Silver Swans

ARTIST / BAND: Silver Swans

MP3: “Holidays”  / “Secrets” / “Anyone’s Ghost” (The National Cover)/ “Secrets” (Letting Up Despite Great Faults Remix)

FILE UNDER: Indie Pop

LABEL: Tricycle Records

INFO: The Silver Swans are three fictional characters in the Wonder Woman stories. Each Silver Swan has the ability to create powerful sound waves with her voice. Her "swan song" is capable of devastating a small area of land with its destructive force. By creating a low-level humming, the Silver Swan can form a protective shield around herself that can deflect bullets and projectiles. They also have the telepathic ability to control birds and re-arrange matter with the sound they generate.

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I'll Be Hometapes For Christmas

Madison

ARTIST / BAND: Madison

MP3s: "Santa Baby" / "#1 (RAC Remix)"  / "Hot Hot Love"

ALBUM: The Noise Some People Make

FILE UNDER: noise pop

LABEL: G Records

INFO: It may still be a long time coming (January 11, 2011), and it may not have anything to with Oregon (except for the recent RAC remix) or even the West Coast, but Madison’s debut EP, The Noise Some People Make, is electro-hot.  And it may be only four swift songs, clocking in at under 13 minutes (we have two of them for you below!), but they’re soon to be burning up the dance-pop charts across the country.

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The Luyas

ARTIST / BAND: The Luyas

MP3: "Tiny Head"

ALBUM: Too Beautiful to Work

FILE UNDER: Experimental / Indie

LABEL: Dead Oceans / Idée Fixe

INFO: The Luyas are four musicians named Jessie Stein, Mathieu Charbonneau, Pietro Amatro and Stefan Scheider. They made a record called Too Beautiful to Work at 6 Nassau in Toronto, Ontario, and call Montreal, Quebec home.

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Clockwork Radio

Clockwork Radio

Latest tracks by clockworkradio

Rachel Goodrich

ARTIST / BAND: Rachel Goodrich

MP3: "Na Na Na"

ALBUM: Light Bulb EP

FILE UNDER: indie pop, folk, Psychobilly

LABEL: s/r

INFO: Rachel Goodrich is an American musician and pioneer of "Shake-a-Billy" based in Miami, Florida. Her music has also been described as an "eclectic blend of vaudeville-inspired indie pop, swing-jazz andcountry-folk."^[1] Her first album, Tinker Toys, was self-released in 2008 to critical acclaim, including a feature in the New York Times which dubbed her as a "queen of the Miami indie rock scene".^[2]

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Braids

ARTIST / BAND: Braids

MP3: "Plath Heart" / "Lemonade"

ALBUM: Native Speaker

FILE UNDER: Indie, Psych Pop

LABEL:Kanine

INFO: BRAIDS’ was formed by four best friends in their last year of High School in Calgary, Alberta. Convincing one another to skip university, they stayed in the garage all year and practiced obsessively, even while their fingers froze during the cold prairie winters. Then, at only 18 years old, they took the bold step of moving across the country together to Montreal, where they began crafting their self recorded/self produced debut album Native Speaker.

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The Liptonians

ARTIST / BAND: The Liptonians

MP3: You Know I Did

ALBUM: Let's All March Back Into The Sea

FILE UNDER: rock

LABEL: head in the sand

INFO: In 2008, completely unheralded, The Liptonians emerged from a basement in Winnipeg with an "earnest little pop-rock gem" (Uptown Magazine). Much to their  surprise, the album picked up a Western Canadian Music Award for Outstanding Pop Recording, garnered rave reviews, charted on college radio across the country, became a regular on CBC Radio and paved the way for three cross-Canadian tours. The strength of their dynamic live show scored them opening slots for bands like Silver Starling (Last Gang Records) and Chicago indie rock legends, The Sea and Cake.

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Tracey Thorn

Tracey Thorn 'Why Does The Wind?' (Ewan Pearson Radio Edit) by buzzinfly

Jonsi

 

Smashing Pumpkins

ARTIST / BAND: Smashing Pumpkins

MP3: Tom Tom

ALBUM: Teargarden by Kaleidyscope Vol II: The Solstice Bare

FILE UNDER: Rock

LABEL: Virgin

 

INFO: The newest single "Tom Tom" is here for download!   If you haven't already scooped up your copy already of the second EP, Teargarden by Kaleidyscope Vol II: The Solstice Bare is in still available for a short time in The Smashing Pumpkins store  or at various physical and online retailers.  Again, it is limited edition and contains a 4-song CD, and a beautiful 12-inch vinyl picture disk featuring "Freak," "Spangled," "The Fellowship" and "Tom Tom" as well as the unreleased B side "Cottonwood Symphony." Go get yours before they're gone.

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Les Jupes

ARTIST / BAND: Les Jupes

MP3: Myth #3 (The Mountain)

ALBUM: Modern Myths

FILE UNDER: indie

LABEL: head in the sand

INFO: Les Jupes are a new band from the centre of Canada versed in expansive musical landscapes, sharp lyrics and an observer’s eye for the world. They are three Anglos with a French name making big, broad and determined music. And they are at the centre of a prairie renaissance growing around Head In The Sand Records.

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Cosmo's Academy

Cosmo's Academy

Cosmo's Academy is a band from the West Coast who just got done listening to the Dark Side of the Moon and eating frozen pizza.  Our interests include philosophy, hiking, bean bag chairs and weed.  We're really just trying to make the world a better place. 

Latest tracks by cosmosacademy

Eksi Ekso

ARTIST / BAND: Eksi Ekso

MP3: "Kills Of The Flood Tide"

ALBUM: Kills Of The Flood Tide 7" Single

FILE UNDER: post rock

LABEL: The Mylene Sheath

INFO: Eksi Ekso (pronounced 'ex-ee ex-o') is a rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. The latest brainchild from the creative forces behindThe Burning Paris and On Fire, Eksi Ekso is the convergence of atypical rock instrumentation, experimentation with form, and the breath of collaborative writing via six musicians coming from very different schools. Nate Shumaker (vocals/guitar), Tom Korkidis (vocals/bass/keys/samples), Sean Will (flugelhorn/trumpet/keys/samples), Clara Kebabian (violin/oboe/vocals), Beth Holub (viola), and Alex Mihm (drums/percussion) compose songs that play out like soundtracks to found footage reels.

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The Happy Hollows

ARTIST / BAND: The Happy Hollows

MP3: Faces / Monster Room / High Wire

ALBUM: Spells

FILE UNDER: Rock

LABEL: Autumn Tone

INFO: In the past year, Sarah Negahdari, the singer, guitarist, and chief songwriter of Los Angeles art-rock trio The Happy Hollows, has caused quite a commotion in the music world. Wired Magazine called her “one of the coolest women in rock,” Pitchfork wrote that her voice “commands attention on both the stompers and serenades,” and The Huffington Post branded her a “rock goddess.” Now The Happy Hollows are set to release their debut album Spells via Autumn Tone Records. The L.A. indie label will release the album in the U.S. on January 26, 2010. Sarah Negahdari’s journey to this point has been unconventional to say the least. It all began in a trailer park…well actually it began during the Iranian Revolution….

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Elk

ARTIST / BAND: Elk

MP3: Volleyball

ALBUM: Lets Get Married

FILE UNDER: Afro beat

LABEL: Shape Up Records

INFO: In 2009, after a brief tour through a handful of midwest cities, Elk (aka Justin Stein) was on the receiving end of some positive feedback for his debut EP Honey Range, which was released on his own Shape Up Records. So, he took the next logical step and began working on a full length release from his Brooklyn, NY apartment.

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Radical Face

ARTIST / BAND: Radical Face

MP3: The Deserter's Song/ Doorways

ALBUM: Touch The Sky

FILE UNDER: Indie

LABEL: Morr Music

INFO: Radical Face is the solo project of Ben Cooper, musician, illustrator, and artist based in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. On November 16, 2010, Radical Face will release the EPTouch The Sky via Morr Music.
In 2007, Radical Face released Ghost, an album that presented the simple idea: what if houses had memories? Some of the songs on Ghost were from people still living their lives, some were from the point of view of those dead and gone, watching over the living or haunting them. Be sure to check out the "Making of Ghost" documentary that aired across the US on Current.TV. Ben is also a member of the Jacksonville duo Electric President. Made up of Ben and band mate Alex Kane, Electric President has two albums and one EP, also released under Morr Music.

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Twilight Hotel

ARTIST / BAND: Twilight Hotel

MP3: Mahogany Veneer

ALBUM: When The Wolves Go Blind

FILE UNDER: Alternative / Roots Music

LABEL: kill beat music

INFO: Twilight Hotel is the musical partnership of Brandy Zdan & Dave Quanbury. Together they possess an elusive chemistry and musical style that is dark, moody and rooted in some kind of nostalgic passion for scratchy records and vintage guitar tones. They combine a rock n roll sensibility, compelling songwriting, and haunting arrangements while standing comfortably outside your predictable genre box.

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Guards

Guards

MP3: "Swimming After Dark"

ALBUM: GUARDS ep

FILE UNDER: alternative new wave power pop

LABEL: 3 syllables records

INFO: GUARDS are living proof that this Twitter / Internet malarkey actually works! Closely affiliated CULTS (you don’t get any closer than your own sister) tweeted an update to their mighty list of followers a few months back that they feature on a new EP by GUARDS.

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Lonnie Walker

ARTIST / BAND: Lonnie Walker

MP3: Summertime / Love Turn

ALBUM: These Times Old Times

FILE UNDER: Indie / Americana / Punk

LABEL: DiggUp Records

INFO: Raleigh’s Lonnie Walker will see a national release for debut full-length These Times Old Times December 14, 2010, after a successful local release in 2009. Currently on a month long tour with Future Islands, they will release a split 7” with them November 4, 2010. Titled The Ink Well/Love Turn, the release is limited to 300 pieces of peach vinyl.

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Eat More Cake Site

ARTIST / BAND: Eat More Cake Site

MP3: Underwater

ALBUM: Climb The Ladder, Live The Dream

FILE UNDER: hip hop, trip hop, electronica

LABEL: Urban Torque Recordings

INFO: Eat More Cake are a 4-piece electronica band based in Harrow, NW London. Their music combines elements of dance, hip-hop and down-tempo which form the basis for an innovative and unique sound.

Their debut single ‘Red Sky’, featuring Alexis Griffith, was released on December 7th and was taken from the album ‘Climb The Ladder, Live The Dream’, due out in 2010 on independent label Urbantorque Recordings.

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Gorbi stream

Watch live streaming video from gorbi1 at livestream.com

gorbi2 on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free

Sub Swara Mixtape

MP3: TRIGGERS Vol. 1

1. Sub Swara – Steam
2. Distal – Coke Bottle
3. Sub Swara – Bend You
4. Moldy – Embrace the Filth
5. Julio Bashmore – Batak Groove
6. Sub Swara – Vagabond Knowledge
7. Sub Swara – In Ether
8. Kraddy – Minotaur
9. Tinie Tempah – Written in the Stars (Starkey Remix)
10. Sub Swara – Schemes
11. Sub Swara – Future Fresh
12. Ultragamma – Stars Collapse
13. Big Boi – Shutterbug (Sub Swara Remix)
14. Stuart Bogie (Antibalas & Superhuman Happiness) – Horn Interlude
15. Sub Swara – October
16. Sub Swara – Bird of Paradise

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Lille

ARTIST / BAND: Lille

SONG (MP3): "Tall Shoulders" / "Tall Shoulders" - Todd Buchler (Duchess Leo) Remix

ALBUM: Tall Shoulders

FILE UNDER:  Melodramatic Popular Song

LABEL: Whale Heart Records

INFO: Lille is Grace Bellury, an eighteen year old songstress from Atlanta, GA. Born a poor asian boy, Grace accompanied his father and three sisters to America, where they sailed on a ship carrying spices to every corner of the earth. He was the friend of every swarthy sailor and sat up late at night in the cabins below the deck, the warm lantern glow radiating off the roughened yet kindly faces, spinning stories of exotic girls from every continent and exploits worthy of a Conrad novel. The sailors constructed papooses made from sturdy rope for Grace and his small sisters and they hung suspended from the ballast every night, sleeping peacefully

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Jen Wood

ARTIST / BAND: Jen Wood
MP3: "Pills" / "Morning Light" / Zeppelin
ALBUM: Finds You In Love
FILE UNDER: Alternative / Indie / Acoustic
LABEL: New Granada
INFO: Originally one half of the mid-90's duo Tattle Tale, Wood went on to record and release a string of albums, EP's & singles as a prolific singer/songwriter in her own right.  Known for her delicate and gorgeous voice, she has appeared on some high profile releases including the Postal Service's landmark 2002 album Give Up, singing the duet "Nothing Better" with Benjamin Gibbard as well as providing the backing harmonies for the single "Such Great Heights".  Additional vocal appearances include releases by Jeremy Enigk, Black Heart Procession, Rosie Thomas and Joan of Arc.
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Elizabeth & the Catapult

ARTIST / BAND: Elizabeth & the Catapult

MP3s:  "You and Me" / "Go Away My Lover"

ALBUM: The Other Side of Zero

FILE UNDER: Folk / Singer Songwriter / Pop

LABEL: Verve Forecast

INFO: “I’d hope there’s humor to both of our albums, but they’re actually quite different from one another,” says Elizabeth Ziman, the singer/songwriter/keyboardist behind Elizabeth & the Catapult. “While Taller Children has the sarcastic lightness of a Woody Allen film, the new record’s more in the vein of Kubrick or Lynch. It’s a bit darker, a bit more tongue-in-cheek—another side to who we are.” The reason for this shift isn’t as simple as a sudden breakup or breakdown. The dissonant strains are lurking between the lines, from the clanging chords and galloping groove of “The Horse and the Missing Cart” to the hopeful but bitter contrasts of “Thank You For Nothing,” a heartbroken ballad that channels the Buddhist teachings of an old Leonard Cohen poem. As it turns out, Elizabeth read Cohen’s Book of Longing collection from cover to cover while working on the Lincoln Center song cycle—performed last spring for a commission from NPR’s John Schaefer—that gave The Other Side of Zero its title and a handful of tracks. As the pages sunk in, one particular theme stood out: Cohen’s struggle to meet Buddhist goals in a monastery, which Elizabeth felt paralleled her own coming-of-age struggles while living and growing up in New York City. “Once I finished the book,” she says, “I realized that reaching this zen state wasn’t a realistic goal. Not for Leonard, and certainly not for me.

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Giant Sand

ARTIST / BAND: Giant Sand

MP3: Fields of Green

ALBUM: Blurry Blue Mountain

FILE UNDER: alt. country

LABEL: Fire Records

INFO: Inaccurately yet affectionately dubbed the Godfather of Alt. Country by the British press, Tucson, Arizona-based musician Howe Gelb has remained the sole epicenter and creative force behind the ever-fluid configurations of Giant Sand for over a quarter century. 2010 marks the 25th anniversary of the bands 1985 debut long player Valley Of Rain – the point in which Howes music visions began – and will see the release of the complete works of Giant Sand, Howe Gelb, Arizona Amp and The Bands Of Blacky Ranchette – a collection of works that maintains its own genre-defying singularity drawing on the not-so disparate threads of his south western roots, lo-fi, country, jazz, and punk … “Giant Sand is a mood,” explained Howe, as if to simplify the dizzying breadth of his prolific output as an artist.

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Gorillaz

Gorillaz - Doncamatic (Joker Remix) by Hypetrak

Valleys

ARTIST / BAND: Valleys
SONG (MP3): "Ordinary Dream"
ALBUM: Stoner
FILE UNDER:  Experimental / Psychedelic / Shoegaze
LABEL: Semprini
INFO: Enriching the intimacy of lo-fi with bold experimentation, psychedelic folk and haunting melodies, Valleys forge delicate vignettes that chill the blood and stir the soul.  Soaked in a swirling ocean of electronic haze, stripped guitars, ghostly vocals, feedback and sparse percussion through a shimmering dream-pop cloudscape.
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Underworld

ARTIST / BAND: Underworld

MP3: Always Loved A Film (Christian Martin Remix)

ALBUM: Barking

FILE UNDER: Electronic

LABEL: Universal International Music B.V.

GOSPEL CLAWS

ARTIST / BAND: GOSPEL CLAWS

MP3: Walk Me Down / Summer Nights Lakeside / Avenues

ALBUM: C-L-A-W-S

FILE UNDER: Indie / Melodramatic Popular Song / Thrash

LABEL: Common Wall Media

INFO: Gospel Claws have just released their first full-length record
C - L - A - W - S. Tracks from the record have been featured by Paste, Magnet, Large Hearted Boy, and more. With reviews that contain both the words “complex” and “pop” you know this is a must have.

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Daft Punk

Daft Punk - Derezzed (NTEIBINT Remix) by Hypetrak

 

Esben and the Witch

ARTIST / BAND: Esben and the Witch

MP3s: "Warpath" / "Marching Song"

ALBUM: Violet Cries

FILE UNDER: Indie

LABEL: matador records

INFO: On the heels of their recent “Marching Song” 12″ EP and first US tour (culminating in tonight’s show at Brooklyn’s Knitting Factory), Esben and the Witch will be releasing their debut full-length LP/CD/digital album on January 31, 2011 (February 8 in North America ). The Brighton trio, recently nominated for a Q Award, found themselves nearly drowning in plaudits following “Marching Song”‘s release “teetering on the edge of explosive emotion”, raved one observer, while the assessment, “thoroughly mesmerizing” came to mind for another.

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Röyksopp

I Wanna Know by Röyksopp

Elvis Costello

Rebekah Higgs

ARTIST / BAND: Rebekah Higgs

MP3: Little Voice

ALBUM: Little Voice EP

FILE UNDER: Indie / Alternative / Pop

INFO: Rebekah Higgs is an instrument all her own. At times happy, often haunting, her voice echoes and chimes like a xylophone French kissing a wa-wa pedal. Produced by Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse, Califone), Little Voice is not only a shiny new four song EP to wrap around yourself for warmth against the coming winter but also a glimpse into what fruit Rebekah Higgs' upcoming sophomore full length record will bear come the new year.

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Twin Shadow / Free MP3s and Video

Twin Shadow 'Slow' (NSFW) from Twin Shadow on Vimeo.

Ezio

ARTIST / BAND: Ezio

MP3: A Small Dream

ALBUM: This Is The Day

FILE UNDER: Acoustic / Folk Rock

LABEL: Tapete records

INFO: This is the Day is NOT just another Ezio record.
Some good friends of mine could never quite understand my passion for the songs and lyrics of Ezio Lunedei till theyʻd actually seen Booga and Ezio perform live, preferably as a duo.
Here the songs finally fulfill their wild promise. The delivery is always poignant, at times deadpan funny, melancholic, political, sarcastic and quite mean, indeed. Not so comfy and nice as some of the records would want you to believe. Itʻs always been a wee bit the „Let It Be/Phil Spector“ dilemma with Ezio. Great songs and sentiments,... but who let the string section and choir in?

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Cults

Aloe Blacc

ARTIST / BAND: Aloe Blacc
SONG (MP3): You Make Me Smile / Femme Fatale
ALBUM: Good things
FILE UNDER: Soul, Hip Hop
LABEL: Stones Throw
INFO:Born to Panamanian parents in Los Angeles in 1979, E. Nathaniel Dawkins (aka Aloe Blacc) first began playing trumpet in elementary school, an instrument he continued throughout high school. There he also independently released Imaginary Friends, produced by DJ Exile, with whom he would go on to form the hip-hop group Emanon. read more from the source...

Social Studies

ARTIST / BAND: Social Studies

MP3: We Choose Our Own Adventures

ALBUM: Wind Up Wooden Heart

FILE UNDER: Indie Pop

LABEL: Antenna Farm Records

INFO: Social Studies craft intricate songs that combine angular indie rock and classic twee-pop. What distinguishes the San Francisco-based group is their eclectic, complex song writing: unusual structures and mathy beats are tempered by soft edges and danceable casio hooks. Moody, defiant and hopeful, the lyrics celebrate duality through themes of discontent, violence, innocence, renewal, nostalgia, regret and joy. All these elements take shape in unpredictable, catchy songs that burrow into your consciousness and demand repeat listening and a critical reading between the lines. Combine this imaginative songwriting with a consistently high energy live show, and it is no surprise that Social Studies has generated a loyal fanbase and strong buzz in the SF Bay Area and beyond.

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One Hundred Flowers

ARTIST / BAND: One Hundred Flowers
MP3: Rat Trap
ALBUM: Mechanical Bride
FILE UNDER: experimental / a'cappella / pop
LABEL: Stem & Leaf Records
INFO: in the summer of 2007, harrison speckʼs bedroom recordings began taking shape. after months of experimentation, he found himself making musical compositions interacting with impressionistic lyrical content and melodies dictated in their rhythm. complicated yet catchy, the songs reflected the nature of conflict, both lyrically and musically. a collection of seven songs from this time period became the ep titled some summer falls. the enthusiastic response from the austin music community prompted speck to recruit a band capable of adapting the original material to live performance, which became the band one hundred flowers in the spring of 2008.
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THE KNOCKS

ARTIST / BAND: THE KNOCKS
MP3: THE KNOCKS - MAKE IT BETTER (DOM REMIX) / When You've Got Music  / 'Make It Better' MP3
ALBUM: "Make It Better"
FILE UNDER: electro
LABEL: Neon Gold Records / HeavyRoc
INFO: This one comes courtesy of the Massachusetts noisy electro/rock group DOM.  Ever since Pitchfork sang their praises these guys have been all over the place and we were very happy when they said they would do a remix for us.  With a fat gritty analog bass over driving drums leading the way followed by a shimmery rat-a-tat-esque lead chorus synth, this remix changes up the whole vibe of the song in a great way.  This remix sounds like it could be in your favorite 80s action film and we love it.  THANKS DOM

Club 8

ARTIST / BAND: Club 8

SONG (MP3): "Shape up!" / Closer now

ALBUM: The People's Record

FILE UNDER: Indie / Pop / Electronica

LABEL: labrador

"The duo have expanded their sonic melodic pallet with traces of
Afro-pop, boss nova, and South American jazz. The result is a warmly
inviting album that's as sweet as it is cleverly composed" 8/10
UNDER THE RADAR

"The People’s Record ultimately feels personal and focused on the
public. It’s party music centered upon the fact that we’re all going
to die " 8/10 POPMATTERS

"Club 8 have never sounded deeper, darker, or funkier." PITCHFORK

"The People's Record" is the Club 8's first an outside producer.
Their initial idea was to move to Brazil for a couple of months and
record the album there with a local producer. But after having read
an interview with Jari Haapalainen (Camera Obscura, The Concretes,
Ed Harcourt) where he talked about his love for rythmns from Western
Africa and the Middle East the choice fell on him. The result is a
captivating mix of bittersweet lyrics about death, life affirming
Afro-beats and Swedish pop melancholia.

BOTANY

ARTIST / BAND: BOTANY

MP3s: Feeling Today / Waterparker

ALBUM: Feeling Today

FILE UNDER: Psychedelic

LABEL: Western Vinyl

INFO: Feeling Today is Spencer Stephenson's debut release under the Botany moniker. The culmination of years of assembling music, this EP, and his forthcoming full-length, flow with a transcendental radiance. Under the gauzy patina of decades-old samples, this Texan sound-sculptor masterfully merges the past and the present, the earthly and the infinite.

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Frightened Rabbit

 

ARTIST / BAND: Frightened Rabbit

MP3: My Brother Tom, the Green Beret

ALBUM:If a Lot of Bands Play in the Woods…? (A compilation album by The Philistines Jr.)

FILE UNDER: Indie

LABEL: TARQUIN RECORDS

INFO: The Philistines Jr. are an indie-pop threesome from Connecticut whose members include super producer Peter Katis (Interpol, the National, Jónsi, and Frightened Rabbit), his brother Tarquin and Adam Pierce (who runs FatCat USA and plays drums in Mice Parade).  October 19th will see the band release an album called If a Band Plays in the Woods…? along with an album of covers and remixes (If A Lot Of Bands Play In The Woods…?) from their impressive list of friends (the National, Jónsi, Tokyo Police Club, Tapes N’ Tapes and more). 

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Bird By Snow

ARTIST / BAND: Bird By Snow

MP3s: Friends In The City / There Is A Marriage

ALBUM: Common Wealth

FILE UNDER: psych-pop, indie pop

LABEL: gnome life records

INFO: Place is important. Bird By Snow was formed in the weather, wild, and little towns of Northern California. Cold water, dark woods. Fog in the branches, sunlight through a Pelican-wing. Abundance in all directions. This is theplace that has informed the aesthetic of the whole Lo-fi, Pacific Northwest Indie Scene. Bird By Snow can be seen there too, but not limited to one view, instead at home in the limitless, expanding west. --- You’ll find genres bent as if light through a prism. Song-craft as ritual, where themes of primitivism, pagan meditations, and transcendent dronings breathe deeply. Only one constant member: words, tunes, recording and much playing by Fletcher Tucker.

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Tony Castles

ARTIST / BAND: Tony Castles

SONG (MP3): Black Girls in Dresses

ALBUM: No Service

FILE UNDER:  Indie Pop

LABEL: Famous Class Records

INFO: Tony Castles was born in August 2008 in Brooklyn, NY. For having been formed one year ago, the band has plenty of history. Paul Sicilian and Gabriel Wurzel first crossed paths as freshmen in high school. The two soon began playing together in bands and ended up attending college together continuing to write music throughout. During this time they were introduced to fellow student and musician Willie Miesmer. Within a year after graduation all three moved to Brooklyn where they reconnected and began playing together in loose free form sessions, often swapping instruments and experimenting with loop pedals and samplers. The chemistry was instant and they continue inventing, deconstructing and reinventing their sound all the while clinging to a shared adoration for both strong vocal melody and open space.

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In Grenada

ARTIST / BAND: In Grenada

SONG (MP3): Distance & Temptation

ALBUM: Break

FILE UNDER:  Indie Pop

LABEL: s/r

INFO: In Grenada was born from the ashes of Philadelphia’s premier ukulele indie-rock band, Movable Type, during the summer of 2007. Now, they make their presence felt with their debut release, Break.

Stuck with a few left over songs and an environmental conscience, songwriter/instrumentalist Jesse Leyh plucked the tunes from the trash and saved them for his compost heap. Over the next two years those first few songs grew in the fertile environs of a home studio, watered by a monsoon of shifting and breaking relationships and the pressures of finding a new place in the world and life.

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Jupe Jupe

ARTIST / BAND: Jupe Jupe

SONG (MP3): Something About Love

ALBUM: Invaders

FILE UNDER:  electro-ambient synth with guitars and poppy hooks

LABEL: s/r

INFO: Jupe Jupe mix sci-fi and glam into a synth-noir cocktail and serve it in the genre they wholeheartedly embrace: Pop. Invaders, this debut cocktail, see it’s national release October 5th, 2010!

Taking their textual cues from campy films and the excitement of a late-night dance hit, Jupe Jupe provide escapist songs you can move to – in Milan, or alone in your bedroom.

Jupe Jupe is composed of My Young on vocals and synthesizer, Bryan Manzo and Patrick Partington on guitar, and drummer Jarrod Arbini – veterans of the Seattle and Austin music scenes (Pleasurecraft, The Cinematics [U.S.], Maximum Coherence During Flying). The quartet’s first release, Invaders, combines crooning vocals, jangling guitars, shimmering synths and pulsating beats to take you on a glamorous ride to the far reaches of the electro-pop universe. Set the controls. Launch.

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Fox In The Henhouse

ARTIST / BAND: Fox In The Henhouse

SONG (MP3): Fears

ALBUM: Fox In The Henhouse

FILE UNDER:  Indie

LABEL: iBot Records

INFO: After moving from coast to coast, and spending two years writing and recording, Wakefield singer, Ryan Escolopio has finally settled down in Baltimore, MD. Shying away from his pop punk roots, Ryan broke into the indie rock scene with his new project Fox in the Henhouse and their debut album The Fox EP, on iBOT Records. The bands latest album, Vulves Vulves, unites his poignant lyrical stylings with rollicking guitars to spark a number of crowd pleasers. The album, with standout tracks like "Fears," which appeals to indie rock fans and non-indie rock fans alike, is set to release October 12, 2010.
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Motorifik

ARTIST / BAND: Motorifik

SONG (MP3): Secret Things

ALBUM: Secret Things

FILE UNDER:  Indie

LABEL: Modern Language Recordings

INFO: Phil Kay is a busy man… his main project, Working for a Nuclear Free City, has a new album releasing 12 October and he has this intriguing side musical partnership with French songwriter Idrisse Khelifi under the Motorifik moniker. Like Working for a Nuclear Free City, Motorifik is interested playing with space and texture in their tunes, evoking a certain pastoral sensibility, as well as an obvious nod to their shoegazing forebearers. The idea with this group was to be a bit less experimental than WFANFC and a bit more rooted in a pure pop aestethic. Motorifik’s Secret Things releases 9 November via Modern Language Recordings and we have the premiere today of the title track as well as Kay discussing the song in his own words.

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The Moaners

ARTIST / BAND: The Moaners

SONGs (MP3): "Cowboy Bob" / "Humid Air"

ALBUM: Nocturnal

FILE UNDER:  Rock / Folk / Experimental

LABEL: Holiday For Quince

INFO: Head south past the Mason-Dixon line and into the swamp-hot humidity of North Carolina’s summer months, and a porch-swing singalong with The Moaners starts to sound very appealing. Melissa Swingle (formerly of alt-country darlings Trailer Bride) and Laura King (formerly of Grand National) have been conjuring the spirit of the South for over five years and two records with the ambitious goal of “[capturing] the feeling of … Faulkner’s South, O’Connor’s South.” With Nocturnal, their spell is stronger than ever.

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Filthybird

ARTIST / BAND: Filthybird

SONG (MP3): "Pick Me Up"

ALBUM: Songs For Other People

FILE UNDER:  Indie Folk

LABEL: Holidays for Quince

INFO: Cosmic American four-piece Filthybird has had an busy year, migrating from Greensboro, North Carolina, to the Triangle, opening a guitar repair shop in downtown Graham (Fret Sounds), and putting the finishing touches on their brilliant new full-length record, Songs for Other People. The follow-up to the lauded Southern Skies, Filthybird’s latest record reveals an astounding depth, effectively marrying the lilting vocal melodies of Renee Mendoza (Ashrae Fax) to her husband Brian Haran’s (Glenn Branca Orchestra, LaMonte Young projects, Viridian) layered guitar atmospherics. Anchored by Michael Duehring and Otto Hauser’s (Vetiver, Bright Back Morning Light, Espers) powerfully inventive rhythm section, these songs are both soulful and dreamy, familiar and fresh. Lush, breezy and cinematic arrangements may recall the best moments of Gram Parsons, Jefferson Airplane, Roky Erikson and Chris Bell, but this band is unique, reassembling the most colorful fragments of a mythic American music into something entirely new.

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Grandchildren

ARTIST / BAND: Grandchildren

SONG (MP3): “Saturn Returns”

ALBUM: Everlasting

FILE UNDER:  Electroacoustic / Roots Music / Pop

LABEL: Green Owl

INFO: In Grandchildren, every memory is a montage of sound. The beat-driven, orchestral-pop epics on Grandchildren’s forthcoming album Everlasting play like an audio scrapbook of nostalgia and pop-culture inspired by memories from the songwriter’s life. Sentimental harmonies and globally sourced rhythms weave through every track, reflecting a history that is both chaotic and serene, but ultimately uplifting. These energies manifest in Grandchildren’s “larger-than-life” live performances, the six multi-instrumentalists swapping instruments in what reviewers have called “a choreographed musical chairs.

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