Music to drink tea by
Archive for November, 2010
Acid House Kings – Are We Lovers or Are We Friends?
01 year ago
in MP3s
Acid House Kings have apparently been going since 1991, which makes me feel slightly guilty for only latching on to them now. I’m not entirely sure why it’s taken this long. Usually if you say the words Swedish tweepop to me, I’m there. Yet somehow they have escaped me. That was until I got hold of Are We Lovers or Are We Friends?, which may well be one of my favourite songs of the year, for a whole number of reasons. It’s playful enough to be a nice easy listen, while also resonating a little more for those who have been in such a situation. Exactly what any good pop record should be doing then.
Are We Lovers or Are We Friends is taken from the upcoming fifth album by the band, entitled Music Sounds Better With You. It’ll be released March 22 2011 via Labrador Records. Feel free to recommend me one of their albums in the comments too, as I’m certainly curious to hear more, and have no clue where to begin.
Allo Darlin’ – Darren
01 year ago
in Videos
Here’s a random find from Youtube. A stunningly good quality version of Darren, a new song by Allo Darlin’ about the former Hefner frontman, Darren Hayman. They’ve been playing this live for a while, including the last time I saw them, but the sound was so muddy you could hardly make anything out in that instance. Recorded in San Francisco as part of their recent US tour, it just whets the appetite for new additional from the band. Handclaps “for the win”, as the kids might say.
Giant Sand – Fields of Green
01 year ago
in MP3s
Giant Sand are yet another band that I’ve long been aware of, but have been too intimidated by their discography to actually explore. If Wikipedia is to be believed, their upcoming album, Blurry Blue Mountain, will be their 25th release, with the band being active since 1985. When there’s this much of a back catalog, I’m never sure where to begin, so I inevitably don’t. That said, I am rather enjoying BBM (as the kids are sure to call it) and Fields of Green in particular. The song may set a new standard for world weariness in music. There’s a rich, dusty vibe to it, led perfectly by Howe Gelb’s richly layered and seemingly completely fed up voice.
Blurry Blue Mountain will be released on November 23 via Fire Records.
Phil Wilson – I Own It
0Each time I discover something new, a gaping hole in my indiepop knowledge is brought to the fore. In this case, we have Phil Wilson, who was lead singer of the legendary indiepop band The June Brides back in the 80s. Shameful as it may be, I’ve never heard of them, despite being aware of Phil’s music for the past year or so. Still, in the grand spirit of doing things backwards, I’m going to start with his latest release and work back from there.
Which shouldn’t really take that long as it would appear that the man has spent the last couple of decades having nothing to do with music at all. Only recently resurfacing, he’s now started releasing his own solo material, and rather good it is too. Unsurprisingly for someone active in the 80s, there’s very much a C86 sound to I Own It, just with slightly better production values. The video may be one of my favourites of the year too. Deceptively simple, but it’s ideal for the song. The full album is also more than worth your time. Now, onto The June Brides then.
God Bless Jim Kennedy is out now via Yesboyicecream in Europe and Slumberland in the US.
Johnny Foreigner and Stagecoach release split single
11 year ago
in MP3s
It’s been an odd period for Johnny Foreigner of late. There seemed to be a period where they were destined to actually breakthrough and become the next big thing. This never seemed to quite work out for them for whatever reason, and the band started to look like they wouldn’t grow beyond their small, if incredibly dedicated, fan base. Changes now seem to be afoot for the band though, most notably a change in record labels as the band jump from Best Before to Alcopop Records. Certainly a hell of a coup for Alcopop, and the DIY nature of the label should hopefully suit the JoFo ethic rather more than their old home did.
The first thing the band is releasing at their new home is a split single with Alcopop stalwarts Stagecoach. There’s only one original song here, entitled Tru Punx (below) and it’s just about what you’d expect from a Johnny Foreigner single. It’s hard, it’s fast, and features some great lyrics that will take you a lot of listens to pick up entirely. As a taster for their upcoming and awesomely titled You Thought You Saw A Shooting Star But Yr Eyes Were Blurred With Tears And That Lighthouse Can Be Pretty Deceiving With The Sky So Clear And Sea So Calm, it’s ideal. And yes, the EP really is called that. Good luck tagging it correctly in iTunes.
Tru Punx – Johnny Foreigner by alcopop
Stagecoach are a band that have seemingly gone from strength to strength over the past year. Ever since their superb We Got Tazers! single was released, they’ve started appearing all over the place, with slots at Reading/Leeds and End of the Road over the summer. They also managed to put out one of my favourite songs of the past year, the superb Break, and now they are back with their own contribution to the split single. Not Even Giles Would Say We’ll Be OK (which the nerd in me really hopes is a Buffy reference) may be their finest release yet, striking the perfect balance between 90s US indie rock throwback and their own sound. If any band has a chance of making it big in 2011, it’s Stagecoach.
Not Even Giles Would Say We’ll Be OK by alcopop
The Love In 7″ will be released November 15 (that’s this Monday) via the ever superb Alcopop Records. The single also includes Johnny Foreigner covering Stagecoach’s Good Luck With Yr 45 and Stagecoach covering JoFo’s classic Salt, Peppa and Spinderella. As you might expect, both of these versions are awesome.
