First Aid Kit "Ghost Town"

Slowing things down a bit, here is “Ghost Town,” from Klara and Johanna Söderberg of First Aid Kit. Let their harmonies wash over you and pretend for a few minutes that this L.A. heat wave hasn't made you crazy.

Their album The Big Black & The Blue is out now via Rough Trade Records.

First Aid Kit from Black Cab Sessions on Vimeo.

Twin Sister "Meet The Frownies"

Twin Sister are neither twins nor sisters, but they craft dream pop so effortlessly we'll forgive them all that. The band is Long-Island based, consisting of Andrea Estella, Bryan Ujueta, Eric Cardona, Gabel D'Amico and Udbhav Gupta.

"Meet the Frownies" was just released via Weathervane's Shaking Through series, which aims to give rising bands the opportunity to record in professional studios. Twin Sister's previous EP Color Your Life was completed in March 2010. They are currently touring with Devendra Banhart and the Grogs and will continue in the Fall alongside The Morning Benders.


Twin Sister – Meet the Frownies


Twin Sister – Lady Daydream


Twin Sister – I Want a House

Maps & Atlases: "Solid Ground" Video and Perch Patchwork Album Review

The success of Maps & Atlases' first official album is old news, but their video for "Solid Ground" just released and reminded us how great Perch Patchwork really is. So here you have a new music video coupled with a slightly belated album review. Deal with it!

"Solid Ground" Video:

Video courtesy Barsuk Records. Directed by Taryn Gould and Emily Kowalczyk.

---
Album Review:


Dave Davison’s voice rises and falls for the first two minutes of Perch Patchwork, embedded with careful drum work, calculated guitar taps, and an emphatic bass line provided by bandmates Chris Hainley, Erin Elders, and Shiraz Dada. Some would call this mere decoration; confusing a track without lyrics for a track without meaning. They could not be more wrong. “Will” is a wordless track prefacing the complexity of Perch Patchwork, carefully tracing and framing the upcoming songs.

Although they have existed since 2004, Perch Patchwork marks the first full-length album for Maps & Atlases. Earlier EPs made it easier to classify the Chicago-based band as strictly math rock, but Perch Patchwork marks a slight turning point in this stylistic trajectory. Certain tracks float above their precise technical aspects and into a pop influenced realm.

A mosquito-like drone engulfs the first few seconds of “The Charm.” Dave Davison confesses, “I don’t think there is a sound that I hate more/ than the sound of your voice/ when you say that you don’t love me anymore.” The insect buzz fades in and out; existing as an omnipresent reminder of a human voice that Davison might like to forget. “The Charm” builds steadily, its military-esque drum line and vocal harmonies punctuated by personal disconnect.

Set to a more upbeat tempo, “Living Decorations” reveals a similar sentiment through which Davison compares people, and perhaps relationships, to immovable, unchangeable pieces of furniture. Though the idea might weigh heavy in concept, it’s bouncy guitar patterns transform the track into a playful, and very danceable, commentary on social indifference.

Lyrics and instrumentation aside, it should be said that Dave Davison’s voice is one of the most distinctive present in music today. Possibly stemming from the style of math rock, Davison is able to repeat the same lyrics using different intonations and meter to convey various shades of meaning. At times his voice may seem purposefully indecipherable; nevertheless it pulls you closer for a second listen.

This technique is most clearly evident in the title track, in which Davison repeats, “With the race over/ we’ll take what we can get.” His vocal success depends in no small part on the collaboration of his bandmates who provide inventive, complex, and complementary structures upon which to build songs.

Perch Patchwork succeeds because of juxtapositions, slowly revealing its strengths over multiple listens. As the title might suggest, irregular and dissonant sounds are woven together to create surprisingly intriguing compositions. Dave Davison, Erin Elders, Shiraz Dada, and Chris Hainley constantly rework similar themes into different shapes, crafting an album you will want to listen to many times.

What's Left of September

September may be coming to an end, but the nine remaining days hold a packed agenda of shows and concerts in the Los Angeles area. And let's not forget that every end marks the beginning to something new--in our case, a new month. October will show up before you know it, bearing gifts of musical goodness that make me glad I'm a Californian.

Here's what's in store for the rest of September. Look out for a new post from me in the next few days with October's gift list, and in the meantime, enjoy what's left of this month.

9/22 (Tonight!)

The XX w/Warpaint and Zola Jesus @ Hollywood Palladium

9/23

Modeselektor @ The El Rey

9/24

Dirty Projectors w/Dominique Young Unique @ The Wiltern

Glasser @ Amoeba Hollywood

Ratatat w/Dom and Bobby Birdman @ Fox Theatre (Pomona)

9/25

Band of Horses w/Admiral Radley @ Greek Theatre

Dungen, Entrance Band, John Carpenter +more as Waved Out II @ The Echo and Echoplex

Frankie Rose & The Outs @ The Smell

9/26

Frankie Rose w/Hunx and his Punx @ The Echo

Vampire Weekend w/Beach House and The Very Best @ Hollywood Bowl

9/27

The Black Keys w/The Growlers and Nicole Atkins @ Hollywood Palladium

Eastern Conference Champions w/Moving Picture Show @ Spaceland

9/28

The Black Keys w/The Growlers and Nicole Atkins @ Hollywood Palladium

Ellie Goulding @ The Roxy

No Age DJ set @ Amoeba Hollywood

Surfer Blood w/The Drums @ Glass House (Pomona)

9/29

Surfer Blood w/The Drums @ Henry Fonda Music Box

9/30

Jamie Lidell w/Twin Shadow @ Echoplex

Jukebox The Ghost @ Echoplex

Justin Townes Earle @ Gene Autry Museum

Pavement w/Sonic Youth and No Age @ Hollywood Bowl

Spoon w/Cold Cave @ Hollywood Palladium

The Drums @ Amoeba Hollywood

Frankie Rose & The Outs

Q: What do you do after being in Vivian Girls, Crystal Stilts, and Dum Dum Girls?
A: If your name is Frankie Rose, start your own band!

Frankie Rose & The Outs' self-titled album will be released September 21st.

For now, here's a video of "Candy" courtesy Slumberland Records

Chromeo and Ezra Koenig "I Could Be Wrong"

Although you might have to hear it to believe it, Chromeo and Ezra Koenig have collaborated on a track called "I Could Be Wrong."

The song is a highlight from Chromeo's newest release Business Casual, which is available now. However, if you're one of those listen-before-you-download types, the album is currently streaming on NPR.



Chromeo feat. Ezra Koenig – "I Could Be Wrong"

Summer Camp - Young EP

The tracks surfaced one at a time, often prefaced with dialogue borrowed from John Hughes films. Now, months after “Ghost Train,” Summer Camp (now revealed as Jeremy Warmsley and Elizabeth Sankey) have finally released these mysterious songs on an official EP.

Summer Camp appear to live in a world cloaked in nostalgia, where every person is carefully poised for a cinematic coming-of-age moment. While their dialogue sampling might come across as superficial to some, it creatively provides context and anchoring.

Characters from Say Anything introduce the standout track “Ghost Train.” Amidst a building bass line and stuttered pronouns, we hear Corey Flood trying to dissuade Lloyd Dobler from going after Diane Court: “It’s just you’re a really nice guy and I don’t want to see you get hurt.” Undeterred, Lloyd Dobler’s replies: “But, I want to get hurt!” What follows is a song about wanting to stretch relationships further than their seemingly concrete summer boundaries will allow.

“Round the Moon” is heavy in synth and vocal reverb, but carefree in its lyrics. (“And we danced all night and we held each other tight, ‘til the morning light.”) With this song in particular, it feels as though Warmsley and Sankey have transported their listeners back to the 1980s.

The presence of the 1980s is not just auditory either. Two of the six tracks, “Veronica Sawyer” and “Jake Ryan” are named after characters from Heathers and Sixteen Candles. These explicit references further reinforce Summer Camp’s intention; their aesthetic isn’t accidental.

Elsewhere on Young, the duo’s vocals aren’t really given the opportunity to be complementary. With the exception of Warmsley on “Round the Moon,” Sankey’s voice propels almost the entire album. Even though at times her voice can seem monotonously hypnotic, at other times it feels like the perfect vehicle for carrying these young adult dilemmas.

Summer Camp work, almost obsessively, to pair familiar cinematic dialogue with their original compositions. At their best, these rearrangements create affecting moments. Jeremy Warmsley and Elizabeth Sankey appropriate their personal obsession with 1980’s pop culture into thoughtfully crafted youthful reflections. While this EP might not be perfect, their conviction shows unlimited promise.

----
"Ghost Train" – Summer Camp


"Round The Moon" – Summer Camp

Of Montreal - False Priest

Of Montreal (or should I say Kevin Barnes?) does it again--this time with their 10th release, False Priest.

Once again, the band reaches new and uncharted levels of blissful gaudiness laced with narration, uncontrollable emotions, and traces of funk and R&B. This time, Janelle Monae and Solange Knowles accompany Barnes on this sex-driven almost-magic carpet ride, succumbing to crazy, spiteful girls who throw beta fish out of windows and grappling with religiosity the whole way through. Monae and Knowles duel with Barnes' ringing falsettos, but the entire album remains very much, without a doubt, 100% The Kevin Barnes Show.

False Priest only retains some of the chaotic, experimental elements that overstuff Skeletal Lamping, yet manages to keep listeners wondering what they will hear next. Give "Godly Intersex" a try and you will understand. Any inhibitions or boundaries around lyrics, emotions, and sound were chucked out with the beta fish, resulting in layers upon layers of mind-scrambling noises (if you think too hard about it, like I do) that somehow fall right into place.

This time around, Of Montreal lets out not-so-subtle hints of "natural" instrumentation in the background music. Between Barnes' crooning, his falsettos, and the one-sided conversations he has lie real instruments, each producing its own distinct sound to contribute to the greater good. Listen--but not too closely, so as not to get lost following one path--and you could catch a gritty guitar, some soft strumming, or what might as well be your neighbor banging away at his upright piano.

Jon Brion, an acclaimed musician and composer (he has the scores to Magnolia, Punch-Drunk Love, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and I Heart Huckabees, among others, under his belt), produced the album.


False Priest is scheduled for release on September 14, 2010, by Polyvinyl Records.
Stream it for free on NPR.

Belle and Sebastian "Write About Love"

Belle and Sebastian Write About Love won’t be fully released until October 12th, but you can listen to their title track below.

For Now

This is a temporary space for a community music journalism site.

Temporary, only because we haven’t decided on a permanent name yet.

What should we call ourselves?