Yowza!
All I knew from that world was the Pizzicato Five. I came to Fantasma expecting that kind of kaleidoscopic, sunny-pop vibe with some playful cutting and pasting of samples. Then I got scared off by the unexpected bursts of garage rock and aggressive shoegaze noise. Now I get it.
Not sure anyone else cares about The Felice Brothers but there are some killer songs on the new album.
Here!
PLUNDER!
Weird. I just went searching for Cornelius, to find that he’s touring Fantasma this summer!
In a strange turnabout-is-fair-play move, he’s only touring as far east as Chicago. Finally, you NYC guys miss out on something awesome!
Boo! EAST COAST WANTS CORNELIUS! (My next show is Lush in mid-September… Woo!)
Just stumbled on a great new track called Bills by Ultimate Painting. I’m psyched they already have a new album coming soon.
Meanwhile, Numero Group is readying a reissue of Blonde Redhead’s first three albums plus extras and rarities. Including Big Song. Got mine pre-ordered!
Temple of the Dog is re-uniting to go on their first-ever tour later this year. 25th anniversary and all. I’ve got friends already itching for tickets.
WAIT, WHAT?! The Amazing just released a new album!
Their previous two, Gentle Stream and Picture You, are probably my two most-played albums of the past 5 years. One might even say they’re my favorite band. Therefore, huzzah! I’ll be in my bunk.
Annabelle Lord-Patey, daughter of Mary Lou Lord and Keven Patey (of The Raging Teens) has put out an album, Polaris. Full thing is up on Spotify, but here’s the lead single. She sounds a lot like her mom.
Hey yo–when some band decides to channel their inner 1973 Todd Rundgren Philly rock soul thing, lemme know next time! Because holy shit is the new Night Moves album doing it for me!
Tried that album yesterday and really liked it.
The new Amazing album is good but after 5 or 6 listens, I’m not hearing any songs that measure up to the best tracks off their last two releases. Still love those guys.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQpnpvjaJM4
Massive Attack featuring Hope Sandoval from Mazzy Star. Such a recognizable voice.
Spotify added a new user based playlist Release Radar which captures new releases based on your artists etc. It’s pretty good and clued me in to a few releases I missed, though it gets a little confused by new to Spotify/rereleases and dumps some old stuff in their too.
You’re all going to be like “Whatevs dude”, but I dun’ care.
Morton can verify, for a time between 1999 and 2001 my world was ruled from the Maritimes, by two bands: Sloan and The Flashing Lights. The FL’s record, Where The Change Is, is one of my 10 favorite records ever in fact.
After a second Flashing Lights album almost as good as the first failed to catch fire (and after the Flashing Lights North American record deals expired) they called it quits. Sloan remained Sloan. Flashing Lights frontman Matt Murphy did a stint as an actor, playing the lead in the Life And Hard Times of Guy Terrifico…and then became a segment producer with the CBC.
Well. Chris Murphy of Sloan and Matt Murphy of The Flashing Lights have put together a band, along with their friend Mike O’Neill from The Inbreds. They’re called TUNS, a named they nicked from a defunct school their hometown of Halifax, the Technical University of Nova Scotia (it’s now been merged into Dalhousie University).
Anyway, I tried to not get excited about this. Oh, no big deal. First proper rock record from Matt Murphy in 15 years, with Chris Murphy as his partner in crime. I tried to reign in my excitement for what it would be…
…but now Exclaim Media in Canada is streaming it a week prior to release and HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS ITS BETTER THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE AND ITS GREAT AND I’LL BE IN MY BUNK OH MY GOD SO GOOD
It’s kind of become a joke between my friends and me about how much I detest Sloan. I think it started when I went to see them at this tiny 150-ish capacity club in SF, and they were big-timing the whole place, acting like total douchy rock stars and purposely turned the amps waaaaay up since they were used to playing theaters and clearly thought this gig was beneath them.
But then later they put out an album that I kinda liked (Navy Blues) so I mostly forgave them, though I still never wanted to see them live again and I pretty much hated everything after it.
I dunno why I told you that story, except to say I like that “Mind Over Matter” song quite a lot. Not sure I’ll be heading off to my bunk, but I’m willing to give the Sloan people another chance based on that one :-)
I’m often in my bunk so I appreciate the TUNS link.
I’m halfway through my first listen of a new song called Pet Body by Miya Folick and feeling compelled to share it immediately. She had me at OOoooOOooooOOOOooooohh.
That Miya Folick song, awesome. A slightly dreamier X-Ray Spex?
Finally giving this a digi-spin and OH MY GOD YOU’RE SO FUCKING RIGHT I TOTALLY JUST PRE-ORDERED THE SHIT OUT OF THIS MOFO ON HOT WAX NOW BRING IT MR. POSTMAN
I’m just gonna pull the pin on this, leave it here, and run.
(I just adore the way the melody into the chorus goes wandering off in a way that is totally weirdly unpredictable and awesome.)
Super pumped about the new Okkervil River album coming out in a couple weeks.
SPC ECO put out a new album. This is a father/daughter project featuring Dean Garcia of Curve. Their early works were a bit more Curve like and they gradually shifted to a more synth/electronic sound, latest seems to continue along those lines.