Wise Blood - These Wings EP

 Wise Blood - These Wings by Dovecote Records

Loving this EP from Wise Blood. This Reptar-esque sampling master hits us with seven densely layered, bright-eyed tracks.

(Thanks to A.Hoff)

Purity Ring - Belispeak

Purity Ring releases its third haunting track.

Belispeak by PURITY RING

Aeroplane August Mix

Well.

We can't deprive you of this hour jam session by Aeroplane's Vito de Luca. Get over the hump, the weekend's almost here!


 Aeroplane August 2011 Mix by Aeroplane (Official)

M83 - Intro (feat. Zola Jesus)

Here's the second leak off of M83's upcoming album Hurry Up and Listen due out October 18th via Mute.

...Epic.

Fenech-Soler - Golden Sun

If you haven't heard of Fenech-Soler, get to know them as they've worked alongside the likes of Stardust, Groove Armada, and have graced the Top Ten Indie Chart on Radio 1. In their own words, this four member band lays down a "crystal clear hook...that soothes then snares, glistening synth, and dirty brass..." in every addicting track as they redefine what we consider pop. You can hear elements from influences such as The Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk, Soulwax, N.E.R.D, and Queens of the Stone Age coalescing to help them fill this hybrid niche.

These Brits are currently signed with B Unique, but attribute their rise to indie stardom as a genuinely grassroots endeavor. While the music industry has caught itself shifting on quicksand, members of Fenech-Soler are proud of having fervently promoted themselves without the help of any industry label.

Fenech-Soler aptly describe their latest track Golden Sun of having "rhythms that summon up the sultriness of desert heat." Put your visors on and give this track a play or three.


(If they get winded from their electro-pop crusade, I think they have a lucrative future in creative writing...)


 Fenech-Soler - Golden Sun by Fenech-Soler

A few more pop crystals for your Wednesday night.


 Demons by Fenech-Soler

 Lies by Fenech-Soler   Demons by Fenech-Soler

TEED - Garden (Joe Goddard Remix)

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (TEED)'s single Garden is set for official release on October 2nd. Before its debut, Soul Clap, Hackman, MYNC, Calibre, and Donae'o have blended up a few remixes of the TEED jam. Here's Joe Goddard's (half of Hot Chip) take.

 Garden (Joe Goddard remix) by T-E-E-D

Mix Chopin - Lush

This Canadian's still too young to buy drinks at the bar, so he spends his time producing some lusciously chill grooves.

 Mix Chopin - Lush by Mix Chopin

The Magician - Magic Tape 14

Stephen Fassano pulls another rabbit out of his hat. 

 Magic Tape Fourteen by TheMagician 

||VIDEO|| Gotye - Bronte

Beautiful song by Gotye from his album Making Mirrors. This Gorrilaz meets Princess Monoke meets Jungle Book video evokes a lot of emotion, even if you were never raised by buffalo.

||VIDEO|| TV Girl - Baby You Were There

TV Girl - "Baby You Were There"


Baby You Were There is off TV Girl's latest EP Benny and the Jetts. A few pictures speak a few thousand words as this clip shows the limitless narrative capabilities of stop-motion cinematography. In less than two minutes, the director manages to convey the mind numbingly stagnant plateau this couple's relationship has capped off at while they literally just go through the motions.

The Weeknd - Thursday Mixtape

The Weeknd released this hair-pulling sextape last night. Successor to House of Balloons and predecessor to the rumored Echoes of Silence, this collection of tracks is in high demand. A few cameo verses from Drake probably doesn't hurt the hype.

My favorite from this Canadian all-star [NSFW]:



(For Sara)

Active Child - You Are All I See (Full Album Stream)

Active Child's new LP You Are All I See is set to drop August 23rd. Try it on for size. 

This is gorgeous. 

Flight Facilities - 37,000 ft. Mixtape

Fasten your seat belts. 

 37,000 ft Mixtape by flightfacilities 

Miami Horror - Under the Milky Way

Melbourne gem Miami Horror is one of my most beloved exports from the Land Down Under, and this brand new track only solidifies that contention.  Their fall tour dates will have them plowing through Mexico, Germany, Canada, Switzerland, Belgium and the United States (PA, CA, NV, NY, IL, AZ) so get your dance shoes on if you're in these areas. 

You'd think they could make another stop in Miami...

 Under The Milky Way by Miami Horror (Official)

A trip down memory lane.

 Empire Ants - Gorillaz (Miami Horror Remix) - Mastered by Miami Horror (Official)

 Holidays - (Miami Horror and Cassian Remix) by Miami Horror (Official)

 I Look To You by Miami Horror (Official)

||VIDEO|| Bon Iver - Holocene

Director Nabil Elderkin rips the air from my lungs.

|VIDEO| Strange Talk - Climbing Walls

Strange Talk pairs an amazing jam with a visual bursting with color - and I can't stop playing it. Don't see how anyone could stay angry in the desert if more of these guys were out there.

Allegedly if you 'like' Strange Talk's video sponsor Cheer on Facebook and then click on the colorful clothes in the video - you might actually be able to win them. I will not question this technological wizardry.

Lucky for Strange Talk, we don't need many marketing incentives to enjoy Climbing Walls  - this one's a keeper.

||VIDEO|| The Naked and Famous - The Sun [NSFW]

The Naked And Famous - The Sun from The Naked And Famous on Vimeo.



The Naked and Famous live up to their name - at least to the naked and infamous part - with their new video for The Sun. Apparently when you throw a little glitter, paint, and soft core porn together, YouTube will not be featuring your work anytime soon. Luckily Vimeo doesn't abide by any moral codes. This clip is more beautiful than it is vulgar, and probably more tasteful than most of the videos on MTV (just kidding they don't play music on MTV).

Here's to all-day-Snooki-marathons and America's everlasting phobia of nipples. Enjoy.

EL-P - Drones Over BKLYN

Final installment from Adult Swim's 2011 Singles. EL-P comes in for a strong finish. 

|DANCE| Bastille's Bumpin + Radio Edit

Almost slipped through our butterfly net. Here's a track off of Bastille's EP Bumpin'. This California duo has toured with the likes of Designer Drugs, Nadastrom, Stanton Warriors, Anamaguchi, and Brother Ali. They're also apparently avid fans of whiskey and fire breathing.

I like to jump around to things like this.

 Bumpin  by Bastille

Bumpin' led us to this brand new edit by Bastille as well.
Jumpin' resumes.

 Radio (Bastille Edit) by Bastille

Tune Yards - Gangsta (Ad Rock Remix)

The blugs (sic) are blowing up Tune Yards like there is no tomorrow - a good thing because this woman is pure, unadulterated talent. Love this remix by Ad Rock. 

Nightbox - Pyramid (Hidden Cat Remix)

 Nightbox - Pyramid (Hidden Cat Remix) by Hidden Cat

||VIDEO|| Chromeo - When the Night Falls

I think my water just broke.

||VIDEO|| Reptar - Rainbounce

Athens' Reptar is rapidly gaining momentum from humble beginnings as they recently killed their Lollapalooza 2011 performance and kick off their tour with Foster the People. (Pumped up Kicks is on the radio now, by the way). To top all that off with a maraschino cherry (also maybe some grapes and melted bananas), Rolling Stone just featured this brand new video directed by Ross Brubeck. If you remember their previous video debut here, you'll recognize their affinity for kaleidoscopes and Rocky Horror Picture Show lips hasn't waned a bit.

Reptar @ Bardot, Miami, July 2011

Though we didn't get a chance to fly out for Lollapalooza this year, we were lucky enough to catch a very intimate Reptar performance at Bardot (Miami) this past July. As a small venue, Bardot is accustomed to packing a tight squeeze for in-demand acts, so we were shocked to see there was no line; no cover; no shoulder shoving. On the one hand, I wish Miami recognized what it had on its hands that Thursday night - on a more selfish note, I'm ecstatic we were able to experience Reptar among a pleasantly relaxed yet engaged crowd (full of Thursday night regulars and a handful of die hard fans). Rising above Bardot's vibe was a flawless performance by this four man ensemble - I'd venture to say they're better live than anything else. Members Graham Ulicny, Andrew McFarland, Ryan Engleberger, and William Kenedy were also kind enough to hang out in their polyester pajamas after the show and chat with anyone there. Couldn't have asked for more.

Tame Impala - Featured on Jimmy Fallon + Remixed

If you were having trouble indexing Tame Impala, members Kevin Parker, Dom Simper, and Jay Watson would encourage you to put them under P for "psychedelic hypno-groove melodic rock." This Australian band is getting some big looks on this side of the Pacific as they made their US television debut on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon this past Friday, August 12th. Peep their 2010 EP Innerspeaker if you haven't already. 

Also, Modular People have offered up a free download of the remixed Solitude is Bliss - one of my favorite Impala tracks. Loving The Time and Space Machine's take on this.   

  

 Solitude Is Bliss (Time & Space Machine Remix)   


A Tame Impala original:


 Tame Impala - Sundown Syndrome by caesdeloica

Feist - How Come You Never Go There

 How Come You Never Go There by Feist

||VIDEO|| Mr. Little Jeans - The Suburbs

Mr. Little Jeans - The Suburbs (music video) from High5Collective on Vimeo.


Mr. Little Jeans just dropped this powerfully haunting video for a rather sultry cover of Arcade Fire's The Suburbs. Better take care of those inner demons, my friends.

Lou Teti - I Know the Way (Cassian Remix)

I Know the Way (Cassian Remix) - Lou Teti by cassian

Little Dragon - Modcast # 87

Stream Little Dragon's 'Modcast', through Modular People, here. 

Tracklisting:
1. Alexander O'Neal - Whats Missing
2. Joe Lewis - Midnight Dancin'
3. Elektrik Funk - On a journey (I Sing the Funk Electric)
4. Mzee - Africa Natives (silly, willy mix)
5. Professor ft Oskido & Dj Tira - Jezebel
6. Busta Rhymes - Take it off
7. Addis Black Widow - Innocent
8. The Celibates - Coming Alone

Com Truise - Ether Drift

Chill wave for your Friday morning. Com Truise's EP Galactic Melt is currently on sale.  


Also, don't do drugs.


"There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge, and I knew we'd get into that rotten stuff pretty soon." Roal Duke in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas 


 Com Truise - Ether Drift by Butter and Jams Music

Clock Opera - Lesson No. 7

Clock Opera is known for delivering tracks so breathtakingly gentle, you can't help but get a few goosebumps. Hands down, this is his most aggressive track. On either end, I appreciate the different alleys and corners his voice uniquely traverses through in each release. Expect to see the new EP by October 3rd via Moshi-Moshi/Island Records.

Clock Opera - Lesson No. 7  clockopera

And a gentler side...

 Belongings 

Housse De Racket - Roman (Oliver Remix)

I thought they were singing about romance; the song makes way less sense when you realize they're just repeating Roman. 

Great track by Housse de Racket, and an even better remix by Oliver. 

Housse De Racket - Roman (Oliver Remix)

||VIDEO|| The Swiss - Double or Nothing

The Swiss - Double or Nothing from Modular People on Vimeo.

I've said it once, I'll say it again - there is a fine line between artsy and douchey when it comes to low budget independent music videos. For me, this teeters on the latter, but I can't say I didn't enjoy the Beethoven bust cameo (a reference to A Clockwork Orange?). In spite of this video, Double or Nothing is a freakin' jam. The Swiss's album comes out September under Modular People.

||VIDEO|| Oh Land - White Nights

Denmark's Nanna Fabricius, better known to us as Oh Land, released this creatively quirky video to accompany her song White Nights. Overall the reception seems to be positive. However, some critics feel the release is in an awkward twilight zone between being too aurally 'poppy' and too visually non-conventional for any one to like.

Genre is irrelevant; a good song is a good song. The video might be full of visual non-sequiturs stringing together scenes from a drug induced dream sequence, but we find it entertaining and intriguing nonetheless. The ex-ballerina pulls out some slick moves post water-fall leap.

Giving this dimensional trip a purpose, Oh Land shares:

"In my music I often get inspiration from both nature and civilization, two contradicting elements that pull equally in me...In this video I explore these two opposite worlds in my dream and imagination while I start mixing them together to become a world known as 'Oh Land.'"

How well do you think she executed that concept?

||VIDEO|| Blu - My Sunshine (feat. Nia Andrews)

Here's the first official single off Blu's upcoming LP, NOYORK!. My Sunshine features Blu's lyrical finesse and some honey sweet reverberations from the wind pipes of Nia Andrews's. Aaronisnotcool pairs the tune with an appropriately warm and vibrant video.   

I'm a fan of most of his work - and the fact that he brings just as much talent as present day hip hop lynchpins without the megalomania is a bit more than refreshing.

Chances are you haven't heard of this dude - he's unfortunately pretty hard to find right now. Be prepared to sift through a lot of google images of skies and color wheels until he gets big. Until then, get acquainted. 


 Blu-  Doo Whop (Feat. Planet Asia) (Prod. The Alchemist) 


 Blu - Vanity

Oliver Sadie's Mass Soundcloud Composition

This is a bit out of the ordinary from my regular posts - except that I love it. Even more striking than the song itself is how it was composed. I would tell you, but I think Oliver Sadie does a much better job...

"This track is the result of an experiment in crowd-sourced composition, a large SoundCloud-based idea collaboration. On 8th July 2011, I released a piano improvisation and invited you to compose something over it through posting timed comments as idea prompts: Exactly one month later, 8th August 2011, I present to you the finished article, the result of going through each and every comment you made and making a compositional decision from it..."


 SoundCloud Sinfonietta: You Composed This


By the way, if you're wondering, Soundcloud is a website where artists can upload music and interact with other artists/fans. The players I embed are almost always from Soundcloud and he's referring to the comments you see pop up as the track plays. This is creativity and brilliance on another level. If you're curious, here's the original track (which was improvised to begin with):

   [SoundCloud Mass Collaboration seed track. Please see description] by Oliver Sadie 

|DANCE| Geisha Twins - Summer Vibes

Long summer days are waning into the cusp of fall, but the Geisha Twins are hanging on for as long as they can.

For that, I am tremendously grateful.

 Summer Vibes

Tycho - Hours

San Francisco native Tycho (Scott Hansen) is preparing to release a new LP, Dive, by November 15th. I'd keep writing, but I'm a little entranced by its featured track, Hours. 

 Tycho - Hours


An older gem from 2010. 


 Tycho - Adrift by Tycho 

Summer Chill

Grab the water wings and take the day off tomorrow. 

 Poolside - Harvest Moon by Poolside Music

 R.E.D. - Chicano Life (Agent Stereo 'Chileno' remix) by Agent Stereo

 This Is Love by flubba

Beirut's The Rip Tide Full Stream Through NPR

In my opinion - Beirut's best work. This album is stunning, so let the French horns take you someplace else today. 

NPR articulates my feelings on this album perfectly:

"The Rip Tide benefits from a sense of restraint, never veering into self-indulgence or over instrumentation."

Stream Beirut's 'The Rip Tide' in Full


Album drops August 30th. I wait.

Moustache Machine - Pluton + Remix

France's Moustache Machine describes himself as a cosmic nu-disco producer, born to a Colombian prostitute, and "un artiste rare." I can certainly agree with the last part. But on the same note, his style is very reminiscent of the epic synth interludes that defined Daft Punk and what drew me (along with many others) to this genre years ago. I've posted one original and one remix off his new EP Miami 1986. Here's to early 21st century nostalgia. 

 Pluton by moustachemachine 


 Miami 1986 (Action Movie Hero Boy Remix) by moustachemachine 

All the Lights - Chasing Colours (Plastic Plates Remix)

Plastic Plates has caught our attention with earlier remixes from the year on artists such as Adele, Sia, Body Language, and The Human League. His work on Chasing Colours stays consistent with the quality of his previous remixes and we look forward to seeing more from him soon.

 All The Lights - Chasing Colours (Plastic Plates Remix) by PLASTiC PLATES

What got us hooked...

 The Human League- Sky (Plastic Plates Remix) by PLASTiC PLATES

 Body Language - Social Studies (Plastic Plates Remix) by PLASTiC PLATES

 Sia - Cloud (Plastic Plates Remix) by PLASTiC PLATES
"I am a daaarrkk cloud swelling with raiiiinnn."

 Adele - Set Fire To The Rain (Plastic Plates Remix) by PLASTiC PLATES

||VIDEO|| Baby Monster - The Fear of Charlie Sunrise

Baby Monster just put out a new video for The Fear of Charlie Sunrise featuring a lonely, pre-teen girl in desperate need of more attentive parents.

Also maybe some friends.

Directed by Naor Aloni.

Bjork - Virus

Another mind bending creation from the laboratories of Bjork's mind (preview from upcoming album Biophilia.) It sounds like she used a children's xylophone toy for part of the track - brings me back to my Gerber days. 

Like a mushroom on a tree trunk, 
As a protein transmutates, 
I knock on your skin, 
And I am in.

...She's always had a way with words. 

Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch the Throne

The long awaited album by Kanye West and Jay Z has finally been released today. You can stream the whole album here. Hands down, there are some killer tracks on this LP - No Church in the Wild, That's My Bitch, and Murder of Excellence are some of my favorites. The album also features contributions from Frank Ocean and Beyonce. If you're not well acquainted with it yet, don't worry, the radio will probably be shoving it down your throat for the rest of the year. 

(For Nsilo.)

Jesse Boykins III - Way Home [Mermaids and Dragons] (Prod. by Gold Panda)

It seems we missed this beautiful summer jam. Furnished by Jesse Boykins III's smooth R&B vocals and woven together by Gold Panda's immaculate production, we're going to have this stuck on repeat for a minute. Boykins graduated from The New School school of music in New York City and is backed by his band, The Beauty Created. Since 2008, he's released two EP's and an LP (Dopamine: My Life On My Back (2008), The Beauty Created (2008), Way of a Wayfarer (2011)). Keep an eye out for Love Apparatus, set to drop sometime this year.

Thanks to Zim Z for this find.

 Back Home [Mermaids & Dragons] by Jesse Boykins III

Air France - It Feels Good to be Around You (Mixed by Star Slinger)

Star Slinger mixes (not remixes) Swedish duo Air France. Slinger clarifies via Soundcloud comment that a "mix" is when one adjusts the levels of all the instrumentation they have recorded in his own way, but the original track remains. Learn something new everyday. 


 Air France - It Feels Good To Be Around You (Mixed by Star Slinger) by Star Slinger 

Best Coast - How They Want Me To Be

Another Best Coast track for the week - a preview of what's to come from their next LP. Diggin' it. 

Best Coast - How They Want Me To Be by Hypetrak

Neon Indian - Polish Girl

Synth-pop king, Neon Indian, is setting blogs on fire with one release after the next. Off of the upcoming Era Extraña, here's Polish Girl. This is gonna be a classic.

Neon Indian - Polish Girl by Butter and Jams Music

|DANCE| Human Life - Uptown + More

Southern California's Human Life is working tirelessly on their new album under Defected Records- and I have a feeling it's going to be making tremendous waves in 2011. The group is comprised of producer Josh Collins, and producers/musicians Rachel Starr and Matt Wasley. According to their bio, their production goal was to make music "detached from the usual mega-club styles." This genre-twisting electro-pop ménage-à-trois has accomplished just that.

Human Life rose to fame in the electronic dance world with their internationally acclaimed jam In it Together. Since then, their tracks have received royal remix treatment from a slew of artists including A-Trak, Grum, Carte Blanche, and Cookers. In anticipation for their upcoming (unnamed/sometime this summer or fall) album, Human Life has decided to give away Uptown as a free download. They've also, rather thoughtfully, split up two summer mixes for your Daytime activities and Nighttime frolics.

Their new releases...

 Human Life - Uptown (Free download) by Defected Records

 Summer 2011 DJ Mix Parts 1 & 2 by Human Life

Their claim to fame...

 Human Life 'In It Together' by Human Life

Joe Goddard - Gabriel (feat Valentina)

Half of Hot Chip, Joe Goddard, is putting out a solo EP titled Gabriel under Greco-Roman. Intriguing sound. 

 Joe Goddard - Gabriel (Feat. Valentina) by DFA Records

||VIDEO|| Toro y Moi - How I Know

Casper doesn't have much on these love hungry she-ghosts. Director Jordan Kim resurrects Toro y Moi's How I Know back to life onto a visual realm. Kim has also done superb work on Teams vs. Star Slinger - Close To Me and Daedelus - Fair Weather Friends.


Remember to look out for Toro y Moi's new EP Freaking Out on September 13th.

Das Racist - Michael Jackson

Hailing from the streets of Brooklyn, Das Racist is comprised of Himanshu Suri (Heems) and Victor Cazquez (Kool A.D.). They are known for lacing addicting beats with hilariously jarring and (seemingly) nonsensical verses. They first started getting looks in 2008 with their single Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell and rose to blogosphere notoriety with their mixtapes Shut up, Dude and Sit Down, Man. 

Heems on Das Racist's style: 

"We're not making music that's instantly appealing. We dabble with nonsequiturs, dadaism, repetition - repetition. We make dance music while talking about not-dancey things. We say things that on the surface can seem pretty dumb; it's a mask...for actual discontent with a lot of shit in the world."

What inspired this feature - their latest track.

 Das Racist - Michael Jackson

And the jam that started it all:

 Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell by dasracist

||VIDEO|| Best Coast - Our Deal

Get More: MTV Supervideo, Music, Best Coast

This Best Coast video is directed by Drew Barrymore and features cameo appearances from actors such as Donald Glover (from Community) and Alia Shawkat (from Arrested Development). This West Side Story tale of Shakespearean star-crossed lovers is fun yet painfully heart wrenching - amazing work on Barrymore's part. Best Coast's deservingly receiving a lot of attention this year.

|DANCE| Oliver - I Need You

This Los Angeles duo goes simply by Oliver and has put out this dance-floor ready track very early in the work week. Once they get 20,000 plays on their Soundcloud, they'll put the track up for free download. They've got some big remixes on the way; until then, I suggest you get an extra helping of synth and keep hitting play on this track!


 Oliver - I Need You by weareoliver

Gramatik's New Album - Beatz and Pieces Vol. 1

Pretty Lights Music's newest producer Gramatik released his first full album on July 12th. His tracks are reminiscent of Pretty Lights' work, but they have a distinctly hip hop Star Slinger feel to them. The Slovenian Gramatik has been putting up tracks since early 2008 and has won second place for "Best Chill Out Artist" and "Best Chill Out Track" at the 2010 Beatport Music Awards. He's also been touring with the likes of Pretty Lights, Glitch Mob, Two Fresh, and more. The album is up for free download but I kindly encourage you to donate if you download the whole thing - this is one seriously talented producer. 

 On The Boardwalk   

 Good Evening Mr. Hitchcock 

 Is It Over  

 The Drink Is Called Rakija