Merry Christmas, Johnny.

Once, a love for The Strokes was kindled...and then they spidered.

Nikolai : Nickel Eye - Brandy of the Damned

Fabrizio : Little Joy - Keep Me in Mind

Albert : Albert Hammond Jr - GfC

Julian : Julian Casablancas - 11th Dimension

(granted, Nick Valensi is nowhere.)

Merry Christmas, my sweet Irish friend.

.x.

moisture maps a silken skin.

...

I'm feeling generous & tired, so here's a podcast (y.s.i.)

Anti-Hackneyed-live-1.mp3

playlist:

1. Hurts - Wonderful Life
2. Monarchy - Black the Colour of My Heart
3. Fenech Soler - Lies
4. Feathers - Weird Summer
5. Crystal Fighters - Xtatic Truth
6. Wild Beasts - All the King's Men
7. High Places - I Was Born
8. Laura Veirs - July Flame
9. The Middle East - Blood
10. Ramona Falls - Russia
11. Life In Film - Get Closer
12. Lunar Youth - Peppermint Lounge
13. Pictureplane - Cyclical Cyclical
14. JJ - From Africa to Malaga
15. Memoryhouse - To the Lighthouse

.x.

cause it feels so empty without me...

I'm back on airwaves - if in a more limited and dumbed down sense...

The Pod at King's College London, a belly full of talent, noise and laughs, has given me back a voice, with my sidey-sidekick Nylon, [Jerone].

You can listen to our first contribution -

our show : WDYD? Big Time (click to lick)

it's haphazard and glorious.

Crystal Fighters, Wild Beasts, Fever Ray, Live Like Lions, Cold Cave are all featured.

epileptic children.

This Friday is a night to move: a new club night is bursting to establish itself.

Kinetic Kids may not be doing anything groundbreaking with an electronic night full of "wonk and wobble", but boy oh boy, are they serving it up full and proper on their launch night -

D.I.M., Jakwob, Youngsta, to name a few.

taste a bit:

Fischerspooner - Danse En France (D.I.M. Remix) [y.s.i.]

Alan Pownall - Life Worth Living (Jakwob Remix) [y.s.i.] - something different from the wave of Ellie Goulding's.

Youngsta - Bongo (Double Dutch Edit)

but you can get more goods here.

This Friday, 18th December, at Hidden, Vauxhall.

jump on tickets here for £8, or risk it at the door for &10.

I hear multiple orgasmically good things about how they propose to keep movement 10.30-6.30 without even wanting a cig break. YUM.

christmas is 12 days away.

for no particular reason, except the fact that I like these songs for Christmas:

Erlend Oye - Last Christmas (y.s.i.)

Low - Just Like Christmas (y.s.i.)

Death Cab for Cutie - Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) (y.s.i.)

you see, longest list of three.

more will come.

.x.

A word from Vice:

A word from Vice:

Simian Mobile Disco

After making videos for Klaxons and These New Puritans and a billion other amazing projects, Saam Faramand is pretty much our favourite director (something that showed itself when he managed to get half the editorial staff to dance in a box for five minutes each for his last project). Simian Mobile Disco first worked with him in their "Hustler" video when he seemed to get every girl inside Catch to come round and make out with each other. Now, for SMD's new collaboration with Beth Ditto, Saam's brought together the woman from all those Nescafe adverts, sapphism, and electronic drug abuse. He also let us film him make it for our Heroes project with Vodafone - http://bit.ly/8aeJPG

AND:

look what they made:

I'm bruising from the inside out.

It's the time of year when everyone goes nuts for lists, and not just Christmas present lists. I've toyed with the idea of telling you all who I've liked this year, if only to fully decide and prioritise it for myself, but I don't care, so nor should you.

Life will continue as normal here, the longest list you'll see is three.

I went and saw Fever Ray on Saturday, and ever since I've had this silent beat entwined around my bones.

This song has kept it there:

High Places - I was Born

High Places sound like School of Seven Bells having a day off; a beautiful, pained and tribal reverberation from duo Mary Pearson and Rob Barber.

.x.

bare with me, if you'll bare this.

regards to Jamie, the gold prospector.

p.s. it is an intentional different spelling, thanks.

oh, it’s fine.

How about a winter tryst -

We'll wrap up warm in each other

and compose letters to your mother;

oh, we'll try hard to resist.

Sublime the cold of our hearts

To the smoke of the day.

Let it roll by, come as it may -

Our love poisoned darts.

Soon it'll be spring and we'll part;

We'll let our hairs malt,

Take our breaths with ease.

The birds won't have a love-song,

Not for us, not for long;

In a rush we'll taste summer's breeze.

would you like some delicacy? a little sprinkle of snow upon your nose? wouldn't we all. If only I could look outside and see white.

I gave H* Ane Brun and she didn't listen - her loss, your gain. Ane Brun is sweetness incarnate.

Ane Brun - Treehouse Song (y.s.i.)

Give this track multiple listens and you'll sink into love:

Laura Veirs - I Can See Your Tracks (y.s.i.)

.x.

the faces watch from the walls.

...

some things in life are meant to be done, others are not.

Hannah Hunt and Ryan Lynch probably know this, they have a band called Dominant Legs. They have songs too; songs that get lost in your head, but don't fight to get out again, they just drift about, smiling.

Dominant Legs - Clawing Out at the Walls (y.s.i.)

Dominant Legs - About My Girls (y.s.i.)

.x.

ghoulish gaiety - you're a bit late.

...

There's an urban legend in South Korea that an electric fan can cause sudden death by suffocation, hypothermia or poisoning. No, they don't believe the fan morphs into a monster and slays them, just, simply, that the electric fan can chop up oxygen molecules, leaving none to breathe; that it creates a vortex that sucks all the oxygen out of the air; that it uses up the oxygen and creates more carbon dioxide...mental.

So, out of the manga-fuelled madness saunters Fan Death, the protégés of the Erol Alkan, to deliver a whole load of synth slaughter. Last year, out came 'Veronica's Veil', and now a new offering of 'Cannibal' that is every decent drag-queen's dream. It's downcast-disco with an upbeat tempo; they sing like all the greats did, with nonchalance, and yet it's a diamond tear you'll find on their cheeks.

Fan Death - Cannibal (y.s.i.)

.x.

a truncheon to the head, a hammer to the heart.

...

Do you ever wake up in a day? A blaze of life overwhelms you; it's no longer a day that's merged, slipped and stretched from one to the next; it's no longer a day where nothing really starts nor ends - when it seems the night got caught up in the day and the day’s fallen asleep. BOOM! with a spread of synth, if you like it that way, Cold Cave will be that match for your fuse. Oh so 80s and oh so infectious, I was mesmerised by them when I spectated in person. It's music for the kids who want to feel a purpose when they realise they haven't seen daylight in 48 hours. This is all very paradoxical since Cold Cave is the genius of Wesley Eisold, who spouts vast quantities of nihilism and misery; however, he has brought together Caralee McElroy, Dominick Fernow and Max G Morton to create darkwave music that is hooky enough to relate to, and could it almost be disco?

Spoonful:

Cold Cave - Life Magazine (y.s.i.)

.x.

a sweet slap in the mouth.

...

Moody and nonchalant, The Cheek is a five-piece band from Suffolk who seemingly would far rather suit Paris, yet the way they shout in harmony, in an apathetic punk kind of way, requires them to be Mancunian or of the like. Vogue love ‘em; it must be the “je ne sais quoi” of Rory Cottam on vocals, Charlie Dobney on guitar & vocals, Thom Hobson on bass, Christian Daniels on guitar and Ali Bartlett on drums. They recorded their album in Belgium and it is now due to be released in early 2010 - produced by Ed Buller, who’s collaborated with Pulp in the past; it adds greater weight to The Cheek’s sense of Britpop days, where solid, catchy, punchy guitars is accompanied by sullen vocals, oft complaining. With these surly smiles The Cheek have moved from their name of Cheeky Cheeky and the Nosebleeds to a band worth looking at, and maybe pretending to dislike...:

The Cheek – Hung Up (y.s.i.)

The single's out and available from Puregroove.

.x.

I miss. have I missed?

...

haunting and beautiful, it caresses and pinches your insides; Warpaint are a four-piece L.A. band that's girl power harmonised with drums. They all sing; Jenny Lee Lindberg plays bass, Emily Kokal plays guitar, Theresa Wayman also plays guitar; then there's their drummer, a man, Josh Klinghoffer. Apparently they were once Heath Ledger's favourite band...and they've toured with Strokes' Fabrizio Moretti's band Little Joy. Besides, besides, they released an EP, 'Exquisite Corpse', but a month ago on the label, Manimal, which once put out Bat for Lashes; so have a little try:

Warpaint - Billie Holiday (y.s.i.)

Jenny's the sister of that girl [Shannyn Sossamon] in 40 Days & 40 Nights and A Knight's Tale; she used to drum for the band, but had to stop for her acting schedule...

.x.

p.s. The last DODOS show in the UK this year is this Sunday at Scala and you can get tickets here.

fragmented tales, pt. 2.

"...

Bent-over, typical, and hobbling, the patron appeared out the shadows, raised his glasses and eyes off his drooped nose. His stare, despite being glazed over by cataracts, peered right into my gaze; telling me all I wanted to know. The lock clucked and a flash of light from the dimming sun clothed the shop, highlighting. His shuffle and mumble contradicted my stumble and shout; he turned back into the remaining shadows and I followed, demanding still more. The swathe of luster did not last as the door creaked shut and the darkness returned, leaving me there, with swollen curiousity. Books and knick-knacks lined the walls, yet dust was in a greater quantity. What lead me here grew in appearance as my eyes adjusted to the remaining light, and an open book on a lectern collected my focus."

Huzzah!

...

In a flicker and a shimmer, Flashguns will become your favourite band; a band you'll treasure, a band you'll show off to your friends, a band you'll quietly absorb in your headphones while all around you is chaos.

They've played at Reading and at KOKO, but they've grown and vined their way up to a place where I'd like to think they might be able to have some more permanent and physical success. They're aiming big, with desires to fill the kind of places two of their contemporary idols, Killers and Biffy Clyro, could.

Their sound's a guitar-driven, soul-striven, synth-rhythm that won't offend the majority of ears.

have some acoustic:

This should please a few, and satisfy others.

.x.

all clapped out.

...

i love unknowing encounters.

(Name Drop) At the launch party for Mr. Hudson's album, 'Straight No Chaser', I sidled/bumped into an awesomely dressed girl, with an awesomely smiley dad. I was merry, she had a bag = conversation starter. This girl was Kitty, Kitty Durham, from the outfit Kitty Daisy & Lewis, which also comprises her brother, sister, mum and dad. A*.

Their trans-generation mixup harks of the 50s - good hand-clapping, closed eyes, head-nodding with a quiff, leather and frills; a time-warp. They're on the Rob Da Bank label Sunday Best, using analog recording equipment to produce rock 'n' roll the way the phrase is meant. They're multi-instrumentalists of banjo and ukelele, creating the sound the way it was meant totoooo.

example, maam : Kitty Daisy & Lewis - Mean Son of a Gun (y.s.i.)

not all's cup of tea, maybe it's a bit too Assam for some.

.x.

a cheat - to pass the time, comfort the heart.

You told me a secret, one that I knew,

and our embraces tightened; the truth was our glue.

I drew on your cheeks with my finger,

a note of love, which I hoped would linger.

The giggles and laughs,

stifled by the glass, echoed in sweet surrender;

who could have said it was not forever

when the kiss-stamps of possession

took a momentary digression -

the door broke open and the lights barged on

as the pretender to your heart,

stood there aghast.

out every night, to a different fight.

...

Kick, Jump; Stutter; Push, Shove; Flutter.

We opened this year's book with 'Something Good Can Work' from Two Door Cinema Club that seemed to scream from the rafters "have a cracking year!" and now, with the light dimming surprisingly early, they're popping up and about through the country on the Kitsune tour, along with Delphic - see here for details.

Without a drummer, but a machine, TDCC carve a refreshing sound, juicy with hooks and catching bass lines. The Northern Irish threesome do better than most could ever manage, mixing electro-pop and indie-rock, two great hyphenated genres; yet shying away from the typical stereotype of either.

Here's their soon-to-be-released song, 'I Can Talk', remixed:

Two Door Cinema Club - I Can Talk (French Horn Rebellion Remix)

you can see them in London on 31st October at Hearn Street Warehouse, and 12th November at The Lexington.

.x.

schtum.

...

there's been minimal music on Newfangled without a single use of electronic software stuuuff for a while, so here's a mug of tea-ful and a nice little fire of it: Heather Woods Broderick is just like the ideal camping trip in the woods; one where everything glitters, even the company, and clocks don't mean a thing.

Heather Woods Broderick - Old Son (y.s.i.)

Sister to Peter Broderick, there's a fair bit of sibling help, but that doesn't diminish the glare of her voice and the layers of it, which sparkle the lyrics off.

'From the Ground' is the debut album, out now on Preservation.

.x.

cheers to the dears.

...

The Rest is a cracking band from Canada who have flown over with a bunch of presents for us:

Firstly, TODAY Something In Construction (Loney Dear, Memory Tapes, Air France) is releasing their album 'Everyone All At Once' in Rough Trade shops, where the first fifty are selling for a shocking 50p, and only after that do they double with the next 50...and so on;

their second present is a little stream of gigs to partner it -

12 Oct 2009 @ The Old Blue Last W/ SEBASTIEN SCHULLER, 13 Oct 2009 @ The Lexington W/Kill It Kid and 14 Oct 2009 @ 229.

If that weren't enough, here's some colouring to the rainbow:

they're busy-beeing on a new EP, which will be accompanied by an illustrated novel - The Cried Wolf Book, adorned by MLXNDRSC. You can catch the first section and first song here; they will be releasing another section every month on Auteur Recordings, but for now enjoy their cover of Robyn's 'With Every Heartbeat'. The next section's out November 1st, check back for more details.

.x.

coco-pop stained sheets.

...

did I ever talk about Blind Man's Colour? - that band that Kanye "I ain't gay" West had a mini rave about: Chromatic Flights is the solo project of one key member, Kyle Wyss.

I'm not one (maybe I'm two) to make band-wagon assumptions, but this COULD be one of those solo projects that are a flash of beauty and not much more, or who knows - isn't that more beautiful? who cares?

Wyss released an EP called 'Favourite Cat' back in May, and here's a little toasting to it:

Chromatic Flights - Sunset Bell

acoustic-experimental electronic beats.

there's more to come, I think I'm just jumping the gun.

love is easy to write -

if your heart is full/empty enough,

it will bleed onto paper.

life is easy, enough, to write –

if your eyes are wide/closed enough,

they will guide the pen.

but,

when the two co-mingle,

and feelings float – heavy and empty,

pencil-lead snaps and clouds brow-furrow.

.x.

I'll give you a catch, if you'll give me a slide.

...

Olly Murphy. - his blog is http://warehouse-music.blogspot.com/

the name sounds like a bad 80s children's programme, but their sound is typical 80s revival; Penguin Prison is Genesis/Wham rolled into the 21st Century.

The NYC producer Chris Glover has remixed a variety of top-dollar tunes including Marina and The Diamonds and Golden Silvers, but his very own one could easily be worthy [paradoxical] of a remix too:

Penguin Prison - Animal, Animal (y.s.i.)

.x.

we're being watched.

Flora Cadzow.

...

when I was once ushered along to The Social back in April, to support a friend's friend, Giovanna, singing backing vocals for, previously gummed-up on Newfangled, King Charles, I spied a talent - Alan Pownall.

Now, wham, bam, thank-you Maam, he seems to be peering his head and guitar out more and more with his single, Clara, gaining fast attention from all directions. I once heard him described as an English Jack Johnson, but I think that carries an unfortunate stigma, so I'm going to dub him a...you know what, his sound is not a blob but an ongoing ribbon; maybe you'll just have to keep your ears pricked for a new likeness.

Alan Pownall - Clara (Melechtric Remix)

Melechtric is deejaying at The Den Wednesday night, if you fancy getting your shuffle-kerfuffle shoes on.

I've been hiding this cover of Kanye for a near-year now:

Alan Pownall - Love Lockdown (cover) (y.s.i.)

.x.

a wealth of choice in a time of poverty.

...

Swedish xylophone-tamperers, with harmonising heterogenous whispery voices, electronic drums and dreamy synths, Lake Heartbeat tinker similarly to Au Revoir Simone. However, there are similarities to bands such as, mildly weirdly, The Lighthouse Family and The Beach Boys.

this is for dew-touching walks in the blinding dawn light; or a moment-encapturing seaside drive with the roof down :

Lake Heartbeat - Mystery (y.s.i.)

It's far more commercial sounding than the rest, feebly 1990s boy band; but you overlook that and have a little inside dance anyhow - it's their head-lining single.

This is their debut album, 'Trust in Numbers', and every track is filled with an unenthusiastic optimism, making the songs emotionally self-fulfilling.

I don't think I sold that song too well, so here's another taste:

Lake Heartbeat - Pipedream (y.s.i.)

My favourite track is, however, Blue Planet, which I, unfortunately, can't show you...sorry.

On another strain, I'm trying to start up a magazine [I don't want to give too much away here], if anyone's interested in any way - getting involved or just general support, leave a comment.

.x.

i'm fresh enough.

...

This Wednesday is the Fear of Sleep launch party - my first freshers night, of any note [tonight I'm going to Punk for a Bite!]

Headlining is Hot Club de Paris who you may most probably have heard whispered in the wind a little - signed by Moshi Moshi Records in 2005, they've released two albums and have been touring with names like Maximo Park and Jamie T ever since.

Hot Club de Paris - Hey! House Brick (y.s.i.)

But, the band I didn't know, but might tickle my sides, was Heebie Jeebies, sounding a little like Pete Doherty and The View without the inconsistency and freaking annoying mainstream riffs. Oh I don't know, they might shake my pepper and salt.

Heebie Jeebies - Winter's Gone (y.s.i.)

.x.

fragmented tales, pt. 1.

"a shop in an alley led me to a frozen glass window - i looked through to see the other side and, catching the shimmer of a secret staring back, a cold realisation of a future found me. the shiver that told me so much about its importance left a stain on my skin and refused to sink in. i knew i was meant to be there, that moment, there. i shoe-gazed a while and let the wind curve around my figure, brushing over the bristling hairs that betook it all.

A noise shook me into a new frame and I gave in to the available tip-toed sight above, gazing into the shop. An establishment of cobwebs; there was darkness in all the rightly-wrong places, disguising the true nature of its custom. A few steps back and a look to the left, right and top told little else. I doubted my instincts, existence and time; I doubted my very self. why was I there?"

navel-gazing.

feel this pulse; if you come out, so will i.

...

omen in the rain, a lone walker with hurt and hood;

taken in by the overbearing clouds, spat out in the droplets.

solace in doorways not taken; unbegrudgingly trudging

footsteps painted the pavement, while a trickling-spattering flooded jeans.

A mild "shoe-gaze lo-fi" artist, Ivansxtc, has the pleasant 80s vein that really, of fucking course, appeals to me. He's UK and he's awfully lonely.

Ivansxtc - Breathe (y.s.i.)

when nothing nights come to something.

...

cough-up, in the phlegm of the night he told me he loved me.

utterings and splutterings,

in the dark,

at a dark time; when more more spun past us.

time between meanings blurr;

reasons for not

and reasons for are.

frYars came like a pen to my paper - just as ink spiders out, if its pressed long enough - frYars, has the possibility to do the same, musically. 19 year old Ben Garret has already been "Big in Japan" and now, with the album Dark Young Hearts having come out four days ago, he is re-conjuring the magic he stirred three years back with a little synth number, 'The Ides'.

frYars - Of March (y.s.i.)

The melancholic electro-pop simply spits out to his very own rhythm and rhyme. You won't be able to shy from his voice, you can tell he'd like to perform with David Byrne.

.x.

we're all ivy league, really.

...

Vampire Weekend with a tambourine; I guess east coast top-dollar education centres might influence their goslings. But just to throw a spanner in the works Princeton are actually west coast and only have their name because founding members lived on Princeton Street in Santa Monica. shame.

They formed in London and so named their first EP, Bloomsbury; Cocoon of Love is out 29th September, which is mildly spiced up and tingle-tangles from Summer to Autumn.

Princeton - Shout It Out (y.s.i.)

.x.

been away so long.

and then I just give you this:

emotions come easily, it's sentiment that won't.

...

" a little something my father is writing " (y.s.i.)

.x.

let me bow down and apologise.

...

Wolf Gang.

the newest Neon Gold unearthings is the UK band Wolf Gang. A band that have the same amount of gusto as previous Neon Gold-ettes, with big sounds, big emotions and huge fusions - covering hints from the 80s and mixing with the sweeping choruses of present day bands such as Arcade Fire and throwing a little TV On the Radio too.

This remix " Pieces of You (Baby Monster Remix) - Wolf Gang " is the best one to date, with others by Yes Giantess and We Have Band knocking about as well.

You can find the physical at Puregroove, find it.

.x.

I'm an outcast, cast right out.

sorry, I've been away - I was walking, I was a pilgrim to Rome. Now I'm back, but only long enough to throw a few doggy bones your way.

...

Pariah.

By no means "new", but by all means GREAT and this isn't even his day job. Detroit Falls is an awesome hippity-hop track with the kind of beats that Kid Cudi showcased so well earlier this year. Detroit Falls has the synthesised beats and fragmented vocals of the late J Dilla that manage to get in your head and wiggle around - 2 step/ techno/dubstep, whatever. Arthur Cayzer is an unsigned London-based producer with not much else to show but much more to be seen...so we'll see.

you like The xx? Pariah shook up Basic Space a little " Basic Space (Pariah Remix) - The xx " (y.s.i.)

.x.

a week away; hell to pay.

...

Memory Tapes.

A collaboration of Weird Tapes & Memory Cassette has hatched from one person earlier this year and morphed into Memory Tapes. One shady, and for all we know, dubious, producer has amalgamated his projects, which were two shades different anyhow, to form this one. 

The debut single is going to be released in the first week of August, Bicycle.

One sentiment I immediately cling to in it is the rough 80s feel; there's a bit of a tribal thing with cowbells, going nicely with a buttering of synths. It's got the genetic makeup of a lot of the disco-pop pumping this summer up, full of synth, guitar riffs & mystical vocals (Little Boots, Passion Pit et cetera), but that in no way detracts from the class of the song.

Memory Tapes - Bicycle (y.s.i.)

.x.

another week away. more hell to pay?

cheek by jowl & hand in glove.

...

Monday night The [A] TEAM gazoogled away to The Enterprise, Chalk Farm to hear Kid Harpoon and his supporting act Josh Weller. Although tonight wasn't officially part of Kid's tour, it was a chance for him to showcase a few of his new songs in preparation for the release of his single Stealing Cars, coming out 20th July.

Josh Weller was unknown to us before tonight but, my oh my, we liked a bit of him - from his Marge Simpson-esque hair to his painted skeleton hand - he was as enthusiastic as a child with an ice lolly to bosh and bash his drum, scattering glitter everywhere. Yeah, he verged on the twee indie with a vocal-driven performance but the undulations of his songs, swinging from very soft, almost folk, to a mad, ska-like deliverance made him more engaging. His single Push is out now on Yodel.

Kid Harpoon revelled in his show; sodding encores in favour of just continuing to play until he'd completely sweated out. 

I found him sexy...something about his gold earring and cheeky blue eyes grabbed me. There were other raving groupies, embarrassingly drunk ladies who clogged up the front and knocked over his microphone stand; but our composed if excitable selves were given a jam-packed set list, played with a kind of vigour that caused the giggers, that were, until then merely nodding in approval, to shake the room. 

the aftermath of when a particularly drunk groupie knocked over his microphone stand.

However, we weren't completely blown away to become fully fledged, t-shirt wearing Kid Harpoon-ers because his digression to playing the piano just came out all wrong; the cheek in his blue eyes turned to a kind of cockiness that he could play anything on the piano and the females would swoon. Once back, guitar-clad, his rendition of his old haunt burning down caught our attention, after he'd ranted too much about roses. 

Byesies.

.x.

Mama Do.. Mama Don't?!

So the next round of Brit-Pop Queen's have arrived. They're sharpening their knives and doing their hair and they want to give our good old girlies a run for their money. Having said that, I for one am just not convinced. Paloma Faith and Pixie Lott. Hmmm.

While Faith's single Stone Cold Sober is being released today in fact, Pixie made it to number 1 just a few hours ago. I am not 100% sure, they deserve our love nor the blogosphere's. I gladly find mostly they have not caused a stir online yet and while I wish them no harm whatsoever, their polished and different sides of the pillow voices are just...lacking.

Make what you will. It is by no means a mean feat to march straight into number 1, ousting the Black Eyed Peas on the same label. I am sure they will both go far.

Pixie Lott is a kind of soulful and tuneful song lady (not songstress) who repeats "Uh oh" a lot. Her MySpace fare is actually preferable in my opinion and it veers towards Jordin Sparks. There will be more from (P I X I E <3>)

Paloma Faith and her more 'heartfelt' rhythms harking from Hackney truly mark the beginning of the punk-blues that Amy Winehouse graced us with a while back. Her squeaky if powerful voice has plenty of potential but iffy lyrics don't make the most of it. That's not to say she doesn't try, in her single she is:

"wilder than the wind...You think I'm crazy, a little bit hazy/But I'm stone cold sober," - Right. These kind of semi righteous words back up her mix n match style sense but I don't think she pulls it off. In any case, it reminds me of a NHS teenage alcoholic campaign. Just peruse her MySpace for more 'information'. But in her defence, she was in St Trinians and worked with Basement Jaxx.

"I fly sometimes, sometimes I land with a thud. I am never what you think as I am multiple. Sometimes what isn't said is more powerful than what is." - ?!

I'll stick with Elly Jackson (La Roux), Little Boots and even Florence & The Machine, despite TheGirlWithThorn's weighty dismissal!

Peruse & abuse:

Pixie Lott - Mama Do (Linus Loves Radio Edit) (y.s.i)
Paloma Faith - Broken Doll (y.s.i)

time taints.

...

I liked her so so much this time last year. Oh yes. When a good friend showed me the enlightened voice of Florence Welch and her delectable clockwork Machine, everything she touched seemed to just sparkle, with that dangerous amount of power in her voice and the tingly-tangly accompaniment.

Now, it scratches and scathes. I know I shouldn't be saying this on the verge of her hitting the "big time", but I can't help but feel it just doesn't feel right. 

The video for her next single, Rabbit Heart, released 21st June and seen below, seems a little too much (I think the mouthing is out of sync as well).

Maybe I should just take a rain check and renew my faith once her album, Lungs, comes out on July 6th.

Here's some old magic in the form of a Bruce Springsteen cover duet with Kid Harpoon, whom I'm ecstatic to be going to see on Monday at The Enterprise, Camden:

Florence & Kid Harpoon - Going Down (y.s.i.)

.x.

Because Sometimes It's Easier To...

To reach out and feel... something.

Why? - The Vowels, Part 2 (y.s.i)

"Did anyone hear me cry there?
Through a toilet stall divider
I swear I care, raw"

If one feels a bit down, which one often does, Why? are here to try and articulate all these strange and unruly emotions. Well actually, they try to capture various curious emotions that crop up from deep down and their majestically quirky lyrics seem to do just that. From Fatalistic Palmistry's beautiful and breathtaking love story to The Hollows where we follow a darker trip to Berlin, Why? manage to combine a lyrical narrative thought-train into a powerful and perverted in their album from 2008, Alopecia.

Incidentally, a new album recorded at the same time labelled Eskimo Snow will be released this Autumn and should see a supposedly more introspective take on the Alopecia sessions than the word crazy pop we heard last year. The Bay Area trio will hopefully deliver the goods on Anticon's label.

Why? - Fatalistic Palmistry (y.s.i)

Byesies.

a blur is far more enticing.

...

Young Galaxy. 

Dream Pop/Shoegaze/Drone Music; whatever you want to call that strain of indie pop that swoops and soars to stirring vocals and constant chords, Young Galaxy play it.

Young Galaxy have supported acts such as Death Cab for Cutie, which could lead to some confusion as to their space rock (there's another one!) allegiances, but the Canadian quintet most definitely have a greater Galaxie 500 affiliation and Luna sound. Their first release of 2007, the eponymous Young Galaxy, was picked up by many, shaken around, and generally decided upon as alright but not that great - Young Galaxy are made up of former Stars guitarist, Stephen Ramsay, and his girlfriend, Catherine McCandless, which, I can only gather, has restricted Young Galaxy broaching these influences. Although their lyrics aren't nearly as interesting as folks like Joy Formidable, to whom they could easily be compared to, their new release of 2009, Invisible Republic, creates the atmosphere to compensate, using McCandless' vocals predominantly, as opposed to Ramsay's. It's set to be an epic little LP full of frustration and a definite hark back to the 1980s roots of the Shoegaze sub-genre. 

Young Galaxy - Long Live the Fallen World 

Joy Formidable - Whirring (y.s.i.) 

.x.

beards and brows; stuck in the gold rush.

Human Highway.

//The feeling isn't there, like it was all a bad dream; now we're looking everywhere//I'm just gonna follow the sound.//

I'm still working through the black hole of SXSW bands; Human Highway jumped up at me yesterday, nagging for my attention. 

Named after the Neil Young 1982 film, I can only presume, Human Highway are two men - Nick (Thorburn) and Jim (Guthrie) - who do the simple-beautiful very well. Light guitars, light drums and light voices; that's what they do wonderfully. Apathetic Summer Sundays suit this music to the [cup of] T.

Human Highway - The Sound (y.s.i.)

.x.

my feelings float; empty and heavy.

...

We Plants Are Happy Plants.

driving past a town.

We Plants Are Happy Plants is a one man machine called Peter Bergmann who's based himself in Budapest and sets about making the kind of euphoric (and still experimental) dance music that can make the grumpiest of souls crack a smile. It flows out the speakers/headphones in a constant cascade of synth and reaches to every nook of the room giving an incredible atmosphere. It's the music for the one-time moments of your life; when you're feeling on the top of the world and you'd shout but that'd ruin the mood; when you're with someone and the tingles are jumping; when you're driving at night and you feel alone and oh so content. That's what We Plants Are Happy Plants is for. 

We Plants Are Happy Plants - Apollo (y.s.i.)

.x.

[you'll never know quite how much you affect me.]

just sit in the dribbles of light and freckles of sun, playing lyrics.

Yellow Ostrich.

Why can't we be friends? said one peakish-looking ostrich to another. The another just frowned.

Yellow Ostrich is the solo project of The Chairs' frontman Alex OSTRICH (real name Schaaf but how dull...). The Chairs are a debutant indie outfit from Wisconsin whose EP November covered Neutral Milk Hotel's "Aeroplane Over The Sea" and absolutely nailed it. This is more like the side project then; Ostrich has got all the panache of Bon Iver, minus the distinct, pained wail [and beard] of Justin Vernon, and a kind of Death Cab for Cutie lyricism. 

Yellow Ostrich - Time Machines, Pt. 1 (y.s.i.)

Bowerbirds. 

What is nu-folk? For I should know not. Is it different to anti-folk? because I only quite grasped the meaning of that a while ago. Bowerbirds are a "nu-folk" group from North Carolina where Beth Tacular (rhymes with Count Dracula !) plays the accordion, Phil Moore (honestly!) vocalises and Matt Damron (...nope.) hits a few pig skins. They have that honesty of folk; they're not over-produced but their lyrics and melodies still haunt. 

Bowerbirds - House of Diamonds (y.s.i.)

.x.

Friday Is Thong Day, Saturday Is Song Day

This is Helen

Ahhh... Summer. It's coming. I can feel it. It's nothing to do with man made accelerated global warming. No really, it's sunny and for a while I cannot cease to be happy. Therefore, music has shifted from the likes of gloomy, brooding types like Bat For Lashes and Sally Shapiro to Neon Neon and Jenny Owen Youngs or whatever it is that gets you all summery. For me, I personally think no summer is complete unless it is accompanied by that sound. The one where you pump it out so loud you can't hear anything else, as you get ready to go out into that balmy, ochre strewn world. Could have been MGMT a while ago, VEGA this summer or even dare I say it La Roux's Bulletproof or even one of the awesome remixes like Skream's RMX.


But, part of me feels there is [potential] in the slow but energised rhythms of The Glass, hailing from NY/Berlin. Even though most of their stuff is a little 'out there' for a summer sound , their new single (slightly not new) 'Wanna Be Dancing' is a real slick, lucid, eery piano driven piece. We think it's certainly got us dancing in the right direction.

The Glass - Wanna Be Dancing (y.s.i)

On the other hand (and side of the world) maybe its in the form of Melbourne based The Dukes Of Windsor. It all depends on your idea of that blend of electronica, pop laced feel, 80s, or AustroPop (I just made that up). The DoW remind me of my other Australian babes, PNAU and of course Empire of the Sun. Ladyhawke; our Kiwi deserves to be there too. Their The Others
made significant waves in the blogging community in 2006 and the exhilirating rock sound mutated into a more synthy one that is no doubt familiar to most of us, but one that is respectively better than more copycat acts that Australia produces. I couldn't get their new Down In Dirt track nor The Others which is well worth checking out.

The Dukes of Windsor - Land Of Strangers (CB Remix) (y.s.i)

I also want everyone to take a look at a really really summery sound that's been around since 2001 but didn't really take off until 2003. They're really neighbours. It has to be said that nobody does it better like the Frenchies. It's M83. The eternal sound originally created by the duo, Anthony Gonzalez and Nicolas Fromageau, has now become the singular sound of Gonzalez. But it's alright because the more melancholy electronica sound of Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts featuring desperate beats that delves into minimalism has now developed into a bit more of a cohesive tranced out sound that reminds me of Friendly Fires. Their 2008 album focused on the eternal theme of youth and uncertainty and schtuff like that. Anyhoo, I think Couleurs is an excellent summer send off for us young 'uns; long, unrelenting and deep.


M83 - Couleurs (y.s.i)

That's all for now folks (as I write this, it's pissing it down.. sigh)

Britain's Got Cooties

So, this is terribly un-Kosher of me... I'm going to write about Escala, the previous finalists of Britain's Got Talent. This is NO Susan Boyle, thank you very much. Now I don't want to dwell on the depraved state of Britain, nor the celebration of mediocrity, or the show, but, seeing as I'm terribly patriotic and they're gorgeous, talented and a bit different, I want you to take a serious look at them. I hate to admit it, but I am a sucker for electronica and a bit of rock, so why not an electronic string quartet?

The reason I chose to shed light on one of the more lucky and talented products of Simon Cowell's music factory was because their album reached No 2 in the UK two days ago. Simon is quite nice in person by the way. For quite a polished, successful if strange brand, the album has classics from Kashmir, Clubbed To Death and Chi Mai - so quite a varied scoop huh. The best one, in my view is the (arguably) outstanding rendition of Children (orignially by Robert Miles, a childhood memory). Now, just to be clear, it's classic meets new wave rave and I think it does the job very well. However, I suspect, if you're a fan of the classical genre, you won't be impressed, although I don't know of any other classical remixes of Children.

Oh and if you do love Britain, vote tomorrow!

See what you think...

Escala - Children (y.s.i)

That's all for now children, (giggle), byesies

There was nothing and everything magical about it.

Final Fantasy.

Last night I saw a truly incredibly talented artist - Owen Pallett. Under the alias of Final Fantasy, Owen created a captivating show armed with only a violin and a keyboard (oh and the lovely accompaniment of an overhead projectionist, which added a nice little touch). With this ingredients (minus the overhead projectionist, she was pretty happy just cutting shapes) he used a sampler and a few foot pedals to concoct his songs before our very eyes by looping what he'd already played. I liked it bestest when he sang through his violin. 

So, with his cherub smile, he plucked and pounded his way through an impressive set, only to be called back for two encores - we would have had a third, if we'd had the guts to run into his dressing room. It's no wonder that we clapped so hard, he manipulated his violin to forge the kind of orchestral yumminess that only acts like Beirut, Arcade Fire and Patrick Wolf can try to serve up. Oh and wait, he's collaborated with them all. Currently, however, he's apparently doing the orchestra arrangements for Pet Shop Boys and The Rumble Strips.

Afterwards we were speechless; so in awe that we hung around in a courtyard, chain-smoking, waiting to maybe catch a glimpse of him (we did. he smokes.), to the point that we were locked in and, as it turns out, there's a lot more to Union Chapel than just the nave...

I'm still a little speechless to be honest.

Final Fantasy - The Dream of Emma and Cam (y.s.i.)

Because I don't think you can fully appreciate Owen Pallett's talent without seeing him live, here's a video. It gives an idea of how he builds his songs, however this is a Mariah Carey song and the recording is a little shit.

oh and there was also Cryptacize, who were, yeah, pretty okay:

.x.

p.s. Sorry for all the cooking imagery, maybe I'm hungry.