Caribou’s (Dan Snaith’s) most recent project/record, Swim, to nick words from the title, is, well, “swimmy.” The vocals seem to be sung inside an open-clamshell discotheque on the ocean floor, accompanied, at times, by a woodwind orchestra. His ability to somehow combine organic sounds with analog and metronomic digitalism results in one beaut of a… Continue reading Caribou’s Swim does everything but sink
Category: New Albums
Kate Nash is all over the place on My Best Friend is You
I’ll be honest: I could not find a point of entry to get into Kate Nash‘s My Best Friend is You. I mean, sure, the music is fine, and interestingly varied: there’s the faux-’50s throwback guitars of “Kiss That Grrrl;” the staccato piano of “Pickpocket;” the sludgy guitar tone of “I’ve Got a Secret;” the… Continue reading Kate Nash is all over the place on My Best Friend is You
Rafter’s Animal Feelings makes love to you on the dance floor
How badly do you want to combine the auto-tune and beats of Daft Punk with the vocals of Death Cab, the pop tendencies of Passion Pit and the crude attitude of Arctic Monkeys? Very badly? Fortunate for you! The new album by musician/producer Rafter Roberts (aka Rafter) is all of that and so much more!… Continue reading Rafter’s Animal Feelings makes love to you on the dance floor
[MP3] Big Tree: “The Concurrence of All Things”
Big Tree, a quintet out of Brooklyn, stole my heart immediately with pop gem “The Concurrence of All Things” off their forthcoming EP, Home(here), set to drop June 1. Their debut full-length came out in 2008, but this is the first I’m hearing of them, and I’m glad they didn’t fall off my radar. “The… Continue reading [MP3] Big Tree: “The Concurrence of All Things”
[MP3] The National: “Afraid of Everyone”
MORE NEW THE NATIONAL. Sorry, but caps lock was totally necessary. The latest tune available off the forthcoming High Violet is called “Afraid of Everyone”, and starts off with Berninger taking the lead in a melancholic despair of a song, with backing falsetto harmonies (courtesy of Sufjan Stevens). Steady percussion kicks in about a minute… Continue reading [MP3] The National: “Afraid of Everyone”
MGMT is jarring, surreal, wonderful on Congratulations
I think the best way to approach MGMT’s follow-up album, Congratulations, is to just pretend it’s not by MGMT. At least not by the MGMT you know and love already for their pop-indie hits “Kids,” “Time To Pretend” and “Electric Feel.” One of the things that plagued reception to the band’s first new single, “Flash Delirium,”… Continue reading MGMT is jarring, surreal, wonderful on Congratulations
Sam Billen covers The Postal Service, Sufjan, and more on Removers
Late night email for the ages. We were just sent a few tunes from Sam Billen off his Removers album, with remixes and covers that range from Sufjan Stevens to Deastro to The Postal Service. His voice has a fragile melancholic ting, and he adds a bit of dreaminess to the songs with airy crescendos… Continue reading Sam Billen covers The Postal Service, Sufjan, and more on Removers
Tokyo Police Club reveals tracklist and cover art for new album, Champ
Tokyo Police Club has announced via MySpace (yep!) the tracklist and revealed the cover art (above) for their forthcoming album, Charm, out June 8 via Mom + Pop. Tokyo Police Club – “Breakneck Speed” [MP3] Tracklist: 1. Favourite Food 2. Favourite Colour 3. Breakneck Speed 4. Boots of Danger (Wait Up) 5. Bambi 6. End… Continue reading Tokyo Police Club reveals tracklist and cover art for new album, Champ
Stream Greg Laswell’s forthcoming album, Take A Bow, in its entirety
That’s right! One of my go-to singer/songwriters in times of melancholic pop need, Greg Laswell, is streaming his entire forthcoming album, Take A Bow (out May 4) [Edit: Link removed. Unfortunately there was some miscommunication and the album was only streaming for review purposes for promoters.] The album is everything you’d expect from Laswell –… Continue reading Stream Greg Laswell’s forthcoming album, Take A Bow, in its entirety
[MP3] The Radio Dept.: “Never Follow Suit”
The Radio Dept. finally made their much-ballyhooed second single (it’s been floating around the interwebs for quite some time now), “Never Follow Suit”, available for free download. You know my mantra here on Knox Road: Gimme Swedish Rock! These guys are yet another epitome of Sweden’s brilliantly constructed, chilled-out dream pop, and nowhere is that more… Continue reading [MP3] The Radio Dept.: “Never Follow Suit”