It’s hard to imagine that just a few short months ago we were enjoying sunny summer days. 2011 was my best year yet, having achieved a few milestones: four and a half years running FensePost, riding my bike from Seattle to Portland and logging over 1,000 total on those two wheels between January and December, enjoying life with the love of my life (Andi), and a few defining mindset changes that put the two of us on a path to minimalism and frugality.

I figured with my previous show being devoted to songs that remind me of sleep, this one would be the opposite. After a few bouts of standard indie rock, things got thick and loud.

I know I said I was going to take a mini vacation for a few days, but an awesome new JEFF The Brotherhood video is enough to bring me out of hibernation. “Hey Friend” is off the band’s new LP, We Are The Champions, out soon (June 21) on Infinity Cat Records. It was directed by Lina Plioplyte and it has a bit more color than the band’s previous stuff. It fits the epic wail of distorted, greasy guitar rock JEFF The Brotherhood creates.

“Shredder” lives up to its name, but I honestly wouldn’t expect anything less from JEFF The Brotherhood. The band exudes the shred mentality with wild infectious guitar riffs epic in their near simple, slushy nature backed by heavily beat drums. And they take it to the next level with the inclusion of keyboards. “Shredder” matches the personality of everything off 2009′s Heavy Days, an album that came in at #10 on my year end list.

So this is it, the first FensePost Podcast. A few weeks ago I sat down and compiled a mix of various songs; some new, some old, most finding some relation to garage rock or garage pop. Hence the title, From The Garage. The theme is loose, so some bands fit and some don’t. There are sixteen songs total here, stemming from local Seattle and Portland acts on across the world. New Zealand, Sweden, Canada… you get the picture. Enough banter — listen to the FenseCast …

2009 is a tough year to judge. I’ve checked out more albums this year than any year in the past. Well over 1,000. And there have been quite a few great ones as well. When this list began, it had 110 albums. I abandoned my top 33 and 1/3 for 45, and then said “screw it” and upped the number to an even 50. These are the top notch albums of the year, all worthy of praise.

Heavy Days by Jeff The Brotherhood may be my sleeper album of the year. It comes and goes, leaving and re-entering my playlist on a moment’s notice. And with each new re-entry, it stays a bit longer and I get a little more blown away. It is garage rock to the max; the band consists of powerful rock guitar riffs and rock-your-face-off drums. That’s it. The latest from JTB is a video for track 2 off Heavy Days, “U Got The Look”. It’s got …

“Bone Jam” by JEFF the brotherhood is the epitome of a low-budget music video. And it fits the song and band perfectly. JEFF the brotherhood, like so many bands this year and last, fully realize the term garage band. But where artists like The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart and The Splinters and Darlings all are undeniable in their pop sensibilities, JEFF the brotherhood feigns pop for full-on garage rock. Throughout their recent LP Heavy Days, they inject elements of punk and psychedelia in for …