Track Of The Day: Caveman - "Old Friend"

Ever since Caveman graced our WLFY Day After CMJ Party last year with a mind blowing live performance, I've been waiting like a madman for the brooklyn band to release a track/debut LP.  Wish granted as today Fader premiered the first track of their debut album, Coco Beware (Digital Release 9/13 Physical 11/15).  "Old Friend" is a introduction to the band as it displays their laid back approach to indie rock.  The strength of Caveman is how the band crafts songs that move from soft to powerful with the slightest touches.  As my buddies over at I Guess I'm Floating pointed out, this band could contend for a top spot on year end lists...this is not a band to ignore.  

 Caveman "Old Friend" MP3 by The FADER 

Track Of The Day: Son Of The Sun - "10,000"

Have some sun drenched great music for your long summer days.  

Almost Not There by sonofthesunmusic

(Off Almost Not There EP)

Bro. Stephen

Bro. Stephen is a traveler.  A musical Jack Kerouac, moving from town to town across America, letting the experiences and landscapes sink into his being, eventually allowing them to flow out in the form of his gentle, yet powerful music.  A musician like Bro. Stephen is hard to find these days and when you do it's rarely on a music blog, rather a coffee house in the shadows of a small town or at a house party where only friends sing every line to his songs.  He has the talent of any buzz band or big name folk act out there, but he's just not interested in playing the game, creating a back story that defines his music more than the music itself.  Hell, he didn't even send me his music, I had to stumble upon it.

His catalogue is extensive, with a bunch of tracks floating around in various corners of the internet.  Bro. Stephen, after doing some research, goes out on self-booked tours each season, traveling to whatever spot will have him and in doing so I've seen a great growth in his music.  With each stop on the map, it seems Stephen learns something new and it eventually comes out in his music.  I found two offerings, a four track EP for LEM and a single that appears on the Midwest Fest 2011 mixtape.  It's artists like Bro. Stephen that remind me that the passion for music will never die.  He doesn't care about blog buzz or creating a sensational backstory to grab attention.  It's this music as music that makes Bro. Stephen's songs incredibly special.  It also helps that he has a lot of talent, smart lyrics, and an unmatched sincerity that drips off each track.  

BRO. STEPHEN FACEBOOK 

M83 New Album Video Preview

One of the best PR e-mails I've ever received.  Subject Line: M83.  Body: Video preview of the new M83 album.  That's it.  It speaks for itself.

(via PR e-mail/http://ilovem83.com/Every Website On The Internet)

Track Of The Day: J. Irvin Dally - "Teething"

One of J. Irvin Dally's unbelievable strengths as a musician is his ability to write songs that run the gambit of emotion without ever feeling over stuffed or forced.  Depression and despair melt into happiness and back again with an ease that only few artists can achieve.  "Teething" begins with two contradicting guitars, one sun soaked, the other a standard acoustic folk lick.  With the turn of a switch, the two guitars turn upbeat and dance around each other for the remaining of the song.  Folk and all its off shoot genres are usually better suited for the dark and cold winter months...but Dally proves with "Teething" that in the right hands re-imagined folk music can be happily sun drenched as well.

"Teething" is off Sun Room / Teething 7"  (Pre-Order)

Other Lives - "Dust Bowl III" (VDub Session Video)

Nurses Announce New Album/MP3

One of the biggest surprises of 2009 was the glorious album "Apple's Acre" from Nurses.  The opening track "Technicolor" stole the show and pointed for things to come for the band.  Dead Oceans announced their new album "Dracula" today and are giving everyone a sneak peak in the form of a MP3.  Everything I loved about Nurses is present on this new track, "Fever Dreams".  It features bright vocals with a drums that chug along under a constantly evolving melody.  Put Nurses and their album "Dracula" on your calendar, it's a can't miss release.

Nurses - "Fever Dream"

"Dracula" will be released September 20th on Dead Oceans.

TRACKLIST:

Fever Dreams

You Lookin' Twice

Extra Fast

Through the Window

So Sweet

Trying to Reach You

New Feelings

Wouldn't Tell

Dancing Grass

Gold Jordan

Eternal Thrills

From Dead Oceans:

Nurses return with Dracula, the follow-up to their 2009 homemade psych gem Apple's Acre. Dracula is steeped in the strange pop brew that bore Apple's Acre, with the band's unmistakable elastic melodies, heady pop hooks and unconventional knack for catchy songwriting that gets under your skin. But where Apple's Acre was an insular album, recorded primarily in an attic in Idaho using just an internal Macbook microphone and primitive recording software, Dracula is bursting. It's bolder, heavier, with deep grooves, dubby basslines and a focus on rhythm. It's an album with pure physical qualities. Apple's Acre was an album made for headphones; Dracula needs a sound system. What has not changed is the undeniable constant in Nurses' body of work: their immediate and catchy pop songs. The band embraces hooks and melodies--yes, they turn them upside down and inside out--but at their core, the band (and Dracula) are defined by pop songwriting.

Nurses retreated to the Oregon coast to record the album, spending winter months in a cabin together, where they set up a recording studio away from the distraction of their hometown of Portland, OR. They were completely immersed in the process, the three members of the band (Aaron Chapman, James Mitchell, John Bowers) deep in collaboration. They did not embrace typical roles--no guitarist, no keyboardist--instead collaborating as a trio of producers, adding one idea on top of another until the sounds became songs. This isolation, the early winter darkness, the misty, moody walks on rocky beaches all creep into Dracula. The band avoided society and focused on making the record, and managing to shut out most outside influences. Except for Prince. Like almost any music fan, you have a moment with Prince, the moment that you realize his mastery of song and soul and discover the true depth of his genius. Luckily for us, this moment for Nurses happened during the making of Dracula.

Following the tracking of the album on the Oregon coast, the band took the audio to Scott Colburn's Gravelvoice Studios in Seattle, enlisting Colburn and Julian Martlew to mix Dracula. Colburn's masterful touch (his production credits include Arcade Fire's Funeral, Animal Collective's Feels, and the bulk of the Sun City Girls catalog) brought the sounds to life, allowing Dracula to become a three dimensional being, solidifying the band's evolution from a bedroom recording experiment to a dynamic ensemble.

Joanna Newsom - What We Have Known (12" Single)

Before Joanna Newsom's debut LP, "The Milk-Eyed Mender", she self released two EPs burned on CD-R's in 2002 and 2003.  Every track on her second EP, "Yarn and Glue", ended up on her debut LP...except for "What We Have Known" (and the short track "Yarn and Glue") which ended up on a rare b-side single CD for "Sprout and the Bean".  Now, Drag City is pressing "What We Have Known" on a 12" vinyl that is available for pre-order: (HERE).  Click the link to hear the track.

SYNCHRONESS

I read a lot of music websites...too many.  With all these new tumblrs my google reader is currently at five hundred and twenty two sites.  If each of those sites post twice a day...well...it's a lot of reading and "staring" for later.  I don't typically recommend sites to people that are in their infancy because one of the big feats of a blogger, regardless of quality, is to make it past two years with regular posting.  Here is to hoping Synchroness sticks around and works hard because this site has a lot of potential.

Their mission statement is simple:

"We created this site to show how music interacts with, defines, reshapes, and brings life to moving images."

The writer's have impressive resumes: Creative directors, music supervisors, and an editorial director.  This is a fresh site that will offer exploration of visuals/sound and how they work toghther, something I'm very interested in as both a film and music fan.  I recommend adding this site to your daily reads as it appears to be a newcomer with a lot of potential and a endless pool of source material for fascinating pieces of writing.

SYNCHRONESS

ATO Recalling My Morning Jacket "Circuital" Deluxe Vinyl

We're obsessed with vinyl over here at WLFY and stories like this as very disappointing and encouraging at the same time.  I heard from a few friends (looking at your Louisville) that complained that the deluxe green vinyls packaged for "Circuital" were extremely warped.  This plays into the anti-vinyl argument that vinyl is an unstable product.  I have records that were pressed in the 60's and play beautifully...and CD's that skip after a few months, so...

The good news is ATO is amazing and is taking action.  One of my favorite websites: VINYL HOUND has the scoop:

Note: At the request of ATO records, I promised not to comment on this situation until the label and band had a chance to issue an official statement. I agreed.

So, if you were one of the many folks who purchased the Circuital Deluxe Vinyl Box Set, you've probably noticed by now that your limited edition green vinyl is virtually unplayable due to severe warpage of one or both of the vinyl discs. If they aren’t, consider yourself lucky.

When I first received my box set, I eagerly placed the first disc on the turntable and let it spin. And boy was I startled by the loud, abrasive noise that followed when my stylus was launched from the groove and sent bouncing across the first track. After snapping my head round to see wtf, I immediately noticed the severe warpage and instantly lifted the needle from the record.

So then I placed the second disc on the turntable and, sadly, discovered it, too, had the same defect. I was aghast. All other items in the box were as perfect as the day they were made so, I assumed this was all due to a manufacturing flaw or exposure to extreme heat somewhere along the supply chain. 

Anyway, after some initial panic, I got my thoughts together and starting emailing anyone remotely involved with the purchase (i.e. Top Spin, ATO, Band Merch, and even band representatives). After an initial response from ATO indicating they were looking into my situation, the next couple of weeks passed without a remark from anyone. I was getting nervous.

Then a few days ago I received a very honest and revealing email from ATO. Essentially, they admitted the problem was widespread and indicated everyone who purchased the deluxe box will soon receive a new pair of green LPs at no charge. I was immediately impressed with their decision and thrilled that I would soon be getting replacement GREEN vinyl! I quickly responded letting them know how much I respected their concern for their customers and the pride they put in to their products. Not something you see often enough from a record label.

A few days after that, ATO released this statement:

Dear Discerning Vinyl Consumer,

As you are no doubt already aware, the manufacture and distribution of high-quality phonograph records is a highly-nuanced and sometimes tricky business that is subject to any number of vicissitudes as the finely grooved discs travel along the path from their origin to you, the listener.

It has come to our attention that an unfortunately high percentage of folks who purchased the "Deluxe Box" edition of My Morning Jacket's Circuital discovered a most unfortunate condition of warpage on one or both of their green 12" LPs. That is why, in order to guarantee maximum value and listening pleasure, new pairs of brand-new, warp-free green LPs are being mailed out to all purchasers of the "Deluxe Box" free of charge. So watch your mailbox. And hold on to your gatefold sleeves and jackets, folks, you'll be needing those for your new discs.

We offer our sincerest apologies for this unfortunate circumstance, and we thank all of our partners in manufacturing and distribution for working hard to help us correct the situation. They all remain committed to delivering top-notch goods and we're glad for that.

We thank you for your patience and for giving us a chance to make things right. And enjoy the green LPs, we think they sound fantastic.

Sincerely, 

ATO Records

How fuckin' awesome is that!  And I just got my replacement vinyl in the mail today to boot! Everything, for once, is right in the world. Thank you ATO, My Morning Jacket, Top Spin, Band Merch, United Pressing, and whoever else who was involved!

... and they all lived happily ever after.

And by the way, ATO recording artists Dawes and Gomez's deluxe vinyl packages have recently arrived in my mailbox and, not only are they freakin' awesome, the vinyl is flawless!

Radiohead - "Staircase" (NEW SONG LIVE VIDEO)

Here's a new track called Staircase, taken from our upcoming 'From The Basement' session.
And no, you're not seeing double. The doppelganger drummers are myself and Clive Deamer. Clive has long been one of my favourite drummers and so I was really excited when he agreed to perform with us. Hope you like what we've all done.

Philip x

REVIEW: Shabazz Palaces - "Black Up"

Shabazz Palaces - "Black Up"

Label: Sub Pop

Release Date: June 28th, 2011

Hip-hop is currently defined by context and not content.  Looking at two of the most talked about hip-hop albums of the last two years – Tyler, The Creator’s “Goblin” and Kanye West’s “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” – a listener couldn’t help avoiding the outside context surrounding the album before it even came out.  Hell, both albums are about the artists’ reaction to the conceptions and misconceptions of them as people, role models, and rappers.  One the biggest online music publications dedicated paragraph after paragraph to West’s Twitter account in their review of “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”  While at SXSW this year, the conversation surrounding Odd Future’s live show wasn’t about the presentation of their music, but rather,  how “crazy” they are, or which shows they cut short because the crowd wasn’t going “crazy” enough.  Context isn’t new with hip-hop.  Eminem was that white rapper who could actually rap, 50 Cent was the guy who survived being shot eight times, and so on.  The current message is if you want to reach the top of hip-hop, be vain, be controversial, start “beefs,” and work just as hard or even harder creating conversation pieces outside the music as within it.  

The only context needed for Seattle’s Shabazz Palaces is that Palaceer Lazaro (Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler) was in the wonderful jazz-based rap group Digable Planets.  While this is basic background, even this context is not necessary when pressing play on Shabazz Palaces’ “Black Up.” What’s fascinating is that Lazaro understands what I’m talking about in the first paragraph above better than anyone.  Looking at an interview with Lazaro with the context king Pitchfork:

 Pitchfork:

Lazaro initially declined Pitchfork's interview request, replying that he'd prefer to read a writer's take on Shabazz Palaces' music rather than offer his own answers. He won't name any of the other people involved in the project. He wouldn't send us a photograph; instead, he requested that we run the graphic you see above. Shabazz Palaces have no MySpace page, and they self-released two albums into the ether last year on their website. They're a group happy to work in the shadows.

 Pitchfork: At first, you were reluctant to do this interview. Why do you prefer not to do interviews?

Palaceer Lazaro: We all feel, that this new era, this contentual era -- where content drives information -- is not interesting. It's not unique. None of the questions that are usually asked are very revealing. And also, it's difficult to really represent something as ethereal as what goes on, what becomes the music you make, and then try represent that in that Q&A form. We find that it's always more interesting when people, if they like your music, just go off on their own thing, just say what they think, instead of asking us about it. We've been leaving it up to writers and people that listen to the music, blogs and shit, to say whatever they want to say about it. 

I know what you wise guys are thinking.  This whole review has been context.  But that’s exactly the point.  “Black Up” is an album that explores the problems of context and constantly makes the point that the only thing important in music and life is the actual product – not what surrounds it.  On the last track of the album, “Swerve…” the lyrics read: “If you talk about it, it’s for show…if you move about it, it’s a go.”  Simply put: actions speak louder than words.  Shabazz Palaces are next to zero on self-promotion and creating context, but the content on “Black Up” speaks for itself in a big way.

After your first spin of “Black Up”, take all your impressions, thoughts, and judgments and throw them in the trash.  It takes multiple listens to sift through the layers and layers of tones, influences, and lyrical content.  The songs on this album are constantly shifting and developing over the two to six minute time span of each track.  To simply listen to snippets of each track and shuffle along to gauge the album would be to miss half an album’s worth of new sounds. Synths, marimbas, African thumb pianos, and countless other surprising instruments surface all throughout “Black Up” but never result as an interruption or distraction from the original concept of the track.  Every detail on “Black Up” seems to be meticulously thought on and manipulated to its greatest effect. 

The familiar sounds on “Black Up” are particularly shocking and satisfying.  The last thirty seconds of the opening track “Free Press and Cruel” display a synth line that could easily be mistaken for one of James Murphy’s creations.  “Endeavors For Never” mixes a horn section that could be found in a 50s cop film with a burping synth line that is reminiscent of the same synth sounds found on The Flaming Lips track “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots pt 2.” The repetitious beat on “The Kings New Clothes” sounds like a creation from The Books. “Black Up” is a bit of everything in music, and the biggest feat is that somehow Shabazz Palaces made all these brilliant details work as building blocks to something bigger, and in the end, the album feels like a singular thought.

It seems like a bit of a cop out for a music critic to say, “Just listen to the album – it speaks for itself.”  It’s true. The only problem is that I’m not the only one who is saying it.  On the track “Are You…Can You…Were You” a particularly striking lyric is present.  “I can’t explain it with words, I have to do it.”  While everyone else in the world of hip-hop is concerned with self-declarations of prominence, Shabazz Palaces would rather you listen to their music and judge the album for yourself than manufacture impressions of outside noise. “Black Up” speaks loudly for itself, and in my opinion it’s one of the most interesting, daring, intellectual, and overall pleasing hip-hop records of the last decade.  But I have a feeling that Shabazz Palaces wouldn’t want you to care about what I think. Instead, I think they’d want you to listen to their record and judge for yourself. 

Joanna Newsom Making Music Video For "Good Intentions Paving Company"

Almost a year after the release of my favorite album of 2010, "Have One On Me", Joanna Newsom is making a music video for the wonderful track "Good Intentions Paving Company".  Here are the set photos:

via (fuck yeah Joanna Newsom)

WLFY's Best Of The First Half (2011)

BEST ALBUMS

1.) The Antlers - "Burst Apart"

2.) Mountain Goats - "All Eternals Deck"

3.) Mother Mother - "Eureka"

4.) Radiohead - "The King Of Limbs"

5.) Other Lives - "Tamer Animals"

BEST TRACKS

1.) Radiohead - "Codex"

2.) The Deloreans - "Buffalo"

3.) The ACBs - "Be Professional"

4.) Cults - "Bumper"

5.) Mother Mother - "The Stand"

6.) The Antlers - "Putting The Dog To Sleep"

7.) Nerves Junior - "As Bright As Your Night Light"

8.) Shabazz Palaces - "Swerve..."

9.) Other Lives "For 12"

10.) The Mountain Goats - "High Hawk Season"

BEST SELF-RELEASED ALBUMS

1.) The Deloreans - "American Craze"

2.) The ACBs - "Stona Rosa"

3.) Marissa Nadler - "Marissa Nadler"

4.) The Glass Canoe - "Chimera"

5.) Evening Man - "The Last Night"

BEST EPs

1.) Beach Fossils - "What A Pleasure EP"

2.) The Henry Clay People "This Is A Desert EP"

3.) Conveyor - "Sun Ray EP"

4.) Airlines - "Visions EP"

5.) Marvelous Toy - "Moving"

BEST DEBUT ALBUM

Cults - "Cults"

BEST PUNK ALBUM

Fucked Up - "David Comes To Life"

BEST HIP HOP/RAP ALBUM

Shabazz Palaces - "Black Up"

BEST DANCE ALBUM

Starfucker - Reptillians

ALBUM THAT DEMANDS MULTIPLE SPINS

Deerhoof - "Deerhoof vs. Evil"

BEST MUSIC VIDEO

BEST VINYL 

Matthew Friedberger - "Solos"

BEST 7"

The Deloreans - "Buffalo"

BEST ALBUM COVER

Cut Copy - "Zonoscope"

BEST LIVE SHOWS

1.) Fiery Furnaces (Largo / Los Angles)

2.) Other Lives (The Satellite / Los Angeles)

3.) Beach Fossils (SXSW / Austin)

4.) Mother Mother (The Satellite / Los Angeles)

5.) Marissa Nadler (The Bootleg / Los Angeles)

MOST ANTICIPATED OF 2011

(in no specific order)

The Avalanches - TBA
Arms - TBA
Caveman - TBA
Nas - "Life Is Good"
The Pass - TBA
Slow Animal - TBA
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - TBA
Nerves Junior - TBA
Morning Benders - TBA
M83 - TBA
Eleanor Friedberger - "Last Summer"
Ty Segall - "Goodbye Bread"

NOTE:  We're using the word BEST as WLFY's FAVORITE.  Opinions.

What are your picks for each category?  Let me know in the comments.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - "Same Mistake"

CYHSY are back and set to release their third LP, "Hysterical" on September 20th.  If this first track is any indication, it appears frontman Alec Ounsworth is back to the passionate vocals everyone loved so much on their self titled debut and desperately missed on "Some Loud Thunder".  While the track is upbeat, it's not an immediate hit, but with each listen I've found myself humming along and liking "Same Mistake" more and more.  As a single some people might be disappointed (it's hard to live up to the magic of that debut LP) but thinking about the track knowing it's part of a collection of songs, "Same Mistake" is a hint to what this third LP "Hysterical" will bring: a return to the shimmering guitars, orchestral keys, and vocals that overflow with emotion...everything I was hoping "Hysterical" would be.

  

Eleanor Friedberger - "My Mistakes" (Music Video)

Pitchfork has the exclusive for Eleanor Friedberger's first music video off her debut LP "Last Summer" (July 12th on Merge).  In the video, Eleanor recreates shots from a childhood friend's short film.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

Eleanor Friedberger on tour:
Jun 18 Brooklyn, NY  Europa Nightclub
Jul 11 Philadelphia, PA Kung Fu Necktie
Jul 12 Washington, DC Black Cat Backstage
Jul 14 Cambridge, MA Lizard Lounge
Jul 16 New York, NY South Street Seaport – The Village Voice / 4Knots Festival
Jul 19 Toronto, ON Horseshoe Tavern
Jul 20 Chicago IL The Hideout
Jul 23 Portland, OR Neumo’s Crystal Ball – Capitol Hill Block Party
Jul 24 Seattle, WA Doug Fir Lounge
Jul 26 San Francisco, CA Hotel Utah Saloon
Jul 27 Los Angeles, CA The Satellite

Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers - "Jubilation Day" (Video_

Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, "Jubilation Day" from Moving Colour on Vimeo.

take that Jib-Jab.

Bomba Estéreo

(image via)

For the indie audience from the USA, it might be hard to conceptualize Colombian band Bomba Estéro. First there's the problematic definition of "World Music" which is unfortunately lumped in with Puto Mayo comps at your local Starbucks and your crazy aunt who wears one too many bead necklaces. Second there's the strong ties that the band has to Colombian musical traditions and forms like cumbia. Finally, there's the defiant vocal stylings of Liliana Saumet -- an emcee of prodigious skill and unbelievable live performer -- which, let's face it, aren't easy to categorize in the reductive world of lady leads.

What's impossible to deny is the unbridled energy and riveting music that Bomba Estéro makes. At the base is a strong study of Latin rhythms which are transformed in crashing electro-psychedelia. At the NYC club, Sounds of Brasil (SOB), last month, I got to see the group live and it was one of the most incredible live shows of my life. Saumet is the rival of just about any frontman (or woman) out there and the band is top-notch, lead by Simón Mejía. Mejía's particular genius lies in the reinvention of the cumbia tradition in the context of 70s Latin psychedelia and the better moments of the electro-ecstasy songs. It's music that engages your whole body and spirit whether you know Spanish or not. Cumbia is a traditional Colombian form that originated in the Caribbean as a way for West African slaves to keep their musical traditions and as such it was changed into a courtship ritual. As the process of colonization is wont to do, other instruments and traditions were laid atop. Bomba Estéro's usage of the cumbia as one of the main rhythmic elements stands in stark contrast to another, more famous Colombian, Shakira, whose turn to the USA transformed her into into a sort of Latina Britney Spears -- exotic for show. Shakira is, in many ways an export, whereas Bomba Estéro is a living agent effecting the traditions of music with diverse and hypnotic instruments.

The group has 2 proper records: Vol. 1 and Blow Up. An EP, Ponte Bomb, was released in January. They've been making the festival circuit as well, playing Bonnaroo, SXSW, & Bumbershoot in 2010 but they need a bigger audience. So, get after it, kids. Trust me. It's the only way to party in the summer. And if you need more pressing, check out the vids below:

"Fuego"

"Pa' Respirar" & "Cosita Rica"

Canary Records

Check out this beautiful promo for Canary Records featuring the owner Ian Nagoski talking about his forthcoming reissue To What Strange Place: The Music of the Ottoman-American Diaspora, 1916-29, to be released June 28 by Tompkins Square Records.

Wilco Announces New Single/Limited 7" Vinyl

Wilco has their own record label dBpm Records and they've just announced a brand new single and matching 7" as their first release.  From the site: 

Here it is: the debut release from Wilco's very own label, dBpm Records. It's a 7" single featuring, you guessed it, Wilco doing a rockin new tune called "I Might" and on the b-side, covering the oh-so-appropriate Nick Lowe-penned "I Love My Label." And the Wilco store is the only place you can get it on limited edition clear blue vinyl. Very cool. Very rare.

A digital download of both tracks is included in every sleeve and we'll make "I Might" available for instantdownload through your store account before July 1st.

A side: I Might
B side: I Love My Label

Doesn't look like the limited blue 7" will be found in record stores and with their fanbase, it won't be around for too long.  Go grab the special piece of wax HERE.

Ted Leo - "One Polaroid A Day" (Room 205)

Before today I had no idea what Room 205 was, but consider me a fan for life after seeing this wonderful Ted Leo live video.  Head over to ROOM 205 for details and make sure to watch the video below:

The ACBs

Start conditioning yourself.  Disregard album art and track or band names.  Listen to the music and make your decision to move on or invest in a band off the music only.  I woke up today with a slew of mp3s and album reviews I wanted to write about/post, but was swiftly interrupted by a tweet from the wonderful band SSLYBY.  The tweet was simple: "I think you will love this album (bandcamp link)."  

I clicked the link and was immediately turned off by the album art, the album name "Stona Rosa" (Surfer Rosa???), and track names like "Street Fighter II".  It just seemed like amateur hour.  But this is not an art competition, it's about the music, so I clicked play on the first track and was blown away.  This is pure indie rock, a wormhole of sound bringing my ears back to the days of Pavement, The Pixies, early Of Montreal, and Portishead.  I haven't heard indie rock sound so uninhibited and planted in the early concepts of the genre like this (in The ACBs) since the wonderful Aqueduct record "I Sold Gold"(2005).  The sound on the new ACBs album "Stona Rosa" is raw and driven by the marriage of traditional rock instruments that bounce off each other.  It feels weird writing this, but it's refreshing to have a lead singers vocals up front and untouched by layers and layers of effects.  Flawlessness is often times boring and it's bands like The ACBs that embrace the garage band (not the program) sound without sacrificing any aspect of their final product.  

Track after track, The ACBs present some of the best music I've heard all year.  The immediate take away is that these guys are clever songwriters.  The indie rock sound is coming up on two decades now and it's hard for bands to separate themselves from the greats that came before and even more difficult to shift away from the new artists and bands that are scrambling to fit into new subsections of indie rock.  The ACBs seem blissfully unaware of the musical trends of the last five years and the listener prospers with "Stona Rosa".  This album was like taking a shower after months of being dirty.  All the bullshit buzz outside the actual music that bands/artists use today to get attention washed down the drain and The ACBs remain as a reminder that great music trumps all.

REVIEW: Marissa Nadler - "Marissa Nadler"

Marissa Nadler - Marissa Nadler

Record Label: Box of Cedar Records

Release Date: June 14, 2011

Marissa Nadler's self-titled album, her 4th overall and first since 2009, seems like a solitary affair. It's eponymous, funded from Kickstarter coins (full disclosure: I helped fund and received my advance copy as a result of my backing), and out on her new label Box of Cedar Records. Then there's Nadler's whispery, etherial soprano which has the paradoxical effect of spinning you away from the world and drawing you into the speakers at the same time. However, by the end of the record, there's little that feels isolated except Nadler's prodigious talent showcased in a soundscape that is her own creation.

Nadler's songwriting takes an impressive turn on her self-titled effort. Our first taste, the melancholic single "Baby, I Will Leave You in the Morning," mixed siren-sounding keys humming behind the closely-held dramatics. It's a paradigm that works (and reworks) itself over and over through the record. Opener "In Your Lair, Bear" begins with a cycling acoustic melody which is plods its way through the track while cymbals crescendo in the background until it plateaus as the other instruments work their way in almost 2 min into the track. It's a prescient moment as Nadler intones about coming out of hibernation, of emerging into the light and then it hits in the music.

For someone who has built their career on stunning dreamy vocals, in this record, Nadler lets the instrumental moments do the work. Keeping her soprano at bay, often, or at service of a narrative. What connects her to folk music isn't just the soundscape, but the commitment to the narrative service of music. The steamy "Alabaster Queen" is a perfect example where the emotive chorus spirals to the stratosphere because of the storytelling as much as because of the songwriting. There's an implicit tension between technique and sentiment that Nadler keeps the tight reins on, allowing a kind of dramatic that never feels forced. Neither the music nor the lyrics are at service of one another, but rather are woven together with bliss. The themes of nostalgia and remembrance reoccur without feeling trite or melodramatic largely because as a songwriter Nadler is at the apex of her craft, continually surprising her listeners with subtle musical changes that draw us forward into her illusory world.

Nadler's emergence onto the music scene couldn't have come at a better time. As Banhart's freak folk movement has slowly freaked itself out, artists like Nadler have had a built in audience that their work appeals to. And while style and substance walked hand in hand for Banhardt, for Nadler, the trappings of identity are the fodder for musical expression not outrageous outfits. Backed by a top-notch supporting cast, Nadler's able to create a first-rate record that refashions folk music for the world today. This is the stuff of music as dream and the listener as dreamer. Ambiguous and ambient, Marissa Nadler is indeed a singular creation and while it may be about loneliness, you'd never feel that way listening to it.

Beirut - "East Harlem"

Beirut - East Harlem by Revolver USA

BUY THE 7"

Beirut Announces New Single

Beirut announced they're going to drop a new single "East Harlem" June 6 via Condon's Pompeii label. "East Harlem" was featured on Live At the Music Hall of Williamsburg. The B-side will be "Goshen." So it looks like all systems are go for a new album this summer. Fire up your flugelhorns.

"Beats, Rhymes, & Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest" (Trailer)

Track Of The Day: The Glass Canoe - "Happy"

Let the Animal Collective comparisons roll.  Obviously, The Glass Canoe have all the Animal Collective albums, but there's room for other bands at the experimental, world beat driven, phased vocals music dinner table.  What I love most about The Glass Canoe is that their music is much more on the "Sung Tongs" or "Feels" side of Animal Collective's discography, albums that feel more organic than any of their other records.

"Happy" is off the full length LP, "Chimera", which the band is giving away for free on Bandcamp.  It's really a gem of an album that provides one of the more challenging/interesting listens of 2011.  I've only been playing this record for a few days now, but I'm continuing to dive in and sort through the layers upon layers of textures and sounds that radiate from this impressive debut.

Get The LP Free On Bandcamp

The Fervor - "Crazy For The Feeling" (MUSIC VIDEO)

The Fervor do their best Bonnie & Clyde impression in the new video "Crazy For The Feeling".  The track is powered by a big guitar lick and the vocals will be welcomed by any fans of Neko Case.  The video has some very beautiful car mounted driving shots.  Check it out:

Off new LP "Arise, Great Warrior"

Stream: Tom Vek - Leisure Seizure (Full Album)

2011 is 2005 again as Tom Vek is back and his new album "Leisure Seizure" is fantastic.  Hype Machine has the full album stream.  Get to it:

League - "Golden Maps" & "Two Wild Hearts"

I Guess I'm Floating found a gem in the band League.  Think MGMT, Klaxons, Yeasayer...now throw those thoughts out because while they definitley have their infulences, League is bringing a whole new edge to the psychpop genre.  It's fun, smart, and an instant dance party.  Kind of hard not to get knocked over by these two tracks.

 Golden Maps by League 

 Two Wild Hearts by League 

Check out more tracks from League

via IGIF

Sondre Lerche - "Domino"

It's taken Sondre Lerche five studio LP's and a soundtrack to finally release a self-titled album.  Typically   this is a sign to fans that the artist/band has settled down and honed in on their relationship with the music they create.  Lerche's self-titled LP comes out June 7th on Mona Records and if "Domino" is any indication, then we're in store for another great collection of songs with Lerche's fingerprints firmly planted on every aspect of the album.

 Sondre Lerche - "Domino" by Yep Roc Music Group  

Leonard Cohen Wins Prestigious Spanish Letters Award

That's right. Cohen took home the Prince of Austurias award for work of invaluable merit. Pervious winners were Nobel-laureates Jose Saramago and Mario Vargas Llosa. From the AFP:

Canadian singer and poet Leonard Cohen won Spain's prestigious Prince of Asturias literature award on Wednesday for a body of work of "immutable merit," the jury said.

The jury decided by majority vote to confer the 2011 award for letters on 77-year-old Cohen for his writings.

Cohen's writing "has influenced three generations of people worldwide through his creation of emotional imagery in which poetry and music are fused in an oeuvre of immutable merit," the jury said in a statement.

"The passing of time, sentimental relationships, the mystical traditions of the East and the West and life sung as an unending ballad make up a body of work associated with certain moments of decisive change at the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st century."

Cohen left music in the 1990s and spent years in a Buddhist monastery in California, where he became a monk and took the name Jikan, which means "silence."

But the musical and literary giant known for songs such as "So Long, Marianne," "Suzanne" and "First We Take Manhattan" returned to the stage in May 2008.