Toy

One of the things i love most about living in Austin during SXSW is that i seem to come across new bands and artists at an almost hourly rate.  There is so much to discover.  And so, hailing from London, i heard the band Toy today, and they're marvelous (now attempting to find a show they're playing at).  The 5-piece incorporates elements of psych, prog, post-punk, and krautrock to create a really full sound.  The songs are arena ready, yet also sound like they could be jamming away in the garage just as easily.  Listen to the epic, 10-minute album closer "Kopter" below and look for their self-titled album on Heavenly Records.

Calvin Love

Edmonton, Canada's Calvin Love crafts warm little lo-fi pop songs, catchy aural candy from the heart and the 4-track recorder.  His "New Radar" LP is bedroom jamming done right.  Get it from Autumn Tone and listen to and download "Magic Hearts" below.

SXSW day 2 pics

 Another day of SXSW, another day of feeling like i'm too old for this shit.  An interesting line up today of decent bands, good bands, and bands who desperately want to be Maroon 5 (blegh!), but there were drinks to be had and some artists i've not heard before to discover.  Check out some pics below.

Wardell

Half Moon Run

Jamie N Commons

Michael Kiwanuka

M0

HAERTS

HAERTS

Swim Deep

Sky Ferreira

Sleep well.  I'll most likely kill you in the morning.

SXSW day 1 pics

 And we're off.  I drank too much today.  Free beer + hanging out with one of my oldest friends in the world generally gets us both in trouble.  We did manage to catch some great music though, courtesy of Consequence of Sound.  Check out the pics below.

Fort Lean

Wampire

White Lung

TEEN

St. Lucia

Ex-Cops

Jacco Gardner

Mac DeMarco

Chelsea Light Moving

 In the evening, we caught a little bit of a different show that was supposed to include a performance from Jandek, but he cancelled last minute, which made me a sad panda.  The synth-goth of Troller made up for it though.

Troller

Best Coast (and Snacks the Cat) cover Roy Orbison

Because i've been drinking beer most of this week so far, and because it's SXSW, and because the latest tunes i've heard from Best Coast seem to be going back to their fuzzy, lo-fi awesome roots, here's a cover of Roy Orbison's classic "Crying," featuring Snacks the Cat (you'll hear the meowing at the end).

SXSW pre-party pics

 The good folks at Panache Booking put together a lovely free party today to kick of this year's SXSW.  It was a great line up of some bands i know and lot that i do not (as SXSW is supposed to be).  Saw some great stuff, and i'll be linking some tracks from these bands in the near future and see if anyone has any releases on the horizon.

I would have loved to stay for the whole gig, but i've got other things to attend to (my dog and my pregnant wife to be exact).  Here's to tomorrow's parties.  Check out some pics below.

Hunters

Delicate Steve

Calvin Love

Fat Tony

Roomrunner

Outer Minds

Jacco Gardner

Jacco Gardner

We'll be back with more pics tomorrow...

St. Lucia & CHVRCHES

New York electro-kid St. Lucia's "Before the Dive" gets the remix treatment from Scotland's CHVRCHES to wonderful effect.  The perfect springtime jam to get your party started, whether that be SXSW (both artists will be there), drinking a beer in a lawn chair in the backyard (always a classic), or pretending you're not at work.  Listen below.

Feuerbahn

Feuerbahn hail from Italy, combining elements of black metal, industrial, and drone to create an ethereal, chant-like funeral dirge for giant, rusted Siberian robots.  Are giant Siberian robots a thing?  Because they totally should be.  "The Fire Dance" LP will soon be available from Aufnahme and Wiedergabe, but listen to "Triumphwagen" below and sample the rest of the album here.

Phantom Love

I don't know what it is about Italians and their pulsing synth soundscapes, but god bless them for it.  Phantom Love's "Lotus" from their upcoming self-titled EP is the perfect post-heist soundtrack for an anti-hero to make his escape through a neon countryside to.  Check the song out below (sorry, all i could find was a link) and look for the EP from Mannequin Records in April.

https://soundcloud.com/mannequin-label/phantom-love-lotus

The Knife - A Tooth for an Eye

Here's another track from the upcoming new album "Shaking The Habitual" from The Knife.  "A Tooth for an Eye" uses tribal percussion, lulling you into a trance-like state as Karin Dreijer's vocals carry you away as a new member of the cult.  Awesome stuff.  Listen below and look for the album in April from Mute.