There's Something About Mary

Great movie, or greater cat? The Hit Parade seem to think the cat takes it, so we're spared a tribute to the Ben Stiller film. What we do get from "There's Something About Mary" is a three minute pop corker, just the way you remember the Hit Parade: jangly and filled with harmonies about kitty love. What else would you expect from London's number one pop group?

The b-side gave me a chuckle, especially with the blurb in the press release: it's "a tribute to the 1989 Sarah Records indie band Brighter who were famous for being melancholy and playing all their songs in the key of D." Remember that awesome song about the Japanese girl with a broken heart? How about the English boy version? No? Oh that's right, it's not out yet because it's "The Boy Who Loves Brighter" (and maybe one or two tracks from the back-catalogue, but who's keeping count of melancholy Hit Parade love songs?).

JSH Records is putting out the There's Something About Mary single on 7" vinyl today, and for digital download on May 2nd.

Hey, this is pretty neat!
There's Something About Mary by the-hit-parade

The cat's out of the bag

Colin and Dana's labor of love is almost ready to see the light of day! Well, I guess it already is ready, it's just picking out it's favourite outfit. Let's Whisper have been a sort of Smittens side project for years, but The Shortest Days is their very first album. The firsts don't stop there, as it's also WeePOP's first full length! It's due out April 9th, so mark your calendars because you don't want to miss out on the hand-screened goodies. 

Like with the Keep A Secret EP, Colin and Dana's songwriting on The Shortest Days comes from opposite sides of the same spectrum to make an album that delivers far more than you'd expect from a band named "Let's Whisper," while still remaining coherent, and identifiably Whispered. 

Tullycraftian in its variety, you're as likely to hear something reminiscent of Pipas or Pocketbooks as you are The Smittens.  I've got no trouble saying this is one of the best albums of the year, and I'd be surprised if my mind's changed 8 months from now.  Order your copy here. I promise it'll literally make Spring seem better.

Give the title track a listen and tell me you don't want more.
The Shortest Days .mp3

In Soviet Russia, Overlord serves you?

Remember when Twin Cinema come out? That album fucking rocked. Ever wonder what it would sound like if it popped? No? Well, Brooklyn's Overlord have already come up with an answer, so don't worry your pretty little head. In Soviet Russia, My Heart Breaks You is due out April 1st on Storm Tower Records, and as I alluded, there's a bit of a New Pornographers thing going. That, and the Smiths, but they're not complaining about the comparison, so neither will I. I will give them a little more credit though: by mixing influences from the bast 50 years Overlord have developed a sound more complex than just a "poppy New Pornographers." Wow, that was almost silly-professional-reviewer sounding, but basically it's the first album of the year that's "Summer Jam" worthy.

In the meantime, need something to throw on your "Springtime Drive Mix?"

Oh, My Mechanical Heart .mp3
Keep it from the Baby .mp3

Or stream the whole thing on their Bandcamp!

Two If By Sea

I don't even need to be witty with the title on this one.

Two If By Sea is a long distance project between Teresa Daniele (formerly of The Haircuts), Lisle Mitnik (Fireflies, Very Truly Yours) and Kevin Clark (Homeville Circle, Wooden Owls). Lush would be a pretty good way to describe the 5 track Staysail. It's also a pretty good...ehh...what's that acronym "RIYL?" The Field Mice covering The Softies wouldn't be a bad summarization either (or maybe the other way around?). If that doesn't entice you, maybe talk of jangling guitars, swirling soundscapes, and breathy vocals will. If you're still thinking "eh, not for me," then you're a lost cause anyways.

Scoop up a 7" from February Records and get ready spend way too much time watching some grooves spin.

While you're at it, give the video for the opening track "Apron of Flowers" a watch/listen.

How does it feel?

Boy, it's a good thing I don't have to deal with deadlines at work, because I sure am lousy at making them.

V-Day, and the equally popular Desperation Day came and went (all the while most of this was sitting as a draft ready to be posted, but I digress), and some unfortunate souls were undoubtedly alone. Do not despair pop losers, for The Bynars have you covered!

The first single from their forthcoming album was equally lonely on the 14th and looking for love. Luckily, your chance to find each other hasn't passed, as it's available as a pay-what-you-will on their bandcamp.

"How Does it Feel to Be In Love" takes the Boston band's patented rockin' synth-pop sound and turns it up to 11. That's more drums, guitars, and synths to boogie on down to, even if you have to do it by yourself. Heck, even that body pillow you dressed up like Buddy Holly's going to want to cut a rug, so finding a real, live partner shouldn't be too hard.

No .mp3, but this sure is nifty!

White Wishes

So one of my favourite Christmas presents this year came from Matthew over at Shelflife, and this time I don't have to hoard it (though I do thoroughly enjoy hoarding)!
Nikita Pavlov's White Wishes seems like it would be the equivalent to sunshine-pop back in perma-frosty Mother Russia, with jangly guitars floating behind reverb-y drums and soothing vocals. The occasional dash of delay or fuzz adds a touch of shoegaze without being abrasive enough to offend anyone. What I'm trying to get at is for the past half hour I've been in this weird state where I'm not sure if I should be perky from the popiness, or in a daze from the gazeyness.

Everyone and their mom should click here for their "I'm nice and cozy inside while it's all cold and snowy out" soundtrack.

The Wind-Up Birds

Weeeelllllll, I think this sets the record for "Most Overdue Post" by about 10 months. I've never heard of squatter punks holing up in a library, but apparently anything's possible in Yorkshire. As their name might suggest, The Wind-Up Birds have read a book or two, and that translates into hyper-literate lyrics that are as much poem as they are prose, and filled with a poignant English wit. Their songs can ramble, jangle, and squeal. Sometimes they blur the line between (please excuse the useless genre pigeonholing) indie-rock and post-punk, and sometimes you might have to pull out the old Oxford English Dictionary lest you get beaten with it, but for the educated drunk, The Wind-Up Birds will be your new favourite band.

In a Yorkshire Call Centre I Knelt Down and Wept .mp3
This Boat is Going Nowhere Tonight, Son .mp3

Sound like a good way to get through the winter? There's currently an EP and 7" out on Sturdy Records, both of which John Peel would undoubtedly blare whilst pissed.

Sort of a Big Deal

I got an email from Records Records Records Records about three weeks ago concerning Big Deal's debut single, and am just now getting around to posting about it. Too much homework and not enough time makes SugarSours a dull blog. Ironically, the a-side, "Homework," is about one very good reason for not being able to do it. It being homework, get your mind out of the gutter.
I've always had a soft-spot for folksy pop songs, especially when they involve harmonized boy-girl vocals and are about things like not being able to do homework and walking home from school. Needless to say, I'd highly recommend picking up a copy on spiffy vinyl if that sounds remotely appealing. If you're still skeptical, watch the video and I'll spare you an "I told you so."

Le Futur Pompiste

I've been on a hiatus of sorts, but nothing compared to Le Futur Pompiste, who are putting out their second album after a six year interim.  The sheer fullness of their self-titled sophomore release on Shelflife Records is proof enough that they haven't been sitting on their laurels, and with all the layers and swells and keys and guitars, Le Futur Pompiste have started to sound a lot like a Scandinavian Rocketship. And in case the banner isn't a tip-off, I'd say that's quite the accolade. Having Ms. Jessika Rapo of Burning Hearts fame on vocals is just icing on the cake.  Now, I like to categorize music into soundtracks for life, you know, "this album I can dance to, this album I can sleep to, this album I can cook to" and so forth, and Le Futur Pompiste was no exception, except, well, it was sort of difficult to pigeon-hole.  It's not so introspective that you wouldn't listen to it around other people, so maybe you'd play it at something intimate.  It has a certain openness to it, so maybe you could listen to it outside, but it has an almost ethereal quality that you'd probably want to just sit and enjoy.  After a couple listens I figured out that it would be a perfect soundtrack for a picnic, but not just any picnic, it would be perfect for a picnic through infinity where when you look up you see this:

and the only disturbance is that little skip when the album starts over.

But don't take my word for it, order it here, and download the complimentary .mp3 copy.  Once you've done that, pack a snack, and head outside and just lie on your back and listen.

For the abridged experience, download Five Hundred Heartbeats and look out a window. 


Five Hundred Heartbeats .mp3

Basement Scam!

It's almost worth a turkey trade off...

This Friday is the very last Basement Scam night at the Buffalo Bar, and headlining are Foxes! from Brighton who are fresh from their tour supporting nautical folk band Stornoway. Here is the video from their "Who Killed Rob?" single which was released earlier this year, which as you'll agree is a right indiepop stomper.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umYxAvsjWyI

Blood Oranges will also be playing their first London show in support of their new single which is out on Things to Make and Do on the 29th November and yes there's another awesome video (with a semi naked man in it!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOqVuXjGHMI

Supporting we have London favourites Evans The Death and Plantagenet 3. Tickets are only £5 and available in advance from http://www.wegottickets.co

m/event/99378

What do a cucumber and cassette have in common?

They're both cool in a crisis! Yeow! I'll be here all week.


























Really though, Cool in a Crisis is a great start-up cassette label hell-bent on spreading lo-fi, cuddly, pop goodness. Their first release will be a split between California's Sweater Girls, and the UK's The History of Apple Pie (who I've written about before), that's due out on November 14th!

You know The Softies? Of course you do. Now double them. And add one. You know what you've got now? Sweater Girls. It's like Rose Melberg got stuck in LA and tried to start a jangle-pop band. All four Sweater Girls tracks on this split are totally cute, about pretty smiles and picnics in the rain.

Sweater Weather .mp3


I was also happy to see that The History of Apple Pie are still around, and still making their lovely kind-of-fuzzy-but-not-really pop songs. I'll forgo the stupid analogy this time and just get to the point; The History of Apple Pie have 3 solid popsongs on this tape and each and every one of them have that perfect blend of fuzz, reverb, and harmonized girly vocals.

You're So Cool .mp3

Big Wave Riders

They're from Finland. They also play some great surf-inspired, new-wave influenced, 90's-throwback tunes. Now you're probably thinking, "Surf music from Finland?" but here's a fun fact for the day: Finland has over 600 miles of coastline, and from the surfers I know, where there's water, there's someone with a board. Anyways, you don't need to surf to drench your guitar in reverb. Think Devo backed by Shadowy Men from a Shadowy Planet, and, well I don't know, pick a guitar based pop band. I'm terrible with the whole comparison thing, but that amalgamation is Big Wave Riders. Summer Cats actually come to mind when the keys kick in on "Republic of the Average." Yeah, let's go with Summer Cats. So if that sounds like it might tickle your fancy, listen to or download "Republic of the Average" and "Big Sound" here. If it doesn't, well, give it a go anyways.

All our money goes to 7" singles, cardigans and traveling around the world

No new music, just youtube solid gold. Whoever made it fess up, because you're comic a genius.

OnomonoPOWERPOPia!

I think lethargy is a chronic condition. I've been meaning to post on The Tyler Trudeau Attempt's 7" for ages and just haven't. Alas.

So hey! The Tyler Trudeau Attempt have a 7" out on February Records RIGHT NOW! Sometimes you need a little kick-start in the morning (or morning, evening, and then morning again in my case), and These Are Dark Times is like a powerpop-punt. The surf inspired riffs mixed with a heavy dose of reverb and distortion get "The Are Dark Times"' proverbial foot in the door of the reverb-drenched garage scene that's so hot right now, but make no mistake, this is solid power pop. Flip it over for "We'll Win This One Yet," and wind things down as Tyler winds things up, doubling the tempo before just drifting off.

These Are Dark Times .mp3



















And then there's Life Size Maps, who take the chamber pop route, breaking out the fucking cello while still keeping all the classic aspects of 90s power pop. Sing-along-ability, bop-along-ability, and rock-along-ability are all there, but don't write off Life Size Maps as just Superchunk with a cello. They incorporate everything from the Beach Boys, to 50s pop, to classical to make something all at once familiar and refreshing. But don't take my word for it, check out the "Seems to Me" .mp3 that's right fucking here! Or, make your way out to Spike Hill in Brooklyn on October 1st for some live action.

Sssshhhhhhh.....

Keep your voice down. I've got a secret. No, I can't tell you, it wouldn't be much of a secret if I could, would it? I'll give you a hint though, I heard it from Camila, and she heard it from Colin, and it's wonderful. Almost as wonderful as the new WeePOP! Let's Wisper EP. Or maybe a little more. I'm not so sure, but I do know those four tracks on that little CD are the best four consecutive tracks I've heard in a long time. I also know Let's Whisper are a bunch of sadists. Well, two sadists anyways. Why would I say that? Because they schemed a diabolical scheme to rope unsuspecting listeners in with the catchy and oddly familiar "California Girls" before shutting off the power and whispering sweet nothings on "Snowy Sunday." You know what they do next? They turn the wintertime lull into a fucking discotheque with Colin imploring to "Meet Me on the Dance Floor." And once you're in the groove, bopping and shaking and shimmying, the music dies and you're back in Vermont in the middle of a fucking snowstorm with "Holly in Wintertime." Colin and Dana, you're the worst. Just for that, I'm telling everyone your dirty little secret...the one about Let's Whisper putting out a full length album on WeePOP!

Because I can...
Meet Me on the Dance Floor .mp3

Speaking of Darren Hayman

He has a new album coming out sometime soon on Fortuna POP! I don't know much besides the title, Essex Arms, and that there's a track on it called "Two Tree Island." I'm also not sure of the influence an outside conversation-of-sorts is having on how I'm interpreting it; there is an awful lot of talk of pushing and wood. Regardless, it's a catchy little folkestral tune with banjos and cellos and a uke and some other things backing the possible smut.

It's not going to be a single or anything, but there's a pretty Super 8 video for it anyways.

Forgotten

No, not the blog. I just haven't had internet for the past couple weeks. Here's a free tip for anyone planning to move to New York: Don't use Time Warner Cable if you can help it.



























That little preface aside, the title is actually in reference to the new Tears Run Rings single by the same moniker. To get us all ready for their upcoming sophomore album Distance, the long distance quartet/quintet decided to mercilessly tease us with "Forgotten" in both .mp3 and video format. Comfortably nestled in what I so eloquently like to call "swirly shoegaze" Tears Run Rings make their noise using generous quantities of modulation rather than the wall of fuzz that the "fuzzy shoegaze" groups generate. Since Distance isn't due out for another month, I'm going to have to make due with dusting off my old Pale Saints and Lush records. Blast. Luckily, it's already available for preorder from Tonevendor, so all you impatient and forgetful types can get that out of the way now.

Forgotten .mp3

Forgotten from Tears Run Rings on Vimeo.

Rise and shine sleepy head!

I've been abysmally lazy for the past couple weeks, and Mike's put out five, yes, five, superb new releases in the past month.


The Pains new single "Say No To Love" is every bit as good as you'd expect it to be. And one of the perks of being indie-pop super stars is you can make all sorts of ace music videos to accompany your ace singles and everything will be ace. And that wasn't the least bit sarcastic, unlike a certain NME article.


See? And you can download it here.


Tender Trap are sounding like a proper girl group these days with Amelia, and the new additions Katrina and Elizabeth, all pitching in on vocals. Actually, the girly harmonies are about as far as the girl group comparisons can go. The ramshackle beats, dirty-jangle guitars and somewhat seedy subject matter are still classic Tender Trap/Heavenly/Talulah Gosh. You can get a taste from the "Do You Want a Boyfriend" single, or a three course meal with Dansette Dansette.

Here's Dansette Dansette's title track.


New Haven's Procedure Club is the noisiest bedroom pop project I've heard in a while. If you haven't been washed away by the deluge of noisy, reverb drenched garage pop bands from the past year, give Procedure Club a listen. While Andrea might be a raging bitch (Adam's words, not mine. I'm sure she's perfectly lovely), she's got some pipes on her. And Adam has a gift for causing a racket. A beautiful, beautiful, racket that would get most people evicted. Is there really any higher praise one can bestow?

Nautical Song .mp3. It's loud.

The History of Apple Pie

You know the saying "As American as apple pie?" It's not especially accurate, seeing as apple pie's origin can be traced back to 14th century England. That's right, the History of Apple Pie is British. See what I did there? Flawless segue. But really, The History of Apple Pie are a two piece from London who are making some pretty reverb-y (or pretty, reverb-y) pop songs. They're still in the writing/recording process right now, but when your first dish is a cup of Comet Gain, three scoops of Young Marble Giants, and two tablespoons of Galaxie 500, all baked in a flakey Beach Boys crust I'm excited to see what else is in the oven.

Sorry, that was stupid, but I reaaaallly want some pie.
Here's a .mp3 of "Tug."

Birds of California!

Ramshackle jangle-pop. Fuzzy shoegaze. Surfy horns. Boys racing for their lunchboxes. A useless stream of consciousness to try to summarize Birds of California. Actually, they're a six piece that's comprised of Tim Brown and Donna McKean of Lunchbox, Stewart from Boyracer, and Ron Mckean, Amr Toppozada, and Jeremy Goody, who all just happen to be awesome. And they actually do mix the aforementioned elements to make some fantastic indie-pop. The genre bending single Great Expectations is available as a free download from Tweefort-cum-February Records just in time to keep you cool during the terrible transition to summer. I suppose I should also elaborate about Tweefort's evolution to a record label. Danny and the gang are going to be focusing more on putting out ace music such as this, and the Fictional West single I mentioned a while ago, than booking.