Pocahaunted were boss. Unfortunately they're probably most famous because the lead singer from Best Coast formed this band. Don't let that fact make you expect summery indie pop - Pocahaunted played psychedelic dubby goodness. Highly reccomended.
A one-off supergroup from the Chicago indie/math-rock scene, consisting of brothers Tim "Cap'n Jazz" Kinsella and Mike "Owen" Kinsella, as well as the guitarists from Ghosts & Vodka. If any of those bands tickle your fancy, then this is for you. If not, then try it anyway - this album is truly spectacular.
Everyone has a German house DJ mate living in Edinburgh, right? You don't?! For shame.
Hey kids, I know the weekend's here, but are you ready for some fun musical maths? Good.
Politically charged post-rock from San Francisco. As well as creating soaring guitar-scapes, this trio use samples from TV and film to get their vitally important pro-liberty message across.
Epic post-rock with a slightly darker edge. This band hail from Athens, Georgia so you know they're gonna be good.
So about a fortnight back I went out in Hull for my cousin's leaving party (she's moved to Shanghai for a year), and ended up at one of those shitty clubs I hate so very much. Luckily the DJ played this amazing song - a remix of Tinie Tempah by a dubstep producer from Dublin called Fog (check out his SoundCloud for more of his stuff) - which not only saved me from throwing myself out of the window, but is about infinity times better than the original, which is well shite.
Congrats to the XX for winning this award last night - almost as prestigious as coming 7th in TCOAL's Best of 2009, but not quite. Don't get me wrong, it is a great album (go buy it, cos I'm sick of uploading it and it getting deleted), but to be honest it was a pretty shit batch of albums nominated - yeah, Mumford & Sons made a good record, and yeah Foals were interesting (but nowhere near as good as their first record, quelle surprise), and yeah Dizzee Rascal made THE anthem of the decade, but none of the albums were groundbreakingly amazing, and most were a proper load of bollocks. For shame.
A kick-ass new club night in London run by my dear friend Chev (of 'Best of 2009' fame), a guy who has such an eclectic and expansive music taste it makes me weep with jealousy.
My cousin's band. He's the lad with a circle round his little face. He plays guitar. My Dad even managed to get my Gran to go on their MySpace page to check them out. I wasn't there (too hungover, in no fit state to see my eldest living relative for the first time in eight months) but I wish I had been now...Much love, chat soon. xx
The lead singer from Two Gallants, everyone's favourite alt-country-indie band, is going solo for a wee bit. His album We Live On Cliffs is out at the end of September on Saddle Creek, but in the meantime you can download a taster track (for FREE!) from his official website. Also, check out his MySpace for August tour dates and more info.
Fuck you, this album fucking owns. They were the first band I ever saw live, and Justin Hawkins rode around the arena on a giant white tiger. Fucking boss.
I've only ever met one Alaskan. She was my friend Meghan's housemate and when she wasn't spending all day snowboarding or being ridiculously cool and unbelievably hot, she was also super nice. This garage electro band are pretty much like that (apart from the snowboarding bit, which I can neither confirm nor deny). They are currently touring the lower 48 states until October, so check out their MySpace to find a show near you!
ANNE hail from Portland, Oregon, that amazingly creativly that has also produced Le Tigre and The Thermals, and also houses a number of American and British bands-in-exile such as Gossip and The Cribs. They blur the boundaries of shoegaze and new wave (shoe wave?!) and their recently released demo is freely available from the band. Also check out their MySpace for more info, and to see if they're hittin' up your hood in the near future.
Here endeth the Canadian lessons for now. Over the next couple of days expect a pair of artist request profiles - if you want to be profiled yourself, send me an e-mail! Anyways, Kepler were an Ontario-based band who played a genre called slowcore - think of bands like Low, Codeine and Akron/Family. Jeremy "Arcade Fire's drummer" Gara played guitars and keyboards on this record which is fucking A. Even if you've never heard of slowcore or any of the bands I have just so unceremoniously namedropped, but you have a vague interest in the Explosions In The Sky-brand of post-rock. Enjoy.
The first KC Accidental album. This is a jazzier affair. Personally, I prefer the second one, but whatever. It's still good. Enjoy.
As I approach the end of my seven-month stay in Canada, a trip which I have come to realise has been a bit of a mistake, I want to find some positives to say about a country which just annoys me. Don't get me wrong, it's a great place to visit (if you can afford the alcohol prices...) but living here was a major error. Anyways, I am going to post some Canadian bands I have been listening to since I moved here over the next couple of days, beginning with KC Accidental's second album. They broke up soon after this and formed a new band called Broken Social Scene, which is the only Canadian band most people outside of the worst-half of North America have heard of. Enjoy.
Another random collection of songs I'm listening to at the minute. Enjoy.