Lissie – “Bully”

I heard this song for the first time last week but at that point there wasn’t an mp3 out there to post. Now there is. Lissie is an Illinois singer/songwriter that  has garnered some attention lately due to her covers of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance”, Kid Cudi’s “Pursuit of Happiness” and Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters”. [...]

Funeral Party – “Finale”

Upon your first listen to Funeral Party you might find yourself thinking of At The Drive-In. If that is the case then that’s to be expected considering that Mars Volta sound engineer, Lars Stalfors, invited the group to do some recording at the Volta’s studio in East Los Angeles. “Finale” is the initial single from [...]

Strange Shapes

Strange Shapes is a refreshing reprieve from the constant barrage of lo-fi, 4 track recordings that seem to be making it into my mailbox these days. This Brooklyn quartet has the good part of Vampire Weekend’s surf rock but without all the extra baggage or lawsuits. Each track is continually moving and progressing. There was [...]

Sixty seconds in, and it’s magnificent

by Fred (follow us on Facebook) Late June we recommended four downloads, including Placement And Angles by Chris Lynn/Cedar Lines. Digging deeper in the Cedar Lines catalog finds the restrained and cutting A Place In The Field Of Rights, which, says creator John Harrison “explores the energy around loss.” “Afterthoughts and Regret” is barely undulating [...]

Diving At Dawn

Pete Hobbs, one half of the indie pop band Boy Least Likely To, has taken off solo to present us with Diving At Dawn. Hobbs sticks to the adorable arrangements with simple piano lines and minimalist orchestrations. The first single off the upcoming album is “A Lot Like Love” which see Hobbs seeking out a [...]

Perfume Genius

Perfume Genius is one Mike Hadreas who is one of the newest bands to sign to Matador Records and has just released his debut album, Learning, which you can listen to and download the two track from below. The album was written in his mother’s basement after he moved from New York. Mike uses the [...]

Surfer Blood – Astro Coast

Surfer Blood, you have been a standout crowd pleaser at every pool party this summer. You call on me whenever I’m preparing a tasty meal. You’ve been known to lift my spirits on a dreary day. Finally, you never miss an opportunity to show up on an extended car ride. These things are all very [...]

The Sea of Cortez – “The Shores”

The Sea of Cortez get their name from the John Steinbeck novel The Log from the Sea of Cortez, a fantastic novel of love and loss – oh who am I kidding I’ve never read it, but if this novel is anything like this song then it might be time to visit my local library. [...]

Hey Marseilles

I’ve been severely struggling to find something to post about today. When will I learn, when in doubt turn to orchestral baroque pop? It never fails me. Hey Marseilles plays swooping worldly music that is not constrained by boundaries or borders. Soundscapes swing between melancholy cellos to blaring trumpets, all of which are kept under [...]

James McMorrow

James McMorrow is being touted as Ireland’s Bon Iver. The two share a few similarities, both sport a falsetto whisper of a voice and both use the minimal amount of obvious layering and at the same time can crush your soul with blanket upon blanket of new sounds that you’ll hear each time you listen [...]