Say Hello, Wave Goodbye

This blog is done.

I will still be posting music, but only on Tumblr now. Why? Tumblr makes posting music a lot easier and I do not have a lot of time due to job pressures

You can follow me at http://www.tumblr.com/blog/tuneagefanclub

New Music: Parquet Courts- Black And White

I just finished listening to Parquet Courts new album Sunbathing Animal, and I am a little bit surprised. I am not surprised that is it good- and it is very good- but surprised at the length of the LP. I thought it would be like a lot of similar garage artists of their ilk, and it would be a record that is short and sweet. In actual fact, their new record clocks in at over 50 minutes and contains a couple of garage psych jams that push past 6 minutes. The single "Black and White" is the best track off the new album, and its mixture of Black Lips style garage rock blended with Pavement slacker-dom pretty well sums up the whole  record. Watch the video for the song below:

New Music: A Sunny Day In Glasgow- Bye Bye Big Ocean (The End)

Only a could of weeks now until Philadelphia's A Sunny Day in Glasgow drop their new album Sea When Absent, and to prepare us for it the band has released the wonderful track titled "Bye Bye Big Ocean (The End)". This song might be the most anthemic thing they have ever released, thanks in part to the beautiful voice of singer Jen Goma (She is on a role, having contributed her voice to a couple of songs on The Pains of Being Pure At Heart's new album Day of Abandon). That being said, the band's experimental shoegaze is still prevalent, and the track features a very chaotic blend of synths and reverb. Check it below:

Sea When Absent is out June 24th via Lefse.

New Music: Merchandise- Little Killer

Florida post punk band Merchandise are back with a new single, and by the sounds of it, they are anxious to show off the new wave side of their band, If you are familiar with these guys, you know a lot of their songs clock in at over six minutes. Not on their new single "Little Killer", however, as the poppy, 80's sounding tune is just over three minutes long. Maybe their new new wave sound is the influence of producer Gareth Jones, who worked with some of that era's biggest standouts including Depeche Mode, Wire, and Erasure. Check out the music video for the track below, which features the band reenacting that era and doing their best impersonation of the Bunnymen or the Mary Chain.

"Little Killer" is taken from Merchandise's new album After The End, which is out August 25th via 4AD.

Five Star Songs; The Primitives- Thru The Flowers

Beautiful, sunny and warm, holiday Monday here in Toronto, and what better way to cap off this day than to play some 80's indie pop from The Primitives. The Coventry band were best known for their hit song "Crash" here in North America, but they had a string of really great singles throughout the 80's in the UK. "Thru the Flowers" was the first single they ever released in 1986 on Lazy Records, however just before they signed with RCA records, they re-released a more polished single of the song, which also appeared on their 1988 LP Lovely. Check it out below, especially if you are into bands like Veronica Falls, Fear of Men or The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart.

The Primitives are still together and touring. Let's hope they come back to North America in the near future.

New Music: Sharon Van Etten: Every Time The Sun Comes Up + Your Love Is Killing Me

Is there a better female indie singer-songwriter hailing from North America right now than Sharon Van Etten? Other than Feist or Angel Olsen, I cannot think of any. And Feist is between albums right now, so that means Miss Van Etten is deservedly receiving a lot of attention. Just listen to "Every Time The Sun Comes Up" and "Your Love Is Killing Me", two truly majestic songs that are probably going to be on a lot of top 10 lists at the end of the year.

Both tracks are taken from her new album Are We There, out May 27th via Jagjaguwar.

New Music: Total Control- Expensive Dog

After featuring "Flesh War", the new song from Australian post punk band Total Control, I learned something that I never knew about the band. I found out their guitarist is Eddy Current (Mikey Young) from seminal Australian punk band Eddy Current Suppression Ring. ECSR are probably my favourite group to emanate from down under from the last few years.

Getting back to Total Control, these guys recently dropped a second single from their upcoming new album Typical System. The song is called "Expensive Dog" and it is guitar driven raucous track that wouldn't be out of place on an Eddy Current LP. Check it out below:

Typical System will be out June 24th via Iron Lung.

R.I.P. : Nash The Slash

I spent my youth listening to a lot of Nash The Slash. I was too young to a big fan, and did not own any of his albums, however he was a favourite of my brothers, and he used to play his music almost every day. When you are a kid, though, and you see a man playing music dressed like a mummy, you become very intrigued.

If you are not familiar with Nash The Slash, aka Jeff Plewman, he was a Toronto experimental musician, who made a name for himself in the 1970's with the Prog rock band FM, and in the eighties as a solo artist. He was probably best known  in Canada as that weird, avant grade rock star, who wrapped himself in bandages, wore a top hat, and played an electric mandolin. But he was more than just an odd musician. Nash the Slash was an electronic pioneer, who had an influence on Gary Numan. and he was a performance artist who's live shows were a spectacle to behold.

Sadly, Nash The Slash passed way last weekend at the age of 66.

Chart magazine did a really good interview with Plewman in 2012 and they re-posted it today. Read it here.

Watch him below do a live version of "Children Of The Night" from just a few years ago.

New Music: Beverly- You Can't Get It Right

We first introduced you to new indie duo Beverly back in February, with their song "Honey Do", which they recorded for a compilation put together by their record label. Now, the duo of Frankie Rose and Drew Citron are back with another single, but this time the track is taken from a brand new album. "You Can't Get It Right" is a lo-fi charmer, and sounds like the music Rose made when she was with The Outs. Check it out below:

The track is taken from the album Careers which is out July 1st via Kanine.

New Music: Hockeysmith- Hesitate

A couple of months ago we featured the Hockeysmith song "But Blood", and we told you at the time the sister act had a new EP on the way. We now know that "But Blood" is the title track of the new EP and that it will be out at the end of May. The cute caravan couple from Cornwall have also shared a brand new track from the EP titled "Hesitate". The song starts out with a bit of an R&B swagger reminiscent of some of the music on Warpaint's last album, but as it progresses it morphs into a synth-y, reverb friendly track, complete with the backing of industrial strength guitars. Listen Below:

But Blood is out May 26th via Double Denim.

New Music: PS I Love You- For Those Who Stay

With a new and cleaner look plus a new and cleaner sound, Kingston Ontario indie rock duo PS I Love You have returned with a brand new song. "For Those Who Stay" is the title track of their new album, which will be out in July via Paper Bag, and it finds the band progressing from their noise rock roots. The sonic palette of the track features various textures, Neil Young-like guitar solos, and (I could be wrong) a hint of synth throughout the six and half minute track. There is one thing that hasn't changed- Paul Saulnier continues to be one of the best guitarists in indie rock today. Check out the track below:

New Music: Austra- Habitat

Austra have announced a new four song EP,  and "Habitat" is the title track and first single from the release. If you are a huge fan of the band you may recognize the song. The track is something they have been playing live for a couple of years now, but they never got around to releasing it. "Habitat" sounds like their darker, older material, and lacks the shine of the songs off of Olympia. That's okay, I prefer the icier, gloomy version of Austra. Listen below:

Habitat is out June 17th via Paper Bag.

New Music: School- Easier

School are back, and there here to "school" you on making really good music. If you may recall we posted a couple of the Swedish band's songs, "SoLong" and "Clouds Aside" back in January and now they have provided us with their newest track "Easier". The new song keeps the same sound of those earlier tracks, in other words, extraordinary indie pop for people who like their music with a side of jangle guitar. Check it below:

New Music: Beta Frontiers- So Cold (featuring Carmen Elle)

If the voice on this track sounds familiar, you are probably a fan of synth pop band Diana, and their lead singer Carmen Elle. (also the singer for the under appreciated Toronto indie rock band Army Girls). Toronto producer Beta Frontiers (Michael Butler) has enlisted Elle for his newest track, " So Cold", and the singer has never sounded so smooth. The title may be "So Cold", but the music of the this song is anything but.

Check it out below and if you like it buy it from Buzz Records Bandcamp.

New Music: Christopher Owens- It Comes Back To You + Stephen

Early last year former Girls front man Christopher Owens released his solo debut album, Lysandre, an inconsistent effort, but the album did contain a couple of treasures- most notably the lead single "Here We Go".  No word on a new album from Mr. Owens, but there are rumours that an announcement on the new LP could be forthcoming in the very near future. To tease us the singer-songwriter has dropped a couple of new songs over the past few weeks. First, is the beautiful " It Comes Back To You", a heartbreaking song reminiscent of the music from his old band. And even more heartbreaking is the soulful "Stephen", which according to Stereogum, is an ode to Owen's late brother, who passed away at the age of two, when their family was living in a cult. Check both tracks out below:

New Music: Papertwin- Alkaline

Some nice synth pop from Brooklyn band Papertwin. The band already have a couple of EPs under
their belt and are poised to release a third, Vox Humana, which will come out on June 17th. Listen to "Alkaline", the dreamy lead track from the new release.

Five Star Songs: The Walkmen- Heartbreaker

This song goes out to all of the long suffering Toronto sports fans (including myself)-second year in a row of heartbreaking exits from playoff series.

"Heartbreaker" is taken from the 2012 LP Heaven, possibly the last album The Walkmen will ever release.

New Music: The Luxembourg Signal- Distant Drive

Okay...the warm weather has been holding off for way too long. It is time for some summer music and The Luxembourg Signal are here to fulfill that need. The Luxembourg Signal are an indie pop group made up of former members of seminal UK twee bands Aberdeen and Trembling Blue Stars. By the sound of their latest single "Distant Drive", that twee-ness has stuck around from their former musical incarnations. Perfect jangle indie pop for warm summer days, if they ever come. Check it out below:

New Music: Jack White- Lazaretto

I went to see the Jim Jarmusch flick Only Lovers Left Alive this weekend, a rock & roll vampire movie starring Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton. The movie was pretty amusing and featured some strange moments. One of the weird scenes had the two vampires taking a night tour of Detroit and ending up at Jack White's boyhood home. In front of the house Hiddleston's Adam character explains to Swinton's character Eve that Jack was his mother's seventh son ("Ball & Biscuit" reference?) and then Eve imagines Jack White as a boy, "Little Jack White" she exclaims. I sort of knew that Jarmusch was a big Jack White fan but I still find it funny that he would feature a scene in his movie about a 300 year old vampire worshipping the rock star.

Anyhow, some of Jack White's popularity might be due to some of the odd and different things he has done over the years. Appearing on reality TV shows, recording with The Insane Clown Posse, or doing a Bond song with Alicia Keyes are just some examples. More recently, White attempted and succeeded in releasing the world's fastest record at his Third Man studio in Nashville. Even though that was a hokey thing to do, the song he made is pretty good. The studio version of the "Lazaretto" came out a couple of days after his stunt and you can hear it below. It features some of White's fiercest guitar work since his days in The White Stripes and there is even a fiddle solo (could that be White's cousin Ashley MacIsaac making an appearance???) near the end of the song.

"Lazaretto" is the title track of the new album and it will be out June 6th via Third Man.

New Music: Alvvays- Archie, Marry Me

It has been a while since we've heard from Toronto indie band Alvvays and their particular brand of reverb friendly sunshine pop. Their first single "Adult Diversion" was released way back in the fall of 2013, and since then the track has gotten them a lot of attention including heavy rotation on a local Toronto radio station. That success led the band to a new record deal with Polyvinyl, and that means that we are finally going to get their debut album. The new record will be out in the summer but for now the band have shared "Archie, Marry Me", a love song featuring a dreamy chorus that is also the title of the song. Who would ever turn down a marriage invitation from someone who's voice is as beautiful as Molly Rankin's? Check out the song below:

New Music: Gold-Bears- For You

With a name like Gold-Bears you think these guys would hail from California when in actual fact the band makes their home in Atlanta Georgia. They are set to release their forthcoming new album titled Dalliance and have shared "For You", the first single from the LP. The track starts off like any great indie rock song with a wall of guitars and yelp-y lyrics, but about half way through the band goes into overdrive, and the song turns into something quite brilliant. The quick tempo change seems simple, but the change of melody, driving bass and drums, plus added chimes turns this from a really good tune into one of the best indie rock songs I have heard all year. Check it out below:

Dalliance is out June 3rd via Slumberland.

New Music: Peter Murphy- Hang Up

Last week, Bauhaus bassist David J released a new album that featured a bonus track, a cover of Britney Spears' "Toxic". That song is a jazzy take on the pop princess' hit and features a music video starring goth porn star Sasha Grey. This week J's bandmate, Bauhaus lead singer Peter Murphy, has come out with the first single from his forthcoming new album Lion. "Hang Up" sticks to a more conventional goth sound thanks, in part' to the production from Killing Joke bassist Youth. Killing Joke's industrial punch is also apparent, but this is unmistakably classic Peter Murphy, with his crooning shining darkly throughout the track. Check out the video for the song below:

Lion is out June 3rd via Nettwerk.

New Music: Ummagma- The Road To Lees

Canadian/Ukrainian dream pop duo Ummagma are back with a brand new music video for their song "The Road to Lees". We already know from previous posts that this band has an eclectic sound with splashes of shoegaze, post rock, psychedelica and electronica heard throughout their body of songs. "The Road To Lees" is no exception and is a song that showcases the electronic side of their talent-the mesmerizing track might even be considered trip hop.

The music video for the song is a shimmering kaleidoscope of colours interwoven with scenes of mid  20th century American life. Shauna from the band sees this video as somewhat of a juxtaposition: “unfortunately, apart from that which was familial or community-based, what we knew as the good old days did indeed seem ‘real’, but it was based on a faulty foundation, which we’re only hearing about now. Just the same, this is still a happy place for many”.

Ummagma are also releasing a remix LP on May 16th with several reworkings of their excellent single "Lama". You can preview that LP right now on Soundcloud.

New Music: Wolf Alice- Moaning Lisa Smile + Storms

Wolf Alice are a UK based noise pop band out of London who are getting plenty of buzz from their home country, and deservedly so. These guys are fairly new but they did release an EP back in 2012 and at the same time garnered some attention from NME's Radar.  Now they are back with couple of songs that will shatter your ear drums and knock you against the wall if you are not careful with the volume button. Unfortunately, they haven't got the same attention in North America, but with a little help from this blog, that all might change.

Both "Moaning Lisa Smile" and "Storms" are tracks from the band's new EP Creature Songs which is out on May 26th in the UK. Check them out below:

New Music: Ablebody- After Hours

Ablebody is a new band from Los Angeles that is led by twin brothers Christoph and Anton Hochheim who already have a pretty good resume from working with bands like The Depreciation Guild and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart. You already know that "After Hours" is going to sound fantastic from their previous work history: shimmering guitars, bombastic drums, twee lyrics. You get the picture. Check it out below:

Ablebody will be on tour with Fear of Men and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart in the coming weeks and "After Hours" will be available May 20th on 7 inch. You can preorder the single via Bandcamp.

New Music: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart- Eurydice

The Pains Of Being At Heart just released a second track titled "Eurydice" from their forthcoming new album Days of Abandon, and just like the first single,"Simple and Sure" the sound is a much cleaner brand of indie pop than anything we have heard from this band in the past. It sounds good, but I am sure going to miss the fuzzy tweegaze of the band's past. Check it out below:

Days of Abandon will be released May 13th via Yebo.

New Music: Xeno & Oaklander- Interface

Check out the latest single from Xeno & Oaklander titled "Interface". The track has a sound that moves them further away from their cold wave beginnings and into more of a fresh synth pop direction. Kinda sounds like Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark.

The song is taken from their new album Par Avion, out June 24th via Ghostly.





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New Music: Echo And The Bunnymen- Lovers On The Run + Holy Moses + Market Town

Veteran post punk band Echo & The Bunnymen have always been compared-rightly or wrongly- to U2, and one of the trio of new songs they just released will be criticized as sounding a little too much like modern day Bono. "Holy Moses" is an overwrought song about singer Ian McCulloch's religious conflicts, a theme close to the heart of a lot of U2 songs. Fortunately, the other two songs "Lovers on the Run" and "Market Town" are vintage Echo & The Bunnymen and harken back to their Crocodiles or Ocean Rain era musical output. All three tracks are taken from the band's new album Meteorites, out June 3rd via 429. Listen below:

New Music: Ramona Lisa: Arcadia + Backwards And Upwards

Chairlift's Caroline Polachek has been slogging away making crazy good synth pop with her band for approximately ten years now, plus she has been collaborating on songs with everyone from Washed Out to Flosstradamus, so perhaps, maybe, it is time she goes out her own. Polachek has done exactly just that with her new solo project Ramona Lisa. She has released a new album titled Arcadia that she made in Italy last year, a record that was recorded on just her laptop.  Two of the songs from the new album, the creepy video for the title track and "Backward and Upwards", are featured below. Check them out:

Arcadia is out today (April 15th) via Terrible.

New Music: Fear Of Men- Outrun Me + Descent

Great new English band Fear Of Men will be dropping their debut album Loom next week, but before that they have shared a couple of more tracks from the LP. " We first heard their wonderful "Alta/Waterfall" and "Luna" songs back in February and now they have come out with two more fantastic tracks in "Outrun Me" and "Descent". I am looking forward to both buying the album next Tuesday and, seeing them live, opening for The Pains of Being Pure At Heart in a couple of weeks.

Loom is out April 22nd via Kanine.

New Music: Total Control- Flesh War

This is the first I've heard of Australian former punks Total Control, but I've heard their back story has a pretty eclectic history. Immersed in punk and post punk their 2011 LP Henge Beat mixed that sound with electronic minimal wave and house music.  Their latest single "Flesh War" keeps the post punk vibe but their sound has matured. The song sounds like a mix of Joy Division, with sullen vocals in the same way as Ian Curtis, and The Horrors with their trademark fuzzy guitars and gleaming synths. Listen below:

"Flesh War" is taken from Total Control's new album Typical System, out June 24th via Iron Lung.

New Music: Klaxons- Atom to Atom

Back in February English dance band Klaxons premiered their first new music in a couple of years with the rave-tastic songs "There Is No Other Time and "Children of the Sun". The band keep the party going on "Atom to Atom", the third track to be previewed from their forthcoming new album Love Frequency. Listen below:

The album is out June 9th via Akashic Rekords/Sony Red.

New Music: Haunted Hearts- Johnny Jupiter

Had a chance to catch the wonderful Dum Dum Girls when they were in town a couple of weeks ago and as usual they put on a pretty good show. Dee Dee Penny might be in the middle of an extensive tour with her band right now, but that hasn't stopped her from hooking up with her husband Brendan Welchez (Crocodiles), forming Haunted Hearts and making their debut collaboration album called Initiation.  The first single from the LP is the dreamy psych pop "Johnny Jupiter". Check out the video for the song below:

Initiation will be out May 27th via the couple's own imprint Zoo Music.

New Music: Warpaint- Disco /Very + Keep it Healthy

The lovely ladies of Warpaint have never looked so lovely as they do in this new double music video. The clip is for two tracks off their critically acclaimed new self titled LP and features a day and night scene for each song. "Disco/Very" has the ladies singing while walking down a road on a bright sunny day while "Keep it Healthy" sees them at night hanging out with L.A. skater boys.  Watch below:

New Music: Circa Waves- 100 Strangers

Maybe guitar indie rock is starting to come back in the UK. Liverpool band Circa Waves seem to think so. With music that harkens back to early Arctic Monkeys, Libertines, and The Fratellis, these guys want to go back 10 years when every artist in Britain wanted to be in The Strokes. Listen before:

New Music: Lykke Li- No Rest For The Wicked + Love Me Like I'm Not Made Of Stone

When I was offline with computer issues for a couple of weeks in March the wonderful Swedish songstress Lykke Li released a couple of new songs from her upcoming new album I Never Learn. The tracks "No Rest For The Wicked" and "Love Me Like I'm Not Made of Stone" find Li at her hauntingly beautiful best. Looking forward to the new LP.

I Never Learn is out May 6th via Atlantic.

New Music: Allie X- Catch

Allie Hughes was a piano playing singer-songwriter who had a bit of notoriety a few years ago in Toronto with a wacky wedding themed concert and an appearance on a reality TV show that had contestants auditioning for The Sound of Music. Now, Allie is back as Allie X and she has transformed herself into an electro pop star. For her debut song in her new persona,  Allie plays a jilted lover who seemingly wants to seek revenge and has a warning in the chorus "Just Wait Until I Catch My Breath". "Catch" is the kind of addictive saccharine pop song that gave Lauren Mayberry of Chvrches a household name, and it seems Allie X is about to follow in her footsteps. Download below:

Five Star Songs: Shout Out Louds- Hard Rain

Another iPod discovery, "Hard Rain" came on my shuffle last week and totally surprised me. The song is the last track from the 2007 Shout Out Louds' Our Ill Wills LP, and features singer Adam Olenius' whisper voice, punctuated with the heart breaking sweetness of Bebban Stenborg's singing that all melds into a raucous guitar smeared ending. One of those songs from an unappreciated album that I totally rediscovered this weekend. Check it out below:




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New Music: Craft Spells- Breaking the Angle Against The Tide

Craft Spells, the indie pop project of Justin Paul Vallesteros, is back with his first new music since the 2012 EP Galley. The single "Breaking the Angle Against The Tide" is taken from the project's new LP Nausea and the track fits the jangle rock template of the band's label to a tee. Listen below:

The LP will be available June 10th via Captured Tracks.

New Music: September Girls- Sister

Some bands you know are going to be good just by the name of their band. Irish group September Girls are one of those bands and not just because they share their name with a classic song by Big Star. Their sound has a slight resemblance to the Alex Chilton/Chris Bell group, but for the song "Sister" these girls are more post punk and shoegaze than early 70's power pop. They released their debut album, Cursing The Sea, earlier this year with little fanfare, but then they made a big buzz at SXSW and people are starting to take notice.

Check out the video for "Sister" below:

New Music: The Snow- Memory Loss

Record Store Day is quickly approaching and like previous years there will lots of weird and wonderful rarities and collaborations. A new 7"single that was just announced today is from a new supergroup that is made up of record label Captured Tracks artists. The band is called The Snow and it features jangle rockers  Dustin Payseur of Beach Fossils, and Jack Tatum of Wild Nothing, plus Andreas Lagerström of Swedish punk band Holograms.

"Memory Loss" is exactly what you expect from a bunch of 80's influenced artists- somewhere between The Cure and a darker post punk sound (I must be suffering memory loss because they sound exactly like a band from the new wave era and I can't think of the name of them).

"Memory Loss" b/w "Joy Of Life" will be available April 19th via Captured Tracks.

New Music: When Nalda Became Punk- Song For Carrie Mathison

What a great name, I think When Nalda Became Punk should get the award for best band name of 2014.

I figure these Spanish twee-gazers are heavily influenced by The Pains of Being Pure At Heart because they sound an awful lot like TPOBPH, and they have a passing reference to TPOBPH (blink and you miss it) in their video for "Song For Carrie Mathison" Not sure who Carrie Mathison is (Homeland girl?? I've never watched the show), but she should be honoured to have such a superb song dedicated to her. Check out the South Park-like video for the track below.

The track is on the band's EP Indie Pop or Whatever? which you can pick up here.

New Music: Weeknight- Dark Light + Wreckage

Weeknight are a Brooklyn synth pop duo whose music sides on the darker side of the genre. They will be releasing their new album Post-Everything on March 4th via Artificial Records. The excellent "Dark Light" and "Wreckage" are two tracks from the LP and you can listen to both tracks plus watch the eerie music video for "Dark Light" below:

New Music: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart- Simple and Sure

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart sound like they made a trip to the Wax Bar because they have totally removed the fuzz from their music. The band announced a new LP titled Days of Abandon the other day, and today singer Kip Berman elaborated on how the album will sound by stating that the record would be “joyful and full of light, even if the subjects were often dark.” Their first single "Simple and Sure" is a lot cleaner than the songs on their previous records, and that enhances the melodic pop music they are known for. Now they are a lot less Pastels and a lot more Aztec Camera. Listen below:

Days of Abandon will be out April 22nd via Yebo.

New Music: Fear of Men- Alta/Waterfall + Luna

Not sure why I missed hearing about Brighton band Fear of Men before this week, but better late than never. These guys released an EP titled Early Fragments (an EP I really need to check out) last year, and now they will be dropping their debut LP, Loom, on Record Store Day. The first single "Alta/Waterfall"is actually two songs in one. "Alta" is a short 50 second instrumental opener that lapses into the gorgeous dream pop of "Waterfall". And building on that first single is the hazy "Luna", the second track to be previewed from the album. Check them out below:

Loom will be out April 21st via Kanine Records.

New Music: Kevin Drew-Mexican Aftershow Party

"Mexican Aftershow Party" is the second track to be previewed from Kevin Drew's upcoming new LP Darlings. The Broken Social Scene front man will also make a couple of appearances at Toronto's Field Trip festival on June 7th and 8th, both with his solo project and with his band.

Darlings is out March 18 via Arts & Crafts.

New Music: Hamilton Leithauser- Alexandra

New York indie rock band The Walkmen broke up, got back together to play some NBA all star game benefit show, and then during the last song of that gig announced that it would be the last song the band would ever play. And now, just a few days later, The Walkmen lead singer Hamilton Leithauser has announced a new solo album titled Black Hours.

The boys in the Walkmen have made a lot of friends over the years, and Leithauser's new LP reflects this with a pretty impressive guest list. Among the contributors are Morgan Henderson (Fleet Foxes), Richard Swift (The Shins), Amber Coffman (Dirty Projectors) and Paul Maroon (The Walkmen). Also helping out is Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij who produced and co-wrote the first single "Alexandra", a song not too far removed from Leithauser's work with The Walkman, albeit way more uplifting and less forlornly than the songs of his previous band. Watch the video for the track below and watch for a cameo from the aforementioned Rostam Batmanglij.

Black Hours will be out May 6th via Ribbon Music.

New Music: Cousins- Mess

Halifax Nova Scotia indie rock band Cousins have been a fixture in this part of the world for a couple of years now. The group are well known for putting on a ferocious live show and that has garnered them a lot of attention. In fact, so much attention that they have just signed to popular indie label Hand Drawn Dracula and have announced a new LP titled Halls of Wickwire.  Listen to the album's garage-y guitar rock first single "Mess" below:

The album will be available May 13th.

New Music: The Horrors- I See You

UK shoegaze band The Horrors premiered a brand new song titled "I See You" on BBC Radio earlier today, and now it is available for all to take in via a lyric video. The track will be part of the just announced new LP Luminous which will be available on May 5th. "I See You" is two songs in one-the track starts out like a synth-y post punk pop song, but after a couple of minutes it transitions into a extended glistening psychedelic jam. Listen below:

New Music: The Wytches- Wire Frame Mattress + Gravedweller

The Wytches are a new buzz band hailing from Brighton, England who possess a unique sound that mixes 90's alt rock with 60's Dick Dale surf guitar. These guys are being compared to everybody from The White Stripes to The Smashing Pumpkins. Me, I think they sound like a better version of Strange House era The Horrors. Take a listen below to their first single "Wire Frame Mattress" and then stick around to watch their video for the song "Gravedweller". BTW, "Gravedweller" is available as free download here.

New Music: Yuck- Another One

I just realized I have not bought Yuck's Low and Behold album on vinyl yet. I better hurry up because the band are almost set to come out with their new EP Southern Skies. There is still no release date for the EP, but they did just drop their second single "Another One" the other day and this one is layered with extra fuzz. Take a listen below: