Hinds – ‘San Diego’

HINDS PR 2015

Madrid quartet Hinds previously shared ‘Garden’, one of the best tunes this year, from their debut album, Leave Me Alone, which will be out on January 8 via Mom + Pop.

Now, Hinds have shared another track from their aforementioned LP, the bopping new single ‘San Diego’. It’s an upbeat, jolly slice of scratchy lo-fi surf-punk, with an unashamedly west coast vibe. ‘San Diego’ crashes and bangs with snappy drums, reverb-soaked guitar melodies, playful harmonies and back-and-forth vocal. It’s not all sunshine and cheer however, the lyrics tell a darker tale of struggles with insomnia and deals with the devil. Of course, this rollicking adventure is draped with frenzied chants and relentless infectious energy; fast becoming group’s signature scuzzy calling card.

You can stream ‘San Diego’ below while Leave Me Alone will be out on January 8 via Mom + Pop/Lucky Number.

Hinds just wrapped up their North American tour but they’ve got a pile of European dates coming up. All the dates are listed here.

Millions Like Us Podcast – Episode #5

Millions Like Us logo (1)

Delighted to once again to share a brand new episode of ‘Millions Like Us’, a music podcast with myself & Justin Beats, in conjunction with Vancouver news & culture site 604now.

A bi-weekly digest of music from metro Vancouver and beyond, the fifth installment has the usual chatter and top tunes, comprised from an eclectic mix of styles and genres. There’s also a chance of winning tickets to see the excellent Joanna Gruesome, in The Cobalt, Vancouver on November 15th – tune into the show and then email your name to millionslikeuspodcast[at]gmail[dot]com – winners be notified before 5pm, Friday, November 13th.

That’s about that then, we hope you enjoy episode #5. You can read more on it here and listen to episode #5 below, and the tracklist (with links) is after the jump. You can subscribe to ‘Millions Like Us’ on iTunes & Podcast Republic or find them on Facebook & Twitter.

Hopefully you enjoy our curated pickings, here’s to good listening.

Episode #5:
Unalaska – ‘Air Transylvania’
Kyross – ‘Fragments’
Queen of Jeans – ‘Dance (Get Off Your Ass)’
Big Harp – ‘Diev’
The Statics – ‘Fake Sorrow’
Soft Serve – ‘Better Off When You’re Gone’
Hippies Vs Ghosts – ‘Three Shadows’
Joanna Gruesome – ‘Psykick Espionage’
White Poppy – ‘Sublimity Form Natural Phenomena’
Avid Walker – ‘Who’s Your Lover’
Soft Haze – ‘Love Song’
Super Furry Animals – ‘Slow Life

 

 

Avid Walker – ‘Who’s Your Lover’

Avid Walker - Photo by Amanda Anderson

Vancouver duo Avid Walker – Jared Langerud and Brendan Bleker – introduced us to their sun-soaked, melodic lo-fi not so long ago with two sublime singles; ‘Sun In Eyes’ and ‘Conversations’.

Completing a hat-trick of terrific singles is new one ‘Who’s Your Lover’; which is also 3 for 3 with the Vancouver based nbd label. It is another elegant example of the pair’s musical mastery, ‘Who’s Your Lover’ is a gentle, bubbling and woozy number. Imbued with a laid-back and super easy-going vibe, owing much to the majestic combination of soft instrumentation and hushed, whispering vocals; it is sweetly melodic and layered with harmonies, it climaxes with a babbling sort of mild euphoria. Magnificent stuff from Avid Walker as usual, who as it goes, are one of this year’s finest new discoveries.

A debut EP is expected soon but there’s no confirmed release date as yet. Until then? Well, there’s ‘Who’s Your Lover’, which you can check out below. And if it is to you liking? You can check out ‘Conversations’ & ‘Sun In Eyes’ here.

 

Introducing: New Cardinals

12015174_744037455708364_3945069349248997162_o

New Cardinals are Seattle duo Peter Tilton (guitar/vocal) and Sam Rice (bass/keys), who are tapping into a rich vein of psychedelia, ’60s sunshine filled pop, ’70s proggy vibes, new wavey guitars and synth sounds.

All that said, on their recently released eponymous debut EP, New Cardinals supply an ample amount of their own distinctive twist, while channeling various influences from both past and present (some contemporary comparisons to Tame Impala, The Bees and a touch of Django Django). Opener ‘Window Days’, is a free-flowing, idea-filled psych-pop wonder. Lush sounds combine and cascade upon shimmering guitars, blissed-out swirling atmospherics and synth work. ‘Let’s Talk’ is just so silky smooth, as a slinking and utterly irresistible groove mixes it up between swirling keys, choppy guitar, synth wonder and some pointed post-punk riffs. Aside from overwhelmingly joy-filled blissfulness and spacey wonder, New Cardinals’ EP is anchored by alluring layered vocal harmonies and an undeniable groove, which combined, is the pièce de résistance of a magnificent sound.

There a few choice cuts below and if they are to your liking, the entire wonderful EP is available from Bandcamp, just ‘name your price’.

 

Coves return with new single ‘Stormy’, and news of a second album for 2016

2015Coves_Press_RobRegan_031115.hero

Coves have returned with a brand new single ‘Stormy’. Released on 18th December, it is the first track taken from their forthcoming second album, penned for release in March 2016.

It follows the duo’s much vaunted debut album, Soft Friday; one of last year’s high points it was an atmospheric, distinctive and very enjoyable blend of spectral vocals, swirling psychedelia met with sweeping grandeur and dreamy synths. Coves’ new single ‘Stormy’ picks up where the pair left off, retaining the essence that made Soft Friday such a great record. It’s a well honed, thrilling and intoxicating three-minutes where soaring riffs and vocals mingle amid flickers of shimmering psychedelic, some rampaging guitar heroics, rhythmic grooves and plenty of swaggering confidence to boot. An emphatic indication to what we should expect and judging by ‘Stormy’, we’re in for quite the second album from Rebekah Wood and John Ridgard.

You can check out ‘Stormy’ below now. Coves play Servants Jazz Quarters in London on January 28th & their as-yet-untitled second album is penned for release through 1965 Records in March 2016.

Manor – ‘Grand Mal’

Manor 2015 - Photo by Anny Duff

Melbourne duo, Manor, have been charming us with a series of enchanting singles, the most recent of which, ‘Can You Hear Me’, was released only this summer.

Following on from that, and marking the band’s second offering from their forthcoming debut EP (out December 2015), the Aussie pairing have returned with an equally excellent new single, ‘Grand Mal’. While retaining those hazy, psychedelic aesthetics of their previous work, ‘Grand Mal’ pushes further their flair for dreamy pop toward further spaced-out zones of surrealism. Grounded with a distorted crunchy drum beat, it is a hypnotic four-minutes of reverb-drenched guitars, deep grooves and a gently undulating haze of layered sounds, as Duff’s floaty and exquisitely beautiful vocal peaks through an at times, heavy blanket of reverb and fuzz. An utterly, intoxicating and all consuming return from Manor – fast becoming their forte.

You can check out ‘Grand Mal’ below and keep an eye out for their forthcoming debut EP, which shall be with us in December.

 

Globelamp – ‘San Francisco’

1ad933af57bc55a7-globelamp02

Globelamp, aka Elizabeth Le Fey, released her new album The Orange Glow a few days back.

Out through Psychedelic ThriftStore Recordings and produced by Joel Jerome, the new record follows her sublime 2014 debut, Star Dust, and The Orange Glow‘s first single ‘San Francisco’, and it’s a doozy. As is le Fey’s signature, she embraces a myriad of genres and influences which permeate this mystic, blissful and potent psych-folk. Le Fey’s sound is saturated with cascading melodies, unpredictable and off-kilter time changes and spirited vocals; creating a dreamy, spaced-out and somewhat disorientating quality. Lush, gorgeous and utterly eccentric psychedelic folk music from le Fey; looking forward to getting to grips with the new record.

You can check out ‘San Francisco’ below and you can stream The Orange Glow in full via Noisey and purchase the album from Psychedelic ThriftStore Recordings.

 

Anderson – ‘Cecilia’s Sister’

Anderson has announced his new single, ‘Cecilia’s Sister’, the second to be taken from his meticulously crafted debut LP, Patterns.

Immersed in an irresistible lush, sweeping and classic orchestral sound with nods to late ’60s/’70s pop and singer-songwriters, and draped in Anderson’s prowess for intuitive song-writing and storytelling, Patterns is one of the finest records of 2015 – from Ireland or anywhere else. If you haven’y yet heard it, you need to rectify that situation sharpish (you can do so here). That bring us nicely to ‘Cecilia’s Sister’; in just over two-minutes it sums up everything that is so marvellous about both Anderson, and Patterns. An enchanting and buoyant Beatles-esque number, it is lyrically rich, clever, personal and wholly optimistic as it bobs happily along some jaunty keys, acoustic guitar mingling with a generally sunny disposition. A simply wonderful track from one of the finest and heart-warming records of the year.

You can listen to ‘Cecilia’s Sister’ below and/or download it here, for free.

Anderson plays the Button Factory Dublin on December 9th and the Roisin Dubh in Galway on November 27th. Patterns is available now from www.andersonsongs.com, and digitally from iTunes.