Switchblade Comb

Los Campesinos!
Hold On Now, Youngster…
Wichita/Arts & Crafts
2008

loscampesinos.com

1. Death to Los Campesinos!
2. Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats
3. Don’t Tell Me to Do the Math(s)
4. Drop It Doe Eyes
5. My Year in Lists
6. Knee Deep at ATP
7. This Is How You Spell “Hahaha, We Destroyed the Hopes and Dreams of a Generation of Faux-Romantics”
8. We Are All Accelerated Readers
9. You! Me! Dancing!
10. …And We Exhale and Roll Our Eyes in Unison
11. Sweet Dreams, Sweet Cheeks
12. 2007: The Year Punk Broke (My Heart)

From All Music Guide: Celebrating a bratty, tongue-in-cheek viewpoint and a spunky indie-punk style similar to Art Brut while applying an assortment of instruments akin to Architecture in Helsinki, seven-piece group Los Campesinos! (roughly translating to “the Peasants”) formed in 2006 in Cardiff, Wales. The lineup includes Aleksandra (keyboard, horn), Ellen (bass), Gareth (glockenspiel), Harriet (violin, keyboard), Neil (guitar), Ollie (drums), and Tom (guitar), with all members sharing vocals and the last name of Campesinos! The band played its first show in May 2006 and by the following August opened for Broken Social Scene. Later that year they signed to U.K. label Wichita, which released their first single in early 2007. A few months later they were added to the roster of Canadian label Arts & Crafts. That summer the band’s young catalog expanded with another single from Wichita and an EP from Arts & Crafts titled Sticking Fingers into Sockets, produced by David Newfeld (Broken Social Scene). The full-length Hold on Now, Youngster followed in 2008.

Death to Los Campesinos!

You! Me! Dancing!

Don’t Tell Me to Do the Math(s)

My Year in Lists

The Kills
Midnight Boom
Domino
2008

www.thekills.tv

1. U.R.A. Fever
2. Cheap and Cheerful
3. Tape Song
4. Getting Down
5. Last Day of Magic
6. Hook and Line
7. Black Balloon
8. M.E.X.I.C.O.C.U
9. Sour Cherry
10. Alphabet Pony
11. What New York Used To Be
12. Goodnight Bad Morning

From All Music Guide: The bluesy punk duo the Kills consists of vocalist/guitarist VV, aka Alison Mosshart, formerly of the Florida punk band Discount, and drummer/guitarist/vocalist Hotel, aka Jamie Hince. After Discount ended in 2000, VV began exchanging tapes with the London-based Hotel through the mail, but both of them felt hindered by this method, so VV crossed the Atlantic so the duo could write faster. In spring of 2001, they issued a self-released demo that showcased their gritty, sexy sound and earned favorable reviews from such quarters as TapeOp Magazine. They also contributed a song, “Restaurant Blouse,” to 5 Rue Christine’s If the Twenty-First Century Did Not Exist It Would Be Necessary to Invent It compilation early in 2002, before their debut EP, Black Rooster, arrived that summer on Dim Mak. Along with gigs at the London and Glasgow LadyFests and supporting Le Tigre, the Kills also toured the U.S. for eight weeks before returning to London to finish their first full-length album, Keep on Your Mean Side, which was released by Rough Trade in spring 2003. Their second album, No Wow, arrived in 2005 and was an even dirtier, leaner collection of songs.

“U.R.A. Fever”

“Cheap and Cheerful”

“Tape Song”

“Last Day of Magic”

Video Interview about Midnight Boom

The Twelves
30 Minutes of Twelves
Self-Released Mix
2008

http://www.myspace.com/the12s

I’ve been bumping this great mix I pulled off of BIGSTEREO yesterday non-stop for almost 24 hours. It’s mostly mid-tempo italo-disco and electro stuff. The Thriller instrumenal is deftly beat-mixed in. Chromatics, Datarock, M.I.A. are all killer. But The Twelves’ remix of The Black Kid’s “I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You” is the highlight of the mix. It kicks in around the 24 minute mark. Party!

…

The Twelves - 30 Minutes of Twelves Mix

0 - Intro - Title Music from A Clockwork Orange
1 - Revolte - Weak Generation
2 - Michael Jackson - Thriller (instrumental)
3 - Chromatics - In The City (The Twelves Replay)
4 - Datarock - I Used to Dance with my Daddy (Metal on Metal Remake)
5 - Lifelike - So Electric
6 - Theatre of Disco - YOA (The Twelves Remix)
7 - Boys Noize - Feel Good (TV Off)
8 - Thieves Like Us - Drugs in My Body (The Twelves Replay)
9 - Le Knight Club - Rhumba
10 - Les Rhythmes Digitales - Hypnotize
11 - Black Kids - I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You (The Twelves Replay)
12 - M.I.A. - Boyz (The Twelves Replay)

DOWNLOAD HERE

…

About the Twelves: From Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, “The Twelves” were formed by the duo João Miguel and Luciano Oliveira back in 2005. The name came from the strange coincidence of their birth dates: twelve of july of 1980.

The breakthrough for The Twelves came in July of 2007 when they remixed the track “Boyz” from M.I.A’s sophomore album, Kala. The reworked track with an added club feel resulted in one of the most talked about remixes of 2007. The blog coverage surrounding the remix was extensive and eventually the track started to appear in sets from high profile djs around the world, including Kissy Sell Out, who played it on BBC’s “In New Djs We Trust” series.

The duo followed “Boyz” with equally well received remixes for Asobi Seksu and Erlend Oye, both of which featured on a number of blogs and music related sites. This stream of good tracks soon caught the attention of a number of labels, including Modular Records (home of Cut Copy, Klaxons and others) who comissioned a “Twelves Remix” of the song “Get Lucky” by New Young Pony Club. The resulting remix was released alongside reworkings from household names like MSTRKRFT and Who Made Who, and received excellent reviews.

Press coverage in Brazil soon started to pick up, with interviews in newspapers and magazines. The coverage led to appearances in festivals and concerts alongside names like Diplo, LCD Soundsystem, She Wants Revenge, Van She and Phoenix.

The sound of the duo brings influences from many genres. Among the most influential to their sound are Daft Punk, Justice, Röyksopp, Vitalic, Simian Mobile Disco, MSTRKRFT, Clor, Cut Copy and Goldfrapp.

Their live show is a unique blend of live keyboards, drum machines, mash-ups and remixing on the fly. A key element for the duo is trying to improvise as much as possible.

“We’re always looking to remix new and original people, so drop us a line.”

The Dirtbombs
We Have You Surrounded
In The Red
2008

thedirtbombs.net

Side A
1. It’s Not Fun Until They See You Cry
2. Ever Lovin Man
3. Indivisible
4. Sherlock Holmes
5. Wreck My Flow
6. Leopardman at C & A

Side B
1. Fire in the Western World
2. Pretty Princess Day
3. I Hear the Sirens
4. They Have Us Surrounded
5. Race to the Bottom
6. La Fin du Monde

The newest Dirtbombs record is everything you’ve come to expect from this Detroit powerhouse. It’s a nasty, sexy, raw, fuzzed out piece of garage rock mayhem. For those that are unfamiliar with The Dirtbombs, the first thing you will notice is how undeniably Detroit they really are. They are part of a rich history of great Detroit bands and wear their musical influences proudly on their sleeves by exhibiting equal parts MC5 angst and Motown soul. Starting off with a 7″ single in 1996 the band has consistently gotten better with each subsequent release. We Have You Surrounded is the culmination of 12 years of relentless touring and recording for The Dirtbombs. The first side of this album is probably one of the most solid, well rounded openings of a record I’ve heard in the last few years. Running the gamut from the straight up garage rock of “Ever Lovin’ Man” to the balladry of “Sherlock Holmes” to the hip hop-ish “Wreck My Flow” the Dirtbombs show why they are one of the top bands of the garage rock any genre playing today. If there was any justice in the world “Indivisible” would be the dance club anthem of the summer. The only real hiccup in the record comes at the end of the second side with “Race to the Bottom”, a sprawling 8+ minute mess of space sounds and feedback. While it’s an interesting idea all it really does is slow down the record before the excellent sing along closing of “La Fin Du Monde.” Aside from that, the record is damn near perfect. It’s not only a welcome addition to the already great Dirtbombs catalog, it’s an excellent starting off point for those not very familiar with the band.

The Dirtbombs - “Ever Lovin’ Man”

The Dirtbombs - “Indivisible”

The Dirtbombs - “Pretty Princess Day”

Bon Iver
For Emma, Forever Ago
Jagjaguwar
2007; re: 2008

virb.com/boniver

1. Flume
2. Lump Sum
3. Skinny Love
4. The Wolves (Act I and II)
5. Blindsided
6. Creature Fear
7. Team
8. For Emma
9. Re: Stacks

From All Music Guide: Justin Vernon began recording under the nom de band Bon Iver following the breakup of DeYarmond Edison, an indie folk group similar in tone and manner to Iron & Wine, Little Wings and, to a certain extent, Bonnie “Prince” Billy. Vernon’s solo project took DeYarmond Edison’s introspective, folky sound and embellished it with squinchy, quirky orchestral touches that nodded to Sparklehorse and a drifty optimism reminiscent of the Flaming Lips. Vernon moved back to Wisconsin the winter following DeYarmond’s demise, setting up camp in a remote cabin in the north woods for three months. It was a hugely generative period for Vernon; writing and recording songs in 12-hour bursts, he found himself with a nine-song debut album by spring. He dubbed the project Bon Iver (an intentional misspelling of the French for “good winter”), and the disc, For Emma, Forever Ago, was released on Jagjaguwar in early 2007. Joined in his live shows by Sean Carey, Vernon toured throughout the eastern U.S. and Canada throughout the remainder of the year, sharing the stage with like-minded singer/songwriter Elvis Perkins.

Stream: Bon Iver - 89.3 The Current Interview

“Skinny Love”

“Lump Sum”

“Flume”

“The Wolves (Act I and II)”

“For Emma”

“Blindsided”

The Raveonettes
Lust Lust Lust
Vice
2008

theraveonettes.com

1. Aly, Walk With Me
2. Hallucinations
3. Lust
4. Dead Sound
5. Black Satin
6. Blush
7. Expelled from Love
8. You Want the Candy
9. Blitzed
10. Sad Transmission
11. With My Eyes Closed
12. The Beat Dies
13. My Heartbeat’s Dying (Bonus Track)
14. Honey, I Never Had You (Bonus Track)

From All Music Guide: Self-confident and ambitious, the Raveonettes entered the garage rock race of the new millennium with a stylish, brassy sound not heard since Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation. Sune Rose Wagner (guitar, vocals) and Sharin Foo (bass, vocals) hail from Copenhagen and formed the Raveonettes out of dismay for their homeland’s state of music.

“Dead Sound”

“Hallucinations”

“Lust”

“Blush”

“You Want the Candy”

“Aly, Walk With Me”

MGMT
Oracular Spectacular
Columbia
2008

myspace.com/mgmt

1. Time to Pretend
2. Weekend Wars
3. Youth
4. Electric Feel
5. Kids
6. 4th Dimensional Transition
7. Pieces of What
8. Of Moons, Birds & Monsters
9. Handshake
10. Future Reflections

From All Music Guide: Finding an unlikely middle point between Suicide’s hostile proto-electro punk art noise and the sardonic, studied, but ultimately pop-friendly sound of the Flaming Lips, MGMT started as electroclash musical terrorists but quickly transmogrified into an eclectic, brainy pop group with heavy psychedelic overtones. MGMT first formed in 2002, during Ben Goldwasser and Andrew Van Wyngarden’s freshman year as art students at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. At first the band was known as the Management, and its shows consisted mostly of backing tapes, synthesizers, and prerecorded vocals playing as Goldwasser and Van Wyngarden engaged the audience in a manner somewhere between performance art and good old-fashioned punky hostility. By their senior year, things had toned down considerably on-stage and the duo was augmenting its live sound with backing musicians. Upon graduating, the duo released an electro-rock EP, Time to Pretend, on the tiny indie Cantora Records in 2005. Good reviews, especially for the title track, and extensive touring brought the duo to the attention of British producer Steve Lillywhite in his role as an A&R executive for Columbia Records, which signed the band for a major long-term deal in 2006. Regrouping in Brooklyn, the duo enlisted producer Dave Fridmann to create the entirely different-sounding Oracular Spectacular, a far more musically expansive album. MGMT were Of Montreal’s opening act for their extensive 2007 tour, during which Van Wyngarden and Of Montreal leader Kevin Barnes began sketching out ideas for a new collaboration called Blikk Fang.

“Kids”

“Electric Feel”

“Time to Pretend (Live on Letterman)”

“Youth”

Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend
XL
2008

vampireweekend.com

1. Mansard Roof
2. Oxford Comma
3. A-Punk
4. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa
5. M79
6. Campus
7. Bryn
8. One (Blake’s Got a New Face)
9. I Stand Corrected
10. Walcott
11. The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance

From All Music Guide: Describing their sound as “Upper West Side Soweto,” New York City’s Vampire Weekend mixes preppy, well-read indie rock with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies and rhythms. Ezra Koenig, Chris Baio, Rostam Batmanglij, and Chris Tomson formed the band early in 2006, when they were finishing up their studies at Columbia University. Taking their name from a movie Koenig made during his freshman year, the band started out by playing gigs at the university’s literary societies and at parties. Word spread about Vampire Weekend’s unique sound and lyrics, buoyed by the band’s self-released EPs, which they recorded in locations spanning their Columbia dorm rooms to a family barn. The buzz around Vampire Weekend reached a peak in 2007: that summer, the band embarked on their biggest tour yet, made several appearances at that year’s CMJ Music Marathon, and signed with XL Records that fall.

“The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance (Take Away Show)”

“A-Punk (Live on Letterman)”

“Oxford Comma (Live on MTV)”

“Mansard Roof (Take Away Show)”

“Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Live on MTV)”