We first featured the country-surf sounds of London’s Men’s Adventures back in February and now we have a new track from the duo that is taken from their debut four song EP Solitary Trip (out June 24th on Dirty Bingo Records).
B.B Vulture gallops along on the back of a hypnotically groovy country-twang that would have the mighty Johnny Cash tapping his toe in approval.
This beauty comes recommended. Have a listen below. Pre-order the EP here.
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Here is another collection of fifteen top tunes lovingly collected and filtered for your listening pleasure. So gather round and invest some time in these – a veritable aural treasure trove of tracks.
First up is another track of swaggering blues rock and roll in the shape of New York Avenue from the Delta Routine’s recently released album, Cigarettes And Caffeine Nightmares.
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In a similar vein, the bravely named Velvets from down under, have a big, sleazy blues sound going on with their free download of Shoot You Down.
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Darren Hayman has shortened his Long Parliament and returns with a new album of seventeenth century folk songs called Bugbears, which is due out on Fika Recordings in July. A companion piece to previous release, the very well received The Violence, have a listen to Seven Months Married.
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Graham MacRae has shared a new single from his album Dundrearies and by the sound of Game Changer, those Bill Fay and Bill Callahan comparisons seem pretty much on the money.
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Granite City is the lysergic new single from Aussie psych indie-rockers Deep Sea Arcade.
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London’s Low Moon Low are set to release their first official single with Calm Now, sweetly melodic indie-folk that errs on the side of dreamy.
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The wonderfully skewed world view of Justin Farren featured on MM back in March last year and he is back with a new album Another Bluebird Day from which we have Mostly In My Mind. This time he plays it a little straighter on the back of an upbeat folky strum and some scalpel sharp lyrics. Great stuff.
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Spectrals have given us another track from new album Sob Story. Inspired by Dave Edmunds, A Heartbeat Behind has a great riff and is full of rockabilly twang and heartbreak lyrics. No longer are the brothers low key, lo-fi merchants and it bodes very well for the album indeed.
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Two Inch Astronaut have given up Blood From A Loyal Hound for download, a convulsive rocker propelled by a muscular power-pop melody.
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Quilt hail from the eastern shores of Massachussets, where the band formed out of a tight-knit art collective in the winter months of 2009. They combine traditional folk vocal harmonies, reverb-drenched fingerpicking and meditative drum repetition in a patchwork of eclectic psych-folk ideally suited to their name. Open Eyes comes from a recent split single with MMOSS.
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Carmen Villain, aka London-based Carmen Hillestad, recently released her fiery debut album, Sleeper. Introduce yourself to the darker and more psych-oriented side of the album via Made A Shell.
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Half The Time, the A-side of recent 7″ single by Nick Ferrio & His Feelings is a psychological thriller, exploring one man’s realization that his love is unrequited and only exists within the confines of his fallible mind.
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Like the excellent Allah-Lahs, The Young Sinclairs mix folk rock and garage rock with plenty of jangle in the style of The Byrds or Rain Parade and their most recent single Hurt My Pride is a top-notch example of what they are capable of.
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Though we were late to it, we are loving the gorgeous Hymnal by In The Valley Below, a duo from Echo Park in LA who are a new musical pairing, delivering hushed swirls of male and female vocals forged with dark stories of brooding riddles and romance.
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And lastly (for now) we have a taste from Robert Pollard’s (of Guided By Voices fame) new album Honey Locust Honky Tonk. The song, I Killed A Man Who Looks Like You is already one of our favourite titles of the year so far and thankfully the tune itself more than lives up to its title.
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Last year, we were gradually seduced by Amanda Jo Williams last album The Bear Eats Me (see our post here), which went on to become a real favourite. In particular the epic closing track Sick And Dying is still getting regular spins in various playlists here.
So, good news then that her fourth album You’re The Father Of My Songs will see a release on the 21st May. As ever her idiosyncratic mix of twangy rockabilly and weird Americana are mixed in perfect quantities to deliver her unique world view in the most delightfully and beguiling way.
Quirky and off-kilter are much overused terms to describe anything slightly out of the ordinary, but not for Amanda Jo Williams, You’re The Father Of My Songs is more the latter than the former, ranging from psychedelic seasick shanties to country gospel and straight-up unashamed pop. But, lurking beneath the surface, is something altogether a bit more dangerous that every so often snaps and snarls and never lets the listener settle into any type of comfort zone and that, you suspect, is just how she likes it.
Dive into the impending brimstone of album opener 2000Hell, and mark the album release date in your diary…
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We’re loving the rock’n'roll garage rumble of the Sunburn At Midnight EP by Thee Commons.
Watch the video for the classic surf-inspired guitar twang of the title track and listen to the perfectly executed rockabilly of EP opener Rabbits And Rattles. Just brilliant.
Unfortunately, we’re not too sure where you can buy the EP, but check their Facebook page here for more band info.
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Here is our selection of the best of our February downloads together with a few brand new tracks to dig into.
So go on. Knock yourself out.
Blank Realm – Cleaning Up My Mess
Sitting somewhere between the melancholic churn and burn of Mercury Rev and the noisy squall of Sonic Youth, the four-piece gleefully meld psychedelia with punk and pop and even a smattering of blues licks, all to fantastic effect. (Click through for a free download).
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Black Pus – 1000 Years
Slightly deranged, often furious – it is a cacophony of drums, loops and repeating phrases and rhythms, but with a pop heart. (Click through for a free download).
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Úlfur – So Very Strange
Ambient folk featuring enchanting vocals by Alexandra Sauser-Monnig of Mountain Man.
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Andrew Leahey & The Homestead – Summer Sleeves
The sound of the modern South: organ, harmonized guitar riffs, pedal steel, and three-part harmonies all in the mix.
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Express and Company - Gold In Your Pockets
Recalls the work of Whiskeytown and Uncle Tupelo.
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Vandaveer – Pretty Polly
First taste from their forthcoming collection of reinterpretations of age-old traditional folk songs and murder ballads.
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Charity Children – Elizabeth
Rousing folk anthem – their tribute to the bullied and downtrodden.
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Pure X – Things In My Head
Guitar jangle, but with added ominous sonic undertones.
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Burning Condors – Honey Trap
Blues-punk par excellence.
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Brave Baby – Lakeside Trust
Prime toe-tapping, head-bobbing example of infectious guitars and percussion.
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New Mexico – Alpha Male
Joy Division-esque rumbling bassline over which a compelling synth harmony and a muscular garage rock riff battle it out for supremacy. (Click through for a free download).
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LA Font – Onshore
Wry look at at a relationship in decay that is big on hooks, tipsy guitars and a windows-down groove.
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Fantasmas – No Soul
Brooklyn based four-piece that hold the Washington DC punk scene and the no-wave era of Sonic Youth close to their hearts.
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Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside – Party Kids
A retro swagger through rockabilly tinged rhythms and classic garage soul.
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Criminal Hygiene – Alan I’m In Love
Another bitter pill of noisy, visceral skater-punk that demands to be played at maximum volume. This is needle in the red territory, and all the better for it.
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Download The Futurebirds - Virginia Slims mp3 (from Baba Yaga)
Near-six minute pedal steel washed, country tinged, pure, unadulterated joy of southern fried rock.
Download JP Whipple – Home (Is Where I’m Leaving) mp3 (from Ghosts)
Gently plucked strings, scalpel sharp lyrics, black humour, sorrow, and not a little wisdom delivers something sitting somewhere between an (even more) stoned Arlo Guthrie, Damon Moon and Wooden Wand.
Download Thee Oh Sees - Minotaur mp3 (from Floating Coffin)
A more subdued (though still dark and brooding) take on their frenzied garage-psych.
Download Quiet Hollers – Road Song mp3 (from I Am The Morning)
While it clocks in at less than two minutes it is still as tale of extremes – of despair and woes, of worn boots on dusty highways, but of hope and redemption too.
To finish, we have new tracks of beguiling minimalism from Low, and Patrick Stickles from Titus Andronicus covering Free Energy’s Hey Tonight. Finally, from Uncut magazine’s Best of New Music free cover disk, a track of perfect dazed, paisley pop from The Holydrug Couple, and Mount Moriah’s countrified take on weird new/old America with White Sands from their second album, Miracle Temple.
Download Patrick Stickles – Hey Tonight mp3 (Free Energy cover)
Download The Holydrug Couple – Counting Sailboats mp3 (from Noctuary)
Download Mount Moriah – White Sands mp3 (from Miracle Temple)
Videos to enjoy today come from Scarlett Parade and their acoustic version of the achingly beautiful Call The Waves, (then click through on the Soundcloud link to grab a download of the equally good March of the Fallen). We have rootsy Americana from Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer with a video for a stunning live version of their standout track Serotiny (May Our Music), then there is the video for Valerie June’s brilliant new single You Can’t Be Told, which is another insight into her world of beautiful vintage country, gospel and powerful delta blues. Lastly, in a similar vein, we have the video for Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside’s Party Kids, a retro swagger through rockabilly tinged rhythms and classic garage soul.
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As well as Insound’s latest free Vinyl News Mixtape, Noisetrade have put up four free brilliant label samplers from Anti Records, ATO, Frenchkiss and Nettwerk Music.
The Insound sampler includes within its 10 tracks, offerings from FIDLAR, Memory Tapes, Teen Mom, The Analog Girl, and The Joy Formidable.
The eight track Anti Records sampler features, amongst others, Calexico, Jason Lytle, The Coup and Sean Rowe.
The ATO sampler has tracks from many MM faves including Patterson Hood, Old Crow Medicine Show, Alabama Shakes, Alberta Cross and plenty more.
Frenchkiss are offering up 24 free tracks including Fidlar, The Guards, Fuck Buttons, Slow Animal, Tall Firs and plenty more.
Nettwerk Music’s offering includes Great Lake Swimmers, Family Of The Year, Young Liars, Current Swell and nine more.
Click here to get the Insound mix, but hurry it is only up for a limited time. Click here for the Anti Records sampler. Click here for the ATO sampler. Click here for the Frenchkiss sampler and click here for the Nettwerk music sampler.
Alternatively dip your toe in the water with a sample of our favourites from each one.
Download Beaters – Fishage mp3 (from Insound Vinyl Mixtape – December 13, 2012)
Download Dr. Dog – These Days mp3 (from Anti-Winter EP)
Download Two Gallants – My Love Won’t Wait mp3 (from ATO Records Fall Sampler 2012)
Download Other Lives – Take Us Alive mp3 (from ATO Records Fall Sampler 2012)
Download Two Wounded Birds – If Only We Remain mp3 (from Frenchkiss Label Group Compilation)
Download Chelsea Wolfe – Tracks (Tall Bodies) mp3 (from Frenchkiss Label Group Compilation)
Download Admiral Fallow – Brother mp3 (from Nettwerk Fall Music Sampler 2012)
Follow @madmackerelIn addition to the Wilderness Olympic medal awards handed out by youngest sprat (see Mrs Mackerel’s post here) Saturday at the festival was another day of glorious sunshine, bizarre moments (badminton matches joined table tennis, the official skinny dipping world record attempt, miming cats and much much more) and a stellar musical line-up.
The timeless, beautiful harmonies of The Staves set everyone up perfectly in the mid-afternoon sun, but their mix of softly strummed folk and a-cappella hides a steely core – these three sisters from Watford are nothing if not feisty when the mood takes them. Jake Bugg was next up, a rockabilly prodigy from Nottingham who you suspect has pictures of boxcars and Woody Guthrie on his bedroom wall. Clearly talented and with a classic three-piece line-up he kept the crowd entertained in a way that belied his tender years and finished with his “hit” Lightning Bolt – the perfect song to accompany Usain’s efforts in the Olympics.
Cloud Control fizzed and popped with their psych-tinged indie and sing-a-long choruses, and elsewhere Robbie Boyd’s funky folk cooked up a storm and created a mini-hoedown in the London Folk Guild tent. Local boys Stornoway enjoyed their clearly growing popularity with a perfectly judged set of melancholy tinged folk and The Temper Trap picked up the pace as the sun went down with a crowd-pleasing set of widescreen, epic electro-rock with soaring falsetto vocals.
Finally in the gloom, amidst the dry ice, guitar virtuosos Rodrigo Y Gabriella took the stage to showcase their six-string wizardry amongst video backdrops and pyrotechnics – perfectly melding Metallica riffage with flamenco, jazz, and everything in between, the crowd bumped, swayed, salsa-ed, and grooved their way through a blistering set from a couple (and Band) who were clearly enjoying themselves immensely.
Eventually, they took their leave, and us ours, with the last notes fading away to join more chinese lanterns and glowsticks in the sky and all of us looking forward to tomorrow.
Download Cloud Control - Gold Canary mp3 (from Bliss Release)
Download Stornoway - Zorbing mp3 (from Zorbing Single)
Download The Temper Trap - Love Is A Losing Game (Amy Winehouse cover) mp3 (from Q Presents Back To Back To Black)
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A few new releases on the radar and well worth some ear-time we think.
We have a new single from Van Pierszalowski aka Waters following on from his excellent debut album Out In The Light last year, If Only is another quality slice of psych-pop with added fuzz.
Download Waters – If Only mp3 (from If Only Single)
After a four year hiatus, Cat Power has a new album, Sun prepped for release. The first taste is an unusually catchy, but typically pithy Ruin.
Download Cat Power – Ruin mp3 (from Sun)
The always good Adult Swim Single Series has kicked into gear for 2012, with 12 free tracks appearing at the rate of one each week. This summer, they’ll be giving us tracks from people like Wavves and Wye Oak, as well as this the first song of the series, from psych-poppers Unknown Mortal Orchestra.
Download The Unknown Mortal Orchestra – I’ll Come Back 4 U mp3 (from Adult Swim Single Series)
The Lighthouse And The Whaler have a new album This Is An Adventure scheduled for release on 18th September. First taste comes in the shape of Venice and most appetising it is too.
Download The Lighthouse And The Whaler – Venice mp3 (from This Is An Adventure)
Amanda Jo Williams released her latest album The Bear Eats Me a couple of days ago. A wholly compelling mix of quirky, idiosyncratic, freak-folk style indie mixed with classic jukebox rockabilly numbers. We have already posted the title track and here is a second taste, the soulful and imaginative Hello Good Morning.
Download Amanda Jo Williams – Hello Good Morning mp3 (from The Bear Eats Me)
And lastly we have another track from retro-indie popsters Saint Motel’s forthcoming debut release Voyeur (out on 10th July). This is Benny Goodman, a genre-bending homage to the man himself.
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Monsters From Mars is, perhaps unsurprisingly given the name, a surf/garage rock band from San Diego, CA. Formed in 2001, over the years they have put out various self-released DIY CD-Rs and a 7″ out on Tic Tac Totally, which includes an instrumental surf cover of Britney Spears‘s Toxic.
Way back in 2006 they recorded a couple tracks for a split 7″ with their friends in The Creepy Creeps, but label problems and delays meant the release fell through.
So a few weeks ago the band uploaded their side of the split as a free download release on Bandcamp.
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