UNARMED ENEMIES

Artist / Band: UNARMED ENEMIES
Song (MP3): THE BINGING
Album: UNARMED ENEMIES EP
File Under: Pop / Electronica / Indie
Label: http://www.shaktar.nu/
Info: We're two middle-aged ex-models/actors, just trying to make it in the music industry as well. read more from the source...

LOUIS XIV

Artist / Band: LOUIS XIV
Song (MP3): LOUIS XIV/LA MIX
Album: ILLEGAL TENDER
File Under: Idie Rock
Label: Atlantic/Pineapple Recording Group
Info: Louis XIV: It's really just the name. It's like Led Zeppelin doesn't have much to do with ballons but they are a Rock & Roll band. The same way Louis XIV is a Rock & Roll band. We are just a very unique band. I think nobody sounds like us at the moment; or ever. Our first record we made, we recorded in France. It was a concept-album that had a little more to do with the name Louis XIV. But our new record is a more sexually driven record. It's different in all ways. Everything is not intended to be sort of royal in a way. In fact I usually try to shy away people from things like that. Because we are only a Rock & Roll band. It's sort of you try to say: "Smashing Pumpkins? Do they have anything to do with pumpkins patches or so?" I don't think so!. Or: "Led Zeppelin? Have they anything to do with big ballons flying in the air?" I mean Jimmy Page is Jimmy Page and has nothing to do with ballons, you know. read more from the source...

EINE OLIVER TWIST KOOPERATION

Artist / Band: EINE OLIVER TWIST KOOPERATION
Song (MP3): HELIOTROP
Album: tausend kleine tänze
File Under: Indie
Label: Rewika
Info: Some of you will know about The Oliver Twist Band and »Eine Oliver Twist Kooperation«, their latest incarnation, respectively. Remembering The Oliver Twist’s last release you might expect to find certain names like Die Goldenen Zitronen, Von Spar (with whom Eine Oliver Twist Kooperation share their vocalist), The Robocop Kraus, Liars, or The Make Up in bold type. You are mislead! None of the above will help us clarify the subject matter at hand! read more from the source...

MY DARLING YOU!

Artist / Band: MY DARLING YOU!
Song (MP3): EVERYTHING, ALLRIGHT?!
Album: none
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Self
Info: My darling YOU! is Christoffer and Klas, from Goteborg and now also Hjalmared. We play popmusic on guitar, bass, organ and drums and synthesizer. Christoffer plays bass. Klas plays guitar and sings. The organ and synth was recorded by Klas once upon a time. The drums were recorded by a computer.We have recorded 2 CD-R, that can be bought, and the third is no longer CD-R but it's push&press.They cost some SEK each and were recorded at home among other places.read more from the source...

THE APPARITIONS

Artist / Band: THE APPARITIONS
Song (MP3): ELECTRICITY + DRUMS
Album: AS THIS IS FUTURISTIC
File Under: Rock / Pop / Indie
Label: http://www.machine-inc.com/
Info: Generally speaking, bands with three guitar players don't play lean-sounding music. The guitars usually overwhelm the other instruments with a wall of sound, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. But The Apparitions, from Lexington, Kentucky, don't pummel listeners with rock even though they have three guitarists (one also plays the keys). Instead, the group's new album, As This Is Futuristic, sounds full but not overwhelming. It's guitar-based power pop that's jangly, fuzzy, and full of infectious energy...read more from the source...

THE HORROR THE HORROR

Artist / Band: THE HORROR THE HORROR
Song (MP3): I LOST MY GIRL TO ALCOHOL
Album: THE HORROR THE HORROR
File Under: Indie
Label: www.tapeterecords.de
Info: First emerging in 2002, The Horror The Horror quickly gained a reputation as one of the most promising bands on the Stockholm club circuit. With their blend of influences including early New York punk bands such as Television, The Modern Lovers and Velvet Underground as well as the British indie scene of the early nineties, The Horror The Horror have developed a unique sound highly appraised by audiences and critics all over Sweden.
Their music combines a seemingly impossible blend of total nonchalance and heartfelt compassion. Holding it all together are the melodies that are the core of The Horror The Horror’s songs.
Awaiting the release of their debut album (scheduled early 2006) this first taste includes two songs from a band that will undoubtedly leave a mark on anyone who hears them.
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Playlist Muzorama 5 February

5WE ARE SCIENTISTS- IN ACTION /THE WOLF'S HOUR
LOVENINJAS - KEEP YOUR LOVE / KEEP YOUR LOVE EP
REUBENS ACCOMPLICE- ALL CHORUS/ THE BULL, THE BALLOON, AND THE FAMILY
THE ELECTED- NOT GOING HOME/ SUN, SUN, SUN
GOODNIGHT MONSTERS - 20 FINGERS 20 TOES
KELLEY STOLTZ - MEMORY COLLECTOR / BELOW THE BRANCHES
THE GLASS FAMILY - SWIMMING IN FICTION / SLEEP INSIDE THIS WHEEL
THE OCTAGON - DON'T BE ALARMED > THE WOLF
HEAD LIKE A KITE - NOICY AT THE CIRCUS / RANDOM PORTRAITS OF THE HOME
RAISING THE FAWN - CARBON PAPER / THE MAGINOT LINE
ROCKY VOTOLATO - PORTLAND IS LEAVING / MAKERS
NEKO CASE- STAR WITNESS / FOX CONFESSOR BRINGS THE FLOOD
DOVEMAN - HONEY / THE ACROBAT
EEF BARZELAY - BALLAD OF BITTER HONEY / BITTER HONEY
PELLE CARLBERG - GO TO HELL, MISS RYDELL /GO TO HELL, MISS RYDELL [EP]

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Doveman

Artist / Band: Doveman
Song (MP3): Honey
Album: Acrobat
File Under: insomnia pop
Label: swim slowly
Info: doveman plays lamp rockdoveman plays insomnia popdoveman likes jasmine tea and single malt scotchdoveman does not live in brooklynwhere is brooklyn?
doveman is:thomas bartlett--voice, piano, wurlitzer, pump organ, harmonium founding member of assembly, sometime member of elysian fields, chocolate genius, and mike doughty's band
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Neko Case

Artist / Band: Neko Case

Song (MP3): Star Witness

Album: Fox Confessor Brings The Flood

File Under: Country

Label: Anti
Info: When it comes to the art of telling tales, Jim Thompson had it pegged. “There are 32 ways to write a story,” the noir author famously observed, “but only one plot: Things are not as they seem.” The story of Neko Case, similarly, could be told a number of different ways; but the facts, as always, yield only a part of the truth.

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ROCKY VOTOLATO

Artist / Band: ROCKY VOTOLATO
Song (MP3): PORTLAND IS LEAVING
Album: MAKERS
File Under: Singer / Songwriter
Label: BARSUK
Info: Singer songwriters are a dime a dozen. Among their ilk, few are able to portray a convincing human quality. Underneath the suffocation layers of overproduction, psuedo-cowboy heartache and disingenuous roots-of-rock posturing, such efforts are simply ineffectual. Somehow, believing the sincerity of a heartbroken performance coming from a rock star making TV appearances to sell hip-young men's urban apparel is becoming increasingly hard to swallow. The recipe may all be in place. The songwriting formula is there. The right vintage instruments might have been played but if there's no heart behind the delivery, the music just falls flat. For those ailing from such an understandably jaded outlook, the music of Rocky Votolato comes as a pleasant change of pace.
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RAISING THE FAWN

Artist / Band: RAISING THE FAWN
Song (MP3): CARBON PAPER
Album: THE MAGINOT LINE
File Under: Indie Rock
Label: sonic unyon records
Info: Born in a bedroom, impatient with the lack of patience in late nineties indie rock, Raising the Fawn was started in 1997 as a one-man show. When you write and play everything yourself, questions are both easily asked and answered. Everything that I originally sought for the music — minimal arrangements, gentle playing, gradual pacing, a reaction against the flailing, manic nature of indie rock — was practically dictated to me by the setup of a guy and his four-track. Even as the debut CD (2001) was released and Raising the Fawn became a live band, the “singer/songwriter” reins stayed firmly in my hands. In retrospect, motivated by both fear and ego, I did little to change that hierarchy for a long while.. read more from the source...

The Glass Family

Artist / Band: The Glass Family
Song (MP3): Swimming In Fiction
Album: Sleep Inside This Wheel
File Under: Powerpop / Indie / Rock
Label: I Eat Records
Info: Austin's The Glass Family's debut is a showcase of brilliantly subtle and well crafted pop that explodes into epic orchestral compositions, complete with twinkling keys, horns, and catchy hooks. RIYD: Wilco, Spoon, Death Cab

Kelley Stoltz

Artist / Band: Kelley Stoltz
Song (MP3): Memory Collector
Album: Below the Branches
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: sub pop
Info: San Francisco home-recording multi-instrumentalist Kelley Stoltz spent the better part of the past three years promoting and distributing his last album himself. "I finished Antique Glow in 2001, but found myself without a label when it was ready for release. So, being a vinyl nut, I decided to press up a couple hundred and, to save some money, painted all the covers myself. I sold them at shows and stores all around San Francisco. After that the record took on a life of its own." And, this life of its own involved an eventual domestic CD release on San Francisco's Jackpine Social Club, as well as considerable UK press attention. Antique Glow garnered a 4-star review and a "Mojo Rising" feature in MOJO magazine, as well as critical praise in Ptolemaic Terrascope, Uncut, Record Collector and on BBC6 radio. At year's end Antique Glow was ranked #24 in MOJO's "40 Best Albums of 2004," described as, "a time capsule only recently discovered…a jamboree grab-bag of delights filled with everything from psychedelic folk and cosmic troubadour pop to garage-rock and lysergic r&b…one of the year's major finds." Kelley's new album, Below the Branches, picks up where Antique Glow left off, combining psych rock, folk, blues and pop in its 13 tracks, exploring new, piano-driven directions as well. It's an album of improvisational pop, alchemically blending influences with results that are both timeless and new. Kelley and his band (Sean Coleman, Kevin Ink, Shayde Sartin, and John Hofer) will tour extensively with the release of Below the Branches. read more from the source...

GOODNIGHT MONSTERS

Artist / Band: GOODNIGHT MONSTERS
Song (MP3): 20 Fingers 20 Toes
Album: The Brain That Wouldn't Die
File Under: Lo Fi / Indie
Label: Bone Voyage Recording Company
Info: In the spring of 2004 Matti Jasu and Valtteri Virtanen decided to make an albumful of songs and record them with no particular reason why. Guess they didn’t have anything better to do. They had met each other just a couple of times and had never played together before. With no real musical direction they started to make songs. Probably because they are fans of bands such as Flaming Lips, Beach Boys, Flipper’s Guitar and Teenage Fanclub the result was melodic and quirky pop music.The album opener “Girls” was made during their first afternoon session. It was soon followed by “Phone Booth”, “Demonstrator” and so on. Soon after the first songs were ready they started recording them in Matti’s livingroom. Every idea was tried out. When the summer ended the album, titled as “The Brain That Wouldn’t Die”, was finished. After coming up with a groovy name, they started to look like a real band. Great!With the addition of drummers Kece and later Jussi Rantanen and bass player Markus Jalonen, Goodnight Monsters came alive. And God only knows what they’re going to do next! read more from the source...

The Elected

Artist / Band: The Elected
Song (MP3): Not Going Home
Album: Sun, Sun, Sun
File Under: Indie Rock
Label: sub pop
Info: Los Angeles, California boasts some of the most transcendent sunsets on Planet Earth. Beatific, swirling miasmas of deep color culled from some distant, holy palette. But before we get carried away, it’s important to remember that the sunsets of Los Angeles would be nothing without the thousands of noxious chemicals that blanket the greater San Fernando region. L. A. sunsets look that way because of the smog.
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Reubens Accomplice

Artist / Band: Reubens Accomplice
Song (MP3): All Chorus
Album: The Bull, The Baloon, And The Family
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: western treadInfo: Strip mall chintz. Cinder block suburbs. Depressing Dairy Queens. Hesher metal. For lifelong desert dwellers and North Phoenix, Arizona natives Jeff Bufano and Chris Corak this deadening litany could’ve doubled as a description of their adolescent lives. Before long the two schoolyard chums and burgeoning musical misfits began pining for something more than an existence predicated on old Slayer riffs and tweaker-trailer culture. And so, Reubens Accomplice was born.The band’s peculiar journey- a labyrinthine saga that’s taken them from high school talent shows to amphitheatre stages- has yielded a spectacular bounty in the sun struck pop perfection of their latest album, the Jim Adkins (Jimmy Eat World) produced THE BULL, THE BALLOON, AND THE FAMILY.
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Loveninjas

Artist / Band: Loveninjas
Song (MP3): Keep Your Love
Album: Keep Your Love
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: labrador
Info: Loveninjas’ songs sound like classic schlagers that have been forced through a dirty indie filter and then had its lyrics replaced by pornographic manga. And you should know the live experience is even greater! Singing songs about broken penises dressed in a giant heart is… well, very funny to say the least.

We Are Scientists

Artist / Band: We Are Scientists
Song (MP3): In action
Album: With Love and Squalor
File Under: Disco Rock
Label: Virgin
Info: We Are Scientists, a.k.a. “the We Are Scientists”, a.k.a. “W.A.S”., sometimes written “tW.A.S.”,Comprises Keith Murray, guitar and lead vocals; Chris Cain, bass guitar and backing vocals; Michael Tapper, drums and backing vocalsGenerating rock music of the thoughtful, sometimes epic, often loud, vaguely danceable, implicitly humanist variety.Begun in a bar in A.D. 2000,They moved to New York in 2001,Have issued three self-released e.p.s and a gregarious little full length since then,Performed constantly across America and Europe,And eaten plenty of cake, which they were then consternated to find missing.
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Playlist Muzorama 29 January

THE JOLLY ROGERS - JANE IS FAT/OH NO! OH MY!
LITTLE MAN TATE - COURT REPORT
MATES OF STATE - FRAUD IN THE '80S/BRING IT BACK
ELEFANT - THE CLOWN/ THE BLACK MAGIC SHOW
THE TWIN ATLAS - THREE LOVES / SUN TOWNSHIP
WOMEN AND CHILDREN- WAVE AND A SMILE/ BOX SET
HOTEL ALEXIS - QUEENS AND THE SOFT KING/ THE SHINING EXAMPLE IS LYING ON THE FLOOR
SEEDY GONZALEZ - PAGE 28 / BIRD THAT SINGS
THE BEATINGS - STOCKHOLM SYNDROME RELAPSE / HOLDING ON TO HAND GRENADES
TESTFACE - SOUNDS DON'T COME AROUND HERE ANYMORE/ DOCTOR WON'T YOU GET US TO DAWN
TARKIO - TRISTAN AND ISEULT / OMNIBUS
EVERYTHING IS FINE - 1000 SECONDS / GHOSTS ARE KNOCKING ON WALLS
DEVICS - COME UP/ DEVICS PUSH THE HEART

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Devics

Artist / Band: Devics
Song (MP3): Come Up
Album: PUSH THE HEART
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Filter US Recordings
Info: When you hear something as beautiful and endowed with genuine emotion as the music of Devics, you can’t help but wonder...Just who are these people anyway? Well, the short answer will hardly raise an eyebrow: Devics is vocalist Sara Lov and multi-instrumentalist and sometimes singer Dustin O'Halloran, a musical duo from Los Angeles who found a home in Italy after signing to the UK label, Bella Union. But the complete answer is as unique and magical as anything in the history of modern music. read more from the source...

EVERYTHING IS FINE

Artist / Band: EVERYTHING IS FINE
Song (MP3):1000 SECONDS
Album: GHOSTS ARE KNOCKING ON WALLS
File Under: Shoegaze / Experimental / Down-tempo
Label: tract records
Info: NEW RELEASE! "IF WE WERE TREES" A SPLIT CD WITH, DERECK JOE BROCKETT, GRUMPY BEAR, EVERYTHING IS FINE, AND THEATH. its 3 breand new songs by eif with hand made covers. limited edition of only 100 copies. order one at http://www.tractrecords.com/TR036.htm Order the new full length cd "ghosts are knocking on walls" at http://www.tractrecords.com here is a link for an interview that the italian label awful bliss did http://www.awfulbliss.it/interview/eif_eng.htm here is the review of ghosts by bedroom dancing: It's a scary world, but it can sometimes be a comforting one too. That seems to be the message behind Ghosts Are Knocking on Walls, the just-released album from Portland's Everthing Is Fine. The brainchild of musician/artist Marc Manning, EIF is noteworthy for its multi-layered sound that fuses elements of folk, rock, campfire singalongs and No Depression-style alt country. Recorded at Philadelphia's Miner Street Studios with a full band, Ghosts's songs are contemplative landscapes of yearning, be it for escape ("Over the Road," the DB Cooper-inspired "Vapor Trails and Light"), closure ("Cold Click"), or a new beginning ("Today Is the Day"). Despite the disc's often weighty subject matter, Manning infuses the songs with melodies--sometimes mellow, sometimes eruptive--that perfectly compliment their lyrics.! read more from the source...

Testface

Artist / Band: Testface
Song (MP3): Sounds Don't Come Around Here Anymore
Album: Doctor Won't You Get Us To Dawn
File Under: Indie / Folk / Pop
Label: Broken Sparrow
Info: Testface , the brainchild of David Snider, hails from central Oregon, via years of winters in the cold woods of New Hampshire. Almost a decade of woodsheding and selectively chiseling out songs in the shadows produced this years "doctor won't you get us to dawn." For this release he has harbored an arsenal of trusted friends, accomplices and academic monsters to create a suprisingly different kind of album. Parts psychedelic, parts experimental Americana, the songs are spacious and lonesome with a deep yearning for solace. Testface is poignant, wounded and endlessly searching. read more from the source...

Nat Baldwin

Artist / Band: Nat Baldwin
Song (MP3): wake up it's time to rise
Album: Lights Out
File Under: Acoustic
Label: Broken Sparrow
Info: Today, when most of the so-called musical innovators simply offer contemporary takes on already proven and accepted movements in music (neo-psychedelia, nth-wave garage bands...) Portsmouth, New Hampshire's Nat Baldwin is a true original. Baldwin is an upright bass player and a singer, but he takes both of those things to their limit, and has perfected a sound that he can call entirely his own.
His bass playing can be soothing or jarring- he bows and plucks, taps and scratches... he finds endless different sounds in his instrument, and it never seems lacking or overplayed. His voice is a beautiful instrument all it's own. A big, open, oceanic voice- sultry and sublime. The simple combination of Baldwin's bass and singing is pure, direct, and timeless.
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THE BEATINGS

Artist / Band: THE BEATINGS
Song (MP3): STOCKHOLM SYNDROME RELAPSE
Album: HOLDING ON TO HAND GRENADES
File Under: Indie / Rock / Powerpop
Label: mid riff records
Info: Once society is broken down and rebuilt, the prophets of yesteryear will be discussed in whispers; Springsteen, Richman, The Moz. Field hollers replaced by anthems. Beer soaked rags, hanging from bloated bodies, providing armor against the construction of our oppressors. We are the flare gun of youth. We encourage indulgence in our vices, and we encourage the children to indulge as well. The party is ending. Soon you will be shackled. Throw the rock through the church window, slash the ambulance's tires, dismantle the iron lung. These memories must be documented. A broken heart only stops hurting when it stops beating. read more from the source...

SEEDY GONZALEZ

Artist / Band: SEEDY GONZALEZ
Song (MP3): PAGE 28
Album: BIRD THAT SINGS
File Under: Indie Rock
Label: gigantic music
Info: There are serial killers, serial novels, serial poets—and now with the Seedy Gonzales self-titled debut EP, a serial record with a little bit of (time) killer, novelist and poet among its five tracks. The first of a two-part series, Seedy Gonzales embodies a laid-back “downtown” vibe, a literate-but-not-literal look at city life through the eyes of a sad, cheeky poet. It is, to be sure, exactly what you’d expect from “a cranky ex-pat writer from Prague [singer Johnny Riley] who sings like Lou Reed” and “a New York filmmaker [singer-guitarist Jason Orans] who sings like Lou Barlow.”read more from the source...

Hotel Alexis

Artist / Band: Hotel Alexis
Song (MP3): Queens and the Soft King
Album: The Shining Example Is Lying On The Floor
File Under:
Label: Broken Sparrow
Info: Seemingly out of nowhere, The Hotel Alexis have emerged like a thunderstorm across the plains of American song. Having delivered a heartbreaking first record full of haunting, mesmerizing songs, the band embarked on a series of riveting live performances across the country. Founder and singer/songwriter Sidney Alexis (aka Sidney Lindner) cut his teeth in bands like Torrez and Josh Ritter’s band before going on to form The Hotel Alexis in 2003.
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Women And Children

Artist / Band: Women And Children
Song (MP3): Wave And A Smile
Album: Box Set
File Under: Folk
Label: Attack Nine
Info: When asked how their individual geographies have influenced the music they create collectively, the members of the expatriate quartet Women & Children respond simply, “Why do you eat at a smorgasbord?” Currently residing in Paris but comprised of two Americans, a Canadian, and a French national, the band’s own analogy only partially fits. Because while Women & Children’s willowy, melodic songs are redolent of multiple and complexly interlocking sensibilities, they’re also too fragile and impressionistic to bear any relation to the excesses of the buffet table. Instead, their music is more akin to something like demi-glace – robust but concentrated, reduced to a point where it becomes difficult to discern the flavor of the individual ingredients.
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THE TWIN ATLAS

Artist / Band: THE TWIN ATLAS
Song (MP3): THREE LOVES
Album: SUN TOWNSHIP
File Under: Indie Pop / Folk
Label: Tappersize
Info: Music by The Twin Atlas is usually atmospheric folk & pop songs, written and home-recorded by Sean Byrne with Lucas Zaleski, who began playing together when they met at the University of Delaware in the early '90s and began releasing music as The Twin Atlas in 2000.
Zaleski is now an NYC resident and Byrne lives in Philadelphia where he has drummed with the bands Lenola, Mazarin, Matt Pond PA, Audible and BC Camplight.The foundation of their songs often come from Byrne's compositions or from Byrne & Zaleski's recorded collaborations and improvisations, upon which Byrne later goes back to and finishes; adding vocals, additional melodies & instrumentation, and assorted sounds. This work process has proved prolific to say the least.
Their newest release is 2005's Sun Township, a ten song set of haunting folk rock containing their most fully realized fidelity to date thanks to post-production by engineer Dave Grubb (Lenola, Like A Fox)
The Twin Atlas plays: acoustic & electric guitar, vocals, mandolin, keyboard, live & electronic drums, harmonica, banjo, effects, melodica, percussion, as well as whatever and whoever may be laying around at the time.
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ELEFANT

Artist / Band: ELEFANT
Song (MP3): THE CLOWN
Album: THE BLACK MAGIC SHOW
File Under: Alternative / Indie / Rock
Label: hollywood records
Info: Magic is anything but child's play. To be a successful conjurer, one must create the illusion of achieving the seemingly impossible, executed with uncanny ease. The audience's attention must be captivated by one theatrical display, while behind the scenes the real work takes place under wraps. And so it is with The Black Magic Show, the sophomore release from Elefant. Scratch the surface, and what the New York quartet has on offer is a riveting set of dynamic pop-rock. But as you pull back the curtain, and investigate in closer detail, it becomes apparent that the album operates on a variety of intricate levels. read more from the source...

Mates of State

Artist / Band: Mates of State
Song (MP3): Fraud In The '80s
Album: BRING IT BACK
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Barsuk Records
Info: Mates of State is the husband/wife duo of Kori Gardner (organ, vox) and Jason Hammel (drums, vox). They quit their day jobs (teacher and cancer researcher) in 2001, got married, and hit the road bringing their love to the rest of the world. The Mates have released three full lengths, my solo project, our constant concern, and team boo, as well as numerous singles and EPs, most recently last year's all day EP.
Mates of State has been described by critics as "unabashed joy", "honesty at its best", a "two piece with balls", and "a band that you must see live". Their first record was listed in the New York Times as one of the best records you probably didn't hear in 2000. Their live show has amassed a reputation worldwide as a uniquely joyous experience — capacity crowds smiling, dancing, and singing along with every word.
Mates of State's unique, often complex and always catchy pop gems defy genre boundaries. Though a duo, they never fail to generate an overabundance of melody and harmony via monster, bass-heavy organ, creative drumming, and alternately lushly layered and playfully dueling vocals.
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Little Man Tate

Artist / Band: Little Man Tate
Song (MP3): Court Report
Album:
File Under: a jerking synthesis of punk-funk de jour and gritty, socio-realist lyrics
Label: cargo records
Info: We live and love in Sheffield, allegedly a steel city. Maz and Jon have been best mates since the age of diddly squat, and did their first gig together at the age of 12 in a church hall in Crookes. It was crap. Ben is like the Ron Jeremy of pop, he likes to surf the internet. Dan was the last to join the band, he is cool, and looks after everyone.We dont like to dwell in the past, looking back at all the previous bands we have been in, they were pretty dire, but they have got us where we are now. We like to sing, dance and have fun.We had our yellow van nicked in York. That was shit. Everything went including our leads and plectrums, but we managed to save our badges, they were in Jons pocket. The police said the robbers were probably drug addicts, we agreed and had to come home on the train. All our songs are based on real life, things we have done and people we have met. Being in a band is the best.We live to be live.

The Jolly Rogers

Artist / Band: The Jolly Rogers
Song (MP3): "Jane is Fat"
Album: Oh No! Oh My!
File Under: Indie / Folk / Pop
Label: None
Info: From the minds of songwriters Greg Barkley and Daniel Hoxmeier comes a catchy post-pop band that loves themselves a tasty melody. Both Greg and Daniel were home schooled through high school and, for lack of anything better to do, learned to play the guitar and any other useful instruments they could get their collective hands on. Teaming up with Joel Calvin (drums), they formed the band (poor) yorik, an experimental rock band, which after 8 months they decided was a much too depressing style of music. The trio spent a month in deep meditation and self reflection (during which Joel found inner peace), and it was decided that they would from then on be called The Jolly Rogers. However, upon discovery of several pop-punk bands from Nebraska and Florida, and a group that frequents renaissance festivals dressed in pirate garb, the band decided it was time for another name change. They chose Oh No! Oh My!, named for a song by The Robot Ate Me. In early 2005, the band began work on a brand new collection of songs after a demo from the year prior was met with a strong response over the internet. They are currently finishing the final stages of their self recorded debut LP to be self released in January, 2006. read more from the source...

Playlist Muzorama 22 January

THE CAPES – CARLY (GODDESS OF DEATH)
THE SUNSHINE UNDERGROUND - THE WAY IT IS / COMMERCIAL BREAKDOWN
NEW YOUNG PONY CLUB - JERK ME /THE GET GO / JERK ME (7")
CATFISH HAVEN - PLEASE COME BACK /PLEASE COME BACK
PEOPLE IN PLANES - TALK TOO MUCH
SUPER 700 -I LOVE YOU
THE APPARITIONS - GOD MONKEY ROBOT /AS THIS IS FUTURISTIC
13 GHOSTS – ROBERT J
THE LOVE X NOWHERE - LIFE DIVINE / ODYSSEY EP
FINN – ELECTRIFY / THE AYES WILL HAVE IT
STONE JACK JONES - SMILE
THE OWLS- AIR
ESTER DRANG - VALENCIA'S DYING DREAM / ROCINATE
PHILIP FOGARTY- SLEEPLESS
SWEARING AT MOTORISTS - LOST YOUR WIG


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SWEARING AT MOTORISTS

Artist / Band: SWEARING AT MOTORISTS
Song (MP3): LOST YOUR WIG
Album: Last Night becomes this morning
File Under: Indie / Rock /
Label: Secretly Canadian
Info: It is difficult to find information about Swearing at Motorists without pulling up either a Guided by Voices discography or a road rage site. So, the band may have a few things in common with Guided by Voices, including both its members -- Don Thrasher drummed on some GBV stuff and Dave Doughman was GBV's soundman -- and its geography. But to lump them in with their Dayton brethren would be lazy and unfair. Swearing at Motorists sounds like GBV as much as any rock band does. So what? This is simple, unpretentious rock and roll with great pop hooks that's not afraid to make a big noise. There must be something about the middle of the country that gives band members a greater appreciation for melody, harmony, and simplicity. On More Songs From the Mellow Struggle, delicate, almost classical guitar work alternates with driving rock and roll rhythms, resulting in music that is both delicately introspective and raucously dynamic. "I'll Only Sleep" is a triumphant clarion call that harnesses the energy of great rock and roll to prove you don't need a high-tech studio and a giant budget to rock: you just gotta have a guitar and something to say. "Telford to North Main" starts out slow, betraying its big rock finish. Both songs are from the Secretly Canadian release, More Songs From the Mellow Struggle, which was released in 1999. In 2000, Secretly Canadian released Number Seven Uptown, featuring the graceful epic "Talking Pictures" (highlighted by Kelli Byrne's salty/sweet vocals) and the fuzzy pop anthem "Flying Pizza." Then in 2002 the group followed with This Flag Signals Goodbye after touring pretty relentlessly throughout the U.S. and Europe. It's pretty obvious that the constant touring destroyed at least one relationship for Dave, as that's the unwavering theme of the album. Dave, drummer Joseph Siwinski, and several guest musicians navigate a rootsy stripped-down heartbreak album. read more from the source...

PHILIP FOGARTY

Artist / Band: PHILIP FOGARTY
Song (MP3): SLEEPLESS
Album: Short Stories
File Under: Indie
Label: PHILIP FOGARTY
Info: Philip Fogarty hails from County Clare and has a varied musical background. Songwriter, vocalist and instrumentalist, he has worked with Cormac Dunne (The Stunning) and Waterboy Anthony Thistlethwaite among others. His band features Galway's finest with a line-up of drums, guitar, violin and keyboards delivering a powerful yet controlled sound which owes much to his eclectic Irish traditional/rock/industrial roots. Philip's current EP, "Endangered Breed", is a strong mix of rock, industrial, dance and trad influenced songs, blending the elements of fiddle and guitar with industrial synth, percussion, drums and sequences in a backdrop to a unique vocal and songwriting style.
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ESTER DRANG

Artist / Band: ESTER DRANG
Song (MP3): VALENCIA'S DYING DREAM
Album: ROCINATE
File Under: Indie
Label: Jade Tree
Info: Though considered by many to be a relatively new act, Ester Drang has spent the last eight years droning away in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, playing their elegant and arty songs to a dedicated but rather modest following. Convinced it would be a travesty to let these engaging symphonies go unnoticed, Jade Tree signed the band in early 2003, providing a home for their swinging-door guitar lines, hollowed out drum beats and synth-covered yearnings, while allowing the group to deliver their visions with Technicolor radiance. These days the Drang seem to tight-rope walk along the same musical heights as heady experimentalists like Spiritualized, the Sea and Cake or even their neighbors and occasional collaborators the Flaming Lips. But there is of course more here than easy compartmentalizing, and as these four friends from the Bible Belt continue their Quixote-like search for a niche of their own, they do so proving that musical transcendence can lead you anywhere. Even Oklahoma. the source...

THE OWLS

Artist / Band: THE OWLS
Song (MP3): AIR
Album: Our Hopes and Dreams
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Magic Marker Records
Info: Who are The Owls? “Two librarian chicks, the sexiest bass player you’ve ever seen, and a drummer who’s the spitting image of Gary Oldman.” In other words, a little something for everybody. Maria May’s songs welcome you into a unique world that closely and imaginatively parallels reality. Lyrically conversational, she playfully tussles with modern living, infusing soul into the workaday world with a grandeur that at once recognizes and transcends pop-culture. Her supple voice is the kind that elevates words into poetry, and with such intimacy it seems that while singing on stage she is also standing with you in the audience, demurely passing you candy over her shoulder as if she knew it was your favorite kind.Allison’s songs disarm with potent sincerity and vulnerability even as they claw you with a toughness that is immediately engaging. A wolf in sheep’s clothing, her music tumbles forth with a pretty, childlike quality that is characteristically undone by words that may warn of wrath or impending doom. She can inject a love song with an urgency and sense of loss that places not only the song, but love itself in an altogether different category. Intermingling beautifully within these sensibilities, Brian functions as the group’s backbone. Heavily involved in the production and arrangement of the Owls’ music, Brian has been exploring and refining his songwriting talents for more than a decade as the frontman of the seminal pop group, The Hang Ups. This consummate songwriter bores easily and is therefore always striving for music that suprises the ear as well as satisfying it. The songs he contributes are chosen for how they play off what he calls the “the Owls personality.”“That personality has a soberness that allows room for excitement, for the raising of spirits,” he says. “As if out of this grounded nature comes an opportunity to be genuinely uplifted.” When the Owls went looking for the right drummer for their project, they found their man in the mysterious John Jerry. Living in a passionately musical world, John could be found by day building boutique amplifiers, and by night, drumming for alt-country poppers the Ashtray Hearts. John discovered his keen knack for rhythm at an early age, and found in the Owls a fitting vessel for his restrained and elegant style. the source...

STONE JACK JONES

Artist / Band: STONE JACK JONES
Song (MP3): Smile
Album: Bluefolk
File Under: Psychedelic / Indie / Experimental
Label: FictitiousRecords.com
Info: Stone 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.the source...

FINN

Artist / Band: FINN
Song (MP3): ELECTRIFY
Album: The Ayes Will Have It
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: Sunday Service
Info: Patrick Zimmer is finn. He creates clouded worlds of sound which utter warmth and familiarity. His songs are driven by melancholy and his tender voice comes so close that we imagine feeling his breath on our ear. If finn.’s debut expose yourself to lower education (2003) had appeared like a rapture of the deep, his second work the ayes will have it seems utterly surfaced. Guitar and vocals have been swept to the surface of the sea of timbres. As listener, we’re floating just over the water, in a gulf stream of circulating sounds and melodies. finn.’s music makes you feel like you have arrived at a snug place after a long journey – and be it only a comfy current washing about us temporarily.finn. sends layers and loops into the echo chamber and leaves them there to their own devices. He makes the analog synthesizers vibrate darkly, eliciting the computers human side: strings, brass, softly pulsating beats, they all seem enchanted and wrapped int wool. then again finn. sets down notes almost a chastely as in chamber music, combining them to stirring patterns. A live drum kit provides occasional ground and fleeting foothold. even with all the changes of the sea, the ayes will have it is one thing always and everywhere: pop music!finn has created a recognisable cosmos of sound. here and there memories appear of the names of people who may have inspired him to the creation of this form – or at the very least, names that help approximate finn.’s inconceivable world: the reverberated rush of Sigur Ros, the touching organ of Barbara Morgenstern, the gift of combination of the notwist, the dry humour of arab strap, but also great english pop music from the 1960s till today.
finn. is once again determined to embrace the world from his Hamburg apartment. We’re sure he will have the ayes.
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THE LOVE X NOWHERE

Artist / Band: THE LOVE X NOWHERE
Song (MP3): LIFE DIVINE
Album: ODYSSEY EP
File Under: Indie
Label: Aquarius Records
Info: The Love X Nowhere makes San Francentric music that drops like sparks from the Muni lines on a rainy night. On Odyssey, their second EP, TLXN finds themselves amidst an evolution of shoegaze and dream rock. A big lush one-sound coming forth from guitars heavy with the sway of chorus and delays, analog synth sounds as though from previous incarnations, and solid grooves that never lead the listener astray. Two vocalists who wind their way through harmony and melody, reminiscint of a bridge between Pink Floyd and Slowdive. Quasi-psychedelia like a meandering walk from the Beatles to The Verve or Helio Sequence. The Love X Nowhere. Having nothing in common with terminological inexactitude or planned obsolescence.
TLXN is gabriel leis, brett chulada, michael chulada, yuki kasuya, and adam perry.

13 GHOSTS

Artist / Band: 13 GHOSTS
Song (MP3): ROBERT J
File Under: New Folk / Pop
Album: Cicada
Label: Skybucket Records
Info: At one level this is the sort of comfy-sounding, down-home strummy-guitar song that often does not catch my ear. And yet I know there is a variant of this sort of thing that I like, and "Robert J." from the Birmingham, Alabama-based 13ghosts is a good example of this variant, and I'm sitting and listening and trying my best first to ascertain and then to describe what, to me, separates a non-descript rootsy-country-Americana song from a standout track. The word that arises as I attempt to figure this out is "tension." A song can sound simple and laid-back and yet be suffused with depth and character--and tension is what makes all the difference. How, in this case, is that tension achieved? From the start we hear a strikingly plain acoustic guitar, upfront and exposed, no rhythm section, no steel guitar accents, and it strikes me that in this case the slower rather than the faster strum sounds more vulnerable, more real--tenser.
the source …

THE APPARITIONS

Artist / Band: THE APPARITIONS
Song (MP3): GOD MONKEY ROBOT
Album: AS THIS IS FUTURISTIC
File Under: Rock / Pop / Indie
Label: Machine Records
Info: Stylistically wedged somewhere between The Pixies and The Flaming Lips, the Lexington, KY-based quintet The Apparitions feature two distinct vocalists and a three-guitar sonic assault that is dynamic, angular and full of wiry tension. Wrapping dystopian riddles, whimsical stories and spastic social commentary in sugary melodies and swampy harmonic bliss, The Apparitions deliver a constant barrage of spacey, driving rock that is both immediate and lyrically engaging. The band has finished tracks with long-time producer Duane Lundy for their Machine Records debut, As This Is Futuristic, a cinematic affair bubbling with intense imagery and jangle-hooked melodies.[
the source...

SUPER 700

Artist / Band: SUPER 700
Song (MP3): I LOVE YOU
Album: When Hare And Fox Had Fun
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: cutting edge recordings
Info: gordon raphael (producer of the strokes)
... they are called Super 700, and I suggest you say this name over and over to yourself unless you want to be late for one of the most stunning and futuristic bands I have heard in years. Their un-earthly yet natural singer is called Ebadet, who – along with her twin sisters – fronts this totally new-sounding group. The three sisters blend their voices in a magical, almost unbelievable way, while the keyboards, drums, bass and guitar perform high-level tricks and create a rolling power similar to if the early Talking Heads were actually born and raised in an African tribe. It’s body rocking atmospheric music to hypnotize the ears, and the skill level of the musicianship, songwriting and singing is probably just a bit unfair to those of us mere mortals. I can’t say enough good things about Super 700 (go on, say it three more times) and I pray that I can record with them when I get back home to Berlin ...
the source...

PEOPLE IN PLANES

Artist / Band: PEOPLE IN PLANES
Song (MP3): TALK TOO MUCH
File Under: Indie Rock
Label: Wind-up Records
Info:
The great chasm for any musician is the distance between what they hear in their heads and what reaches listeners' ears. Unless you're a band committed to either effete esoterica or stage-humping feral lunacy, your success largely depends on how well you reconcile the purity of your musical ideas with an audience's need for hooks and melody. This is what makes People In Planes so welcome: their music is equally ambitious and pleasing. The band's debut: As Far As The Eye Can See is a richly atmospheric, sometimes challenging album that doesn't stint on inviting melody and anthemic choruses. In other words, this five-piece band from Cardiff, Wales traverses the long distance between visionary flights of imagination and simple rock pleasures as easily as, well, people in planes.
Yes, the band name -- even that was created with a sense of equilibrium, guitarist Peter Roberts explains that "it's quite a wacky image, the idea of the whole globe being such a small place and people floating around the world in these little tin cans," but also hastens to add "it's essentially a cool-sounding name, really." He continues, "I like the image that people in planes aren't exactly where they came from, and aren't quite where they're heading to yet. It's a nice representation of how people are always unwittingly on a conveyor belt, taking them through time to their destiny."
Things weren't always so well balanced. People In Planes started out with a penchant for the abstract, and armed with more ambition than skill. "We were trying to make esoteric music when we were really too young to really pull it off," Peter says, "Our ideas were a little beyond our abilities."
Peter explains the transformation evinced by tracks like "Falling By the Wayside," with its haunting chorus and plaintive, acoustic beginning, or the stirring "For Miles Around," simply: "We happen to write better songs now than we did before." But to really understand how People In Planes arrived at As Far As The Eye Can See, you have to go back to when he and singer Gareth Jones were young pals on a family vacation together, and how the record that made them want to be in a band eventually made them a better one.
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CATFISH HAVEN

Artist / Band: CATFISH HAVEN
Song (MP3): PLEASE COME BACK
Album: PLEASE COME BACK
File Under: Indie
Label: Secretly Canadian
Info: Hailing from Chicago, IL, Catfish Haven is George Hunter (vocals/guitar), Miguel Castillo (bass), and Ryan Farnham (drums). The band's name is taken from the Missouri trailer park that George Hunter grew up in. The band describe their music as, "Soulful howling over an acoustic guitar turned way up. Hopeful yearning for better days echoed through amps and a drum kit." Secretly Canadian will release "Please Come Back" CDEP early 2006, tracklist provided below, and a proper debut full-length late-spring of 2006. Catfish Haven will soon appear on Bloodshot's 10th Anniversary compilation CD this fall, joining the likes of My Morning Jacket, Richard Buckner and Crooked Fingers. Catfish Haven MP3s are listed below, provided are two demo versions of songs that will appear on the EP. read more from the source...

NEW YOUNG PONY CLUB

Artist / Band: NEW YOUNG PONY CLUB
Song (MP3): JERK ME
Album: THE GET GO / JERK ME (7")
File Under: Wave / Electronica / Indie
Label: Tirk
Info: We're shy Ponies and we don't like to give much away as you'll see from our website but the story so far is Tahita and Andy formed NYPC in 2003, we released two singles on Tirk records which lots of people seem to love. We found Igor, Lou and Sarah to play live with us and have rocked a few venues in Europe so far. read more from the source...

THE SUNSHINE UNDERGROUND

Artist / Band: THE SUNSHINE UNDERGROUND
Song (MP3): THE WAY IT IS
Album: COMMERCIAL BREAKDOWN
File Under: Indie Pop
Label: City Rockers
Info: The Sunshine Underground are four likely lads from Leeds. They hail from sunny Shrewsbury originally but are all now based in the northern city famed as the birthplace of Peter Sutcliffe. Their names are Craig Wellington, Stuart Jones, Daley Smith and Matthew Gwilt.They are 22,22,24 and 22 in that order. Their records come out on CITY ROCKERS. They have a record out called PUT YOU IN YOUR PLACE. It is available as an extended mix which could be mixed by DJs with skills. It is not a remix, however, and features no additional production. It is entirely possible that they are going to be really big. Like all straight up Northern lads they like drinking and girls and occasionally some drugs, particularly if someone else is holding.This may change in the future as Craig has been loathed to return the pink and blue Marc Jacobs polo shirt he was loaned for the video.He’ll be demanding champagne on their rider next.The band still own almost no equipment and have begged, stolen and borrowed all their gear up to now. read more from the source...

THE CAPES

Artist / Band: THE CAPES
Song (MP3): CARLY (GODDESS OF DEATH)
Album: Hello
File Under: Britpop
Label: hard soul records
Info: Things are changing very quickly these days. You could call it a revolution, you can call it an invasion – call it what you will, The Capes -- alongside like-minded Brits Bloc Party, Maximo Park, British Sea Power, et al. -- are rapidly catching the public’s ear. We call it a rescue. With all the stealth and superhero qualities associated with the band’s namesake, the South London quintet burst upon the scene at a time when the UK music industry had turned a deaf ear to the typically bohemian, sleazy art-rock coterie in favor of sounds coming from northern regions like Manchester and Glasgow. Soon thereafter, however, The Capes and fellow art school bands like Bloc Party, Clor and Art Brut were causing quite a stir:
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PLAYLIST MUZORAMA 8 JANUARY 2006

THE ROBOCOP KRAUS - ALL THE GOOD MAN
THE KILLERS - MR BRIGHTSIDE / HOT FUSS
HOT HOT HEAT - GOODNIGHT GOODNIGHT / ELEVATOR
MAXIMO PARK - THE NIGHT I LOST MY HEAD
THE SOUNDTRACK OF OUR LIVES - A ROOM WITHOUT A VIEW/A ROOM WITHOUT A VIEW
MERCURY REV - VERMILLION / THE SECRET MIGRATION
LOGH - FELL INTO THE WELL / A SUNSET PANORAMA
MOONBABIES - WAR ON SOUND / WAR ON SOUND
OKKERVIL RIVER - FOR REAL / BLACK SHEEP BOY
VEDA - THE FALLING KIND /THE WEIGHT OF AN EMPTY ROOM
THE CONSTANTINES - LOVE IN FEAR / TOURNAMENT OF HEARTS
LAURA CANTRELL - 14TH STREET/ HUMMING BY THE FLOWERED VINE
NADA SURF- DO IT AGAIN /THE WEIGHT IS A GIFT
SUFJAN STEVENS - CASIMIR PULASKI DAY / SUFJAN STEVENS: ILLINOIS
MAXIMILIAN HECKER - HELP ME / LADY SLEEP

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

PLAYLIST MUZORAMA 1 JANUARY 2006

HOT HOT HEAT - MIDDLE OF NOWHERE / ELEVATOR
HARD-FI - CASH MACHINE
EZRA REICH -I NEED A MOMENT ALONE / MILKSHAKE ARCADE
CRYSTAL SKULLS - NO ROOM FOR CHANGE / BLOCKED NUMBERS
BIFFY CLYRO - MY RECOVERY INJECTION
AZURE RAY - NOVEMBER
BRITISH SEA POWER - PLEASE STAND UP/OPEN SEASON
CLAP YOUR HANDS SAY YEAH - IN THIS HOME ON ICE / CLAP YOUR HANDS SAY YEAH
LOGH – DESTINY MANIFESTO
CLEARLAKE - I WANT TO LIVE IN A DREAM (REMIX) / WONDER IF THE SNOW WILL SETTLE EP
COCTEAU TWINS - HEAVEN OR LAS VEGAS (EDIT) / HEAVEN OR LAS VEGAS
ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN - STORMY WEATHER
GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS - MOVING PICTURES SILENT FILMS / GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS
ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS - YOU ARE MY SISTER
22- PISTEPIRKKO - HEY MAN (BEATBOX MIX) / ELEVEN- DEMOS

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