Always remember just to have a good time...

Person Pitch is the third solo album by Panda Bear(of Animal Collective fame).. Very catchy. If Brian Wilson had grown up in Japan in the mid-80s listening to free-noise interpretations of western pop music, This is what he would be creating today.. Sonic ambient soundscapes with lush, layered melodies. Highly recommended!

MP3s: (right-click to download)
Panda Bear - Comfy in Nautica
Panda Bear - Bro's(edit)

With this land, do we choose peace?

Veda



I attended another great concert at the Norva last night and one band in particular caught my attention. Veda is a Kansas City-birthed female-fronted rock powerhouse that is set to explode.. Kristen May’s dynamic voice is definitely the backbone of this four-piece, but they have a very solid sound backing them as well. Don't expect any earth-shattering creativity, in fact, Veda would fit very nicely on any alt-rock radio's top 20 rotation, but they are a breathe of fresh air in that they are 110% real and passionate. What Veda lacks in originality they make up for with pure presence.
Expect to hear about them soon, they're on the rise..



MP3s:
Your God, Your Country
Still Standing
Safe
Falling Kind


Official Website:
www.weareveda.com


Buy Their CDs:

what does nostalgia sound like?

Black Moth Super Rainbow


Disconcerting... and yet beautiful..
BMSR should have a BoC sized fanbase very soon..

Trees and Colors and Wizards
I Am the Alphabet
Boatfriend
I Think It Is Beautiful that You are 256 Colors too

Official Website:
http://www.blackmothsuperrainbow.com/

Buy Their CDs:

shameless self promotion

Automate


Yes, this is my music.. I promise this is the one and only time I will ever subject you to it. Feedback! Hop to it.

Wrap Your Arms Around Me
Wrap Your Arms(Sensitive Male Mix)
And then there was...
Lucid Dreams
Secondsminutes

Websites:
www.myspace.com/automate
http://ic-musicmedia.com/automate
www.purevolume.com/automate

Is Love Ever Enough?

Folksongs for the Afterlife

Folksongs for the Afterlife are different than your typical "folk" band in that they are completely stripped down yet remain hypnotic.. This is exactly the kind of music I would imagine being played in the afterlife, dreamy-pop, minor key at times, but still happy.. Interestingly enough, Chris Deaner of +/- (plus/minus) indie-fame is a member..

You Walked Me Home
Did I Let You Down?
So Glad

Official Website:
http://www.fortheafterlife.com

Buy Their CD:

midnight drives(and silent sighs)

(((this is what happens when I have a 2 hour night-time drive with instrumental CDs)))



The rumblings fade away and the earth settles, the blood-red sky mirrors the devastation of the land below.

The rubble shifts.. scattered survivors emerge, grim determination set in their faces...

They gather, an unspoken purpose driving them.. They converge, not a word escapes their cracked lips; in silence, they pick up their soul's voices, their weapons..

Instruments....

And as one, they play..

The landscape responds, quaking in newfound purpose. Scorched corpses seem to tremble, desolate ruins shift and groan.

Who are these silent soldiers.. these post-apocalyptic messiahs?

Jesu..

Our saviors continue, preaching not of hope, but of total embrace with Our Mother.... Despair..
Languish in her bosom, let your thoughts and feelings find their cold rest..
....
Millennia pass like waking dreams.. our sacred rites pass into stale religion..
mediocrity...

A group of truth-seekers, not satisfied with tales of old, enter the sacred city, the tabboo, Our Mother's temple...
Enboldened by the lack of swift consequence they move on, and soon come upon an altar..

Instruments....

Sacred relics of that day, preserved and waiting.. yearning...
They silently pick them up.. and begin to play..

This is not their forefather's message, this is new, this is their own truth, this is their reality..

Hope is reborn in aural form...

Gasping with their newfound power, they soar, gravity having no hold any longer.. endless possibilities await..

Spurned into awakening by their reckless abandonment, Our Mother rises... an angry goddess preparing to wreak her vengeance...

They clash..

Explosions in the Sky...

silence reigns...

a hush... a glance.. a furtive wish.. inner conflict between ancient loyalties and newborn yearnings...

silence reigns...

the waiting begins....

...
<<<<<<<<<<<End.

Jesu - "we all faulter"
explosions in the sky - "a poor man's memory"
explosions in the sky - "look into the air"
explosions in the sky - "memorial"

Still Kickin'

Pony Up!


Guess who's back with a brand new (working) laptop?

me.

*Ahem*

Let's skip through the "oh so sorry so long since last post"'s and head straight to the ear candy.
A week ago at Starbucks(which is where I am humbly employed), I noticed a customer wearing a Pony Up! tshirt. Me being the geeky music fanboy I am, I struck up a conversation with him, mentioning that I too was a dedicated Pony Up! fan. To my suprise, it turns out that this guy is the brother of one of the sweet young ladies that comprise the aforementioned band.
Made my whole friggin week.

Shut Up and Kiss Me
Marlon Brandos Laundromat

Official Website:
http://www.ponyup.ca/

Buy Their CD:

here's some coffee... for Sam....

I'm ashamed, it's been centuries since my last update, I know. I recently moved into an apartment with a horrific lack of internet access, I'm still working on that one but till then my updates will be few. For all of you who would like to harrass, insult, berate, or simply give me a public flogging, email me and I'll see what I can arrange.
Monday I trekked up to Norfolk, VA and caught Iron and Wine at the Norva. It would be pointless to tell you that the show was good because, c'mon, it's I&W.. that's to be expected. Sam played mostly newer songs but also some old favorites, if slightly revamped. I tried to give him a 1lb bag of whole bean coffee to show my appreciation(aka psychotic obsession) but, sadly, he never showed his face after his set, and alas, I was forced to pass it along via his merch guy.
What did suprise me that night was an excellent set by a new signing to Subpop(that seems to have snuck by me), Band of Horses. Besides the fact that one of their guitar players bears an uncanny resemblance to my dad 20 years ago, I was instantly intrigued when they hit the stage.
First of all, these guys just scream "kids you want to hang out with." They seemed like the friendly guys next door, slightly nervous but happy to be playing for friends. And the music... They started with a quiet, minimal song that introduced the singers outstanding vocalization style, mischievous and quirky at times, heart wrenching and epic at others. I wanted to say I heard an "Arcade Fire" tinge in the beginning, but they very quickly dispelled that notion with each new song. Afterwards, they all hung out at their merch table and I was able to chat with them for a few minutes, very friendly guys, would love to see them play again.
I was disappointed with only one thing, and that was the fact that I had spent all my cash at the local record shop before hearing them, I would have loved to own their Tour EP, especially with it being in such high demand and low quantities. I can only hold my breath and wait impatiently for their official Subpop release.. till then here are the only recordings I could find, for your listening pleasure.


Wicked Gil
I Lost My Dingle on the Red Line...
Funeral
Bass Song

And a here are a few I&W tracks to keep you happy till my next post:

Woman King
Naked as We Came
Jesus the Mexican Boy
Lions Mane
Southern Anthem

stick THAT in your hipster handbook..

Crime in Choir


The frantically mathmatical neu-prog of Crime in Choir sounds like the soundtrack to some long-lost Japanese Anime featuring giant pink, purple and yellow robots duking it out, with plenty of interludes filled with seizure-inducing strobe-lighting..
The very prolific members are all involved in more then one sideproject each and the current lineup features founding members of such acts as At the Drive-In, Hella, and The Hades Kick

Hot Slant
The Hoop
Venequa!
WorldwideCB

Official Website:
http://www.crimeinchoir.net/

Buy Their CDs:

a stroll with my friend, childhood memories..

Boards of Canada

Throughout my life, I've experimented with many genres of music. I've stretched myself and reinvented myself many times.. But I keep returning to the wistfully ambient IDM made an art by Boards of Canada. The music of BoC has much more depth then just notes and beats. There is a frantic quietness, a hidden childish curiousity, an adult longing for naiveté, a nostalgic wonder, all pulsing in the background. There is also an undercurrent of raw, primitive spirituality, not religious spirituality, spirituality in the purest sense, the untainted state of awe and nothingness..
Many people theorize about "subliminal messages" hidden in the works of BoC; this is because both members have expressed an interest in said subject and also because their music is fraught with mostly unintelligible samples from movies, radio, television, and real life.

XYZ (Peel Session)
Neotropic Do You Know How to Waltz Vert
Birthday Tape
Hiscores
North Sea Arbeit
Orange Hexagon Sun
Chinook
Orange Romeda

Official Website:
http://www.music70.com/

Buy Their CDs: