[Gothic, Drone, Alt-Country, Freak Folk]
Those Poor Bastards play miserable and primitive old-time gothic country music. Lonesome Wyatt (guitar, vocals) and The Minister (banjo, bass, etc.) are both legally certified holiness preachers. If you're looking for slick, over-produced, commercial songs, you'd better cover your delicate little ears. Those Poor Bastards play it raw and they play it mean. Here is there 2008 release, The Plague, off Tribulation Recordings.
slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: Diablo Swing Orchestra, Hank Williams III, Lonesome Wyatt and The Holy Spooks, The .357 String Band, Sons of Perdition
[Garage, Psychedelic, Noise, Rock]
Striking awe in nearly all concert goers who bare humble witness to their live performances, Awesome Color, a band of three hailing from Ann Arbor, Michigan, are quickly making a name for themselves. Signed to Ecstatic Peace/Universal Records, the band is still pushing onward with their outstanding sophomore release, Electric Aborigines, the follow up to their debut s/t album of 2006. The band is just about as trippy as you get without...well, actually tripping. Just look at that artwork alone. That has to tell you something. These guys jam not just for garage rock, psych rock, noise rock, or southern rock...these guys flat out jam on a whole new level of jamable rock.
slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: Oakley Hall, Danava, Witchcraft, Pride Tiger, Oneida, Black Lips
[Ambient-Punk, Psychedelic, Experimental, Shoegaze, Post-Rock]
The lovely minimalists of Deerhunter are back again with their 2008 release of Microcastle on Kranky Records, and its even more fantastic than their previous, Cryptograms. Deerhunter's sound is the perfect polarizing balance between electronic ambience, psychedelica, experimental and shoegazey dronage and nothing could exemplify this, as well as their progression as a band in general, better than this album.
slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: No Age, Liars, Atlas Sound, Oneida, BARR
[Experimental, Math Rock, Shoegaze, Instrumental]MAPS is an instrumental rock band from Nashville, TN. They formed in February 2005 “in a town where instrumental music is virtually non-existent”. Within a year MAPS had played with post-rock heavyweights like Foxhole and Unwed Sailor and released their first demo titled “The Occidental EP” in February 2006. From there regional touring took place and the band recorded and released their first full length album “Oh, That Our Heads Were Waters” in November 2006. They have shared the stage with bands like Foxhole, Unwed Sailor, Caspian, Constants, Gifts from Enola, Cinemechanica and The Ascent of Everest among many others known in the instrumental scene.slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: Foxhole, Caspian, Darkroom, Grails, Battles, Unwed Sailor
[Post-Rock, Experimental, Instrumental, Ambient, Drone]
Here is Grails' 2008 follow up to their 2007 release Burning Off Impurities, Take Refuge in Clean Living, released by Important Records. Portland residents, Grails are a band you probably already know and if you don't then allow me... They were formally kown as Laurel Canyon, but were renamed upon their 2003 release of their first LP. They became louder, better, and more aggressive with their approach, but still maintain their lulling ambient drones.
slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: Gregor Samsa, Caspian, Mono, Om, Holy Sons, Magic Gardens
[Experimental, Instrumental, Electronic, Folkish-IDM]
Luke Fischbeck is probably one of my favorite people on earth at this moment, mind you I have a lot of favorites, but I'm just saying he is definitely one of them. His on-going musical project Lucky Dragons was started in 1999 and has since remained strong with the aid of many other hands who recruits for recording and live performances such as his recent performance at the Whitney Biennial. His new full length release, Dream Island Laughing Language, is just as superb as his last release in 2007, A Sewing Circle.
slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: Karl Bau, Panther, Fragile Fingers, High Places, Javelin, Escho, No Age
[New Weird America, Folk, Tribal, Female Vocalists]
Holy crap! This album is like spearing an oil well in the middle of the mundane. These two sisters Lindsay(Cake Bake Betty) & Alexis Powell of Brooklyn, NY have debuted one of the best debuts this spring with their release Come, Arrow, Come! signed to Language of Stone. For me, this album was one of those first three second loves, finally, its been too long. Throughout the composition the girls' talented sound stays consistently enticing while switching back and forth from genuine folk to tribal ritualistic hymns to hypnotizing psychedelic drones.
slightly similar to these crazies or vice-versa: Jana Hunter, Ghost Bees, White Magic, The Valerie Project, Cake Bake Betty
[Psych-Folk, Esoteric, Freak Folk, Female Vocalists]
Heres a trio who makes me even more proud of my heritage. Hailing from Glasglow, Scotland, Nalle aka Hanna Tuulikki, Aby Vulliamy, and Chris Hladowski also of Scatter, are a rising folk band who can finally show all these other freak folk trendsters how the real esoteric folk is executed. To some this album may seem barely tolerable, but to others who genuinely enjoy this genre of musical art this album could very well be pure gold.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Six Organs of Admittance, Espers, Lau Nau, MV & EE, Joanna Newsom
[Experimental, Drone, Ambient, Psychedelic, Psych-Folk]
For those who like Indian Jewelry's oldest album, Rattling Death Train, or those who like Andy Spore of Raccoo-Oo-Oon's dark aura of a sound then here is Pocahaunted's 2008 full length, Island Diamonds off of Arbor records. This time the two girls have really stepped it up a notch all while still maintaining a nice alluring tribal/mystical aspect to their sound.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Racoo-Oo-Oon, Grouper, Indian Jewelry, Double Leopards, Clipd Beaks, These Are Powers
[ Minimal, Lo-Fi, Electronic, Avant-Garde, Post-Punk]
Also off of Ariel Rosenberg's Human Ear Music label, Geneva Jacuzzi (Geneva Garvin) is one wicked vamp of a character whose musical aesthetic is the closest thing to a sibling or maybe an immediate cousin to Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti. Aside from familiar relations, Geneva Jacuzzi, also of Bubonic Plague, poses another striking resemblance to groups like The Knife and Super Creep, if those two alone have any in common. They don't, but still. Geneva Jacuzzi brings at most a handful of her own tricks to the table, building a stable, mysterious, and hauntingly cold composition for her '08 release Koose Control.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Bubonic Plague, Super Creep, The Knife, Panther, Glass Candy, Vibe Central
[Post-Punk, Lo-Fi, Electronic]A spawn of Ariel (Pink) Rosenberg's independent record label Human Ear Music, Bubonic Plague is five piece dirty skull lo-fi band that screams Pink's babies. Their sound is brilliant, but only to some. If you're a fan of Holy Shit or Haunted Graffiti definitely give this a go.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Holy shit, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Geneva Jacuzzi, Super Creep, HEALTH
[Free Gold!]
I think I can say, in my own opinion, that Indian Jewelry is the most productive band so far this year. Yea, a couple releases are rereleases due to recent resignage but still 2 new full length LPs, a singles compilation, and a split all in one first half of a year is damn impressive. As previously posted, India Jewelry already rerealsed their LP We Are The Wild Beast from 2003 this year and have just now released an all new full length entitled Free Gold! that is even better and as I said more along the lines of Rattling Death Train. Hallelujah! Also released, is their second all new album of this year, Fake and Cheap, followed by Sangles Redux.
[Freak Folk, Finnish, Experimental, Lo-Fi, Electronic]
Paavoharju is an experimental band from Finland, and like most Finnish collectives they are above and beyond brilliance in their noise composition, yet still filled with mindbogglingly hookish melodies. Signed to a the freak folk label vision of Fonal, Paavoharju's soon-to-be 2008 release, Laulu Laakson Kukista, is one huge extraordinary ball of entertainment thats consistently bending back and forth between freak folk and lo-fi electronic magic, keeping all its listeners enlightened even if you can't speak the Finnish language.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Islaja, Quiet Village, Yellow Swans, ES, Lau Nau
[Post- Rock, Shoegaze, Ambient]
Gregor Samsa are back with their sophomore record, Rest, on Kora Records, as a lofty follow up to their previous LP, 55:12. They're music is lull-ishly suspenseful, yet juxtaposed by beautiful harmonies. Their instrumentals are refreshingly hypnotic and forever morphing, taking the listeners' emotions on a near cinematic, yet never cheesy, roller coaster of intensity at still a mere lull.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Grails, Caspian, High Skies, Slowdive, Mojave 3
[Freak Folk, Psych Desert Gypsy Blues, New Weird America]
Alela is from Nevada City, California and is not-so-surprisingly friends with Joanna Newsom, having opened for her several times. Alela plays dark, yet beautifully haunting music that sounds much like its been served up right off the side of a deserted western highway, rather than a smoky Appalachian highway. She incorporates a strikingly sorrowful, yet wonderfully right Native American aesthetic that adds an appropriately comforting depth to her collections. In 2003 she self-release Forest Parade, and then The Pirate's Gospel the year following. Since then she was signed by Holocene Music in the US but then transfered to Names Records (UK) upon which she released her 2006 EP Songs Whistled Through White Teeth along with a remastered version of The Pirate's Gospel in 2007.
slightly similar to these crazies or vise versa: Joanna Newsom, Marie Sioux, Jana Hunter, Vashti Bunyan, White Magic
Here are several bands that I have been stalking recently who have yet to put out debut EPs and who have therefore made me uncharacteristically skiddish in the sense that I cannot download more than one track by them at this time. I am now unusually forced to wait for their releases of which have no set/announced date for release, and some aren't even of rumored possibility/production. We can only assume these LPs will exist soon, if not soon, I might gain an unfortunate 2nd...or third personality.
Effi Briest
Seven girls, one band, and a whole lot of magic makes for an outstanding freak-folk/rock septet known as Effi Briest, coming straight out of Brooklyn, NY. Their brilliant clatter screams hauntingly loud on a debut 7" entitled, Mirror Rim, say it backwards with now. Mirror Rim. Here is their single accompanied by its B-side, The Newly-weds, a cover of an old 1970s jazz tune, and their 2nd 7" Long Shadow.
Effi Briest - Newly-weds Song.mp3
Effi Briest - Long Shadow.mp3
Effi Briest - Pheonix.mp3
Ipso Facto
Words can not describe the love I have for these four girls. They are all such amazing artists! Hailing from London, and in no way related to their typical comparison, The Horrors, Ipso Facto is a steadily rising, post-rock modern goth soon-to-be phenomenon. Finally a female band that produces music which screams intellectual vision and specific style thats not overly accessible to the mainstream listener, much like Effi Briest above. Here is Ipso Facto's 7" Harmonise/Balderdash, along with a few other unreleased tracks.
Ipso Facto - Harmonize.mp3Ipso Facto - Balderdash.mp3Ipso Facto - Introducing.mp3Ipso Facto - Little Puppet.mp3Ipso Facto - Girl.mp3The Hawds
These five guys, also from the UK, are hard to find, still locally oriented, only have a couple demo releases, and frustrate me more now than I was with White Denim and their seemingly long period of scarcity. Some might say they are your typical guitar rock band, but there is something else that lingers on your ears and somehow convinces you that they are awesome. I might carelessly relate them to the Black Lips in regards to their rawness, but these guys are a lot less focused on a scene to belong to and rather they devote their time to just being an honest band.
Oh woa. Ok, if you have or had any interest at all, even a superficial pull, towards Tigercity or MGMT or any other seductive new wave jams then you will absolutely adore these guys. They are so incredibly right-on it is not even a question of whether they will be huge. They're from Essex, England and still continue to tour rather locally, but were just signed to XL Records which alone reveals their fate. I can hardly take their simmering success; they are my calm before the storm.
Magistrates - The Inbetweens.mp3Magistrates - Colour Co Ordination.mp3Magistrates - Make This Work.mp3
[Here's their third full length]
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