Blog: There Goes the Fear

The nautical and urban beauty of Los Angeles is profiled in the new promo from School of Seven Bells for 'Reappear'. The song's a sultry slow burner. Watch the video below. Click here to view the embedded video.

(Editor's note: lighting was horrible for most of the night, so apologies on the quality of the photos on here.) I have wistful memories of the first time I saw the Drums. It was 2 years ago at the 9:30 Club , co-headlining with then flavour of the month band Surfer Blood. Before that, I did a very candid interview with Jonny Pierce and then drummer Connor Hanwick at a Caribbean café across the way. It's with much disgust that I report to you that the [...]

'Seeds', the third studio release from Newfoundland, Canada's Hey Rosetta! is getting a deluxe reissue. Happily, vocalist Tim Baker reminded me of a favorite now defunct Irish band, Vega 4 , so I listened to the album with fondness. Hey Rosetta!'s sound is a blend of finely tuned acoustic performance, with full fledged orchestration mashed with the sound of a full throttle guitar band. This is because while the core band consists of the standard guitar band line-up, there is a permanent strings section as well. I [...]

• Hey Rosetta! - Welcome

Nothing like a little bit of sibling love. London band Dems features Emmy the Great 's (Emma-Lee Moss) brother, so she gave us the heads-up on a remix of her forthcoming single 'God of Loneliness', out in May, that Dems did. Listen to and download the remix below.

• Emmy The Great - God Of Loneliness (Dems Remix)

Maximo Park have announced a trio of English gig dates in June. Tickets go on sale Friday 27 April at 9 AM. Wednesday 6th June 2012 - Birmingham Glee Club Thursday 7th June 2012 - Manchester Sound Control Friday 8th June 2012 - London Heaven

We have some fab news. TGTF favourites and former Bands to Watch the Coronas will be releasing their album 'Closer to You' in the UK on Lix Records on the 28th of May, and they have announced accompanying May UK tour. 'Addicted to Progress' will be released as a single a week before (21 May), watch the video for the song below. Cheryl reviewed the album when it came out in Ireland in November 2011; read her review here. Tuesday 1st May 2012 - Glasgow [...]

'Only the Horses' is the new one from Scissor Sisters. Remixed by none other than Calvin Harris , the song with a driving beat will be released as a single on the 20th of May.

Youth Lagoon , aka Trevor Powers, was recently filmed in the great outdoors to perform a stripped down version of 'The Hunt'. Watch the video in all its gorgeousness below. Click here to view the embedded video.

Midway through Graham Coxon 's near 2-hour set at the Sage, a couple of important points leap to mind. Firstly, Coxon is a proper, nailed-on Guitar Hero, of the kind that in the '80s had massive poodle hair and seven-string guitars and competed to see how many notes per second they could tease from their Ibanez. It's just that this particular exemplar happens to prefer noise, a dash of atonality, and obscurantist song forms to demonstrating his mastery of the mixolydian mode. Secondly, how curious [...]

Ambient Swedish electronic two-piece jj have been on a steady rise to fame since their debut album release in 2009. Best known for remixing and collaborating with some of the biggest names in r&b – including Akon and Ne-Yo , the dream pop duo are releasing their first new material in two years. Originally titled 'Beautiful Life', it has since been dubbed 'jj n° 42 to match the style of their other record releases. From the off it's instantly recognisable as the enigmatic Swedes creating the most beautiful, yet [...]

Clock Opera have appeared from relative obscurity, to produce their debut album 'Ways To Forget,' a beautifully crafted record. I think – no, I know - that people are going to enjoy it. From first listen, Clock Opera most definitely occupy that most odious of genres for me, synthy, indie-poppy, squealy, joyous rubbish. Luckily for them and me, they occupy it, and then completely make it their own. They go from piano solos in songs like 'Belongings', sounding like they could have been lifted straight from Elbow 's 'The Seldom Seen Kid', [...]

Does anyone remember Victoria Hesketh, aka Little Boots ? Hard to believe she won BBC Sound of 2009, doesn't it? No matter. She's got a new album presumed to be released later this year, and she'll be playing London XOYO on the 4th of May. Just this past Saturday on Record Store Day she had a special 123 release of new song 'Every Night I Say a Prayer'. You can download the single and its b-side, remixed by Tensnake , for free. Listen to and download [...]

• LittleBoots - Every Night I Say A Prayer
• LittleBoots - Every Night I Say A Prayer (Tensnake Remix)

In the mood for something humourous after a long Monday at school or work? Here is Tellison 's new video for 'Freud Links the Teeth and the Heart', a new single from them out the 28th of May as a limited 73 and on digital download. The band have a headlining UK tour in May; all the dates are below. Click here to view the embedded video. Thursday 3rd May 2012 – Andover George Friday 4th May [...]

In San Francisco, Bon Iver recently paid tribute to drummer Levon Helm of the Band, who passed away last week. How? By performing the Band's 'Ophelia' at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Watch it below. Click here to view the embedded video.

Newcastle trio Mammal Club are releasing a new single next month, called 'Painting'. I look upon most synth/guitar rock pairings with some suspicion: ever since MGMT hit the big time with 'Kids'. it seemed like every new fledgling band I saw gig in Washington had a synthesiser in their live arsenal, not necessarily used to maximum effect. Seriously. I've gotten to the point where as soon as I see a Nord or Korg onstage for an opening band I think, oh god, not again, really? Thankfully, Mammal [...]

• Mammal Club - Painting

'Blunderbuss'! I mean, what a name for an album; it conjures up images of old fashioned battlefields and a wall of sound thundering towards you. Now *that* is what I expect from the album then, you've got yourself a hard sell their Jackie boy! That said, this is Jack White, stepping out on his own for the very first time, to record his first solo record. On first listen, it's classic coming out music: the lyrics are all about collapsed relationships and loves lost. It begins with some classic Jack White honkytonkery. [...]

Here is Moby 's 'Poison Tree', remixed by David Lynch. (Yes, *that* David Lynch.) This freebie will feature on 'Destroyed Remixed', an album out on the 1st of May on Mute. Listen to and download the remix below.

Haven't you heard? TGTF will be coming to Liverpool Sound City this year and we'll soon be revealing information on who'll be playing our showcase...but that's not all of the good news. Since Mary's original preview posted in February , the full Sound City line-up has been announced, and it's a doozy. Manchester's D/R/U/G/S are new to the line-up, as are obvious football fans and good bunch Flat Back Four. They join a host of larger acts, ranging from Radio1 friendly rapper Professor [...]

Here's the new video from Pip Brown, aka Ladyhawke , for the track 'Sunday Drive'. The song appears on the Kiwi singer/songwriter's album 'Anxiety', out on the 28th of May on Modular. "I can't pretend to hate you / 'cos I will always love you / and when you try to leave me / I'll run insane" ? I'd really like to hear your opinions on this: you know the drill, let us know what you think in the comments. Click here to view the embedded video.

Sick of Coachella coverage yet? Err... tough toenails. Below we've got a live gig video of hot band of the moment Wild Belle . We've also got Mulberry's interviews with them, frontman Joseph Mount of Metronomy (pictured above) and the Vaccines. Click here to view the embedded video. Click here to view the embedded video. [...]