Black Atlass

A little late on this one, but check out the video for "Castles" by Canadian electronic act Black Atlass below.  Then listen to and download the smooth Ryan Hemsworth remix.  Enjoy.



And the aforementioned remix...

Magic Touch & Sapphire Slows

Apparently Mad-chester and 90's house music are still alive...or at least they are on LA's disco label 100% Silk.  Pretend you're 17 and that you've just snorted a line of crushed up Ritalin, and then jam out to Magic Touch & Sapphire Slows' "Just Wanna Feel" below.  Grab the record here or here.

Lana Del Rey - Bel Air video

Because i'm tired and hungry and there's nothing i could say or write about Lana Del Rey that hasn't already been said or written into the ground, here's the smoky, slow motion video for new track "Bel Air," from the "Paradise" EP.  Watch below.

Samantha Glass

Not Not Fun has compiled some of the cassette tape jams of Wisconsin's Samantha Glass, aka Beau Devereaux for the new LP "Mysteries from The Palomino Skyliner."  It's a trance-like mix of psych and drone, like acid being smeared across your brain.  Grab it here and listen to "Lost Along The Way" below.

Peach & Plum

Tech Honors is a performer/electronic musician/synthesizer enthusiast from Philadelphia.  He's already given us one album of the year contender with Dinosaur On Fire's "Sleep Moon Voyage," and is now upping the ante with his crazy-sampling. goopy and sloppy synth-project Peach & Plum.  He describes it as "a noise/synthpop album that abstractly tells the story of some idiot, bored at work, zoning in and out, daydreaming about being on a tropical vacation."  New album "Archipelago 3.0" is available here.  Pay what you want and listen to "Speed of Zen" below.

Chrome Sparks

Check out this bouncy, swirly new jam from electronic artist Chrome Sparks.  "Marijuana" sounds like being high.  If i was younger and cooler, i would say it's "some dope shit."  But i'm not.  Listen below.

Profligate

Profligate is the sound of cold, mechanical fingers creeping their way up your spine, a bleak landscape of grey skies, old, flashing computer monitors, and shredded analog tape surrounding you, like one of Trent Reznor's early 90's wet dreams.  Profligate is also the new project from Noah Anthony since abandoning his Night Burger moniker.  Grab the "Videotape" 12" from Not Not Fun and listen to B-side "Conditioning Trench" below.

Julia Holter covers Fleetwood Mac

My disdain for Fleetwood Mac and all of its members is pretty much unrivaled by any other band.  I think they're the most overrated group in the history of pop music, and no amount of lobbying by anyone will change my opinion.  That being said, here's a cover of "Gold Dust Woman" by Julia Holter from some tribute record.  I like Julia Holter.

Holly Herndon

Here's some menacing, unsettling, swirling electronic music for your Sunday morning.  Holly Herndon creates bleak collages of bleeps and ticks brought together nicely by the cold hum of synthesizers and some warbly vocals.  Listen to "Fade" from her "Movement" LP below.  It's the soundtrack to a black and white Berlin.  Get the album from RVNG Intl.

RIP Larry Hagman

RIP Major Nelson.  RIP J.R. Ewing.  RIP Larry Hagman.

New Chromatics

Here's another awesome new jam from Chromatics from the forthcoming "After Dark 2" compilation from Italians Do It Better, coming out soon.  "Cherry" would have fit in nicely on the band's "Kill For Love" record.  It's lovely.  Listen and download below.

Mogwai remixed

The always reliable Scottish prog rockers of Mogwai have a new album of remixes of jams from their "Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will" album.  "A Wretched Virile Lore" came out yesterday on vinyl as a Record Store Day Black Friday release, and will be available on CD and digitally in a couple of weeks.  The album includes remixes from the likes of Tim Hecker, Zombi, Xander Harris, Umberto, and more.  Listen to Justin K Broadrick's (of Jesu) rework of "George Square Thatcher Death Party" below and grab the album from Sub Pop.

Nothing

Check out the new track from shoegaze outfit Nothing.  "Downward Years To Come" is the title track to the band's latest EP.  There's a cool, old school Starflyer 59 vibe going on here, but without all the subtle god stuff.  Visit the band here.

Happy Thanksgiving

Enjoy your day of eating too much, drinking too much, watching football, and being annoyed with your family.  Happy Thanksgiving.

Buke & Gase

It's almost Thanksgiving, so here's a new jam from Hudson, New York's experimental duo Buke & Gase.  "General Dome" is the title track to the forthcoming album due in January from Brassland.  It clicks and pulses and lurches, sticking in the eardrums like turkey grease.  It's probably great for digestion.  Listen below.

Mushy

Stuck in some Lynch-like fever dream, characters of questionable stature surround, while all the while a steady thump, thump, thump reminds you that you are miles away from home and hours from waking back into reality.  And thus you have the album from Mushy.  Grab "Breathless" from Rough Trade and listen below.

Savages

England's Savages have released a live EP entitled "I Am Here" on Pop Noire Records.  Part Joy Division, part Liars, part Siouxsie and The Banshees, part Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and a whole lot of fun.  Grab the record here, and watch the "trailer" for the EP below.



Here's the non-live version of "Husbands" as well.

The Allah-Las

I'm a little late on these guys, but California's The Allah-Las are the embodiment of exactly the kind of old-school garage psych rock you would expect to hail from the west coast.  Bits of surf rock, jangly pop, and old, analog production values abound on the band's debut self-titled album.  The album makes me want to sit in a lawn chair, drink a cheap beer, and smoke a cigarette (and i don't even smoke any more).  Listen to "Tell Me (What's On Your Mind)" below and grab the record from Innovative Leisure.

The Faint

Wow.  Haven't heard from these Omaha groove makers in a long, long time.  I give you the return of The Faint.  Listen to and download new jam "Evil Voices" below.  It will cost you an email address.  Look for more music from the band next year.

YVETTE

What's with everybody putting their band's name in all caps lately.  I'd be more annoyed if they didn't all seem to be so good.  That being said, i really dig the sometimes tribal, sometimes tranquil, sometimes brutal music coming out of Brooklyn no-wave act YVETTE.  Listen to "Radiation" and "Scrape It Off" below and get more info on the duo here.

Lower

Here's the B-side from Danish post-punk outfit Lower's excellent new 7" from Chaos in Tejas.  "But There Has To Be More" broods and scowls like a death-obsessed teenager.  Listen below and get it here.

Action Bronson

Not being content with one excellent mixtape release for 2012, Queens rapper/total slimeball Action Bronson has teamed up this time with The Alchemist for his "Rare Chandeliers" mix.  Listen to "Demolition Man" featuring Schoolboy Q below and download the whole thing for free at Stereogum.

Captain Murphy - Duality

So the mysterious rapper Captain Murphy (although i'm still not unconvinced it's either Tyler The Creator or Flying Lotus) just put out a weird mixtape/video thingy.  It's pretty cool, both musically and visually, though totally not safe for work as attested by the glimpse of boobs in the above picture.  Watch and listen here.

REVEAL YOURSELF!

HAERTS

As if you didn't need already need a soundtrack to take you back to those wistful days of growing up in the 80's, making friends, going on adventures, and falling in love, here it is anyway.  Brooklyn's German transplants HAERTS have crafted such a jam with their lovely "Wings."  No word on any other release, but you can listen below.

(As an aside, i realize how annoying it is for bands to either capitalize all the letters in their name or deliberately misspell their name, but the jam is still a good one, so i'll turn the other cheek.)

Pyramids with Wraiths

Texas experimental drone metal act Pyramids have a penchant for creating awesome collaborative works with like-minded artists (see Nadja, Horseback, Mamiffer).  Their latest effort with Scotland's Wraiths is 25-minute opus of doom and drone and swirling vocals and tones, a ritualistic culling called "Magpie and Raven."  You can sample some of it here.  Hooray!

Guards

For the time being, Guards may best be known as the indie rock band that has the brother of that chick from Cults, but they are beginning to make a name for themselves and are set to release their debut LP, "In Guards We Trust," in February.  Listen to the instantly hooky pop rock of  "Coming True" below and look for the album next year from Black Bell Records.

Asobi Seksu and Boris

The same good people responsible for the insanity of a Saturday morning that is Record Store Day also have a batch of limited edition goodies prepped for your perusal on the worst day of the year, Black Friday.  One awesome item in particular is the split 7" from Asobi Seksu and Boris with the two bands covering each other.  Listen to Asobi Seksu's take on "Farewell" below.

You can see a list of the rest of records coming out here.

Mere Mortals

In the near future, post apocalypse, survivors will inevitably resurface to start life anew, digging through the ash and ruins for relics of the past life worth remembering.  Quite possibly they'll stumble upon pieces of Gothic pop fashion and attire, old analog synthesizers and samplers, and warped, damaged cassette tapes of Kevin Shields demos.  This is the music they will offer up to their new gods and churches.  Seattle's Mere Mortals' "Purple Fire" album is for sale in digital form at their bandcamp page.  Listen to "The Pulpit" below.

Kate Boy

Spooky and metallic synth-pop, for some reason the Swedes just know how to pull it off.  Enter Kate Boy, an apparent disciple of The Knife and adherent admirer of 2006's "Silent Shout."  "Northern Lights" bounces and swirls, filling the empty space and reminding me just why i dig on dark, Swedish synth-pop to begin with.  Listen below.

Miami Connection

Getting prepared to have my mind blown by Miami Connection.  Watch the trailer below.

Tim Hecker and Daniel Lopatin

Two of our favorite off-kilter artists, Tim Hecker and his drone and tape manipulations and Daniel Lopatin and his analog synthesizers and warped samples, combine their their talents on their new collaborative record, "Instrumental Tourist," available from Software/Mexican Summer on November 20th.  Listen to "Intrusions" below and get lost in the swirl.  This is music for grainy landscapes.

Adam & Binki

Here's a new song from Adam & Binki (Adam of Adam Green fame and Binki Shapiro from Little Joy) called "Collage."  It's a great pop jam that draws from psyche and folk and may or may not be on their self-titled album due out early next year.  Listen below.

Altar Eagle

Altar Eagle is the husband/wife duo of Brad Rose and Eden Hemming, a warm synth project of beautiful, floaty, ethereal jams.  Listen to "Parallel Lives" below from "Nightrunners" album, out now on Digitalis.

FIDLAR- Cheap Beer video

Here is the ridiculous video to one of our favorite songs of the year, FIDLAR's "Cheap Beer."  The band's self-titled debut is due in January from Mom & Pop.

Lust For Youth

Here's a new jam from Swedish electro-goth act Lust For Youth's upcoming release on Sacred Bones.  "It's You" pulses and oozes like a minimal darkwave version of New Order.  Nice.  Listen below and look for the "Growing Seeds" record next week.

Raime

Raime is the London based duo of Joe Andrews and Tom Halstead.  The two craft some pretty warped and gloomy experimental electro-pieces, and their debut full-length "Quarter Turns Over A Living Line" LP is due later in the month from Blackest Ever Black.  Listen to "Your Cast Will Tire" below.  It sounds like walking into a haunted factory building, grays and blacks everywhere except for a small puddle of blood on the floor.  Good creepy stuff (a little late for Halloween).

Empress Of - Champagne video

We brought up Lorely Rodriguez's dreamy Empress Of project a couple weeks ago.  No Recordings has issued the debut 7" featuring the jams "Champagne" and the aforementioned "Don't Tell Me."  Get it here and watch the video for A-side "Champagne" below.

Fun Fun Fun Fest 7 pics, Day 3

And we've reached the end of our festival.  Time to give the old body a rest, a detox, and hopefully distance from all the vertically-striped tank tops out there.  Seriously kids, they look stupid.  At any rate, excellent festival, excellent weekend, excellent music.  Until next year, here's some pics...

Pallbearer

A.DD+

Bleached

A Place To Bury Strangers

Nite Jewel

Class Actress

Trust

Yvonne from Octopus Project with a Theremin and a Red Bull...aw yeah!

Titus Andronicus

Lagwagon

Fucked Up

Black Moth Super Rainbow

On a side note, i got to give Damian a hug during the Fucked Up set, and that's awesome.

Fun Fun Fun Fest 7 pics, Day 2

Day 2 of the fest went off without a hitch (at least on my end).  Pizza and beer, some awesome performances, a Longhorn victory from afar in Lubbock, a girl dressed up as a unicorn, and Refused melted my brain.

Oh, and if any of you Austinites out there are missing the old glory days of the horrifying bathrooms at the original Emo's location, just check out the port-a-potties over by the Black Stage.  They'll bring back the memories.

Here's some pics from the festival...

Why?

Wyatt Cenac

David Cross

Tanlines

Schoolboy Q

Real Estate

Danny Brown

Public Image Limited

Refused

And finally, a pic my friend Aleena snapped at Girl Talk (while my brain was being melted on the other side of the park)...

Girl Talk

More pics to come...