Tagged: songreviews

The Everywheres is right up my alley: punchy psych-influenced garage pop adorned with fuzzy vocals, jangle guitar and tambourine. The Everywheres' self-titled LP is out later this month on Father/Daughter Records . "Someone Disappeared" is the lead single from the band, who's catchy hooks delightfully infect every aspect of the song. Hailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia, The Everywheres is the project of Samuel Hill, who originated the project over the summer last year. With hazy vocals, "Someone Disappeared" reminds me of a less folk-centric version of early [...]

Phil Elverum is undoubtely my favorite local artist. Hailing from the town of Anacortes about 20 miles to the west of my Mount Vernon hometown (yes, the one affected by last week's bridge collapse), Elverum is most recognized by two musical monikers: Mount Eerie and The Microphones. On the cusp of a reissue from the latter, the former and more recent project is about to release a live record on XRA Records simply titled Live in Bloomington, September 30, 2011 . (The Microphones reissued It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water [...]

This is a song you want to hear through headphones. Through headphones, "Hounds" seems to swirl around your head, a dreamy escape from reality. The song is off Valleys ' new LP, Are You Going to Stand There and Talk Weird All Night? , out now on Kanine Records . Pretty Much Amazing, who premiered the track a while back had this to say: Somewhere around the three minute mark, “Hound” stops being a bit of pop escape, and becomes something that instead makes [...]

Following our top EP of 2012, Portland duo (guitarist Daniel Hindman and keyboardist Sarah Versprille of Vetiver) Pure Bathing Culture returns with a new single called "Pendulum" off their forthcoming debut LP, Moon Tides . The new release will hit via the band's new label, Partisan Records . "Pendulum" seems to expand beyond the simple pop of the duo's self-titled EP. The track premiered yesterday on Gorilla Vs. Bear , who had this to say: The wistful “Pendulum” sets the record’s emotional tone [...]

To accompany the official announcement of their forthcoming LP, White Lighter , Portland's critically acclaimed Typhoon has released a new digital single for their track "Dreams of Cannibalism". The new album will be released August 20 on Roll Call Records . Longtime fans of Typhoon will be pleased; "Dreams of Cannibalism" follows the band's penchant for changing up time signatures, adding plenty of horns, and featuring a chorus of singers. And there is plenty of that good ol' experimental folk-pop they seem so fond of as well. [...]

San Francisco garage pop outfit The Mantles return with their sophomore LP, Long Enough to Leave . The band has given us a sneak peek from the new album with the psychedelic-leaning, garage pop track "Hello". For fans of their 2009 self-titled debut LP, this track is sure to please. With thick, fuzzy guitar riffs and vocal stylings that hint of the 70s, "Hello" finds The Mantles delving further into psych-pop while staying true to their garage-pop roots. It's no surprise that Kelly Stoltz recorded Long Enough to [...]

Alex Bleeker and the Freaks is set to release his sophomore album, How Far Away . Most out there will focus on the fact that the Freaks is a side band for Real Estate bassist Jackson Pollis, or that it features Woods' Jarvis Tanviere, but the focal point should be on the band's name: Alex Bleeker. It his with Bleeker that the direction is set and the project comes together. How Far Away opens with "Don't Look Down", which immediately sets the tone somewhere between an obvious [...]

I love bands that have only a few hundred fans on Facebook and a sound that begs to be heard. The latest to come to my attention is Portland-based Lubec , who boasts four members, three of which provide vocals. On their new track "Local Celebrity", male-female vocals front a sound that Portland Mercury calls "fuzz-drenched guitars to give it a charming shoegaze-twee feel." This shoegaze-twee thing is spot-on, and it's not the first time the band has delved into this realm; their three-song EP from [...]

German Error Message returns with their first newly recorded material since a May 2011 single called In Comforting . The album, The Lifting , features seven new tracks and is available as a limited (to 25, so hurry!) cassette from Tent Revivalist Records and digitally from the same German Error Message bandcamp page. FensePost is excited to premiere "There's a Place" off the new album. It's hard to believe that my introduction to German Error Message came two years ago. On April 25, 2011, I [...]

• German Error Message - There's a place

Not much can be found online about Belgian Fog . Belgian Fog is Robert Dale, a Los Angeles native who now resides in Seattle. There's a single song, "Wait for Help", on Soundcloud , a simple and minimal Facebook Page , and an equally minimal Twitter account. His lone public song, "Wait for Help", lyrically appears to be about some sort of mental affliction. I can take the meds more easily / Knowing I have a friend who'd take it for me / And I [...]

Melissa Harris and Rebecca Scott of Chicago go by the name Architecture . One of moody pop, their sound blends dark synths, a catchy bass-line and dual vocalists. "Diamond Mind" is the title track off their forth coming 73 single, out soon on Notes And Bolts Records . In a way, Architecture hints of the pairing of Au Revior Simone with the latest by Social Studies . While the band has always been Harris and Scott, they have had other members - most notably Erin Dorr on bass (per their [...]

I admit, I freak out a bit each time I hear of a new undertaking by Johan Angergård - anything by Acid House Kings, The Legends and/or Club 8 . The last on the list is Angergård's project with Karolina Komstedt, who takes lead on vocals; and they're back with their eighth studio LP, Above the City . The lead single is "Stop Taking My Time" and it reverts back to the band's earlier days with heavier electro-beats and catchy vocals. Club 82s seventh, The People's Record , was the [...]

When I first heard Snoop Dog was changing his moniker to Snoop Lion, I had mixed emotions. I thought it was a bad move. I thought how the hell was it going to work. I thought he was broadening his appeal to other demographics. I thought he would eventually go back to being Snoop Dog. I thought it was just a really ridiculous idea that would only hurt the rapper's reputation. But one thing I never thought it would be, was good. And Snoop Lion's new track with Drake, "No Guns Allowed," has definitely [...]

Yesper 's heartfelt folk melodies and luscious finger-plucked guitar will strike a chord with fans of Justin Vernon's Bon Iver and Sam Beam's Iron & Wine. With vocals containing a soft playfulness that border on dreamy, Yesper adds in occasional plush with harmonies that complement the accompanying instrumentation. Cannibal King is the new EP by Yesper and it has a wonderful reverberating, chamber-like sound that cuts through silence. And there's good reason for this. According to Yesper, Cannibal King was "recorded with a single [...]

Kate Nash has always been admired by us for her amazing music, clever lyrics, and do-it-yourself ethic. With all the love we have towards her music, we were very excited to have the opportunity of interviewing her. Tonight, Kate is set to play The Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, so to get everyone ready for the show, AMBY spoke with Kate Nash about blasts of smoke, acting, and superpowers! AMBY: Hello Kate. Congratulations on the release of your third album  Girl Talk . How are you doing? Kate Nash: I’m on [...]

Conventional Girl by Kate Nash “I’m sick of being the bitch that you think I am” If you don’t know it yet, I’m a massive fanboy of Kate Nash. She’s just an absolute goddess, I adore her. Her lyrics can be as witty as any good sitcom on TV but also, incredibly poignant. What I love about the rest of this album, her third full-length release entitled Girl Talk , is its nature of being such an emotional purge for Nash. This kind of lyric is something you just blurt out, which [...]

Last October, we received a taste of London band Still Corners ' follow-up to their 2011 debut, Creatures of an Hour , with a new single called "Fireflies". The song was the first to be released from the band's forthcoming 2013 sophomore LP Strange Pleasures . We now have "Berlin Lovers", the second taste. In my review of "Fireflies" , I noted: Taking notes from electro-pop bands like Purity Ring, Still Corners add some heavier beats... (yet) Still Corners maintains their cinematic [...]

Everybody is freaking out about The Knife 's forthcoming LP, Shaking The Habitual and it all makes perfect sense. Silent Shout , their most recent LP, not only wooed countless people to the band, it topped many year-end lists. That was back in 2006, seven years ago. In fact, it was seven years and two days ago that Pitchfork gave that record a whopping 8.6 . So it makes sense that they snuck a new track out yesterday, and one called "A Tooth For An [...]

"Dropla" is the first single to be released off Youth Lagoon 's forthcoming sophomore LP, Wondrous Bughouse and it lives up to the greatness of Trevor Powers' phenomenal debut. However, if you were expecting Powers to pick up right where The Year of Hibernation left off, you are mistaken. "Dropla" is substantially more sophisticated, deep and heartfelt. Time to get personal. Last year I lost my beloved grandmother. It was not unexpected, as what else can you expect from a 93-year-old with health problems, but nor was [...]

I'm a car guy. It's pretty damn obvious. I gave up my 1974 BMW (sadly) back in December, but that makes my daily driver a jet black (interior and exterior) 1979 El Camino. The thing is beastly, with a 350 four barrel carb and dual exhaust. The torque gives me tingles. Likewise, I get that meaty, pedal-to-the-metal feeling when I listen to "Conflict Free Diamond", the latest from Seattle band Kinski . Kinski hits all the right notes for being muscle car music . The guitar riff is right out front. [...]