Cougar Microbes

For the next 48 hours The Strokes are giving away ‘Under Cover Of Darkness‘, the first single from the much awaited new album ‘Angles’ . It has been five long years since “First Impressions of Earth” was released to a bittersweet reception but we can look back and appreciate the darker side of that album.

The band members used this downtime to work on individual projects such as band leader Julian Casablancas’ great debut solo album ‘Phrases for the Young’, drummer Fabrizio Moretti’s summery project  Little Joy in which he proved that he is not only the reliable heartbeat that keeps the band alive but also a talented singer,  or Albert Hammond JR lovely ‘Yours to Keep’ album .

Following this self imposed break it seems they have all benefited from this extensive break and put their past differences aside. In a time where it seems that a new rock band is born every two seconds, all eyes are on the ones who revived garage rock and gave birth to what is undeniably one of the greatest albums of 2000s.

It’s time for the New Yorkers to take back their throne.

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Post by Olivia ex-les miserables.

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Maps & Atlases set aside their early math-rock tendencies for what an undoubtedly more accessible set of songs in 2010. The resulting album ‘Perch Patchwork‘ proved that the wild percussions and breakneck instrumental interchanges were not being entirely forgone by the band but instead were balanced with a knack for atmospherics and dynamics.

The shift from playing a thousand notes a minute to only revving it up at key segments is surprisingly smooth and frontman Dave Davison booming voice benefits most from the new found spotlight. Imagine Kings Of Leon’s Caleb Followill fronting a more daring Vampire Weekend and you may just begin to scratch the surface.

There is a lot going on on this album and it took me a few listens to digest it all but it is on the live stage that these songs truly begin to soar. With the band seemingly intent on recreating every note they recorded there is genuine tension and excitement in the air.

Add that to the fact they 4-pice are stand up guys and you have yourself a must hear album.

TRACKS:

NEXT: #07 Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2010: Emanuel and The Fear – Listen

PREVIOUS: #09 Cougar Microbes Top Albums Of 2010: Best Coast – Crazy For You

Having only just recently bigged up a new Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros track because it DIDN’T feature the vocals of Alex Ebert, something you can forgive when considering the lovely Jade Castrinos takes over vocal duties, I feel I should immediately compensate.

The idiosyncratic frontman has had a busy year; On top of recording an ‘Itunes Sessions‘ EP with ‘ES&MZ, being on a seemingly non-stop tour and releasing a new album with his original band Ima Robot he has also found time to unleash his first solo single under the Alexander identity.

The track ‘Truth‘ is not a million miles away from ‘Up From Below‘s more introspective moments once again radiating a feel that is  ”like a Sergio Leone picture“.

It will be interesting to see how he balances all these projects in 2011 as we await new Edward Sharpe material.

First things first; Return to Mono are anything but monophonic. Their catchy guitar rifts, strong vocals, and solid synths form a fully fledged and fully phonic electro rock sound.

‘Song Of The Beast‘ is the bands largest slice of electro; crunched beats are supported with warps and synths to provide a harder edge to their sound.  Leading lady Tanya Kelleher adds some pop accessibility to the tracks with her vocal style sitting somewhere between Garbage‘s Shirley Manson and the Noisettes‘ Shingai Shoniwa.

The album title track ‘Framebreaker‘ has a dense MGMT style production sound to it combined with military percussion and rustic earthy vocals that add maturity and longevity to the track.  ‘Seeker Cicuit‘ is the most rock infused of all the album tracks, focusing more upon vocals and stripping back the normally saturated synths to expose some serious guitar solos.

Even those who wouldn’t describe yourself as a classic electro pop fan you’ll be surprised to find that this band’s genre spanning  San Francisco sound offers something for everyone.

Return To Mono release their new album ‘Framebreaker’ on Audio Villain Records early next year.

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Post by the villainous Ruby

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TRACKS:

The first thing to strike you about this young songstress from Detroit is the uniqueness of her voice.She’s got a sickly sweet nostalgic twinge that’s a little bit Lykke Li and a retro flair that’s a little bit Paloma Faith and the rest I just can’t place.

Refreshingly, her tracks show the kind of production and instrumentation that other current pop records glimpse at but never fully grasp. Take ‘Choice Notes’ for example, with its plucky piano chords, hand clap percussion and xylophone tinkering. It’s rammed packed with musical entertainment yet it still manages to retain a light happy –go- lucky pop feel.

‘Medicine’, is equally whimsical with layered backing vocals and choral chanting. With lyrics such as “I won’t take my medicine” and ‘so thanks for nothing’ there’s a nursery rhyme feel to it that adds some playful personality. In contrast, ‘Gimme Me Heart’ graduates towards more teenage years and is drenched in a school-crush-style cooing that makes you wonder if Winston had cartoon doves fluttering above her whilst in the recording studio.

Normally, the idea of a female singer /songwriter producing theatrical boutique pop would see me run to the hills or at least towards the nearest record collection in search of an auditory antidote. However, in the instance, Alex Winston has won me over and wooed me with her form of picture perfect pop and shall seek no immunity from it.

‘Choice Notes’ is out now on HeavyRoc.

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Post by the vanishing Ruby

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Here is the cheeky new video from Milwaukee siblings French Horn Rebellion. Filmed whilst the brothers were doing a magazine film shoots; I think it both glamorises and pokes fun at rockstardom.

‘This Moment‘ precedes the bands upcoming debut album ‘The Infinite Music of French Horn Rebellion‘ due in late november.

TRACKS:

French Horn Rebellion – This Moment

Les Savy Fav have been underground indie-rock darlings for forever. This is as much a consequence of singer Tim Harrington’s eccentric onstage antics as their DIY ethos – all but one of their albums have been released on bassist Syd Butler’s Frenchkiss Records. After a decade and a half, which includes a year-long hiatus, the 5-piece have released a 5th studio album which may just catapult them into the big leagues.

The release, ‘Root For Ruin’, comes complete with the Fugazi-inspired post-hardcore quirks of previous LSF offerings. As a general rule song structures are consciously more straightforward, with the exception of midpoint ‘Poltergeist’, the result being greater accessibility for the uninitiated. There are elements borrowed from more commercially successful artists; guitars reminiscent of the Pixies, backing vocals veering towards Weezer territory and offbeat instrumentation that wouldn’t feel out of place on a Modest Mouse record. Still the band have not relinquished their edginess entirely and there are plenty of moments where you can feel the tension rising.

The high points on this album are… well pretty much everywhere to be honest. On a personal note rocking opener ‘Appetites’ ingeniously borrows from Silver Jews’ ‘Punks In The Beerlight’, a Cougar favourite. Stopping short of mentioning the entire track-list, ‘Dirty Knails’, ‘Sleepless in Silverlake’, ‘Lips n’ Stuff’ and ‘Excess Energies’ also contribute to make this a master class in dynamics, merging pop craftsmanship with ballsy rock ethos.

You’ve got to feel for LSF. They were forced into a hasty digital release of ‘Root For Ruin’ more than a month ahead of schedule after it was leaked via various torrent sites. As a result it may not have quite the impact that it would have enjoyed were it to have exploded onto the market with a co-ordinated release strategy.

It deserves more, seeing as it is arguably the Brooklyn post-hardcore outfit’s best work to date. Here’s hoping the gods smile upon “les bloody fab”.

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Post by back-to-school Kenny

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TRACKS:

Les Savy Fav – Appetites

At the start of the year we featured PackFM‘s relentless verbal assault entitled ‘Happy Days‘. The track, which sampled the American sitcom’s theme tune, had him reel of a list of everything he perceived was wrong with the modern hip hop industry.

The Brooklyn rapper is back with his ‘I Fucking Hate Rappers‘ LP and as you can guess by the title the subject of his wrath has not changed much.

The tracks are hard hitting and fresh and better sill, there isn’t a hint of autotune in sight!

Grab a copy of the album now through QN5

TRACKS:

PackFM – I Fucking Hate Rappers