Rhapsody: The Mix: Indie Category Feed

Producers Corner: Dntel

2011-12-02T22:50:42Z

Welcome to Producers Corner, our new video series in which we grill our favorite producers about their mysterious craft while following them around their natural habitat: the studio, of course. So far we've talked to folks like Pacific Northwest icon Phil Ek, fearless M.I.A. cohort Zakee and SF rock guru John Vanderslice. Today we make a home visit to Jimmy Tamborello, the electro-pop innovator who records as Dntel, has worked with the likes of Rilo Kiley and Bright Eyes, and is also one-half of celebrated indie-pop duo The Postal Service. He tells us why he prefers working from home (who doesn’t?), how to deal with writer’s block (buy something!), and why it’s better to work alone (you feel free to do dumb stuff). It’s all brought to you by ASUS and Intel. Enjoy.

Rhapsody Speakeasy: Active Child

2011-12-01T12:07:50Z

Live from New York City's CMJ Music Festival, here's our exclusive chat with Pat Grossi of the symphonic dream-pop crew Active Child, wherein he discusses how he got into the harp, the ways his time at Catholic high school inspired him and why he wants to be James Brown (!). Enjoy.

Rhapsody Speakeasy: Wild Flag

2011-11-30T12:22:39Z

Live from New York City's CMJ Music Festival, here's our exclusive chat with Janet Weiss and Rebecca Cole from fantastic art-punk band Wild Flag, wherein they discuss inspiring scores of young female rockers, "building a sense of mystery," and their unquenchable love for Bill Withers. Enjoy.

Rhapsody Speakeasy: Dum Dum Girls

2011-11-28T17:12:58Z

Live from New York City's CMJ Music Festival, here's our exclusive chat with Dee Dee from fantastic fuzz-punk band Dum Dum Girls, whose new Only in Dreams is one of the best records of 2011. Here, she talks about her love of Patti Smith, the pleasures and perils of being married to a fellow musician (Crocodiles' Brandon Welchez), that time she dreamt a new video for The Breeders' "Cannonball," and more. Enjoy.

On The Record: Wild Flag Talk Minutemen

2011-11-23T14:01:16Z

On the Record is a video series wherein rock stars gush about their favorite records -- for exactly 45 seconds. Click above to watch Wild Flag give it up for Minutemen.

Wild Flag
Wild Flag

Minutemen
Double Nickels on the Dime

An Indie Winter Wonderland

2011-11-23T14:00:00Z

Holiday music is not just reserved for the fair crooner. In fact, many an indie artist has been struck with yuletide fever — or has at least shivered enough through a December day to be inspired to sing about hard winters and white snow. So this isn’t strictly hall-decking, bell-jingling music, but rather an array of tunes that represent both the jolly and the melancholy of the holiday season, from covers by Sufjan Stevens, She & Him and Rogue Wave to sweet originals by Snow Patrol and The Raveonettes to, well, stranger Christmas ditties from Beck, The Flaming Lips and Julian Casablancas. There’s also lots of talk about winter and snow — and if you’re dying to learn 50 ways to describe the white stuff, Kate Bush will educate you.

Click here to listen to my An Indie Winter Wonderland playlist.

Cheat Sheet: Merge Records

2011-11-22T17:52:24Z

One of America's most successful indie labels doesn't run out of Brooklyn or Portland or L.A., but rather the modest metropolis of Durham, N.C., home of the Blue Devils of Duke University and the Bull Durham Tobacco Factory. It may not be the likeliest of habitats for a record label to blossom, but Merge Records has slowly risen to indie-powerhouse status.

Founded in 1989 by Superchunk's Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan, the label released a handful of indie classics by the likes of Neutral Milk Hotel, The Magnetic Fields and Superchunk themselves during the 1990s. But it wasn't until a little collective called Arcade Fire found themselves on the Billboard 200 for 2004's Funeral that the label started getting its due. Since then, bands like Spoon and She & Him have also had chart success, but perhaps the label's biggest feat to date was Arcade Fire's unprecedented Album of the Year Grammy win for 2010's The Suburbs. In the following year, albums by Wye Oak, Destroyer, Wild Flag and Telekinesis have helped earn the label further indie cred.

Below, we spotlight key albums from Merge Records' vast catalog. For a sampling of each album, check out our Cheat Sheet: Merge Records playlist.

]]> Arcade Fire
Funeral (2004)
"Wake Up" sounds like it was written for a revolution. Arcade Fire didn't start one — their songs ape the best bits of Springsteen, U2 and Talking Heads — they merely sound like it, and in so doing have gotten several folks believing in collectives, Canadians and the power of jams to inspire joy and conviction. This album evokes familial connections, love affairs and the bonds of friendship; if it were a Rorschach drawing, you'd say it looked like passion itself. What the band is so exuberant about is simply being a band. Their songs have purpose, but could be about whatever you wanted. [Garrett Kamps]

Neutral Milk Hotel
In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (1998)
On Neutral Milk Hotel's second album, Jeff Mangum crosses the line between abstract folk singer and something more akin to cryptic genius. The song arrangements and musical backdrops are perfectly fuzzy and off-kilter, but it's Mangum — obviously enraptured by some intangible muse — who delivers most. [Jon Pruett]

Spoon
Kill the Moonlight (2002)
The only unconvincing part of this album is when Britt Daniel coyly claims, "We rarely practice discern." It's a little hard to believe him when it's self-control, subtlety and simplicity that make Kill the Moonlight prickle and pop. Spoon take elements that are often just sprinkled in for effect and make them key ingredients. Flittering synths, staccato piano chords, tambourine jingles, hand claps, drumstick taps and a human beatbox make standouts like "The Way We Get By," "Stay Don't Go" and "Paper Tiger" both sticky and sweet — ear candy you don't feel guilty asking for more of. [Stephanie Benson]

Caribou
Andorra (2007)
On Andorra, Dan Snaith works like a scientist, dissecting the emotions and notions of his created characters and turning them into a frolicsome jumble of beats and bleeps, flutes and strings, claps and taps. "Sandy" has a playful electro-pop spirit, while "Eli" floats on psychedelia. "Desiree" basks in Beach Boys-like sanguinity, and "Irene" and "Niobe" repose in a fairy-tale fusion of shoegazer and folktronica. Delving into an array of genres, Snaith has a distinct ability to create order and beauty out of chaos — maybe it has something to do with that PhD he earned in mathematics. [S.B.]

Superchunk
Foolish (1994)
Chapel Hill, N.C.'s indie-rock heavyweights put out this fourth album in 1994. While there's nothing as pitch-perfect and flat out "crank it up" fun as "Slack Motherf*cker" on here, the band was in full stride, so the songs, while a little more grown up, still offer plenty of enthusiasm. Like a cross-up of Daydream Nation-era Sonic Youth and Neil Young, Superchunk offer a sort of twangy noise-pop heartbreak. "Driveway to Driveway" and "Kicked In" are highlights. [Mike McGuirk]

Camera Obscura
Let's Get Out of This Country (2006)
Crave an even sweeter alternative to Belle and Sebastian? These Glaswegians spin similar pillowy pop magic with the shy vocals of Tracyanne Campbell ramping up the twee quotient and, on this third CD, highlighted with a subtle '50s girl group touch. Country includes plenty of orchestrated charmers dealing in kiss-offs and low self-esteem, plus a winking response to '80s alt-pop expatriate Lloyd Cole on the answer song "Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken." [Michele Flannery]

Destroyer
Kaputt (2011)
Dan Bejar is something of a musical nomad, and his ninth album is the consummate diary of his travels. From soft rock, acid jazz and vintage funk to ambient electro, space rock and New Wave, he explores areas well wandered, but rarely linked within the same journey. It comes quite effortlessly, too: sultry synths share kisses with breathy flutes and smooth-operating sax. Bejar remains cool and calm; he doesn't so much sing as he intones with the lulling touch of a therapist, even when his words add unexpected spark: "Wasting your days, chasing some girls, alright, chasing cocaine." [S.B.]

M. Ward
Post-War (2006)
For his fifth solo album, Portland troubadour Matt Ward enlists the help of a full band, including guest appearances by Neko Case and My Morning Jacket's Jim James. The added Rhodes, percussion, backing vocals, and other bells and whistles only sweeten the already rich pairing of Ward's nimbly plucked guitar and his electric blanket of a voice. "Post-War" is a warm bath of electric keys and hushed vocals, while "Chinese Translation" tells a jaunty tale of man's never-ending quest for love and redemption. This thing shimmers like a full moon on a crystal lake. [G.K.]

The Clientele
Suburban Light (2000)
This collection of The Clientele's initial singles and EP cuts is so cohesive that it plays like a well-thought-out debut LP. Suburban Light offers gauzy, '60s-etched, rain-strewn guitar pop, full of polite English lyrics flush with dreamy imagery. There's no denying the pastoral pull of such tracks as "Monday's Rain" and "Reflections After Jane." [Nick Dedina]

Archers of Loaf
Icky Mettle (1993)
Released at the height of the '90s explosion, Archers' 1993 full-length debut has everything any indie rocker worth his or her salt could ask for: crashing guitars, Pavement-ready chord changes and lyrics that denote a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to poseurs, which is pretty much everyone alive. Archers of Loaf's endlessly P.O.'d Eric Bachmann burst on the scene like an EMP when this band's early seven-inches (collected in this reissue along with their stellar Archers of Loaf vs. the Greatest of All Time EP) made the rounds. [M.M.]

She & Him
Volume 1 (2008)
Though fans of Him will flock to this debut, it is She who earns the spotlight: Zooey Deschanel wrote most of the songs and sings them all. Her girl-next-door vibrato and M. Ward's country inclination lend the album the lilt of a Crystal Gayle demo, with highlights in "This Is Not a Test" and "Change Is Hard." The covers toward the end — chestnuts like Smokey's "You Really Got a Hold on Me" and a Hawaiian rendering of The Beatles' "I Should Have Known Better" — offer campy rewards. [Nate Cavalieri]

Teenage Fanclub
Shadows (2010)
Five years after their last release, Teenage Fanclub offer up more bittersweet power guitar pop from three distinct songwriting talents. The band is still refining its sound — many of the songs on Shadows take woozy, orchestral detours that will please anyone with an affection for Love or forgotten acts like The Blades of Grass or modern indie bands like The Clientele. There is a consistency of vision, yet every tune is distinct. Highlights? This is Teenage Fanclub — every number sounds like it belongs on the radio. [N.D.]

Conor Oberst
Conor Oberst (2008)
With Oberst dropping his Bright Eyes handle and heading to a studio in a Mexican city famed for UFO sightings to record this album, things seemed poised for the deep end. But aside from the 49-second conch solo of "Valle Mistico," he stays with a relatively unadorned set of songwriter-driven rock in the mode of his main band's recent Cassadaga. Sturdy Americana rockers like "Danny Callahan" and "Souled Out!!!" owe stylistic debts to Wilco, though the crystalline simplicity of the ballads — especially the elegant closer "Milk Thistle" — bear the heartrending confessions he's best known for. [N.C.]

Wild Flag
Wild Flag (2011)
If anyone ever questions a female's ability to rock, crank Wild Flag and watch them weep. The quartet comprises vets of the grrrl-power '90s: Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney), Mary Timony (Helium), Janet Weiss (Quasi) and Rebecca Cole (Minders). Opening with "Romance," a flirty pop-punk hand-clapper, their debut quickly shifts into proggy acid-punk (see "Glass Tambourine"). Brownstein and Timony's vocals and guitars slither around one another with self-assured defiance, as Weiss pounds and Cole's keyboards hypnotize. And they do it all with just the right touch of Go-Go's girliness. [S.B.]

Further Listening
Magnetic Fields: 69 Love Songs
Wye Oak: Civilian
Lambchop: What Another Man Spills
Versus: Hurrah
Telekinesis: 12 Desperate Straight Lines
Portastatic: I Hope Your Heart Is Not Brittle
David Kilgour & the Heavy Eights: Left by Soft
Oakley Hall: I'll Follow You
Robert Pollard: Normal Happiness
The Love Language: Libraries
Stephin Merritt: Obscurities

Indie Roundup, November 2011

2011-11-16T18:40:26Z

As 2011 starts to wind down, we're highlighting some of the last remaining releases of the year. It's a mix of luscious dream pop from the likes of M83, Atlas Sound and newcomers Blouse, alongside creepy electro-pop from none other than the filmmaker weirdo David Lynch, symphonic rock from former Oasis man Noel Gallagher, bold romantic pop from Florence + the Machine and My Brightest Diamond, and even a new Twilight soundtrack for the tween in us all. There are also some tasty singles and EPs from Mazzy Star (!), Kurt Vile, moody post-punkers The Soft Moon and downtempo Grecians Keep Shelly in Athens.

For a sampling of every album mentioned below, go straight to our Indie Roundup, November 2011 playlist.

1. M83
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
This is the kind of music that'll have you holding up a jukebox for your true love. M83's sixth album runs like a relentless reverie set in an '80s cinematic wonderland where synths wiggle, wobble and billow to hair-raising levels. The two discs are meant to act like siblings, and each parallel track does seem to share threads of DNA: the horn blasts of "Midnight City" and "New Map," the acoustic strums of "Wait" and "Splendor," the seductive female purrs of "Reunion" and "OK Pal." Plus there are the ambient interludes, which come as welcome flashes of serenity amid such cathartic intensity. [Stephanie Benson]

]]> 2. Atlas Sound
Parallax
Bradford Cox's third release as Atlas Sound luxuriates in velvety dream pop. His compositions are complex — layers of acoustic and electric guitars are rendered weightless in a sea of woozy electronics — yet it all comes off so simple and serene. No song travels a straight path: a perky piano opens "Te Amo," then morphs into undulating synths, while "Terra Incognita" starts like light '70s rock, then dissolves in a whirling helicopter of noise. Cox is poignant as always ("I know a place called love/ No one bothered me there/ No, I was all alone"), but he makes it feel like paradise. [S.B.]

3. David Lynch
Crazy Clown Time
If you've ever been terrified, perplexed or just mesmerized by the onscreen work of David Lynch, Crazy Clown Time should come as no shock. It opens at an ominous gallop, as bluesy slide guitar snakes its way into an abyss wherein Karen O seductively hollers. From there, Lynch grabs a vocoder for creepy robotic mantras that wrap around electro-pop loops and trembling, Chris Isaak-flavored guitar. He also whispers with unhinged aplomb, warbles like Tom Waits and wails like Neil Young, which only makes his Kafkaesque musings and stalker tales that much more unsettling. Good luck sleeping tonight. [S.B.]

4. Florence + The Machine
Ceremonials
After blowing up with debut Lungs, Florence Welch holds nothing back on Ceremonials. Every song has a similar setup: Welch tiptoes in like it's a haunted house — quietly, innocently, almost tentatively — before she bursts through, a reckless siren of Kate Bush descent, boldly battling with rolling piano, huge bass, glistening strings and choral echoes. She works the romantic drama with gut-twisting grandiosity like fellow Brit belter Adele trapped in some sort of Transylvanian echo chamber. This is the kind of woman who will haunt your dreams — and you can't help but like it. [S.B.]

5. Blouse
Blouse
On their self-titled debut, Portland's Blouse dive right into a soft bed of lush dream pop, as the wispy voice of frontwoman Charlie Hilton slithers through the sheets. She's the ultimate seductress, sly yet shy, repeating wistfully vague lines like "I want to watch you fade into black" and "I was in the future yesterday" with hypnotizing serenity. Meanwhile, Patrick Adams and Jacob Portrait (also of Unknown Mortal Orchestra) dish out moody bass, glistening guitars and distorted waves of synths. It all comes off like a cross between The Cure and Beach House. [S.B.]

6. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
With bro Liam and the rest of Oasis comparing themselves to "Beatles and Stones" as Beady Eye, Noel takes a seemingly more modest approach with his solo debut. "Hang in there love/ You gotta hold on," he proclaims on the opening track, and he very much keeps this "Love is all you need" attitude throughout. The music, however, is anything but humble: more symphonic rock than Britpop, it bursts with Sgt. Pepper brass ("The Death of You and Me"), bold strings ("Record Machine"), punchy piano ("AKA ... What a Life!") and lots of choral backup. It all culminates in "Stop the Clocks." [S.B.]

7. Real Estate
Days
Real Estate's sophomore album begins with "Easy," an aptly titled opener given the breezy beach pop that follows. A listen to Days may leave you checking your shoes for remnants of coastal sand: jangly Yo La Tengo-ish guitar is touched with reverb for optimal sun-dazed wooziness as frontman Martin Courtney maintains a positively wistful disposition. He craves the careless days of "floating on an inner tube in the sun" — there's also a song called "Wonder Years" — and even his hazy vocals sound trapped in a long-lost daydream. Reserve this for your next drive down the Pacific Coast Highway. [S.B.]

8. R.E.M.
Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982–2011
R.E.M. have dropped several anthologies over the years, but Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage is the first to feature selections from the band's albums for both the I.R.S. and Warner Bros. labels. As a result, it allows listeners to follow the group's full evolution from jangle-pop brats to alternative superstars of the '90s to elder statesmen flying the flag for dads everywhere who still crave fairly hip rock music. [Justin Farrar]

9. Surfer Blood
Tarot Classics
Taking a quick break from touring in support of their acclaimed 2010 debut, Astro Coast, the Florida indie rockers offer up an EP of four new tracks. Tarot Classics runs at mid-tempo as the band blends buzzing Dinosaur Jr.-ish riffs with touches of surf-pop and Weezer's alt-nerd charm circa 1994. Things start to turn more interesting on "Voyager Reprise," when a harmonica and keyboard slink through, and then on "Drinking Problem," where icy synths hint at post-punk glum and John Paul Pitts hypnotizes with the mantra "at least I know who my friends are." [S.B.]

10. Radiohead
TKOL RMX 1234567
As Radiohead venture further into electronic experimentation, remixers find themselves utterly giddy with possibilities. TKOL RMX focuses on the band's 2011 release, The King of Limbs, which was already quite the playground of bloops and loops wrapped around butter-smooth melodies and Thom Yorke's phantom croons. Though the result here has a seemingly haphazard order, it generally keeps the fluid vibe of the original material, whether it's sculpted with Caribou's funky plops, Harmonic 313's churchly robotics, Four Tet's trippy drones, Objekt's throbbing bass or SBTRKT's moody beats. [S.B.]

11. My Brightest Diamond
All Things Will Unwind
Don't let those dainty songbird chirps and high-flying operatic trills fool you — My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden is one tough cookie. On her third release, she's quite outspoken, whether it's with an innocent statement of love — it "binds the world," she moans — or a playful metaphor for greed ("There's a Rat") or an astute analysis of socioeconomics ("When you're privileged, you don't even know you're privileged/ When you're not, you know"). Her vocal theatrics, meanwhile, float along a river of gorgeous instrumentation. Play "I Have Never Loved Someone" for your sweetheart. Now. [S.B.]

12. Various Artists
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1
The Breaking Dawn soundtrack appropriately coats your ears in a Forks-like mist of plaintive, moody sound, dipping into a wide stylistic palette but somehow coming up with only a deliciously morose collection of grays. There's plenty of pensive indie rock, of course, but Bruno Mars, Theophilus London and Christina Perri (as well as Twilight actress Mia Maestro) also jump on the woe-is-me express. The rare ray of sun is welcome: The Belle Brigade and the Noisettes offer a sassiness we wish Bella would adopt more often, while Iron and Wine recaps his sweet entry to the first soundtrack. [Rachel Devitt]

13. The Decemberists
Long Live the King
Long Live the King features tracks recorded during the same sessions as 2011's The King Is Dead. And though it's ostensibly a jumble of extra songs, it still manages quite a seamless flow that's mostly folk in nature, with a few touches of sleepy horns in "Sonnet" and slide guitar in "Foregone" and the Grateful Dead cover "Row Jimmy." There are even two tracks about laying a man in his grave. One of them, "Burying Davy," is the absolute highlight here — a ghostly acoustic number that slowly gathers into a psychedelic dust storm of electric guitars, all grounded by Colin Meloy's deadpan howl. [S.B.]

14. Deer Tick
Divine Providence
On Deer Tick's fourth release, Divine Providence, the quintet sounds positively rambunctious from the get-go: "I got a lust for life/ And a dangerous mind" is John McCauley's first guttural utterance in the pub-rockin' sing-along "The Bump." "You f*ckin' douchebag," he then mutters at the top of The Stones-ish "Funny Word," which is followed by a Hendrix-like mangling of "The Star-Spangled Banner" in "Something to Brag About." Soon, though, the booze-fueled antics wind down, and slow-burning ballads (including the strings-touched "Electric") start to reveal Deer Tick at their most reflective. [S.B.]

15. The Dø
Both Ways Open Jaws
The Dø have incredible ambition — maybe too much. On the duo's sophomore album, Finnish singer Olivia Merilahti and French multi-instrumentalist Dan Levy tackle everything from glitchy dream pop ("Dust It Off") to Cardigans indie rock ("Gonna Be Sick!") to fantastical symphonics to alt dance ("Slippery Slope") to Newsom lullabies ("Leo Leo") to ambient ("Moon Mermaids") to jazz ("No Clue") to experimental. Merilahti often seems caught in an identity crisis of her own — sometimes she's a comforting siren, other times a spunky pixie. A little more focus may just do wonders. [S.B.]

More New EPs & Singles
Kurt Vile: So Outta Reach
The Soft Moon: Total Decay
Mazzy Star: "Common Burn" + "Lay Myself Down"
Keep Shelly in Athens: Our Own Dream
First Aid Kit: "The Lion's Roar"
Phantogram: Nightlife

Rhapsody Speakeasy: Crocodiles

2011-11-15T20:23:53Z

Live from New York City's CMJ Music Festival, here's our exclusive chat with Brandon Welchez of the California noise-punk band Crocodiles, holding forth on how they got started (by "reacting to crap local bands," mostly), his love of abrasive music, and whether he plans to collaborate soon with his wife, Dee Dee of Dum Dum Girls. Enjoy.

On The Record: Crocodiles Talk Rodriguez

2011-11-14T17:39:22Z

On the Record is a video series wherein rock stars gush about their favorite records -- for exactly 45 seconds. Click above to watch Crocodiles give it up for Rodriguez.

Crocodiles
Sleep Forever

Rodriguez
Cold Fact

Producers Corner: Tim Green

2011-11-11T20:50:43Z

On The Record: Active Child Talks Peter Gabriel

2011-11-11T14:19:21Z

On the Record is a video series wherein rock stars gush about their favorite records -- for exactly 45 seconds. Click above to watch Active Child give it up for Peter Gabriel.

Active Child
You Are All I See

Peter Gabriel
Car

Youth Lagoon, The Year of Hibernation

2011-11-10T12:00:00Z

"You make real friends quickly/ But not me," squeaks out Trevor Powers, just holding back the tears on opener "Posters." As Youth Lagoon, he's a lovesick kid who lets his self-consciousness unravel amid swirling synths, ringing guitar and programmed percussion. His voice is often manipulated into a distant-sounding echo that only adds to his vulnerable charm. The Year of Hibernation doesn't droop in lonely introspection, though; in fact, it often has a hopeful lilt. Beginning as hushed laments, these songs build into powerfully poignant pieces of sweet, meticulous pop. [Stephanie Benson]

Hear It Now!

Hearts Unpossessed: The Sad Musical Tale of Ben & Zooey

2011-11-09T18:02:19Z

Once upon a time, there was a young doe-eyed beauty of rising Hollywood fame. An inspiration for deadpan girls with cutesy fashion sense and a taste for retro indie-pop, she had everything but her Prince Charming. One day she met a like-minded lad, bespectacled and slightly nerdy, but nonetheless a sensitive troubadour of rising hipster fame. He claimed he would "possess" her heart; she batted her eyes and purred, "You really got a hold on me."

The lovers waltzed into a whirlwind romance -- "no perfect truths, just our love," he ascertained; "I was made for you," she coyly replied. Their courtship led to marriage, but, alas, no baby in a carriage. Feelings started to wane, hearts began to splinter -- distance and fame proved to in fact be a perfect truth of despair. "I should have known better," she sang; "You can do better than me," he sulked, and soon they were off on their own… single, rich and still quite beautiful.

Thus is the tragic tale of dear Ben Gibbard and Zooey Deschanel, best told through the former lovebirds' tuneful poetry, wherein they unabashedly sing of love and, ultimately, loss. Get yourself a box of tissues, kids.

Listen here: Hearts Unpossessed: The Sad Musical Tale of Ben & Zooey

On The Record: Dum Dum Girls Talk The Cure

2011-11-08T20:47:02Z

On the Record is a video series wherein rock stars gush about their favorite records -- for exactly 45 seconds. Click above to watch Dum Dum Girls give it up for The Cure.

Dum Dum Girls
Only in Dreams

The Cure
Disintegration

On The Record: Wild Flag Talk Prince

2011-11-04T17:01:26Z

On the Record is a video series wherein rock stars gush about their favorite records -- for exactly 45 seconds. Click above to watch Wild Flag give it up for Prince.

Wild Flag
Wild Flag

Prince
Purple Rain

Friday Mixtape: Late Night Tales

2011-10-28T17:00:24Z

LateNightTales is a mixtape series that "invites the world's best artists to delve deep into their music collections to create the ultimate 'late night' selection." MGMT, Midlake, Belle & Sebastian, Snow Patrol, Jamiroquai, The Cinematic Orchestra and others have curated their own LateNightTales, featuring their favorite nocturnal aural pleasures. These compilations not only reveal the curators' influences, but also offer a wide range of candlelit gems with which to soothe and seduce.

It's a great series (definitely check out the latest one by MGMT), so I thought I'd create my own Late Night Tales mixtape. I'm often drawn to music primed for late nights anyway — tunes slick with midnight-oil mystique and back-alley grime; tracks fueled by booze, narcotics and self-pity; and songs that are darkly detached, desolate and sometimes downright depressing. For me, this means the sexy devilishness of trip-hop (Massive Attack, Tricky), the grandiose moping of post-punk (The Cure, Joy Division), the machinest grit of industrial (Suicide, Nine Inch Nails), the cinematic melancholy of post-rock (Sigur Ros, Mogwai), and some of the darkest singer-songwriter mire known to man (Cat Power, Johnny Cash). This is the kind of stuff the sun could never handle.

Click here to listen to my Friday Mixtape: Late Night Tales.

Producers Corner: Phil Ek

2011-10-26T17:13:55Z

Welcome to Producers Corner, our new video series in which we grill our favorite producers about their mysterious craft while following them around their natural habitat: the studio, of course. This week we visit Pacific Northwest titan Phil Ek, shepherd of innumerable indie-rock classics from Built to Spill, Modest Mouse, The Shins and more. Watch as he shows us around his inner sanctum, laments the plight of new up-and-coming producers, and tries to explain how much work this job really entails. It's all brought to you by ASUS and Intel. Enjoy.

Soundcheck Series: Thao & Mirah

2011-10-21T17:13:24Z

Recently Rhapsody teamed up with our friends at Om Records to present Soundcheck, a series of cool after-work shows featuring up-and-coming bands at a swank San Francisco hotel. It seemed like a good idea to interview all those bands on the hotel roof as well. Here, then, is our dispatch with indie-folk titans Thao & Mirah, who hold forth on the importance of beer in cooking, the beauty of San Francisco and how their distinct approaches to songwriting still somehow mesh perfectly (it involves “holding the door for each other”). Please also see our South Park Session on T&M, wherein we convinced them to do a concert for us in a park near our office. Enjoy.

The power of one woman with a mic and a guitar is a force to be reckoned with. Now double that. Thao Nguyen (of The Get Down Stay Down) and singer-songwriter Mirah do just that on their debut, adding tUnE-yArDs' Merrill Garbus as producer for a trifecta of Bay Area female fierceness. The quirkier spots point to Garbus, like the clickety-clackety punch of opener "Eleven"; her eccentric touches balance beautifully with Thao's subtle grit and Mirah's softer inclinations. Whether they try on waltzing folk, sun-kissed acoustic, loopy pop or big-band jazz, it all fits like a glove. [Stephanie Benson]

Source Material: Beirut, Gulag Orkestar

2011-10-12T17:08:06Z

When Beirut burst (OK, shuffled quietly) onto the scene in 2006, Zachary Condon's rotating crew wowed fans and critics alike with both his precocious songwriting and the globe-trotting, youth-belying range of stylistic sources he employed. As the legend goes, the New Mexico native dropped out of school as a teenager and went bumming around Europe, where he discovered and thoroughly absorbed folk and pop music traditions from French musette to Balkan brass to (especially) Roma/Gypsy folk. Back home, he wove his sonic discoveries into the tapestry of his debut album, along with bits and pieces of other influences, like the mariachi music he often heard while growing up in Santa Fe, the inclinations of his fellow globally inclined American singer-songwriters, and, of course, a lot of indie rock and pop. Then he filtered it all through a sweet, pensive haze that constituted both a gesture toward Roma music's palpable sense of yearning and his own take on the tradition.

In short, Gulag Orkestar was a remarkable (and remarkably mature) debut for a young singer-songwriter who has gone on to live up to the hype (and continue his sonic globe-trotting) on subsequent albums, including this year's The Rip Tide. Join us as we retrace Beirut's steps and take a deep dive into that debut album's roots and routes; your ears can follow along with this playlist: Source Material: Beirut, Gulag Orkestar.

]]> Goran Bregovic
Alkohol
One of the artists Condon fell for on his travels was Goran Bregovic, a Serbian-Croatian composer and musician highly respected throughout Europe for his score for the 1989 film Time of Gypsies and his stint with Euro-rock outfit Bijelo Dugme. With his solo career, Bregovic homes in on the (potential) intersections of rock, pop and hip-hop with the rollicking brass of Balkan wedding bands and the passionate, mournful pathos of Roma folk music. This album came out after Gulag Orkestar, but it's one of the few Bregovic releases available in the U.S. and a great example of the stylistic breadth and emotional depth he's capable of. You can hear how he might be a touchstone for Beirut's own yearning aesthetic on tracks like "Ruzica (Rose)."
See Also: Django Reinhardt

Les Yeux Noirs
Balamouk
Like Condon, this French brother act fell in love with Roma music fast and hard. But also like Condon, they take up the softer end of the Roma spectrum, favoring melancholy fiddles and virtuosic cimbaloms (hammer dulcimers) over raucous brass. They also augment their Romani and Yiddish predilections with bits of pan-European folk and French pop.

17 Hippies
El Dorado
17 Hippies are actually 13 German multi-instrumentalists and singers who love gypsy music, French musette, and American folk and blues. Known for their rollicking live shows, the group has evolved over the years, slowly letting the manic Gypsy- and Americana-influenced breakdowns mingle with classy neo-chanson, all of which are touchstones for Beirut. The seasoned band's most recent album introduces a vein of melancholic French pop, while still leaving plenty of room for banjo breakdowns and Middle Eastern meditation.

Firewater
The Ponzi Scheme
Think of Chicago's Firewater as Gogol Bordello's slightly older, slightly less punk brother — the one who spent a lot more time sneaking into strip clubs with cool Uncle Tom (Waits) and sulking to Nirvana when he got home. The Gypsy aspects of Firewater's sound are really just that: aspects, nuances, details that enhance the slinky cabaret-rock structure on which they've built their career. The Ponzi Scheme waits a good long time to go Romani 'n' roll, but they start hauling out the big guns (read: horns) 'round about "El Borracho," which retraces the polka dots between Eastern Europe and the Texas-Mexico border.
See Also: Paul Simon, Graceland

DeVotchka
Super Melodrama
Like Beirut, this Denver outfit is a Gypsy-tinged indie-rock band, but they'd been at it for several years before Zach Condon took his European vacation. Their sounds can seem quite different, due in part to their distinctive origins: DeVotchka got their start as a house band for burlesque shows and have always incorporated a bawdy theatricality. At its core, though, the band consumes and spits back out a global buffet of folk and pop traditions with a strong Roma main course.
See Also: A Hawk and a Hacksaw, whose members actually play in Beirut but who also jumped on the Gypsy-rock bandwagon before Condon.

Kocani Orkestar
L'Orient Est Rouge
Though Beirut's bits of brass never reach the frenetic levels or tongue-twisting virtuosity of most Roma brass bands, it's clear that the Balkan band sound influenced Condon's style. Kocani Orkestar have been one of the genre's premier outfits for years, and this is the album that broke them to the world. Their sound is immersed in the traditional wedding and village music of their Macedonia home, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia and Turkey, but they aren't averse to the odd Indian film song or salsa lick. Don't miss the Roma national anthem, "Dielem, Dielem."

Burhan Öçal
Trakya All Stars
Much has been made of Beirut's prominent Balkan influences, but Condon's sourcing practices stretch out across the continent. The influence of certain styles of Turkish music, for instance, which itself overlaps frequently with Roma and Balkan music, can be heard in much of Gulag. Fired by rock, pop and jazz flames, Burhan Öçal's traditional-folk blend connects the dots between Beirut and Turkey.

Esma Redzepova
Chaje Shukarije
Another example of the diversity encompassed by the overly general term "Gypsy music" that is so often associated with Beirut, Esma Redzepova is an incomparable Macedonian diva comfortable with both the mournful ballads ("Hajri Ma Te Dike") and feverish dances (see "Abre Ramce," featuring the Klezmatics' Frank London) of traditional Roma music. She's also not afraid to take risks, flirting with Afropop on the second track and working the soulful swagger of "Nasvali So Uljum" like a Balkan Barry White. And then there's that voice, baby. She keens and belts, croons and cajoles, sasses and seduces — and that's just the title track. They don't call her the Queen of the Gypsies for nothing.

Mariachi Mexico de Pepe Villa
Antologia del Mariachi Vol. 6
Although Condon's dips into mariachi get mentioned a lot, what Beirut's music more accurately gestures toward is the cultural kinship between Eastern European folk music and the music of the Mexico-U.S. borderlands, both of which trade in polkas, rich brass and penchants for melancholy. That said, Condon is from the American Southwest, and so mariachi undoubtedly filtered into his consciousness. Few do the classical music of old Mexico better than this ensemble and their revolving cast of singers. This is music for lovers, and if you're lucky enough to be one, pay attention.

Keren Ann
La Disparition
Beirut's second album delves far more deeply into chanson and musette, but strains of the hushed acoustics and winsome vocals associated with French pop can be heard on Gulag as well. Keren Ann's sparse, quiet, heavily acoustic second album provides a lovely example of the Francophone stylings Condon has found so beguiling.

Indie Roundup, October 2011

2011-10-11T16:04:09Z

For this month's Indie Roundup, we highlight a couple dozen new releases. We include big names like Björk, Feist, Ryan Adams and Wilco, but we also put the spotlight on several underground greats like '90s revivalists Big Troubles, minimalist dream-poppers Gem Club, manic garage-rocker Mikal Cronin, bedroom-pop lamenter Youth Lagoon, and Swedish electro-shoegazers I Break Horses. Discover some great new music here!

While reading, check out my playlist: Indie Roundup, October 2011

1. Feist
Metals
With "The Bad in Each Other," Feist's fourth album begins at a leisurely plod before it's quickly swept up in an orchestral squall; "Graveyard" then starts with sparse acoustic picking before funereal horns trudge and a chorus of Feists chants, "Whoa-oa-oa, bring 'em all back to life." This is how most of the first half of Metals flows — the drama sneaks up on you as Feist's lullaby coo never ceases its warm embrace. But after "A Commotion," the liveliest track here, the second half seems hypnotized by its own siren, slowing down to a rustic crawl that hints at the record's Big Sur origins. [Stephanie Benson]

]]> 2. Mikal Cronin
Mikal Cronin
Mikal Cronin, a regular in Ty Segall's band, crafted a first solo effort that's a heavy set reaching into the same dirty bag of lo-fi tricks, putting an avant-garde spin on fuzzed garage rock: there's a freaky flute on "Is It Alright," a shrieking sax on "Apathy" and a droning organ on "Slow Down." But mostly there's a lot of scruffy guitar licks roughly built on Cali surf-rock, from the Beach Boys harmonies to the swinging psych-pop of "Get Along," "Gone" and "Situation" to the slow-dance-worthy "Hold on Me." Segall even drops by to provide those slapdash beats. [S.B.]

3. Big Troubles
Romantic Comedy
Big Troubles' 2011 Slumberland Records debut could fit between Dinosaur Jr. and Smashing Pumpkins on any indie-loving suburban kid's shelf of '90s classics. The band pinpoints the nexus between '80s indie rock, Britpop, dream pop and shoegaze in a cozily retro package. Opening with the jangly "She Smiles for Pictures," Romantic Comedy embraces the ennui of any good slacker: "I just want some fun for once"; "Love is in the air, but I don't care/ 'Cause I don't want to love anymore." Highlights like "Sad Girls" and "Minor Keys" will have Billy Corgan wishing he could still write this well. [S.B.]

4. James Blake
Enough Thunder EP
After winning indie hearts with his debut album, James Blake took a hard left with "Order" and "Pan," two tracks of atomized, alienating dubstep minimalism. Enough Thunder is far cuddlier: the Justin Vernon duet "Fall Creek Boys Choir" is a melancholy Auto-Tune prelude with woodland critter effects, and the live title track and the Joni Mitchell cover "A Case of You" present Blake at his most vulnerable, with rippling piano as the fig leaf to his naked, cracking voice. "We Might Feel Unsound" and "Not Long Now" dip back into electronics in a way suggestive of Björk. [Philip Sherburne]

5. Wilco
The Whole Love
The essence of Wilco's best stuff is all here: a weave of dollar-bin sounds (the cheapie organ riff on "I Might," the retooled vaudeville jive of "Capitol City," even a bit of E.L.O. on "Dawn On Me") and Jeff Tweedy's usual ambiguous confessions and suggestive images. With the sprawling opener, "Art of Almost," the band uses a pixilated oblivion of digital blips and square-wave guitar distortion to lull you into complacency before finishing it in a wash of lionhearted noise. Adding songs like "Black Moon" and "One Sunday Morning" helps flesh out one of Wilco's most engaging records. [Nate Cavalieri]

6. Youth Lagoon
The Year of Hibernation
"You make real friends quickly/ But not me," squeaks out Trevor Powers, just holding back the tears on opener "Posters." As Youth Lagoon, he's a lovesick kid who lets his self-consciousness unravel amid swirling synths, ringing guitar and programmed percussion. His voice is often manipulated into a distant-sounding echo that only adds to his vulnerable charm. The Year of Hibernation doesn't droop in lonely introspection, though; in fact, it often has a hopeful lilt. Beginning as hushed laments, these songs build into powerfully poignant pieces of sweet, meticulous pop. [S.B.]

7. Dum Dum Girls
Only in Dreams
Dum Dum Girls main gal Dee Dee nails the rock-goddess coolness of Chrissie Hynde and the hippie-girl dreaminess of Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval on her quartet's sophomore album. Where their 2010 debut, I Will Be, was rooted more in Shangri-La shoegazer squall, Only in Dreams is darker in theme yet lighter and sharper in sound. Rhythms snap, hands clap and guitars shudder with surf-rock playfulness. There's sexy schoolgirl coyness ("Bedroom Eyes"), poignant Pretenders rock ("Hold Your Hand"), irresistible indie pop ("Just a Creep") and the silkiest dream pop since "Fade Into You" ("Coming Down"). [S.B.]

8. Gem Club
Breakers
The songs on Gem Club's debut album are so delicate they could seemingly float away with the ease of a leaf caught in the wind. But what keeps the band's minimalist dream pop grounded is the minor-key plunks of Christopher Barnes' piano and the honeyed moans of Kristen Drymala's cello. Barnes provides the vocals, reminiscent of a sedated Jonathan Meiburg (Shearwater), while Ieva Berberian lays out soft female harmonies. This is melancholy at its most heartbreakingly gorgeous. When Barnes faintly mumbles, "I heard the party's here," you really just want to give the poor guy a beer. [S.B.]

9. Ryan Adams
Ashes & Fire
Ryan Adams has finally mellowed. After a decade of absurd prolificacy and uncouth behavior, alt country's most volatile son sits pleasantly behind the whisper-quiet shuffle of Ashes & Fire, a soothing blanket of gentle guitars, bright organ and delicate piano. His lyrics are philosophical and apologetic: "Do I want to say the things I say/ When I know they're wrong?" "What am I doing here?" "Am I really who I was?" Perhaps it dips too often into David Gray soft rock, but oh well. Norah Jones guests throughout, tiptoeing and deferential; "Save Me" marks Adams as worthy of redemption. [Rob Harvilla]

10. Wavves
Life Sux EP
In case the title of this five-song EP didn't tip you off, Nathan Williams still plays the apathetic stoner maybe a little too well — "You're no fun/ You're just dumb" — but at least he's starting to sound more confident in that role. Williams' sweetie, Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino, offers up some "ooohs" and slight harmonies on the surf-punk-bopping "Nodding Off," while F*cked Up's Damian Abraham growls throughout "Destroy" like a hypoglycemic Cookie Monster. Hints of Nirvana are everywhere, from the grungy guitar riffs of "Poor Lenore" to the obvious "I Wanna Meet Dave Grohl." [S.B.]

11. Pink Playground
Destination Ecstasy
Pink Playground aren't the first band to worship My Bloody Valentine, and they most certainly won't be the last. That said, Destination Ecstasy (an apt title, no?) proves they just might be the most adroit. The Houston outfit is a recording project first and foremost, a fact that goes a long way toward explaining this music's clever shading, fine textures and uncanny mingling of warm distortion and frigid feedback. It's all rather exquisite. Moreover, Pink Playground nail the narcotic delirium that made the original shoegazers unique. The best example of this just might be "I Don't Know You." [Justin Farrar]

12. I Break Horses
Hearts
Swedish duo I Break Horses flip Loveless on its back and craft Hearts, a debut swimming in glistening shoegazer fuzz and vocals that liquefy on impact. But this isn't all dream pop encircled in buzzing layers of noise. Maria Linden and Fredrik Balck put in electro rhythms that positively drive, adding a sense of fun and urgency to the otherwise somnambulist orbit of synths and guitar sizzle. "Winter Beats," "Hearts" and "No Way Outro" throb with anthemic drama, while the narcotic flow of "I Kill Your Love, Baby" and the churchly echoes of "Cancer" hypnotize with a seductive pulse. [S.B.]

13. Tyler Ramsey
The Valley Wind
He may be best known as the lead guitarist for Band of Horses, but Tyler Ramsey is a powerful force on his own. His third release is a dusky batch of singer-songwriter fare with a touch of Neil Young's weary and melancholic disposition. An avian infatuation permeates The Valley Wind, from the finger-picking instrumental "Raven Shadow" to "1000 Black Birds" to "The Nightbird" that's to blame for his insomnia — another recurring theme. Fitting, as much of Ramsey's melancholic folk captures that dark-hour feel, when introspection is at its dimmest but most heightened state. [S.B.]

14. Apparat
The Devil's Walk
Berlin's Apparat has always been a doe-eyed romantic compared to most of his laptopping brethren, imbuing his glitchy electronic pop with sumptuous textures and a general sense of yearning. On his first album for Mute, his methods are even better suited to his moods, with lush acoustic instrumentation and heartbreaking vocal harmonies. He has become a more ambitious composer, learning from Jeff Buckley, Steve Reich and even Cat Power while maintaining his own signature. Uniformly gorgeous — almost too gorgeous — it's perfect for listeners who want to have their cake and wallow in it too. [P.S.]

15. Yuck
Yuck (Deluxe Edition)
This promising debut calls to mind an era when Yuck's members were still yuckin' up diapers. The band has homed in on early '90s college radio as a reference point, balancing elements from shoegaze haze to lo-fi guitar to smooth-sailin' dream pop. Some of the album rocks; some of it rolls: tracks like "Get Away" and "Holing Out" buzz with the guitar assaults of Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr.; others, such as "Shook Down," "Suicide Policeman" and "Stutter," simmer with the girl-guy harmonies and melodic ease of Yo La Tengo. This is '90s revival at its freshest. This edition includes six B-sides. [S.B.]

16. Ben Folds
The Best Imitation of Myself: A Retrospective
He's got a couple dozen songs better than "Brick," y'know, and this three-layered beast lets alt rock's reigning piano man unload them all, from his Ben Folds Five years ("Don't Change Your Plans") to his subsequent decade of solo work ("Still Fighting It"). The second disc focuses on his raucous live shows, while disc 3 dips into B-sides and oddities, most of which are inconsequential, but a few are either appealingly goofy (a straight-ish cover of Dr. Dre's "B*tches Ain't Sh*t") or profoundly sad (the guest-star-studded "Because the Origami") or a bit of both. "The Luckiest" is a wedding-dance classic. [R.H.]

17. Marketa Irglova
Anar
She was Glen Hansard's feisty love interest in the irresistibly charming Once (and, for a brief time, in real life), but now Oscar-winner Marketa Irglova is a married woman and looking to get out from under Hansard's shadow. Her solo debut showcases her pianist chops, almost to a fault; her fragile vocals can sometimes get lost in the flood of rolling piano. And while she still often plays the hesitant siren — "Am I really in love?" she asks on "Crossroads" — she starts to come into her own when the rhythm picks up just a tad, as on "Go Back" and "Dokhtar Goochani." [S.B.]

18. Rachael Yamagata
Chesapeake
Three albums in, Rachael Yamagata knows what works for her: pensive, emotive lyrics that explore the nooks and crannies of love; an intrepid sense of style that's grounded in decades of singer-songwriter tradition; and, especially, husky vocals as sexy and smoky as a tumbler of scotch. The range of aesthetic moods is especially wide here, moving effortlessly from the dark, sultry and surfy rock of the fabulous "Starlight" to the Indigo Girlish, sunlit coffee-shop pop of "Saturday Morning" to the twangy alt country of "Miles on a Car." It's a carefully crafted album by a thoughtful artist. [Rachel Devitt]

19. Erasure
Tomorrow's World
After 31 years and 13 studio albums, Erasure's Vince Clarke and Andy Bell can probably write their music in their sleep. The electro power ballads and jaded dance anthems of Tomorrow's World certainly sound second nature for the duo, but the presence of the 26-year-old dance-pop producer Frankmusik keeps the songs sounding contemporary — or like a contemporary version of '80s synth pop, anyway. Tomorrow's World looks a lot like yesterday's, apparently, just with added Auto-Tune. For fans of the band, that's not a bad thing. [P.S.]

20. Björk
Biophilia
Biophilia is more than just an album: it's a sensory overload of multimedia that includes a collection of iPad apps. Here, you strictly get the audio, partly created on an iPad with a slew of one-of-a-kind instruments. Björk herself coos and squawks throughout, as her words — mostly cosmic and philosophical in nature — nearly melt off her tongue, with icy blips and bleeps circling around heavy drum 'n' bass beats that don't always obey convention. Still, the album often drags, seemingly folding under its own weighty ambition. "Crystalline" is by far the most interesting piece here. [S.B.]

Further Listening:
S.C.U.M.: Again Into Eyes
Twin Sister: In Heaven
Veronica Falls: Veronica Falls
We Were Promised Jetpacks: In the Pit of the Stomach
Dominant Legs: Invitation

Girls, Father, Son, Holy Ghost

2011-10-06T11:00:00Z

With their second album, Girls' production values may have gone up, but it doesn't mean they're any happier. It could be a fun drinking game to count the number of coy loves tumbling out of Christopher Owens' mouth, but then you'll miss the band's exceptionally nimble moves here. These range from the surf-rock of "Honey Bunny" to the stoner-rock stomp of "Die," the slow-burn lamenting of "My Ma" and "Forgiveness" to the prog folk (with flute!) of "Just a Song," the soul-gospel swing of "Love Like a River" to highlight "Vomit," which acts as the magnet pulling all those elements together. [Stephanie Benson]

Hear It Now!

The Wide World of Wilco

2011-09-29T18:05:33Z

Wilco have now been around so long and put out records of such consistently high quality, it's tempting to take a new one for granted. But don't make that mistake with their latest opus, The Whole Love: it's both wildly ambitious and comfortably lived-in. To celebrate its arrival, we've whipped up a slew of Wilco-centric content, from an extended look at The Whole Love to playlists celebrating their all-time greatest hits and their many side projects to an in-depth exploration of the influences behind their 1996 breakthrough, Being There. Enjoy.

	Another classic? A deep dive into Wilco's adventurous new album.			Being There, Decoded: Revisiting the biggest influences on the band's 1996 breakthrough
	Wilco's Greatest Hits: Prepare yourself for a career-spanning monster playlist			Wilco's Extended Universe: Side projects, solo jaunts, guest stars and more
	Ladies of Alt Country: Neko Case, Lucinda Williams and other crucial innovators			Alt Before Alt Was Cool: Dwight Yoakam, Steve Earle, and other fearless Wilco predecessors

Source Material: Wilco, Being There

2011-09-28T15:43:19Z

Wilco's Being There is one of those albums that was tailor-made for The Mix's Source Material treatment. The double-disc set is a ramshackle song cycle about all things rock 'n' roll: rock fandom, growing up on rock, rock as livelihood and so on. Even when Jeff Tweedy — using as he does that deadpan croon that makes you think he's either bored or stoned or both — rhapsodizes on the struggles of love and romance, he views them through the prism of ... the rock.

A big part of this hyper self-awareness is the way Being There wears its influences on its sleeves. The thing is littered with lyrical allusions and sonic references, as if it's a kind of Masonic Bible for rock 'n' roll: if decoded properly, it will open up a secret history. This is something I discovered not long after the record dropped in the fall of '96. I was a senior at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo back then. I was also a record store clerk "in the middle of awkward musical transitions," according to old pal and author Bryan Charles (who chronicled our college days in his Wowee Zowee book for Continuum's 33 1/3 series — Wilco are also mentioned). Moreover, I had "disowned the traditional in favor of screeching free-form noise." Thus, Being There's American rock vibe was the last thing my antennae were attuned to at the time.

But two other close friends, Steve and Rob, big Wilco fans whose tastes I genuinely dug, got me hooked regardless. As the autumn turned into one of the Midwest's harshest winters in decades, I used Rob's Escort GT to run errands quite a lot, and the discs were always in the car. Every time I borrowed it I worked on this decoding process: the lines in "Misunderstood" were lifted from punk icon Peter Laughner's "Amphetamine" ("Take the guitar layer for a ride ..."); there was a nod to Pink Floyd in "Far, Far Away" ("... on the dark side of the moon"); and "Hotel California" had turned into the "Hotel Arizona," where they made the band "wanna feel like stars." This process has never stopped, in fact. Through the years I've discovered more, like the way the fiddle jam "Dreamer in My Dreams" is surely a brazen reimaging of the Sir Douglas Quintet deep cut "Funky Side of Your Mind," or how "Kingpin" and Bert Jansch's "Open Up the Watergate (Let the Sunshine In)" share the exact same slinky groove.

]]> Shout at the Devil produced backward-masked Satanic messages. Then again, that's exactly the kind of fanaticism Being There demands of its listeners.

Now on to a few other points ...

In terms of bigger-picture aesthetic issues, I love what Tweedy and the band ultimately achieved on Being There: a modern and utterly non-retro (thank you) interpretation of classic rock. They took all the great music they grew up worshiping (from The Stones and Little Feat to The Eagles and Neil Young) and filtered it through heady sonic ideas gleaned from fellow Midwesterners such as The Flaming Lips, Red Red Meat and Souled American. I'm talking about stuff like feedback as ambient texture, electro-acoustic warmth/space and the use of all manner of novel instrumentation. On top of all this, Being There can also be framed as belonging to the American power-pop tradition that has its roots in the mighty Big Star, particularly the band's debut, #1 Record, on which they strike an uncanny balance between The Move and Crosby, Stills & Nash.

But enough is enough. Between the albums below and my 52-track Source Material: Wilco, Being There playlist, you, like me, will be busy for decades to come.

The Rolling Stones
Exile on Main St.
Appearing in practically every critic's poll as one of the best rock records of all time, with many counting it as the best, Exile came out at a time when people thought the Stones had been taking too many drugs, losing too many friends and making way too much money for too long to really be able to pull off another great record. Well, they did it. This deluxe re-release features no less than 10 previously unheard tracks. — Mike McGuirk

The Flaming Lips
Clouds Taste Metallic
A justifiably confident band takes its love of studio manipulation to new extremes on this set, which deploys xylophones, bells, birds, whirring machinery, exploding cities, cheering crowds and more as instrumental accompaniment to songs about cosmic orgasms, burning postmen and the inevitable triumph of evil over everything we know and love. Given the grim ending they predict, the band advises you to "show no mercy/ In your dreams," and this album is pretty much them doing exactly that. It's dreamy, and they're merciless — even when you think they're joking. — Tim Quirk

Little Feat
Hoy-Hoy!
Released not long after the death of Lowell George, Hoy-Hoy! is an enlightening, if patchy, collection of live recordings, alternate takes and deep-vault gems. For those familiar only with the Feat's New Orleans-flavored and/or fusion offerings, the record served as a nice peek inside the band's obscured roots in California country rock. Remember, back in 1981, the group's earliest albums were nearly impossible to track down — still are, in fact. Interestingly, vintage tracks such as "Easy to Slip" and "Strawberry Flats" sound like modern Americana. So yeah, George was one prescient dude. — Justin Farrar

Big Star
#1 Record / Radio City
The far-reaching impact these two records have exerted on rock 'n' roll is nothing short of profound. Led by Chris Bell and Alex Chilton, Big Star cut the sounds of British Invasion pop — The Move in particular — with West Coast harmony and hard rock (drummer Jody Stephens rumbles like John Bonham). The band created a distinctively American sound in the process. But what's truly amazing is how the music still feels fresh, as if it were created only yesterday. There's no real way of parsing this unique achievement, and that's why such a delicious mythology continues to surround Big Star. — J.F.

The Eagles
Eagles
Let's clear up a few things. First, it wasn't cosmic American hipster Gram Parsons or the ahead-of-their-time Byrds who turned mainstream America on to country rock; it was The Eagles. Second, they didn't suck. They were fantastic (especially when Bernie Leadon was around). For their debut album, The Eagles studied their influences before honing a sound that is obscenely catchy and as uniquely identifiable as a fingerprint. Sure, Glenn Frey comes off like a bell-bottomed stoner on "Chug All Night" and "Most of Us Are Sad." But hey, this is sunshiny road-tripping music, not existential poetry. — J.F.

Doug Sahm
Groover's Paradise
Groover's Paradise, a lost gem if there ever was one, is the product of a '70s supergroup few at the time knew existed. The frontman is, of course, the charismatic and versatile Doug Sahm, who does it all: Tex-Mex, honky-tonk, folk rock, blues, power pop and more. Tying together this wonderful array of styles and sounds is Creedence's legendary rhythm section, bassist Stu Cook and drummer Doug Clifford, who swing like a metronome: minimal and totally locked in. The group's most striking quality is its love for pop brevity. It gives Groover's Paradise a prescient, '80s roots-rock vibe. — J.F.

Uncle Tupelo
Anodyne
Uncle Tupelo's first major-label release also happened to be their last album. It's fitting in that they seemed to have reached their apex here, having created a work that meshes folk, country and rock in a way that's almost revelatory in its directness. The Doug Sahm-assisted "Give Me Back the Key to My Heart" is a highlight. — Jon Pruett

Neil Young/Crazy Horse
Zuma
Neil followed up the harrowing brilliance of Tonight's the Night with a structurally less-challenging (it didn't sound like he was going off the deep end) yet equally powerful record in Zuma. Marked by "Cortez the Killer" and the often-overlooked "Danger Bird," Zuma is also the first record with Danny Whitten's replacement, Frank Sampedro. — M.M.

Stephen Stills/Manassas
Manassas
Stills' slide into mediocrity in the '70s was so unpleasant to witness, it's easy to forget he created some killer rock in the decade's opening years. Manassas, a double LP, is the most ambitious thing he ever released. Surrounded by a cadre of California heads (Chris Hillman, Dallas Taylor and Joe Lala among them), Stills employs sweeping brushstrokes to paint a grand and epic statement. There's boogie jams ("Rock & Roll Crazies"), country-folk balladry ("Jesus Gave Love Away for Free"), stoner-grass ("Fallen Eagle"), Latin smoothness ("It Doesn't Matter") and even space pop ("Move Around"). — J.F.

Red Red Meat
Bunny Gets Paid
You'd swear singer and guitarist Tim Rutili, who possesses one weary groan, was some kind of backwoods alt-country troubadour — that is, if it weren't for the dub/industrial grime that's caked all over these 11 jams like a soggy mulch. But still, this is some truly earthy rock 'n' roll — as ragged as anything off the Stones' Exile on Main Street. And like Exile, there's something inscrutably murky about Red Red Meat's music; just about the only well-defined sound is the killer slide-work. — J.F.

Further listening
Peter Laughner: Take the Guitar Player for a Ride
Gram Parsons: The Complete Reprise Sessions
Little Feat: Little Feat
The Beach Boys: Friends / 20/20
Giant Sand: The Love Songs
Bert Jansch: L.A. Tunraround
Gene Clark: No Other
Palace Music: Viva Last Blues
American Music Club: Everclear
The Band: Stage Fright
The Beatles: The White Album
The Byrds: The Notorious Byrd Brothers
Souled American: Frozen

South Park Sessions: Thao & Mirah

2011-09-26T17:44:20Z

South Park Sessions is a new Rhapsody TV project wherein we invite our favorite musicians out to a lovely park near our San Francisco offices for a stripped-down, intimate, (hopefully) sunshine-filled private show. Indie-folk sirens Thao & Mirah were kind enough to take the plunge and go first. And so, live from South Park in SF, here's an exclusive performance of "Hallelujah," a highlight from their self-titled debut album. Enjoy.

Fat Possum Records' New Class

2011-09-21T17:36:55Z

Oxford, Miss.'s Fat Possum Records was founded in 1992 with an initial mission to discover and endorse local blues musicians like R.L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough and Mississippi Fred McDowell. It was an honorable ambition, but one that certainly didn't have the label rolling in dough. Since the mid-'00s, however, Fat Possum has experienced a resurgence of sorts, gradually branching out beyond its Southern roots to embrace artists like The Black Keys, Andrew Bird and Heartless Bastards. Most recently, the label has stretched its limbs even further, cultivating talent from lo-fi indie rockers to soulful singer-songwriters. Their current roster boasts musicians like Wavves, Yuck, Smith Westerns, A.A. Bondy, Lissie and Unknown Mortal Orchestra. Hear these artists and discover more of Fat Possum's newest class with our sampler playlist: Fat Possum Records' New Class.

Indie Roundup, September 2011

2011-09-20T17:05:09Z

Indie artists have been cranking out some quality albums lately, with some possible year-end-list contenders emerging from such disparate acts as lovelorn indie rockers Girls, weirdo princess St. Vincent and grrrl-punk supergroup Wild Flag. Then there's smooth disco-punk from The Rapture, groovy throwback rock from Blitzen Trapper, merry indie pop from Grouplove, gauzy stadium rock from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, a new project from Crowded House's Neil Finn (Pajama Club), another new project from Grizzly Bear's Chris Taylor (CANT), and a few others sprinkled in between. Read more about these albums below, and get a sample of each with our Indie Roundup, September 2011 playlist.

Girls
Father, Son, Holy Ghost
With their second album, Girls' production values may have gone up, but it doesn't mean they're any happier. It could be a fun drinking game to count the number of coy loves tumbling out of Christopher Owens' mouth, but then you'll miss the band's exceptionally nimble moves here. These range from the surf-rock of "Honey Bunny" to the stoner-rock stomp of "Die," the slow-burn lamenting of "My Ma" and "Forgiveness" to the prog folk (with flute!) of "Just a Song," the soul-gospel swing of "Love Like a River" to highlight "Vomit," which acts as the magnet pulling all those elements together. — Stephanie Benson

]]> St. Vincent
Strange Mercy
On her third LP, Annie Clark has the affectation of a deranged nurse whose calming coos effectively hide a sinister intent. "If I ever meet the dirty policeman who roughed you up," she sweetly threatens on the balladic title cut; "Come cut me open," she coolly commands on "Surgeon," which sounds like Snow White dropping acid at a Pink Floyd show. Then there's "Champagne Year," an angelic come-down from said acid, and "Cheerleader," a sort of Tori Amos therapy session. Buzzing guitars, gurgling synths and rich strings sparkle throughout as she waltzes down the line between genius and insanity. — S.B.

Wild Flag
Wild Flag
If anyone ever questions a female's ability to rock, crank Wild Flag and watch them weep. The quartet comprises vets of the grrrl-power '90s: Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney), Mary Timony (Helium), Janet Weiss (Quasi) and Rebecca Cole (Minders). Opening with "Romance," a flirty pop-punk hand-clapper, their debut quickly shifts into proggy acid-punk (see "Glass Tambourine"). Brownstein's and Timony's vocals and guitars slither around one another with self-assured defiance, as Weiss pounds and Cole's keyboards hypnotize. And they do it all with just the right touch of Go-Go's girliness. — S.B.

The Rapture
In the Grace of Your Love
Losing a member (bassist/vocalist Mattie Safer) and their major-label deal has The Rapture sounding lighter and more liberated. The trio's first album in five years comes via DFA Records, where they helped evolve dance punk back in 2003; eight years later, frontman Luke Jenner and co. have tamed their punk 'tude, favoring more complex guitar work. (Like Guitar Hero complex: see "Blue Bird" and "Roller Coaster.") Elsewhere, horn blasts and sassy sax attacks (see "How Deep Is Your Love?" and the Marvin Gaye-ish "It Takes Time to Be a Man") nourish their irresistible disco-bound beats. — S.B.

Beirut
The Rip Tide
"I'm just too young," croons 25-year-old Zach Condon, conceding his inexperience amid arrangements bursting with sophistication. As Beirut, Condon has mined traditional sounds from Eastern Europe, France and Mexico. And while these elements are still present here, his third album is less distinct in its aural origins, more a Pangaea of the band's rich horns-uke-accordion-piano amalgam. The mood varies too, from the plucky bounce of "Santa Fe" to the melancholy keys of "Goshen," from the funereal march of "East Harlem" and "The Rip Tide" to the celebratory spirit of "Port of Call." — S.B.

The Drums
Portamento
Like to wear black eyeliner to the beach? Here's your band. The Drums do a curious (i.e., awesome) combination of post-punk surf music, a sort of Beach Boys facade for a heart that pumps to the sounds of The Cure. Even more pronounced on their sophomore album, this mix of ghostly analog synths, breezy hand claps, ooh ooh's and ringing surf guitar is a foil to frontman Jonathan Pierce's atheistic infatuation with the afterlife and the afterlove. The sunnier fare, at least in melody, bookends Portamento, while the darker stuff ("Searching for Heaven," "Please Don't Leave") seeps in midway. — S.B.

Blitzen Trapper
American Goldwing
American Goldwing opens with the one-two punch of "Might Find It Cheap" and "Fletcher." Both tunes embody what has gradually become the Blitzen Trapper sound: a punchy, nasal fusion of power pop and country rock, with a dash of "hick-hop" syncopation thrown in for maximum grooviness. The group, in all honesty, hasn't really changed their strategy through the years. But that's OK. Even when the songwriting feels borne of habit, American Goldwing sounds fantastic. Every instrument — harmonica, pedal steel, banjo, piano, those soaring harmonies — has been rendered in crystallized vibrancy. — Justin Farrar

Grouplove
Never Trust a Happy Song
A curious album title for this L.A. five-piece, whose debut is seemingly packed with "happy songs." Then again, it's hard to tell at times, what with vocalist Christian Zucconi often invoking an introspective Jeff Mangum yelp amid layers of jangly, folky guitar and feel-good beats. But all seems pretty well in Grouplove's world, a world not far from the merry collectivism of Edward Sharpe. "Here is now and now is where I want to be," professes Zucconi before playing word-hopscotch on highlight "Colours" and sing-rapping with vocalist/keyboardist (and girlfriend) Hannah Hooper on "Naked Kids." — S.B.

Toro Y Moi
Freaking Out
Just six months after his excellent LP Underneath the Pine, Toro Y Moi's Chaz Bundick returns with a five-track EP of stripped-down funk. In contrast to that earlier album's lush, woozy vibes, this one sticks to skeletal synth-and-drum-machine workouts more in keeping with the retro-boogie of electro revivalists like Dam-Funk or Chromeo. "I Can Get Love" experiments with whooshing, hyper-compressed house, and the Alexander O'Neal and Cherrelle cover "Saturday Love" gets a gleaming, new-new-jack makeover. — Philip Sherburne

A.A. Bondy
Believers
Believers may be slightly more spacious and slightly more fleshed out, but thankfully, A.A. Bondy's second effort on Fat Possum is more of the same beautiful stuff that filled his first two solo releases. His blurry, rain-soaked Americana songs are perfectly heartbreaking just the way they are, so reinvention would be tragic. Pull any one of these tunes out of a hat: each one is intentionally constructed with the sure hand of a songwriter at the top of his game. Pressed for favorites, go for "Down in the Fire (Lost Sea)" or "Surfer King." Press play and zone out: Believers is a gorgeous, lethargic trip. — Nate Cavalieri

CANT
Dreams Come True
CANT is the solo project of Chris Taylor, bassist and producer for Grizzly Bear; with help from George Lewis, Jr., of Twin Shadow, he's crafted a debut that's more experimental than it is accessible — Thom Yorke's The Eraser is a fair comparison. But more significantly, Dreams Come True reveals a lot of the wistful whimsy present in Grizzly Bear's work. "Too Late, Too Far" opens things up with funky synthesized clomps, but soon Taylor's weaving in hints of deconstructed R&B (think James Blake) and even some industrial grind ("She Found a Way Out"). — S.B.

Pajama Club
Pajama Club
Pajama Club is quite possibly the least jangly album Neil Finn has ever been associated with, considering the tunesmith made his name as one-third of jangle-pop icons Crowded House. Finn's Pajama Club, which also features wife Sharon on bass, specializes in effervescent indie-pop that's tricked out with bouncy, danceable grooves and quirky flourishes of electronica. Several tracks, among them "These Are Conditions" and "TNT For 2," possess a retro-New Wave vibe, as if Finn were attempting to update the sound of his pre-Crowded House band, Split Enz. — J.F.

Laura Marling
A Creature I Don't Know
This young, absurdly skilled Brit folkie will remind you of a half-dozen all-time greats instantly. You'll hear Joni Mitchell, definitely, but also tough-but-sensitive troubadours from Richard Thompson to John Martyn, with a few delicious Leonard Cohen detours (see the chilling "Night After Night") and a couple nods to the more modern, boisterous tack taken by her buddies in Mumford and Sons. Her third album is a perfect union of vulnerability and invincibility — start with "The Beast," probably the most menacing ostensibly sensual song of the past decade. Do not cross this woman. — Rob Harvilla

Ladytron
Gravity the Seducer
After 2010's best-of compilation, Ladytron return with their fifth studio album. All that reminiscing must have made them reflective, as this is a dark, brooding album; even comparatively danceable numbers like "Melting Ice" are shadowy and nervous. As lush as their sonics can be, there's also something forbidding about them. "Ritual" is terse New Wave, part Cars and part Cure; suffused in reverb, "White Gold" has the whiff of freezer burn. With the three closing songs, the clouds part somewhat, and shades of trance, the Cocteau Twins and the Caribbean impart a reassuringly rosy glow. — P.S.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Hysterical
C.Y.H.S.Y. have never sounded so ready to rock a stadium (think The Killers) as they do on their third album. After focusing on other projects, the quintet returns intact nearly five years after sophomore semi-slump Some Loud Thunder, and contrary to its lo-fi-ish title, Hysterical boasts quite the slick production. Synths wiggle, throb and glisten, but they also tend to weigh down the band's quirkiest and most endearing qualities, like the guitar shreds of "Into Your Alien Arms," the upbeat stomp of "Ketamine and Ecstasy," and Alec Ounsworth's fractured yelp, which has mended itself into a smooth croon. — S.B.

Further Listening:
Milagres: Glowing Mouth
Brooklyn quintet plays melodic and dramatic indie pop (think Grizzly Bear or Shearwater).

James Blake & Bon Iver: "Fall Creek Boys Choir"
Two of today's most haunting voices come together and bring the Auto-Tune.

Blood Orange: Coastal Grooves
The man behind Lightspeed Champion gets groovy and eclectic on his newest project.

Neon Indian: Era Extraña
More gauzy, psychedelic experiments from the chillwave champ.

The Kooks: Junk of the Heart
The Brit boys tame their bad-boy rockin' ways — they just "want to make you happy."

Primus: Green Naugahyde
Les Claypool and Co.'s first full-length since 1999 interestingly turns back the clock to the late '80s.

The War on Drugs, Slave Ambient

2011-09-17T11:00:22Z

Slave Ambient sounds a lot like The War on Drugs' 2008 debut, Wagonwheel Blues: bouncy roots-rock buttressed by a Krautrock-inspired sense of rhythmic repetition. The Long Ryders playing the Neu! songbook, in other words. It's a decent enough listen. The only problem is that the record lacks the killer anthems that made its predecessor so fun -- then again, that just might be the point. This time around, primary singer and songwriter Adam Granduciel sounds more introspective and reflective; not only that, his vocals are often rendered indecipherable by the echo-soaked din challenging them. [Justin Farrar]

Hear It Now!

Indie Roundup

2011-08-24T17:00:22Z

What's new in indie? Oh, just your usual hodgepodge of eclectic sounds from eclectic artists. Veteran indie dudes (Stephin M. and Stephen M.), Brazilian booty-shakers, Philly rockers, Canadian all-stars, Swedish popsters and more take over our August edition of the Indie Roundup, featuring notable new releases and singles.

Be sure to check out my Indie Roundup, August 2011 playlist.

1. Arcade Fire
The Suburbs Deluxe
The Suburbs is an intimate portrayal of not just sameness and shopping malls, but also the nostalgia and jadedness that comes with it. It opens with a deceptively jovial beat ... then gets morbidly epic. As they "drive through the sprawl," guitars, strings and synths gather and tumble, then sway like an empty swing in the wind before dissipating into laser bleeps and ABBA beats. Win Butler then makes his final admission: "If I could have it back/ All the time that we wasted/ I'd only waste it again." This deluxe edition includes "Culture War" and the David Byrne assist "Speaking in Tongues." — Stephanie Benson

]]> 2. CSS
La Liberacion
"I've got a PhD in ADD," Lovefoxxx slyly snarls on "F*ck Everything." It's nice to see CSS haven't lost any of their irreverence, even if that ADD still reigns over their music. La Liberacion boasts some cool guest stars — Primal Scream's Bobby Gillespie, Ratatat, pianist Mike Garson — as the Brazilians try to navigate their way between the discotheque and the punk club. "I Love You" has a Pixies touch, "Hits Me Like a Rock" and "Echo of Love" work a reggae sway, "City Grrrl" has potential to kick Gaga off the dancefloor, and "La Liberacion" proves punk can be translated into any language. — S.B.

3. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks
Mirror Traffic
"I cannot even do one sit-up/ Sit-ups are so bourgeois." We rely on Steve for such loopy bon mots, and he delivers on Mirror Traffic, his first post-Pavement-reunion outing with his long-running post-Pavement band. Earlier Jicks efforts were knotty and proggy and intimidating, but this one's warm and sweet, full of cheery guitar noodling and fuzz-pop delights like "Stick Figures in Love." Full of great titles ("Forever 28") and great lines, there's a refreshing air of openhearted uncoolness. — Rob Harvilla

4. Moonface
Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I'd Hoped
One of indie rock's most prolific eccentrics, Spencer Krug does right by that album title, filling his debut album as Moonface with more organ than the Vatican. Only a few months after retiring Wolf Parade, the band's former co-frontman sounds sufficiently refreshed in a sea of organ loops and digital percussion. The bleeps and bloops hypnotize like a carnival ride locked in fast-forward as Krug's howls snap, crack and plow through the sea with mystical force, echoing oceanic references with poetic precision. The songs are lengthy and dense, yet spellbinding in their psychedelic stupor. — S.B.

5. Mister Heavenly
Out of Love
"Doom wop" is Mister Heavenly's self-proclaimed M.O. Made up of Nick Thorburn (Islands, The Unicorns), Ryan Kattner (Man Man) and Joe Plummer (Modest Mouse, The Shins), the band acts like Bill & Ted on a bogus journey through '50s doo-wop, '70s experimental rock and '90s alt. It's like The Platters in flannel and Frank Zappa in a poodle skirt singing tainted love songs for a school dance. Thorburn's heartthrob croons complement Kattner's caveman grunts, while the rhythms sway between a soulful swing ("Charlyne," "Your Girl"), a cool swagger ("Reggae Pie") and a gritty stomp (yes, "Doom Wop"). — S.B.

6. Active Child
You Are All I See
Pat Grossi's intimate, falsetto-laced R&B-tronica (or "hymntronic," as he calls it) hovers in the same stratosphere as contemporaries James Blake, Bon Iver and How to Dress Well (who guest here on "Playing House"). The L.A. artist's sound rises miles above his city's polluted ozone, as he juxtaposes trained choirboy croons and nimble harp with synths that sweep through like a celestial wave. His debut as Active Child often sounds like Tangerine Dream sent to church on the moon, so when he incorporates hints of sensual R&B, like on standout "Hanging On," it adds a nice human touch. — S.B.

7. Release the Sunbird
Come Back to Us
Jack Johnson's Brushfire Records is the perfect home for Rogue Wave's Zach Rogue and his Release the Sunbird project. His debut album under the moniker is as warm and cozy as soft sand massaging your toes — ironic, given that it was recorded in Bloomington, Ind. A mostly acoustic affair, Come Back to Us features musicians like vocalist Kate Long, whose hushed coos on such tracks as "Always Like the Son" and "A New You" add a silky texture to Rogue's own soft-spoken croon. Like a sun-kissed son of James Taylor, he sounds tranquil and liberated, and so will you upon pressing play. — S.B.

8. The War on Drugs
Slave Ambient
Slave Ambient sounds a lot like The War on Drugs' 2008 debut, Wagonwheel Blues: bouncy roots-rock buttressed by a Krautrock-inspired sense of rhythmic repetition. The Long Ryders playing the Neu! songbook, in other words. It's a decent enough listen. The only problem is that the record lacks the killer anthems that made its predecessor so fun — then again, that just might be the point. This time around, primary singer and songwriter Adam Granduciel sounds more introspective and reflective; not only that, his vocals are often rendered indecipherable by the echo-soaked din challenging them. — Justin Farrar

9. The Horrors
Skying
With The Horrors, a wild game of "name that influence" is always in store. Their third album is no exception, but they do the romanticizing-goth-meets-gawky-John-Hughes-teen so well it's hard to find fault with their endless adoration of '80s synths and shoegazer drama. Skying is about atmosphere, a spiraling melancholy established right from its first chords, while frontman Faris Badwan weaves a Richard Butler-like baritone through woozy melodies with the precision of a lone fish navigating dark waters. He sounds way beyond his 24 years; so does the rest of the band, for that matter. — S.B.

10. Little Dragon
Ritual Union
Little Dragon have evolved from quiet students of soulful downtempo to the cool kids of electro-pop with third album Ritual Union. The Swedish band gets its edge from singer Yukimi Nagano, who makes everything sound invitingly exotic — when she coyly demands, "Please turn," you better believe you will. Wacky clanks, sliding notes and reverberating bass round out the dreamy Casio-pop experience, which seamlessly flows from playful, midtempo lounge-funk ("Little Man," "Summertearz") to sleek, upbeat club fare ("Shuffle a Dream," "Nightlight"). — S.B.

11. Stephin Merritt
Obscurities
Obscurities gathers just that: a hodgepodge of previously unreleased cuts from Magnetic Fields mastermind Stephin Merritt. The collection may lack a cohesive flow, but it does showcase how versatile the man is, from minimalist love songs to avant-garde pop to quirky synth work. Selections include tracks from The Song from Venus (a science-fiction musical cowritten by Lemony Snicket that unfortunately never came to fruition), along with rare Magnetic Fields seven-inch singles, Merritt's work with the 6ths, and "The Sun and the Sea and the Sky," an outtake from the 69 Love Songs sessions. — S.B.

12. Pepper Rabbit
Red Velvet Snow Ball
There are roughly a dozen different instruments co-starring in Pepper Rabbit's mix of folky psychedelic pop. And yet just two guys, frontman Xander Singh and percussionist Luc Laurent, concoct it all, gracefully spinning polyrhythms around woodwinds, strings, horns and vintage synths. Singh's vocals are Sufjan-level innocuous (when he cusses, it just doesn't seem right), yet they add a weightlessness to the swirling instrumentation. Overall, Red Velvet Snow Ball is finely polished, but it's missing some of the unrefined whimsy that made the duo's debut, Beauregard, such a delight. — S.B.

13. Crystal Antlers
Two-Way Mirror
There are aspects to Two-Way Mirror that reflect Crystal Antlers' love of progressive rock, psychedelia and garage, particularly their use of atmospheric reverb and clever time changes. Ultimately, though, this is a post-hardcore outfit, one whose mix of bruising rhythms and herky-jerky grooves are rooted in The Mars Volta, GoGoGo Airheart and the great Unwound. Overall, the album is significantly less aggro and loud than previous ones — the poppy "Summer Solstice" even boasts tickling ivories and a sweet melody. Another cool song is "Jules' Story," which is more of a rocker. — J.F.

14. Screaming Trees
Last Words: The Final Recordings
Screaming Trees had the unfortunate fate of getting lost in the '90s grunge shuffle, peeking out for a minute with hit "Nearly Lost You," releasing one more album, and then disbanding at the close of the century. More than a decade later, Last Words: The Final Recordings unveils the group's concluding statement, a "lost album" of sorts recorded in 1998 and '99. A testament to their underrated rep, it still sounds fresh thanks to the Trees' singular weaving of '70s rock, subtle psychedelia and frontman Mark Lanegan's brooding cowboy drawls. Josh Homme and Peter Buck guest-star. — S.B.

15. Portugal. The Man
In the Mountain in the Cloud
The opening track is titled "So American." This is a fat slice of irony, because In the Mountain in the Cloud captures a band that worships vintage British rock: Ziggy-era David Bowie, T. Rex, The Move, The Beatles and so on. Portugal. The Man deal in pastiche that is extravagant and wildly over the top; the group has packed just about every song here with layers of synthesizers, harmonies, guitars and other effects. John Gourley's piercing falsetto gnaws on the eardrums at times, but even that belongs to the tradition the group mines: Roy Wood, Freddie Mercury, Justin Hawkins and others. — J.F.

Notable Singles & EPs:
M83, "Midnight City"
St. Vincent, "Surgeon"
Dom, Family of Love EP
Wilco, "I Might"
Grouplove, "Colours"

Cheat Sheet: Sub Pop Records, The Early Years (1988-'99)

2011-08-03T17:00:53Z

The rise of Sub Pop Records is a tale of Cinderella stature: Prince Charming came in the form of a rogue Aberdeen poet, and the rest, as they say, is history. But that was only the beginning of the story. From longhaired grunge to squeaky-clean indie folk to a world-music imprint and now hip-hop, the Seattle label has proven time and again to be one of the most reliable tastemakers in the biz. For over two decades, they've helped define whatever "indie music" is, or soon will be.

Sub Pop's formative years are often synonymous with the advent of grunge, but this isn't a totally accurate perception. Sure, they kick-started the careers of Nirvana and Soundgarden, but they also gave artists like Sebadoh, Sunny Day Real Estate, Codeine and Julie Doiron a platform on which to evolve — and to ultimately influence.

Below, we spotlight 15 key albums from Sub Pop's salad days. (Stay tuned for a Cheat Sheet of Sub Pop's post-2000 catalog.) For more from the label's early years, check out our comprehensive playlist of Sub Pop stars: Sub Pop Records, The Early Years ('88-'99).

Nirvana
Bleach
Nirvana's heaviest album, with its prominent Melvins influence, delivers the band's perfect prescription — a head-nodding riff, Kurt Cobain's freaked-out loner verses followed by mirror-punching just before the chorus — just as powerfully as it did in 1989. Their next record would go global, but Bleach pile drives harder. The crisp remastering of this deluxe version dares you not to turn tracks like "Scoff," "Swap Meet" and "School" all the way up. An entire live set from the early days is included, and the sound on these cuts is fantastic. — Mike McGuirk

]]> The Vaselines
Enter the Vaselines
Sub Pop's first try, 1992's The Way of the Vaselines: A Complete History, was good. But Enter the Vaselines is slightly better. A deluxe reissue of its predecessor, this 36-track juggernaut boasts new cover art, a new title, a thoughtful remastering of the group's existing catalog and a smattering of previously unreleased demos and live tracks. Though you could argue Enter the Vaselines is for hardcore twee fans only, it does offer newbies a fuller understanding of these indie pop icons. — Justin Farrar

Sebadoh
Bakesale
Bakesale goes a long way in demonstrating why Sebadoh are the quintessential lo-fi band of the '90s. Anchored by Lou Barlow's off-kilter, acoustic-based songs, this is the band's most accessible outing to date. Crowning jewels "Rebound" and "Skull" strike a perfect balance between jangle pop and noisy indie rock. — Linda Ryan

Afghan Whigs
Congregation
Cincinnati's Afghan Whigs are crucial to the birth of '90s alternative rock. The first band signed to Sub Pop Records without roots in the Pacific Northwest, they rocked blustery disenchantment as intensely as any of their Seattle brethren. There's an effortless precision in vocalist Greg Dulli's libidinous groans and howls of slacker frustration; his lyrics are full of stifling dissatisfaction and boozy philosophy ("drink it, smoke it, stick it in"). It's all held together by roughed-up rock heightened by lead guitarist Rick McCollum's slick and sleazy riffage. — Stephanie Benson

Sunny Day Real Estate
Diary
This raw and deliriously good debut album from the Seattle band has garnered hosts of similar-sounding acts in its wake. It's a tightly constructed album of loud and soft dynamics, moderation followed by catharsis. Most convincing are Jeremy Enigk's raspy vocals, which sound like a man in need of some sort of therapy. — Rhapsody

Codeine
Frigid Stars
When released in 1990, Codeine's debut felt like the product of underground outsiders on the verge of homelessness. Years later, Frigid Stars, a slowcore classic, has lost none of its damaged intensity. But distance has revealed the disc's rightful place in rock history. Back then, the trio was seen as Sonic Youth street scum interpreting Joy Division's bleak post-punk. Nowadays, however, Codeine sound equally in debt to Pink Floyd's mid-'70s atmospherics. What a cool realization. — J.F.

Green River
Dry As a Bone/Rehab Doll
Is Green River the first grunge band? Many argue no, citing the long-overlooked U-Men or even Australian bruisers The Scientists. Regardless, Green River's contributions to the movement should not be underestimated. As this 1990 compilation demonstrates, the band was extremely adept at retrofitting the tongue-in-cheek depravity of Black Flag and The Nig-Heist to vintage hard rock. Just about every track here is loud, perverse and obnoxious. Drowning in a sea of nasty riffs, Mark Arm howls like a rabid dog who wants to simultaneously hump your leg and chew it off. — J.F.

L7
Smell the Magic
Forget Bricks Are Heavy; Smell the Magic captures L7 at their squalid, furious, slightly self-parodying best. (Is the title a Spinal Tap reference? You be the judge.) Lyrical quality varies — bad girls don't give warnings before they shove — but "Fast and Frightening" makes up for that with lines like "Got so much cl*t/ She don't need no balls." And when those sludgy guitars kick in, it sounds like somebody's taking a chain saw to the recording equipment. Yum. Johnny Thunders may have died penniless and drug-sick, but he left behind a few daughters. Check out the final three bonus tracks. — Rhapsody

Mudhoney
Superfuzz Bigmuff
This release combined the band's debut EP alongside a few B-sides and covers. Worth listening to just for "Touch Me I'm Sick," this album is a mess of dirty guitars and the ragged, hyper vocal style of Mark Arm (also of Green River). This is what happens when you let punks listen to the blues. — Rhapsody

Red Red Meat
Bunny Gets Paid
You'd swear singer and guitarist Tim Rutili, who possesses one weary groan, was some kind of backwoods alt-country troubadour — that is, if it weren't for the dub/industrial grime that's caked all over these 11 jams like a soggy mulch. But still, this is some truly earthy rock 'n' roll — as ragged as anything off the Stones' Exile on Main Street. And as with Exile, there's something inscrutably murky about Red Red Meat's music; just about the only well-defined sound is the killer slide-work. — J.F.

Julie Doiron
Loneliest in the Morning
Loneliest in the morning is right. From the Joni-like cover to the piano 'n' strum confessionals, this is album is chock full of sad-eyed singer-songwriter fare for those who listen to music while curled into a fetal ball. Don't laugh! We all feel the pain every now and then, and you can do a lot worse than Julie Doiron. Few musicians can make so much from so little. After nearly 20 years on the indie scene (she got her start in Eric's Trip, y'know), Doiron is a bona fide pro at her craft. — J.F.

Elevator to Hell
Eerieconsiliation
Canada's Eric's Trip were a pretty darn cool indie band, but singer Rick White's solo project Elevator (aka Elevator to Hell/Elevator Through) were even better. That's because he submerged E.T.'s love for Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. in the downer psychedelia of Black Sabbath, early Pink Floyd and 13th Floor Elevators. As a result, 1997's Eerieconsiliation is grimy, lo-fi garage pop with hooks that melt into fuzz and fuzz that hardens back into hooks. It's murky, moody and, most of all, eerie. — J.F.

The Spinanes
Arches and Aisles
Nineteen ninety-eight's Arches & Aisles was recorded after drummer Scott Plouf departed for duties in Built to Spill and is mostly a one-piece act (with friends in the studio) that singer/guitarist Rebecca Gates recorded after she relocated to Chicago. The result is an appealing yet melancholy effort rife with lingering memories and additional studio effects (including sweet Rebecca-on-Rebecca harmonies). It was the final studio release for Sub Pop before Gates officially retired the name and went on to a solo career. — Michele Flannery

Six Finger Satellite
The Pigeon is the Most Popular Bird
With droves of N.Y.C. hipsters going out to see Erase Errata and Black Dice, it seems that noise rock has finally come into its own. S.F.S. were among the first art school bands to combine jarring rhythms with a No Wave aesthetic and pure, unadulterated freak-rock abrasion. This is their first mega-awesome album. — M.M.

Mark Lanegan
Whiskey for the Holy Ghost
In 1994, Mark Lanegan was best known as the Screaming Trees' frontman. This, however, is a whole other beast of foreboding fare. So deft at navigating lonesome despair, this guy's brain must resemble a desolate forest of misery. While the Trees' psych-grunge rumble may have masked some of Lanegan's songwriting finesse, his solo work puts it in clear focus. Whiskey for the Holy Ghost highlights his bluesy, brooding baritone with acoustic picking and flecks of organ, strings and sax. Don't miss "The River Rise" and "Sunrise." — S.B.

Feist, The Reminder

2011-08-02T11:00:12Z

Sounding like a cross between Mazzy Star and Juliana Hatfield, the third gorgeous release from Canada's Leslie Feist is a must for lovers of perfectly balanced, gently poppy torch songs. Newcomers should start with "The Limit to Your Love," a beautifully performed tune showcasing her diaphanous vocals and deft songwriting. Savvy music supervisors will place this alongside scenes of yearning in romantic dramas for years to come. —Nate Baker

Hear It Now!

July 2011 Roundup - Independent Rap

2011-07-27T17:07:52Z

Independent hip-hop is no longer split between "backpack" and "street." In 2011, the underground defies categorization, and artists like Jay Rock and Kendrick Lamar (both from the Black Hippy crew) or Mellowhype (from Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All) balance an unapologetic street ethos with a taste for complex sounds and themes. Even Sole, who helped create the modern indie-rap landscape with early '00s albums like Bottle of Humans, is collaborating with idiosyncratic swag thugs like Lil B and Isaiah Toothtaker.

It's in this spirit that we play catch up with some of this season's more notable independent releases. While reading, be sure to check out my accompanying playlist: July 2011 Rap Albums Sampler

]]> Trae the Truth
Street King
Texas hood star Trae the Truth's Street King cruises at a low hum. There's not much happening thematically, just endless proclamations of how he "runs the streets." Yet he might be the only rapper who can whisper, "Please don't r-u-n-u-p on me/ I might c-l-i-c-k quickly" on "I'm Gone Bus" and make it sound like a sensuous ballad. The beats flow like they were screwed and chopped as Trae contextualizes threats of violence into a kind of stress reliever, commanding respect from Wiz Khalifa ("Getting Paid"), Rick Ross ("I Am The Streets"), Lil Wayne, Lupe Fiasco and many others.

Mellowhype
Blackendwhite
This retail version of Hodgy Beats and producer Left Brain's 2010 mixtape offers a less complicated version of Odd Future's gory swagcore than controversial group leader Tyler, the Creator. Hodgy Beats rhymes hardcore about "Gunsounds" and copping b*tches -- on "64" he brags, "My flow's overheated, it needs cooling" -- while Left Brain has a facility for grimy and minimalist keyboard beats. The duo's creativity flags before album's end - this is a mixtape, after all - but not before launching heaters like "Primo" and "Deaddeputy."

Jay Rock
Follow Me Home
Thank Strange Music head Tech N9ne for helping Jay Rock land heavyweight guests like Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, will.i.am and Chris Brown. Yet Follow Me Home depends on this gruff-voiced L.A. street rapper who isn't afraid to both celebrate gang life ("I'm Thuggin'") and condemn it ("Just Like Me"). Jay speaks with a cadence reminiscent of The Game, and his best tracks feature his unpredictable Black Hippy crew ("Hood Gone Love It," "Say Wussup"). Follow Me Home has an impressive flow, although the hour-plus running time dilutes its impact.

Kendrick Lamar
Section.80
Buoyed by acclaim for his 2010 debut Overly Dedicated, Kendrick Lamar ups the stakes with this portrait of Los Angeles life, from stories of the crack epidemic ("Ronald Reagan Era") to the heartbreaking "Keisha's Song (Her Pain)," inspired by 2Pac's "Brenda's Got a Baby." While unafraid to show his influences - the superior "HiiiPower" references Kanye West's "So Appalled" - Lamar has a rambling tone and strong lyricism that sounds like none other. He may sometimes lapse into awkward hooks and lame verses, but give him credit for an ambitious and ultimately rewarding album.

Lil B
Im Gay (Im Happy)
Lil B is a divisive and contradictory talent, and Im Gay (Im Happy) will provoke fans and haters alike, from the gimmick title to his meandering rhymes. He doesn't have a great flow, yet he still achieves rambling epiphanies. Brilliantly, he builds "Unchain Me" over suicidal thoughts and a loop of Lou Gramm's "Lost in the Shadows (Lost Boys Theme)." On "I Seen That Light," he claims, "Last time I made love is when I wrote this song." By setting aside his silly "Wonton Soup"/cooking dance antics in favor of soulful tunes, the Berkeley rapper has made his most accessible work to date.

Del The Funky Homosapien
Golden Era
Golden Era wraps up a trilogy of recordings that hearken to Del's No Need for Alarm phase. But this self-produced affair sounds more crazed than that battle-rap classic, as Del freestyles monomaniacal thoughts over numbingly hypnotic beats, including "Double Barrel" and "One Out of a Million." It's banging, sure, but also uncomfortably serious and intense. So it comes as welcome relief when he ends "Pearly Gates" with a weird yet funny story about the Hanna-Barbera cartoon Laff-A-Lympics.

Madlib feat. Frank Nitt
Greetings from Nittyville
Welcome to Nittyville may be the weakest entry in Madlib's Medicine Show series, but it's not his fault. Frank Nitt (of former J Dilla protégés Frank-N-Dank) is a bland vocalist whose predictable celebration of blunts and booties plagues decent beats like "Sunday Sinema" and "So Beautiful (Dues Paid)." It's almost a relief when MED saves "What Can U Tell Me" from Nitty's corny party rhymes. Meanwhile Madlib's mélange of comedy skits and blaxploitation soundtrack snippets serve as a superior alternate theme.

Oddisee
Odd Seasons
Ten years ago, Oddisee's breezy loops and instrumentals would have been revolutionary; today, they sound like throwbacks. This collection of four Internet-only seasonal EPs still dazzles, because the D.C. rapper/producer balances familiar yet compelling musical ideas with brevity. Tracks like "Everyday People" and "Tell the Truth" spin magic in two minutes or less, while vocal cuts like "Supplier" break up any lingering monotony. Not all of Odd Seasons' 32 tracks are perfect, but it makes a case for Oddisee's relevance.

Sole and the Skyrider Band
Hello Cruel World
Rapper/producer Tim "Sole" Holland brings his progressive left views to a wider audience by recruiting underground voices such as swag representative Lil B and gangsta rap iconoclast Isaiah Toothtaker. The indie-rap pioneer casts himself as an urban survivalist preaching "Possimism": "I'm just a white Panther rolling on fascism in all forms," he raps. Hello Cruel World's jarring, keyboard-based production fail him at times, but works wonders on the title track and "We Will Not Be Moved," the latter soaring on a memorable chorus from folk-hopper Ceschi.

Black Rob
Game Tested, Streets Approved
Who is Black Rob? A talented street artist done wrong by Diddy and Bad Boy Records, or a minor act with a novelty hit in 1999's "Whoa"? He can't answer that question in Game Tested, Streets Approved, because his era has obviously passed. Still, the Duck Down crew help him achieve a grimy (and somewhat dated) thug aura for "Boiling Water" and "Showin' Up." "I've been doing my thing since I came home from the swing," he raps on "Get Involved," referring to his 2010 release from jail. After four years in prison for robbery, Game Tested, Streets Approved is good enough.

Lollapalooza 2011

2011-07-22T17:57:31Z

As a heatwave descends upon the country, Team Rhapsody is ironing its Jantzen bathing suit in anticipation of the twentieth installment of Lollapalooza, August 5-7 in Chicago's Grant Park. If you can't make it, fear not: We shall be in attendance, interviewing artists, snapping photos, and reporting on the various shenanigans (looking at you, Ween). To help get everyone jazzed, we've compiled a taste of the 2011 lineup here, including headliners Eminem, Foo Fighters, Coldplay and Muse, along with acts spinning booty-shaking sets at Perry's, like Girl Talk and Kid Cudi.

Click here to listen to the entire playlist: Lollapalooza 2011

Source Material: tUnE-yArDs, W H O K I L L

2011-07-20T17:04:11Z

The much-lauded second album by tUnE-yArDs (aka Oakland-based indie-rocker Merrill Garbus) has been, well, much-lauded for many reasons, not least of which is the finely tuned and widely varied sonic palette into which she dips. The creatively styled W H O K I L L has been heralded for digging into hip-hop, funk, R&B, free jazz, soul and much more — as our own Stephanie Benson put it, treating each style like "a treasure she eagerly excavated from a junkyard." But as the brilliant Sarah Bardeen, our former world music editor, pointed out, what often gets left out of the discussion of Garbus' crate-digging, style-raiding, experimentally hodgepodge approach is the global scope of that pastiche, which dabbles in European, Asian and a whole lot of African sounds. Garbus herself appears to be an avid world music fan, name-checking influences that range from Kenyan to Bulgarian. So we went ahead and took a stab at excavating the more global sources mined on W H O K I L L. Dig in! (and listen to the music discussed here on our Source Material playlist!)

]]> Various Artists
Mbuti Pygmies of the Ituri Rainforest
Garbus' vocals are positively steeped in the vocal traditions of several Pygmy groups from Central Africa. "Pygmy," though, is an overly general and fairly pejorative shorthand for several tribal groups, such as the Mbuti, Aka and Efe, many of which have developed musical traditions that revolve around interlocking, contrapuntal harmonies and hooted, hopscotching, improvised melodies. Often work songs, these vocal concoctions allow a group to sing communally, playing off the echoes of the rainforest. Garbus creates similarly dissonant vocal lines on W H O K I L L, weaving her own conversational hoot in and out of instrumental lines, the two threads chasing each other around a melody. Just compare "Bizness" to "Honey-Gathering Song" from this Smithsonian Folkways comp. Or, for more pop-oriented fare, take a listen to the polyphonic, percussive, yodel-esque vocals of Zap Mama, themselves greatly inspired by Congolese music.
See Also: Zap Mama, Adventures in Afropea. Deep Forest.

Le Mystere de Voix Bulgares
Le Mystere de Voix Bulgares
The record's other prominent global vocal touchstone is, to our ears, Balkan (and especially Bulgarian) female choral traditions. Like the Mbuti, the Bulgarian State Television Female Choir featured here structure their music around a tightly interlocking harmonic structure that sounds drone-like, even discordant to Western ears. In the Bulgarian choral style, vocals are sharp and pinpointed, each part wrapping snugly around the others to create dissonant, polyphonic and often mournful-sounding textures. Garbus has acknowledged the influence: listen to the fierce, undulating snarl soaring above layers of electric harmonica, cat-and-mouse horns and tricked-out vocal pops on "My Country," which is sort of like a rock 'n' roll version of the keen-and-response of Le Mystere's "Kalimankou Denkou."
See Also: Sacred Harp Singers, Original Sacred Harp

Mahmoud Ahmed
Ethiopiques Vol. 7
The soaring-yet-flat vocals. The pentatonic harmonic structures that bridge Amharic folk, Afropop, American jazz and, later, American funk. And especially, those sidewinding saxophones. These are just a few of the many reasons music fans have found the Ethiopiques archive of vintage Ethiopian and Eritrean pop so intoxicating. The series, which helped turn singer and pop star Mahmoud Ahmed into a beloved musical figure, has also inspired much contemporary global pop, especially revivalist psychedelic rock and now, the slinking horns of W H O K I L L.

Various Artists
Sleepwalking through the Mekong
Speaking of global psychedelic rockers, Dengue Fever, whose sound is at least partially influenced by Ethiopiques-style rock, put their money where their mouths are with this 2009 documentary soundtrack and archive of the vintage '60s Cambodian pop that's their sonic foundation — music that also filters subtly into tUnE-yArDs' sound. Where Dengue Fever are more revivalist, however, Garbus is a polyglot pastiche artist.
See Also: Turkish pscyh rockers Baba Zula.

Ali Farka Toure and Toumani Diabate
Ali and Toumani and Rokia Traore, Tchamantche
The two master Malian musicians' collaboration was one of 2010's most achingly gorgeous albums (posthumously, after Toure's death in 2006). Ali and Toumani is a testament to the soft rolls and subtle graces of Malian music, and especially to the rippling fountains of sweet sound that traditional West African harp the kora can emit in concert with Toure's guitar. Traore, one of Mali's most brilliant young stars, crafts folk-hued Afropop that takes the delicate grace of traditional Malian instruments (including the kora, the balafon and the ngoni) as inspiration, and the storytelling of griot song as its foundation. Her 2008 album is an impressive showcase of her hushed, epically elegant musicality. Garbus is undoubtedly a storyteller, but on tracks like the tiptoeing "Wooly Wolly Gong," the ebb and flow of which evokes Malian instrumentation, she proves she's also capable of a similar (if decidedly creepier) quietude.
See Also: Etoile de Dakar, for a more rollicking Senegalese pop/African jazz deployment of traditional African instrumentation.

Babatunde Olatunji
Drums of Passion
Nigerian doctor-turned-drummer Olatunji made a career out of introducing Western audiences to the agitated, interlocking rhythms of traditional Yoruba drumming. You won't hear tUnE-yArDs taking up the kind of spinning, deceivingly chaotic complexities showcased on Drums of Passion, but her penchant for emphasizing the off beat and playing with syncopation and slightly shifting meters is clear.

Lee "Scratch" Perry
Arkology and Richie Spice, Book of Job
Garbus has frequently listed reggae as a major influence. It's not always easy to hear (well, other than the occasional lyrical reference, like her "get up stand up get up" invective on "Bizness"), but tracks like "Powa," with its thick, chunky beats and slow, easy pace, bear some resemblance to Perry's classic dub and Spice's rootsy dancehall.

Orchestra Super Mazembe
Giants of East Africa and Various Artists, Poetry and Languid Charm: Swahili Music from Tanzania and Kenya
Garbus has also spoken of Kenyan music's influence on her: she traveled there after studying Swahili in college. It's not always immediately audible (perhaps partially because Kenyan music is not as familiar to our Western ears as, say, West African pop or even Ethiopian/Eritrean music). But in the piercing, focused keening of classic taarab singer Siti Binti Saad, or the ringing guitars and rolling, soukous-like sway of Swahili pop outfit Orchestra Super Mazembe, one can hear where Garbus may have found inspiration for tracks like "Riotriot."
See Also: Papa Wemba, Molokai

Jake Shimbukuro
Gently Weeps
Garbus plays the ukulele, but doesn't really wield it with the quiet whimsy or Hawaiian traditionalism we've come to expect of the instrument. Which is why we'd position her on a musical family tree with fellow experimenter Jake Shimbukuro. He's always been in the business of exposing the rock 'n' roll soul of his instrument, but managed to balance his punk tendencies with the instrument's traditional subtlety on his award-winning 2006 acoustic album.
See Also: Shimbukuro's latest, this year's Peace Love Ukulele, featuring an awesome "Bohemian Rhapsody" cover.

Balkan Beat Box
Blue Eyed Black Boy
B.B.B.'s relationship to tUnEyArDs isn't so much influence as perhaps spiritual kinship. Like Garbus, this multicultural outfit mines an array of globe-trotting sources, especially on their latest album, which adds strains of Peruvian chicha (psychedelic cumbia) to a mix that already included everything from Moroccan gnawa to Gypsy brass and Jewish klezmer. If Garbus is primarily an indie experimenter with an agnostically global palate, however, Balkan Beat Box represent the flip side of that coin: a band that starts from quote-unquote world music, but leans in an indie-rock-friendly direction.
See Also: M.I.A., Arular, which might actually be W H O K I L L's closest musical soulmate.

Listen to the music here on our Source Material playlist

Indie Roundup, July 2011

2011-07-12T17:49:16Z

Discover fresh sounds from a diverse lineup of indie artists. In our latest roundup of new releases, we cover chillwave champions, dreamy folkies, quirky sirens and even a mysterious masked man. Read all about them and play away.

Washed Out
Within and Without
Washed Out's full-length debut opens with a wash of synths that ebb and flow like an ocean dependent on electricity. This leisurely rhythm is the basis for main man Ernest Greene's chillwave aesthetic, which draws from '80s ambient music with its layers of soft beats and drones that echo nature at peace. Greene's stoic murmurs merely act as a parallel force, floating along like a fish swimming with the current. "Amor Fati" is the liveliest track of the bunch, and possibly the best, but the whole mix, produced by Ben Allen (Animal Collective, Deerhunter), is as smooth and steady as the sea. —Stephanie Benson

]]> SBTRKT
SBTRKT
After a few years of EPs and remixes for the likes of M.I.A. and Basement Jaxx, London's SBTRKT finally drops his debut LP, and it's enough to blow a sideways hole in bass music. Drawing from dubstep, garage and U.K. funky, his beats snap with club-tested precision, but it's the fullness, the songfulness of his productions that really carries you away. Rotating singers Jessie Ware, Little Dragon's Yukimi Nagano and the velvety Sampha inhabit the music with ease, practically luxuriating in SBTRKT's glistening architectures; they also temper the harder edges with a weary grace. —Philip Sherburne

Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Unknown Mortal Orchestra
No orchestra here: just one dude, New Zealand-bred Ruban Nielson, rocking retro in the Ariel Pink vein. After posting "FFunny FFriends" online, he quickly inked a deal with Fat Possum and released this 2011 debut. A swirling mix of psychedelic pop, Unknown Mortal Orchestra flows as effortlessly as blobs in a lava lamp. Nielson's voice comes off almost like a stoned Paul McCartney; his lo-fi guitar strikes carry hints of other Brit invaders like The Kinks and The Zombies, while Syd Barrett's distorted pop sense lingers. He even gets a little funky on "How Can You Luv Me." —S.B.

Bon Iver
Bon Iver
Proud Wisconsinite Justin Vernon is the rare star to truly stick to his roots; by identifying every song as a place, it's as though he's reminding himself to stay grounded. Bon Iver is all ambiance — not as stark as 2008's For Emma, Forever Ago, but just as riveting. And though Vernon employs similar instrumentation, it's with greater aplomb: the pitter-patter of a snare; the weaving of horns, synths and guitar; and that inimitable falsetto manipulated into its own class of emotion. The lyrics melt together, but they reveal a still very modest man: "And at once I knew I was not magnificent." —S.B.

Vetiver
The Errant Charm
Though Vetiver's dream-folk aesthetic hasn't undergone any radical transformations through the years, The Errant Charm feels noticeably different from prior albums. It's still a singer-songwriter affair, with main man Andy Cabic cooing and whispering his inner thoughts, secrets and desires. But on tracks such as "Can't You Tell" and "Fog Emotion," Vetiver's usual acoustic flavors have been replaced with smooth ambient tapestries woven from synthesizers and drum machines. Then there's stuff like "Ride Ride Ride" and "Wonder Why," both of which recall The Sneetches' jangly brand of power pop. —Justin Farrar

Small Black
Rhapsody Original
They may specialize in hazy, New Wave-drenched dream pop, but Brooklyn band Small Black still provide a healthy dose of adrenaline in a live setting. This exclusive 2011 set was recorded live at the annual Rhapsody Rocks Austin party, and features tracks from 2009's Small Black EP and the band's debut LP, 2010's New Chain. It's a woozy mix of keyboard loops, echoing vocals and fizzy beats — the perfect soundtrack for barbecues and suntans. —S.B.

The Middle East
I Want That You Are Always Happy
Aussie collective The Middle East traverse a gothic underworld of folk-tinged post-rock. An acoustic guitar is dolefully plucked, a piano wearily played, as a male voice ekes out cryptic lyrics like they're his last. And that's only the beginning. A few tracks, like "Jesus Came to My Birthday Party," flirt with buoyancy, but the mood mostly lurks in the doldrums with the aid of lush guitar, strings, piano and the occasional lonely sax ("Mount Morgan"). It all gets pretty heavy, especially when you get to the 10-minute "Deep Water," but overall, it's an ambitious and promising debut. —S.B.

Handsome Furs
Sound Kapital
Husband-and-wife Dan Boeckner and Alexei Perry have thrown out the six-string in favor of synths for their third album. It's a somewhat natural progression from Plague Park's sparse, keyboard-tinged experiments to Face Control's steady slide into electro-pop territory — but it's also slightly jarring. Boeckner's always been an axe man, most notably fronting Wolf Parade, and to hear his Springsteen-echoing yelps encircled by big bass-y beats and laser-shooting synths may throw off some of his most devoted, especially those not versed in '80s synth-pop, industrial and Euro club music. —S.B.

Eleanor Friedberger
Last Summer
More than a decade after forming The Fiery Furnaces with her bro, Eleanor Friedberger offers her solo debut, an excuse for the quirky siren to get both introspective and nostalgic. On Last Summer, she captures intimate slices of life rather than fleshing out full-bodied narratives, creating a slew of images destined to be manifested in indie-film montages, like when we watch her "watch Footloose with the biggest bottle of vodka in the world." Meanwhile, her delicate coos and sing-talk flurries are enhanced with ghostly guitars, groovy sax and funky basslines. —S.B.

Memory Tapes
Player Piano
Chillwave purveyor Dayve Hawk's sophomore disc is just as cozy as his first, with hypnotic swirls of synths rolling around in bleeps and beats melted by the summer sun. Yet Player Piano is a bit denser than its predecessor, Seek Magic, as it travels through breezy psychedelic pop ("Wait in the Dark," "Trance Sisters"), rock-out guitar solos ("Today Is Our Life"), and eerie drones and glistening synths that echo M83 with a Joy Division scowl ("Humming," "Fell Thru Ice II"). Hawk, meanwhile, sounds like he's narrating it all from an endless dream. —S.B.

Depeche Mode
Remixes 2: 81-11 (3-Disc Version)
Depeche Mode spin 30 years of remixes into an infinite universe of forking paths in this collection of rare, out-of-print and unreleased versions. Club jocks like Bushwacka! and Eric Prydz deliver tough progressive reworks, while bands like M83 and Peter Bjorn and John ply more indie-friendly wares; Claro Intelecto, Monolake and Efdemin all pursue more minimalist approaches. And vintage mixes like "Fly on the Windscreen (Death Mix)" revive the glory days of '80s import EPs, with their treasure trove of B-sides. —P.S.

White Hills
H-p1
White Hills' aesthetic is concise and to the point: space-rock head trauma brought on by a dive into a rabbit hole of psycho-fuzz, brittle grooves and narcotic vox. As H-p1 can attest, these third-eye warriors spent a lot of time spinning their Hawkwind and Loop albums. This is a good thing, of course. But what distinguishes White Hills from other indie bands exploring similar terrain (like The Black Angels) is their devotion to sonic violence and multidimensional ruptures in the soundscape. To appreciate these points, crank "Movement," which melts into a clanging industrial racket. —J.F.

Digitalism
I Love You, Dude
Some listeners may be asking themselves, "Dude, where's my carnage?" Where Digitalism's 2007 debut, Idealism, could hammer as hard as the best of their electro brethren, here they ease up on the bombast, indulging themselves in cleaner sounds and sweet, relatively straightforward pop pleasures like "2 Hearts," on which they could pass for Coldplay's only slightly tougher younger brothers. Still, stompers like "Blitz" and "Reeperbahn" will rock festival tents to the ground, while the buzzing "Antibiotics" balances out the dreamy "Just Gazin'," which might almost pass for an Air outtake. —P.S.

Noteworthy New Singles:

Bjork: "Crystalline"
Nick Cave & Neko Case: "She's Not There"
CSS feat. Bobby Gillespie: "Hits Me Like a Rock"
Avi Buffalo: "How Come?" + "Good I'm Wishing"

Neko Case, Middle Cyclone

2011-07-10T11:00:08Z

Her rich alto has always delivered a visceral gut shot, but with Middle Cyclone Neko Case continues to emerge as a songwriter who truly knows how to wield the commanding instrument. When she sings "My love has never lived indoors/ I had to drag it home by force," on "Vengeance Is Sleeping," it's a nod to this record's salty themes (Mother Nature, a killer whale, and prison girls cameo). As she stomps through the elaborately produced country-inflected rock, the smattering of threats ("I will punch you in your face") disenfranchised come-ons and desperate rage is intoxicating. —Nate Cavalieri

Hear It Now!

Rhapsody Radar, Week 4: Cauldron, Sunny Sweeney, Shabazz Palaces, tUnE-yArDs, Bradley Gaskin, and Rival Sons

2011-07-07T17:17:40Z

Welcome to the final installment of Rhapsody Radar, our month-long tribute to 24 up-and-coming artists who thrill us. Below you'll find our last six honorees: a couple melancholy but inspiring country upstarts, some muscular boogie-rock enthusiasts, a little experimental hip-hop, and a killer Canadian metal band with song titles like "Chained Up in Chains." Let's start with those guys, actually — read (and hear) below.

Cauldron: The Metalheads Bringing Catchiness Back

"We are youuuuung … and hungry!" Jason Decay proclaimed in the first song on Cauldron's 2009 debut album, and this metal trio has spent the two years since proving their case. They're a throwback to the pre-thrash early '80s — a time when metal bands were allowed to be super-fast, catchy, heavy and hilarious, all at once. Sometimes they even sound like Def Leppard crossed with Metallica, if both had quit after their own debut LPs: speed metal before the rock 'n' roll got purged from its system. Their album covers, too, are absurdly over-the-top in ways rarely seen since 1983 — girls on fire and in chains, both of which happen to be favorite song-title themes. Their Flying V-brandishing guitarist calls himself Ian Chains.

]]> Burning Fortune picks up new drummer Chris Steve from the band Agressor, and it's made a big splash in the metal press. The lyrics, totally audible and often prettily sung, suggest the travails (often girlfriend-related) of an average suburban adolescent hesher who imagines his mundane life as a comic book — and not even a gory one. Raging in "Rapid City," these boys "Miss You to Death" and offer even more hooks than hair — plus a fake Van Halen solo called "Unchained Assault" and a dirty song about a tragic Canadian Playboy bunny. They've got tunes about suicidal teens and witch burnings too, but fear not: as metal goes, this is truly life-affirming stuff. —Chuck Eddy

Key Tracks: "Chained Up in Chains," "Miss You to Death," "Rapid City/Unchained Assault"

Sunny Sweeney: The Improbably Cheerful Twang-Country Weeper

Dolly Parton's "Jolene" is one of country music's most sacred texts, a heart-rending tale of an aggrieved woman begging a beautiful seductress not to steal her man. Nearly four decades later, Texas honky-tonk siren Sunny Sweeney brings us the other side of the story with "Amy," sung just as passionately from the seductress' perspective: "Amy, he never meant to be untrue/ But he needed love he said he never got from you" leads into "And I'll let him go for you if you'll just treat him like you should/ But if you don't love him, Amy, let him leave." It's hard to make that sentiment convincing (or sympathetic), but Sweeney sings it with quiet, determined, unshowy grace. Moreover, that's actually only the second-best track on her recent self-titled EP sung from the perspective of The Other Woman: "From a Table Away" was one of 2010's great singles, strident and fierce and almost unbearably sad.

Sweeney's other recent songs are similarly downcast — see the self-explanatory "Drink Myself Single" and "Staying's Worse Than Leaving." But as with her 2006 full-length, Heartbreaker's Hall of Fame, there's an odd but palpable underlying lightness perhaps best experienced now by following her on Twitter. (She's at @gettinsweenered, Tweets from airports a lot, and has a tendency to describe large things as "BIG ASS.") Now ensconced with Taylor Swift's Big Machine, hopefully she sweet-talks them into a full-length soon, and hopefully country radio treats her like it should. —Rob Harvilla

Key Tracks: "From a Table Away," "Amy," "Staying's Worse Than Leaving"

Shabazz Palaces: The New Avant-Hip-Hop Vanguard

Shabazz Palaces accurately call their debut album, Black Up, the "new sonic move." It requires complete immersion. Listen too casually, and you may get turned off by its tinny melodica and dub synth washes, concluding, "What's the fuss all about?" But take a deep dive, and the album's conception of an Afrocentric world set apart from the pop hustle-and-bustle will intrigue and challenge you. The music it makes sounds spontaneous and effortless. As Palaceer Lazaro says on "Are You … Can You … Were You? (Felt)," "It's a feeling."

It's been years since an American hip-hop group achieved critical mass with self-consciously experimental rap music — you have to go back to the early 2000s, and collectives like Definitive Jux, Anticon, and Antipop Consortium. This may be why Shabazz Palaces seem exceptional. The irony is that Palaceer Lazaro is a mask for Ishmael Butler, the man known as Butterfly when he led Digable Planets in the early 1990s. That group, which won a Grammy for its cheeky hit "Cool Like Dat," was hardly seen as avant-garde, but a closer listen to their lyrics showed that they that cleverly used specific images to approximate the sensory overload of New York life. Shabazz Palaces, based in Seattle, achieve a similar result with their collages of dread bass, jazz and alternative soul. But this time around, Butler's not playing word games. "Nothing's gonna stop it if it's bound to turn a profit," he raps on "Youlogy," acknowledging that his complex vision of a black American ethos is for sale. "For this amount I'll do it/ For this I'll let you watch it." —Mosi Reeves

Key Tracks: "Are You ... Can You ... Were You (Felt)," "Endeavors For Never," "Youlogy"

tUnE-yArDs: The Primal, Joyous Indie-Rock Dervish

Merrill Garbus would probably be the best elementary-school teacher of all time. She's loud, brash, excitable, relentlessly cheerful and outrageously inspiring, with a penchant for vivid colors, face paint, spastic dance routines, funny faces and rhythmic cacophony; watching her prod the childlike ids of ordinarily motionless (and emotionless) hipster-ish crowds with nothing more than a drum, a loop pedal, a demure bassist, a ukulele, and a triumphant chant of "DO YOU WANT TO LIVE?" is a delirious thrill. See her live immediately.

Now, though, with this year's W H O K I L L, she's got a record worthy of her live show's elation and innovation. It's a crazed, braying, sprawling, ramshackle thing, her subject matter veering from economic inequality to body issues to white guilt to sex (see "Powa") to police brutality, the sound both white-funk slick and lo-fi choppy, bolstered by lumpy basslines, howling saxes, searing sirens and pots-and-pans percussion, all built around her raging fire hydrant of a voice, charging up instantly from a whisper to a scream, a sultry coo to a murderous howl. It's as complete, appealing and infectious a sound world as "indie rock" has to offer in 2011: listen to the way "Gangsta" takes what sounds like a home-recorded fire-engine siren and builds it up into a raging urban-jungle manifesto of air-raid intensity. If you get the urge to paint your face up like a lion and howl at the moon yourself, all the better. —R.H.

Key Tracks: "Gangsta," "Bizness," "Hatari"

Bradley Gaskin: The Crooning "Real Country" Throwback

If your first song for public consumption served as a laser-accurate predictor for your entire future country-music career, then Bradley Gaskin, he of Duck Springs, Ala., might be our towering overlord for the next several decades. "Mr. Bartender" is a monster of an introduction: an epic tear-in-my-beer waltz lament with weeping pedal steel, clever wordplay ("Take me down with one shot") and Gaskin's bracing, melancholy-yet-exuberant baritone. Everyone in country claims to be Real Country — carrying the mantle of Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, George Jones, etc. — but you can tell immediately that this guy isn't scrambling to look those dudes up on Wikipedia. The tune is about as close to the way Hank done it as a guy in 2011 can get.

Gaskin's actual origin story is a great deal more, shall we say, modern, of course: he was hanging drywall for a living and writing songs on his lunch breaks when his wife (they met at church) goaded him into putting them on MySpace (which he hadn't heard of), where they were then discovered by John Rich (whom, presumably, he had heard of). His imminent debut album is more likely to connect with that-ain't-country purists than the pop-Nashville masses, but that is most likely the way this dude likes it. Plus he's already got some great stories, like the one about the first time his daughter heard him on the radio. Per an interview with theboot.com: "Maddie walked over to the stereo, put her arm around it and hugged the stereo and said, 'Dada, I love you,' and sang the opening line of 'Mr. Bartender' at two years old. She then crawled up on my lap and gave me a kiss on my right cheek." Awww. —R.H.

Key Tracks: "Mr. Bartender"

Rival Sons: The Soulful Hard-Rock Pounders

Classic-sounding hard rock is thriving in this new, young century. What can be called the mainstream in 2011 is home to the Josh Homme-Dave Grohl axis, Jack White's one-man march, and nowadays, even The Black Keys. Meanwhile, culture's more out-of-the-way realms have produced Graveyard, The Sword (who are only getting bigger), Buffalo Killers and similar ilk. While considerably more "out there," these bruisers still explore sounds and ideas of a similar vintage: a stew of hard boogie, psychedelia, soul and British beat that first began to boil in the late 1960s.

Rival Sons, a quartet from Los Angeles boasting absurdly sharpened skills, fall somewhere between these two roughly sketched-out poles. Pressure & Time, their latest full-length and second overall, is punchy, stuffed with hooks and condensed in the ways pop music tends to be in the modern age. But it's also punishingly manic and physical. The band doesn't sit back and take the stoner's neo-Sabbath riff-ride; rather, they pound themselves into submission while passionately reaching for that high-energy R&B/revival vibe.

Here's the thing: Rival Sons wear their influences on their sleeves in a truly brazen manner: certain songs are certain to remind you, straight-up, of Zep or The Jeff Beck Group or Cactus or Humble Pie. But the group gets away with it because they know how to swing, roll and groove. It's as simple as that, really. —Justin Farrar

Key Tracks: "Tell Me Something," "Get What's Coming," "Soul"

Source Material: Bon Iver, Bon Iver

2011-07-05T17:21:11Z

During its first week out, Justin Vernon's sophomore album under the name Bon Iver couldn't quite knock Adele's 21 off the top of the Rhapsody charts, but it did overpower albums by pop queens Katy Perry, Rihanna and even Lady Gaga. That says a hell of a lot for a humble Cheesehead who just a few years ago was holed up in a cabin in the dead of Wisconsin winter, lovesick and depressed as he crafted Bon Iver's celebrated 2008 debut, For Emma, Forever Ago. It also says a lot for an album that unabashedly takes cues from schmaltzy '80s soft rock and earnest singer-songwriter fare. There's certainly no glitz or glam about Bon Iver, but it's nonetheless a minor pop sensation capable of riling up people who normally wouldn't care about just another indie dude. (Though contrarians have been quick to accuse Vernon of being a bearded hipster hack, a shameless Bruce Hornsby/Peter Cetera/Phil Collins revivalist, or — gasp! — just plain boring.)

]]> Kanye West's 2010 hit My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy certainly helped elevate both his profile and his art; he's been quick to cite that partnership as a great influence on what became Bon Iver. That doesn't mean West fanatics will necessarily fall for this decidedly more hushed aesthetic, but it does mean that Vernon's been inspired to push his music into a much more collaborative and expansive territory — just look at the record's long list of contributors, who provided their expertise in everything from vibraphones to handclaps.

That newfound group dynamic is also partly thanks to Gayngs, the Midwest supergroup started by Ryan Olson and featuring Vernon as an occasional collaborator. The group's 2010 debut, Relayted, is a throwback to '80s soft rock that blurs the line between cheese and sincerity, proving incredibly successful in an indie landscape completely obsessed with every other form of '80s nostalgia. With that foundation and Vernon's open adoration for Bonnie Raitt (see his recent cover of her "I Can't Make You Love Me"), it's no surprise how a gently nostalgic Bon Iver track like "Beth/Rest" came to be.

Gayngs
Relayted

Bonnie Raitt
Luck of the Draw

John Martyn
Solid Air

As with For Emma, Forever Ago, there are still heavy hints of troubadours like Will Oldham, Jose Gonzalez and Brit-folk mastermind John Martyn in lush Bon Iver ballads like "Holocene" and "Michicant." And you could even argue that whiffs of Sufjan Stevens (whatever happened to the 50 States Project?!) are sprinkled throughout, as Vernon identifies each song with a specific place, real or imagined.

But what seems most different about this record versus his first is its weightier feel. Where For Emma's haunting mood came from its space and sparseness, Bon Iver is enhanced by a sort of ghostly post-rock undertone. Songs like "Perth," "Minnesota, WI" and "Calgary" work off eerie drones and instrumental nuances reminiscent of bands like The Sea & Cake, who have mastered the art of being both light and simple, and dense and mysterious.

Sufjan Stevens
Illinoise

The Sea & Cake
The Biz

Destroyer
Kaputt

Lastly, for those confused by the Hornsby/Collins adult-contempo vibe seeping into some of Bon Iver: Didn't it seem inevitable after modern music's appropriation of every other form of '80s nostalgia? Vernon pulls it off with humble sincerity, and he ain't the only one bringing it in 2011: go straight to Destroyer's sax-saturated Kaputt for an excellent precursor.

Rhapsody Radar, Week 3: Com Truise, Aurelio Martinez, The Antlers, Natalia Jiménez, Big Sean, And Natalia Kills

2011-06-30T17:10:31Z

Welcome to another edition of Rhap Radar, our month-long survey of 24 up-and-coming artists that excite us. For a peek at what you've missed so far, here's a playlist of our first dozen honorees. And now we move on to a new batch, featuring a slow-burning blog-rap upstart, an Afro-Latin innovator (and politician!), Radiohead-esque indie rockers, a nostalgia-drenched electro-funker, and two women named Natalia (one a Latin-pop diva, the other a will.i.am-abetted pop star in training). Read on and listen in below.

Com Truise: The Synthesizer-Wielding Retro-Futurist

]]> first EP under the alias, he's remixed the likes of Daft Punk and Neon Indian, released his debut album on the acclaimed Ghostly International label, and turned in his resignation as an art director in anticipation of an upcoming world tour.

Titles like "Terminal," "Futureworld" and "VHS Sex" offer a good approximation of Com Truise's preoccupations. His pealing synthesizers reveal an artist who's logged hours and hours immersed in Vangelis' sound-world for Blade Runner, while his shuddering beats are unrepentantly nostalgic for the glory days of '80s electro-funk — as heard through lysergic, rose-tinted headphones. — Philip Sherburne

Key Tracks: "Fairlight," "Terminal," "VHS Sex"

Aurelio Martinez: The Garifuna Innovator and Singing Congressman

Aurelio Martinez makes the rest of us feel lazy and woefully mediocre — but in, you know, the best possible way. Beloved in his native Honduras and acclaimed among connoisseurs of Afro-Latin music everywhere for his sunny grooves, cascading guitar riffs and earthy vocals, he's also widely respected as a master of the rich tradition of Garifuna music. Descendants of Africans who escaped slave ships and built communities with the local Arawakan population along the Caribbean coast of Central America, contemporary Garifuna musicians are heirs to one of the world's most distinctive and resilient cultures. Because they escaped slavery, early Garifuna musicians managed to more delicately preserve African musical traditions that were snuffed out elsewhere, even as they created new, hybridized styles reflecting their surroundings. Contemporary Garifuna music, accordingly, encompasses several styles that are at once richly diasporic and inherently inventive, including percussive religious music; the acoustic-guitar-driven paranda; and the various permutations of the punta rock genre created by the late, great savior of Garifuna music, Andy Palacio, who passed away in 2008.

Widely considered the heir to Palacio's throne, Martinez also takes up his elder's penchant for adaptation and innovation. With one respected "traditional" Garifuna pop album (2004's Garifuna Soul) under his belt, he wowed critics and fans alike even more with this year's Laru Beya. The album pushes into sleek, chic and sometimes astounding new directions. Swirling currents of often-unexpected sound (subtle horns here, surf-rock licks there). Vintage guitars and dubby, scratched-out beats. A globe-trotting aesthetic that jets from Afropop to Manu Chao. Searing critiques of the history of slavery ("Yurumei"). And the cross-cultural connections just keep coming: Afropop star Youssou N'Dour was so impressed with Martinez that he took him under his wing and brought him to Africa, where he earned cameos from such local titans as Orchestra Baobab and Senegalese rapper Sen Kumpé. Adding to that impressive pedigree is the fact that Laru Beya is the second-ever album released on Sub Pop's much-vaunted world-music imprint, Next Ambiance. Clearly, Martinez is a musical force to be reckoned with. Oh, and did we mention that, in his spare time, he also was elected to public office, becoming the first black deputy in the National Congress of Honduras? — Rachel Devitt

Key Tracks: "Laru Beya," "Yurumei," "Nuwerun"

The Antlers: The Soft-Spoken Indie Rockers With Epic Ambitions

Back in the mid-'00s, young Peter Silberman was dutifully crafting lo-fi soundscapes in his tiny Brooklyn digs. He self-released a series of records, never quite nailing down a sound, but quietly mastering the art of songwriting. Then came Hospice. Initially Silberman's solo creation, the loose concept record follows a hospice worker and a terminally ill patient. It references Sylvia Plath. It touches on death, grief, guilt. It's downright depressing, but it's also utterly gorgeous, partly due to Silberman's willingness to expand The Antlers into a full-fledged band. Bringing on drummer Michael Lerner and multi-instrumentalist Darby Cicci allowed Hospice to be a fully realized entity, one whose sweeping post-rock dirges and heartbreaking melodies landed it on numerous Best of 2009 lists.

That means the band's follow-up had a lot to live up to, and 2011's Burst Apart absolutely does. The Antlers' first true collaborative effort, it's smoother, more intricate and more robust than its acclaimed predecessor. Still, the band never dares to drown out Silberman, whose powerful falsetto and intimate songwriting paint pictures so poignant and vivid they'd have Freud drooling (see "Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out"). With a stronger electronic influence subtly weaved throughout, Radiohead comparisons are inevitable — and we can't think of a better compliment. — Stephanie Benson

Key Tracks: "Parentheses," "Rolled Together," "Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out"

Natalia Jiménez: The Jet-Setting, Controversy-Baiting Latin Diva

At the ripe old age of 30, up-and-coming Latin diva Natalia Jiménez has already enjoyed one super-successful career as a pop star, and is now on to her second. The former lead singer of pop-rock outfit La 5a Estacion was already a beloved icon in both the band's hometown of Madrid and its adopted country of Mexico (where they moved to connect with their massive Latin American fan base). Then the offers to do solo gigs started rolling in, including a primo guest feature on Ricky Martin's "Lo Mejor de Mi Vida Eres Tu." Then she met Emilio Estefan, who was so impressed with the gorgeous star and her powerful, equally gorgeous voice that he wound up producing her solo debut.

That self-titled effort, out this month, finds Jiménez stretching her wings. Drawing inspiration from all her hometowns (Madrid, Mexico City and now, Miami), she tries out a host of Latin styles: sizzlingly danceable salsa, accordion-tinged Norteño, hip-hop flamenco, and her first English-language work. The result is perhaps more steeped in adult contemporary than one would wish for a singer with such an impressive voice (regardless of how many Celine Dion comparisons she's earned). But Jiménez's diva potential is undeniable. After all, this is an artist who bats away criticisms that lead single "Por Ser Tu Mujer" (which also appears as "I'll Do What It Takes" on the album) is a bit too submissive, and addressed the gossip swirling around her own real-life aborted wedding (which she cancelled on the day of) with a subsequent video wherein she wears a wedding dress and plays a runaway bride. She has also referred to herself as "stupendous" and has a reputation for absolutely killing recording session in just one take. Yeah, she's probably got another career — or 15 — in her. —R.D.

Key Tracks: "Por Ser Tu Mujer," "I'll Take It Back," "Si No Esta Usted"

Big Sean: The Rap-Nerd Prodigy

Big Sean, who grew up in Detroit's suburbs, doesn't sound like Eminem, Slum Village or other heroes of "the D." His music seems borderless. Yet rap nerds who listen to his major-label debut, Finally Famous, will immediately locate its origins in the blogosphere, where Drake, Kid Cudi, Kanye West, The Neptunes and other fan-approved stars have inadvertently created a new form of pop-rap, one much sturdier than the New Jack-crazed style of the late '80s and less divisive than the G-funk soundtracks of the mid-'90s.

While the country is only hearing him now (thanks to the Chris Brown-mediated balladry of "My Last"), Sean has been a viable Internet quantity for years. His 2010 mixtape, Finally Famous Vol. 3, included high-wattage guests like Chiddy Bang, Bun B and Mike Posner. He used its popularity to launch a series of tours, and audiences crammed into nightclubs and ballrooms to sing along to viral hits like "Memories" and "What U Doin'."

That isn't to say that Sean has escaped criticism. As an honor-roll student at a Detroit preparatory school, he networked onto West's G.O.O.D. Music roster in 2007 before he'd even issued a mixtape. His uncomplicated (though lengthy — four years is a long time to wait) rise triggers comparisons to Drake, who continues to himself generate accusations of being a "fake-indie" artist en route to Thank Me Later. But unlike the former Degrassi High: The Next Generation actor, who mixed contemporary R&B, pop and indie-rap with stunningly distinct results, Big Sean's Finally Famous has inspired debates about its quality, not his audacity.

Finally Famous is a modest delight, and that's not an underhanded compliment. Big Sean can kill 16 bars, dropping a revealing line so quick you'll miss it among the Lupe Fiasco and Wiz Khalifa appearances. His "Memories (Part II)" is essentially the 2010 original retrofitted with a new No I.D. beat and a maudlin John Legend chorus, but his verses about treasuring the here and now instead of pining for the future still ring true. And though he spends a lot of time bragging about the girls he screws and the designer clothes he wears — this is hip-hop, after all — he also picks apart a relationship's remains on "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" as he rues, "Crazy when a heart breaks it never breaks even." Big Sean's challenge in the months ahead is to prove that he not only belongs among his many co-signers, but potentially above them. — Mosi Reeves

Key Tracks: "Memories (Part II)," "My Last," "High"

Natalia Kills: The Ice Cold (and Smoking Hot) Dance-Pop Sensation

She makes dark, dramatic dance-pop that somehow balances twisted, confessional glimpses of her personal demons, a slight dominatrix aesthetic, and killer beats. She writes songs about loving zombies ("Do you love me for my body/ Or do you want me for my brain?") and crafts videos that stage (or at least imply) her own decapitation. She's whip-smart and multitalented, with a background in acting and filmmaking as well as music. She was signed by will.i.am, and her debut album is being partially produced by Akon. And oh yeah, she's smoking hot in that cool, somewhat terrifying, "ice queen dance diva" kind of way.

In short, British singer-songwriter Natalia Kills ought to be extremely poised for pop stardom, a status she's already achieved in Germany and is well on her way to attaining in the U.K. The artist born Natalia Keery-Fisher in Bradford began her performing career as a child actor, playing parts on BBC sitcoms and soaps all through school. Always interested in music and writing songs, she eventually released some material under the name Verbalicious, and created a thriving MySpace community before will.i.am discovered her and signed her to Interscope/Cherry Tree. Since then, Natalia has set about on a whirlwind networking tour: she's toured with Robyn and Kelis, and appeared on tracks by artists as disparate as FaR*EaSt Movement and LMFAO. She's also earned (favorable) comparisons to the likes of Lady Gaga and Rihanna. Impressive credentials, to be sure, but whether they'll add up to success in the U.S. when her album, Perfectionist, drops in August remains to be seen. Either way, we can't wait to see what this deliciously warped dance-pop queen-in-the-making does next. —R.D.

Key Tracks: "Wonderland," "Mirrors," "Zombie"

Cheat Sheet: Hipster Dance Club

2011-06-21T17:25:36Z

We're not attempting to define the elusive hipster here, but we're guessing this dance party may just be rocking a consignment shop's worth of skinny jeans, neon headbands, Ray-Bans, Converse and off-the-shoulder T's … but we don't judge. From New York (LCD Soundsystem) to L.A. (Foster the People) to Paris (Daft Punk), London (Hot Chip) and Melbourne (Cut Copy), hipsters are ruling the dancefloor, and probably having more fun than you are (but without ever actually showing it). Here, we compile some key soundtracks to optimize your hipness. So bust a move, get ironic and keep the PBR flowing (can we fit any more stereotypes in here?), because it's a hipster dance party!

For eight straight hours of too-cool-for-school booty-shaking, go straight to our Hipster Dance Club playlist.

LCD Soundsystem
Sound of Silver
LCD's James Murphy may win the award for the '00s' biggest hipster, but this album proves, most improbably, that he's a hipster with a heart of gold. Irony and disaffection course through these mostly dance songs' frayed, bulbous and lumpy productions — yet there's undeniable warmth here, and the beats are constructed with mucho TLC. It's all anchored by "All My Friends," a natural high as fluent in Steve Reich's cerebral looping technique as it is the language of a sweaty Brooklyn dancefloor. — Garrett Kamps

]]> Daft Punk
Discovery
Paris' coolest pair of cybernetics perfects its robot rock on Discovery, morphing Homework's buzzy filter disco into an even suppler strain of electro-funk. Never shy of lite-FM cliches, they turn guilty pleasures into unabashed house anthems with "One More Time" and "Digital Love," and give the vocoder a passionate workout on the infectious "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger." Throughout, the synths go to 11 and the vocals beam down from cloud nine. Establishing one of the decade's most durable sounds, Discovery paved the way for everyone from Justice to Kanye. — Philip Sherburne

The Rapture
Pieces of the People We Love
And the prophets sayeth, "Find thy eternal reward within The Rapture's sly dance punk incantations or get left behind." Flouting the doubters who gave their "white guy getting down" sound the shelf life of an organic banana, the N.Y.C. band returns with a sophomore effort that's both timely and timeless. Swirling in a warm blast of disco, dub, post-punk, post-rock, The Cure, Gang of Four, early-'80s funk and millennial electronica, Pieces of the People We Love proves that The Rapture is indeed upon us. Listen and be saved. — Jonathan Zwickel

Hot Chip
One Life Stand
Hot Chip have never sounded sweeter than they do on their fourth album, which finds them taming antic urges in favor of a rich, rounded sound. "I Feel Better," "One Life Stand" and "We Have Love" all betray a penchant for the peak time, but Alexis Taylor's fluttery falsetto lends a unity of mood to the diverse song set, which ranges from the piano-led stomper "Hand Me Down Your Love" to the waltz-tempo "Slush." Their "mature" album, One Life Stand speaks to a desire to turn pop's pleasure rush into something longer lasting, and it amply rewards extended cohabitation. — P.S.

Foster the People
Torches
Just in time for summer, L.A. trio Foster the People deliver their debut, a neon-lit electro-pop record that works every catchy element in the hip-kid's handbook. Torches starts off in the Daft Punk pyramid before reverb infiltrates and a flaccid falsetto snakes in. Breakout single "Pumped Up Kicks" should perk Peter Bjorn and John's ears up, its dark lyrics ("You better run, better run, faster than my bullet") disguised with a jolly whistle and a smooth dance groove. Elsewhere, hints of MGMT's kitschy pop and Passion Pit's relentless synth-bounce will have the kids flocking. — Stephanie Benson

Cut Copy
Zonoscope
They've gone from "bright neon" to "ghost colours"; now Cut Copy expand their palette further with third album Zonoscope. At an hour long, including 15-minute closer "Sun God," it's quite the ambitious work. Opener "Need You Now" sounds like U2 if Bono and The Edge were more into dance clubs than stadiums; "Take Me Over" has the breeziness — plus the tom-toms — of that fellow Aussie hit "Down Under"; and "Where I'm Going" is positively Beach Boys. From there, songs flow into one another, sheets of sparkling synths wiggle and wobble and disco beats thump and bump (think The Rapture). — S.B.

MGMT
Oracular Spectacular
MGMT may use laptops and samplers, but their debut album is really a love letter to the '60s, couriered via the '80s. Psychedelia, bluesy R&B and breezy surf rock swirl together with taut New Wave guitars and post-punk atmospherics, creating a sunny sound harboring chilly shadows. Breakout hit "Electric Feel" is lush, slow-mo disco with a softcore vibe, all come-hither falsetto and a bassline to die for, and "Kids" imagines Giorgio Moroder as an emo heartthrob. Elsewhere, The Byrds, The Rolling Stones and The Mamas & the Papas clearly dominate MGMT's board of directors. — P.S.

Hercules and Love Affair
Hercules and Love Affair
Andy Butler may be Herc's main man (songwriter, player, coproducer), and DFA dude Tim Goldsworthy's beats and reputation may bring the project dance-world cred. But what makes this debut more than just another entry in the 21st century's disco revival is Antony Hegarty's singing. His unique voice is totally incongruous with the usual disco diva vocalese, and yet completely redefines the setting. Where the other eight tracks do a nice job retrofitting New York's halcyon club daze for the kids, Antony's four tunes — especially the hit single "Blind" — tap into a modernity that's completely new. — Piotr Orlov

Crystal Castles
Crystal Castles
Crystal Castles are the toast of the electro scene, despite raging far harder than their hipster pals over at Kitsune. Taking cues from American freak rockers like Coin, Viki and Extreme Animals, the Toronto duo splashes buckets of neon distortion all over robo-dance jams made from vintage Atari chirps. If that wasn't awesome enough, check out the impassioned punk vocals of cofounder Alice Glass. On "Alice Practice," she howls and wails as if someone stole her favorite eyeliner. — Justin Farrar

Chromeo
Fancier Footwork
Montreal's Chromeo aren't the stone-faced types. Thick with cowbells, vocoders and Moogs, their electro-infused funk celebrates '80s touchstones like D-Train and Rockwell with tongue firmly in cheek. Along with three tracks from their debut CD and the entirety of last year's Fancy Footwork, Fancier Footwork collects remixes from the likes of MSTRKRFT, Playgroup and Yuksek. Italy's Crookers turn "Fancy Footwork" into an irresistibly bouncy house anthem; top props go to DFA's driving rework of "Destination Overdrive," which lives up to its title and then some. — P.S.

Bloc Party
Silent Alarm
The London four-piece delivers tightly wound pop songs beaten into shape by frantic, spastic guitars and singer Kele Okereke's yelp-speak. When the bassist and drummer aren't locking into jerky, funk-ified punk rhythms on tracks like "Positive Tension," they are knocking out bleak, emotionally resonant pop. — Jon Pruett

Simian Mobile Disco
Temporary Pleasure
On the best track here, "Synthesise," Simian Mobile Disco take your basic acid-techno groove and allow it to spiral totally out of control. The rest of the English duo's sophomore effort is equally delicious. Plus, it's packed with hipster cameos, including Jamie Lidell, the Gossip's Beth Ditto and Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip. In all honesty, though, S.M.D. truly thrive when they're going it alone, as they do on "Synthesise" and the killer "10,000 Horses Can't Be Wrong." Now that's jam — J.F.

Franz Ferdinand
Blood: Franz Ferdinand
With help from Tonight producer Dan Carey, Blood is a legitimate dub-dabbling reinterpretation of Franz Ferdinand's sexed-up 2009 romp-rocker. If possible, it's even more indefatigably fun than the original, which already sounded ready-made for a run through Carey's remix mill. On dancefloor goodies like "Feel the Pressure" and "Die on the Floor," Alex Kapranos' sly flirtations loop around big bass thumps and electro beeps that drip like acid rain striking metal. A deeper dub influence slowly unravels itself, especially on closing tracks "Feel the Envy" and "Be Afraid." — S.B.

Passion Pit
Manners
The five-piece electronic dance-pop subversives made an immediate splash on the strength of the inescapably fun, oddly exotic "Sleepyhead." With tripped-out samples culled from around the world and then sped up, high-register vocals that recall the Danielson Famile, the whole spectrum of electronic percussion, fat club synthesizers, and a subtle but undeniable prog-rock feel, Passion Pit are damn near the weirdest band ever to come out of Cambridge, Mass. — P.S.

Major Lazer
Gunz Don't Kill People, Lazers Do
Dancehall riddims serve as the album's backbone, but this is really pastiche, and there are frequent excursions into surf rock, one-drop reggae, 8-bit electro, and more. All of which is to say that this is a pop album. It's teasing and campy — the sonic equivalent of a Quentin Tarantino film in that it's affectionate of its source material while managing to be completely irreverent as well. It's light, quirky and fun: at one point, a baby's cry lapses into Auto-Tune, and Prince Zimboo exclaims in deep patois, "Oh my goodness, you have built in Auto-Tune." That silliness serves it well. — Sam Chennault

!!!
Myth Takes
!!! may smell like a jam band — they're alleged to have done an entire U.S. tour without showering between shows, carving a wide arc of empty space into the audience — but their musical cues come straight out of early '80s post-punk. Their bass- and cowbell-heavy grooves often draw comparisons to Liquid Liquid or A Certain Ratio; on the title track, they're straight-up Bauhaus. "Funk-punk" doesn't have quite the ring it used to, but here, the things that make these trisyllabic rockers different stand out even more, especially on oddball rave-ups like "Sweet Life" and "Yadnus." — P.S.

Thao & Mirah, Thao & Mirah

2011-06-15T13:00:36Z

The Best of 2011 (So Far)

2011-06-14T16:51:44Z

One aspect of summer that never fails to surprise is that the year is now nearly half over: we are closer to 2011's year-end critics-poll season than we are to 2010's. You've started drafting your own Top 10 list already, right? No? You haven't? Don't panic: here, Rhapsody's genre editors each pick their five favorite records of the year so far. How many will survive until November? Which ones will be replaced by Lil Wayne, by Beyoncé, by the soundtrack to Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark? Time will tell, but for now, here are our picks for the year's best, half a year early.

]]> Philip Sherburne
Gang Gang Dance: Eye Contact
Key Tracks: "Adult Goth," "Sacer"

Bibio: Mind Bokeh
Key Tracks: "Saint Christopher," "K is for Kelson"

Metronomy: The English Riviera
Key Tracks: "We Broke Free," "Everything Goes My Way," "The Look"

Kurt Vile: Smoke Ring for My Halo
Key Tracks: "Baby's Arms," "Jesus Fever"

Austra: Feel It Break
Key Tracks: "Hate Crime," "The Future"

Chuck Eddy
Cauldron: Burning Fortune
Key Tracks: "Miss You to Death," "Rapid City/Unchained Assault"

Nazareth: Big Dogz
Key Tracks: "When Jesus Comes to Save the World Again," "Watch Your Back"

Kultur Shock: Ministry of Kultur
Key Tracks: "Don't Shoot Me!", "She Works in a Coal Mine"

Thompson Square: Thompson Square
Key Tracks: "Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not," "Getaway Car"

The Dirtbombs: Party Store
Key Tracks: "Sharevari," "Cosmic Cars"

Justin Farrar
Moritz von Oswald Trio: Horizontal Structures
Key Tracks: "Structure 1," "Structure 2"

Mike Dehnert: Framework
Key Tracks: "Quattro," "Kontextfrei"

The London Suede: The Best Of
Key Tracks: "The Drowners," "Beautiful Ones"

Tedeschi Trucks Band: Revelator
Key Tracks: "Don't Let Me Slide," "Midnight in Harlem"

Crosby & Nash: Another Stoney Evening
Key Tracks: "Déjà Vu," "Triad"

North Mississippi Allstars: Keys to the Kingdom
Key Tracks: "The Meeting," "Hear the Hills"

Stephanie Benson
The Antlers: Burst Apart
Key Tracks: "Parentheses," "Rolled Together," "I Don't Want Love"

James Blake: James Blake
Key Tracks: "The Wilhelm Scream," "Lindisfarne II," "Limit to Your Love"

P.J. Harvey: Let England Shake
Key Tracks: "The Words That Maketh Murder," "The Glorious Land," "Written on the Forehead"

Yuck: Yuck
Key Tracks: "Get Away," "The Wall," "Stutter"

Gil Scott-Heron & Jamie XX: We're New Here
Key Tracks: "NY is Killing Me," "I'm New Here," "I'll Take Care of U"

Linda Ryan
Hayes Carll: KMAGYOYO & Other American Stories
Key Tracks: "KMAG YOYO," "Another Like You," "Stomp and Holler"

Drive-By Truckers: Go-Go Boots
Key Tracks: "Mercy Buckets," "Cartoon Gold," "Dancin' Ricky"

Alison Krauss & Union Station: Paper Airplane
Key Tracks: "Paper Airplane," "Dimming of the Day," "Bonita and Bill Butler"

Craig Campbell: Craig Campbell
Key Tracks: "Family Man," "When I Get It," "I Bought It"

The Blind Boys of Alabama: Take the High Road
Key Tracks: "Family Bible," "Jesus Built a Bridge to Heaven," "I Know a Place"

Britney Spears: Femme Fatale
Key Tracks: "Till the World Ends," "How I Roll"

Rachel Devitt
SMOD: SMOD
Key Tracks: "Ca Chante," "Les Dirigeants Africains"

Aurelio Martinez: Laru Beya
Key Tracks: "Ineweyu," "Lubara Wanwa"

Dengue Fever: Cannibal Courtship
Key Tracks: "Uku," "Cannibal Courtship"

Adele: 21
Key Tracks: "Rumour Has It," "He Won't Go"

Mosi Reeves
Raphael Saadiq: Stone Rollin'
Key Tracks: "Heart Attack," "Go to Hell," "The Answer"

Plan B: The Defamation of Strickland Banks
Key Tracks: "Welcome to Hell," "The Recluse"

Kode9 & the Spaceape: Black Sun
Key Tracks: "Love Is the Drug," "Otherman," "Hole in the Sky"

Joell Ortiz: Free Agent
Key Tracks: "One Shot (Killed for Less)," "Battle Cry," "Call Me"

Pharoahe Monch: W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)
Key Tracks: "Calculated Amalgamation," "Clap (One Day)," "Still Standing "

Spoon, Transference

2011-06-14T13:00:23Z

Spoon had a pretty incredible '00s (seriously, four great albums). So for their first release in a new decade, and also their first self-produced effort, Transference is just what the title promises—a transferring of all that the band has learned and defined into a sound that is as familiar as it is fresh. Slight piano bumps, soft hi-hat hits, lo-fi guitar, the occasional echo, and the rare fuzz effect ebb and flow with the same patience and ease as Britt Daniel's coos. This is Spoon as you know and love them: minimalist, smart, catchy, always playing it cool. — Stephanie Benson

Hear It Now!

Indie Roundup, June 2011

2011-06-08T17:26:30Z

It's time for another look into the past month of new indie releases. We've got the vets (Death Cab, My Morning Jacket, Thurston Moore, Arctic Monkeys), along with some buzz-y newcomers (Cults, Givers, Foster the People) and exclusive live sets from indie mainstays Deerhunter and Kurt Vile. For more info on each release, read on and play away.

For a convenient two-track sample of each album, check out our accompanying playlist: Indie Roundup, June 2011.

Cults
Cults
Couple/duo Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin started Cults as a way to test out the playful experiments conducted in their NYU digs. Single "Go Outside," a soul-pop confection laced with glockenspiel, brought on blog buzz; roughly a year later came this, their full-length debut. Cults is shamelessly retro, fluttering between the reverb flush of The Raveonettes and the bittersweet effervescence of '60s girl groups. Follin's coos are alternately pining and distant, as the rhythms rock flirtatiously and the guitars jangle in a reverb haze that occasionally dips its toes in the Cali surf. — Stephanie Benson

]]> Arctic Monkeys
Suck It and See
Still only in their mid-20s at the release of this, their fourth effort, the Arctic Monkeys already sound like the elder statesmen of Britrock. The spunky smart-arses have transformed their sardonic strut into a rather suave waltz, carrying almost the entire album on retrofitted mid-tempo melodies. Frontman Alex Turner still sounds like he's up to no good, his sly croon tossing off slick wordplay ("When she walks her footsteps sing a reckless serenade") in the shape of a smirk. It solidifies best when the Monkeys are at their most rambunctious, as on "Brick by Brick" or "Library Pictures." — S.B.

Black Lips
Arabia Mountain
This unpredictable Georgia garage-punk band's third album for Vice Records has the classic sound and guitars/horns combination that once typified the Brian Jones-era Rolling Stones. Arabia Mountain comes off as a tour through '60s rock 'n' roll/garage moves: "Mad Dog," for example, echoes ? and the Mysterians. More of a loving extension of the old ways than any sort of gimmicky retro act, Black Lips offer a legitimacy to the often insubstantial, overly stylized garage-rock scene. "Raw Meat" could as easily fit on a Ramones record as a Troggs best-of. — Mike McGuirk

Foster the People
Torches
Just in time for summer, L.A. trio Foster the People deliver their debut, a neon-lit electro-pop record that works every catchy element in the hip kids' handbook. Torches starts off in the Daft Punk pyramid before reverb infiltrates and a flaccid falsetto snakes in. Breakout single "Pumped Up Kicks" should perk Peter Bjorn and John's ears up, its dark lyrics ("You better run, better run, faster than my bullet") disguised with a jolly whistle and a smooth dance groove. Elsewhere, hints of MGMT's kitschy pop and Passion Pit's relentless synth-bounce will have the kids flocking. — S.B.

Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi
Rome
The word "prolific" doesn't do Danger Mouse justice. For Rome, the Grammy-winning producer gathered a cast of superstars to capture the mystique of the spaghetti western: it's a natural progression, as hints of the dusty and desolate sound have popped up in his previous work with Beck, Sparklehorse & David Lynch, and Broken Bells. With help from composer Daniele Luppi, Rome features musicians who played on the original Ennio Morricone scores (how's that for authenticity?) and grants blockbuster starring roles to Jack White (the suave rebel) and Norah Jones (the soulful seductress). — S.B.

Death Cab for Cutie
Codes and Keys
Married life never sounded so good. In the years since 2008's Narrow Stairs, both Ben Gibbard and bassist Nick Harmer got hitched, and drummer Jason McGerr became a father; thus, seventh album Codes and Keys very much indulges in honeymoon bliss. "No perfect truths, just our love," Gibbard gushes. Throughout, the arrangements are meaty — propulsive rhythms guiding rich textures of ringing guitars, strings, piano and even glitchy synths — but they're often encased in an ambient cloud of contentment. "You Are a Tourist," "Unobstructed Views" and "St. Peter's Cathedral" especially glisten. — S.B.

Givers
In Light
To open their debut album, this Louisiana quintet boasts, "Yeah, we up, up, up in the clouds!" amid a polyrhythmic paradise that's as blindingly bright as the first rays of sunshine slicing through your eyeballs in the a.m. That undeniably fun and jubilant bounce never ceases throughout the rest of In Light. The band's quirky Afropop has hints of Vampire Weekend sans the Ivy League pomp, and their use of synths and samples suggests a flair for Animal Collective-like noodling. In the midst of it all, the silky-smooth coos of lone female Tiffany Lamson give everything just a touch of sexiness. — S.B.

Planningtorock
W
Like peers Glasser and Zola Jesus, it's hard to know just what to call Janine Rostron. Is she a singer? A producer? In fact, the British-born, Berlin-based musician handles both equally compellingly. Combining acoustic instruments with synths and digital processing, her music can sound like Meredith Monk remixed. But once she starts singing, all thoughts turn to her powerful, mutable voice, which moves like a swollen river. Her beats and her singing both carry an echo of her collaborators The Knife, but there's no mistaking Planningtorock's vast, theatrical music for anyone else's. — Philip Sherburne

Deerhunter
Rhapsody Original
A Deerhunter listening experience is nothing short of hypnotic, but have you seen these guys live? Not only do they play with technical precision, they bring an intensity that steadily lifts their hazy melodies into the stratosphere. This 2011 set was recorded live in Austin at the annual Rhapsody Rocks SXSW party. The band opens with a squall of electrifying guitar that never lets up as frontman Bradford Cox alternates between bratty sneers, childlike croons and melancholic howls. Press play and imagine yourself boiling in the Texas sun, Lone Star in hand, and you'll nearly be there. — S.B.

F*cked Up
David Comes to Life
The third full-length from Toronto's hardcore-punk experimentalists is a four-act concept record concerning love lost, death and emotional rebirth. Featuring both male and female vocal trade-offs, guitars that jump out of the speakers, and radical shifts in tempo and mood, David Comes to Life is a successfully ambitious contribution to F*cked Up's consistently challenging body of work. "Under My Nose" and "The Other Shoe" offer the album's first one-two punch of songs you're going to be playing loud and often. — M.M.

My Morning Jacket
Circuital
The one-two punch that opens Circuital is worth the price of admission. "Victory Dance" burns at a slow, steady pace before building into a psychedelic groover that nearly explodes at song's end; this leads to the title track, which gallantly struts its way through mystic drones and killer guitar. But there's also "Holdin' On to Black Metal," a weirdo slice of soul pop with a female choir, horns and Lucifer references; the folksy simplicity of "Wonderful (The Way I Feel)"; and finally, the wistful closer "Movin' Away," which has the power to bring Jim James right into your living room. — S.B.

Thurston Moore
Demolished Thoughts
Demolished Thoughts may just be Thurston Moore's Sea Change — an apt comparison, since Beck himself sat as producer. Moore's noisier ambitions are mostly left in the dust as he strums an acoustic and paints some of his most personal vignettes to date. The album's best supporting characters are Mary Lattimore's harp and Samara Lubelski's violin, soothing and assuring Moore through sleepy hymns ("Benediction," "Illuminine"), giving urgency to his darkest moments ("Circulation," "Mina Loy") and adding instant drama to his cinematic twists and turns ("Blood Never Lies," "Orchard Street").— S.B.

Kurt Vile
Rhapsody Original
Much like Neil Young and Crazy Horse, who has to be a hero for sure, Kurt Vile and his unique brand of shoegaze roots-rock are far heavier in the live setting than on record. Recorded in the spring of 2011, at Rhapsody's annual SXSW party in Austin, Tex., this three-song EP is shambolic, raw and loud. The twang-fried "Hunchback" is from the 2009 album Childish Prodigy, while "On Tour" and "Ghost Town," both of which are significantly more meditative and spacey, can be found on the follow-up, 2011's Smoke Ring for My Halo. — Justin Farrar

Hooray for Earth
True Loves
New York's Hooray for Earth take the best of '80s synth-pop, lace it in dreamy psychedelia and let it soar. The band's debut album has a modern Depeche Mode punch mixed with the earthy eccentricities of Yeasayer. Lilting melodies are built on pure synthesizer magic that sometimes sounds like a bubbling digital bath, other times like a room full of lasers; polyrhythmic beats add flair to frontman Noel Heroux's languid vocals, which sound beamed in from another planet. Highlights include "Realize It's Not the Sun," "Last Minute" and "True Loves." — S.B.

Friendly Fires
Pala
Pala is undoubtedly the finest British dance punk album named after an Aldous Huxley novel — a cheerful, energetic, unabashedly corny bastion of priapic falsetto, muscular disco beats, Daft Punk-ian digital burbles and white-boys-in-skinny-jeans grandeur. Typical chorus: "All I want is to feel true love." It all sounds very expensive. Pour one out for the bassist, hope for some equally killer remixes, and go see them live. — Rob Harvilla

Dawes
Nothing Is Wrong
Dawes' sophomore album opens with "Time Spent in Los Angeles," a troubadour's ode to that mythical city. It's fitting when one considers Nothing Is Wrong is all about archetypal West Coast roots rock. From Neil Young and The Byrds to The Long Ryders and Tom Petty, Dawes hit all the key notes, so to speak. On the six-minute mini-epic "My Way Back Home," lead singer and songwriter Taylor Goldsmith even nails that peculiar mix of boyish innocence and well-aged wisdom that Jackson Browne nailed in the mid-1970s. What pushes the record over the top is the warm, vintage production. Very cool. — J.F.

The Vaccines
What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?
A brash title for a debut album, no? It's fitting, though, for a group of young Brits indulging in a three-chord ethos that bounces from the "Ra Ra Ra" fun of Ramones punk to the poppy bravado of The Strokes, the fuzzified squelch of The Jesus and Mary Chain, and the self-pity pomp of The Smiths. Lyrically, it's all a bit limp, but vocalist Justin Young is a competent chameleon through it all, seething and sneering through "Wreckin' Bar" and "Norgaard," working his best Morrissey on "A Lack of Understanding" and "Wolf Pack," and turning on the balladeer charm with "Somebody Else's Child." — S.B.

Indie Roundup: May 2011

2011-05-11T17:48:01Z

Here we count down the top indie albums from the past month; it's a smorgasbord, to say the least. Dig into folk rock, experimental rock, chamber rock, dance rock, post-rock and even New Zealand rock. Yum.

Go here for our sampler playlist featuring songs from each album mentioned below: Indie Roundup: May 2011

1. Fleet Foxes
Helplessness Blues
If bearded angels exist, they probably look (or at least sound) a lot like the Fleet Foxes. The Seattle folkies' 2008 debut assured the hipness of mandolins and multipart harmonies, and their 2011 follow-up is just as inspiring. This time their bucolic melodies stretch across further terrain: think Simon & Garfunkel times three, transported back to the Renaissance. Luscious strings and woodwinds waltz on demand to the Pied Piper call of frontman Robin Pecknold, who remains remarkably humble: "I'd rather be a functioning cog in some great machinery, serving something beyond me." — Stephanie Benson

]]> 2. The Antlers
Burst Apart
The Antlers' 2009 LP Hospice is so epic, so crushing, that listening to it feels like a bullet taking 50 minutes to sink into your chest. Burst Apart captures the aftermath in a slow-burning dream state that's as narcotic as it is haunting. Frontman Peter Silberman is more introspective, examining the fine line between loneliness and independence: his falsetto slithers like a charmed snake as guitars echo and keyboards meander into the ether. "French Exit" grooves, "No Widows" floats in space, "Tiptoe" evokes film noir, and "Parentheses" has Radiohead on the brain. — S.B.

3. Gang Gang Dance
Eye Contact
It's not that Eye Contact can't be broken down into its constituent parts. It's just that descriptors like world beat, crunk, fusion and dream pop fail to express its collective sound. Gang Gang Dance produce a perceptually challenging racket that's all about sonic reflection, refraction, decay and shadow play. The constants are crystallized synths, chopped grooves and Liz Bougatsos' ethereal chirp, yet they're incessantly dissolving, re-forming, then dissolving again. At the midway point, a track emerges from G.G.D.'s private noosphere titled "Mindkilla." That's exactly what Eye Contact is. — Justin Farrar

4. tUnE-yArDs
WHOKILL
Merrill Garbus treats every instrument, including her voice, like a treasure she eagerly excavated from a junkyard — one man's drums, sax and ukulele are another woman's means to experiment. The core of tUnE-yArDs, Garbus is nearly impossible to pinpoint; her influences run from hip-hop to funk to R&B to free jazz to Nina Simone. One minute she's yelling out intriguing philosophies, the next she's sweetly chirping like a bird at sunrise, the next she's a "don't take sh*t from you" kind of woman. She articulates it all with a keen pop sense even as beats tumble, horns rumble and chaos erupts. — S.B.

5. The Cars
Move Like This
The swaggering first 30 seconds of "Blue Tip" recall, no joke, LCD Soundsystem. But once Ric Ocasek's laconic vocals kick in, it's all vintage Cars: that stiff, sardonic New Wave jolt you remember. Their first full-length with a full lineup (minus co-frontman Benjamin Orr, lost to cancer in 2000) since 1987, Move Like This keeps the flame: "Sad Song" offers the purest nostalgia (hand claps!), "Drag On Forever" the loopiest lyrical imagery (glockenspiels, ginger snaps). But anything here works, and while it can't approach the transcendence of their early stuff, it doesn't tarnish the legacy. — Rob Harvilla

6. David Kilgour and the Heavy Eights
Left by Soft
The seventh solo album from this longtime key figure on the New Zealand rock landscape, Left by Soft — as may be expected — is a flawlessly constructed collection of songs that echo the past even as they are steeped in utter distinction. Kicking things off with a Byrds-meets-Sebadoh instrumental title cut, Kilgour, backed by his third post-Clean set of musicians, effortlessly blends country, indie rock and drums that always sound amazing into 11 songs that are just slightly sad and have that New Zealand pop "sound." Basically, you want headphones. — Mike McGuirk

7. Thao & Mirah
Thao & Mirah
The power of one woman with a mic and a guitar is a force to be reckoned with. Now double that. Thao Nguyen (of The Get Down Stay Down) and singer-songwriter Mirah do just that on their debut, adding tUnE-yArDs' Merrill Garbus as producer for a trifecta of Bay Area female fierceness. The quirkier spots point to Garbus, like the clickety-clackety punch of opener "Eleven"; her eccentric touches balance beautifully with Thao's subtle grit and Mirah's softer inclinations. Whether they try on waltzing folk, sun-kissed acoustic, loopy pop or big-band jazz, it all fits like a glove. — S.B.

8. Explosions in the Sky
Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
Austin's masters of symphonic catharsis took four years to bottle up all the emotions injected into this sixth album — and you'll feel every single one of them. Explosions in the Sky's ability to bring both dark intensity and light buoyancy into a yin-yang of balance is always a mind-melting experience. Guitars will suddenly turn into air-raid sirens that cut through a marching-soldier shuffle of nimble percussion; a soft pitter-patter will trickle through as ghostly moans weave in and out. It's unrelenting, and at times feels infinite — by album's end, you may wish it was. — S.B.

9. Okkervil River
I Am Very Far
Okkervil River main man Will Sheff has always had a way with words. I Am Very Far, the band's sixth album, is never short of poetic prose — the music does its best just to keep up. "I need a myth, brought back to life by a kiss," he cries out, with the tone of a young Billy Joel, amid a hailstorm of instruments. Opening with an ominous swirl of strings and synths, the band never lets up: pianos are stabbed, violins viciously struck, guitars painstakingly plucked. In "The Valley," Sheff sings of the "rock 'n' roll dead," and he sounds determined to wake them. — S.B.

Summer Blockbusters (Musically Speaking)

2011-05-05T12:00:08Z

We must admit that Tuesday is our favorite day of the week here at Rhapsody: that's when new releases come out. Thankfully, the next three months of Tuesdays look absolutely glorious, full of fresh music from ukulele-brandishing rockers, electronic pioneers, strident country hit makers, unabashed pop divas, unrepentant metalheads, CCM luminaries, contenders for Best Rapper Alive honors, soul superstars and, of course, Lady Gaga. Here's the best of what's to come.

Lady Gaga, Born This Way (May 23) Quite possibly the most anticipated album of 2011, Gaga's second full-length bears a heavy load: there's the dreaded sophomore slump to avoid, and her massive celebrity to justify. Then there's the public's increasingly conflicted position on Gaga to contend with: do we find her hyper-theatricality annoying or endearing? Are the new singles ("Judas" and "Born This Way") brilliant meta-nuggets of pop culture or weak Madonna rip-offs? The whole world waits with bated breath to decide. — Rachel Devitt

Beyoncé, TBD (June) Then again, with just one girl-power-hungry, oh-Sasha-it's-fierce lead single packed with distinctive Diplo-and-Switch beats, Beyoncé made the world sit up and go, "Gaga who?" And when her fourth album drops sometime in early summer, you can bet your granny panties B's gonna knock all those lesser divas down like dominoes. — R.D.

Kanye West and Jay-Z, Watch the Throne (hopefully soon) Keep watching. This long-threatened mega-rapper summit will happen eventually, we swear: manic lead single "H.A.M." emerged way back in January, but it's been mostly radio silence since. Still, whenever these guys get around to it, Throne is sure to be a delightfully extravagant bacchanal of Best Rapper Alive narcissism. Hopefully Nicki Minaj drops by, too. — Rob Harvilla

]]> Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dr. Johnny Skinz's Disproportionately Rambunctious Polar Express Machine-Head (August) It's been five long years since the release of Stadium Arcadium (that's 157,680,000 seconds, for all you hardcore fans). The biggest question facing these rock gods is how guitarist John Frusciante's replacement, one Josh Klinghoffer, will fare in the studio. He has some massive Vans to fill. (And yes, that's a working title.) — Justin Farrar

Brad Paisley, This Is Country Music (May 23) It seems like Brad Paisley released American Saturday Night just a few months ago, partly because that album housed single after single after single — which sharply illustrates not only the quality of his songs, but also the collective depth of the entire album. Paisley uses humor to draw people into his circle, and once there, he dazzles them with deft guitar playing and reduces them to tears with the occasional heartbreaker. "Old Alabama," the latest single off his imminent ninth studio effort, features a reunited Alabama; other guest stars on This Is Country Music include Carrie Underwood, Don Henley, Blake Shelton, Sheryl Crow, Marty Stuart and, erm, Clint Eastwood. — Linda Ryan

Lil Wayne, Tha Carter IV (June 21, maybe) Wayne's post-prison singles, including "John" and "6 Foot 7 Foot," suggest that he'll get back to basics and Dirty South mean-mugging on Tha Carter IV. But with a discography that ranges from the poppy rapcore of Rebirth to the soulful Hurricane Katrina commentary of Tha Carter III, we won't be sure until it's actually released. — Mosi Reeves

Bon Iver, Bon Iver (June 21) Bon Iver's Justin Vernon has been teasing us for the last few years, joining groups like Volcano Choir and Gayngs, offering up a few stand-alone tracks on comps and a Twilight soundtrack, and kicking it alongside Kanye West. Aside from those various forays, the last we've heard from B.I. proper was 2009's Blood Bank EP, where Auto-Tune brought out a whole new side of the troubadour. And now that Vernon has a full band behind him, we're expecting something a lot more robust and experimental — and we couldn't be more excited. — Stephanie Benson

Owl City, All Things Bright and Beautiful (June 14) Not a few critics have surmised that Owl City exist more or less to fill the emo-stroked gap left by the Postal Service. So what is electronica's most earnest musician to do but make that earlier band's first and only album over again? Then again, maybe not: "Alligator Sky," the first single from Beautiful, features actual rapping — a verse that, to be honest, sounds like an outtake from I.C.P.'s "Miracles" — while "Galaxies" sounds like it's trying to take a piece of the Black Eyed Peas' stomping electro-house turf. — Philip Sherburne

Jane's Addiction, The Great Escape Artist (August) The Duff McKagan era, if you can call it that, ended after six months: Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio is officially the new bassist for these alt-metal icons. And no, ruminating on who plucks four measly strings doesn't really matter. Jane's Addiction will always sound like Jane's Addiction. First single "End to the Lies" (available now!) was first released to the fine people of Chile back in April. — J.F.

Rick Ross and Maybach Music, Self-Made (May 24) Perhaps taking a cue from Lil Wayne's Young Money camp, Rick Ross has built his Maybach Music crew around blog-rap brands like Wale, Atlanta rapper Pill and Philadelphia emcee Stalley. Ross' coke-baron dreams will make for a weird contrast to these scrappy underground emcees, but he proved on Teflon Don that he can incorporate strikingly different personalities to create a satisfying whole. — M.R.

Death Cab for Cutie, Codes and Keys (May 31) Ben Gibbard and Co. are still going strong on their seventh studio album. In the three years since Narrow Stairs, Gibbard married Zooey Deschanel, bassist Nick Harmer also got hitched and drummer Jason McGerr became a father; family issues are very likely on the band's mind for Codes and Keys. But perhaps more intriguing, Death Cab recruited producer Alan Moulder (best known for treading darker terrain with the likes of My Bloody Valentine and Nine Inch Nails) for this one, and the word is analog synths will play a starring role. — S.B.

Danger Mouse, Daniele Luppi, Jack White and Norah Jones, Rome (May 17) What's a summer without a new Danger Mouse release? The 2011 Grammy winner for Best Producer has gathered a cast of superstars for his Spaghetti western album: with help from composer Daniele Luppi, the Mouse recruited musicians who played on the original Ennio Morricone scores. (How's that for authenticity?) Add Jack White as the suave rebel and Norah Jones as the soulful seductress, and you've got a blockbuster. — S.B.

Daddy Yankee, Prestige (Summer) Dad! Dy! Yan! Kee! and hot weather go hand in hand, no? The reggaeton kingpin is scheduled to drop his sixth collection of swaggering riddims this summer. Last time around, he expanded his reach to encompass a host of Latin and mainstream pop sounds. Here's hoping this time he manages to finesse that range, balancing it with a bit more of the reggaeton ballsiness that made "Gasolina" such a huge hit. — R.D.

Eminem & Royce Da 5'9", Bad Meets Evil EP (June 14) More than 10 years ago, fans marveled at the prospect of Eminem and Royce making a whole album as good as their "Nuttin' to Do"/"Scary Movies" single. And now? Transcendent thug rap may be out of reach, but with luck this will have the punch-drunk grace of a Slaughterhouse mic-trading session. — M.R.

The Cars, Move Like This (May 10) Wait, The Cars? Like, from the '70s and '80s? Yep, Ric Ocasek and Co. (sans bassist Benjamin Orr, who passed away in 2000) are back after 23 (!) years for Move Like This, with producer Jacknife Lee lending a hand. First single "Sad Song" sounds like vintage Cars, and that is just fine with us. They ain't out to prove anything — just to show you youngsters how the O.G.s roll. — S.B.

Tyler, the Creator, Goblin (May 10) With Goblin, Tyler will finally get a chance to prove that his vision of gory swagcore can move more than magazine covers and HulkShare downloads. The fantastically plodding "Sandwitches," wherein he takes shots at B.o.B. over a sonic mood piece reminiscent of Gravediggaz, provides an early clue. — M.R.

Tinie Tempah, Disc-Overy (May 17) He's already kind of a big deal on his side of the pond, where his album debuted at No. 1 back in October. Now the British emcee has his sights set on the American market, climbing the charts with "Written in the Stars," which showcases his dramatic, grime-tinged but pop-friendly electro-hop sound. — R.D.

Blake Shelton, TBA (July 12) Fresh off his ACM Awards cohosting duties — and currently riding a tidal wave of success around new prime-time TV show The Voice — Blake Shelton is country music's "It" boy. Oh, right: and his marriage to country star Miranda Lambert is right around the corner. There's so much going on for Shelton right now, it's hard to imagine his as-yet-untitled album will be weighed down by downer songs about love gone wrong. But we all know that it's not going to all be fluffy sweetness and light, either. Regardless of the subject matter, chances are Shelton's humor will shine through, just as it does on his current hit, "Honey Bee." — L.R.

Nazareth, Big Dogz (May 10) Great comeback by these hard-charging, hard-swinging, '70s-surviving Scottish sons of bitches. Dan McCafferty's high wail holds up better after four decades than his disciple Axl Rose's did after four years. Subjects of the two best songs: religious zealots and gang wars in the barrio. — Chuck Eddy

Eddie Vedder, Ukulele Songs (May 31) Pearl Jam apparently has more than 25 tracks in the can for a new album, one that's expected this year. But since we don't have a release date, all we can do is eagerly anticipate E.V. doing his best Israel Kamakawiwo'ole impersonation. Hopefully, he covers "Over the Rainbow." — J.F.

Sixpence None the Richer, Strange Conversation (TBD) We first expected this album last fall, then in spring 2011. The latest word is that label issues have been resolved and it's coming soon. Recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Jim Scott (Red Hot Chili Peppers), whenever it gets here, it will be worth the wait to finally hear from this long-silent group, most famous for their ethereal late '90s single "Kiss Me." To whet your appetite, we can tell you that Leigh Nash's voice is in pitch-perfect form, and Matt Slocum is as creative as ever. — Wendy Lee Nentwig

Ryan Leslie, Les is More (July 4) Is the world sleeping on Ryan Leslie? Should he, and not The National, have opened for Kanye West at Coachella? This Harvard graduate, who can croon sexily, spit a panty-dropping rhyme and arrange keyboards like Pharrell Williams, will get another chance to separate himself from the alternative soul mass. — M.R.

Selena Gomez & the Scene, TBA (June 28) This wildly successful Disney starlet seems poised to do the impossible and overcome that Disney grooming, a path she embarked on with her first two albums (the last released just last fall). She claims album No. 3 (led by the infectiously inspirational, well-sung single "Who Says") is going to be more mature. Goodness, we hope not. — R.D.

Ashton Shepherd, Where Country Grows (July 12) When Ashton Shepherd's debut, Sounds So Good, was released in 2008, it offered a striking alternative to the country pop fluff blasting across the airwaves. Shepherd, a native of Coffeeville, Ala., was unabashedly proud of her small-town roots and used her thick Southern twang to stellar effect. Steeped in pedal-steel guitars, her traditional sound put her on a "zig" trajectory while the country music machine was in full-on "zag" mode. Her new single, "Look It Up," is a sassy kick-him-out-the-door song with clever lyrics punctuated by that trademark twang. And we're certain there's more where that came from. — L.R.

Pitbull, Planet Pit (June 14) Mr. 305 — sorry, Mr. Worldwide — is arguably the most successful Latin crossover artist of the day, slipping bits of Spanish language and Latin pop into his mainstream pop smashes and still appealing to Latin audiences everywhere. The first couple singles aren't particularly game-changing, and yet somehow we find ourselves faced with the overwhelming urge to "Drop It to the Floor" when Pit demands it. — R.D.

Los Tigres del Norte, MTV Unplugged: Los Tigres del Norte and Friends (May 24) The hugely popular Norteño collective threw a party and invited a few of their closest friends: Paulina Rubio, Juanes, Calle 13 and Rage Against the Machine's Zack de la Rocha joined them onstage for this can't-lose recording. — R.D.

Queensryche, Dedicated to the Chaos (June 28) Geoff Tate and his enduring Seattle prog metal band have been using words like "digital," "rhythmatic," "electronic elements" and even (gasp) "great dance vibe" and "modern dance" to describe this. But they still insist it's a big rocking metal record. We'll see! — C.E.

Tech N9ne, All 6s and 7s (June 7) With sights on winning a mainstream rap audience for the first time in his career, Tech N9ne has reportedly snagged features from Lil Wayne, B.o.B., Nas, the Deftones, Snoop Dogg, E-40 and his Strange Music crew. Whether so many guests will make for a decent album may be beside the point — the Midwest cult hero wants to prove that he belongs among the big dogs. — M.R.

Ronnie Dunn, Ronnie Dunn (June 7) There hasn't really been enough time after the demise of Brooks and Dunn — country's reigning duo for the best part of 20 years — for any dust to settle, and our guess is Ronnie Dunn likes it that way. On his first solo effort in 25 years, Dunn wrote, or co-wrote, the lion's share of these dozen tracks, though a friend emailed him "Bleed Red," his current smash hit. — L.R.

Moby, Destroyed (May 17) With a title describing the average superstar DJ's condition come Monday morning, Moby's new album chronicles his life on the road. The songs began as laptop sketches made late at night in random hotel rooms; the album is accompanied by a book of the bald-pated polymath's photographs, from backstage to back alleys. Read more and get a free EP here (registration required). — P.S.

Steven Curtis Chapman, re:creation (August 9) Christian music's most winning artist continues to work his way back from personal tragedy, this time by giving older songs from his vast catalog a fresh, new look. On re:creation, these excavated tunes get a more organic treatment and are joined by several new tracks as well. — W.L.N.

Toby Love, La Voz de la Juventud (May 10) He named himself Love and created a whole genre for himself. And while "crunkchata" mostly just sounds like regular old bachata (with a slight, occasional hip-hop/R&B edge), the claim itself speaks to Love's boldness as an artist. Certainly his latest (in which he apparently designates himself the voice of the youth) will be no less bold or compelling. — R.D.

White Wizzard, Flying Tigers (June 21) Leading lights of L.A.'s early-'80s-retro New Wave of New Wave of British Heavy Metal, these guys have made the two most hilarious metal videos of the 21st century, but their 2009 EP and 2010 full-length proved they're no joke. Last year's at-least-as-good album by their rival/spinoff band Holy Grail will hopefully now spur White Wizzard to even higher hesher heights. — C.E.

Seun Kuti, From Africa with Fury (June 21) Here's another African artist who has managed to balance dad's legacy with his own unique perspective. Following in the footsteps of his brother Femi's album a few weeks back, Seun, another performing son of Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti, has christened his latest with what is possibly the most awesome title ever. — R.D.

Babasonicos, A Proposito (May 17) Here's the umpteenth album from this Argentinean outfit known for making bubbly, candy-coated, totally addictive pop rock. Their slightly retro '90s-alt feel is always fun. — R.D.

Raphael Saadiq, Stone Rollin (May 10) On his fourth album, the Bay Area soul pioneer continues to amaze with his patented style of old-school revivalism. Although retro soul is an established trend by now, few can do it like Saadiq. Check the title track, a stomping Chicago blues-styled number, and "Just Don't," wherein Saadiq trades verses with Little Dragon's Yukimi Nagano. — M.R.

Tedeschi Trucks Band, Revelator (June 7) If you're wondering why we're anticipating the latest offering from the Susan Tedeschi-Derek Trucks axis, then you haven't heard the under-the-radar jams Already Free, Back to the River and Joyful Noise. It's a shame Trucks and Tedeschi are regularly banished to the blues rock bin, because they make some of the best rock 'n' roll, period. — J.F.

Tyr, The Land of Thrym (May 27) Wherein manly Vikings from the far-Nordic Faroe Islands return to pillage and plunder the seven seas with their stirring, ale-chugging blend of power, folk, doom, goth and snow-metal. Scariest title: "Shadow of the Swastika." Most unpronounceable: "Ellindur Bóndi á Jaori." — C.E.

Mark E, Stone Breaker (May 10) Along with artists like Motor City Drum Ensemble and The Revenge, England's Mark E has been putting the brakes on house music for a while now, looping samples of disco and R&B into woozy, late-night jams. On his debut album, he expands his range to include the whole sweep of house and techno history — it's a master class in dance-music craft. — P.S.

SMOD, TBA (May 24) He's got a global-music pedigree that's to die for: Dad and Mom are the legendary Afropop couple Amadou and Mariam, and family pal Manu Chao produced his debut. But Sam and his trio, SMOD, have the skill to back up the family connections, blending hip-hop with Malian folk traditions in an exhilarating brew. — R.D.

Trin-i-tee 5:7, Angel & Chanelle (May 31) After more than a decade on the music scene, New Orleans natives and original Trin-i-tee 5:7 members Chanelle Hayes and Angel Taylor have transitioned the group from a gospel trio to a duo. They'll debut their new sound here, tackling the topic of accepting and embracing each other's differences. — W.L.N.

Christina Perri, Lovestrong (May 17) A piano-playing, gut-punchingly emotional adult-alt drama queen in a sea of, well, dance pop drama queens, Christina Perri clawed her way up the charts with her debut single, "Jar of Hearts." If recent EP The Ocean Way Sessions is any indication, you best have a diary or a blog at the ready to process all the dark and twisty angst her debut's likely going to bring. — R.D.

Foster the People, Torches (May 24) L.A.'s Foster the People may just be the breakout band of the summer. With their breezily catchy single "Pumped Up Kicks" reaching No. 7 on the U.S. alt charts, their debut album has become a hotly anticipated release. Marrying soft synths with sunny indie pop and a slight psychedelic lean has earned the trio countless comparisons to MGMT. Not a bad spot to be in. — S.B.

SBTRKT, SBTRKT (June 28) The map of bass music — that unstable terrain comprising dubstep, funk, U.K. house, garage and other mercurial styles — seems to shift every few months, and you can expect to take a new set of coordinates when England's SBTRKT drops his debut album. After a string of singles and remixes for the likes of M.I.A. and Little Dragon, he brings 10 years of production experience to bear on a set of tunes that blows a sideways hole in bass music. Imbued with Basement Jaxx's spunk and James Blake's emotional tenor — and even a hint of Magnetic Man's stadium aspirations — it might be a game-changing record for the genre. — P.S.

Jill Scott, The Light of the Sun (June 28) If first single "Shame" is any indication, The Light of the Sun will be more lively and upbeat than the post-breakup squalor of 2007's The Real Thing: Words & Sounds Vol. 3. It's about time, too, as Scott's brand of neo-soul reverie is overdue for reinvention. — M.R.

Justin Moore, Outlaws Like Me (June 21) When Justin Moore came on the scene with his 2009 self-titled debut, country music lovers were immediately drawn to his small-town charm and rebellious attitude. On his sophomore effort, Outlaws Like Me, Moore gives fans a hefty dose of both. Co-writing 11 of the 13 tracks, he has taken the opportunity to extend his artistic reach, digging deep into his personal life. And while Moore's current hit, "If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away," wasn't written by the Arkansas native, he makes the song his own very personal tribute to his grandfather. — L.R.

Peter Furler, On Fire (June 21) The former Newsboys frontman left the popular group in 2009, but he's always been more than just a band member: the Aussie drummer is also an award-winning songwriter and producer. Now he steps back up to the microphone with nothing to prove but a lot to say. It's his first go-round as a solo artist, and fans are excited to see where this new path takes him musically. — W.L.N.

3 Doors Down, Time of My Life (July 19) C'mon, what kind of summer would it be without a gaggle of Southern boys getting their post-grunge on? Also, did you know 3 Doors Down have shared the stage with both Lynyrd Skynyrd and Daughtry? Ukulele not included. — J.F.

Burlap to Cashmere, Burlap to Cashmere (July 19) It's not hyperbole to say that cousins Steven Delopoulos and John Philippidis, along with their BtC bandmates, turned Christian music on its head with their 1998 debut, Anybody Out There? Influenced by their Greek heritage and Brooklyn upbringing, it was 180 degrees from anything else happening in the genre. They seemed too good to be true, and it turns out they were: a sophomore album has taken more than a decade to materialize. But now they're back, this time with more '70s singer-songwriter influences. — W.L.N.

Helado Negro, Canta Lechuza (May 10) This Ecuadorian American artist (born Roberto Carlos Lange) has built a (new) name for himself crafting gauzy, gorgeous dreamscapes that might recall Animal Collective or Iron & Wine for some listeners. His new solo album filters field recordings and live instrumentals through synths and studio trickery. — R.D.

In Flames, Sound of a Playground Fading (June 15) These tuneful Gothenburgers have been quietly (yet also loudly) building a loyal Stateside audience over the past decade; their 2008 album, Colony, went Top 30 in the U.S. The new one, their tenth, is said to reject worn-out metal formulas, especially in terms of vocals. — C.E.

Ximena Sariñana, Ximena Sariñana (August 2) Her super-buzzy debut didn't quite live up to the massive amounts of hype heaped on it, but it did give the world its first glimpse of this Mexican singer-songwriter's impeccable songwriting skills, wide-ranging stylistic interests and honeyed voice. We can't wait to hear what she does next. — R.D.