W♥M

Local Natives at 400 Bar, Minneapolis (5/17/10)

Local Natives - Sun Hands Local Natives Tour Dates 06/02/10 Rickshaw Stop SF, CA 06/03/10 Bottom of the Hill SF, CA 06/04/10 Troubadour LA, CA 06/05/10 Bootleg Theater LA, CA 06/10/10 Bonnaroo Manchester, TN 06/13/10 Isle of WIght Festival Newport 06/15/10 Shepherds Bush Empire 06/17/10 Vera Groningen, NL 06/18/10 Southside Tuttlingen, DE 06/19/10 Hurricane Scheebel, DE 06/23/10 Melkweg Amsterdam 06/24/10 Glastonbury Old Queen’s Head 06/25/10 Glastonbury Festival 06/27/10 Solidays Festival Paris 06/29/10 Ravenna Hana Bi Ravenna, IT 06/30/10 Ancona Mole Vanvitelliana 07/02/10 Beauregard Festival Herouville Saint Clair, FR 07/04/10 Roskilde Festival Roskilde, DK 07/11/10 Oxygen Festival 07/18/10 Pitchfork Festival� 08/05/10 Middle East Boston, MA 08/06/10 1st Unitarian Church� Phila, PA 08/07/10� Beach @ Governors Island NY 08/11/10 Pantiero Festival Cannes 08/12/10 Haldern Festival Haldern 08/13/10 Way Out West Festival 08/14/10 Oya Festival Oslo, NO 08/15/10 Summer Sundae Weekender� 08/19/10 For Noise Festival Pully 08/20/10 Pukkelpop Hasselt-Kiewit 08/27/10 Open Air Festival Zurich 08/28/10 Leeds Festival Leeds 08/29/10 Reading Festival Reading 10/09/10 Austin City Limits Austin, TX Download Free download of "Sun Hands" via myspace

I've only recently discovered Local Natives via Fleet Foxes radio library on last.fm, which is, if you aren't already familiar with last.fm, an online record keeper of what you play on your iTunes (www.last.fm/about). Actually, no. I take that back. I first heard "Warning Sign" on Minneapolis' local radio station The Current but never caught the name of the band. I allowed myself to just confuse them with Fleet Foxes or assumed that they were some side project of J. Tillman. But, no – these are L.A. boys and these L.A. boys know how to rock. But first, let's discuss the opening band Suckers. A 4-man band from Brooklyn, New York with influences from across the board. I initially thought they sounded like The Killers but then was surprised to hear influences of Mt. Eerie (Phil Elverum) in their drumming. I was skeptical at first when I saw the frontman of the band walk around with some questionable bling around his neck. Turns out the bling didn't influence their music much, just added sparkle to the small stage the 400 Bar. Enough about visual aesthetics, though. Suckers put on an entertaining show and they were hot. Literally. It was a sold out show and the air condition wasn't working. The stage was a hot plate ready for Fleet Foxes, uh, I mean, Local Natives.

The crowd was pumped once Suckers ended their set. For an 18+ show, I didn't see many 18-year olds. Or maybe they were 18-year olds with a fake I.D. and thought PBR was the best beer they've ever had next to Premium Grainbelt. As for me, I was fishing for ice in my glass of Hendrick's & Tonic. It was uncomfortably hot and everyone's sweat was rubbing on me.

Local Natives, photo by Dolly

I forgot about the heat once Local Natives hopped on stage to tune their guitars and test their mics. I was front stage and center by their feet, completely enamored by Taylor Rice's 'stache and Ryan Hahn's pretty eyes. I was totally crushing on them and their music. They rocked so hard that Ryan Hahn accidentally tore off the poorly applied foam from the wall. At one point, the power shut off on stage when the bar decided to turn on the AC. As a time waster, Kelcey Rice started to tell a joke that was so stupid, it was funny. Aside from stage theatrics, their performance was solid. Sun Hands, Cards & Quarters and Wide Eyes were my favorite performances by them that night, not to mention my favorite songs off of Gorilla Manor. It was nice to see that Taylor, Kelcey and Ryan switched off between playing keys and guitar. I'm seriously glad I got to see Local Natives perform in Minneapolis. I overheard in the crowd that they had opened up for Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes and sad I had missed that. Next time they come back, we need to provide them with a bigger venue and some AC, for reals. Local Natives are the bees knees.

05/31/2010 14:27:44♥ dolly ♥ thelocalnatives.com ♥ myspace.com/localnatives

Suckers at 400 Bar, Minneapolis (5/17/10)

Suckers - A Mind I Knew Suckers Tour Dates 05/28/10 Vancouver, BC - Media Club* 05/31/10 Seattle, WA – Comet Tavern 06/02/10 SF CA - Rickshaw Stop* 06/03/10 SF, CA - Bottom of the Hill* 06/04/10 LA, CA – Troubadour * 06/05/10 LA, CA – Spaceland 06/17/10 Phila, PA - First Unitarian 06/18/10 Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall 06/29/10 Brooklyn, NY - Prospect & 06/30/10 NY – Governor’s Island & *With Local Natives & With Passion Pit, Tokyo Police Club Download BUY “Black Sheep” single @ iTunes. Free download of "A Mind I Knew" from the band’s June 8 full-length debut, Wild Smile (Frenchkiss Records)

It's a good thing I got there early because this show had sold out for months already.  The majority of the fans I spoke with were there to see The Local Natives, but  were very impressed with the opening performance as well.  The 400 bar was heavily packed long before either band stepped on stage to start playing.  It was one of the hottest days of the year so far and I have a small request for the 400 bar- VENTILATION PLEASE.  With the full house and little to no air movement, it was very stuffy and tough to breath; let alone rock out with the jammin' music, but the show must go on, so the artists, the music fans danced through the heat.
 
For many of you I will be introducing for the first time the Suckers. A Brooklyn based band that gained rapid local and national attention shortly after their self-titled EP was released in 2009. All of the band members were very musically talented and cultured. All of the songs I remember involved several of the guys playing more than one instrument at a time and harmonizing the vocals. I believe it was my first time witnessing a guitar/bass player rockin' some percussion in between beats on the strings. Very nice!

Their style and sound reminded me very much of Modest Mouse, a band that I am also very fond of. With excellent harmony and chemistry the Suckers managed to bounce the fans in the house and solidify their name here in Minneapolis. They came equipped with tons of energy and sounded great throughout the whole setlist. I don’t see them opening for bands much longer, so all you music heads out there get out and see them now so you can claim that you were a fan “long before they were huge”. 

05/27/2010 21:41:06♥ jared () ♥ suckersmusic.com ♥ myspace.com ♥ twitter.com

Three Month Sunset, Deep Sea Arcade & Sister Jane

So... recent days has seen me looking at a number of bands I'd never caught (and some I'd never even heard of before). Yes, i even ventured into Kings Cross to do this. It is here that i'm going to describe some of these bands. Three of them, to be exact.

So.... I haven't been to the World Bar since the Kings Cross Hotel shut up shop for renovations and Loaded had to move there (and it's been quite a while since it moved elsewhere - even to the point that i have no idea where it is these days). 

Firstly I'd like to commend the World Bar clientele, in general, for providing the first instalment of entertainment for the evening. I've never seen such "ladies". No, i don't lead that much of a sheltered life.... i guess i just don't go to places where girls, who wear dresses that only barely cover their arses, hang out. Special mention also goes out to the gang of Russell Brand impersonators who were also loitering up the back.

Three Month Sunset

 

Three Month Sunset

 

Three Month Sunset - Hey Rose

Fresh from, I'm sure, a horrendously long drive from Melbourne to Sydney, to be greeted by the aforementioned short-skirted "ladies" of the World Bar. Then being squished onto a stage the size of a small car, Melbourne four-piece, Three Month Sunset, weren't phased (although the case of the missing felafel still continues) and managed to pull off an excellent set. 

How could i describe their sound? Let's see.... well, it's mellow, but loud; melodic, but not to the point where any of the songs are likely to get stuck in your head (a good thing or a bad thing - you can decide); the female vocals contrasting with the rest of the bass, bass and (very interesting) guitar. Not your traditional instrumental line-up, but works really well. 

Possibly not the cuppatea of the majority of the crowd. Admittedly, this style of music is not something that the majority of World Bar patrons would be accustomed to. However, there were clearly a handful of the audience really appreciating the sounds. Three Month Sunset - keep your eyes peeled for a show near you (I'm looking at you, people in Melbourne)

29th May - Ding Dong Lounge, Melbourne w/The Black Ryder

12th June - Pong, Melbourne w/Andrew Keese & The Associates

Website: http://www.myspace.com/4112338

Deep Sea Arcade

Deep Sea Arcade

I'd, previous to this night, had it drilled into me that "Deep Sea Arcade are one of the best Sydney bands... blah blah blah" (i think that's how it was said), so therefore i had pretty high hopes as i walked into the room and witnessed them dancing on the stage to the beastie boys track that was being played by the between-band DJ's. I'd really only heard one of their songs prior to this night, Don't Be Sorry, and i was quite looking forward to it. Far more poppy than Three Month Sunset, but obviously with some of the same psychedelic influences. I was mostly impressed (and we all know how easily impressed i am) by their rendition of the Stone Roses, Waterfall.

 

Personally, I'd like to check them out in a different venue. I have a feeling that performing at the World Bar doesn't do anything to make a band sound good.

 

Deep Sea Arcade-Don't Be Sorry (official video)

28^th May - Rocket Bar, Adelaide w/Fire! Santa Rosa, Fire!  

3^rd June - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney w/Fire! Santa Rosa, Fire!  

5^th June - The Troubadour, Brisbane w/Fire! Santa Rosa, Fire!  

11^th June - Newton Workers Club, Melbourne w/Fire! Santa Rosa, Fire!  

13^th June - Come Together Festival, Sydney 

Website: http://www.myspace.com/deepseaarcade 

Sister Jane

Sister Jane

On a slightly different note, I just wanted to mention Sister Jane, whom I happened to catch the Sunday night after the World Bar event. I always love seeing bands at the Lansdowne Hotel. Something about the freeness of it all (and the uber-cheap pub meals) that makes me content. I generally didn't expect a lot when I'm not paying. 

This night saw Sister Jane supporting Three Month Sunset and Sounds Like Sunset (i lost count of the "sunset" related jokes - mind you i stopped counting after i heard the first one). Sister Jane were brilliant. Just what was needed to end quite a large weekend. They were energetic and loud. Almost a complete contrast to the bands on either side of them on the bill; more of a rock/blues kinda feel.... brilliant. Well worth tracking down again and viewing on a night that isn't a "school night". 

Website: http://www.sisterjane.net

www.britpop.com.au

One more thing.....Britpop... this saturday!

But that's all for now.

Sally 

sally@weheartmusic.com

 

Real Estate/Frontier Ruckus - Birmingham Hare and Hounds 16/05/2010

Frontier Ruckus - Abigail (demo) Frontier Ruckus Tour Dates 05/21/10 Lexington London, GB 05/23/10 WOOD Festival Oxfordshire 05/24/10 Railway Winchester, UK 05/26/10 Paradiso Amsterdam 05/27/10 Ubel & Gefahrlich Hamburg 05/29/10 Loppen Copenhagen 06/01/10 Studio 672 Cologne 06/02/10 Bang Bang Club Berlin 06/04/10 Tap Tab Schaffhausen 06/10/10 Bonnaroo Manchester, TN 06/12/10 Rumba Cafe Columbus, Ohio 06/13/10 Beachland Tavern Cleveland, OH 06/16/10 Triumph New Hope, PA 06/17/10 Southpaw Brooklyn, NY 06/19/10 Founders Brewing Company 06/22/10 Night Cat Easton, MD 06/23/10 World Cafe Live Phila, PA 06/24/10 IOTA Club And Cafe Arlington, VA 06/26/10 Canal Club Richmond, VA 06/27/10 Soapbox Wilmington, NC 06/28/10 Berkeley Cafe Raleigh, NC 07/09/10 Forecastle Festival Louisville, KY 07/24/10 Bash Rip Rocks Lubbock, TX 08/13/10 Magic Stick Detroit, MI 08/20/10 Hoxeyville Music  Wellston, MI 08/21/10 Founders Brewing G Rapids, MI 08/27/10 Porcupine Mountains Festival 10/21/10 Manship  Rouge, LA Discography [2008] The Orion Songbook [2009] Way Upstate and the Crippled Summer, pt. 1

Frontier Ruckus roll onstage around 8:30, a jumbled mess of plaid shirts, facial hair and homespun all American manners. They tune their instruments, and shrug off an impeccable county tinged rendition of Scott Japlin’s ragtime classic “The Entertainer” as a sound check. It very quickly becomes apparent that we are in for something special.

Read their blurb on myspace, and, amongst a number of other things, it will tell you that Frontier Ruckus have:

“Catalogued and internalized the apparently permanent fixtures of a cherished locality until our bodies have in fact become either physical extensions or microcosmic containers of these landscapes: arms kinking in unbroken strip-mall chains, gaping mouths mimicking the enormous vacancy of an evacuated sports dome.”

Nice. But lets take a couple of steps back, and try to decode what any of that actually means.

As far as band blurbs go, it’s a goodie.

A shining example of the awkwardly pompous “21st Centruy - Post - Bright-Eyes - Faus - Alienated - Surburban - Middleclass - Whitekid Rhetoric” which has flooded Myspace since its inception, or at very least its subsequent metamorphosis into a medium for sharing music over the internet.

What it doesn’t tell you, is very much about the kind of music which Frontier Ruckus make. Not to worry though, that’s why I’m here. Hold my hand, and we’ll try to work it out together.

Any ideas? No?

Well, what I think it means, and I’m glad you asked, is that Frontier Ruckus write spine tingling alt-folk ditties, which draw heavily on the classic bucolic imagery of the great American song book, carefully side stepping cliché by incorporating the modern day experiences of young men who have grown up in inner city Michigan.

If you had another suggestion as to what it means, then your wrong, because I went to see them last weekend, and let me tell you, my description is pretty much spot on.

As a live band, they are incredible. Effortless vocal melodies and snaking Banjo lines, perfectly complement a whinnying one man horn section through out, but the skeleton pirate jig of Rosement St is a particular highlight. I did a little bit of googling and it appears to be available as free download. Why not treat yourself?

Next up, Psychedlic surf pop straight from the heart of the Garden State, courtesy of New Jersey’s very own Real Estate. Real Estate are a super group of sorts, proudly counting ex members of Ducktails, and Silver Futures amongst their number, last year, media Pitchfork gave their self titled debut 8.5. Interesting stuff, but, a lot to live up to.

For the first half of the set all I’m hearing is a lazy Pavement pastiche. The room is full of hipsters nodding along. I’m frustrated it’s Sunday, I’m tired. I’m a whiney little bitch at the best of times, but tonight I’m starting to come down with a cold. Things are not looking good for Real Estate. I’m just about to give up, and shut down my ears for the evening when things start getting interesting.

By this I mean Real Estate start playing the excellent collection of songs which make up their Reality EP. They are simply stunning. So good I lack the words to properly do them justice.

The closest I can get, is “Bossanova-era” Pixies as played by a really great Shoegaze band, with “Stroke-sy” art rock, razor wire guitar jabs.

With every bone in my body I urge you, if you care about music at all, beg borrow or steal some money so that you can go out and buy this EP.

Or listen to it on Spotify, which ever works best for you.

 05/21/2010 08:17:08 ♥ nick (♥twitter.com) ♥ frontierruckus.com ♥ myspace.com 

New York City Popfest / Brooklyn & Manhattan / May 20-23, 2010

 

 

 

Secret History-It's Not the End of the World, Jonah

Attention, New York.  As if you need an excuse to don little canvas sneakers and wear your hair in varying degrees of Mary Tyler Moore:  starting Thursday (May 20) the NYC Popfest is serving up delicious helpings of hooks, bells, twinkles, and of course, plenty o’ cute.  With an emphasis on ‘hooks,’ this year’s lineup includes sunny acts like Tender Trap, For Ex-Lovers Only, Very Truly Yours, Sweater Girls, and the painfully-punctuated Hearts! Attack, to name a few.  Cute overload?  Never fear.  Counteract the surfeit of squee with post-punk underdogs The Wake (Scotland) or the curious poetics of New York’s own Secret History.  Be there or be square (or be ironically square).

The festival boasts a total of 32 bands from New York to California to the UK (and a few odd ducks in between).  On a scale of one to Williamsburg, your hosts for the 2010 Popfest top the list of Venues Most Likely to House Hipsters:  the Cake Shop, Bell House, Don Hill’s, Littlefield.  No need to worry about saving a few bucks by purchasing a 4-day pass (sold out!), but individual tickets can be found at http://www.nycpopfest.org/. 

This is the Wake’s (Myspace) first visit to America: the promised land, so it’s your duty, NYC, to make these fellas feel right at home; or at the very least, like non-tax paying, foreign consumers (in other words:  pretend to be likable).  The Wake have been playing music together since the early 80s and may very well be the most silently revered band you’ve never heard of, depending on who you ask.  Brooklyn darlings the Pains of Being Pure at Heart list the Scottish trio amongst their influences; the Depreciation Guild, who Pitchfork dubbed “solidly wispy”, also share in Wake love (no surprise as the band is led by Pains drummer Kurt Feldman).  If that sounds mildly incestuous, welcome to indiepop.

The Popfest kicks off this Thursday at the Cake Shop (152 Ludlow St., NYC).  Poverty-afflicted New Yorkers should be sure to check out Saturday’s free show in Williamsburg.  For a full listing of bands, dates and times visit the festival’s official website.

 05/20/2010 02:21:18 ♥ lara () ♥ nycpopfest.org 

Everything Everything: Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall 15/05/2010

Everything Everything-My Keys, Your Boyfriend Everything Everything Tour Dates 05/18/10 Electric Ballroom, London 05/19/10 Soundcity 02 Ace, Liverpool 05/21/10 Ritz, Manchester 05/28/10 Immergut Festival, DE 05/29/10 Pinkpop Festival, NL 05/31/10 Evolution Festival, GB 06/10/10 Thetford Forst+, Suffolk 06/11/10 Bedgebury Pinetum+, Kent 06/18/10 Westonbirt Arboretum+ 06/19/10 Sherwood Pines Forest+, GB 06/25/10 Dalby Forest+ 06/26/10 Cannock Chase Forest+ 06/27/10 Glastonbury Festival 07/09/10 T in the Park, Scotland 08/07/10 Summer Sonic, Tokyo 08/14/10 Haldern Pop Festival, Germany 08/15/10 Dockville Festival, Germany 08/20/10 Pukkelpop, BE 08/27/10 Leeds Festival 08/28/10 Reading Festival 09/11/10 Bestival Isle of Wight * with Delphic + with Keane Read More Foals http://weheartmus... Birds, what is up with that? It seems lately that we're getting album artwork that features birds...

Recent Graduate of NME’s Radar tour, Everything Everything, are an interesting band to watch, and their eclectic sound tips a cheeky wink to many of the bands who have sound tracked this writer’s last couple of years.

Take the vocal melodies of gawky Sunderland oddballs the Futureheads, add the precision, snare heavy drumming of Oxford Math-rockers Foals. Smother with 80s influences and cover with a damp dish cloth. Leave in a warm dark place to rise for a little while. Dust with a generous helping of zeitgeisty essence art school and you’re ready serve.

The baking imagery starts to fall apart however when you realise that Everything Everything are more than just the some of their influences. A genuinely decent band in their own right, good for them.

Also, I forgot to mention cooking times, and nobody likes eating raw dough.

The lights go down. Fat, sweaty, balding thirty-somethings tilt their heads and back and point at the sky like they truly believe that the band which they are watching is in any way special or interesting. It’s time for Delphic.

I am genuinely confused. Is this really the band which every one is talking up to be the next big thing? The one who’ve bagged themselves heavy rotation on the playlists of alternative radio stations up and down the UK?

I turn to my companion, she looks bored. I turn my gaze stageward and am temporarily blinded by a flash of retina scorching neon. Delphic are coming to the end of their third number, a theremin is produced, and whilst it whoops and wails its approval, they cobble together a rhythm track so powerful that I am temporarily suckered into feeling something. They hit their stride.

“This is it, the second dawn of rave!” I think “Hell, the sun is shining outside, this could even be the next summer of love”.

The song ends. They plough through another 40 minutes of sub-pendulum dance plod, taking everything wrong with indie music in 2010 and carelessly grafting it to bargain basement dance anthem sensibilities.

Is it fair to compare Delphic to raw dough? Probably not. Any way the “Next Summer of Love”^(TM) never arrived. The dream is dead, sorry you had to find out this way.

 05/18/2010 05:19:08 ♥ nick (♥twitter.com) ♥ everything-everything.co.uk ♥ myspace ♥ twitter 

In Memory of Melinda Hsu

The Smiths - I Know It's Over (live) The Smiths

I'll write what I cannot eloquently say: Melinda was the sort of person that lived for the moment. If it were not for her, I would never have all the world traveling, concert-going, Morrissey-hunting that I enjoy today.

In the early 90s, before the internet, I did not know too many people that had an interesting in UK music, particularly The Smiths and Morrissey. So when I found out that someone loved Morrissey and also lived in Fresno, through the pages of the Morri'Zine, I was ecstatic. We became really great friends.

For those that don't know, Fresno, where we both lived at the time, it was a small city that most bands skip over when they play in California. So between Mel and I, we'd trek regularly to San Francisco or Los Angeles to see bands - like Gene, Suede, Lush (all the Britpop bands). We often crashed on friends floor or family couches. We often (if in San Francisco), would head over to Berkeley, where a holy trinity of record store goodness (Amoeba, Rasputin, and Mod Lang) awaits us. Man, those were the days. Spending hours shifting through the record section in hopes of finding that one Smiths 7" that we were missing....

She was my guide in my late teenage years, so it was very painful to go through the ceremonial of the interment* in the early morning on May 15th. We met a few family members and friends at the "Last Supper" building at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale. I don't think I've ever been to such a massive cemetry (Smiths fans should spot the obvious typo) and I know that we got lost and turned around a few times.

At the public memorial at 4pm that day, Jose Maldonado, of the Sweet and Tender Hooligans, played four songs between remembrances and prayers. I was a little too choked up and in deep memory of Melinda to note all of the songs, but I'm sure he did "There is a Light that Never Goes Out" and "Lost". We were very grateful he could perform for us, but it felt awkward to me as my instinct were to clap after a song. Still, Smiths and Morrissey songs playing at a memorial is exactly the type of service that would make sense for Melinda.

There was a reception in Janes Hall after the memorial and was generally less formal. Lots of Morrissey fans, obviously, and it was really nice to meet many of you. And I apologize if I don't associate/know your real or nick names.

A few of us got together later that night at the English pub, The Cat & Fiddle off of Sunset. There were so many of us that they eventually kick us out of the main bar room and placed us in a private room (Casa Blanca room, I think?). We toast to Mel and thanked her for bringing us together.

The one thing that Mel's sudden death have taught me is that life is much, much too short. We should be doing things that we enjoy and love. It made me think that I should make an effort to travel more and spend less time worrying about the little things.

---
* Mel's ashes were placed with her father's ashes (please contact me for location), for those interesting on visiting her final resting place.

Also, thank you to the Hsu family for their hospitality and their kindness. I speak for everyone when I say that we are very sad for their loss.

A few selected photos are here. If you know anyone that does not have a Facebook account or would like higher resolution photos, please contact me and I will gladly take care of it.

 05/17/2010 08:48:52 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic♥news.weheartmusic.com

The Bundles

The Bundles - Desert Bundles The Bundles Tour Dates 05/15/10 Brudenell Social Club* Leeds, GB 05/16/10 ABC2* Glasgow, GB 05/17/10 Deaf Institute* Manchester, GB 05/18/10 Trinity Arts Center* Bristol, GB 05/19/10 Union Chapel* London, GB 05/20/10 Komedia* Brighton, GB 05/21/10 Glazart* Paris, FR * with Your Heart Breaks Read More Kimya Dawson http://weheartmus... Just to give you an idea of the lack of organization at W♥M, we have this shared "pending" list ...

Man, I really, really, really, love Kimya Dawson's voice. She has this quality that can only be describe as a bit nerdy, friendly, optimistic, and twee.

The Moldy Peaches - Anyone Else But You

Dawson needs no introduction, she's been well-established in the Anti-Folk scene and had a bit of a boost from being in Moldy Peaches (and subsequently in the movie Juno).

Her latest project is The Bundles, basically a collaboration between Dawson and Jeffrey Lewis. Although their album was just released last month on K Records, their secret origin lies in early 2001 when Dawson met Lewis and ultimately asked him to tour with Dawson (then-solo artist) throughout Germany. Lewis was supporting Dawson with his unimaginative-named band, the Jeffrey Lewis Band.

Much of The Bundles' self-titled album features the boy-girl melodies that you'd find on twee bands. It's very cute and you can't help but fall a little in love with them. Sometime the constant boy and girl lyrics comes off as a bit like an argument (like on "Klutter"), but most of the time they feel like dialogs in a good play.

The Bundles seems to me like a silly, fun band. Especially on "Shamrock Glamrock" where I ROFLCOPTER on hearing, "Leprechaun rock on, rock on". That's why I wasn't really keen on final song, "Be Yourself", which basically is the "I love you" song. Seems kind too "serious" to me, but what do I know? The rest of the album is A+ to me. If you've ever liked Moldy Peaches or cute twee bands, you'd love The Bundles.

Currently, K Records is selling a white vinyl of The Bundles Record. Ironically, there's no special "bundle" with the purchase.

Also, I wanted to mention that K is introducing their Singles Z-Pak subscription. It's basically a modernized singles club. Instead of a monthly 7" mailed to you for a year, you get new music every week via electronic mail (or via browser). They promised no "dad rock", so look for new music from Mirah, Chain & the Gang, LAKE, Karl Blau, the Hive Dwellers, Adrian Orange, Strange Boys, Jeremy Jay.... Basically this is a really good way for you to discover all the artists that I already love.

From my understanding is that you get at least two songs in a zipped file. That's over 100 songs, for 50 weeks. On top of that, there's bonus remixes and "documents", which should be interesting to see how that turns out. The Singles Z-Pak starts July 1st, 2010, and as a special introductory price before May 31st, it's $45 - plus you get a $3 coupon.

 05/14/2010 09:10:28 ♥ vu () ♥ myspace.com/thebundles ♥ myspace.com/kimyadawson

Stripmall Architecture - Feathersongs for Factory Girls

Stripmall Architecture - Radium Girls Stripmall Architecture Tour Dates 05/29/10 The Parlour - Stripmall Architecture, Happy Prescriptions, The Silent Numbers, Portland, Oregon , US Discography [2009] We Were Flying Kites [2009] Whiskey for the Holy Ghost [2010] Feathersongs For Factory Girls  Read More DJ Shadow http://weheartmus... DJ Shadow (Josh Davis) is a mixer and turntable artist out in Davis, California. Somehow amazingl...

Over the past 10 years the internet has changed the face of popular music. Fact.

It’s inescapable, unavoidable and so bleedin’ obvious that you don’t need me to stress the point any further. Depending on your  job title, this means one of two things.

Ask any record industry dullard and they will you:

“The dream is dead”

“There is no money in contemporary recorded music”  

“The artists can barely afford to feed themselves”

These  are the same people who think torrenting Hollywood blockbusters eight months before they are released funds terrorism.

For every one else:  Spotify, Youtube and a revolving network of internet radio stations mean that we can actually get a feel for the sort of music we want to buy before we part with our hard earned cash.

In the 1980’s shitty “Hair Metal” bands like Mötley Crüe or Van Halen would celebrate the release of a new record by hosting tediously over blown parties, chock full of strippers and spandex,  Ice sculptures and caviar, cocaine and regret.  

Parties, which in essence, were full of everything barr a half decent record or a modicum of good taste.

In stark contrast to the sickening excess of their 80’s counterparts, Stripmall Architecture celebrated the release of Feathersongs for Factory Girls by taking to their Twitter page and selecting 10 followers at random, serving each one up with a tiny little micro song, a slice of alt-pop perfection which encapsulated both their screen name and something about their character as perceived by the band.

They are, in short, a shining example of the perfect business model for the music industry in the 21^st century.  All of which is great, although that’s not why any of us are here.... 

....Very few of my friends read independently run music blogs for marketing tips, and it’s likely that if you’ve got this far, you want to know what the album sounds like.  In a word, it sounds “great”.

If I had my way,  a copy “Feathersongs....” would nestle comfortably in every half decent record collection in the multi-verse, labelled up as “twitchy-American-indie-dance-pop loveliness”  and filed  between  DJ Shadow (who isn’t pop)  and the Howling Bells (who aren’t American). The first time I heard it, I kinda liked it.

By the time album opener “Radium Girls” had reached its reverb drenched climax, on my second listen through, I was openly in love with this record. The chapel was booked, and plans were afoot for us to marry the following morning.  

I was commissioned to write a 5 part mini series based around the whole thing. “Inspired by True Events” ran the tag line. “Stripmall’s..” own “Pripyat” was due to play over the opening credits which seemed curiously appropriate.  The rest of the album, looked on scornfully, all post Radiohead screechy guitars, sexual jealousy and resentment.....

.....I woke up before I found out how it all ended.  “Never mind” I thought “I’ll make a cup of coffee, and get a bit angry about the 1980’s for a while, that will cheer me up”.

 05/13/2010 02:02:34 ♥ nick (♥twitter.com) ♥ stripmallarchitecture.com ♥ myspace.com 

What Laura Says – 400 Bar, Minneapolis MN 5.8.10

What Laura Says - I Suppose What Laura Says Tour Dates 05/11/10 Crocodile Seattle, WA 05/12/10 Doug Fir Lounge Portland, OR 05/14/10 Bottom of the Hill SF, CA 05/15/10 Spaceland Los Angeles, CA 05/16/10 Rhythm Room Phoenix, AZ 05/19/10 Emo's  Austin, TX 05/20/10 Mango's Cafe Houston, TX 05/21/10 Hailey's Denton, TX 05/23/10 Old Rock House St. Louis, MO Discography [Aug 2008] Thinks and Feels [Jun 2010] Bloom Cheek Read More What Laura Says http://weheartmus... As far as I know, there are no Laura in this band, this is especially confusing because there is ...

It’s not often that an opening band trumps the headliner.  In fact, the headliner, by virtue of being the headliner, generally has carte blanche to a). show up after the opener(s) have finished their set*, b). mack on your hot girlfriend, conscience-free, and c). draw the biggest, loudest ban of devotees.  Southwest natives, What Laura Says, may have played to a nearly-empty, girlfriend-less room, but the lack of bodies only underscored the band’s uninhibited stage presence.

With nary a mosh pit in sight, What Laura Says rocked their grungy hearts out, as though the tides of fandom tickled at their toes.  It was incredibly endearing, based on showmanship alone; but factor in the band’s soulful harmonies and generally groovy bass lines and ask yourself: “Why was I sitting at home with a microwaveable dinner instead of being serenaded by a vocally-gifted quintet?”  Why, indeed, Minneapolis. 

It’s possible I am simply old and boring, but bands like the Annuals and The Most Serene Republic tend to sound interchangeable, even live.  The most sincere compliment one can give a musician is to say “that sounded fresh and familiar.”  What Laura Says doesn’t feel new in the same sense that weird, space-age electropop is dubbed “cutting edge.”  Instead, the music combines the familiar in a way that may produce an “ooh” or “ah” but more often satisfies some earthy desire to be hugged.  This particular embrace includes a bear’s worth of neo-soul, psyched-electric guitar, sprawling desert folk, sunny keys (and buoyant keyboardist), and pitch-perfect harmonization. 

Bloom Cheek is a veritable catalogue of quirk.  The strongest tracks manage to incorporate every previously listed influence (“On the Fence,” “Spoke”), while the others fill the spaces between.  There are obvious comparisons to be made (you know, of the Fleet Foxes variety**), yet tracks like the all-instrumental “Grocery List” defy instincts to label the band “indie folk” or “indie whatever,” especially when their music is so flavored by multi-genre nuances.

Post show, I spoke with tour manager Tony Kitmitto, who is maybe the friendliest Arizonian in the state (excluding my Sedona relatives who will serve you a steak dinner if you ever visit).  Tony filled me in on the band’s current state of mind:  a lengthy tour with the Most Serene Republic and Annuals, the release of Bloom Cheek in June, and plenty of driving time to memorize Justin Bieber choreography.***  For those readers hoping to catch the Most Serene Republic/Annuals on the road, consider forsaking the TV dinner for an unfashionably early arrival.  While you’re there pick up a free download card made from seed paper (!), let your hair down, and prepare to be hugged.

For more information, visit www.whatlaurasays.com or the band’s Myspace.  Bloom Cheek will be available June 8.

*Conversely, proper etiquette dictates an opener should never ever leave before the headliner plays.  Those that do kind of seem like ungrateful chumps (even if the bands are on tour and the opener is tired, has seen the full show a dozen times, and just wants to get drunk in the backseat of the van.  NO EXCEPTIONS).

**Somebody should add ‘Fleet Foxes’ to the Urban Dictionary with the following definition: adj., boy harmonies; allusion to Mountain folk despite hailing from Portland/Seattle/Brooklyn/Chicago/Minneapolis/insert relatively flat urban city.

***Kidding, of course.  What Laura Says does not (officially) endorse Justin Bieber.  SORRY, BIEBS (stop calling).

 05/11/2010 17:02:38 ♥ lara () ♥ whatlaurasays.com ♥ myspace.com