I have been loving Eliphino ever since I heard More Than Me on the Jamie xx/Caribou Boiler Room session. I hunted and consumed all of his material, and since then haven't been able to stop noticing how many DJs drop his stuff, and for good reason.
Beware, if you don't like repetitive vocal samples this is one for you to skip. If like me, however, repeatedly singing the same few words for several minutes does it for you then you'll dig this. Aptly titled VRYBDY (it makes sense upon the first listen), it's a powerhouse anthem, relentlessly driving away for 6 whole minutes.
Also on the same piece of wax is Don't Make Sense. Check them both out below.
I love Errors. When I first saw them at Field Day back in 2009 they seemed a bit unsure of themselves. They were a little bit musically insecure, as if they didn't feel they were quite ready for the big stage. Nonetheless brilliance still beamed out all the way through their set, but it was as if they themselves were unaware of it, or simply refused to acknowledge it. The following year I saw them at Bestival and they were 10 times stronger. They had shaken off any on-stage insecurity (don't get me wrong, it had an endearing quality to it), but their music had evolved and with it so had they. They were bigger and stronger, and they had so much more of an impact for it.
Tusk takes this evolution even further, firmly placing the band in amongst some of the instrumental heavyweights. It's a step away from the vaguely 8bit sound they had several years ago and a move closer to the post-rock camp; being a lover of 8bit sounds and post-rock, I can't decide if this is a good or bad thing. Either way, Errors are good, and so is Tusk.
Tusk is on their latest release Have Some Faith In Magic and is out now on Rock Action Records.
Modern Driveway is the latest release from the Norwich based producer Luke Abbott, and it's an absolute gem. What hits me most about this track is its simplicity. At first, the track does not require or demand much attention - in fact it can easily blend into the background and seem quite forgettable. But as with Abbott's earlier work, giving the music time to develop and grow really pays off. Overtime the track starts to grab you, and you're slowly reeled in by its beautiful, childlike innocence. For something that's so simple, it really goes somewhere. It has that cinematic effect we love, where it can transform the most mundane task you might be carrying out into something so significant and full of meaning; like buttering your toast or stirring your tea. Powerful stuff.
The EP of the same name is out now on Notown Records.
I've always been a massive fan of all things Hot Chip; Joe Goddard is an electro-house legend, Alexis Taylor's delicate, frail voice contrasts perfectly with their deep synthy electronic sounds, but most of all I love the bands insistance on keeping their music "live". Many people are saying their latest LP, In Our Heads, is their best yet. Well, if it even comes close to the quality of One Life Stand it will be an awesome record. You can stream the whole thing here. Enjoy.
In Our Heads is released on the 11th of June via Domino.
Holler! It's me and I have something for you all. Ok, so it's not that new, but it's very, very good, so it's ok right?
Introducing [drum roll....] Poliça! This amazing Minneapolis-based band are currently making big waves on both sides of the Atlantic following their debut release in February - I can't believe I missed it. So if you were to go out and buy Give You The Ghost, what could you expect to hear? Well the first thing that would hit would be these beautifully simplistic warm analogue synth sounds - they crash and flood the music in slow-motion like something out of a disaster film. Distorted guitars swollen in effects often offset the slightly erratic processed vocals of ChannyLeaneagh; If you like Justin Vernon’s use of the vocoder, you will like, if you don’t Poliça might not be for you. Personally, I like it - it manages to blur the line between instrument and vocals almost to the point where it can be one or the other, or both.
While this album does have an electro indie sound (think Fever Ray, I Break Horses), here, unlike many modern indie acts, Poliça have managed to hold on to the fact that it is really just a group of musicians playing songs. All too often these days music sounds like it was dreamt up entirely by some skinny, bespectacled, beard wearing Brooklyn scene-setter, and not by a bunch of musicians sat round throwing ideas back and forth to one another. For me this is a victory! A victory for all the bands, yes the actual bands. The bands that go on tour, who live together, who actually make sounds by touching things with their fingers. If you are like me, and this is something you appreciate, you will love Poliça. That’s all there is too it.
It has been several years since we last heard anything from Baltimore dream-pop duo Beach House. 2010's Teen Dream was packed with beautiful hazy pop tracks and I was lucky enough to see them perform most of it live at Nottinghams Dot to Dot festival. After periodically checking out the bands website for the past 6 months, looking for even the smallest whiff of new material or possible tour dates, there was nothing. It was so depressing; one of the best bands of 2010 had seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth. All was not lost though, the band were scheduled to play End Of The Road festival in September, so I had a sneaking suspicion that they might have something up the sleeves of their brightly coloured anoraks. Today that suspicion is confirmed! The band have posted Myth on their website, and word on the street is their new album Bloom is being released on Sub Pop in late May. If that's not something to put in the diary, I don't know what is.
[12.06.12] | authored by 
