Category Archives: Check ’em Out!

November 26, 2014 · 12:22 pm

Newest Love: Max & The Electric

maxandtheelectric_photo

After endless discussions throughout 2013 and 2014 between duo James Stefanuto and Tom O’Reilly over whether Rick James or Neil Young would be better member of The Beach Boys – Max and The Electric was born.

Recorded and produced by Sam Ford (Abbe May, The Silents) at Tone City Studio in hometown Perth, the upcoming EP Lecteur Éponyme is a tribute to pop music, love songs, and the humble melody.

A beat-driven dancefloor-filling feast with a Moloko-inspired electro battleground of Fender vs Strat, debut single “City Lover” mixes a late Fleetwood Mac-style rhythmic verse with a driving groove-laden pop chorus. All this coming to your ears with a thematic purpose: their affection for love songs and their disdain for the fruitless flavour of lacklustre modern pop.

James Stefanuto (Max & The Electric): “When we sat down with the director (Robert W. Livings), we decided we wanted the video to encompass everything that has been popularised as “indie” in recent times and just mix that up with a bit of Tim & Eric style comedy strangeness and a Wes Anderson style and feel to the colours and frames. The video was shot over a Friday night through toSaturday afternoon with a budget of 400 dollars. $320 of which went on the slow motion camera. Do not try to make sense of the video otherwise your head will start to hurt. I’m pretty sure the cactus I ate for one of the shots was poisonous because my tongue felt really strange for the rest of the night. For the most part we hope that Lisa Curry doesn’t have to ever see this. Rob the director has been collecting VHS tapes nearly his whole life and needless to say ‘Lisa Curry’s Pregnancy Workout’ VHS wasn’t on the top of his list of videos to keep in the collection. Sorry Lisa Curry.”

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November 25, 2014 · 12:37 pm

Video: Elephant Stone – “Knock You From Yr Mountain”

“Knock You From Yr Mountain” is from Elephant Stone’s new LP, Three Poisons out now via Hidden Pony Records.

Check out their website for more information (and to listen to their album)!

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November 7, 2014 · 4:16 pm

Listen: Busy Living – “Let You Down”

Busy Living

Listen: Busy Living – “Let You Down”

Crafting artful, arena sized indie-pop set against the beat of a post-punk backdrop, LA’s Busy Living are back with new singles produced by Spoon’s Jim Eno that take cues from the likes of Weezer and The Pixies, creating a seamless fusion of futuristic dance elements with pop-centric rock. Their songs are cinematic, landing them several syncs on popular television shows including NCIS, Hawaii 5-0, and Beauty and The Beast.
Comprised of Mike Moonves (lead vocals, guitar), Tim Hutton (bass, vocals), and Matt Leddy (keys, vocals), the Los Angeles based three-piece return with a staggering collection of indie-pop, set to be released later in 2014. Busy Living were recently hand picked to tour with Communion, a multi-city showcase founded by Mumford & Son’s Ben Lovett.

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October 9, 2014 · 9:05 am

Dimond Saints Release 3rd Single From Hunters Moon EP

Hunters

Listen: Dimond Saints – “Hunters”

Out of the shadows and with steady aim, Dimond Saints release the formidable “Hunters”. A hulking beast of a song that twists and turns on the drop of a dime. “Hunters” uses dark yet empowering vocal manipulation, combined with the multiple bass & rhythm shifts, with crisp futuristic production the Saints are becoming known for.

“Hunters” is the 3rd song from the Hunters Moon EP. Which is the Second chapter from the Shingetsu Album.

Here are the previous 2 songs:

Dimond Saints

DS

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October 3, 2014 · 3:04 pm

Check ‘Em Out: BØRNS

10000Emerald Pools

Listen: BØRNS – “10,000 Emerald Pools”

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October 3, 2014 · 10:41 am

Video: Cathedrals – “Unbound”

Check out the video for Cathedrals’ “Unbound” which is a collaboration between the band, Maria Kochetkova who is the principal ballerina in the San Francisco ballet and The Sugar Cubes light sculpture (see piece on Discovery Channel). “Unbound” was directed by Sam Pressman and the cinematographer Isaac Bauman (John Legend, Sam Smith, Drake, The Presets and Blood Orange).

 “The intimacy of the lovers is the ground, the base emotion of the song – the light cubes are the rhythm, continuous in every shot of the video they remind that everyone herein is coexisting even if we so often feel separate – Maria is the spirit, up and down, dancing our worlds together – and Cathedrals are our storytellers mirroring the struggle of the lovers to find each other. ” – director Sam Pressman in FADER

Later this month, the San Francisco duo will play their first ever East Coast show at Neon Gold’s New Shapes CMJ showcase on October 23rd. Don’t miss the band live — information HERE.

cathedrals hi res

Listen: Cathedrals – “OOO AAA”

Listen: Cathedrals – “Harlem”

Cathedrals – Cathedrals EP (out 9/8 on Neon Gold – smarturl.it/CathedralsEP):

01. Harlem
02. In The Dark
03. OOO AAA
04. Unbound
05. Want My Love

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September 24, 2014 · 1:24 pm

BT & Christian Burns Are: All Hail The Silence + Tour Dates w/ Erasure

"[All Hail the Silence] showcases the synergies between BT's polished production style and Burns' pop-conscious songwriting." -Billboard

“[All Hail the Silence] showcases the synergies between BT’s polished production style and Burns’ pop-conscious songwriting.”
-Billboard

Grammy-nominated producer BT and triple platinum singer-songwriter Christian Burns’ new supergroup, All Hail The Silence, will open for legendary synthpop group Erasure on The Violet Flame North American tour starting 9/26.

“Vince Clarke of Erasure has been a major musical influence on Christian and me,” says BT. “We’re thrilled to introduce All Hail The Silence to Erasure’s audience and can’t wait to join them on tour.”

Long-time friends and artistic collaborators many times over, the announcement joins the unveiling of BT and Christian’s single, “Paralyzed,” which was released on Enhanced Recordings 8/25.

Inspired by 80’s New Wave bands like Depeche Mode, Yaz, and The Human League, All Hail The Silence gives BT and Christian the freedom to showcase a different side of themselves artistically and focus on the live music element of their performances. The songs on their upcoming album are being recorded in a basement in Baltimore using step sequencers and modular/analog synthesizers, straight to tape, without the aid of a computer.
“We’re excited for the fans who have supported us throughout the years to join us on this new journey,” says Christian.

Keep an ear to the ground for new music by All Hail The Silence and check to see if they’ll be coming to a city near you on The Violet Flame Tour starting 9/26.

All Hail The Silence // Erasure

 Fall Tour Dates

All Hail The Silence small
9/26 – Atlantic City, NJ – Borgata, The Music Box
9/27 – Boston, MA – House of Blues
9/28 – Pittsburgh, PA – Carnegie Music Hall of Homestead
9/30 – Toronto, CAN – Danforth Music Hall
10/1 – Detroit, MI – Royal Oak Music Theatre
10/3 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Theatre
10/4 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Theatre
10/5 – Milwaukee, WI – Pabst Theatre
10/8 – Nashville, TN – War Memorial Auditorium
ABOUT ALL HAIL THE SILENCE
All Hail The Silence is the collaboration between BT and Christian Burns. The duo will be releasing a fully-analog album in early 2015.

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September 24, 2014 · 11:40 am

Sophie and the Bom Boms Release Debut EP – The Schmixtape

photo credit: Myles Pettengill

photo credit: Myles Pettengill

“Sophie Stern hit us like a brick with her catchy, infectious pop jam “Pray.” – Refinery 29

“Just when you thought things couldn’t get any catchier than Sara Bareilles, Katy Perry, or even Britney Spears (yeah, we went there…), Sophie Stern comes along.”  – NYLON Magazine

“… indeed the songwriter knows a thing about creating tunes that resonate with girls.” – Yahoo!

“Sophie and The Bom Boms will make their mark on the pop scene in the next coming months…soon become a name associated with Jessie J, Betty Who, Tove Lo, and Katy Perry.” – Earmilk

Back in July, I posted about Sophie and the Bom Boms and included two of their songs, “Woman,” and “Pray”. Now, they’ve released their debut EP, The Schmixtape.

Order: Sophie and the Bom Boms – The Schmixtape  (iTunes)

Here’s a sampler of the 4 songs:

And here’s a video for “Can’t Say Yes”:

If you want to listen to “Woman” and “Pray”, check out my post from July here.

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September 23, 2014 · 2:53 pm

Check ‘Em Out: Teeel

Teeel

Listen: Teeel – “Runners”

Check out this song, “Runners”, which is a new track from Teeel’s album Hydrostatic (out digitally now via Mush Records, followed by the physical release in November). “Runners” is the follow-up to Teeel’s first single “Disk Go”, which also has a super fun music video (see below).
On Hydrostatic, intricate synth and guitar work dance around bouncing basslines, laying foundation for an album full of vocal hooks. Teeel switches up styles from track to track, delivering dancefloor-ready grooves, dark washes of synthesized brooding, and pop hook after pop hook. If you dig folks like Holy Ghost! or Chromeo, you’ll probably love Teeel.

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September 19, 2014 · 1:22 pm

Check ‘Em Out: Sneakout

The Art of Hanging On

“an anthem for rebels and rule breakers everywhere.” — NYLON
“…Sneakout exhibits a rowdier side of Fleming’s stylistic repertoire.” — Impose Magazine

Sneakout’s Robert Fleming crafts upbeat, electro-tinged indie-pop with a fun and mischievous vibe, so it’s only fitting that his new video for “The Art Of Hanging On” would feature drinking, partying, and general rowdiness. The twist is in the crew of characters he’s cast: a grandfather and his buddies, eager to teach one lucky grandson how to have a good time. Directed by Andrew Hines, who’s shot videos for A$AP Ferg & The Head and The Heart.

Shedding his previous moniker Victory — whose tracks were featured in national ad campaigns for Cadillac and iPhone & Burberry, as well as HBO’s Girls— Fleming chose to call his new project Sneakout, a name that embodies his values of living in the moment and not taking life too seriously. As an introduction to Sneakout, he put together the Letting Go Mixtape, which features brand new tracks alongside reworkings of some old Victory favorites. You can stream the full mixtape via Soundcloud.

Sneakout

Listen: Letting Go Mixtape

Letting Go Mixtape Track Listing:

1. The Art of Hanging On
2. Thought I Had It All
3. West Coast (Lana Del Rey cover)
4. Soothing Me So (acoustic)
5. Play It (acoustic)
6. The Art of Hanging On (acoustic)
7. The Art of Hanging On (Enso remix)
Sneakout will play a free show at LA’s Bootleg HiFi on Monday, September 22nd alongside Toronto artist Lowell (more information & RSVP here.)

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