New from Small Black

Last month we gave you Photojournalist the first single from Small Black’s new album New Chain, a masterful slice of aural bliss perfect for a mid-afternoon or late night space out. Today we’ve got Search Party the second single from the album, a revved up banger of a tune built upon frantic synth sonics unraveling into bursts of melody over a dance ready beat.

Sound good?

Visit their MySpace here. In the US – pre-order from Insound here.

Download Small Black – Search Party mp3 (from New Chain)

Download Small Black – Photojournalist mp3 (from New Chain)

See them live in the UK

29 Nov London, Lexington

30 Nov Bristol, Cooler

1 Dec Glasgow, Captain’s Rest

2 Dec Sheffield, The Plug

3 Dec Manchester, Salford Lads Club w/ Frankie & The Heartstrings

4 Dec Leeds, Nation of Shopkeepers

5 Dec Brighton,  Jam

MM’s Best of the Month: August

Here is our usual round-up of the best songs we’ve posted in August together with a couple of our favourite covers and three new songs to tempt you. Another perfect mix tape we think.

Black AngelsTelephone mp3

Gentler psych-pop approach from new album calling to mind classic era Zombies

DreamendMagnesium Light mp3

Superb psych-folk from the loosely joined and hellish story of a serial killer

The Migrant The Organ Grinder mp3

Gentle, low-key start before the swelling, insistent guitar strum builds and builds while the plaintive vocals keep pace the whole time

EfrenStay High mp3

Psych-folk tale of trying to lose love, dreams of family past, tall boys, gambling, and whiskey stills…

TV TorsoI Can See Your Face mp3

Excellent, hypnotic pulses and sixties harmonies

Amen DunesBy The Bridal mp3

Hazy, sunlit psychedelic folk

Nick MarshBest Shag In The World mp3

Like an evil Richard Hawley on smack singing something from Blue Velvet

Victorian English Gentlemens ClubA Biting Wind Followed By An Occasional Drift Of Snow (Was No Way To Cure A Hangover) mp3

Excellent new track from post–punk, art-rock weirdos

White Noise SoundSunset mp3

Corrosive feedback, pulsating krautrock rhythms, floating vocals and wall-of-sound guitars combine into an ear-shattering, blissed out climax

White Dress No Solid State mp3

Noir rock, taut and quivering with all kinds of emotion poured into the vocals

Small BlackPhotojournalist mp3

Lilting sliding beat dropping into a gorgeous moment of ambient wash

Paul Hawkins & The Awkward SilencesI’m In Love With A Hospital Receptionist mp3

Anti-folk masters of oddball lyrics, black humour, biting satire and sometimes poignant political comment

Ono PalindromesBlack Lungs mp3

Ferocious energy, vicious circling guitars and gunshot percussion

The NationalYou Were A Kindness mp3

New, suitably downtempo piano ballad

American GraveyardCommon Ones mp3

Debauched Americana, delivered in the timeless style of all classic protest songs

Truman Peyote Featuring Emily ReoTurn Into Feathers mp3

Like something from a banned 1970s horror flick it quickly transforms into a delightfully skewed three minute pop song for freaks and outsiders

Haunted WindchimesDon’t Take My Baby Away (Baby Back) mp3

Authentic, bewitching folk that draws you in and holds you tight

Baby EagleDay Of Our Departing mp3

A corking track with echoes of Neil Young, Gram Parsons and Pavement

We Are TreesDear Chan Marshall mp3

Deceptively simple song with some lovely flamenco style guitar and clever lyrics

Pepper RabbitOlder Brother mp3

Folk with chamber leanings and a twisted, slightly psych-pop edge

The War On DrugsComin’ Through mp3

Strummed guitar delight from forthcoming album

Roy PaymonImonetta mp3

Simply georgeous, fragile pop song

Our cover versions of the month are these two:

Download Fever RayMercy Street mp3

Download Mumford & SonsUnfinished Business mp3

And three excellent new tracks to finish off with: firstly another cover – The Drums doing Arcade Fire, the new taster track from indie-folk God Sufjan Stevens and finally some superb, caustic, drone punk from The Band In Heaven.

Download The DrumsWe Used To Wait mp3

Download Sufjan StevensI Walked mp3 (from The Age of Adz)

Download The Band In HeavenSuicide Pact mp3 (from The Band In Heaven / Weird Wives Split Tape)

Small Black release first track from New Chain

Last week Jagjaguwar announced the first details of Small Black’s first full-length album New Chain due out Oct. 26 in the U.S. and Oct. 25 in the U.K. They have now released the first single Photojournalist for download.

The song begins with a lilting sliding beat before dropping into a gorgeous moment of ambient wash. As the lyrics kick in with lead singer Josh Kolenik repeating the refrain “rise up again, like a ghost” the song does just that, growing more concrete in form as Josh’s vocals strengthen, are supported by a chorus, and drums come up in the mix. Layers are added until the song hits maximum velocity only to disappear even quicker than it began.

All bodes very well for the full album!

Download Small Black – Photojournalist mp3 (from New Chain)