Blog: Head Underwater

Jagwar Ma - Come Save Me So you know the Foals new album? Yeah. That one. It's good right? Pretty poppy but solid. Well they worked with this fellow Aussie Jono Ma, who happens to be Jagwar Ma to craft those jams. So one would figure if Jono Ma could help the Foals graft Jams he's got to have to have jamz of his own! Well my friend. You're in luck. He's got a few tracks for your aural pleasure. Crafting joyous tribal thump with a little help from some friends Gabriel Winterfield (Ghostwood) who adds some vocals, [...]

Bombino This Friday at the Black Cat, this Tuareg diamond in the rough from Agadez, Niger is bringing extraordinary guitar playing and electrifying jams to DC. Stoked to have my face melted. Listen to his album and a favorite of mine Agadez

Mike Bruno & the Black Magic Family Band - In the Shade I'm not one for black magic. However, if black magic happens to be like this, I might have to think about dabbling with the dark side. It's a spooky soundtrack to a scene of a dark knight riding through a thick forest on a thin river standing at the front of the canoe with his best "Captain Morgan" stance with the hired old man from around the way in a ragged cloak donning a long beard paddling in slow motion. These New Brunswick, NJ [...]

Work Drugs - Physical Acts You can download this track from their SoundCloud . These dudes stay smooth.

Brian Adam Ant - Psychic Assassins Sometimes simplicity is best. You can pick this track and many others in an epic round up by Friends Records in a 2-cassette release or free download of the best music the Greatest City in America , Baltimore can provide. DO IT.

Peaking Lights - Hey Sparrow Their album 936 was one of my favorite releases last year and this song was the first of their's that I heard.

Young Heel - Love You Down [cover] Unlike a young lady wearing heels for the first time where everything is a little unstable and iffy the dudes have created a killer atmospheric cover a 80s R&B track by Ready for the World [ please watch the video ]. Like their previously mentioned track Trouble at the Top these Brooklyn natives have taken you high above where stand like a ray of light pokin' through a single spot in the clouds.

Arlo Guthrie - Alice's Restaurant Thanksgiving tradition.

Brown Bread and Von Holt - Why Are You So Damn Agreeable Re-imagining what seems to be a bulk of kids dancing recorded on their fancy cellphones they've taking high-energy moves tracked by a chill big-room track off their EP Body Combat which you can download now . via the fader

Sharon Van Etten - Serpents If you've been reading this thing for an extended period of time, you know that I have a non-creepy-school-boy crush on Sharon. With the release with this track only amplifies it. Not just due to the fact that this track enlists the help of some of my favies [Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner and the Walkmen's Matt Barrick ] but the fact that it's a natural evolution of Sharon's song writing. While there still has the same aurally intense haunting quality to her voice, there is this [...]

Mirror Talk - Down and Out I may be way out of line on this but I'm just gonna say it. The first thing that came to mind when I heard this track from this LA group was this is what it would sound like if Small Black brought a Prince vibe coupled with a post-break-regret-80s-movie-mo ntage. You know, that 80s split screen following contrasting characters walking down darkened street lit by intermittent overhead lights, one's crying and the other is kicking over every aluminum trash can in sight then prompting readjusting their jean [...]

Fleet Foxes - The Shrine / An Argument Sean Pecknold really took his music video level to Great Grand Master. Please, please, please watch in HD with headphones or speakers and full screen

Phantogram Washington DC / Black Cat / November 2011 Original photos - click to enlarge

Friends with Benefits - Twins (Gem Club Re-imagination) Dang. It should be known that "Twins" is one of my favorite tracks of the year. I was apprehensive to listen to this re-imagination because of the sheer beauty of the original, but Friends with Benefits has done this is a tasteful manner that won't offend fans of the original and hopefully not the members of Gem Club . via thenewblack : First off, calling anything a "re-imagination" is a fantastic idea and [...]

Summer Camp - Down Made from more than 50 infinitely looping gifs…

Surfer Javelin Javelin Javelin Future Islands Future Islands Future Islands Future Islands Future Islands Javelin // Future Islands Washington DC / [...]

Le Loup - Morning Song Equated to a sonic journey in a single engine plane over the Serengeti into the Himalaya mountains with a sherpa donning a polar bear fur coat, aviator goggles and a grin from ear to ear. I miss this DC band a whole heap load. Unfortunately the members that were apart of creating their album Family has since moved on quite a while a go to the next phase of their lives. But do yourself a favor [...]

Lord Huron - Man Who Lives Forever [Rollo & Grady Session] The dudes of Rollo & Grady have started doing band session [rad] and they've just released the videos from, one of my favorites, Lord Huron. This track is a new one not on any EPs. Be sure to watch She Lit a Fire and super standout, The Stanger .

Wisdom Tooth - Quitting the Circus I have mentioned this many times before. But I love simple, lazy garage tunez. Like that music those close weirdo buddies who only plays random house parties, and happen to be really good. John & Friends would be those friends, well when he isn't making film shorts , music videos , drumming for the great psych rock band Quilt or playing in various bands or tumblrin' . Right now you can buy a CD-R of his latest record [...]

Pressed And - Blue Noun Pick up their new album released a couple weeks ago via Crashed Symbols .