Hinterland

Today's ramble is all about shoegaze and I'm not sure a week has gone by yet here without a solid or at least semi-relevant feature in that direction. Plenty of music blog folks are discovering and posting new bands from around the world that are re-creating similar variations of this now time tested sound for us. Today's featured band was part of a post on Mars Needs Guitars the other day. I honestly don't think you can classify what people refer to as shoegaze into a genre since it has been incorporated and evolved into so many other styles during the past several years. Plenty of the bands I've heard in the past 15 or so years interpret it in a definite Dinosaur Jr. or Hüsker Dü indie rock fashion. This makes sense to me since both bands were such a major influence to the original crop of late 80's/early 90's shoegaze musicians. Other artists have taken the sound into what I would consider a beautifully dark corner of the indie pop spectrum where female vocal talent is all important and the traditional wall of sound guitars are secondary, if present at all. The latter is where I would place today's featured band although you might disagree with me toward the end of this track when the guitars become slightly more pronounced. Whether you agree or not with my take on things above, this is a really great song and lead vocalist Michaela Galloway needs to be heard to be believed.



























Hinterland are five musicians from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada who began making music in 2000. After a pair of EPs in 2001 and 2002 the band's debut full-length album titled Under The Waterline was released in 2003 on HybridElectric Records. Their latest release The Picture Plane came out just this past February on Submerged Records and today's featured track is a part of that release. You can buy either of these at CD Baby for $13 USD or download their music via Zunior. Also, check out the Hinterland website for much more info and links. They have a MySpace page that is recommended for more listening and another song for download as well. The other songs are decidedly more pop-influenced but really good.















MP3: Object Lessons

The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra

One crazy thing led to another looking for yesterday's music and I stumbled upon yet another great band from Ireland in the process. I was immediately smitten and ended up listening to the featured song at least 5 times in a row before shaking the blank stare off my face in order to download the song. This is really nice acoustic stuff and I hope you enjoy it. I got a late start so this will not be the most detailed review but around halfway through the song it won't matter what I have to say at all. Temperature being the Gauge, this is probably one of the warmest songs I've had to offer here. The shared vocal responsibilities are divided equally, but as I am a complete sucker for the female tone, Ann Blake really did me in. There are no comparisons that need to be made here. I'm just glad to have found this music.















The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra is a sextet from all over Ireland so don't ask me to pin it down to anywhere else besides the college where they met. That would be University of Limerick circa mid 90's. They were separated after university and some years later re-grouped in 2004. The product of that reunion is what you are listening to here. You can visit the BPLO MySpace to hear some more music and add on to their friends list if you feel so motivated. There is also the BPLO website where the band's Fireside Chat EP is completely free to download. That might be the band's way of secretly taking over the world... shhh! Or at least Brad Pitt's identity. This one is highly recommended.













MP3: Talking To Yourself

Crayonsmith

I stretched out my legs yesterday in order to jump around music blogs on a mission of finding something for today's feature. After sifting through a ton of Richard Buckner posts I decided to call it quits. When I want the rust belt feel of American folk rock, all I need to do is visit this guy. Not that Buckner isn't good or anything. He's just not Superman as some bloggers would have you believe. (next week = new flavor) Needless to say, I abandoned my mission and high tailed it back to MySpace for a stint. I messaged a band from Ireland the other day but they haven't been online to answer the all-important question "do you have band pics?" Since I was on their page anyway, I decided to check out this oddly named artist that was sitting on a silver ball with a blue guitar. Sure glad I did. The growl of the backing guitar sets what could surely be described as a shoegaze stage but it never really builds into anything that trapped. Swervedriver or MBV will come to mind at first but by the end of the song you will have the musical picture this artist might want you to see (or hear.) It's a really nice song as you can probably already tell, and sometimes that is just enough for a good sit back and listen. I need that sort of thing to start off the week.













Crayonsmith is primarily the music of Ciaran Smith from Dublin, Ireland. To complete the full band he enlists the assistance of Ruadhan O' Meara and Ronan Jackson. Ciaran has been creating music since he was a child and in 2004 started his current project under the name Crayonsmith. The debut release Stay Loose is a true DIY bedroom style recording that was mixed a bit more by friend Steve Fanagan who runs the Slow Loris record label. If you visit the Crayonsmith Myspace page you can click to buy a copy of the album for €12.50 (roughly US $16/GBP £8.50 - and you can use PayPal), and you'll find more songs for listening and download as well as a MySpace video. Also stop by the Crayonsmith Website for much more info. There is also this really good YouTube YouTube video of Ciaran on a building rooftop playing acoustic guitar for you.



I hope this post finds you well and on your way to a tolerable non-hungover work week. I, on the other hand, might need some aspirin.













MP3: Scarytale

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Ok... It's classic Sunday and I have a good one for you. Don't expect me to go into the history of Pussy Galore here. I'm fairly drunk and have them planned for a future Sunday but I will give you what little I can from this part of the Jon Spencer experience. I'm not sure what it is about this guy that brings out the extremes in people. He has a beautiful wife in Christina Martinez of Boss Hog and an amazing musical history, but people get (yeah, I'll say it) downright catty about him. I think it brings out latent homosexual jealousy when people discount the full scope of this artist's body of work. I only say this because he is obviously an attractive (skinny marlboro man) guy and who wouldn't notice it?? I am way outta line and having fun doing it so just enjoy this song from the mid 90's. This is by far the worst review I've ever done and oh ho ho... I'm not done. I will, however, save the 1988 story of Necros drummer Todd Swalla throwing Mr. Spencer off an after hours front porch like a bag of antlers for another day. That was one hell of a party. In case you get bored this is what I looked like back then. Please have the slightest care before laughing it up.















In 1994 I had made my way to college and the newly released album Orange was a collection of new anthems for me while the previous year's gem Extra Width was still in heavy rotation on the block. Countless afternoons were spent with my stereo speakers pointed out of my apartment windows while we tossed a frisbee over oncoming traffic. The lineup of the band consisted of Jon on Vocs/Guitar, Judah Bauer on guitar and Russell Simins tending to (or beating the shit out of) the drums. Please notice that no bass was involved. This was the first exposure I had to a non-bass band and plenty of the musicians that do it now have Mr. Spencer to thank. They might even have been the first indie rock band to do it. Jon Spencer is now involved with a project called Heavy Trash on Yeproc Records but beyond that I have no information on the whereabouts of the balance of this incredible band. The song I was originally going to feature started out with "HEY BABY YOU SURE LIKE TO FUCK"... and actually, I think I will post it, as a bonus track. The only other thing I could find was this fan MySpace page. I'll edit this in the morning sooo...until then much love from a drunken Mr. Casey. Happy Sunday.

























Oh hell, I almost forgot. This classic show happend in 1990 or '91?? I was standing in a small bar called Staches here in Columbus and JSBX rocked out. There were no more than 20 people standing there to witness it. Buffalo Tom was outstanding also. Just for kicks, the opening act was local band Stupid Fucking Hippie. That might have been their only show...haha















MP3: Bellbottoms
Bonus MP3: Full Grown

The Low Lows

It's the weekend and there's not much going on here. I'll do some Saturday apartment cleaning and then I need to get out of the house for once. This music searching thing is fun but sometimes I need to get away from the computer in order to preserve my sanity. In other words, this is going to be a short write up. When I heard this song, it brought to mind a some lost soundtrack from a late 60's love story that would end in brutal tragedy. The reverb levels muffle what might otherwise be considered noise rock and I'm fairly sure there's a big difference between the live performance and recorded music with this band. Beautifully haunting and quite eerie in a recurring dream is how I would describe their sound. You can listen to some of the additional songs at The Low Lows MySpace Page.



















Parker & Lily were an NYC pop band that started in 1999. From what I read in their bio they moved to Athens, Georgia, at some point, and after 3 albums eventually split up in 2005. P.L. Noon, Daniel Rickard and Jeremy Wheatley were 3/4 of that band and have since gone on to form The Low Lows. Their debut full length release Fire On The Bright Sky will be released September 12th through Athens based Warm Electronic Recordings. The band is already working on material for a follow up LP to be titled Panther Panther. Check the The Low Lows website for more info on the band and live dates. The upcoming tour will last through the duration of October here in the states, and then take them off to Europe for some dates in Nov/Dec as well. If you enjoy a healthy dose of reverb, gentle feedback and the lo-fi end of the indie music spectrum in general, this is definitely worth your time.



















MP3: dear flies, love spider

The Carter Administration

It was extremely busy at the office yesterday and I didn't get so much as a few minutes to screw off in order to look around the Internet for today's feature. I got home and decided that The Lemonheads would stay on for another day and I would make my way up the street for cocktails. While having a pre-cocktail beer, I was on our MML MySpace page and saw a bulletin posted by previously featured Apollo Up! I mistakenly clicked their profile instead of the bulletin and ended up snooping around checking for other good bands they might have as friends. It didn't take long at all to find one. After a quick Skype call to Michelle we both listened and I was happily staying in for the evening to change music. I mentioned before that Nashville was a place I wanted to revisit for music and soooo... here we are. This is a great garage rock band that has just enough of a southern flare to keep me from thinking NYC. The rhythm is tense and urgent while the guitars lure you back in with simple yet amazing hooks at each turn. All of the songs I listened to were equally solid.















As I mentioned above, The Carter Administration are a power trio from Nashville, Tennessee. They formed in 1998 and have quite a few DIY releases since their inception. In 2005 they joined onto Theory 8 Records and released the full length Air Guitar Force One that summer (Aug. 26th). If you visit the Carter Administration MySpace there is plenty more to hear from the new EP God & Country. They will be giving this self-released CD out for free for the first time when they play 3 Crow Bar tomorrow night (Aug 26th also!?!) Coincidence in the dates ah? The band is also working on a new full length LP. Another good visit to make is to the Theory 8 MySpace page for more great music.














MP3: Evil Is The Way

Technical Woes

**We, or rather are hopelessly unreliable hosting site, EZArchive (can anyone recommend something better? Please?), are currently experiencing *ahem* 'technical difficulties', meaning that the MP3 links may not be working. Sigh... we're sorry about that - if you're trying to listen to any of the songs and having no luck, please check back a little later - EZArchive is temperamental, but always irons out its glitches soon enough.**

Blowoff album out Sept 5th: MML is excited!!

We at MML are very happy that the release date for Blowoff's album is almost upon us, and if you've heard Hormone Love, the first taste of what we can expect from this collaboration between Bob Mould and Richard Morel (featured here on MML back in June), you'll be very happy too. And if you've not heard it yet... what are you waiting for?? Here's the link to the song again, in case you missed it there... now go listen!

The self-titled longplayer comes out on September 5th, and can be pre-ordered direct from the Blowoff store on CD (they have Blowoff t-shirts, too, y'know... and even a bargain CD/t-shirt combo) - if you choose the express shipping option, your copy is guaranteed to reach you on the day of release. The album's available in digital format from the iTunes Music Store, too.

Roll on September 5th... this is going to be a good one.

The Lemonheads

Before I begin the writeup I'd like to say that I know this is a leaked unreleased track (purposeful or not.) I'm not the first to post this incredible new song and it will probably be flooding the music blogosphere soon enough. The song was so good, and such a surprise, I had to jump on the bandwagon this time. The official Lemonheads website acknowledges this and even points readers in the direction to find it. With that said, I loved The Lemonheads during the mid to late 80's. I followed them closely and still have a few of the first cassette tapes. Hate Your Friends and Creator were favorites and I can still remember driving around in a car full of empty beer cans and High School friends screaming at the top of our lungs "THERES NO SUCH THING AS A SECOND CHANCE". (I am well aware Evan didn't sing that one) Those were great days. I usually don't pay much attention to the bands that reunite from back then. I figure the new craze of reunions are geared more towards the younger generation that didn't get the chance to experience the music first time around. It's a good deal, but this band is a bit different. With all of the lineup changes over the years, it really is refreshing and notable that Evan Dando can bring this sound back for us. I can only hope this isn't a one time thing.













If the guitars sound a bit too familiar, it might be because Dinosaur Jr. front man J. Mascis is lending his signature sound for accompaniment. If you'd have asked me 20 years ago if I wanted to hear a song in which these two musicians performed together, I might have let you cut off one of my fingers to make it so. Well... now we all get to hear it and, as a bonus, I get to keep my precious digits. Bill Stevenson (drums and production) as well as Karl Alvarez (bass) both of Descendents/ALL fame round out the recording of this new release. The funny thing is, at a few points in the song you almost think Evan is fronting Dinosaur Jr. but In a quick second you once again feel like you've been transported back to the land of Taang Records. If you visit The Lemonheads MySpace you might think it is just a fan page but guess again. I checked and it's the real deal. The new CD will be released September 26th. You can pre-order through Vagrant Records right this moment if you wish. Oh and one more thing for you 30somethings... "RAT VELVET!!!"

(HEY... I found an old ticket stub from 14 years ago. I keep them in a little shoebox and will be bringing more of them out to share soon. xoxo Casey)















MP3: No Backbone

Heartless Bastards

After featuring an exceptional band from the UK yesterday, I felt the need to come back home (musically speaking) to Ohio for today's offering. I live an hour and a half or so north of Cincinnati and and am always amazed at the massive amount of good bands that are down in that area. The music bloggers and live music scene there are never at a loss and it doesn't hurt a bit that WOXY.com is such a stellar outfit. We could use a station like that here in Columbus. Anyway, I think it's a really cool thing that this band has been given such widespread media attention, yet keep themselves at a pace that lends you to believe they possess the gift of longevity. Since I was on a mission to have a clean kitchen last night, I tried to keep this writeup brief and to the point.














As I mentioned above, the Heartless Bastards are a trio from Cincinnati, Ahia. From the bio I read, I learned that vocalist/guitarist Erika Wennerstrom grew up in nearby Dayton, Ohio where she had extensive vocal and piano training. She met bassist Mike Lamping and drummer Kevin Vaughn when she moved to Cinci at age 22 and collectively they ended up with a damn good band. Their latest full-length release shares the name of today's featured title track All This Time and is available through Mississippi based Fat Possum Records. There are a few more MP3s there and also a Fat Possum MySpace page to hit up. The CD release party will be Sept. 1st at the historic Southgate House near Cincinnati and the previously featured Lab Partners will also be playing!! Check out the Heartless Bastards MySpace for even more music. Ok, I attempted not to be long winded. Just be glad you don't have me on the phone with you.















MP3: All This Time

Broken Robots

As I've mentioned in the past, one of the best parts about having the MML MySpace account is receiving bulletins about new projects and music released from the bands. It makes it much easier to keep up to date on things than if I were to attempt to go through endless music blogs and aggregators for the latest. Today's featured artists have been on my friends list for over a year now and have always been a great shoegaze listen. I've noticed recently, however, a new intensity in their music that puts aside some of the overly-delicate qualities that many other modern shoegaze bands rely too heavily upon. The guitars are more aggressive and the tempo is increasingly a driving backdrop. This enhanced sound is enough to earn their music the updated Dream Rock description in my book. At the same time, Mark, Damion and Annie, who share vocal responsibilities, keep it real in true MBV fashion. After reading a bulletin regarding this brand new track, I immediately went to take a listen. My computer's sound system has a really good sub-woofer and this song shook the hell out of the floorboards of my apartment. The track was halfway through and I had already begun typing a message to the band asking if I could feature it. Thanks BR!













Broken Robots are from Blackburn, UK and started out as the music project of Mark Woodward and Damion Bridson in 2004. Seeing as they are both guitarists/vocalists they soon decided to enlist the help of keyboardist/vocalist Annie Parsons. Eventually brought into the mix were Chris Eaves on drums and Ben Parsons on Bass to complete the 5 piece. If you visit the Broken Robots website there are additional songs and info on the band's upcoming debut EP. There is no specific DOR set as of yet but it will be released at some point in 2006. The band decided on the DIY approach for distribution and created their own label Landscape Records. The EP will be the label's debut release as well. Also check out the Landscape MySpace page. Finally, to hear even more music and get a copy of a 16 track demo that is currently available, hit up the Broken Robots MySpace. Annie's vocals on the song Sorry are really something to witness. They also have a split 7 inch with The Terribles in the works. If you weren't completely convinced of my adoration for this band all you have to do is go to my own space where you will find a BR banner (courtesy of Letty.)














MP3: 1.2 Million Candle Power
***This track will only available for a limited time.***

Salty Pirates

It will be Monday when you read this. Either you will be on your way to work with coffee (like me), dragging yourself out of bed for summer classes with a bottled water, or just sitting having a beer on the couch watching morning talk shows. In any of these cases, it might bring a smile to your face when you hear yet another great band from Sweden. I'm not sure what additive is in the water over there that makes these people create such great music, but if I ever decide to start another band I will import this music juice by the barrel. The lyrics in this song will jump right out at you as being witty and a total catch. Once you realize that there is a healthy dose of guitar involved you will get that smile for sure. I've decided to reduce the amount of time I spend trying to figure out every reason I like certain songs in order to sit back and simply enjoy the music. After finding and listening to today's feature, I have a good place to start.















Salty Pirates are an indie pop quintet from Halmstad, Sweden. There is just about enough guitar in there to call it indie rock but who really cares. They began playing together as a full set in 2002, and from what I read on their MySpace Page, the band is good at making their own pizza and have sinister plans on taking over the world. I think I like that plan (and food group). If you visit the Salty Pirates website you will find a really nice surprise. All of their music is downloadable for free. Every single song!! You can even download a really cool video there as well. It's a very trippy video of what you could expect if heavily medicated and traveling through Swedish forests. I like the singing fish... I like this band a lot.















MP3: The Couple On The Bus

Altered Images

Oh no he didn't... Oh yes I did. In 1982 I was 12 years old and was in my grandparents' car on the way back up to see family in Ottawa, Canada. (I am the only yank in the family) We were driving through Toronto and, out of boredom, I began twisting the radio dials in search of a music station. I remember clearly catching the end of this song as we pulled into a McDonald's for breakfast. I had just found my new favorite band. Funny how that works in a young teenage mind ah? Soon after we arrived in Ottawa, my two cousins (Jenny and Missy) and I were dropped off at the local shopping mall so we could find a Canadian hockey jersey for cousin Casey. Guess what I found? The LP Pinky Blue was tucked away in the A category bin at the mall record shop and was subsequently purchased that day. In true American fashion, I forced my cousins to listen to it for the duration of my week long visit. I can't say I remember any other song from the album and I'm probably better off as a result. This is, however, a completely relevant song when it comes to the development of my musical tastes.



















When you think of Altered Images, the first thing that might cross your mind is that horrid Happy Birthday song that even circa 80's Stacy Q would back away from. Little would you expect that this band was once a John Peel favorite. The first single from Altered Images was released in 1980. The single, titled Dead Pop Stars, came out right around the time that John Lennon (yawn) was killed. This caused a bit of a stir in the media and probably helped further the band's career. The first LP was produced by Siouxsie and the Banshees bassist Steve Severin. I found a fairly decent YouTube clip of Dead Pop Stars live for you. There is also a video there for I Could Be Happy but the sound is almost non-existent and the toilet paper ribbon on Clare Grogan's head is distracting (but funny.) We will post an original vinyl ripped to MP3 version of Dead Pop Stars as a bonus track for you to download. Thanks to Little Hits for that one!! The only link I could find for the band that doesn't produce a ton of pop up ads is on MySpace. The Altered Images MySpace fan profile awaits your visit and approval. I can't speak for all of the band's music but will tell you that, if this song were to be released tomorrow there would be plenty of attention given to it.



















MP3: I Could Be Happy
Bonus MP3: Dead Pop Stars

Sunny Day Sets Fire

The sky started to darken yesterday as I looked out of my office window and after a quick check of the weather forecast, I learned that it was about to start raining for my drive home. It's supposed to continue throughout the weekend which led me to want some happy sounding music for Saturday. If the name of this band isn't indication enough of what I would soon discover to be the SDSF sound, I'm not sure what name could be. Sunny and cheery, with the beginning of this track somehow reminding me of a retro Pizzicato Five number I can't quite put my finger on. The P5-ish quality soon evolves into a really well done pop song. Ever so slightly stronger guitars poke through the puffy twee clouds periodically only to leave me waiting for them to return. This is actually the only song I've heard from this band so I will need to return to their MySpace Page to click on some of the others.



























Sunny Day Sets Fire is quite the international outfit. Guitarist/vocalist Mouro is from Italy while drummer/vocalist Onyee is from Hong Kong. They met while working as ushers at a movie house in London and soon began creating music. They performed as a duo for quite some time, then added Max on guitar/baritone and most recently bassist Ed to complete the full band. If you go to the Sunny Day Sets Fire Website there is an interactive matchbook to navigate. Inside the matchbook are some songs and a video for the track featured here today. There is also a video on Youtube to check out. September 15-17 will see the band travel to North Dorset/Wiltshire, UK. There they will visit the beautiful Larmer Tree Gardens and perform for the Parrots, Peacocks and around 5000 music fans at the End of the Road Festival. Happy Saturday!!















MP3: Wilderness

Kings & Queens

Photo by Simon Weller

Well... It's my 37th birthday today so I have a fun fact for you. August 18th 1969 was the last day of the original Woodstock Festival. It was Jimi Hendrix who took to the stage at 9:30 that morning and I was born by noon the very same day. Kinda funny I suppose, but coincidence? I don't think so. Anyway, I have wanted to post this band for a week now and finally found the right day to do so. The musicians I presented to you on the group yesterday reside just outside of L.A. County so you will need to travel 435 miles up the coast to Northern California for today's featured artists. From their location you might get the mental picture of driving on an open desert road with this song... but no no not me. I have 2:30 in the morning with city street lights passing me by into a glow while I rip through traffic in my Mazda. Speaking of driving, that's exactly what this song does. The tension builds perfectly and never lets you loose. Now get yourself ready for link city!















Kings & Queens is primarily the music of Richard Good (not to be confused with Rick Good of Rhythm in Shoes fame.) The band was once the Indiana Experiment and before that The Pleased. You should definitely check out the Kings and Queens website for more to see and hear. They also have a Journal that is well worth the read on their site. I spent a while meandering through it (... stalker). You can download this song as well as another from the band's MySpace page. Also make sure to add them to friends. I did it straight away. You can buy the Kings & Queens 6 song EP for $6 dollars via PayPal and from what I listened to, all songs are as good as the feature here. Ooooh, I almost forgot. They also have a YouTube video for another song. Have fun and check the comments there.













Photo by Simon Weller

MP3: Kings Theme

Jed & Lucia

In order to keep a good mix of of musical stylings here, I've been attempting to switch things up a bit more lately. I only hope you can notice the recent effort I've undertaken. It was extremely difficult to decide which song to feature out of the available downloads from today's artist, so as soon as I figured out that Swedesplease posted this track, it was all the excuse I needed. Craig (through his wonderful Swedish music blog) was nice enough to mention our efforts recently and we wanted to return the favor. If you visit here often, you know that I won't try my hand at describing music as any type of texture, landscape or ice cream flavor. I'll leave that trite blather to the professional also-rans. Instead, I will simply say that these two musicians create songs that are absolutely beautiful. Together they mix the sounds of basic folk instruments with their interpretation of what an ambient pop song should be. It works extremely well. Now let's get to the important stuff...















Jed & Lucia are a couple that came from separate parts of the world. Jed's hometown is Seattle, Washington while Lucia is from Stockholm, Sweden, and now they both reside in the rural area of Chatsworth, California. This duo has been making music since they met at CalArts and have several solo projects each. To understand the true scope of things you need to first visit the Jed & Lucia website. The About section there is a very good read that explains much more. They recently inked a deal with Riptide Music for electronic distribution and have enlisted the assistance of a Fanatic Promotions (good friend of our MySpace group). Next you can visit the Jed & Lucia MySpace page for more music and the compulsory "add". The latest full length CD is Candles in Daylight and was released Feb. 1st of this year. It is available on Amazon and CDbaby for $10.00!! I would put up the iTunes link but it keeps trying to make me register and I refuse to have it on my computer. Jed & Lucia is highly recommended.















Btw...above dress by Renee

MP3: Answers

The Medics

In an attempt to stay in touch with and keep up to date on the artists we post here and on the group, we created a MySpace profile that you are more than welcome to visit or add. It's really kinda cool to get all of the bulletins from these bands. Every now and again there is a new release or project that is made available and I was really pleased that this particular band decided to offer up some new material. These guys are truly generous for posting today's song for download and it won't take you long to notice that the song is an exceptional example of good ole Indie Rock. If you think this is far too nice to be anything but finished product you would be wrong. It's only a demo! I featured The Medics around 3 months ago and it now gets better. I haven't heard a weak track yet from this band and that is a rare occurrence. Your first stop should be to the The Medics MySpace Page to hear another equally good demo and some songs from the last time they graced us with their music in May.














Photo by Ben Shapiro

Ok, the last time I featured this four piece, I mistakenly mentioned that they were all from New Jersey. I am thankful that I now have the opportunity to redeem myself. The Medics are from both New Jersey and Tulsa err... I mean New York, New York. They released their latest 7-song EP Shangri-La on Omad Records and it really is worth the measly $7 you have to pay to get your hands on it. There is also a white vinyl LP version available that is all analog and highly recommended. If you visit The Medics website there are band updates and songs to download. I have been assured that there will be several upcoming shows in and around the northeastern US so stay tuned. Another thing you might want to check out are the bedroom recordings of the lead vocalist/guitarist from this band. Ray (formerly known as DVC) has an ongoing project in Hundred Dollar Elephant. From what he tells me, if you send him $3.00 USD he will send you 30 songs. Not a bad deal at all. Really good lo-fi songs from what I heard.















Photo by Ben Shapiro

MP3: Bomb

Brazilian Girls

I received a friendly email today with a link to a recent review of Bob Mould's 1996 classic that is often and affectionately referred to as Hubcap by fans. I followed the link and visited the music blog Muzzle of Bees for the first time today and have to say that regardless of the "love him or hate him" part of the Bob review that had me scratching my head a bit, it is a really great site I recommend you visit for new music. I ended up snooping around there for a moment and found today's feature. I'm not sure I thought I would ever use the word sexy in one of these write-ups but that's the first thing that came to mind as the track began to kick in. Since I am firewalled from MySpace at work, I tried looking for band pics elsewhere online. Big hint... If your regional VP has an office next to yours, don't do a Google Image search of "Brazilian Girls" then walk away from your office to go make coffee. Ouch.

Besides some of the classics I feature on Sundays, this might be one of the more popular bands I've posted here but I couldn't resist. For those of you who have yet to hear them (like myself earlier today) you are in for a treat. Brazilian Girls are an Indie Pop quartet from New York, New York. In this one song, the vocals incorporate 4 different languages and a mix of all of them therewithin (is that a word?)... but that is not the first thing that jumped out at me. In the early part of this track Sabina Sciubba sounds so remarkably like Austrian-born Korinna Knoll from the NYC duo Neulander on the song Flying that I had to check pictures to make sure they were two different women. We'll feature that song here as a bonus track so you can hear what I mean. The new album Talk To La Bomb comes out September 12th and will be available via Verve Forcast. You can visit the Brazilian Girls MySpace page to hear this and another song and add them to friends. Another recommended stop would be the Brazilian Girls website. Again I will have fun in saying it... sexayyy!!

MP3: Jique
Bonus MP3: Neulander - Flying