New Music Tuesday - 02/11/2014

New Full-Length Releases

Doug Keith - Pony Doug Keith has been a member of Sharon van Etten's touring and recording band since at least 2011. I got to see him in action backing her up when I saw her in Columbus. Keith has also had an active solo career, though he hasn't received the same level of attention as van Etten. Hopefully, his latest album will see him getting some more attention for his own work! Listen: "Pure Gold in the 70s" Listen: "You Can't Stand to Be Alone"

Fanfarlo - Let's Go Extinct Fanfarlo has been one of my favorites since 2009 and the release of their debut, Reservoir. At the beginning, their sound reminded me of Neutral Milk Hotel, but they progressed beyond that with 2012's Rooms Filled with Light, taking on a more post-punk/alternative sound. With the latest, they change it up even more, bringing some dream pop into their sonic mix. We'll see if they can maintain being one of my favorites with this one! Watch: "Landlocked" Listen: "Let's Go Extinct"

HANDS - The Soul Is Quick HANDS is the side project of Axel Willner of The Field, another band that I've only recently become familiar with. The Field's music has been characterized by its busy-ness and a "lack of space." Here, he attempts to step away from that, but still maintains some of the darkness that he is known for. Listen: "Beelitz-Heilstätten pt6" Listen: "Beelitz-Heilstätten pt7"

Other New Releases

Band of Horses - Acoustic at the Ryman Band of Horses played at the iconic Ryman Auditorium two nights last April. They played a set of 13 bare bones songs from all of their albums. The recording of those shows is seeing a release, leading into another show at the Ryman for the band. Listen: "Detlef Schrempf" Listen: "Neighbor"

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - PRODUCE Mixtape Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. may make pop-tinged indie music, but that doesn't stop them from releasing a mixtape in a similar vein to what we often see from hip hop artists! The release sees them working with some interesting artists like Asher Roth and includes a Randy Newman cover. The mixtape is available as a free download from Datpiff.com! Listen: "Curtain Call" (featuring Asher Roth) Listen: "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today"

Endless Love Soundtrack Endless Love is a remake of the 1981 film of the same name. The reviews of the film aren't good and I'm not very likely to see it, but it does have some great songs on the soundtrack! Listen: Tegan & Sara - "Don't Find Another Love" Listen: The Tallest Man on Earth - "Leading Me Now"

Girls, Volume 2: All Adventurous Women Do "All Adventurous Women Do..." is the title of the third episode of HBO's Girls. I haven't yet started watching the show (it is on my list), but, like the first soundtrack, it's attracting some great artists to record original music! Watch: Lily Allen - "L8 CMMR" Listen: Jenny Lewis - "Completely Not Me"

The LEGO Movie Soundtrack The second soundtrack released this week to feature a new song from Tegan & Sara, but also another movie I'm not very likely to see. The majority of the soundtrack is comprised of the film's score by Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo. Watch: Tegan & Sara - "Everything Is Awesome!!!" (featuring The Lonely Island) Listen: Mark Mothersbaugh - "Escape"

The Moon Song EP Now for a movie that I do actually plan to see! Her is Spike Jonze's latest film and it includes an excellent song , "The Moon Song," penned by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O. The mini soundtrack includes several versions of the track, including the movie version sung by the film's stars. Listen: Karen O & Ezra Koenig- "The Moon Song" (Studio Version) Listen: Scarlett Johansson & Joaquin Phoenix - "The Moon Song" (Film Version)

The National - "I Need My Girl"/"Learning" The National's latest single from last year's excellent Trouble Will Find Me comes backed by a cover of a Perfume Genius song. While Matt Berninger's voice is much deeper than Mike Hadreas', he's able to bring the same sadness to it and it's an excellent addition to the band's repertoire. Watch: "I Need My Girl" Listen: "Learning"

Sweet Valley - "So Serene" Sweet Valley, the side project of Wavves' Nathan Williams, put out a number of sound experiment albums (all free) throughout 2012 and 2013. The latest is perhaps the most experimental and just consists of one 20+ minute track. Listen: "So Serene"

Tarka and Friends: Life Tarka Cordell was an influential British musician who took his own life in 2008. During his time here, he became good friends with a number of other musicians, who are now coming together to record some of his music in tribute. Listen: Lily Allen & Louis Eliot - "Shelter You" Listen: Imani Coppola - "13 Perfect Days"

Thurston Moore - "Detonation"/"Germs Burn" Thurston Moore has kept himself busy since the dissolution of his primary band The Sonic Youth a couple of years ago. He released a record as Chelsea Light Moving last year and is gearing up for a solo release early this summer! Listen: "Detonation" Listen: "Germs Burn"

Vampire Academy: Music from the Motion Picture OK...so this is another movie that I have no real plans to see, but has some amazing songs on its soundtrack. And yes, it was the Chvrches cover of the classic Bauhaus song that caught my ear on this one! Listen: Au Revoir Simone - "Crazy" Listen: Chvrches - "Bela Lugosi's Dead"

New Music Tuesday - 10/08/2013

New Full-Length Releases

Anna Calvi - One Breath While I started listening to Anna Calvi following the release of her eponymous debut album in 2011, it wasn't until I heard the early singles off this release that I really started to fall in love. Though she already had a strong, independent vibe going, it felt even stronger leading into her follow up. I've had a couple of weeks to listen to this album and to absolutely fall in love with it! Listen/Watch: "Sing to Me"

Cage the Elephant - Melophobia Cage the Elephant burst onto the scene in 2008 with their raucous and rebellious self-titled debut. Unfortunately, their follow-up, Thank You, Happy Birthday, didn't have quite the same magic. They sounded like a band that wanted to grow their sound, but didn't know how. I think they've figured it out with this one. While it still maintains much of what made their music so much fun in the first go-around, they also sound a bit more mature. Listen/Watch: "Come a Little Closer"

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - The Speed of Things This band has such a deceptive name. On paper, you think you're going to get something incredibly silly, or really country. While some of their songs, and definitely most of their music videos, do have a certain silliness to them, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. may be one of the most talented  pop/indie rock bands out there. They demonstrate great lyrics, harmonies and melodies. All this, and they're still a lot of fun to listen to! Listen/Watch: "If You Didn't See Me (Then You Weren't on the Dancefloor)"

The Fratellis - We Need Medicine As I said last week, I thought that this band was done for. Like with Cage the Elephant, they released an awesome debut and followed it up with something very disappointing. And, like Cage the Elephant, the latest is a bit of a return to what they do well. I'm pretty happy to see The Fratellis return to form. They had released what was probably one of my favorite (and the most fun) albums of the British indie rock surge and they are nearly back to that sound here. Listen/Watch: "Seven Nights Seven Days"

Frog Eyes - Carey's Cold Spring The announcement of this latest album from Frog Eyes also came with some tragic news; frontman Carey Mercer had been diagnosed with throat cancer. Because of this, the band may not be touring in support of the record. Whatever happens in the bands future, and I'm sure all are praying for a successful recovery, they've put out a great record here. Listen/Watch: "Claxxon's Lament"

Glasser - Interiors I wasn't sure of how big a name Glasser really was. I stumbled across her debut album, Ring, a couple of years ago, but it didn't seem like I saw her name in very many places. I was scared I wouldn't know when she released a follow up. Thankfully, her name seemed to be everywhere when this album was announced. She's one of the few great experimental female artists, and I'm excited to see how she's grown on this follow up! Listen/Watch: "Design"

Lee Ranaldo and the Dust - Last Night on Earth All former members of Sonic Youth seem to be keeping themselves pretty busy, and Lee Ranaldo, the band's guitarist is no different. He released Between the Times and the Tides last year, and wasted no time in releasing this follow up. In contrast to the music put out by his former bandmates, his music is relatively lowkey; the others have maintained a closer tie to the band's punk aesthetics. I like it when artists step away from their bands and release something completely different. Listen: "Ambulancer"

of Montreal - lousy with sylvianbriar of Montreal are the purveyors of crazy, eclectic music accompanied by crazy album covers and even crazier live shows. For their latest offering, they home recorded on a 24-track tape machine (for a more vintage vibe) and have taken on a slight country sound. So, making their music even more eclectic than it already it. They're consistently one of the weirdest and most fun bands to listen to and this album should be no different! Listen/Watch: "Fugitive Air"

Pusha T - My Name Is My Name My self-education of hip hop continues! I first became familiar with Pusha T on last year's Cruel Summer compilation from GOOD Music. His was one of my favorite voices on the release and I decided that I wanted to hear more. It feels like I've been waiting for forever for this album, though. I heard the first single (below) way back in March and have been on pins and needles ever since. It's finally here and I think I might have a new favorite rapper! Listen/Watch: "Numbers on the Boards"

Sleigh Bells - Bitter Rivals When Sleigh Bells released their first album, Treats, in 2010, they seemed a bit like they would be a flash in the pan. Sure, they released something that was fairly unique, but it didn't seem like it would be a sound people would be interested in past one album. But they proved me wrong; they successfully grew their sound into a follow up, Reign of Terror, and again here. They've maintained the loud, feedback-heavy guitars, but there's enough else there to give them some longevity. Listen/Watch: "Bitter Rivals"

Other New Releases

Albert Hammond, Jr. - AHJ EP Throughout the releases of the last two Strokes albums, I've really been wishing for more side work from its members. Well, here's the first release since the band released 2011's Angles and thank God (my hopes for their return was not matched by the output)! I can only hope this means more solo work from the other members, especially Fab Moretti's Little Joy! Listen/Watch: "St. Justice"

How I Live Now Soundtrack How I Live Now is a 2013 film about a neurotic US teenager sent to live with family in the UK in the midst of war (that's about all I know about it since I've only seen a trailer). In true fashion for British cinema, it has what promises to be an incredible soundtrack, provided by electronic artist Jon Hopkins. It also includes tracks from Amanda Palmer and Natasha Khan (aka Bat for Lashes). So yeah, pretty awesome! Listen/Watch: Natasha Khan & Jon Hopkins - "Garden's Heart"

Parquet Courts - Tally All the Things That You Broke EP I jumped on the Parquet Courts bandwagon a little bit late. They released their second full-length, Light Up Gold, last year, but I only started listening this year. It's good punk music, though. This is their follow up to that critically successful album. Listen/Watch: "You Got Me Wonderin' Now"

Passion Pit - Constant Conversations EP Passion Pit released a pretty decent sophomore album, Gossamer, in summer of last year. "Constant Conversations" was one of the singles from that album and now it's getting the inevitable remix treatment. The EP features a remix from Dillon Francis and a pair of new tracks. Listen/Watch: "Constant Conversations"

RED HOT + FELA Red Hot is an organization which promotes AIDS awareness. Over the 23 years, they have released compilation albums, always featuring a diverse selection of artists performing songs with a particular theme. This album features musicians such as tUnE-yArDs, Sinkane and My Morning Jacket performing covers of songs by the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti. Listen: tUnE-yArDs, ?uestlove, Angelique Kidjo, Akua Naru - “Lady”