Mixtape: Best Songs of 2008 – Electro/Pop

Posted on December 22, 2008 by the OCMD

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As many of you who read this blog already know, I’m mostly indie rock girl but I do dabble in a little indie pop/electronica from time to time. I am attracted to that Euro/ambient/dub pop/downtempo groove. However, it’s the rare album in this genre that can hold my interest all the way through. Which is why you won’t find many (if any) electro/pop albums on my top 20 list for 2008.

But there were many great songs of this variety that stood out to me this year. And here is a compilation of some of those tracks that moved me. I love listening to this mix and hope you will too. Enjoy!

Listen to Best Songs of 2008 – Electro/Pop:

Koushik, ‘Lying in the Sun‘
Air France, ‘Collapsing at Your Doorstep’
Martina Topley-Bird, ‘Phoenix’
The Black Ghosts, ‘Full Moon’
Nightmares on Wax, ‘195LBS.‘
The Notwist (Panda Bear Remix), ‘Boneless’
Tobacco, ‘Hairy Candy’
Lemonade, ‘Sunchips’
Raised By Robots, ‘I Love You/U Luv Me 2′
Starf**ker, ‘Florida’
Rafter, ‘Juicy’
Cut Copy, ‘Lights & Music’
Nightmares On Wax, ‘Da Feelin’
Rainbow Arabia, ‘Omar K’

Get these albums free via eMusic’s 50 Free MP3 Promo

buy it at insound!

AmieStreet Download for Charity: Titus Andronicus & SF’s Lemonade

Posted on December 4, 2008 by the OCMD

I love AmieStreet. It’s become one of my new favorite music sites and latest obsessions. They have great music and a very cool, community-driven concept that makes it really cheap to get music. But you have to be on top of your music game. It works like this:

All songs on Amie Street are priced from free to 98 cents. Instead of the arbitrary $0.99 per song, on Amie Street the community determines the price of music. Every song starts free, or very cheap, and increases in price, up to 98 cents, as more and more people purchase it.

This variable pricing system ensures that you get music at a fair, community-driven price point, and makes it easy for you to find the type of music you want. Then you’re encouraged to talk about the music you like by putting money in your account for more downloads when you recommend songs that continue to rise in price. All the music is DRM-free! Go get an account if you don’t have one already.

And make sure you take advantage of these great album deals…

Titus Andronicus – The Airing of Grievances

Listen to ‘Titus Andronicus‘:

Taking their name from a minor Shakespearean tragedy, this New Jersey punk rock band is making waves and getting compared to the likes of The Kinks, The Pogues, Bruce Springsteen, and even Arcade Fire. They’ve built a reputation for their rowdy live performances. If you’re in San Francisco, you can see them tonight at The Rickshaw Stop opening for No Age.

Buy it at AmieStreet for $4.74!

Lemonade – Lemonade

Listen to ‘Sunchips‘:

This San Francisco-based trio has already built a following around town with their energetic live performances of avant-electronic music that fuses psych heavy synths and spacey delays. They’ve toured and opened for the likes of Black Moth Super Rainbow, Modeselektor and Crystal Castles. Their self-titled debut is out now and you can get it at Amie Street right now for $1.32. Drink it up!

Buy some Lemonade for $1.32 right now.

San Francisco Bands You’ve (Probably) Never Heard Of – Part 4

Posted on November 3, 2008 by the OCMD

Kid Mud

San Francisco’s Sean Duncan, aka Kid Mud, just released his first EP ‘Birds Will Move In’. I really like this album. It has a mellow Sparklehorse feel. He records much of his work in his home studio and plays each instruments himself. Very cool.

Listen to ‘Press it Out’

Lady Genuis

Lady Genius’ short, layered pop songs feature shimmering keyboards and echoing guitars coupled with crisp drums and boy/girl harmonies. A SF Weekly article recently put it, “the result is like the Magnetic Fields crash-landing a flying saucer in New Pornoghraphers-land.”

Listen to ‘New York Through York’