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EXCLUSIVE NEW DOWNLOAD: Gemma Hayes - Out Of Our Hands (feat. Kevin Shields) + Stream
Gemma Hayes is from Ireland and writes huge pop songs with crescendos and refrains well suited for coastal chilling and campfire roasting with close acquaintances. These two tracks (both crisp, warm tunes about the perils of love) feature the endless guitarscapes of a certain Mr. Kevin Shields, whose band that you might’ve heard of with the initials MBV personally invited Gemma to perform at their ATP New York festival this September. A cosign from the shoegaze god himself is all you need, so grab “Out Of Our Hands”, the first single from her new record The Hollow Of Morning (out September 30 on Second Motion), along with a stream of another album cut, “In Over My Head”.
Sounds like: Dolores O'Riordan, Chairlift, Daylight's For The Birds
Exclusive Download: Gemma Hayes - Out Of Our Hands (feat. Kevin Shields)
EXCLUSIVE NEW DOWNLOAD: Merz - Moi Et Mon Camion (Eviction Song)
According to his bio, Conrad Lambert bka Merz “left behind a major label deal and disappeared completely” in 1999, only to surface six years later to release his second album to a ton of laudatory ink in England. I think the last person to do that successfully was Trent Reznor and look where that guy is. Now counting Chris Martin among his fans, Merz is prepping Moi et Mon Camion, due in 2009 and preceded by a US EP entitled Presume Too Much, which will hit stores next week. His tunes are soft, serene ballads, packing a traveled worldliness missing in most dudes with acoustic guitars. It’s pretty soothing stuff, so download an exclusive of the title track below for Sunday morning sickness.
Sounds like: Joseph Arthur, Conor Oberst, Lykke Li
DOWNLOAD: PONTIAK - Shell Skull & ARBOURETUM - Buffalo Ballet
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Pontiak are slow and heavy and from Baltimore, kind of like some of my favorite characters on The Wire. The trio recently signed to Thrill Jockey, who is re-releasing their album Sun on Sun next month, which they recorded live, in single takes, in a Virginia cabin. "Shell Skull" is equal parts Sabbath, Slint, and Sunn (I'm taking the "S" thing too far). They also recently released a split LP with label-mates and fellow Charm City residents Arbouretum – take a listen to their cover of John Cale's "Buffalo Ballet," which has a palpable Will Oldham feel to it, a logical byproduct of the time that member Dave Heumann spent touring with the Bonnie Prince. Download both for the price of none.
Sounds like: Dead Meadow, Sunn, Bonnie "Prince" Billy
Download: Pontiak - Shell Skull
DOWNLOAD: Silje Nes - Giant Disguise
Norwary’s Silje Nes plays folk songs, but you have to dig for them. Under down jackets of softly-samped toms and snares you’ll find her solitary strumming and luring whisper, faint traces of song wrapped in programmed outerwear. There are only a few chords, but they get clouded among the cascading loops and arctic noise in the background until you've all but forgotten about them. This is the sound of roasting salmon in a large igloo near a lake or making snow angels alone at twilight. “Giant Disguise” is from Nes’ incredible debut album Ames Room, which came out earlier this year through Fat Cat. The singer just played the Oya Festival last week, finally graduating from loop pedal accompaniment to a fleshed out full band. I know it’s summer, but grab the tune below and think of wool and icicles and toboggans and marshmallows and then go buy the record. Winter always seems more pleasant when you're not actually in its grasp.
Sounds like: Animal Collective, Andrew Bird, Grizzly Bear
EXCLUSIVE NEW DOWNLOAD: Las Palabras - La Primera Vez
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When I tagged along to see Rafael from El Guapo/Supersystem's solo project Las Palabras a few months ago, I was expecting something along the lines of his previous bands' output on Dischord and Touch & Go. Instead I found him with an acoustic guitar (and a toy guitar he got when he was five) singing beautifully in Spanish about car rides, relationships and life in general. I've been after him ever since to a) record an album, and b) give me a song to post here. I'm keeping my fingers crossed about the album, but the wait is over for the first single: "La Primera Vez," freshly mixed by the man himself. Download and listen as the guitar, organ and percussion chase each other in circles right up to the near-psychedelic climax, where the layered vocals drift off into space. Every time I hear it I'm scoring the next Almodóvar film in my head.
Sounds Like : Caetano Veloso, El Guincho
Download: Las Palabras - La Primera Vez
DOWNLOAD: C.W. Stoneking - Don't Go Dancin + Goin The Country
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C.W. Stoneking should not be a white dude with his eyesight fully intact from Australia making music circa now. This should be coming from an old dude with stories about drinking on his belly from the Suwannee River and only available on dusty vinyl. C.W. Stoneking is as baffling when he's playing with his brass band, the "Primitive Horn Orchestra," as he is doing cheeky old-timey duets or producing a lonesome howl accompanied by his steel bodied guitar. You know that scene in Ghost World when Steve Buscemi's character tries to listen to some old timey for real blues man but is surrounded by tanned neophytes? Starting in September, C.W. is making the great journey around the world to do a residency in LA with some NYC dates peppered in and one can imagine how out of place a man this routed in pre-war blues could be in the city of Angels. Don't miss your chance to check out this man visiting via time machine and grab these two tunes now so when you're getting your blues on Monday morning these are waiting for you.
Sounds Like: Blind Willie McTell, Blind William Jefferson, Abner Jay
Download: C.W. Stoneking - Don't Go Dancin
DOWNLOAD: Two Sheds - You
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Since some of the greatest songs of all time were written about love, it sounds Grinch-like to say I typically hate all music by couples. But it's true; a fast beating heart can quickly put a wrench in the creative process, leading to criminally cloying ballads about blue eyes and belly buttons. So with such warning label in mind, I first listened to "Two sheds" (i.e. lovers Caitlin Gutenberger and John Gutenberger plus Rusty Miller). But "You" is actually a mellow, laid-back ballad about life and love's imperfections. Caitlin croons how "age redecorates my face" as an acoustic guitar patters in the background. Cupid back off; this ain't Yoko-Lennon and those aren't no rose-colored glasses.
SOUNDS LIKE: Jaymay, Mazzy Star
DOWNLOAD: MARIA DUE - Better Soon
When I spent a week in Norway last February (see tour diary), I was expecting to find frozen tundra and Santa's workshop. Downloading this sunny track from Oslo's Maria Due should help to clear up all those misconceptions, with its bossanova beat and layered harmonies that sound more Southern California than Northern Europe. Just like my iTunes, it will fit nicely in your collection right in between The Mamas & The Papas and Joni Mitchell.
WATCH: Lykke Li Video “Breaking It Up”
You good citizens of the modern world may have been wondering where the Scandinavian indie pop cupid whose name sounds like an onomatopoeia for a leaky facet (Lykke Li), who still managed to look graceful while wailing into a megaphone to Bowery Ballroom, and who can pull off a wicked cover of Tribe Called Quest (as our buddies Gorilla Vs. Bear posted a while back) went. Well lucky for you, Lykke Li is about to launch another tour- this time playing in cute, intimate joints (many of which have already sold out so be quick to act) around the continental US. Check out her myspace below for details.
In the meantime, we are bringing you a sweet new video of hers........always ethereal, always demure.
STREAM: Cass McCombs - Lionkiller Got Married (Live On World Cafe)
Making one of our dream bills actually materialize (and for free, no less), Cass McCombs and Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson will serenade both the devoted fans and curious passers-by at New York's South Street Seaport this Friday, August 8th. Expect lots of broken strings, distortion, and lyrical epics about down-and-outs and do-gooders. Not so coincidentally, we have a special stream of Cass's "Lionkiller Got Married", recorded last year for WXPN/NPR's World Cafe with David Dye. Mr. McCombs is currently recording a new full-length for Domino that's due early next year but no word on whether this unreleased gem (and presumed epilogue to "Lionkiller" from last year's Dropping The Writ) will be included. It's a wandering and contemplative strummer, Cass's voice sounding naked but healthy without the lush production of his albums. It's far from morose, 'cause hey, even lionkillers can find love.
Sounds like: Iron & Wine, Conor Oberst, The Gun Club
Stream: Cass McCombs - Lionkiller Got Married (Live On World Cafe)
Stream: Cass McCombs - Windfall
Download: Cass McCombs - That's That
Download: Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Buriedfed
Stream: Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - The Debtor
Cass McCombs Artist Page @ RCRD LBL
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