king krule

Gingers do have soul. I have been listening to the King Krule EP that was released earlier this month and I'm feeling it. Last year, Archy Marshall was just a sixteen year old with a bandcamp account he was posting on under the name Zoo Kid. Now, at seventeen, he is gaining notoriety in Europe and more recently in the U.S. as King Krule. His style sounds much closer to jazz then any type of rock/pop music. With a voice like Billy Bragg drunkenly wrestling Joe Strummer, Marshall's songs base themselves around the warm guitar and his distinctive vocals. This EP is only five tracks long so listener beware : you will want more.

CMJ 2011: King Krule performs "The Noose of Jah City" at Shea Stadium

mix

narnia mix:

North Highlands - Lion Heart

Gross Magic - Yesterdays

Gypsyblood - Superstition

Total Control - Carpet Rash

Tyler the Creator - Yonkers

Annuals - Carry Around

Dr. Dog - That Old Black Hole

Neon Indian - Future Sick

King Krule - Portrait in Black and Blue

Bjork - Cosmogony

john maus / ariel pink

Buds

dr. dog

Dr. Dog (local healers) released this little 7 inch last Friday to promote consumers heading to their local independent record stores on "black Friday". The art was done by the band as well as the packaging (look). The songs are a perfect early Christmas/Hanukkah present for all the little pups out there. This is a video of them performing "Control Yourself" at their show this past week at Kung Fu Necktie.

mix

premature christmas cheer mix:

The Arcade Fire - Modern Man

No Age - Glitter

Pterodactyl - December

White Denim - Anvil Everything

Cults - Bumper

Gauntlet Hair - Top Bunk

The Stepkids - Suburban Dream

Tune-yards - Bizness

Radiohead - Little By Little

New Science Projects - White Elephant

cults

I saw this video this morning and had to share it. The band Cults, a duo based out of New York, released their self-titled debut album this past June and this video plays off their name. For those familiar with The Jonestown cult, this video is an eerie look at the events leading up to the tragic massacre that occurred there. The song adds to the vibe with layered, echoey vocals singing the main hook in a cult-like unison. The video for "Go Outside" comes off as seamless, integrating the band members in to original footage of Jim Jones' large assembly of people that he lead to Guyana and eventually to their doom. Cults will be playing in Philadelphia on January 13 at Union Transfer. Let's get weird!

white denim

I come originally from Texas and many of my oldest, dearest friends still live there. I took an extended stay there this summer and a friend of mine, Ralph, showed me a local Austin band that had just put out a new album and was blowing up. As we listened to their cd, I felt like a Dead-head that drank a 4-pak of Red Bulls. The guitars wailed over a spot-on rhythm section as their hypnotizing vocals whispered an unmistakable subliminal message in my ear: "Hey.. We're White Denim, and we're rad."

I saw White Denim over the summer in Austin, Tx at La Zona Rosa. Standing front row right in front of lead singer James Petralli, I probably came off as more of a drunken jack-ass then the intellectual writer/musician/artist that (I swear) I am. As they took the stage, I shouted "WHITE DEEEE!" at Petralli while he set up (he thought it was funny). Not the best way to network, but hey, tequila, right? Anyway, the set was phenomenal. In the past year or so, I'd started to become very jaded and cynical when it came to guitar solos. Yes, they can be impressive at times, but they can easily come off as trite fluff to take the place of a verse. These shredders reminded me just what the difference is between wanking around to fill time and really playing solos that do something for the song. They take all the best qualities from psychedelic, progressive, and classic rock to create a fresh sound that renewed my faith in the guitar solo. This year they released an EP Takes Place in Your Work Space at the end of October after releasing their album D back in May. They're currently on tour with Wilco and will be headed up the West coast by January/February. This is a great video for their single off of D , "Drug".

mix

breakfast mix:

OK Go - Last Leaf (sweet vid)

Blur - Coffee & TV

Thee Oh Sees - Ruby go Home

Bass Drum of Death - religious girls

The Wombats - Last Night I Dreamt..

Feist - How come you never go there

Dum Dum Girls - Bedroom Eyes

Black Moth Super Rainbow - Jump into my Mouth and Breathe the Stardust

Pissed Jeans - R-Rated Movie

Waters - O Holy Break Of Day

R.E.M. - We All Go Back To Where We Belong

Safari Dudes - Fry it up

gauntlet hair

So I keep hearing/seeing the name Gauntlet Hair everywhere. I walked by the TLA this past summer and saw their name on the marquee and thought "Hm." I couldn't decide if I liked the name or not. Turns out I do. Put on "I Was Thinking" for a blown-out groove that will get you moving 'round a dance floor (or in my case, my kitchen). The band tours as a four piece but the two main members are BFF's since the age of 15 from Colorado. They seem to have found the perfect balance between reverb-y dance and cranked indie guitar jams. Released in October, their self-titled debut album is a great introduction to an experimental band with a lot of promise. They will be returning to Philly next month to play Milkboy on December 4th. I will see you there!

mix

Fall mix:

My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges

We Are Trees - When I’m with You (Best Coast cover)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - We Almost Lost Detroit (watch this)

No Age - Common Heat

Le Butcherettes - Henry Don’t Got Love

Real Estate - Suburban Dogs

The Dodos - Hunting Season

Yo La Tengo - Auturmn Sweater

Natural Child - Makin’it

Zoo Kid - Out Getting Ribs

Lykke Li - Let it Fall

TV Girl - Benny and the Jetts

real estate / big troubles

Shins, eat your whimsical little hearts out. Real Estate wants to put you in a new home today and sing you softly to sleep in your warm bed. These Jersey boys will be playing tonight in Philly at Johnny Brenda's with a little help from Big Troubles. I just recently started listening to this band and I am smitten. Light-hearted , catchy guitar jams with clean lead lines that will take you by the hand and bring you on a walk through the park. They released their self-titled album in 2009 on Woodist and released their follow up entitled Days (Domino) on October 18th of this year. Nothing too flashy, just lo-fi pop sing-alongs about dogs, small town life, and introspection. This is the musical equivalent of a picnic on the beach spent reminiscing about the past year. The song "It's Real" immediately pulls you on board with a great three measure phrase that keeps the song gliding gently along. It's hard not to enjoy this video, especially if you love dogs (I do).

dale earnhardt jr.jr.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. is going to be in Philadelphia on December 13 and I'm kicking myself for having to leave town that same day. These guys are pop rock monsters that aren't going to let you go to any average show. And they demonstrate how to be seriously good with out being too serious. DEJ Jr. is a collaboration between Josh Epstein and Daniel Zott. They met after Epstein saw Zott perform and after the show, suggested the two combine forces. The unlikely duo quickly found they could craft indie pop songs with mass appeal. In 2010 they released the Horsepower EP which was recorded on a single microphone in Zott's basement (frugal!). Their full length It's a Corporate World came out earlier this year and their popularity has spread nationwide. Please go in my stead and SEE THEM!

bubonic bear / furnace

It feels good to blow off a little steam at the end of the working week. Bubonic Bear and Furnace will be blowing off ALOT tonight at the Spruce Caboose with some sludge punk guaranteed to throw ya neck out. No need for showy, over-the-top metal solos for Bubonic bear. Just driving, thrashy doom played by a duo of punks with a knack for switching up their phrasing and timing to keep you on your toes right before they knock you on your ass. These Philly locals will be releasing Fleshworld in December and will hit the road mid-month for their Tour of the American South (no Texas though..) . Furnace, Now Denial (both on tour from Boston) and Heavy Medical (great name) will be playing with Bubonic Bear tonight at the Spruce Caboose. 8:30 pm, 5$

mix

Zoo mix:

Miniature Tigers - Bullfighter Jacket

Bass Drum of Death - High School Roaches

Safari Dudes - Animal

Grizzly Bear - Two Weeks

Beach Fossils - What a Pleasure

Deerhoof - The Merry Barracks

Fruit Bats - When U Love Somebody

Wavves - Bug

Clams Casino & ASAPRocky - Wassup

Warpaint - Elephants

The Growlers - People Don't Change Blues

Bubonic Bear - anonymous and forgotten

cheap time / mannequin men

Throw back the last of your bourbon and get out to see Tennessee trio Cheap Time blow it up at Kung Fu Necktie tonight with some help from Mannequin Men and The Tough Shits. You will get blasted by Stooge-y, cranked guitar and sputtering rude vocals.. and you will love it. We're still waiting for a follow up to their Cheap Time LP, but here is a video they released this year.

Another one direceted by Denton, Tx local TV's Daniel, "Glitter and Gold":

Follow this link To be directed to a site where you can read about the PROTECT IP bill has been proposed to Congress. It is important that the internet remain a totally free exchange of information. The rate that information is shared online shouldn't be hampered in anyway because it may infringe on our First Amendment rights. Sites like independent, reliable news sources are at stake. The implications of this bill are unimaginable and by following this link you can right to your Representatives and Senators.

mix

Substitute teacher mix :

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Anne with an E

Neon Indian - Fallout

The Sex Pistols - Substitute

Youth Lagoon - July

The Stepkids - Legend In My Own Mind

The Beets - Doing as I do

Jacuzzi Boys - Automatic Jail

Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

The Sonics - Strychnine

Fanzine - My Stupid Brain

Friends - Friend Crush

youth lagoon

In the months since Year of Hibernation's release at the end of September, it's hard to get away from Youth Lagoon. Trevor Powers spent 2010 writing the album, emotional keyboard ballads with vocals that range from powerful and haunting as his press shot stare, to soft and subtle as his jawline. The guy's got unrefined talent and heart. His relentless touring paid off. People are started to take notice and Fat Possum picked him up to release Hibernation. Powers is twenty-two and currently tourng with Youth Lagoon along with Young Magic(barely legal!). They will be performing at Milkboy tonight with Philly locals Nothing. This is a great video of him performing "July"

ganglians / friends

Is it too cold to go surfing? Nah.. Ganglians (combination of the words "gangs" and "aliens") came out with Still Living, their follow up to 2009 album Monster Head Room, in August. They are still living and and still twanging it up with spacey far-out lo-fi surf rock sing-alongs. All the way from Sacramento, CA, they will be performing tonight in Philly at Kung Fu Necktie with their friends, Friends. Check out Ganglians' songs "Valiant Brave"(2009) & "Jungle"(2011)

mix

Commuter Mix:

UV Race - Always Late

Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - No One Is (As I Are Be)

Gypsyblood - 2 4 6 in the Dark

Balam Acab - Oh, Why

The Blow - Milkmaid

Teenage Cool Kids - Kachina Doll

Tune-yards - Gangsta

Women - Black Rice

Fela Kuti - Zombie

Abe Vigoda - House

Tobacco - 2 Thick Scoops

Tennis - Origins

Wilco - I Might

King Krule - The Noose of Jah City

balam acab / power animal

Alec Koone has it made. After moving to Ithaca, NY to study music education, he drops out and turns swiftly around to return to his parents house. This may not sound right, but trust he does, in fact, have it made. Better known as Balam Acab, Koone started learning how to download samples of sounds and songs from the internet and digitally manipulated them into ambient jams with soft tones and hard grooves. The electronic notes and noise fumble and fight to the foreground of the songs before locking together to form ambient beats. Add an indiscernable vocal-sample-glaze across the top and Koone creates a sound some call "witch house". Soon after posting his songs on his Myspace page there was such a demand for Balam Acab that he decided to put school on hold and focus solely on his own music. He released his first EP See Birds last year on Tri Angle. He currently resides in Mechanicsburg, PA with his parents (free rent!). He is on a month long tour promoting his debut album, WANDER / WONDER, and will be playing at Johnny Brenda's (Philadelphia,PA) tonight with Gracie and Power Animal (they're rad).

Motion #3 - Balam Acab from Maiya on Vimeo.

Copernicus - Power Animal from Nicholas DiCicco on Vimeo.