Some things I'm looking forward to in the coming months:
A new Pains album! and a Sexy Kids Album! By February Slumberland will have already put out two of the best albums of next year. Not too shabby, eh?
"Aboa Sleeping" by Burning Hearts! It's Cats on Fire and Le Futur Pompiste! Go Finland! Another one of the best records coming out next year! I Guarantee it! I've Lost My Color Vision .mp3 Happy New Year! .mp3 (it's only cliche if you let it be)
Geez, it's been a really long time since I've updated... I don't like being restricted to just a top ten list, so instead I have a list of things that were really good this year. It's a medley of songs, 7"s, albums, concerts, and whatever else I deem really good.
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart- Everything With You 7"
The Pains (of Being Pure at Heart) just killed it this year. Everyone and their mother thinks that "Everything with You" was the single of the year and I wholeheartedly agree. That, and they put on an awesome live show, and that Kip is not, in fact, a dick. And they have an album coming out next year on Slumberland Everything with you .mp3
NYC Popfest!
More pop than you can shake a stick at. The Cannanes flew in. Cats on Fire made it. Tullycraft finally came to the east coast. The Orchids?! And there's still another 20 bands that were all absolutely fantastic.
Sexy Kids- Sisters are Forever 7"
Sexy Kids sound kind of like a toned down Royal We (because they're members of The Royal We), and are every bit as catchy. This little gem got a lot of buzz when it was released and I would say it is indeed that sweet. And what's that? They have an album coming out next year on Slumberland as well? Hoo ha.
Talk about a comeback! After an all too long hiatus Slumberland Records came back with a vengeance. Between the ace podcasts and slew of absolutely stellar 7"s and full lengths, I would say the label of the year award would have to go to Mike.
One Happy Island- Secret Party That the Other Party Doesn't Know About
Four super-catchy sing-along pop songs from the twee-est kids in all of Boston. The only problem with this release? All the songs are so catchy, you won't know which to have stuck in your head. Temporary Tattoo is the obvious choice, with all its killer little melody and talk of long lasting unicorn and frog temporary tattoos. Temporary Tattoo .mp3
The Tartans- Cats of Camerford/ My Baby Doesn't Care for You
LA isn't exactly at the top of the list for indie-pop epicenters (or really on the list for that matter), but the Tartans didn't let that stop them, and showed the world LA is okay by putting out two superb singles. I couldn't pick which I liked more, so I decided to split the difference and put up both the a-sides. My Baby Doesn't Care for You .mp3
Asobi Seksu- Me and Mary
Awesome song. Awesome 7". Awesome live. It's catchy and kind of feels dance-y and that chorus has been stuck in my head since it came out, so I'd say it's pretty darn awesome. Me and Mary .mp3
The Lodger- Life is Sweet
Epic summer jam! It's still good to listen to in end of December, so I guess it's just an epic jam. That baseline just gets me. Another winner from Slumberland.
The Lucksmiths- First Frost
I don't think this even warrants an explanation. It's new material from The Lucksmiths, so of course it's amazing. Any new material from the boys is good news, really good new material is even better. Up With The Sun .mp3
There's a bunch of other things that were super awesome, but these were the first to come to mind.
Skipping Stones Thanksgiving Sale! Go! Sadly they're out of the special Popfest comps, but hey, you can still get a wonderful deal on some other CDs or a $3 t-shirt!
And I'm not sure why I don't have Pylrolyse Bred in my link section, or why I haven't even mentioned the site before. Basically, whoever runs it, has converted their old mostly pop-ish records to mp3. There's some real gems in there, and a lot of vinyl only releases, so get crackin!
Oh! And Indie mp3 has a bunch of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart mpfrees up...
Life's probably been a bit rough for Pet and Jof. They went from having one of my favourite albums to having no record label at all. They have to hear "Be Gentle with Me" used in reality shows. Thankfully, things are starting to look up for the boys. Come March their second album finally sees the light of day! And they gave us a lovely little early Christmas (or holiday I suppose) gift in the form of "The First Snowflake." It's a lot more stripped down than you would expect, and features the rattling snare drums, glockenspiels, sleigh bells, and whatever that Christmas sounding string instrument is (a lyre?). So I guess it isn't that stripped down, maybe organic is the word, well, it's a wonderful winter tune one-the-less. For now you can stream their brand spankin new tune from Stereogum! The First Snowflake Stream
The Lucksmiths don't really need an introduction or explanation. They're the Lucksmiths, and the new stuff is every bit as awesome as you remember them being, so get over to indiepages, or Matinée for your very own copy of First Frost! Up With The Sun .mp3
Then there's the debut of Glasgow's own Bubblegum Lemonade! Doubleplusgood they call it. I call it wonderful. I stumbled across Bubblegum Lemonade a while ago on myspace and thoroughly enjoyed the couple tracks on there, so having a whole album is spectacular news. On their (his) myspace, Bubblegum Lemonade say they (he) have (has) a certain fondness for the Byrds and the good ol' JAMC, and I can't really think of a better way to describe their (his) sound, so I'll leave it at that.
Glockenspiels, melodicas, violins, stylophones, boy/girl harmonies, handclaps. That pretty much sums up the new Little My EP, which, as it happens, just came out today! It's loads of fun (if the video for "Sellotape My Hands" is any indicator) and is available on the usual 3" CDR or as a lovely 7" on blue vinyl. Whichever format you fancy, you can order it from WeePOP! here. If you live in the UK, you can catch them live, because they're on tour!
Two new singles from Slumberland! First up is Sexy Kids' (ex-Royal We) debut single "Sisters are Forever" b/w "Drown Me." "Sisters are Forever" chugs right along, but, instead of taking the interstate, it races down the back-roads to that chorus, and when they get there, it sticks with you like white on rice. Where "Sisters Are Forever" has that driving punk feeling, "Drown Me" is its perfectly sparse counterpart. Held together by a simple guitar line, 8th note high-hats, hand claps, and a la-la chorus "Drown Me" is pop, plain and simple.
Bricolage sound like Orange Juice on a sugar high. So, maybe they sound something like Sunny-D. "Turn U Over" comes off their debut album (which is seeing its stateside release in January), and "Night Falls With Vertigo" is meeting vinyl for the first time. With chunky guitars, lots of harmonizing vocals and oodles of "whooo-aaahh," "shoooo-waah-aah-aah," and all sorts of other "oooo-aaahh"s Bricolage already have one of the best albums of next year.
First up is Play People's "Goes Out" b/w "Just Don't." Infectious? Check. Dance-y? Check. Infectiously dance-y? I think so. Awesome keys, awesome guitar, awesome drums, and fucking handclaps and "la-la-"s, make for some pretty awesome pop music.
Hari & Aino have the formula down: jangly guitar+dance-y bassline+Andrea's voice=wonderful pop. It served them well on their last Cloudberry release, why change it? "A Considerate Kind of Home" isn't anything groundbreaking, but it delivers the goods, and will be stuck in your head for hours (though it will probably be longer).
That's why there haven't been any posts. How was everyone's Halloween? Anyways, until I have the time to do a proper post, enjoy what might be the best flash cartoon ever made. Ever.
The last time I talked to Mike from Slumberland, he said that it was crunch time over there, and boy he wasn't kidding! Next week (October 28th to be precise) will see the release of full length albums from CaUSE Co-MOTIONS and Crystal Stilts!
Crystal Stilts sound like they were fans of Joy Division and The Jesus and Mary Chain as well as some more southerly groups and decided to mix these influences together to make some sort of awesome hybrid pop. Their new album Alight of Night is 11 tracks of popapunkajanglebilly genius with each track building where the last left off: aka a superbly made album. Crystal Stilts .mp3
CaUSE Co-MOTION must have really liked 90's DIY crash pop, and they wouldn't be out of place throwing candy to the crowd with Calvin. It's Time is 14 jams in under 20 minutes to scratch that Pastels/Comet Gain/anything crashy, jangly, and awesome itch. This Time Next Year .mp3
And speaking of Slumberland I should hopfully have a little treat from Mike sometime soon, so keep your eyes open, because it'll be epic.
I received my copy of Half Dreaming from Quince Records last night, and it's even better than I was expecting (and I was expecting it to be fantastic). It sounds like those fall days where even though it's a sunny day, it's still not blindingly bright outside and you have a coat to protect you from the cold, and the wind is blowing leaves everywhere and it just feels so refreshing and comfortable. You know? Enveloping without overwhelming would be another way to describe it. And the build-up as the album progresses is just perfect for an hour long fall travel soundtrack.
I'll keep this short and sweet. Asobi Skesu have a new single streaming over at Pitchfork. I'm not really a fan of Pitchfork, but I (and everyone else) will just have to make do. The track is entitled "Me & Mary" and it's amazing. One of the reasons I like Asobi Seksu is that you can hear Yuki Chikudate's absolutely lovely voice really well over all the fuzz. This track is no exception. It's got its shimmery moments. It's got its noisy moments. And you could totally dance the shit out of it. So go and stream it for yourself over at Pitchfork. UPDATE:
The Manhattan Love Suicides have not been sitting idle. March saw the release of the Clusterfuck EP, and this Wednesday (that's October 8th) we'll be treated to the Veronica 7"on good ol' Squirrel Records. Sounding as loud and fuzzy as ever, the recently unveiled "Veronica" reminds lots of people of Darkness era Jesus and Mary Chain, while "The 10th Victim" (which you can go stream from the MLS myspace) is slower, more droning, and definitely darker than what we've heard in the past. That's not to say it's not the noise-pop The Manhattan Love Suicides are so gifted at making; it's just slower noise pop. And about it being darker, well The MLS were never exactly cheery to begin with. The Veronica single is available for pre-order over at Squirrel Records' website.
And here's the creepy-as-fuck video for "Clusterfuck" to get you in the mood.
And if you haven't downloaded it already, Matt from Skatterbrain made an amazing mix a couple days ago. I highly recommend it, especially if you're looking to dance your pants off.
So Hind Hind Legs was a really awesome album. Loads of fun. And their live show is even better. I know I have any single song off Hind Hind Legs stuck in my head for weeks after listening to it. If you don't start dancing and jumping and singing and having all sorts of fun listening to them you should probably reevaluate your life. And throw out that electric ice-cream scooper. From what I've heard of it, their new album Scherezadian it's a little more rockin' than Hind Hind Legs and every bit as fun. And what's more they're going to be in New York this month for CMJ.
CMJ MARATHON @ Ace of Clubs. 8:00 New York, New York
It's no secret that I love Tilly and The Wall a whole lot. I always have. "We say 'oh!'" "You say 'fuck'!" "Oh!" "Fuck!" Good times...Anyways! Team Love posted the Tillies newest music video a couple weeks ago and I've been neglecting it. Off their most recent album, "0," here's Alligator Skin! Like all of their songs it's a good fuckin' time! TILLY & THE WALL - ALLIGATOR SKIN from Team Love on Vimeo.
And in case you don't have "0" (which you should most definitely purchase as soon as possible) here's the .mp3 for Alligator Skin.
You can watch a whole bunch of other Tilly videos over at Team Love's website.
So, just so everyone knows, group jumping photos=awesome! And the Ballads of The Cliché are pretty awesome. They're from Jakarta, Indonesia (which, from the looks of it, has one heck of a scene) and play some pretty dang good pop music. Think Belle and Sebastian if Stuart Murdoch was in a good mood and feeling cute. Then again, sometimes you could just think Belle and Sebastian. And don't forget to throw in some folk or 70's pop. Ballads of The Cliché have a perfect mix of acoustic pop, jangly guitar and twee (not to mention a medley of other influences). And is that some doo-woop they're dropping on me?! Dang! They're good! If it were June and I was driving down to the ice cream shoppe to meet up with a pretty young thing and then when I got there saw her sharing a milkshake with the ice cream boy and then drove off to go get a cupcake instead, Ballads of The Cliché would have the soundtrack for the entire day covered. They have a bunch of music streaming (is it downloadable? I still can't figure it out!) over at their myspace. From there you can also watch a bunch of music videos and order some CDs and email them and do a bunch of other things.
Anyways, because it's a good song (and video) and I can't post an .mp3, and I like the concept, I present to you the video for "Jennifer Love Hewitt."
Shoegaze is a wonderful friend late at night (or early in the morning). I'd been meaning to post about Hazel for a while now, but between computer crashes and other fun things I never got the chance. They're a five piece from Indonesia, and have that dreamy shoegazey sound dialed. It's fantastic; it just comes swelling over you, and in the dark at 2:00 AM it's a wonderful thing. Unfortunately, they only have one song on their myspace (which used to be downloadable, but since myspace changed their player format I can't find out how to get it...yes, I know "it's right there!" but, alas, I am not versed in the world of myspace), and may not even be together anymore. Their myspace is still active, which is a good sign, but there hasn't been any updates in over a year, which is a pity... Anyways, go give them a listen, and maybe if you send them a nice message they'll send you some music!
The past couple days have been very kind to my mailbox. First I got my Series Two Records compilation set of volumes 10-14, and then today I got my copy of the new Pains of Being Pure at Heart single "Everything With You." All of it is just sooo goood.
The Series Two compilation consists of 390 minutes of music from all over the world. There's only 100 hand numbered copies of the special 5 disc set, so get to Series Two as quick as you can! I was number 33, so there's probably only a couple left by now! It's kind of hard to review that much all at once, so I'll just leave it at this is a really nice world sampler of mostly pop-ish music and a good way to hear lots of bands you've never heard of.
As for the Pains single, I've talked about it's awesomeness already, so all I have to say now about it is how pretty it is. Two superb track on gorgeous blue vinyl. And the cover art is also on the middle part of the physical 7"! This thing's the cat's best sunday clothes.
(and yes, that terrible picture is everything on my floor)
So, I was away for a couple days and came back to some wonderful news from Japan's Quince records. The news itself is neither here nor there in regards to this, but what is here is what came of the little game of top friend jumping I played after checking out Quince's myspace: the lovely Bare Threads. If I were to have a soiree where everyone hade to drink whiskey and wear fancy clothes and dance and the only light came from oil lamps, I think this might be what it would sound like. Or at least be on the soundtrack. "Paint A Smile" is definitely doing it for me right now, but the freshly posted "Tell You Tales" isn't too shabby either. You should go check out their myspace to stream a couple tracks. Sadly, none of them are downloadable, hence the lack of mpfrees in this post.
Have their new album "Home Free" coming out November 11th, and I'm excited. They're definitely one of my favourite bands out there. For those of you unacquainted and uninitiated, they sound like "60's girl groups dry humping 90's pop punk" or kind of like the Go-Gos. Those are other people's opinions. I think they sound like the perfect soundtrack for a summer road trip to the beach. A.k.a awesome-ly indiepop! You can check out "What Would Tim Armstrong Do?"(from the new album) and some other tracks (from older releases) over at their myspace. If you like it, you can get their 7"s and eventually Home Free from Hugpatch Records, or their debut album "Singer" from Skipping Stones Records. If you live in New York, you should go see them sometime. They play a lot. In fact, they're playing at Glasslands on October 30th.
Hot dang! I've been waiting for this one for ages! Luckily, I know some people who are fantastic people, so I say pish-posh to October 14th! But that's when Slumberland Records puts this fantastical single out into the world. With Everything With You taking care of the a-side and The Pains of Being Pure At Heart covering the b-side, this is definitely one of the best 7"s released all year. With all that fuzzy-pop making its way to your brain, if hearing this doesn't make something bubble up inside you and turn into cupcakes covered with glittery frosting, you should go get yourself checked out. So, to hold you over until the 14th you can give it a listen right here. Everything With You .mp3 The Pains of being Pure at Heart .mp3
And because I can, and it's that good, here's the POBPAH's side of their split with the Parallelograms... Kurt Cobain's Cardigan .mp3
So, now that your Monday musical listenings are pretty much taken care you should get up and go out, because it's a beautiful day. And take your ipod or whatever with you.
He reminds me a whole lot of Jens Lekman (being a huge fan of Jens' stuff I'd say that's a very good thing), and it's not just his being Swedish. Anyways, "If I Ever Get Married" is a really good song, and the music video is thoroughly entertaining (and thanks to the censors, you can watch it at work). Erik has those wonderful songwriting skills that make Jens so enjoyable, and the perfect voice to match. If it were summer right now, I'm sure this would be one of my jams. Since it's more like fall, I guess it'll have to be an autumn jam.
After a massive computer failure yesterday, I've been trying to recover a few songs that I don't have the album to. In that search I came across The 6ths, who are a side project of a Mr. Stephin Merritt. Yeah, I've never heard of him either...but, unlike Stephin's other side projects (The Gothic Arches and Future Bible Heroes), he does not touch a single instrument or sing a single word. That's right, Stephin might have written the words and music, but everything is performed entirely by other people. Where (I've read) the first 6ths album was more indie-pop, Hyacinths And Thistles heads more down the "chanson" path. Think Serge Gainsbourg with his Galoises and a Moog (or guitar, or something else) singing for you in some dusty café in late October. Anyways, it's a nice sound for fall. The 6ths on myspace.
I'm not sure how I forgot to post this, but Minisnap have their spiffy new album out on Magic Marker Records. With a title like "Bounce Around" you know it's going to be some good stuff. But oh my! Is it good stuff! If you're not hopping and bopping within the first couple seconds, you're dead inside. This is the sound of bliss. I'm actually suprised there's enough room in my head to have so man things stuck in it. Kaye's vocals are beautiful and she can write with the best of them. And then there's those guitars! Hot dang! Those guitars! And everything else! Go pick it up from Magic Marker right now! Why is New Zealand so awesome?
If there's even a trace of doubt about the awesomeness, listen to this!
Yeah, yeah, old news, right? Well, they're awesome, and I can write about whatever I want, and I've been listening to them for most of the morning, and they don't get nearly enough love. But if anyone is reading this that doesn't know The Haircuts, here's a quick overview. They were formed back in 2003 out of a love of indiepop. Through some cassettes and the wonders of the post office, Canada (Teresa) and the good ol' US (Ryan) got together to make some absolutely stellar boy/girl indiepop. It's lo-fi and pop, and will get stuck in your head for the rest of the week.
You can check out The Haircuts website or myspace for some more mpfrees. If you like it, you can order their cassette here. Their old label, Yellow Mica Recordings, seems to have gone under, but you might be able to pick up a copy of their album "Sorrow is the Way to Love" if you message The Haircuts directly. The Haircuts myspace
Straight out of Jakarta, Indonesia, Sweaters is a 4(?) piece that's absolutely nailing that Field Mice/Sarah Records sound. There's a sort of Sarah revival going on over there, so no real surprise. Heralded as the brightest hope of guitar-pop bands in Indonesia, you know they're good. They put out their most recent album, Written Like Postcards, this past January on Lovely Records in Indonesia.
You can check out Sweaters' myspace for some more Indo-pop goodness. When you're done there, head over to Lovely Records. They've got a couple more Sweaters tracks, and some other goodies.
That's why they put out a stellar new single. Free for download! Sharing is caring, you know, and friends care. They want to get us excited for their new album, It's Nothing Personal, It's National Security, which comes out on Stereo Test Kit Records October 6th. I'm pretty amped on the single. The Baltic Sea is an ode to the wonders of Sweden and its inhabitant's shining demeanor. Anyways, if the whole album is as epic as the single, well, it'll be a really good album.
I just found out about the Half Dreaming "Asian shoegaze compilation" that came out on Quince Records back in August. It has contributors from China, Japan, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, and Hong Kong. All the tracks are noise-a-licious, but I'd say my favourite is the track by Perfect Angel. I don't have any of the .mp3s yet, but I do have a tracklist (and the country where each band is from).
1. The Majestic High See Her Fall (Korea)
2. burrrn Song Without Words (Japan)
3. Perfect Angel Cataclysmic (Indonesia)
4. Hideka Echoes (Japan)
5. Elemental Gaze Unperfect Sky (Indonesia)
6. Monocism Seisou (Japan)
7. Daixiaole Satellite Boy (China)
8. Oeil Strawberry Cream (Japan)
9. Witherspoon Tingles And Everything (Malaysia)
10. The Evening Primrose Stargazer (Hong Kong)
11. Caucus Sing (half dreaming version) (Japan)
12. Candyaudioline Felt So Fine (Philippines)
13. Sharesprings Fix Your Eyes On (Indonesia)
14. Nanocycle Great Little Ones (Japan)
15. Everybody Loves Irene Love Is So Strange (Indonesia)
16. cryv April And You, March And I (Japan)
You can go to the Quince Records Myspace and link off of that to hear all the different bands.
If you live in America, you can pick it up here, which I'd recommend.
I also have some more stuff from that side of the world that I'll be posting about soon.
So I was just over at WeePOP!'s myspace checking up on things, and to my delight they had just posted a song from a brand new EP by Megamoog. I hadn't heard Megamoog before, but they're two girls from San Francisco who make some lovely pop using just an 80's casiotone, a drumkit, and some girl vocals. The lyrics are simple and heartfelt, without being overly sentimental. And they're sung in a such a nice, hushed voice. It's kind of like a twee Au Revior Simone.
EDIT: Megan from Megamoog was nice enough to send me the Icicle .mp3
You can also listen to some more Megamoog at their myspace.
are from Umeå, Sweden, and have only two members: Tátà and her camera-shy friend. They play super catchy, super-minimal pop. I'm having trouble figuring out who they remind me of, but I assure you it's something wonderful. Something like The Winks, meets Uni and her Ukulele, meets Pipas. Maybe. But Swedish. Anyways, it's super pretty. I mean super pretty. I mean I've had the few songs on their myspace on repeat for a while now and don't plan on stopping. They have some things coming out sometime this fall, which I will surely be ordering.
Times New Viking have a new 5 track 7" coming out on Matador Records in October. You can pre-order it (with a poster if you'd like) directly from Matador for $3 (or $7). I heard them described somewhere as "shitgaze" a while ago. If you haven't heard them before, it's pretty apt. They're loud and kind of shoegaze-y, but not. They're shitgaze-y.
The also have a couple dates in New York before heading off to the UK. Check their myspace for dates and stuff.
It's noisy, and loud, and NEW from the Pains of Being Pure at Heart. And it's got more reverb than...well, I can't even think of anything to compare it to. You can hear it on their myspace right now!
And in other wonderful POBPAH news, they're in Sweden right now, but are coming back to New York in early October with a slew of shows, before heading off to the UK. If you're in New York, mark your calendars!
Oct 9th Public Assembly w/ Zara, Soren Wall Oct 19th Cake Shop w/ Women + more Oct 22th Knitting Factory Tap Bar w/ Ringo Deathstar, A Sunny Day in Glasgow Oct 24th Cake Shop NYNOISE showcase
Burnt Out Landscapes by The Manhattan Love Suicides is out right now! 27 tracks of crashing, swirling, fuzzy, pop. Some of the songs are from earlier singles, some from their first LP, some are live recordings, and some are brand new! Wow. You can order it from Magic Marker, here, for a measly $10. UPDATE: Squirrel Records has sold out of their version of Burnt Out Landscapes.
Is on vinyl! With The Smittens! You should get one! Gosh, I love Tullycraft. And The Smittens. They're the best thing to come out of Vermont since Chubby Hubby. You can get it from Tullycraft. Or the Happy Happy Birthday to Me singles club.
And while I'm talking about wonderful things. I thought I'd share my most favourite. The "Hey, Hey, Girl" single by Rocketship. I don't know how long I've spent looking for a physical copy, but it's been a very long time. If you don't know Rocketship, this might be the most important moment of your life. If you do, well, you should listen to them some more anyways. Hey, Hey, Girl mp3 (Matt at Skatterbrain has both of the Rocketship singles, and a Softies cover of Hey, Hey, Girl for download if you look into his archives.)
And welcome! Here, you're going to find a some pop music that I think is pretty good, and since I think it's good, I think it should be shared. Some of the stuff will be old, and some will be so brand new it will still be wrapped in plastic. I hope you find something new and wonderful, or at least some added appreciation for indiepop, because that's why this little blog exists.
The stuff I post on here is for primarily for sampling purposes. If you like something you hear, you should go buy the album. And while you're at it, you should buy a t-shirt so the world can see that you support good things.
If you're a band and want something taken down, just say so. I'd say you should sleep on it first. Or at least have some cookies. If you're certain you still want something removed, I can make that happen.
If you're a band and you think that you fit in with what I talk about, then let me know right now! I'll put up a nice little blurb, and a picture, and some files (if they're available). It'll be a good time.
Some places to go
Sat 1/15 8:00 PM * The Depreciation Guild, The Click Clack Boom, The Vanguard The Rock Shop21+
Sat 1/15 8:00 PM * Tyvek, The Beets, Eternal Summers, Sweet Bulbs Glasslands21+
