It’s been a long year–exacerbated by a miserable economy, more war, the heightened threat of global warming—so take your mind off it all with the good that happened. Like, for instance, a year full of great music we posted!
Oh No Ono – Internet Warrior is one of those bands that manages to combine the hip sounds of disco and the new wave sounds of yore with a variety of different musical synth-dance melodies, infectious as they are danceable.
Russian Circles – Malko - it’s also exciting to see what a band like Russian Circles is doing to bend the laws of musical physics, and always a mystery as to what’s going to happen on the way out.
Warpaint – Billy Holiday - Give in to reverb-heavy arpeggios draped overtop the dewy, luscious voices of Emily Kokal and Theresa Wayman. It’s easy to get lost in the stereo world of Warpaint’s sound.
Jogger -Gorilla Meat - one of those bands that proves hard to describe through praiseful adjectives. You’re sort of lost on an ocean of schizophrenic sound, where swells of jazz and blues and electronica intertwine with the indefinable, the somber and ethereal emotions of life.
State Radio -State of Georgia (Live Acoustic) – Their radio-friendly image will please many and perhaps drive away many others, but one need only listen to their new LP Let It Go to get a sense of the band’s diverse musical territory.
The Slits – Ask Ma – Around the time that The Runaways were proving girls could handle the big leagues of hard rock, The Slits went even further by embracing a more schizoid musical palette that extended far beyond the punk rock realm.
Revolting Cocks – I’m Not Gay - On their latest, Sex-O Olympic-O, Revolting Cocks re-establish themselves as pioneers of a genre all their own, while adapting, kind of, to that modern trend of re-hashing the sounds of industrial days past.
The Mary Onettes – Puzzles – Imagine a Swedish equivalent of The National on a diet of speed, Planet Earth DVDs, and 80’s guitar pop singles and you’ll have a vague idea of how amazing this is.
The Darlings – Teenage Girl – t’s rare that a band manages to masterfully merge the catchy hooks of yore with that je ne se qua indie sensibility and a bit of proto-punk abrasiveness (remember The MC5?)– but it proves to be a conglomeration of endearing traits which have already helped NYC’s own Darlings garner notoriety outside the city that never sleeps.
Bobby Evans and Freakazoid Robots – Them Jeans Remix – With a smash hit single, Freakazoid Robots, DJ Bobby Evans has created something modern, danceable, yet defiantly retro.
Peudo Slang – Bedouin – is the collaborative effort of Emcee Sick of Xtracts of Slang and producer Tone Atlas of Pseudo Intellectuals. Based in Buffalo and Chicago respectively, PS have been closely followed for almost a decade, garnering international praise and acclamation for creating music that steps outside the standard boundaries of contemporary rap.
Battlehooch – The Special Place – For any other band, it’d be unreasonable to say you want to be the first band to play on the moon, but for Battlehooch, it only seems natural.
The Jaguar Club – Beautiful House – The band has released 2 EP’s of danceable pop tunes and played shows up and down the Eastern seaboard from Maine to Florida. At home they have been thrilled to play with some very fine bands including: The Duke Spirit, The Cinematics, Scissors For Lefty and many more.
Ancient Astronauts – I Came Running – Their very name, “Ancient Astronauts,” implies a mash-up of the distant past and the far future; traits exemplified in their melding of old school hip hop, funk, and dub reggae with forward-thinking flair and production technique.
Thunderheist – Nothing 2 Step 2 – if you’re in the front row, expect to get wet. Thunderheist sweats Belvedere and Red Bull, and sprays more hooks than a heavyweight championship bout.
Balkan Beat Box – Nu-Made - blends electronic music with hard-edged folk music from North Africa, the Middle East, the Balkans and Eastern Europe…the natural reaction of passionate musicians that demand the erasure of political and geographical divisions in music.
These Arms are Snakes – Red Line Season – After seeing These Arms are Snakes at Red Eyed Fly in Austin, I now know why everyone I talked to said “I HAD TO SEE THEIR LIVE SHOW.” They were NOT lying. These Arms are Snakes have been touring for a long time, and it shows – they’re live show is ruckus, rowdy and tight.
Late of the Pier – Space and the Woods – Jack Paradise would like you to know that 2009 will have birthed the third coming of the “Summer of Love” and he personally would like to wish you “Happy Hunting.”
The Lords of Altamont – Named for the infamous speedway immortalized in the Rolling Stones concert film, Gimme Shelter, the Lords of Altamont evoke the feeling of psychedelic influenced, 60’s, biker culture. Their attitudes and attire are more reminiscent of the Steve McQueens of the motorcycle movie world, than say, the Peter Fondas.
Fitz and the Tantrums – They aren’t what you expect. Their melodic retro Motown/Soul infused rhythms keep the crowd guessing. Think Amy Winehouse on Orange Juice.
The Shackeltons – Your Movement – This band calls to the forefront an energy that has all but dissapeared in contemporary music in decades and somehow, bafflingly, they infuse pop into the cocktail without polluting this sweet and volatile mix.
