Noah and the Whale, a nice little indie pop group from London, are releasing their latest, Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down, on Cherry Tree Records on September 16th; to promote it, they’ve released a video for “5 Years Time,” which I’ve embedded below. The track’s cute, happy, the works — in it’s own way, it fields a certain twee feel. I’m not complaining. Watch the video after the jump, or watch it on imeem.
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Stereolab
Chemical Chords
4AD August 18, 2008
Stereolab’s made enough of a name for themselves by now that most releases will hit the radar of an assortment of music fans, especially those finding themselves attracted to the indie pop sound this bold outfit is known for producing so elegantly.
Stereolab - “Three Women” | download | preview at Beggars Group USA
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The Telepathic Butterflies
Breakfast in Suburbia
Rainbow Quartz, 2008
The Telepathic Butterflies - “Telescope” | download
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One thing is made clear from the opening track of Breakfast in Suburbia: The Telepathic Butterflies (what a name!) are rooted in a 1960s pop aesthetic, their apparent influences a combination of the usual suspects: The Beach Boys and The Beatles, most notably, with a nice dose of surf rock playing out in the guitar tones. There’s enough of a psychedelic inflection in the music produced by the duo that citing Barrett-era Pink Floyd wouldn’t be completely off the mark, either.
Click to continue reading “Released This Week: The Telepathic Butterflies - Breakfast in Suburbia”
Aviary Ghost
Memory is a Hallway
Self-released, 2008
Aviary Ghost - “Somewhere Else” | download
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There are times that self-releasing an album can be the best option for a band, especially given the many instances of hot-air blowing by music industry personnel — and it’s not just major labels that have been known to play the game in miscreant ways. Sometimes, though, artists just don’t want to deal with the hassle of marketing their release, preferring to just put the music out for public consumption.
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Ah, gentle-but-active pop music — Team Genius, who released the Hooray EP on Feb. 26, are the perpetrators of some fairly simple music, but that doesn’t mean they don’t create something addicting, too. Of course, this much is likely obvious: Much music, historically, has been simplistic, and some of it has been successful. Big surprise. Still, Team Genius provides an interesting perspective on the matter, with their irreverent indie pop taking on a variety of historical styles without much concern for public opinion. That’s where the band’s strength is, I’d argue, but given I have heard relatively little of their music, I can’t honestly make a quality assertion in one direction or another. At any rate, they’re worth writing about if just for the chance to include their over-the-top, quirky photograph. It’s a bit creepy, really.
Team Genius - “Sing Song” | download
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Team Genius - “I’m Just An Idiot” | download
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Plastic Operator are an electronic indie pop duo out of the U.K. made up of Mathieu Gendreau and Pieter Van Dessel. Their music is a refreshing change from the typical guitar-drums-bass combination that has dominated the music scene for so long. The beats are thumping and the vocal melodies entrancing throughout their entire debut album, Different Places, which was released on May 14th, 2007 in Europe. They focus mainly on upbeat and catchy songs with an ’80s synth feel, but show their diversity in the song Another Sound, which features a riff ridden guitar solo. In the end, Plastic Operator is one of those bands that’s just fun and enjoyable to listen to. You can check out more of their music and a new video for the song, “Home 0207,” at their myspace page, http://www.myspace.com/plasticoperator.
Plastic Operator — “Peppermint” | download
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Plastic Operator — “Another Sound” | download
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Grand Archives, consisting of five – Mat Brooke, Jeff Montano, Curtis Hall, Ron Lewis, and Thomas Wright – bring us bright, experimental pop recordings. “Torn Blue Foam Couch” is particularly lush with a chirping summery tone and beautiful four-part vocal harmonies. Perfect walking music, as great pop should be. To kick off their album release (Feb. 19th) Grand Archives will be performing Live at KEXP 90.3 FM and a live (free!) show at Sonic Boom later that evening in Seattle, WA. Full tour dates will be listed here. Their self-titled album will be released Feb. 19 on Sub Pop Records.
Grand Archives — “Torn Blue Foam Couch” | download
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The latest video from The Terrordactyls, a strangely enticing lo-fi indie pop group, is a strangely enticing lo-fi stop motion endeavor. “Devices,” which features Moldy Peaches-veteran and Kimya Dawson on vocals, features, of all things, scissors speaking to each other. Read after the jump for the video. Michael Cadiz and Tyrel Stendahl, who make up The Terrordactyls, are quite capable of holding their musical own, as it were: See “Fall,” posted below, for an example.
Contributing vocalist Kimya Dawson may overshadow the two musicians, given the love a variety of teenagers have expressed for recent Ivan Reitman flick Juno — don’t get me wrong, I am quite a fan of the film, as well; I merely find the newfound love for The Moldy Peaches and Kimya Dawson a bit puzzling or, at the very least, surprising.
The Terrordactyls — “Devices” | download
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The Terrordactyls —”Fall” | download
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Kara Keith, from Calgary, Alberta and previously of Falconhawk, will release her self-titled solo debut EP on Saved By Radio on Feb. 12. The EP can be purchased in the Saved By Radio online store. “Kick This City,” from the release and posted below, is an engaging, driving track that makes its name with synthesizers and keys, but is also home to smooth vocals from Kara Keith. With talent of this nature, it’s hard to believe that this singer and songwriter won’t go anywhere.
Kara Keith — “Kick This City” | download
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Eric Elbogen of Say Hi (previously Say Hi To Your Mom), who, today, release The Wishes and the Glitch, answers a few questions from MusicGeek.org regarding the new album, working with David Bazan and John Roderick, and more. Read after the jump for more of the interview, tracks from The Wishes and the Glitch, and links to purchase music from the group. Say Hi were previously the subject of a MusicGeek.org spotlight.
Say Hi — “Northwestern Girls” | download
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What’s the geekiest thing you did during the recording of The Wishes and the Glitch?
Well, cooping up in a bedroom full of music equipment for six months for twelve hours a day is pretty geeky, don’t you agree? I got nothing else.
Click to continue reading “An interview with Say Hi, who released a new album today”
Head of Femur, a wonderfully orchestrated indie pop group, will release their new album, Great Plains, on March 25 on Greyday Records. The LP, their third, is a tightly constructed pop record with a flare unique to the group. The passionate songwriting embodied by the group can be heard in the trumpets, the multi-part harmonies, and the jangly, twee-inflected guitar work: This isn’t some one-off, pointless project. Head of Femur pulls influence from C-86, The Flaming Lips, The Smiths, The Beach Boys, The Beatles — the usual greats, really; touches of legendary pop writing make a distinctive presence on Great Plains, and that’s sure to set this outfit apart.
Head of Femur — “Isn’t It a Shame” | download
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Head of Femur — “Jetway Junior” | download
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Casey Dienel — the 22-year old performing a unique combination of jazz and indie as White Hinterland and the subject of a previous MusicGeek.org spotlight — is set to embark on her North American tour tomorrow, kicking off with a performance in Boston. The tour ends with a three-day stint at SXSW, but the final regular tour date, March 4, will see the release of Phylactery Factory on Dead Oceans. Dienel is touring with Taken By Trees, with whom Victoria Bergsman, previously of indie-popsters The Concretes, has been performing.
Winter Hinterland - “Dreaming of the Plum Trees” | download
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Read after the jump for tour dates.
Click to continue reading “White Hinterland begins North American tour tomorrow”
American Music Club, who released their first album in 1985, are preparing to release their ninth full length album, The Golden Age, on Merge Records. The album is set to be released on Feb. 19 in the US and Feb. 4 in the UK, on Cooking Vinyl. Posted below is “All the Lost Souls Welcome You To San Francisco,” an exquisitely crafted indie pop track that holds a certain amount of energy beneath its mellow demeanor.
American Music Club — “All The Lost Souls Welcome You To San Francisco” | download
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Read after the jump for purchase links and North America tour dates beginning in April.
Nathaniel Carroll, indie pop pianist, guitarist, and vocalist, is preparing a new album for release at some point in the future. While awaiting the release, take a listen to two tracks, “You’ll Make a Killing” and “A Lie Worth Living,” which he provided for your listening. The tracks, among his most musically mature and best-recorded, feature Carroll’s signature genuine, heartfelt songwriting.
MusicGeek.org previously conducted an interview with Nathaniel Carroll in October, 2005. His music can be purchased at his web site.
Nathaniel Carroll — “You’ll Make a Killing” | download
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Nathaniel Carroll — “A Lie Worth Living” | download
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What’s the status on your new album?
Slow and steady wins the race. I’d be vain if I told you that I planned on it taking over two years to record my new album, as if I’ve been carefully crafting some masterpiece in my secret underground lair. In actuality, this album is one of many flaming chainsaws in my juggling routine. I have the skeleton tracks (drums, piano or guitar, vocals) recorded for 10 songs, and I have 2 songs that are “good enough.” I’ve enclosed them in this electronic correspondence for your leaking pleasure. If track lists mean anything to anyone these days, here’s one that looks cool in my head:
Click to continue reading “An interview with Nathaniel Carroll”
Chairs in the Arno, a synth-driven indie pop band in the vein of Barcelona, answer a few questions from MusicGeek.org regarding their music, their future, and the reception of their release, File Folder. Chairs in the Arno have previously been the subject of a MusicGeek.org spotlight.
Chairs in the Arno — “Size Thirty” | download
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You seem to occupy the same general music area as, say, Barcelona and Sprites. How much affinity do you hold to them, and how influential were they in your musical development as a group?
Jeff Excell and Becca Hsu: We are all really big fans of Barcelona. No other band was making such simple but genius synth-pop music. Their singer, Jason Korzen, who later went onto form the Sprites, basically made it seem “ok” to write lyrics about simple and enjoyable things. I would say they had quite an impact on the making of all our music. A couple years ago, Jason made a comment about how we were his “new favorite band” on MySpace. I think we all freaked out about it and almost peed our pants with excitement. Barcelona and the Sprites are WAY underated.
Click to continue reading “An interview with Chairs in the Arno”
