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The Jubilee Allstars - When I'm All Alone
2007-08-26 21:17:00
Another case of wasted talent but as the McCormack siblings readily admit the Jubilee Allstars were often their own worst enemies. Live shows were shambolic and the laissez-faire attitude extended to their songwriting which meant that the best stuff was sometimes left behind. That said they left a sprinkling of golden moments before the end in 2005. And ‘When I’m All Alone’ is certainly one of
More About: Bile

Softlightes - Girlkillsbear (Lo-Fi-FNK Remix)
2007-08-25 00:34:00
I’ve just watched a film called ‘Wolf Creek’. My Godly and Cream I need some cheering up and thankfully this does the trick. And then some. In fact it's an absolutely killer tune, prepared to bed your happy genes and even goes so far as to ring them back the next day. The San Diego quartet are headed up by Ron Fountenberry and generally have a ball screwing with the one dimensional genre
More About: Remix , Lo-Fi , Bear , Remi

Brian - You Don't Want A Boyfriend
2007-08-23 20:17:00
As promised the story behind Brian 's 'You Don't Want A Boyfriend ' by its creator Ken Sweeney. The song was released as a single in the early 90's on Detzi Records. You can buy the single for £90 here. Eat your heart out Thurston Revival! Thanks Ken. KD ""This song, of course, is about the end of a relationship. Listening back to it now, it's a young person trying to make sense of something

Holy Fuck - Lovely Allen
2007-08-22 22:04:00
Adored by squarely configured parents as much as their rebellious teenage offspring Holy Fuck have made a name for themselves with their anything-goes stage shows. As much as they depend on the machines to produce their all-encompassing take on electronica they have been known to let the machines take over. Or not, when a full albums worth of material went kaput after the hard drive was involved
More About: Allen , Lovely

Rogue Wave - Lake Michigan
2007-08-21 20:43:00
I pretty much steer clear of the songs that cut up the hype machine charts preferring to return at a later stage when the fuss has died down. In this case I had to make an exception though as the promo from ‘Asleep At Heaven’s Gate’ is just too good to put in mothballs. Just right now Rogue Wave are where it’s at, forget the Shins, 2007 could well belong to the former if ‘Lake Michigan ’ is

Little Name - Tracy & I
2007-08-20 23:31:00
Perhaps the best thing about being in a band of one is the fact that you’ve got complete artistic control and there is a general lack of incidences that could result in a trademark messy break up. The only problem lies in the fact that the inspiration to make a success of it rests squarely on your shoulders. Thankfully Lee Barker has nothing to worry about as breezy twee pop nuggets appear to
More About: Tracy , Trac , Litt

The City & Horses - Little Finland
2007-08-19 19:30:00
For the first couple of minutes nothing entirely remarkable happens on ‘Litt le Finland ’. Surprising then that by the end you could easily be welling up such is the powerful sense of emotion that permeates. The City & Horse s is the work of Marc Louis who spends his time writing music in his Manhattan apartment and then giving it away for free on his website. The venture is unlikely to make Marc a

Diamond Jim - Little Heartbreaker
2007-08-19 10:41:00
You may have heard of the Rondo Brothers, for this is where Diamond Jim (Jim Greer) plies his 9-2-5 in the music world. Greer has also done some session work with Scissors For Lefty and Handsome Boy Modelling School so one wonders how he’s managed to fire off 4 of his own albums as well. The latest is called ‘Big Bad Beautiful Dreams’ and much of it was recorded live. ‘Litt le Heartbreaker’ wasn’
More About: Brea

Blackpool - Fusillade
2007-08-18 23:08:00
It’s been a while since I’ve posted some post-rock and as I’ve been sitting on this one for a bit it seems about the right time. Anyway, as its raining cats and dogs outside it wouldn’t seem right to shower you with a blast of indie pop. As you might expect Blackpool don’t come from Northern England (it's like that, it's just the way it is), they instead forage for gale force wipeouts from their
More About: Lack

Fanfarlo - Fire Escape
2007-08-18 09:46:00
This could be the product of a union between a gorky zygotic mynci and a super furry animal but for some reason they don’t come from Wales in the slightest. In fact the 12 armed creature that goes by the name of Fanfaro comes from deepest London (via Sweden, starting to make sense now). I like them, in fact I like them a flippin lot. You’ll also fall for ‘Fire Esca pe ’ (their current single,
More About: Scape

The Shining Hour - Before You Know It
2007-08-17 21:48:00
Mark Cohen is the one man jangle-meister of the Shining Hour . Can’t say I’ve ever stumbled across his material before but he has had a long career behind him stretching back to the mid 1980’s (the Beat Circus, Fragile). It took a release on the fantastically assembled Cloudberry Records based in Miami for me to sit up and take note. The ‘Think About Her’ single was released earlier this month
More About: Fore

Thirteen Senses - The Invitation
2007-08-15 22:42:00
{album review written in 2005, pulled from the indiecater archives, rated 3/5} The year is 2005 and breakthrough bands are heading in one of two well-defined directions. The new romantic wave has been plundered to varying degrees of success by the likes of Franz Ferdinand, The Strokes, Kaiser Chiefs and Bloc Party. The other strain is producing polished tunes with giant choruses that ensure
More About: Thirteen , Invitation , Thirteen Senses

Buraka Som Sistema - Yah!
2007-08-15 21:08:00
This is something and should really be what the bodies are dancing to in whatever place passes for Ibiza these days. ‘Yah!’ may sound fabulously unique but it takes direction from a whole genre of music known as Kudura (techno ‘hard ass’) which sprung from Angola in the 90’s. It’s influence has crept as far as Lisbon where Buraka Som Sistema are one of its prime proponents. Not sure whether an
More About: Stem

Brian - Understand
2007-08-15 00:34:00
I taped this song off the radio about 15 years ago (check the wiki entry for cassette tape kids) and despite many years of searching in all of Dublin’s second hand record stores I have been unable to capture the album that it is taken from. Imagine my surprise then when I came across Ken Sweeney’s (the one man show that ran the band) myspace that deals with all things Brian . Ken kindly acceded
More About: Understand , Stand

The Rosebuds - Blue Bird
2007-07-01 15:23:00
Before folk enthusiasts get too excited ?Nights of the Furies? has absolutely nothing to do with Davey Arthur and his mates whipping up a storm with several Guinness fuelled ballads. Instead it marks the return of the duo known as the Rosebuds, now on their 3rd album. It should have the summer dancefloors rocking to its beat infested contours but on a humid Sunday afternoon we?ll dip back into their back catalogue for an altogether more drowsy listen. ?Blue Bird ? is awash with Kelly Crisp?s dreamy whoops and Ivan Howard?s more straight laced yet eminently enjoyable wordage. As your eyelids get heavy let this piece of heavenly caress you into a comfortable corner of the land of nod. KDThe Rosebuds - Blue BirdRate This Tune!Watch The Video To Silence By The LakesideMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Night of the FuriesYear: 2007

Let's Go Sailing - Icicles
2007-06-28 20:10:00
If summer fails to arrive on our shores maybe we should stop complaining and move on to the next season forthwith? To help out here is a band from a sunny clime who sing about one of winters tiny miracles. Shana Levy used to be in Irving but is now the main thrust behind Let?s Go Sailing . ?Icicles? is taken from her debut ?The Chaos In Order? and is unlikely to be rupturing eardrums such is its light and airy disposition. Levy?s voice is particularly attractive amidst the gentle instrumentation, a polkadotted frenzy that?ll dry the linen when the sun is the last thing on the weathers list of today's duties. KDLet's Go Sailing - IciclesRate This Tune!More Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: The Chaos In Order Year: 2007

Terrene - Fifty-One
2007-06-28 00:00:00
If only a band existed that distilled the best bits (you know the bits I mean, they?re all over your CD compilations) from the Shins, the Apples in Stereo and Built to Spill and in the process arrived at a perfect sonic constellation. Well, Terrene?s new (old) album may just have arrived at this superlative juncture due to its consistent policy of dreaming up hypnotic melodies. John Dylan is the poet and chief architect on Terrene?s debut ?The Indifferent Universe?, an album that has had a less than hasty gestation period. While the thrills don?t always fall into your lap as easily as ?Fifty-One? there is an unmistakable sense of grandeur on nearly every track. ?Fifty-One? is flighty and energetic, spilling its ample array of goodies with the profligacy of a faulty sweet dispenser. KDTerrene - Fifty-OneRate This Tune!Watch The VideoMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album (in july): The Indifferent Universe Year: 2007
More About: Rene

Mum - Dancing Behind My Eyelids
2007-06-27 00:20:00
What do you do when you know you are the third best musical act in Iceland? Keep doing what you do best, namely electronic excursions to faraway planets or perhaps change gear and introduce a surprise element like the semblance of a proper tune. From the sound of ?Dancing Behind My Eyelids? it would seem that Mum have chosen the latter and a nice departure it is too. Not that it?ll be troubling the mainstream charts any time soon but the introduction of the non-digitised presents an occasion that is as close to a chorus as they?ll ever produce (the video of ?Green Grass Of Tunnel? may counteract these words but you get my drift). The new album is out on Fat Cat Records in September and is called ?Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy?. Could this perhaps mark the beginning of the changing of the guard? KDMum - Dancing Behind My EyelidsRate This Tune!Watch The Video To Green Grass Of TunnelMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Go Go Smear The Poison IvyYear: 2007
More About: Lids

Paper Airplanes - The Fences
2007-06-25 20:50:00
Of course Gaz Coombes was writing fantastic songs (well at least one anyway) for the Jennifers aged 14 so it should come as no surprise that the young bucks from Paper Airplanes who made ?Boyhood? should be capable of a nice tune or 2. In fact they?ve made a clutch of great ones, full of opportunistic variations on the indie rock theme. If variety be the spice of life then surely this Wichita mob have enough elixir to fill several racks. ?The Fence s? opens the album in epic fashion, in many ways it's one song inside several songs. This Russian doll approach serves the band well as ?The Fences? has all the charm and chaotic good humour of a Christmas get together. The stars (and there are many) of the piece include Marcus Stoesz?s aching vocals, some ingenious string arrangements and a piano that just refuses to stand still. This is another new opus to call your own. KDPaper Airplanes - The FencesRate This Tune!More Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Boyhood Year: 2007ish
More About: Plan , Planes

South Ambulance - Die 5times Times5
2007-06-24 15:49:00
It has been almost 2 years now since I started this blogging lark and although I was a ferocious hoarder of all things indie beforehand actually writing about the stuff has spurred me onto a different level of inspection. It?s funny how despite the thousands of mp3?s that have passed my aural gaze how one or two just refuse to budge from my consciousness. One of these is this song from a Swedish band called South Ambulance , a band I cherish but have failed to attain even a smidgeon of sales. ?Die 5times Times 5? will be with me forever as much for the shoegaze frontage as the absolutely venomous lyrics where the rejected party wishes endless excruciation on the triumphant Romeo. Try this for size ?I hope you?ll never be, happier than me, I hope your flat burns down, I hope you 2 break up, I hope you lose you hair, though I wish I didn?t care, I know you?re fucked up, I hope they beat you up?. Ah such sweet maliciousness wrapped up in wonderfully realised boy/girl harmonies, riffs so...
More About: Lance , Bula

The Paper South - Short-Wave Resolutions
2007-06-23 23:58:00
This sort of stuff always gets me and it?s probably because shoegaze remains one of my favourite genres. While not fully in the shoegaze arena the Paper South ?s ?Short -Wave Resolutions? still delivers an impressive brew of twisted guitar lines and delicate male vocals (reminding one of UK band Revolver). The Paper South are a quartet from Austin that have previously played in the American Analog Set and Winslow. They released their 6 track self-titled debut EP last year from which ?Short-Wave Resolutions? is taken. The EP is available for free download from the bands website and highlights an appealing jangling sound that could flower wonderfully over the next few releases. KDThe Paper South - Short-Wave ResolutionsRate This Tune!Watch The VideoMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy: The Paper South EP Year: 2006

Radar Bros. - To Remember
2007-06-23 16:44:00
Jim Putnam and his cohorts are entering the final stages of recording their new album, the follow up to 2005?s ?The Fallen Leaf Pages?. That album received a mixed reaction, the fans hailed its languid charm while the detractors pointed to a lack of variation. Well, who cares what they think when here on the blogosphere all you generally get is one mp3 per band with variation just a mere post away. Not to say that ?To Remember? isn?t memorable because it is, in fact it is a godsend for someone still mourning the loss of Grandaddy (not related). The song has a wonderfully warped sense of pace, coordinated by a dandy piano line and a hip jazz sensibility. And all that before you even consider Putnam?s delicate singing, don?t listen too hard or it may just fall apart in your ears. This is a luscious opportunity to recharge your emotions. KDRadar Bros . - To RememberRate This Tune!Watch The Video To PapillonMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: The Fallen Leaf Pages Year: 2005

VietNam - Priest, Poet And The Pig
2007-06-23 00:32:00
This takes a while to get going but before you know it there?s a scrambling effort akin to the Kings of Leon going at it hammer and tongs in progress. And they?ve got some fairly impressive beards to show off too which must make for some very sweaty chins when they hit full throttle on stage. To its credit ?Priest , Poet And The Pig? hardly flags for the duration, but stops just short from being an instant classic due to the lack of a truly memorable chorus. But these are Viet Nam?s early days so there is bound to be a few minor casualties before they become a force to be reckoned with. VietNam's self-titled debut was released on Kemado Records in January and should appeal to anyone with a weakness for rock centric blues that secretly hanker for a time when ZZ Top pulled all the girls. Give them all your lovin'. KDVietNam - Priest, Poet And The PigRate This Tune!Watch The VideoMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Vietnam Year: 2007

Citizens Here And Abroad - Appearances
2007-06-22 00:14:00
?Appearances ? is classically briefed in the ways of the religion they call indie. Perhaps it has studied in the seminary as Thurston Moore, David Gedge and James Mercer dolled out advise that was too good to forget. The other possibility of course is that its makers Citizen s Here and Abroad from San Francisco are clever tacticians in a game that easily falls flat on its face through endless repetition. Citizens Here and Abroad released their second album late last year but ?Appearances? is taken from their debut, the intriguingly titled ?Ghosts of Tables and Chairs?. It boasts what is surely some textbook boy/girl vocal interplay. Chris Groves and Adrienne Robillard swoop and glaze over each other while the tommy gun beats and shoegazeresque crescendo?s create a effervescent backdrop. KDCitizens Here And Abroad - AppearancesRate This Tune!Watch The VideoMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: [UK] Waving Not Drowning [US] Waving, Not Drowning Year: 2006
More About: Broad

Louis - My Own Good
2007-06-20 23:32:00
You may not have heard of Louis Schefano but he has been in bands you might have. Previously he fronted Regia, drummed with Remy Zero and is currently doing the same job with the Ladybird Transistor (he had a spell with Bright Eyes too). It is quite likely that his greatest success will come as himself though, by simply dropping his surname he has created a new incarnation called Louis. A debut album is near completion (damn those Ladybirds) titled ?Songs from the Psych-Salon? but he has already squeezed out an EP earlier this year. ?My Own Good ? was one of its slumber tracks, a hushed beauty with a sparkling glint in its eyes. The song hardly shifts into second gear but before it ends you may have nodded yourself into a right old sore neck. KDLouis - My Own GoodRate This Tune!More Info: Official & MyspaceBuy The EP: [UK] Freak Show Revenge [US] Freak Show Revenge Year: 2007

Hooray For Humans - Signature
2007-06-20 20:39:00
Could this be the start of a shouty female scene on our shores? To the unfettered joy of Fight Like Apes you can now add Hooray For Humans from Cork. And with a 10 track album in the works ?Signature ? will soon be in the company of a plethora of like minded brattish escapades. ?Signature? is a scattershot gem, a cut and paste scrapbook of tiny acorns all vying to become the biggest yoke of them all. Think Bis if they?d come from a republic within a republic and could sing ?Woo, Hey Hey? against a backdrop of electronics and frantic chords. It doesn?t get much kookier than this, at least until the album drops that is. KDHooray For Humans - SignatureRate This Tune!More Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Soon.... Year: 2007
More About: Natur , Mans

The Star Department - Palettes
2007-06-19 21:37:00
The Star Department are a Dublin quartet with 2 releases to their name. The most recent mini LP ?Auditions? displayed the grand plans that they?ve in store for us. The song structures they adopt generally have a loose feel, trading the traditional chorus verse chorus system for something that never lulls into the realms of predictable. Not that listening to their music is a difficult task; despite an ever-changing soundscape there are bite sized pieces of melody and sweet shimmering chords to dine out on immediately. ?Palette s? is typical of the lolloping bundle of jangling noise that the band are capable of as it switches from quiet introspection to stampeding herd of riffery within the blink of an eye. The Star Department are a great prospect who are proving that experimentation doesn?t necessarily always have to be a challenge to unlock. KDThe Star Department - PalettesRate This Tune!More Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Auditions Year: 2007

Ronderlin - Way To Be
2007-06-19 20:49:00
You?ve probably guessed by now that this blog is partial to the odd slice of Swedish indie pop. Bands from that neck of the woods generally come equipped with pantry sized sunny melodies and more often than not spring from the loins of the majestic Labrador label. Labrador released Ronderlin?s debut ?Wave Another Day Goodbye? 5 years ago and although they have since moved on they retain the essence of what that label stands for. In between that last album and its follow up ?The Great Investigation? various members of Ronderlin have moonlighted with other Swedish bands such as Love Is All and Irene. ?Way To Be? is one of 3 tracks that are been given away free to entice newcomers to Ronderlin?s celestial world. It?s impressive stuff, a million miles away from the Arctic Monkeys of this world. If anything it has a slightly gothic edge, with creepy organic drifts and vocals that emanate from cobwebbed cathedral towers. KDRonderlin - Way To BeRate This Tune!Watch The Video To Three Time...

Motocade - Into The Fall
2007-06-18 22:46:00
This has been sitting in my inbox for a while now but I find myself returning to it regularly. Motocade are from Auckland and cut the sorta dash in angular ditties that you?d have expected the ?Silent Alarm? version of Bloc Party to conjure. Motocade play it hard and fast but never forget to include a good tune amidst all the scattered riffage. ?In The Fall ? is taken from the band?s second EP ?Into The Fall?. And good value it is too as the EP boasts 7 tracks in total. The song is adroit at short bursts of intense energy that come alternatively from the sharp riffs and Eden Mulholland?s rapid-fire verbal volleys. And it?s all tempered by some pleasing background harmonies to seal the deal on a neat little track. KDMotocade - Into The FallRate This Tune!Watch The Video To Bomb SquadMore Info: Official & MyspaceBuy EP: Into The Fall Year: 2007
More About: Cade , Toca

For Against - Coalesced
2007-06-18 11:56:00
For Against have a rich musical heritage stretching back to the early 1980?s. I hadn?t heard of them until I stumbled across their music on the words on music label?s website. For Against create an attractive formula with Jeffrey Runnings lean vocals and their preference for energetic jangling riffs. This approach is never more evident than on the title track from their last album ?Coalesced? released in 2002. There is more than a hint of C86 in evidence with the vital ingredients uncluttered by plush recording techniques and openly left to fend for themselves. Things go supernova in the second half as the words are dropped in favour of the charge of the lightly tugged chord brigade. This is a band to fall in love with. KDFor Against - CoalescedRate This Tune!More Info: Official & MyspaceBuy Album: Coalesced Year: 2002