Nov 28, 2014

The Miserable Rich - Live in Frankfurt - 2014


I like this chamber pop band out of Brighton. Charming, melodic music that comes together wonderfully in a live setting.


creators of the fiery chamber music for song lovers: tellers of tales, writers of tunes, forgetters of punchlines. equal parts surly, silly and sumptuous.

the sound of one lip kissing.

The Wooden Wolf - Seven songs Op​.​3 - 2014


The Wooden Wolf may howl or hum, joke or moan, but he'll do it in the moonlight, when the night is blue...
Very nice release, has touches of Will Oldham and company all over the place on this one.

Eef Barzelay - The Giving And Taking Of Thanks - 2014


This EP is a collection of fan inspired and desired tracks mostly from the Eldorado Subscription Service series
All songs Written by Eef but for that Sound of Music one.

Nov 27, 2014

Koala Tea Time - Life, Watered Down - 2014


http://www.toofargonerecords.com

Papermoons - New Tales - 2009


Less is more. It's a philosophy that Matt Clark and Daniel Hawkins of Papermoons understand quite well. The idea that you can say a whole lot more without screaming or shouting is evidenced by the brilliantly constructed songs on their debut New Tales. They use subtle transitions, gorgeous Simon & Garfunkel-esque harmonies, intricate performances and attention to every minute detail to create a unique mid-tempo mix of indie rock and alt-country that is truly captivating. Lyrics such as "I just wanna know / if my life is a joke / cause I breathe right / do I live right?" will capture your attention, your mind and perhaps even your soul. "There isn't a lyrical theme to the record, but more of an array of experiences. What we hope is that the listener can find comfort in our songs no matter their mood. We strive to make music that can both cheer someone up and also console. We've both been involved with playing music for many years now and what has been continually inspiring to us is the way in which music connects people" says Matt Clark. It's impossible to pick a favorite from this impressive collection of songs...because the reality is every single track on New Tales is a winner. Beautifully melodic, innocent songs with undercurrents of sadness and hope, New Tales is an album with no equal. (DER-487)


KASHKA - Bones EP - 2014


Forest City Lovers began in the bedroom of Kat Burns and slowly expanded into a collaborative project over the last five years. The band is based in Toronto, Ontario and has toured extensively all over the place. So much love to the mountains, deserts and beautiful cities in between.

Robert J. Hunter - Blistering Soul EP - 2014


The ‘Blistering Soul’ EP is a combination of the old and the new. 
A sign off for the past, and a snapshot of the future. 

''Rob has grown over the past year or so into a consummate performer, seemingly playing almost non-stop somewhere or other, and this had lead to him becoming the sort of person who, it seems, is incapable of putting on a bad show'' - Tom Girard, BBC Introducing. 

'Based in London, Hunter has a voice and guitar skills that most would kill for on their own but put the two together and we have something quite, quite special and unique. 
Hunter's voice is once again the main attraction and his world-weary style is so utterly believable as a well travelled Blues man that you could only expect him to have the look of a Seasick Steve or Muddy Waters. Whatever the man looks like, the important thing is that he sounds absolutely incredible and by golly you need to seek him out to improve your life.' - listenwithmonger.blogspot.co.uk 

'Hurricane is a beautiful stripped back acoustic track, you feel that your in the room sat in front of Robert. Maybe in a tavern with a class of single malt whiskey by your hand. No back band, just a man and his acoustic guitar and a voice that’s so powerful.' - indieminded.com 

'We are only 8 days into 2014 and we can already safely say that we’ve found one of our gems of the year. It is rare that a blues or folky artist will sweep across Mute Print’s pages but every now and again we’re swept off our feet and drawn into a tornado of incredible gritty vocals and a guitar hook to die for.' - muteprint.com

Nov 26, 2014

Beerjacket - A Boy Of Action - 2007


Shows have included dates with the likes of The National, Kristin Hersh, Feist, Frightened Rabbit, Guillemots, Rilo Kiley, Joan As Police Woman and Tom Vek, amongst many others.
"The new Elliott Smith." Matt Berninger (The National)
"Great, sweet tunes." Jenny Lewis
"F***ing great." Feist
Beerjacket has received regular national and international radio airplay including on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio

Nov 24, 2014

Spencer Radcliffe & R.L. Kelly - Brown Horse - 2014


A record label of family and friends since 2010.

bulldog eyes - you have fun - 2014


emo-acoustic indie demos... nice foundation.

The Polish Ambassador - Future, Sex, Computers - 2011


It's funky. it's electronique.. it's bleeps... and peeps it'll get you jiving to a new kerbleep!

Matt Paxton - Mountain Eyes EP - 2014


A little darker than my previous post, however Scott Orr lends a hand in drawing up these raw demos. A dark lo-fi acoustic sound weaves this release into a sketch of a desolation, dirty landscape where a man has a guitar and a story to tell.

Scott Orr - The Acoustic EP - 2010


One of my favourite Canadian singer-songwriters; great acoustic renditions from his musical catalogue, introduce yourself all over again. 

I've always wanted to take some of the songs ("greatest hits") that I've written over the course of the last 6 years and re-record them in a live, acoustic setting. 
However, this collection took so long to come together because writing/recording new stuff is always more fun then working on old material. This EP collects various recordings I've done in the last year of acoustic versions of new and old songs. All of them brought together in a quiet EP, recorded roughly and acoustically. Mostly in one or two takes... with little to no editing or overdubs. 

Track Listing 
1. No (Acoustic Version) 
- Brand new song written for this project. 
2. Other Thoughts (Acoustic Version) 
- Originally from "3 Songs EP" and "Miles from Today" 
3. A Bird On the Ground (Acoustic Version) 
- From the upcoming new record 
4. For a Frame (Acoustic Version) 
- Previously unreleased 
5. Hurricane (Acoustic Version) 
- Originally from "Lonesometown" and "Miles From Today" 
6. Danger (Acoustic Version) 
- Originally from "Ghost Party" 
7. Laura Lynn (Acoustic Version) 
- Originally from "Lonesometown" 
8. Ghosts (Acoustic Version) 
- Originally from "Ghost Party"

Nov 22, 2014

Knots - The Blistering Sun, the Pale Moon, Hahahaha - 2011


Well said at BC:

Colin Nielsen Such a fantastic album all of the song are beautiful on their own, but together they create this beautifully haunting feeling that seemingly flows through the whole album

wonderdog Gives the same feeling as albums by His Name Is Alive: on listening, one is thinking "where the heck is this going?", but it all fits together well.
I like it a lot.

flat soda - electric Kool​-​aid - 2014


flat soda create bedroom pop with lots of experimentation abound. The pillow love songs fit well with the bare arrangements and deadpan vocals. Worth a listen.

ösö - LISTENJOY - 2014


Folk yin/yan harmonies warm the latest release from ösö. At times delicate and times frenetic, but always full of sentiment. 
Nice release

Nov 21, 2014

Norwegian Arms - Trimmings of Hides - 2011


Norwegian Arms presents: 

Trimmings of Hides 
a slight foray into the mind/body/soul of Keith Birthday and Dr. Awkward at American Diamond 

1. Run! Ran! Run! Rah! 
'Every day your life is the same until it is completely different' 

2.She Lives in a Secret Town 
'There is a reactor over there but I cannot touch it' 

3.Tramplebeasts 
'I went and moved until I was tired and then I got lost in the woods'

Dear Pariah - Engulf - 2014


Dear Pariah is the moniker for London based artist Charlotte Hinchcliff, a 24 year old British singer-songwriter and arranger. Her voice holds the weight of an old soul on young shoulders, with a distinctive sound that demands your attention.


Einar Jullum - Overraskelsen - 2014


Montreal singer-songwriter. Nice release.


Nov 15, 2014

Cabana - Live on KEXP - 2014


Recorded 10/25/14 on KEXP Seattle

A Tribute To Elliott Smith - 2005



"A Tribute To Elliott Smith" features some of the best Independent bands from all over the world honoring the late, great Elliott Smith with an outstanding collection of covers and originals inspired by Elliott Smith's music. 

The musicians represented here are a diverse crowd hailing from across the USA, France, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom. Each was selected because of the quality of their unique and interesting music, to bring a wide range of takes on Elliott Smith's music worthy of a tribute to his legacy. 

This fully licensed tribute complements any Elliott Smith fan's CD collection - each cover is treated with the respect it deserves while at the same time exhibiting a fresh take on these classic songs. The originals on the album are all from musicians who were inspired to perform and create by Elliott Smith's music. Unlike many tribute albums, the track listing of "A Tribute To Elliott Smith" flows seamlessly from one song to another, really keeping the listener in an Elliott Smith state of mind and coming off as a cohesive album rather than a hastily thrown together collection of songs. Each song and artist was chosen with care to ensure a heartfelt tribute that gets everything right. 

With 21 tracks and over 77 minutes of music, "A Tribute To Elliott Smith" is absolutely loaded to capacity with great music. From slow and mellow songs to full on rockers, this album covers the whole musical spectrum while still retaining that special Elliott Smith flavor on each and every track. 

A portion of all proceeds from this release will be donated to the Elliott Smith Memorial Fund.

The Glue Ensemble - Teatime At A Funeral - 2010


Alternative acoustic music from London and Paris.
We are the sound of slipping away before everyone else wakes. We are the feeling of a train journey back to where you grew up. 
We are the sound of tea-time at a funeral.

Nick Jaina - Sleeping on the Covers - 2011


Really nice collection of covers, done with subtlety and craftsmanship. 
Very enjoyable "older" release.

BD Harrington - Regarding the Shortness of Your Breath - 2013


BD Harrington’s piano, guitar and voice are augmented by pedal steel, stand-up bass and Don Kerr’s inimitable percussion and cello. From the plaintive lament of ‘New Skin’ (“the light will part the flesh and leave every door ajar, and I won’t wonder where you’ve been, I won’t wonder where you are”) to the vertiginous, hallucinatory ‘Mariella’ (“bring your soft lips down and kiss my new concussion”) ‘Regarding the Shortness of Your Breath’ is haunting, cogent and solidifies BD Harrington’s unique voice and establishes him as an emerging songwriter of note. 

Leafa - 2014


Raised in O'ahu, Hawaii, Leafa Vagatai's life has been shaped by music. With a guitar in hand, essentially from birth, Leafa learned to participate in the cultural art of story telling through song. Leafa's music has been described as "Island Folk" combining the smooth of style of blues with the raw story telling of folk. Leafa attributes much of her unique style to her unique musician influences. Everyone from Chicago to Ziggy Marley to Petra has influenced Leafa and left an indeliable mark on her sound.

She currently resides in Nashville where she is studying International Education and Community Development. Upon completion of her degree, she hopes to take her musician act and her unique charm to the Philippines to encourage impoverished communities with her music. In fact, it his her friends in the Philippines that have inspired many of Leafa's songs. She has used her talents as a story teller to inspire audiences with stories about people who live in a world marked by poverty. fb

Wett Nurse - Hissy Fit - 2014


From newly minted record label Ongakubaka

YOU READ THAT RIGHT! We're extremely excited to announce that Ongakubaka is taking the big leap to small independent record label!! Our first release, of what we hope will be many future releases, is a 6 track EP from Portland's WETT NURSE! Hot hip-shaking garage tunes for those cold winter nights. 

Nov 14, 2014

Bahamas - Live at The Current - 2014


Bahamas (Singer-songwriter Afie Jurvanen) recently visited the studios at The Current in St. Paul, MN to perform songs off his new self explanatory album Bahamas is Afie, out now on Brushfire Records.
Listen in on intimate performances of “Bitter Memories” and “Stronger Than That” from the new album, and “I Got You Babe” off Jurvanen’s 2012 effort, Barchords.


new snow


taken with my new iPhone... burrrrr

Nov 13, 2014

Buck Meek - Live from a Volcano - 2013


Beautiful authentic songs... The sound is old but oh so nice!

Wolf Collage - Forward: - 2014


Travis Button The versatility that has been shown since "Suburbia Space Program" is just amazing, look forward to seeing what lies ahead for Wolf Collage.

Michael Reilly Captivating songs in what is a fully developed alternative folk style of pop/rock. Great guitar playing and a heartbreaking vocal delivery raise these songs above the normal and display a mature and exciting direction. 

Only Magic Left is Art Forward is the crescendo of every teenager's life when he must transition from boy to man. Each song examines this inward state of self-reflection. The anger, the awkwardness, the grief, the loss. But ultimately the acceptance that "he knows exactly where he should be for the very first time". This affirmation of life explodes on the track Glow. Which monumentally shares the best attributes of The National and Youth Lagoon. It's an unforgettable listen and an album you will not soon forget.

Megafauna - 2009


Recorded in a Fortitude Valley garret in 2006, Ben Salter & Conor Macdonald's 'Megafauna' side project is a collection of hissy, claustrophobic low fi folk weirdness. A number of tracks were later ransacked and recycled for Gin Club and Giants of Science songs including the title track and "All Your Men". However the original is still the best. 
For fans of Sparklehorse, Eric's Trip, Smog and Grandaddy.

The Everywheres - Strange Love & A Nightmare - 2014


Very nice release out of Halifax.

"A new cassette single called "Strange Love" & "A Nightmare" recorded by The Everywheres at home on North Street in Halifax during the Autumn of 2014. The cover art was done by Nicholas Hanlon. This one is for you if you're feeling slightly frightened by the noises you hear as you walk the daily beat. At this point there are innumerable songs called "Strange Love" or some variation on that theme. You already knew that. And A Nightmare I had a few weeks ago but I can hardly remember. The one thing I know is that there was an angry crowd.

Nov 12, 2014

Hey Rosetta! - Cathedral Bells - single 2014


This song is wonderful. Great album!


That's when the shadow came and darkened your china face
The dancers still shook and swayed, but I couldn't look away
They were all in the chemicals, all hundred cars up an icy hill
And we were stood under them, grim, quietly grimacing
And you spoke with that voice I love
And love awoke in my boiling blood
With this I dissect before
The road is lit, and I'm going home
There'll be no caving in, no suicide, no, no pills and gin.
I hear your voice again, and it stirs me like a pealing bell
Echoes by everything and everywhere
By every fraught fiber in every cell
Here I'm telling you you're not the only one

You're not the only one
No, you're not the only one
You're not the only one feeling this stuff
You're one of us

And that's when the shadow lifts
And the camera reveals her lips
And all the lava under your skin
You gotta always remember it
And try not to talk it off
And say all of that common stuff
No, just let the lava come
And all the love you've been holding off
Yeah, that's when we're rising up
Feel the elevator pull your guts
Each floor is like medicine drops
The only fear is the fear it'll stop

But it won't because
No, it won't because
No, no it won't because
No, it never stops
No, it never stops
No, it won't because
'Cause it's in your blood
You're one of us

Yeah, that's when we're rising up
Out of the ashes and plastic cups
On and on on a dirty rug
While they're all dancing to jungle love
I don't care if a shadow comes and covers us like a shovel of rocks
The party's still going on
I heard cathedral bells

SPC ECO - The Art of Pop Remixes - 2014


A nice bunch of remixes by SPC ECO... well done guys.

Wet Leather - Past Lives - 2014


Straight from a 4 track cassette recorder and a broken laptop—both currently residing in a freezing basement on the Williamsburg waterfront.

The lives in question are Yours & Mine, full of off-brand electric guitars, sexual failure, genre pastiche, malfunctioning electronics, and a secret but unabashed preference for neurotically erotic pop hooks. I hope that you submit wholesale to their charms.

Nov 10, 2014

Big Lonely - Dirty Clocks - single 2014


The first single off of our full length album, "Close Your Eyes, Keep Talking" - To be released on December 5th, 2014. 

Big Lonely is a picnic basket of smoldering emotion, waiting to erupt. When the band members aren't busy being best friends, they spend time pairing dark themes of heartbreak and confused morale with aggressive surf/dance rock.




I’ve come to hate birthdays 
And appreciate loss 
Tell me how your days been 
I seem to have missed it I slept too long 

Do you have any good reads? 
Could you send them my way? 
I’ve been running out of original ways 
To spend my day 

But just because I closed my eyes once 
Doesn’t mean I’m blind 

Discomforting condolences bring my mind up to speed 
But I’ve been trying not to think fast thoughts 
It’s been easy with dirty clocks 
My hands can’t help but move slow 

I’m tired of holding burning ropes 
But I’m too tired to let them go 

Just because I closed my eyes once 
Doesn’t mean I’m blind 

Do you still wear my t-shirt underneath his old sweater? 
Is there something else behind your heart? 
Minding your tongue when you know that you’re wrong 
At least you have the decency to stay far 

I know what I won’t ask of my new friend 
And I will only speak in half-truths 
Time hides more than it heals 
Mend the glass on your watch, if you want time to heal 
Time is hiding everything 

Don’t worry, don’t wait 
I’ll run into you again 
But just because I closed my eyes once 
Doesn’t mean I’m blind

My Drunken Haze - 2014


Greek five piece band My Drunken Haze are based out of Athens in the Mesogia area and make 60's psych-tinged melodies with fiery pop flourishes. Their self-titled debut album, released by Inner Ear Records on 3th of November.  
Produced by King Elephant, best known as the drummer of Baby Guru. An album starring the character of a woman in search of love, longing, separation and redemption, set against a backdrop of daydreaming, drugs and the hot sand of a summer beach. 

My Drunken Haze formed in the spring of 2010 by guitarist-songwriter and Spir Frelini, as an endeavor to reconcile neo-psychedelic music with the 60's garage guitar sound. In 2011 guitarist Harry Kane joined the band, while in 2012 they found the ethereal singer, Matina Sous Peau. The rhythm section was staffed with Nick Zoura on the drums and Costa Gunn on bass.




Born in 2007 Inner Ear Records is based in the Greek city of Patras. It began as a one-man project and is currently Greece’s leading indie music label, home to some of the most interesting new local bands. Inner Ear is mainly focused on english-speaking alternative rock, pop and modern folk music but it keeps horizons and ears open to any other genre.

photo by: Dionyssis Matiatos

Nov 8, 2014


Last night's moon... It was haunting.

No Sleep Records - "Here's No Sleep" - 2014 Fall Sampler



Nov 6, 2014

Advance Base - Plastic Owen Band - 2014


Collected covers, compilation tracks, demos & rarities 2011-2014 

Nov 2, 2014

franny & zooey - I Love You - single 2014


Franny & Zooey is the name behind Juan Julio Peña and Victoria Linares, two buddies that were introduced at a a punk show in Dominican Republic. Years later, in the sizzling summer of 2012 they decided to make some demos for two weeks straight, giving birth to Bananafish (released on Dufflecoat Records in 2013). 

The band is heavily influenced by 60’s girl groups and 80’s indiepop.

To The Wedding - Silver Currents - 2014


To The Wedding, San Francisco's Lauren Grubb, has already cemented herself as one of 2014's stand-out artists with just three tracks. Previous singles "Silver Currents" and "Come On" introduced an immersive, unhurried songcraft and now "Set Fire" has come along and trumped them both...

Bigger, larger, even better, "Set Fire" beings similarly restrained, with Lauren's smoky vocals intoxicating softly strummed guitar before enveloping you slowly within a hazy, cinematic monster as skyscraper rhythms build and build into a crescendo of Hope of the States esque instrumental sound. A huge drip feed of emotion awaits. JMTIL

Nov 1, 2014

Buddy - Last Call for the Quiet Life - 2014


Excellent Release, as winter closes in...

Buddy is an evolving collection of Los Angeles musicians, the singer & songwriter of which is a man named Buddy. Buddy’s songs are full of brilliant turns of phrase and suffused with beauty, longing, and sadness.


‘Last Call for the Quiet Life’, Buddy’s sophomore album reflects Buddy’s struggle and reconciliation with himself over the past few years. For Buddy, the songs are a sort of confessional therapy. The album expresses the ups and downs of existence, relationships and family, and the highs and lows of finding yourself in your own life. We caught up with Buddy to discuss his lyrical mindset, enjoying the ‘creative journey’ and his love for The Replacements’ ‘Tim’…

TSH: As you began forming the new album, entitled ‘Last Call for the Quiet Life’, tell us about the unlikely beneficial feature of not knowing where things were going and instead learning to just let it happen and to let things keep unfolding…

Buddy: I’ve learned (the hard way!) in the past that if you try to control things too much artistically and don’t just let creativity happen organically, it’s really easy to stifle it. So, when Will and I started out on the record we were really adamant about letting the songs reveal themselves to us instead of limiting ourselves to a fixed plan. It allowed us to go in a new direction and was a really fun process.  (CONTINUE ON The 7th Hex Site)

Car Seat Headrest How To Leave Town - 2014


lo-fi release from Will Toledo...