
A Classic Education A Classic Education are a six-piece band from Bologna, Italy whose epic melodramas seem to attracting much attention. They played Indietracks in 2008 and are frequent visitors to London and further afield. Following a trip to CMJ in New York in October, they're back in the UK this month: they play at the Lexington on 26 November and the Buffalo Bar the following night. They have released two records: an [...]

Photography by Kira Can someone explain to me why a label would release a single & a video for a hot & hyped up band like Vampire Weekend, only to hire the Web Sheriff to make sure nobody can share, hear, or watch the song or video, unless going through, I imagine, some "approved source", wherever the hell that is.... I thought Vampire Weekend & their label are trying to ride last year's hype with some 09 hype to carry and convert into [...]

I know I normally write about music itself, and I promise I will get right back to it in the subsequent days, but at this particular point in time, I'm feeling extremely compelled to offer a word of advice (in my own humble opinion) in the first of a series I'm going to call Picking That Bone . Obviously, seeing as I am just one man, your angry disagreements are inevitable, and are thusly welcomed. "Bangers" I beg of you, the fun-loving people [...]
ARGENTINA: Zonaindie Entre Ríos - Frontera Finally we get the chance to showcase this great indie-pop band from Buenos Aires on MAP. Entre Ríos is a musical project led by Sebastian Carreras (vocals, keyboards, guitar) that has been around since 1998. Their first albums were recorded with Isol as the main singer, but since her departure in 2005 they've featured different guest vocalists live and in the studio. Frontera is a MAP-exclusive [...]
30 years ago (sharp intake of breathe), Setting Suns was another November release for The Jam, the bands fourth album contained only one single release - but what a single it was - The Eton Rifles The Eton Rifles gave the trio their first Top Ten Hit when it entered the [...]

The Music Alliance Pact is a collective of 34 of the world's top music blogs and webzines from 34 countries spanning six continents. Every month, each of these 34 sites picks one hot local song that gets posted on all these great blogs and zines. This month we picked Kolkata experimental rock act PINKNOISE 's 'Dream Dream' as the Indian representative on this massive international indie mixtape. The song comes from the band's soon-to-be-released live DVD. You can download 'Dream Dream' along with 33 other tracks from regions as diverse as Denmark, Brazil and Portugal [...]

Eternal question: how to leave the rock, how to rock the rock? We no want to go away, we a want to stay. Love home, rep home. But yard hard. No soul want a be forever down, stepped upon. We assert ourselves against authority. We our own authority. But everyday downpressor on our back in everyway. What we gon do? The upward struggle of our living down-under make our music come strong, got to be tuff enuff to stand forward in the shit-storm. Take a little woman like this here hummingbird Cherine who sing eagle strong. [...]

Once more, here is November's edition of the Music Alliance Pact . For those of you who don't know about MAP, it's a collection of music blogs from around the world who band together once a month to shed light on up-and-comers from their home countries. It's sort of like the WTO without the human rights violations. No new MAP countries were added for this edition, so we're sitting solid at 34 countries. If you'd like to be considered, drop by the comments section with a link to your site and I'll [...]

We're so excited about this month's Music Alliance Pact we could explode since it gives us the exclusive privilege of inviting the world to download an incredible song by Scotland's best new band of 2010 and makes us want to use exclamation marks in a frenzied fashion!!! As ever, each country's mp3 selection and the words that go with them come courtesy of the individual blogs, who simultaneously post the entire collection you see below on their own sites. Here for your pleasure then is the world's greatest monthly mixtape... SCOTLAND: [...]

It's the 15th of November, Music Alliance pact day! Music Alliance Pact (MAP) is a collaboration between 34 blogs from all over the world, and every month, each of us present a band from our own country. All presentations are put together in this huge blogpost, and presented on the same day in all the MAP blogs. Massive promotion for the bands! This month is kind of special for the us at Eardrums, since it's 1YEAR since we first started representing Norway in the Music Alliance Pact . Yay for us! I've [...]
over the 12 months of being part of MAP , we've brought you the best of singapore music, from the established veterans ( concave scream , force vomit , astreal ) to the current flag bearers ( i am david sparkle , the fire fight ), spanning across genre from electronica ( MUON ), folk and acoustic ( jon chan , inch chua ), indiepop ( leeson ), post-hardcore ( a vacant affair ), and some good ol' rock ( nuance ), faithfully curated by our local music ambassador brian koh . this month, [...]
ARGENTINA: Zonaindie Entre Ríos - Frontera Finally we get the chance to showcase this great indie-pop band from Buenos Aires on MAP. Entre Ríos is a musical project led by Sebastian Carreras (vocals, keyboards, guitar) that has been around since 1998. Their first albums were recorded with Isol as the main singer, but since her departure in 2005 they've featured different guest vocalists live and in the studio. Frontera is a MAP-exclusive [...]

E 15 noiembrie, ceea ce înseamnă o nouă ediţie a megacompilaţiei MAP [download] . Silent Strike reprezintă luna asta România, iar dacă numele nu vă zice nimic, el e omul care a făcut muzica pentru reclamele promo la Sibiu, capitală culturală, în 2007. Silent Strike - 27 Silent Strike (Ioan Titu) is a 27-year-old electronic music composer and sound designer from Bacau. He is influenced by Aphex Twin, Future [...]

34 songs, 34 music blogs, 34 countries JAPAN: JPOP Lover Sebastian X - Tour Star People Sebastian X are an impressive Tokyo-based outfit with indie-pop and punkish leanings. Their brilliant debut album Wonderful World was finally released last week. The band, who don't use guitars, have catchy melodies driven by the cute pop vocal of Manatsu Nagahara. [...]
Bulan ini kami mengirim Santamonica sebagai perwakilan dari Indonesia ke forum Music Alliance Pact, semoga dengan ini musik berkualitas dari Indonesia dapat lebih didengar lagi. :) dan seperti biasa, apakah sudah siap keliling dunia melalui lagu-lagu terbaik bulan ini? Scroll sampai bawah untuk mendapatkan link download keseluruhan materi. ARGENTINA: Zonaindie Entre Ríos - Frontera Finally we get the chance to showcase this great indie-pop [...]
by Bill Pearis Field Music Sunderland, UK's indie-prog-pop band Field Music are back from a two-year hiatus, with a new line-up and a new LP, Field Music (Measure) , due out in February. Before that, Field Music will play The Bell House on December 3 -- their first NYC show since March 2007. Tickets are still on sale. Still anchored [...]

In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book. Hanan Al-Shaykh's The Locust and The Bird is a unique memoir, a mother's life written by her estranged daughter, told in the first person. Not many authors could pull this off, but Al-Shaykh, widely regarded as one of the Arab world's finest writers, does so with incredible effect. Kamila (Al-Shaykh's mother) can neither read nor write, so she dictates her story of a forced marriage, search for true [...]

In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book. Joshua Gaylord's debut novel, Hummingbirds , caused Kirkus reviews to call him "an impressive new voice in American fiction," and I have to agree. Gaylord eloquently paints the relationships and interactions of his characters, both adult and teen, male and female, with rare and impressive insight into human character in this compelling story of an all-girls high school.. Library Journal wrote of the book: [...]

In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book. Joshua Gaylord's debut novel, Hummingbirds , caused Kirkus reviews to call him "an impressive new voice in American fiction," and I have to agree. Gaylord eloquently paints the relationships and interactions of his characters, both adult and teen, male and female, with rare and impressive insight into human character in this compelling story of an all-girls high school.. Library Journal wrote of the book: [...]