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The Orchids: The Girl & The Soldier [mp3]

orchids

From the remnants of Sarah Records and the twee movement come The Orchids, who have spent the past few decades mastering their craft. The band has a new record out now on Pebble Records, and their song “The Girl & The Soldier” comes from it. What makes the song so endearing is accompaniment by the Cairn String Quartet, who has also worked with Camera Obscura. The song itself is relaxed and laid back, soft and slow. It’s the perfect ballad for an indie pop slow dance, and nerds everywhere will rejoice upon hearing it. I know I did. Read More »The Orchids: The Girl & The Soldier [mp3]

Inner Prisms: Synchronicity [Album Review]

  • Cyndi 

inner-prisms

There is something very grandfatherly about the music of Inner Prisms. It’s warm, comforting, and even a little bit mischievous. Whether singing about a dusty road or a kitty, the big city or past loves, these artists are great for making nostalgia a jovial experience.  Acoustic guitar, harmonicas, and swimming bass lines wield for us a harmless listening experience while certain tracks, such as the sitar laden “Mediation 1”, help mix things up a bit. Read More »Inner Prisms: Synchronicity [Album Review]

The Migrant

The Migrant [Feature]

The Migrant

Last month… actually, two months ago now that it’s officially November, Danish artist Bjarke Bendtsen released his debut album under the guise of The Migrant. That work is titled Travels In Lowland and it is a wonderful mix of pop and psychedelic folk. Bendtsen’s life seems a dream; he spent the past year traveling through the states with a guitar and a suitcase only to return to Denmark to record this album. And he did so from a cottage on the coast. That is, I assume, where the cover art comes from. Then he returned to the states to record his second, which we will see next year. Read More »The Migrant [Feature]

We Read Minds: We Read Minds [Album Review]

we-read-minds

We Read Minds is a band that parallels many other bands you are probably already familiar with….sort of. Their slightly frenzied collection of tracks on their self titled album are dark, electric guitar driven soundscape pieces that rip apart humanity one disturbing lyric at a time. But, they’re not to be skewed by the mainstream pop reality to be a truly “heavy” band. They’re unique in the fact that they almost reach their heavier counterpoints with a pretty basic layout, yet make an immediate left turn down the road towards obscurity before becoming too complacent. Read More »We Read Minds: We Read Minds [Album Review]

La Sera: Never Come Around [Video]

la-sera

Just in time for Halloween comes La Sera‘s video for “Never Come Around.” The song finds Katy Goodman (formerly of Vivian Girls) enacting a massacre Dexter style, but without the vigilante-ism and with an eerie complacency. The video comes from the mind of Brady Hall, who also directed two for Vivian Girls — “When I’m Gone” and “Moped Girls.” This terrifying display of gruesomeness begs the question: why don’t more horror movies have pop soundtracks? If they did, the result would be much creepier and horrific than most of today’s ridiculous cinematic blood-baths. Read More »La Sera: Never Come Around [Video]

The Head And The Heart [Feature]

  • Cyndi 

the-head-and-the-heart

The Head and the Heart craft songs of such sweetly cadenced melodies and rhythms we can’t help but feel all together joyful when we hear them. Their self-titled debut album is from beginning to end an effortlessly accessible celebration of a refusal to give in to the thick of things. With a beautiful sun-lit Americana style, this band captures in sound the idea that songs are stories. Stories about the hope, glory, and severity we experience while being uprooted and replanted. About what we’re looking for, what we’ve left behind and who we’ve found. Stories about us. Stirring together classic elements of guitar, percussion, piano, bass, and strings with gravely vocals and a touch of hand-clapping, this band has a maturity in their musicianship that defies expectation. The Head and the Heart’s folk/pop approach may not be new, but it’s sure as hell fun, rousing and full of spirit. Read More »The Head And The Heart [Feature]

25 Great Bands, 30 Great Music Videos

vitalic-birds

Creating a music video, in my opinion, should be about creating art. There are so many intricate elements that should go into a video that are so often left forgotten or, at least, unattended. First and foremost is the song itself — a video must compliment the art to which it is expanding from audio to video. Connecting the two is extremely important. Second is theme. The best videos have some storyline, vague or distinct. Or at least something visually interesting. Read More »25 Great Bands, 30 Great Music Videos

Troy Von Balthazar: How To Live On Nothing [Album Review]

troy-von-balthazar

There’s something a little off about the music Troy Von Balthazar creates, and that’s a good thing because there’s also something a bit normal about it. The normal meets the slightly off; quite interesting. How To Live On Nothing is Von Balthazar’s latest work and it combines the standard traits of folk and pop and rock with bits that are slightly more original. How To Live On Nothing may, for the most part, be normal, but it’s the electronic and psychedelic subtleties Von Balthazar ads are what makes his music so interesting. Read More »Troy Von Balthazar: How To Live On Nothing [Album Review]

Falling Trees: Youth Club Disco EP [Album Review]

falling-trees

Oh those classy Brits! Their sensational love for pop music is absolutely understandable and with precedent. Especially when they have such an elusive underground filled with a massive amount of genius characters. Andy Botterill is definitely one of these wonderful characters. Paul Stolworthy and Andy Padfield are pretty nice as well. Together they make a swell team of individuals joining forces to creating blissful and bouncy pop music from the heart. Together they are Falling Trees. Read More »Falling Trees: Youth Club Disco EP [Album Review]

Ghost Box Orchestra: Oh, The Moon Hangs Low [mp3]

ghost-box-orchestra-tom-gilmore

The Only Light On begins with a dreamy, shoegaze-like percussion and guitar pattern, fronted by a playful keyboard riff. Blending post-rock and shoegaze with elements of psychedelia, Ghost Box Orchestra finds a comfortable mix between being instrumental versions of Piano Magic and The Black Heart Procession. Vastly instrumental, Ghost Box Orchestra’s music finds solace in dreamscapes, and “Oh, The Moon Hangs Low” is no different. However, it has more of a rock edge to it, with heavier, louder guitars. And it has vocals, which sets the song apart from the others on The Only Light On. “Oh, The Moon Hangs Low” is explosive, hypnotic and swarming with the ethereal mystery you expect in post-rock meets shoegaze, and they execute it all masterfully. Read More »Ghost Box Orchestra: Oh, The Moon Hangs Low [mp3]

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