Siberian
Caught between shoegaze and rock, Seattle, Washington's band Siberian fall under the category of music that leaces you floating amongst the fields of its euphoric tunefulness and lyrical tenderness. For a band who's been around since 2004, With Me, is their first full length, displaying this common rise and fall between each of its 11 tracks. It's melodramatic dreamy pop, swayful and sonically-ambitious motives make open to rendering interpretations. Comparative to The Walkmen, Siberian are an eye opener. The album dropped last week and has been aimlessly wandering around my ears since then.
Siberian Belgian Beer And Catholic Girls
Siberian Islands Forever
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Cassette Kids
Cassette Kids are from Sydney. They are really attractive and play dancey post-punk. I haven't been this infatuated with a band from just one track since Teenagersintokyo. They have played with Riot In Belgium, Van She and White Rose Movement.
Cassette Kids Acrobats
We're Catching Bullets In Our Teeth...
Hello all. Another lengthy absence from me. Again, duty calls with what is known to us as life – however, here is a lovely mixture of what I fill my existence with. The sounds that accompany the movements of my body through minutes, hours, days and weeks.
Liam Finn Second Chance
This boy has been causing a slight ruckus amongst forums and blogs. Whether being Neil Finn’s son is a blessing or a curse – is beside the point, despite past criticism. Finn’s Kiwi accent lingers through out various songs and you can hear that twang of Neil Finn in there in the undercurrent of beautiful music – however what do you expect, like father like son. In this case, we have a very talented and almost magical musician on our hands.
Shout Out Louds Tonight I Have To Leave It (Kleerup Remix)
Now to get things a little more … uhh exciting? Here is a great track; you all know I love my remixes. The SOL’s always give me this ‘the cure’-esque feeling to them. The intensity of the vocals at some points are very Robert Smith-ish (2:48 mins) – to be precise! This song will keep you moving, I guarantee you – if it can have me running on the treadmill for ten minutes – I can’t imagine the future possibilities for all of you!
Scott Matthews Elusive
Back to another dreamy slow song that I can’t seem to stray away from. Such a great track, Elusive will have you just sitting still in the beauty of the subtle and simple sounds. This song requires no additional notes. Download, listen, and merely enjoy!
Tunng Bullets
Another UK artist, you’ll hear Tunng all over the airwaves these days, & why the hell not? This track is the second single from ‘Good Arrows’. Tunng play a mesmerising mix of folky acoustics and busy electronica, overlaying electronic crackles, gorgeous harmonies, bewitching mantras and synthetic beats.
The Panics Don’t Fight It
A few days ago I purchased Aussie band, ‘The Panics’, latest album; Cruel Guards – and what the album! It came as a double CD set, with the second CD, ‘Join the Dots’, compiled of 5 tracks of cover songs. Covers include ‘Just Like a Woman’, a great track from Bob Dylan and a few other treasures. This song, however is their first single from the album, again you might hear this little jewel floating amongst the airwaves!
Black Kids I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You
Ok so I have gone all AWOL and decided to give you a whole bunch of tracks to keep you moving through the rest of the week! I know which tracks to give you – based on the response my body gives while listening to them at the gym. This song is a sure hit with my muscles! A slinky, sleek and almost amusing track to talk with, dream with, or to even get on the cross-trainer with!
I hope you enjoyed this instalment of my fabulous – or not so fabulous – mix! I have mashed this one up a little bit with ups & downs and arounds! Right, that doesn’t make sense but what the hell. A mix to match the weather, a girls mood, or even how a day can be so bad, but then oh so good!
Bridezilla
Sydney's band Bridezilla, are more than surprising in many ways. With most of them still in school and half of them currently undergoing their HSCs, they've managed to fit time to tour and record. Mustering dark sounds of the violin and saxophone, along with sultry vocals and sharp guitar and drums, Bridezilla create an interesting blend of folk, jazz and art rock, with influences from Cat Power, The Dirty Three and The Velvet Underground. Matching their musical abilities to their stage performance with confidence and flair, making it an incredible experience for the audience to watch them as they drive their instruments with so much power and style as witnessed the first time I saw them back in January this year at the "Future Is Now" gig with other bands also blogged about here (Ghostwood & teenagersintokyo). You can't really underestimate them despite their age, they're probably cooler than you. Last month they were signed by Ivy League Records which will see them releasing an EP sometime soon, by the end of the year. Next year will be bigger for this bunch; guaranteed!
Bridezilla Brown Paper Bag
Bridezilla Saint Francine
Joan As Police Woman
Joan Wessar; the lady that is Joan As Police Woman has been quoted saying "beauty is the new punk rock" and I couldn't agree more. Joan's been around the block a few times now, having played in now-disbanded bands such as The Dambuilders, Black Beetle and Those Bastard Souls, as well as pitching a hand here and there, and taking a more quiet path, for artists so unique as Antony And The Johnsons and more evidently, Rufus Wainwright. Last year marked the release of her debut album, Real Life, which was loved by just about everyone who were fans of the aforementioned bands or hadn't even heard of Joan before. The album was diverse, there was no track that sounded like another. It's music that shimmers throughout your body, giving you chills. It's jazz, it's soulful, it's come from nowhere, it's familiar but yet unheard of. Put quite simply, it's a brilliant album. So, a year on after the release what does an artist do? You re-release it of course! Real Life now comes with a bonus 6 track CD that features songs from singles, EP's and a couple of rare ones.
Joan As Police Woman Eternal Flame
Joan As Police Woman Christobel
Joan As Police Woman Sweet Thing (David Bowie Cover)
Die! Die! Die!
For kids who enjoy playing with fake blood, New Zealand 's punk trio Die! Die! Die!, they do it best at creating music to be short, fast and loud. With that, complexity of disorderly heavy rhythms and shrieking vocals which tingle from your neurons out to your toe hairs. Formed over just almost 4 years, the band have built solid foundation throughout New Zealand, Australia and the UK, playing an incredible amount of shows that has certainly done them well. Just having recently released their second full length album is Promises, Promises, it was recorded within 12 days and produced by Shayne Carter who had seen them at one of their SXSW shows earlier this year and decided to work with them after witnessing their persistence to perform with such energy despite guitarist/lead singer Andrew Wilson's injury of a broken hand and even whilst recording their 2005 debut album, he suffered with vocal strains. After all, there's no stopping this band!
The album Promises, Promises is already out in New Zealand, will be released sometime next month in Australia via Etch and Sketch and the rest of the world next year. For more taste test of the album and details about the promotional tour around Australia and New Zealand, check out their myspace page.
Die! Die! Die! Blue Skies
Die! Die! Die! Britomart Sunset
Dan Kelly "Nothing Compares To You"
This is honestly one cover I never thought would happen. Dan Kelly covering Sinead O'Connor, no one could have picked that. Nevertheless! Dan Kelly has made an excellent version that is completely his style but still sticking true to the original. The song features on the soon to be released cover's album No Man's Woman, which features only Australian male artist's (The Vines, Expatriate, and even Dan's uncle, Paul Kelly) doing cover versions of female artists from around the world (PJ Harvey, Bjork, Blondie, Everything But The Girl and even The Veronicas). This song sounds so very 60's acoustic surf, it's refreshing. If mandalin's and soothing vocals are your thing, you can't go past this song. Actually, you can't go past Dan Kelly at all. He's a genius, that's all there is to it, he's pure genius.
Dan Kelly Nothing Compares To You (Sinead O'Connor Cover)
Seabear
Does a seabear really exist? Originally a myth concocted by locals, it is now the truth that one truly does but alas, 'tis rare. This mysterious creature hailing from one of the world's greatest animal hotspots (from the likes of Björk and Sigur Rós) consists of one to seven members when migrating. Their call is one entirely of its own – dainty indie pop with lashings of folk touches interjected in between. Sprinkle with Kings of Convenience’s solemn lyricism, simple but unforgettable melodies and Belle & Sebastian’s charm and this call may as well be named a certain term - music – perfect music to turn the bluest of blues into happy, bursting pinks.
Seabear I Sing I Swim
Seabear Lost Watch
Ghostwood
Modular Record's latest darlings, Ghostwood, have just released their debut self-titled EP. Formally know as The Ghosts, these Sydney kids are fast becoming well known around radio airwaves with their song Red Version getting multiple plays here and there. Floating around in the same boat as Mercy Arms and Lost Valentinos, Ghostwood combine that real sort of indie surf-rock (it's a genre now), slow soothing, big drums effect but make it easily listenable and enjoyable. The guys have been quiet as of late after doing a round of shows around Australia promoting their EP, but one hopes that they'll be back again soon.
Ghostwood Red Version
Ghostwood Run
Birth Glow
Instead of Kelly Clarkson singing and tearing it away in lounge room whilst people are running away from her scared, you have Birth Glow playing the same song with furniture intact and people listening intently. I'm not saying Adelaide's Birth Glow, don't create much of a mess either, but when you have Ellen Carey (ex Jemima Jemima, and has also lent her voice to Sly Hats' Will You? on Liquorice Night), Nic Walton (Sweet Raxxx) and Stephanie Crase (No Through Road) together, it's almost as if they are experimenting a variety of absurd candy flavours, only to hear its wrappers making crackling noises and see reactions of facial expressions to the sweet or sour after-tastes. Coating the minimalism of Beat Happening and out-of-range boy/girl harmonies juxtaposed within an inconsistent clutter of rattling percussions, their sound reverberates through small spaces/warehouses/lounges/kitchens/whatever. Sounding half as finished as this post, this is Birth Glow.
Birth Glow Batman
Birth Glow Pathos Face
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