My friends and I (along with every single other WVU student) have always sang John Denver’s “Country Roads.” Well…guess WHAT?!?!
Pretty Lights has done a reeeeeee-mixxxxxxx (he just played it at the All Good Festival in West Virginia)!!!
Listen/download: John Denver (Pretty Lights Remix) – “Country Roads”
Filed under downloads, Holy Freaking Crap!, listen, Newest Love, Whoa!
Check out this dope new Clock Opera remix!
Metronomy – The Bay (Clock Opera Remix)
Filed under downloads, listen, Newest Love, Whoa!
Gino DePinto, AOL
Caveman is pleased to announce the digital release of their debut album CoCo Beware on September 13th, followed by the physical CD and vinyl release on November 15th. Exploding out of the New York scene over the last few months, the band has decided to get this “hot off the presses” album out as soon as possible via a digital self-release. The fans wanted it, so the fans get it — a straight-ahead ethos for a band that’s about the music FIRST.
In honor of the New York five-piece’s first release, the band has made “Old Friend” available as a free download, premiering the track with Fader Magazine this morning. Recorded and produced by Nick Stumpf (French Kicks), CoCo Beware showcases the dreamy chamber pop and multi-part harmonies that have been turning heads at the band’s live shows for the better part of a year. Leading up to the release of their debut, Caveman will also be heading out on tour with The War On Drugs, hitting the east coast, midwest and Canada before returning to New York to celebrate their album release at the Mercury Lounge on Thursday, September 15th.
Listen/download: Caveman – “Old Friend”
For Caveman, the last year and half have been a whirlwind. Formed in New York back in January of 2010, the band has gone from relative unknowns to opening for Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes, White Rabbits, Here We Go Magic, Cursive, Wye Oak and Yuck in a little under a year. Listening to CoCo Beware, it’s easy to see why the band has garnered so much attention in such a short period of time. Caveman’s lush four-part harmonies, spaced-out guitars, and inventive percussion come together perfectly on the tracks “Easy Water” and “My Room.”
To get a further taste of the album, watch the quintet perform their tracks “Vampirer/Old Friend” at the Fader Fort HERE. Also, in a more public setting, Caveman run through “Decide” on FADER.tv HERE. And you can see a live version of “Easy Water” on IFC HERE.
Filed under Check 'em Out!, downloads, Highly Anticipated, listen, Newest Love, Shows
New album Controlling Your Allegiance out June 21
The Japanese Popstars – Gary Curran, Declan ‘Decky Hedrock’ McLaughlin and Gareth Donoghue – may have been together for just four years, but they’ve carved out a reputation to rival the biggest names in dance music as a must-see live act and purveyor of raucous, foot-stomping, energetic electronic dance music. In the two years since their debut album We Just Are dropped on Gung-Ho! (UK), they have played major market dates in the U.S. including Ultra Music Festival in Miami, Electric Daisy Carnival in LA, played in Australia, across Europe and, of course Japan – a place that’s especially taken them to their hearts.
The band has also made a name for themselves as sought after remixers, having notched up their own inimitable re-rubs for luminaries such as Beyonce, Depeche Mode, Gorillaz and Kylie Minogue. In keeping with this proud tradition, The Japanese Popstars were also featured in the Tron Remix album, Tron: Legacy Reconfigured with their take on Daft Punk‘s Arena.
But it’s Controlling Your Allegiance, that’s the real leap forward as this is The Japanese Popstars first use of vocalists on an album. And they didn’t pick just any old session singers either… Wonder why the track “Take Forever” sounds like The Cure? That’s because the trio has enlisted collaborations from top notch artists such as Robert Smith (The Cure), Lisa Hannigan, Jon Spencer (of Blues Explosion), Tom Smith (The Editors), Green Velvet, Morgan Kibby, M83 and Ireland’s James Vincent McMorrow.
I’m not sure what this video is really about…and I’m not sure what that creature is. All I know is that I felt bad for it while watching…it sort of made me sad. Quite an odd video.
Anyhow, you’ll like them if you’re a fan of Depeche Mode and Gorillaz.
Filed under Check 'em Out!, Newest Love, video
Click image to listen to "Holiday Heart"
Ki:Theory (a.k.a. Joel Burleson) is a recording artist and producer who walks the tightrope between electronic and indie/alternative rock. Ki:Theory has also lent his adventurous sound to remixes for Daft Punk, Queens of the Stone Age, Ladytron, and Brazilian Girls among others. Having already rocked Bonnaroo and dj-ing for Betsey Johnson’s during NYC fashion week, Ki:Theory has returned to the studio to work on new material. Yesterday, he released the single for “Holiday Heart.” For the B-side, he teamed up with Holy Fuck for a remix of
UNKLE’s track “Natural Selection” which features The Black Angels.
Check out the “Holiday Heart” MP3 where it premiered on PopMatters or HERE!
“Holiday Heart” has a bright vocal melody, skittering beat, and an instantly memorable hook with something a little darker brewing beneath the surface. “(Holiday Heart) is actually a medical condition you get when you’ve been hitting the whiskey and summer sausage a little too hard (commonly around the holidays). I’ve always thought it makes a great metaphor for ‘to much of a good thing.”, explains Burleson. The b-side is an Olympian collaboration between Ki:Theory, UNKLE, Holy Fuck, and The Black Angels. “Natural Selection” is such a great song to start. I’m a huge fan of UNKLE, The Black Angels, and Holy Fuck. I did a remix for UNKLE once before [2007’s “Hold My Hand”], so getting asked to contribute to something all these great artists had collaborated on was just phenomenal. Holy Fuck had already laid some really nice textures and ambient soundscapes for the remix so getting in there with big drums and some leads seemed like a cool direction.”, says Burleson.
Ki:Theory has also recently contributed a remix of Daft Punk’s “The Son of Flynn” to Daft Punk/Tron: Legacy remix album “Reconfigured”. His song “Arms for Legs” is also featured alongside Sleigh Bells and Silversun Pickups in the trailer for John Singleton’s new film “Abduction”. This month, his remix of the song “Angelica” is also featured on the “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” soundtrack by Rodrigo y Gabriela with Hans Zimmer.
Filed under Check 'em Out!, downloads, Newest Love
Click image to listen to Strange Talk's EP
The latest band that gets the hot Neon Gold label treatment is Australia’s Strange Talk, who will be releasing their Strange Talk EP on May 2nd. This EP marks Neon Gold’s first ever vinyl and CD release (to this point there have only been vinyl Neon Gold releases). The last few months have seen Strange Talk flex their musical muscle as a live act, honing their show opening for the likes of The Rapture, Neon Indian and Marina and The Diamonds.
Coming off like the perfect hybrid of Friendly Fires and Phoenix with a bit of that Down Under electro touch thrown in for good measure, Strange Talk are one of the most polished and exciting new acts to emerge. Fully equipped with an arsenal of stadium-ready anthems, “Climbing Walls” is all shimmering synths, cascading bass surges and expert delay pedal use, while next single “Eskimo Boy” shines as the bands flagship anthem, churning synths and heavy basslines slowly building up to the kind of dancefloor-swallowing breakdown Neon Gold dreams are made of. Elsewhere, “Is It Real” and “We Can Pretend” beg to be blasted with the top down on the open roads of summer as producer Eliot James (Two Door Cinema Club, Bloc Party), earns his 2011 Music Producers’ Guild Breakthrough Producer of the Year award with some of his finest work yet.
The Strange Talk EP is available for preorder from the Neon Gold website now for delivery on or around May 2nd.
Download: Strange Talk – “Climbing Walls”
Filed under Check 'em Out!, downloads, Newest Love
Watch the video for “Up All Night”
“Next big thing…Electro” New York Times
“Irresistible, panting synth-pop, with fat new wave key tones and ecstatic vocals.” Pitchfork
“A roller-coaster ride of an album that is as uplifting as it is beguiling” Q Magazine
“Warp speed eclectic” Time Out London
French Horn Rebellion (Robert and David Perlick-Molinari) kick off 2011 by announcing the US self-release of their debut album The
Infinite Music of French Horn Rebellion on April 19th digitally and May 24th physically (Once Upon A Time Records) and play 27 North American live shows supporting French electro pop outfit Yelle starting 17th April. MySpace Music exclusively premieres the band’s debut early, go here to listen to it.
Written, produced and mixed by Robert and David, ‘The Infinite Music…’ is a debut album that warps the fabric of dance, electro, rock and funk and may just turn out to be a contender for this year’s most ambitious, multi-faceted and engaging debut album. Crucially, the album also follows an intergalactic narrative that tracks the physical and emotional journey of an unknown French Horn player. “There is a story running through the album, it’s about the Universe. We’re pretty clear on what the story is, but what you take away from it may be something entirely different,” says David.
These two unassuming brothers, originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, have already toured and played with the likes of Hot Chip, Sleigh Bells, The Drums and Cut Copy. The band have also remixed the likes of MEN, Two Door Cinema Club, OMD, Young Empires and Alex Winston.
Check out this hilarious video for “Broken Heart”
You can have a listen at the entire new album on MySpace by clicking here.
Download “This Moment” here
Download “Up All Night” (Clubfeet Remix) here
Download “What I Want” (JD Samson’s EVA HESSE remix) here
Filed under Check 'em Out!, downloads, new albums, Newest Love, video
LOVE the song, LOVE the video!
Filed under Check 'em Out!, Newest Love, video
“The Gang — which is actually just the recording moniker of Kamtin Mohager — delivers silken bursts of New Wave-inspired dance music with meaty, Cut Copy-sized hooks and flourishes of Passion Pit-style falsetto.” – SPIN‘s 35 Must-Hear Acts at SXSW
After self-releasing two albums over the past several years and receiving early praise from the likes of SPIN, The FADER, RCRD LBL, Brooklyn Vegan, and more, The Chain Gang of 1974 is ready to break out with Wayward Fire! Set for release June 21st on ModernArt, this is an album as restless as The Chain Gang of 1974‘s White Guts, an album which funneled three years of instrument-swapping, sample-splicing experience into a lean focused listen, but it melds the standout moments from that release into something wholly new and realized. In creating this new album, The Chain Gang of 1974’s genre-jumping singer/multi-instrumentalist Kamtin Mohager moved from Denver to Los Angeles, severed the ties of the two-year relationship that fueled Wayward Fire, and raised the
curtain on what’s next, proving that this particular film has just begun.
On Wayward Fire, the laser-guided synth lines of “Undercover” and the rather epic “Hold On”-crowd pleasers that hint at everything from LCD Soundsystem to Talking Heads-make perfect sense alongside such shifting soundscapes as the shimmering keys of “Don’t Walk Away,” the hands-in-the-air hooks of “Taste of Heaven,” and the choruses that cut through the rain clouds in “Matter of Time.” Of course, it doesn’t hurt that Mohager balances his minor-key melodies with bold, bloodletting lyrics.
“Fresh off a string of noteworthy performances at South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, Chain Gang is positioned to pick up where LCD Soundsystem is leaving off – live dance music with an abrasive edge and hipster swagger.” — Denver Post
In the lead up to this release, The Chain Gang of 1974 will play select dates on the west coast with Jamaica.
The Chain Gang of 1974 Tour Dates
Sat. April 23 – Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex
Tue. April 26 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent w/ Jamaica
Thu. April 28 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios w/ Jamaica
Fri. April 29 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos w/ Jamaica
Sat. April 30 – Vancouver, BC @ Fortune Sound Club w/ Jamaica
Sat. June 11 – Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre w/ Candy Claws, Bad Weather California, Fellow Citizens
Filed under Check 'em Out!, downloads, new albums, Newest Love, Shows
Click image to listen/download "Silly Fathers"
On June 7th, Rubblebucket will release their latest full-length, Omega La La. The album was recorded at Plantain/DFA Studios and finds the band collaborating for the first time with legendary producer/mixer Eric Broucek (LCD Soundsystem, Cut Copy, Hercules and Love Affair) for the Brooklyn eight piece’s most adventurous record yet. In honor of the band’s new album, Rubblebucket has made “Silly Fathers” available for free download HERE. The band is also heading out on an extensive North American spring tour, including performances at the Joshua Tree Music Festival and Floyd Fest.
On Omega La La, Rubblebucket takes a dramatic step forward with their sound, grafting their afrobeat rhythms with a creative take on dancey indie pop. Listening to the crystal-clear, minimalist production of the album, DFA veteran Eric Broucek’s influence is apparent. The album opens with “Down in the Yards,” a track that builds off the ebb and flow of a droning, two-note guitar riff, only to explode into a triumphant chorus anchored by the band’s horn section. That track is followed up by the bouncy, Afro-Cuban-inspired rhythms of “L’homme,” a buoyant psych-pop gem. “Silly Fathers” and a reworked version of “Came Out of a Lady” show off the band’s penchant for creating pop songs that stick in your head. “Raining” is a tender ballad built around the subtle interplay between Kalmia’s plaintive saxophone and Ian Hersey’s cascading guitars.
For Rubblebucket, it’s been a long journey to make Omega La La. Led by the musical couple of bandleader/trumpeter Alex Toth and frontwoman/saxophonist Kalmia Traver, Rubblebucket has spent the last four years building a reputation as a band that blurs the lines between psychedelic indie rock, upbeat dance, and Afro-Cuban-influenced jazz.
The band released their debut album, Rose’s Dream, in 2008. The following year proved to be an important one for the band, with Rubblebucket releasing their self-titled sophomore album. SPIN hailed the band as a “must-hear artist from the CMJ Festival” in 2009 and the band won that year’s Boston Music Award for Live Act of the Year. The band then relocated to Brooklyn and released the Triangular Daises EP in 2010. A stylistic precursor to Omega La La, the Triangular Daises EP was hailed by The Wall Street Journal, NYLON, Paste, and a host of others.
Rubblebucket Spring/Summer Tour Dates:
03/23: Cleveland, OH @ Beachland
03/24: Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre *
03/25: Chicago, IL @ Martyr’s *
03/26: Rock Island, IL @ Rock Island Brewing Co. *
03/27: Bloomington, IL @ Bluebird Nightclub *
03/28: Iowa City, IA @ Mission Creek Music Fest: Gabes
03/29: Kalamazoo, MI @ The Strutt
04/03: Kerhonkson, NY @ Rock and Roll Resort
04/07: Boone, NC @ Legends *
04/08: Chattanooga, TN @ Rhythm & Brews *
04/09: Athens, GA @ New Earth Music Hall *
04/10: Asheville, NC @ Emerald Lounge
04/14: Portland, ME @ Port City Music Hall **
04/15: Woodstock, NY @ Bearsville Theater **
04/16: Northampton, MA @ Pearl Street Ballroom **
04/20: New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge **
04/21: Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall **
04/22: Ithaca, NY @ Castaways **
04/23: Syracuse, NY @ Westcott Theater
04/27: Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall
04/28: Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live **
04/29: Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Ballroom **
05/01: Phoenix, AZ @ McDowell Mountain Music Festival #
05/04: Boise, ID @ Reef
05/05: Bend, OR @ Cinco De Mayo Street Fair ##
05/06: Seattle, WA @ Nectar
05/07: Portland, OR @ Mt. Tabor
05/10: Eureka, CA @ Red Fox Tavern
05/11: Sebastopol, CA @ Hopmunk Tavern
05/13: San Francisco, CA @ Boom Boom Room
05/14: Los Angeles, CA @ The Mint
05/15: Joshua Tree, CA @ Joshua Tree Music Festival
05/19: Denver, CO @ Cervantes
05/21: Chicago, IL @ Martyrs
06/18: Grand Rapids, MI @ Founders Fest ###
06/30 – 07/03: Rothbury, MI @ Electric Forest Festival %
07/09: Schuylkill, PA @ Midsummer Meltdown
07/16: Greenfield, MA @ Green River Fest
07/29: Floyd, VA @ Floyd Fest %%
07/30: Floyd, VA @ Floyd Fest %%
* = w/ Toubab Krewe
** = Million Young opens
# = w/ Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros, Black Joe Lewis & more
## = w/ Ozomatli
### = w/ Galactic
% = w/ String Cheese, Tiësto, Pretty Lights, Bassnectar, Edward Sharpe & more
%% = w/ Grace Potter, Robert Randolph, Old Crow Medicine Show & more
Filed under Check 'em Out!, downloads, Newest Love, Shows
Musically Amusing 