A friend of mine recenty alerted me to the charms of young Swedish girl duo First Aid Kit. Thanks for the heads-up, bud: the warm, fresh and just a tad naïve pop of their full-lenghth debut The Big Black And The Blue goes down a treat here. No-frills acoustic bliss, located somewhere halfway between late-sixties Laurel Canyon and modern Stockholm. "I wish that I could have known by then... we all know now that we're never getting back to those times..." Johanna and Klara´s earlier cover of the Fleet Foxes beauty Tiger Mountain Peasant Song [...]
Woset These songs by Woset are brimming with wonderfully energetic folky vibes, positioning themselves confidently between the Fleet Foxes' comforting winter hymns and the The Dirty Projectors overflowing virtuoso palette. Woset - Has It Not Been ( mp3 )
Filed under: Band of the Week With his floppy, Morrissey -esque quiff, graphic tee and over-sized cardie, bassist Andy Hamm is more architecture student than thundering axe god, but -- channelled through the Amsterdam Paradiso's beefed up sound system -- the vibrations from his playing send his pedal setup skittering across the stage. Restless, twitchy percussion becomes pounding and martial, twinkling close harmonies turn to ragged-throated yelps: Los Angeles' Local Natives make quite a racket live. Not as much of a racket as Dutch techno-punk duo Aux Raus, though, [...]
![CD Review: Local Natives – Gorilla Manor [2010, Frenchkiss]](http://cache.elbo.ws/posts/2313657_lg.jpg)
Toronto - This is going to be a fairly lazy review, I will probably pull a Jamie Foxx and name drop a bunch of things here, hoping somehow that in the process, a review will somehow percolate subconsciously in your head and you'll come away from the article thinking this was a good review. Local Natives are a 5 piece band from Los Angeles, California. I thought Local Natives in California were known as Mexicans. HAHA. Maybe that's a sensitive issue, I am not sure. Anyways, they have an album coming out on February 16th, [...]
I've not been very busy on here recently. Some of you may even have wondered where I've been. The picture above may provide some clues. I had so much stuff to post last week, but it never happened. But I make no apologies for further absence, I'm happy with the ...
Last week saw the release of one of the most anticipated records of the year thus far in Beach House 's Teen Dream . Their third LP and first for maxi-indie Sub Pop . A much more sophisticated effort than its predecessors, this time around they incorporate elements of 70s AM radio pop and smatterings of soul into the mix to create this more distinctive collection, yet never losing the fuzzy dream haze that they are known for. In addition, the album features a companion DVD, comprised of videos for each song and produced by [...]
![Fleet Foxes: Mykonos [Cover Art]](http://cache.elbo.ws/posts/2284980_lg.jpg)
"Mykonos" was the most noteworthy song off Fleet Foxes ' debut Sub Pop EP Sun Giant , and now they give it the single-worthy nod of recognition it deserved at the time by releasing it on 7-inch vinyl. The sleeve is unique for the format: a gate-fold keeps the record nice and cozy amidst distinct art that fits well with the song and the band. The b-side is "False Knight On The Road". Fleet Foxes have literally taken the [...]
Bright Eyes - At The Bottom Of Everything (I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning) Super Furry Animals - Hello Sunshine (Phantom Power) The Supernaturals - The Day Before Yesterday's Man (It Doesn't Matter Anymore) The Besnard Lakes - Albatross (The Besnard Lakes Are The Roaring Night) Massive Attack - Blue Lines (Blue Lines) Frank Sinatra - I Won't Dance (A Swingin' Affair) Gorillaz - Stylo [feat. Mos Def & Bobby Womack] (Plastic Beach) Whitney Houston - I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Whitney) Kenny Loggins - Footloose (Footloose) Fleet Foxes - Your Protector [...]
Il video che trovate qui sopra è vecchio di qualche mese... allora perchè ve lo proponiamo? Semplice, perchè l'album, intitolato "The Big Black and the Blue", in cui è contenuta questa "Hard Believer" è in uscita proprio in questi giorni. Loro sono le First Aid Kit , due sorelle svedesi (Klara e Johanna) che propongono una sorta di folk femminile a due voci. Immaginatevi le prime Paola & Chiara ... ma anche no, qui si respira molta più serietà e credibilità. Le First Aid Kit si sono fatte conoscere attraverso Youtube ed in particolare grazie [...]
Two years after we were first awed by the baroque harmonies of Seattle's Fleet Foxes EP, Sun Giant and the highly acclaimed, self-titled debut album, band member Robin Pecknold says a new album is set to be released in December 2010. It's about time. But what can we really expect this year? Instead of focusing on a new album during 2009, Pecknold and his sister Aja Pecknold, formerly Seattle Clubs Editor for Seattle Weekly, and Morgan Henderson of Past Lives have been working on a side project they call Rainbow Fang [...]
just as horrible as a fire usually is, just as beautiful is this rumour. if you haven't already heard the rumour, and my guess is you haven't, now's the time to sharpen your ears and spread the rumour wide. thanks to the rumour, the new decade starts off good what counts quality, danish rock with a twist and twirl of indieness. ohh yes, we're dealing with the kind of music you would want to be enjoying in the summer time. the kind of music you hope to be enjoying while standing with a sweet girl in your arms. [...]
The penultimate entry in my list of favourite albums released throughout the noughties is the debut offering from the Fleet Foxes. At first, I had avoided the band because they'd been the subject of a bit too much hype in the music press and online. I imagined that they were just another cool indie band, although this was before I had actually heard any of their music. Fortunately, I was pleasantly surprised when I got around to listening to them. The first song I heard was White Winter Hymnal and it encapsulates a lot of what the band [...]
Fleet Foxes - " White Winter Hymnal " (from Fleet Foxes ) (photo via )
If we were writing this blog for Nuts or Zoo, this next sentence would probably make you, the hypothetical reader, go "phwoar", or some such; Next up are two teenage sisters from Sweden. Klara and Johanna Soderberg, aka First Aid Kit , aren't ever going to appear in either of those publications, however, because, well, they just wouldn't. Instead, they create fragile folk songs centred around lush harmonies and delicately plucked acoustic guitar. Lyrically, it's surprisingly depressing given the fact both of them have yet to see twenty, but hey, perhaps Sweden's just not that fun. This [...]
Well, with snow blanketing apparently the entire world, I thought a winter-themed post would be apt. Wintersleep I suppose it makes some sense that the Canadians are good at producing some quality wintery bands. 2007's Welcome to the Night Sky was excellent, and these boys have set May 2010 as a tentative release date for their next album. Matt Mays & El Torpedo – Wicked Come Winter [...]
Unless you are a diehard fan of Michael Jackson or the Beatles, last Tuesday's album releases won't do much for you. That is a very, very good thing, because 2010 promises for some excellent music. Get your wallet ready. The Album Leaf - Chorus of Storytellers ( Subpop ) (February 2) Brilliant instrumentalist Jimmy LaValle is back next month with a new album, this time with a full band. I'm [...]
Coldest winter ever. And worst January of the decade so far, for many reasons, not the least of all because I've had to work harder for the past week than I had to work in any week in the entire previous decade, and for a company that is getting rid of me in another month. I think there's irony in there somewhere, and not the Alanis Morrissette kind. But also, it's the only January of the decade ever, so I guess one could say it's been the best ever. If you like the fucking cold. i [...]
Filed under: Band of the Week Living, performing and being inspired together in Glasgow, rock trio Sparrow and the Workshop are fronted by Chicago born violinist and singer Jill O'Sullivan -- who in a previous life performed as Dead Sparrow. Her voice has been compared to both 60s traditional folk singer Sandy Denny yet also to Polly Harvey ; on some songs innocent and on others deeply violent and guttural. When Spinner gets her on the phone, it's an incredibly sexy drawl. Sparrow and the Workshop's eccentric mix of styles [...]
[MP3] Florence and the Machine - Addicted To Love Florence and the Machine had a terrific 2009 with the release of her debut Lungs and is still riding the wave of success into 2010, releasing her next single "Hurricane Drunk" on March 1 st . Aside from studio success, the first time I was really turned on to Florence's sound stemmed from a great cover of Cold War Kids' "Hospital Beds" last year. Now there is another cover to add to the [...]
You may notice a few differences between this list and the album list. I don't feel I need to justify that due to the distinct difference between a song and a full album. These are the songs that I still listen to on repeat; they made me laugh, tear up, dance, think, and morph my own tastes into what they are today. So here in no particular order is my Favorite Songs of the Decade. Picking a favorite song is like picking a favorite child, it changes depending on your mood... ___ [Audio clip: view full [...]
TOUR: The Tallest Man On Earth Announces U.S. Dates
Yeasayer – Odd Blood (Review)
New Releases V2.9
[mp3] Joanna Newsom - "Kingfisher"
