Wednesday, November 25, 2009

[Video] Yeasayer: "Ambling Alp" + MP3

There were two things that initially attracted me to Yeasayer: Chirs Keating's incredibly melodic voice and the fact they described their music as "Middle Eastern-psych-snap-gospel". Since listening to All Hour Cymbals and watching them perform a few times, I quickly fell into their ever-growing fanbase. The video for "Ambling Alp" is very bizarre, like mixing strange imagery from The Cell with the arid environments found in The Fall (make an effort to see that movie if you haven't, very good). After posting a NSFW teaser on their website, the group made sure to follow through with said frolicking nudists toward the end too. There is a new emerging trend in hipster fashion; screw skinny jeans, just go no jeans at all.


[MP3] Yeasayer - Ambling Alp

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Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Two-Take Tuesday



Do you remember the first time you heard that incredible song? You played it to the point of redundancy and still managed to enjoy it every subsequent listen. Then you got older and your ears more selective, moving onward to find more great songs. After time and upon nearly forgetting the track all-together, you hear it once more and go through an entire renaissance with your cherished tune all over again.

[MP3] Bishop Allen - Busted Heart
[MP3] The Fiery Furnaces - Evergreen

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[Quickie] Who is Idgy Dean?

Fall has not been kind to my new music listening rotation, as my ears have recently been whisked away by the repeat button to a seasonal beach house. In an attempt to free myself from the confines of looping Lennox and Legrand, I picked up the nearest CD from a stack on the floor staring at me like the terrifying furnace from Home Alone. It just so happens the first disc I picked up was the long lost music of Kid Whitman, an artist I met during Bonnaroo this past summer who has since changed her musical name to Idgy Dean.

[MP3] Idgy Dean - Election

The brainchild of New Yorker Lindsay Sanwald, Idgy Dean crafts rough garage-pop without any sanded sounds of a studio. Considering the limitations experienced whilst recording in a bedroom, the influences of Animal Collective meeting traces of folk Lilith Fair make for an intriguing mix. Sure, some of her songs tend to lose focus and her range certainly needs expanding but that's what follow-ups are for. We'll see if Idgy Dean can find me floating around Bonnaroo to follow through.

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Monday, November 23, 2009

[MP3] Surfer Blood: "Take It Easy"



If you haven't yet pre-ordered Surfer Blood's debut Astro Coast you should get on that ASAP. You'll feel better about getting into them before the rest of the indieverse and the Pitchfork accoutrement does. We've been loving the Florida music (Holiday Shores, Blind Man's Colour, Chromatic Flights, Viernes, Levek) so naturally Surfer Blood is right up our alley. But honestly, even if Florida made us cringe we'd have nothing but good vibes for these boys... after all Astro Coast sounds like the result of a jam session between Joey Ramone, Paul Simon, and Frank Black. Who's gonna say no to that?

[MP3] Surfer Blood - Take It Easy


<-- Surfer Blood -->
Label Site | MySpace | More MP3s | Preorder Astro Coast

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[Contest] Beatles Holiday Poster Giveaway

Thanks to Frank from Cornerstone Promotion for hooking us up with the festive poster you see here. In celebration of the remastered box set collection and a certain set of year-end related holidays, we've got one of these cool wall posters to give away. If you're as much of a Beatles fan as the rest of the planet, you'll want this in your stocking for sure.

To enter, just leave your name and email in the comments. A winner will be chosen at random at the end of the week.

How does that sound? Happy Hannu-kwanzaa-christmas.

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Thursday, November 19, 2009

[Reacharound] Flotation Toy Warning



The musical year of 2010 could very well be like the year 2012, that is if John Cusack cuts a record with a multi-million dollar budget leaving critical audiences with a collective "Oy" escaping their lips. However, what 2010 lacks in apocalyptic CGI effects it more than makes up for in fantastic music releases. Perhaps an LP not as anticipated as the LCD Soundsystem's and The New Pornographer's of the world, but exciting (to me) nonetheless.

London's Flotation Toy Warning released their debut LP Bluffer's Guide To The Flightdeck in 2004 and really grabbed ahold of my ears with an edgy experimental pop sound. Each track on the album is like putting a ViewMaster to your ears, containing completely different sounds than the one preceding it yet trapped on the same disc. Imagine a musical Frankenstein containing parts of Grandaddy, David Bowie, and The Flaming Lips all constructed in a laboratory of pop fuzz.

[MP3] Flotation Toy Warning - Popstar Researching Oblivion

The year 2010 is also marks the release window for Flotation Toy Warning's sophomore LP, one that has been some six years in the making. Years after hearing their debut I still can't get a grasp on the group's popularity (both domestic and abroad), however, a superb sophomore effort could be just the thing they need to escape the confines of obscurity. They're a band I'll keep an eye on next year, until then we can only reacharound and listen to what the future may hold.
[MP3] Flotation Toy Warning - Fire Engine On Fire Part 2


<-- Flotation Toy Warning -->
Official Site | MySpace Site | More MP3s | Buy Bluffer's Guide To The Flightdeck

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[News] Bonnaroo Festival Dates + Holiday Ticket Specials

Bonnaroo has become synonymous with summer, at least to me, since this summer will mark my sixth trip to the 700-acre Tennessean farm for some festival fun. The Bonnaroo festival dates have been announced for the weekend of June 10-13, 2010! Although the Roo folks won't announce the initial lineup until January, they're providing those who already know they're Bonnaroo bound and others not so happy with the recession a special opportunity. Starting on Black Friday (Nov. 27th), you can snag a ticket to the four-day festival for five payments of $50! Considering ticket prices tend to climb upward each year, it's definitely not a bad deal for 150+ bands on 13 different stages. Hooray Bonnaroo layaway!

Oh, and if you're more convinced by folk singing and claymation then simply watch Bonnaroo's latest video titled "Lisa Go Stick It, I Got My Bonnaroo Ticket":


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[Video] Levek's Incredible Acappella Cover of Grizzly Bear's "Shift"

In addition to the two songs we posted the other day, Levek has a pretty great arsenal of covers at his YouTube page including this fantastic a cappella cover of "Shift," a track from Grizzly Bear's Friend EP (originally recorded for the entirely Ed Droste produced debut Horn Of Plenty). The cover pairs pitch-perfect vocals with footage from an unnamed Disney movie-- pretty much the coolest video I've seen in a while. Check it out:



Here's the Grizzly Bear original:

[MP3] Grizzly Bear - Shift (Live on KEXP)

If you missed it, make sure to check out Grizzly Bear's Take Away Show where they try out "Shift" in a cramped Parisian bathroom.

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Wednesday, November 18, 2009

[Video] Yeasayer's Experimental Video Thing (NSFW)



What's with all the NSFW videos of naked people running around in fields and forests hitting the web these days? Has this replaced hand-drawn animation as the new cool indie video fad? All that's not to undervalue Yeasayer's new video (up at their website), which sees a few very naked people interacting with a 360° panoramic camera and then running into the desert to chill with some silverish spacey looking thing. Check it out...

Here's Yeasayer's latest single, "Ambling Alp" »

[MP3] Yeasayer - Ambling Alp

As a bonus, here's a rare track called "Final Path" that was the b-side to their "Wait For The Summer" single off of 2007's All Hour Cymbals:
[MP3] Yeasayer - Final Path

After the Beach House leak yesterday and the Animal Collective leak today, my fingers are crossed on Yeasayer... I'm pretty sure they'll deliver one of 2010's best. If you get the chance to see them live, don't pass it up!


<-- Yeasayer -->
Official Site | MySpace | More MP3s | Buy Ambling Alp 12"

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[Video] Atlas Sound: "Quick Canal" (feat. Lætitia Sadier)

I really love Atlas Sound's latest LP Logos - it has terrific replay value that catapults the album into a list containing "best" and "2009" in the title. The video is for the epic eight-minute song "Quick Canal" featuring Stereolab's own Lætitia Sadier. Although the video surfaced on YouTube about a month ago, 4AD did not designate it an official music video but did give it their seal of approval. The song is a slow building bundle of beauty complete with a video sampling segments from a retro era of eclectic American (family) advertising, like Mad Men without the sex and drama.


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Tuesday, November 17, 2009

[MP3] new That Ghost: "Later Nights" (Premiere) + EP Release!

Often times, in various professional sport drafts, teams will draft a player based on how they've performed and a key trait called potential. If I were the wealthy GM of a reputable music team looking to draft a record label, two syllable records would probably be my first round pick. They've certainly assembled a roster teeming with talent and have more potential than the opti-grab.

Alongside label-mates Holiday Shores, lo-fi sensation That Ghost is also releasing new material today in the form of a (previously) tour-only, sold-out EP titled Get It And Get Out. In a similar vein to one of my favorite albums of the year, we're proud to debut my personal favorite track from That Ghost's new EP titled "Later Nights". Although the EP contains a handful of fuzzy and intimate bedroom songs, "Later Nights" leaps out with a catchy melody that catapults your ears through the tune from start to finish.

[MP3] That Ghost - Later Nights (Download expired, links to stream)

Click fast, for the MP3 will only be available to download during a limited time today before disappearing! If you're not the early bird and missed the worm, you can stream the entire EP for a week and then buy it after trying it!


<-- That Ghost -->
Official Site | MySpace | More MP3s | Buy Get It And Get Out on iTunes

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