7.16.09
New Tracks
- Vega “No Reasons” Austin’s Vega, aka Alan Palomo, blends funk, disco and house for a pretty intoxicating synth-heavy electro cocktail. Basically, it’s good to dance to. http://www.myspace.com/vegavisions
- Neon Indian “Terminally Chill” No wonder I’m feeling this electro song – Terminally Chill is the second project of Alan Palomo, aka Vega. If you dig it too, check out “Deadbeat Summer,” also by Neon Indian. http://www.myspace.com/neonindian
- Generationals “When They Fight, They Fight” Mark Ronson eat your heart out: New Orleans-based Generationals are near flawless in their 60s pop/soul time capsule “When They Fight, They Fight.” http://www.myspace.com/generationals
Slightly Used (Walther)
- Down Boy by The Yeah Yeah Yeahs Teeth grinding anticipation of the lead singer Karen O’s growl makes it difficult not to punk-dance the fuck out of this song, making the track’s title all the more relevant. I need to relax. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e92TyG8gPpw
- House Jam by Gang Gang Dance When I discovered this band earlier this year I almost thew up: they’ve been performing for over 5 years all over NYC. Where have I been? Their tracks are hot: enough pop to make the Middle Eastern/Africa influence go down easy; enough beat to keep you moving while the electronics take your mind elsewhere and enough experimental sounds to keep you wondering what’s gonna happen next. http://www.myspace.com/ganggangdance
Album
Merrill Garbus, aka tUnE-yArDs wrote her debut album BiRd-BrAiNs with just a ukelele, a few bottles and random found sounds, and a background in puppetry. She recorded it using only a Sony digital recorder and laptop with free Audacity software. The resulting album, produced entirely from free media, is experimental, but utterly listenable. Songs like “Sunlight,” “Hatari,” “Jamaican” and my personal favorite “News,” which conjures images of a gaggle of village women rhythmically pounding meat for dinner and then breaking into a jubilant MGM musical-style song and dance, will have you humming, tapping and yodeling along your commute to work. The other passengers on the subway would complain if you didn’t look so darn happy.
Test the music out: http://www.myspace.com/tuneyards
Get the record: http://www.marriagerecs.com/shop2/744/tune-yards/#BiRd-BrAiNs
Website: WeAreHunted.com
For the sake of conveying just how awesome WeAreHunted.com is, I will openly admit that some of the songs selected for the playlist were stolen directly from the site. We Are Hunted aggregates social networks, P2P networks, music forums and blogs to compile a chart of the most popular songs in the blogosphere based on sentiment, expression and advocacy rather than a mere download count. It’s a smart and highly addictive tool to discover new music, not to mention the easiest way to out-hip your friends.
http://wearehunted.com/