It is surprising given their alarming brilliance that we haven’t heard more about Electric Penguins. Back home in Dublin the group may as well be from East Java considering the amount of fuss that is made of them. Ah well, perhaps they prefer it that way, gives them more time to tinker with their rust ridden instruments. You see the trio are obsessed by the junkyard yet precious vehicles of electro making noises the Mellotron, the Moog and the incomparable Farfisa (remember them Inspiral Carpets). With these base ingredients and Mark Cummins’ singing Electric Penguins fashioned a stellar debut in 2006 that was cheekily named ‘Goodbye To The Electric Penguins’. There are nods to Air and Kraftwerk yet Electric Penguins give the impression that there's more to them than mere revivalists on tracks like ‘Soft Landing’. Bedded on a layer of acoustics, late sixties vocal representations ‘Soft Landing’ sounds like a drug free Clinic after their surgical masks were removed. Organ donations required. KD

Electric Penguins - Soft Landing

Watch The Video To Lonnie

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Electric Penguins
Year: 2006

‘No Getting Over You’ falls into that difficult category of song that you know you like but you can’t reason why. As far as I can work out there is no chorus, the tune just sorta floats along like a helium filled balloon that’s at the discretion of the wind. The breeze in this case is supplied by Maya Saxall, the helium comes via the 3 others in the band behind her. Saxall’s vocals are breathy, at times Sinead O’Connor in nature but forever in a flap trying to make themselves heard. And it’s not like the music is distracting, for most of the time it is positively languid but somehow seems to reinvent itself every now and then. Said The Shark are from Copenhagen and will release their second album ‘Silly Killings’ next month. ‘No Getting Over You’ is from their 2006 release, the curiously titled, ‘Always Prattling On About Wolves’. Great white hopes you could say. KD

Said The Shark - No Getting Over You

Watch The Video To In This Heat

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Said The Shark
Year: 2006

Reading's Chapterhouse were not in any way the perfect band but they succeeded over a short time in writing a couple of perfect songs. ‘Pearl’ is one such, a tour de force that ranks among the best that shoegaze ever threw up (!). ‘Mesmerise’ was another and marked a totally different direction, part electronic but still beating with the mighty heart of an indie classic. The eye-catching video was an advert for summer days, swimming pools, lido’s and long shaggy hair and pretty much summed up the carefree butterfly of the song it showcased. From the off a piano trickle signals the start of something great with the bulging electro brass heralding the arrival of some wonderfully realised ethereal vocals that were so beloved of the dream poppateers. It may be 17 years old but this tune still sounds like it still can’t go to the toilet by itself. Don’t hold back, a cherubic wonder like this deserves a pinch in the cheek. KD

Chapterhouse - Mesmerise

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More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Chapterhouse
Year: 1991

Birdland were 4 non-brunettes, 2 of them were siblings. They existed for a short time between 1989 and 1992 but still managed to get the video to this song played on Top of the Pops (it meant something in those youtube free times) after it broke into the UK Top 40. The short jerky tunes that Birdland turned out matched their unpredictable on/off stage antics. In fact said behaviour saw them thrown off a priceless Jane’s Addiction tour after just one date. Lukewarm reviews of their eponymous debut in 1991 marked the beginning of the end for the quartet but worse was to follow soon afterwards when their label Lazy Records went bust. ‘Sleep With Me’ is a pretty simple affair, within the first couple of seconds you’ve heard the riff that underpins the whole tune and Robert Vincent’s sneer isn’t exactly revolutionary but my does it pack a punch. Perfect mixtape material as you can imagine, check those cassette filled shoeboxes in the loft, I’m sure this one is there in scrawled bic. Simple times, great music. KD

Birdland - Sleep With Me

Watch The Video

More Info: Official
Buy Songs: Birdland
Year: 1990

Last time we checked Montreal’s Under Electric Light was heading down a dream pop path that triggered a tingle of delight in our gut. Almost 3 years on and I’m glad to report that nothing much has changed, Danny Provencher is still infatuated with the early 90’s and his softly floating pieces of dream pop illuminate his latest offering the ‘After The Blue’ EP. I wonder how this must sound to someone who has yet to sample the delights of Ride, Chapterhouse or Slowdive. Armed with the knowledge it is a lush reminder of how the pioneers stole our hearts with clouds of fuzz and sweeping vocals. Under Electric Light have the art of the shimmer down to a tee and surely rank alongside Celestial as one of the finest purveyors of contemporary shoegaze. KD

Under Electric Light - This Moment

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Under Electric Light
Year: 2008

What a strange little song, part pretty, part stained but a story you won’t be able to put down. It may only be a workaday scenario of star-crossed lovers but Jeremy Warmsley details it with such grace it makes for a fascinating drama. There is scope for a neat little indie pop tune here but the London singer songwriter forsakes it by adding variable crunching beats and electronic wheezes. And the funny thing is that it works wonderfully, a boy and a girl in a relationship where honesty is the first victim deserves a tarnished yet likeable soundtrack. Belle & Sebastian so often serve up harmonious ditties where the words utterly belie the music. Jeremy Warmsley ditches such confusion and goes the whole hog so whether you are a student of lyrics or just of the music that accompanies them you won't fail to get the drift. KD

Jeremy Warmsley - 5 Verses

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More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Jeremy Warmsley
Year: 2006

For some reason you’d think they’d come from Scandinavia but instead Michael Talbott and The Wolfkings call San Francisco their home. The name references a South Californian myth and there is an equally mystical quality to the music they make. It takes 13 people for the Wolfkings to operate at full pelt but given the hushed quality of the output I’d wager at least half that number are employed on quiet-making duties like door closing and shushing any potential interrupters. And their efforts are duly rewarded when you cock an ear to the pristine nature that goes by the name of ‘Goodnight’. Everything is its right place; the tinkling piano, the beautifully strung out bass line and Talbott’s deep hum for a vocal just melt into a grand sonic tapestry to caress your weary senses as you drift off. KD

Michael Talbott and The Wolfkings - Goodnight

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Michael Talbott and The Wolfkings
Year: 2006

I’ve got to be honest I know absolutely zip about hip-hop or rap, in fact I’m not sure I even know what the difference is. Of course I got in on the Beastie Boys circa ‘Ill Communication’ and the Streets imperious second album ‘A Grand Don’t Come For Free’ is something I often return to but apart from ‘Stan’ that is my only contact. I heard ‘Kenji’ quite by chance, during one of those aimless shuffling sessions where any one of a couple of thousand tracks could end up playing. As soon as it had run its course though I found myself replaying it several times to try and absorb every word that had been sung. ‘Kenji’ is an emotive piece of music, instrumentally attractive and lyrically innovative and slick it will stay with you long after it has stopped playing. It is the work of Mike Shinoda as Fort Minor, a side project of his away from his main band Linkin Park. KD

Fort Minor - Kenji

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Fort Minor
Year: 2005

For a while in the mid nineties it seemed that Mansun could devour the world. They had a carefully cultivated image, wrote intelligent p-opuses and had the critics deep inside their pockets yet they never quite cracked it. Perhaps it didn’t help that the monolith known as Oasis stalked the earth during their most creative spells, who needs a Chad that loves you when you could just as easily do it with a doctor in a helicopter? For all of Mansun’s dramatic endeavour’s it was their periodic bows to accessibility like on ‘Wide Open Space’ that they will be best remembered for. ‘Wide Open Space’ even came complete with several dishy makeovers which in those hugely bleeptastic times was an essential move. Mansun called it a day in 2003 but have over the last while been spilling their grand discography in the shape of free downloads from their myspace page. See for yourself what a fine legacy they have left us. KD

Mansun - Wide Open Space

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More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Mansun
Year: 1996

And Little Big Adventure’s yang could well be Dallas’s Tree Wave. Well it’s certainly louder and more aggressive but reading their bio it seems that the music they make comes from, presumably soundcard enhanced, computers made in the 1970’s – something that would probably sit quite easily with LBA. ‘Sleep’ is Tree Wave’s contribution to the SXSW 2008 mp3 fest and a sparkling ditty it is too even if it is taken from a release, the ‘Cabana’ EP, which dates back to 2004. ‘Sleep’ is the ingenious love child of Orbital’s ‘Style’ and the frothy pronouncements of Stereolab’s Lætitia Sadier. In truth it is Lauren Gray that provides the vocals and you’ve got to applaud her generosity along with that other Tree Waver Paul Slocum for dropping the code to a synthesiser program for the Commodore 64 on the aforementioned ‘Cabana’ release. It has the makings of a great story and could even spawn a new generation of (Donkey) kongwriters. KD

Tree Wave - Sleep

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Tree Wave
Year: 2004

If I drove a car then this would be the sort of music that would blare from its mono speakers. It’s just not possible to fall into a bout of unseemly road rage with spiralling electro nodes filling your ears with smiley thoughts. For that is what ‘I Want to Be a Villain Too’ specialises in, sophisticated lounge music for people on the move even if movement is achieved through peddling. Little Big Adventure doesn’t let the finer details of his existence slip out too easily but return trips to his web spaces are rewarded by the arrival of new songs to download gratis. His myspace profile has had 468 reads, a remarkable statistic given the quality of the goods offer. Anonymity made all the more confusing by the existence of another Swedish outfit of the same name. Arggghh, play my calming ‘I Want to Be a Villain Too’ play. KD

Little Big Adventure - I Want To Be A Villian Too

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Little Big Adventure (no need they're free)
Year: 2007

Big thumbs up to Blue Orange Records for gathering a stellar collection of bands from around the globe and putting them on the wonderful collection called ‘Come Tomorrow’. The best thing is that the sampler is completely free to download. I can safely say that I have never heard of any of the 11 participants so I was like a bee hovering over a lid free jar of honey as I scanned the fare on offer. Many of the tunes have a neat DIY feel and there is an overwhelming sense of tweeness at work. Electronic bleeps and fey vocals are a proposition that still finds favour with these crumpled ears you see. Think of it as a United Nations made up of a hybrid of Bis/Data Panik. The tune that stood out immediately was ‘Mundo’ from the Madrid duo Clovis. Fino Oyonarte and Cristina Plaza may strike a lighter shade of My Bloody Valentine but that doesn’t mean that they sound in any way diluted. Actually it is so charming I may play it until the mp3 begins to sound like worn out vinyl with all its signature skips and scratches. KD

Clovis - Mundo

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More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Clovis
Year: 2008 (originally 2005)

Yeah I know what you’re thinking, why couldn’t they have gone and called themselves Samurai Cities. Well, you’d do well to remember that not all Swedish bands have to bend to our English speaking partiality all of the time. Samuraj Cities are a singular band; one that weaves the electronic with the guitar totting in a carefree manner. Their debut album ‘Cheap Deluxe’ has been hailed from certain quarters but despite turning 2 this year it remains off the radar. ‘All Along The Shoreline’ should be reason enough to welcome it into your home (as well as their charming use of that distinctly Irish phrase ‘thanks a million’ on ‘Thxa1000000’) with its nice little distorted riff that underpins the piece. ‘Cheap Deluxe’ is available from the appropriately named Imperial Recordings. KD

Samuraj Cities - All Along The Shoreline

Watch The Video To Go Raibh Maith Agat

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Samuraj Cities
Year: 2006

Today I came perilously close to throwing in the towel on my day job. Standing back and examining the situation I surmised that it's not a bad thing at all, the hours are relatively flexible, the people I work with are nice if a little dull and the work is not pressurised enough to ever give grey hair. It's just that most working days for the last couple of years I have been subjected to an overriding feeling of utter boredom. Moving on to pastures new could be one solution but my preferred route would be to jack it all in and give this music blogging a lash on a full time basis. There are ways and means to make a living by purely blathering about new music but it would mean diversifying big style from the 'what about this band and their ace tune' format that has been the bedrock of mp3hugger for over 2 years. And despite what you may be thinking it could all be done in an above board and legal manner (with talk like that music blogs could start getting a good reputation). Although it may read like a daft statement with connectivity on the rise and the internet rapidly becoming portable blogs will soon be in pole position to become the primary information deliverers. This site's hit count has been climbing steadily and on a good day there can be up to a thousand different people dropping by. Many visits are fleeting (goddamn mp3 harvesters) so the key is to rein in the attention for long enough to get those bookmarking fingers working. I'm under no illusions that the number of readers would have to expand exponentially to make the operation viable but I'm pretty sure it is achievable without losing the passion that drives this lust of mine for all things jangly and new.

Anyway, down with all this incoherent day dreaming let me introduce a band that you may never have heard of but who will soon be creatively blowing your socks off. Just press play and let the curious tango ensue. KD

Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Fleet Foxes (soon)
Year: 2008

At a guess I’d say ‘Jackie O’ was made for about $3. And boy do A Faulty Chromosome have a talent for stretching their budget to its limits. Of course having a sound like this would never have been a problem had it been the early nineties when lo-fi was rarely off well-informed hi-fi’s. Things has moved on though and unless you have a producer with at least a splinter of timber in his frame you’ll likely have to scrape hard for a living. A Faulty Chromosome should take some solace from the fact that there are still some of us out in the fringes going ga-ga (and quite tongue tied) for their delicately put together debut ‘As An Ex-Anorexic's Six Sicks Exit’. There you’ll find us basking in the ghost of Ian Curtis while a menagerie of electro beats and splashes colour the vocals in the neatest of ways. The Field Mice have at last made contact with their barn loving cousins. KD

A Faulty Chromosome - Jackie O

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More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: A Faulty Chromosome
Year: 2007

What do Batgirl, Miss America and Lieutenant Uhura have in common? Not an awful lot to be honest but that could be all about to change as Molly Shannon, Molly Shannon (owing to a childhood love of repetition) have gathered the delectable beauties together as song titles for their debut album ‘You Think Yr The Doctor, I Think I'm The Sheriff’. There is more than a hint of madness to MSMS, which I always find to be an appealing characteristic when it's twinned with arch creativity. As a result MSMS will never be labelled a generic indie band. When you've got melodies appearing from nowhere in a mosaic of sound from the asylum it's time to sit up and start taking notes. ‘Bianca Montale’ is as close as the band get to single material because it comes fully kitted out with shiny chords. ‘Nichelle Nichols’ is much more frightening for connoisseurs of mainstream audio which as you’d expect means it turns out to be a bundle of roguish fun. The singing when it arrives after 90 seconds is Native American in nature and with that in mind I am about to climb the highest peak in the land so as to send smoke signals announcing this great new band. Oh crumbs, it's dark outside, maybe I'll wait until morning. Image courtesy of Kyle M. Peterson, Kyle M. Peterson. KD

Molly Shannon, Molly Shannon - Bianca Montale

Molly Shannon, Molly Shannon - Nichelle Nicholsi

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Molly Shannon, Molly Shannon
Year: 2008

You’ll either love or abhor this and that’s before you even consider what this Bristol duo are called. I’m assuming that not many men of the cloth are reading so it’s probably only the music that swings your interest either way. Andy Hung and Ben Power (surnames that surely influenced the moniker) have been working together since 2004 and have surprisingly held on to the majority of their hearing which really must be commended considering the bashing it must take every time they roll out their bleep making machines. To date Fuck Buttons have limited their recorded output to this little pretty, which came out as a 7-inch (appropriately enough) last year. The full length (stop it) is due very soon on ATP and is titled ‘Street Horrrsing’. ‘Bright Tomorrow’ is fabulously cylindrical, whatever that means and probably could only be truly appreciated in a half-lit crowded room with hound of the baskervilles quantities of dry ice. KD

Fuck Buttons - Bright Tomorrow

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Fuck Buttons
Year: 2008

It is quite likely that Finnish band Cats on Fire take themselves altogether too seriously. How else could you explain the melancholy expressions captured in the photo above on a sunny day in St. Stephen’s Green. I mean if only they could cut the cool image for one second and realise that sunny days and Dublin go together like Steve Staunton and tactical nouse. No matter, we’re here for the music and Cats on Fire are adept at supplying the jangling variety that is very close to our hearts. Their debut album came out last year but somehow got lost along the way. Pity really because it contains a collection of belters like opener ‘I Am the White-Manteled King’. You may pick up on a Smiths influence but even if the Moz isn’t your tea you’ll find much to savour. Namely a chorus of twinkling chords, an ancient organ backdrop and Mattias Björkas’s classic indie boy vocals. So forgive them their moody promo shots and instead bask in their summer flecked soundtrack. KD

Cats on Fire - I Am the White-Manteled King

Watch The Video To Draw In The Reins

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Cats on Fire
Year: 2007

As the Irish Housing Market continues to unravel people are naturally beginning to tighten their belts. But wait, help is already at hand. Nope it’s not that long awaited European Central Bank rate reduction announcement but a budget friendly missive from one of Ireland’s most underrated artists Mumblin’ Deaf Ro. You see in the next couple of weeks Ronan Hession will be playing 2 gigs for the princely sums of €5 (Anseo, Sunday 2 March) and €12 (Whelans, Wednesday 5 March). How can you justify that huge leap on the second gig we've got kids to feed I hear you scream, well perhaps the words Adrian Crowley will cool your boots. That’s right, the genuine sound of acoustic Ireland will finally gather together on one stage in the newly decked out upstairs section of Whelans. So why not forget about negative equity for a night, your ears will thank you for it. KD

Mumblin' Deaf Ro - The Ballad Of Lonesome Ray James

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Senor, My Friend... & The Herring & The Brine
Year: 2003 & 2007

It’s funny, it’s been a couple of weeks now since Explosions In The Sky’s gig in Dublin and all I can think about is how this song from support act Eluvium played out. Eluvium is the work of one man Matthew Cooper and what he lacks in on-stage rapport he more than makes up for in the beauty that emanates from his guitar and PC. Cooper records a snippet of music to hard disk, it replays endlessly through the machine, he then records another snippet which is layered onto what’s already recorded. As the sound swells and shimmers even more brightly with each incremental loop the effect is beguiling. ‘Under The Water It Glowed’ must have played out for over 10 minutes and we stood agog. At the finish the only response from Cooper was to gently stoop his head towards the floor as if the process has sapped everything from inside. It was a touching moment, a true performance even if it all sounds a bit pretentious when you try to explain it. Also included here is another track called ‘Prelude For Time Feelers’ which probably translates that bit better on record. KD

Eluvium - Under The Water It Glowed

Eluvium - Prelude For Time Feelers

Watch The Video (live)

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Eluvium
Year: 2003 & 2007

If like me you preferred it when Spiritualized laid off the gospel and stuck with the reverb (‘Lazer Guided Melodies’ and ‘Pure Phase’ in other words) then Pacific UV could well be about to brighten up your collection. The bands new album ‘Longplay 2’ is due to be released at the end of the month and it comes a full 5 years after their debut ‘Longplay 1’. There has been significant line up changes in the intervening period but we have been promised that the music has lost none of its dreamy artistry. Being new to the band I have fallen head over heels for their 2003 effort, with its soaring chords and wispy vocals it could almost be the sound of Verve had they carried on in the vein of form that saw them craft (their best album) ‘A Storm In Heaven’. ‘Scarlet’ is effortlessly cool, loose chords jangle and echo and Howard Hudson perfectly translates what it feels like to be Jason Pierce. Interestingly Lucas Jensen from hugger favourites Venice is Sinking provides the gentle tap tapping throughout the whole affair. I think I may have found my new favourite band. KD

Pacific UV - Scarlet

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Longplay 1 & Longplay 2
Year: 2003 & 2008

Lately my patience for taking in an album in a single sitting has faltered but I still found it impossible to turn away from Immovable Objects' ‘Hoping It Stays Just This Broken’. We don’t know a lot about Matt Gagin apart from the fact that he is from San Diego and used to be in a well-respected band called Waterline Drift before choosing the solo route. Gagin as Immovable Objects has crafted something really special by pulling shoegaze and dreampop patterns into a lush mosaic of sound. For the most part the lyrics are indecipherable but Gagin’s voice integrates so seamlessly with the woozy instrumentation that it matters not a jot. There is a spectral feel throughout the album, so much so that you may find yourself with eyes closed and mind racing as the music offers up a seemingly endless list of possibilities. ‘Sheen’ is the perfect closer and if you are of a certain age you may notice a nod to Slowdive early on. ‘Hoping It Stays Just This Broken’ contains reems of heartbreaking material, it may be elaborate at times but that doesn't stop it from affecting all those who come into contact with it. KD

Immovable Objects - Sheen

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Immovable Objects
Year: 2007

For not entirely obvious reasons ‘Underneath Gold’ just has that feeling of a sunny Saturday morning. Perhaps its uncluttered vision depicts a world without alarm clocks, irritating work colleagues, statutory cigarette breaks and stale sandwiches. Instead one thinks of a walk in the park, the smell of coffee brewing or just a world filled with relaxing distractions. Black Before Red are a well connected quartet from Austin who released their debut album ‘Belgrave To Kings Circle’ last year. You can't escape the retro feeling to ‘Underneath Gold’ but its sprightly and good-humoured nature never lets this tic become pervasive. So arrange a pile of newspapers in front of you, open the door to whatever creatures are wandering around your back garden and turn on Black Before Red to join the dots in your new stress free world. KD

Black Before Red - Underneath Gold

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Black Before Red
Year: 2007

He may or may not have been moody but for some reason I have always figured that Ian Broudie was a cranky individual. Not sure what leads me to this mid air assumption, perhaps it’s just based on my own experiences with small people. What isn’t open to conjecture though is Broudie's lavish songwriting gifts, which were first alerted when he contributed to 1980’s gods Big in Japan. Greater things were on the way as the decade closed when the Lightning Seeds headed up by Broudie scored a major hit with their debut single ‘Pure’. Hardly surprising that the piece captured the imagination given its enormously melodic flights of fancy but it must have seemed like a sugar coated iceberg in an era of giant shoulder pads and automated drumming mechanisms. Broudie continued to have success with the Lightening Seeds throughout the 1990’s and also carved out a reputable career as a producer. ‘Pure’ remains his high watermark though, still delivering an unrivalled distillation of contemporary pop music almost 20 years after its release. KD

The Lightning Seeds - Pure

Watch The Video

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Lightning Seeds
Year: 1989

There is a beautifully shambolic feel to this band Boy Genius from Brooklyn. Like they wandered into a studio, threw on their gear and played whatever popped into their heads. The music is in no way sequenced, is unlikely to be ever sung by the masses but it has such an inbuilt likeable quality it could catch on like a particularly virulent strain of the winter flu. Comprised of 3 fellas and a girl Boy Genius are accomplished musicians and despite the scrappy appearance know exactly when to prop up a song with a dart of brass or a fragment of harmonica. ‘Radio Silence’ is a classic in waiting, its DIY heart hammers at your door until you finally relent. A slow amorous dance is sure to follow and Boy Genius’s slow ascent towards glory gets another step closer. The band's Eureka EP is out now. KD

Boy Genius - Radio Silence

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Boy Genius
Year: 2007

He’s finally ditched his Mom and by the cut of his 5th album ‘The Wishes and the Glitch’ he has also grown up a bit, maturity it seems has well and truly taken hold. This newfound descent into adulthood could potentially be a dangerous turn of events given the innocent thrills and spills that Eric Elbogen has supplied us with for the last 6 years. Thankfully a wiser head has left this man with a tighter grasp on what the dynamics are to craft a memorable tune. We’ve already fallen for bass heavy gallop of ‘Northwestern Girls’ and now it’s time to readjust our headphones to absorb what ‘Toil and Trouble’ has to offer. Quite a bit as it happens, it is a ragged piece of pop that skids from A to B before arriving at destination unknown (in a Say Hi sense at least). Horizons have been expanded and the view is rather fetching. KD

Say Hi - Toil And Trouble

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Say Hi
Year: 2008

Crouched low and staggering along as it does ‘He Kisses The Streets I Walk’ is just one of several albums worth of reasons to adore Ai Phoenix. On their 5th outing ‘The Light Shines Almost All The Way’ the Norwegian’s breath new life into the art of sounding melancholy while remaining heart creakingly tuneful. Could there be a more perfect Valentines soundtrack than the sound of a chanteuse cast amid a lonely synth and a wonderfully woven bassline? KD

Ai Phoenix - He Kisses The Streets I Walk

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More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Ai Phoenix
Year: 2007

Before you ask, this post has nothing at all to do with Kerry Football. Instead it will focus solely on a band from Portland who tend to be obsessed by a different brand of football altogether. You see their debut EP was built as an ode to a quarterback called Johnny Unitas. ‘I Am Constellation’ was one of its tracks and a uniformly non-uniform piece of indie rock it is too. Boy/girl harmonies crash into each other, unseemly synths are never far enough away to be out of earshot and the drumming is as flat as the rolling hills in Holland. The funny thing is that everyone involved gets out alive and anyone who bothers to listen in is taken aback by the shambling beauty of it all. KD

The Kingdom - I Am Constellation

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Kingdom
Year: 2006

Today I inflated a plastic hammer. Giovanni Trapattoni has agreed to take over the crumbling artefact known as the Irish Football team with the expressed intention of taking us to tournaments (and maybe even more if we don’t wake up from this incredible dream). The last couple of years have been so hard to take; limp performances, gormless victories and a consistent policy of dropping points against inferior opposition. Trap has certainly got something to work with as there are some promising players coming through. That and the fact that he still feels he has something to prove at international level (his home country of Italy have been drawn in Ireland’s qualifying group) should ensure we have some good times to look forward to. So best of luck to you Trap, we’ll be drowning the shamrock to celebrate your birthday next month (Paddy's day as it happens!). KD

The Walkmen - They're Winning

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Walkmen
Year: 2002

Welcome to the inaugural hugger mixtape based rather tenuously on theme of ‘the arsonists songbook’. I've attempted to patch a story together which may or not become apparent as the tape progresses.



If you want to know more about a particular song, click the 'info' button on the bottom left of the player.

Of late I seem to have fallen into some sort of parallel universe inhabited purely by sweet acoustic female vocalists. With her softly plucked guitar swaying not too dissimilarly to Nick Drake and a voice that unfurls seemingly live beside you Anna Ternheim is proving to be another multi-talented citizen. Ternheim is feted back home and recently picked up several Swedish Grammy Awards. ‘I’ll Follow You Tonight’ is sparse and affecting and was recorded alongside the 9 other tracks from her debut album ‘Somebody Outside’ on an island off the coast of Sweden. Ternheim is adept at recreating the scared little girl, which can lend a chilling aspect to the music, which would otherwise prove quite comforting. Dark and enchanting. KD

Anna Ternheim - I'll Follow You Tonight

Watch The Video To Girl Laying Down

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Anna Ternheim
Year: 2004

I can still remember the disappointment I felt with Sugar’s follow up to their debut ‘Copper Blue’. ‘Beaster’ may only have been an EP but after the pop majesty of ‘A Good Idea’, ‘Changes’ and ‘If I Can’t Change You Mind’ it all seemed so harsh (the EP was actually made up of outtakes and leftovers from the ‘Copper Blue’ recording sessions). Thinking back though it wasn’t quite that bad, in fact ‘Walking Away’ and ‘Come Around’ stack up favourably with the highlights from ‘Copper Blue’. Funny that because ‘Come Around’ is just a maze of churning chords with Bob Mould mouthing in a near meditative style. The combination works well though and like me you’ll likely be replaying it over and over to once again bask in the ocean of grungey noise. Bob Mould's 7th solo album 'District Line' is out now. KD

Sugar - Come Around

Watch The Video To Changes

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Bob Mould & Sugar
Year: 1993

They may not have the frenetic craft of that other colony of primates from up Sheffield way but right now it’s Monkey Swallows the Universe that I’m going bananas for. Right, that is likely to have been the lamest sentence ever uttered on these pages so if you are in need of instant therapy ‘Time Will Be Last’ should do the trick. Monkey Swallows the Universe are unashamedly acoustic so are unlikely to grab you by the throat straight away but there’s magic in them thar slow turning melodies. The band have 2 albums to their name but worryingly have gone on a little break to think things through. Whether this means this Monkey’s gone to heaven remains to be seen but while we wait for their next move there is plenty of luscious audio to fawn over. KD

Monkey Swallows The Universe - Time Will Be Last

Watch The Video To Little Polveir

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Monkey Swallows The Universe
Year: 2007

If you were asking I’d have to say the strand of indie that gives me the most pleasure is the template as espoused by bands like the Botticellis, namely melodic indie pop. You’ll hear it in good Apples in Stereo tunes or in those rarefied classics that the Shins sometimes throw up. The Botticellis plunder the same source from their San Francisco base; harmonies pour forth like water from a Roman fountain, guitars are tuned to exhale the sweetest jangle and a background organ adds the requisite nod to the late sixties when stuff like this was invented. ‘Old Home Movies’ is the Botticellis debut, it won’t be out until April but the title track and ‘Up Against The Glass’ show exactly why it could be one of this years most treasured releases. KD

The Botticellis - Up Against The Glass

The Botticellis - Old Homes Movies

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Buy Songs: The Botticellis
Year: 2008

Marry the quirky melodies of Sydney’s Gerling (‘Get Go’) with the ‘where’s it gone I liked that song’ effervescence of Brighton’s Brakes (‘Radio’) and you’ll be at the gilded stage of Dublin’s Grand Pocket Orchestra. Doesn’t really matter if you’ve never heard of Gerling or Brakes (tut tut, you are missing out) though, Grand Pocket Orchestra have the charm and the songs to entertain you all by themselves. Up to now we’ve had to make do with home cooked demos like the heart swelling ‘Little Messy’ and the mayhem that is ‘Radio’ so it comes as a relief to see that plush studios and production trickery hasn’t chipped away at the bands nutty perspective. ‘Get Go’ is perfectly uneven, devilishly played out and about as adorable as a puppy with a penchant for odd socks and chongo pop. KD

Grand Pocket Orchestra - Get Go

Grand Pocket Orchestra - Radio

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Buy Songs: Grand Pocket Orchestra
Year: 2008

It only feels like yesterday that we first came across the San Francisco duo the Dodos. In fact it was last August and at the time we were slurping in the quirky delight that was ‘Trades and Tariffs’. Well Meric and Logan haven’t been sitting idly by waiting for the world to catch up with their idiosyncratic sonic curves. Instead they've been pluming album number 2 ‘Visitor’, which is due on the hungover induced arena that is the 18th of March. In fact a messy head is where the Dodos could do most of their damage. Listen to ‘Jodi’ and you'll initially bask in the gently tugged jangle, before long though the momentum has a rocket rammed up its behind and all hell breaks loose. The effect is freewheelin and wholly liberating for ears forced fed on insipid ballads. Break free from monotony, a brave new whole awaits, let the Dodos show you the way. KD

The Dodos - Jodi

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Buy Songs: The Dodos
Year: 2008

Every year the crew behind the music wing of SXSW release a torrent with mp3’s from the bands appearing across Austin. If your bag is traipsing through a mountain of mp3’s (700+) then jump right in but be warned that you’ll have to circumnavigate plenty of dross to turn up gems like ‘Hands In Pockets’. At the point that Laura Gibson appeared I had massacred at least a dozen songs that ranged from badly recorded rockabilly to ear splitting thrash metal. ‘Hands In Pockets’ is a picture of calm, a clutter free misty morning with an alluring chanteuse in place of chirping birds. Gibson is from Portland and recently ditched her solo performances for the full-blown band effect when the wonderfully named 5-piece Musee Mecanique joined her on stage. She also recorded a Daytrotter session which goes to show how highly she is regarded in the right circles. An impressive new voice is emerging. KD

Laura Gibson - Hands In Pockets

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Buy Songs: Laura Gibson
Year: 2006

There is more than a mere hint of the Interpol’s about this song and I for one am very happy about that fact. The trio known as the Bell are from Malmo (mostly) and Stockholm (leastly) and are about to release an album (it came out last year in Scandanavia) that is sweetly titled ‘Make Some Quiet’. Nothing in the least bit quiet about ‘On and On’, a rampaging anthem that is filled to the brim with melodic nuances. In what is a propulsive delight Mathias Stromberg does a great job mashing Paul Banks and Gary Numan in a smooth shape shifting vocal performance. The band provide able support, turning ‘On and On’ into one of the more memorable tunes to emerge so far this year. KD

The Bell - On And On

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Buy Songs: The Bell
Year: 2008

Speaking of the mad one from Down Under here is his undoubted masterpiece, I think. I’m guessing because I don’t own any Nick Caves & The Bad Seeds albums, as much as I think I’d love ‘Henry’s Dream’. The problem is the eccentricity that so pervades in their output, like a contemporary Frank Zappa you probably get it or more likely lump it. Cave was born in Warracknabeal, Victoria in the late 50’s and has had an incredibly varied career that has seen him perform central roles in bands like the Birthday Party, the Bad Seeds and more recently with Grinderman. He also has some soundtrack credits to his name but his most successful brush with the movie world has been his screenplay for the ingenious outback yarn ‘The Proposition’. ‘Straight To You’ hits you between the eyes with its intense playing, lovestruck lyrics and Cave’s unforgettable performance.The Bad Seeds 14th album ‘Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!’ is released on Mute Records in early March. KD

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Straight To You

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Buy Songs: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Year: 1992

It may lack the orchestral sheen of their best work but ‘The Flicker of a Little Girl’ is such a nice way to get reacquainted with Nottingham band Tindersticks. Their last album was over half a decade ago and their return sees the band stripped back to a more managable 3-piece. Good to hear Stuart Staples in such fine form, in the early days I had him down as a Nick Cave clone but quickly saw the folly of my ways and fell head over heals for his soft gravely tones. ‘The Flicker of a Little Girl’ is easy listening for those who lose their marbles listening to daytime radio playlists. It is taken from Tindersticks forthcoming album ‘The Hunger Saw’ which will be released on Beggars Banquet in April. KD

Tindersticks - The Flicker Of A Little Girl

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Buy Songs: Tindersticks
Year: 2008

After an impromptu drinking session following a football game last night I am a tad slow in embracing anything resembling high decibels this morning. Funny then that I am awash in these glorious noise makers Heartless Bastards from down Cincinnati way. While it may indeed come across as indiscriminate audio to the untrained ear there is so much to applaud in Erica Wennerstrom’s dual guitar/vocal approach. You may hear Sonic Youth in certain passages but I’m not sure Thurston’s mob can slow it down to this degree and still sound so energetic. Nothing Heartless Bastards do is straight laced; their music is forever in full bloom with a myriad of colourful sounds vying for your attention. Hard to refuse, even when there is another set of pumping drums going off in your head. KD

Heartless Bastards - I Swallowed A Dragonfly

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Buy Songs: Heartless Bastards
Year: 2006

As anyone who has ever been to Glasgow will testify it is not really one of the most aesthetically pleasing cities in the world. Much of the beauty occurs underground you see and no it's not the city's subway. Glasgow achieves this by punching above its weight in the here comes another great indie band department. Strawberry Whiplash are typical of the exciting fare on offer. Sandra and Laz may be slow to release their surnames to the expectant media but they nonetheless pour their insides out to coin endless classics. I mean ‘Who’s In Your Dreams?’ could have kept Sarah Records in cheap microphones for decades all on its own. It is a fuzzy delight, overdosing in sweet bah bah bah’s and drums that while pounded have a certain timedness. KD

Strawberry Whiplash - Who's In Your Dreams?

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Buy Songs: Strawberry Whiplash
Year: 2008

Sexy and 80’s Ireland aren’t constructs you’re likely to see too often in a sentence together. The country was a desolate place, rife with unemployment and politicians with a penchant for feathering their own nests. Enter Leslie Dowdall and In Tua Nua (Irish for ‘A New Tribe’) and things started to look up. In Tua Nua were a distinctly Irish pop band who flew close but never quite achieved success outside of their home territory. Dowdall’s performance at the otherwise drab Self-Aid concert from 1985 is a fond memory. In Tua Nua had some fine singles, a strong pedigree (Steve Wickham, later of the Waterboys was a founding member and Sinead O’Connor co-wrote the one of the bands early singles ‘Take My Hand’) and a sound that could only have come from here. ‘All I Wanted’ was taken from their most successful album ‘The Long Acre’ and still packs a punch through its singalong chorus and the dancing at the crossroads instrumentation. KD

In Tua Nua - All I Wanted

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Buy Songs: In Tua Nua
Year: 1988

If I told you this band contained Peter Gunnarson from Suburban Kids With Biblical Names would it make you love them more? Peter has been leading a double life you see, with his girlfriend Lina Cullemark he has busying himself with Springfactory the fruit of which can be heard on their eponymous release on Series Two records which gathers the bands early EP’s together. Sounds like it must be a lot of fun to be in Springfactory, their music is uniformly light, airy and full of matters that are unlikely to give you grey hairs. ‘Get Out Of Bed’ could become a student anthem or alternatively map said organisms’ daily activities in less than two minutes of brilliant indie pop. The Charlatans spoke similarly in the early days (remember that single?) but they never exuded such an enthusastic lust for life from the confines of their warm duvets. KD

Springfactory - Get Out Of Bed

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Buy Songs: Springfactory
Year: 2007

I mentioned the Motifs on the Jenna Nicholls post the other day, which was a sly reminder to self to check out what the antipodeans were up. Quite a lot it seems as they have had 2 separate releases out on 2 different labels in 2007. The first on the Japanese based Lost in Found records was a mammoth affair that gathered 25 tracks from the Motifs (lead singer Alexis!) bedroom etched diary’s. Later in the year WeePOP! snapped up the band for a 3-inch CD (a song for every half inch by the looks of it) which contained this flurry of delight ‘Yours and Mine’. It may sound effortless but it takes quite an amount of talent to sound this dreamy. In fact if it could be cannisterised it could likely spell the end to stinky teenage bedrooms the world over. KD

The Motifs - Yours And Mine

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Buy Songs: The Motifs
Year: 2007

I hope that I never lose this love I have for indie music, age may usher in quieter musical forms like classical or slow tempo jazz but hopefully it won’t quell my guitar absorbing sensibilities. Life would just be so much poorer without the elation of finding bands like the Liberty Bell. TLB engage in musical acts not too dissimilar to those early Ride EP’s (or the unfairly forgotten Jubilee Allstars), namely they sound like the recordings took place on analog tape in a dusty parish hall. The effect is beguiling, especially so when the rough edges are twinned with slow turning melodies like on ‘I Need You’. The Liberty Bell is primarily the work of Joshua Moblo of which I know very little about apart from the fact that he comes from Michigan. ‘I Need You’ is taken from a very promising demo he made last year. KD

The Liberty Bell - I Need You

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2007

Belgian indie bands of note may not come along too often but when they do tend to be pretty special. Deus should occupy at least a CD’s worth of space in your living area for the ramshackle genius that was their debut ‘Worse Case Scenario’. Equally impressive if perhaps a tad more immediate on the ears are Brussels based Girls in Hawaii. While much of their sophomore ‘Plan Your Escape’ struggles to match the incandescent glory of opening track ‘This Farm Will End Up In Fire’ it is nonetheless a rewarding listen. If you pleasure in the act of wallowing in Grandaddy like melancholia then this is something that should fit perfectly. But for me the Nada Surf at full melodic throttle (‘Hyperspace’) of ‘This Farm Will End Up In Fire’ is what I keep returning to. The funny thing is that that honeyed chorus really does take it’s time to unveil itself, a full 3 minutes in fact. When it does appear though you’ll shiver with delight, punch the air in appreciation and praise the Lord for priceless indie pop like this. KD

Girls In Hawaii - This Farm Will End Up In Fire

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Buy Songs: Girls In Hawaii
Year: 2008