Heaven Is Above Your Head

Holiday Soar

2010-12-15T15:37:00.002+01:00

Matinée Recordings have just released a holiday ep, that harkens back to the time of their Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter themed compilations of yesteryears. Back then, during my first few years of indiepop obsession, Matinée was very important. I think the first mp3 I ever downloaded was "Poppy Day" by Brighter, and subsequently Jimmy did a commendable job on introducing me to bands like The Visitors, Razorcuts, Slipslide, The Pines and The Fairways - bands that are still among my favourites. Today their roster is different, but in a year that hasn't seen many great indiepop albums released, Matinée again saves the day with Bubblegum Lemonade's new album (more about that soon). Another thing that was important about Matinée was their idiosyncrasy when it came to releasing vinyl. Not many other indiepop labels did at the time. Now that new vinyl is becoming collectible again, Matinée have returned to the format, and that makes me smile.

To get back to the ep, it features the best of the current roster, including Northern Portrait, Bubblegum Lemonade, and Laz' other group Strawberry Whiplash. And it is the latter's "Santa Needs a Holiday" that really hits the spot. Perhaps their best recording to date, with the catchiest 12-string fill this side of The Rain Parade. You can stream all the tracks on the Matinée facebook.

CLOUD 122 Strawberry Whiplash - Santa Needs a Holiday

Record Turnover

2010-12-09T14:02:00.000+01:00

As you can see, there have been significantly fewer posts here this year. This is not, like Matthew said, because I have listened to less music this year - quite the contrary, as you can see from the list of recommended 2010 releases that I just took off the sidebar and put into a post.

But, I now have a new blog where I post more frequently! I have finally moved to Wordpress and created a blog under my website, which is called Record Turnover and is about design and art, as well as music of course. Since Don't Die On My Doorstep is now finished, the new name will also be used as an umbrella name for all kinds of events I might put on.

HIAYH will still be here, and I will save longer pieces of writing (or reviews if you want to call it that) for this space, enabling me to post quick blurbs to my new blog. This also means that the heavensabove email will no longer be checked, so direct all inquiries to the email at www.kristerbladh.co.uk or leave a comment on the blog and I will write back to you.

Happy reading.

Christmas Shopping List

2010-12-09T11:28:00.010+01:00

This is simply a dump of my list of recommended releases in 2010. My Top Ten lists will be posted at Record Turnover shortly.

Albums
Standard Fare The Noyelle Beat (Melody/Thee SPC)
Warm Morning Too Close to the Stars (self-released)
Very Truly Yours Things You Used to Say (Skywriting)
Sourpatch Crushin' (Happy Happy Birthday to Me)
The School Loveless Unbeliever (Elefant)
Dum Dum Girls I Will Be (Subpop/Hozac)
Beach Fossils s/t (Woodsist)
The Magnetic Fields Realism (Merge)
White Mystery s/t (Missile X)
The Art Museumn Rough Frame (Woodsist)
Dignan Porch Tendrils (Captured Tracks)
The Splinters Kick (Double Negative)
Black Tambourine s/t (Slumberland reissue)
Boy Genius Staggering (Greenpop)
Ruby Suns Fight Softly (Lil' Chief)
V/A PVI006/IBB004 (Italian Beach Babes/Paradise Vendors
Allo, Darlin' Dreaming (Fortuna Pop)
The Soft City s/t (Plastilina)
The Lodger Flash Backs (Slumberland)
Woven Bones In and Out and Back Again (HoZac)
Male Bonding Nothing Hurts (Sub Pop)
Chin Chin Sound of the Westway (Slumberland reissue)
Knight School Revenger (Make a Mess)
Neverever Angelic Swells (Slumberland)
Best Coast Crazy For You (Mexican Summer)
Wild Nothing Gemini (Captured Tracks)
The Bank Holidays Sail Becomes a Kite (Lost & Lonesome)
Bart & Friends Make You Blush (Lost & Lonesome)
Ribbons Surprise Attacks (Electric Lights)
The Secret History The World That Never Was (Le Grand Magistery)
The Honey Dos Fine Thank You (self-released)
Ty Segall Melted (Goner)
Harlem Hippies (Matador)
Las Robertas Cry Out Loud (Produccion Automata / Art Fag)
Dolly Mixture Everything and More (self-released 3CD box set)
V/A Les Filles Du Crépuscule (LTM)
The Girls At Dawn Call the Doctor (Norton)
Math & Physics Club I Shouldn't Look As Good As I Do (Matinée)
Cats On Fire Dealing In Antiques (Matinée)
Tender Trap Dansette Dansette (Slumberland)
The Hepburns How the Fallen Are Mighty (Radio Khartoum)
Aias A la piscina (Captured Tracks)
Magic Kids Memphis (True Panther)
Dead Ghosts s/t (Florida's Dying)
The Vaselines Sex With an X (Sub Pop)
Jaill That's How We Burn (Sub Pop)
The Specific Heats "Cursed!" (Fun With Asbestos)
Bare Wires Seeking Love (Castle Face)
Grass Widow Past Time (Kill Rock Stars)
The Intelligence Males (In the Red)
Tijuana Panthers Max Baker (self-released)
Frankie Rose & the Outs s/t (Slumberland)
Shrag Life! Death! Prizes! (WIAIWYA)
Fabienne Delsol On My Mind (Damaged Goods)
Seeland How to Live (Loaf)
The Clientele Minotaur (Pointy)
Cinema Red and Blue s/t (What's Your Rupture)
The Ocean Tango s/t (self-released)
Royal Baths Litanies (Woodsist)
The Frowning Clouds Listen Closelier (Off the Hip)
Edwyn Collins Losing Sleep (Heavenly)
Eternal Summers Silver (Kanine)
Laetitia Sadier The Trip (Drag City)
Cheap Time Fantastic Explanations (and Similar Situations) (In the Red)
Dead Ghosts Live Tapes (Psychic Lunch)
The Fresh & Onlys Play It Strange (In the Red)
Cola Freaks s/t (Douchemaster)
Belle & Sebastian Write About Love (Rough Trade)
Vermillion Sands s/t (Alien Snatch)
The Unwed Teenage Mothers Blonde Girls (Play Pinball)
The Rantouls In the Village of Rantoul (Chocolate Covered Records)
Tyvek Nothing Fits (In the Red)
The Magnificent Brotherhood Dope Idiots (Magnificent Music)
The Loons Red Dissolving Rays of Light (Bomp!)
The Milkees Lovelever (Sazanami)
No Joy Ghost Blonde (Mexican Summer)
Pigeons Si Faustine (Olde English Spelling Bee)
Le Futur Pompiste s/t (Shelflife)
Phil Wilson God Bless Jim Kennedy (Slumberland)
Happy Birthday s/t (Sub Pop)
The Sugar Stems Sweet Sounds of (Bachelor)
Mighty Clouds s/t (Polyvinyl)
Pigeons Liasons (Soft Abuse)
Reading Rainbow Prism Eyes (HoZac)
Myelin Sheaths Get On Your Nerves (Southpaw)
Venereans Future Primitive (Tic Tac Totally)
The Felt Tips Living and Growing (Plastilina)
Crushed Stars Convalescing In Braille (Simulacra)
Bubblegum Lemonade Sophomore Release (Matinée)
Moonhearts s/t (Tic Tac Totally)
Personal & the Pizzas Raw Pie (1234 Go!)
Trembling Blue Stars Fast Trains and Telegraph Wires (Elefant)
Teenage Fanclub Shadows (Merge)
Golden Triangle Double Jointer (Hardly Art)
Les Bellas Belladelic (Disques Steak)
Miss Chain & the Broken Heels On a Bittersweet Ride (Screaming Apple)
Heavy Times Dead (Rotted Tooth)
White Fence s/t (Woodsist)
Super Wild Horses Fifteen (HoZac)

Singles & EPs
Beach Fossils Daydream (Captured Tracks 7")
Veronica Falls Found Love In a Graveyard (Captured Tracks 7")
Burning Hearts Night Animal (Shelflife 7")
Standard Fare Fifteen (Thee SPC)
Fair Ohs Summer Lake (Sex Is Disgusting 7")
Spectrals/Fair Ohs split (Tough Love 7")
Best Coast Something In the Way EP (Past Present Medium 7")
Vivian Girls My Love Will Follow Me (Wild World 7")
German Measles Color Vibration (Wild World 7")
The Babies All Things Come to Pass (Wild World 7")
Blank Dogs Phrases (Captured Tracks 12")
The Fresh & Onlys August In My Mind (Captured Tracks 12")
Minks Funeral Song (Captured Tracks 7")
La La Vasquez Hello EP (Captured Tracks 7")
The Girls At Dawn Back to You (Tic Tac Totally 7")
The Flips s/t (HoZac 7")
The Blanche Hudson Weekend The Rats In the Cellar EP (Oddbox 7")
Hollows Bobby Blueheart (Trouble In Mind 7")
Ty Segall/CoCoComa/White Wires/Charlie & the Moonhearts covers split (Trouble In Mind 7")
The Loves Sweet Sister Delia EP (Fortuna Pop download)
Summer Cats Your Timetable (Slumberland 7")
The Hairs Electric Virgin EP (Holiday download)
The Limiñanas I'm Dead (HoZac 7")
The Limiñanas Je ne suis pas trés drogue (Trouble In Mind 7")
Girls Names Don't Let Me In (Captured Tracks 12")
The Babies Meet Me In the City (Make a Mess 7")
Brilliant Colors Never Mine (Slumberland 7")
Box Elders Tiny Sioux (HoZac 7")
Metric Mile Since April Left (Holiday digital)
Young Michelin s/t (Bulle Sonore 7")
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart Say No to Love (Slumberland 7")
Tender Trap Do You Want a Boyfriend? (Slumberland)
Sea Lions/The New House Greetings From Oxnard to Tokyo (Violet and Claire split-CS)
For Ex-Lovers Only Coffin (Magic Marker 7")
World Atlas s/t (Magic Marker EP)
Coasting s/t (M'Lady's 7")
Pens You Only Like Me When I Tell You I'm Wrong (De Stijl 7")
Girls Names You Should Know By Now (Tough Love 12")
Comet Gain I Never Happened (What's Your Rupture 7")
The Fresh & Onlys Vanishing Cream (Plastic Spoons 7")
Cults s/t (Forest Family 7")
Sweater Girls s/t (HHBTM 7")
The Manhattan Love Suicides Dandelion Radio Seesion (Oddbox EP)
Colleen Green 4 Loko 2 Kayla (self-released CS)
Colleen Green Milo Goes to Compton (self-released CS)
Girlfriends Good to Be True (Ampeater Review digital)
The Cave Weddings Last Time (Bachelor 7")
Apple Orchard A Month of Spring (Haymarket 7")
Veronica Falls Beachy Head (No Pain In Pop 7")
Twig Hourglass (Fraction 7")
Comet Gain/Hello Cuca split (Doble Vida 7")
First Base She's Boy Crazy (Play Pinball EP)
The Mantles Pink Information (Mexican Summer 12")
Liechtenstein Passion For Water (Fraction Discs EP)
Nerve City Sleepwalker (Sacred Bones 12")
The Girls At Dawn/The Gaye Blades split (Norton 7")
Bubblegum Lemonade Caroline's Radio (Matinée EP)
Spectrals 7th Date (Slumberland 7")
Aias Aias (Captured Tracks 7")
Mazes Cenetaph (Suffering Jukebox 7")
Hanoi Janes Specks Ho! (Captured Tracks 12")
Weed Hounds Beach Bummed (Iron Pier 7")
The Blanche Hudson Weekend Hate Is a Loaded Gun (Squirrel EP)
Girlfriends Gov't Seizure (Aurora7 7")
Woven Bones I've Gotta Get (Hardly Art 7")
Minks Ophelia (Captured Tracks 7")
Ergquist 42,069 Secods With Ergquist (self-released EP)
Papá Topo Oso Panda (Elefant 7")
Wet Illustrated Born Stoked (Corvette City 7")
Zipper Visions (Cloudberry 7")
Zipper Last Chance For Friday's Badge (Bubblegum EP)
Sea Lions/Watercolor Paintings split (YAY! 12")
Fair Ohs Eden Rock (Sleep All Day 7")
Eternal Summers s/t (Chimney Sweep EP)
French Kissing Oh Suzanne (Sleep All Day 7")
The Hit Parade I Like Bubblegum (JSH 7")
Los Ginkas Ongi Ibili Pop-abily (self-released EP)
Still Corners Don't Fall In Love (Great Pop Supplement 7")
The Just Joans Your Pain In Nothing Next to Mines (WeePOP! EP)
Outer Minds Bloodshot Eyes (HoZac 7")
Outer Minds s/t (Plustapes)
Coasting Coasting (Group Tightener 7")
Black Time More Songs About Motorcycles & Death (Wrench 12")
Harlem LSD Saves (Matador 7")
Spectrals An Extended Play With... (Moshi Moshi ep)
Beach Fossils Face It (Captured Tracks 7")
Wild Nothing Golden Haze (Captured Tracks 12")
Sweater Girls/The History of Apple Pie split cassette (Cool In a Crisis)
Seapony Dreaming (Double Denim 7")
Dávila 666 12" EP (Rob's House 12")
Dávila 666 Mala (In the Red digital)
Fungi Girls/Indian Wars spliti (Psychic Lunch 7")
Fergus & Geronimo Never Satisfied (Hardly Art 7")
Christmas Scenic Beauty (Highfives & Handshakes flexi)
Christmas Metal (Highfives & Handshakes 7")
Guards Resolution of One (Small Plates 7")
Crystal Stilts Shake the Shackles (Slumberland 7")
Lemon Dots Girl In Motion (Labor of Love 7")
Girls Names/Brilliant Colors split (Slumberland 7")
Sticks N Stones Red Light (Dusty Medical 7")
Sweater Girls Pretty When You Smile (HHBTM 7")
Sourpatch Mira Mija EP (HHBTM 7")
Catwalk Bona Fide EP (YAY! digital)
Catwalk (Please) Don't Break Me (Captured Tracks 7")
Sunray Baby Honey (Strawberry 10")
The Splinters Blood On My Hands (Southpaw)
Vermillion Sands 20 Hours (Trouble In Mind 7")
Vermillion Sands Something Wrong (Hell, Yes! 7")
Vermillion Sands In the Wood (Fat Possum 7")
The Beets/Cassie Ramone split (Psychic Lunch 7")
La Sera Never Come Around (Hardly Art 7")
All Saints Day It'll Come Around (Art Fag 7")
Real Estate Out of Tune (True Panther Sounds 7")
Audacity Ears and Eyes EP (Volar 7")
Coasting/Reading Rainbow split (Atelier Ciseaux 7")
Soda Shop Farewell (Shelflife 7")
Ty Segall My Sunshine (Trouble In Mind 7")
La La Vasquez Buoy EP (M'Lady's 7")
The Sticks Under Pressure EP (M'Lady's 7")
Coasting Same Old Same Old (M'Lady's 7")

Guitar amp&

2010-12-02T20:43:00.003+01:00

Happy Happy Birthday to Me have some new 7"s out, one of which is Sourpatch's follow-up to the brilliant debut lp Crushin'. The ep contains four tracks and I think their music works best on this format. "Deli Dream" opens up like an almost Tiger Trap affair, an influence they're not only with anymore (listen to the fantastic Seapony for example). The other three songs are over in five short but sweet minutes, during which you can admire the cover - screenprinted, as usual, on thick brown paper.

Also out is the second single from Sweater Girls, now without Allan Kingdom in the line-up. Three new and exciting songs, but still with some of the worst recorded drums in pop history. The three, plus "Sweater Weather" are also to be found on split with The History of Apple Pie, released by new London-based cassette label Cool In a Crisis - definitely a medium that is more forgiving to their sound.

In and Out of Print

2010-11-25T18:19:00.002+01:00

It's twenty years since Happydeadmen released their first album Eleven Pop Songs, and probably almost as long since it went out of print, at small Swedish label Ceilidh. It actually is quite strange that it's been unavailable for so long, since it's up there with the first Popsicle album and Hep Stars' It's Been a Long Long Time as one of the best Swedish pop albums ever. However, this fact has given it a 'holy grail' status and it has also been virtually impossible to come by even in Sweden.

What about the songs then? Happydeadmen's sound was not really all that unique as there were plenty of other groups around at the time playing jangly guitars (The Watermelon Men, The Playmates etc.) but what separated Happydeadmen from the rest were their purely indiepop influences, while the other bands were part of the garage rock revival in 80s Sweden. The Watermelon Men had probably listened to American and Australian bands, while Happydeadmen sounded like British groups on Creation.

The reissue has finally been taken care of, by Swedish label Fraction, and it is a very faithful reproduction of the original LP, down to the pastel cover art. It includes the 11 tracks and has not seen any remastering. I seem to recall a Japanese reissue with some bonus tracks, but if you really want to hear the 7" version of "Silent Sigh City" you can always get the Classics: A Decade In Pop compilation which is still in print.

Perfect Pervert

2010-11-18T14:31:00.003+01:00

Photo by rezflicks on Flickr.

The Girls At Dawn are sadly no more, but before leaving us they gave us a fantastic full-length, released by garage authorities Norton. An album was a natural step after a 7" on HoZac, a 12" on Captured Tracks and another 7" on Tic Tac Totally (which doesn't seem to have come out yet). Up until now, The Girls At Dawn have seemed perfectly suited for the 7"/12" format and one of the reasons I've been so keen to hear the LP is to see if they could pull it off. And I don't think there's any doubt that they have.

Although the title (Call the Doctor) and the cover photo might give you associations to riot grrrl groups, these 12 pop songs are much more rooted in 60s garage and the few female performers within that scene. I suppose lots of groups can bash out 12 songs in 20-25 minutes, but what is most impressive about this set are the melodies - especially the vocal and harmony on "I'm Alone", and "They're Waiting" (The Sonics reference?).

The recordings sound as thin as a bad 7" rip on Back From the Grave (this is good, of course), with a touch of chorus on the guitars to supply that gothic touch which I guess is part of the idea of the band. "Reach Me (Don't Forget Me)" sounds like the most elaborately arranged one, and works splendidly with its 12-string overdubs during the breaks.

Norton also have TGAD featured on their Rolling Stones covers singles club. "That Girl Belongs to Yesterday" (never actually recorded by the Stones) is backed with The Gaye Blades' take on "Ruby Tuesday". The question is, what happened to "Fox In the Woods" which was my first favourite by the band? Whoah, my question was just answered as I downloaded the new (and free!) Tic Tac Totally comp. There is was!

Looming Clouds

2010-11-11T21:35:00.010+01:00

There have been at least three classic releases on the garage revival scene this year, and they're all by bands I haven't previously been familiar with.

First, and probably the the most criminally overlooked by me, is San Diego's The Loons. One look at the Vox and Rickenbacker wielding musicians on the cover could tell you that. And it gets worse when you find out they're a veritable super-group led by Mike Stax of The Tell-Tale Hearts (and the equally great Crawdaddy's and The Hoods, as well as being the editor of Ugly Things magazine since 1983!). In fact all the members streamed together from previous obligations in other bands around 1995. Having been on the scene for 15 years, this is still only their third effort. If all three bands in this post have to be pinned down to the sound of one year, these guys definitely have the '66 sound of Love and The Pretty Things nailed. All the songs are solid garage-psych, and in fact Glen Ross Campbell of The Misunderstood plays on a couple. I don't really have to divulge any more since the whole album is available on Spotify, unless you want to buy it from Bomp! of course. Oh,and if you like it you definitely have to listen to The Higher States' two LPs.

The strangely named Frowning Clouds however, are a bunch of fresh-faced kids from Australia. With two fantastic eps behind them, they now have a longplayer out on classic Aussie garage label Off the Hip. Listen Closelier sounds as authentically '65 as anything recorded at Toe Rag. Going straight for the r'n'b sound of The Rolling Stones and early garage groups like The Eyes, they manage to sound completely derivative yet somehow still magically exciting.

The Magnificent Brotherhood out of Berlin, are definitely the most psychedelic of this lot. Building on the reputation of 2008's acclaimed self-titled debut and a live lp, the release party for new album Dope Idiots was held only a few weeks ago. It sounds like they've found The Music Machine's fuzz pedal and a Vox Continental organ that The Doors scrapped in 1967, and the results are anything but mediocre. The album is self-released on green vinyl and can be picked up from their shop.

Mushrooms Cloud the Sky

2010-11-03T18:48:00.004+01:00

After two great singles, "I'm Dead" (HoZac) and "Je Ne Suis Pas Trés Drogue" (Trouble In Mind), French yé-yé time machine The Limiñanas are back with a full-length. It is the tastemakers behind garage label TIM (and garage group CoCoComa) who have taken upon themselves to release the LP, and their unique sleeve art is nicely adapted to the new format.

Musically, it's another home run for Marie and Lionel, with some help from their faithful guest vocalists Mu and Nadege. This is the best re-creation of the wild sound of mid-to-late 60s French artists like Antoine, Delphine and Ronnie Bird in recent years. It has been done before: April March, Fabienne Delsol, Cécila et Ses Ennuis... but it hasn't been done enough!

Most of the record stays within the lounge-friendly midtempo zone, but slows done on the "Bonnie & Clyde"-like "Berçeuse pour Clive". Since that was the b-side to their previous single, perhaps they should have left the a-side off this album, as it is very similar to opening track "The Darkside" (not a Shadows of Knight cover). "Chocolate In My Milk" mines the same Nancy Sinatra territory as their Italian colleagues Vermillion Sands, but perhaps not quite as skillfully. The duo are on top their game however, on the ultra-cool "Je suis une go-go girl" and the oriental-flavoured "Tigre du Bengale" (also included as an instrumental).

Pick up the 12-track vinyl (download code included) from the new TIM website now, along with the latest 7"s from Personal & the Pizzas, Wounded Lion and Vermillion Sands.

The White Skeleton Boys Have a Lifestyle I Can't Afford

2010-10-29T00:47:00.005+02:00

I never think that I am going to make a Halloween mix, but as you know, it has happened before. Here is one for 2010, with the cover being another Ngaio Marsh adaptation. It includes new nerve-tingling material from Black Time, The Limiñans, Vermillion Sands, Nerve City, Unwed Teenage Mothers, Royal Baths, Harlem, The Girls At Dawn, Outer Minds and Guards. And of course a few carefully selected moody garage numbers, like The Affection Collection track which is only included on a single compilation, Larry & Blue Notes' unreleased "Night of the Sadist" (censored and recut as "Night of the Phantom") and a track from Ludella Black's (Thee Headcoatees) second album. Through in a few classics from Skywave, Lost Sounds and Forbidden Tigers and you have a winner!

CLOUD 121 V/A - Grave Mistaken

Sight-Specific Site

2010-10-28T15:01:00.003+02:00

Here's something for anyone interested in design, I just finished my website www.kristerbladh.co.uk and one of the projects shown is one I worked at while in Auckland last year.

You may remember the brief: creating a brand and a marketing strategy for a festival, but I never posted the result as I promised. My proposal was a pop festival in Ponsonby, featuring bands like Summer Cats, The Clean, The Chills, Sly Hats etc. The marketing campaign (pictured) was inspired by street art on Ponsonby Road and I've had this photo on Flickr for ages. The piece also turned up on a street art blog around that time, and I found out it was by Component. Today, I found out that he has a website, where the same piece is pictured. Apparently he caused some controversy earlier this year when being arrested, while his work was included in the Public Access exhibit at Auckland Art Gallery!

HIAYH#14

2010-10-22T18:15:00.002+02:00

Slumberland have posted my new and second podcast for them, making it #14 in the total count. It's been in the feed for a while, but if you haven't heard it yet, you should head over and check it out. It's full of 12-string jangle, and even a couple of songs that not from the 60s: The Higher State is a UK band featuring members of The Mystreated and The Embrooks, and The Terminals is a NZ band with releases on Flying Nun and early Siltbreeze who returned with a new lp in 2007. Les BOF! is of course the Edinburgh hitmakers featuring members of The Thanes.

Bent Statues

2010-10-15T17:38:00.009+02:00

One of the most interesting new bands I've heard this year is Eternal Summers. Their first album Silver just came out on Kanine (home of The Depreciation Guild et. al), following an ep and a download single on Beko. Apart from the two tracks from the excellent single, the album includes 10 new songs showing a welcome diversity in songwriting and structure. The duo, augmented by bass and some guitar overdubs, manage to sound like everything from Brilliant Colors (expected) to Pylon (less expected) to Galaxie 500 on the closing jam "Bully In Disguise" (unexpected).

Black Time quite recently put out what is rumoured to be their last record. More Songs About Motorcycles & Death with the excellent cover art you can see above is a 6-track ep on Wrench, following last year's fantastic split with Ty Segall. Over the last five years the band have actually recorded a whopping 10 singles, most of which have been sadly over-looking. I've only heard four of them myself! The best tracks on the new ep is the "Psycho" homophone "Cycles" and their cover of Brigitte Bardot's "Harley Davidson" (how can that not be great?). She seems a popular artist cover recently seeing as Fair Ohs just did a take on "La Madrague"...

M'Lady's are as slow as ever, and we have to wait for the La La Vasquez 7" a bit longer. But Coasting on the other hand (Fiona of The Coolies + Madison of Dream Diary) have a follow-up to their M'Lady's single already, available from Group Tightener now. It pairs the instrumental "Coasting" with "Hot For Teacher".

There have been a few good gigs in Malmö for a change. Just saw Cheap Time, whose excellent new album Fantastic Explanations (and Similar Situations) is out on In the Red now (as well as the third Fresh & Onlys album). After their 20-minute set I picked up a flyer for a Cola Freaks gig next week. They're playing with Captured Tracks head honcho Blank Dogs in Copenhagen tonight and is another piece of evidence of the reversed trend in quality of Danish bands. They just released their first album on Douchemaster, and judging by the generous amount of songs from it on Myspace it's well worth a purchase - even if you don't understand Danish. Apart from that, they also have a great 7" out on the hip Rob's House label (pictured above) and a live lp.

And as if that wasn't enough, I've just updated the list of recommended new releases in the sidebar with a bunch of new items.

Accidental Knife

2010-10-14T18:08:00.005+02:00

Captured Tracks have just signed Catwalk! So hopefully we can expect some new music from them soon. CT have also released a new Blank Dogs album, which is actually quite good, and he's out on tour in Europe soon. Beach Fossils are coming to Europe too, hot on the heels of a new single. "Face It" is just as good as their album from earlier this year. The a-side has a bit more bass-heavy drum machine groove to it, while the excellent b-side "Distance" leads off with a droning 12-string riff. Whatever happened to "Time" by the way? Woodsist didn't seem to release it, which is a shame since it's probably Beach Fossils' best song. The Brooklyn group are playing in Lund on November 4th and Don't Die On My Doorstep will be DJing some of our fave Captured Tracks records along with the odd Sacred Bones or HoZac 7".

If you act fast you've got a chance of buying one of the 400 copies of this silkscreened Aias debut longplayer. Captured Tracks is offering this alternate sleeve (and white wax record) for early birds. Do we need to mention how great the songs are? Well, most of them have been on Myspace forever so you probably know.

We'll we back with more news on the Vermillion Sands and The Limiñanas debut lps soon!

The Sunken Cinema

2010-10-12T17:12:00.005+02:00

Is it just me or is Cinema Red and Blue the new Tyde? A supergroup destined for critical acclaim and collective ignorance... While The Tyde borrowed their musical bearings from The Flying Burrito Brothers and Felt, Cinema Red and Blue here cover The Chills and Vic Godard while having a track named after Jesse Lee Kincaid (member of The Rising Sons and writer of "Baby You Come Rolling Across My Mind"). The Tyde was formed by members of Beachwood Sparks, Further and Velvet Crush. Cinema Red and Blue is David, Anne and Philip of Comet Gain, Andy and the ubiquitous JB of Crystal Stilts, as well as Kyle (now also in Crystal Stilts) and Gary of the Ladybug Transistor. That Philip, who now lives in New York, also plays with Kyle in the excellent Soft City is perhaps only trivia at this point.

As it seems Gary has mostly acted as producer here, the album can basically be seen as a Comet Gain and Crystal Stilts collaboration. While some reviewers have played up the psychedelic element of this record, it really sounds quite close to a Comet Gain album due to David's overbearing presence and writing style, as Tim Sendra rightly points out. But there actually is a proper Comet Gain album coming out on Fortuna Pop! one day soon, recorded with Edwyn Collins. Far more interesting for late 60's psych fans is "Commin' Soon" on the CR&B myspace.

The best cover on the album is the version of Wreckless Eric's "You're Gonna Screw My Head Off". The least intereting one is "Brave Words" which just sounds too much like The Chills. Out of the original songs my favourites are the 12-string jangler "Melanie Down" and the half-spoken mess of "Jesse Lee Kincaid". The album is out on the eminent label What's Your Rupture?.

Cloud Pleaser

2010-10-08T16:18:00.003+02:00

[altered found image]

Who was Brian Arthur? All I can tell you is that he released a single on the relatively big Coral Records (Decca subsidiary) in 1966, called "What Can You Do With a Broken Heart" b/w "I'd Like to Know". The a-side was compiled by the Australian who goes by the pseudonym Gyro66 in 2003, on Teen Blast USA Vol. 2, and it's the closest anyone has got to recreating Roger McGuinn's unique Rickenbacker tone on record. It seems to go for about £50, but is it really rare?

CLOUD 120 Brian Arthur - What Can You Do With a Broken Heart?

Foxtrot Beta

2010-10-03T20:19:00.003+02:00

One of the most anticipated albums of the year is here: the self-titled debut from The Ocean Tango. Once again French/British composer and singer Louis Philippe has entered into a collaboration, but unlike the Huddle House album with Stuart Moxham (Young Marble Giants, The Gist) the Ocean Tango project sees Louis paired with Swedish group Testbild! in a more mutual and symbiotic fashion. Both parties contribute to the song-writing here, as well as vocals and instrumentation. The eleven tracks on the album couple Louis's soft-rock tendencies with Testbild!'s excellent feeling for jazz and lounge to great effect. Short interludes of not more than a minute ("Par Hasard") feel as justified as six-minute compositions ("The Ocean Tango"). It is a warming sound for chilly autumn evenings and an album that does not require attention but rewards those who give it theirs - undivided.

The album is currently available digitally from bandcamp, which also offers a package deal including a pre-order of the cd. If you are interested in acquiring this fantastic record on vinyl, you should answer this survey on Louis' website to make the pressing happen.

High Heeled Speakers

2010-10-01T15:43:00.005+02:00

My favourite new Spanish band since hearing Aias is Los Ginkas from Pamplona. Despite the unarguably twee cover of their first ep (above) they play melodic powerpop to rival the sadly disbanded Stolen Hearts. Of course, Spanish pop fans will liken them to TCR, Los Muebles and Zipper, but since I've listen so much to Hello Cuca lately, that's what I hear. The ep's got five songs on it, and all being equally good, it certainly makes one wonder how great their album will turn out to be?

Speaking of Zipper, their second single of the year (they're planning three, I think) came out recently on Scottish pop purveyor Bubblegum Records. It's a three-track English language affair called "Last Chance For Friday's Badge", an amalgamation of the three song titles. Opening track "Friday Night" was played at Indietracks last year, and introduced as a prequel to "Sunday Morning" off of their album 11. My favourite on the ep is "Last Chance" with its catchy major-minor chord changes.

Also out on Bubblegum is a new ep from Scottish 80s band The Hardy Boys. They've had a reunion coming a long time now, and here we get a taste of their new material in the shape of three fresh songs. "You're Just What I Need" is probably what the revivalists want: an upbeat, jangly sound, while the other two are more mellow with a fine duet between Johnny White and Kat King on "And the Trains Run On Time". The ep is called Under the Picadilly Clock and is available here. More importantly, the long-anticipated compilation of their older material is available from their own label for a mere £8 within Europe! Called The Hardy Boys Play Songs From the Lenin & McCarthy Songbook, it includes all the tracks from their lone 12" as well as the planned release on Egg (which appeared finally in 2005). "Wonderful Lie" is a classic that must be heard. Even if there is no relation to the Lenin and McCarthy label, googling it turns up this.

Old As the Till

2010-09-27T01:44:00.006+02:00

There's actually nothing new about this Monochrome Set 12", as Bid pointed out. Yes, of course the songs are old, but they have been released before (check out the Black & White Minstrels comp on Cherry Red). But vinyl lovers as they are, Captured Tracks decided these songs deserved to be pressed onto black plastic. All seven tracks were recorded prior to the band's first single "Eine Symphonie des Grauens". While the first side shows an overbearing influence from Lou Reed, on "We Are Zarbie" they are making what is definitely their own kind of noise.

If people are smart, they will buy this record so that Bid, who's still recovering from a stroke (without side effects luckily!), can comfort himself with an icecream. The Monochrome Set reunion is not far off now, starting off at London Popfest in February. It wasn't that long since the last reunion (for Cherry Red's 30th anniversary in 2008), and you can hear what Bid and Lester Square had to say back then. They'd only reform if someone offered them a lot of money or if it was something really special apparently, like playing the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Which begs the question, what was it this time?

Hopefully, the reunion will also bring some attention to the extensive MS back catalogue, and Cherry Red would do right to get the 90s albums Misère, Trinity Road and Dante's Casino back in stock. Perhaps a reissue of Jack (on Honeymoon, 1991) would also be in order?

I'll leave you with this great video for "Fat Fun", one of their best songs in my opinion.

Use Motion

2010-09-26T20:57:00.006+02:00

Chris of Knight School (and now The Bright Lights too!) teams up with Jed of My Teenage Stride to record a cover of caUSE co-MOTION!'s first single "Only Fades Away", making it sound like a lost Dennis & the Times acetate. Best unreleased song of the year? He made this video too.

Female Superstructure

2010-09-25T15:48:00.003+02:00

The last track of the second podcast for Slumberland that I just finished is the amazing "Please Stay With Me" by Charlotte & Emily from 1965. I haven't found any information about the artists except that they were from New York and released this one single for New Voice, the sister label to Bob Crewe's Dynovoice. Both sides of this fantastic release have been compiled (for example on the Lost Jukebox series and The Dynovoice Story 1965-68) and I recently heard the a-side, the haunting "Love Not Have I", and you simply must hear it. And look out for the new Slumberland podcast - if you're subscribed to the HIAYH feed you will already have got it!

CLOUD 119 Charlotte & Emily - Love Not Have I

Lost Cavalcade

2010-09-23T14:08:00.008+02:00

It's been more than a year since I last made any promotion for Don't Die On My Doorstep on here, so I thought this might be a good occasion to mention it. See, we've got the brilliant British band The Cavalcade to play for us next month!

The Cavalcade caught an ear or two when their first ep Meet You In the Rain came out last year. The Edition 59 ep For You followed suit, and by that time it wasn't enough to just compare them to The Clientele anymore. Perhaps The Shining Hour? Pebble Records just released their first full-length Many Moons, which includes four songs from the eps as well as seven completely new tracks - probably enough to make them the other half of a comparative pair. With its release, The Cavalcade grabbed the opportunity to embark on an ambitious European tour, covering Greece and Spain as well as Sweden. You can watch a video for the upcoming single "I'm Like a Ship Trapped Inside a Bottle" here, and all the detail about the gig in Malmö are here.

Support comes from Swedish group The Lost Homeboys who, like The Cavalcade, have released an ep on Cloudberry. On Rainy Days however, the band consisted only of Jimmi and Gustaf (of The Electric Pop Group and Tellus About the Moon) but they've now expanded to a fourpiece and have some new songs. They rarely play live, so we're very happy to have them come to Malmö.

There is no guest DJ this month, so to make up for it we've compiled a playlist for Spotify that you can play before you head out.

All the Newsprint Fit

2010-09-12T22:46:00.011+02:00

In Berlin I got to spend a few hours in the great shop Bis Auf's Messer in Friedrichshain, and I remember thinking they had most of the records I've wanted to buy this year. There was even a section marked Sacred Bones / Captured Tracks / HoZac / Goner etc... One of the things I picked up was a tape by Brown Recluse that I didn't even know about. The tape section was quite big, and items reasonably priced. This tape was the band's second release, while they still carried the "...sings" bit of their name. It's got 11 songs on it, all of them basic, early versions of tracks meant for their first LP. The Evening Tapestry should hopefully be out this year on Slumberland, and though this tape is naturally far from what the full arrangements will sound like, one can still tell that there is enough songwriting quality in there to make for a magnificent album.

In the meantime you should pick up the excellent Zombies-flavoured The Soft Skin 12" on Slumberland. Apart from this tape and the brilliant new Flips 7" (even better than the Bankcroft one!) I also picked up the first single from Chicago's Outer Minds. The cover of this HoZac release is unfortunately too hideous to show here, but the three songs are the best garage I've heard since Dead Ghosts, sometimes not a far cry from Count Five. I have yet to acquire a copy of their tape, which is out now on Plustapes, but I should. There are mp3s of two tracks off of the single floating around already, so I will direct you to their myspace, and instead present you with a Brown Recluse tape rip.

CLOUD 118 Brown Recluse Sings - Monday Moon

Visigoth Isthmus

2010-08-28T13:56:00.003+02:00

The new Intelligence album just came out on In the Red, making it their fifth. There are a number of reasons why I like The Intelligence. For one they have been going since 2003, when most beach bums who now want to be on In the Red were still in school - something the last album Fake Surfers seemed to comment on. Add to that lyrics that contains a considerable dose of that very same intelligence. Males seems less infused with the self-referential attitude of their previous record, except for the Facebook ditty "Like Like Like Like Like Like Like" perhaps.

On here you'll find a new recording of my favourite Intelligence number to date, "The Beetles", which sadly sounds inferior to the version on The World Is Lousy With Ideas Vol. 8. When I think about it, the production is what makes this album less interesting than say, Icky Baby from 2005, which is arguably still their best effort. Plus points though, for the total length being under 30 minutes, and for Lars Finberg's 12-string Squier Venus showing on the cover.

Beach Boys Are the Best Boys

2010-08-18T17:17:00.006+02:00

It's been quite a while since I posted an mp3 here, but recently I found a group that simply requires a post. I'm talking about Houston-based group The Coastliners. Apparently they still play together occasionally, as this article suggests, but they formed in 1963 and released their first single in 1966. "The Lonely Sea" was a cover of The Beach Boys song, with a b-side in the same style - which you can stream here. For their next single they were picked up by International Artists (later to sign groups like 13th Floor Elevators). The slightly more rocking "Alright" was backed with a more bubblegum number, "Wonderful You", which you'll find below. At about the same time they also signed with the Back Beat label, for whom they cut two singles. The first one, "She's My Girl", had the great garage stormer "I'll Be Gone" on the flip, using the riff of The Turtles' "Almost There". That song has been blogged here.

Their final single "California On My Mind" from 1967, is almost ruined by a phaser effect that is sadly typical of its time. However, the group's finest moment arrive with the b-side "I See Me", which I've already decided to end my set in Berlin with. Oh yes, I am playing records at the indiepop weekender in Berlin (September 3-5th).

The Coastliners changed their name to The U.S. Males after this, recording one more single in 1968 "Come Out of the Rain"/"Open Up Your Heart". These songs are included on vol. 122 & 125 of Lost Jukebox, so I expect to have them soon.

CLOUD 117 The Coastliners - Wonderful You

Tyrannies of Fun

2010-07-10T14:33:00.006+02:00

Matt Jones' Hepburns are back with a new album, equally well suited for the beach as for a quiet evening with the curtains pulled and fingers tracing the lyrics. It's released by Radio Khartoum, and as usual Alexander has done a good job of the cover.

I was actually surprised to notice that their previous album Trojan Hearse is already two years old. Especially since I felt it was their best work since getting back into recording in the late 90s. How the Fallen Are Mighty (a twist on 'how the mighty have fallen') builds on the feats of that album, managing to sound both instantly catchier and suggestive of a rewarding exploration of its themes and lyrics. The musical spectrum covered is wide, stretching as far back in its familiarity as the Goalmouth Incident ep (on "Vermouth" and "Growing Old"). "Writer Friend" and "Man Missing" retains the best of the urban soundtracking of Champagne Reception. Perhaps the new confidence is a result of Jones' increased collaboration with other musicians, most notably Testbild! from the Sweden, the results of which I hope to hear soon!

The title of the album is very fitting, full of odes to the odd and old as it is, but always with a finesse and perfection in delivery more fitting of Billy Childish's father than the child himself. The album also includes a tasteful instrumental, the name of which inevitably brings to mind Duffy's vibraphone tune for Felt, "Press Softly On the Brakes Holly". "Save Your Stories For the Police, Maurice" is considerably more interesting though.

How the Fallen Are Mighty will suddenly make you remember how much of the other music listened to or made today requires little thought to digest, perhaps like popcorn. This is more like pickled shark. And reading Alexander's note on the mastering and about not participating in the 'loudness wars' makes you want to give him a pat on the shoulder.

Also out on RK, is the second album from Leed's Cavil. It's a pleasure to be acquainted with them and I shall definitely give Laughing In the Morning, their first album, a listen if I come across it. That being released in France in 2002, it's taken the band quite some time to find a home for the new album. And Radio Khartoum, also being the home of Cessna, Anthony Rochester and Testbild!, is of course a very good home. Mares' Tails is a type of cloud, and its celestial and pastoral associations suggest a positive and warm musical tone, but there's not really that much in major key on the album. Most of it lingers in a meandering melancholy, like a sophisticated Iron & Wine or perhaps even Mr. Wright.

Considering I've listened plenty to all things Crépuscule lately, I must mention that LTM Publishing have just put out a new compilation drawing from the vaults of the Belgian Le Disques du Crépuscle label. Called Les Filles du Crépuscule, it features 20 tracks with female vocals. Among the many great selections you'll find Antena, Swedish translator Virna Lindt, Ludus, Mikado, Cathy Claret and Devine & Statton.

Beatnicks d'Occasion

2010-07-08T14:59:00.003+02:00

My new favourite non-Cave Weddings band is Dead Ghosts from Vancouver. If you haven't heard of them before, you'll find that they've put out four singles over the last two years. The one above is the latest one, released by Goodbye Boozy. I first heard them thanks to Bachelor's split-single featuring their "She Likes It" backed with "Tonight" by Smith Westerns. And as if that wasn't enough, next month sees the release of their first LP on Florida's Dying, who also gave us the Jacuzzi Boys LP.

You can listen to the new single on myspace, but I'd recommend getting the Bachelor split as well as their single "Holy Ghost". The a-sides dives into most amazing guitar/ride squall halfway and the b-side is the catchiest garage this side of The JuJus.

Braved Herring

2010-06-30T19:43:00.007+02:00

The first album by The Girls At Dawn will be released this summer by garage (reissue) label Norton. It will look like this, and by the sounds of their upcoming single on Tic Tac Totally (hear it on myspace) it will be a real corker. They've already put out a little something on Norton, namely a split-7" in the Rolling Stones cover series. They tackle "That Girl Belongs to Yesterday", and the 7" is shared with The Gaye Blades' version of "Ruby Tuesday".

Now The Gaye Blades is a band I've heard very little of but their legend is building in my mind. The Gaye Blades was Bobby Ubangi of The Lids and a Jared from Black Lips. 'Was' because Bobbby tragically died in cancer last year, which means the upcoming LP on Norton must be a posthumous collection of old material. That would be a good idea, since their two singles seem quite tricky to come by. Their track "Bobby Is a Lover" has become an underground (quite far under, that is) hit after the band was included on the Wild About Jenkem comp. Bobby released a solo album before his death, as well as a single under the name Bobby & the Soft Spots.

M'Lady's have some great singles out this summer too. We're still waiting for the La La Vasquez 7" but in the meantime you can pick up Coasting's hyped vinyl debut. Featuring Fiona from New Zealand group The Coolies on drums (she now also plays in Vivian Girls apparently) they're based in Brooklyn and started playing only a few months ago. M'Lady's site says the limited purple vinyl edition is sold-out, but I got one anyway!

Obscene Shorts

2010-06-12T20:32:00.004+02:00

Summer and no more school means posting should be picking up here! To kick things off, here is our mix for the summer featuring many old and even more new tracks. Make sure you hold your tape-player high above the water while swimming. Cover included.

CLOUD 116 V/A - Meet Me At the Beach

Last Time Around

2010-05-15T11:04:00.003+02:00

The Cave Weddings were one of the brightest hopes of 2009. Now they have split up and released a posthumous single on German label Bachelor. The a-side "Last Time" sounds like a rough demo, but it's really the b-side "Never Never Know" that makes this record truly amazing. Erin takes the lead vocal over 2010's catchiest guitar riff yet! Get your slab of pastel green vinyl now. You should also pick up The Elektras only single ever, one of few Bachelor back catalogue items still available. The cover reads "Rare girl garage trash from Munich 1963!", which is mostly true except that a more correct date would be 2007. Sadly The Elektras have also split up since several years ago.

The third single on my kitchen table is the latest racket from Oxnard's Maria. "Love Is Something I Know Nothing About" came out on their own Yay! label last year, and it's their best effort to date. I picked up my copy from the Fraction table at Copenhagen Popfest, but you can also order directly from Yay! of course, perhaps when that Watercolor Paintings/Sea Lions split-12" finally comes out? Up on the Yay! site now, is also details for an upcoming Tartans single that is going to feature my two favourite Tartans tracks "West of La Brea" and "Tarmac". Yay.

Cloaked Clocks

2010-05-09T17:19:00.020+02:00

Another great band from France - Alan McGee should reconsider! After hearing The Limiñanas a few weeks ago, it didn't take long until Brogues tipped me about Young Michelin, who just supported The Wake in Paris yesterday. Couldn't have imagined a more suitable match really! Young Michelin released a single on digital label Holiday last year, but for some reason you can't get to it now. Anyway, the a-side is also included on their first 7", which is available now from Bulle Sonore Records.

The latest (and perhaps greatest) release on Holiday is a new outing for The Metric Mile, who seem to have busied themselves recording new material and apparently have yet another ep coming up. "Since April Left" is a perfect spring single and puts them into a slightly more synth-pop mode, especially on the b-side "Stephen and Me" that approaches They Go Boom!! territory.

Band of the month at Don't Die On My Doorstep last month was The Soft City, a British band started by Phil Sutton of Kicker (and Comet Gain). They sound similar to Kicker (but even better!) and it seems my previous confusion of them with The Soft Set seems justified aurally as well as literally. Their first album is out now on Plastilina and includes ten fantastic songs, and my favourites are the jangly "Cold Hearts" and the almost Velocette-sounding "Capital Soul".

I just got a copy of Peter Parker's new single, which is a split with The Sexual Objects (ex-Fire Engines), and it is definitely the Peter Parker side that makes it a worthwhile purchase. "Pretty Living" sees the Lung Leg/Miss the Occupier outfit hone the hooks of their first single, which was also released by Glasgow-based Say Dirty. I just wish I won't miss another Peter Parker gig next time I'm in town!

The Ruth Ellis Swing Band stood for what was probably the most unlikely indiepop re-appearance of last year. They were kind enough to send me their new album, but unfortunately it's slipped my mind to mention it repeatedly. What is remarkable about it (except for a virtually unknown band with one flexi to their name doing a 'comeback') is how similar it sounds to their 1989 incarnation. Phil, or Fil, is now the only member of the band, and he once also played in James Dean Driving Experience. The album, called Swinging In the Rain can be had from the man himself here. If you haven't heard the two songs from the flexi "The Antichrist of Love & Hatred", you can do so here. (I played "Burn Your Books and Join My Life" on the radioshow/podcast last year.) Among the new songs, the standouts are the opening track "Can I Tempt You", which languidly jangles in nostalgia for those long lost indiepop compilation tapes (that they were occasionally on), just like "Like My Heart Still Shines", while "Too Near" sounds more like am angry mod beater filtered through The Jam, and songs like "Love's Got a Hold of My Heart" makes you think of a tinfoil Spacemen 3, even. A pleasant surprise to say the least.

Beyond the Tee

2010-05-06T16:49:00.004+02:00

As this is almost finalised, I though I'd post it here. A Smile and a Ribbon are heading over to North America for the first (and maybe last) time! We've got eight gigs as you can see, and we're playing with some great bands. We feel very privileged to start off our tour at the popfest in NYC, and I want to see virtually every single band. One of the gigs is the farewell gig of one of my favourite bands: Pants Yell!. It feels very special to play with them since both me and Kajsa hung out with them a lot on their only trip to Sweden, before A Smile and a Ribbon existed as a band.

To coincide with the tour, Cloudberry are releasing our new single and Roque will supply us with some copies for the tour, so empty your band accounts. We are also on the next volume of The Beautiful Music's Television Personalities comp, which is out soon.

Our friends from Malmö, Leaving Mornington Crescent are accompanying us to NYC Popfest and it feels weird that we will be playing next to legendary Swedish groups like The Embassy (whose mediocre live capabilities are as legendary...).

While the Silver Moves Around the Room

2010-04-10T18:00:00.004+02:00

Captured Tracks have done well in picking up the best new bands of the year so far, La La Vasquez and Girls Names from London and Belfast respectively. The former have done a 3-track 7" and have one more coming up on M'Lady's. Girls Names offer us a 12" with the prospect of future greatness in the form of a Tough Love release. But the best band bar none, that I've heard this year is actually French. The Liminanas, or The Limiñanas, have two singles out right about... now.

One is part of HoZac's Hookup Club and features the fantastic "I'm Dead", which could have been on the French volume of Girls In the Garage. The other one is pictured above, and while you are ordering from Trouble In Mind anyway (who have quiet cheap overseas postage!) you should also pick up the new single by Hollows. Unfortunately the 4-way split featuring, amongst others, Ty Segall's take on "2+2=?" (by Bob Seger System), can only be bought in person at gigs.

CLOUD 115 The Limiñanas - I'm Dead

Freudian Lip

2010-04-09T15:06:00.007+02:00

(Nice Decca adaptation, huh?) I just found out that Melbourne's Super Wild Horses, who appeared on The World's Lousy With Ideas Vol. 7 and also released an excellent ep on Aarght! last year, appear in an embarrassingly bad tv commercial for Australian underwear brand Bonds. I wonder how much they got paid for that and if Bonds really like their music. The group have a 7" on HoZac coming up, as well as their debut lp.

Bonds probably isn't the smartest company ever. At least not if you look at their logo:

Date With Separation

2010-04-04T14:52:00.008+02:00

It seems Malmö is quiet on the gig front until May. Mount Eerie and Deerhoof are playing in Copenhagen quite soon, but on this side of the sound there is nothing until the Best Coast gig on May 19th. Then there seems to be blitz of great gigs including Sic Alps, Bachelorette and Ganglians. I'll miss most of them cause I'm going to the US, but at least I will be helping put The Sunny Street on in June.

Great new singles have appeared in abundance lately - I'm especially excited about getting the La La Vasquez single on Captured Tracks - but a handful of albums worth mentioning have come out in the last two months as well.

First of all, The School have finally released that album that should have come out two years ago (if us fans had got what we wanted). It's available from Elefant and contains a whopping 7 new tracks. At least in my opinion, it seems a bit unfair to include all the tracks from the previous singles, because the fans will already have those. And I was looking forward to hearing some more new songs, especially now that we have waited so long and Liz and Ryan have practically got a completely new band together. That said, the news songs are easily worth their money! "Is He Really Coming Home?" is a sure-fire hit, "The One Who Left Me" is a fantastic minor key number that lifts the same inspiration from Love that Belle & Sebastian sometimes did, "Can't Understand" is proto-disco at its best, and it's fantastic to finally hear a proper recording of their sunshine pop classic "Summer's Here" that was on their first demo."I Love Everything" sounds like the kind of adorable ditty The Jerks would cook up (for those who are familiar with them, in other words went to the first Indietracks festival). The least interesting new track is "Hoping and Praying", a re-working of Peggy March's "I Will Follow Him" that is a little too similar to be really inspiring.

Mitch Easter is a name that crops up a few times a decade. In the 80s he played with his band Let's Active and put the finishing touches to The Someloves' powerpop classic Something Or Other and in the 90s he brought The Hang Ups and Velvet Crush into the presence of greatness. Boy Genius have just released their sophomore album, which, with Mitch Easter's help, is a great leap forward from 2008's Anchorage. It includes last year's pristine single "Blame Love" as well as 9 new tracks. A song like "He Can't Hit" reaches that much-desired state where the melody is so intimately familiar but still impossible to place, at least with more exactitude than "the nineties". Actually the album sounds quite a bit like pre-Velvet Crush outfit Choo Choo Train. "When Sunday Goes" could have been "When Sunday Comes".
Very Truly Yours have finally released an album! It's out on Skywriting in plenty of time before their appearance at NYC Popfest (along with e.g A Smile and a Ribbon...). The album is more of the same from their self-released Reminders ep from last year. The Camera Obscura likeness is even played-up on "Sorry to Say It" which is a dead ringer for "Teenager". While Reminders was a very slow and stately affair, it's great to hear the band tackle some mid-tempo tunes again. Opening track "I'd Write You a Song" is one of their best so far and the new version of "Homesick" sounds even better than before. Kristine's songwriting is brought to the fore on "Your Funeral" that has one of the most gorgeous vocal melodies since The Boy With the Arab Strap. I'm still hoping to hear some more from The Lorimer Sound too, but maybe that's hoping too much now that "Ballad of Growing Up" which used to be on their myspace is now released on the Very Truly Yours album?

Also, be sure to pick up the new Black Tambourine comp on Slumberland, which includes covers of Suicide and Buddy Holly as well as two previously unreleased originals. There's also a new Summer Cats 7" to go with it!

Slide Show At Un-Free University

2010-03-23T17:56:00.002+01:00

From Internationale Situationniste #12, 1967.

Treasured Seekers

2010-03-03T23:17:00.005+01:00

There are many love parades, but now there are two in pop. Graeme Elston's teenage outfit of course, and 20 years later a Sydney psych-pop group as well. Well, they've been around for a few years without me knowing: their first release, the Sunshine EP came out in Australia in 2006. They sound a bit like the cover - Pet Sounds-esque without the yellow, type closer to that of Odessey & Oracle Revisited, and the animals replaced by some obtrusive foliage (perhaps a reference to The Leaves?). In other words, a bit like this:

Like Brown Recluse, they know how to vary their approach a song, and you can hear all four tracks on myspace. I'll be enjoying "Six Months in particular while I'm waiting for their album to come out. They also have a little video for its first single over here. If you're on facebook, you can also see a live set consisting of the whole of Sgt. Pepper.

While you're at it you should also look up this:

These guys don't sound like their cover art, which should have looked like something halfway between The Golden Dawn's Power Plant and Younger Than Yesterday in that case. This is by far one of the best albums that came out last year and immediately convinced me The Higher State is the best 60s revival group in the UK since The Mystreated, indeed including two of their members. 12-string guitars are all over this, just like the debut From 'Round Here. On this one however, they allow themselves a bit more experimentation, which works amazingly well on the 4-minute "Wandering Through Fields of Green", sounding like it picks up where "Renaissance Fair" left off.

Designer Politics

2010-02-12T17:05:00.001+01:00

Object of Study for the next few months. Now I should cook dinner.

Plotting a Fever

2010-02-11T13:19:00.003+01:00

Some updates from the world of girl garage groups. Best Coast have released the first 7" of 2010! It's out on Post Present Medium now and features three tracks. Lead-off track "Something In the Way" is quite old now, but I love it as much as when it got played at Don't Die On My Doorstep way back in 2009. "Wish He Was You" and "The Road" are newer and definitely sound better recorded.

Vivian Girls tour the US again, instead of coming to Sweden like any other sensible band. A new 7" is available from their own Wild World label, as soon as they get back home I guess. You can hear the b-side wich is a cover of The Chantels on Myspace. Sounds great!

The Girls At Dawn have a 7" on Tic Tac Totally on the way. The a-side "Back to You" is embellishing their myspace at the moment, but no cover art has appeared yet.

Something For Nothing

2010-02-08T22:55:00.003+01:00

CLOUD 114 V/A - Winter Got Angry

Castle On the Corner

2010-02-02T21:31:00.005+01:00

It was a unique experience playing with Warm Morning under the scorching Piacenza sun at the height of last summer. Unique also, beacause rather than playing with the full band Andrea and Simone made do on their own accompanied only by their acoustic guitars. All the songs sounded new to me, but I assume they played most of what now make up their second album Too Far From the Stars, a self-released lp in 500 numbered copies.

Second album? Yes in 2005 the brothers released an album called Feather, another self-release, but then 6 of the 10 tracks (plus a new song) saw a more proper release as the Silver Rain ep on Shelflife, the first in the 1000 series and the first release by the 'new' Shelflife. A convenient way to get your hands on the remaining songs that made up Feather is to pick up the 3" cd that came out on Series Two last year. Or maybe not all that convenient, since it's part of their ep club, which means you can only get it as part of a parcel of 5 eps by different bands. So that's three of the four other songs accounted for, the last one "Diamond Lies" was on the compilation Series Two Vol. 2 in 2008. Last year a second ep was released on Edition 59, featuring three songs from the upcoming lp.

But now it's here! Definitely a progression from their previous work, it sounds less folky and more like sunshine pop. You can really hear the influence from Roger Nichols that they mention themselves. It is a very ambitious production full of lush orchestration and unusual instruments, and in scope I can only compare it to Butcher Boy's React Or Die among last year's releases. One of my immediate favourites is "Catch the Thrill" with its rim clicking smoothness. "What a Nice Day" is probably the closest to the sound of Silver Rain, all stripped-down folk-rock and banjo solo. "I Curse the Day I Met You" relies on ukelele and piano while building up a complex blanket of sustained notes. Below you'll find another great song, called "I'll Be Fine".

Also ready soon is The Rookies' second album. The Rookies is Italy's best garage revival group since The Others and features Simone on guitar and a singer that looks and sounds like a curly Lenny Helsing. They share The Thanes' love of Dutch freakbeat and on Out of Fashion - released on Teen Sound (run by Massimo of The Others and Misty Lane) in 2005 - they cover The Outsiders, The Bumble Bees and The Motions. There's also a version of the classic "I Want to Live" by Sweden's The Mascots, a brilliant take on "I Don't Care" by Thor's Hammer not to mention some quality originals. For the new album they've given up covers and have focused on developing their own material. The results, judging from the new songs on myspace, are astounding. I can't wait to hear the jangle of "Another Rainy Morning" on vinyl!

CLOUD 113 Warm Morning - I'll Be Fine

I Don't Know Where You Live But You Aren't Living

2010-02-01T00:08:00.003+01:00

If I were you (or maybe if you were me) you should pick up the amazing split cassette from Obeast Tapes (great name!) featuring Handglops and Sea Lions. It's only made in 100 copies, came out in November and not many are left! You can get it from Sea Lions' myspace, or Obeast HQ. This is how they describe the packaging: "Each tape comes hand numbered with full color, fold out, reversible j-cards and color labels on translucent blue tapes." Now, doesn't that make you smile? Well, maybe not.

A truly lo-fi release, it was recorded in a garage and the hiss is loud - even the download you get is a low bitrate one! It's quite an uneven split, with 6 tracks from Sea Lions and only 4 from Handglops. But since it's the Sea Lions side that makes it worth the purchase (only 3 bucks anyway, the artwork alone would be worth that!), who am I to argue? Only "I Wish I Was Lou Reed" is on their myspace now, but if you visited it a few weeks ago you would have heard the brilliant "I Loved Her So Much" as well.

No need to pout though, Sea Lions have uploaded 3 new very promising tracks: "Real Swell Time", "You Don't Know" and the Orange-Juice-class "A Cloud". According to the topmost blog post you can get a free cd or tape of songs if you send Adrian a stamped envelope! Maybe those songs would be on it? Also, both tracks from the split-12" with Watercolor Paintings that I mentioned last year are up for your listening pleasure. It still hasn't been released by YAY!, but since Sea Lions just keep getting better it will be a guaranteed purchase once it is.

Veronica Falls Into Lake

2010-01-28T16:43:00.003+01:00

So CT are finally putting out the first single by Veronica Falls from London. Since hearing the a-side early last year hopes have been very high (but also a bit hesitant considering the longevity of the members' previous outfits) for future material. "Beachy Head" on the Rough Trade 09 compilation fueled expectations even more, and I think that Roxanne really comes into her own as lead singer on the b-side "Starry Eyes". I haven't heard Roky Erickson's original (from 1975) but I can't imagine him matching this gorgeous vocal.

Another new CT release is the debut 7" from Beach Fossils, which is a nice taster for the upcoming LP on Woodsist. The a-side "Daydream" inevitably makes me picture an uptempo Real Estate (which is a great idea!), while the b-side sounds more like a slowed down variation on "Have Love, Will Travel". They definitely do better with the brisk jangle of the a-side.

Plenty more 7"s are available to order from the CT website now, including the first single off of Wetdog's second album.

Take Off Your Mask, It's Me

2010-01-23T23:49:00.003+01:00

It's been a bit of slow start to this year, or maybe I have just been busy finishing up one of my degrees and moving house. But the only great album that has come out so far in January is Standard Fare's debut The Noyelle Beat. Well, it's not really out, but if you pre-order it you get an instant download in mp3 or flac! And for only £10 - can you get a better deal? It looks like a co-release between Thee SPC and a label called Melodic, so I guess the Bar/None deal has been postponed or maybe won't happen. Who cares when the album gives us 13 fantastic songs in a comfortable 38 minutes?

It's no wonder the album has followed so quickly on the heels of the single "Fifteen" (that just came out on Thee SPC) considering some of their songs (including "Fifteen") are almost three years old now. They've been captured very well on tape, retaining the energy of their live appearances. Of which I was lucky enough to catch 3 last year, most recently at The Windmill in December. You'll recognise most of the songs from gigs (if you've seen them!), the ones that sound new to me are "Secret Little Sweetheart" and "I Know It's Hard" and they are both making me smile. A contender for album of the year already, innit?

Actually, I don't know how Standard Fare do it. They're just one of those three-pieces that seem to work organically and make perfect pop seem stupidly simple. In that sense they remind me of Bearsuit. But Standard Fare have a unique resource in Emma Kupa, vocalist and bass player. The bending vocal melody of "Wow" is something not many people would pull off. It's one of my favourite songs on the album, as well as "Be Into Us" - can there be more POP titles than those?

I'm also eager to hear Sourpatch's first album, which is coming out on Happy Happy Birthday to Me next month. And while Slumberland are having a rest Matinée have pushed out the first release of the year with The Matinée Grand Prix, a compilation that feels like a follow-up to The Matinée Hit Parade. While not quite matching the latter's promised "a-side quality throughout", it's certainly an essential companion to the two recent albums from Northern Portrait and The Electric Pop Group. Those both came out at about the same time, at the tail end of December, and the compilation features exclusive non-album tracks from both groups. Northern Portrait have contributed a beatiful slow number called "Stirling Moss" which is not far off a "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" in a racecar. Otherwise The Matinée Grand Prix is notable for three things: 1) the return of Simpático! 2) a new (yes, new) song from Math & Physics Club 3) the last Lucksmiths song to be released. The Luckies' "Get-to-Bed Birds" is really something - I think it's better than anything on their last album actually.

I just found out that Fireflies put out another free download ep last year, called Butterscotch. A co-release between Lavender and Music Is My Girlfriend like the last one, it should surely whet your appetite for the album that came out in November. I've been playing that lots since Christmas, and the ep is suitable winter listening too, with two songs called "Winter" and "Sledding"! But Autumn Almanac is even better. If Lisle had only varied the rhythms a bit more it could have been a would-be classic!

It looks like Fair Ohs is a band to watch in 2010. Their first single "Summer Lake"/"Almost Island" is out now and is a huge improvement from their tape as 'Thee Fair Ohs'. Our Days On the Pacific Rim, released by Suplex Cassettes (now revealed as the bass player's label!) was a tad too Black Flag-inspired for my taste, but the two new sides are upbeat POP with slightly exotic rhythms. Get it from Sex Is Disgusting now! There's also split with Leeds darlings Spectrals coming up soon, pre-orders are shipped from Tough Love in February.

Man Without a Movie Camera

2010-01-11T23:14:00.003+01:00

Now that I have finished my essay I can finally get around to posting my best-of list for last year. I had two late contenders in Northern Portrait and Fireflies, the latter whom had actually released his second album in November already. But the undisputed no. 1 is still The Mantles' self-titled debut lp. For someone with one foot in the garage and the other on a stack of indiepop flexis, this album couldn't have hit home better. They've managed the meld better than any other band who has tried it over the last year, and many many have tried.

1. The Mantles - s/t (Siltbreeze)
2. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - s/t (Slumberland)
3. The Clientele - Bonfires On the Heath (Merge)
4. Cola Jet Set - Guitarras y Tambores (Elefant)
5. Christmas Island - Blackout Summer (In the Red)
6. Pocketbooks - Flight Paths (HDIF Label)
7. Northern Portrait - Criminal Art Lovers (Matinée)
8. God Help the Girl - s/t (Rough Trade)
9. Liechtenstein - Survival Strategies In a Modern World (Fraction Discs/Slumberland)
10. Afternoon Naps - Parade (Happy Happy Birthday to Me)
12. The Crayon Fields - All the Pleasures of the World (Chapter)
12. Cats On Fire - Our Temperance Movement (HDIF Label)
13. Knight School - The Poor & the Needy Need to Party (Lostmusic)
14. Fireflies - Autumn Almanac (Littlemusic)
15. Pants Yell! - Received Pronounciation (Slumberland)
16. Butcher Boy - React Or Die (HDIF Label)
17. Vivian Girls - Everything Goes Wrong (In the Red)
18. Brilliant Colors - Introducing (Slumberland)
19. The Fresh & Onlys - Grey-Eyed Girls (Woodsist)
20. Pens - Hey Friend, What You Doing? (De Stijl)

Tough deciding between the Pens and Tyvek albums, but I've definitely played Pens more.

The Gig Worked But the Audience Survived

2010-01-04T13:07:00.006+01:00

So Northern Portrait managed to squeeze in an album release just before 2009 came to a snowy halt. And Criminal Art Lovers will definitely be on my end-of-year list, which I haven't finished yet because I had a sneaking suspicion this album would need to be on there. It's got 9 new songs, only their hit (well I understand if people would call it that) "Crazy" is a repeat. The album opens with the grand "The Münchhausen In Me" and immediately we can conclude that is the best the Danes have ever been. They even dare to introduce some glockenspiel towards the end, without tarnishing the grandeur. The song following "Crazy" at #3 is crucial to the album - it has to be of the same caliber as that, their now most recognisable tune, or the record would feel disappointing. Northern Portrait manage this commendably by putting "The Operation Worked But the Patient Died" at #4, a song frequenters of their Myspace have been able to enjoy for many months already. It is one of their slowest songs but also one of the most impressive. Another new favourite is the frighteningly titled "Murder Weapon", which jangles along at yes, a heart-stopping pace. The highlight of their live sets last summer, "What Happens Next" sounds good as well but lacks that extra boost the surprise attack of the Rickenbacker at the move into major key gave. What's this? "That's When My Headaches Begin" shows that the group is not without wit either, as Stefan sings "armed with these weapons of self-distraction" in a tender lament on the temptations of drink. The closing track "New Favourite Moment" (which we also got to hear live) winds up the album on a positive note with its exuberant picked guitar. It strikes the listener that this album, not unlike The Sundays in production, could well have been a radio staple if it had only been mixed and mastered more suitably, with a bit more low end etc. Thankfully it isn't, Northern Portrait stay just the right side of well-produced. If there's anything that needs more compression it is the collar of one's shirt.

Guitars In the Garage

2010-01-03T18:47:00.005+01:00

One of the best discoveries so far this year is Lydia Marcelle's other two singles. Her "The Girl He Needs" from 1967 has been one of my alltime favourites since ploughing through the Girls In the Garage series, but Rateyourmusic has two more singles listed. I've heard "Everybody Dance" from her debut, but it was nowhere as great as her second a-side "It's Not Like You", which you can find on the northern soul comp Wigan Forever (and also on Youtube). If anyone has the other sides, please let me know!

The other big surprise was Cécilia et Ses Ennuis, who sound like The Bristols singing in French. Their four eps all come from the same recording session at Toerag, so no surprise there. Their singer Cécilia Meneau also runs a record label and has played with the legendary garagepunk group The No-Talents, and later with Opération S. She also sings in garage supergroup Cécilia & die Sauerkrauts, that include members of the also French Les Terribles, The Mummies and King Kahn & the Shrines.

In other female garage group news, The Flips are about to release their second 7" - this time on Hozac. Their debut came out last year, and I was particularly impressed with "I Still Wanna Be His Girl" which is quite jangly. Otherwise they sound quite similar to Stolen Hearts, who are also great.

Late last year I also listened to some Japanese girl groups, like the amazing The Apricots, who Pierre told me about. I think they only have one album, called Swingin'! Smilin'!. Then The Bunnies, who have released at least two albums and are apparently still playing. I've only heard their second album Ooh Wee Baby, which was great but not as great as The Pebbles, who I finally heard today. They are from Japan as well, and Sympathy For the Record Industry reissued their first album in 1997. I don't know if they have released any more albums, but here is an interview with them. For a great introduction to similar Japanese bands, check out the compilation My Summer Love on Daiki Sound.

There Is Life After Birth

2010-01-02T17:24:00.002+01:00

First post of the year! And it's about time to clear up that list of recommended releases to the right. The last record to make the list, before I start one for 2010, is Santa Monica Swim & Dive Club and their mini-album Mild Honey (great Beach Boys reference!). SMS&DC is Tim Sendra, previously of such notable pop ventures as Veronica Lake and Madison Electric. According to Myspace, he's been using the alias since 2003. The seven songs on the record sound as playful as anything he has recorded though computer recording makes for better sound quality then the old 4-track. While not chronicling independent pop on the otherwise very dependent Allmusic, Sendra's got another blog called None More Twee, together with co-author Margaret. He's just posted his faves of 2009, so check it out.

Albums
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart s/t (Slumberland)
Pocketbooks Flight Paths (HDIF Label)
Burning Hearts Aboa Sleeping (Shelflife)
Pens Hey Friend, What You Doing? (De Stijl)
Wavves Wavvves (Fat Possum)
Shrag s/t (WIAIWYA)
Knight School The Poor & the Needy Need to Party (Lostmusic)
The Besties Home Free (Hugpatch)
Butcher Boy React Or Die (HDIF Label)
The Loves Three (Fortuna Pop)
Cats On Fire Our Temperance Movement (HDIF Label)
Tenniscoats Temporacha (ROOM40)
Camera Obscura My Maudlin Career (4AD)
Blank Dogs Under and Under (In the Red)
Blackberry Wine Modern Living: A Survival Handbook (Pony Proof)
Cola Jet Set Guitarras y Tambores (Elefant)
The Wave Pictures If You Leave It Alone (Moshi Moshi)
Woods Songs of Shame (Shrimper)
Eat Skull EUSTA Kill (self-released tour CDR)
Eat Skull Wild and Inside (Siltbreeze)
Liechtenstein Survival Strategies In a Modern World (Fraction Discs/Slumberland)
Bricolage s/t (Slumberland)
Girls At Our Best! Pleasure (Cherry Red reissue)
Mr. Wright Diary of a Fool (Series Two)
Cheap Red s/t (555)
The Relationships Space (Big Red Sky)
Let's Wrestle In the Court of the Wrestling Let's (Stolen)
God Help the Girl s/t (Rough Trade)
Slow Club Yeah So (Moshi Moshi)
The Beets Spit On the Face of People Who Don't Want to Be Cool (Captured Tracks)
Thee Oh Sees Help (In the Red)
Ye Olde Maids God Blesses Us, Mother Dresses Us (Art Fag)
Vivian Girls Everything Goes Wrong (In the Red)
A Sunny Day In Glasgow Ashes Grammar (Mis Ojos)
Tyvek s/t (Siltbreeze)
Ray Rumours Le Pont Suspendu (Stitch-Stitch)
The Clientele Bonfires On the Heath (Merge)
Pants Yell! Received Pronounciation (Slumberland)
Grass Widow s/t (Make a Mess)
Another Sunny Day London Weekend (Cherry Red reissue)
Hurrah! Tell God I'm Here (Cherry Red reissue)
The Claim Black Path – Retrospective 1985–1992 (Cherry Red)
The Ogdens Hellish Mad Rush (Firestation)
The Close Lobsters Forever, Until Victory! (Fire)
Ty Segall Lemons (Goner)
Afternoon Naps Parade (Happy Happy Birthday to Me)
Bunnygrunt Matt Harnish & Other Delights (Happy Happy Birthday to Me)
The Crayon Fields All the Pleasures of the World (Chapter)
Rose Melberg Homemade Ship (WIAIWYA)
The Mantles s/t (Siltbreeze)
The Fresh & Onlys s/t (Castle Face)
The Intelligence Fake Surfers (In the Red)
Christmas Island Blackout Summer (In the Red)
The Fresh & Onlys Grey-Eyed Girls (Woodsist)
The Procedure Club Music For Leisure Time (Series Two)
The Medusa Snare Cinderella (Squirrel)
The Pearly Gatecrashers But Wait, There's More (Plastilina)
Hollows s/t (Addenda)
The Gladeyes Psychosis of Love (Lil' Chief)
The Brunettes Paper Dolls (Lil' Chief)
The Manhattan Love Suicides Louder and Longer (Squirrel re-release)
Brilliant Colors Introducing (Slumberland)
Theoretical Girl Divided (Memphis Industries)
Real Estate s/t (Woodsist)
Wetdog Frauhaus! (Captured Tracks/Angular)
Tesco Chainstore Mascara Good Foundations (Bubblegum)
Voluntary Butler Scheme At Breakfast, Dinner, Tea (Split)
Box Elders Alice and Friends (Goner)
Fireflies Autumn Almanac (Littlemusic)
The Electric Pop Group Seconds (Matinée)
Northern Portrait Criminal Art Lover (Matinée)
Zoey van Goey The Cage Was Unlocked All Along (Chemikal Undergound)
Fungi Girls Seafaring Pyramids (Play Pinball)
Santa Monica Swim & Dive Club Mild Honey (Little Pocket)

Singles & EPs
Wake the President/Je Suis Animal split single (Electric Honey/Lucky Number Nine 7")
Very Truly Yours/The Understudies split ep (Cloudberry EP)
The Morning Paper/Moscow Olympics split single (Lostmusic 7")
The Specific Heats Back Through Tyme (Hugpatch EP)
Dum Dum Girls s/t (Zoo Music EP)
BMX Bandits Love (Elefant EP)
The Sea Lions Let's Groove (YAY! EP)
The Loves The Ex Gurlfriend (download EP)
The Felt Tips Bough & Sold (WeePOP! EP)
The Just Joans Love and Other Hideous Accidents (WeePOP! EP)
Electricity In Our Homes Silver Medal In Gymnastics (4AD 7")
Ipso Facto If... (Vinyl Junkie EP)
Dum Dum Girls Yours Alone (Captured Tracks 12")
Liechtenstein Everything's For Sale (Drill Building EP)
Mutating Meltdown Fantasy (M'Lady's 7")
Comet Gain Herbert Hunke (Germs of Youth 7")
The Voluntary Butler Scheme Multiplayer (Split 7")
The Bumblebees s/t (self-released ep)
Dum Dum Girls Longhair (HoZac 7")
Colin Clary Every Little Thing Counts (WeePOP! EP)
Brilliant Colors s/t (Make a Mess 7")
Brilliant Colors Highly Evolved (Captured Tracks 7")
The Mayfair Set Already Warm (Captured Tracks 7")
Blank Dogs Seconds (Captured Tracks 12")
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart Young Adult Friction (Slumberland 7")
Crystal Stilts Love Is a Wave (Slumberland 7")
The Bridal Shop In Fragments (Plastilina EP)
Woods Sunlit (Captured Tracks 7")
Little Girls Youth Tunes (Captured Tracks 7")
Kid Romance Fuck Punx (Captured Tracks 7")
Very Truly Yours Reminders (self-released EP)
German Measles Demos Sorry (Captured Tracks CS)
Little Girls Youth Tunes (Captured Tracks 7")
Vivian Girls Moped Girls (For Us 7")
The Artisans s/t (Cloudberry EP)
caUSE co-MOTION! Because Because Because (Slumberland EP)
Help Stamp Out Loneliness Torvill and Dean (Papillons Noirs 7")
Help Stamp Out Loneliness Pacific Trash Vortex (WIAIWYA 7")
Standard Fare/Slow Down Tallahassee split-single (Thee SPC 7")
Boy Genius Blame Love (Greenpop 7")
The Motifs People Like Us (Cosy EP)
California Gold s/t (self-released EP)
The Proctors s/t (Cloudberry EP)
Socialist Leisure Party Turktown Saints (Cloudberry 7")
Socialist Leisure Party Tactical POP! for Coffee Cadets (Shelflife EP + 7")
The Depreciation Guild Dream About Me (Kanine 7")
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart Higher Than the Stars (Slumberland 12")
The Champagne Socialists Blue Genes (Slumberland 7")
Eux Autres You're Alight (Bons Mots 7")
Eux Autres Strangled Days (WIAIWYA 10")
The Smittens/The Just Joans split single (WeePOP! 7")
Tender Trap Fireworks (Fortuna Pop)
Spectrals Leave Me Be (Captured Tracks 7")
The Drums Summertime! (Twenty Seven EP)
PENS/Crocodiles/Dum Dum Girls/Grafitti Island split single (Art Fag 7")
The Cavalcade Meet You In the Rain (self-released EP)
Brown Recluse The Soft Skin (Slumberland 12")
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart Come Saturday (Slumberland 7")
Sic Alps L. Mansion (Slumberland 7")
God Help the Girl Stills (Rough Trade 10")
Apple Orchard Leafy Lanes (Haymarket EP)
Wildwood Lights True Love Woes (self-released EP)
Real Estate Fake Blues (Woodsist 7")
The Mayfair Set Young One (Captured Tracks 12")
Grass Widow s/t (Captured Tracks 12")
Horowitz Super Snuggles (This Almighty Pop! EP)
Ty Segall/Black Time (Telephone Explosion split-12")
The Cave Weddings Bring Your Love (HoZac 7")
The Sugarplums s/t (self-released ep)
Strawberry Whiplash Picture Perfect (Matinée EP)
The Magic Kids Hey Boy (Goner 7")
Gregory Webster Promised Land (WIAIWYA 7")
The Girls At Dawn Never Enough (HoZac 7")
Woven Bones With You Alone (HoZac 7")
Ganglians Blood On the Sand (Captured Tracks 7")
Woven Bones Janie (Needless 7")
German Measles Wild (Captured Tracks 12")
Woven Bones Your Sorcery (Sweet Rot 7")
Christmas Island Nineteen (Captured Tracks 7")
The Cavalcade For You (Edition 59 EP)
Warm Morning Sleepy (Edition 59 EP)
Pale Man Made/Leaving Mornington Crescent (Cloudberry split-ep)
Leaving Mornington Crescent Corners (Susy EP)
Woven Bones The Minus Touch (Zoo Music 12")
Maria Love Is Something I Know Nothing About (YAY! 7")
Sea Lions/Watercolor Paintings (YAY! split-12")
The Mantles Bad Design (Slumberland/Dulc-i-Tone 7")
Stolen Hearts Heart Collector (Douchemaster 7")
Real Estate Suburban Beverage (Underwater Peoples 7")
The Blanche Hudson Weekend The Letters to Daddy EP (Squirrel 7")
The Girls At Dawn s/t (Captured Tracks 12")
Shrag Rabbit Kids (WIAIWYA 7")
Best Coast When I'm With You (Black Iris digital single)
Beachniks s/t (Captured Tracks 7")
The Garlands/The Sugarplums split (Atomic Beat 7")
Electricity In Our Homes We Agree Completely (Parlour 12")
Felt Letters 600,000 Bands (M'Lady's 7")
Fergus & Geronimo Harder Than It's Ever Been (Woodsist 7")
Fergus & Geronimo Blind Muslim Girl (Tic Tac Totally 7")
Fergus & Geronimo Tell It, In My Ear (Transparent 7")
The Flips s/t (Stankhouse 7")
The Metric Mile Trade Fours (digital EP)

Eight Metric Miles High

2009-12-30T23:18:00.003+01:00

Speaking of The Metric Mile, it pays to visit your favourite bands' Myspace! I recently saw that The Metric Mile released a new ep in November, called Trade Fours, following up last year's brilliant "In Praise of Ski Jumpers" single. This time it is just a digital release, but these four songs are more than worth a visit to your nearest digital store. The duo/group have proved an uncanny ability to follow up their original masterpiece How to Beat the SAT indefinitely. That ep was probably the best thing Unpopular released, and as close to The Wake anyone has ever got. Their self-released 7" from 2008 held two songs that were ever bit as good. And now, "The Difference Is" and "Legion" would easily have placed this ep on my end-of-year list had I only discovered it sooner! Plus points for the brilliant title "Tell Me In a Taxi" and the tasteful little 12-string solo in the opening track.

Lest the Decade Leave You Listless

2009-12-30T19:37:00.007+01:00

Thank you for suggestions about albums that should make the list of the best records of the decade. I have done some revising and ended up with a list of twenty. Ordering is always the tough part, but I think I am sufficiently happy about this to post it. A list like this ultimately says more about the person compiling it, in my case someone for whom the time period has coincided with that of my adolescence. The decade started two days after my 14th birthday and now I am 24. I have found that a lot of the albums that still mean incredibly much to me are from the first half of the decade, which was when my musical tastes formed. Several of those records I may not have discovered until a few years after they came out though, so actually I should have listed the year I first heard them. Also, surprisingly many of these bands have become people I have met or in some cases even got to know. Which is a good thing of course, since one's relation to one's favourite albums is a personal one in the first place. In fact there are only seven here that I haven't met a member of, and nine that I haven't seen play live. Here is the list, with a few words about each item.

1. The Clientele - The Violet Hour (2003)
The Clientele have released four albums so far, all in this decade, and they would all deserve a place on here. So them getting the first spot is not solely due to the merits of The Violet Hour. But since I had to pick one album I chose this over the perhaps superiorly recorded and arranged subsequent albums. It was also the first I got to know, having discovered them in 2002, so of course it was exciting to 'be there' as it was released. Another reason is that this is the only album of theirs sporting their 'original' sound. The basic three-piece with some guitar overdubs. Like Galaxie 500, they proved there is so much one can do with this basic setting, when all three musicians work together. It is also the Clientele album that contains their longest song, "The House Always Win", which I have been fortunate enough to hear live, on my own request. I'm thankful I've got to see them four times this decade, got to interview them the second time round, and have enjoyed talking to at least Alasdair and James the last three. The personalities of the band members perhaps shouldn't be allowed to influence this list, but I can't stop it.

2. Camera Obscura - Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi (2002)
In 2003, Camera Obscura seemed like a viable alternative to B&S, who had started down the path to a new sound with Dear Catastrophe Waitress. Underachievers Please Try Harder was the first album I got, but I was quick to pick up their debut album as well. Perhaps the songwriting had improved on their second album, but Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi seemed more endearing in its more unified sound and Tracyanne's still undeveloped voice. Furthermore, it was even closer to the early B&S, with whom they had once shared a drummer, and Stuart Murdoch was said to have 'produced' the record, as well as writing the lush string arrangements for "Eighties Fan". What would they have become without this endorsement? I think they released an album at just the right time. They debuted with their If You're Feeling Sinister, if you will. Judging by their early singles, had they released a Tigermilk before that, it wouldn't have been nearly as compelling. The single version of "Eighties Fan" really sounds tame compared to the album recording. The first time I went to Glasgow, I got to meet Gavin who still worked in Avalanche, but it took until the summer of 2006 before I got to see them play, by which time they had stopped performing most of their early material.

3. The Fairways - Is Everything All Right? (2000)
I was relatively late to pick up on The Fairways, well at least until after they had split up. Since then I have been obsessed with all of Kenji's projects, including Skypark, Uni, The Young Tradition and Clayhips. This album is the closest he ever got having a real, organic group around him, the fruit of which was one of the best recorded and most solid albums ever. I would have liked to see Skypark's material recorded in the same fashion, but on this album it is still Kenji's beautifully breathy voice and Leavitt's clear and full lead guitar that take the main stage. I finally got to meet Kenji in July, now strangely enough as Shelflife Records label mates. But unfortunately I will never get to see The Fairways live.

4. Belle & Sebastian - Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant (2000)
Unlike Reeling At All, who also have this album on a similar list, my relationship to this album is not very problematic. After all, I didn't hear B&S until 2002 I think, and listened to the first four albums with exactly the same expectations and on the same conditions. Naturally, I could only accept things that older B&S fans would find peculiar, such as the ridiculously long album title, the several songs not written and sung by Stuart and the slightly different sound. And although I don't love it as unconditionally all the way through as I do the first three records, it was still immensely important to me. Those four albums had a combined effect on me that I still think is more important than anything that has affected me in my life. Perhaps it is idiotically romantic to call a musical thing the most important thing in one's life, or maybe just selfish. But it is equally impossible for me to rate this album in a rational way. I have been forced to give it a number here, but really that doesn't mean more than giving my right arm a #4 in a list of my body parts, ordered by importance.

5. The Lucksmiths - Why That Doesn't Surprise Me (2002)
Along with say, B&S, Hefner and Pavement (and yes, probably Bright Eyes as well), The Lucksmiths was among the most important bands to me for a few years. Only months after hearing B&S I borrowed this album at the library in town, where I used to go to take out 10 new cds every other week. It seems forever imbued with the warmth and sunshine of that summer, the uncommonly full bass guitar as round and bouncy as the sand on our local beach. Again, this album was recorded by the time the group had perfected the recording and mixing process, making it sound different than previous, perhaps more popular records among the Lucksmiths fanbase. After all, they'd been together for about 10 years at this point, and not surprisingly they'd left behind that sometimes tinny sound and had muted the outrageous witticisms slightly. While still quite basic, the songwriting here is impeccable and along with the first B&S albums, this is what I looked to when I tried to learn how to play guitar. Luckily The Lucksmiths (sorry, it rubs of easily) like Sweden and I got to see them here three times before their final European tour this year, on which I (incredulously) got to support them twice. It was truly amazing to spend two days together with these guys, who bring a new meaning to 'nice'.

6. Language of Flowers - Songs About You (2004)
2004 was another important year, during which I started uni and pretty much never saw any of my school mates again. A large part of the year was soundtracked by Language of Flowers, whom I had heard started out in Belfast of all places. Like many bands that I discovered at the time, I first heard them through the then essential radio show P3 Pop on national radio, at the time presented by Hanna Fahl (later in Kissing Mirrors). The song was "Tara Mascara", which sounds slightly different than the rest of the album, but perhaps closest to what they wanted to sound like. I vaguely remember The Smiths being mentioned on the radio, and when I later got to interview them (for the student radio) they mentioned The Smiths, Heavenly and (particularly their lead guitarist) Jim Beattie-era Primal Scream as bands they wanted to sound like. It is an archetypal indiepop album, but to me it sounds like neither of those groups. In a review I wrote of the album (maybe the first proper one I ever wrote) I likened them instead to Lush, due to the chorus-tinged guitar sound. Lush was a band I had listened to plenty in 2004 and 2003, and Songs About You (including "Tara Mascara", but excluding "Christmas") could well have been the last Lush album, had it sounded a bit more like Split, but still been as poppy. Language of Flowers was always a band better at drinking than playing live (even though they tried to combine these two practices on occasion), but I much enjoyed both gigs I saw them do. Two of the members have carried on making music, check out Help Stamp Out Loneliness if you haven't already heard them.

7. Vivian Girls - Vivian Girls (2008)
In the future, I predict it will be difficult to justify the prominent position of this record. But at the time (and still now to some extent) VG was just a band I instinctively and wholeheartedly loved, in the same way I had loved The Ramones in high school. There is no question that the album was a watershed, and it was also my natural favourite of last year. Back then a lot of the hip indie music (cf. Pitchfork) seemed caught in an experimenting post-Animal Collective acid-folk soup, and the bread was getting stale. No one can claim that what VG did was new and unique, but it was badly needed. Perhaps they have now played out their role (even though this year's second album is great too) because now not only all the bedroom bands in Brooklyn sound like they have never listened to anything else than The Clean, JAMC and Black Tambourine, but bands across the US and increasingly in Europe as well. I got to see VG twice (during one day!) and I still want them to tour Sweden properly, but they should have done it last year.

8. Pants Yell! - Alison Statton (2007)
Another band I have turned out to form a very personal relationship with is Pants Yell!, who almost came to mean as much to me as B&S during that otherwise unremarkable summer of 2006 when they came to Sweden. We were several eager fans who spent the days of the Emmaboda festival and the subsequent alldayer in Bräkne-Hoby (pictured on the cover of Alison Statton), hanging out with Carly, Andrew and Sterling. Their second album Recent Drama just having been released, expectations on their live show were high. It goes without saying that they didn't disappoint. That was also the first I heard of their new material, which was going to form part of the next album. Alison Statton finally came out at the end of the following year and in my end-of-year list it was only trumped by the majestic God Help the Clientele. It was about twice as ambitious as Recent Drama and I have expounded my love for it at length on here before. It is a very important album in my eyes, and having a song named after one of mine was of course very special.

9. Pipas - Chunnel Autumnal (2000, reissued 2006)
Pipas' A Short Film About Sleeping was probably the first indiepop 7" I bought, must have been 2004. It left a lasting impression on me to say the least. When they came to Sweden later that year (with Alice of Arthur and Martha in tow), we were quick to attack them with microphones - and even convinced them to record a couple of tracks in the radio studio. I must see if I can find them, the version of "Amsterdam" was heartbreaking! Chunnel Autumnal had come out on their own microscopic label Long Lost Cousin and had sold out well before 2004. So I guess I didn't hear it until 2006, but that only meant I cherished it all the more. Because all Pipas records, except perhaps A Cat Escaped, would merit a place here. Another Pipas record feels unlikely, but then again the brilliant Sorry Love was recorded long distance.

10. The Saturday People - The Saturday People (2001)
The first Slumberland release on the list and the first band I have met no members of, although we used to see Ara around a bit when he was studying in Lund. And of course I have seen Terry Banks' old band St. Christopher after their comeback. A true allstar indiepop group and I won't even bother to list the other bands these guys have been in. The main songwriters seem to have been Banks and Greg Pavlovcak, and admittedly they sound a bit like Tree Fort Angst and a lot like The Castaway Stones. But this group is greater than the sum of its parts and the 15 tracks on the album skillfully blend clattery Slumberland vintage with 60s garage sounds. They do a masterful take of Jan & Dean's "Lullaby In the Rain" and manage to match its beauty with the original "Working For the Weekend".

11. The Aislers Set - The Last Match (2000)
The Aislers Set is a band I have neglected the last few years. Perhaps I never got over the fact I missed my only chance to see them live, was it in 2003? But whenever I listen to their records I am reminded of how much I liked them and 12-string guitars before I could recognise the sound of one. I prefer this record to the other one they released this decade, How I Learned to Write Backwards. And they still seem strangely overlooked by the kids, even though half the new bands on Slumberland and Captured Tracks sound like them.

12. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - The Pains of Being Pure At Heart (2009)
One of the best things I have done is to put on a gig for this band in Malmö, and the whole thing happened more out of luck than anything else since they had already far outgrown gigs of that size. But unlike Vivian Girls, it had taken a while for POBPAH to catch on. When their first ep came out in 2007 it seemed unlikely that they would go further than other bands on Cloudberry. The Metric Mile that Peggy played with before are still virtually unknown. But clearly, we weren't the only ones who liked their instantly appealing pop songs. People had lived with these songs a long time by the time the record came out, its release probably delayed by all the touring. And we can argue about the production of the album, whether the ep versions sounded better etc, but they are still the same songs, and they are still great. It will be interesting to see if they can follow it up, without trying to please as many people as possible.

13. The Relict - Tomorrow Is Again (2003)
This might be a surprising choice, or merely a way to get more Clientele on the list. But I just love Innes Phillips' songs, The Relict being the vehicle for his songwriting after leaving The Clientele (before they released their first single). It usually includes members of said band and other London scenesters and in fact, a few songs have been released as both The Relict and The Clientele songs (cf. the latter's It's Art Dad demos compilation). One of the joys of the record is hearing two of the best female voices in indiepop harmonising together: Lupe from Pipas and Pamela from The Pines etc. The album followed a string of 7"s and splits and contains some of the same songs but in new versions with vastly improved sound quality and the added benefit of Mark Keen's metronomic drum sticks. And the record label Vegas Morn is clearly a reference to Felt. Any more Relict material has not appeared since - did Innes move to Australia?

14. Louis Philippe - An Unknown Spring (2007)
Philippe (or Auclair in real life) has worked with The Clientele since Strange Geometry, and for An Unknown Spring Alasdair and Mel returned the favour. It was his first album since The Wonder of It All in 2004, when I first encountered his music. The new album was similarly financed (by subscription) but couldn't have been more different. The Wonder of It All didn't impress me much and it took a couple of years for me to work through his back catalogue, starting at él Records in 1986 (at least for his solo recordings). The Louis Philippe of the 90s verged sometimes on cheesiness in his polished sound, but An Unkown Spring avoided the wince-worthy keyboard sounds and was also his most complex and ambitious work since 1989's Yuri Gagarin. It is so much more accomplished than most popular music it almost feels out of place on this list.

15. Slipslide - The World Can Wait (2003)
Matinée was the first indiepop label I got into, primarily due to the generous offerings of their sounds page. Two of the first mp3s I downloaded were Slipslide's "Eden" and "Baked Alaska". I had no idea the former was actually a new version of the Eva Luna song. Since then I have grown to love all of Graeme Elston's previous groups, including Eva Luna. Compared to his teenage group Love Parade, the sound of Slipslide's only album is very grown-up. But at the time it was the best album Matinée had put out. It's got a very nostalgic sound, the 12-string guitars somehow reminding me of watching tv as a child. It is actually quite similar to the first Stone Roses album, without the 'hits'. Graeme's voice sounds better than it ever did and the production is spot on. Slipslide proved they still have the knack to bash out jangly goodness with "Let Things Fall Apart" on The Matinée Hit Parade from a couple of years ago, but I am quite content if they remain a one-album-wonder - much like The Bodines, whose "Slip Slide" single they might feasibly have culled their name from.

16. The Motifs - Away (2007)
Now here's a problem for you list makers: The Motifs released their first album Dots in 2006 (50 copies made), Away was released in Japan the next year, featuring the same songs plus 10 more! Are they both individual albums? Last year their first release back home in Australia came out, a 23-track lp featuring songs from all previous releases and three new songs. I decided to call the latter a compilation, and since Dots was only a limited cdr I have put Away on this list. That The Motifs should even be on the list is indisputable of course. I like them as much as I have ever loved Pipas, and I cherish the four songs I got to hear live in Melbourne a few months ago.

17. The Airfields - Up All Night (2008)
I am certain the first album from The Airfields impressed everyone who heard it. Sure, the Laneways 10" was great, but to me Up All Night keeps a first class standard all the way through in a way not even The Field Mice managed on their full lengths. It came out at the perfect time of year as well, winter. This year has been sadly lacking in Airfields action - when is the next single coming out? It does not look probable that I will go to Canada in the next decade, so I hope they will come to me (or at least somewhere a bit closer).

18. Pocketbooks - Flight Paths (2009)
Neither Pocketbooks nor POBPAH got the first spot in my best-of-2009 list (coming soon), but out of all the albums released this year, I think Flight Paths is the one of the most enduring quality. A timeless album in other words. Lyrically compact, perfectly recorded by Simon Trought, I can't see myself tiring of it. Pocketbooks as a band have improved at an incredible rate since 2006. They have perfected their craft and I am greatly looking forward to the next album, and hopefully more gigs in Sweden. I admit I might be biased here, but getting to design the sleeve was purely an honour.

19. Niza - Canciones de Temoporada (2002)
With the amount of Spanish pop I have been listening to the last two years, this list must inevitably include something of Spanish origin. I didn't discover Niza until late last year I think, but immediately I started searching for a copy of their only album, released by Elefant. The record is indeed as classy as Grego Soria's cover art suggests, and actually sounds more like a Siesta production. Madrid-based Uke is their new project and I wanted play with them on A Smile and a Ribbon's summer tour, but unfortunately we never got as far as Spain. And, if you still haven't seen this video, you simply must.

20. The Autumn Leaves - Long Lost Friend (2008)
And the last spot goes to The Autumn Leaves, who made an unlikely comeback last year with their first album in 7 years. Treats and Treasures is one of my favourites of the 90s and this their third and last album is just as good. Their Byrds/Leaves-inspired folkrock works perfectly because the songwriting is so strong. They also manage the best Bee Gees cover (and you know there are many) I have ever heard. This is hardly an indiepop record, but essential for any lover of acoustic and Rickenbacker 12-strings. It doesn't have to be done differently than it was in 1966 to be of interest in this decade, which is hereby over.

Fed Pop Stars

2009-12-27T17:10:00.003+01:00

Been listening to Dolly Mixture singles today, and I can't seem to find that website that had all the demos and live stuff. So in case anyone missed it here is their intended (or so I've read) first single "Dead Rainbow". It's mentioned on Wikipedia as a cover, but that can't be right. It may well be that it is about Gary Glitter though. In any case here it is, in lo-fi mp3 form. I can understand if the members are hesitant to re-releasing their 'white album' since the sound quality of the demos seems to have been average even on the original pressing. But why not a singles compilation? After all, "Everything and More" and "Remember This" are among the best singles of the 80s.

CLOUD 112 Dolly Mixture - Dead Rainbow

An Inch a Month

2009-12-26T14:37:00.007+01:00

All in all it's been a pretty good year - for singles. I had trouble narrowing my list of favourites down to 20 even! And here it is.

1. Spectrals - Leave Me Be b/w Suit Yourself (Captured Tracks)

I knew this was going to be the single of the year, soon as I found it on Myspace through the CT profile in the spring. I've played it pretty much everywhere I've been and finally getting it on 7" vinyl only makes me like it more.

2. Christmas Island - Nineteen b/w Twenty Nine (Captured Tracks)

CT nails the two first positions, Christmas Island coming second with their brilliant 'conceptual' single about life a decade apart. The a-side is the normal "growing up in a small town, nothing ever happens" story while the latter is quite a heartfelt look at aging, both sides in the form of breakneck pop riding on rollercoaster melodies. The two sides of the sleeve seem to picture the band's two main members as nerdy school kids - I like it!

3. The Cave Weddings - Bring Your Love b/w Let's Drive (HoZac)

Brogues tipped me about this one. A perfect garage-pop single with two stunning tracks. I was too late to get the limited coloured vinyl, but that hasn't stopped me from constantly flipping this over to decide which track is the best.

4. Best Coast - When I'm With You b/w This Is Real (Black Iris)

Apparently you can get this as a vinyl 7" - by winning some sort of competition that involves signing up to Lala. No way Black Iris! Well miss Best Coast is already recording the full length, and the singles will probably be on there too. This is by far the best of her three offerings in the 7" racks this year.

5. The Magic Kids - Hey Boy b/w Good to Be (Goner)

The Magic Kids came from nowhere and made the best indiepop single in ages. Call them Beach Boys ripoffs, but Bryan Wilson himself would tear his hair (if he still has any) to write songs as good as this again. I want more!

6. The Sea Lions - Let's Groove EP (YAY!)

Adorned with what is probably the best sleeve of this bunch, The Sea Lions debut disc is an instrumental pop monster. The b-sides prove they know their way around a vocal as well - these are three perfect This Poison!esque stormers. A new split with Watercolor Paintings is already out, but I haven't got it yet.

7. Very Truy Yours - Reminders CDEP (self-released)

This hand-crafted beauty holds five polished numbers that sound more like Camera Obscura than they do themselves these days. Quite a mellow bunch of tunes, but perfect for the late autumn.

8. The Garlands/The Sugarplums - split EP (Atomic Beat)

This should be available on the Atomic Beat website as soon as they've got some inserts printed. You can't say no to two new tracks from Roger Gunnarsson's The Garlands, but The Sugarplums prove their worth too on their first proper release. Get their CDR ep if you crave more.

9. German Measles - Wild 12" (Captured Tracks)

German Measles promised unbelievably much with the CT demo cassette, and Gary Olson has done a good job getting this party mayhem down on tape (analog I should hope). GM would be nothing without their enigmatic frontman, who lands just the right side of luny on "Totally Wild". Desperate Bicycles if they recorded for Brent (or pick your own obscure 60s garage label).

10. The Girls At Dawn - s/t 12" (Captured Tracks)

A big step up from the first 7" on HoZac, these four songs so good I can't wait for their album coming out next, and all the other upcoming goodies listed on their Myspace. "Tomorrow Will Be Yesterday" would have been one of the classiest tracks on Girls In the Garage if the girls had been their mothers.

11. The Specific Heats - Back Through Tyme EP (Hugpatch)

Coming home from Indietracks and SH's literally smoking performance I couldn't wait to play this lavender-coloured 7", which had arrived in the post while I was in New Zealand. No songs about icecream here! This is moody, twangy garage. Now we want Cursed!, if a truly cursed album can ever really be released that is.

12. Crystal Stilts - Love Is a Wave b/w Sugar Baby (Slumberland)

CS's only release this year (not counting the UK single with two album cuts) is a brilliant pop tune, which I like more than most of the songs on their album. Have they got a new drummer yet? Let's hope they haven't lost any momentum.

13. Brilliant Colors - s/t EP (Make a Mess)

I still prefer these version to the ones on the recent lp on Slumberland - a lot more dynamic and unique. Sold out, but available on a CT 12" including the two sides of the "Highly Evolved" single.

14. Standard Fare/Slow Down Tallahassee - split-EP (Thee SPC)

Mostly for the Standard Fare side, "Dancing", which is one of the biggest hits of 2009. Apparently got them signed to Bar/None! The new single on SPC is available in January next year.

15. Liechtenstein - Everything's For Sale CDEP (Drill Building)

Preceding the album by a few months, this Swedish CDR release is a more humble (and more humbly produced) ep with three exclusive and brilliant tracks. Good cover too!

16. Fergus & Geronimo - Blind Muslim Girl b/w Powerful Lovin' (Tic Tac Totally)

Having to pick a favourite among this year's three F&G singles, I'd have to settle for this one. The two sides here are equally great, even though "Harder Than It's Ever Been" from their Woodsist 7" would give them a run for their money.

17. The Cavalcade - Meet You In the Rain CDEP (self-released)

The Cavalcalde is one the year's best new pop groups. The Edition 59 ep was good, but nowhere near as interesting as this 5-track ep. Maybe with a drummer they could even challenge The Clientele at their own game?

18. God Help the Girl - Stills 10" (Rough Trade)

I still love the GHTG album, and this ep made up of 'outtakes' features the best song graced by Stuart's voice in a long time, "He's a Loving Kind of Boy". The other tracks definitely maintain the same standard as the album. But when will we get to see the actual musical?

19. Grass Widow - s/t 12" (Captured Tracks)

Their first album, put out by Make a Mess, was brilliant, but on this ep they've really outdone themselves. "Lulu's Lips" is even better than the best of Neo Boys.

20. The Depreciation Guild - Dream About Me b/w Listless (Kanine)

While the POBPAH did not make the list ("Come Saturday" would have, but since it's merely a new version of the Searching For the Now split-single, I skipped it), Kurt's own band just made it with the brilliant Bank of England-era-Blueboy guitar squalls of "Dream About Me". Available on white vinyl from Kanine Records, who have also given their first album a proper release. New material coming in 2010!

Don't Sleep Without Horses

2009-12-25T17:41:00.004+01:00

The Crayon Fields is one of the most accomplished pop outfits today, and on their second album All the Pleasures of the World they continue to explore the Oddessey & Oracle inflections of their debut and Geoff's album as Sly Hats, but with a completely modern production that makes it swing more crisply than Phoenix or Tahiti 80 ever managed to.

I never got the chance to see them live in Melbourne (even though I bumped into Geoff once) nor in Europe when they were over here in the spring, together with The Motifs whom they share several members with. I hope they will come back soon to tour the new album, which was released on Australian label Chapter and Japanese Rallye Records in the autumn. It includes the two previous singles "Mirror Ball" and "Voice of Paradise", the latter of which is a pop tour de force in the Felt vein, starting and ending with haunting flageolet chords.

But actually each and every song here is as solid as a solid-body Danelectro, and together with the eight new tracks these songs create a resonant totality that is very uncommon in this day of digital releases and blogged musical tidbits. It's not an album that speaks loudly, but hopefully it's message will slowly resonate through the floorboards of magazine offices. It is the music from downstairs.

Danger Makes Your Suffering Sublime

2009-12-25T14:28:00.005+01:00

I thought I'd use some of my Christmas free time to write a little about great records that came out this year but I have failed to mention so far. One is the debut album by Cheap Red, who are essentially Boyracer + Kanda (in other words Stewart, Jen, Akina and Arland). On the 555 Records mailing list, Stewart exclaimed in surprise that they had only sold 60 copies of this double-disc a few months after its release. Now, surely Boyracer have more than 60 fans worldwide (the 100 copies of their last album sold out quite fast, and I still haven't heard it!), but I don't think one can expect much as an independent pop label today. Also, of course, not everyone know about Cheap Red yet, which is why I'm writing this. Kanda themselves, are an even more criminally under-written pop group. They have recorded two albums of electronic bedroom pop, It's a Good Name For You and All the Good Meetings Are Taken. Together, these guys recorded the songs that make up Cheap Red over the course of three days. It's definitely a record that captures a certain spontaneity. The instant pop genius of "Let's Get Tammy Wynette", a tale of celebrity abduction and abuse, sounds like it was written the same morning. Ironically, this fuzzed-out Boyracer style punker is my favourite on the record. But there are also a few softer acoustic numbers, much like you would find among Jen's solo work. The violin-accompanied "Red Shoulders" is the best. "The Mitten" and "3 Day Drunk" are fantastic handclap pop, the latter with some classy organ added. Two songs about horses, of which the toungue-in-cheek twee of "Horses" ("don't dream without ponies") features the best moment of the record, when Jen misses the last exclamation of "horses!" right at the end. The second disc of remixes doesn't add much, unless that kind of thing floats your boat of course. I read that Cheap Red played the SF Popfest this year, something which I haven't seen any reports of or footage from either. Hope someone gets round to it soon!

Monday Never Comes Around

2009-12-23T18:08:00.007+01:00

I recently heard two Bulldozer Crash songs I'd never seen before. They were on this tape from Bliss Aquamarine called Turquoise Trees:

Turned out they were from a recording session which spawned four tracks that must have been meant for release on Sunday Records. But BC never managed to get drums recorded for them so they remained unreleased. Until now! Stephen has just put them up over at This Almighty Pop! as a download single, and also tells us the full story behind the songs. The sleeve, as you can see, has the same layout as the band's two 7"s on Sunday.

If the especially made-up Monday Records had been a real label and this an actual 7" it would be among my favourites this year! And while we are on this theme I thought I'd upload Bulldozer Crash's cover of one of Po!'s most beautiful songs, "Fay". It's got a gorgeous vocal by Marc and was on a compilation flexi Sunday released in 1993, called Happy Sunday, on which Sunday bands do versions of each others' songs.

CLOUD 111 Bulldozer Crash - Fay

Bubblegum Snow

2009-12-22T19:18:00.004+01:00

The Bubblegum Winter night in Glasgow will probably have to be called a failure, since The Hidden Cameras weren't able to play, and instead just sat upstairs in Stereo. It wasn't a huge disappointment to me though, since I haven't kept in touch with the Cameras for two albums or so. And it was certainly a very well-organised night, with more than enough food and goodies to go round. It was great to meet the man behind it as well, Gary who runs Bubblegum Records since early 2009. He has already put out six records and he makes music himself as well, as Starshy! The latest Bubblegum release is a massive compilation called Pick 'n' Mix which features, amongst others, Leaving Mornington Crescent and A Smile and a Ribbon. LMC was the band I'd come to see at Bubblegum Winter more than any other, but I also really enjoyed Lean Tales. A Glasgow band who appeared last year if my memory serves me right, and since then they've put out an ep on Bubblegum. The band who ended up headlining the night was Pale Man Made, who are from Newcastle I'd learned the previous night when I was in Newcastle. They played well too, their biggest advantage being having two female Rickenbacker-owners in the band. Brogues likened them to The Delgados, but they sounded perhaps a bit too much UK 90s for my taste that particular night. Jennifer of Colour Me Pop played some fine records from stage as well, and we were about four people dancing after the last band.

The definite highlight in the Bubblegum shop (which makes up for what it lacks in design with pure love) is the brand new debut from Tesco Chainstore Mascara. They are a drum machine-backed power pop duo from the tiny Stone, outside Stoke-On-Trent. We first discovered them on Myspace many moons ago, around the same time as their pal Laz turned up with his Bubblegum Lemonade/Strawberry Whiplash juggernaut. The album, called Good Foundations, includes all the hits from back then: "Writer's Block", "Just the Weight You Are", and "The Sun's Shinin' For You" which reaches the same standard as a Teenage Fanclub number. Dave and Katie share vocal duties, and there are some brilliant backing vocals on this record. They've created a full sound and avoid the common trap of the live-guitar-over-backing-track effect. Hopefully they can be coerced to play live soon, which I don't think they have done so far!

HIAYH#12

2009-12-19T20:02:00.003+01:00

Mike added my podcast for Slumberland to the site yesterday! I made it several months ago, but now you can finally hear it. If you are subscribing you will already have got it (note: I changed the feed url recently), but browse over here to read the full story or get the mp3.

They Forgot Me Knot

2009-12-09T20:13:00.007+01:00

I'm taking my break from writing essays and going to the UK, stopping in London, Newcastle and Glasgow. Here are some of the events I'm going to, and that you shouldn't miss either, on crutches or not.

I made neither of these of course, but I'm playing records at a few of them. Also at this Saturday's Popklubb in Newcastle, for which I couldn't find a decent-sized flyer.

New records are out on Captured Tracks, which gives you chance to pick up pop wonders like the new The Girls At Dawn ep and the debut 7" from Beachniks. Both DDOMD favourites!

The Man Whom Bed Demanded

2009-11-29T16:24:00.002+01:00

A band I wouldn't mind to have seen while I was in Melbourne is Tugboat, who are not the band Egg Records have released a compilation of (that was a Canadian band with members of Change of Seasons). But they too, are of course named after the Galaxie 500 single, an influence that comes to beautiful effect on their first album All Day which I just ordered from Library. Bart was kind enough to point out that you can download their newest release on lastfm. The Rushes EP was only made in 200 copies in 2007, but the band still have copies available. The ep is more catchy than that album, with five jangly, slow-paced pop songs that sound quite similar to The Airfields. Next I shall have a listen o their second album Two Schools of Thought! Thanks to Matt for piquing my interest.

Ten Year Itch

2009-11-27T17:08:00.003+01:00

Finally we can make a list of the best albums of the decade. I've started this gigantic task today, and narrowed it down to 34 so far. The Northern Portrait album will probably have to be included too, but this is what I've got at the moment. What are the rules then? Albums only, no singles compilations or similar, and no more than one album per artist/band.

1. The Clientele - The Violet Hour
2. Camera Obscura - Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi
3. The Fairways - Is Everything All Right?
4. Belle & Sebastian - Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant
5. The Lucksmiths - Why That Doesn't Surprise Me
6. Vivian Girls - s/t
7. Pants Yell! - Alison Statton
8. The Relict - Tomorrow Is Again
9. Pipas - Chunnel Autumnal
10. The Saturday People - s/t
11. The Aislers Set - The Last Match
12. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - s/t
13. Lovejoy - Song In the Key of...
14. Language of Flowers - Songs About You
15. The Motifs - Away
16. Niza - Canciones de Temoporada
17. Louis Philippe - An Unknown Spring
18. The Wave Pictures - Instant Coffee Baby
19. Pocketbooks - Flight Paths
20. The Lodger - Life Is Sweet
21. The Airfields - Up All Night
22. Cats On Fire - Our Temperance Movement
23. Butcher Boy - Profit In Your Poetry
24. The Mantles - s/t
25. God Help the Girl - s/t
26. Slipslide - The World Can Wait
27. The Young Tradition - Northern Drive
28. Christmas Island - Blackout Summer
29. The Autumn Leaves - Long Lost Friend
30. Liechtenstein - Survival Strategies In a Modern World
31. Laura Watling - Early Morning Walk
32. The Zebras - Worry a Lot
33. Lovedance - Result
34. Afternoon Naps - Parade

This needs plenty of analysis, and there might be glaring omissions that you're welcome to help me with. Right now I can say: no real surprises in the top 5, and definitely top-heavy towards 2009. Maybe most of the recent albums will fall away when we come back to this in another 10 year time? Hm. I will let you know how I progress with this.

Clouds Send Down Tears From My Eyes

2009-11-25T21:30:00.003+01:00

Los Angeles-based Best Coast is not only Don't Die On My Doorstep's band of the month, they've also released a new single which is so great it must be featured here. 'They' because Bethany has now put a full band together, and they make the two new tracks sound better than anything Vivian Girls or Brilliant Colors have recorded this year. Unfortunately it looks like what could have been one of the best 7"s of the year is only available in digital format, from the label Black Iris. I sure can't find a physical copy anywhere! Well, here is the a-side, shared by the label. Naturally it didn't take long for "This Is Real" to appear on a blog as well, but I'd be happy to pay for it if it was a real b-side!

CLOUD 110 Best Coast - When I'm With You

Don't Paint Angry

2009-11-24T20:00:00.003+01:00

The Procedure Club have had an upcoming 12" on Captured Tracks for some time now. In the meantime I picked up their second album, which has been put out on CDR by Series Two. I got #9 out of 300. They also have another CDR/cassette out called It's Only Fair, featuring three tracks from the new album, one from their self-titled and four new ones. Music For the Leisure Time is lots of fun, with it's wild mix of synthesisers and guitar noise. Old Myspace favourite "You're Not Poignant" still sounds great, and is pretty much the diametrical opposite to Carnival Park's "Poignant" while remaining in the pop field. "Better Parties" follows immediately after it sounding like Suicide and JAMC with female vocals. The band's more tender side is best showed off by "My Best Friend", which is quite quite beautiful.

From the other side of the Atlantic, Wetdog are also releasing their second full length. Like its predecessor Enterprise Reversal, it's out on Angular and both lps will also be available through Captured Tracks in the US. I instantly liked Wetdog after seeing them supporting Vivian Girls in London, and they came pretty close to what I imagine it being like to have seen Fire Engines back in the day. The new album is a bit more restrained and more pop. I was expecting more eardrum massage, but instead found myself really liking the vocals and the backing vocals, that come to their true right on Frauhaus!. Guitarless opening track "Lower Leg" sounds peculiarly similar to the new single from Weave!, and "Trehorne Beach Song" like a rejuvenated Lung Leg. (Speaking of Lung Leg... and perhaps rejuvenated too, The Yummy Fur are doing some reunion shows in London, Glasgow and the US in January!) The rest of the album ranges from the Young Marble Giants-brittleness of "Night Comes Down" to the cracking drum barrage of "Tidy Up Your Bedroom". Apart from the already mentioned tracks my favourite is the infectiously melodic "Round Vox", which is as good as Liechtenstein on an overcast day.

And I finally had a proper listen to Brighton group Shrag's debut full length from early this year. Shrag is a band that hardly gets any mention in Sweden, even though they deserve to be almost as big as Comet Gain. I'd heard some of the singles but it's great to hear them all rounded up on the album, and there's a new 7" coming out in December on Where It's At Is Where You Are as usual. They're playing at SoundsXP's Christmas party at the Brixton Windmill on the night I get to London, with Standard Fare amongst others, and it's also the release party for "Rabbit Kids". I can't wait to see them, since I have missed previous chances to do so!

Today Is Just Tomorrow's Yesterday

2009-11-19T18:36:00.003+01:00

More bands should record songs like this! This is actually an instrumental version of "You're Always Around". One of my favourite songs, penned by Jon Williams of fantastic folkrock outfit The WordD. The intertwined story of The WordD and The Penthouse 5 can be unraveled with the help of Cicadelic, who have released a retrospective compilation of the two groups. Essentially, when The WordD broke up, Williams and 12-string player Richard Keithley joined the other band. This resulted in the re-recording of a few WordD songs, including the aforementioned "You're Always Around". Keithley is one of the best 12-string players I've heard, with a sound almost as rich as McGuinn's.

CLOUD 109 The Penthouse 5 - Twelve String Jangle

What Ever Happened to Blanche Hudson?

2009-11-12T22:09:00.006+01:00

As most of you will know the fabulous Manhattan Love Suicides split up this summer, their acoustic appearance (a contradiction in it itself) on the Indietracks train turned into a performance by The Medusa Snare. You will probably know the name as Adam John Miller's side-project, and in fact, Skatterbrain posted about them roughly a year ago. But now it's become a full band (including old MLS drummer Rachel Barker), and their first album Cinderella is out on Squirrel - an update of the previously released ep of the same name (on the same label) fleshed out to 10 stunning tracks.

Adam builds on the noisy, lo-fi side of the MLS sound (the side that would've chosen to cover Teenage Jesus & the Jerks' "Orphans") while at the same time sounding more American. The Mountain Goats have been mentioned but I think the album sounds a lot like Knight School, with the MLS rhythm section backing. Matt's old fave "Ixtab" even kicks off with the same euphoria as a Pains of Being Pure At Heart song. My own favourites are the similarly upbeat "NCY" and "Out of the Blue" (paraphrasing, but not covering Neil Young). But they manage to slow things down commendably as well, as in "Monster" which builds on a simple, repeated Beat Happening-like guitar figure. Listen to some of the tracks here.

Two other suicidals have formed The Blanche Hudson Weekend, named after the "good" sister in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and they've naturally picked Bette Davis to adorn the cover of their first 7". It comes out on Squirrel on the 23rd of this month, but is up for pre-order already.

The self-confessed influence of girl groups and Girls In the Garage is evident and even if the sound is far from polished it is fuller than that of Cinderella. "Crying Shame" has a certain grandeur to it that the Manhattans captured on songs like "Head Over Heels" (one of their best, in my opinion!). Caroline's singing has the same, barely audible charm it had in her previous band, and it does take a certain voice to give du-du-du's the same credibility as the JAMC, which "Noise and Fury" definitely has. I'm looking forward to a full length from this camp too! All three of these great songs can be heard in their entirety here.

While you're placing you order you might also want to pick up the Louder and Longer remaster of MLS' first album, if you like me thought it sounded a bit tame, or if you just want to get at those bonus tracks from the singles and the few tracks they managed to record for their second album!

Innuendos In a Wine Glass

2009-11-07T13:28:00.005+01:00

Plastilina have just released a new album by The Pearly Gatecrashers from Australia. I love their first album Spectacular! from 1994 and also Popsuey (1996), which I first heard only a month ago, has it's highlights. So now, 13 years later, here is But Wait There's More. Undeniably slightly more mature (if a band who made the "Mobile Girl" video can ever be described with that adjective) at least lyrically. The album cover looks like a Richard Hamilton homage, and the songs seem to be simultaneously reveling in glossy production and Martha Rosleresque moods.

But if you think this is an entirely new album, you are wrong. At least "Summer Here's" is 8 years old - since it was once included on Shelflife's Picnic Basket. It's one of my favourite Pearly Gatecrashers songs so I was very happy to see it included here! Otherwise my favourite songs are the jangly hits like "We Are Family", "Asleep", "Your Brother's Drums" and "Sweet Marie". "Penny Drops" sounds like Trembling Blue Stars on 45. And "Fad" might be one of their best songs ever!

Nessie Is a Star

2009-11-05T22:29:00.004+01:00

I just got hold of a record I've wanted for at least four years. French pop group Evergreen has reached a legend-like status in my mind by now, since hearing about them from a euphoric Jyrki at the Emmaboda festival years ago. At that time all I could find about them was a twee.net entry. I picked up the trail again last week when I heard a track by Lollypops via a There and Back Again Lane post, loved it and soon found out that was an early incarnation of Evergreen. So I searched for their ep again and found a cheap copy via the French CD and LP service. It was a private seller so there might not be anymore copies.

Receiving the 7" in the mail today was most special and after only about 5 spins I have to say it's one of my favourite records ever, at least as good as the Rainyard 7". Great jangly pop with surprisingly good English! Each of the four songs is amazing, with the two songs on the b-side (the 'ballad' side, even though one of them does have a rhythm section) augmented by some prominent violin which makes one of the hooks in "Close-Up" sound just like "A Century of Fakers" by Belle & Sebastian. This record came out only a couple of years before Tigermilk and seems strangely isolated both in time and place (France!). The first five seconds of "House of Magic Cards" sounds exactly like another song, which I can't place now - I thought it was a Celestial track but that can't be right. Check the Lollypops version on the There and Back Again Lane blog and enlighten me!

Actually, if anyone has any more information about the band please let me know. All we can gather from the sleeve (hideous use of the Brush Script font!) are the first names of the members (female guitarist!) and the insert has some more info about the label Nessie - maybe a tribute to Scotland's pioneering efforts in pop? Their first release was a tape compilation called Superqualifragilistic after a Mary Poppins song (anyone have that?) which I found a tracklisting for here. As you can see it includes another Lollypops track - a version of "Time" - and a track from their great French contemporaries Mumbly (pre-Watoo Watoo). Otherwise I don't recognise any of the bands. They also list a Christmas 7" featuring Louis Philippe, Gregory Webster and two other bands, which I found here for 3990 yen (or 27 pounds), if anyone wants to pick it up. I can't find anything on the 'forthcoming' Tribute to él EP.

Anyway here's the first track for you to enjoy.

CLOUD 108 Evergreen - Laurie

Freshly Coloured Corners

2009-11-01T16:09:00.006+01:00

Brilliant Colors are about to release their first album Introducing on Slumberland. Like the Vivian Girls debut it's got ten songs in about 20 minutes, and this could very well have been the same smash that record was for me last year. And yes, they have recorded one of the best albums of the year, seemingly with a flick of the wrist, but it's a tad too well-produced. The sound quality of their two eps didn't always work in their favour but it definitely gave then a unique sound, which made songs like "Over There" and "Takes So Little" so thrilling. Both "Over There" and "Should I Tell You" are on the album in new speeded-up versions, but if you still want to get their previous records (now sold out) you should pick up the 12" on Captured Tracks that includes all those songs.

A record that keeps growing on me and might even outdo Introducing in my end-of-year list is the new album by The Fresh & Onlys, also from San Francisco. Grey-Eyed Girls is their second full length of the year and I don't even know how many singles they've done! I definitely think it's the best album on Woodsist so far, who are set for more attention with the imminent release of Real Estate's album. I liked The Fresh & Onlys' first album a lot too, but in this case it's actually an improvement with the more pop material and a cleaner production. There's some great overdriven, jangly guitar on tracks like "Dude's Got a Tender Heart" as well, while they're still mining the SF garage rock history deeply - just like The Mantles. The only I thing I don't like is how they, like many current bands, bury the vocals in either reverb or distortion (or both) instead of using real distortion from vintage mics, or simply getting King Kahn to sing for them. Lucky "Clowns (Took My Baby Away)" is such a great song title then.

How to Do Things With Words

2009-11-01T15:44:00.003+01:00

We can all agree that The Cavalcade is one of the best new bands this year. I was lucky to find a copy of their second ep, released by Edition 59. It's sold out but Unisex might have some more copies. It's got three great songs, which are bit more pop than most of Meet You In the Rain.

Also, be sure not to miss the great new singles on Slumberland - like a new Bats ep (!) which is an excellent companion to last year's brilliant album on Arch Hill. The first single from Frankie Rose (or Frankie & the Outs, as they're called on myspace) is easily one of the best this year and reminds me of Henry's Dress or The Aislers Set at their noisiest. Gregory Webster's recent single on WIAIWYA sees an American release as well, still with Daniel's (So Tough! So Cute!) trademark artwork. But most intriguing is the new Mantles single "Bad Design" which is the first record in ages to be catalogued as a I Wish I Was a Slumberland Record. It's a co-release with Dulc-i-Tone and holds two great non-album tracks. Read more and listen to the a-side here.

CLOUD 107 The Cavalcade - Secret Signs On Stone

The Sixth Difference

2009-10-23T14:54:00.002+02:00

1. One these bands is new and has released an album on In the Red, one of the best of the year.

2. Pitchfork has found one of them worth writing about, even though describing them as "charmingly antiquated".

3. One of them actually knows how to play their instruments well.

4. One of them has covered The Beach Boys, while the other has settled for reworking "Be My Baby".

5. One of them has covered Radiohead. The other hasn't (yet).

Other than that it's not much that sets Christmas Island and Heartworms apart. Christmas Island has definitely been helped by the current hip-factor of ramshackle guitars and would most likely have been dismissed as 'twee' in 1994 when Heartworms debuted with the smashing "Thanks For the Headache". Both Christmas Island's music and lyrics are very simple, but very addictive. Take "My Baby" for example, strummed chords over thumping drums and the chorus "my baby, I miss you, in my dreams I still kiss you". All you need for a perfect pop song! I'm buying Blackout Summer now.

Painter Without Motive Convicted

2009-10-22T18:20:00.006+02:00

Everyone in London should go see Leaving Mornington Crescent tonight. It's at HDIF Presents at Jamm in Brixton, it's free and also playing are Tender Trap and MJ Hibbett! I just saw the two members of LMC in Gothenburg and they were very excited. I witnessed their first gig at So Tough! So Cute! a few months ago (with Harvey Williams playing too) and they were great. They were kind enough to give me their eps yesterday, so here's a song for you to listen to. It's from the Corners ep released by a label called Susy. I maintain my opinion that they're the best new Swedish band this year! They're playing in Malmö again next week, on Tuesday, together with Horowitz at Don't Die On My Doorstep.

How come I was in Gothenburg then? Well, I was playing records at Don't Tell Me That! (playlist here), where the promising new Swedish band with the dubious name Youngfuck (might it be a direct translation of a Swedish word, that means something completely different?) did their first gig. They were sounded even better than this, and two of them were previously in bands you might have heard of, like Signed Papercuts and Second-Hand Furniture. It was great to be in Gothenburg again - first time in what feels like ages!

CLOUD 105 Leaving Mornington Crescent - Seventeen

Magic ATM

2009-10-20T19:27:00.005+02:00

I got the new Close Lobsters compilation, and it sounds fantastic! The remastering is pretty good overall and it's great to have all the singles on one cd. It actually includes almost everything that wasn't on their two albums, apart from some compilation tracks, and the Caff 7" (but that version of "Just Too Bloody Stupid" is featured on CD86 however).

I got even more excited about the first Spectrals single when I saw that the b-side was a completely new, and not at all the song I thought would be there. The German Measles ep doesn't disappoint either, with 6 new strong tracks, out of which the best are the giddy punk hit "What Are You Going to Do" and the party anthem "Wild Weekend".

While I'm posting anyway, here are my favourite singles and eps of the year so far:

1. The Cave Weddings "Bring Your Love"
2. Spectrals "Leave Me Be"
3. The Magic Kids "Hey Boy"
4. Brilliant Colors "Brilliant Colors"
5. Very Truly Yours "Reminders"
6. German Measles "Wild"
7. The Specfic Heats "Back Through Tyme"
8. Standard Fare "Dancing"
9. Liechtenstein "Everything's For Sale"
10. The Sea Lions "Groove"
11. The Cavalcade "Meet You In the Rain"
12. Wake the President/Je Suis Animal split
13. Dum Dum Girls "Yours Alone"

Carnival Headache

2009-10-18T01:49:00.002+02:00

No one really mentions the Wolfhounds compilation The Essential Wolfhounds, which came out on September already in 1988. It contains some of their best songs, from singles and their first album. The liner notes (courtesy of glassdarkly.com) tell us that "they were born in East London in 1985. After years of working in a wool warehouse, a laboratory, a plastics factory and a coffee bar their first record 'Cut The Cake', was published in 1986. Since then they have written many songs on philosophy, the occult, crime and sexual deviance plus a host of successful songs which have won them an international reputation. Their work has been translated into Spanish, French, Swedish, Dutch, Welsh, Arabic, Urdu, Japanese, German, Finnish and Hebrew." Why then may I ask, are their albums not available on cd? All there is, is the compilation Lost But Happy on Cherry Red (who own the rights to all their songs). And if you're lucky you might find the reissue of The Essential Wolfhounds that Midnight did.

Anyway, I just got to hear it, and after some scouring of online sources I was able to find pretty much all the band's songs. With a few exceptions: "Whale On the Beach" from the 12" version of Cruelty, the b-sides to Son of Nothing, the Happy Shopper 12" and their cover of "I'm Not Like Everybody Else". Who's got these?

One of the best songs I hadn't had the pleasure of hearing before is "Cold Shoulder", from The Anti-Midas Touch released on the Pink Label in 1986.

CLOUD 104 The Wolfhounds - Cold Shoulder

HIAYH#13

2009-10-17T17:55:00.005+02:00

I have spent a couple of days last week listening fervently to bands like The Cave Weddings, The Magic Kids, Woven Bones, Ganglians, Surf City, Thee Oh Sees, Coachwhips, Real Estate, The Fresh & Onlys, Pens, The Intelligence, Weave!, The Mantles, The Drums, Nodzzz, P.S. Eliot, Ty Segall, Black Time and Christmas Island. There's so much to check out, so much that is great, but it feels like eventually people will tire of the ever increasing number of bands following in the wake of Vivian Girls, Wavves and Times New Viking. The fact that Dum Dum Girls have been signed to Sub Pop could be one sign. Perhaps the Captured Tracks/Woodsist festival was the climax? But at the moment I still think it is exciting, and if nothing else, I am glad I've listened to all of it if only for the discovery of The Mantles and Christmas Island!

I've ended up with so many songs I have to do something with, that I can't play them all at my club night, so I decided to just make a new podcast out of them. Even though it's not a proper one with spoken links, I hope you will enjoy the mix of sounds and the sequence of the tracks! (It is #13 since I haven't yet finished #12 that I am making for Slumberland.) Captured Tracks are still winning the year's label race, with more fantastic releases than anyone could have hoped for (or afforded). Just recently a new batch was released, including The Spectrals' first 7" that I've raved about enough already, but also the first proper German Measles release, a Christmas Island 7" and Ganglians best post-Brian Wilson work yet! But they're followed closely by HoZac, Woodsist and In the Red, and as usual Siltbreeze have proven reliable.

Here are some notes about the included songs.

Afternoon Naps - Bubblegum 45
What better way to start off than with a hymn to bubblegum pop from Afternoon Naps, whose second album has been massively anticipated (by me) since succumbing to the masterpiece that was Sunbeamed. Them and Brown Recluse are unique on the US pop scene for putting the ray of sunshine back into pop. Parade (out on HHBTM) became a favourite of this year already upon first listen.
The Magic Kids - Good to Be
The b-side of their first 7" (Goner Records) that came completely out of the blue for me. Perhaps the best emulation of The Beach Boys in an indiepop context ever? The flip is bit more mellow, but still charming.
The Cave Weddings - Let's Drive
HoZac's best release yet? The b-side of this American band's first single is a great as the a-side, and prompted me to use my limited funds to order this and the new Girls At Dawn single from the label. They also have a homemade ep you can order from their Myspace.
The Intelligence - Universal Babysitter
A fantastic post-something band that has been around almost 10 years longer than anyone else. I've listened to three of their albums so far and I have to say this year's Fake Surfing on In the Red is their best so far. They even afford themselves calling a song "Fuck Eat Skull" (apparently one of them is in that band too) which is almost as good a title as Jay Reatard's recent "Blank Blogs". Great band name too!
German Measles - Monkey Me, Monkey You
Simply ingenious track from their demo cassette on Captured Tracks. Their first 12" had just been released, and was recorded by Gary Olson, just like the caUSE co-MOTION! singles (a band that shares members with the Measles).
Pens - 1-2
The album is finally here! It was as great as I expected, the best thing of its kind I have heard since Finally Punk. Out on De Stijl on both cd and vinyl. The split with Crocodiles, Dum Dum Girls and Graffiti Island is out of stock at the moment, but will soon be available again from Art Fag.
Bette Davis and the Balconettes - Big Pussy Sound
Finally heard more than their self-titled ep on Slampt!. This is the best of the bunch, among this Manchester group's recordings, from a 1998 7" on Damaged Goods.
Coachwhips - I Drank What
Yes, why have I never really listened to this band before? Their first album doesn't impress me as much as does their last, from 2003. As noisy as Forbidden Tigers, and it makes me want to check out the intervening albums as well. Dwight is now in Thee Oh Sees, and many other bands.
Woven Bones - Janie
Another great garage group on HoZac! They've released three singles so far, and this track is from one on Needless. An album is in the works, also for HoZac.
Gas - Speak No More
Siltbreeze has set about releasing some old gems, including an ep by Christchurch group Gas, who were around in the late 90s apparently. But even more I'd like to hear The McGoohans, which was an 80s group, some of whom moved on to Gas. Or so I've read! Anyone have The McGoohan Sound lp?
The Terrorways - She's a Mod
A punk compilation I felt compelled to listen to recently is AK79, including bands from the first wave of Auckland punk groups (including Toy Love, of course). This is one of my favourites on it, landing somewhere between punk and mod-revival! A cover of Ray Columbus & the Invaders' hit.
The Castels - Save a Chance
You won't escape the usual dose of 60's jangle. This particular track can be found on a Misty Lane compilation called Leave It All Behind. It was originally released by Wildfire in 1965.
Mary Sawrey - A Lover's Plea
Found this on a cd called Del-Fi Girl Groups: Gee Baby Gee. Compiling female artists of that label, this single from 1961 is the best of the set.
The Jet Set - The Jet Set
You might be familiar with the 80s group The Jetset and the pre-Byrds group of course, but this is a sassy girl group track found on Girls Will Be Girls Vol. 1. Hard to find the original release info, because of the name of the group and song!
Mytty Archer - The Life You Wanna Live
New group started by Jen from Boyracer, including the usual suspects. Their first album is here, and judging from this track - available for free on the 555 sampler - it is worth a fair percentage of your income.
Christmas Island - Bed Island
I heard this band thanks to the cool 8th volume of The World's Lousy With Ideas, which together with the Yeti 7 compilation was what started last week's listening spree. This song is from their upcoming first album on In the Red. At the moment they a have a split-7" with Le Jonathan Reilly and a new single on Captured Tracks out. Maybe they will soon have one of the best albums this year too.
Black Time - You Don't Love Me
This British group continue to release fantastic, ear-spliting pop - this song is from a recent split-lp with Ty Segall - and they continue to stay out of Sweden, unfortunately.
DNA - Lionel
An old one, from the 1978 compilation No New York. One the same record you'll find some tracks by the next band.
Teenage Jesus & the Jerks - Less of Me
Lydia Lunch and James Chance in the same band can only mean one thing, noise and popular music coming together in a promising union (at least for 1979). This was the b-side of their first single, by which time Chance had already left.
Weave! - Man He Can
A new San Fracisco group who sound a bit like The Slits and Delta 5. With minimal inclusion of guitar, they've already recorded a great ep. This track is their best yet and is the first we've got to hear from the upcoming full-length.
Sado-Nation - Gimme You
The quest for Neo Boys led me to another punk compilation: History of Portland Punk Vol. 1 (no sequels as far as I know). The second best band on it (no, not Wipers) is this group, also featuring female members. There is a retrospective of their whole output called Future Past, Present, Tense if you're interested.
The Fresh & Onlys - Peacock and Wing
This group have already released their second album of the year, on top of a slew of singles. I've only heard the first, self-titled record in full so far, but it's definitely destined for the top 20 of the year. Great SF garage!
The Mantles - Burden
This is from what will definitely be the best album of the year for me, unless Pants Yell! cook up something that outdoes Alison Statton... The album is out on Siltbreeze and builds on two previous 7"s, with a superior sound and simply brilliant songs with one stylus on Nuggets and the other on an 80s indiepop single I've never even heard of.
Present - I Know
Another jangly present from the 60s. Ugly Things tell us this group was from New York, and released a single in 1967. Google won't tell us that much, even.
The Field Twins - We Were Lovers
I really love this girl group from Australia, who only cut two singles I think. One is from 1966, so I guess this one must be from around the same time. The singing isn't great, but I can't stop playing it!

Woman, the Hope of Men

2009-10-16T23:36:00.002+02:00

How come no one talks about this? Well I think I know why, but this first single from Brooklyn's The Girls At Dawn is actually great. As usual on HoZac, they care about their vinyl, and the first 200 copies are on orange transparent vinyl. Both "Never Enough" and "Every Night" are fuzzy Shangri-Las lo-fi and you should look out for a 12" on Captured Tracks.

While you're ordering from HoZac you have to pick up The Cave Weddings' first single too - probably the best single I've heard this year and I mean both sides! You can also get the songs plus three more as a cdep, directly from them.

The World Ain't Round, It's Square!

2009-10-11T18:37:00.006+02:00

It's more than time to announce that my favourite album of the year will no doubt be the debut longplayer from San Francisco's The Mantles. Together, SF and LA have by now caught up with Brooklyn, being the homes of groups like Dum Dum Girls and The Fresh & Onlys (more about them later) and perhaps best exemplified by the Part Time Punks festival which is on right now. Like a more fun-packed equivalent to the Captured Tracks/Woodsist fest, the line-up includes bands like The Raincoats, Section 25, The Jazz Butcher, The Intelligence and locals Weave!. And let's not forget The Smell.

But The Mantles self-titled lp on Siltbreeze is, to my ears, the first record landing exactly between the otherwise widely separated worlds of indiepop and 60s garage. Other people have mentioned the similarity to Flying Nun bands and the Paisley Underground scene of early 80s San Francisco (two things that are suddenly hip again). But I think the garage element of their sound goes right back to Golden Dawn and The Mantles' Californian predecessors The Seeds and The Chocolate Watchband. It's a perfectly produced album and every song knocks me out. It sounds very simple and I bet the rest of the American punk-pop bands are regretting all the time they spent disfiguring and tweaking their guitar sounds. Like the very few garage-revival bands who actually achieved a pure 60s sound in spite of the despicable production values of the 80s (LA's The Last come to mind of course!), songs like "What We Do Matters" and "Yesterday's Gone" give me the same thrill as a crackly 45 from 1967. "Samantha" makes me think of The Summer Suns (who have song called the same thing) and the 12-string-laden "Don't Lie" and "Burden" sound like a mix of them, Dom Mariani's other group The Someloves and "Misty Lane" by The Chocolate Watchband. "Disappering Act" kicks off the record, just like the equally 60s-influenced Biff Bang Pow!, with it's frantic strumming. "James" is the most blantant pop offering, and crashes along like The Wedding Present or This Poison!, before stopping just shy of the 2-minute mark.

I can't see myself tiring of this album in the foreseeable future.

Middle-Sized Mind

2009-10-10T22:58:00.005+02:00

Although half of what I listen to is from the 60s, it's not something usually apparent here. But today I felt like recommending some albums and reissues that all have something in common, somewhere.

3's a Crowd were sunshine pop / folk-rock group who not only released several topnotch singles, but a whole album. They are included on compilation series like Fading Yellow and Soft Sounds For Gentle People, but their 1968 album Christopher's Movie Matinée is well worth a listen! There are no reissues, but you will be able to find it online, and if you want some background history there is a beefy article on Garage Hangover.

Also shamefully lacking a re-release (Sundazed, what are you doing?) is the magnificent only album by another number group: The Eighth Day. On the Eighth Day was released in the same year and holds eleven great tunes. It is among the best sunshine albums I have heard, right up there with The Inner Dialogue and the best of The Sunshine Company. Like 3's a Crowd, they employ a healthy dose of 12-string picking

The Enfields were a jangly garage group from... Enfield, Delaware. I first heard them on a compilation called What a Way to Day, but recently heard this cd released by Get Hip! in 1993. You might still be able to find a copy, but it also exists online. The group was fronted by Ted Munda who later formed a band called Friends of the Family, who sound a lot like late era Love or even Montage. A Bomp list post calls him a white Arthur Lee, and it's easy to see why. A track by Friends of the Family is on a volume of Fading Yellow but I doubt it is the same band as that song sounds very different.

Cicadelic doesn't have much on Sundazed or Rev-Ola when it comes to reissues, but they've just dropped a great retrospective on The JuJus, known from Pebbles and Teenage Shutdown and many other comps. I love all the songs I have heard this band, so I'm going to pick it up soon as my wallet allows.

While you're checking out Cicadelic it might also be worth taking a look at The Kreeg cd. It's not available from them anymore, but can still be found on mailorders. The title-track is known from Garage Beat '66 and is one of my fave 60s songs, both jangly and forceful. The cd contains both more gentle and folky cuts and fuzzy garage rock stomp, all of it pretty much in a Revolver-era Beatles vein.

I was disappointed to say the least that this cd is no longer available. The Heart Beats is one of those groups on Girls In the Garage that tend to pass you by. But now I think "Cryin' Inside" is a great track! What changed my mind was this amazing performance of "Time Won't Let Me". Those Texas girl look like they are about 14 and must have had a hip manager, seeing as they're obviously sponsored by Vox and are playing a song by The Outsiders! The best song by far I've heard by them though, is their take on "Little Latin Lupe Lu". It's on volume five of Garage Beat '66, but for some reason the download I had of that was lacking this and another track right at the end. It's been amended now, and I will definitely play this somewhere in the near future.

Twenty Years of Envy

2009-09-30T18:18:00.006+02:00

I thought I'd steal a Slumberland catalogue number, as they're up to about the same numbers as here anyway. We've all enjoyed Skatterbrain's Subjective Best of Slumberland 90-95, and I wanted to compile my favourites from their whole catalogue, now that they've been around for 20 years. Some of the best stuff has come out in the last two years actually. I've stuck to no re-releases as a rule, so I've not included anything previously released on other labels - there went the Black Tambourine and 14 Iced Bears comps, the Bright Coloured Lights single and the Just a Taste Summershine retrospective! Here are my favourite Slumberland songs, presented in an order that couples bands for the old and new era, to reveal some interesting lineages.

1. Liechtenstein - All At Once (SLR 96, 2009)
2. Rocketship - I Love You Like the Way I Used to Do (SLR 40, 1996)
3. The Lodger - A Year Since Last Summer (SLR 80, 2008)
4. The Ropers - I Don't Mind (SLR 38, 1994)
5. Summer Cats - In June (SLR 101, 2009)
6. The Saturday People - Working For the Weekend (SLR 67, 2001)
7. Brown Recluse - Contour and Context (SLR 102, 2009)
8. The Clientele - Porcelain (single version) (SLR 63, 2001)
9. The Softies - Half As Much (SLR 47, 1998)
10. Glo-Worm - Change of Heart (SLR 45, 1995)
11. The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - Stay Alive (SLR 89, 2009)
12. Black Tambourine - Drown (DRYL 9, 1991)
13. Crystal Stilts - Love Is a Wave (SLR 91, 2009)
14. Henry's Dress - You Killed a Boy For Me (SLR 34, 1995)
15. caUSE co-MOTION! - Leave It All (SLR 93, 2009)
16. Go Sailor - The Boy Who Sailed Around the World (SLR 36, 1995)
17. Sexy Kids - Drown Me (SLR 79, 2008)
18. The Aislers Set - Been Hiding (SLR 52, 1999)
19. Boyracer - Vitamin B (SLR 48, 1996)
20. Honeybunch - Candy Breath (DRYL 5, 1991)

SLR 106 V/A - I Wish I Was Slumberland Records

Even Though You Can't Dance

2009-09-26T19:28:00.002+02:00

...you should step out tonight for the last So Tough! So Cute! (at Retro). It's sad to see it go as I've always regarded it as the only indiepop club in Sweden with a proper dancefloor. Tonight is a tribute to Slumberland, and the late Ellie Greenwich. By a stroke of luck I found the only Raindrops album earlier today (The Raindrops was of course the alias Ellie and her songwriting partner Jeff Barry used for their own recordings), perched delicately on a pile of rubble. I bet the guy or girl who once picked it up for the considerable sum of 1 crown is kicking themselves now! It's also available on cd these days (on Sequel I think) with a bunch of bonus tracks. But this 1963 Jubilee release is so much nicer, pressed on that super-thick vinyl you only got back in those days. It proves that not only were they able to pen megahits like "The Kind of Boy You Can't Forget", but also swooning tracks like "That Boy's Messin' Up My Mind" and my new favorite "Isn't That Love".

CLOUD 103 The Raindrops - Isn't That Love

Between Mister and Mattress

2009-09-25T18:28:00.004+02:00

This image of Paul Handyside has come to you across several different media - recorded, broadcast, rerecorded, ripped, encoded, transcoded, copied and saved digitally and virtually. Still, it is an image. We can just about make out the beautiful, black Burns Doublesix he is playing. Or simulating playing. Because there is music as well, only this image has now been stripped of its soundtrack. The sound that should go with this image is an edited down version of a song recorded in a different place and different time. In its full context, we can even see Paul happily strumming along when he should actually be playing something completely different. So it would make as much sense to present this image here, totally out of context, and out of time.

To provide some context, a virtual person has recently uploaded several videos spanning the whole career of Newcastle band Hurrah!, perhaps in excitement over Monday's reissue of Tell God I'm Here on Cherry Red (following the surely unprecedented success of the Another Sunny Day reissue last month). You can watch them here. The early ones are magnificent, while the later ones can best be described with the adjectives 'silly' and 'sexist'. Now, the reason for picking up the in many respects forgettable Tell God I'm Here (already reissued in Japan last year) is the second disc, which includes 11 tracks from desirable compilation The Sound of Philadelphia. While they have omitted the best Hurrah! track "Around and Around" (ask Bob Stanley) you are treated to the b-side to "Hip Hip" and the best cuts from second album The Beautiful.

The reason why I say they are the best is because I have just had the pleasure of hearing this 1989 lp in it its entirety. I think it is beautiful, landing somewhere in-between their more fragile early recordings and the sound of Bronze. It includes new versions of several old songs: "Saturday's Train" (recorded for radio in 1982), "Big Sky" (intended to be their third single, in 1984) and "Velveteen" (documented on the live lp Way Ahead, recorded in 1985). Since the only way to hear the whole record is to download it illegally, perhaps you should suggest to Cherry Red that they reissue The Beautiful as well!

On the same cherry red note, next Monday sees the release of Black Path, a retrospective of my favourite Medway group The Claim, culled from their singles (including both sides of their Caff 7"!) and two albums plus plenty of unreleased material.

Mundane Monday

2009-09-22T18:10:00.003+02:00

German Measles is the among the very best bands of the inbred Brooklyn scene. They've got a sense of humour, their first release was called "Demos Sorry" - a tape now proudly listed as 'sold out' in the already impressive catalogue of Captured Tracks - and they don't hesitate to call themselves a party rock band. In the tradition of the wildest 60s garage and fratrock groups of course. I can definitely imagine them playing new track "Totally Wild" at a North-West college dance in 1966. Or as a track on The Savages' album Live 'n' Wild from the same year. The 'demos' are obvious live recordings too, most of them introduced with "take one". The only thing about it is that the guitar sound is a bit too thin, but then again that makes them sound like Desperate Bicycles! Especially on the opening track "Monkey Me, Monkey You", whose haphazard rhythms has the unusual effect of putting a big grin on anyone's face. Indie music has always had too many pretentious saddos, and such a work of simple genius as this is as rare these days as ever. To me, lyrics like those to "Mosco Street" and "We Want You" is the most fantastic thing since Helen Love's "We Love You". That they have one foot in the 60s (tempted to say in the grave) is proved by the silly "Japanese Beetles" and their playful inversion of Dylan's "It Ain't Me Babe" (also covered, of course, by many garage and folk-rock groups). Perhaps none of this would have got them far if they hadn't had a singer with a real personality. A true (post)modern Gerry Roslie! German Measles may be a live band (proved by the fantastic session on WFMU that you can listen to here) but at least the sound on the soon to be released 12" on Captured Tracks has improved dramatically, thanks to Gary Olson's production. I talked about the recording with him when we played in Germany and he says he's very happy with it. Two mp3s from it are floating around as I write, so if you don't buy it... And don't forget to buy the 12"!

German Measles was one of the many bands who played the Captured Tracks / Woodsist festival in New York this summer. For those of you as envious of the visitors as me, there are some great videos over here.

Death By Transistor Radio

2009-09-21T18:09:00.005+02:00

The first copy of Wildwood Lights' debut ep has made it to Sweden! You remember Wildwood Lights, right? That lovely, talented band I had the pleasure of not only meeting and seeing live in Auckland, but also arranging a gig for. We've waited eagerly for the first release and now it's here! Reports from the release party have been very favourable, especially of the new tote bags. The True Love Woes ep contains three songs, including my first favourite "Town and Country" which has subsequently made it to no. 1 on bFM's top ten. It only exists in 100 copies, handmade by the ladies themselves, so get yours now on their site!

The Gladeyes also have news songs on Myspace, from the long awaited new album. Another cause for celebration!

In other homemade record news I have been enjoying the digital version of the first Sugarplums release. They have been selling it at gigs, and I assume you can buy it directly from them! Covers vary, but at least one of them looked like what you can see above. It includes five old and new songs, full of ramshackle guitars recorded with minimal means. "Cate's Crush" is a new favourite with its pairing of Juniper's choppy guitar sound with the fizz of Henry's Dress. The melodies are everywhere, hardly concealed by the lo-fi trappings. "Plum Coloured Sky" will have to be the old favourite then, with a guitar intro that sounds like it's been nicked from the most credible of sources. I do wish they'd let the lyrics come through a bit more, which is why I'd love to hear them with newly added (from the looks of it on Myspace) singer Rachel. But this is an amazing start that could well mean that their next release will be on a label like Art Fag, Captured Tracks or HoZac.

Even Bachelors

2009-09-19T17:07:00.002+02:00

This is what this month's DDOMD booklets look like, well, folded in half of course. Still no colour printer, so I had to add some colour with the trusty John Bull kit. Featured in this issue is a diary entry from an 11-year-old, the CO-RITUS manifesto from 1962 and some short features on Neo Boys and Les Misérables (no, not the musical). Will be given out tonight if you can make it.

Love In a Goldmine

2009-09-17T17:42:00.006+02:00

What do these bands have in common? Cartwheel, Colors & Shapes, Casino Ashtrays, The Autocollants, Tears Run Rings, In a Day and Evening Lights. Well probably several things, but one is Laura Watling. Perhaps most well-known for being the female voice in The Autocollants, she now plays with Tears Run Rings (the picture is from one of their gigs). Apart from all these pseudonyms she also has releases under her own name. The album Early Morning Walk is one the finest things Shelflife have ever put out, and it's a true honour to be in a band that has a record out on the same label! The sound is so brittle and beautiful that the only thing I can really compare it to is a Motifs record. From the poignant lyrics of "Perfect Penmanship", to the laudable cover of The Motorcycle Boy's perhaps best number "The World Falls Into Place", to the gorgeous harmonies of "It's All I Can Do" (that always reminds me of a West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band song), the whole album bears the mark of Watling's penchant for simple arrangements, utilised to the fullest to accompany her plainly wonderful voice.

I've put together one song each by the bands of hers that I know of (there might be more?), starting with a solo number from a Popgun tape I have dated to 1997. Casino Ashtrays were Watling and Raoul who runs Popgun, and formed after The Autocollants split. Someone should really compile a full discography of Laura's releases, because even though I thought I had gotten hold of everything, at least digitally, I just found out that there is Popgun cassette from 2006 with three leftover Casino Ashtrays songs!

Colors & Shapes' (Watling + Tim Gauslin) only release was also a Popgun tape, with two songs, however doubled over both sides. In a Day (perhaps named after the Evening Lights song?) only had one release as well, a split-7" with the reformed Even As We Speak in 2003. Evening Lights themselves seem to be the group that prefigured Tears Run Rings, as it also included Shelflife proprietors Matthew and Ed. The song here is from their only ep, released of course, on Shelflife. Cartwheel was Watling and Dwayne Palasek (also in Autocollants and In a Day) and they released a 7" on Sandcastle. That label isn't around anymore, but their site is still up at Indiepages.

As you can see there is also a 'Library tape' with Laura Watling songs. If anyone knows where you could get hold of these songs please let me know! Apparently Sandcastle's idea was to create a library of songs, so that when you ordered something you could get a tape with your own selections recorded. What a great idea!

Just now I also found another band called The Disappointment, who had the same members as Evening Lights it would seem. I don't have any of their songs, but you can hear a few on Myspace. Right now you'll have to do with these:

Laura Watling - I Fell In Love On Saturday
Casino Ashtrays - Comfortable Distance
Colors & Shapes - Song One
The Autocollants - Skybloom
In a Day - Lazy Summer Days
Cartwheel - Halfway There
Evening Lights - Starless
Tears Run Rings - Waiting For the End

CLOUD 102 V/A - We're Still Fun

NEWS!
Ed told me that there is a Laura Watling retrospective coming out soon, with some unreleased songs. It's called Songs From Dreams and a track is included in the Shelflife sampler that you can get here. Also included is a track from an upcoming Evening Lights cd, compiling the odds and ends they never released! Called The Disappointment, not surprisingly.

Only Stupid

2009-09-14T18:40:00.003+02:00

Apart from studying, today has been spent listening to 14 Iced Bears' 14 Iced Bears (reissued on the now equally out of print Let the Breeze Open Our Hearts) and my latest parcel of records from Matinée. People who were quick (like me!) could make some real bargains among the newly discovered leftovers from Jimmy's old Roundabout mailorder. Finally got a mint copy of the Bubblegum Splash! ep, the second Gentle Despite single (not as great as their first one but worth it just for 6-minute opus "Shadow of a Girl" on the b-side), that treasured first single from The Fairways (which has been sold out for years) and last but not least the first ep by Oxford folk-rock group The Relationships.

That came out on Twee Kitten in 1998, and Twee Kitten being a name that probably wouldn't be passable a for newly established label today, they did package their releases commendably. Among the noteworthy ones are a Casino Ashtrays ep and (later Matinée signees) Sweet William's excellent Ambiguous ep. I definitely like how they've applied the 80s diy 7"-packaging (folded paper sleeve in plastic bag) to the cd format - complete with catalogue insert, and in this case a "bonus mini-'zine accompaniment"! In it you can read details about the members of Relationships (including their current mode of transport and favourite Beatle) and about their love for 60s groups with hand-drawn logos. The reviews from the Twee Kitten team sets the timeframe for the release perfectly, with reviews of Moon Safari, In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, a Magick Heads ep and (yay!) #Poundsign#s best single.

The Relationships, it can't hurt to remind you of, was once formed by former members of the excellent Anyways and their sound-a-likes Razorcuts. Their latest album came out recently and we enthusiastically played a track from it on the HIAYH radio show in Auckland. But here's a reminder to go out and purchase Space as soon as the credit crunch lifts! Country Catalogue itself is impressive for a debut ep, my favourites being the closing tracks "Sea Street" and "Disappearing Girl". The former has some magnificently airy guitar-playing from Angus, his twelve strings reverberating at the bottom of the mix, while the latter is a classic 3-minute powerpop hit.

Together with these timeless pop artifacts came a shiny copy of Strawberry Whiplash's new ep. Picture Perfect is their second outing and slightly less fuzzy than Who's In Your Dreams, but ever-so-pop. The title-track is the big hit of the bunch, and with "Hay In a Needlestack" Laz continues his playful referencing of pop culture (cf. "Surfin' USB" on the recent Bubblegum Lemonade ep) helped on by some nifty 12-string picking. Sandra's vocals sound perfectly smooth throughout, upheld by seriously hook-laden melodies. "Celestial" turns up the overdrive and gives Laz the opportunity for that solo even pop guitarists itch for. "Falling Through" sounds as great as when we heard the first recording of it on Myspace all those years ago, utilising a clever variation of that Byrds riff. It's very hard for my to pick a favourite here, I guess the only solution is to buy it so that you can play all four songs on repeat!

Little Deuce Coup

2009-09-13T20:35:00.006+02:00

In Melbourne I was talking to Alex about making a mix for driving to. Now I've finally finished it! 21 songs about cars, driving, and roads leading everywhere. Named after the Mighty Mighty song, which they even played at Indietracks this summer. Of course there are many more songs that would fit the theme, but if you find any embarrassing omissions, they might be on another mix with the same theme that I just made! The live version of "Driving South" is incredible, and I captured it from Swedish radio several years. In fact it was the first time I properly listened to The Clientele, and there could not be a better introduction. "Big Blue Bus" is an earlier version of the Choo Choo Train tune "Big Blue Buzz", and is from the first release on the Bus Stop label. I'm sure you'll recognise the rest of it. Now, all proud car-owners can scroll down and download the mix from the link. Everyone else will simply have to be satisfied with gazing at the tracklist.

CLOUD 101 V/A - Built Like a Car

You Meet What You Eat

2009-09-12T23:22:00.003+02:00

One of the most confusing things about 60s garage is that almost every band name was used by more than one group. The Rogues is probably the worst/best example, but recently I have been listening to different Beefeaters. Perhaps most well-known is the group that was first known as The Jet Set, and after recording a Bob Dylan tune became The Byrds. They only released one single, "Please Let Me Love You" and on the flip is a less interesting recording of "Don't Be Long" (or "It Won't Be Long" as it was called on Turn! Turn! Turn!). There is also a Danish group called Beefeaters that some people will have heard of, at least in Scandinavia. But the first group of this name that I heard is a much lesser known group from Dallas. They only recorded two songs (at least as far as I know). "Don't Hurt Me" was included in the Garage Beat '66 series, and both are also on the much older Texas Punk 1966 Vol. 1 on Cicadelic. As you can read on Allmusic, they're not entirely different from early Byrds. Especially so on the 12-string-equipped "Change My Mind".

CLOUD 99 The Beefeaters - Change My Mind