Skatterbrain!

NEWS! NEWS! NEWS!

2011-12-11T21:47:00.005-05:00

as a result of my last post on here some of you thought that Skatterbrain was perhaps over. As I clarified in the comments, it is not. BUT, it is changing. Skattebrain is being "relaunched" on a new platform. That platform, as you may have guessed, is tumblr! I made this decision based upon the ease and efficiency of tumblr and its interactive capabilities. Having the blog at its new home will hopefully leading to more regular posting as it used to be around here.

You can still read Skatterbrain on tumblr without having a tumblr account. However, for those of you that do have tumblr accounts it will make for a much more interactive blog than before, hopefully producing a bit more discussion and the like. The www.skatterbrain.org address will point here for probably another week, but then it will be permanently relocated to the new Skatterbrain over on tumblr! This blog will still be alive and can be reached via www.blownbythewind.blogspot.com should you want to continue to dig through the archives. I want to thank everyone who's followed Skatterbrain here for sometime during the past—wow—six years. I hope all of you are able to continue reading over at Skatterbrain's new home.

The end of the year festivities are beginning over at the new Skatterbrain right now with my favorite records of 2011 just posted! The 'favorite songs of 2011' mega-gigantic mix will be up later this week! Favorite EPs, too! See you there!

The new url is:
www.skatterbrainpop.tumblr.com

*Remember, the .org address will no longer point to this blogspot after this week!

I hope this isn't too confusing. If you have any questions, you know where to reach me!

A Note:

2011-11-16T18:10:00.002-05:00

Hey! So, I think that the fact that the last four posts on here are the past four months' mixes is as a clear an indication as any that regular posting, as it were, will probably never be happening here again. That being said, I still post and talk about a lot of the same stuff as here on TUMBLR! There is a lot of other stuff mixed in, too, but if you're interested, you can follow me over there. The link is below!

matthewedwards.tumblr.com

A monthly mix: November 2011!

2011-11-11T07:49:00.002-05:00

Looks a bit more like Spring, but what can you do?

Hey folks! It's Monthly Mix time again! This is actually a special monthly mix in that it is the first one ever to be 100% comprised of new songs. Since I haven’t actually been posting on the blog too much these days, I figured I’d use this months mix to share some of my most favorite new bands, new records, and new songs from the past month or two. I hope you like it! If you want to know any more about any of the bands, let's talk about it in the comments!

DOWNLOAD/LISTEN!

Here’s the tracklist:

01. The Capstan Shafts “Like Theme From ‘Arthouse Floozy’”
02. Literature “14 Seconds”
03. Still Corners “Into The Trees”
04. Heavenly Beat “Desire”
05. Pink Playground “Dark Bloom”
06. Tashaki Miyaki “Somethin’ Is Better Than Nothin’”
07. Wax Idols “Grey Area”
08. Opposite Sex “La Rat”
09. Sea Lions “Grown Up”
10. Youngfuck “Black Tulips”
11. Glish “Magazine”
12. Twerps “Through The Day”
13. The Blanche Hudson Weekend “One Last Kiss”
14. The Proctors “All The Books”
15. Sea Dweller “Marion”
16. White Wishes “Come And Say Hello”
17. Weekend “Hazel”
18. Moscow Olympics “Keeping The Avenues Open”

Happy Autumn!!!

A monthly mix: October 2011!

2011-10-11T22:35:00.003-04:00

This month's cover art features Koloman Moser's "Profilbildnis eines Mädchens".

Did you guys know that October is the best month ever? Because IT IS. I hope you like this mix. As with all Fall season mixes, I highly recommend pairing it with a nice crisp evening stroll. Bye!

GO TO THERE

Tracklist:
01. Archers of Loaf "Toast"
02. Beat Happening "Gravedigging Blues"
03. Eggplant "Often I Lie"
04. Rose Melberg "Spin"
05. Princess Niko "The Broken Paper-Heart Club"
06. Sea Lions "To Love Somebody" (Bee Gees cover)
07. Sleeping Bag "Ben"
08. Seam "Granny 9X"
09. Post Post "Entryway"
10. The Ropers "These Days"
11. Veronica Falls "The Fountain"
12. Waxahatchee "Catfish"
13. Twerps "Dreamin"
14. Dinosaur Jr. "Goin Home"
15. Portastatic "Why Pinch Yourself"
16. Yo La Tengo "Take Care"

A Monthly Mix: September 2011!

2011-09-06T09:49:00.005-04:00

Yes, yes, I know Fall is not really here yet, but I simply REFUSE to endure one more minute of that hot and sticky Summer mindset. I've put my foot down and made a September mix with the exclusive purpose of tricking myself into believing my favorite season of the year is already upon us. All of my old Autumn standbys are here (Rose Melberg, Velocity Girl, Slumber Party, Clock Strikes Thirteen, etc), but there's also a few new songs from Widowspeak and Dum Dum Girls fitting the bill rather perfectly. I hope you enjoy it and I hope you're as excited about the coming season as I am!

MAKE IT YOURS!

Here's the tracklist:
01. Blake Babies “Severed Lips” (Dinosaur Jr. cover)
02. Widowspeak “Half Awake”
03. Velocity Girl “Tripping Wires
04. Pencil Tin “In Dreams”
05. Veruca Salt “Fly”
06. The Nonpareils “Inside”
07. Spent “Stumble Up The Stairs”
08. Tiger Trap “You’re Sleeping”
09. Engine No. 9 “Sleep”
10. Semi-Gloss “Groupie’s Lament”
11. Clock Strikes Thirteen “One Cold Day”
12. Slumber Party “I Never Dreamed”
13. Cuffs “Privilege”
14. Wild Carnation “Wings”
15. Dum Dum Girls “Wasted Away”
16. Tsunami “Kidding On The Square”

A monthly mix: August 2011!

2011-08-10T22:12:00.002-04:00

Here's a little last hurrah of Summer! I love the Summer, but not as much as what's coming up next, and these hotter than hot days are getting very old. Put this on and go out for a ~~walk~~ melt. Literature, Tunabunny, and Catnaps are a few of my favorite bands being bands right now! If you're not on it, get on it! Everything else is, well, you probably know it. If you don't then I can assure it's all a blast. Now grab it go have a blast.

DOWNLOADDDDDDDDDD!

Tracklist:
01. Literature "It's Cruel"
02. Tunabunny "(Song For My) Solar Sister"
03. Medicine "Never Click"
04. Catnaps "Lullaby"
05. Eux Autres "Go Dancing"
06. Big Red Bus "All I Need"
07. Kristallin "Twelve Until I Die"
08. The Twerps "She Didn't Know"
09. Happydeadmen "Heaven No!"
10. The Girls "Here I Am In Love Again"
11. All Girl Summer Fun Band "Will I See You"
12. The Hermit Crabs "I Don't Know How"
13. Lush "Lit Up"
14. Fat Tulips "My Secret Place"

I can't keep my hands to myself

2011-07-27T08:12:00.004-04:00

Philly's Catnaps

Catnaps are a very lovely new-ish pop band from Philadelphia! You may remember them as When I Was 12, but they've since changed their name to Catnaps and now here we are. They just self-released their new record Why Don't You Whisper? on July 1st and you can grab now it via the Catnaps Bandcamp! Personally, I think the record sounds somewhere between Pipas and The Deirdres—and maybe also a little bit of Sparky's Magic Piano—which is just perfect! Listen to "Lullaby"!

[MP3]: Catnaps "Lullaby"

It's nice to know there's another wonderful pop band in Philly! Of course they're on tour right now, so I won't be able to see them play for a while. But! Maybe you can! Here are the dates:

July 28th_ San Franscisco, CA @ TBA
July 30th _ Los Angeles, CA @ Origami Vinyl
July 31st _ Long Beach, CA @ TBA
August 1st_ Phoenix, AZ @ Trunk Space
August 3rd_ Albuquerque, NM @ TBA
August 5th_ Norman, OK @ TBA
August 6th_ Little Rock, AR @ TBA
August 7th _ Memphis, TN @ The Stash House
August 8th_ Nashville, TN @ HOUSE SHOW
August 10th_ Birmingham, AL @ HOUSE SHOW
August 11th_ Athens or Atlanta, GA @ TBA
August 12th_ Greensboro, NC @ CFGB'S
August 13th_ Richmond, VA @ The Triple
August 14th_ Baltimore, MD @ TBA

You've gotta take it as it comes

2011-07-26T20:52:00.002-04:00

This new Vivian Girls video is the most wonderful, adorable thing! "Take It As It Comes" is one of my favorites from Share The Joy and I'm so excited they made a video for it. I can't wait to see them in Philly in September! I'm gonna go watch this for the tenth time now.

We can run away and I don't mind!

2011-07-26T19:56:00.003-04:00

Tiny Fireflies

Tiny Fireflies is the relatively new collaboration between Lisle and Kristine of Very Truly Yours, or Fireflies and Tiny Microphone, respectively. If you, like me, were able to catch them at this year's NYC Popfest then you already know how utterly fantastic they are. Delicate could aptly describe both members' previous outings and it still fits like a glove here. Their four-song debut EP Change feels as much like the soundtrack to squinty Summer afternoon as it does a winter spent inside, gazing out a frosted window. The guitar and keys fall like snowflakes, but Kristine's voice, cloaked in reverb, falls even softer; like dust caught in a sunbeam. Opener "Your Love" and "So Sad To Say Goodbye" (with its great New Order-y bassline!) are personal highlights, but all four songs are gems, really. Have a listen and pick up the EP from brand new label Little Treasure! It's limited to just 125 copies so go go go!

[MP3]: Tiny Fireflies "So Sad To Say Goodbye" (Very Recommended!)

New Pocketbooks single!

2011-07-22T08:15:00.009-04:00

Pocketbooks have just released a brand new single from their upcoming sophomore album 'Carousel'. "Promises, Promises" is a blast of summer with it's shimmering strings, lush harmonies, and just a touch of sadness. It makes me feel the way I do on those days where I keep Belle and Sebastian's "Dirty Dream Number Two" on repeat. It's a good feeling and since I first heard them, Pocketbooks have always found a way to bring it out! Have a listen! If you're in love then head over to Odd Box Records and preorder your copy of the new record! It won't be out until September, but you're going to want to get on it now, I assure you.

[MP3]: Pocketbooks "Promises, Promises" (Highly Rec'd!)

A monthly mix: July 2011!

2011-07-21T18:19:00.003-04:00

It's 100 degrees outside today. Yuck.

Hey pals! It's July and I have a new mix to share with you! This month's mix is pretty JUMBO compared to the typical length of previous mixes, but I could couldn't bring myself to cut it down any further. Personal new favorites here include a new track from Bleached (Ex-Mika Miko sisters), Dear Marje (A+ Tiger Trap worship; my new favorite band and yours, too), and a new one off of the new Veronica Falls LP (Sure to be one of the best of the year). Some old gems, too. 20 songs in all. It's perfect for hiding away from the 104 degree temperatures we'll be seeing here tomorrow. Enjoy!

OMG DOWNLOADTIME PARTYTIME!

Tracklist:
01. Sourpatch "Funny Inside"
02. Comet Gain "An Arcade From The Warm Rain That Falls"
03. Ultrasport "Sharing Secrets"
04. Twitch Hazel "Mention"
05. Speedmarket Avenue "Moments Of Sudden Brightness"
06. Reina Republicana "Mar Diamante"
07. Bleached "Think Of You"
08. Dear Marje "Soft And Sweet"
09. The Tribbles "Mercury"
10. Swimsuit "Mongoose"
11. The Mondo Crescendo "Heaven Only Knows"
12. Still Corners "Cuckoo"
13. Further "Don't Need A Rope"
14. Tigerella "Rid Of You"
15. Syrup USA "Joie De Vol"
16. Veronica Falls "Come On Over"
17. Screamfeeder "Dart"
18. #Poundsign# "Michigan"
19. Seapinks "Peripheral Vision"
20. Pale Saints "Fine Friend"

Swimsuit!

2011-06-10T07:45:00.002-04:00

After a putting very good demo tape and a fantastic 7" last year, Swimsuit's debut LP is finally here! The self-titled record is being released by Speakertree Records on June 28th, but you can go stream the whole thing at bandcamp RIGHT NOW! I've been listening to it all morning and I can already not recommend it enough! The songs are super-infectious and the band-wide vocal melodies are so much fun. I can't even imagine how much of a blast this band must be having. So yeah, go listen to it! Now!

A monthly mix: June 2011!

2011-06-05T00:13:00.003-04:00

Featuring Rita Tushingham!

Hi! Things are back in order and on time this month. Hopefully I will not be missing another whole month anytime soon! This month's mix is a 100% SUNNY SUMMER FUZZY JANGLE FEEDBACK FEST split almost 50/50 between old Summery favorites and brand new, soon-to-be Summer mix staples. The mix ends just as excitingly as it opens and it doesn't slow down much from point A to point B. Make sure you've got plenty of room to move around because this mix definitely requires some light dancing at the very least. LISTEN TO THESE JAMZ!

PARTYTIME!

Tracklist:
01. Summer Cats // Paperweight
02. Tashaki Miyaki // All I Have To Do Is Dream
03. Kids On A Crime Spree // John Paul Sartre II
04. Even As We Speak // I Won't Have To Think About You
05. Camera Obscura // Swimming Pool
06. Aberdeen // Byron
07. Bad Banana // Teleport Tonight
08. Betty And The Werewolves // The Party
09. Boomgates // Layman's Terms
10. Girls Names // I Could Die
11. Primal Scream // All Fall Down
12. Brilliant Colors // How Much Younger
13. Sea Lions // Let's Fall In Love
14. The Specific Heats // What Can I Say?
15. The Faintest Ideas // Another Sunny Day
16. Help Stamp Out Loneliness // Record Shop
17. Girl Of The World // 3,000 ft.
18. The Earthmen // Flyby

YEAH! JUNE! YEAH!

Into The Wilderness

2011-05-09T11:27:00.003-04:00

In anticipation of the seriously STUNNING new Burning Hearts EP, Into The Wilderness, here is a look at the equally beautiful video for the title track. If this is not the precise visual realization of Burning Hearts' melodically colorful dreampop than I just don't know what is. There's enough color and film grain here to feed a small country. Go big:

Into The Wilderness will be out mid-June-ish on Shelflife Records!

Dead To Me

2011-05-03T22:37:00.003-04:00

BRB GONNA GO LISTEN TO THIS RECORD FOREVER. I can't remember the last time I was this seriously jazzed about fuzz-less guitars. Despite the heavy shade of reverb hanging over these ten songs, Dead To Me actually manages to sound brighter than the sun. This is the sound of young Spring.

[MP3]: Girls Names "Cut Up"

This one's a disaster

2011-04-29T10:01:00.003-04:00

Good morning! Here's a relatively new video for Street Chant's "Less Chat More Sewing". Street Chant, as you might recall, were included on the March mix—this song, actually. They're awesome and I love them and their new record, 'Means' has been getting loads of plays around these parts lately. Watch!

A monthly mix: April 2011!

2011-04-28T21:15:00.002-04:00

It's late! Really late! I hope you don't mind too much, again. This month's mix ended up being almost exactly half and half, old and new. It ended up working out quite well and hopefully there are a few discoveries to be made here! Not really sure what else to say about it, I guess. Oh, except for that I like to listen to that Swell Maps song with headphones on while walking around the city because it makes me feel really cool like I'm just punching everyone in the face as they walk by and they don't even know what's going on. It's the best. Take care!

DOWNLOAD WHOAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Tracklist:
01. Huggy Bear // No Sleep
02. Boyracer // Yr Unspoken Desires
03. The Wedding Present // Don't Talk, Just Kiss
04. Broken Water // Heart Strings
05. P.S. Eliot // Sadie
06. Crystal Stilts // Through The Floor
07. Mood Rings // Year Of Dreams
08. Collider // Mono
09. Persian Rugs // Always All
10. Seapony // Into The Sea
11. Yo La Tengo // Pablo and Andrea
12. Teenage Fanclub // God Knows It's True
13. Swell Maps // New York
14. Tripwires // Cinnamon
15. Sea Dweller // Settings
16. Swirlies // Two Girls Kissing

A monthly mix: March 2011!

2011-03-28T23:32:00.003-04:00

I'm back! Mostly! Since I have been away lots of things have happened. The largest and most important of those things being that I have (very, very recently) moved to Philadelphia!!! After 24+ solid, fantastic years in Maryland, I decided to pack up and move a bit north with two wonderful friends. Now that I'm feeling a bit settled in my new locale I decided it was about time I get back to Skatterbrain and make a March mix before I miss my chance like I did last month. So here it is — composed mostly of songs that I've been listening to on my walks to work in the morning. I get to walk to work now. Yay! Enjoy the mix!

DOWNLOAD AWAY!

Tracklist:
01. Brown Recluse // Impressions Of A City Morning
02. Slumber // Snoop Jane (Demo)
03. Brave Irene // No Fun
04. Comet Gain // Another Girl
05. The Aislers Set // Falling Buildings
06. The Bartlebees // You Are Still Beautiful
07. Street Chant // Less Chat, More Sewing
08. Ringo Deathstarr // Two Girls
09. Juniper // Think And Die Thinking
10. Sweet Bulbs // Acid And TV
11. Las Robertas // Ojos Con Dientes
12. Javelins // My Best Friend
13. Air Miami // Special Angel
14. The Twerps // Someone's Changed
15. Beat Happening // Teenage Caveman
16. Creepoid // Dream Out

New Liechtenstein song! "Meantime"

2011-03-19T13:02:00.003-04:00

From Liechtenstein's new 'Meantime' CDR released March 5th on Drill Building! Go get it!

A monthly mix: January 2011!

2011-01-03T21:03:00.003-05:00

Though my mantra for 2011 is "back that ass up", this, the flagship monthly mix of 2011, is a bit more of a languid affair. Perhaps it's a last goodbye to a year I don't altogether regret, but that I cannot say I loved. The meaning I put into/get out of this means little in the end though. All I really hope is that maybe you'll find some enjoyment in it. If you find something new to love within these fifteen tracks, well then that's even better! Happy 2011, everyone—and happy listening!

DOWNLOAD, YES?

Tracklist!
01. Stereolab // Doubt
02. Still Corners // Wish
03. The Revolving Paint Dream // Mother Wash My Tears Away
04. Po! // Haunt You
05. The Relict // Southern Way
06. The Penny Candles // Sometimes
07. The Sea Urchins // Please Rain Fall
08. Rachel Goswell // Coastline
09. The Shapiros // Do You Know
10. The Pastels // Mandarin
11. Biff Bang Pow! // She Paints
12. Hydroplane // International Exiles
13. Felt // Stained-Glass Windows In The Sky
14. They Go Boom!! // Woody Allen
15. Con Dolore // Keeper

Au Revoir, 2010: The Songs!

2010-12-14T01:26:00.006-05:00

Because it's December

While my EP and 7" lists are on the backburner—as they are proving to be rather difficult to finalize—I decided I would attempt to get everything together for my super-bonkers-crazy 60-song, double-volume 'favorite songs of the year' mix. Now, the amount of time I've spent whittling this down from well over 100 songs is close to embarrassing, so for my sake, let's all just assume that I threw the whole thing together this evening in one quick and painless jiff. I do wish I had the time to sit and explain how much I love each and every one of these songs and how much they all meant to me this year, but no such luck. Should you have something to ask or tell about anything you hear here, please do leave a comment and we can talk about songs there! Together!

As I've already mentioned, this was a beyond great year for musics. The simple fact that I started with over 100 hundred songs should speak volumes to that. Speaking of volumes, here are Volumes One and Two of Au Revoir: Skatterbrain's Favorite Songs of 2010. The point of this is to share, so I hope you can find something new to love in these mixes! Again, your comments are very welcome.

Volume One:
DOWNLOAD
01. Las Robertas // In Between Buses
02. For Ex-Lovers Only // Coffin
03. Grass Widow // Fried Egg
04. Tiger Tape // Let's Work Things Out
05. La Sera // Never Come Around
06. Beach Fossils // Face It
07. Chalk And Numbers // I Really Wanna Work This Out
08. Leaving Mornington Crescent // Corners
09. The Hairs // Duh! x 12
10. Weed Hounds // Hard Drivin'
11. Veronica Falls // Starry Eyes
12. The Liminanas // I'm Dead
13. Dum Dum Girls // Blank Girl
14. The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart // Lost Saint
15. Sky Larkin // Still Windmills
16. The Specific Heats // End Of An Error
17. Big Troubles // Freudian Slips
18. Seapony // Go Away
19. Sourpatch // Sky Is Falling
20. Dude Japan // If I Were A Posie
21. Crocodiles // Hearts Of Love
22. Panda Riot // When You Said, When I Said
23. Ceremony // Marianne
24. World Atlas // Girl On A Boy's Bike
25. Neverever // Coconut Shampoo
26. Sweater Girls // Fingers Crossed
27. Cuffs // You Can Come True (Demo)
28. Belle And Sebastian // I Didn't See It Coming
29. Le Futur Pompiste // My Trophy
30. Weekend // End Times

Volume Two:
DOWNLOAD
01. Club 8 // Shape Up!
02. Wild Nothing // Chinatown
03. Sweet Bulbs // Kissing Clouds
04. Lê Almeida // Transporpirações
05. The Radio Dept. // Heaven's On Fire
06. Spectrals // Chip A Tooth (Spoil A Smile)
07. Reading Rainbow // Wasting Time
08. Cinema Red And Blue // Melanie Down
09. Mighty Clouds // Spell It Out
10. Shimmering Stars // Sun's Going Down
11. Whirl // Leave
12. Catwalk // (Please) Don't Break Me
13. Frankie Rose And The Outs // Girlfriend Island
14. Still Corners // Don't Fall In Love
15. Best Coast // When The Sun Don't Shine
16. Swimsuit // Evaporation
17. Serena-Maneesh // I Just Want To See Your Face
18. Post Post // Drafts
19. Ringo Deathstarr // Imagine Hearts
20. The Blanche Hudson Weekend // Let Me Go
21. The Soft City // Take Me To The Cinema
22. Shrag // Rabbit Kids
23. Pet Milk // Cherry Outline
24. Gigi // The Marquee (with Katie Eastburn)
25. Brilliant Colors // Walk Into The World
26. Crystal Stilts // Shake The Shackles
27. The Procedure Club // Dead Bird
28. Gold-Bears // Tally
29. Sambassadeur // Small Parade
30. Versus // Cicada

Reading Rainbow: "Always On My Mind"

2010-12-12T02:09:00.001-05:00

I love this new song/video from Philly's Reading Rainbow!

Chalk And Numbers

2010-12-07T20:30:00.006-05:00

Chalk And Numbers

Chalk And Numbers are brand new duo from Brooklyn, NY that I've quickly fallen for—head over heels. They play some pretty charming and spot-on Spectoresque pop with gorgeous female vocals and hooks galore! They've put the entirety of their fantastic debut EP, He Knew, up to stream or download for FREE on bandcamp. If you like this song, I would highly suggest you grab the whole EP on the immediate. Fans of classic girl-group pop songs take note! He Knew does not disappoint!

[MP3]: Chalk And Numbers "I Really Wanna Work This Out" (Highly Recommended!)

Au Revoir, 2010!

2010-12-01T19:50:00.013-05:00

Despite the things I could say about it in other arenas, 2010 was a pretty fantastic year for music. It's no surprise that I was absent from blogging more this year than ever before, but that hardly means I wasn't listening. My intake of new records this year wasn't all that terribly steep and so I expected to have a fairly easy time getting my favorites together in some semblance of an order—certainly not the case. That is why I decided to forgo a numbering system this year. These are my favorite records of 2010. Most of these should not come as any kind of shock if you even have the slightest of ideas of how things tend to go around here. Should you happen to be unfamiliar with any of them you can only assume that I VERY HIGHLY RECOMMEND them! Onward! Onward!

Art Fag Recordings

[MP3]: Las Robertas "In Between Buses"

It was probably about halfway through the Summer that I realized Las Robertas' as-catchy-as-it-is-fuzzy debut record just had to be the greatest thing I had been feeding my ears all year. Cry Out Loud is a full 30 minutes of no-skip fuzzpop gems. The guitars fuzz and buzz to what literally sounds like amp-blowing levels while the drums explode all over everything else, leaving just enough sonic real estate to take in the girls' beautifully crafted vocal melodies. Watch the gorgeous video for slow-burning fuzzfest "V For You" here.

Labrador Records

[MP3]: The Radio Dept. "The Video Dept."

Clinging To A Scheme was one of my most eagerly awaited releases this year. My expectations were beyond high and somehow this record still managed to exceed them. There are too many total jams on here to name and each one served me a different purpose. As a whole you can really sink into it, but you can also pull out songs like "The Video Dept." or "Heaven's On Fire" and take those right on down to the dancefloor—and that's the special thing about The Radio Dept. Oh, also, thumbs up on that production, guys.

Fortuna Pop! Records

[MP3]: Allo Darlin' "If Loneliness Was Art"

The best purely, fantastically, charming indiepop record made in years. Indiepop, as a genre (especially in a hyper-contemporary sense), has a well-known knack for being quick and dirty. The songs show up or are dug up in a wide array of forms and qualities—the internets being first and foremost responsible—and we suck them down as fast as we can, running off that jangly, saccharine rush until, ultimately, we spit it out and pop another. It is, then, an increasingly rare occurrence, especially personally, that something sticks in the way that Allo Darlin' have. Whatever it is, and I am truly not sure what it is, they've got it, probably in spades. This record will (and certainly should) likely be remembered alongside some of the greatest indiepop records of the 90s that we all treasure so dearly. They just don't make em, except occasionally, like they used to.

What's Your Rupture?

[MP3]: Cinema Red and Blue "Melanie Down"

Super groups, while, you know, seemingly super, almost always tend to end up being quite the miserable situation; a bit masturbatory, kind of like an inside joke that a few friends tell right in front of you—they're having a blast, but you're a bit less than amused. Sometimes, though, they're actually pretty damn great. Every time I listened to Cinema Red and Blue, which features members of Comet Gain and Crystal Stilts, as well as occasional appearances from Gary Olson (Ladybug Transistor), Hamish Kilgour (The Clean), and Linton(The Aislers Set), I would hear something new that would stick to me. It's the endless supply of unofrtunately-relevant lines like this one that kept this album on my mind: "Listening to records that nobody wants, dreaming of moments that nobody's had..." Thanks, Feck, why don't you twist it a bit more while you're in there? No, really.

Captured Tracks

[MP3]: Wild Nothing "Chinatown"

I'm glad I got over myself and decided that this record was irresistible, because it would have been a real shame if I thought I was too cool for what turned out to be one of the most endlessly enjoyable records of the year for me. Gemini, in addition to the equally great Golden Haze EP, have been absolute staples in my daily listening ever since the temperatures began to drop back in mid-September. Mr. Tatum's got all this Summer imagery floating around, but I refuse to buy it. This, for me, is cold weather music through and through. Even "Summer Holiday" sounds better with the windows open and the heat on. P.S. It should also be noted that despite this record being a solo effort, Jack Tatum and his merry band of players put on quite the impressive live show and should most certainly not be missed.

Cosy Recordings/Lo and Behold Recordings

[MP3]: Tiger Tape "Let's Work Things Out"

In which a band called Moofish Catfish gets a much, much better name and then truly makes one of the best records of the year. I Woke Up In Hökarängen's guitars sparkle and snarl and it's rhythms seem turn corners on a dime, but Agnes' vocals—the backbone of the record, for certain—remain beautiful and soaring, always commanding, yet never overarching.

Happy Happy Birthday To Me

[MP3]: Sourpatch "Same Street"

Sourpatch are a band I've been following pretty ardently for a few years now, so the arrival of their debut LP was a joyous occasion, indeed. They are, techinically, my ideal band. Fast, punky pop songs played with loads of energy and loads of fun. Leads and harmonies fly in from every angle and every song offers a new opportunity to dance like a fool. I've loved Sourpatch's songs since I very first heard them, but it was on Crushin' that they finally got the production they needed. The reverbed vocals call from the back of the room while the instruments fight for the spotlight up front and that's exactly how I wanted to hear them.

Killer Pimp Records

[MP3]: Ceremony "Marianne"

Rocket Fire is a tremendous record. Tremendously dark, tremendously loud, and tremendously grooving. Yes, grooving. The majority of it's running time ranges from noisy to noisy as hell, but amidst all the fuzz, feedback, and crashing of digital drums are some some seriously smart melodies and that’s exactly why this record shines so much brighter than so many like it. If you’re gonna make a shoegaze record you’d better make damn sure you have the pop-chops to keep up with all that noise.

Shelflife Records

[MP3]: Le Futur Pompiste "Five Hundred Heartbeats"

This, Le Futur Pompiste's first new record since 2004's Your Stories and Your Thoughts, is as a fine a testament as any to why it's always best to do these sorts of lists as late in the year as possible. I could have waited even longer, but Unless something amazing flies in out of nowhere, at this point I think I'm okay. Those of you unfamiliar may be quite pleased to find out that the Le Futur Pompiste stars the lovely voice of Jessika Rapo, whom you will likely recognize from her other band, Burning Hearts. Throughout the entirety of what basically sounds like a brilliant picnic in outer space, Jessika reveals line after beautiful line of some of the finest vocal melodies to hit my ears this year. Look no further than the stunning chorus of "My Trophy" and you'll begin to fall in love.

Slumberland Records

[MP3]: Weekend "End Times"

Weekend's extremely confident, extremely good—and extremely difficult to google—debut Sports was another that I had been eagerly anticipating for quite some time this year. It's post-punk songwriting with shoegaze pedal boards, but then it's not. It's The Ecstasy of Saint Theresa with Andy McCluskey on bass, but then it's not. It's a lot of different things at once, but still, somehow, it manages to behave like an unbelievably cohesive record, one that is even greater than the sum of it's parts (which do function pretty fucking well on their own, see "End Times"). The ridiculous amount of times I've sat through the almost six minutes of "Veil", just for that ever-rewarding, never-as-long-as-I-wish-it-was coda, should be pretty telling of Sports' excellence.

That's all she wrote, folks. Since I would hate to not mention a handful of other fantastic records that for one reason or another didn't end up in my top ten, here are the albums that would fill out my hypothetical 11 to 20 slots:

SAMBASSADEUR // EUROPEAN
MIGHTY CLOUDS // SELF TITLED
GIGI // MAINTENTANT
SERENA-MANEESH // NO 2: ABYSS IN B MINOR
CLUB 8 // THE PEOPLE'S RECORD
FRANKIE ROSE AND THE OUTS // SELF TITLED
GRASS WIDOW // PAST TIME
SHRAG // LIFE! DEATH! PRIZES!
CROCODILES // SLEEP FOREVER
THE SOFT CITY // SELF TITLED

Coming up in the next couple days: Favorite EPs/Singles of 2010!
Coming up after that: Two-volume 'Favorite songs of 2010' mix!

Weekend: "End Times" Live Video

2010-11-24T01:26:00.004-05:00

Here's a pretty stunning live video Weekend playing "End Times", one of my favorite songs from their new record, a few nights ago with some vocal assistance from Stephanie of Young Prisms. I cannot wait to see these guys live.

Pet Milk: "Cherry Outline" Video! and stuff!

2010-11-11T00:17:00.002-05:00

Philadelphia's Pet Milk, as I've mentioned before and you will soon find out, play fantastic fuzzed-out pop songs you can totally groove on. Despite my love for them I've still yet to see them play, so for me, this video is pretty fantastic. "Cherry Outline" also happens to be my favorite song from their demo EP! I love the harmonies and noisy solo around 2:25. These dudes rule.

Their EP I mentioned above is available to download for free! So do that. The EP is also now available on cassette, too, from Philadelphia's Peasant Magik label. Just 100 copies though, so get it quick!

They'll also be on tour towards the end of the month! See them if you can!

FRI 11/26 bethlehem, pa @ secret art space with WE HAVE HEAVEN

SAT 11/27 brooklyn, ny @ the stolen sleeves collective [538 johnson apt. #203] with WEED HOUNDS, SWEET BULBS and TACO LEG 8PM $5

SUN 11/28 somerville, ma @ starlab with REPORTS and DOOMSTAR 8PM $5

MON 11/29 easthampton, ma @ flywheel arts collective [43 main st] with PROCEDURE CLUB, SUMMER OF ADEN and LION CUB 8PM $6

TUE 11/30 philadelphia, pa @ sailor jerry store [118 s. 13th] 7PM FREE

Cuffs

2010-11-09T00:25:00.007-05:00

The end of Pants Yell! was a pretty sad thing for me. Their songs entered my life right around the time I started college and followed me all the way through until the year I graduated. Andrew's words have always meant a lot to me and I guess it's because I feel like I can relate to them so well. If I was going through a bad time, there was a Pants Yell! song to complement my woes. If I was feeling good, that bright picking was always there to accompany my happiness. So, as you can see, they made a pretty big impression on me and though I had little other choice, it was still hard to say goodbye.

Flash forward to Cuffs! Pants Yell! may be gone, but Andrew's knack for writing amazing pop songs lives on; he's just got a few new friends now. Cuffs are based in Cambridge, MA and are comprised of 2/3 of Pants Yell!, a member of Reports and that blonde kid from Big Troubles! They have a seriously fantastic three-song demo available for free download and I could not recommend it enough. If you only download one thing this November make sure this is it. Listen to "Privilege"!

[MP3]: Cuffs :: Privilege (Demo)

A monthly mix: November 2010!

2010-11-05T01:13:00.004-04:00

After what was a somewhat disappointingly mild October, November is finally here and has brought with it some seriously cold weathers. Some may wonder why dropping temperatures is any kind of a good thing. Well, for someone who's listening habits tend to be guided almost exclusively by the changes in the weather, November's relatively frigid days and nights have brought some much loved bands and songs back into my life. This mix is my opportunity to share them (and a few new-found favorites) with you guys. I hope you enjoy the crap out of it.

DOWNLOADSVILLE: THIS WAY

The tracklist:
01. Ida "Poor Dumb Bird"
02. The Cat's Miaow "Not Like I Was Doing Anything"
03. Belmondo "Sleepwatch"
04. Sweater Girls "Fingers Crossed"
05. The Aislers Set "Why Baby"
06. Birdie "Linus"
07. Tiger Trap "Sweetheart"
08. The Bats "Mad On You"
09. The Hairs "Feeling A Lot Of Feelings"
10. Clock Strikes Thirteen "We Could Walk Together" (Clientele cover)
11. Tugboat "So Much Fun To Be Had"
12. Mighty Clouds "I Could Have Told You Your Name Then"
13. The Sunny Street "Pottery & Glass"
14. Weekend "Veil"

La Sera: "Never Come Around"

2010-10-30T02:35:00.002-04:00

I could not urge you more to watch the brand new video for La Sera's wonderful "Never Come Around"! There's some killing and a bit of blood then some dancing and dismemberment. It's all just very, very fantastic.

Ida: "Tellings"

2010-10-27T00:13:00.003-04:00

I don't think I've ever mentioned Ida here before (aside from monthly mix inclusions), but they're one of my very favorites and Autumn is the perfect time for listening to them, so here we are. They wrote some of the most honest, heartbreaking songs I've laid ears on and "Tellings" is one of their finest. This live version from 1996 is beautiful!

Crystal Stilts: "Shake The Shackles"

2010-10-26T23:46:00.003-04:00

Shake The Shackles 7" cover art

Leave it to the perfect timing of Slumberland to decide to drop the new Crystal Stilts single just weeks into my October resurgence into the brilliance of Alight of Night. Being that I was already in the mood, so to speak, it didn't take much for me to latch on to this new slice of reverb-drenched and Rod Serling-approved pop goodness, but the fact that it's just flat-out great didn't hurt either.

[MP3]: Crystal Stilts :: Shake The Shackles

The undead strut of B-side "Magnetic Moon" isn't to be missed, either, and it's exclusive to this single. Limited edition white vinyl copies are available right now, but probably not for long, so grab it while you can!

Further: "California Bummer"

2010-10-19T20:16:00.002-04:00

Would you guys mind if I kind of just posted songs and videos and stuff without really writing that much about it? I'm down if you're down. Anyway, here's a really good song by Further!

Shrag in Scared To Dance's Autumn Fanzine!

2010-10-12T09:31:00.004-04:00

Shrag

Scared To Dance have just launched their Autumn fanzine! Their lead interview is with Cats On Fire who talk to them about new material and coming back to play in Britain. Also, they've got a track-by-track rundown of the new Tender Trap LP Dansette Dansette by indiepop legend Amelia Fletcher and The Specific Heats tell them about their recent European tour. Meanwhile they catch up with Shrag, Pocketbooks and Moustache Of Insanity. Here's a taste of the fanzine—an interview from the new issue with the wonderful Shrag!

How did Shrag come into the world?
 
Helen: Slowly and by surprise. A group of friends who accidentally started making songs together…  

Bob: It's like any kind of birth. It takes you a few years before you realise you exist. After that it was surprisingly easy.

  You’ve said that your eponymous debut LP felt more like a collection of material you’d recorded up to that point, rather than a self-contained record. Were you happy with the result? 

Helen: Oh yeah of course, you know I NEVER thought we’d actually have a full-length, so I was thrilled and we are proud of those songs, I think some more than others. But I guess because all of those songs had already been released – albeit in tiny runs of 300 – there wasn’t quite that feeling of “What will people think? Do we suck? Are we any good?” Having said that, the fact that WIAIWYA asked us to put them together as an album meant that far more people got to hear them than would have done otherwise, they reached far more people, and it got reviewed as an album by people who wouldn’t have listened to the singles, so it was exciting.

Bob: I'm still not convinced by the album format. A great album is more than a collection of songs. The debut LP is a collection of songs. Good ones though.

  You supported The Cribs last year and they’ve been incredibly supportive of the band. How was the experience of playing such large venues? 

Helen: Equal parts terrifying and exciting. I tried not to think about it once we were on stage to be honest, though there was one point where we played to what must have been a three quarters full London Astoria, and I looked out and had an actual knee-trembler. The Cribs are the loveliest boys in the world, sweet and funny and gentlemanly and incredibly tolerant of us, we must have been so annoying, we had absolutely NO CLUE about proper big tours like that, their tour manager would ask for things like stage plots and we’d just stare back at them blankly.   

Bob: I find the experience strangely comforting. The sound is always good and if you break a string someone you’ve never met before runs on and helps you change guitar. Then they offer to carry things for you. Brilliant!

During your recent gigs you’ve been playing quite a lot of new material. How have the new songs gone down? 

Helen: The vast majority of the feedback we’ve had has been good and encouraging. I think we got some criticism because we stopped playing a lot of the older songs a while ago – Sean Price (Fortuna Pop!) told us off for doing that, because I guess they were the only songs people had a chance of knowing – but really we had been playing those songs for ages and we were just excited about the new stuff and wanted to try it out. We do realise this is not particularly astute in terms of good business sense, but then that was never really our forte… (sorry Jervis).

The subject matters in your lyrics on your debut record were based on very specific events. Do the new songs open up to more general themes? 

Helen: Yeah you’re right about the first album. I think at that point, I had a certain feeling with the lyrics that they needed to have a concrete idea behind them. I was maybe a bit less confident, I’d never written lyrics for a band that were actually going to record before, it had all been the kind of thing you do with one other friend in your room, that kind of thing. So I think I felt, for some of the songs at least, that I needed to have something solid and sometimes a bit silly to write about. Which isn’t to say that I didn’t care about those things or that they were disingenuous in any way, but I guess this time I think I tried to be a bit braver and write about stuff that was happening to me and the people around me that I care about in a way which at least tried to approximate how these things really felt, and stuff in my life is rarely that defined or immediately coherent, especially the last couple of years. It felt important to not maybe hide so much behind a robust, easily delineated scenario. Saying that, “Tights In August” is pretty silly.

  You’re releasing your second album Life! Death! Prizes! on Monday 4th October. Tell us about the record.

 Helen: It’s got 12 songs on it, some are louder and faster than others, and it has lots of umber and orange and red and empty chairs on the artwork. I think musically we’re a bit better, have been a bit braver, have had more of a sense of what we might be able to do. Oh and one song has real strings on it! I’m especially excited about that.

  Bob: I think the album is structured like a really good live set. It was important to me in case we get asked to do one of those Don’t Look Back shows in years to come. We won’t of course, but it’s always nice to be prepared.

  Will you be touring later in the year in support of the album?

 Helen: Yes! We’re just finalising everything as I write this. We will be doing a UK tour from the Monday 27th September until Sunday 3rd October, and then we have our album launch show at the Lexington on Thursday 14th October. And then, providing we get our Visas, we’re going to New York to play CMJ and some shows around the East Coast, but we’ll see.

In the new issue they also talk to Fortuna Pop!, Big Pink Cake, Colour Me Pop, Brilldream and Dandelion Radio! And an Odd Box Records Showcase EP, Bless Me Iggy For I Have Sinned features exclusive songs from:

1. The Humms – Are You Dead?
2. The Blanche Hudson Weekend – Fever Van
3. Sarandon – Expecting Joe
4. Boundary JIM – House of the Seven Gables
5. The Medusa Snare – Tripping

Each copy is £2 plus P&P. Please email Paul Richards at admin@scaredtodance.co.uk to order. You can join them on Facebook and become a friend on Twitter.

Ringo Deathstarr: "Imagine Hearts"

2010-10-04T22:15:00.002-04:00

Whoa! This is too, too good! Have a listen to and a look at this video for new song "Imagine Hearts" from the forthcoming Ringo Deathstarr album Colour Trip. It'll be out February 2011 on Club AC30! I can't wait. More info HERE.

A monthly mix: October 2010!

2010-10-04T01:38:00.002-04:00

The greatest, most wonderful month of the year is finally upon us! I couldn't be more excited and I'm sure many of you could only agree! I've thrown together lots of Fall favorites for this month's mix and I think it all came together quite well. I hope you can find a few new favorites to enjoy for Octobers to come! Download link is below.

DOWNLOAD IT!!!

Tracklist:
01. Beat Happening "Noise"
02. The Frenchmen "Change of Season"
03. The 6ths "Falling Out of Love (With You)"
04. Pants Yell! "Evan's Way"
05. Heavenly "Orange Corduroy Dress"
06. The Softies "You and Only You"
07. Blueboy "Also Ran"
08. Las Robertas "V for You"
09. Yo La Tengo "Nowhere Near"
10. Spent "The Quarter Conspiracy"
11. Sushi "Strip Mall Breed"
12. Broadcast "Living Room"
13. The Pastels/Tenniscoats "Boats"
14. Ms. John Soda "Sometimes Stop, Sometimes Go"

Happy October! Go forth and listen!

Popfest New England 2010!

2010-09-21T20:45:00.002-04:00

I hope by now everyone is getting very excited for Popfest New England 2010! If you've yet to get excited than consider this your chance, because I'm going to be very excited about it for a few more sentences. As in the previous years, Popfest New England will be hosted by Skipping Stones Records in Northampton, Ma! This years fest will be taking place over two days — Saturday and Sunday, November 13-14. There are a lot of reasons to go, but here are two big ones: 1) The lineup is super awesome! (see below!) and 2) Northampton is going to be BEAUTIFUL in November; orange and red everywhere! Also, on a personal note, the two bands I begged to have at the fest are both going to be there (Weed Hounds and Sweet Bulbs, in case you were wondering). LETS'S GET EXCITED!

Here's that fantastic lineup I was talking about:

14 Iced Bears
London, England

Bourgeois Heroes
Northampton, MA

Panda Riot
Chicago, IL

Thrushes
Baltimore, MD

Brown Recluse
Philadelphia, PA

The Smittens
Burlington, VT

Strega
Brooklyn, NY

Schwervon!
Broooklyn, NY

The True Jacqueline
Northampton, MA

The Hush Now
Boston, MA

The Mystery Keys
Brooklyn, NY

Whistle Jacket
Somerville, MA

Weed Hounds
Brooklyn, NY

Onward Chariots
Brooklyn, NY

Sweet Bulbs
Brooklyn, NY

Math the Band
Providence, RI

Tinyfolk
Chicago, IL

I Want The World To Stop!

2010-09-06T15:38:00.005-04:00

Happy Labor Day! Here's a quick, yet very exciting, post for today. Judging by how much I love this song already, I think that this new B&S record has the potential to be a very terrific one! I never really had any kind of strong dislike for 'The Life Pursuit', but after just a few listens to "I Want The World To Stop", I'm already feeling pretty confident that 'Write About Love' is going to be a far more enjoyable experience!

Yay! ¡UPDATE! "I Didn't See It Coming" is even better!!!

Sweet Bulbs

2010-09-02T19:32:00.006-04:00

Sweet Bulbs

I've a huger than huge crush on Brooklyn's noisy Sweet Bulbs. Whenever someone asks me to describe what my favorite music sounds like, I'm normally left scrambling words together, getting nowhere fast. What I think my brain is normally desperately trying to describe is exactly what Sweet Bulbs sound like. Strep-contagious female vocal melodies paired with screaming guitar-mess and catchy, driving basslines. It's the quickest way to my metaphorical music-heart. The most exciting thing about Sweet Bulbs though, is that they seem to nail it everytime. As of right now I've still only heard a few songs, but they've done more than enough to make me enormously impatient to hear the whole of Sweet Bulbs' debut LP, Cybergaze. Listen to "Kissing Clouds" (from the upcoming Cybergaze) and perhaps you'll understand my excitement.

[MP3]: Sweet Bulbs "Kissing Clouds"
(There is no adjective strong enough to clearly stress my recommendation of this song!)

Sweet Bulbs on MySpace!

June

2010-09-01T19:15:00.003-04:00

Chapel Hill's June

Though it wasn't all that long ago, I've already forgotten where I heard of June in the first place, but I'm so glad glad I took the chance and downloaded their singles. I'm typically sold on "90s Chapel Hill" anyway, but reviews and descriptions only made them sound even sweeter. June don't sound all that sweet, though. Amongst the woven guitar lines and bursts of fuzz and distortion, Kat Cook's vocal harmonies still manage to steal the show in most of June's recordings. Way up front and mostly bereft of reverb or any other kind of effects, her voice ends up playing a very powerful role and the lines stick to you like glue almost immediately. They released three singles—one of which produced by Mr. Mitch Easter—and one one album in 1996 before breaking up nearly a month after. I've still yet to hear the full-length, but the three singles have been hogging most of my ear-time lately. Listen to "Stripteaser", the A-side from their second single in 1993 of the same name.

[MP3]: June "Stripteaser" (Highly Recommended!)

A monthly mix: September 2010!

2010-09-01T00:25:00.003-04:00

Fall is almost here!

I love Fall. This really shouldn't be any kind of secret to anyone that even knows me in the very most remote way. The connection between so much of the music I love and the many smells and sensations of this upcoming season is kind of uncanny, but it's something I've come to truly look forward to every year. There's nothing like putting on the perfect record and going for a walk or even a drive outside in that crispier than crisp air. Anyway, the mix. Well here it is. Take it out for a ride! It would be a little better if it weren't still 90 degrees during the day, but what can you do?

DOWNLOAD IT! [NEW LINK!]

Tracklist:
01. Cinema Red & Blue "Ballad Of A Bus Stop"
02. Felt "My Face Is On Fire"
03. Cold Cold Hearts "Broken Teeth"
04. Ruby Falls "I Knew You When"
05. The Birthday Machine "Direction & Destination"
06. The Spinanes "Rummy"
07. Lilys "Elizabeth Colour Wheel"
08. The Pines "Kisses And Fog"
09. The Airfields "The Long Way Home"
10. Boyracer "My Town"
11. The Fauns "1991"
12. Scrawl "Disappear Without A Trace"
13. Henry's Dress "Zero Zero Zero"
14. The Lucksmiths "If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now"

A monthly mix: August! 2010!

2010-08-04T16:25:00.003-04:00

This month's mix marks a farewell to a Summer that I've been eager to see the end of ever since it began. I'm not sure if that emotion shows through in the mix itself, but there's a good chance it's there somewhere. Despite my personally lackluster experiences the past several months, music has been very good to me and I feel like there are quite a lot of new things to be excited about! Opening the mix is Swimsuit. I mentioned them just a post ago, so you go find out a bit more there! The Best Coast and Wild Nothing records have both been soundtracking my Summer quite well and I still can't manage to put them down! Then, in terms of new stuff, there's the new Sky Larkin album! I cannot recommend it enough — it's a perfect slice of 90s indierock and it's been on repeat since I got my 90s-loving hands on it. The rest of the mix goes on in particular Skatterbrain mix fashion and I'm sure you'll see some familiar faces along the way. I really hope you enjoy this one! Have an awesome August!

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. Swimsuit "Evaporation"
02. Best Coast "When The Sun Don't Shine"
03. East Village "Strawberry Window"
04. Ultra Vivid Scene "Special One" (ft. Kim Deal)
05. The Arrogants "It's All A Dream (Nightmare Version)"
06. Wild Nothing "Our Composition Book"
07. Helium "Honeycomb"
08. Sky Larkin "Still Windmills"
09. The Autocollants "Beyond The Reef"
10. Camera Obscura "A Sister's Social Agony"
11. The Cave Weddings "Never Never Know"
12. Tuscadero "Mt. Pleasant"
13. Big Troubles "Freudian Slips"
14. Moped "Keep In Touch"

Swimsuit!!!

2010-07-27T20:05:00.005-04:00

Ypsilanti's own, Swimsuit!

Not since getting ahold of the Weed Hounds demo last year, have I been so excited and blown away by the first listen of demo. The band is Swimsuit and they're from Ypsilanti, MI! They're relatively fresh out of the over and are not to be slept on! Fred Thomas of the amazing, incredible, best ever Saturday Looks Good To Me teamed up with friends Shelley, Dina (of Secret Twins), and Amber to form Swimsuit back sometime around the beginning of the year. They've since released a Demo EP, Life Like, and since hearing it, oh, just about an hour ago, I've fallen madly in love. The melodies are surfy and as catchy as I could have hoped for (and frankly I do believe I could have guessed Fred was involved even if no one told me). The vocals, which I believe come from Dina — who lent her vocal chords to Stuart Murdoch's God Help The Girl project — are also pretty to die for. Listen to "Evaporation" below! If you love it as much as I do you'll definitely want to download the Life Like HERE.

[MP3]: Swimsuit :: Evaporation (SO, SO Rec'd!)

Swimsuit on MySpace!

I've got a passion for water

2010-07-21T18:47:00.003-04:00

Liechtenstein are back!

Following their fantastic debut LP, Liechtenstein are back with a new single on, you guessed it, Fraction Discs! The single's three tracks represent the sound of Liechtenstein we've all come to love, but the songs just seem to keep better and better. A-side "Passion For Water" sounds as if it were nicked from some lost El Records compilation. Like the rest of the single, it remains catchy and very danceable — just like I like my Liechtenstein to be! Have a listen to "Passion For Water" and keep your eyes peeled over at Fraction Discs, as it should be ready to order soon!

[MP3]: Liechtenstein :: Passion For Water

A monthly mix: July!

2010-07-08T22:31:00.003-04:00

A need to be on a rollercoaster asap.

Hey! Time for another monthly mix! The past month or so has yielded too many awesome records I've barely been able to keep up! Ideally I would get to separate posts for every single one of them, but if I don't have time for all of that, at least you'll be getting familiar with most of them on this new mix! There are a few personal Summer stardards on here — Dressy Bessy, The Cat's Miaow, True Love Always — that I hope you'll love, too! I'd really recommend popping this in and driving aimlessly into the sweltering Summer afternoon. You'll be sweaty, but you'll feel awesome! I'm sure of it! Let me know if you're curious about anything you hear!

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. Club 8 "Shape Up!"
02. Ivy "This Is The Day"
03. Gold-Bears "Tally"
04. The Mantles "Situations"
05. Dressy Bessy "Maybe Laughter"
06. Hexicon "Annie Oh!"
07. World Atlas "Saint Mary"
08. Allo, Darlin' "My Heart Is A Drummer"
09. Grass Widow "Shadow"
10. The Procedure Club "Vermont"
11. Neverever "Coconut Shampoo"
12. Seeland "Local Park"
13. The Cat's Miaow "I Really Don't Know"
14. Ampersand "I'm Still Waiting"
15. True Love Always "Sheets"

Reprobate!

2010-07-01T18:49:00.004-04:00

I cannot resist one second of the new Serena-Maneesh album. SM-2 is full of sounds and melodies that I've mostly heard before, but the thing is, those are some of my favorite kinds of sounds and melodies, so I'll never say no. I'm pretty much in agreement with how Eric at Marathon Packs so perfectly put it: "Seriously, music: if you keep recycling the basic Lush formula and stirring in different elements/theme variations, I’ll keep buying (into) it." This live video makes me love this song/album even more than I already do. I urge you, please indulge.

I'm gonna be the one on the morning train

2010-06-28T19:13:00.004-04:00

The Blanche Hudson Weekend, like the late MLS, seem to never stop releasing records. Not so far off the heels of their last EP, comes a new one called Hate Is A Loaded Gun. A new track from the EP titled "Let Me Go" is up streaming on Drowned In Sound right now, so you should go check it out post haste! It's a bit more upbeat than anything on the last EP, and I think it might just be my favorite BHW song yet.

New Pains Video: "Say No To Love"

2010-06-22T10:39:00.002-04:00

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's new sun-soaked video for their new single "Say No To Love" has just (well, two days ago) been released and it does just what a video should: it makes the song even more infectious than it already was. Watch it!

2010-06-22T01:49:00.003-04:00

The Liminanas

I don't follow Hozac's release schedule all that closely, but after realizing I've been missing out on The Liminanas for a while, I think I may be paying a little closer attention from here on out. The Liminanas come to us from France with pockets full of reverb-soaked hooks that both Phil Spector and VU could only be proud of. One listen to their single "I'm Dead" and you should be hooked. Grab the single from Hozac.

[MP3]: The Liminanas :: I'm Dead (Highly Rec'd!!!)

For Ex-Lovers Only debut single!

2010-06-21T15:03:00.006-04:00

I originally mentioned my favorite Florida band named after a Black Tambourine song almost three years ago on this very blog and they have just finally released their debut single! It comes to us from Magic Marker (who by the way are absolutely killing it with Summer releases right now — World Atlas, Gold-Bears, AND For Ex-Lovers Only???) and features three songs.

A-side "Coffin" is a driving, fuzzed-out pop song if I've ever heard one; a Summer jam, for sure. The B-sides follow in somewhat different veins, with "Scaps" even sounding a bit Guided By Voices-y. All in all, certainly one of my favorite singles of the year and I must urge you to pick it up immediately. Or, listen to "Coffin" immediately and then go order it!

[MP3]: For Ex-Lovers Only :: Coffin (Way Totally Recommended!)

For Ex-Lovers Only on MySpace!

Video: Dum Dum Girls "Bhang Bhang, I'm A Burnout"

2010-06-11T01:29:00.003-04:00

The brand new video for Dum Dum Girls' "Bhang Bhang, I'm A Burnout", directed by Christin Turner, is as perfect a visual companion to the song as I could have imagined. Girls dancing, colorful layers, sunshine — what more could one ask for?

Pet Milk: So Hot Right Now

2010-06-10T10:13:00.006-04:00

Pet Milk are fantastic new band from Philadelphia featuring, among others, the lovely Herbie Shellenberger of Brown Recluse! They — like one of my other recent favorites, Weed Hounds — play some highly infectious fuzzed-out pop with a little bit of that boy/girl vocal thing going on from time to time. Their debut demo EP reminds me of everything I love about noisy pop and ultimately leaves me feeling about as excited as I was when I first heard the Pains several years ago. I could listen to records and records of this stuff. I've been dying to see them live since I first heard their self-titled EP back around mid-May, but then I cleverly managed to miss their first show... bummer. Anyway, The Pet Milk EP is available for free over on Pet Milk's Bandcamp page and I highly recommend grabbing is as soon as you can — you really don't want to miss this one!

[MP3]: Pet Milk :: Cherry Outline (Really, really recommended!)

Pet Milk on Bandcamp.

A monthly mix: June!

2010-06-09T01:52:00.005-04:00

Summer!

The June mix is here! I feel quite bad for completely missing May, but I was a bit too distracted with at least a million things that it just never really came together. I've got a lot more free time right now though, so for the time being, you might see a little more action going on here than usual!

The cover art for this month's mix might be one of my favorites and it also happens to be relevant to my recent interest in Paris. "Paris" by Northern Picture Library is also the closing track on the mix — are you starting to notice the connections?? The song choices are all over the place, but it all works out, I promise. I bet The Beach Boys never thought they would be sharing a tracklist with the rest of these bands! The tracklist is just a few lines below and I encourage you to check it out and see if this mix is the one for you! Have a happy June! Let me know if you like it!

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. Brittle Stars "Tripping Me Up"
02. Alsace Lorraine "Though I've Never Seen You"
03. The Beach Boys "Girl Don't Tell Me"
04. Pia Fraus "Summer Before Spring"
05. The Blanche Hudson Weekend "Sharks"
06. Eggs "It's Hard To Be An Egg"
07. Broadcast "Man Is Not A Bird"
08. Saturday Looks Good To Me "Car Crash"
09. Mahogany "One Plus One Equals Three Or More"
10. The Ecstasy of Saint Theresa "Sweet Abyss"
11. Belle and Sebastian "A Century Of Fakers"
12. Grenadine "In A World Without Heroes"
13. A Sunny Day In Glasgow "Summerlong Silences"
14. Northern Picture Library "Paris"

You Love Me Or You Don't

2010-05-19T01:42:00.003-04:00

Bake Sale

Hailing from the likely, yet unlikely, city of Memphis, Tennessee are Bake Sale. If I were a slightly more bitter, critical soul I'd probably be able to find fault in the pop stylings of these girls (and guy). However, being the easily swooned pop-lover I am, the beautiful four minutes and sixteen seconds of "Prom Song" left me glass-eyed, sighing "Yessssssssss." Have a listen for yourself. "Meanwhile", which is currently streaming on Bake Sale's MySpace, is also definitely worth a few listens.

[MP3]: Bake Sale :: Prom Song (Highly Rec'd!!!)

P.S. This also happens to be my 1,000 post on Skatterbrain. Hooray!

In love with: Las Robertas

2010-05-13T05:03:00.003-04:00

Las Robertas

These girls seem to be getting written up all over the internet right now, but I'm finding myself too in love with their debut Cry Out Loud to not also give a shout about them here. Las Robertas hail from Costa Rica and make some of the best fuzzed-out pop these ears have heard in a while. There are a lot of bands out and about right now just chomping at the bit for this type of sound, but so few really have the melodic chops for it. You can't just get by being cute and plugging into a fuzz pedal—at least not for me. Each and every song on Cry Out Loud is melodically memorable, and instantly so! This can be a hard trick to pull of in a genre that is, frankly, massively over-saturated at the moment. That's why Las Robertas get such two huge thumbs up from me. For example, notice how quickly this song gets into your head.

[MP3]: Las Robertas :: In Between Buses (So Highly Recommended!!!)

Download Cry Out Loud for free, HERE!

New video for "Western Hospitality"

2010-05-11T12:18:00.003-04:00

I've been dying to hear the new Club 8 album, The People's Record, ever since I got my ears on it's first single "Western Hospitality" months ago. It's a brilliant song and I love the video. Now if you could just put the record into my hands, I would be the happiest person!

Preorder The People's Record from Labrador!

Rocket Fire

2010-04-29T10:44:00.005-04:00

Cover art for Rocket Fire.

The new Ceremony record that I speculatively mentioned back in early March is finally really, truly out! True to my hopes and suspicions, it's flat out fantastic. While comparisons could easily be made to A Place To Bury Strangers, anyone with a keen ear for melody would have to agree that Ceremony lends themselves much more to Skywave's pop sensibilities than that of APTBS. That said, the noise is definitely coming before the pop on Rocket Fire — and to great success, too! Songs like "Stars Fall" and "Marianne" are total noisepop gems worthy of endless repeated listens and "Someday" sounds like it could have been a classic Factory Records single. The CD version of the record is out now on Killer Pimp, but the vinyl version won't be out until May 25th. Personally I'd say it's worth the wait. Tide yourself over by listening to "Marianne".

[MP3]: Ceremony :: Marianne (Very Highly Recommended!)

Ceremony on MySpace!

The Secret History: "Johnny Anorak"

2010-04-23T02:14:00.001-04:00

So in love with this song right now!

A monthly mix: April!

2010-04-20T12:58:00.003-04:00

The latest yet!

Hello all! Long time no see, yes? Unfortunately, when real life responsibilities pile up, the internet responsibilities are the first to fall to very bottom of the list — but we all know that. Anyway, enough excuses! I present to you the absolute latest monthly mix to ever be compiled! This month's mix is a real mish-mash of stuff; pretty much a random sampling of what you would have heard had you been hiding out in my room for the past couple weeks. It's full of 100% totally good songs though, and I would still very highly recommend getting it and listening to it — especially if you're unfamiliar with anything on the tracklist. Off you go!

DOWNLOAD IT!

01. Trinitone "Trying To Think"
02. Butterglory "Waiting On The Guns"
03. Flying Saucer Attack "Soaring High"
04. Dum Dum Girls "Blank Girl"
05. The Wedding Present "Granadaland"
06. The Eyes "I'm Rowed Out"
07. The School "I Want You Back"
08. Tiger Tape "She Is Fiction"
09. Then "Afterglow"
10. The Soft City "Capital Soul"
11. The Charade "The World Is Going Under"
12. Leaving Mornington Crescent "Corners"
13. Fat Tulips "Chainsaw"
14. Citrus Groove "Hit The Ground"

Enjoy!

Flashbacks

2010-04-02T14:00:00.004-04:00

Really, really excited for this record!

Slumberland will be releasing it on both CD and 12" vinyl on April 26th! Just a little over a week-ish after the Chin Chin reissue is released! It's gonna be a good Slumberland Spring!

Video: Summer Cats, Rose Melberg, Mike Schulman: "Throw Aggi Off The Bridge"

2010-03-29T00:01:00.002-04:00

I'll regret not being at this for a very long time. Possibly forever.

Video: The School: "Is He really Coming Home?"

2010-03-25T16:02:00.003-04:00

Is this really happening?!?! Two new videos from two of my most anticipated albums on this Spring in the same day?! My pop heart is exploding! I'm somehow even more excited for Loveless Unbeliever than I already was, which is really saying something because I've truly been counting the days waiting to hear it. The video is a beauty to look at and very perfect for The School's sound. If I may, I would strongly urge you to also check this one out!

Video: Allo, Darlin: "Dreaming"

2010-03-25T15:42:00.002-04:00

The brand spanking new video for Allo, Darlin's newest single "Dreaming" is now up! The single, if you haven't yet had the pleasure of hearing it, features the very fitting voice of Monster Bobby. Their vocal pairing comes off as a little bit "C Is The Heavenly Option"-ish, which is just fantastic! Anyway! This video is yet another reason to get absolutely over-the-top excited about the album! The video is just spliced together super 8 footage of a night on the town, but I think it suits the song pretty well. Watch!!!

NYC Popfest spotlight: Leaving Mornington Crescent

2010-03-24T10:19:00.002-04:00

Leaving Mornington Crescent

Leaving Mornington Crescent are one of the bands I'm most excited to see at Popfest this year. I heard their new-ish Corners EP a little while back, but the weather is finally getting perfect for it and I suspect it'll be getting daily play for a while! Just as most things that are catchy and sweet, Leaving Mornington Crescent hail from the the great country of Sweden. Their previously mentioned EP, Corners, has been out for a little while now care of Susy Records, but if you're in the US you can get it from Chris Mac's newly opened Jigsaw Records! Here's the sweeping, string-laden title track from the EP! It won't leave you head!

[MP3]: Leaving Mornington Crescent :: Corners (Highly Rec'd!!!)

Catch LMC on the first night of Popfest at the Cake Shop!!!

Leaving Mornington Crescent on MySpace!
NYC Popfest 2010 on Facebook

New Hari and Aino: "All That Remains"

2010-03-23T15:09:00.002-04:00

Hari and Aino have just released — with perfect timing, I must say — a brand new EP titled All That Remains on Edition 59. They've also got a new and fantastic video for the title track to go along with it! Check it out!

Hari and Aino on MySpace!

A monthly mix: March!

2010-03-16T03:31:00.003-04:00

The monthly mix is arriving rather late this month — almost exactly halfway through the month to be exact! Anyway, it's here and I think it's a pretty good one! March's mix officially leaves the dead of Winter behind and instead finds itself packed full of brightly-colored pop songs under the awesome influence of Springtime! Now if it would just stop raining already...

A few notes: There are a bit more new songs on this mix then there normally are, so I wanted to bring a little attention to a few of them. The new songs Allo, Darlin' and Club 8 will be on their respective new records out soon, so keep your eyes very, very peeled for those! As for the two new bands on the tracklist, Junkers and Party Photographers, well they both hail from Philadelphia! Junkers' picture perfect 60s garage pop and Party Photographers' fuzzy pop noise are both worth keeping an eye or three on as well! There will be separate posts on both in the near future!

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. The Ropers "Lost"
02. Air Miami "Definitely Beachy"
03. Pants Yell! "Stop Making Music"
04. Land of Ill Earthquakes "Heartbreak Bombardier"
05. The Fairways "Postcard Picture Perfect"
06. Pipas "Book Launch"
07. Allo, Darlin' "Dreaming" (with Monster Bobby)
08. Gigi "The Marquee" (with Katie Eastburn)
09. Club 8 "Western Hospitality"
10. Junkers "Summer Fun, Summer Bums"
11. Postal Blue "The World Doesn't Need You Now"
12. Blueboy "Amoroso"
13. Dear Nora "Hey Tiger"
14. Party Photographers "Piano Vache"

Enjoy!

Video: Ceremony: "Stars Fall"

2010-03-12T14:22:00.001-05:00

By the sounds of this new song, the new Ceremony album is going to be awesome!

P.S. Thanks Ed!

NYC Popfest spotlight: Dream Diary

2010-03-09T11:59:00.004-05:00

Dream Diary

I first heard Dream Diary this past Fall and loved the two Brighter-esque songs they had up on MySpace at that time. Fast forward to now — those still seem to be the only songs they've got in circulation and I still haven't caught wind of any planned releases. As the previous Brighter name-drop may have suggested, the Brooklyn group play twinklingly classic indiepop from the heart! I feel like they should have had something released on Holiday Records by now — seems like the perfect home for them! Anyway, make sure you don't miss them when they play Thursday, May 20 on the opening night of Popfest at the Cake Shop! Until then!

[MP3]: Dream Diary :: Bird In My Garden

Dream Diary on MySpace!
NYC Popfest 2010 on Facebook

Video: Allo Darlin: "Polaroid"

2010-03-08T17:09:00.003-05:00

I'm just now discovering the absolute wonderfulness that is Allo Darlin! Please forgive me for living under a rock and not hearing this amazing song or seeing this fantastic video until just a few moments ago. I think I'm in love.

NYC Popfest spotlight: Elephant Parade

2010-03-04T10:02:00.004-05:00

Elephant Parade

Playing right after Sweater Girls on the first night of the Popfest, we've got Elephant Parade. Estelle (of the wonderful Brittle Stars) and Ido play sparse, hearfelt pop songs with acoustic guitars and minimal electronics. Their first self-released record, appropriately titled Bedroom Recordings, is sweet and sad and well, mostly its all about love — a reasonable enough subject for boy/girl duo singing like they're whispering into each others ears. They're currently at work on a new record, so keep lookout for that; I'd imagine they'll probably be playing quite a few new ones at the show! For now though, check out "For You" from Bedroom Recordings:

[MP3]: Elephant Parade :: For You

Elephant Parade on MySpace!
NYC Popfest 2010 on Facebook

We Disappear

2010-03-02T01:23:00.003-05:00

Transmittens!

I first heard Lawrence, Kansas' own Transmittens almost a year ago when WeePOP! released their first mini-album, Our Dreams. At that time they sounded a bit like the Deirdres, playing lush little pop songs full of bells and what have you. Well, fast forward to the now and they've already got another mini-album out on WeePOP! and this one is called We Disappear. Things are a little bit different this time around, but "catchy little pop song"s would still be a pretty solid descriptor. The album end up being somewhat stylistically split between, well, the songs with synth and the songs without synth. Personally, I think it's the latter that make We Disappear so charming and keep me coming back to it. Songs like "Holiday", "Something Else", and "Blue Whale" are little gems.

[MP3]: Transmittens :: Blue Whale (Very Recommended!)

Buy We Disappear from WeePOP!
Transmittens on MySpace!

NYC Popfest spotlight: Sweater Girls

2010-02-25T23:25:00.003-05:00

L.A.'s Sweater Girls (and boys)

Much like I attempted back 2008, I'm am again going to try to highlight as many bands playing the NYC Popfest this year — especially the ones that are new to me — as I can before the Popfest starts! I'll be moving through the lineups chronologically, so first up will be Sweater Girls from Los Angeles, California!

To my slight surprise, Sweater Girls are not all girls and are infact 2/5 boys (one of which is former Siddeley Allan Kingdom!). They play catchy indiepop with nice female vocals and twinkly leads aplenty. The demos on their MySpace page are wonderful and I'd highly recommended listening to them all, perhaps a few times. Indiepages described them as a "full band Softies" a little while back, which not only sounds a bit like a dream, but is also relatively accurate! They'll be heading off the Popfest Thursday, May 20 at the Cake Shop. I would definitely consider them a "don't miss".

Here's a live video of "Pretty When You Smile":

Sweater Girls on MySpace!
NYC Popfest 2010 on Facebook

The Hummingbirds: "Get On Down"

2010-02-24T11:58:00.001-05:00

Hello, I've been rather hooked on The Hummingbirds lately. How they aluded me for oh so long is one big gigantic mystery, but I sure am glad I have them now.

The Pastels/Tenniscoats: live!

2010-02-23T14:30:00.003-05:00

This video is an entire live set of their show at Point éphémère. If you click the link you can watch it on the original site where it's split into chapters. The video quality is impeccable and the songs sound so beautiful live! So many thanks to Brogues for pointing this out a few days on the list. I've been glued to it all morning, and I'm thinking that some of you may end up doing the same once you check it out.

Things You Used To Say

2010-02-19T10:39:00.004-05:00

I guess I've been a bit out of the loop as I was very surprised earlier this week when I found out about Very Truly Yours' debut LP, Things You Used To Say. The record is due out March 23rd on Skywriting Records, the teeny pop label that has previously released records from Dreamdate and Cloetta Paris. On Things You Used To Say Chicago's Very Truly Yours pretty continue from where they left off with last year's Reminders EP. You can expect ten new slices of their sunny, delicate pop songs topped off with Kristine's dreamy vocals. You'll find that the Camera Obscura comparisons that emerged with Reminders last year are still quite applicable here, too. As much as I'd love to see a bit of a return to the style of their first Cloudberry split, these ten songs are beautiful pop gems of the highest order and I can't wait for it to warm up so I can take them with me on a sunny Spring walk.

[MP3]: Very Truly Yours :: Things You Used To say (Recommended!)

Preorder Things You Used To Say!
Very Truly Yours on MySpace!

A monthly mix: February!

2010-02-10T09:26:00.003-05:00

Please excuse the delay on this one, at least it's finally here! It was originally delayed due to getting settled into my last semester of college, but then the 30+ inches of snow currently keeping me down hasn't exactly helped either. Anyway, enough excuses! If you happen to be similarly and happily snowed in like me then you'll probably find a lot to like about the lush wintery sounds on this mix. If you'd rather be dreaming of Spring, you're gonna have to wait until the next one, because when the snow is coming down I just never want it to stop. Maybe it'll stop sometime, though. For now, here are fourteen mostly dreamy songs. Something old and something new, something noisy and something smooth — and lots of other things! If I were you I would go make myself a snow fort and listen to this in there.

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. The Radio Dept. "Heaven's On Fire"
02. The Electric Pop Group "Drawing Lines"
03. Sambassadeur "Sandy Dunes"
04. Sea Dweller "Underwater Town"
05. Chin Chin "Dark Days"
06. My Favorite "Cult Hero, Come Home"
07. Sourpatch "Outer Space"
08. Grenadine "I Only Have Eyes For You"
09. Bouquet "Electric Fluff"
10. The Arctic Flow "Books and Magazines"
11. The Cat's Miaow "Tangle My Shoes"
12. Felt "Mexican Bandits"
13. Veronica Falls "Starry Eyes"
14. Pia Fraus "Deep Purple Girl"

Enjoy!

Anticipation

2010-02-05T10:22:00.002-05:00

[MP3]: The Cat's Miaow :: Do You Think It Will Snow Tonight?

Yes, yes I do — and I am very excited!

Black Tambourine: New Stuff

2010-01-27T21:53:00.001-05:00

Heavens to murgatroid!

OH BOY!

2010-01-25T08:40:00.003-05:00

World Atlas

Good morning! While doing my daily MySpace check-in this morning before class I decided to see what World Atlas, whom I've mentioned a couple times in the past, were up to these days. To my extreme delight, it turns out they're up to a lot! They have apparently got a record to be released by Magic Marker at some point — hopefully soon! The more immediate and exciting news however, is that they will be playing the NYC Popfest this year!!! with a string section!!! I couldn't say yay enough to times to truly justify how great I think this will be.

Go Listen to some of their sweet pop tunes on MySpace!

In other almost-equally-exciting news, the new Sad Day For Puppets 7" on Cloudberry is almost out!!! It'll be available February 10th and you're definitely going to want to be grabbing one. I've been listening to "Again" since Roque first put it up and it still sounds like gold!

[MP3]: Sad Day For Puppets :: Again (Hiiighly Recommended!!!)

Two New Blanche Hudson Weekend songs!

2010-01-14T12:31:00.006-05:00

The Rats In The Cellar EP

At this point I feel that it's pretty safe to say that my love for The Blanche Hudson Weekend grows just as deep as it did for the late, great Manhattan Love Suicides — and I love/loved the MLS. A LOT. I ordered the BHW's Letters To Daddy EP last year as soon as it was out and I'll do the same again with their upcoming Odd Box release, The Rats In The Cellar EP. The two new songs on their MySpace right now, which will hopefully be on the EP, are both brilliant — and more importantly, they further prove that the BHW, like their predecessors, have the same fantastic inability to ever write a dull song. Head over over to MySpace and listen to "Only Snow" and "Grip Of Fear" and do your eyes peeled for that new EP!

Sea Dweller

2010-01-12T01:24:00.005-05:00

Sea Dweller

Okay, whoa. To be honest, I already forget how I stumbled upon Sea Dweller — aka Italy's greatest whammy-bending secret — but I am sooooooooooo glad that I did! This is truly some of the best shoegaze I've heard that was made in the past ten years. I suppose we all prefer our noisy melodies in different ways, but the Swirlies/MBV/Ecstasy of Saint Theresa sort of thing that Sea Dweller has got going on could not be more accurately hitting the nail on the head for me. When the the verse comes in on "Settings" I simply die. Anyway, they just released their debut record this past November on 2&1 Records. Had I heard it just a little bit sooner it would have been a huge favorite of the year for me. Listen to "Settings" right now!

[MP3]: Sea Dweller :: Settings (Super Recommended!)

Sea Dweller on MySpace!

Video: Evening Lights: "Are You Listening?"

2010-01-11T01:58:00.003-05:00

I CANNOT WAIT for the release of the Evening Lights' posthumous debut album! It shoul dbe out anytime now on Shelflife Records! I am going to listen to "Are You Listening?" over and over and over and over and I won't even have to set foot on MySpace to do it! Oh what a day that will be! Wish I would have gotten to see them live!

If I could just have you here in my arms

2010-01-11T01:31:00.003-05:00

Sleepover

Sleepover are a new-ish indiepop band hailing from the lovely state of Utah that play early 90s K Recs-sounding stuff. They've recently released their debut s/t record as a free download from Magic Goat. There are a lot of great songs within — "Kilgore", "Sleepover", and "Swim Swam Swum" are early favorites! My one complaint is that all of the lovely vocal melodies throughout the record are, at times, just barely cutting through the mix. I'd really like to hear them a bit louder! Other than that bit, it's a pretty wonderful debut record full of catchy little pop songs like this one, right here!

[MP3]: Sleepover :: Swim Swam Swum

Sleepover on MySpace!

What's a girl to do?

2010-01-08T03:08:00.004-05:00

Some Yuck feet, I think.

I just found out about Yuck via Jack Shankly's ever-brilliant Transparent Blog. I listened to their song Georgia. Then I listened to it again. Then I Listened to it again, and again, and again, and again. In fact, it's still playing, and I haven't the slightest urge to hit the stop button yet. The name Georgia in the title immediately brought Yo La Tengo into my head, and come to think of it, it sounds a wee bit like Yo La Tengo. It's got that sunny, wheezing fuzz that I just can't seem to ever say no to, but on top of that we've also got some pretty great — albeit quite drenched — boy/girl harmonies going on. Some totally great, poppy 90s stuff going on here, but one question still remains. Who are Yuck? At least we know they're from "New Jersey, London, Hiroshima". That really narrows it down. Thanks, guys.

[MP3]: Yuck :: Georgia

I don't know what it's like to know you

2010-01-07T01:05:00.002-05:00

Chris, Mark, and Jenny

I got ahold of Grenadine's first record, Goya, about a month ago, but didn't really listen to it until this past afternoon and I'm in love with it front beginning to end. What would one expect from a Jenny Toomey and Mark Robinson combination. It's beautiful, moody and woozy, but also downright poppy. Jenny and Mark's vocals are brilliant and well, I don't know, I don't really have anymore words, but I'm just really stuck on this song – along with just about every other one of the record.

[MP3]: Grenadine :: In A World Without Heroes

McTells: "Snowy White"

2010-01-05T16:34:00.003-05:00

Four Letter Words 003, 1991.

I haven't listened to The McTells in a while, but I saw their "Snowy White" 7" yesterday and for just four bucks, I couldn't pass it up. "Snowy White" sounds like it could have been a chart topping garage hit in the 60s. It sure has enough stops and starts. Speaking of "Snowy White", I could realy go for some more snow right now. I can't get enough of the stuff.

[MP3]: The McTells :: Snowy White

Skatterbrain's Top Songs of 2009: Vol. 2

2009-12-28T15:31:00.002-05:00

The next 22!

As promised, here's Volume Two! Same drill again, lots of different stuff going on, but I assure you, not one of them should be missed! Hope you enjoy it!

Skatterbrain's Top Songs of 2009: Vol. 2
DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. Grass Widow "To Where"
02. Brilliant Colors "Highly Evolved"
03. Summer Cats "Hey You"
04. The Cave Weddings "When The Lights Go Out"
05. Veronica Falls "Found Love In A Graveyard"
06. Vivian Girls "Can't Get Over You"
07. Weed Hounds "Embrace (More Or Less)"
08. Brown Recluse "Contour And Context"
09. The Clientele "Tonight"
10. Rose Melberg "Things That We Do"
11. The Pastels/Tenniscoats "Song For A Friend"
12. P.S. Eliot "Tonight"
13. The Mantles "Don't Lie"
14. Afternoon Naps "The Fall Companion"
15. Devon Williams " Sufferer"
16. The Depreciation Guild "Dream About Me"
17. The Fauns "The Sun Is Cruising"
18. Pants Yell! "Rue De La Paix"
19. Best Coast "Make You Mine"
20. The Blanche Hudson Weekend "Crying Shame"
21. A Sunny Day In Glasgow "Passionate Introverts"
22. The Raveonettes "Boys Who Rape (Should be Destroyed)"

Skatterbrain's Top Songs of 2009: Vol. 1

2009-12-28T13:30:00.006-05:00

The first 22!

Some people might have some different things to say about 2009 music-wise, but for me, it was a pretty good year – for both singles and albums. Though I hardly blogged as much I wanted to, I was still listening, a lot! I tried and tried to put together an actual 'best of 2009' list, but I just couldn't decide, so that's why, like last year, I've decided to make a mix of my favorite songs of the year, in no particular order, spread across two volumes, 44 songs total. There shouldn't be a ton of surprises here, but there is a quite wide range of sounds here, from the slow and soft to the quick and noisy. I hope you enjoy the mixes and here's looking forward to a great 2010! Here's Volume One, Volume Two will be here later!

Skatterbrain's Top Songs of 2009: Vol. 1
DOWNLOAD IT! *NEW LINK* (as of 1/13/10)

Tracklist:
01. The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart "Stay Alive"
02. Burning Hearts "A Peasant's Dream"
03. The Cavalcade "Meet You In The Rain"
04. Two If By Sea "Pale As White"
05. Very Truly Yours "1 2 3 4"
06. Liechtenstein "Wallpaper Stripes"
07. Knight School "Oprah (Open Your Ears)"
08. Andy's Airport Of Love "Duquesne Incline"
09. Seeland "Turnaround"
10. Maribel "Deflowers"
11. Crystal Stilts "Love Is A Wave"
12. The Specific Heats "Violent?"
13. Dreamdate "8 Sleeves"
14. The Kick Inside "It's Always The Quiet Ones"
15. The Sea Lions "Beautiful Day"
16. The Understudies "Flicknives"
17. Cats On Fire "Letters From A Voyage To Sweden"
18. God Help The Girl "Stills"
19. Boy Genius "Blame Love"
20. Nun Party "Architect Of My Heart"
21. Yo La Tengo "All Your Secrets"
22. The Metric Mile "In Praise Of Ski Jumpers"

Look Blue Go Purple: "Circumspect Penelope"

2009-12-24T01:40:00.001-05:00

A love I didn't know I had for Look Blue Go Purple has recently arisen. I'm in love!

A monthly mix: December!

2009-12-08T09:01:00.003-05:00

It's finally here! Sorry about the delay, but better late than never, right? I went back and forth trying to decide whether to make the December mix a Christmas mix or just another monthly mix. In the end I decided to just make it non-holiday-themed. I've got a partial Christmas mix put together though, so perhaps I may finish that up and post it a little later. Not a ton of surprises on this one I suppose, but a lot of good, chilly songs. As far as new-ish stuff, The Fauns track is from their debut LP that came out earlier this year. It's really great dream pop through and through and I'd really recommend checking it out if you dig this song. There's also a brand new Weed Hounds song that I've been playing over and over lately. I see a really great record in their future... fingers crossed! The Mix closes with a seriously fuzzy Ecstasy Of Saint Theresa jam that I'd advise you listen to super loud!

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. Unrest "Isabel (12" version)"
02. Pia Fraus "Outskirts Of Me"
03. Lush "Kiss Chase"
04. Evening Lights "In A Day"
05. Mars Accelerator "Plastic Afterglow"
06. Stereolab "Ping Pong"
07. Tears Run Rings "Run Run Run"
08. A Sunny Day In Glasgow "Passionate Introverts"
09. Hydroplane "New Monotonic FM"
10. The Rileys "Dreamsway"
11. Je Suis Animal "Secret Place"
12. The Fauns "The Sun Is Cruising"
13. Weed Hounds "Hard Drivin'"
14. Ecstasy Of Saint Theresa "Honeyrain"

Enjoy!

New Bart & Friends: "A Summer's Dream"

2009-12-02T11:56:00.003-05:00

I still tend to go a little crazy for anything and everything Cat's Miaow related, so imagine my excitement when I got a message from Bart (Cat's Miaow, Hydroplane, Pencil Tin, Shapiros, etc) just the other day mentioning two brand new songs he'd recently finished recording?! Not that anyone was questioning it, but he's still very much got it! "A Summer's Dream" sounds like some beautiful mix of Hydroplane and The Go-Betweens and I'm in love with it.

[MP3]: Bart & Friends :: A Summer's Dream

Another new track, "Make You Blush", is available here.

Study Of The Lifeless

2009-12-01T10:38:00.003-05:00

Ugh.

Despite sporting what has got to be THE worst cover art in the history of everything, Study Of The Lifeless' Self-titled 1999 debut features some seriously good songs. As a point of reference, prepare to expect sprawling dreaminess ala Just For A Day-era Slowdive.

[MP3]: Study Of The Lifeless :: Nothing Every Stays The Same

P.S. December mix coming soon!

Lorelei at SLR20!

2009-11-30T08:06:00.003-05:00

Lorelei in 1993.

Lorelei's set at Slumberland's 20th Anniversary in DC was one of my favorite parts of the entire show for sure. It was their unexpected cover of Lilys' "February Fourteenth" though, that for me at least, was the absolute pinnacle of the night. I was one of those people screaming "valentine" at the top of their lungs during the chorus. It was magical.

[MP3]: Lorelei :: February Fourteenth (Lilys cover) (Live at SLR20 in DC)

Download the rest of the DC and NYC sets here.

Screamfeeder: "Dart"

2009-11-24T10:12:00.004-05:00

Screamfeeder circa 1997

[MP3]: Screamfeeder :: Dart

As mentioned in the last post, I've been completely hooked on Screamfeeder's 1996 LP, Kitten Licks, for quite a few weeks now. "Dart" is probably my favorite moment of the record, but to be honest, there are few duds to be found throughout it. This type of fuzzy 90s stuff has really been my cup of tea lately. Most days I seem to just be going back and forth between The Spinanes, Screamfeeder, and Versus.

Bonus! The video for "Gravity", also from Kitten Licks. On "Gravity" they tend to pretty much just sound like Pavement.

Long time no see

2009-11-23T08:18:00.004-05:00

Finally, on this cloudy Monday morning, I've found some free space to actually give this blog a minute of my time. I really miss posting and updating frequently and keeping up with everything, but frankly I just can't do it like I used to – real life just keeps getting in the way. So I've decided that, while I truly can't keep it up in the same way it once was, I can still keep it going. Instead of new reviews and features and etc, I'm going to try out just posting a song a day, with just a little bit of background. I think that will be fun! We'll see, though.

Just to catch you up to speed though, here's a bit of what I've been loving lately:
Pants Yell! Received Pronunciation
Best Coast Make You Mine EP
Versus Secret Swingers
Screamfeeder Kitten Licks
The Fauns S/T
The Spinanes Strand
A Sunny Day In Glasgow Ashes Grammar

Now for a song – not from any of those records!

[MP3]: #Poundsign# :: Michigan

I'm going to assume anyone reading this is relatively familiar with #Poundsign#, but maybe not with this particular song. "Michigan" comes from the 1997 Cher Doll compilation Something Cool. It's one of my favorite comps ever. Check out the rest of the tracklist and you'll see why. It's even gold based on "Michigan" and that Rizzo track alone!

A monthly mix: November!

2009-11-02T22:55:00.003-05:00

November!

Didn't quite make it by the first, but yes, it is indeed monthly mix time again! November is looking pretty good so far – leaves are really coming off the trees now and sweater weather is almost in full swing! This mix was sort based stylistically around the fact that I just HAD to put a Spinanes song on it, and it just HAD to be "Hawaiian Baby", and then the rest of the mix just sort of fell into place. Lots of 90s, and if I'm not mistaken, all American bands, too. This mix, like most of the monthly mixes, is a pretty good representation of where my tastes are lying at the moment. Anyway, I hope you like it! Download away!

DOWNLOAD IT!

Tracklist:
01. The Autocollants "Send Me Back"
02. Ida "Dream Date"
03. The Spinanes "Hawaiian Baby"
04. The Clientele "Shadow Of Your Life"
05. Veronica Lake "Insecure Baby"
06. Beat Happening "Sleepy Head"
07. The State Of Samuel "Slow Day For The UFOs"
08. Insta "Nitelight"
09. Sleepyhead "Sick Of Heaven"
10. The Ropers "Home"
11. Versus "Wind Me Up"
12. Julie Doiron "Sweeter"
13. Nerdy Girl "Hate Me"
14. Heartworms "Really, Really, Really, Sorry (Parts I & II)"

Susurrate

2009-10-27T09:08:00.002-04:00

Susurrate

I've been listening to Ecstasy of Saint Theresa's debut LP Susurrate (Along with The Spinanes' Strand) pretty much endlessly as of late. It feels like such a perfect record to me and I seem to keep getting lost in it. Some strange mixing (see: "Thorn In Y'r Grip"), but it all work so well. Their first EP Pigment is also amazing, and by all accounts probably better than Susurrate, but I love them both. Here's "Pistaccio Places", from Susurrate.

[MP3]: Ecstasy of Saint Theresa :: Pistaccio Places (Highly Recommended!)

Frankie Rose

2009-10-27T08:36:00.003-04:00

Cover art from "Thee Only One"

Among other things (THE ROPERS!), I'm really excited to see Frankie Rose and the Outs at the Slumberland Anniversary show in DC on November 13! Her new single, sans the Outs, is out now on Slumberland, of course, and it's a fucking gem of a record. Musically, Frankie reminds me a great deal of Linton in terms of vocal chops and melodic style. While the charging A-Side "Thee Only One" recalls "Been Hiding" or even late-period Henry's Dress ala "Only 21", the graceful epic "Hollow Life" on flip side could be comparatively called Frankie Rose's "Bang Bang Bang" – though perhaps sounding a bit more Tracyanne than Linton amidst the layers and layers of reverb. Get this single now, because in a couple years you'll regret it if you don't.

[MP3]: Frankie Rose :: Thee Only One (Way Recommended!!!)

Frankie Rose and the Outs on MySpace!

Elm City POPFEST!

2009-10-22T09:05:00.005-04:00

Elm City Popfest!

The news of no New England Popfest this year was a bit sad to hear when it was announced back in the beginning of September, but just a few weeks later, the announcement of the very first Elm City Popfest was like a shining beacon of hope! A beautiful, Sunny Day In Glasgow-headlined, beacon of hope! Elm City Popfest will take place this year on November 14th in New Haven, Connetticut – Tweefort HQ, as some may know. The popfest is being put on as a collaboration between both Tweefort and CT Indie and will be a sort of mini-popfest of sorts. Music will start around 3pm in the afternoon on Saturday and will probably wind down sometime around 11pm. The day's full schedule looks like this:

3:00 PM - FayRey (New Haven/New York)
3:45 PM - One Happy Island (Boston)
~~4:30 PM - The Sugarplums (Baltimore)~~ *
5:15 PM - The Cavemen Go (New Haven/Boston)
6:00 PM - The Metric Mile (New York)

7:00 PM - Intermission

8:00 PM - ArtSpace Underground @ Elm City PopFest begins with DJ and performance art

9:00 PM - The Tyler Trudeau Attempt (New Haven)
10:00 PM - A Sunny Day In Glasgow (Philadelphia)

* The Sugarplums were set to play the popfest, but unfortunately, due to unforeseen scheduling conflicts and bad tires, we had to cancel.

A full day ticket for the Popfest is only $8 (!) and all proceeds will go to benefit Artspace New Haven, which has undergone more than $90,000 in budget cuts this year. Artspace is an artist and volunteer run contemporary arts non-profit whose mission is to catalyze artistic efforts, to connect artists, audiences, and resources.

For more information on Elm City Popfest visit Tweefort!

Video: The Spinanes: "Sundays"

2009-10-19T10:17:00.001-04:00

Been on a bit of a Spinanes kick lately. Thus,

The Girls At Dawn: "It's The Only Time"

2009-10-19T09:40:00.007-04:00

The Girls At Dawn

Brooklyn's all-girl three-piece The Girls At Dawn have been making fuzzed out garage pop for the past year or so. They've already got that Hozac 7" under their belt and another record on the way from Captured Tracks – a 12" EP, actually. Now while one could argue that this whole garage pop revitalization of late is getting a bit diluted (and let's be honest, some of it has been a bit shit), I think there will always be those of us who have some sort of special affinity for the sound of a fuzzy pop song. The Girls even throw on some girl-group-influenced layered vocal melodies for extra bonus points. A nice move in my book, for sure. Check out "It's The Only Time" from their upcoming Captured Tracks EP!

[MP3]: The Girls At Dawn :: It's The Only Time (Highly Rec'd!)