Like any great album should, Big Light’s full-length debut Animals in Bloom (2010) draws me in more completely with every listen. The songs endlessly unravel as one’s ears open to the nuances. I’ve been enamored with the band since they debuted in San Francisco near the end of 2007 and it’s all in the combination. Skillful songs, prodigious musicianship, and a certain sincerity. It’s the kind of music you want to sit back and take in and also the kind that you want to move to and lose yourself within. It’s the best of all genres, melding the weight of rock, the earnestness of folk, the edginess of indie, and the transcendental psychedelia of jam. The band’s sound is easy to love and hits with an immeasurably depth. As my friend Melissa and I would say to each other back then, “Big Light plays just the kind of music I want to hear.”
From the grittiness of “Triceratops”, to the tenderness of “Departed”, to the touching words, melodies, and guitar riffs of “Rainbow Eyes”, Animals in Bloom gets inside. “Good Time of the Year”’s youth-filled intimacy is undeniable and “Monster” strikes with washes of sound. “Heavy” just tears it all apart. It’s not just the raging guitars that send you to oblivion but the band as a whole progressing, ripping, lying deep within the groove. Unabating until the raging finale moments of “Bonebreaker”, the album is a solid realization of Big Light’s limitless potential. The album’s lyrics are poetic, pensive, inspiring and filled with color. The songs catch inside your head and refuse to let go. It’s intimate and makes you feel included.
The San Francisco foursome features Fred Torphy (lead vocals, guitar, songwriting), Bradly Bifuclo (drums), Steve Adams (bass, vocals) and Jeremy Korpas (lead guitar, vocals). After several shifts in lineup, this band feels like the one Torphy needs to convey what’s inside his head. Torphy’s voice morphs from track to track all the while staying endearing and real. And his guitar solos soar. Bradly Bifulco contributes a strength of foundation and depth that stands out on every song. ALO’s Steve Adams exemplifies what this incredible player can do when offered an alternate existence. And the most recent addition of Jeremy Korpas seals the force of Big Light. Korpus’ ripping playing which has earned him the name “Swordfish”, raised the bar of Big Light’s musicianship, allowing the band to travel where it was ready. A nod to the benefit of timing and luck, Korpas’ inclusion came by chance after needing a place to crash when first moving to SF. By way of a friend he landed on Torphy’s couch and later joined the band. Together these four individuals gesture gratitude to the great bands that inspired them – Dr. Dog, The Slip, Wilco, and My Morning Jacket – yet seamlessly unite to create a sound that is undeniably Big Light.
Yesterday, I got to chat with songwriter Fred Torphy about the album…
How does the current state of Big Light compare to what you imagined when you originally formed the band?
Torphy: Probably closer to what I imagined it being. More professional and cohesive and focused. That was something we had to work for, a permanent lineup. You saw a lot us in the formative days. It was sprawling then and you never knew who was actually going to play. That was always really hard to deal with as a bandleader. All the coming and going of the personal and getting the band staffed probably. You don’t want to push any of those things. It needs to happen on its own. Give it time. That happening was cool. I’m just stoked that it’s where it’s at right now. And that we are more lean and mean. More focused.
Are there any unseen insights into the album that you want to share?
Torphy: Mechanically we got really experimental and went deep. There are sounds you might not hear unless you’re listening on headphones. There are all of these undercurrents of noise that prevail from the beginning to the end. We capture sounds that aren’t musical in some senses. Detuning ukuleles or dropping an amplifier on the ground so that it makes a crazy thunderous sound. We put ghosts in the recording so that they could be heard later when someone is listening a little closer.
The one thing that probably nobody one knows is that there’s one guitar amp that we ended up using for 90% of the record that we got from this dude who lives in an apartment that’s next to the studio where we recorded. He’s this guy Kidd Candelario, Jerry Garcia’s right hand man for like 30 years, his guitar tech and all this stuff, and he has a bunch Jerry Garcia’s old gear. He gave us this Fender Twin that had belonged to Jerry and that Jerry used on stage for a really long time. We went back and looked at pictures and saw this thing. We had this modified Fender Twin that was Jerry Garcia’s primary guitar amp and we used it in every situation imaginable because it was cool… it sounded so different from everything else because it was modified for him. It was really loud and you could do crazy shit with it. It was fun playing with that thing. The history, recording the album in San Francisco… We’re not a Grateful Dead leaning band at all in any respect. I mean we like improvisation, we love that band, but they aren’t a model for Big Light in any way. But we did love using that guitar amplifier to make all the cool guitar sounds.
Who’s singing the words before the chorus on “Rainbow Eyes”?
Torphy: We call that the “gang vocal”. Our friend Ty Roberts and his family, Sabrina & Ted, Chris Joseph, Ray (Bradly’s wife)… There are probably 40 voices. We threw a whiskey and pizza party one night in the studio and invited our supporters and friends and asked them all to yell “rainbow eyes”.
Below is a teaser for Animals in Bloom featuring studio and tour footage and clips from their December ‘09 performance at San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium, all set to an excerpt of the new track “Triceratops”.
For Big Light, club dates have translated into high profile gigs, including appearances at Outside Lands, Noise Pop, Wanderlust, and High Sierra and at renowned California venues such as the Troubadour and The Roxy in Los Angeles and The Fillmore in San Francisco. They’ve also been placed on bills with Spoon, Broken Social Scene, The Mother Hips, Dead Confederate, Surprise Me Mr. Davis, Everest and Howlin Rain. As a fan from the beginning, it’s truly exciting to stand back and watch Big Light constantly progress and evolve at such an electrifying rate and receive due recognition for their musical journeys. Big Light’s CD Release tour for Animals in Bloom kicks off with a performance at San Francisco’s Independent on March 4th (TODAY!).
Mar 4 – The Independent, San Francisco, CA – Animals In Bloom Release Party w/ Guns for San Sebastian and Everest
Mar 5 – 50/50 Brewery, Truckee, CA
Mar 11 – The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ
Mar 13 – Sullivan Hall, New York, NY
Mar 17,18,19,20 – SXSW, Austin, TX
Apr 8 – Crystal Bay Casino, Crystal Bay, NV
Apr 16 – Cooper’s, Nevada City, CA
Apr 17 – South Lake Tahoe Earth Day Festival, South Lake Tahoe, CA
July 1,2,3,4 – High Sierra Music Festival, Quincy, CA
Animals in Bloom is for sale on the Big Light’s website, at Amazon, and on iTunes where you can download the added bonus track of “Piece Together Wings”, co-written with Nathan Moore and featuring Dan Lebowitz (ALO) on pedal steel. Jeremiah Kille of Conspiracy Surfboards created the memorable album artwork for Animals in Bloom. Check out more of Jeremiah’s work.
In addition to their previously announced set at Coachella, Thom Yorke’s solo band will hit several major U.S. cities this April on a two-week, eight-date tour. Thom Yorke broke the news on Radiohead’s blog Dead Air Space on Thursday, Feb 25th. Southern California’s electronic / hip hop artist Flying Lotus will support the band all eight nights.
The name of the band? Atoms for Peace. Aside from being the name of the stand out track on Yorke’s solo album, The Eraser (2006), Atoms for Peace refers to the title of a speech delivered by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to the UN General Assembly in New York City in 1953. The speech was likely a tipping point towards inspiring international focus on peaceful uses of atomic energy.
Atoms for Peace (the band) features Beck/R.E.M.’s Joey Waronker on drums, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea on bass, Mauro Refosco of David Byrne and Bebel Gilberto on percussion, and longtime Radiohead/Yorke producer Nigel Godrich on guitar/synths/laptop. This lineup is the same one that backed up Yorke at the Echoplex and the Orpheum Theater in L.A. in October.
Tickets are being sold via Ticketmaster as well as on Radiohead’s ticketing site, W.A.S.T.E. On sale info below.
Atoms for Peace Tour:
04-05 New York, NY – Roseland Ballroom * – onsale through TM March 2nd at 10am EST
04-06 New York, NY – Roseland Ballroom * – onsale through TM March 2nd at 10am EST
04-08 Boston, MA – Citi Wang Theatre * – onsale through CPAC March 2nd at 10am EST
04-10 Chicago, IL – Aragon Ballroom * – onsale through TM March 3rd at 10am CST
04-11 Chicago, IL – Aragon Ballroom * – onsale through TM March 3rd at 10am CST
04-14 Oakland, CA – Fox Theatre * – onsale through TM March 4th at 10am PST
04-15 Oakland, CA – Fox Theatre * – onsale through TM March 4th at 10am PST
04-17 Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl * – onsale through TM March 3rd at 11am CST
04-18 Indio, CA – Coachella
* with Flying Lotus
TM = Ticketmaster
CPAC = Citi Performing Arts Center
Pre-sale tickets are being sold on W.A.S.T.E. Tickets (Radiohead’s ticketing site) on the following schedule:
New York – Roseland Ballroom – April 5th & 6th – On sale through Tickemaster
Boston – Citi Wang Theatre – April 8th – On sale through CitiCenter
Chicago – Aragon Ballroom – April 10th & 11th – On sale March 3rd via W.A.S.T.E.
Oakland – Fox Theatre – April – 14th & 15th – On sale March 4th via W.A.S.T.E.
Santa Barbara – Santa Barbara Bowl – April 17th – On sale March 3rd via W.A.S.T.E.
I’ve never been much of an Of Montreal fan, but I’m currently in love with their video for “Wraith Pinned To The Mist & Other Games”. It follows the psychedelic, Yellow Submarine-esque, slightly violent journey of little square-bodied cartoon characters and friends. Love the purple one’s dance moves at the end (3rd from the right!).
The style of their music still doesn’t entirely capture me, but… as it often seems to be, there can be things you quite like hiding around the corner from a band you thought you disliked.
Said style is theatrical techno-pop glam, one that seems to have changed over the years from a more quirky, indie pop sound. They also tend to fuse gloomy lyrics speaking to apathy, loneliness and death, with bouncy, upbeat melodies and hooks. Certainly, the music is catchy in some bizarre, deranged, and fantastical way.
One more tune. Listen to “She’s a Rejector”, just to hear Kevin Barnes sing the following:
There’s the girl that left me bitter
Want to pay some other girl
To walk up to her and hit her
It seems the Swedes have cornered the market on innovative, ambient electro pop. The intentionally cryptic new group jj are another example of this breath of fresh air. The group fuses lushly atmospheric electro-pop and world music with sultry female vocals to create a rather exotic sound. What results is irresistibly beautiful and blissful.
The duo released their debut single jj n° 1 in early 2009 and several months later released their stylistically brilliant debut album jj n° 2. It’s a short opus of nine tracks of island infused synth pop, akin to the music of fellow label mates The Tough Alliance. But the duo emerges on the softer side due to the pervasive lush vocals of Elin Kastlander. Like their peers, jj show a propensity towards sampling, irritable pop hooks, and stylistic diversity to create something gorgeously intricate that shows admiration for both the expansive realms of world music and minimalistic electro-pop. jj sit aside The Tough Alliance and Air France, on one of Sweden’s best and most consistent labels, Sincerely Yours, founded by TTA in 2006.
jj’s dance pop is built on ethereal string and synth samples along with exquisite vocals that float freely through their tracks. The songs are deceptively simple, incorporating a vast array of musical influences from reggae to electronica, new age to hip-hop. The dream-like quality of Elin’s voice is lusciously smooth and textured taking the music even further.
The group’s full-length debut jj n° 2 changes styles slightly with every song, which makes listening to the 27 minute album an unpredictable yet alluring experience. Even when they explore 90’s ambient-house, they still allow emotion to flood through the textures. jj expand on the reach of ambient music — defined, as Brian Eno once did, as music that “suggests, a place, a landscape, a soundworld which you inhabit” — offering it a new essence .
“Things Will Never Be Again” opens jj nº 2 sounding much like The Tough Alliance, tying together synth samples of steel drums and MIDI Strings, with Elin’s low vocal tones and harmonies. “From Africa to Malaga” is by far my favorite track with Elin’s celestial, reverb-effected vocals riding atop synthy Caribbean percussion. The sounds wash over you and the winds referenced sweep you up into a blissful state of ecstasy. “Ecstasy” unexpectedly drops a sample of Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop” creating a track that is trippy and drug-hazy, turning the sound of the album drastically on a pin. (jj released another track with a Weezy sample in January, titled “My Way”. ) Later the album moves into more lilting folk-pop, and further into the laughing and hammer-dulcimer sampling “Intermezzo”. With jj nº 2, the duo created a visionary new sound that is bound to generate more buzz in 2010.
Fascinatingly, jj has kept to almost absolute internet silence. Seriously, not even a MySpace. Info on jj was literally nonexistent until recently, save for a few cryptic sentences, download links, and blood-splattered album artwork on their label’s site. It seems to have made the music all the more endearing and enchanting. Quite a surge of conversation has lived surrounding the identity of jj. Some rightly thought that it might be a side project of The Tough Alliance or Air France, but the mystery quickly unfolded. The enigmatic jj consists of multi-instrumentalist Joakim Benon and vocalist Elin Kastlander. The story almost ends there for now, although I did come across a fabulous interview with jj published on the Drumming On Tabletops blog several weeks ago. Here are a few excerpts.
Where does the name “jj” come from?
jag & joakim. joakim & jag. (”jag” means me or myself in Swedish)
What’s the plan for live shows? Did you originally ever expect to perform live? I ask that because it seems (from the various YouTube videos I’ve watched anyways) that the stage show is really based around the recorded music and projected images rather than the typical “live performance”.
We have grand plans for our public executions, it will be magic, soon enough. Now when we’re out there Elin is just trying to get over her social phobia and anxiety. She sings for her life, as always. And I’m (Joakim) trying to learn everything I recorded, and decide if I should play the guitar solo or the piano, the drums or the flute, or maybe get someone else to do it; so many decisions. Maybe we’ll get James Cameron to do the visuals, and perhaps Kanye will have some ideas. Whatever we do I hope people will understand that being on stage is a fucked up situation in the first place, where everything can happen: you can live more than you’ve ever lived or be wanting to die, feeling things will never be the same again.
The newest album, jj nº 3 has already leaked online. What does it feel like to have to deal with a leak? Do you mind it considering that almost every album leaks online now before the release date?
Beautiful, sad, scary, nice, confusing. It (jj nº 3) should’ve been released in September though, so it’s all good. A slightly fairer chance for anyone to keep up with us.
How much are drugs involved with your music (the song ecstasy, the pot leaf on the cover of jj nº 2)? Do you feel like the two can be separated or are they intertwined?
Our music is dope, you know that.
In December, jj signed with the indie label Secretly Canadian who will release the duo’s next LP, jj nº 3, in the U.S on March 9th in conjunction with the release on Sincerely Yours in Sweden. Following, they are set to perform 14 American dates with fellow lowercase, double-lettered electro group, The xx. These shows, along with SXSW, mark the first U.S. live appearances ever for jj.
JJ tour dates:
3/22 – Spanish Moon, Baton Rouge, LA w/ The xx
3/23 – Bottletree, Birmingham, AL
3/24 – Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA w/ The xx
3/25 – Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro, NC w/ The xx
3/28 – Sixth & I Historic Synagogue, Washington, DC w/ The xx
3/29 – First Unitarian Church Sanctuary, Philadelphia, PA w/ The xx
3/30 – Knitting Factory, Brooklyn, NY
3/31 – Webster Hall, New York, NY
4/2 – Paradise, Boston, MA w/ The xx
4/3 – Le National, Montreal, QC w/ The xx
4/4 – Lee’s Palace, Toronto, ON
4/5 – Wexner Center, Columbus, OH w/ The xx
4/6 – Buskirk-Chumley Theater, Bloomington, IN w/ The xx
4/8 – Lincoln Hall, Chicago, IL w/ The xx
4/9 – Varsity Theater, Minneapolis, MN w/ The xx
4/12 – The Nightlight Lounge, Bellingham, WA w/ The xx
4/13 – Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC w/ The xx
4/14 – Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR w/ The xx
4/16 – Bottom of the Hill, San Francisco, CA
For those of you already enamored by The Avett Brothers and especially those who aren’t yet, check out this view of “Murder in the City”. It captures the brothers candidly sharing their song about family. The video is frank and touching, sweet and intimate. The song is off of The Second Gleam EP (2008).
Their upcoming tour begins at the end of the month and takes the Avetts across the states and beyond to both Europe and Australia.
The energetic, Swede pop perfection of The Tough Alliance immediately entangled me when I first heard “Neo Violence”. It’s spring loaded, synth heavy, techno-tropic and gets you giddily dancing. I adore their wry humor at the end. I finally dove into their last two releases and got turned on to more TTA. The songs are bright, emphatic, and uplifting, buoyant with constant explosions of sounds. I’m surprised they haven’t yet hit the scene harder in the U.S.
Check out the rad video for “Simple Games” from the New Waves EP (2006). It’s got girls jumping rope in the breathtaking, sun-dappled outdoors and projections of breaking waves (a recurring visual motif of theirs).
Childhood friends Henning Fürst and Eric Berglund formed The Tough Alliance in 2003. The Göthenburg, Sweden duo have polished their glammy blend of pop and electronica through a series of EP and album releases, first on the locally based Service label (home to Jens Lekman and Studio) and then on their own label, Sincerely Yours, beginning in 2006. Each critically acclaimed creation helped to establish them as a central force within the Swedish indie music scene. TTA began attracting greater international attention in 2007 due to outstanding reviews for A New Chance (2007) and American distribution.
Adding some color to their story, The Tough Alliance amusingly have an infamous reputation for their live appearances and receive frequent attention in the Swedish media for lip-synching to their backing tracks while ambiguously wielding baseball bats. The resulting accusations of glorifying violence and hooliganism haven’t gone unnoticed. TTA directly confronts all detractors in the lyrics of “Neo Violence”, which ascended to number 13 on the Swedish album charts in 2007.
No U.S. dates at the moment, but keep your eyes out for The Tough Alliance.
Neo Violence
No no need for a baseball bat
Don’t need no knife for a sharp attack
No excuses, no looking back
We think too much about the things we lack
This neo violence
Pure self-defiance
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
I hardly noticed your short romance
Your careless manners and your anxious glance
Kissed and telled, got paid in advance
You’re far behind now love you missed your chance
This neo violence
Pure self-defiance
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
Truly sorry thought you’d get the wink, it’s in our nature to be out of sync
Truly sorry thought you’d get the wink, it’s in our nature to be out of sync
This neo violence
Pure self-defiance
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
This neo violence
Can’t stand the silence
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
Britain’s Royal Mail is honoring both art and music with the launch of 10 stamps that feature iconic album covers from the past four decades. Speaking at the launch of the stamps at London’s Rough Trade West on January 7th, Jimmy Page revealed the irony behind Led Zeppelin’s iconic ‘IV’ album cover. “Almost 40 years after the album came out, nobody knows the old man who featured on the cover, nor the artist who painted him,” he said. “That sort of sums up what we wanted to achieve with the album cover, which has remained both anonymous and enigmatic at the same time.”
Royal Mail agreed upon the final list after going through thousands of album covers, lists, and polls. The decision was based on the art and album design, not necessarily music. “For decades, the album sleeve has been the canvas for some of the most imaginative graphic artists in the world, and this issue celebrates this unique art form and some of its greatest examples,” said Juliette Edgard, Head of Special Stamps at Royal Mail.
The chosen album covers include The Rolling Stones 1969 album Let It Bleed, Led Zeppelin’s 1971 album Led Zeppelin IV, David Bowie’s 1972 album The Rise and Fall Of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, Mike Oldfield’s 1973 album Tubular Bells, The Clash’s 1979 album London Calling, New Order’s 1983 album Power, Corruption and Lies, Primal Scream’s 1991 album Screamadelica, Pink Floyd’s 1994 album The Division Bell, Blur’s 1994 album Parklife, and Coldplay’s 2002 album A Rush of Blood to the Head.
For decades the album sleeve has been the canvas for some of the most imaginative graphic artists worldwide. The U.K. stamp issue acknowledges this unique art form and celebrates some of the greatest examples used by UK musical artists.
During a recent visit to Australia in November to promote the release of their new album Contra (Jan 12, 2009) Vampire Weekend performed an exclusive concert for Triple J radio. Previous Triple J radio Live At The Wireless artist include Lily Allen, MGMT, Modest Mouse, and Air.
Denver-based songwriter/singer/musician, John Common and his band, Blinding Flashes of Lights, will be debuting their new record, entitled Beautiful Empty, at Casselman’s in Denver, CO on January 16th, 2010. The CD release will be a collaborative event that offers independent music, film and visual art, all related to and inspired by the new record. The band features John Common (vocals/guitar/keys), Jess DeNicola (vocals), Wes Michaels (cello/sax), Adam Revell (keys), Jimmy Stofer (bass/vocals) and Carl Sorensen (drums). The band will be joined on stage by a string section and other musical guests. Also playing that night are two popular Colorado artists, both who are superb: Achille Lauro and Danielle Ate the Sandwich.
Tickets are $15 presale and include an exclusive bonus EP (digital download), a copy of the new CD (given at the door) and other surprises on the night of the show. Tickets are $20 day of show and come with a copy of the new CD and the fabulous surprises, but no bonus track.
Earlier this fall a collaborative short film festival was organized for this event, named the Beautiful Empty Short Film Conspiracy. A call went out to Colorado-based independent filmmakers who shot and submitted their short films, all inspired by and incorporating songs from Beautiful Empty. A handful of the most interesting short films will be shown throughout the night of the CD release.
The event will also feature box art by 60 artists from across the U.S. who were invited to create unique works of art inspired by what would eventually become the new record, Beautiful Empty. Each artist was sent a simple wooden box, along with early stage lyrics, images and music. They then mixed it all together into a beautiful collaboration called the Common Box Project. The final exhibit of the Common Box Project will happen the night of the CD release inside the venue. For more information visit .
Date: Saturday, January 16th, 2010 Location: Casselman’s Bar and Venue (26th and Walnut, Denver, CO) Music: John Common & Blinding Flashes of Light, Achille Lauro, Danielle Ate the Sandwich Film: The Beautiful Empty Short Film Conspiracy Art Exhibit: The Common Box Project Tickets: $15 presale / $20 day of show. Price of ticket includes a copy of the new CD, other surprises and an exclusive bonus EP (digital download) for those who buy tickets in advance Doors: 7pm / Show starts at 7:30pm Ages: 21+ Buy tickets:Casselman’s | John Common
Listen to some gorgeous tracks off the new album. It is thoughfully written and the vocal harmonies between Common and DeNicola are almost as stunning here as they are live.
Panda Bear – Person Pitch (2007)
This album delicately led me by the arm towards Animal Collective, when I was confounded by how strange it was. 2007 saw me doing yoga to Person Pitch almost every day, allowing me to sink into what Panda Bear and, as a result, what the whole AC crew had to offer. Person Pitch is simultaneously poppy and abstract, winsome and deranging, creating elaborate and magnificent convoluted sonic collages. mp3: Panda Bear – Comfy in Nautica mp3: Panda Bear – Bros mp3: Panda Bear – Good Girl/Carrots Download Person Pitch MySpace | Website
Lily Allen – Alright, Still (2007)
This album had me rocking out in my car during many of those 2007 summer months. Allen’s smart alec, sassy attitude is emphatic. Her explosion on the scene as one of Britain’s superstars might put off some, but it’s hard not fall for her well produced brand of bouncy, horn heavy, ska-inspired pop.
Check out “Smile”, “LDN”, “Nan You’re A Window Shopper” – explicit! (can’t post!) Download Alright, Still MySpace | Website
Brett Dennen – Hope for the Hopeless (2008)
Brett Dennen inspires me. His lyrics are entirely well considered and thought provoking, and his positive, dynamic melodies are hard to deny. “Make You Crazy”, featuring Femi Kuti, is the true gem here, gorgeous in it’s entirety, speaking about our untrustable government, prisons, child soldiers, and how people treat each other to get ahead. The songs soar, speaking of love, hope, home and peace. “San Francisco” is thoroughly nostalgic especially if you’ve taken any time to get to know Dennen’s amazing city. mp3: Brett Dennen – Make You Crazy mp3: Brett Dennen – Wrong About Me mp3: Brett Dennen – San Francisco Download Hope For The Hopeless MySpace | Website
Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009)
By far my favorite release of the year. Since their inception, Animal Collective has wandered the territorial edges of music, seeking out boundaries previously erected and looking beyond them. They’ve imbued gorgeous indie songs with peculiar vocals and irritating noises, contrasted West African rhythms with British folk melodies, and have hung on a single chord for what seems like eternity. Merriweather feels like a culmination of all of these explorations, achieving a sound that is both accessible and thoroughly innovative. Finally an Animal Collective album that I’m moved to listen to all the way through -hooky and pop drenched in swirls of psychedelia, heavy with sonic texture. mp3: Animal Collective – My Girls mp3: Animal Collective – Summertime Clothes mp3: Animal Collective – Brothersport Download Merriweather Post Pavilion MySpace | Website
Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (2009)
The danceable, catching indie rock of Phoenix is perfectly featured on their newest release. The tight grooves of the band’s electrifying synth pop flow loudly behind Thomas Mars’ smooth and all the while urgent vocals. Wolfgang is brilliantly sleek with sonic texture, putting the band on the map as one of the most exciting groups to blow up stateside this year. mp3: Phoenix – Lisztomania mp3: Phoenix – 1901 mp3: Phoenix – Lasso Download Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix MySpace | Website
Built to Spill – There Is No Enemy (2009)
On There is No Enemy, Built to Spill investigates an aesthetic they’ve created and honed over the years, revolving around Doug Martsch’s soft, yet penetrating vocals swimming in a bath of refracting guitar tones. The band again finds a new and interesting way to approach their sound making this my favorite BTS album since 1999’s Keep It Like A Secret. mp3: Built to Spill – Aisle 13 mp3: Built to Spill – Hindsight mp3: Built to Spill – Nowhere Lullaby Download There Is No Enemy MySpace | Website
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