August 2009
2 posts
Sorcerer - Push To Freeze
Can a song be shy? With its tentative, almost hesitant opening of syncopated guitars and hypnotic, subtle changes in percussion, “Push to Freeze” takes a while to come out of its shell. Gradually adding sonic layers while maintaining a spacey, wide-open quality, Sorcerer (a.k.a. Daniel Judd) shows a great flair for creating inviting atmospheres and scintillating textures and breaking...
Hello Seahorse! - Bestia
Dont let the stormy, haunted sound effects at the front end of Hello Seahorses! Bestia frighten you away from this charming track. The crystalline vocals of Denise (a.k.a. Vanilla Face or Lo Blondo) float over suave keyboards and a solidly drummed beat, instantly making you feel metropolitan. Her bandmates, Burgos and Bonno T, maintain a tight balance between the recording aesthetic of the garage...
July 2009
11 posts
Aid - Boogie Vigo
Savvy listeners can learn a lot about rappers just by studying their vocal delivery. In the case of Ad, whose well-metered flows unfurl in lisp-tinged Castilian and Galician, its clear this Spanish female emcee is the real deal not the result of a get-rich-quick marketing scheme. On swinging Boogie Vigo, the former graffiti writer rides a funk-tinged, minimal beat and lets you know all about her...
Billy Boy On Poison - On My Way
Pure attitude will ooze through your earbuds or speakers from the very first unaccompanied kick and snare-drum pairing of Billy Boy On Poisons “On My Way.” Tightly executed rhythm guitar contrasts with freely wailing lead guitar, while the primal drumbeat perfectly underscores each infectious Hey! in the chorus. If you need a walk-on song for your next talk-show appearance or summer...
Hill Country Review - You Can Make It
Fans of the North Mississippi Allstars should be familiar with the deeds of Hill Country Revue. The Revue is NMA’s Chris Chew and Cody Dickinson jamming with guests Daniel Coburn, Kirk Smithhart, Ed Cleveland, and Garry and Duwayne Burnside (sons of legendary bluesman R.L.), veering NMAs jam-blues caravan down a more rootsy path. “You Can Make It” is a snappy country-rock number...
Comic Book Heroes - Catch Me If You Can
Still only juniors in high school, Comic Book Heroes already have four years of music experience in their gig bags. Dont let their youth fool you, though: This is by no means teen pop. Citing collective influences that range from Charles Mingus, the Rolling Stones, and David Bowie to Dream Theater, Nirvana, and Franz Ferdinand, the quartet from Reading, Pa., perfectly combines sassy vocals,...
Gossip - Heavy Cross
Gossip return unleash a new batch of rock ‘n’ roll mayhem with help from producer Rick Rubin with Music for Men. Transformative rock, sharpened disco hooks, soul, and gospel influence abounds. Check out our free Single of the Week, the funk-punk-tastic “Heavy Cross.” If you like the track, check out the album. Click here to download Gossip - Heavy Cross. Click here for...
Carlos y Alejandra - Explicame
The debut from the modern bachata duo Carlos y Alejandra has been all over the tropical charts thanks to the mid-tempo melodic bliss of La Introduccion’s first single, “Cuanto Duelo.” Judging by the tracks on this debut album, you can expect to hear a lot more of the group’s unique rhythms and sensational vocal work. “Explicarme” is another strong, rootsy...
Jaimee Paul - Cry Me A River
Southern Illinois native Jaimee Paul grew up singing in church, where she wowed congregations with her spins on classic hymns. On her newest album, Paul reinterprets jazz standards, including Cry Me a River, originally popularized by Julie London. Close your eyes and listen to Pauls timeless, smoky vocals mingle with tranquil string orchestration and Beegie Adairs delicate piano playing. If you...
Owl City - Fireflies
Owl City is the stage name of Adam Young, a Minnesota native plinking out dreamy tunes that meander down clever lyrical sidestreets. Fireflies melds a partly-cloudy-with-a-chance-of-clearing attitude to a trance-pop beat. The result: an invigorating, feel-good electro-pop experience. Young has a bit of Death Cab for Cutie in his vocal timbre that, when pressed up against a synthesized beat, is so...
Natalia LaFourcade - Ella Es Bonita
Last week we showed our appreciation for the efforts of Natalie LaFourcade when we spotlighted her new work with Los Amigos Invisbles. This week, we take our new love a little bit further and spotlight a track from her new album, Hu Hu Hu. “Ella Es Bonita” is a bright slice of sunshine pop where Ms. LaFourcade comes across like a nouveau folk-singer with a penchant for horns and...
Meese - Next In Line
Meese is a Denver-based group thats ready to send its debut album, Broadcast, out into the world. We’ve got the band’s new single, “Next In Line,” available for you to check out for free. Meese has a solid, slightly synth-touched rock backbone that drives its songs forward. A mixture of soulful harmonies within rough guitars and electronic textures gives the band a...
Los Amigos Invisibles - Vivire Para Ti
How appropriate that Vivire Para Ti is the Song of the Week just as everybodys pulling skimpy summer clothes out of storage. The fun Venezuelan group fills a highball tall with cool disco and Latin lounge, topped with a gorgeous vocal one-two punch from Julio Briceo and special guest Natalia Lafourcade. Producer Dimitri from Paris gives “Vivire Para Ti” wings to transcend both...
Roba - Laberinto
Robert Avellanet spent his youth as a member of Menudo in the late ’80s, and honed his rock skills throughout the ’90s as a part of bands like Euphoria, El Reencuentro, and Los Ultimos Heroes. Now he’s back as RoBA and with a new album, Jet Privado. “Laberinto” is a smooth pop track on the surface, but it rocks with gusto - a blazing guitar kicks the tune off which...
Ace Hood - Loco Wit The Cake
A signee to DJ Khaleds We the Best/Def Jam imprint, Ace Hood is riding the shockwaves from the success of Overtime with a brand-new single, Loco Wit the Cake. Ace Hood shows off his flamboyant lifestyle (Spend 30 in the mall/Five cars sitting tall) over a treacherous Schife beat. Loco Wit the Cake reveals that the cards are in Ace Hoods favor. If you like the track, check out the album. Click...
Leslie Mendelson - Hit the Spot
Any recording that begins with an old-fashioned walking double bass line already sounds like a winner to us. Add suave yet understated drumming, crisp acoustic guitar comping, and, most importantly, singer/songwriter/pianist/guitarist Leslie Mendelsons spirited voice, and one gets a song that does indeed, as advertised, Hit the Spot. The bluesy piano and boozy horns that come in later fortify the...
June 2009
15 posts
Mayer Hawthorne - Just Aint Gonna Work Out
Mayer Hawthorne’s music is a throwback to a time when sweet, sweet soul ruled the airwaves and solid backbeats were recorded without any digital enhancements. “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out” is from the school of Impressions-era Curtis Mayfield or Miracles-era Smokey Robinson it’s got Hawthorne’s falsetto vocals ruling over a minimal bit of funk (also provided by...
Love and Theft - Don't Wake Me
This Nashville group perfectly illustrates the mixture of twang and commercial rock that helps keep country music alive and thriving with a new generation. “Don’t Wake Me” is a cut from Love and Thefts upcoming World Wide Open album. Members Brian Bandas, Stephen Barker Liles, and Eric Gunderson intertwine their vocals to create excellent harmonies, and there’s a fiddle...
Bomba Estreo - Fuego
This Colombian group released its first album in 2007, mixing the electronic sounds boom out of the clubs with more traditional cumbia rhythms. Its newest album, Blow-Up, expands on that idea by integrating champeta and bullerengue sounds into the mix and adding more live percussionists to bring the rhythms to the forefront. This new electofolklorico sound is taken to a high point on...
Federico Aubele - Otra Vez (feat. Sabina Sciubba)
Argentine singer/songwriter Federico Aubele has given us two albums of genre-hopping pop - mixing up ambient grooves with tango and hip-hop with bolero. “Otra Vez” is a track from his third album that squeezes in some exquisitelyplayed acoustic guitar against the moody and luscious electronic backbeat. Assistance on the vocal side comes from Brazilian Girls vocalist, Sabina Sciubba....
Laura Izibor - Don't Stay
Dublin’s Laura Izibor has a voice that sings up and out over her surroundings, bringing a little bit of sunshine wherever she goes. She represents the new sound of soul music and brings to it a touch of sass and passion that makes her particular style stand out from the pack. “Don’t Stay” is breezy, windswept funk with Izibor shining on the vocals - it’s orchestrated...
Major Lazer - Keep It Goin' Louder
Major Lazer is the dynamic DJ duo of Switch and Diplo, creating a distinct style of future-facing dance music. Diplo and Switch build a feverish pace on Keep It Goin Louder, chopping up baile funk beats and electro effects, while Nina Sky and Ricky Blaze watch over the packed dance floor doing play-by-play and color commentary. Keep It Goin Louder is an example of the collaboration-heavy Major...
The Ruse - Beautiful Is Gone
Help the L.A.-based group the Ruse celebrate its fifth year together by downloading the sparkling Beautiful Is Gone. Recalling the grandeur of U2, the song features impassioned vocals and heroically layered guitars over a tightly executed rhythm section of bass guitar and drums. Its the sound of 1980s earnestness coupled with 21st-century ambition. If you like what you hear, check out the Ruses...
The Sippy Cups - Seven is The New 14
This week were proud to serve up our first-ever childrens music selection. The Sippy Cups hail from the coastal Bay Area town of Montara and combine a modern rock aesthetic with the family music principles of education, kindness, and fun. Seven Is the New 14 sneaks in some basic numerical concepts and multiplication lessons in a power-pop package that comes complete with groovy keyboards,...
Pilar Diaz - Tu y Yo
With her former band, Los Abandoned, Pilar Diaz was the center of tracks that dipped into new wave party rock and riff-driven power pop. On her own, she’s freer to create something more dizzying. With her ukulele never too far behind her, Diaz makes quirky, mournful pop songs with an ethereal air - and on “Tu y Yo” she adds a solid, uptempo hip-hop beat. Click here to download...
Matias Aguayo - Bo Jack
Former Closer Musik maestro Matias Aguayo is responsible for this whimsical, jumpy creation. The electronic drumming provides an 80s electro feel, while captivating, slurred vocals (reminiscent of I Want Candy) and sounds panning from ear to ear provide a slightly disorienting Doppler effect. Bo Jack will get the party started or keep it going. If you like the track, check out the album. Click...
David Nail - Red Light
Missouri’s David Nail has been releasing solid, no-frills country music since 2002. He’s blessed with a confident vocal style that gives a little heartland sincerity to his poetic examinations of the day-to-day. “Red Light” is a perfect example of his charms; instead of launching into a road-rage diatribe when stuck at a stoplight, Nail finds the simplicity and beauty of...
Polbo - Te Quiero Mucho
Polbo’s self-titled debut was nominated for a Latin GRAMMY in 2006. The album was a refreshingly hard-rocking effort that alternated between 60’s rock riffs and good-time jangling roots-rock. Now Polbo’s back with Liminada, and the hooks are pushed even farther out in front. “Te Quiero Much” is a riotous singalong that keeps the British Invasion influences on the...
May 2009
12 posts
Vib Gyor - Fallen
The groups eye-raising name, Vib Gyor, is simply a mnemonic for colors in the visible spectrum (violet, indigo, blue, green, and so forth). The five Brits behind this colorful, burgeoning band have already collaborated with producers whose big-time credits include Sigur Ros, Radiohead, and the Cure and influences of each can be heard on Fallen, an ethereal sparkler that finds lyrics of...
Vieux Farka Toure - Fafa
Its hard when one wants to pursue a creative career against the will of ones parent. So it can only be exponentially more difficult when ones father was the great, late West African guitarist/vocalist Ali Farka Tour. Guitarist/vocalist/percussionist Vieux Farka Tour eventually earned his fathers blessing and has gone on to make his own contributions to Malian music. “Fafa” features a...
Naldo - No Se Si Tu
Puerto Rican reggaeton producer Naldo came to the attention of many a club-goer after his contributons to the Mas Flow compilations. His slick, syth-heavy style is all over this new track from his forthcoming album while the mic gets passed over to De La Ghetto for the sweet vocal work. If you like the track, check out the album. Click here to download Naldo - No Se Si Tu. Click here for more...
Diane Birch - Rise Up
In jazz, a popular phrase among players is to bring some church to the bandstand. Singer/songwriter/pianist Diane Birch does that with her soulful music in more ways than one. The youngest child of a travelling preacher, she spent time with her family in Africa and Australia before ending up in Portland, Oregon. Initially underexposed to non-secular music, she studied classical piano before...
Anuhea - Right Love, Wrong Time
Anuhea provides a sweet reminder that looks can be deceiving. This blonde-haired, blued-eyed singer/songwriter is actually Hawai’i born and bred, and laidback Right Love, Wrong Time showcases her engaging brand of R&B with a breezy twist befitting of Anuhea’s island roots. File this sultry song somewhere near Lauryn Hill, Little Jackie, and Colbie Caillat. If you like the track,...
Domino Saints - Buenos Dias San Juan
Domino Saints bring many of the street sounds of Puerto Rico to the surface and combine them into one groove-heavy whole. “Buenos Dias San Juan” is a monster of a track with solid, no-nonsense horns matching a dub-friendly guitar riff and some elegant vocals from Giselle Ojeda. If any tune demands the return of the boombox, it’s this one. Click here to download Domino Saints -...
Parachute - Under Control
Is it too early to think about the summer songs of 2009? The fledgling Charlottesville, VA quintet Parachutes Under Control is an early qualifier, if not. Opening with a brief, dual guitar-and-keyboard instrumental exploration, it quickly transforms as infectious piano chords and Will Andersons soaring vocals join in to make it an irresistible pop-soul gathering. Organ stabs, whirling guitar...
Christian Finnegan - High Five Yourself
This week we follow a path we rarely go down with our Discovery Download - stand-up comedy. If you’ve ever watched VH1’s Best Week Ever, you’ve probably caught some of Finnegan’s material. He’s disarmingly funny, self-deprecating … and he has new stand-up album out, Au Contraire. With this cut, he analyzes the art and etiquette of the high five. If you like the...
Los Hollywood - No Te Aguites
This trio hails from Santa Barbara have hit pop-punk gold in the form of their new single, “No Te Aguites”. The song has a formidable rhythm section in members Gustavo and Marcos (first names only, please!), who pound out a sky’s-the-limit mixture of power chords and fierce drumming. Vocalist Heidy brings it all home, mixing lascivious Spanish/English vocals in her Stefani-esque...
Boaz - No More
The sharp-dressed MC called Boaz hails from Pittsburgh and, based on the tracks from The Audio Biography, is likely to follow in Wiz Khalifa’s big footprints as far as bringing attention to the PA sound. “No More” shows off Boaz’s wise-hustler stance via verse after verse of molasses-thick wordplay, while producer Soulstar ties it all together with Curtis Mayfield-esque...
Jon Hopkins - Light Through The Veins
Playing keyboards for producer/songwriter/ambient pioneer Brian Eno is the impressive musical equivalent of being a sous chef for Thomas Keller or Alice Waters. Producer/composer/remixer/pianist Jon Hopkins has that Eno studio credit to casually mention at parties, as well as a reputation for compelling live shows. The London natives epic instrumental Light Through the Veins may sound familiar to...
Larry Hernandez - El Querendon y Cajetoso
The suave Larry Hernandez comes to us with a new album 16 Narco Corridos which offers up some of the most heartfelt corridos in recent memeory. Hernandez has a friendly, easy-going voice which suits hist warm style behind the microphone. Laughing it up, making asides and then launching into some eye-watering bits of poetry - Hernandez and his horn-driving band sound just perfect on “El...
April 2009
10 posts
Zoe - Nada
Zo’s Britpop and psychedelic influences set the band apart in its native Mexico. Produced by Phil Vinall (Radiohead), “Nada constructs a musical bridge from Manchester to Mexico City. Comparisons to Placebo and the Cure are favorable, with moody keyboards, Duane Eddylike guitar twang, and passionate vocals from Len Larregui building to a climactic end. Let Zo escort you down the...
Phillip LaRue - Chasing the Daylight
Phillip LaRue came to many people’s attention for the work he did with his sister several years back under the name LaRue. Now LaRue is back with his debut solo album and he’s got passion and songs to show for his absence. In “Chasing the Daylight”, LaRue wonders if his faith is like the wax wings of Icarus, not destined to last. You can rest assured that LaRue finds that...
Sarah Reeves - Come Save
This week we’re taking a closer look at the music of Sarah Reeves, a 19-year-old vocalist from Alabama. “Come Save” is a track from her debut, Sweet Sweet Sound, and it’s a rallying, sweetly sung song of worship that addresses faith in a very direct and powerful way but also works as a showcase for Reeves as a pop vocalist. If you like the track, check out the album. Click...
Empire of the Sun - Walking On A Dream
One first glance at Empire of the Sun - from their album artwork, style, and song titles, and you won’t be sure whether or not you want to listen to them or stand in line at the theater to watch them on the big screen. They came across as either sci-fi diehards or glam rock warriors from outer space. Let it be known that the mastermind behind the group’s David Bowie-in-Labyrinth style...
Group Therapy - If You Ever Hear Me
Group Therapy is the project of Crooked I and King Tech, who work together (the former on the mic, the latter on production) honing skills and verses over claustrophobic live beats dotted with heavy synths and guitar arpeggios. Crooked I rallies against hip-hop’s current state, decrying the auto-tune (“unless it’s T-Pain”) and ringtone jams. But this cut is more than a...
Taxi Amarillo - Si, Te Amo
Pedro Cruz Montesino and Chris Hierro make up the duo known as Taxi, Amarillo, named for the ubiquitous vehicles that travel throughout their home city of New York. Montesino spent years recording Cruzmonty, while Hierro has been tightening his skills as a writer and producer for just as long. Together they’ve crafted an emotional, rock-driven record tinted by elements of dance-pop and...
Ida Maria - I Like You So Much Better When You're...
Stockholm’s Ida Maria has a great rock ‘n’ roll voice - it occupies a kind of slurring middle ground between Joan Jett and the Strokes’ Julian Casablancas. On this track - a bit hit last spring in the U.K. - Maria voices an often hard-to-face fact about relationships with punk-rock gusto, creating a jumpy pop tune that grabs you by the collar. If you like the track, check...
Band of Skulls - I Know What I Am
Band of Skulls Russell Marsden (guitar and vocals), Emma Richardson (bass and vocals), and Matt Hayward (drums) play a ragged, rough, and absolutely riveting take on rock n roll. Somewhere between howling, minimal blues-rock and sneering indie pop is where you’ll find this U.K. trios debut single, “I Know What I Am.” Were confident you’ll fall for the band’s...
Sacred Oath - Counting Zeros
Headbangers take heed: Heavy metal vet Sacred Oath is back on the grind. The four-man Connecticut crew has been making a lot of noise since returning in 2007 from a two-decade hiatus. On Counting Zeroes, a sweltering guitar dissipates long enough for an impassioned Rob Thorne to sing about the shattered state of the world; then it returns for a little assault on your eardrums. If you like the...
El Hijo De la Cumbia - Soy el Control
El Hijo de la Cumbia is the name taken by Emiliano Gmez - the DJ and producer who hails from th Buenos Aires suburb of San Martn. Most of you know cumbia as the traditional sounds that come booming out of the speakers at holiday parties. Gmez turns it up a notch, stripping the sound down to it’s barest, rollicking rhythm and adding an array of dubbed-out effects, turntable tricks, and...