Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream

G’day mate. That and opposite spinning toilets are  the extent of my knowledge regarding Australian dialect. Nevertheless, I’m liking what I’m hearing come from down under. First Wally de Backer (see Gotye) and The Basics (new album out, btw). And now there’s the new EP from Bird Automatic Not Morning People. This is a wonderful little sampling of music from  a talented quintet out of Sydney.

Bird Automatic does best when using its ‘quiet voice’ as opposed to the emotive-arena-rock of “Drew a Line”. The rolling bassline, slap-happy clapping and ebb-and-flow of “Fireflies” sounds like a lot like a Pinback resurrection, and you’re no hearing complains from me on that front. “Borders not Boundaries” illustrates how purely affable Bird Automatic is, and there’s certainly plenty of potential to be spoken for here.

Best line (from ‘Drew a Line’): “Difference is tearin’ us apart”

Check out their website.

Download “Fireflies” free from  Bird Automatic’s website.

Listen to “Borders not Boundaries“

It’s a declarative statement, and by gosh, Four Tet will make you believe it by the end of his newest LP There is Love in You. As you may or may not be aware, Four Tet is laptop brainchild of one Kieran Hebden. He’s been around the block for quite a few years now, but his work has finally made that trek from the strange to the esoteric to their strangely enjoyable. Less clicks and clacks and more rhythms, There is Love in You is as warm and embracing as a computer will get.

Imagine a portrait of someone you know and love. Then imagine Picasso just messed with it and there’s an ecletic element to it that you love. Essentially, that’s why I imagine Hebden doing with the tracks here on There is Love. The underwater homage to Air that is “Circling”  is one of those minimalist beauties that develops right inbetween your ears, leaving you wanting a whole lot more by the track’s end. “This Unfolds” is a blatant olive branch to the listener: ‘don’t worry’, I imagine him saying, ‘this is going somewhere. I promise.’ Where that place is I’m not exactly sure, but I’m certain it’s on the set of Beverly Hills Cop III. Yes, I just went there. Anyhow, the disjointed “Plastic People” has a peculiar intrigue that draws me in, but doesn’t really reward me. The Latino influence in ‘She Just Likes to Fight” has a delicate somberness to it (Album Leaf, anyone?), and it stands out a little bit like a sore thumb here because of the stark contrast. In my opinion, that’s exactly why the song succeeds here.

Best line: “Love cry”

Grab a copy of There is Love in You.

Listen to “Angel Echoes“

Shhh…I have a secret for you.

What, you say? That I’ve been MIA for a long time? Yeah, this is true, but I’m taking about something secretly canadian.

I gotta tell you that Secretly Canadian’s lineup gets more and more impressive by the week. The Seattle-based collective Throw Me the Statue released their second LP Createresque last August, and I’ve been meaning to write about it for a while now. As legend has it, the idea behind Throw Me the Statue began as a sort of mixtape for a girl, and has flourished under Scott Reitherman’s guidance into a rhythmic, cerebral type of indie pop, playing off the delight of syncopation and falsetto. Sure enough, Pitchfork gave them a not-so-flattering 6.1, which really only means that they must actually be good. Another story for another day.

But Createresque. Bonafide good. I mean what a cheerful optimism embedded in the infections bassline in “Pistols” and the crashing waves of drums in “Tag”. “Baby You’re Bored” is reminiscent of Noah and the Whale in the sense of capturing that sort of care-to-the-wind, comical pop (but more harmonious perhaps!). And the cheezy echoing hat-tip to the 80s in “Cannibal Rays” is as enjoyable as it is just plain fun! That chorus will not get out your head for days, and neither will that smile on your face. You know what I’m talking about…..

Best line: (in “Pistols”): “These lonely brothers on the radio / If that’s a DJ I’m the pilgrim Mona Lisa”

Listen to “Cannibal Rays”

Listen to “Pistols“

Dr. Silver is on call, readers!

Check out: Dr. Silver - “Jupiter Spacedisco“…it’s exactly what it sounds like.

You’re gonna need to do yourself a favor and check out some of the sets from Pretty Girls & Lasers. These cool cats are definitely going to get you moving. And that’s a good thang. A real good thang.

Do you like the Swedish like I do? Well then you’ll probably like The Sweet Serenades. Check out their new album Balcony Cigarettes (sounds dangerous!)

Check out: The Sweet Serenades - “On My Way“

So here’s how the story goes.  Legendary jazz pianist Dave Brubeck’s long-time music partner and alto-saxophonist Paul Desmond came  to Brubeck one day with a piece he’d written in 5/4 signature. That song, my friends, is the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s most famous song of all time: “Take Five”. Even if you don’t know what I’m talking about this second, take one listen and you’ll know exactly what I mean.

I figured it might be a nice treat to include a remake of “Take Five” by the Kashmere Stage Band. All I can say is “FUNKAAY!” Enjoy.

Listen to The Dave Brubeck Quartet - “Take Five”

Listen to the Kasmere Stage Band - “Take Five“

Readers, listen up! I have a secret for you…one that I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while, but time has been a luxury lately.

Ladies and gentlemen, presenting Tristan Clopet. Clopet’s debut EP Duende is an interesting conglomeration of  good ol’ southern soul, funky rock, and a whole lot of heart. For one, Clopet’s vocal range is impressive, smoother than the other side of the pillow (and that’s smooth!) in both the higher and lower registers. The instrumentation here perfectly complements the clean and breathy vocals at every turn, showing a real rapport between Clopet and his bandmates.

Duende takes off with “Your Love is a Drug”, a funked out jam that oozes classy-cool. “The End of an Era” begins like a typical folk-pop track, but Clopet’s vocals and the reverberating echoes of harmonies turn the song into a soulful treat. “Flowers in Bloom” see Clopet taking on the role of storyteller that reminds me of the golden days of Citizen Cope. The spontaneity and freshness of “Let it Go” sees the band juxtaposing spitfire rock with soft ebbing harmonies, while the clear highlight of the EP is the skittish rocked out “Concrete Dreams”.

So what are you waiting for? Grab a copy of Duende (note: iTunes link).

Listen to the whole EP here!

Everybody go crazy! Bon Iver has released something!

Okay, seriously, let’s all calm down. I’m not one to get all crazy excited for every little piece of music that gets released by the suddenly (and appropriately) famous band/artist. Nevertheless, here I am about to tell about Bon Iver’s side-project Volcano Choir and their ‘debut’ album Unmap. There’s a few gems sprinkled in here and there on this eccentric take on acoustica. The folksy syncopated claps and the spiraling chants of random sounds on “And Gather” is a perfect snapshot into what this album is all about: taking a guitar, some voices, and combining them to change the way the artist and listener approach acoustic music.  “Husks and Shells” continues on that note, with simple twinkle of a guitar riff that creates a wintry hideaway into some otherworldly igloo. The urgent “Island, IS” strays away from the midline with its jumbled guitar and soft drums. “Seelpymouth” sounds more like a falsettoed tribal chant than anything else, blending nicely into the heavily layered voices and swirls of guitar.

While some have gone batty over this album (see pitchfork), I’m taking a more conservative view; I can see the message, I can see the purpose, and I can see the place for such an album. But truth be told, I’ll just wait patiently for the next Bon Iver album.

Check out Unmap

Listen to “Island, IS”

Alasdair Maclean’s voice has always intrigued me. It’s not that there’s anything so particularly wonderful about the pitch or the quality. It’s all in the delivery.  I get this feeling that The Clientele’s songs are crafted around his soothing British rasp, its gentle vulnerability and its unwavering perseverance. Maclean’s voice is what makes The Clientele’s folksy brand of eerie, delicate pop so fascinating.

But enough about voices…what about the music on UK collective The Clientele’s Bonfires on the Heath? I’m glad you asked. Take the self-deprecating God Save the Clientele, turn up the volume, and raise the urgency–and you’ve got Bonfires on the Heath. Don’t get me wrong–you’ll still get the achy ballads like “Tonight”, but you’re also getting the short-lived bits of rock on “Sketch”. The jangly “Harvest Time” is replete with the billowing plumes of harmonies and with the ebb and flow of the dancing guitar (think Pink Floyd here). “I Wonder Who We Are” is an absolute throwback to the happy-go-lucky rock of golden AM radio, ripe with ‘Bah bah bahs’ and the heavily syncopated verses. “Jennifer and Julia” is a swirling delight of horns and quivering strings, and the way Maclean says “Julia” is as amazing as it gets. All I can say is that Mel Draisey (she plays violin, keyboard, and percussion) has been an excellent addition to the band since she joined back in ‘06, and you can really hear it on Bonfires on the Heath.

So do what you will, but don’t miss out on Bonfires on the Heath.

Listen to “Jennifer and Julia”

Listen to “Harvest Time“

Seriously.
It’s been way too long.
Can you forgive me?
Will you still come to this site?
In that vain:
Sondre Lerche - “No One’s Gonna Come”

**This is such a wonderful song; a great look into the then-burgeoning Sondre Lerche. I liked him much better then…..

I’ll be honest, I don’t really know much about Themselves  or about Why?

From Pitchfork: “Themselves, the duo of Doseone and Jel, who also worked together in Subtle and collaborated with the Notwist for 13 & God, here team up here with WHY?, whose main man Yoni Wolf was a member of seminal Anticon group cLOUDDEAD with Doseone.”

Well, either way, they’re out with a collaboration on a song called “Canada”, and that it’s getting some serious attention (for good reason!). And I know that remix artist iamxl has done a pretty phat and fat remix of “Canada”. So enjoy.