The Diggs

Brooklyn's The Diggs have been getting quite a few rave reviews in their hometown for their live performances, which earned them a current residency at NYC's Sin-e (including a show tomorrow night). I especially like "Trouble Every Day", an atmospheric, dreamy pop-rock ballad that slowly gains momentum and swells into a huge wave of sound that is indicative of the band's style. Look for the The Diggs upcoming LP, Commute, to be released later this year (hopefully).

The Diggs Trouble Every Day mp3
The Diggs Stagg mp3

Buy The Diggs EP, Orange, here for only $7.

Turn Records

I discovered indie label Turn Records while I was trying to buy the new Thee More Shallows record, More Deep Cuts (which I received in the mail already, and i fu**ing love it), and I'm pretty happy about the find. In addition to having a roster of really cool bands and a wealth of mp3s on their website, when you order a CD from them you get it in like 2 days.

So I recommend you first download these tracks, courtesy of Turn Records, then go to their online store and buy something. You can't go wrong, and most cds and t-shirts are only ten bucks.


Thee More Shallows 2 a.m. mp3
"...one of the most original and best releases of 2005." -Tiny Mix Tapes


The Dying Californian Prairie Fire mp3
"Their intimate style may draw comparisons to the more introspective end of The Elephant Six posse, but The Dying Californian are in a league of their own..." -Splendidezine.com


Dealership Pure Of Heart mp3
"an irresistible blend of punk, sugar sweet twee, and breakneck beats...simultaneously fun and intelligent" - Venus


Track Star The One We Play mp3
"Its...tunes range from sedate ditties to sublimely poppy rockers that whiz by in a brief yet blissful 30 minutes" -CMJ


Nervous and the Kid Stoned Ponies mp3
"Their music has elicited comparisons to rock groups such as the Velvet Underground or Neutral Milk Hotel, to folk and county outfits such as the Carter Family or Palace Brothers"

Download more at the Turn Records website

Also...

Check out Austin, TX, based Indie Interviews, where you can download mp3s of interviews w/ indie bands, such as the Wrens and Midlake. Pretty cool idea, and it'll be interesting to see if it catches on. I hope it does.

If you haven't heard Dungen yet, this song is a great place to start. I got the U.S. release of "ta det lugnt" recently, and it is amazing. Here you go, courtesy of Filter:

Dungen Panda mp3

The Long Winters

Download the great title track from the upcoming EP from The Long Winters, Ultimatum (out Oct. 11), at the Barsuk website. Highly recommended.

Bonus:

The Long Winters Blue Diamonds mp3 (also highly recommended)

Seventeen Evergreen

If you live in or around San Francisco, I highly recommend that you attend the release party tomorrow night (Aug. 31) at The Rickshaw Stop for Seventeen Evergreen's debut album, "Life Embarrasses Me On Planet Earth". The album is exceptional, and is definitely one of the best debuts I've heard this year.

UPDATE: You can purchase "Life Embarrasses Me On Planet Earth" right here or here. Do it now! (thanks Caleb!) Listen:

Seventeen Evergreen Music Is The Wine (follow link)

SF's Minipop and Japan's PINE*am will also be performing, and you should check these bands out too.

Minipop Sky Like mp3
PINE*am Do I Know You mp3

Also...



Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 4 came out today...I will be buying it after work and you should too. For serious.

Music is Happiness

In the next few weeks leading up to ACL, I thought I'd feature a few awesome bands from Austin, TX that you may or may not have heard yet. First up: The Octopus Project



I'm not even going to attempt to describe The Octopus Project's electronica-driven glitch pop-rock hybrid, but I will let URB Magazine do it:

"The trio calls its music 'ambidextrous equipment failure junk-tronica' after the way it hooks up 'half-broken electronic shit all wrong'. However, this record is nowhere near as sloppy as they'd lead you to believe. Every strong is structured; some will fill a dancefloor, others are icy and emotive."



If you live in one of these towns, go seem them on their upcoming U.S. tour...you won't be disappointed.

If you can't make it to a show, buy the record or some other really cool merch (toys, t-shirts, wallets, etc.) here.

mp3

The Octopus Project Music Is Happiness
The Octopus Project The Adjustor

Summer Is Almost Here

PAS/CAL and La Laque

Detroit's PAS/CAL and NYC's La Laque will release a split-12" vinyl single (buy it), featuring new tracks from both bands. The Romantic Air Recording Co. has made both tracks available for free download for a limited time. Both of these bands are great and I love both of these songs. Get them while they're hot:

PAS/CAL Summer Is Almost Here mp3
La Laque Secret mp3

And if you're in NYC tonight:



From PAS/CAL's Myspace page:

"We here at PAS/CAL/HQ are sick and tired of practically everything and plan to let it all out in the most bombastic of manners on the forsaken stage at TONIC, located in Manhattan's Lower East Side, this Saturday the 27th of August.

Fellow comrades of La Resistance include New York's frenchy hipsters La Laque and Philly's The Teeth."

Bonus mp3:

PAS/CAL The Bronzed Beach Boys mp3
PAS/CAL O Honey, We're Ridiculous mp3
La Laque La Sirene dort mp3 (.zip)

More New Polyphonic Spree

The Polyphonic Spree has two new tracks (both from the upcoming Thumbsucker soundtrack, out Sept. 13) available for streaming at their myspace page.

The band has a few big things coming up in the next couple of weeks: they open for Brian Wilson on Sept. 4th at the Hollywood Bowl, then play PETA's 25th Anniversary Gala in L.A. on Sept. 10th, before heading home to play The Granada here in Dallas on the 11th.

You're My Top Special, Baby

Via Rolling Stone.com:

"Jack White pulls his black Ford pickup truck to the curb on a quiet, tree-lined street in his native Detroit and hits the 'play' button on the CD player in the cherry-red dashboard. He turns the volume up to deafening and grins proudly as howitzer-fire drumming and squeals of distorted guitar rattle the windshield. There are bursts of marimba, too, which sound like someone shaking a bag of bones. The singing is really just shouting, and the lyrics are kid stuff: "You're my top special, baby/Top! Top!" But the total effect is elementary, irresistible ecstasy.

Jack is playing "Top Special," a new White Stripes track recorded a week earlier with drummer Meg White -- who is sitting quietly in the back seat -- for a special Japanese single. The chorus, Jack says over the din, is a phrase popular with Japanese teens: "It basically means 'You're my best friend.'""

Download The White Stripes' "Top Special" here (via Prefix)

New Buffalo

I know this is my second post in a row on an Australian artist, but the new album from Australian singer-songwriter Sally Seltmann, aka New Buffalo, was released this week on Arts & Crafts, and I've been listening to it quite a bit (thanks to Jesse for the recommendation).

Aversion calls New Buffalo's music "sweet, chilling pop...more akin to Spiritualized or Black Box Recorder than Sarah McLachlan."

I would throw comparisons to Mirah, Bjork, and Beth Orton in there (for those of you who are into comparisons). Just a stunning collection of electronica/jazz tinged pop, especially for a debut LP.

New Buffalo Recovery
New Buffalo I've Got You and You've Got Me
New Buffalo Yes

Buy New Buffalo's Last Beautiful Day here

Nations By The River

Australian "supergroup" Nations By The River is Luke Steele's (of The Sleepy Jackson) side project, and while not as good as The Sleepy Jackson (who are fu**ing awesome, and an amazing live band, by the way), they are definitely interesting and worth checking out.

Pitchfork says the band "conjures visions of some lost pocket of '60s social idealism, a wigwam village where men cultivate immense beards and women nurse infants in slings and everyone gathers around the campfire for early-evening sing-alongs" (ummm, okay), while Evolution of Media recommends the band for "fans of Bright Eyes, Iron & Wine and the Shins".

mp3 (courtesy of The Alternative)



Nations By The River Boy
Nations By The River These Are The Times
Nations By The River Heart Attack Romance

Download an interview/live set the band did on Australia's Triple J

This Saturday

I'm hopefully going to see the Wrens this Saturday at Hailey's (c'mon Melissa!), and The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up (a band I've heard of but never really checked out before now) will be opening. They're on the same label as the Wrens, and I'm liking this track from their new album, Picks Us Apart. Check it out and let me know what you think:

The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up Silver Sparkler mp3

Listen to 3 more tracks from Picks Us Apart at the band's Myspace page
Buy the album at Absolutely Kosher's website

Bonus:

The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up Reckless Driving mp3
The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up Sleeping in the Crawlspace mp3

Thee More Shallows

San Francisco's Thee More Shallows is a band that has apparently been making the rounds of the blogosphere as of late, yet somehow they had managed to escape my attention until late last night. I downloaded these four tracks, and at first listen, I was instantly mesmerized, and compelled to listen again and again, especially to "2 a.m." I don't know, maybe I was just in a contemplative mood, but the immediacy of this track, driven by what sounds like a toy piano, is both haunting and beautiful. I will be buying this album. Highly recommended.



Thee More Shallows 2 a.m.
Thee More Shallows Freshman Thesis
Thee More Shallows House Break
Thee More Shallows The Perfect Map

Buy Thee More Shallows' album, More Deep Cuts, here

Check out the awesome cover art of their UK EP:

Giant Drag

Annie of Giant Drag is hot

Via Filter Magazine:

"It's not every day that a new band is mentioned in the same breath as My Bloody Valentine, The Pixies, Mazzy Star, PJ Harvey, the Beach Boys and Nirvana. It's even rarer when it occurs in those bastions of hipster credibility." (read more)

The new band they are referring to is Giant Drag, whose new album, Hearts and Unicorns, comes out on Sept. 13. Listen:

Giant Drag This Isn't It mp3

Bonus: Listen to "Kevin Is Gay" from the new Giant Drag album at Filter

Listen to more tracks here

My New Headphones: Strong with the Magnetic Force Dynamic Sound

My Apple earbuds were no longer cutting it sonically, so I gave in and bought these camoflage Audiotechnica headphones, imported from Japan (I got them from Turntable Lab). Not being very technically advanced myself, I have no idea if these are that great, but they were in the price range I wanted (under $100), and they sound pretty damn good to me. Much richer and fuller than those damn tinny-sounding white earbuds. And I was checking out some reviews online, and they were all favorable, I think. Of course, all the reviews were in Japanese, so I really have no idea what the hell they were talking about, even after Google translated that shit for me. Here are a couple testimonials of how awesome (or crappy?) these things are:

"It is strong with the magnetic force neodymium magnet dynamic sound."

"The sound quality is heavy (where) the bass is good hard,
The vocal is played back powerfully."

"Operativity is high with the DJ booth the cirque cord/code
whose reversing the housing, one ear monitor"

"But, seeing price, entire, it is thought it is good being popular value"

Apparently Yoda is Google's translator. Anyway, here are some tracks I've been bumping to test them out, if you know of any other tracks that really need to be heard on headphones, please let me know:

mp3

Four Tet Smile Around The Face mp3 (follow link)
The Album Leaf Over The Pond mp3
Tripping Daisy Waited A Light Year mp3 (follow link)
Ariel Pink For Kate I Wait mp3
Radiohead Planet Telex (UNKLE remix) mp3 (follow link)

And a couple classics that sound fu**ing amazing on these things--all most highly recommended: (follow link)

Zombies Care of Cell 44 mp3
E.L.O. Livin' Thing mp3
The Stranglers Golden Brown mp3

DJ Shadow vs. Diplo

vs.


Diplo + Shadow = Megatroid Mix mp3 (43 minutes)

via Solesides...thanks to my boy Van Horn aka "Pinnacle of Evolution" (his self-appointed nickname) for the heads up

Download these

InSound has some great new downloads in their mp3 section...here are some highlights that are rocking my iPod at work today:



Grandaddy Pull The Curtains mp3
fron the upcoming "Diary of Todd Zilla" EP

American Analog Set Born on The Cusp mp3
from the upcoming album, "Set Free"

Hail Social Hands Are Tied mp3
"80's roller skating music played by a metal band"

CocoRosie Noah's Ark mp3
title track from CocoRosie's upcoming album

The Cribs Hey Scenesters mp3
from the new album, "The New Fellas"

Floatation Toy Warning Popstar Reaching Oblivion mp3
"the rare masterwork that sounds equally skewed through a set of headphones or blasting at top volume"

And as always:

New Polyphonic Spree

I mentioned the other day that Tim DeLaughter of the Polyphonic Spree scored the upcoming soundtrack to Thumbsucker. Well, he involved the whole band on a couple tracks, and here's a live version of one of them, as well as a live Beatles cover, courtesy of The Polyphonic Spree message board.

mp3 (follow link)

The Polyphonic Spree Move Away and Shine (live)
The Polyphonic Spree Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (live)

The Thumbsucker Soundtrack also features 3 unreleased Elliott Smith songs. Buy it here.

Bonus:



View the Thumbsucker trailer here

completely unrelated:

I watched the Comedy Central roast of Pam Anderson the other night, and my girl Sarah Silverman stole the show. Check out the trailer for her upcoming film, "Jesus Is Magic", right here (NSFW!).

New Broken Social Scene

"You need it now....then have it.
This was a hard album to let go of.
But it is done.
We were hoping that it would have taken longer before someone leaked it.....
but today is a beautiful day.
We are all confused and happy.....
We're grateful you are tracking us down
Go argue and go fall in love....
Either way, thanx for the support and thanx for the bullshit."

--excerpt of BSS's Kevin Drew addressing the internet leak of "Broken Social Scene" (read the whole thing here)



Broken Social Scene's upcoming self-titled LP (pre-order it now), due out in October, is already drawing mixed reviews...Some are calling it genius, while others find it slightly underwhelming. After only a couple listens, I can't say yet how I feel about the record as a cohesive whole, but I can say I really love this track. Entitled "Windsurfing Nation" (the original title of the album), it features Canadian indie-rapper k-os, and it is both chaotic and melodic in the way only BSS can be. There's a lot going on here, but somehow it all works.

Broken Social Scene Windsurfing Nation mp3 (follow link)

New Go! Team Track

Here's a new track from The Go! Team's tour only EP, "Are You Ready For More?". Reminiscent of my favorite track from Thunder Lightning Strike ("Huddle Formation"), this track sounds like a cheerleading squad chanting over a 70's TV show theme song. Go see The Go! Team on their upcoming U.S. tour and pick up a copy of the new EP.

The Go! Team We Just Won't Be Defeated mp3

The Go! Team will be at Trees on Oct. 15

Saturday Looks Good To Me

I think I've mentioned this before, but I love Detroit, MI's Saturday Looks Good To Me. They are one of my favorite bands, and I don't really understand why they aren't huge already.

They have been described as "What The Beach Boys might have sounded like if they recorded in an underwater cove", sounding like "a warped vinyl copy of your favorite pop record played on one of those tan Fisher Price record players we all owned as kids".

To me, they sound like Belle & Sebastian if they were a '60's Motown band and Phil Spector was their producer. And that's a huge compliment. Listen:



The Girl's Distracted mp3
Meet Me By The Water mp3

Get a couple more mp3s here

Bonus Detroit-ness:

Sufjan and Katrina Kerns sighting!

Go Blue

Michigan's Heisman Hopefuls

The AP preseason poll has been released, and my team, The University Of Michigan Wolverines, came in at #4. I probably won't post on them as frequently as I did the Pistons during the NBA Playoffs (you're welcome), but I will post on them occasionally throughout the season, especially if they're doing well. For more indepth coverage of my boys, check out this great blog.

Bonus request (follow link):



Feist Nothing In This World Can Stop Me Worryin' Bout That Girl (Kinks cover)

Entourage Music

I've been catching up on Season 2 of Entourage this weekend (OnDemand is the best thing ever), and one thing I love about the show (and pretty much every HBO series, for that matter) is the music. Here are a few selections used so far in Season 2:

mp3 (follow link)

A Tribe Called Quest Scenario mp3
Muse Time Is Running Out mp3
M.I.A. 10 Dollar mp3
Beck Que Onda Guero mp3
Queens of The Stone Age Little Sister mp3

twin cinema

Kill All Artists has posted "Stacked Crooked", the closing track from the new, New Pornographers album "Twin Cinema" (buy it) and it has me all worked up in anticipation of this album (out Tuesday, by the way).

Just his track description alone ("The vocal harmonies in this song really remind me of something The Zombies would have done, Odessey & Oracle era of course. I hear some surf-style Beach Boys in there, too, with the ooh-ing and the guitar twang. Plus, there's even some Sgt. Pepper trumpet. Truly epic stuff.") had me excited, and the song really delivers.

A.C. Newman can do no wrong in my eyes (if you don't have "The Slow Wonder" yet, buy it now and thank me later), and Twin Cinema is no exception. All right, enough talk, go download the song here.

And a couple bonus tracks from Twin Cinema (via Matador):

Use It mp3
Twin Cinema mp3

The White Birch

Today's second post about a band named after a white plant (purely coincidental, by the way):



Norway’s The White Birch is a slow-core trio who's piano-driven, contemplative, moody music has been described as "like Mark Kozelek putting Sigur Rós to sleep, equally paranoid and gentle. Like fire..." I've only heard these 3 tracks, and it is dark yet melodic, dreamy, and best listened to in the dark...

mp3

From the new album, "Come Up For Air", out Nov. 2005:

Your Spain

From the band's previous album, "Star Is Just A Sun":

Beauty King
Breathe

You Could Be All You Ever Want In A Dream

The film Thumbsucker (starring Vince Vaughn, Keanu Reeves, Benjamin Bratt, etc.; out Sept. 16), will feature new music from Tim Delaughter of the Polyphonic Spree, as well as unreleased tracks by Elliott Smith. Here are some words from the director of the film, Mike Mills (via Pitchfork):

"Mills (not the guy from R.E.M., by the way) found inspiration in the unlikeliest of places-- a Polyphonic Spree concert. As Mills told MTV.com, "[The show] really changed all the molecules in my body! Their performance just made me feel like, 'Why not be happy? Why aren't you choosing to be positive?' I walked out of the theater and [felt], 'That's what I want people to feel like in the film.'"

Spree frontman Tim DeLaughter dug into the project immediately, and eventually the band hammered out almost two dozen tracks for the film. The soundtrack to Thumbsucker hits shelves on September 13, complete with previously unreleased Polyphonic Spree material not heard in the film."

Listen to a preview here

Bonus Tim Delaughter: (follow link)



Tripping Daisy Sonic Bloom mp3
The Polyphonic Spree Soldier Girl (live) mp3

The White Foliage

I discovered "avant-pop" duo (or trio?) The White Foliage while browsing around Where Is Helsinki? (a great new-ish blog by Samantha). They make charming lo-fi experimental pop that could be described as a combination of Iron & Wine-esque hushed vocals with more layered and lush instrumentation.

Well, turns out they're on the same label as the much blogged about Page France. The White Foliage describe themselves this way:

"Formed in late 2001, catalyzed by a mutual love for Neutral Milk Hotel, we traded tapes through the mail and built up a vast (or at least respectable) surplus of vaguely experimental pop...We’re just two kids with hundreds of miles of frozen tundra between us and the nearest scene. Only we’re the best band ever.

Download "Zurich (be still)" and listen to more tracks at the band's Purevolume page (I recommend "Dreams of the Silver Moon")


Buy the album, Zurich, for only $8 here


Buy this really cool t-shirt here

The 40-Year-Old Virgin

I'm taking the day off work tomorrow to go see this, because Steve Carell (The Daily Show, Anchorman, The Office) is fu**ing hilarious, and because that's how I roll. I don't even know what that means, but yeah, I'm going to see this tomorrow. Written and directed by Judd Apatow, who is responsible for one of my favorite TV shows ever (Freaks and Geeks, bitches!).

Robert Wilonsky of the Dallas Observer calls the film "near-brilliant...astoundingly astute but also wondrously clever, written with more care and joy than any hundred comedies to come out of Hollywood in years". Now usually I don't give a shit what critics say, but Wilonsky hates just about every movie ever, so if he likes it, it's gotta be good. I'll let you know.

Also:

Head over to YANP where Matt has made available for download "Do They Know It's Hallowe'en" featuring The Arcade Fire, Karen O, Smoosh, Beck, and others. So awesome.

The Hourly Radio

The Hourly Radio

The Hourly Radio is a band from Dallas that doesn't sound like they're from Dallas. If you're not from Dallas, you may have no idea what I'm talking about right now. How about this description of THR from Dallas Music Guide:

"Britpop evolved with Southern sentiment, their music is expansive, effusive, and beautiful...The radio-ready, The Strokes meets My Bloody Valentine, “Lost + Found” is pleasing pop waiting to be added to any playlist."

And Torr, who probably knows more about Britpop than you (or anyone else, for that matter), has been singing their praises for quite some time now. And if that's still not enough for you hipsters, according to the band's website they recently played a show at a Vice party in NYC w/ Clap Your Hands Say Yeah.

Download two new songs from The Hourly Radio:

Deaf Ears mp3
Closer mp3

Watch a short video clip by Torr for what is probably my favorite THR song, "Lost and Found"

Rogue Wave--Descended Like Vultures

Poster by The Heads of State

The new Rogue Wave album, Descended Like Vultures, comes out October 25, and I already love it. Yeah, I know I say that about everything. But that's because I usually only post about stuff I love, so BACK OFF! Sorry about that. Anyway, this album is like, possibly "gorilla vs. bear top 10 of 2005" good, but don't take my word for it: listen to the first single from the album, 10:1 (mp3), and head over to More Cowbell, where Solace has posted his two favorite tracks from the album. And as a bonus, here's my favorite track so far...I think (well, it's either this one or "Catform"):

Rogue Wave You mp3 (follow link)
(such an amazing song)

Buy the 10:1 EP here
Be like me and order this shirt
Buy Rogue Wave's debut LP Out Of The Shadow here

Also...

Brandon from Love as Laughter (another SubPop band I really like) was in a very serious car accident, and he and his wife were badly injured. If you would like to help, please go here and make a donation.

Love as Laughter In Amber mp3

New Brendan Benson Song (sort of)

For some unexplicable reason, I don't think I've devoted an entire post to Brendan Benson yet. He's one of my favorite artists, and one of his 3 LP's is always in rotation either on my iPod or in my car. Plus he's from Detroit. And as if I needed an actual excuse to post on him, here's one: he has posted a new mix of his song "Cold Hands, Warm Heart" from his latest album, Alternative To Love (buy it) on his MySpace page--I knew MySpace was good for something. Anyway, here it is:

Brendan Benson Cold Hands, Warm Heart (Chris Shaw mix) mp3

It's the Remix

I know the mashup is a tired, played-out genre in most cases, but there are a couple innovators (namely Diplo and Z-trip) who can still make it interesting. The Elektrobank collective (Fake ID, LionelVinyl) is another crew who can combine two seemingly incompatible songs and turn them into something new, and while they may be disposable, they're worth at least a listen or two. Check these out:

Kylie vs. Mark Ronson Sloooweee (recommended)
Shapeshifters vs. Busta vs. Daft Punk Danger, Hard Lola
Missy vs. Air Kelly Wash the Cars

Additional Fake ID remixes:

Annie Chewing Gum (Juicy Fruit mix)
The Faint Agenda Suicide (Fake Agenda mix)

and one more mashup:

Interpol vs. Dizzee Rascal Live Stand Up (mcsleazy bootleg)

and because this song just hasn't been remixed enough:

Gwen Stefani vs. South Rakkas Crew Bionic Girl (DJ Skeletor mix)

and a 45 minute long Baile funk/mashup thing:

DJ Sujinho I Love Baile Funk

Also...

What are you guys' thoughts on this thing?



It comes out in October, and while I realize it's probably not a legitimate form of DJ'ing, it may be fun to play w/. Think it's worth $400?? (get a close-up view of it here)

The Most Serene Republic

The newest band to sign on to the greatness that is Canada's Arts & Crafts collective (joining Broken Social Scene, Stars, Apostle of Hustle, etc.), The Most Serene Republic creates indie pop in the same vein as the other bands on their label. And while they don't come anywhere close to BSS quite yet, they do show promise on their debut single, "Content Was Always My Favorite Color".

PopMatters says about the song:

"The beat combined with frontman Adrian Jewett's fey, Gibbard-esque vocal stylings invites all too easy comparisons to The Postal Service. But it's in the unpredictability where The MSR really shines. From that moment of the unavoidable reference point, the song mutates, incorporating seemingly out of place acoustic guitar and handclaps. It's this volatile side of the group's sound that makes it stand out more. "

The Most Serene Republic Content Was Always My Favorite Color (via Insound)

Bonus:

Also via Insound:

Grandaddy Pull The Curtains mp3
(i love this new Grandaddy EP)

New Bloc Party Track

Here's the new song from Bloc Party that's been floating around...pretty good stuff.

Two More Years mp3 (follow link)

And in case you don't already have it...the new Franz Ferdinand song:

Do You Want To mp3 (follow link)

The Happy Bullets

The Happy Bullets

You guys know how much I love breezy, shimmery indie-pop, and The Happy Bullets, from Dallas, TX, make damn near perfect indie-pop songs. Forget for a second that they're from Dallas, so I may be a little biased...these guys hold their own w/ the best of them: if you're a fan of The Shins, The Kinks (and who isn't?), or any of the poppier Elephant 6 bands (Of Montreal, Apples In Stereo), I'm pretty sure you'll dig these guys.



Released on Dallas' own Undeniable Records, the band's debut LP, "The Vice and Virtue Ministry" can be purchased here (highly recommended!)

mp3 (follow link)

The Vice and Virtue Ministry
If You Were Mine
A Momentary Vision At The End Of The World...

The Happy Bullets open for Mates of State on Sept. 25 @ Hailey's.

Other Dallas music stuff...

Head over to Good Records tonight at 7 PM for Salim Nourallah's "Beautiful Noise" release party...free food, beer, and an acoustic performance by Salim.

De La Soul + Common Live @ Gypsy (camera phones suck ass)

My boy T-Shurn called me last night and said he could hook us up with tickets to the De La Soul and Common show at Gypsy last night, which I didn't plan on going to because it's been sold out for two months. So we went, and it was one of the best hip hop shows I've ever seen.

Rahzel of the legendary Roots crew was the host, and he was fu**ing awesome...you indie kids may know Rahzel as one of the collaborators from Bjork's "Medulla" album, but hip hop fans know him as "the Undisputed Beatbox Champion of the World". Dude makes music with his mouth that is ridiculous, and he got the crowd into it with his rendition of some '80's hip hop classics like "Lodi Dodi" and "Push It". He did, however, turn down my request to do a Bjork song, saying "Man, that's too deep".

Rahzel makes the music with his mouth (trust me--that's him)

Then came one of the best hip hop groups of all time: De La Soul. These guys were amazing, and it was really good to see one of the truly revolutionary hip hop acts live. Unfortunately, no cameras were allowed in the venue (they made me take mine back to the car), but I did my best for you guys. I had my trusty piece of shit camera phone, and it did a serviceable job (and by "serviceable" I mean "shitty")...here you go:

Pos aka Plug One

Then De La brought out Dres from Black Sheep (another hip hop legend) to perform the classic "The Choice Is Yours"...

Then Common came out and tore it up, performing w/ more energy than I've ever seen at a hip hop show...he did all his classics, as well as a few tracks from his new album, "Be"....

And some aftershow photos:

Me and Dres of Black Sheep


T-Shurn (center) w/ Dave and Maseo of De La Soul


Me and Pos of De La Soul


Common

mp3 (follow link)

Bjork featuring Rahzel Pleasure Is All Mine
Common Be
Rahzel Beatbox Freestyle

Short and random

After a short vacation last week, I'm back to work. Yeah!



Anyway, I've got some catching up to do today, so here are a few quick things for you:


Proton Proton's debut EP is now available for purchase here...only $6!! Have a listen:

Proton Proton Lock Picker mp3

A few tracks currently getting heavy rotation on the iPod:

Bishop Allen Busted Heart mp3
Amusement Parks on Fire Smokescreen (via Blisspop)
Say Hi To Your Mom The Twenty-Second Century (via Blisspop)
Innaway Threathawk mp3
Fruit Bats Lives of Crime mp3

And some early contenders for Gorilla vs Bear's song of the year (reposts; get them now if you missed 'em the first time):

Animal Collective Did You See The Words mp3 (follow link)
Sigur Ros Saeglopur mp3 (follow link)
Broken Social Scene 7/4 (Shoreline) mp3 (follow link)



Get some live Joanna Newsom tracks here. My favorite:

Sadie (live) mp3

Brian Jonestown Massacre Live @ Trees

Anton Newcombe gets to know us

We went to the Brian Jonestown Massacre show at Trees on Saturday night hoping to see the train-wreck genius of Anton Newcombe, and we were not disappointed.

Opening act Innaway started the night off with their Led Zeppelin-inspired psych-rock, and they were awesome. I highly recommend you catch them live if you get the chance:




The Quarter After also impressed with their guitar-driven '60's-style pop-rock:



When BJM finally took the stage after midnight, Anton came out, told the cheering audience to "shut the fu** up", and proceeded to launch into a 5 minute rant on how he should've cancelled the show because his voice was shot, but he loves Texas so much he decided to go on. Then he yelled at some loud audience members...



...and then he yelled at some members of his band:



And that was all before they had played one note. Finally, he told his drummer to kick a hip hop beat and told the rest of the band to just follow his lead. Then the band launched into a 30 minute (non-stop) vocal-less psychadelic jam session, finally concluding when Innaway's frontman came up (at the request of Anton) to save the song w/ his growling vocals...





At this point, half of the audience looked amazed, while the other half looked bored...then the show really derailed: Anton proceeded to bring up various audience members to sing lead vocals, his only requirement being that they knew the lyrics. We could only take so much of this, and decided to leave about an hour and a half into the set. Anton Newcombe is clearly a genius, and the show definitely had it's brilliant moments, but one can only speculate how huge BJM would be if he wasn't such a drugged-out, egotistical control freak. Anton best summed up the night when he said, "I may be a fu**in' crazy psycho retard loser, but at least I don't quit".

Are You A Dreamer?

I got Denison Witmer's new record, "Are You A Dreamer?", yesterday, and it is perfect listening for a lazy Sunday afternoon. This track features Witmer's boy, Sufjan Stevens, on the organ, and the lovely Katrina Kerns (see photo in sidebar) on backup vocals. Just a beautifully simple folk song.

California Brown and Blue mp3 (follow link)

Buy "Are You A Dreamer?" at insound

Bonus mp3:

Denison Witmer Love In Mind (Neil Young cover)

This Is Why You Love Me

The Brian Jonestown Massacre

We're going to see The Brian Jonestown Massacre (w/ support Innaway and The Quarter After) tonight at Trees. After seeing BJM frontman Anton Newcombe's antics at Lollapalooza and having watched Dig! recently, I'm pretty excited. Pics and words tomorrow, hopefully.

mp3: Brian Jonestown Massacre Not If You Were The Last Dandy On Earth

Kevin over at So Much Silence has mp3s from Brendan Benson's Sirius Left Of Sessions.

Detroit was named "America's Most Liberal City" in some recent study. Represent. In the same study however, my current hometown of Plano, TX, was named the 5th most conservative city in the entire country. Yikes. This poll loses some credibility, however, when Dallas (#32 most liberal city) is ranked higher than Austin (#93) on the list of most liberal cities. That's just not correct.

Dreams of Horses hooks us up w/ this link to one of the best videos I've seen in quite some time (from the Dirty Projectors). Everything I've heard/seen from these guys has been pretty cool; they're definitely worth checking out. Here's the mp3 from the song featured in the video, "I Will Truck" (follow link):

The Dirty Projectors I Will Truck mp3

Also, please check out the band's label, Western Vinyl, for more mp3s from The Dirty Projectors, as well as some great tracks from Salim and Faris Nourallah.

Today's hot girl of the day: The girl who plays Sloan on Entourage, Emmanuelle Chriqui:

Sigur Ros + Poker = $

We went up to Oklahoma last night to this Indian Casino (basically a glorified circus tent) to play some poker. It was my first time playing pot limit (SUCH a different game than no limit), and I ended up winning around $75, while my friends each lost $80. I credit my solid play to this song (my favorite from "Takk" so far), which I had on repeat on my iPod as I was taking a bunch of senior citizens' hard earned social security checks. Such a beautiful, calming track:

Sigur Ros Saeglopur mp3 (follow link)

Bonus: Hot Hipster Girls of the Day





Photos courtesy of the Cobra Snake (this guy's site is fu**ing awesome)

On!Air!Library!

On!Air!Library's self-titled LP was one of the most overlooked albums of last year. Their edgy and atmospheric sound has been compared to everyone from Lush to Broken Social Scene to The Cocteau Twins. Tiny Mix Tapes Called On!Air!Library!'s debut LP "easily among the best of 2004". And don't think I didn't notice: not only do twin sisters Claudia and Alejandra Deheza have angelic, ethereal voices, they are both absolutely gorgeous and ridiculously hot.



mp3

Faultered Ego
Feb.

Bonus mp3 (follow link)

Prefuse 73 Reads The Books Pagina Ocho (ft. Claudia Deheza)

We Gonna Drop It Like This

To celebrate the fact that I got my 3-day pass for ACL in the mail today (so excited), here's what is probably the most fu**ed up, creepiest track from the Kidz Bop Kids. And that's saying a lot, because truthfully, all those Kidz Bop Songs are really fu**ing creepy to me:

The Kidz Bop Kids 1,2 Step mp3 (follow link)

Bonus Kidz Bop Jams! (follow link)

Take Me Out mp3 (wooooooo!)
Float On mp3 (yeah!)

Check out the disturbing, yet kinda awesome, video for the Kidz Bop version of Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone"...keep your eye out for the Asian kid in the yellow shirt, who I have officially dubbed "Coolest Kid Ever".

New Band You Should Know: sourceVictoria

A couple of other blogs have already posted on Phoenix, Arizona's sourceVictoria, but they've been getting repeat listens on my iPod lately so I thought I'd do my part in letting you guys know about them:


sourceVictoria

Citing a wide variety of influences, including early Radiohead, Low, and Wilco, to name a few, sourceVictoria makes sweeping, layered indie rock that ranges from catchy and driving (see "Opportunistic", remixed by Jimmy Eat World's Jim Adkins) to hypnotic and dreamy (check out "The Future Falls In Love", probably my favorite track from the EP). And while "Opportunistic" may be the obvious choice for the band's first single, it is the depth of the other tracks on the EP that hint at a band capable of doing great things. Have a listen:

mp3 (follow link)

Opportunistic (Jim Adkins remix) mp3
The Future Falls In Love mp3

Hear more from sourceVictoria on their official website, or on their MySpace page

Get sourceVictoria's debut EP AND a t-shirt for only $10 here.

New Animal Collective Track

This is the opening track from the new Animal Collective album, "Feels", due out Oct. 11. This track is one of my favorite things the band has ever done, and it's slightly more accessible (I said slightly) than most of "Sung Tongs", as is most of "Feels". After a only a couple listens, I'm really loving the whole album so far.

Boomkat said about "Did You See The Words":

"Animal Collective take the non-Waco bollocks of the Polyphonic Spree, lace through some psychedelic swerves then bring to boil with a 20-foot tall, balls-to-the-wall chorus."

Well said, guys. Check it out:

Animal Collective Did You See The Words mp3 (follow link)

Also...

You may have noticed (or maybe not) that I've been rotating my header every few days...the current one is a photo I took at Lollapalooza '05 in Chicago. Since I am notoriously indecisive, please take a second and vote for your favorite in the poll on the bottom left of the page. Thanks.

Head over to Fluxblog to download the Fiery Furnaces complete butchering cover of The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood".

More Silversun Pickups

As regular visitors to this blog can attest, I have a penchant (I like to call it a gift) for posting on something, when I really like it, over and over again to the point of almost making everyone tired of it, but not quite (Sufjan, anyone?). And, since I called in sick to work today , I figured I could take a break from watching that Sweet 16 show on MTV long enough to give you guys some more Silversun Pickups...



This is my 3rd post on Silversun Pickups, an LA band whose debut EP, Pikul, was released recently. Now I'm sure you've already heard the first single, "Kissing Families" (mp3), but the whole EP sums up why I love EPs so much. It is reminiscent of TV on The Radio's or the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' debut EPs in that it is the perfect length: short enough to leave you clamoring for more, yet just long enough to serve as a great introduction to the strengths of this superior band.

If you're a fan of Earlimart, Autolux, or the Secret Machines, do yourself a favor and listen...

Comeback Kid mp3 (follow link)

...then buy the EP

And to answer Mallie's question....



...second from the left.

Sufjan vs. Kanye West (??!!)

vs.


You guys HAVE to check this shit out. Rarely does a remix/mashup work this well...I'm not a big Kanye West fan, but the way this guy combined Kanye's "Jesus Walks" with Sufjan's "They Are Night Zombies..." surpasses the original Kanye production as far as I'm concerned, and gives one of my favorite tracks from "Illinoise" a whole new life. The flow of Kanye's vocals, not to mention the subject matter of the track, just go perfect w/ Sufjan's arrangement. Check it:

Two Faced John McCartney Zombies Walk!! mp3 (follow link)

Elsewhere...

Check out The Armchair Novelist's interesting and well-written commentary on being black and indie. (while you're there, also check out his track-by-track reviews of Death Cab's "Plans" and the new Danger Doom LP)

Beautiful Noise

Busy morning = short post. But I highly recommend you seek out anything you can find from this guy. One of Dallas' finest, I really think you guys will love his music as much as I do:


Salim Nourallah

I realize I don't post nearly enough local music on this blog, but it's really a bit ridiculous that I haven't posted on Salim Nourallah before today. It's okay though, I was just waiting until the timing was right; his new album, "Beautiful Noise" comes out next Tuesday (Aug. 16). Don't be surprised if it ends up on a more than a few critics' year-end lists.

I recommend Salim's brand of subtly beautiful, heartfelt pop music for fans of Paul McCartney, Elliott Smith, or Wilco (yes, he's that good):

mp3 (follow link)

Salim Nourallah 1978 (such a great song)
Salim Nourallah All Waste The Days

Bonus:

Go to Salim's MySpace page to listen to his ridiculously good cover of "Seasons In The Sun".

Come to Dallas and go to Salim's Good Records In-Store on Aug. 16.

Go here to listen to Dconstruction.org's podcast featuring Salim Nourallah.

Edit: Heliotramp made a good point in the comments...I didn't mention The Nourallah Brothers and I definitely should have. Consisting of Salim and his bro Faris, these guys are awesome. Check out this track (courtesy of Heliotramp):

I'll Be Around mp3

and one more Nourallah Brothers track:

Lightness and Space mp3

The Blood Arm

My newest banner at the top of the page is a photo I took of The Blood Arm at their show at SXSW '05. I hadn't heard much about The Blood Arm before that day (other than that they were Franz Ferdinand's favorite new band), and it would be an understatement to say I am now a fan of this band. Frontman Nathaniel Fregoso is absolutely insane in the best way...he spent most of his time climbing the rafters of the venue and making out w/ audience members (male and female).

Drowned in Sound says about The Blood Arm, "what the 'Arm most hint towards is Julian Casablancas and co. at their most riotously, slurringly drunk." Count me in.

The band recently wrapped up a west coast tour with Maximo Park and will be touring the UK in late August.

Watch the video for The Blood Arm's "Say Yes" (highly recommended)
Check out The Blood Arm's blog

mp3 (demos that only hint at the greatness of The Blood Arm)

Do I Have Your Attention? mp3
Can I Unwind? mp3

Flake Music

Way before The Shins were going around changing Natalie Portman's life in overrated movies, they were Flake Music. I pull out Flake Music's "When You Land Here, It's Time To Return" every once in while, if only to hear how far one of my favorite bands has come. There are some glimpses of where James Mercer was headed on this record, namely "Spanway Hits", while tracks like "Structo" and "Blast Valve" recall "Pinkerton"-era Weezer, but mostly it sounds like Mercer attempting to find his voice and unearthing his uncanny ability to craft a perfect pop song. Here are some of my favorite tracks from Flake Music:

mp3 (follow link)

Spanway Hits
Blast Valve
Structo

Buy "When You Land Here, It's Time To Return" here.

Elsewhere:

I'm pretty excited about this.

I hit the record store last night, and I picked up the new Fruit Bats album, the Silversun Pickups EP, Public Enemy's new greatest hits CD, and Dungen's "Ta Det Lugnt" reissue. Reviews/mp3s coming from these throughout the week (hopefully).

Pilotdrift

Pilotdrift performs at Good Records

Pilotdrift is a band from Texarkana, Texas. Pilotdrift's music can best be described as cinematic and epic, in the vein of Spiritualized,The Flaming Lips, or even Pink Floyd. They have toured w/ Eisley and The Polyphonic Spree, and their new album, "Water Sphere", comes out on September 20 via Good Records.

The album's opening track, Caught In My Trap, has been described as "theatrical, haunting, dark, (and yet somehow inviting)":

Caught In My Trap mp3 (follow link)
Dancing Bear mp3
Rings of Symbols mp3

Buy Pilotdrift's out of print debut LP, Iter Facere, here.

Danger Doom

The Danger Doom album comes out in October (i think), and it is the best hip hop album I've heard thus far this year (not a surprise considering it's a collaboration between MF Doom and Danger Mouse, and the fact that it was inspired by Adult Swim)

Here are a couple tracks from the album, including two different versions of "Sofa King"...not really sure why there are two versions or which one will end up on the album, but the label in parentheses is my opinion, not the official track title.

mp3s (follow link)

Sofa King (more better version) mp3
Sofa King (less better version) mp3
Space Hos mp3

Le Tigre + Diplo

For your weekend playlist:

Le Tigre After Dark (Diplo mix) mp3 (follow link)

Also, i know i posted this song before, but god it is so good, if you missed it or ignored it last time get it now. Seriously:

Silversun Pickups Kissing Families mp3

New Iron & Wine and Calexico

Sorry for the abundance of posts today (or you're welcome, depending on how you feel about it), but there's just a lot of good stuff to post. Plus it's a slow day at work:



I'm really looking forward to the collaborative album Lays in Reins, a seven-song EP which will feature Sam Beam's (Iron & Wine) songs with Calexico as his backing band. The album will be released September 20, and the title track is very interesting. It features Beam's familiar hushed vocals over Calexico's country-tinged Southwestern sound, with additional contributions by vocalist Salvador Duran. I know nothing about Duran (enlighten me), but his turn adds a lot to the general feel of this track, which is a beautiful song.

He Lays in the Reins mp3 (follow link)

Get another track from the EP at Audio for Drinking

Bonus:

Calexico Across The Wire (acoustic version) mp3
Iron & Wine Naked As We Came mp3

Buy the album here.

Iron & Wine/Calexico will perform at the Ridglea Theater on Oct. 29, and Stubb's on Oct. 30.

Elsewhere...

Matt has a kickass Sufjan video up, Dodge has a few Brendan Benson tracks that i highly recommend you download, Kevin has some vinyl-only Hot Hot Heat remixes from the likes of El-P and Boom Bip, and Rebecca wrote an excellent post on Sufjan and contemporary Christian music.

New Rogue Wave!

Rogue Wave's Out of the Shadow was one of my favorite releases of '04, and their new album, Descended Like Vultures, comes out Oct. 25. Sub Pop hooks us up with an mp3 of the first single, 10:1:

Rogue Wave 10:1 mp3

Bonus Rogue Wave (from Out of the Shadow):

Every Moment mp3

Buy the "10:1" EP here
Order Descended Like Vultures here.

Also, Subpop finally has an mp3 from Chad VanGaalen available for download:

Chad VanGaalen Clinically Dead

Read my previous post on Chad VanGaalen.

Workout Playlist

Who wouldn't want to look like this guy?

I posted a workout playlist a while back, but I've been in a workout lull lately, going to the gym only when the circumstances are absolutely perfect and I can't think of an excuse not to (which is almost never). So I decided that a new and improved workout playlist would be a good catalyst to get my ass back in gear. Anyway, here's a sample, complete w/ some mp3s, and as always, suggested additions for my playlist are always appreciated. And if you think my playlist sucks, Kevin is going to put one up today too, which I'm guessing will be heavier on the hip hop.

Disclaimer:

These may not produce results for everyone, and you may be thinking, "Dude how in the hell do you work out to Sufjan Stevens??", to which my reply would be, "Get your own damn workout playlist then."

A.C. Newman Miracle Drug
Metric Succexy (follow link)
The Walkmen Little House of Savages
M.I.A. China Girl (Diplo mix) (follow link)
Mark Ronson Ooh Wee (ft. Ghostface) (follow link)
Le Tigre Deceptacon
Interpol Obstacle 1
Devin Davis Iron Woman
Brendan Benson Tiny Spark (follow link)
Sufjan Stevens Chicago
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Maps (Diplo mix) (follow link)
The Go! Team Huddle Formation

(I didn't post the Walkmen, Sufjan, and Interpol tracks because hey, if you don't have those albums yet, you've got bigger problems than needing a workout playlist. Also, some of these may be repeats from my last list, and if so, download them! because they are effective)

New Sigur Ros

The new Sigur Ros album, "Takk" comes out on Sept. 13. I take a lot of shit from my friends for my devotion to this band (except for Marcel, who also loves them, maybe a little too much), and I'm really excited for the new album. Takk's lyrics are Icelandic, which is a departure from the last album "()" which was mainly in "Hopelandic" (jibberish), and I believe this song is the first single:

Sigur Ros Gong (follow link)

Torr has another track from the new album.

Buy the album here

Download a bunch of sigur ros here

Life Embarrasses Me On Planet Earth

"Rock Need Not Bore." That is the motto of San Francisco band Seventeen Evergreen, and goddamn it if they don't back it up. This shit is vibrant, resonant, alive. I don't know how else to put it.

According to the band's bio, the song-writing duo of Caleb Pate and Nephi Evans "met during an elementary school recess in Sacramento where they were found making strange sounds with warped Speak-N-Spells." So while the other kids were playing kickball, apparently these two were already busy conjuring up what would become "Life Embarrasses Me On Planet Earth".

The songs that Seventeen Evergreen create are awash w/ buzzing layers of sound, created by keys, guitars, and other various electronic toys...yet they possess a very organic, beautiful quality that is best heard through headphones. After listening to their album all day at work yesterday, I can safely say that"Music Is The Wine" is one of the best songs you will hear this year.

The band's press release recommends their music to fans of "Sparklehorse, Flaming Lips, Eno-period Bowie, Boards of Canada, Pavement, early Verve, Super Furry Animals, and Air", and while their music definitely possesses certain elements that would justify the comparisons, they have an unmistakably original sound. Let me know what you think. Better yet, let them know what you think (and listen to a couple more tracks) here.

I struggled over which song to post, just because they're all so good, but this one would be my pick for a single, if only because it's slightly more pop-y and accessible:

Music Is The Wine mp3 (follow link to download)

"Life Embarrasses Me on Planet Earth" comes out on Aug. 22. Buy it here (eventually)

Twee-tronica?

I saw Miami-native Oly perform to about 20 people a little over a year ago at I/O when I was living in Miami, and she is able to create suprisingly warm, whimsical (some may use the word "cute") synth-pop songs w/ just her voice and a laptop. Well, Oly has relocated to Chicago, and is apparently making quite a buzz in the local music scene there, and I'm glad. She deserves it. Her song "No Money Fun" has a child-like charm that even the biggest asshole cynics will have trouble resisting...Do yourself a favor and buy her new ep, "A Hot Hooray" today (i just ordered mine...only 7 bucks!!).



Recommended if you like: Bjork, Lali Puna, The Postal Service (and who doesn't like The Postal Service...so basically i'm saying this is recommended for everyone)

Dead Woman
No Money Fun (highly recommended)

Who's Coming To Austin? (and other random stuff)

ACL weekend (Sept. 23-25) is shaping up to be pretty fu**ing great. In addition to the actual festival, I just got tickets to the Arcade Fire/Black Keys show (get tix here) at my favorite venue in the world, Stubb's, and Dodge and Kevin (and their respective crews wives) will be meeting up with us to hang out for the weekend.

Speaking of Dodge and Kevin, their blogs are all official and shit now, so update your bookmarks (i trust you've already updated for this blog...gorillavsbear.net):

Dodge is at www.myoldkentuckyblog.com
Kevin is at www.somuchsilence.com



In Sufjan news (i haven't mentioned the guy in like a week), he has expanded his tour, and by "expanded", I mean, "still no fu**ing Texas date". Also, he will contribute a track to a Rubber Soul tribute album (along w/ The Fiery Furnaces, Ben Kweller, and others), which, on paper, should be pretty great. Sufjan's song is "What Goes On", and Welcome To The Midwest had the mp3 posted (not sure if it's still up), and I really like it. Also, check out Kevin's review/photos of Sufjan's show last night in Tempe.

Coincidentally (or maybe not so much), I have been rocking Rubber Soul a lot lately...and god damn, it's pretty much perfect. But you already knew that.



Also, I have given in and posted up on MySpace...find me here, be my friend, leave a comment, I don't know...do whatever they do over there.

Still need convincing to get tix to the Arcade Fire/Black Keys show?



The Black Keys 10 A.M. Automatic mp3
The Black Keys All Hands Against His Own mp3
The Black Keys Grown So Ugly mp3
The Black Keys Have Love Will Travel mp3

(get a couple more tracks from Fatpossum.com)

The Like

The Like

Have you guys heard of The Like?

They are a trio of hot young girls from L.A.--Z Berg (Vocals.Guitar), Tennessee Thomas (Drums), and Charlotte Froom (Bass. Vocals)--that play dreamy, atmospheric pop-rock that has earned them comparisons to bands like My Bloody Valentine and Ride.

You may not want to like them for a couple of reasons. I mean, Ashley Olsen's a fan, they've toured w/ Maroon 5 (yikes), and the fact that these girls all have music-industry parents immediately raises a red flag, but hold up, haters...



They have been featured on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic, they are really hot (see pics), and there is no denying that their songs are pretty really fu**ing good. The LP, "Are You Thinking What I'm Thinking?", comes out Sept. 13. Listen and let me know what you think:

The Like What I Say and What I Mean mp3

Did i mention they're hot?



listen to a couple more tracks at The Like's MySpace page

Summer Music

I don't know how I'd never come across this San Francisco band before (they've been around for a while, and have toured w/ Wilco, Pavement, and Elliott Smith), but I was instantly smitten by their psych-pop style, which makes an absolutely perfect soundtrack for a summer evening. Oranger's new album, "New Comes and Goes", comes out on September 20, and I personally can't wait.

Highly recommended for fans of the Elephant 6 collective bands, Grandaddy, the Beach Boys.

Here are a few tracks from "New Comes and Goes":

Crones
New Comes and Goes
Crooked in the Weird of the Catacombs

And a couple older songs:

Vegetables (Beach Boys/Brian Wilson cover)
Heavy Denim (Stereolab cover)
Bluest Glass Eye Sea
Butterfly Magician

Head over to Scenestars to get a couple more tracks from the new album.