indie music

Every Tuesday, we publish the Best New Releases of the Week. However, there are always releases that we don’t have time or room to feature, or that we don’t hear about until after their initial release date. This playlist features 2010 releases that we’re featuring for the first time. They include new tracks from Boy Eats Drum Machine, Phantogram, The Exhibition, ArpLine, Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore, Charlie Alex March, Bluebrain, Schooner, and Wakey!, Wakey!.

“Hoop + Wire” - Boy Eats Drum Machine from Hoop + Wire - released Feb. 16th
Boy Eats Drum Machine on MySpace

“Bright New Worlds” - The Exhibition from s/t EP - released Feb. 22nd
The Exhibition on MySpace

“When I’m Small” - Phantogram from Eyelid Movies - released Feb. 9th
Phantogram on MySpace

“Parts Unknown” - ArpLine from Travel Book - released Feb. 16th
ArpLine on MySpace

“Something, Somewhere, Sometime” - Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore from Dear Companion - released Feb. 16th
Daniel Martin Moore on MySpace
Ben Sollee on MySpace

“Ten by Ten” - Bluebrain from Soft Power - released Feb. 9th

“Twenty Two” - Wakey! Wakey! from Almost Everything I Wish I’d Said… - released Feb. 2nd
Wakey! Wakey! on MySpace

“Feel Better” - Schooner from Duke Kee Sessions - released Feb. 9th
Schooner on MySpace

“Black Glass” - Greg Gibson from Black Glass - released Jan. 17th
Greg Gibson on MySpace

“Carot No. 9″ - Charlie Alex March from Home/Hidden - released Feb. 16th
Charlie Alex March on MySpace

Recent Popular Posts and Playlists:

Best New Releases of the Week: Bear Hands, Local Natives, The Hush Now, Field Music, Son Lux, The Good Listeners

Best New Releases of the Week: Fang Island, Shout Out Louds, Shearwater, Holly Miranda, Blood Feathers, Quasi and More

More Great Songs from 2009: Le Loup, The Perms, Jet, Netherfriends, The Vision, Loney Dear and More

Some of the Best Tracks of 2009: Radiohead, Girls, Sunset Rubdown, Flaming Lips, Deer Tick, WWPJP and More

Best Rarely Heard Songs of 2009 Vol. III: Furcast, Ape School, Regrets and Brunettes, Lower Heaven and Pure Ecstasy

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

It sucks when good bands break up. In the past year, we’ve seen a number of bands split, and the band members go their separate ways, including Page France, the awesome indie duo The Format, the sensational band, The Sun, and a relatively unknown (in comparison to their talent), but fantastically promising, New Faces.

Seattle’s New Faces split in November of last year, sending mini-shock waves through the Puget Sound music community. In a post on their MySpace page on Nov. 16th, the following statement was issued: “Due to irreconcilable conflicts, we have decided to break up. We want to thank everyone that supported us…Sorry there wasn’t a second album.”

The New Faces received a flood of critical praise, especially in the Seattle area, with the release of their debut EP in 2007, and their debut LP, Two Years, in 2008. They had an undeniable gift for enthralling music, a sound refined beyond their time as a band, and a potential that could have made them international rock stars (if they wanted it) - those are not usually characteristics of a fresh, unsigned, totally DIY band.

“My Alarm” - New Faces from Two Faces (2008)

“She’s Like The Snow” - New Faces from s/t EP (2007)

“Ms Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” - New Faces from Two Years (2008)

But with as much promise as New Faces had, and the praise of music critics throughout the Northwest and beyond, it’s a blow to all music fans when a spectacular band ends before they hardly got started. In 2008, the Seattle blog, Sound on the Sound, proclaimed: “I’m often asked what are the best new things I’ve been hearing…In the New Faces, I finally feel without reservation that I have an easy (and good) answer to that question.”

Artists and bands that influenced New Faces: David Bowie, The Smiths, The Libertines, Interpol, The Strokes, The Clash, Franz Ferdinand, The Rakes, The Beatles, The Velvet Underground, Arctic Monkeys, New Order, Violent Femmes, Joy Division, NWA, The Cure and XTC.

When the punk pop band The Fake Fictions announced in January on their official website, “The Fake Fictions are done. It has been a wild ride. We played our last show on Nov. 20, 2009…” fans of the band were understandably disappointed. The band had delivered a steady stream of edgy, engaging albums and EPs since their formation early last decade.

Thankfully, however, the band has been good enough to offer much of their music as free MP3s, spanning a total of seven releases.

“Parallel World” - The Fake Fictions from Magic Infinity EP (2010)

“Laugh Track Loser” - The Fake Fictions from Les Faux Fictions (2008)

“TV Snow” - The Fake Fictions from Krakatoa (2009)

The Catholic Comb, only months after announcing work on a new album, Halloween Street, suddenly broke up last summer. In a non-explanatory post on their MySpace blog, dated August 4, 2009, and titled, ‘Comb Over’, the band wrote: “We are no longer a band. Sincere thanks to anyone who ever supported us in any way.” The Catholic Comb were Adam Dishart, Daniel Awand, Ryan Rene Wansley and Andy Rice, all from the San Francisco Bay Area.

The band first rose to national, and in some cases, international, recognition with their 2005 single, “Sixteen to Twenty-One,” which was later used as the soundtrack to a Corey Duffel skateboarding video.

“Sixteen to Twenty-One” - The Catholic Comb

The band described their music as “a morbid bicycle ride.” But that doesn’t begin to explain the far-reaching, intoxicating sound they had cultivated, and which was being gobbled up within the circuitry of the underworld alternative rock network.

The past year has seen plenty of evidence of culture’s long-standing obsession with vampires, whether in film or music, but somehow most people missed out on The Catholic Comb’s splendid track, “Vampire Life.”

Not surprisingly, the song is all about the dreaded existence of life as a vampire, but with a musical twist that infuses acoustic pop, prog rock and goth to create a song that is hard to pin down, and even harder to ignore. Despite it’s subject matter, the song is intriguingly bright and melodic.

The lyrics of “Vampire Life” fit perfectly with the tempo of the song, while being slightly ironic and direct: “I go out at night/I eat what I like/I sleep where I might/the vampire life…” Hmmm, is this The Smiths slowed down to a ballad pace or The Cure with folksy abandonment?

“Vampire Life” - The Catholic Comb from s/t 7″

The Catholic Comb on MySpace

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

This is a blockbuster week for music releases as evidenced by the sheer number of tracks featured in this post. Brooklyn’s prog-rock quintet, and grads of the Rhode Island School of Design (which has also given us The Talking Heads, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Les Savvy Fav), Fang Island, belt out punk inspired pop with spirited vigor, triumphant harmonies, riff-heavy jams and uplifting tempos.

The Shout Out Louds return with their third album, Work, that will be followed by an extensive European and North American tour, including a sold out show next week at New York’s Music Hall of Williamsburg. Shearwater are back with a new album, The Golden Archipelago, and the featured track, “Black Eyes.”

Denmark’s experimental pop band Efterklang released their new album, Magic Chairs, and will kick off a U.S. tour next week. The recently disbanded The Fate Fictions dropped their final album today, and the long-awaited new album from San Francisco’s Brian Johnstown Massacre also dropped today. Another San Francisco band, Man/Miracle, released their new LP, Shape of Things, today. The band will perform tomorrow night as part of the city’s 18th annual Noise Pop festival.

We also have new singles from fresh releases from Blood Feathers, Wolf People, Toro Y Moi, We Are Wolves, Holy Fiction, Xiu Xiu, Quasi, Holly Miranda, The Exhibition and others. Enjoy.

“Life Coach” - Fang Island from s/t debut
“Daisy” - Fang Island from s/t debut
Fang Island on MySpace

“Walls” - Shout Out Louds from Work
Shout Out Louds official website

“Black Eyes” - Shearwater from The Golden Archipelago
Shearwater official website

“Hot Sprawl” - Man/Miracle from Shape of Things
Man/Miracle official website

“Modern Drift” - Efterklang from Magic Chairs
Efterklang on MySpace

“Parallel World” - The Fake Fictions from Magic Infinity EP
The Fake Fictions official website

“Let’s Go F**king Mental” - Brian Jonestown Massacre from Who Killed Sgt. Pepper?
Brian Jonestown Massacre

“Don’t Know You at All” - Blood Feathers from Goodness Gracious
Blood Feathers on MySpace

“Repulsion” - Quasi from American Gong
Quasi on MySpace

“October Fires” - Wolf People from Tidings
Wolf People on MySpace

“Blessa” - Toro Y Moi from Causers
Toro Y Moi on MySpace

“Gray Death” - Xiu Xiu from Dear God, I Hate Myself
Xiu Xiu official website

“Iron Eyes” - Holy Fiction from Hours From It
Holy Fiction on MySpace

“Colors” - April Smith & The Great Picture Show from Songs For A Sinking Ship
April Smith & The Great Picture Show

“Waves” - Holly Miranda from The Magician’s Private Library
Holly Miranda on MySpace

“Rapture” - Elaine Lachica from I Think I Can See the Ocean (feb 23 via
Elaine Lachica on MySpace

“Half Truth” - Dead Leaf Echo from Truth
Deaf Leaf Echo on MySpace

“Bright New Worlds” - The Exhibition from s/t EP
The Exhibition website

We realize that all of this music is a bit overwhelming, but it would be a disservice to our regular visitors, subscribers and new visitors to exclude certain tracks for the sake of creating a smaller list of releases - we feel all of the tracks we represent are worth the space they consume. While we do filter which tracks from new releases to present to you all (many do not “make the final cut”), we also try to be as thorough and eclectic as possible, and let you decide which songs you like the most in an effort to help you decide which albums you want to purchase for your music collection.

Reminder: You can stream continuously all of the songs in any of the playlists featured on IRC - while you do other things - just by clicking on the first song.

Next Week: Rogue Wave, Dinosaur Feathers, Portugal. The Man, The Whigs, Butterfly Explosion, Ted Leo and The Pharmacists, Peasant, Kiki Pau and more.

Previous New Releases Mixes

2/16/10: Music Bear Hands, Local Natives, The Hush Now, Field Music, Son Lux, The Good Listeners

2/9/10: Music Showstar, Yeasayer, Hot Chip, Galactic, Vinca Minor, Drew Danburry, FM Belfast and More

2/2/10: Music from Midlake, The Album Leaf, King of Prussia, Seth Augustus, The Heligoats and More

1/26/10: Music from Beach House, The Magnetic Fields, No Through Road, Woodpigeon, Retribution Gospel Choir, Citay, Boy Genius and More

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

San Francisco’s 18th annual Noise Pop festival, featuring indie rock artists, independent films, and special events that will take place at venues throughout the city over a span of seven days, starting this Tuesday, February 23rd.

Artists and bands scheduled to perform include an eclectic line-up, ranging from folk and rock to pop and electronic. Some of the headliners include Rogue Wave, The Magnetic Fields, The Dodos, Zee Avi, !!!, Edward Sharpe and the Zeros, John Vanderslice, Atlas Sound, Memory Tapes, We Were Promised Jetpacks, Thao Nguyen, Mark Kozelek, Foreign Born, Far and The Soundtrack of Our Lives.

Claudia Gonson Of Magnetic Fields will present the keynote speech at the opening ceremonies at the Industry Noise. A number of shows have already sold out, including performances headlined by Rogue Wave, Atlas Sound, Four Tet, Memory Tapes, Edward Sharpe and the Zeros and The Magnetic Fields’ Monday night show at the Herbst Theatre. Some film screenings have also sold out (see details below; plus plenty of trailers).

The Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band will perform for the first time in San Francisco in 15 years opening night at the Fox Theatre in Oakland. Performing with Yoko Ono will be her son, Sean Lennon, With Cornelius, Yuka Honda and Deerhoof.

This is the full schedule for Noise Pop organized by music and film, and including information such as artists, venue names and locations, show times, ticket prices, song streams, and video trailers.

Wednesday, Feb. 24th

Music

Rogue Wave with Princeton, Man/Miracle, and Two Sheds at Bottom Of The Hill (website | 1233 17th St. ) - 8 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. All ages.

“Good Morning” - Rogue Wave
“Sadie and Andy” - Princeton

The Ghost of a Saber Toothed Tiger at The Independent ( website | 628 Divisadero St. ) - 8 p.m. Tickets: $20. Ages 21+.

Harlem, Best Coast, The Sandwiches and Young Prisms at Cafe Du Nord (website | 2170 Market St. ) . Tickets: $12. Ages 21+.

“Friendly Ghosts” - Harlem
“This Is Real” - Best Coast

Foreign Born, The Fresh & Onlys, Free Energy and The Splinters at the Rickshaw Stop (website | 155 Fell St. ) - 8 p.m. Tickets: $15. All ages.

“Vacationing People” - Foreign Born
“Free Energy” - Free Energy

Film

Austin, Texas: Live Music Capital of the World? at the Roxie Theatre (website | 3117 16th St), 7 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

Related: See a three minute, cool promo video mashup of Austin with some great shots of the music scene and other Austin attractions, via AustinTexas.org and set to music by Vallejo.

P Star Rising at the Roxie, 9 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

Thursday, Feb. 25th

Music

Citay, Greg Ashley and Tape Deck Mountain at Cafe Du Nord - 8 p.m. Tickets: $12-$14. Age requirement of 21 years.

“Careful with That Hat” - Citay
“Ghost Colony” - Tape Deck Mountain

Far (Reunion show) with Stomacher, Picture Atlantic, The Trophy Fire at Bottom of the Hill - 8 p.m. Tickets: $14. All ages.

“Pony” - Far

The Dodos with Magik Magik Orchestra Collaborative at the Palace of Fine Arts (website | 3301 Lyon St.) - 8 p.m. Tickets: $25. All ages.

“Jodi” - The Dodos

Zee Avi with The Hot Toddies, Leslie and the Badgers and Tiny Television at Rickshaw Stop - 8:30 p.m. Tickets: $12-$14. All ages.

“First of the Gang to Die” - Zee Avi

Film

Blood Into Wine at Viz Cinema (website | 1746 Post St. ) - 7:30 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. All ages.

The Heart is a Drum Machine at the Viz Cinema - 9:30 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

Friday, Feb. 26th

Music

John Vanderslice with Nurses, Honeycomb and Conspiracy of Venus at Swedish American Hall (website | 2174 Market St.) - 8 p.m. Tickets: $15. Ages 21+.

“Me and My 424″ - John Vanderslice
“Asleep” - Nurses

Atlas Sound with Geographer, Magic Wands and Nice Nice at Great American Music Hall (website | 859 O’Farrell St. ) - 8 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. All ages.

“Walkabout” (featuring Noah Lennox, aka Panda Bear, of Animal Collective) - Atlas Sound
“Can’t You Wait” - Geographer

The Mumlers with The Growlers, Sonny and the Sunsets and The Ferocious Few at Cafe Du Nord - 8 p.m. Tickets: $12-$14. Ages 21+.

“Red River Hustle” - The Mumlers
“Barnacle Beast” - The Growlers

Wallpaper, The Limousines, Butterfly Bones and Battlehooch at Slim’s (website | 333 11th St. ) - 8 p.m. Tickets: $14. All ages.

“Pool Party” - Wallpaper
“Dancing at Her Funeral” - The Limousines

Four Tet with Nathan Fake, Rainbow Arabia and New Villager at The Independent - 8 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. Ages 21+.

“Plastic People” - Four Tet
“Harlem Sunset” - Rainbow Arabia
“Rich Doors” - New Villager

Scissors for Lefty, Judgment Day, Ghosts and the City, and Glaciers at Bottom of the Hill - 8 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. Ages 21+.

Film

Blood Into Wine at ATA (website | 992 Valencia St. ) - 7 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

Downtown Calling at ATA - 9 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

Saturday, Feb. 27th

Music

Memory Tapes with Loquat, Birds & Batteries, and Letting Up Despite Great Faults at Bottom of the Hill - 9 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. All ages.

“Plain Material” - Memory Tapes
“Sit” - Loquat

The Magnetic Fields at Fox Theatre in Oakland (website |1807 Telegraph Ave.) - 8 p.m. Tickets: $32.50. All ages.

“I Don’t Believe You” - The Magnetic Fields

True Widow, P.E.E., Ovens, and Grass Widow at Cafe Du Nord - 8 p.m. Tickets: $12-$14. Ages 21+.

“Duelist” - True Widow
“Time Could Bend” - Grass Widow

We Were Promised Jetpacks with The Lonely Forest, Bear Hands, Tempo No Tempo at Slim’s - 8 p.m. Tickets: $16. All ages.

“Conductor” - We Were Promised Jetpacks
“What a Drag” - Bear Hands

Thao Nguyen with Mirah and Horse Feathers, Dave Smallen, Carletta, and Sue Kay at Swedish American Hall - 8 p.m. Tickets: $15. Ages 21+.

“Beat” - Thao Nguyen
“Curs in the Weeds” - Horse Feathers

The Soundtrack of Our Lives with Nico Vega, Music for Animals, and Imaad Wasif at The Independent - 8 p.m. Tickets: $16. Ages 21+.

“Firmament Vacation” - The Soundtrack of Our Lives
“Beast” - Nico Vega
“Red Cells” - Music For Animals
“Wanderlusting” - Imaad Wasif

Mark Kozelek with Laura Gibson, Paula Frazer, and Fences at The Great American Music Hall - 8 p.m. Tickets: $26/$30. All ages.

“Celebrated Summer” - Mark Kozelek
“Come By Storm” - Laura Gibson

!!! with Maus Haus, Sugar & Gold, and My First Earthquake at Mezzanine (website | 444 Jessie St. ). Tickets: $20. Ages 21+.

“Take Estasy With Me (Magnetic Fields)” - !!!
“Rigid Breakfast” - Maus Haus

Black Prairie (with members of The Decemberists), Trainwreck Riders, Billy & Dolly, and Birds Fled From Me - 8:30 p.m. at Rickshaw Stop. Tickets: $14. All ages.

“Engine Driver” - The Decemberists
“Chug Along” - Trainwreck Riders

Film

Unusual Heroes: John Darnielle and Lou Barlow at ATA - 2 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages

Woodstock: Now & Then at ATA - 4 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

Sunday, Feb. 28th

Music

Dizzy Balloon with The Houds Below, Visqueen and Laarks at Bottom of the Hill - 1 p.m. Tickets: $12. All ages.
“Raise A Glass” - Dizzy Balloon
“All The Words” - Laarks

Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros with The Watson Twins, AB & The Sea, and The Northern Key at Bimbo’s 365 Club (website | 1025 Columbus Ave ) - 7:30 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out.

“Daydream” - Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros
“Sky Open Up” - The Watson Twins

Film

The Secret to a Happy Ending at ATA - 2 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. All ages.

All My Friends Are Funeral Singers at ATA - 4 p.m. Tickets: $10. All ages.

A Film About Stephin Merritt and The Magnetic Fields at Mezzanine - 8 p.m. Tickets: $15. All ages.

Monday, March 1st - The Finale

The Magnetic Fields with Mark Eitzel at Herbst Theater (website | 401 Van Ness St. ) - 8 p.m. Tickets: Sold Out. All ages.

“All The Umbrellas in London” (Live at KVRX, 1999) - The Magnetic Fields

Tickets for all performances listed above can be purchased on the Noise Pop full schedule page

Note: The official website homepage’s top menu links - Artists, Schedule, etc. - do not contain the updated 2010 information, for some strange reason; a bit confusing, but make sure to click here for all of the information for the 2010 event.

Check out the Noise Pop official website. The Bay Bridged put together a cool feature of free Noise Pop events.

We’re gearing up for Noise Pop! Thanks to Tell All Your Friends PR and Noise Pop organizers for helping us out in planning for the festival.

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

There have been literally hundreds, probably thousands, of blogger and mainstream music media “best of” lists of 2009 for indie and alternative rock and pop.

No list is right or wrong. However, we don’t pretend that we can put together a definitive ‘best of’ list for an entire year because it’s frankly too difficult, and perhaps pretentious. Plus, everyone has there own set criteria and personal tastes. This playlist mix is merely a representation of some of our favorite tracks of 2009 and also ones that all of you responded to the most when we originally posted them during 2009. You can also view hundreds of sweet songs from 2009 via the Ears To The Music playlist series.

“Hellhole Ratrace” - Girls from Album (2009)

“My Twisted Words” - Radiohead, single (2009)

“Apollo & the Buffalo and Anna Anna Anna Oh!” - Sunset Rubdown from Drayonslayer (2009)

“Pink Sabbath” - Dananananaykroyd from Pink Sabbath (2009)

“Quiet Little Voices” - We Were Promised Jetpacks from These Four Walls (2009)

“Roses in the Park” - Liechtenstein from Survival Strategies in a Modern World (2009)

“Silver Trembling Hands” - The Flaming Lips from Embryonic (2009)

“Know Better, Learn Faster” - Thao with the Get Down, Stay Down, single (2009)

“Easy” - Deer Tick from Born On Flag Day (2009)

“Bow Down and Die” - The Almighty Defenders from s/t debut (2009)

“Paralyzed” - Starlight Mints from Change Remains (2009)

Fantasy Nation - Kordan from Fantasy Nation (2009)

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

There have been literally hundreds, probably thousands, of blogger and mainstream music media “best of” lists of 2009 for indie and alternative rock and pop.

No list is right or wrong. However, we don’t pretend that we can put together a definitive ‘best of’ list for an entire year because it’s frankly too difficult, and perhaps pretentious. Plus, everyone has there own set criteria and personal tastes. This playlist mix is merely a representation of some of our favorite tracks of 2009 and also ones that all of you responded to the most when we originally posted them during 2009. You can also view hundreds of sweet songs from 2009 via the Ears To The Music playlist series.

“Hellhole Ratrace” - Girls from Album (2009)

“My Twisted Words” - Radiohead, single (2009)

“Apollo & the Buffalo and Anna Anna Anna Oh!” - Sunset Rubdown from Drayonslayer (2009)

“Pink Sabbath” - Dananananaykroyd from Pink Sabbath (2009)

“Quiet Little Voices” - We Were Promised Jetpacks from These Four Walls (2009)

“Roses in the Park” - Liechtenstein from Survival Strategies in a Modern World (2009)

“Silver Trembling Hands” - The Flaming Lips from Embryonic (2009)

“Know Better, Learn Faster” - Thao with the Get Down, Stay Down, single (2009)

“Easy” - Deer Tick from Born On Flag Day (2009)

“Bow Down and Die” - The Almighty Defenders from s/t debut (2009)

“Paralyzed” - Starlight Mints from Change Remains (2009)

Fantasy Nation - Kordan from Fantasy Nation (2009)

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

The Best Rarely Heard Songs series continues today with music from bands that many of you have probably never heard of: Furcast, Ape School, Regrets and Brunettes, Lower Heaven and Pure Ecstasy.

California indie duo Furcast - comprised of Johann Carbajal and Vincent Mazza - evoke a dark, cinematic film noir sound on the track, “Grey is Old,” a composition which could have fit nicely on a Kill Bill soundtrack. Shortly after the mid-point of the nearly seven-minute track, the song explodes into a brief fury, and subsequently transforms into a creepy, shifting piano and percussion piece that ultimately winds down and fades away, leaving the listener transfixed. Chances are if you like this track, you’ll enjoy most or all of Furcast’s debut EP, Together. Massive Attack fans take special note.

“Grey is Old” - Furcast from Together
Furcast on MySpace

On “Wail to God,” one-man band Michael Johnson, aka Ape School, carries along the torch of film noir influenced music and taking it to another level with the ascent of a firey, almost disco-esque, beats accompanied by a neo-psych, Moog-heavy flare. The two and a half minute reverb-loving track closes with a steady descent “back to earth,” complete with space alien-like sound effects. Throughout the Ape Man debut, Johson’s influences, which range from Phil Spector and Brian Eno to The Beach Boys and Animal Collective, are unmistakable. Before founding Ape School, Johnson was briefly a member of two terrific bands, the Lilys, and Florida’s indie outfit, Holopaw.

“Wail to God” - Ape School from s/t debut
Ape School on MySpace

The attraction to Los Angeles indie rock band Regrets & Brunettes was immediate within the first half minute of hearing the band’s song, “Tough Love,” off their debut LP, At Night You Love Me, released last December. This single is the perfect precursor to the album itself, so if you really dig this track, you’re probably going to love the album.

“Tough Love” - Regrets and Brunettes from s/t debut
Regrets and Brunettes on MySpace

Lower Heaven are an accomplished quintet from the Silverlake area of Los Angeles that crafts haunting, reverb-heavy melodies obviously influenced by some of their favorite self-proclaimed bands, such as My Bloody Valentine and Jesus and Mary Chain. Lower Heaven took their name from the lyrics of an Echo and the Bunnymen song, and they’ve opened for bands such as the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Darker My Love and The Black Angels.

“Fruitless” - Lower Heaven from Ashes
Lower Heaven on MySpace

Pure Ecstasy crafts sweet, lo-fi psychedelic pop reverberations that sound a bit like Wavves and Animal Collective in myosis. While we usually dislike songs that stop and restart at various points in the composition, Pure Ecstasy’s track, “Easy,” is too good to pass up. We hope the band will receive more “blog love” soon, and continue to grow their fan following.

“Easy” - Pure Ecstasy from Voices
Pure Ecstasy on MySpace

Other installments in this series:

Best Rarely Heard Songs of 2009, Vol. I - Sun Airway, The Ambience Affair, Brian Olive, The Bats, Land of Talk & More

Best Rarely Heard Songs of 2009, Vol. II - Ex Norwegian, We All Have Hooks for Hands, Pistol for Ringo and Fredrik

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

In the on-going Singer-Songwriter Spotlight Series, we have a backlog of musicians to present to you in the coming weeks, with more new talent coming in all of the time. Most of the artists we feature are those who have sent their music in hoping to strike a chord, and more often than not, they do. With that in mind, we are expanding this particular feature to include more singer-songwriters into each installment just to keep up with them all.

Nashville recording artist Andrew Belle, a native of Chicago, has made quite a name for himself in the past year or so, especially within the Nashville scene. In December, Belle was part of the Ten Out of Tenn tour, a collective of Tennessee musicians who hit the road to entertain concert goers across the midwest and west, performing a range of classic and modern-day Christmas songs as well as rare indie songs. Watch a promo video of the TOT rehearsals for their Christmas 2009 tour.

In addition to Belle, the collective included Trent Dabbs, Butterfly Boucher, Katie Herzig, Andy Davis, K.S. Rhoads, Tyler James, Jeremy Lister, Matthew Perryman Jones, Erin McCarley and Will Sayles.

Due in part to the success of the TOT holiday tour, Belle is now on the road again, performing a series of solo shows in Washington state, mostly at colleges and universities. In March, he will launch another tour of colleges and universities throughout the Midwest in support of the release of his first LP, The Ladder, which will drop on February 23rd. The LP is a self-release, and was mixed by Grammy award-winning engineer Vance Powell (The Raconteurs).

After you hear the magnificent live cover of Bright Eyes‘, “First Day of My Life,” and the wonderfully memorable, “Static Waves,” you’ll probably not forgot Andrew Belle anytime soon. Remarkably, Belle’s voice reminds us both of Johnny Legend and Chris Martin, especially on “Static Waves.” Some of you may recognize Belle’s voice from his debut 2008 EP, All Those Pretty Lights, from which a couple of songs were featured on 90210 and MTV’s The Real World. Last August, Belle won MTV’s ‘Chicago Break Out Artist’ VMA award for the song, “I’ll Be Your Breeze.”

Amazingly, his superb debut EP is available as a free download from Bandcamp.

“Static Waves” - Andrew Belle from The Ladder (2010)

“I’ll Be Your Breeze” - Andrew Belle from All Those Pretty Lights EP (2009)

“All Those Pretty Lights” - Andrew Belle from All Those Pretty Lights EP (2009)

“First Day of My Life” (Bright Eyes) - Andrew Belle, live (2009)

Andrew Belle on MySpace

Americana singer-songwriter Chris Volpe is a self-taught guitar virtuoso who executes complex finger-picking styles akin to Leo Kottke and Paul Simon. Volpe taught himself to play piano, banjo, bass and drums, among other instruments and honed his skills for songwriting. After listening to half of a dozen of his songs from different releases, it becomes ever more apparent why Volpe has received as many music awards as he has in the span of five years.

“Don’t Go” - Chris Volpe from Shipwrecked (2009)

In 2008, Volpe was picked to represent Nashville at the Forecastle Festival; earlier that year, Volpe won the international Lyric Writer Award for the song “Dusty Bibles,” plus the Independent Music Award for the “Singer/Songwriter Album of the Year” category in 2006 for the LP, Refugee Blues. In fact, all 15 songs on the LP were recorded live in one take - a stellar recording feat. He won the studio time to record Refugee Blues as a prize for taking the “best song of the year” at the West Coast Songwriting Association’s annual contest in 2004. Volpe’s music is sometimes politically charged, as well as evidenced in “Dusty Bibles,” which ruminates about Saddam Hussein, Osama Bin Laden and David Koresh, and sounds a bit like a Tom Waits song.

Volpe’s top-quality songwriting and performing has also garnered him honorable mentions in the prestigious John Lennon Songwriting Contest and Billboard Worldwide Song Contest. The following lyrics from the song “1849 Revisited” are one example of Volpe’s songwriting abilities: For all along the river banks there lives/A residue collected in the weeds/It smells of tasteless regret: a faint glimpse/Of hearts that sold the life they own to lease.

With the help of Grammy award-winning producer Phil Harris, Volpe recorded songs that range in style from folk-jazz to Americana and country noir for his 2009 release, Shipwrecked. His band comprises some of Nashville’s finest musicians, including Jeff Coffin (Flecktones, Dave Matthews Band), Bryn Davies (Tony Rice, Patti Griffin), Donnie Herron (Bob Dylan, BR549) and Kenny Malone (Cat Stevens, Johnny Cash).

“Dusty Bibles” - Chris Volpe from Shipwrecked (2009)

Chris Volpe official website

Chris Volpe on MySpace

Check out previous installments from IRC’s Singer-Songwriter Spotlight Series.

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Best New Releases of the Week: Bear Hands, Local Natives, The Hush Now, Field Music, Son Lux, The Good Listeners

Band of the Week: Oregonian Band The Dimes Present a History Lesson of Colonial Boston in Song

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

This week’s new releases include the fresh songs, as well as some tracks that have already made the rounds and are now being repackaged and re-issued in various forms. For example, Brooklyn’s popular, but still unsigned, band Bear Hands, have re-issued their single, “What a Drag,” today on white vinyl, and will celebrate this evening at The Studio at Webster Hall in New York, a kick-off show for an extensive tour of the U.S. with We Were Promised Jetpacks and Passion Pit. The band’s shows with Passion Pit have already sold out in cities like Chicago, Minneapolis and Vancouver.

Los Angeles blog buzz band Local Natives‘ LP, Gorilla Manor, celebrates its official release today, but some of the tracks - and good ones at that - were leaked last fall, making them a band to watch in 2010. Bear Hands kicks off a European tour tomorrow night with a sold out show in Paris, and will then return to the perform three shows at next month’s South by Southwest in Austin, followed by sets at Coachella and Bonnaroo music festivals.

Other tracks featured below from new releases include The Hush Now, Field Music, Son Lux, SPEAK and El May, as well as a handful of releases from last month that we didn’t have time for, or that we just recently learned about, but are worth checking out.

“What a Drag” - Bear Hands from What a Drag
Bear Hands on MySpace

“Sunhands” - Local Natives from Gorilla Manor
Local Natives on MySpace

“Constellations” - The Hush Now from Constellations
The Hush Now on MySpace

“Measure” - Field Music from Field Music
Field Music on MySpace

“Weapons V” - Son Lux from Weapons EP
Son Lux on MySpace

“Carrie (Mindfull)” - SPEAK from debut EP
SPEAK on MySpace

“Don’t You” - El May from s/t debut
El May on MySpace

Los Angeles indie folk pop band The Good Listeners released their third album, Don’t Quit Your Daydream, last month via Three Finger Records. The LP was recorded during a month long journey to twelve cities across the US, and also made into an indie film documentary by the same name. At each stop on their adventure, the duo collaborated with a cast of strangers and musicians who forced them to reconsider what a life dedicated to the pursuit of music really means.

“Insect Losing Balance” - The Good Listeners from Don’t Quit Your Daydream
The Good Listeners on MySpace

January Releases from Cop Shades, Sun Hotel, The Houston Brothers and More

In January, the experimental indie rock band Cop Shades released their debut album as a free download via Superbob Records - a label formed in 1993 by Ken Kelley, the drummer of The Monoxides. Cop Shades deliver gritty and fuzzy guitar rock almost guaranteed to attract rock fans who are hungry for something fresh and edgy.

Sun Hotel is an indie band from New Orleans that we are really beginning to like; we’ll have more about them in our upcoming Bands to Watch in 2010 issue. The band released their LP, Team Spirit, on January 28th. Also, check out tracks from January releases by Adam Green, The Houston Brothers, Gobotron, and Charlie Hunter.

“I Sh*t Ponies” - Cop Shades from s/t EP
“The Sorority” - Cop Shades from s/t EP
Cop Shades on MySpace

“Allways” - Sun Hotel from Team Spirit
“Plantation Land” - Sun Hotel from Team Spirit
Sun Hotel on MySpace

“Castles and Tassels” - Adam Green from Minor Love
Adam Green on MySpace

“Confederate Dunce” - The Houston Brothers from The Archer
“Wasted Youth” - The Houston Brothers from The Archer
The Houston Brothers website

“Never Turn Around” - Gobotron from On Your Mark, Get Ready…
Gobotron on MySpace

“High Pockets and a Fanny Pack” - Charlie Hunter from Gentlemen, I Neglected to Inform You That You Will Not be Getting Paid
Charlie Hunter official website

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.

This week’s new releases include the fresh songs, as well as some tracks that have already made the rounds and are now being repackaged and re-issued in various forms. For example, Brooklyn’s popular, but still unsigned, band Bear Hands, have re-issued their single, “What a Drag,” today on white vinyl, and will celebrate this evening at The Studio at Webster Hall in New York, a kick-off show for an extensive tour of the U.S. with We Were Promised Jetpacks and Passion Pit. The band’s shows with Passion Pit have already sold out in cities like Chicago, Minneapolis and Vancouver.

Los Angeles blog buzz band Local Natives‘ LP, Gorilla Manor, celebrates its official release today, but some of the tracks - and good ones at that - were leaked last fall, making them a band to watch in 2010. Bear Hands kicks off a European tour tomorrow night with a sold out show in Paris, and will then return to the perform three shows at next month’s South by Southwest in Austin, followed by sets at Coachella and Bonnaroo music festivals.

Other tracks featured below from new releases include The Hush Now, Field Music, Son Lux, SPEAK and El May, as well as a handful of releases from last month that we didn’t have time for, or that we just recently learned about, but are worth checking out.

“What a Drag” - Bear Hands from What a Drag
Bear Hands on MySpace

“Sunhands” - Local Natives from Gorilla Manor
Local Natives on MySpace

“Constellations” - The Hush Now from Constellations
The Hush Now on MySpace

“Measure” - Field Music from Field Music
Field Music on MySpace

“Weapons V” - Son Lux from Weapons EP
Son Lux on MySpace

“Carrie (Mindfull)” - SPEAK from debut EP
SPEAK on MySpace

“Don’t You” - El May from s/t debut
El May on MySpace

Los Angeles indie folk pop band The Good Listeners released their third album, Don’t Quit Your Daydream, last month via Three Finger Records. The LP was recorded during a month long journey to twelve cities across the US, and also made into an indie film documentary by the same name. At each stop on their adventure, the duo collaborated with a cast of strangers and musicians who forced them to reconsider what a life dedicated to the pursuit of music really means.

“Insect Losing Balance” - The Good Listeners from Don’t Quit Your Daydream
The Good Listeners on MySpace

January Releases from Cop Shades, Sun Hotel, The Houston Brothers and More

In January, the experimental indie rock band Cop Shades released their debut album as a free download via Superbob Records - a label formed in 1993 by Ken Kelley, the drummer of The Monoxides. Cop Shades deliver gritty and fuzzy guitar rock almost guaranteed to attract rock fans who are hungry for something fresh and edgy.

Sun Hotel is an indie band from New Orleans that we are really beginning to like; we’ll have more about them in our upcoming Bands to Watch in 2010 issue. The band released their LP, Team Spirit, on January 28th. Also, check out tracks from January releases by Adam Green, The Houston Brothers, Gobotron, and Charlie Hunter.

“I Sh*t Ponies” - Cop Shades from s/t EP
“The Sorority” - Cop Shades from s/t EP
Cop Shades on MySpace

“Allways” - Sun Hotel from Team Spirit
“Plantation Land” - Sun Hotel from Team Spirit
Sun Hotel on MySpace

“Castles and Tassels” - Adam Green from Minor Love
Adam Green on MySpace

“Confederate Dunce” - The Houston Brothers from The Archer
“Wasted Youth” - The Houston Brothers from The Archer
The Houston Brothers website

“Never Turn Around” - Gobotron from On Your Mark, Get Ready…
Gobotron on MySpace

“High Pockets and a Fanny Pack” - Charlie Hunter from Gentlemen, I Neglected to Inform You That You Will Not be Getting Paid
Charlie Hunter official website

Putting the “in” in to Indie. Stop by Indie Rock Cafe for the best
bands, MP3s, videos, news, concert listings, festival updates, playlists and more.