Sunday, March 12, 2006

PLAYLIST MUZORAMA 12 MARCH

FIGURINES - THE WONDER
DESTROYER - AN ACTOR'S REVENGE
THE BROKEDOWN - SPARKS
CENTRO-MATIC - TRIGGERS AND TRASH HEAPS
THE PRESETS - ARE YOU THE ONE?
CAPTAIN - FRONTLINE
EPO-555 - HYPERSCHLIEB
SERENA MANEESH - UN-DEUX
I LOVE YOU BUT I'VE CHOSEN DARKNESS - ACCORDING TO PLAN
GUS BLACK - CERTAIN KIND OF LIGHT
CASIOTONE FOR THE PAINFULLY ALONE - COLD WHITE CHRISTMAS
13GHOSTS - THE STORM
BAND OF HORSES - THE FUNERAL
CAROLINESUNRISE
THE NEW AMSTERDAMS - TURN OUT THE LIGHTS

RADIO MUZORAMA IS BROADCAST WEEKLY ON RADIO FORTUNA (FM106.9 , TBILISI, GEORGIA) PRODUCED BY KOMUNIKATORI

FIGURINES

Artist / Band: FIGURINES
Song (MP3): THE WONDER
Album: Skeleton
File Under: Alternative / Rock / Pop Punk
Label: Morningside Records
Info: Mid 90's. Three childhood friends. Christian Hjelm, Andreas Toft, and Claus S. Johansen. In 2001 they record the EP “The Detour” and shortly after sign with Morningside Records. Later that year Kristian Volden (a.k.a. Volle) joins the band, completing the ensemble that we see today. read more from the source...

DESTROYER

Artist / Band: DESTROYER
Song (MP3): AN ACTOR'S REVENGE
Album: Destroyer's Rubies
File Under: Indie
Label: Merge Records
Info: A new year, 2006, marks the return of Vancouver’s Dan Bejar with his seventh full-length release under the moniker Destroyer. If there has been any precedent set or pattern developed over the previous six recordings in the Destroyer canon, it’s that Bejar holds little regard for convention or expectations. Never one to rest on laurels, each successive Destroyer release always explores new sonic territories and ideas. We love Dan for that. read more from the source...

THE BROKEDOWN

Artist / Band: THE BROKEDOWN
Song (MP3): SPARKS
Album:The Dutchman's Gold
File Under: Powerpop / Indie / Rock
Info: The Brokedown formed during the hot and dusty Los Angeles summer of 2004. After Ross Flournoy headed west from Austin, TX, where he’d spent two years writing three minute bursts of longing, regret and good, old-fashioned lechery. Once there, he reunited with Floridian Rob McCorkindale (drums) and united with his Connecticut Yankee of a kindred spirit, Dan Iead (lead guitar/pedal steel). Thus The Brokedown was born; soon after the band added Brian Whelan (keys/bass) to form its current core. read more from the source...

CENTRO-MATIC

Artist / Band: CENTRO-MATIC
Song (MP3): TRIGGERS AND TRASH HEAPS
Album: Fort Recovery
File Under: Indie
Label: Misra Records
Info: Centro-matic's music comes on like a sound from a distant dream, somethingnew, yet unmistakably familiar. Clear images adding up to something a littlevague, but in such a comforting way. Once as a child, I watched part one ofsome two-part children's adventure (NBC's Wonderful World of Disney circa1972, no doubt) and that night dreamt the next week's conclusion verbatim.No one ever believed me and I still don't blame them, not sure I believe itmyself, but I know it happened. That's what Centro-matic is like to me.Their music is somehow like something I heard in my head as a child, yet Iknow I didn't. I find myself singing along with their songs the first time Ihear them. They're the best live band in America and know how to make greatrecords. Bunches of them (they're prolific as hell) yet some how they keepgetting better. All of this while playing an exhausting 150 shows a year.
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The Presets

Artist / Band: The Presets
Song (MP3): Are You The One?
Album: Beams
File Under: Electro / Indie / Pop
Label: modular people
Info:
If you could imagine a yearbook for 2005’s School of Rock, The Presets would stand out like a jet black ink blot on the page: defying categorization in their recorded work, exceeding expectations above and beyond in sweat-drenched live shows that leave the competition for dead, releasing videos and artwork as beautiful as they are twisted. They would be crowned the official class odd bods. And they like it that way.
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CAPTAIN

Artist / Band: CAPTAIN
Song (MP3): FRONTLINE
Album: I Want You
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: EMI
Info: Five square pegs in one round hole Five opposites; no common dress code, no two-tone hair, no skinny T-shirts, wildly different pasts, no mention of Joy Division, The Stones, The Clash or Blondie. No apparent reason, in fact, why Captain should exist. But they’re here and they’ll soon be bewitching the world with their wistful, emotive songs. Conceived to sidestep the fashionistas and stand egoless next to their heroes. Meet Captain. After a month saying ‘Yes’ to every question that would usually be a ‘No’, Rik Flynn was sat in a rehearsal room in Cricklewood introducing his band to each other. Mario (guitar). An olive skinned, Athenean experimentalist who’d just finished national service in the Greek army. Clare (Vocals, Piano, Percussion). An elfin, straight-laced health freak that’s addicted to running. Reu (Drums, Piano). A very intense, but very funny son of a preacher man. Alex (Bass). A buff, blonde-haired beachcomber who used to play Polka in a circus. Not you’re usual suspects then. If Brian Wilson, Karen Carpenter, Burt Bacharach, Billy Corgan and Kevin Shields all merged into one you’d still only be halfway to the Captain sound. As comfortable with pop as they are with vast soundscapes, this band aren’t interested in any scenes. They’re busy forging their own.
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EPO-555

Artist / Band: EPO-555
Song (MP3): HYPERSCHLIEB
Album: Mafia
File Under: Indie
Label: Crunchy Frog Records
Info: Armed with flaming beats and bee swarms, giraffes and lethal lyrics the Desert Fox epo-555 sets the scene for the trench war between good and evil. In this dry and dusty univers the only real outlaw is the ruthless epo-555 electronica-based noise rock in which polemic poetry is mixed with poetic politics, popular music programming, and spiced up with careless curiosity, good faces and foul play until the souls are on fire and the Fox is howling at the moon. read more from the source...

SERENA MANEESH

Artist / Band: SERENA MANEESH
Song (MP3): UN-DEUX
Album: SERENA MANEESH
File Under: Rock / Psychedelic / Gothic
Label: honey milk
Info: Norwegian Serena Maneesh present their self-titled, full-length debut “Serena Maneesh” with eleven songs that slide down a razor’s edge of distortion and pop whimsy, raucous guitar work and underwater static, angelic voices and primal screams.The strange melodies are strikingly original, yet they strike to the heart of something familiar: a classic rock guitar lick, a wound, a kiss. Inspired by everything from Southern blues via Neu! to Gershwin, “Serena Maneesh” is as much about exploring sound as crafting song. Working in both horizontal and vertical layers, head musician Emil Nikolaisen creates tuneful paradoxes, infinite yet time-bound. His meticulous compositions balance whispery female vocals and underlying violin with driving guitar rock, distorted samples, and chant-like repetition. Tracks such as “Sapphire Eyes” begin and end in liquid noise; in between guitars shriek and shatter, angels sing, and a snare beats along in cinque-pace time.read more from the source...

I LOVE YOU BUT I'VE CHOSEN DARKNESS

Artist / Band: I LOVE YOU BUT I'VE CHOSEN DARKNESS
Song (MP3): ACCORDING TO PLAN
Album: Fear Is On Our Side
File Under: Indie
Label: secretly canadian
Info: I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness is a new group playing new music. They were formed in 2002 by friends and bandmates Christian Goyer and Jason McNeely, who previously worked together on several Windsor for the Derby albums for labels like Trance Syndicate and Young God. Rounding out the group is Edward Robert of Paul Newman and Cyrus Rego, Austin musician Ernest Salaz of Glorium, and Tim White of Salute the Curse.
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GUS BLACK

Artist / Band: GUS BLACK
Song (MP3): CERTAIN KIND OF LIGHT
Album: Autumn Days
File Under: Indie / Folk Rock / Other
Label: Cheap Lullaby Records
Info: Gus Black is a singer/songwriter from Los Angeles California.
He released his fourth record Autumn Days August 29th in Europe. Last century he released two records for Almo Sounds under the name "Gus".
His cover of "Don't Fear the Reaper" was on the soundtrack for the original Scream movie. His songs have been featured in television shows, including Alias, Smallville, and One Tree Hill.
He likes animals, food, water, and most of all good music.

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CASIOTONE FOR THE PAINFULLY ALONE

Artist / Band: CASIOTONE FOR THE PAINFULLY ALONE
Song (MP3): COLD WHITE CHRISTMAS
Album: Etiquette
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Tomlab
Info: This is the fourth album by Casiotone for the Painfully Alone (originating from Oakland, CA). Owen Ashworth, still one of the most talentedsongwriters working in independent music today, and his intimate character studies are finally getting the production they deserve.
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13 GHOSTS

Artist / Band: 13GHOSTS
Song (MP3): THE STORM
Album: Cicada
File Under: Indie
Label: Skybucket Records
Info: 13ghosts formed in 1990 under a different name and lasted a few years before succumbing to the excesses of being 21. Though the members remained friends, they were spread across the country and didn’t make music together again until the death of the original bass player in 1998. The inception of 13ghosts was Brad Armstrong and Buzz Russell sitting in the basement with guitars and loose ties after the funeral, trying to write a record about their friend. Though this record was never released, it inspired them to put together a lasting project; a lyrical death fixation was borne of this traumatic period as well.
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BAND OF HORSES

Artist / Band: BAND OF HORSES
Song (MP3): THE FUNERAL
Album: Everything All the Time
File Under: Alternative
Label: Sub Pop
Info: Achieving musical transcendence is a tricky feat, almost definitively. If it happens at all, it happens naturally — and perhaps nobody knows that better than Seattle, Washington’s Band of Horses. Guitarist/vocalist Ben Bridwell and guitarist Mat Brooke formed Band of Horses in 2004, after the dissolution of their nearly ten-year run in northwest melancholic darlings Carissa’s Wierd. Carissa’s Wierd trafficked in sadly beautiful orchestral pop, whose songs told unflinching stories of heartbreak and loss, leavened with defeatist humor. And, Band of Horses rises from the ashes of that well-loved band. After playing music with each other for over a decade, Bridwell and Brooke picked up together again when Bridwell began fleshing out his compositions post-Carissa’s. “It was really just a natural thing we started doing,” explains Bridwell. Buoyed by Bridwell’s warm, reverb-heavy vocals (which strangely channel a dichotomous blend of Wayne Coyne, Brian Wilson and Doug Martsch,) Band of Horses’ woodsy, dreamy songs ooze with amorphous tension, longing and hope. At times raggedly epic (“The Great Salt Lake”) and delicately pensive (“St. Augustine,” “Monsters”), Everything All the Time is an album painted gorgeously in fragile highs and lows.
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CAROLINE

Artist / Band: CAROLINE
Song (MP3): SUNRISE
Album: Murmurs
File Under: Electronica / Pop / Ambient
Label: temporary residence
Info: Originally from Okinawa, Japan, Caroline Lufkin moved around a lot by the time she had graduated from Berklee School of Music in Boston in 2003, ultimately settling nowhere (though currently calling Los Angeles her home). With an incredible gift for writing gripping songs from the most minimal elements - not to mention a voice that could make angels weep - Caroline's music seizes the rare opportunity to hypnotize everything and everyone around it. And really, who in this world doesn't want to succumb to a music-induced read more from the source...

The New Amsterdams

Artist / Band: The New Amsterdams
Song (MP3): Turn Out The Lights
Album: Story Like A Scar
File Under: Indie / Acoustic
Label: vagrant
Info: "[The music of The New Amsterdams' Matt Pryor] bears the distinct sound of an indie vet in reflection. With a heavy heart, he sprinkles in couplets for past lovers and corner bars over cotton-soft rock tracks that breathe and shimmer." — Rolling Stone The New Amsterdams' new album, Story Like a Scar, breathes like a breeze across the prairie and shimmers like the sun on the Kansas River. Not that the band’s lyricist, Matt Pryor, was consciously evoking the Kansas locale he calls home. Still, lines like, "It echoes in the hills," "midnight on a dirt road" and “a secret concealed in the wheat fields" conjure an unmistakable sense of place.
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Friday, March 03, 2006

Editors

Artist / Band: Editors
Song (MP3): Munich
Album: Munich
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: the fader
Info: The four members of EDITORS are the first to admit that they are not from the rock ‘n’ roll centres of the UK. Vocalist Tom Smith is from Stroud, guitarist Chris Urbanowicz is from Nottingham whilst drummer Ed Lay is from Ipswich and bass player Russell Leetch the only near Brummie, hails from Solihull. It may be this geographical grounding that leads the band to suggest that “rock ‘n’ roll doesn’t really follow us around” but recent events have suggested that this pattern is changing. Things were set in motion when Ed became the last member on board a previous incarnation of the band and EDITORS were born. Having founded the band at University in Stafford, on graduation the four relocated to Birmingham as it was both the nearest big city and the home of their management. read more from the source...

Irving

Artist / Band: Irving
Song (MP3): jen nothing matters to me
Album: Death In The Garden, Blood On The Flowers
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: www.eeniemeenie.com
Info: Formed initially by members Alex Church (bass), Steven Scott (guitar) and Brian Canning (guitar), Irving began as a thrown-together rock outfit to accompany a friend’s art opening. Within a month, Brent Turner (drums) joined, and the group began working in earnest on the songs that would eventually appear on its first album, Good Morning Beautiful. The release of GMB in 2002 showcased the band’s penchant for writing witty pop songs with whimsical backup vocals and upbeat melodies.
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Gil Manteras Party Dream

Artist / Band: Gil Manteras Party Dream
Song (MP3): Elmo's Wish
Album: Bloodsongs
File Under: Pop / Progressive / Rock
Label: Audio Eagle Records
Info: Check out these two guys, Ultimate Donny and Gil Mantera. They’re from Youngstown, Ohio. They’re brothers. They’re blonde, handsome, and strapping. They play rock-style music mixed with alternative-style. They’re Gil Mantera’s Party Dream.The duo started rocking shows back and forth between the Youngstown and Columbus, Ohio scenes back in 2000, sharing stages with a variety of bands of different genres and dominating all. On the strength of their incredible live show and two self-released CD’s, they grew to own a solid fan-base in every nook and cranny of the state of Ohio (which, believe it or not, is no easy goddamned task) and soon thereafter most of the Midwest.read more from the source...

The High Violets

Artist / Band: the High Violets
Song (MP3): Sunbaby
Album: TO WHERE YOU ARE
File Under: Pop / Ambient / Psychedelic
Label: Reverb Records
Info: The High Violets formed after the demise of legendary Portland favorite the Bella Low, a band that played regulary with Elliot Smith's Heatmiser and The Dandy Warhols. Lead guitarist Clint Sargent picked up the pieces from that band's crash and put together an amazing group of musicians to form the High Violets. Influenced heavily by the amazing sounds of MBV, Ride, Spaceman 3, Lush and the Cocteau Twins, the band soon developed a huge following. After a few early line-up changes they drafted in one of Portland's most amazing voices, Kaitlyn ni Donavan. Having an extremely succssful solo career of her own, Kaitlyn immediately added the lush vocals and beautiful melodies the band needed. One self-released EP later and the band were in the studio recording their debut album 44 Down. The album definitely paved the way for a resurgence in the shoegazer sound and those that followed. Under the Radar Magazine and Magnet Magazine singled out the band and this album with full page feature articles after its release, noting its influence. . read more from the source...

Bad Wizard

Artist / Band: Bad Wizard
Song (MP3): The Rat
Album: Sky High
File Under: Rock
Label: http://www.teepeerecords.com/
Info: Bad Wizard's head honcho Curtis and his brothers in rock lay down a head spinning squall of purple powered, deep-fried, 70's chicken shack power fuzz- part street metal, part garage punk, part super soul shakedown that makes your skeleton dance to a song that your flesh does not know. Through two records 2001’s 'Free and Easy' and 2003’s 'Sophisticated Mouth' the band has established a legend for out-rocking, out-drinking, out-fighting, out-fucking, and out-living all competition." read more from the source...

Track a Tiger

Artist / Band: Track a Tiger
Song (MP3): Glad To Be Scattered
Album: Woke up early the day I died
File Under: Alternative / Folk Rock / Experimental
Label: www.futureappletree.com
Info: “Woke up early the day I died” is a collection of songs Jim Vallet recorded under the name Track a Tiger. The project began in August in 2003 after sifting through some old 4-track tapes and a notebook with a few song ideas. A 16-track digital recorder and a few microphones were bought and recording began in his Chicago apartment (listen close for a cat, squeaky wood floors and occasional late night drunken lover’s quarrel on the street below).
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The Witnesses

Artist / Band: The Witnesses
Song (MP3): We're Taking Over
Album: Black Eyes and White Lies
File Under: Rock
Label: howler
Info: The Witnesses are a rock and roll band from New York City.
Formed in the late summer of 2001, The Witnesses sold out their debut gig at Manhattan's Luna Lounge then quickly separated themselves from the pack as one of the hottest bands in the City's resurgent rock scene. At a time when we all really needed it, word got around that The Witnesses were something most people had all but forgotten... a rock and roll band that is just plain fun.
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Cinemechanica

Artist / Band: Cinemechanica
Song (MP3): Brain Tarp
Album: Martial Arts
File Under: Post Hardcore / Rock / Experimental
Label: Hello Sir
Info: I never had very good study habits, honestly, and I reckon that’s a bit of a shame. I spent the greater part of my evenings in high school pretending to do my Algebra and Chemistry homework, all the while lost between my headphones. Digesting endless hours of Sonic Youth or Jawbox, I daydreamed of being in a rock band and getting off some imaginary jet on foreign tarmac, greeted by some fantasy press conference. Perhaps more alarming to my folks than my sour grades at the time was my lack of competitive spirit about the whole nonsense. Like generations of subversives before I was faced with calling a bluff. School was bullshit, rock and roll was awesome I guess I figured I could get by on looks and a quick wit…but enough about me. read more from the source...

The Eames Era

Artist / Band: The Eames Era
Song (MP3): Year Of The Waitress
Album: Double Dutch
File Under: Indie / Pop / Rock
Label: C Student Records
Info:
Produced by the band with their longtime friend, the Myrtles' keyboardist Casey McAllister, Double Dutch is abundant with bubblegum melodies and infectious powerpop hooks. Songs like “Listen To The Sun” and “Go To Sleep” showcase the band’s skill at weaving well-written, fuzzy-guitar-pop lines with charming, upbeat vocals. Alternative Press gave the album a 4-out-of-5 rating while The New York Daily News called their music “powerful pop with garage-band appeal and danceable tunes.” Currently the band can also be heard on the Greys Anatomy Soundtrack along side the likes of Rilo Kiley and The Postal Service.

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Quasi

Artist / Band: Quasi
Song (MP3): The Rhino
Album: When The Going Gets Dark
File Under: Alternative
Label: Touch and Go
Info: Quasi - brief bioFormed by Janet Weiss & Sam Coomes, Portland, Oregon, '93. Expiremented with various lineups in early live appearances, while recording as a duo, eventually settling on the duo format in performance as well. Released a cassette in '93, & a self-released CD (containing some of the material from the cassette plus additional material, all recorded in the bands basement rehearsal space with "home recording" equipment). Released 2nd Album, "R&B Transmogrification" (recorded in another basement with slightly nicer "semi-pro" recording equipment) on Up Records in '97. Released 3rd album, "Featuring 'Birds'," (recorded in a "professional" studio {16 tracks!})on Up in '98. Toured U.S., Europe, Australia, & Japan opening for & also serving as backup band for Elliott Smith, '98-'99, as well as touring on their own in U.S. & Europe during the same period. Released 4th album, "Field Studies," on Up in '99, continued touring. Released 5th album, "The Sword of God," on Touch & Go Records in '01, returning to self-produced home recording, albeit with upgraded equipment. Released 6th album, "Hot Shit!," on Touch & Go in '03. Quasi albums continue to be licensed internationally through Domino (U.K.) & P-Vine (Japan), & the band continues to tour actively, & are pleased with whatever successes they have achieved while maintaining a personal, anti-corporate approach. read more from the source...

Mogwai

Artist / Band: Mogwai
Song (MP3): Folk Death 95
Album: Mr. Beast
File Under: Rock / Psychedelic / Metal
Label: PIAS
Info: These days - when membership of the rock army can be symbolised by the simple purchase of a Ramones T-shirt - dedication has become a debased currency, subject to the hyper-inflationary dictates of fashion. Raw recruits sign up for the short term, soon surrendering their affections to whichever sexy “scene” might spring up next. Unswerving commitment to rock's righteous cause is rare; it demands a troop of seriously single-minded dudes with their collective heart and soul fixed on one goal - to bring the noise.
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Stone Jack Jones

Artist / Band: Stone Jack Jones
Song (MP3): Bread
Album: Bluefolk
File Under: Psychedelic / Indie / Experimental
Label: Fictitious Records
Info: tone Jack Jones was raised in a coal miner's company house on the banks of Buffalo Creek, W.V. Behind the house rose a canopy of green forest; in the front, a red road and a black creek, winding like a shimmering blacksnake. The woods were the first seduction, and whether by foot or by horse, it was there that he roamed. In this solitude he met the Peacock Man, who would transform his notions of reality, reality at the time being Vietnam raging, no prospects of college, and a draft notice in his pocket. He was rejected from the military because of epilepsy and told to go home. His dad, a fourth generation miner, said, "Don't be a fifth," so the young musician picked up his fiddle and began a life of wandering.Stone Jack Jones traveled the country playing fiddle and guitar, from the hills of West Virginia to Boston, Atlanta, Fort Worth, Baltimore and New York City. Traditional Irish, medieval, punk and country eventually merged into his dark and atmospheric American music.He ended up in Nashville, Tn, and soon met Patty Griffin at the legendary Jack's Guitar Bar, where they spent many a night honing their songs. Stone Jack Jones went on several tours with Patty early in her career, forming what has proved to be an enduring musical relationship. A chance friendship with producer Roger Moutenot (Yo La Tengo, Lou Reed, Sleater-Kinney) began a collaboration that shaped all these different influences and experiences into a distinctive and evocative style. Narcotic Lollipop, Stone Jack Jones' first release, laid the groundwork for his highly praised song style. His second record, bluefolk, is the middle act in a sequence of three planned releases. bluefolk integrates the wide range of his inspirations and features four songs with Patty Griffin, performing with an unusual twist on her vocal approach. It's moody, complex and mesmerizing, from the MLK tribute "Freedom Reigns," to the subtly-veiled antiwar "Bread." Balancing uplifting celebratory dirges and exultant dark songs, Stone Jack Jones unweaves his America. read more from the source...

Witch's Hat

Artist / Band: Witch's Hat
Song (MP3): Glodyany, 1972
Album: Mastery Of The Steel
File Under: Rock / Indie / Powerpop
Label: Emergency Umbrella
Info: In an era of creative stagnation in rock, Witch’s Hat is a beacon of hope; the 21st century’s solution to monotony. Combining innovative sounds and exploratory lyrics set to driving rock rhythms, this Columbia, MO quartet exploded onto the regional scene in 2004, earning both the respect of audiences and fellow musicians alike. Frontman Greg Linde blends inventive lyrics with a storyteller’s charisma, delivering daring melodies in his resonant, ranged voice. Bassist and lead songwriter Steve Doerhoff is a natural musician who not only possesses raw talent, but also the necessary passion for his endeavor. Lead guitar is handled by Mike Wilson, a devoted rock fan whose skills and tone are at the crux of Witch’s Hat sound. Drums are provided by Bert, with an unmatched intensity and an inexhaustible energy supply. Fusing and appreciation of dark pop, 80’s nostalgia, and the ironic, Witch’s Hat is a committed, disciplined act looking to expand their horizons throughout time.read more from the source...
http://www.witchshat.net/newsite/images/witchgrocery1_16.jpg

The Submarines

Artist / Band: the Submarines
Song (MP3): Clouds
Album: Declare a new state
File Under: Alternative / Indie
Label: http://www.nettwerk.com/
Info: The Submarines formed in Los Angeles after getting their start in the Boston scene performing amongst friends in Morphine, Pixies, Helium, Belly and Lemonheads. After much individual success and years of playing on each other's records, Blake Hazard and John Dragonetti forged a romantic relationship which lasted for 4 years. A breakup on the eve of election night 2004 led to a period of sadness but one which grew into productive songwriting. After some time apart, Blake and John reunited and realized the songs they wrote separately each dealt with their breakup in a similar fashion. From those songs was born a musical duo and an album in the pure, nostalgic sense, one with a single, unifying theme: a stronger relationship emerging from fears, discontent and (eventually) longing. "Declare a New State" is about the unexpected wonder of a second chance.read more from the source...

Low Skies

Artist / Band: Low Skies
Song (MP3): Levelling
Album: All the Love I Could Find
File Under: Indie / Shoegaze / Soul
Label: FlameShovel
Info: Low Skies' inception - a merging of young lives from varying middle-American locales - shines through vibrantly in their craft. Formed in 2000 in the calloused expanses of Chicago, the quintet's rooting stretches from the dusty voids of rural West Texas, through the rustic bounty of the heartland and on to the frost-tarnished streets of Minneapolis. Spearheaded by vocalist/guitarist Chris Salveter and drummer Jason Creps, Low Skies self-released their first EP prior to finding a home with Flameshovel Records. The debut full-length, "The Bed," was released in 2002, finding praise locally and nationally. Shortly thereafter, on the cusp of a support tour the band finalized their lineup and expanded their sound with the addition of experimental button pusher Luther Rochester and brothers Jacob and Brandon Ross on guitars and bass, respectively.
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Buried Beds

Artist / Band: - Buried Beds
Song (MP3): Camellia
Album: Empty Rooms
File Under: Indie / Pop / Folk
Info: Eliza Hardy — Vocals, Piano, MandolinBrandon Beaver — Vocals, Guitar, Banjo, MandolinTom Bendel — Percussion, VocalsTom Mallon — Bass, VocalsHallie Boyle — ViolaPhiladelphia’s Buried Beds started small, and grew into a monster. Physically. In three years, what began as a piano-and-guitar duo has ballooned into a mini-orchestra that has seen as many as eight people on stage. On two EPs and their debut full-length, Empty Rooms, the band has developed a unique fusion of old-time Americana, indie rock melancholy and classical string arrangements that earned them the title of Best Band in Philadelphia in Philadelphia Magazine’s Best of Philly 2004 issue.Buried Beds sprang from the New Planet Art Collective, a West Philly haven for painters, musicians and writers where high-school friends Brandon Beaver and Eliza Hardy lived. Each began helping the other with their songs, creating a sound that mixed the harmonies of old-time Americana with the sad sensibilities of Carole King and Randy Newman. With the help of Philadelphia producer Edan Cohen and string arrangements by Brendan Cooney, another high-school friend, the songs took on new life in the studio, resulting in their first, self-titled EP. A second EP, Po Tolo, soon followed, garnering rave reviews from respected outlets like The Onion, The Believer and Philadelphia Magazine. Po Tolo’s haunting “River” even made its way into a Converse commercialLive, the band was still just Brandon and Eliza, who now found themselves with two EPs full of lushly orchestrated songs that were impossible to play in a duo setting. After months of using a rotating who’s-who of Philly indie rock musicians and string players as a backing band, they assembled the full-time band that appears on Buried Beds' first full-length, Empty Rooms.On Empty Rooms, every aspect of Buried Beds’ sound has grown. Working with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Curtis Institute and the Peabody Conservatory, the band and Brendan Cooney have created an ambitious hybrid of classical music and Americana-rooted pop. On songs like “Great Divide” and “Perfect Skyline,” a muscular rhythm section combines with Cooney’s otherworldly string arrangements to create a new kind of chamber rock; the echoing atmospheres of the title track and “Anchor and Sea” find the band taking folk in a spaced-out, experimental new direction; and the lilting melodies of ‘Camellia,” “Insomnia” and the whimsical “Forever in You” show that their pop songcraft has been refined even further.
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Sunday, February 26, 2006

PLAYLIST MUZORAMA 26 FEBRUARY

KAISER CHIEFS - I PREDICT A RIOT
THE LADIES - EMPATHY ON A STICK
MAN MAN - BLACK MISSION GOGGLES
GHOST BUFFALO - HELL HERE
KISS ME DEADLY - DANCE 4
THE ESSEX GREEN - DON'T KNOW WHY (YOU STAY)
SING-SING - COME, SING ME A SONG
HOTEL LIGHTS - A.M SLOW GOLDEN HIT
COLOUR REVOLT - MATTRESSES UNDERWATER
SHELLEY SHORT - SWEET HEART SAID
CAROLINE - WHERE'S MY LOVE
CRYSTAL SKULLS - BABY BOY
WORK CLOTHES - OVER THE MOON
GREGOR SAMSA - YOUNG & OLD

WORK CLOTHES

Artist / Band: WORK CLOTHES
Song (MP3): OVER THE MOON
Album: These Are the Shoes We Wear
File Under: Indie
Label: http://www.fractured-discs.com/
Info: Robert Deeble's March Midwestern tour dates have been posted in the dates section. Alina Simone will be joining Robert on three of these dates, before she splinters off to other parts of the Midwest. Robert recently home recorded three acoustic cover tunes for a limited edition, tour only, EP. Artists covered are Daniel Johnston, Iggy Pop and Steve Wynn. We hope to have everything put together in time for the tour. But if they're not ready before the shows, we'll make certain to have them available through this website and at future Deeble shows. In other news, Robert has a new unreleased track available on the third installment of the Ball of Wax comp series. We'll get a link as quick as we can.read more from the source...

CRYSTAL SKULLS

Artist / Band: CRYSTAL SKULLS
Song (MP3): BABY BOY
Album: Outgoing Behavior
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: http://www.suicidesqueeze.net/
Info: To actually stand out in a sea of lemmings is an extraordinary affair. That isn't to say that sounding like, err...Talking Heads is something to rile against per se, but in the indie-era of mass production, to go your own way is rare indeed.Enter Crystal Skulls; this Seattle troupe has little in common with any of their immediate peers. Instead of angular post-Fall inspired riffage or the art-damaged tones of their angsty neighbors, these boys have studied their AM radio classics finding as much in common with Donald Fagen as say contemporary homeboys the Sea and Cake. read more from the source...

CAROLINE

Artist / Band: CAROLINE
Song (MP3): WHERE'S MY LOVE
Album: Murmurs
File Under: Electronica / Pop / Ambient
Label: http://www.temporaryresidence.com/
Info: Originally from Okinawa, Japan, Caroline Lufkin moved around a lot by the time she had graduated from Berklee School of Music in Boston in 2003, ultimately settling nowhere (though currently calling Los Angeles her home). With an incredible gift for writing gripping songs from the most minimal elements - not to mention a voice that could make angels weep - Caroline's music seizes the rare opportunity to hypnotize everything and everyone around it. And really, who in this world doesn't want to succumb to a music-induced weightlessness every once in a while?
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SHELLEY SHORT

Artist / Band: SHELLEY SHORT
Song (MP3): SWEET HEART SAID
Album: Captain Wild Horse (Rides The Heart Of Tomorrow)
File Under: Indie / Folk / Pop
Label: http://www.hushrecords.com/
Info: After recording Oh Say Little Dogies, Why? (Keep Recordings, 2003) in the desert of New Mexico and the industrial area of Portland, Oregon, Shelley Short left art school in the Pacific Northwest and headed eastward to Chicago for no good reason. Pressed in limited quantity, Oh Say Little Dogies, Why? reached an extensive musical network, building critical momentum along the way.
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COLOUR REVOLT

Artist / Band: COLOUR REVOLT
Song (MP3): MATTRESSES UNDERWATER
Album: COLOUR REVOLT EP
File Under: Indie / Rock
Label: http://www.esperanzaplantation.com/
Info: The band formerly known as Fletcher has cast aside its original nametag, taking its new handle from Edwin Abbott’s 19th century social commentary Flatland, an exploration of life in two dimensions. But Colour Revolt is far from two-dimensional, eschewing Fletcher’s familiar sonic assault of unorthodox song structures and time signatures for a more melancholic though equally guitar-driven aesthetic of the post-grunge Southern gothic. The band’s soundscape reflects the literary heritage of their native Oxford, Miss., channeling the jagged emotionality and moral ambiguity of the locale’s forefathers, William Faulkner and Barry Hannah. Another facet of the small university town’s life is music, serving as the home to the neo-blues pioneering of Fat Possum Records and in-demand Sweet Tea Recording studio. In fact, a batch of songs Colour Revolt had recently tracked caught the attention of Clay Jones, a Sweet Tea engineer who mixed the last Elvis Costello and Modest Mouse albums. With Jones on board to mix the record, the band’s self-titled debut EP was released on the small Mississippi-based indie outfit Esperanza Plantation in late December 2005. In 2005, Colour Revolt, whose five members are all college students, played almost 80 shows in 18 different states (without failing out), including an appearance at Paste Magazine’s Rock’n’Reel Festival alongside Low and Over the Rhine.. read more from the source...

HOTEL LIGHTS

Artist / Band: HOTEL LIGHTS
Song (MP3): A.M SLOW GOLDEN HIT
Album: HOTEL LIGHTS
File Under: Indie / Folk / Pop
Label: bar-none
Info: ...when you see hotel lights in the distance you feel like 'yeah, I'm almost there', but when you stand in the bathroom and turn on the hotel lights, they are fluorescent and you see every scar." -Darren Jessee
Darren Jessee started Hotel Lights after many years of writing songs, playing drums and touring with Ben Folds Five. After leaving the now-famous pop group, Jessee moved from his home base of Chapel Hill, North Carolina to live an ex-pat, anonymous life in New York City. He quietly played solo shows around town, trying out newly written songs and dreaming about making a record.
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SING-SING

Artist / Band: SING-SING
Song (MP3): COME, SING ME A SONG
Album: Sing Sing and I
File Under: Alternative / Electronica / Indie
Label: Aerial Records
Info: Lisa O'Neill and Emma Anderson, otherwise known as Sing-Sing, are about to unleashed their second album entitled 'Sing-Sing and I'. Drawing on such diverse influences as folk-rock, heavy metal hammer-ons, a bit of Motown drumming, and just out-and-out pop, 'Sing-Sing and I' carries the distinctive Sing-Sing sound but, probably due to the extensive American touring, the songs are edgier, favouring guitars over the electronic samples that dominated debut album 'The Joy of Sing-Sing', whilst retaining Sing-Sing's trademark lyricism - personal and observational but still combined with a charm and wit.
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THE ESSEX GREEN

Artist / Band: THE ESSEX GREEN
Song (MP3): DON'T KNOW WHY (YOU STAY)
Album: Cannibal Sea nnibal Sea
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Merge Records
Info: The Essex Green is a band based in Brooklyn NY. For their new album, Cannibal Sea, the band’s three principal songwriters - Chris Ziter, Sasha Bell and Jeff Baron - have assembled a collection of songs that speak to themes of travel, exploration, wanderlust and the desire for quiet niches amid the pressures of big city living. Like the protagonists in the opening lines of Don’t Know Why (You Stay) - “Stepping along the hum of the sidewalk / A marionette, a slave / Your legs are wood and tied to the city / Who has final say?” - the characters from the songs on Cannibal Sea display a yearning to break free of the boundaries and constrictions of city life. To escape the darkness and fatigue, to move on to more lighthearted settings surrounded by water, replete with the spray of the sea, the gentle lift and sway of a boat on the waves. .read more from the source...
http://www.spoiltvictorianchild.co.uk/images/Essexgreen.jpg

KISS ME DEADLY

Artist / Band: KISS ME DEADLY
Song (MP3): DANCE 4
Album: Amoureux Cosmiques
File Under: Indie Danceable
Label: alien 8 recordings
Info: Kiss Me Deadly is a Montreal-based quartet that has progressed from an early Dischord influenced emo/math-rock sound to an epic, deeply melodic, danceable style of music.
Kiss Me Deadly consists of Emily Elizabeth on vocals and guitar, Adam Poulin on guitar, vocals and programming, Mathieu du Montier on bass and vocals, Erik Petersen on drums and Sophie Trudeau on violin. This year saw the release of the tour-only EP “Amoureux Cosmiques” and the band has just completed a well-received American tour with UK sensations Bloc Party. The release of their new full length will be sure to fuel the escalating buzz surrounding this talented young band.
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GHOST BUFFALO

Artist / Band: GHOST BUFFALO
Song (MP3): HELL HERE
Album: GHOST BUFFALO
File Under: Rock / Folk / Indie
Label: http://www.suburbanhomerecords.com/

Info: Ghost Buffalo's debut full length reminds me of good whiskey. Both are smooth, but have a comforting burn to them that lingers long after your sample is gone. During depressing times I can see myself finding comfort in both, probably at the same time. But mostly it's because like good whiskey Ghost Buffalo reminds you how bad the generic stuff really is. Here's the thing. Ghost Buffalo breaks exactly no new ground. They're pretty straight forward country inspired rock and roll. What makes this album so memorable is the passion and heartbreaking soul of vocalist Marie Litton. Channeling the spirit of Emmylou Harris and Joni Mitchell is no small feat but Litton pulls it off with shinning colors. The fact that the rest of the band (including Plans Mistaken for Stars' ex-axe man) kicks out the country flavored indie rock jams without ever being over shadowed or over shadowing is a testament to the bands cohesive sound. It's rare when you hear a group that sounds this connected, but Ghost Buffalo sounds like they've been writing together for years. This is a record for the whole family. Not in a PAX movie of the week sort of way, more gather the family around the fire and finally all agree on something to listen to. There is something that will appeal to pretty much everyone, except your metal head little brother, but no one cares about him anyway (It's ok; it makes his angst deeper). Take a shot kids; this is the good stuff. (Ed. By take a shot I mean listen to the music. No drinking until you're 21 or you are sooooo grounded mister!) read more from the source...

MAN MAN


Artist / Band: MAN MAN
Song (MP3): BLACK MISSION GOGGLES
Album: Six Demon Bag
File Under: Indie
Label: Ace Fu
Info: Somewhere between New York, Philadelphia, and the Holy Mountain, MAN MAN fastens together shellac, perfume, feathers, dirt, and blood, knits together Screaming Jay Hawkins, Etta James, 80s pop, Iggy Pop, Soda Popinski, Mexican funeral marches, religious cults, bad luck, and two-headed wolves to wrangle out something entirely else. With themes ranging from loss to love to mayhem and back, SIX DEMON BAG's narrative structure once again straddles the blurry line between order and chaos. read more from the source...

THE LADIES

Artist / Band: THE LADIES
Song (MP3): EMPATHY ON A STICK
Album: They Mean Us
File Under: absurdist metal
Label: Temporary Residence
Info: Rob Crow: co-creator of San Diego's sentimental pop superstars Pinback; leader of absurdist metal outfit Goblin Cock; former leader of Thingy and Heavy Vegetable; former member of Physics; accomplished solo performer in his own right.
Zach Hill: one-half of the outlandish noise duo Hella; member of Deftones side-project Team Sleep; drummer for post-Marilyn Manson/A Perfect Circle stoner-rock combo Goon Moon; one-third of the total sensory-overload that was Nervous Cop (along with Joanna Newsom and a member of Deerhoof). When you want the sound of three drummers playing at once, but only have room for one drum kit, Zach is your man.
Rob Crow and Zach Hill are The Ladies.
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KAISER CHIEFS

Artist / Band: KAISER CHIEFS
Song (MP3): I PREDICT A RIOT
Album: Employment
File Under: Alternative / New Wave / Pop Punk
Label: Universal/B-Unique
Info: Sometimes the greatest success stories sprout from the tiniest of ambitions. When Kaiser Chiefs formed up in not-so-sunny Leeds, England around the summer of 2003, their aim was not to conquer stadiums and change the world. Instead, these five oddballs began plotting a rather more modest plan. In the shadowy corners of clubs and venues across the city Ricky Wilson (lead vocals, owner of stylish blue and orange suit), Andrew “Whitey” White (guitar), Simon Rix (bass), Nick “Peanut” Baines (keyboards and modeller of impressive pork-pie hats) and Nick Hodgson (drums and vocals) decided to form a band that would harness the awesome capability of being able to, erm, blag an early slot at their hometown Leeds Festival. Impressive, eh? They achieved it without breaking sweat, naturally, but with it came a whole lot more. 18 months down the line and the boys have gatecrashed the UK singles charts, laid waste to huge crowds as far away as Moscow, played triumphant support slots with Franz Ferdinand, made waves at US radio and signed to Universal Records.
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Tuesday, February 21, 2006

PLAYLIST / RADIO/ MUZORAMA 19 FEBRUARY

MELLOWDRONE - OH MY
PARKS AND RECREATION - MAYBE THE MOON KNOWS SOMETHING
AVO-8 - IS THIS THE END?
FLAMING LIPS - THE WAND
VOXTROT - MOTHERS, SISTERS, DAUGHTERS & WIVES
THE GOSSIP - STANDING IN THE WAY OF CONTROL
CONTROLLER.CONTROLLER - POISON/SAFE
EX-BOYFRIENDS - WILLINGLY
MURMANSK - 2ND FLOOR THRASH
ACEYALONE - ALL FOR YOU
COOL CALM PETELOST
BRAZA - SON DO BRAZA
KATHARINA FRANCK - Y-TRACKS TO GET BY
MAGNET - HOLD ON
ANNA TERNHEIM - TO BE GONE


RADIO MUZORAMA IS BROADCAST WEEKLY ON RADIO FORTUNA (FM106.9 , TBILISI, GEORGIA)PRODUCED BY KOMUNIKATORI

ANNA TERNHEIM

Artist / Band: ANNA TERNHEIM
Song (MP3): TO BE GONE
Album: Somebody Outside
File Under: singer/songwriter
Label: stockholm records
Info: Anna Ternheim is a 26-year-old singer/songwriter from Stockholm, who´s making her record debut this fall with the album "Somebody Outside". The album was recorded during a week in August 2003 on Gotland — a Swedish island on the east coast. The recording is characterized by a spontaneity and rawness and Anna´s unique voice provides the musical framework. "A voice that cuts like a knife and sings about those feelings that hurt, so beautiful it makes you want to cry". / Karoline Eriksson, Svenska Dagbladet (one of the largest newspapers in Sweden). Anna Ternheim´s music has a dark touch that reminds you of artists such as Nick Cave, PJ Harvey and Leonard Cohen.The spring of 2003 Anna released the acoustic EP "Anna Ternheim" and went on a major tour with recording artist Nicolai Dunger. She also played together with the swedish artists Olle Ljungström and Tomas Andersson Wij. Tomas Andersson Wij already claims Anna to be this year´s debutant. This fall she´ll support Lars Winneräck on a six week tour around the country.Anna began playing the guitar, writing songs and performing when she was only ten years old. During a year abroad in Atlanta, Georgia, Anna put together her first band "Sova" and played at smaller festivals and local clubs. Back in Stockholm she continued her song writing and later also in Lausanne, Switzerland where she besides from studying French also played a few gigs. After almost two years abroad Anna returned to Sweden and began forming the band that now produces her debut album together with Andreas Dahlbäck and Linus Larsson.
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MAGNET

Artist / Band: MAGNET
Song (MP3): HOLD ON
Album: Tourniquet
File Under: Futuristic Country
Label: ultimate dilemma
Info: Magnet equals one Even Johansen of Bergen, Norway, an alluring young troubadour whose gift has made him the premier endeavor of Filter US Recordings.
His music simultaneously follows in the footsteps of traditional folkdom and modern surrealism, treading a neat path between the two. Johansen draws upon a vast array of influences, from the dusty warmth of Gram Parsons to the ethereal electronica of Air, tenderly etching out the mark that is his own unique sound. NME has likened Magnet to artists Tim Buckley and Coldplay, and others have placed him in the ranks of such names as Johnny Cash, Elliott Smith, Beck, and the Doves. Indeed, these comparisons have not been made in vain.
Even’s first forays into musicianship began at an early age. He grew up in the wake of an old four-string guitar owned by his father, a musician who toured the world in a Norwegian Jazz/Swing dance troupe. Later, in Scotland, his love for the lap steel materialized, quickly prompting his ascent into the world of Rock ‘N’ Roll. Even has always had an a fixation on Clint Eastwood and he admits, “That’s when I became a cowboy – I saw this beautiful guitar in the window of a shop in Dumfries and I had to have it.” And have it he did. In fact, it is this guitar sound that brings life to Even’s unique brand of storytelling. Magnet makes highly emotive music, rich with experience and realism, compacted into personal, electrifying, intensely beautiful songs that you will cherish. Songs that will make the hairs on your neck stand on end, songs that you will fall in love with, songs that lift you out of normality and cradle you in cushioned dreams and so much more.
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KATHARINA FRANCK

Artist / Band: KATHARINA FRANCK
Song (MP3): Y-TRACKS TO GET BY
Album: First Take, Second Skin
File Under: Pop
Label: skycap

Info: Born in 1963 in Düsseldorf, grew up in Portugal. From 1974 to 1977, she lived in São Paulo, Brazil, began playing guitar and soon began to write songs in English. Upon returning to Portugal, she had her first band, stage, and studio experiences. In 1981, she left home and moved to Cologne. First German-language attempts at cut-ups, poems, and prose. First singing lessons. In 1983, she moved to Berlin. Supports herself with part-time jobs, always the morning shift, and spends the rest of her time in practice rooms and at the movies.
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