[ aquarius records — Rock Pop ]

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Showing results 4451 through 4500 of 19388.

Comparisons to the wonderful, bright harmonies of the Posies, as well as Sloan and Velocity Girl immediately jump to mind. Bursts of fuzz-laden guitars. Perky boy/girl vocals that bounce along from English to Japanese to French and back again. If you're

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On their lovely 2005 'debut' L'Avventura, Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham went by their full names, now that they're all 'established' (as if you weren't already, former Lord and Lady of Luna-ville!), they're on first name basis. Heck, it's the most natural thing to do because Back Numbers is so warm, welcoming and familiar. It's like meeting up again with an old friend. There's no awkward pauses in making this acquaintance, just pick right up where you last left off. An enveloping album of dulcet, downy pop as only Mr. Wareham can do, and we love it! The duo are joined once more by Sonic Boom for a little keyboard and guitar flourish, and producer Tony Visconti. Amid their original numbers they've included a smashing cover of Lee Hazlewood's "You Turned My Head Around" as well as Claudine Longet's "White Horses", Donovan's Teen Angel" and The Troggs' fantastic "Our Love Will Still Be There". Glorious.

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Of the Chinese indie-rock outfits that has been pouring into the store over the past few years, Dear Eloise has been one of our favorites. Fuzz-laden dream-pop par excellence, this husband-wife duo from Beijing has mastered the wistful blur of shoegazing icons such as the Lilys, Galaxie 500, and whatever your current favorite band on Slumberland is at the moment. Both Sun Xia and Yang Haisong had previously been members of the highly respected art-rock outfit P.K.14, with Yang continuing to split his time between both groups. The songs of Dear Eloise drip with sugary barbs of post-Jesus & Mary Chain guitar noise, with vocalist / bassist Sun dictating much of the twee-tastic pop sensibilities through her '60s single-note, hipsway low-end pluck and chanteuse vocal airiness. Farewell To The Summer takes a slightly different turn for Dear Eloise with a slower pacing to the tunes, though all of the squalls of shoegazed noise still snake their way through the record. As such, we're hearing a lot more Low coming through the mix, especially those slowcore early classic albums The Curtain Hits The Cast and I Could Live In Hope. The eight-and-half minute gloom-pop dirge "Room" is a prime example, with the basslines reaching a slow, heavy torpor with a simple drumkit backbeat, while an interplay of deep-background caustic guitar noise and rainy-day electric twang sets a thoroughly introspective, bleary mood. A similar swagger can be heard in the slo-mo pop of "Scenery" and "Elandor", while "Clean" modernizes the Phil Spector wall-of-sound with a relatively up-tempo jangle and more shuffling rhythms. The albums' finale "Silence" looks more to the NZ sound of avant-noise with rolling cymbal crashes and discordant guitar flurries layered as a sustained murmer of high-frequency glistening and shimmering, with Sun's naked vocals being the major difference between this and a great piece of avant-fug-noise by Michael Morley and / or Bruce Russell. Very nice to hear Dear Eloise once again!

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THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. Uncontrollable, Ice Age Stories was recorded back in 2012, but for whatever reason wasn't released until late 2015 / early 2016. Dear Eloise has long been one of our favorite artists in the Beijing indie-pop community, consistently producing album after album of fuzzed-out, shoegazing dream pop, jangling with the best of the C86 crowd and dragging out Phil Spector style wall-of-sound production with the reverb cranked even higher. Where all of the other Dear Eloise albums trace their way through ethereal, noise-pop melodies, Uncontrollable taps into an early Jesus & Mary Chain vibe, with a tempetuous squall of dense, psychedelic feedback settled behind the wistfully bittersweet pop arrangements for chiming guitars, breathy vocals, and a perfectly primitive rhythm section. Many of these songs straddle twee shambolic tendencies that dominated much of the Flying Nun catalogue, matched by the mid-tempo gloom pop hypnosis, channelling so many things that we love - The Aislers Set, Swirlies, Jesus & Mary Chain, Black Tambourine, and so many other shoegazing greats.

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We've been digging so much Chinese indie rock around aQ lately, including a recent Record Of The Week from synth/drum duo White+, the dissonant shoegaze Sonic Youth meets MBV of Boyz & Girl, and Dear Eloise, whose full length we reviewed recently, and who traffic in a sort of fuzzed out noisy jangly shoegaze, not that far removed from early Dun Dum Girls, that sound in full effect here on this new split, their track crumbling and noisy, washed out and dreamy, ethereal female vox over crunchy psychedelic guitar, laced with bits of twang and a woozy wandering bassline, lo-fi and fuzzy, a Velvets style minimal rock doused in distortion. The flipside features another Chinese group, Underground Lovers, who we had never heard before, and who deliver a sort of eighties style retro new wave jangle pop, the sort of thing you might hear from some Brooklyn band on Sacred Bones or Captured Tracks, boy girl vox and lilting lovely guitar jangle. Housed in super striking silkscreened sleeves, and pressed on clear vinyl!

As we get more and more new music from China in the shop, we do our very best to get as much of it reviewed as we can. We made the strange synth and drum duo White+ our Record Of The Week a while back. And raved about the most recent record from Boyz & Girl, and on the last list we reviewed a single from Dear Eloise, promising that we would review one of their full lengths eventually, and here it is. Like that single, Beauty In Strangers is a gorgeous collection of distortion drenched shoegaze twee pop. Minus the hazy buzz and squalls of soft focus feedback, this might be the sort of record you'd expect to find on Slumberland (or back in the day, maybe Sarah or K), but Dear Eloise take their lilting jangle pop and wrap it in thick warm swirls of shoegazey distortion, gauze-y sheets of buzz and thrum, the perfect prescription, lush noise pop bliss out, equal parts classic jangle pop and experimental shoegaze, just check out the opening two tracks here, the first a laid back, sun dappled dose of dream pop, opening with what sounds like TV static, and barking dogs, that static transformed into a shimmery backdrop for the crystalline guitars and angelic vox, simple melancholic melodies, and stripped down instrumentation, but then the second track (the titles are all in Chinese), is a whole different beast, opening with a squall of feedback, the sound way more hi-fi, laying down a driving bass and drum groove, a little bit gloom poppy, the vocals soaring dramatically over the top, soon, swells of crumbling static begin to surface, as well as some spidery guitar melodies, those guitars eventually growing more and more distorted until they finally explode into a a dense psychedelic swirl of feedback and grinding guitar noise, all the while the song pulses hypnotically and dreamily beneath. Which is pretty much the musical math of Dear Eloise, their sound a collision of classic twee pop songsmithery, and modern avant noise pop, Sonic Youth, the Swirlies and the like, both sides of the band equally appealing, but the band is at their best, when they land somewhere right in the middle.

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Chinese indie rock! Includes lyric sheet and download code. Limited to 500, numbered.

We've been getting all sorts of music from China in recently, visitors to the store have no doubt noticed our overflowing Asia section, much of it from a blossoming Chinese indie rock scene which has spawned at least two aQ faves of late, a recent Record of The Week of abstract drums and synths spaciness from White+, and the shoegazey jangle pop of Boyz & Girl (both of which should be restocked soon, btw!). Another favorite that had yet to make it onto the list/site was a group called Dear Eloise, whose cds we constantly sell out of before getting enough to review. So we're happy to finally have enough of one of their records to be able to share Dear Eloise's fuzzy shoegaze dream pop with all our faithful, non-local aQ-ers. This super limited 7" is some perfectly poppy, fuzz drenched jangle pop shimmer, all hazy washed out production, ethereal breathless vocals, everything wreathed in sheets of warm guitar buzz and laced with spidery melancholy melodies, wistful and woozy, the drums buried in the mix, more a rhythmic pulse than a proper rhythm, sun dappled and dreamily druggy, the A side is pure shoegaze bliss pop radness. While the B side gets a bit more experimental, laying down a sprawl of almost industrial rhythms, beneath billowing clouds of swirling hiss, and shimmery soft noise, buried within though are of course some dreamlike melodies, and lilting vocals. The song's swirling jangle pop core is tangled up in something a bit more abstract and psychedelic, making for a gorgeously blurred and fragmented avant shoegaze murk pop gem! Pressed on clear coke bottle vinyl, and housed in hand screened covers, all different colors! And yeah, super limited of course...

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Portland, Oregon trio Dear Nora make very very pretty, but not sugary pop. Slightly wistful, bittersweet teen girl tunes with harmonies a-plenty like those of Heavenly or Rose Melberg. Recorded by the awesome Amy Linton of The Aislers Set in her basement

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THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. Dear Nora is the moniker under which Ms Katy Davison performs her sweet lullaby tunes, and she's got the absolute perfect voice for it. Here it's just her and her 8-track in her kitchen doing a cover of Bob Dylan's "Girl From The North Country" (although when it started we could've sworn it was "Scarborough Fair"). On the flipside of this baby blue record are pop sweetheart twosome Mates Of State doing their version of Jackson Browne's "These Days". With Jason handling the lead vocals, it's given an almost John Denver-y feel. So there you have it - a lil' SF split 7" to give you the warmest of fuzzies.

While we totally dug Matthew Dear's debut from several years ago, we just haven't gotten into his last few outings as much as we wanted to, but with Black City, he shows us why we fell for him in the first place. He merges elements of house, electro funk, and dark pop into such a compelling and unique sound, one as influenced by folks like Herbert and Swayzek as it is Gary Numan, early Nine Inch Nails and mid-era Cabaret Voltaire. While there has been no shortage of white guys doing their best Prince imitations in recent years, we love how Matthew Dear takes elements of Prince's sound yet totally injects his own voice and style in it, adding darker beats, sleeker rhythms and more hypnotic melodies, all without having to resort to a really forced high pitched vocal delivery, which so many others do and just comes off as beyond corny. Kind of like if Junior Boys started listening to lots more dirty techno or how that last James Pants record tapped into the same kind of unique hybrid of electronic left-field pop. Undeniably groovy and funky and so very good.

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We were pretty into the inaugural release in Captured Tracks new Shoegaze Archive series, the collected works of Texas dreampoppers Should (reviewed last list), so we were super psyched to check out the second in the series, this one from a New Jersey band with the strange moniker Deardarkhead, and who had an even stranger sound, at least initially, and in the context of a shoegaze series. Their sound, at least at first, based on the first few tracks, was much more deathrock, more gothy and gloomy than shoegazey, not that we're complaining, in fact some of us dig the deathrock side of the band much more. The liner notes featuee much gushing over Robert Smith and Ian Curtis and Ian McCulloch the Jesus And Mary Chain, so it shouldn't be that much of a surprise, just check out the opener "Fish": thick low slung Joy Division bass, wild squalls of psychedelic guitars, and then the vocals, deep and dramatic, a gothic croon if there ever was, when we first threw this on, we were hearing Kommunity FK and the Abecedarians, in fact it brought to mind the Scream compilation, which chronicled a parallel scene happening in LA around the same time, one where DDH would have felt right at home. While their sound did get a little bit shoegazier over the course of their career, they never shed that gothiness, and compared to a lot of shoegaze, these guys were pretty heavy, their sound big and brawny, the guitars heavy, the drums loud, the production thick and lush, reminding us more of bands like Swervedriver, which is most definitely not a bad thing, the big change seems to be that that deep croon softened and became more fey and ethereal and Morrisey like, while the music remained mostly dark an dreamy and surprisingly heavy (for the time at least, and certainly for that scene), sonically, this whole collection is pretty bad ass, from the early gothier deathrock jams, to the later buzz drenched guitar heavy shoegaze blissouts, and we seem to be listening to this a whole lot in the store, which is usually a pretty good sign. Includes a booklet with liner notes and rare photos.

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It's been a while since we heard from these Montreal musicmakers. From the sounds of this new album, it sure seems like they've been polishing their chops, and sharpening their songwriting quills in the interim. This elegant Canadian band has actually been together for over a decade, but while other similarly art-pop minded Canadian indie groups (Broken Social Scene, Hidden Cameras, Arcade Fire to name just three) have been flooding the playing field both at home and abroad, Murray Lightburn and co. have taken their own sweet time -- releasing their debut album in 2000 and what is their third full length proper now six years later. The (typically Canadian self-deprecatingly titled) Gang Of Losers is considerably more accessible and straightforward than The Dears we remember. Each song is far less ornate and theatrical than those on either 2004's No Cities Left or 2000's End Of A Hollywood Bedtime Story. Nonetheless, the group's engaging pop dramatics continue to remind us of old Pulp. A good thing! Much like Jarvis Cocker, Lightburn has definitely got some great slightly tweaked yet lavish pop sensibilities of his own. One question tho': For the main melody in the ninth song "Whites Only Party" did the band borrow the "Perfume" descending piano line from the latest Sparks album? It's certainly a catchy lil' line in a catchy lil' tune... er, both of 'em! Heartily recommended for fans of all of the abovementioned artists, really! Bonus: Included are three U.S. exclusive tracks ("The Highest", a demo version of "Whites Only Party", and an acoustic version of "There Goes My Outfit").

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Maybe you've heard the hype on this Detroit punk rock reissue already. And it's almost too good to be believed. Back in 1974, this trio of brothers, who are also all "brothers" in the African-American sense of the word, and who were fans of the likes of Black Sabbath and The Stooges and Alice Cooper and the MC5, started a band called DEATH, recording an album that was never released (apparently they refused to change their name to get a major label deal). Flash forward to the present. One of these dudes plays in a reggae band now, but his son is in a punk rock band. Dad's like, "hey son, did y'know I had a band like that when I was your age." And then pulls these dusty, 30-some year old master tapes out of the closet. Holy shit, dad!! The long lost Death album. And it IS killer. Not just proto-punk, but practically proto-hardcore. Hear for yourself. The suggestion that HR and the Bad Brains - or Black Flag for that matter - heard this stuff back in the day and were inspired by it (Death did release a 7" single in 1976) doesn't seem entirely implausible. Not sure how Death stayed unknown for so long. Apparently the brothers, finding that Death's brand of uncompromising, politically radical, high energy rock action wasn't getting them anywhere, moved in a more gospel (!) direction... so that was it for Death. Until now, with Drag City's at-long-last release of Death's 1975 album (well, mini-album, it's seven songs, just over 26 minutes). Opener "Keep On Knocking" is a decent enough rocker, hinting at the MC5, the Rolling Stones and maybe early badass KISS but it's tame compared to the hyperactive glam slam of what follows - when track two "Rock-N-Roll Victim" comes on and kicks you in the nuts, repeatedly, you'll really realize how freaking punk Death were. Frantic guitars locked in with frenzied drumming, crazed vocals, handclaps (yeah!)... it's pretty darn smokin'. Smoking somethin' all right. They mellow things about a bit for "Let The World Turn", though just a bit. "You're A Prisoner" is another heavy rocker, and "Freakin Out" doesn't let up, its title no lie. "Where Do We Go From Here???" and "Politicians In My Eyes" are the two remaining tracks on this disc, and the latter in particular is a fierce blend of soulful vocal expression and raging, distorted rockin' with a little bit of a funky vibe. Wow. Definitely in the vein of something like Crushed Butler, but from Detroit a few years later... or in the vein of the Damned, but from Detroit a few years earlier! So, yeah, believe the hype. And by the way, this destroys all that Black Rock Coalition stuff from the early '90s... Drag City must have been *stoked* to get to put this out. We're sorta surprised there's no liner notes, though they do include handwritten lyrics. Also, fyi, this is available on vinyl but we could barely get any, maybe we'll get some more eventually since the couple copies we have at the moment will be gone in a wink...

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The trilogy is complete! The third and likely final volume of unearthed archival recordings from now-celebrated '70s Detroit rockers Death has now been released via Drag City. Who knew it was going to be a trilogy? Well of course it would have to be, what with Death being a trio of brothers. It's obviously another thing orchestrated from beyond the grave by Death's late mastermind, eldest brother David Hackney. We probably don't have to explain the whole amazing story behind Death to you at this point - hopefully you've picked up one or both of the their other two full-length releases, and seen the really excellent and touching documentary film about them, A Band Called Death (you really should see it if you haven't!). But it's not just that Death is such a great story - it wouldn't matter as much if their music wasn't so killer, which it is. So what did they find to fill up this third volume? With recordings done in 1975 and '76, some more from 1980, and one final cut from 1992, it's all over the place. You do definitely get another dose of Death's intense post-Hendrix, proto-punk - this is especially worth it for "North Street", full of hyper caffeinated drumming and living-in-the-ghetto lyrics. Totally could have been on the first Death album, For The Whole World To See. However, a lot of the rest of the material here wouldn't exactly rank among the "hardest" tracks that Death ever cut, much of it being more gentle and soulful, with sunshiney, R&B grooves. There's spacey psychedelic noodling, and even a track of almost country-folk balladry. But it's all pretty good, still possessing the mystical, out-there Death vibe for sure, if exhibiting a lot less of the punked out attack that caught everybody's attention in the first place. Really some of it's quite moving, particularly if you've seen the heartwarming movie, in which one of these songs previously was heard (the ballad "We're Gonna Make It"). We'd say Death newbies need For The Whole World first and foremost, but if you're a fan, you'll want this also.

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Two more Death songs unearthed, with another whole lp on the way!!

The rabid response to Drag City's monumental release of Death's For The Whole World To See - a lost classic if there ever was one - had people everywhere foaming at the mouth for MORE MORE MORE Death. It was really hard to believe that such a primal and emotive slab of heavy punkish rock n' roll could have gone UNRELEASED since its 1975 recording, nor that there could be even MORE in the vaults. Yet astonishingly, Drag City have once again come through with this awesome collection of demo tracks from these Detroit rockers - the brothers Hackney - recorded by the band in their practice space between 1974-1976, some of which served as preproduction for the album proper. The sound here is raw, upfront, and bullshit-free, and like FTWWTS, quite a revelation when one considers the state of rock music before punk exploded. While comparing these guys to Bad Brains may seem a bit cynical at first - ya know, both being all-black rock bands seeming to exist in a world of their own - it really is an apt comparison, especially if anyone is familiar (as they should be) with the Bad Brains' demo album Black Dots. Like those songs, the sound here is swinging and kinda loose without too much fuzz or distortion muddying things up. There are definite nods to the heavier sounds of the late '60s/early '70s (think Alice Cooper, Sabbath, etc.) AND the Beatles ("The Masks" shifting from mean power chords into a brilliant, scuzzed out appropriation of "Got To Get You Into My Life"), and throughout there is a surprising melodicism (check out the tuneful guitar workout of "The Change") and vocals that often rise into the manic screams we all loved from the album proper. The brothers seem to know exactly where to take things, which isn't surprising considering they had been jamming together since the '60s. The lyrics are also awesome, focusing on the state of the world and where things might be heading. There's also some in-the-practice space experimenting thrown in at the end, hinting at possible directions the band unfortunately never headed in before dissolving. While this might not be For The Whole To See Pt. II, it is nonetheless an essential slab of proto-punk greatness by a band who is finally getting their due, and we couldn't be happier to have this in our dirty little hands. YEAH!

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Death & Vanilla should hardly be a secret anymore, as the Swedish retro-futurist outfit has catapulted their low-key releases on Hands In The Dark to the seminal British independent imprint Fire Records. Those earlier albums were on the shortlist of those albums we'd play in the shop on busy Saturday afternoons, knowing that we'd capture the imagination of our enlightened customers here at aQuarius. In years past, others on that list might have also been Os Mutantes, Neutral Milk Hotel, Boards Of Canada, shit even the Conet Project, and yes The Beta Band (which we had known to tickle the ear well BEFORE it was the punchline in High Fidelity). Seductive retro-art-pop of sci-fi dreaminess and bachelor pad slinkiness, that's the stuff of Death & Vanilla. Their soft-as-snow production has all of the feel of an all analog recording by the Silver Apples or the United States of America, with the ghostly vocals of Marleen Nilsson rippling through the echoplex and spring reverb before settling onto the tactile magnetic tape drawing magical daylight out of the arctic dark nights. To Where The Wild Things Are doesn't seem to have anything to do with the beloved Maurice Sendak book of a very similar name. Given how much control and precision they exact over their references, what else might the title refer to? The interwoven melodies and harmonies for Nilsson's voice, those analogue synths, and the bell-tone tremolo guitars latch onto a deluge of impeccably written drifting waltzes, motorik Kraut rhythms, and jaunty beat-pop grooves. We're not alone in seeing the obvious connection between Death & Vanilla and lamentably late Broadcast; and the Swedes are clearly channeling the ghosts of Broadcast in their studio sessions as seance, but there's much that Death & Vanilla brings to the table that's their own. One of the most charming pop records of 2015.

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THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

A marvelous haunted-pop ep from Sweden's' Death & Vanilla, who reprises two of the best tracks on their 2015 album To Where The Wild Things Are. The titular track and "Follow The Light" are blithe tracks of bachelor pad psychedelic poptunes with a soft focus of sexy spookiness rendered through mellotrons and sampled harpsichords accompanying the tremolo fuzzed guitars and the breathy delivery from Death & Vanilla's chanteuse Marleen Nilsson. Two unreleased tracks find their way onto the B-side with a radiophonic track of Derbyshire-ish analogue percolations leading into a triumphantly cinematic number that should make Morricone stand up and take notice. A repeating motif for a wordlessly vocalized melody builds through an groovy piece of avant-pop tension, only to collapse into a swirling melancholy where Nilsson's soft focus voice and an acoustic guitar are the lone protagonists amidst all of Death & Vanilla's vibrato trills and tremolo frills. As we said, marvelous!

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Here's the much needed reissue of Death And Vanilla's first ep, which was originally released in a tiny edition of just 100 copies a couple years back; and truth be told, this reissue will suffer the same fate, as the vinyl has also sold out amazingly fast. Death And Vanilla are a low-profile Swedish duo that triangulate themselves in the forgotten futures of Duophonic era Stereolab, the Focus Group's curiosity shoppe of library music electronics, and Broadcast's avant-pop anachronisms. Given how well D&V manage to operate in this context, it is a bit surprising that a Thrill Jockey or a Matador hasn't banged on their door. But for us, it's all fine and good for the duo to remain in their perch above the largest cemetery in their hometown of Malmo, continuing to produce a Spartan catalogue of spellbinding, sublime albums. Like all of those more contemporary references, Death & Vanilla's impeccable taste in pop music telescopes back to the late '60s with French new wave films, sultry Cinecitta psyche pop, Italian horror grandiosity, and the tried and true motorik rhythms of Neu! The arrangements are baroquely set with fuzzed out / vibrato guitars, slinky basslines, theramin, moog, glockenspiels, vibraphones, and harpsichords, with vocalist Marleen Nilsson breathily crooning like an opiated but just as dreamy Brigitte Bardot. Brilliant stuff this Death & Vanilla; and this expanded version of the original ep features three exquisite bonus tracks, including one based on the work of Daphne Oram and sporting an unsettling extracted piece of dialog from the film Marathon Man. Oh, you know which one.

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The first pressing of this single from the brilliant Swedish, haunted-pop duo Death And Vanilla was cut on a square slab of vinyl and disappeared before we even knew about it. This marks the second (now round, like normal) pressing, which will undoubtedly see the same fate given its paltry pressing of 300 copies. But colored vinyl still this time around too... As we mentioned in the review of their nearly impeccable eponymous lp from 2012, Death And Vanilla deftly channel all of the references that Broadcast also incorporated into the delicious retro-futurist pop on albums like Tender Buttons and The Focus Group, including the United States of America, Free Design, and any given BBC Radiophonic reference you could imagine (e.g. Derbyshire, Oram, White Noise, etc.). The two cuts here pick up right where that record left off with spookily disembodied female vocals floating above fantastic '60s avant-pop with melodies woven from vibraphones, blooping synths, and languid guitar strummings situated above spry rhythms. It's really a shame that there's only 300 of this second pressing around, as Death And Vanilla are way too good to remain an unknown. But for those who are quick on the draw, you'll have a gem on your hands.

Death And Vanilla are a Swedish haunted-pop duo who have found themselves caught in the vortex of retro-futurism circa 1969. On the one hand, they've got a good grip on the baroque psychedelia of the United States Of America, Free Design, and even some of the more woolly tracks that Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg produced; and on the other, they're keen on the whole library music phenomenon augmenting their songs with plenty of sparkling synths, crackling radiophonic samples, EVP recordings (yup, that is Raymond Cass, we hear!), and tripped-out-to-space production tricks that would be right out of the Daphne Oram and Delia Derbyshire playbooks. There's even a track on this album called "Library Goblin"! If you might think all of this seems like the same strategy that Broadcast employed on their highly acclaimed collaborations with The Focus Group back in 2009-2010, you'd be pretty spot on. Even the unnamed female vocalist for Death And Vanilla sounds an awful lot like Broadcast's Trish Keenan, with her breathy delivery and unexpected melodies which soar above the monochromatic lullaby of many of the songs. As sacrosanct as it may seem, Death And Vanilla may be better songwriters than Broadcast; their cinematic pop gem "Cul-De-Sac" should be in the running for poptune of 2012 for sure with its complex interweave of harpsichord, vibraphone, fuzzed guitar, strutting basslines, and shuffling rhythms all driven by the vocal harmonies, which transitions rather deftly into the far more experimental avant-pop number "Sombambulists" which drifts aptly towards a dreamy headspace of loping basslines and percolating synths all bathed in sound-dissolving reverb. The filmic references also abound on tracks like "The Unseeing Eye" and the aforementioned "Library Goblin" as sublimely revisionist '60s pop numbers with bubbly vibraphones and seductive vocals amidst electronic filigree and charming synth blorp, before disintegrating into an otherworldly interlude of ethereal radio noise and cosmic vibrations. As such, it's a pretty irresistible album for any fan of Broadcast, Ghost Box, and Stereolab. The lp has already gone through a couple of pressings, but hopefully, we'll be able to keep this one in stock for a while. It's totally worth it!

The second album from the slyly witty and all too charming British lass Angie Tillett. Following up on her self titled debut on Mike Alway's If... label, as well as the wonderous Lollipop Train recording for the Mike Alway via Siesta imprint Reverie, Tillett treats us to more originals than covers this time 'round. The title track is actually a cover, and was also featured on the If... compilation "Songs For The Jet Set 2" a few years back. If you're unfamiliar with this clever girl's work, she has a fascination with children's stories and '60s psychedelia -- an odd combination, but really very similar considering both deal with loads of abstract imagination and bewilderment. In Tillet's world, with a dash of innocence, anything is possible. Ultra-retro British pop with charming voice-overs between songs make this seem like listening to a Brit teen variety tv show. Somewhat repetitive at times, though entertaining and fun.

So crazy to think that it's been well over a decade since we first became smitten with the hearts on sleeves, bittersweet indie pop of Death Cab For Cutie. Those early records (Something About Airplanes, We Have The Facts And We Are Voting Yes) will always be so near and dear to our hearts. In fact DCFC played an awesome instore at aQ back in the day. Codes And Keys is their eighth full length, and their third for Atlantic. Not tons has changed with their sound over the years. This outing does find them introducing more layers and subtle bits of electronics into their sweetly melancholy indie pop sound. Ben Gibbard sounds as introspective as ever, and the songs are filled with the kind of hooks and melody that have made them the perfect band to put on mixtapes for crushes for over a decade now. Dedicated fans will find lots to love on this new outing.

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MPEG stream: You Are A Tourist
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SORRY. For this ep the intricate downer-pop of AQ sales sensations Death Cab For Cutie takes on a preciousness more like the bittersweet songsmithery of Yo La Tengo on "Painful" than the indie-rock dynamism of Built To Spill, which characterized Death Cab's two previous records. Two tracks from "We Have The Facts and We're Voting Yes" appear in alternate forms, and the band also presents three new tracks.

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We can't think of a band who we've put on more mix tapes or listened to on more roadtrips than Death Cab For Cutie. When we need a break from obscure music obsession, it's really nice to have bands you can turn to when you just want songs that speak to your heart and those ever so simple yet universal emotions that all of us are filled with. Narrow Stairs finds DCFC in fine form. Sounding as crisp and charged as ever, the band has made the transition into their new major-label life quite effortlessly. We're pretty confident that this is the same kind of record they would have made at this point in their career even if they were still on Barsuk. "I Will Possess Your Heart" has become our new favorite DCFC song of the moment, we love how no vocals enter the song until about 5 minutes in, reeling you into their driving grasp and then of course Ben Gibbard's irresistible sincere and sensitive voice comes in to score the winning touchdown. Yikes, we just used a sports metaphor, but it's sort of fitting as there is something so wholesome and everyday about Death Cab's music. They have sort of become the Hall & Oates for folks with an indie sensibility. And it's kind of perfect that their new record comes out as we approach summer as their songs suit the season so well. The soundtrack to a summer fling, the aftertaste as that fling comes to an end, warm nights, the yearning, barbeques with friends you haven't seen in ages. Their topics and methods aren't weird or controversial at all, but their solid and honest delivery always hits the spot so dead on with hearts on sleeves and conviction intact.

MPEG stream: I Will Possess Your Heart
MPEG stream: Your New Twin Sized Bed
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Okay folks! Here it is, beloved indie pop band Death Cab For Cutie's major label debut! While we've already heard grumbles from a number of their ol' devoted fans about it, we implore you to give 'er a chance why don't ya? C'mon, the fact of the matter is that if you didn't know about their change of record label home, you probably wouldn't have your crosshairs zeroing in on this new album. It'd probably be welcomed with open arms and loving ears, just as every other Death Cab release before it has been. Having listened to it a few times already, we can say that, yes, it is a bit slicker than their past recordings, but heck, they've been heading in a more polished, restrained direction for some time now, haven't they? We're sure Atlantic has definitely afforded them more deluxe recording production accommodations and amenities, but the band has by no means abused nor flaunted them on Plans. Darker hues, more bittersweet than sweet. With Plans, Ben Gibbard and Co.'s charming heart-melting tendencies will surely be welcomed by an even broader audience, but will also continue to enchant their long-time devotees.

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AVAILABLE AGAIN ON VINYL FOR A LIMITED TIME. An all time AQ perfect pop favorite! Here's our brief yet concise review from way back in the 20th century before these guys had gotten HUGE: At the risk of slipping into hyperbole, which we try avoid at all costs (snicker...), this is hands down, one of the best (and possibly most overlooked - we almost missed it ourselves, gasp!) indie rock records ever. Landing somewhere between 'There's Nothing Wrong With Love' and 'Perfect From Now On', Death Cab craft a Built-to-Spill-ian universe, full of lazy sad pop, intricate compositions, jangly melodies, shifting structures, odd time signatures, and haunting cellos. This record has been an unbelievable hit in the store. It's pretty much never ever been played without at least one person buying it, sometimes 2 or 3!

So this it it we guess. Death Cab For Cutie's indie farewell. This here ep is their final release as a non-major label entity. Hard to believe how huge they've gotten, but it's not like they don't deserve it. Death Cab are easily one of the best indie pop bands around. This seven track ep is super dooper limited (in fact it's out of print already) and the label only made a bunch for their favorite stores, so we have 30 copies and that is it! The next Death Cab record you buy will be on Sony or something, and will probably be $17.98 and have a video in heavy rotation on MTV. So for now, just dig DCFC's spunky hooky emo pop, all a little rocked up since these tracks were all recorded live. Includes a cool tripped out, barely recognizable, almost Postal Service-y cover of Sebadoh's "Brand New Love". Cool cool cool!

MPEG stream: Brand New Love (Live)
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It's with a heavy heart that I bring you this report of the new Death Cab For Cutie record. I've listened to it several times now in the hopes that, like the last two albums, it would grow on me. Sadly, rather than grow, it has shrunk upon me like a pair of

RealAudio clip: We Laugh Indoors
RealAudio clip: Blacking Out the Friction
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At the beginning of their still short career, Death Cab For Cutie earned more than a few very favorable comparisons to Built To Spill, in crafting an effortlessly complex sound of major-chord pop hooks wrapped around indie-rock dynamisms. Yet, Death Cab has

RealAudio clip: 20th Century Towers
RealAudio clip: All Is Full Of Love

We knew they still had it in them, and Transatlanticism prooves it. After a two year recording hiatus (not including the b-sides / demos release You Can Play These Songs With Chords) while singer Benjamin Gibbard stretched his wings with Dntel's Jimmy Tamborello in their Postal Service project, Death Cab For Cutie returns with a full length that not only does not disappoint, but possibly even surpasses their excellent sophmore effort We Have the Facts... album of three years ago. While they will probably always be compared to Built To Spill (circa Perfect From Now On or even Keep It Like A Secret) Gibbard et al. have undoubtably come into their own. Along with all the great hooks and beautiful melodies we've come to expect from Death Cab, the group has gotten progressively more crafty with their sound, utilizing electronic elements (never overshadowing the songs themselves) and, though it may not seem like much, piano. The latter is really something that suits their sound well. DCFC always have had this nack for pensive and heart rending melodies and there's really nothing better to sink them into your skin than some rich, full chords on a piano. Though it's used sparingly here, they could risk bringing it out more on further recordings, IMHO. The album's title track is a perfect example. The song's epic 8 minute length, beginning with a slow repeated chord progression on the ivories, builds steadily, sucking you into its world and leaving you feeling lonely in its absense when the final chords drift off into oblivion. So so nice.

MPEG stream: The Sound of Settling
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Death Cab For Cutie's debut album "Something About Airplanes" emerged early last year from the mire of mediocre indie-rock as a breath of fresh air (after Andee found it in the dollar bin at Amoeba). These Northwesterners had crafted a near perfect Built-to-Spill-ian alternate universe where Built To Spill didn't make the major label jump, and continued to labor over their excessive orchestrations of melodic jangle-pop, intricate arrangements, and odd time signatures within the limitations of indie-rock recording budgets. Death Cab's second album "We Have The Facts, And We've Voting Yes" represents a maturation of their band, as they have clearly recognized that while it worked for one album, they can't ape Built To Spill for the rest of their recording career. As a whole, "We Have The Facts" is sounding less like Built To Spill, but it seems as though their venturing tentatively into an unknown space for them. The pace of Death Cab has slowed down to embrace a preciousness of songwriting with much quieter arrangements. All of the songs really do want to explode out of the delicate even sensitive moods into a major-chord pop hook, but the restrains have been set in place. "For What Reason" and "Company Calls" are as close as Death Cab comes to releasing that indie-pop sensibility loose, but it doesn't quite happen. It may be the critical kiss of death to say that this is an album that grows on you, but Death Cab's second release isn't going out of its way to bite you like its predecessor.

If there's one thing you can't criticize Death Cab For Cutie for it's their cover layout and design. Always with the nice die cuts and embossings. Top notch all the way. And this new (old) collection is no exception -- the front cover resembling an oversize slide with a picture of downtown Bellingham, Washington (hometown for Death Cab) taken sometime in the late sixties maybe. Andee pointed out that this concept was originally used by his old band A Minor Forest for their Flemish Altruism LP (not for the CD at the time, as the label had claimed it would be too expensive) and was done at the same place . Fortunately, it's not only the cover in which to be excited about with this release. Though not necessarily "new" tracks, they are -- with the exception of one track that sounds like a bad Soul Coughing demo -- all great and 9 of them have never been released previously (well, 3 of them were on a demo tape.) The first 8 tracks on this disc were originally released as a demo tape in 1997 (under the same name as this collection), 5 of them were re-recorded for their debut album Something About Airplanes. Of the remaining 10 tracks -- recorded between 1995 and 2002) -- only 4 were ever released (on the Forbidden Love ep and a 7") and were likewise alternate versions. The remaining 6 tracks are all previously un-released and includes a cover of Morrissey's "This Charming Man." Heads up to Death Cab fans who may have been disappointed by the Photo Album release, this one may be your antidote!

RealAudio clip: That's Incentive
RealAudio clip: This Charming Man

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Death Cheetah is probably a name new to you, it was to us, the man behind Death Cheetah though you might know as the guy who painted that bad ass pile of skulls album cover for the recent AmocomA record on tUMULt, he also contributed to the short lived Matter tape of the month series we reviewed a while back, but this super limited 3" is the first recording from the curiously named one man band, a teaser for an upcoming full length, but it's doubtful that could possibly be as cool as these. LIMITED TO 20 COPIES, of which we got ALL 20, each one hand painted, every single one super striking and unique, just like the music inside. Three tracks, the first one is some sort of brooding Bohren like crawl, all skittery brushed drums and deep rumbling low end, ominous hushed vocals, little muted flurries of soft focus keyboard, a blissed out nightmarish creep, slithery and shimmery and dark dark dark, almost jazzy, but more in a Necks sort of way, some seriously deeeeep slowcore minimalism, that builds to more of a downtempo plod near the end. The second track is totally different, stuttery dubbed out drums, dubstep style fuzzed out synth bass rumbles, shouted distorted vocals, a woozy post punk dubby groove, flecked with shards of reverb drenched guitar, streaks of synthesizer, it sounds like some lost eighties DIY deathfunk jam, but a bit more freaked out and abstract. The closing track veers more toward the minimalism of the opener, spare bits of guitar flutter, jazzy skittery drums, flickers of flute, acoustic guitar, tons of space, a slow slow late night drift, abstract and dreamy, smoke-y and gauzy and so so nice. Hard to get a handle on just what Death Cheetah is all about, three tracks, three different directions, but we like them all, and in some strange way they do all link together, and flow, and when taken with the meticulously hand painted covers, this is a gorgeous piece of outsider soundart, and one that won't be around for long, grab one of these quick or steel yourself for a long wait for the full length...

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MPEG stream: The Book That Bit Me

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SORRY. Second album of "ambient" music from avant speed guitar weirdo Buckethead (rearrange those letters) and constant pal Bill Laswell.

Dark Entries has only a couple of releases under their belt, but the aesthetic of the label is firmly dictated by those releases: darkened post-punk electronics and dour new wave. Obscure reissues seems to be the focus for Dark Entries, but then there is Death Domain, a contemporary one-man band out of Baltimore, who might as well have been releasing work in Belgium circa 1983. The two tracks here fall between two somewhat obscure sounds -- Kas Product (who you might recall doing the title track to the So Young But So Cold compilation of French coldwave from the '80s) and Leather Nun (in particular the Slow Death single recorded for Industrial Records way back when). Death Domain have the aggro rhythms of Kas Product cranked through the most primitive of drum machines, and the life-support system synths that Leather Nun provided for that one single. All together, it's pretty damn good. Yeah, Cold Cave again rears their oh so influential of late head here, but think Cremations, not Love Comes Close. Limited to 500 copies, with glow-in-the-dark silkscreened covers!

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Remixes and b-sides!

First off, love that cover. Pink is always nice and so are elephant trunks. Second...they know how to rock. Yup. Death From Above 1979 are a duo of bass/synth and drums and they're from Canada but we're sure being Canadian is not the only reason the Vice label signed 'em, 'cause as we said a second ago, this rocks. Noisily distorted and pogo-riffically catchy, maybe you can imagine this as being some kinda new wavy stoner rock? Like some sort of weird hybrid of Lightning Bolt and Queens of the Stone Age? I dunno, I'm sure there's been waaaaay more accurate comparisions made but that'll have to do. Anyway these guys prove that they have as much right as anyone to work up a sweat doing the "let's crank it up and rock" thing that so many young 'uns are doin' these days. It works for them. Y'know how it used to be (still is?) that boys start bands so they can get girls interested in them? Well we're guessing that classic motivation is part of the reason DFA1979 got together...and it might have done the trick. That's what this sounds like, anyway. C'mon, give 'em a chance to seduce you with their sweaty, noisy rock wiles.

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This record has been floating around for a while now, in various permutations, tapes, downloads, and now finally an lp, and a cassette again, maybe in anticipation of Death Grips' Epic label debut which is slated to drop later this month. And if you've yet to hear Death Grips, you might be a little surprised that they got snapped up by a major, cuz this is some fierce, grim, mean sounding shit. This Sacramento crew specializes in a twisted hybrid of hip hop and experimental electronics, the sound a dizzying assemblage of buzzing metal guitars, skittery programmed beats, bizarre samples, fractured glitched out buzz, twisted loops, seriously raw and lo-fi, but at the same time urgent and intense and fucking far out and super original. The vocals are fierce and furious, not so much just rapped as bellowed, and howled, which suits the heavy sounds in the background. While much of the drumming is programmed, the drummer in Death Grips is none other than Hella's Zach Hill, but don't be expecting much of that furious Lightning Bolt style frantic drumming, this is after all a hip hop record, so most of the beats are spare and stretched out, as much about their tone and timbre as the rhythms themselves. Opener "Beware" is about as close to perfect as the troublesome hybridization of hip hop and metal has ever gotten, with big chiming distorted chords, an epic almost rock song arrangement, skittery rhythms, and DG mainman Stefan Burnett laying down a fierce flow over the top. "Guillotine" sounds more like a super charged Sensational jam, the beat spare and skittery, the main loop a thick buzzing low end synth, the track laced with little flurries of sci-fi FX, and weird random blasts of psychedelic sound, not to mention a having chain clatter crunch and some motorcycle rev thrum, and the rapping, twisted and deliriously off kilter. "Spread Eagle Cross The Block" is a dizzying assemblage of looped pop song, big sing along verses, stuttery handclap beats, while "Lord Of The Game" is a head spinning shuffle with the main loop made from sliced and diced vocals, there's also Beastie Boys horn bleats, and a Crazy World Of Arthur Brown sample, all tangled up into a crazy rapid fire blast of rhythmic crush. The rest of the record is just as twisted and all over the map, and while we could go song by song and describe each one in turn, it should be obvious by now if this is your cup of seriously spiked tea or not, we'd be surprised if it wasn't, this is the sort of hip hop record that sounds like it was made for aQ, fucked up and funky, heavy and tripped out, groovy and super twisted. For a genre that seems to do less boundary pushing than it should, this is the sort of hip hop record that shakes shit up big time, and suddenly it's not such a surprise that this is getting the big underground buzz AND major label attention it so strangely deserves. Quite possibly our hip hop record of the year, and yeah it came out last year, but it's our favorite this year so far too!

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Originally released on vinyl for this year's Record Store Day, the Money Store is record number two from this weirdo outsider punk/noise/electro/hip hop trio from across the bay, whose debut, the twisted noise drenched Ex-Military was a huge hit around here, and The Money Store seems poised to follow suit. Although in some ways, this new record is a lot less weird, and a lot more polished, and while it's still fierce and fucked up, it's definitely not as outwardly angry, less a sonic brick in the face, and more like a carefully plotted and meticulously executed throat slitting, which we would imagine is a comparison these guys would dig. As with Ex-Military, Zach Hill from Hella is one of the guys behind the production, and while there may be live drumming, it definitely sounds like he spent more time programming beats, the sound more electro than anything, and even moreso that Ex-Military, the sound much more fully realized, more lush and layered, opener "Get Got" has a loop and a beat that sounds like it could've gone in an entirely different direction, and been sort of weird pop radio hit, but with Stefan Burnett's twisted flow and frenetic delivery, it helps transform the songs' shoegazey electro-jitter into something more jittery and dizzying, like some malfunctioning double dutch jam. "The Fever" hews closer to the first record, the flow more of a belligerent bellow, the beat a stuttery skitter, but again, the production is super slick and makes the song a bit more palatable, without taking away from the ferocity, which is definitely a delicate line to toe. The whole record is killer, every track here, all weirdo loops, twisted flow, sick beats, massive production, this is the sort of shit you imagine being blasted from a booming system in the car of THEE scariest dude in the hood, fucked up and fierce, but also groovy and funky, a little bit loopy and twisted, especially when they do the whole sped up soul sample thing, which here just makes things sound weirder then ever. Lots of this record remind us of one of our favorite weirdo outsider hip hop records EVER, Too Bad But True, by Fever, released on DHR way back in 1998, the same sort of disregard for standard song structure, typical rapping, lots of distortion and murk, fractured beats, twisted loops, almost like both groups decided to reinvent the genre from the ground up, and just inadvertently touched on the various elements that DEFINE the genre in most cases, but here those bits and bobs just got all fucked up and came out the other side practically unrecognizable, and got all tangled up into an already head spinning, bafflingly brilliant sound. Hip hop record of the year? Quite possibly, but word is there's gonna be ANOTHER Death Grips later this year, so we might have to reserve judgment until then!

MPEG stream: Get Got
MPEG stream: The Fever
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