham” – Shovels & Rope from O’ Be Joyful on Dualtone Records
“Summer of the Strange” – Toadies from Play.Rock.Music. on Kirtland Records
“Belly of the Beast” – Western Medicine from In Transit EP (self-released)
New releases of 31 July 2012:
The Alchemist – Russian Roulette | CD MP3
Black Swans – Occasion for Song | CD Vinyl MP3
Buttonhead – 3D Opera Whale | MP3
Dikes of Holland – Braindead USA | MP3
Evoken – Atra Mors | CD MP3
Gaelic Storm – Chicken Boxer | CD MP3
Jesse Harris – Sub Rosa | CD Vinyl
Ice Choir – Afar | CD Vinyl MP3
IlldotLogic – Dreams in Stereo | CD MP3 Deluxe MP3
Junk Culture – Wild Quiet | CD MP3
The Locust – Molecular Genetics from the Gold Standard Labs | CD Vinyl MP3
Polar Bear Club – Live at the Montage [Live] | CD Vinyl MP3
Ponderosa – Pool Party | CD Vinyl MP3
Joshua Radin – Underwater | CD MP3
Reel Big Fish – Candy Coated Fury | CD MP3
River City Tanlines – Coast to Coast | CD Vinyl MP3
Aaron Roche – BlurMyEyes | CD MP3
Rick Ross – God Forgives, I Don’t | CD Deluxe CD MP3 Deluxe MP3
Serengeti – C.A.R. | CD MP3
Shovels and Rope – O’ Be Joyful | CD Vinyl MP3
Allen Stone – Allen Stone | CD Vinyl MP3
Suburban Living – Cooper’s Dream [EP] | MP3
Testament – Dark Roots of Earth | CD Deluxe CD Vinyl MP3
Thenewno2 – Thefearofmissingout | CD Vinyl MP3
Toadies – Play.Rock.Music | CD Vinyl MP3
What’s Eating Gilbert – Cheap Shots [EP] | CD Vinyl MP3
Wildlife Control – Wildlife Control | MP3
Willits & Sakamoto – Ancient Future | CD Vinyl MP3
With the Punches – Seams & Stitches | CD Vinyl MP3
IRC Band to Watch, Rhode Island trio, Fang Island, who are also veterans of the Top Ten Songs (being updated now) playlist mixes, and our Band to Watch series, first got our attention in 2010 with their terrific self-titled, debut album. They’ve shot back with a terrific new album, Major, an orgy of uptempo, guitar-riffing pop rock, featuring one song after the next of memorable anthems, as the two singles, “Sisterly” and “Seek It Out” included below clearly demonstrate.
The only thing that is a true disappointment is the crappy album cover art for Major, which is viewable via the album purchase link below. Really guys, this was the best you could come up with? But, the tracks on the album itself make up for the ugly gray cover. Following Fang Island are singles from The Gaslight Anthem, Eternal Summers, Passion Pit and many others.
“Sisterly” – Fang Island from Major on Sargent House
Double-shot: “Seek It Out” – Fang Island from Major on Sargent House
“45” – The Gaslight Anthem from Handwritten (Exclusive Deluxe Edition) on Mercury Records
“Millions” – Eternal Summers from Correct Behavior on Kanine Records
Passion Pit’s second album Gossamer dropped this week. Now a big budget band with the backing of Columbia Records, the band’s fans may have worried that Passion Pit would lose their touch with all that corporate influence – we’ve all seen how that influence has put a damper on the work of other bands, such as the latest album by Best Coast. Since the release of their popular debut, Manners, Passion Pit has made their name synonymous with electro-pop innovation.
Gossamer is a fine follow-up to Manners, complete with glistening synths, frequent tempo changes, absorbing melodies, tamer vocals, and intricate lyrics. The AV Club wrote: “Despite the emphasis on struggle, Gossamer couldn’t sound more assured” and The New York Times said: “For all the artificial splendor, there’s clearly a very human, very troubled voice at the center of these songs.” But some reviews were less enthusiastic; the BBC observed: “An impressive and varied second album, but one underpinned by noticeable troubles.” Also, listen to new singles from Micachu and The Shapes, Lawrence Arabia and Young Moon. Interesting the track, “Winds Light” from emerging artist Young Moon seems a little like a slowed down, melancholy version of Arcade Fire’s “Cold Wind” – just a little.
“Love Is Greed” – Passion Pit from Gossamer
via DoThePantsDance.com
Double-shot: “I’ll Be Alright” – Passion Pit from Gossamer on Columbia Records
“OK” – Micachu and the Shapes from Never on Rough Trade
“Traveling Shoes” – Lawrence Arabia from The Sparrow on Bella Union
“Winds Light” – Young Moon from Navigated Like the Swans on Western Vinyl
“Look Homeward, Heathen” – Grassfight from Icon EP2 (self-released)
The next three tracks seem to fit together in almost a Halloweenish kind of way. Purity Ring, by now a well-established band of the indie pop genre, return with a new album on 4AD, Shrines. The lead single, “Obedar” is glistening with rhythmic synth key loops, but most effective thanks to the melancholic lead vocals of classically trained pianist and vocalist Megan James accompanied by drifting choruses. Family Band take the mysterious and haunting elements to another level with “Night Song” from their new album, Moonbeams, plus Dots Will Echo picks up the tempo, while still thematically fitting with its predecessors.
“Obedear” – Purity Ring from Shrines on 4AD
“Night Song” – Family Band from Moonbeams on No Quarter
“I Like It” – Dots Will Echo from Drunk is the New Sober/Stupid is the New Dumb on Asthmatic Kitty
“Head Up” – Shawn Lee from Synthesizers in Space on ESL Music
“Waitin’ 4 U” – Foxygen from Take the Kids Off Broadway on Jagjaguwar
“Messiah” – Heavenly Beat from Talent on Captured Tracks
“Long Way Up” – Three Mile Pilot from Maps EP on Temporary Residence
This is volume two of the lead singles from this past week’s Best New Music Releases. The first volume of fresh MP3 singles features a double-shot from Jeff The Brotherhood’s new album, produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, plus The Very Best, Shout Out Out Out Out (yes, annoying), Frank Ocean (not really indie, but good stuff), The Drowning Men, among others.
Brooklyn indie rock/psychedelic pop quartet Conveyor deliver a mixture of avant-pop and Afro-pop to electronica and acoustic folk, creating textured melodies and rhythm shifts with synthesizers and guitar strings on their self-titled debut release. The first single, “Mukraker,” is a dreamy, lazy summer afternoon ‘chillwave’ song that features moments of levity with soaring harmonies, smooth melodies, calming synths, hand claps and even a horn section to boot. One thing is clear about Conveyor – they have a flare, and a talent, for incorporating all kinds of musical styles that that make their songs enjoyable, playful and memorable. The self-titled debut is full of such songs, and there is a good potential that Conveyor will be among IRC’s Best Debuts of the year, which will be dtermnd
As Deli Magazine put it: “Animal Collective comparisons aren’t a stretch, but their Fleet Foxes-like harmonies arch into what a mad scientist’s symphony would sound like his in his own head.” Not only is the new record one of the best debuts of 2012, but the band are easily on our Bands to Watch list. If you don’t already follow IRC on Twitter and Facebook, where we regularly post music, news, playlists – some of which are not posted on the site – you should. Right now there is a very easy-to-enter contest running to win a free high quality, studio master MP3 zip of Conveyor’s debut album.
“Mukraker” – Conveyor from Conveyor
Double-shot: “Woolgatherer” – Conveyor from Conveyor
Perhaps the anti-thesis of a typical summer song, Cosmo Jarvis’ new single, “Sunshine.” In his song “Sunshine,” Jarvis proclaims something that is rarely heard: “I’m so sick of the sunshine, maybe because it burns my skin.” As a resident of Tampa, perhaps that make some sense, but the area has had its share of clouds and storms this summer.
There is also another song this week titled “Sunshine” from the long-running, international collective, Matisyahu. The song is the lead single from the band’s new LP, Spark Seeker. Of the two same-named singles out this week, this one is a perfectly appropriate song to play hanging out on the beach having a party, or barbecuing in the backyard. “Sunshine” marvelously integrates hip-hop, reggae and world music into one groove. It’s a good thing there are bands like Matisyahu – they keep music fresh and interesting.
“Sunshine” – Cosmo Jarvis from Think Bigger on 25th Frame/ The End Records
“Sunshine” – Matisyahu from Spark Seeker on Fallen Sparks Records
via ThisBonusTrack.com
Finally, review lead singles from new albums by Detroit band The History of Panic; Omaha trio Icky Blossoms; singer/songwriter John Maus; Virginia fiddlers Old Crow Medicine Show, plus Jen Schande and The Stowaways.
“The Chase” – The History of Panic from Fight! Fight! Fight! on Le Grand Magistery
“Perfect Vision” – Icky Blossoms from Perfect Vision on Saddle Creek
“Bennington” – John Maus from A Collection of Rarities and Previously Unreleased Material on Ribbon Music
“Mississippi Saturday Night” – Old Crow Medicine Show from Carry Me Back on ATO Records
“I Really Like Sonic Youth and I Really Want to Have Sex with You” – Jen Schande from 19: Songs for and Inspired by Valencia Chapter 19 (self-released)
“Changing Times” – The Stowaways from Changing Times (self-released)
In Volume One of the Best New Music Releases, Week of July 17, Jeff The Brotherhood’s new album was our pick for Album of the Week, and two singles were posted. For good measure, here is a third via SoundCloud. The track is called “Leave Me Out.”
JEFF the Brotherhood – Leave Me Out by JEFF The Brotherhood
The Album of the Week goes to Jeff The Brotherhood‘s Hypnotic Nights, the band’s seventh studio album. This is the band’s second album (the first was last fall’s We Are The Champions) with Warner Brothers, who they signed with in 2011 , while retaining their long-relationship with Infinity Cat Recordings. The deal with Warner has been pitched by their PR people as a way to give the band a wider distribution while JTB is assured “substantial creative control.” What exactly that means is unknown, but “substantial” is less than “total” or “full.” Some die-hard fans have accused the band of selling out by signing with a major label. Whether it’s a good move for the band over the long term remains to be seen. For example, the new album has received good reviews from a variety of popular mainstream music outlets and blogs, but not raving reviews.
The All Music Guide remarked: “if [Hypnotic Nights] isn’t able to kick off your summer, nothing will” while Rolling Stone wrote: “it’s got a good-natured sense of slacker irony.” The album was produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, and it’s possible to hear Auerbach’s influence for anyone who is a Black Keys’ fan. Hypnotic Nights has a number of memorable tracks, including the unmistakable summer kicker, “Sixpack,” the first lead single release from the album. It would have been an even better track if the band had extended it a little longer to include a mid-song, all-out jam. And this is probably one element wherein the Warner influence prevailed because they’re aiming for a wider audience now, where songs tend to be produced to be more “radio-friendly.”
“Sixpack” – Jeff The Brotherhood from Hypnotic Nights on Infinity Cat Recordings/Warner
Soundcloud: “Mystic Portal II” – Jeff The Brotherhood from Hypnotic Knights on Infinity Cat Recordings/Warner
Note: Look for more tracks from the past week’s new releases in Vol. II, coming up in just about an hour from now.
This mini-block playlist-within-a-playlist kicks off with the new single from The Drowning Men, “Lost In A Lullaby,” a catchy, flourishing summer-soundtrack type of song that reminds us of Arcade Fire, but which is also unique enough that it’s not some half-assed rip-off of AF’s signature sound – driving, almost frenzied rhythms, larger-than-life choruses, and the inclusion of woods and strings along with the cornerstone elements of pop rock – guitar, drums and bass. Chances are if you dig this track, you’ll want to get your hands on the band’s new album, All The Unknown.
“Lost In A Lullaby” – The Drowning Men from All The Unknown on Borstal Beat Records
Shout Out Out Out Out dropped a new album this week featuring the single, (really, four ‘Outs’? Maybe just ‘Shout Outs?’), Never The Same Way Twice,” which is a decent song. But the band name is awkward and annoying for people to speak or type it – and completely unnecessary. The name doesn’t resinate, especially when you consider there is a fairly popular indie band by the name of the Shout Out Louds. Sometimes it seems as if bands don’t understand how important it is to pick a good band name, and why it’s not a good thing to pick a name that is difficult to say or write, and to Google. Then there is the whole thing about “is it three Outs, or four or five?” It’s not hard to see why “keep it simple stupid” is a good motto to go with; if you look at many successful bands, their names are rather simple.
“Never the Same Way Twice” – Shout Out Out Out Out from Spanish Moss and Total Loss on Normals Welcome Records
“Pyramids” – Frank Ocean from Channel Orange on Island Def Jam
“Yoshua Alikuti” – The Very Best from MTMTMK on Moshi Moshi
“Take My Bones Away” – Baroness from Yellow & Green, on Relapse Records
The Dust Engineers unearth some find alternative country rock on “Snot Nosed Dweeb” (titled reminds us of a Sonic Youth track), the lead single from their new EP, Bail via No Horse Town Records. Plus, listen to new singles from fresh drops by experimental Icelandic band Mum and L.A. garage rockers The Blank Tapes; and to close out part one of releases for the week of July 17th (wow, summer, you are flying fast), two Soundcloud singles from Monterrey, Mexico band Kinky; and, Columbus, Ohio folk band, The Black Swans. The song is also a candidate for the next edition of the State of Music playlist series (picking up, in a way, where Sufjan left off).
“Snot Nosed Dweeb” – The Dust Engineers from Bail EP on No Horse Town
“0,000Orð” – Múm from Early Birds on Morr Music
“I’m Back” – The Blank Tapes from I’m Back 7″ on on 20-Sided Records
“Negro Dia (feat. Mala Rodriguez)” – Kinky from Sueño De La Maquina on Nacional Records
“Portsmouth, Ohio” – The Black Swans from Occasion For Song on Misra Records
After a thin week for new albums during the July 4th holiday, things got back to normal last week with a hefty new batch of fresh releases from Dirty Projectors, Twin Shadow, Deleted Scenes, Digitalism, Summer Camp, Husky, Communist Daughter and more. Plus, after three decades, the post-punk/alt rock band Mission of Burma sound better than ever on their new, widely-acclaimed release, UnSound.
There are also a few impressive debut albums dropped last week, from bands to watch, Videoing and Western Affairs, as well as Holograms, Debo Band and Deep Time. Western Affairs are also a DIY band, as are The Young Evils, who’ve made a name for themselves in and around Seattle, including opening gigs for the Vaselines and Pearl Jam.
The Dirty Projectors‘ sixth studio album, Swing Lo Magellan, was a year in the making, and features the band’s most melodic and intricate album to date, packed with strange textures, rapid transitions, and soaring harmonies. The press and fans have hailed the album, some calling it DP’s best work to date. In fact, The Los Angeles Times wrote: “Dirty Projectors still get itchy at the prospect of sleek surfaces, and their uneasiness is a thrill to behold.” For anyone who liked the band’s first album, Swing Lo Magellan is a must-have, and for a limited time the MP3 version is only $3.99 via Amazon. All this week’s releases are also available, when applicable, via CD and vinyl. A complete list for this past week’s releases is included at the end of this post.
“Gun Has No Trigger” – Dirty Projectors from Swing Lo Magellan on Domino
via TheWheelisStillinSpin.com
Twin Shadow also dropped a new album, Confess, featuring George Lewis Jr.‘s upbeat, 80’s sounding jams and touching ballads. Twin Shadow’s second LP, the follow-up to his hugely popular 2010 indie debut, Forget, is being hailed by much of the music press and blogs as another home run. Drowned in Sound called it “wholly brilliant”; Pitchfork noted: “[it] is defined by its melodic and emotional immediacy” and Slant Magazine boasted: “…an altogether superior effort, and one of the few modern indie releases that handles its 80s reverence with dexterity.” Click the album title below to get Confess for only $3.99 via Amazon.
“Five Seconds” – Twin Shadow from Confess on 4AD
The new Austin music project, Videoing, blends hi-tech industrial with lo-fi cogs, gears, and whistles, to produce a sound that is dark and driving, gritty and grinding. “Night Watch” is all of those things and one of the best singles released this month. The haunting, grimy grit of “Night Watch” lightens a bit with a pronounced uptempo beat, a melodic synth jam infusion, as well as a shifting and disorienting aspect that demonstrates the band’s impressive songwriting and recording skills.
Videoing’s debut album, Reader LP, pricks the ears of unsuspecting listeners, and the audiophile community at large. The band sent three tracks to post; two are posted below as a double-shot; the third, “Crimson Waves” will be Monday’s Song of the Day. Plus, they’re on our Band to Watch list.
“Night Watch” – Videoing from Reader LP on Slack Electric
Double-shot: “Driver’s River” – Videoing from Reader LP
The dream pop fuzziness of Deleted Scenes’ single, “Bedbedbedbed,” conjures up a sense of floating, and a great track for a ‘chill out’ playlist. The relaxing, hazy atmosphere of the band’s sound is only part of their appeal. The album, Young People’s Church of Air, is so impressive among
“Bedbedbedbedbed” – Deleted Scenes from Young People’s Church of Air on Park The Van
Double-shot: “English As A Second Language” – Deleted Scenes from Young People’s Church of Air on Park The Van
The legendary post-punk, alt. rock band, Mission of Burma, jump back into the fray with their fourth album since their reunion in 2006. What makes their newest album so alluring to long-time MoB fans is that their sound hasn’t changed much at all, yet as the All Music Guide wrote: “…their musical wanderlust has resulted in one of the most exciting and eye-opening albums they’ve made to date.”
On Unsound, MoB engineer distorted, brash compositions as they did 30 years ago, splicing together wrenching, yet appealing, vocal harmonies within a cacophony of raw guitar progressions and staggered tape loops that the NME called “thrilling clatter, which shames bands half their age.” Reviews have been mostly positive from the mainstream press and the blogosphere, and sure to satisfy fans, both new and old. To that end, the band sent in two tracks – our third double-shot of the week – “Second Television” and “Dust Devil,” which are as ragged and rough as ever, or as Paste put it: “truly glorious noise.”
“Second Television” – Mission of Burma from Unsound on Fire
Holograms rocks with rapid succession on the single “ABC City” from their new, self-titled album debut. Another single, “History’s Door” by the band Husky was a Song of the Day earlier in the week. The track is sort of a punk dances with indie rock sound that reminds us of Kaiser Chiefs, with a frantic pace and chorus vocals singing: “Isolation” followed by a blistering guitar solo at the tail side of the track. The song has wracked up over 12,000 plays on SoundCloud in just four weeks.
“ABC City” – Holograms from Holograms on Captured Tracks
“History’s Door” – Husky from Forever So on Sub Pop
Western Affairs, currently a DIY band, dropped their album, 2000, this past week. The single, “Laura,” is an uplifting indie pop/rock track that almost feels a bit like you’re soaring in the sky on a beautiful summer day. Sure that’s a bit corny, but what the hell; we think it’s perfect for a summer 2012 indie playlist. We haven’t heard the entire album yet, but it’s on the “Listen To” list.
“Laura” – Western Affairs from 2000 (self-released)
Next, the Seattle rock band, The Young Evils, are back with a fresh EP, Foreign Spells, that was produced by Shane Stoneback (The Cults, Vampire Weekend, Sleigh Bells). Producer Barrett Jones (Foo Fighters, Nirvana) worked on the band’s bouncy, pop-driven 2010 debut album Enchanted Chapel. The band started out as a way to pay homage to the Nirvana-popularized duo, Vaselines, in 2008 by songwriter and founder, Troy Nelson and lead singer Mackenzie Mercer. The Young Evils have opened for the Vaselines and Pearl Jam, which is indicative of their talent and popularity in the Pacific Northwest.
“When Sally Walked In The Rain” – The Young Evils from Foreign Spells (self-released)
“Zero Dark Thirty” – Aesop Rock from Skelethon (only $3.99 limited time via Amazon) on Rhymesayers Entertainment
“Ghosts” – Communist Daughter from The Lions & Lambs EP on Grain Belt Records
“Two Lovers” – Delicate Steve from Positive Force (CD) on Luaka Bop
“A New Drug” – Digitalism from DJ-Kicks on !K7 Records
“Hidden” – Erika Spring from Erika Spring EP on Cascine
“Life” – Summer Camp from Always EP on Apricot Recording Company/Moshi Moshi Records
“Lessons of Darkness (Apology)” – Supreme Cuts from Whispers in the Dark on Dovecote Records
“I Still Pull the Silver (From the Penny Drawer)” – Jonathan Byerley from Catherine Market on La Société Expéditionnaire
“Play Along” – Dan Le Sac from Space Between the Words on Sunday Best
“Asha Gedawo” – Debo Band from Debo Band on Sub Pop
“Clouds” – Deep Time from Deep Time on Hardly Art
Click any version – MP3, CD or vinyl – for any of the releases listed below and you’ll be taken right to the Amazon purchase page where you can check out. When you purchase albums with IRC’s links in any post, we get a few cents for each completed order, which helps us pay our server and related costs to run the website.
Aesop Rock – Skelethon | CD Vinyl MP3 Deluxe MP3
Allies for Everyone – Scavenger [EP] | MP3
A Band of Buriers – Filth | MP3
Beak – Beak II | CD Vinyl MP3
Bravestation – Giants & Dreamers | MP3
Zac Brown Band – Uncaged | CD MP3
Chatham County Line – Sight & Sound [Live] | CD Vinyl MP3
Clare and the Reasons – KR-51 | Clare and the Reasons – KR-51 CD Vinyl MP3
Communist Daughter – Lions & Lambs [EP] | CD MP3
Dead Rat Orchestra – The Guga Hunters of Ness | CD Vinyl MP3
Debo Band – Debo Band | CD Vinyl MP3
Deep Time – Deep Time | CD Vinyl MP3
Deleted Scenes – Young People’s Church of the Air | CD Vinyl
Delicate Steve – Positive Force | CD Vinyl MP3
Dirty Projectors – Swing Lo Magellan | CD Vinyl Deluxe Vinyl MP3
Duran Duran – A Diamond in the Mind [Live] | CD DVD Blu-ray MP3
Dusted – Total Dust | CD Vinyl MP3
The Early November – In Currents | CD Vinyl MP3
Family of the Year – Loma Vista | CD MP3
Glass Cloud – Royal Thousand | CD MP3
Glocca Morra – Just Married | MP3
Holograms – Holograms | CD MP3
Husky – Forever So | CD Vinyl MP3
I Call Fives – I Call Fives | CD MP3
Impossible Arms – Ripped in No Time | CD Vinyl MP3
Kadavar – Kadavar | CD MP3
Dan Le Sac – Space Between the Words | MP3
Eleni Mandell – I Can See the Future | CD Vinyl MP3
Marina and the Diamonds – Electra Heart | CD MP3 Deluxe MP3
Mission of Burma – Unsound | CD Vinyl MP3
Origami Ghosts – It Doesn’t Exist | MP3
Ozarks – Ozarks [EP] | MP3
The Restorations – A/B [EP] | MP3
Saint Motel – Voyeur | MP3
Erika Spring – Erika Spring [EP] | Vinyl MP3
Suit of Lights – Shine On Forever | MP3
Bibi Tanga and The Selenites – 40 Degrees of Sunshine | CD
Serj Tankian – Harakiri | CD MP3 Deluxe MP3
Theclosing – Theclosing | CD MP3
Twin Shadow – Confess | CD Vinyl MP3
The Ugly Club – You Belong to the Minutes | MP3
Van She – Idea of Happiness | MP3
Videoing – Reader | MP3
Hank Williams Jr. – Old School New Rules | CD Vinyl MP3
