Artist: The XX Album: XX Recommended if You Like: Night Music – a la Burial, Four Tet Featured Track: “Crystalised”
Admittedly, for a blogger, I’m way late to the game on this one. The album actually came out an entire month ago (gasp!) and is one of the more hyped bands on the blogosphere right now. But that’s the way I tend to be, the music snob that I am. Get too much hype and I tend to get turned off. But I succumbed happily to this West London group’s debut, XX, whose brand of nocturnal pop has me thoroughly entranced.
Melding an unsuspecting blend of contemporary R&B with reverb-soaked guitars and down-driven beats, these innovative 20-somethings have created a most delightful and intoxicating album. Atmospheric, intimate, sexy and half-drunk, XX is the perfect headphone hypnotica experience….and mood-maker. Players take heed.
San Francisco, The XX will be playing The Independent on November 23.
Artist:Woods Album: Songs of Shame File Under: Lo-Fi, Psych Rock/Jam Band Recommended if You Like: Mount Eerie, Dungen, Wavves, Crystal Stilts Featured Track: “Rain On”
I’m pretty much a sucker for anything filed under the murky category of ‘lo-fi’ but I particularly like the genre-bending twist the Brooklyn-based group calling themselves, Woods, puts on it – which is a combination of lo-fi, psych rock, jam band and Neil Young-tinged folk.
It sounds ridiculous but it works in a delightfully quirky and unpredictable way. For just when you think you’ve got their sound figured out – fuzzed out guitars, off-kilter vocals – they’ll throw in a nine minute guitar jam (“September With Pete”), a great cover (Graham Nash’s “Military Madness”), a melancholy ditty (“Rain On”) or an experimental instrumental (“Echo Lake”). Wrap all that together with the hazy ambience of cassette tape recording and you’ve got yourself an album worth listening to. Trust me.
For those in the Bay Area, Woods is part of a stellar bill of music planned August 30 at Bottom of the Hill also featuring Kurt Vile and Dungen.
Artist: Alberta Cross Album: The Broken Side of Time File Under: Moody Rock Recommended if You Like: Neil Young, My Morning Jacket Featured Track: “Rise From The Shadows”
God damn, I love this album. Take Neil Young’s vocals, his hard-driving Americana rock and combine it with the pathos of Kurt Cobain and you’ve got Alberta Cross. It’s the best way I can describe it. Other than it’s good, damn good. Just listen to “Rise From The Shadows”. This song slays me every time I hear it. Swirling, haunting melodies that build into a crashing wall of guitars. It’s cathartic and this song should be all the convincing you need to buy their debut album, “The Broken Side of Time”, that comes out on September 22 on ATO Records. It’s a seasoned, polished album start to finish and hard to believe it’s only their first.
If you can’t wait that long, go out and get their EP “The Thief and The Heartbreaker”. Another stellar effort that won’t disappoint. And if you want to be really impressed, go see them live. They’ll be at Lollapalloza this weekend then at Austin City Limits later this fall. More US dates will be scheduled soon. Stay tuned.
Whew, I’ve been wanting to get this post up for about 3 weeks now, but you know how it goes – life prevails and hobbies sometimes take a back seat. Well, here it is. My mid-year Best Albums of 2009…so far. Out of all the music I’ve sorted through thus far this year, these are the albums that bubbled to the top, the ones I happily came back to again and again. They may not all be Pitchfork approved (or even rated for that matter), but they worked for me.
I’m not going to go through the diligence of ranking them, so I’ve listed them in alphabetical order. I’ll save the ranking exercise for the end of year round up. Until then, I hope you find some new music to enjoy!
Band of Skulls Baby Darlin Doll Face Honey “Death by Diamonds and Pearls”
Wow. There is an absolute stellar line of music happening tonight at Bottom of the Hill featuring London-based The Veils, So Cal up and comers Foreign Bornand Cleveland buzz makers Other Girls. Two of whom also happen to be the creators of my more beloved albums this year. Why the hell this show isn’t sold out is beyond me. It’s quite possibly one of the finest line ups I’ve seen all year. So if you’re SF-based, I highly recommend you get out to see it. Regardless of where you live, you should definitely add these albums to your collection.
The Veils frontman and songwriter, Finn Andrews, makes me swoon. His voice is stunning, his lyrics are soul baring. Couple that with a heady rush of guitars and you’ve got yourself ballad rock epitomised (nod to the Brits here with that spelling). For a band that constantly earns comparisons to Nick Drake, Morrissey and Jeff Buckley, it’s almost incomprehensible why they are not a bigger deal.
Sun Gangs is their third release and I would go so far to say it might be one of the sleeper albums of 2009. And now for a little music trivia. Did you know that Finn’s father Barry Andrews is a renowned musician himself? Playing with the likes of XTC, Brian Eno, David Bowie and Iggy Pop.
Foreign Born started in San Francisco in 2003 after singer Matt Popieluch and guitarist Lewis Pesacov graduated San Francisco State University. After playing a few shows, the pair went down to LA to clean up their rough demos. The results were promising enough for Lewis and Matt to quit their menial jobs and move down to LA where the current line-up of Foreign Born was, yes, born.
Their first LP, On The Wing Now, was released in 2007 and their latest effort, Person to Person, just released last month. I adore their first single from the album, “Vacationing People” andhad the chance to see them perform at SXSW earlier this year. Judging by the number of recognizable faces in the audience at that show, it was evident that I’m not the only one who loves them either. After all, if Grizzly Bear’s Ed Droste deems you as his “favorite new band”, you must be doing something right.
It’s been a while since a band has wowed me and the Chicago-based group calling themselves Shadows on a River has done just that. I haven’t stopped listening to their debut since it arrived in my mailbox (thanks Undertow!). This is the best unsigned band I’ve heard so far this year.
Dark, brooding and experimental, their sound easily draws comparisons to the electronic rock genius of early Radiohead. Especially on tracks like “In Business” and “Ships Sailing Home”. Singer/songwriter David Hensen’s ethereal and haunting melodies and intricate arrangements complete the effect.
But let me be clear, because making a Radiohead comparison may be sacrilege for some. I’m not saying they imitate them, but inspire a similar feeling you get from listening to them. It’s “honest and transporting.” The kind of album you want to put on to get lost in. One that opens up and evolves with each and every listen.
So I say, bravo boys! If this is what you can create from an apartment in Chicago, I can’t wait to hear what you can do in a studio.
Be sure to download Shadows On A River from iTunes. Only $7.99 and you wont regret it.
I stumbled upon The Phenomenal Handclap Band at SXSW, fell head over heels in love and haven’t looked back since. Combining elements of soul, disco and psychedelic rock, their funky, booty shaking grooves are so infectious you can’t help but smile and bust a move. Thankfully, the band’s self-titled debut has just been released on Friendly Fire with enough new material to keep me jammin’ all summer long. Whoo hoo!
The Phenomenal Handclap Band is the vision of founding members Daniel Collás and Sean Marquand, two underground New York DJ’s who combined their encyclopedic knowledge of esoteric music with their vast network of friends in the indie rock and underground soul scene to create a supergroup of eclectic and original sound.
The Bay Area’s own Bart Davenport appears on a couple tracks, as does Jaleel Bunton (TV on the Radio), Aurelio Valle’s (Calla), Carol C (Sí Se) along with many other carefully chosen artists. When touring the band is distilled to an eight-member powerhouse that is a sight to behold! They’re so fun, and the perfect band for summer. So get your dancing shoes on and tear it up!
I’m obsessed with this track from LA-based Frankel, the brain child of Michael Orendy – singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Given the celebrity centered lifestyle of that city, it’s not hard to imagine how an album and song with such a title could come to exist.
Anonymity is the New Fame, is Frankel’s sophmore release out now on Autum Tone Records. I’ve enjoyed everything he has put out so far and this is no exception. His sound is decidedly low key and easy-going, like a sunnier, happier version of Elliott Smith.
Artist:She Keeps Bees Album: Nests File Under: Lo-Fi Indie Rock Recommended if You Like: Heartless Bastards, Cat Power, Nina Simone, PJ Harvey, Jack ‘n Meg Featured Tracks:
No frills, stripped down, raw, lo-fi, bluesy indie rock. You like that kinda music? Me too. And this Brooklyn-based duo, comprised of Jessica Larrabee (vocals, guitar) and Andy LaPlant, gives it up in spades. The first hit I got when I heard their album was a stripped down version of the Heartless Bastards. Like Erika Wennerstrom and Cat Power, Larrabee’s voice has a similar bluesy, soulful quality. And given their relationship status (boyfriend/girlfriend) and blues rock vibe, it’s hard not to draw comparisons to The White Stripes.
Oh, and then there’s the songwriting!Powerful and seductive, it’s hard not to get caught up in Larrabee’s conviction on “Gimme” as she pleads “Gimme, gimme, give it to me daddy/ Work me like my back ain’t got no bone.” And my personal favorite, “My Last Nerve”, where she growls “Lord, I am tired of this same old bullshit…” just gets me every time.
Nests, originally self-released by the duo in 2008, has been reissued this year under Names Records along with their Revival EP. Go get it. You won’t be disappointed.
The debut album by this Brooklyn-based group has been on heavy rotation for me quite a while. Even more so now that the Grizzly Bear/ Here We Go Magic show at The Fillmore is merely days away. I’ve been listening to it incessantly all week and I am as infatuated with Luke Temple’s (Magic) voice as I am with Ed Droste’s (Grizzly Bear). Both are pure and angelic and the two bands complement each other perfectly.
Both albums are atmospheric but Magic is decidedly more lo-fi and ambient in a Panda Bear kind of way with lots of loops and multi-tracked vocals. The beautiful, murky rhythms of “Tunnelvision” and “Fangela” are representative of much of the sound found on the album. But I must confess they lose me on a couple of their noise, experimental tracks toward the end. While it’s a bit incongruent to the overall flow of the album, it doesn’t overshadow the overall experience – enchanting.
the OCMD 