Stop Okay Go

Mono

From the inbox:

++Hooray for Earth play Henry Fonda Theater on June 1st and they're kindly sharing this single, No Love, off of True Loves, their debut LP coming out on June 7th. Very Peter Gabriel if you're into that kind of thing.:

 

 

++Ooh, here's another kitschy track, in its own way. This one is by Japanese composer World End's Girlfriend is off the album Seven Idiots and is full of a dizzying array sounds, structures and influences. Sort of the musical equivalent of Scott Pilgrim or Speed Racer.:

 

 

 

Anything For Progress

++Merge will release Obscurities, 14 lesser known or unheard Merritt/Magnetic Fields tracks on August 23.

++Is it that time of year again?

++Feels like I should've already written about L'altra at some point. They have the kind of gentle countrified mature sound that usually gets documented here. Plus, they have been at it for 6 years.  The duo recently contributed an electronic'd track to a Japanese benefit album. (via)

 

 

Components of Flow

 

Someone was tweeting about how Rhapsody in Blue is a great song for getting-ready to.  This song by Tim Myers is prolly a little too sweet for everyday use, but would fit the bill for certain specific twee times in life. It sounds a little like a jingle, but that is a'ight round here.: (via)

 

 

 

 

Dream Team Is Here

 
From the 'box:

Would love to see Las Kellies open for a band like Jail Weddings and just kitsch it the hail up. Picturing a stage atop a giant fuzzy dice, etc. The three piece band sings in both English and Argentinan, and their album Kellies comes out on July 5th.

 

 

Bicycle Jumping Jacks

 

Why hello, blog!

Sam Prekop (whose name always reminds me of precogs) and his crew The Sea and Cake have crafted another one of those songs that's relaxing yet urgent. This is the way surfy and sudsy should sound. (via)

 

 

Was I the Wave?

Lots of new shows coming up, sayeth the inbox:

++This Saturday May 21st Dam-Funk, PB Wolf and Vex Ruffin play the Highland Park Ebell club. Show costs $10 with all proceeds benefitting the club. Hey whaddya know, the postcard really plays.

 

 

 

++Montreal's Graham Van Pelt AKA Miracle Fortress heads out on tour with my faves, with the forever young Junior Boys. No dates for LA so far; for now here's a Panthu Du Prince remix of the track Raw Spectacle off of Was I the Wave?

 

 

 

 

++Paleo's album Spirit of the Fruit got a helping hand from Daytrotter's sound engineer Patrick Solly. Paleo drops into The Standard on 6/29. Grab dat here.

 

 

 

++Gavin DeGraw returns with a new album, Sweeter, due August 9th. Fans can hear new material when he plays Hollywood Bowl with Maroon 5 on July 25th.

Quickies

 
 
++Was snooping around Elbows and Chet Faker is generating some buzz. The one man project from Australia covers Blackstreet's No Diggity in this video. Or is it a cover of a cover??

++Dot Allison's message for personnel.

++#1 suspect.

++Ooh, for people in New York "Zap: Masters of Psychedelic Art 1965-1974" will be on display at the Andrew Edlin Gallery until June 25th.

The Shah

From the inbox, here's a song by Stereolab's Laetitia Sadier who has up and gone solo with a little help from bootyshaker Richard Swift and a few fronds. This song is a preview off the album La Piscine, coming in June. Slinky!:

Tramps and Hawkers

Just happened upon this video by Erland and the Carnival. The band has a pretty good pedigree, with Simon Tong being from The Verve and Blur and David Nock from The Orb. Their self-titled album came out in January and it's just now getting some play. This is glossier than what I usually listen to on these pages, but I like the tone and feel of the song. (No one does chilly like the Brits.) Springtime drops on May 30th.

Serving Suggestion

 
Whoops, busy today! Will post more later, in the meantime here's an elevated playlist for the perusing by Nigeria's Henry Pedro.

(via)

Dream Academy

++Under the Radar has been killing it on the newsfront lately:  Baddabing, Baddabjork.

++Sounds from the Dream Valley.

From the inbox:

++Terri Gender Bender (above) and her band Le Butcherettes were recently spotlighted on NPR's All Songs Considered. They play the Bootleg Theater tonight, along with Econojammer Mike Watt and have a sold out show at the Palladium on 6/10.

 

++Owl City touring member Breane Duren plays Hotel Cafe tomorrow night. Hear Gold Mine off her EP Sparks here.

 

Function For the Machine

 

From the inbox:

Scotland's finest, The Arab Strap's Aidan Moffat, has teamed with Bill Wells once more for an album (with accompanying fun site) titled Everything's Getting Older.  This theatrical track is dirty and urgent, full of lists and stories and instructions and then...it ends!  Too bad. Maybe they ran out of material? Yoko could've helped in the 'instructions' department.

Love it:

Cages

 

Give and Take

 

++Cute how some of Datarock's fans in the audience are wearing red sweatsuits in solidarity with the band. This is just the kind of brand loyalty that's needed to push Tweebas over the twop.

 

++Who knew!

++Here's an enjoyable video TRKRVW (track review) of Grouper's Alien Observer. Short, filmed reviews are so much easier to mentally digest than written ones, at least for me. Observations like "no matter what time of day I play this record...it is nighttime" sound much more personal than when in print. Thanks to Einsteinmusicjournal.

 

 

My Ragged Company

++Slow your flow Ms., Yoko.. I just need to go grab my T2D list.  (Honestly though, these are great!)

++The Google Maps car zoomed past me on the way to work today. It was a little sedan with what looks like a huge soccer ball mounted on top. There should be an 'e=mc2' equation that illustrates the amount of time it takes for the realization that it's the Google car you're seeing x the amount of time it takes for your brain to form the thought that you wish you'd flipped it the bird.    

++Stephen Kellogg will play the Bootleg Theater on 5/16.  He and the Sixers all have handles, such as 
"Boots", "Steamer" and "The Goose." But c'mon Kellogg, who ya foolin'? There can only be one "Skunk." (via)

 

 

Quickies

++Julien Dore can hit high notes like this and sings Britney in an accent with cheesy abandon. Though I don't think anyone was necessarily asking for it... he's gone ahead and carved out a niche for himself as the next Tom Jones. (The judges' blase reactions are hilarious.)

 

 

++As a bookish type who bruises easily, there's no way I'm going to this weekend's Gladiator Rock'N Run, which I think is being put on for a good cause. Also, pretty sure the website has already beat me up and stole my lunch money.

 

 

++REDCAT's lineup for Radar LA (June 14-19) has been announced and includes Toshiki Okada who is "known for crafting sharp and visually vibrant works of theater out of the most ordinary of interactions. ..his performers wrestle with issues a seemingly banal as selecting a restaurant for dinner, the workings of an office climate control system, and the awkward departure of a young co-worker."

 

Music from the inbox:

++Witches are touring Europe right now. And if you like their wonderfully sparse sound, album info and totally want-worthy merch are available here.

 

 

Lifesavers

++Kimbra's still in Oz and Erik Hassle's staying put in Europe. In the meantime, here's Erik and wedding singer Ellie Goulding covering The Robyn.

++Tweebas!

++I realize that between this and all the Craft Spells I've been posting it's been a lot of airy atmospheric music round here but hey these are tough times, perfect for sleepwalking music.

 

 

Honda already got dey hands on Monica Birkenes. (via)

Green Ride

Some ppl were tweeting about this song and I had to look it up not knowing all of the Dixie Chicks' work. The video is only from '99 but it might as well be from the 30's with how far removed the style is from today. The strong women singing in unison, the crop tops, blunt haircuts and green screens. So fun to watch.

Gang Fight

Feelin' pretty good today, like an audience member happily shouting out "Cocaine!" in Clapton's live version kind of good. So let's do this..:

++I can't take advantage of this deal but maybe someone else can, $287 from New York to Barthelona. Fuuuu.

++Apparently Herzog's Nick Tolar is singing something about Kevin James and the decline of Hollywood in this song, via Spinner. More interesting is his dark, cynical tone of voice which is one of my favorite things in a lead singer. He could probably sing Ke$ha or Gang Fight lyrics and they'd sound post ironic (blogspeak!). Would love to hear that voice take on some Talking Heads/Metronomy type isht

 

 

From the inbox:

++Tony and Grammy winner (and EGOT contender!)Duncan Sheik plays the Largo on June 20th. His new album Cover 80s features guests such as Rachel Yamagata on songs such as Hold Me Now by the Thompson Twins and Stay by the Blue Nile. More info here.

 

++New video above from Finnish shoegazers Delay Trees. The video was shot in a doll museum in Western Finland with a specially built camera used to create a unique vintage look. The band's self-titled debut is out soon on Friendly Fires.

 

 

Quickies

++In this video with Nylon, Natalia Kills talks about inspiration and says that her music is sometimes labelled "dark pop." Thought she said "dot pop" at first, meaning that it sprung from the internet, which would have been kinda more clever.

++Hmm, was just thinking about upspeak the other day and how much it has hung on with little variation through the years. On the same-ish note, wonder when brooches will ever come back.

++For once the web doesn't disappoint! There *is* an Usher vs. South Park OMG quasi mash up. They could've actually sampled South Park for the "Oh My God" to make it more emphatic, though.

 

Screamo

 
Here's something a little different...a song by Little Scream, a band made up of members of The National and Arcade Fire. The intro is fascinating and lighting up the Wes Anderson and Who parts of my brain. It also has the feel of an epiphany/breakthrough song along the lines of Dan Deakes. Listen to this song by Little Scream, too...been loving all the dissonance lately! littlescream boatman

 

Too beautiful! Worth a few seconds, trust.: