
And now, it's time to list my Favorite Albums of 2011 . Here are 21 albums that I really loved this year. Listen to the tracks below, (and if you have not already) fall in love and go buy some albums. Listen. Hands on Fire by Hunters Downloadable: Brat Mouth (mp3) ( purchase the EP ) THE ELASTIC NOSTALGIA by THE FIELD [...]
Girl in a Coma – Exits & All the RestDownload "Smart" Girls – Father, Son, Holy GhostDownload "Vomit" The Go! Team – Rolling BlackoutsDownload "T.O.R.N.A.D.O." Goldenboy – SleepwalkerDownload "She Belongs to Me" Grey Reverend – Of the Days Gringo Star...
PLAYLIST: Hearts In Space - Shores Of Time Cameras - I Know Midnight Movies - Love Or A Lesson The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Borderline The Horrors - Suffragette City Little Barrie - Surf Hell The Greenhornes - It Returns Dum Dum Girls - Just a Creep Reigning Sound - Shaw The Deadbeats - Loafin' The Soundcarriers - Time Will Come Lilys - Touch the Water Pulp - My Legendary Girlfriend Grooms - Skating with Girl The Beta Band - To You [...]

(Kanine, 2011) Grooms' debut, Rejoicer , was my favorite album of 2009 . I have a fondness for and often slip back into the gritty guitars and general dissonance of 90's indie rock and Rejoicer struck so hard on that aesthetic, those hooks and the general feeling of rawness that I was immediately smitten. It's a difficult thing, becoming so brazenly attached to an album, and then not feel some sense of disappointment when the follow-up isn't quite as awesome. That's how I felt about this year's Gang Gang Dance album, [...]
I know I like to take my occasional shots at the Brooklyn hipster scene. Thankfully the cream still rises to the top. Music Player: Grooms - 3D Voices.mp3 [...]

It is time for the next volume of the Best Downloadables of 2011 . You can download any or all of the tracks at your leisure (with the usual right-click or control-click) or you can stream all the songs in this mix using the Yahoo media player at the bottom left of the page. If you are using Chrome you should really think about installing the awesome ex.fm extension (especially if you use last.fm ). Listen. Downloadables: ( ) [...]

Fact: Tom Selleck's mustache can improve any movie!
Click image to download track Sounds like: Liars, Los Campesinos! "Pterodactyl - School Glue" What's so good? Good noise-rock can be hard to come by. Perhaps because of its raw nature, it's become something of a go-to for bands looking to get loud, without much consideration to the musical skill underneath the fuzz of their guitars. Thankfully, there are bands like Brooklyn-based [...]
Don't let Grooms' Brooklyn roots or Friendster ties fool you, they sound suspiciously like the Midwest. Not just a band from the Midwest, but THE Midwest, or the West Coast. There is an airy glow to their latest album Prom, one seen from peers like Bear Hands or Smith Westerns. It's not just me, indie band names are fucking weird aren't they? Regardless of title, Grooms and their fittingly named sophomoric effort are the epitome of melodic yet modestly ticked-off hipster twenty-somethings. There is something seemingly careless in Travis Johnson's 902s alternative-style voice, which is perhaps [...]

Tangled Melody Writing from his work desk at New York's multifunctional music space Death by Audio, Grooms' Travis Johnson tells us about the band's new album Prom , making guitar pedals and performing for Michael Azerrad. (EMJ) Your new record Prom is out now. Tell me how it was conceived; where it was written, recorded and mastered. (Travis) We had written one song, 'Into the Arms', [...]

Carzor ($17) is a combination mirror and razor that folds into a handy wallet sized flat card. The blades are stored safely behind the mirror while it's in your pocket. When you detach the razor part of the card, the rest can be used as a mirror. You can even choose the scent of the razor- with mint, sandal, lemon, ocean and orange options. The small device is perfect for when you are on the go and realize that you missed a spot when you [...]
Watch 'Expression Of' below. I'm giving away a GROOMS prize pack! Click here to view the embedded video. MP3: GROOMS - 3D Voices
78 mins : 10 secs | 44.7 mb Ty Segall "My Head Explodes" ( drag city ) Goodbye Bread [ amazon ] website | myspace | facebook Grooms "Prom" ( kanine records ) Prom [ amazon ] website | myspace | facebook The Horrors "I Can See Through You" ( xl recordings ) Skying [ amazon ] website | myspace | [...]
PLAYLIST: The Fearless Vampire Killers - Tell Me What You're Trying To Say Darker My Love - Dear Author Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Tigers Kasabian - Processed Beats Ty Segall - You Make The Sun Fry The Boo Radleys - Room At The Top Alpha Stone - Fall On Me The Black Angels - Science Killer The Christines - The Maker Comet Gain - She Never Understood The Last Party - A Thousand Smiles Figurehead - Idiot Savant Grooms - Aisha Hot [...]

Teen Witch is Tyler (formerly of Tempo No Tempo , presently of Grooms ) and Caroline (of The Splinters ). They have a new(ish) EP which fits one side of a cassette with so much rock and roll, they had to leave the other side blank for balance sake. The "smokey black" cassette is available via the Whoa Whoa label in a limited run of 150 cassettes (and naturally comes with a digital download). Listen. Downloadable: I Don't Mind (mp3) The cassette art looks something like this: [...]

Click image to download full album Sounds like: Q And Not U, Sonic Youth, Minus the Bear "Grooms - Tiger Trees" What's so good? It's so refreshing to come upon a newer band who is taking their music in a different (and slightly unknown) direction. Grooms is a noise-rock band based out of Brooklyn. I, for one, love both Grooms albums, but their sophomore release, [...]

It is time for the next volume of the Best Downloadables of 2011 . You can download any or all of the tracks at your leisure or you can stream all the songs in this mix using the Yahoo media player at the bottom left of the page. If you are using Chrome you should really think about installing the awesome ex.fm extension (especially if you use last.fm ). Listen. Downloadables: White Rune (mp3) by Iceage [...]
I was this close to giving up on rock and roll. Seriously there was just nothing coming out that felt new...original...yet still packed a punch...still made me crank it up. That was... [go to the website to read the rest of the article, download mp3s and more]

Taken for Yours Truly's Greetings From NY series. Click to enlarge.