Leach Me Lemonade!!

I found Leach Me Lemonade on MySpace a few days ago, only to find out today that they're actually going to be part of a new Cloudberry compilation! How fun! They're a four piece hailing from Bandung, Indonesia and they're absolutely nailing the dreamy indiepop sound that I love so much. Not surprising though, as it seems Indonesia has become the worldwide hotspot of some sort of Sarah-sound revival as of late. They've only got 81 views on MySpace right now, so you should head over and listen to "Shine of Your Smiles" and make friends with them!!!

The Cloudberry comp "I Would Hurt You for the World - The Sound of Young Java Vol.1" will be out September 1st and in addition to Leach Me Lemonade, it also features the lovely sounds of Arch of Cinema, Sunny Summer Day, and Funny Little Dream.

Leach Me Lemonade on MySpace!

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Win Win Win Tickets Tickets Tickets To To To...

UPDATE: ENTRY CLOSES AT 4:00PM TODAY, 8/28

If you're in NYC you might wanna keep reading. If you're not, you could still keep reading, but I see no reason why you would. This Friday, 8/29, at the Glasslands Gallery in Brooklyn, Neon Lights – a DIY concert night – will be hosting a show with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, My Teenage Stride, The Capstan Shafts, and The Beets. Now, I don't think I have to stress to you how awesome of a line-up that is. If you can make it, you should definitely make sure you show up! AND, if you want to go for FREE, leave your name and email in the comments! The winner, whom I'll be picking at random, will get two guest list spots for the show. Yeah!

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New Postal Blue EP

It's been somewhere around two years since I last mentioned Postal Blue on this blog, a little bit after their "Road to Happiness" EP was released on Humblebee. Well, after a long wait, they – well, HE – is finally back! Downsizing the band member count to just one, Postal Blue is now the work of one Adriano Ribeiro – and he's got a new EP out now on Cloudberry Records. Now partially gone are the deadpan jangly Belle and Sebastian comparisons and instead we're greeted by humming organs and synths paired with ringing guitar and speedy programmed snares. Have a listen to "You Should Keep it to Youself"!

[MP3]: Postal Blue :: You Should Keep it to Yourself

Go order the EP from Cloudberry!!
Postal Blue on MySpace!

P.S. The Tartans' Cloudberry 7" showed up a few days ago and I haven't been able to keep it off the record player or out of my ears. I would verrrrry highly recommend grabbing one up before they're gone!!!

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RIP Faintest Ideas

The Faintest Ideas effectively split up following their show in Columbus, OH this past week where not a single soul showed up to see them. I'm sure one lousy show wasn't the reason, but it was probably the straw that broke the camel's back and it's a damn shame too, because they were great guys and they made some really great songs. I'll never forget seeing them play faster than I've ever seen any band play in my life in Philadelphia back in March of last year. Whatever the reason, I'm glad I got to see them before they split, and I'm gonna miss them. Cross your fingers and maybe they'll just turn back into the Javelins! Until then, here's my personal favorite song of there's – it's alwasy made me really happy inside.

[MP3]: The Faintest Ideas :: Another Sunny Day


Go to their MySpace and wish them well!

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A Subjective Best of Slumberland Records!

What kind of heaven do you want?

Slumberland Records began in Silver Spring, MD in 1989 as collected group of folks from like-minded DC-area bands. Mike Schulman eventually moved the label to California in 1992, but it still makes me proud to say it all began here, in Maryland. I was too young to appreciate it in the 90s, so I don't feel particularly qualified to ramble on and on about the history, since I myself have only learned it all from secondary sources. So, if you wanna know a bit more, ready some stuff on wikipedia, perhaps.

I got an idea the other day to compile some of my favorite musical moments from Slumberland's history, in hopes of, well, I don't know. I guess I just hope that maybe someone will hear something they've never heard, and maybe they'll fall in love with it forever. That's a good feeling, and if I can share it with just one other person, I'd be happy. I've decided to break it up by five year increments, and I'm starting with 1990 - 1995 – which are, quite possibly, the best five years of Slumberland's discography.

The tracklist runs in no particular order, just in a way that I felt flowed the best. It begans with The Roper's amazing "Revolver" – which carries with it a chorus that's sure to not leave your head for days and days – and ends on Jane Pow's first single, "Warm Room" – an absolutely beautiful and perfect closer. I guess I should also note that there are two Lorelei tracks. This is not only because they are both fantastic, but also because between their first two records, they basically turned into a totally different band. Please enjoy! and long live Slumberland!

01. The Ropers :: Revolver
02. Velocity Girl :: Forgotten Favorite
03. Swirlies :: Didn't Understand
04. Honeybunch :: Mine Your Own Business
05. Go Sailor :: Long Distance
06. Whorl :: Maybe It's Better
07. Henry's Dress :: (You're My) Radio One
08. Black Tambourine :: Black Car
09. The Softies :: You Don't Like Me Anymore
10. Lorelei :: Everything's Gone Rain
11. Rocketship :: Your New Boyfriend
12. Lilys :: February Fourteenth
13. Lorelei :: Mostly I Sleep
14. Sleepyhead :: Different Colored Letters
15. Glo-Worm :: Beyond the Sea
16. Boyracer :: Tested
17. The Earthmen ::Cool Chick 59
18. Jane Pow :: Warm Room

DOWNLOAD IT! [.zip, 18 MP3s, 125mb]

Now, remember these are just my favorites. Maybe you have some different favorites? Or maybe some Slumberland memories, or stories? If you do, I'd love to hear about them in the comments :)

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Win Manhattan Love Suicides Things!

The MLS in Brooklyn

UPDATE: THIS CONTEST WILL CLOSE ON 9/1!

The only thing better than The Manhattan Love Suicides these days is FREE THINGS. So, working from that kind of logic, FREE Manhattan Love Suicides records would be a pretty tremendous thing, right?? RIGHT! Answer the question below – along with your name and email address in the comments and you could maybe possibly win yourself their new Burnt Out Landscapes compilation AND all three of their previously released 7"s!!!

What band did The MLS cover on their debut LP?

For those of you not interested in the prospect of free things, you can order Burnt Out Landscapes from Magic Marker Records in the US or from Squirrel Records in the UK right now! the Squirrel records version is actually now SOLD OUT until further notice. Also, in true Manhatan Love Suicides fashion, there's already another release on the way! Look for a new 7" on Squirrel Records in Septemeber!

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The Cudgels "Joybang!" Video!

I had no idea that a video for this song ever existed until a few days ago! "Joybang!" is my number one favorite Cudgels song, and definitely one of my very favorite songs ever. Those squealing guitar runs are just brilliant and the vocals are ridiculously hypnotizing. You can still download the "Joybang!" single – which I posted back in November – HERE. No watch the video!!!



Not surprisingly, I wasn't able to attend Athens Popfest, nor have I had enough time to even cover it at all, but I've heard good things from good people, so I hope it was smashing! If you went, I want to hear your recaps in the comments!

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The Tartans! "Cats of Camerford" 7"

Though from Los Angeles, after listening to their new YAY! label single, "Cats of Camerford", the prospect of The Tartans' hometown actually being Scotland is more than a tad bit suspect. A-side "Cats of Camerford" is as fine a slice of sun-shining jangle pop as one could ask for – opening with horns and organ ablast and sounding very undeniably Bellamera & Sebascura. On the flipside, "1939" follows in a similar suit, while "Your Favorite Song" bounces around quite a bit more, showing off the band's lovely glockenspieling and harmonizing skills! The YAY! roster just keeps getting better and better!

You can listen to "Cats of Camerford" over on The Tartans MySpace right now!
Order the 7" from YAY!

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Claire, Are We Safe With Bears?

It's been a while since I checked in on The Deirdres, so I stopped by their website today to find such lovely surprises! First of all, I find their lovely lovely song "Claire, Are We Safe To Be On Our Own?" has been covered by Drew of Life With Bears and charmingly retitled as "Claire, Are We Safe With Bears?". Have a listen, it's quite different, and really quite pretty, too!

[MP3]: Life With Bears :: Claire, Are We Safe With Bears? (Deirdres cover)

Secondly, a new EP on the way!!! Cosy Recordings will release their Why Do My Glasses Give You The Heeby Jeebies? EP on August 28th. It WILL be stunning, and it WILL be most lovely. The tracklist includes such hits as:

1. Milk Is Politics
2. Electro Magic
3. The Rise & Fall
4. Ball In A Cup
5. Choose A Partner

Head over to the Cosy MySpace to listen to "Choose A Partner"! It's so brilliantly catchy I just can't handle it! But then, it IS The Deirdres isn't it?

The Deirdres on MySpace!

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We got a love that's deep in our hearts

Thunders

I tend to not receive too many things in my inbox these days that really interest me, but when I saw all the JAMC and BJM namedrops in an email from Indianapolis' Thunders, I figured I better check it out. The lion's share of their Sympathetic Oscillations EP actually tends to lean far more BJM than JAMC, which was a slight disappointment initially, but yknow, it's still pretty darn good. I'm still not sure how I feel about the vocals – there's just something about them bugging me – but, the screaming guitars and chugging bass, and the vocal melodies, too, on "Magicsick" have me pretty hooked at the moment.

[MP3]: Thunders :: Magicsick (Recommended!)

Thunders on MySpace!

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A Short Happy Life

Medicine's grammatically confusing debut LP, Shot Forth Self Living.

Due to my listening habits as of late leaning pretty shoegazey, I might as well let it show on here, so here we go. Medicine first appeared on Creation Records in 1992 with their single "Aruca". Shorty following "Aruca", an LP – Shot Forth Self Living – was released. It's a brilliant record – beautiful and noisy as hell, but not without it's moments of undeniable danceable-ness! The record's most shining moment in my opinion – aside from, perhaps, the bridge in "Defective" – remains to be track four, "A Short Happy Life". If Medicine had a "Sometimes", I guess this would be it.

[MP3]: Medicine :: A Short Happy Life

If you don't already own it, I would highly recommend finding and listening to Shot Forth Self Living. You can probably find a good copy of it on eBay for pretty darn cheap any time of the day.

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