photos by Ryan Muir

Happy Holidays! I take on more than I can handle. That results in a lot of unposted content. In the name of catching up, while also taking it easy during this final week of the year, here's some of that lost material.

Then, rising Montreal outfit Clues gave a packed house of industry insiders a glimmer of this city's future sound. Fronted by the confident falsetto of Alden Penner (formerly of eccentric indie act Unicorns) and also led by Brendan Reed, who used to drum in Arcade Fire and Think About Life, these five indie kids channeled Led Zeppelin's guitar grooves, Vampire Weekend's poppy song structure and Sunset Rubdown's angular vocals and unpredictable soundscapes.

Just two years after their very first live show, which actually took place at Pop Montreal 2007, Clues have honed their chemistry and sharpened their sound. Those who missed the band live should consider, ahem, searching around for their self-titled debut which their hip hometown imprint Constellation Records released earlier this year. [Spinner]

Continue reading "Clues @ Pop Montreal 2009 - pics & Take Away Show videos "

Continue reading ""Santa is a Gangsta" by Nice Peter"

Continue reading "DEVO wishes you a Merry Something"

Check out a collection of David Bowie Christmas videos below...

Continue reading "David Bowie & Bing Crosby wish you a Merry Christmas"

DOWNLOAD: Theo Angell - Tenebrae (MP3)

"Just as suddenly as Theo Angell became a musician, after years of writing far out experimentalism, Angell abruptly decided to write pop music. Auraplinth was the result. Angell observes that he hears melodies in his head while woodworking, a trade Angell has picked up in his spare time. As Angell describes, he's able to achieve a meditative state while he's working with his hands. When music comes into his imagination, what he calls "the best music", he is later able to come to a guitar and flesh out an entire song. As of late, Angell has been working on a house in the Catskills region of New York state with Hamish Kilgour of The Clean. The two have collaborated together to produce really out there experimental music, but both share in common the ability to transfer avanty smarts to a pop setting." [Tripwire]

Continue reading "Theo Angell"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Zoos of Berlin - Electrical Way (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fanfarlo - Finish Line (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fanfarlo - I'm a Pilot (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fanfarlo - Luna (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Ballet - The House of Fire (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Phantogram - When I'm Small (Mp3)
DOWNLOAD: Invisible Hand - There's Room in My Will (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Invisible Hand - Caught Myself in a Coy Trap (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Drunk Tigers - Outer Banks, Inner Peace (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Phil and the Osophers - We Have All Summer (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Dream Diary - Bird in My Garden (MP3)

French Horn Rebellion

As previously reported, Detroit band Zoos of Berlin are in town this weekend -- playing Matchless tonight (12/18) and Cake Shop tomorrow (12/19). Mixing elements of baroque, Krautrock and '70s shag carpet, Zoos of Berlin don't really sound like anybody else -- which is a good thing, right? They're good live too, maybe even better than on their album (which is worth seeking out).

I'm told Zoos of Berlin are on early-ish (9:45) so my personal plan for tonight is to catch ZoB at Matchless then head over to Cameo Gallery for the Cantora Late Nite Holiday Special featuring Savoir Adore and French Horn Rebellion. Doors are at 11PM and if you RSVP, admission is only five bucks. I think I've probably written enough about Savoir Adore this year (and you can read their year-end Q&A) for you to know that I'm a big fan and think you should go see them. French Horn Rebellion is David Perlick-Molinari, who plays in the live line-up of Savoir Adore, and his brother Robert -- and their brand of funky electro draws inspiration from Michael Jackson and early '80s disco. They know their way around a catchy tune too -- "Up All Night" is pretty irresistible, and will end up on my Best Singles of 2009 list...whenever I get around to putting that together. That song's video is at the bottom of this post. I've never seen them live -- Paul and Diedre of Savoir Adore play in the French Horn Rebellion touring unit -- so looking forward to seeing them.

Fanfarlo @ MHOW during CMJ (more by Tim Griffin)

Also tonight: after a successful CMJ (including their great performance at the Brooklyn Vegan showcase), Fanfarlo are back in NYC, moving up to Webster Hall where they play with Freelance Whales. Not bad for a band who have yet to get written about at all on Pitchfork. (Though they are one of the choices in their Bands to Watch in 2010 section of theirreader's poll.) I'm still listening to their debut, Reservoir, which has held up over the last 10 months or so. It's a nice pairing with Freelance Whales who were lovely the only time I saw them --at the Brooklyn Vegan day party during CMJ where they played acoustic. Fanfarlo seem like a good band to see during the holidays -- they're very Christmasy. Tickets are still available. Fanfarlo recently stopped by the NPR offices to film an acoustic performance, including a cover of Low's "It Was Just Like Christmas," and you can watch that at the bottom of this post.

The Ballet

The long-running indiepop party Mondo! happens tonight (12/18) at Don Hill's and tonight features a performance by The Ballet who were kind of a big deal with blogs a few years back and played on a few choice bills, opening for Voxtrot, The Hidden Cameras and others. And then they just sort of faded away. Well, The Ballet are back with their second album melodic, upbeat synthpop, Bear Life, and I like it quite a bit. You can download album track "The House on Fire" at the top to this post. Stephin Merritt comparisons are inevitable but it's definitely more Future Bible Heroes than Magnetic Fields.

Phantogram

Moving on to Saturday (12/19), there's a worthwhile free show at Brooklyn Bowl with Phantogram and Class Actress. I might try to hit this one as I have yet to see Phantogram live and am a fan of their debut album, Eyelid Movies, which will get an official release on Barsuk Records in February 2010. You can download "When I'm Small" from the album at the top of this post. It's a pretty good taster for the album, which is kind of trip-hoppy but in a '00s sort of way (breakbeats but no John Barry or Morricone samples). Chilled, atmospheric, but still danceable.

Class Actress I wrote about last week, but have now actually seen them play (at Mercury Lounge). I don't think they've quite figured out the live show, but they're not bad. I like the EP which will be out on Terrible Records in the new year.

If you miss the bowling alley show, Phantogram also just added a February 12th show at Mercury Lounge. Tickets are on sale at noon.

Invisible Hand

And finally, for the indie pop fans out there we've got a good show at Matchless on Saturday night, featuring Brooklyn bands Dream Diary and Phil & the Osophers, plus two bands from Charlottesville, Virginia -- The Invisible Hand and Drunk Tigers. The Invisible Hand remind me a bit of Of Montreal by way of Superchunk or the Clean. Definitely a '90s indie rock thing going on, pretty good. You can download two tracks at the top of this post. Drunk Tigers aren't bad either, a little more in the shouty Port O'Brien school of things.

As for the local acts, I'm on record as being a fan of Dream Diary whose jangly style should appeal to fans of The Pastels and other '80s-era Creation Records bands. And Phil and the Osophers have been at it for nearly five years and whose new album, Parallelo, is worth checking out -- you can download an MP3 at the top of this post.

That's gonna do it for this week. No column next week, so happy holidays folks. Videos, flyers and tour dates are below...

Continue reading "The Ballet, Zoos of Berlin, Fanfarlo, Savoir Adore, Phil & the Osophers, Phantogram & more in This Week in Indie"

Trip-Hop legends Massive Attack have released their new video for "Paradise Circus" (ft. Hope Sandoval) in support of their album, Heligoland, set to release February 9th via EMI's Virgin Records. The Toby Dye directed video features former porn star, Georgina Spelvin, and her candid look on filming the infamous adult film, The Devil in Miss Jones. Original shots of the '73 hit (NSFW) are interlaced with Spelvin's honest take on her physical and emotional state during the production of the film nearly forty years ago.

Heligoland, Massive Attack's highly-anticipated 5th studio album, will feature guest vocals from Damon Albarn, Marina Topely-Bird, Guy Garvey and Tunde Adebimpe. Longtime cohort, Horace Andy, is also set to return alongside Massive Attack founding members Robert Del Naja (3D) and Grand Marshall (Daddy G). The prelude to Heligoland, the Splitting the Atom EP, is available now.

Continue reading "Massive Attack - new album w/ guests & a NSFW porn video for the track featuring Hope Sandoval "

Chevonne

Jews rejoyce. Orrin Hatch, the Republican Mormon senator from Utah, has written a Hanukkah song: "Eight Days of Hanukkah."

As Hatch told the New York Times, "Anything I can do for the Jewish people, I will do. Mormons believe the Jewish people are the chosen people, just like the Old Testament." [Huffington Post]Orrin Hatch.... and Chevonne, and more below...

Continue reading "videos to get you in the mood (for Chanukah)"

by BBG

Dan Auerbach, Jim Jones, Mos Def, Patrick Carney, and Damon Dash

Just in time for the holidays and to remind the hip hop listmakers that The Ecstatic was/is the truth, the two-time Grammy nominated Mos Def has scheduled a show on 12/20 at Highline Ballroom. Tickets, though not cheap, are on sale.

Mos Def was also recently announced as a contributor to the new Gorillaz record, along with a host of notables

The third Gorillaz album will feature one newly announced GPS voice, two iconic frontmen of the '60s and '70s, and more, lending to a contributing line-up as eclectic as the one heard on 2005's Demon Days.
The GPS voice, Snoop Dogg, plus Lou Reed of The Velvet Underground and Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees, will be heard alongside Mos Def, Bobby Womack, The Horrors and the Syrian National Symphony Orchestra in Plastic Beach, out 2010.

The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney have wanted to make a hip-hop album since they were teenagers....
"All the blues music I liked was super simple and stripped down. All the hip-hop I liked was super simple and stripped down," says Auerbach. "We always heard that connection."
The Black Keys' first demo reflected their hip-hop tastes. It featured drum loops and samples, which their first record label later told them to scrap. Years later, following recent praise for their minimalist, bluesy jams, The Black Keys have finally recorded a hip-hop album. Their collaborative ensemble is called BlakRoc.
"What makes this special is the guys' sensibility of hip-hop," [Pharoahe Monch] says. "The drum loop-like timing and patterns make a groove that is easy to rhyme to and to write over."-[NPR]

The Capo Jim Jones and Mos Def, along with the Black Keys, (BlakRoc) played Letterman last night (12/8) - the same night that Jawbox was burnin' Fallon to the ground. It was also rumored that the group might play a secret show at new venue Under 100 (in the basement of Damon Dash's building) later that night, but though Mos Def was there hanging out (again), he and the group didn't actually play (pictures from that event coming later).

Dig on the live Blakroc video from Letterman, the official video for the same song, as well as more videos from Mos, below...

Continue reading "Mos Def on new Gorillaz album, playing Highline, in Blakroc w/ Black Keys & Jim Jones (video from Letterman last night) "

Swedish black metal band Marduk are currently on a North American tour that brings them back to NYC's Gramercy Theater on December 16th. On December 6th in San Francisco's DNA Lounge, vocalist Daniel "Mortuus" Rosten was particularly violent with a fan that made his way on stage during the show. Naturally, it was caught on video...

Continue reading "video of Marduk singer body-slamming a fan on stage in San Francisco (they play NYC next week) "