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“Cuckoo” Video

Jul 29, 2010

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Check out the cute, Sheryl Crow-esque video for Lissie‘s “Cuckoo.” In it a tween-sized Lissie gets the guy, thumbs her nose at her teacher, and forcibly wins her school’s talent show. Pretty productive day if you ask me.

The Midwestern (now Californian) siren has a towering voice ready for the radio. Her Cuckoo EP streets August 30 (U.K.) and includes the singer-songwriter’s cover of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” and a brand new song, “It’s Not Me.” It’s available to pre-order from iTunes now. Lissie’s debut LP, Catching a Tiger is already out in the U.K., but drops in the States on August 17, via Fat Possum. See gigs here.

The Flaming Lips

“See the Leaves” (Live on David Letterman) Video

Jul 29, 2010

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Last night, Oklahoman psych-rockers The Flaming Lips stopped by David Letterman‘s studio to kick out a jam from last year’s stellar LP, Embryonic. The menacing rock track “See the Leaves,” was the blue-plate special for the night and it was served medium-well, with ample sides of riffage, cymbal thwacks, and octopus-limbed drumming.

That Spaghetti Western comedown still gets me every time. (OK, my descriptions are way less cool than Letterman’s aside: “It’s like my lips are on fire!!”) Check it out. The Flips are a force to be reckoned with onstage. Dates with Ariel Pink can be found here. (Via The Audio Perv.)

Jens Lekman

“The End of the World is Bigger Than Love” MP3

Jul 28, 2010

Our favorite lovelorn troubadour Jens Lekman, is back from his self-imposed, three-year exile (where, one assumes he was being both lovelorn and musical). The new track on display is “The End of the World is Bigger Than Love,” a tune about American elections, a Target in Brooklyn, a girl, and perspective. It’ll hold us over nicely until his next proper LP.

Lekman describes the track in his own words:

“It was the day before the American election 2008 and I was filled with a hopelessness that only a McCain supporter could have shared with me at the time. I was in Washington DC to perform for Swedish TV, sitting in the couch with a professional smile on my face, joking with the hosts and discussing the lobster with the TV chef. I saw the clips online sometime ago, it’s amazing what an actor I can be if I really make an effort.

I lived in America back then, up in New York. At the time I felt like everything I touched was turning to shit and I had decided to put everything on one card. Subconsciously I knew I needed to hit the bottom so I could work my way up again. I needed confirmation, I needed someone to tell me it wasn’t going to work out, not this way. Yes, there was a girl involved in this. I was very much in love with her.

Some things you just go through. You don’t write about it, you don’t turn it into art because it can’t be turned into art. I didn’t write any songs that year because you can’t pour manure into an espresso machine and expect a cappucino to come out. When they announced the results and the streets filled up with people celebrating I felt happy to be part of something bigger than myself. It was a feeling that lasted me until the very last days of December 2008 when I finally sat down in my old teenage room at my parents house and I wrote this song. Then the year ended.

It’s a song of hope. When love turns it’s back on you it’s nice to know there’s a world out there that doesn’t give a shit about your problems. That forces you to keep your head held high and move on. A world that is fragile and beautiful. Maybe it can sound cold to some of you, but let me make it clear that I believe in love, I just get so wrapped up in it sometimes that I need to put it into proportion. It’s something you have to do a lot when you’re Jens Lekman.”

(Via Stereogum.) Download the track here or using the handy widget below.

Tu Fawning

“The Felt Sense” MP3

Jul 28, 2010

Portland, Ore. quartet, Tu Fawning is set to issue its debut LP, Hearts on Hold. The dark labyrinth of a song suite will come out in North America on October 5 via the group’s new imprint, Provenance, and on City Slang in Europe on November 1. Download the tumbling haunt-pop of “The Felt Sense,” where Corrina Repp intones about a lost lover.

The multi-instrumentalists Joe Haege (31Knots, Menomena) and chanteuse Repp co-founded the group. Since putting out the Secession EP (Polyvinyl) in 2008, the band’s expanded to include longtime collaborators Toussaint Perrault and Liza Rietz. Also, on September 10, TF will start a fall trek supporting Menomena.

Interpol: “Memory Serves” MP3 Stream

Here’s another mid-tempo, funereal cut off Interpol‘s fourth LP. “Memory Serves” has that shimmery, post-rock guitar line going for it, but the languid pace keeps it from being an out-and-out winner. As per usual, Paul Banks sounds like he’s singing someone’s suicide note. Embrace the gloom via the widget below. (Via The Hook.) Interpol streets Sept. 7 via Matador. Tour dates can be viewed here.

The Chemical Brothers

“Another World” Video

Jul 28, 2010

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The Chemical Brothers’ seventh studio album, Further, is surprisingly good, in that head-trippy way. Check out the green blobs and sound waves that make up the video for the LP’s third song, “Another World.” And yes, head-trips are to be expected. Directors Adam Smith and Marcus Lyall, and the design team at Flat Nose George, fashioned the video together. The Chemical Brothers have some more tour dates this year. View them here.

White Car

“No Better” MP3

Jul 28, 2010

Ominous doesn’t even begin to describe the pummeling industrial-goth beats on White Car‘s debut EP, No Better. Its title track is a deadly tumult of 16-bit vox and funky Chicago House synths. It even smacks of Bauhaus in spots. The pitch-black music (that band name is curious) is made by 22-year-old Chicagoan Elon Katz and his friend, Orion Martin. Daniel Lopatin, the drone wizard behind Oneohtrix Point Never, introduced White Car to upstart imprint Hippos In Tanks. They’ll release No Better on August 31. Formats include digital downloads and limited edition 12-inch numbered vinyl. Enjoy. See upcoming gigs at the pair’s MySpace.

“The Bridge”:

Caribou: “Sun” Video

Old, middle-aged, and young women seductively dance in a room in this clip for Caribou‘s mantra-dance cut, “Sun.” A male dance trio drops by and there’s even some “Macarena” poses thrown in for good measure. Simon Owens lensed the creepy vid. While you’re at it, listen to the winners of the “Sun” Remix Contest at Caribou’s official site. The excellent tune is off Swim, which is out now via Merge. Purchase it here. The band will be touring all year. (Via P4k.tv.)