Arty soul-rock group Gospel Claws are based out of Tempe, Ariz. The band consists of ex-Dear and the Headlights member Joel Marquard (vocals/guitar), Sloan Walters (vocals/keys), Wesley Hilsabeck (guitar), John Mulhern (bass), and Scott Hall (drums). They formed in 2007 when Marquard began collaborating with long-time music pal, Walters. Check out the band’s free download of “Summer Nights Lakeside.”
It may be time for school to start up again, but the warm pop tune will make you forget about homework. (“No worries, no school/ It’s summertime!”) It’s not all sunshine and campfires though. There’s a dark underbelly to Marquard’s lyrics. Check out upcoming tour dates at the band’s Facebook.
Sisters
“Highway Scratch” MP3
Aug 12, 2010
Here’s a killer mp3 from a new Brooklyn noise-pop-punk duo called Sisters. Contrary to their name, vocalist/guitarist Aaron Pfannebecker and drummer/keyboardist Matt Conboy aren’t siblings or even women.
Their “messy pop rock fallout” debut, Ghost Fits, will street on September 28 via Narnack. Download their catch-as-hell single, “Highway Scratch” You’ll dig if you enjoy the lo-fi/punk stylings of Lightning Bolt, No Age, or A Place to Bury Strangers. Check out more about the band and new tunes at The Village Voice. Ghost Fits was recorded at Brooklyn’s Civil Defense studios by Jeremy Scott (Vivian Girls, Woods, These Are Powers, Hollowpaw, Frankie Rose and the Outs). See Sisters’ upcoming gigs at their MySpace.
Röyksopp: “The Drug” MP3 Stream
Norwegian elecro duo Röyksopp will drop an instrumental LP, called Senior, on September 13 via Wall of Sound in the U.K., PIAS in Europe, and EMI in Scandinavia and Japan (no confirmed U.S. release yet). They just posted a moody track from the album on their site. It’s called “The Drug” and you can SoundCloud it below (via P4k.)
Here’s what Röyksopp had to say about the cut: “This highly synthetic drug is the latest craze. Gentle and appealing at first. Repeated use will result in severe personality distortion. Hear that little sound in your head? That ever decaying little “melody”? ..That’s your mind going…”
You can download “The Drug” from iTunes and most other digital stores now. Senior is the companion album to 2009’s Junior.
Joanna Newsom
“You and Me, Bess” / “‘81” (Live on Jimmy Kimmel) Video
Extra special bonus: The whole thing was in black-and-white. How about that for classy late-night music? The seven-minute-plus tune sadly got truncated to five minutes, but that’s just how TV rolls, folks. Definitely check this one out above. Also, Newsom went solo (and colorful!) for “‘81.” Watch that video below too.
Premiere: Lucius: “Shenandoah” Video
Well, this is a calming respite in the midst of the week. The Brooklyn duo Lucius (aka Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig) craft folk-pop tunes with a bedside charm and rootsy warmth. The chanteuses melt some of the ice away on the woozy video for “Shenandoah.” The beautiful clip was filmed in upstate New York this past winter by Tika Buchanan and Michael Grimm. Grimm’s hazy-yet-sharp cinematography compliments the nostalgic tune. The track is off the pair’s promising debut LP, Songs From the Bromley House. (Trivia: Most of the songs were written on a 1921 Steinway piano.) See upcoming gigs and stream more songs at Lucius’ MySpace.
Here’s some background on the Bromley House: “They [Wolfe and Holly Laessig] found it on Craigslist. In the summer of 2008, they moved into the Bromley House in Brooklyn, NY with six other musician friends. It was heaven to them, as the house had been a music school and recording studio for over 60 years. They were the first tenants to live there since the school’s closing…”
Aside from their six musical pals, the Lucius ladies also attracted producer Doug Wamble (Norah Jones, Charlie Hunter), engineer Ariel Borujow (Jay-Z, Kanye West), and mastering engineer Greg Calbi (John Lennon, Bob Dylan, John Mayer). Stream the dream here.
Two days after claiming the Sri Lankan government is pulling her videos from YouTube, M.I.A.‘s crazy new clip for “XXXO” debuts on the popular video-hosting site. In the vid, Ms. Arulpragasam is trapped in sparkly animated GIFland. Basically, M.I.A. really wants to XXXO the Internet./\/\/\Y/\ is out now. Watch more janky M.I.A. videos here (via her Twitter.)
!!!: “The Most Certain Sure” MP3 Stream
Party-starting electro-funkers !!! (chk-chk-chk), just released a SoundCloud stream of their new tune, “The Most Certain Sure.” The “anthem about being alone” is almost six minutes of dark, booty-shaking techno-funk. On August 16, Warp will release “The Most Certain Sure” single, supported by a Liv Spencer remix. While you’re at it, watch the Black Dice-directed vid for album opener “AM/FM” here. !!! takes its Bacchanalian live show on the road this fall.
Bishop Morocco‘s Jake Fairley and Jim Sayce craft shimmery and sensual new wave that stands on the shoulders of Joy Division and New Order. There’s even a smattering of The Cure‘s sullen lyricism and vocal delivery on lead single, “Last Year’s Guitars.’ Its great ‘80s-vibin’ vid was directed by Eva Michon, and stars Rita Liefhebber and Jacob Jurkiewicz. There’s some cool firecracker shots and SFX with prisms. Check it out below.
Here’s some background info on Bishop: They first met in the Dutch town of Groningen in the fall of 2008. Fairley resides in Berlin and is involved in that city’s ever-growing DJ scene. He also releases music on Border Comunity and Kompakt. Sayce toured with Canadian groups such as Tangiers and Th Deadly Snakes earlier in his career.
The Toronto pair’s self-titled debut will be released in the U.S. on Hand Drawn Dracula. Order it here. There will be a Holy Fuck remix of “Last’ Year’s Disco Guitars” soon, and the band will tour the States with them in the fall.
