You can see why Domino would want to pitch Juana Molina with Jose Gonzalez. And by throwing in a dash of Psapp you have perhaps the most rounded bill since Hilary decided to cut chocolate from the pantry. The tour is due to kick off in LA on June 16. Argentinean singer Juana Molina may well be a virtual unknown at this stage but she is truly a sensation in waiting. The pleasing thing is that her song structures are so off kilter yet wholesomely engaging. Her voice is also captivating, the lyrics are obviously oblique to non-Latino’s but it hardly matters because their treatment is so wonderfully conceived. ‘No Seas Antipatica’ is taken from her soon to be released album ‘Son’. Meditative, seductive and alluring all in the space of 4 minutes, this will take your breath away. KD

Juana Molina - No Seas Antipatica

More Info: Juana Molina
Buy Album: [UK] Son [US] Son
Year: 2006

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I met Ian Brown once, back in the mid nineties at a festival called Feile. The Stone Roses were just about coping without Reni and the gig is recognised as one of their best without him. Anyway, despite packing at least 3 Roses t-shirts (Lemon, Dolphin, Elephant) for the weekend I chanced upon King Monkey resplendent in my Dodgy t-shirt. I treasure the photo of the 2 of us together but when I show it to people their only comment is about the offending garment. Anyway Dodgy weren’t all bad, in fact they were quite good for at least their first 2 albums anyroad. ‘Staying Out For The Summer’ has shown admirable longevity on radio playlists but hidden away in their back catalogue are a number of better songs. ‘So Let Me Go Far’ is one of them from its slightly trippy opening to Nigel Clark’s big plume of a chorus. Dodgy was a club of 3 and the close knit association actually yielded a Dodgy night in deepest London for several years. They sold quite a few t-shirts too. KD

Dodgy - So Let Me Go Far

More Dodgy Info: Dodgy
Buy Album: [UK] Homegrown [US] Homegrown
Year: 1994

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And you thought Sonic Youth were the oldest swingers in town. Nope, Antietam have also been around since the mid eighties, taking the odd 10 year break in-between but when time is on your side who cares. Comprised of the husband and wife partnership of Tara Key and Tim Harris and drummer Josh Madell the NYC based band have the mileage on the clock but there is little sign of wear on tear on their current album ‘Victory Park’. ‘New Parade’ is the sound of a band in their prime, a song full of dense theatrics and wandering melodies to spark the imagination. Key sings like she’s encountered the Ghost of Shoegaze whose touching pleas to resurrect the long defunct genre resonated deeply within her. Hard not be taken in by the buried chords, wandering trumpet and a singer who is unquestionably ecstatic about the opportunity to entertain the world. KD

Antietam - New Parade

More Info: Antietam
Buy Album: [UK] Victory Park [Us Import] [US] Victory Park
Year: 2004

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Despite leaving us with 2 terrific albums (and a couple of reasonable ones) Ride have been lost to the ravages of time. The song writing team of Mark Gardener and Andy Bell was among the coolest and most prolific at the beginning of the nineties. Buried beneath a mass of hazy feedback and drenched in all encompassing chords were the gentlest of melodies. Together with Slowdive, Chapterhouse and early Boo Radleys they defined all that was good about Shoegaze. The relationship between Gardener and Bell eventually soured and neither has eclipsed the beauty that came out of their Ride days (Animalhouse…eeek, Oasis…burp). So if you are beginning your journey of discovery of this quartet from Oxford look no further than ‘Unfamiliar’ from the ‘Today’ EP. You see Ride were also adept at writing impressive b-sides and littered throughout their career was at least an albums worth of classic material that could only be found on their singles. Once you’ve absorbed ‘Unfamiliar’ head straight for their debut ‘Nowhere’ and the early EP’s ‘Play’ and ‘Fall’. Then bask in the glory of second generation Ride with ‘Going Blank Again’. What a true carnival of sound awaits your ears. KD

Ride - Unfamiliar

More Info: Ride
Buy Album: [UK] Nowhere: Remastered [US] Nowhere
Year: 1991

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Van Pierszalowski is popping up everywhere these days from Port O’Brien to Alaska and back to his other group the Morning Benders. Based in Berkeley the Morning Benders have only been together for about a year but they’ve already assembled a tight melodic angle that is seeing them rise cream like to the top of a heap of interesting new bands. Chris Chu is the chief vocalist and a fine job he does too, approximating some of the finer Beatles ya ya ya moments on ‘A Grain Of Salt’ from their debut EP ‘Loose Change’. The music thrashes about with such conviction that it’s no wonder Chu’s vocals sound so smart. There’s a freewheelin’ spirit to the goings on sounding almost as if it was recorded quickly on the fly as the metered electricity tethered perilously close to running out of coinage. KD

The Morning Benders - Grain Of Salt

More Info: The Morning Benders
Loose Change For Loose Change: EP
Year: 2006

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First off, a couple of things to note about this band. One is that they come from Fargo (it exists!) and the other is that they don't dress in black, sing in incomprehensible tones or have an audience made up of frustrated adolescents. The Deaths are in fact a riveting example of modern psychedelia, Karl Qualey sings and also puts his Rickenbacker to splendid use. The band have an interesting history, involving break ups, road crashes and committing the mortal sin of not impressing a bunch of Sub Pop cheque book writers. But worry not, there is life after the Seattle label’s reticence as the Deaths debut ‘Choir Invisible’ is set to be released on Essay Records in July. ‘Birmingham’ is the opener and is a delightful taster for what awaits us. This is two thirds a classic stomp starting off as refreshingly as a South Ambulance monster, sagging a tad in the middle through some strained vocals and then gathering itself with distinction towards the close to put the cap on a fine few minutes. This could be the birth of something wonderful. KD

The Deaths - Birmingham

Some Info: The Deaths
Buy Album: Choir Invisible
Year: 2006

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Ace Dublin band Michael Knight have just made a video for Leaving Town. The song is taken from their debut album 'Youth Is Wasted On The Young'.




Find out more about the band at their myspace page.

Ah Sunday night, don’t you just hate it. It’s also quite an awkward time when you are fumbling for something to listen to. Nothing too bouncy cause it’s not Friday and nothing too sombre cause you need cheering up. Et Ret could finally be the answer for that one fourteenth of your life that just doesn’t have an audio fit. Et Ret are headed up by James Angelos who achieves with strings what My Bloody Valentine brokered with guitars on ‘Loveless’. There are subtle patterns floating about in the dense mosaic but you don’t have to trace them to enjoy the experience. ‘Untitled 1’ is taken from the SXSW Showcase although it could well have been monikored by the time Et Ret’s ‘Gasworks’ album was released in April. This is music for your time spent in a flotation tank but lacking said device it could quite easily make the job of ironing five shirts a moving experience. KD

Et Ret - Untitled 1

More Info: Et Ret
Buy Album: [UK] Gasworks [US] Gasworks
Year: 2006

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Despite at times coming worrying close to prog-rock the Webb Brothers produced a stellar sophomore album with ‘Maroon’ in 2000. Renowned singer Jimmy Webb is Justin’s and Christiaan’s father and as you’d expect the pair are more than slightly tinged by his influence. ‘Summer People’ is the sparkling highlight from ‘Maroon’ (although ‘All The Cocaine In The World’ is a close second for comedic value alone) flourishing under the spectacular guitar led opening that sprays mighty riffs about like confetti. The vocals aint shabby either, marching in tandem with the foraging music. The Webb Brothers recently supported the vastly overrated Magic Numbers and have a couple of new songs available for download from their website. A new LP called ‘The God Helmet’ is also in the pipeline. KD

The Webb Brothers - Summer People

More Info: The Webb Brothers
Buy Maroon (v cheaply): [UK] Maroon [US] Maroon
Year: 2000

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Australian band the Devastations signed to Beggars Banquet last month. Already home to Mark Lanegan and Tinkersticks it looks like a sensible signing when you listen to how the Devastations sound. The spectre of Nick Cave and Stuart Staples loom large in Conrad Standish's throat yet the Devastations richly plunder the brighter, less melancholic moments from his influences respective bands. Their new album is called ‘Coal’ and features the exotic charms of one Bic Runga. The band have returned the favour by acting as Runga’s backing band on her current tour of Ireland and the UK. Take a look at their myspace page for a quick introduction to the new album. ‘Sex & Mayhem’ is particulary impressive, so out of kilter with the latest indie goings on and all the better for it. Included here is ‘Leone’ which is taken from the Devastations self-titled debut released back in 2003. KD

The Devastations - Leone

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Album: [UK] Devastations
Year: 2003

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Now here’s one to curl your ears or warm them depending on whether you were there in the first place back in 1992. At the time there was some many Rave Generator compilations doing the rounds it’s a wonder they don’t have their own wing in the National Museum. And when you listen in to ‘A Trip To Trumpton’ now you realise how hideously dated it sounds, in a pre school rather than old skool type of way. Still, it does bring back happy memories from a simpler time. Urban Hype based the anthem on a stop motion Children’s TV programme called ‘Trumpton’ and many of the voices and musical references are taken from the show. You can pick up on the influence that ‘Charly’ from the Prodigy was having on the rave scene at the time and the ubiquitous piano sequences perfectly pinpoints the dateline from which it evolved. A curiosity piece that could very likely kill some down on their luck neighbourhood tomcats. KD

Urban Hype - A Trip To Trumpton

More info: :)
Buy Album: [UK] Very Best of Back to the Old Skool [US] Back to the Old Skool

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I am as much a music snob as the next indie blogger but I also have a sneaky regard for members of the dance fraternity. While it may seem like grand heresy I do admire the way dutch remixer Ferry Corsten can build a tune to sweat inducing levels. DJ Sasha is another I keep an eye out for on the back of his epic ‘Xpander’ EP which is without question one of dance's guiding lights. ‘Xpander’ doesn’t particulary follow the rules of the trance genre. There is no creeping journey to inevitable euphoric blow out. Instead the pace is steady relying on the cascading waves of synths to create a consistent rush of excitement. This version is an edit, a more full blooded effort can be found the EP of the same name. Sasha has recently proven that he is not adverse to cross genre pollination by reworking Mew’s ‘The Zookeeper’s Boy’ from their remarkable ‘And The Glass Handed Kites’ album of last year. KD

Sasha - Xpander

More Info: Sasha
Buy Album: [UK] Xpander [US] Xpander
Year: 1999

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The Land Of Nod received a much needed retrospective in 2003 from Ochre Records called 'Reality Channel: An Introduction To The Land Of Nod'. The highlights are chosen from a 4 album discography and is a delight for fans of Spiritualized pre their descent into gospel. In other words the guitars are set to reverb and the laidback vibes are as omnipresent as sock stalls at a Red Hot Chilly Peppers concert circa 1992. Characterised by an absence of vocals most of the Cheltenham bands output has a trippy, circular twinkling riff motif as evidenced by the tracks included here making them able ambassadors for the space rock genre. There is surely a ready audience pining for the days when pop was as dreamy as an English Football fans World Cup aspirations. KD

The Land Of Nod - Half-Light

The Land Of Nod - Reality Channel

More Info: Official & Myspace
Want Some Shimmer: [UK] Reality Channel [US] Reality Channel
Year: 2003

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A friend of mine with a penchant for Olivia Newton John’s music once commented that ‘In My World’ sounded like the epitome of indie. Not sure if it was a compliment but since he rarely passed comment on the racket going on in my corner of the room I took it as one. Lunchbox operated primarily as a duo with Tim Brown and Donna McKean juggling the instruments alongside a revolving door cast of drummers. ‘The Magic Of Sound’ is regarded as their creative zenith with its surfing Stereolab guitar meanders and organs from outer space. ‘In My World’ is pretty twee but so deliciously so that it’s impossible to show it the door. Brown’s vocals are supplemented by McKean’s fluffy background chirps to craft a wholesome soundtrack to get physical to. KD

Lunchbox - In My World

More Info: Lunchbox
Buy: The Magic of Sound
Year: 1999

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I’ve just spent half an hour trying to figure how many members there are in Swedish band I’m From Barcelona (28, and sadly none of them are called Manual...Emanuel doesn't count). And you thought the Polyphonic Spree and Broken Social Scene had the big band corner all to themselves. As far as the music goes I’m From Barcelona certainly seem to be onto a winner because they produce joyous uncomplicated sunny pop songs to clap along to. Harmonies float about like pollen on a summer’s day but without the annoying side effects. You may have even spotted the video for the title track from their new album ‘Let Me Introduce My Friends’, an eye-catching throwback to a commercial Coca Cola might have made back in the 1970’s. I’m From Barcelona herald the good times, no need to pour over cryptic lyrics here, just sit back and join in all the fun of the best holiday camp ever conceived. KD

I'm From Barcelona - Barcelona Loves You

Watch The Video

More Info: I'm From Barcelona
Buy Some Happiness: Let Me Introduce My Friends
Year: 2006

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The Strokes have blown it big style and their current album is manna from heaven for their baying critics. I can’t even listen to it, it’s that poor. Nobody ever said that they were reinventing rock ‘n’ roll but their debut ‘Is This It’ and (to a slightly lesser extent) the follow up were pretty much faultless examples of rushing melodies, buzz saw riffs and a genuine case of youthful exuberance put to music. Let’s face it they shone a cultural spotlight on NYC at a time when most of the world just felt pity for the city. ‘Is This It’ is one of the few albums I can play from start to finish without ever feeling the need to fast forward, the fact that the songs are short helps but the dynamics never flag. Who cares whether Casablancas can sing or not, the boy sure knows how to use his digitised camouflage. ‘Hard To Explain’ was an instant classic and listening to it 5 years on proves that it hasn’t lost a scintilla of its wicked melodic fury. KD

The Strokes - Hard To Explain

More Info: The Strokes
Buy Album: [UK] Is This It [US] Is This It
Year: 2001

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