Wednesday, March 28, 2012

1991: Top 50 Singles

To quote Sonic Youth, 1991 was the year that punk broke. Nirvana led the charge with "Smells Like Teen Spirit", the stunning first single off "Nevermind", indisputably the rock album of the decade, but if you take a closer look at our Top 50 Singles of 1991 here, you'll notice an abundance of gloriously noisy guitar music.

Other highlights of the year included "Dress", P.J. Harvey's perfectly formed debut single, "Blindfold", the first of the three amazing EPs that introduced us to Curve, "Counting Backwards", one of Throwing Muses' surprisingly pop-friendly moments, the explosive "Siva" by The Smashing Pumpkins, Hole's vitriolic "Teenage Whore", Pavement's dreamy "Summer Babe", "Bed Of Roses", a rare psychedelic gem by Screaming Trees, Mudhoney's mad, broken-brake ride of "Let it Slide" and Teenage Fanclub's storming yet brightly melodic "Star Sign". And that's just the Top 10. Take into consideration the equally awesome releases found elsewhere in our list by the likes of Pixies, Sonic Youth, Babes In Toyland, The Afghan Whigs, Ride or Lush and you start to realize that 1991 was one of the best years in rock history. They just don't make 'em like that any more...

Here's 1991's Top 10 Singles (for the complete Top 50 click here):

1.   Smell Like Teen Spirit - NIRVANA
2.   Dress - P.J. HARVEY
3.   Blindfold EP - CURVE
4.   Counting Backwards - THROWING MUSES
5.   Siva - THE SMASHING PUMPKINS
6.   Star Sign - TEENAGE FANCLUB
7.   Summer Babe - PAVEMENT
8.   Bed of Roses - SCREAMING TREES
9.   Let It Slide - MUDHONEY
10. Teenage Whore - HOLE

You can listen to most of our selections by pressing play below:

1991 Singles by ody on Grooveshark

Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Killer Tracks: My Heart Beats

Another winner by Veronica Falls! "My Heart Beats", the band's first new recording since last year's excellent debut (one of our Top 20 Albums of the Year), is released as a single next week by Bella Union. Check out the retro looking video below and go here for a free download of the super catchy track - can't think of a better way to welcome Spring!

Veronica Falls - My Heart Beats

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Domino Record Store Day 2012 Sampler

Record Store Day 2012 is only a month away. Here's a sample of what will be in indie stores from Domino on April 21st:



More info on Record Store Day here. Check out the long list of releases here.


Sunday, March 11, 2012

Listening Habits 01-02.12

For the first installment of Listening Habits for 2012 we have compiled two neat Top 20 lists with our favorite albums and tracks for the first couple of months of the year as well as a few selections from 2011 that took us a while to get into. Let’s take a closer look at some of the highlights of our Top 20 Albums list:

The two most impressive albums we’ve listened to lately come from a decorated veteran of the grunge years and a fresh-faced, new band that clearly wishes for the return of the late ’80s - early ’90s glorious indie rock sound.

Back in those days, Mark Lanegan was the distinctive voice of Screaming Trees, one of the great bands of the American underground rock scene that had been around making awesome records long before anyone thought of using the term "grunge" to describe rock music. On the other hand, Dylan Baldi, the driving force behind Cloud Nothings, was not even born yet. Fast-forward to 2012, and these two characters are responsible for two of the best rock records around at the moment.

Dylan Baldi first caught our attention (check out here our Listening Habits from December 2010) with the track "Hey Cool Kid", one of the recordings he made alone on his home computer using the name Cloud Nothings. The self-titled low-fi debut LP that came at the start of last year was promising enough but far from impressive. But what a change a year can bring! For the writing and recording of "Attack On Memory" Baldi got the help of the members of his touring band, making Cloud Nothings a group in the true sense of the word. The heavier and more aggressive new tracks were recorded by the great Steve Albini, who certainly knows how to bring out the best in a band without much interference. The intense, hard-hitting sound of "Attack On Memory" is inspired by groups like Wipers or Husker Du and this young band’s true achievement here is that they are able to follow in the footsteps of such legends without missing a beat, producing a record that feels vital for the future of guitar music.

Mark Lanegan has been very busy in the seven years since his last solo record, collaborating with diverse artists like Greg Dulli, Isobel Campbell or Soulsavers. All the different musical elements from those collaborations are weaved together in "Blues Funeral", his seventh solo work, making it one of the most diverse sounding records of his career. Intense guitar rock, blues ballads, electronic influenced jams, all come together under the supervision of Alain Johannes who has done a great job as a producer here, creating the perfect accompaniment for one of the greatest voices in rock music today. A superb work from Mark Lanegan and his Band that we’re looking forward to enjoying live in less than a month’s time.

Another notable release of the January - February period was "Reign Of Terror", Sleigh Bells’ sophomore work, a record supposedly more pop influenced due to Alexis Krauss’ more active involvement in the songwriting process. Despite this fact, I thought this record is less immediate than "Treats", their debut album which didn’t take too long to sink under my skin. However the exquisite guitar noise and cheerleader chants are still ubiquitous and a few spins later "Reign Of Terror" proves to be just as addictive. It remains to be seen if this addictiveness will be as long lasting this time as it was the first time around.

Top 20 Albums

1.   Attack On Memory - CLOUD NOTHINGS
2.   Blues Funeral - MARK LANEGAN BAND
3.   Reign Of Terror - SLEIGH BELLS
4.   Tramp - SHARON VAN ETTEN
5.   Let's Go Eat The Factory - GUIDED BY VOICES
6.   Future This - THE BIG PINK
7.   Something - CHAIRLIFT
8.   Onwards To The Wall EP - A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS
9.   With Love from the Men’s Room EP - 50 FOOT WAVE
10. Rough Trade Shops Electronic 11 - VARIOUS ARTISTS
11. Rough Trade Shops Counter Culture 11 - VARIOUS ARTISTS
12. Parallax - ATLAS SOUND
13. The English Riviera - METRONOMY
14. Feel It Break - AUSTRA
15. Dedication - ZOMBY
16. Exmilitary - DEATH GRIPS
17. Arabia Mountain - BLACK LIPS
18. Hysterical - CLAP YOUR HANDS SAY YEAH
19. Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will - MOGWAI
20. Gravity The Seducer - LADYTRON

Top 20 Tracks

1.   The Gravedigger’s Song - MARK LANEGAN BAND
2.   Serpents - SHARON VAN ETTEN
3.   Chocolate Boy - GUIDED BY VOICES
4.   Wasted Days - CLOUD NOTHINGS
5.   Comeback Kid - SLEIGH BELLS
6.   Genesis - GRIMES
7.   Know Me - FRANKIE ROSE
8.   Off The Wall - LEE RANALDO
9.   Lafaye - SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS
10. Jump Music - THE BIG PINK
11. Amanaemonesia - CHAIRLIFT
12. Betty Wang - HOSPITALITY
13. Teary Eyes And Bloody Lips - MOONFACE
14. Mona Lisa - ATLAS SOUND
15. Everything Goes My Way - METRONOMY
16. Beat and the Pulse - AUSTRA
17. Natalia’s Song - ZOMBY
18. San Pedro - MOGWAI
19. Shallow - BEACH FOSSILS
20. Nowhere - WILD NOTHING

Mark Lanegan Band - The Gravedigger’s Song

(mp3s via Stereogum, Fader)
  

Sunday, March 04, 2012

Still Corners, live @ Six D.O.G.S (Athens, March 3, 2012)


If Still Corners had been around twenty-something years ago, they would have been an ideal fit for the role of the house band at Twin PeaksRoadhouse bar. Their innocent, half-whispered harmonies suggest a dark underbelly of mystery and sinister secrets, a perfect match for the Lynchian world of the cult TV series. Admittedly, the tiny Six D.O.G.S club at the heart of Athens bears absolutely no resemblance to the iconic Twin Peaks joint, so all the credit has to go to Still Corners’ cinematic, dream-like sound for being able to transport us to a completely different, alluring and mysterious universe for the brief duration of their show.


The four-piece band led by silky-voiced singer Tessa Murray and songwriter Greg Hughes showcased last year’s excellent "Creatures of an Hour" LP while the projections shown at the back of the stage perfectly complemented the nostalgic aura of their songs. "Cuckoo", "Endless Summer", "Into the Trees" and "Submarine" were among the highlights of their set, while the encore comprised of haunting, acoustic cover versions of Bruce Springsteen’s "I'm On Fire" and Rogue Wave’s "Eyes".

 
Still Corners, live @ Six D.O.G.S
Local act My Drunken Haze who opened the show with their own brand of cinematic pop, proved to be an ideal companion for Still Corners, mining a similar vein of '60s and '70s influenced psychedelic folk sounds. Have a listen to their creations here.

My Drunken Haze
Here's "Endless Summer" from Still Corners' live debut in Athens:

Still Corners - Endless Summer, live @ Six D.O.G.S

Saturday, March 03, 2012

New Releases: February 2012

Round up of the most interesting albums and singles released in February 2012:

Albums

MARK LANEGAN BAND - Blues Funeral
SLEIGH BELLS - Reign Of Terror
GRIMES - Visions
SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS - Ghostory
SHARON VAN ETTEN - Tramp
FRANKIE ROSE - Interstellar
POP.1280 - The Horror
SHEARWATER - Animal Joy
LAMBCHOP - Mr M
TINDERSTICKS - The Something Rain
XIU XIU - Always
OF MONTREAL - Paralytic Stalks
BOY FRIEND - Egyptian Wrinkle
STANDARD FARE - Out of Sight, Out of Town
BAND OF SKULLS - Sweet Sour
THE TWILIGHT SAD - No One Can Ever Know
DIRTY THREE - Towards the Low Sun
FIELD MUSIC - Plumb
MEMORYHOUSE - The Slideshow Effect
BLEEDING KNEES CLUB - Nothing To Do
GOOD COP* - Good Cop*
MOUSE ON MARS - Parastrophics
AIR - Le Voyage Dans La Lune
GANG COLOURS - The Keychain Collection
TENNIS - Young And Old
PERFUME GENIUS - Put Your Back In 2 It
TRUST - TRST
NEW AGE STEPPERS - Love Forever
CURSIVE - I Am Gemini
DR. DOG - Be the Void
CHUCK PROPHET - Temple Beautiful
DAMIEN JURADO - Maraqopa
JIM WHITE - Where It Hits You
BOKOMOLECH - Mass Vulture

Singles & EPs

A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS - Onwards To The Wall EP
50 FOOT WAVE - With Love from the Men’s Room EP
SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS - Lafaye
JACK WHITE - Love Interruption
THE BLACK KEYS - Gold On The Ceiling
THE DRUMS - Days
WILD NOTHING - Nowhere / Wait
BEACH FOSSILS - Shallow / Lessons
2:54 - You're Early
ALLO DARLIN' - Capricornia
WAR - At War For Youth
FUCKED UP - Year Of The Tiger
DZ DEATHRAYS - No Sleep
FOO FIGHTERS - These Days
KASABIAN - Goodbye Kiss
SPECTOR - Chevy Thunder
JAGWAR MA - Come Save Me / What Love?
ZULU WINTER - We Should Be Swimming
BURIAL - Kindred EP
AZARI & III - Reckless (With Your Love)
SAINT ETIENNE - Tonight
NO CEREMONY - Hurt Love / Wearme
KAILO - Kailo EP
BILL DEMAIN - Extended Stay EP
DEAD LEAF ECHO - Kingmaker 
LAw - Pre Experimental Imagination 
(mp3s via Dead Oceans, Stereogum)