Free Blood - Royal Family EP (08) & Never Hear Surf Music Again (08)

[Electronic, Dance, Indie, Fryk Beat]

"The concept was simple: A soundtrack for parties gone awry.

Music to fuel awkward sexual dalliances, desperate yelled misunderstandings on the dance floor, toilets over-flowing with the night's collective regurgitation, lonesome midnight ramblings, hair-brained (possibly illegal) parlour games, stereo components fried by heat and moisture, backyard furniture bonfires, power outages, mass hallucination, etc." This is pretty much perfect. I love this band.

"Free Blood, the Brooklyn-based duo consisting of former !!! (Chk Chk Chk) member John Pugh and fashion designer Madeline Davy, are releasing their debut single (through Rong Music / DFA Records) entitled “Never Hear Surf Music Again” (due out tomorrow on 12” vinyl and digital download). A second single dubbed "Royal Family" (due out July 15th) comes with the title track, the B-Side "Grumpy", and some bangin' remixes from The Brothers and Greg Wilson. You can expect a Fall 2008 full length release with all these singles and more. Below are a couple Free Blood tracks and a Hot Chip remix that will help convince you of this band's greatness."

Slightly Similar to These Crazies or Vice-Versa: Shocking Pinks, Muscles, Holy Hail, The Whip, Riot in Belgium

Free Blood - Royal Family EP (2008)

Free Blood - Never Hear Surf Music Again.mp3

Free Blood - Quick And Painful (Hot Chip Remix).mp3

Thee Oh Sees - The hounds of Foggy Notion (08) & The Master's Bedroom...(08)

[Garage, Lo-Fi, Psychedelic, Acid Folk]

These two album may just be my favorite garage albums of this year, though I am not fully certain yet. There is an admirable distribution of mellow riffs and memorable hooks throughout, but theres no telling if that'll be enough to drive this band toward the same kind of acknowledgment. All I know is I enjoy, listening to them even if they've been several different bands over the span of a few years. Maybe this will be their year. I personally prefer the faster pace of Master's Bedroom compared to the lullish lo-fi sound of Hounds of Foggy Notion.

Slightly Similar to These Crazies or Vice-Versa: No Kids, White Denim, Women

Thee Oh Sees - The Master's Bedroom Is Worth Spending The Night In (2008)
Thee Oh Sees - The Hounds of Foggy Notion (2008)

Women - Women (08)

[Noise Pop, Lo-Fi, Shoegase]

Women is a vaguely named quartet from my beloved Alberta, Canada, signed to Flemish Eye Records. Their respectively titled debut released this July is rapidly creeping up the yearly top charts of many fellow music collectors. The album was produced my veteran Chad VanGaalen in the guys' basement. I took a quick liking to it, but I am prone to loving the tacky lo-fi trend. Nonetheless, the album is a sturdy debut.

Slightly Similar To These Crazies or Vice-Versa: David Burt, Chorus, Dr. Dog, Parenthetical Girls, Animal Collective

Women - Women (2008)

Black Taj - Beyonder (08)

[Psychedelic, Hard Rock, Southern Drive]

Hailing from Chapel Hill, but you would never know it, Black Taj is one rock band of epic proportions. They do it right. This is a beautiful example of intelligent, quality, classic rock n' roll from a group of four highly talented men. This is what music is all about. By far a better example of their driving rock ability than their debut album in 2005, their 2008 release Beyonder is a must have psychedelic, dirty rock album, specifically the leading track "Move Me".

Sounds Slightly Similar To These Crazies and Vice-Versa: Idyll Swords, Helium, Pavlo, The Black Keys, Cuban Knights, Libraness

Black Taj - Beyonder (2008)