We've loved Sunbear for many years so it is a real honour to be able to offer their debut album on our sister site indiecater. Sunbear were a quartet from Dublin who appeared in the wake of shoegaze and adopted much of the genre's dynamics to create a truly lush sound. They may have been loud but Sunbear never lost their sense of melody, which is all pervasive throughout the album. As there was only ever one thousand copies of 'Sunbear' printed it did not cast a very wide net when released in 1994 but now thanks to a different sort of net altogether we are hoping that a wider audience will embrace it. 'Flutterbye' is perhaps the most straight forward piece of music on the album, an effervescent dollop of dream pop with ethereal vocals and fluid instrumentation. It's a lovely taster for what is a gorgeous album. If you like what you hear you should visit indiecater where you can listen to the whole album as many times as you like! KD

Sunbear - Flutterbye

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Sunbear
Year: 1994 & 2008

Unfortunately it seems that both Eiffel Tower and their label (Zero One Infinity) have gone to ground, as in ground to dust I’m afraid. So details are at an all time high degree of sketchiness while I fall head over heels for this tune from the bands 2006 'Smallish Things' LP. Eiffel Tower is essentially Benjamin Wheelock and he quite obviously has a doctorate in what makes indie rock sound like the most vital music imaginable. ‘Serenade’ doesn’t fashion anything remotely innovative, in fact you can hear a plethora of influences throughout the song, yet it has so many tuneful flourishes that my constant repeat plays are threatening to cause the first mp3 ever to degrade a la vinyl. There's some pop amongst the scratches I can tell you. KD

Eiffel Tower - Serenade

More Info: Myspace
Buy Songs: Eiffel Tower
Year: 2006

I listened to this for the first time and instantly said to myself, this is nice but where have I heard it before. It being a sunny day I decided to go for a walk and ponder the question of the hour. It was only after I’d creamed a second 99 that the penny dropped. The appeal is undeniable and even though Casiotone For The Painfully Alone may be purposely tugging at some cherished childhood memories I forgive them. Then again those who suffer from chilling flashbacks due to ‘Insert Horror Movie With Particularly Gory Ice-cream Van Scene Here’ may not. Funnily enough the song is actually taken from a movie called ‘Stay The Same Never Change’ which CFTPA have soundtracked via their ‘Town Topic’ EP (15 tracks, hmmm). It's all enough to make your heart melt. KD

Casiotone For The Painfully Alone - Ice Cream Truck

Watch The Video To Toby Take A Bow

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Casiotone For The Painfully Alone
Year: 2008

It’s 5am and rather than risk injury from excessive twisting and turning I’ve decided to dedicate my extra waking hours to Brooklyn band La Strada. And all I’ve got to play with is a single track from their forthcoming self-titled EP. Lucky then that ‘Starling’ is a lavishly endowed piece of creativity. In fact if I didn’t know better I would have said that the tune was in fact several, meandering be thy name oh sweeping starling. But, for all their corrupt attention to verse-chorus-verse detail this particular septet do know their way around the forensics of what makes an addictive listen. ‘Starling’ weaves an illuminating shawl of contrasting styles, one minute it’s pulling a Pas/Cal like harmony, the next it’s playing a headline tour with Beirut before it eventually decides it would be pretty cool to be the next I’m From Barcelona. As you can imagine with such diversity it may take you a bit to join the dots but there's plenty of time before the rest of what should an irresistible EP arrives in January. KD

La Strada - Starling

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2009 (!)

Mike Dykehouse like so many other of his generation is a rabid MBV enthusiast and his goal it seems is to record something as wondrous as his idols. Well, he’s got that sense of chaotic brilliance down to a T on ‘Signal Crossing’ but its sound owes more to the synth pop agents of the mid-80’s like Fiction Factory than the shoegaze aristocrats that were to arrive years later. Dykehouse is a bedroom project; the montage of noise is built slowly using nothing more than a home PC. So while it may sound like it was honed by several dozen machinations, the beginning, middle and end all stream from one man’s lucid vision. KD

Dykehouse - Signal Crossing

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Dykehouse
Year: 2004

How good does this sound? I think the Vaselines has set me off on some sort of retro buzz and suddenly (we take a trip to trumpton) historic sonic adventures are beginning to take my brain to another dimension. I must admit I always preferred the early incarnation of the Prodigy, before they got all serious while at the same time started to make bucketloads of dosh. Their debut album ‘Experience’ came at the back end of acid/rave when the best selling compilations often included a not too clever use of the words ‘Generation’ and ‘Rave’. ‘Charly’ (a colloquial name for cocaine, hey at least they weren’t doing E) sampled a children’s education programme over a wildly erratic synth swirl and a deliciously baggy beat. Given that it was released 17 years ago this old dear doesn’t sound too arthritic, in fact given the right circumstances it may even propel the odd youngster into something resembling minor movement. KD

The Prodigy - Charly

Watch The Video

More Info: Wiki & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Prodigy
Year: 1991

I must have heard this song a dozen times in different places and never knew who it was. Then finally as I sat goggle-eyed watching ‘About A Son’ it played out in its lo-fi grandness. Was a tad surprised that it was the Vaselines because I had always reasoned that they were a heavy punk outfit. I had also surmised that they were American given Kurt Cobain’s love for them but it turns out they were from sunny old Glasgow. And the revelations don't end there as it seems the band have played several gigs this year (2008), some of them with members of Belle & Sebastian. ‘Son of a Gun’ was one of the first songs they wrote and is the original of the fey boy/girl call and response species. It is undeniably twee but all the more cutesome for that. And it's somehow reassuring to hear vocalist Eugene Kelly finally join Frances McKee in bellowing out the chorus towards the end. If only Gedge had taken note. KD

The Vaselines - Son of a Gun

More Info: Wiki & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Vaselines
Year: 1987

Yep, it’s not a trick of the night. Thanks to Foggy Notions you can spend a winter evening in the company of two of today’s most spellbinding chanteuses. That’s because on Thursday November 27th Whelan’s will be hosting both Victoria Legrand of Beach House and Jana Hunter. It promises to be a night of otherworldly charm so no sudden movements y’hear. Beach House are onto their second LP and the perfectly seasonal ‘Home Again’ is the dewy-eyed closing track. Legrand might grab the attention but her band mate Alex Scally is equally adept at dreaming up the near tropical electronic soundscapes. Jana Hunter’s star has risen slowly but tunes such as ‘Babies’ signal an individual talent that will surely unveil understated masterpieces in the near future. Tempting isn’t it? Well you can sate your cravings for free as we’ve got 2 double passes to give away to the Whelan’s gig. To be in with a chance just email with your name and then prepare yourself for some languid devotion.

Update: Congrats to Paul Murray & Paul McGinnity. KD

Beach House - Home Again

Jana Hunter - Babies

Watch The Video To Beach House's Master of None

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Beach House
Year: 2008

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Jana Hunter
Year: 2007

In what was another cruel case of ‘should’ve been’s’ Whipping Boy have long since gone back to their day jobs. I saw them in concert several times, the last of which was a reunion gig in 2005 which felt flat and even more disappointingly slightly false. Here was a band with an intense anger and when that subsided the mood remained defiant and rebellious. By 2005 this had dissipated so the Whipping Boy experience that I had grown up loving was no more. The bands major breakthrough came via their second album ‘Heartworm’ which was a fine record. My favourite release from them came several years earlier however and was called ‘Submarine’. This was the bands debut and was recorded on a shoestring in just over a week. The strain of the recording sessions almost lead to the band splitting up before it was even released on indie label Liquid Records. ‘Submarine’ was a joyous noise, intense and broody it cut through the bullshit and for a MBV loving young lad it was manna from heaven. ‘Astronaut Blues’ was one of the quieter moments, a break in the storm to repair the last remaining vestiges of what used to be ones hearing faculties. KD

Whipping Boy - Astronaut Blues

Watch The Video To We Don't Need Anybody Else (at Feile '92)

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Whipping Boy
Year: 1992

Six Red Carpets, a Milanese 3-piece, released their debut album ‘Nightmares + Lullabies’ at the end of June. As is fast becoming the norm the album was issued free of charge for anyone with the time/inclination to download it. So Six Red Carpets were accorded no headlines or calls from important media outlets about their novel approach. Freebies are so passé these days you see, we’ve become ambivalent and somewhere along the way some important music has been lost. So you should put some time aside getting this album on your hard drive because it is a beautiful record. There are flashes of Smashing Pumpkins and early Whipping Boy throughout the 13 tracks, the production is lush and the strings when they appear illuminate the scene rather than appear like an afterthought. The most pleasing aspect of ‘Nightmares + Lullabies’ is that it sounds so vibrant and ripe with possibilities. ‘Vanilla Scent’ and ‘The Dream of / Billy Kite’ are my current favourites but there are lots more besides to enjoy. KD

Six Red Carpets - The Dream Of / Billy Kite

Six Red Carpets - Vanilla Scent

Watch The Video

More Info: Official & Myspace
Free Album Download: Nightmares + Lullabies
Year: 2008

Another literate indie pop combo to savour, well you’d hardly expect anything else with a name like that would you? Princeton come from L.A. but their latest EP ‘Bloomsbury’ was inspired by a year spent in the English capital. ‘Ms. Bentwich’ is the second track and what a perfectly orchestrated piece of chamber pop it turns out to be. From the gently tweeting birds that kick it all off to the victorian sounding instrument at fade out this is a piece of music blessed with a myriad of delights. The Kinks are a stated influence and it shows in the studied (!) yet loose-limbed vocal melodies. Potential to burn then, can’t wait for their debut long player. KD

Princeton - Ms. Bentwich

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Princeton
Year: 2008

I had to slip this in before the grey clouds and endless precipitation threatens to spoil the remaining half hour of sun we have left. Belgium’s Girls in Hawaii have already let us in on one of the best chorus’s of the year but now they give us instances of seasonal dabbling (hey, listen to those bells towards the end) and more reasons to think that Europe can easily approximate that East Coast sound. This makes me smile (!) quite a lot and has me reminiscing about Grandaddy at their peak when a sad lush sound poured from them so effortlessly. Drop your critical defences and bath in the beauty of these melodies. It's enough to have you forgetting the continual tap tap from that nearby window. KD

Girls In Hawaii - Sun Of The Sons

Watch The Video To This Farm Will End Up In Fire

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Girls In Hawaii
Year: 2008

I recently watched a most beautiful film about Kurt Cobain called ‘About A Son’. Pieced together from late night telephone interviews between Cobain and journalist Michael Azerrad it contained absolutely no Nirvana music whatsoever. Instead it relied on the audio that inspired the singer and it was obvious that his music palette was a wide and varied one (Queen, the Beatles, Mudhoney). The cinematography was almost as captivating as Cobain’s outpourings, the stark visuals pulled magnetically from the colourful neighbourhoods of Aberdeen, Olympia and Seattle where he spend most of his short life. His story is both tragic and redemptive, here was a man who was born to make music but was not equipped to deal with the demands of normal/celebrity life. ‘About A Son’ is an incredibly moving piece of art that captures the essence of Cobain in a most subtle of ways and is a must see for anyone who remembers where they were on April 5, 1994. KD

The Floors - Jesus Lived Six Years Longer Than Kurt Cobain

More Info: About A Son Offical Site & The Floors
Buy The Soundtrack To His Life: About A Son OST
Year: 2006

Everything about Lisa Hannigan is lovely. She’s lovely looking, has a lovely personality (read some interviews) and makes music that can only be described as lovely. I’ve enjoyed her new album ‘Sea Sew’, given it the rudimentary 3 listens before I make a judgement and my consistent thought on it was that it was uniformly lovely. I doubt I’ll be returning to it too much though unless we have some friends over for a thoughtful chat and a couple of Baileys. Pretty soon I will file it away in a folder marked ‘music to soundtrack lovely occasions’. That’s why I wish Lisa sometimes had a bit more bite, was a little angrier or at least a tad more colourful in her landscaping of the human condition. Much like Gemma Hayes she positions herself to take the laurels but seems content to slink in the background and pick up a badge of merit instead. ‘I Don’t Know’ is perfectly constructed but it would be a great deal shallower without the flitting brass parts. So for a finish it just ends up sounding utterly lovely. KD

Lisa Hannigan - I Don't Know

Watch The Video To Some Surprise As The Cake Sale

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Lisa Hannigan
Year: 2008

Ok, after much brow beating and endless reruns I think I’ve think I've finally decided on my favourite A Sunny Day In Glasgow track. The Philadelphia act have been top of my agenda ever since their weirdly titled debut album hoved into view. They played Dublin recently to an incredibly unresponsive audience and my heart sank but then a couple of listens of ‘Scribble Mural Comic Journal’ fixed all the damage. A Sunny Day In Glasgow are a gathering of siblings and a couple of others who usher us back to the days of dreampop and shoegaze while still retaining a complete sense of their own identity. They are currently working on their sophomore and if they can summon the noise gods to make anything approaching the greatness of ‘Sometimes I Think About You’ I will be a moshing audience of one (if it comes to that) the next time they visit our neck of the woods. Sublime. KD

A Sunny Day In Glasgow - Sometimes I Think About You

Watch The Video A Mundane Phonecall

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: A Sunny Day In Glasgow
Year: 2007

We’ve been here before of course but I don’t think I could close the door on the Gorgeous Colours stunning debut without giving ‘Miss You’ an airing. I’m sure it’ll be a single someday such is its studied melodies, anthem like refrains and jangling chords. In what is turning out to be a pretty good year for Irish albums (!, well September turned out be some month) the Gorgeous Colours ranks amongst the best. It works very well as an long player but there is much to keep the mixtape enthusiast happy too. ‘Miss You’ is an uncomplicated joy, with undoubted crossover appeal even if the sudden equilibrium wavering momentum towards the end threatens to return it to the darkened rooms of bespeckled indiedom from whence it came. KD

The Gorgeous Colours - Miss You

Watch The Video To Burning

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Gorgeous Colours
Year: 2008

Is that a real bass tug or have the electronics progressed to the extent that traditional instruments have merely taken on the role of looking good while held by skinny chested young things? Who knows and ultimately who cares when whizzkids like David Holmes continue to peddle IDM torch bearers like ‘I Heard Wonders’. Even if his name means nothing to you it’s quite likely you’ve googled his tunes after picking up on at least one of his soundtrack escapades. Holmes has been at this game for a long time and his Shake Yer Brain club in Belfast inspired Orbital to write one of their most famous opuses about the city. The man gets away with relative anonymity yet his name is constantly spilling from the lips of Hollywood soundtrack compilers. But how can you be jealous when it only takes a single spin of ‘I Heard Wonders’ to have believing you’ve heard the dance track of the year. His latest LP ‘The Holy Pictures’ is out now, throw out the Wii and exercise to this instead. KD

David Holmes - I Heard Wonders

Watch The Video

More Info: Myspace
Buy Songs: David Holmes
Year: 2008

Eulogies wrote their 2nd record while touring with Film School last year. It’s gonna be next year before we hear the fruits of their labour but for now the ‘Tempted To Do Nothing’ EP will do just fine. In fact when tunes like ‘Two Can Play’ invade the space between your ears you might just forget about the bills and be content with your lot for a couple of minutes. Charming is what Eulogies do you see and when they present that charm in a setting bedecked in softly focused riffs and boy/girl vocal interplays you’d have to have the heart of a banker to reject them. So let the L.A. act colour your bad times and before you know it they’ll become as big a part of your good times. KD

Eulogies - Two Can Play

Watch The Video To One Man

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Eulogies
Year: 2008

For all I know this could have been a big hit from a famous rock act I’ve never heard of and Screaming Tea Party are just polishing it up. It just sounds so complete, don’t mind the fuzz and clatter because beneath the distortion lies a genuinely brilliant tune. Could be a ‘Teenage Kicks’ (do you hear it boys and girls?) for the noughties if it’s given the airplay it deserves. The trio are based in London but two-thirds of the group come from Tokyo and they play their instruments as if the cumulative pollution from both cities were deposited on their instruments. It’s dirty, raw and downright lovable once you prefer you melodies laced with a non fatal dose of toxicity. And that's before we even get into the mixed up song title. KD

Screaming Tea Party - Let's Do Not Say Another Word

Watch The Video To Stair Rail

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Screaming Tea Party
Year: 2008

Cass McCombs has been popping into this blog more than most artists so it’s safe to assume we are fans. Born in Concord his wandering nature has seen him taking up residency in several cities throughout the U.S. He is currently based in L.A. where his 3rd LP ‘Dropping The Writ’ was recorded. McCombs has yet to make a definitive record but along the way he has dreamed up several genuine classics. ‘Windfall’ is one of them, a fragile composition highlighting McCombs affecting vocals. In some ways, especially towards the end, the song has a certain Sigur Ros quality so you can imagine how cherisable that sounds. McCombs is coming to Whelan's on Saturday 15th November and we’ve got 2 double passes to give away for the gig. If you’d like to go just send an email to the usual address.

Update: Congrats to Stephen Banville & Clive Sullivan. KD

Cass McCombs - Windfall

Watch The Video To Sacred Heart

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Cass McCombs
Year: 2007

You may or may not have been aware that of late I have been leading a double life. Indiecater is my attempt to help out through a series of indie compilations where the profits go straight back to the contributing bands. Thusfar it has been a quiet success, so much so that Volume 3 will be released towards the end of October and a compilation made up of indie Christmas tunes will follow in December. Our latest release is a little different however because it looks to the past rather the future for its inspiration. Red Star Belgrade’s ‘Where The Sun Doesn’t Shine’ originally came out in the mid-nineties and despite a wave of critical acclaim somehow got lost along the way. Hard copies of the album are extremely rare and up to now you could not buy the album digitally. About a year ago we struck up an email dialogue with Bill Curry from the band quite by chance and we both agreed that Red Star Belgrade’s music deserved a second airing. ‘Where The Sun Doesn’t Shine’ was RSB’s first LP, a frazzled, angry and important piece of alt country that I think you’ll really enjoy. Included here is a track from the album called ‘Saddest Girl’ that displays the simple yet powerful ditties that are dotted all over the LP. If you'd like more information about the band, the album and how you can own ‘Where The Sun Doesn't Shine’ head over to the indiecater site. KD

Red Star Belgrade - Saddest Girl

Buy Songs: Red Star Belgrade
Year: 1996

True Womanhood is the distillation of the type of band I set this blog up to talk about. Fresh, vibrant, as yet unreleased but buoyed by the sort of promise that should see them one day make an impressive break through. Based out of Washington D.C. they have already made inroads on the local circuit. Their demos boast a pleasing variety of styles with Sonic Youth’s influence filtering through on occasion. As such the songs are unconventional but they never forget to include some lovely hooks. They also employ a range of previously underused instruments to get their point across. Can’t imagine the Gallagher Brothers have ever put their grubbies on the subtle curves of the Iron Volcano, the Scythetar or the much cherished (in certain D.C. circles) Tympani. ‘The Monk’ is a lo-fi wonder, full of fey vocals and dutifully languid instrumentation. This is a quartet with a spark, can’t wait for the blaze. KD

True Womanhood - The Monk

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2008

Seeing Ulrich Schnauss in a half-empty tent colossus is not the most captivating musical experience I’ve ever witnessed. But, with a set of good headphones set to full throttle his brand of ambient exploration melts my heart. His remix of the High Violets song ‘Chinese Letter’ even crept into our top songs for last year, but this ‘A Letter From Home’ breaths new life into the dream pop/shoegaze revival (forget the fact that it came out pre ‘Chinese Letter’, it’s blogger license you see and anyway ‘A Strangely Isolated Place’ is being reissued). It heartening to see Chapterhouse so high up Schnauss’s list of influences, that band meant an awful lot to me despite only scoring a handful of bullseyes over their short career. ‘A Letter From Home’ is awash with pretty electronic flourishes, intermittent alien interceptors and hopelessly giddy expressionism. You’ve probably guessed by now that I’m slightly enamoured. KD

Ulrich Schnauss - A Letter From Home

Watch The Video To Gone Forever

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Ulrich Schnauss
Year: 2004

The music industry is in turmoil but rather than sit on their laurels and complain endlessly certain savvy acts are using the so-called paralysing methods of distribution to their advantage. So credit everyone’s favourite pub rockers Oasis for several neat marketing tricks (giving away free sheet music with the NME for one) to plug their newest release. Escape Act are going a step further by giving their whole album ‘Loosely Based On Fiction’ away for free through some hand picked blogs. Yes, folks we’ve arrived - the band have been kind enough to let us post the joyous romp that is the opening track on the album ‘Kings Have Fallen’. Their website will tip you on where you can pick up the remainder of the album and once you’ve done that you’ll probably feel like splashing out on one of a limited run of CD's that will come with an individually customised booklet. That’s all happening towards the end of next month so you’ve got a bit of time to enjoy the Escape Act blog treasure trail. We’re rather proud of our track ‘Kings Have Fallen’ with its gilded riffs, driving percussion and sprightly vocals (forever reminding me of Mick Jones) which all adds up to a memorable indie anthem.

One of our favourite compilation blogs BoxSetGo have another song from the album called 'Cabin Fever', it's a goodie! KD

Escape Act - Kings Have Fallen

Permanent Download Link: Kings Have Fallen

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Escape Act
Year: 2008

In many ways this is the least obvious track to go blathering about from Fred’s incandescent ‘Go God Go’ album. It being a multi-faceted beast with a couple of fairly obviously nods to the Scissor Sisters and the Arcade Fire amongst other behemoths but perhaps it’s when they concentrate on just being Fred like on ‘Evergreen’ that my gra really starts to bloom. The Cork (maybe some Kerry in there too) collective have hardly appeared from nowhere given than this is their 3rd long player but surely ‘Go God Go’ will catapult them. At last we have an Irish band prepared take some risks and more importantly succeed in turning them into sweet audio. And despite the influences ‘Go God Go’ never fails to sound fresh, vibrant and adept at handling repeat visits. Looks like the Rebels are beginning to Yell all over again. KD

Fred - Evergreen

Watch The Video To Damn You Hollywood

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Fred
Year: 2008

I was listening to the Kings of Leon’s new album today. Woke up 10 minutes later on an O’Connell Street monument with the faint sense that my ears were aching. It’s obvious I need something a little more chewable, a distant riff that sounds vaguely familiar but enticing enough to warrant greater than solitary listens. Oh, this will do just nicely from Brooklyn’s Bear Hands, an unsigned foursome who’ve been getting important tongues wagging and discerning ears flapping. It’s raw; stripped of several quintessential rock traits but boy does that circular riff leave some sharp memory traces long after fade out. The ‘Golden’ EP is out now, it kills the competition with its bare hands and keeps monument traffic to a minimum. KD

Bear Hands - Golden

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Bear Hands
Year: 2008

In the pantheon of ethereal female vocals surely none is more distinctive than Stockholm’s Stina Nordenstam. I first discovered her music via the seminal ‘No Disco’ programme, Donal Dineen was enraptured and it was easy to see why. The thing about Nordenstam is that she looks exactly the way she sounds, delicate and shy yet utterly hypnotic. ‘Little Star’ was taken from her 2nd album ‘And She Closed Her Eyes’ which was released in 1994. It was also used on the OST to ‘Romeo + Juliet’ which cast Nordenstam to a much wider audience. She didn’t let the fame go to her head though and remains a reticent artist who continues to follow her own creative vision. Her talent for directing is best seen through her own visually stunning collection of music videos. KD

Stina Nordenstam - Little Star

Watch The Video

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Stina Nordenstam
Year: 1994

As Jesus & Mary Chain songs go it is one of my least favourite from ‘Honey’s Dead’ so much kudos to Oliver North Boy Choir for imagining a thoroughly enjoyable reworking. In essence they’ve swapped the guitars for electro pulses which casts the tune in a different light while keeping the remorseless tone as preached by the Reid’s intact. The song was commissioned by the intriguing Jesus & Mary Chain Covers Project which attempts to take that signature sound and turn it into something altogether different. A difficult task but ONBC overcome the pitfalls to put their own stamp on proceedings. And when they unleash their own creativity they ain't too shabby either as witnessed by the Stina Nordenstam like ‘Nest Of Terror’. The trio come from Denmark and a couple of them have already appeared on these pages under the guise of epo-555. KD

Oliver North Boy Choir - Teenage Lust

Oliver North Boy Choir - Nest Of Terror

Watch The Video To Sometimes Always Wherein The JAMC Attempt To Sound Happy (Having Hope Sandoval On Your Arm Helps Of Course)

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Oliver North Boy Choir
Year: 2008

This music is the sound of upheaval, of instruments shoved into uncompromising positions, of a singer singing as if she’s practising in the shower as the water slowly turns cold. And the strangest thing about it all is that I am utterly entranced. In the same the way that You’re Only Massive have the wherewithal to pull a victory from the jaws of an overwhelming defeat. Roni Brunn is From’s chief architect and she dreams up her patchwork quilt of audio from her base in Beverly Hills. How can she afford you might ask but then one only has to look at her resume to see how previous ventures yielded much fancied leather goods. It’s all a bit daft, from the unconventional execution to the strange reactions I am feeling in my approving toes. Oddly compelling. KD

From - Maple Drive

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: From
Year: 2008

While ‘Jacket Hangs’ is undoubtedly their classic the Blue Aeroplanes had a career that was scattered with gems. And they were quite capable of ditching their low-slung signature guitars for an altogether lighter approach as witnessed on single ‘Fun’ from 1992. The vocals on this occasion came from guitarist Rodney Allen rather than mainman Gerard Langley with the result that ‘Fun’ skips along with unbridled joy. Putting a fine chorus in the opening bars certainly helps but there is much to saviour besides. ‘Fun’ was taken from the album ‘Beat Songs’ which included a major hit for the band in their cover of Paul Simon’s ‘The Boy In The Bubble’. In the end though the Blue Aeroplanes had to make do with becoming part of that select group of 'influential' groups with R.E.M. amongst others members of their devout following. KD

The Blue Aeroplanes - Fun

More Info: Allmusic & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Blue Aeroplanes
Year: 1992

Hooray, Bloc Party have gone off and come back all interesting again. Oops, sorry, got the right city but different act – Sam Isaac to be precise. Isaac is an independent musician with a penchant for the DIY approach, so much so that his torchsong ‘Sticker, Star and Tape’ has appeared on several releases over his short recording career. Easy to see why though given its ludicrous charm. The tune has been afforded new legs of late thanks to some nifty remixes, the best of which is Rod Thomas’s beat fantastic take. Thomas strips away the guitar bluster and pushes Isaac’s crisp vocals to the fore which if anything adds depth to the composition. I was immediately reminded of Kele Okereke’s uncluttered delivery but as the song progresses you’ll cast off such idle linkages and bask in the glow (his hair is on fire for God's sake) of a bright new talent. KD

Sam Isaac - Sticker, Star And Tape (Rod Thomas Remix)

Watch The Video To Sideways

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Sam Isaac
Year:

We’ve had the supercomputer and the ship and because things generally come in 3's we now have a band named Kitty Hawk. Seems this particular act are still at embryonic stage as there’s not the slightest hint of a record, just a series of fabulous demos. Kitty Hawk have a lush Grizzly Bear/Animal Collective feel to their fly by the seat of their pants recordings. Lo-fi it may be but this is music that is truly at home on a hi-fi. Right now ‘Bear In The Morning’ suits me grand, despite its fleeting lifespan this is heart melting stuff. Simple hushed dynamics rarely felt this comforting and if Kitty Hawk can draw more wonders like this out of their collective imaginations the future looks and sounds bright. Cheers to Jared for the heads up. KD

Kitty Hawk - Bear In The Morning

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2008

I’ve just watched a clearly awestruck Guy Garvey being interviewed on a BBC political program filmed in Manchester. As you’d expect for a Sunday morning slot of this sort the studio was bare and staid and the interviewer while accommodating failed at any point to connect to Garvey in a meaningful way. The pre-rehearsed questions came thick and fast without any sense of purpose but the answers while concise highlighted why Bury’s greatest ever band deserve everything that is now being bestowed on them. Polite and intelligent Guy Garvey is a most empathic frontman of a band of close friends. ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’ was self-produced as Elbow were between labels so it makes the Mercury Prize triumpth all the more special. The band are currently making the follow up but are constantly distracted from doing so because of the spontaneous parties they throw to watch the playback of their proudest moment. There is a purity to Elbow that hopefully won’t get lost as the hoards come on board pronouncing that they’ve been with them since ‘Asleep At The Back’. They’ve been reborn and hopefully the best is yet to come. As the video for ‘Grounds For Divorces’ faded out following Garvey’s short interview the next guest had already descended onto the BBC couch. Gordon Brown was in for a truly gruelling round of pre-rehearsed questions. After struggling for 17 years Elbow had finally arrived. KD

Elbow - Newborn

Watch The Video To One Day Like This

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Elbow
Year: 2001

+/- {Plus/Minus} is a pretty unusual name for a band don’t you think? Just imagine how many maths hating kids they’ve turned away because of that moniker. Well you are missing out kids because +/- {Plus/Minus}’s new album ‘Xs On Your Eyes’ is one of best of the year. It marks the trio’s 4th LP and its winning bag of indie devices should haul them a wide fanbase. ‘You’ll Catch Your Death’ leapt from my computer through a combination of sounding like something from ‘And The Glass Handed Kites’ and the joyous dichotomy to be savoured as languid verse turns to fluid neugaze chorus. It hits me hard in the solarplexis but rather than call for a doctor I merely press the repeat button endlessly. With +/- {Plus/Minus} it just all adds up you see. ‘Xs On Your Eyes’ is not out until next month so many thanks to Naomi at Absolutely Kosher for allowing us to post the tune. KD

+- {PlusMinus} - You'll Catch Your Death

Watch The Video To Steal The Blueprints

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Buy Songs: +- {PlusMinus}
Year: 2008

You should know by now that music and football are 2 of hugger’s passions but with crystalpalace and Arsenal now invading these pages it would be easy to speculate that one interest was taking a lead role. But, despite a new album called LOTUK it turns out Arsenal are from Brussels and not London. In fact the album was conceived further afield in a frozen part of Finland during a weekend of alcohol fuelled abandonment. Not that you could surmise that from the tropical wonder that is ‘Estupendo’, a pristine sliver of uncomplicated beats with undoubted mainstream appeal. This is Arsenal’s third long cut and they are already stars back home in Belgium but ‘Estupendo’ and its ilk could guarantee them a place amongst the elite. KD

Arsenal - Estupendo

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Buy Songs: Arsenal
Year: 2008

Ok, I know scat all about Koushik apart from the fact that he is a he from Canada. I like a certain mystique, it adds to the glow in a musical prospect. As it is ‘Lying In The Sun’ was doing fine before the glow such is its sun kissed aura, the undoubted psychedelic edge resembling one of Dan Snaith’s better moments (is there higher praise?). Koushik’s releases have been of the EP kind so far but that is all about to change as his first long player ‘Out My Window’ comes out at the end of the month. ‘Lying In The Sun’ is the entrée to what should be an entrancing (!) main course. And what about a double bill with El Guincho, no contest, that would be gig of the year. KD

Koushik - Lying In The Sun

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Buy Songs: Koushik
Year: 2008

Ready for a slow funereal waltz? Grails have taken the longest time to settle in my mind, I knew I liked them (much like Low in fact) but I couldn’t quite work out why. But those frequent late night visits finally paid dividends and I am now quite satisfied to bathe in their slow progressions. ‘Dargai’ comes from as far back as 2004’s ‘Red Light’ but kind of hit the bullseye straight away. The pace, as ever, is slow, like the Velvet Underground at 13rpm (or Ry Cooder at 78rpm) but you can just imagine how the pieces fell together in the neatest of ways. It takes a lot of talent to sound this languid and it wouldn’t mean a whole lot if the crawl wasn’t so flecked with majestic artistry. Grails have a newbie on the way next month, it’s called ‘Doomsdayer's Holiday’ so don’t be expecting the gorgeous melancholy to end any time soon. Long may it prosper I say. KD

Grails - Dargai

Watch The Video To Slow Extinction

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Buy Songs: Grails
Year: 2004

History repeating or just the future right now is what ‘The Evolution of Hunger’ had me pondering. I’m sure it would have found a sweaty home at the Hacienda in the early nineties but then again I can’t imagine Manumission turning up its nose at it either this summer. This is a downright fine piece of old skool electro with designs on the affections of contemporary dancefloors. Not much is known of Jean-Paul from Montréal who propels crystalpalace (‘1.0’ his new album is out now) but I guess that’s in with keeping with dance’s near faceless sound architects of the past. It’s even possible that JP could be amongst the throng as it loses itself in the cascading synths, pounding beats and the expected but altogether fitting sultry vocals. In short you’ll recognise the template but that doesn’t stop ‘The Evolution of Hunger’ from being one of the best dance tracks of the year. KD

crystalpalace - The Evolution Of Hunger

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Buy Songs: crystalpalace
Year: 2008

Sigur Rós’ music is a deeply personal experience. I know this because while I tend to shrivel up and retreat to a childhood state while their music plays my wife carries herself with the sort of nonchalant swagger of someone who is oblivious to their charms. We’ve discussed this state of affairs on many occasions, the recent being at Electric Picnic during ‘Festival’ wherein I crumpled into a heap as a brass band shuffled around the stage after appearing from nowhere to augment the sound to that of a heavenly embrace. How could she not comprehend what these Icelandic people were doing to her husband and why couldn’t she feel the same way? Now my time spent in the company of their new album is a solitary experience, despite that I return every few days. Sigur Rós don’t get better, they don’t get worse, they are just what they are – a spirit so joyous and all encompassing they are even capable of creating temporary schisms in the course of true love. Now that’s what I call music. KD

Sigur Rós - Festival

Watch The Video To Viorar Vel Til Loftarasa

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Buy Songs: Sigur Rós
Year: 2008

You know, probably the easiest way to put a band together is to pitch yourself as the central focus and then invite your musician friends along when the need arises. Not only does this help maintain a healthy harmony it also ensures a steady stream of fresh ideas. Works for Michael O’Connell anyway and when you consider the light fantastic that is ‘Inside The Cinema’ it would appear to have plenty of mileage in the tank. The song can be found on Culture Reject's self-titled LP, which is out now on White Whale Records. The first thing you’ll notice is the warmth in the track as its rolling parts gently collide to create a melodic hum. Brass, piano, handclaps, gently tugged strings and O’Connell’s distant vocals fizz like silent fireworks in the night sky. A quiet delight then. KD

Culture Reject - Inside The Cinema

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Buy Songs: Culture Reject
Year: 2008

With cerebral lyrics delivered in Yoni Wolf’s near spoken polemic style Why? are a band that certainly deserve an in-depth thesis to make sense of it all. Every one of their tunes has a story to tell and the words are tempered by some lovely musicianship, which makes an irresistible combination. But this is not background music, it requires a good deal of listener focus so the prospect of seeing Why? in concert is an attractive one. That’s why you should be clearing your diary for the first day in November when the band will be performing with Son Lux in the Andrews Lane Theatre. If you’d like to go we have 3 double passes to give away so get in touch to be in with a chance of winning. ‘Light Leaves’ which is included here is taken from Why?’s middle album ‘Elephant Eyelash’.

Update: Congrats to Amy, Ronan and Karl!

KD

Why? - Light Leaves

Watch The Video To Early Whitney

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Buy Songs: Why?
Year: 2005

There was a time when Ash used to affix a sticker to their releases that confirmed that they were in fact Guaranteed Real Teenagers (GRT). If there were any left over I’m sure the Wild Mercury Sound would gladly snap them up given that their average age means they are excluded from having a legal pint for at least a couple of years. Don’t be surprised then when you hear their music that it’s snappy and off the cuff but the reason it is appearing here is because it is also off the hook. For an act that has barely a year under its belt WMS appear tight, fuelled by a common purpose and laden with splendid ideas that should ensure a tidy army of fans before too long. The 2 tracks below are both demos but will not require a great deal of tweaking before they eventually appear on WMS’s all conquering debut release. GRT stuff all round then. KD

The Wild Mercury Sound - Cultured Fools

The Wild Mercury Sound - Primrose Beauty

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2008

So much for an Indian summer as the rain cascades from the sky in ever increasing bucketloads. It wasn’t always like this, September always conjures balmy evenings in my head so there must have been sunshine in the 9th month at some stage in recent metrological history. Anyway, I’m sure that’s what London’s Grantura had in mind when they wrote ‘Forever September’ such is its sunny outlook. I hear Teenage Fanclub despite origins that probably are more stateside than northerly. A mandolin being plucked always helps but the vocal melodies provided by several of the sextet makes for a glorious end of summer soundtrack. Grantura’s ‘In Dreams And Other Stories’ is out at the end of the month on Ruffa Lane Records so pretty soon it won’t be just the rain that’s floating your boat. KD

Grantura - Forever September

Watch The Video To Mountain

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Buy Songs: Grantura
Year: 2008

Jive Bunny for the electronically minded? You must be having a laugh given the quality of this mashup from those electronic provocateurs the Dying Seconds. Deus may rule this particular roost but there are joyful intermittent visits from the likes of Feist, Laura Marling and Beirut and it’s all held together beautifully by the Dying Seconds peculiar brand of suds and soda. The Dublin act released their debut album ‘We Make Weapons’ earlier this year (it's free!) and it has since taken up residency at chez hugger. This mashup is just one of a batch that includes a grand nod to the National’s last album ‘Boxer’. With that I’d imagine mouths are beginning to water but it’s your ears that’ll come away the happiest. Just seems that there’s victory in the Dying Seconds no matter what they turn their hands to. If you don’t believe me then listen to the Orbital like genius of new track ‘Lift’. KD

The Dying Seconds - I'll Be The One To Break My Heart

The Dying Seconds - Lift

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2008

May be just me but is Brighton beginning to push Brooklyn for the title of most creative neighbourhood in the world? Perhaps not but I can’t stop running into great little bands from that neck of the woods. Shrag are the latest and within seconds you may detect a certain Ting Tings direction. The thing (ting) with Shrag though is that there are 5 of them which affords more opportunities to flesh out the sound. In saying that ‘Forty-five 45s’ peddles an even personality, buoyancy comes by way of a direct riff with singer Helen appearing like a bottle rocket with a short fuse. All very indie (a song about vinyl singles, yay), all very predictable but about as welcome as voluminous snow flakes towards the end of December. It almost pains me to say it but on this evidence you just can’t beat a good old Shrag. KD

Shrag - Forty-five 45s

Watch The Video To Talk To The Left

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Buy Songs: Shrag
Year: 2008

The comparisons with fellow swedes the Knife are apparent on this remix of ‘Crayons’ but the overriding feeling in Markovic’s music is its vaguely 80’s overtures. In its original guise Johan Berg’s vocal talent is to the fore and it pretty much runs the show despite the impressive grandiosity inherent in the music. For me though ‘Crayons’ beauty is best utilised on Christina Roos remake, where Berg’s vocals provide the lightning flashes while the electro movements drive the piece through a series of incessant thunderbolts. It’s hugely impressive stuff and given the right location it could easily command a Friday night crowd’s fleeting attention span. KD

Markovic - Crayons (Christina Roos Remake)

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More Free Downloads: Markovic
Year: 2008

I’m not surprised that Hot Lava have played with Videohippos because there are striking similarities. The noise, the mayhem, the utter craft in making it sound so palatable. That said I can’t help feeling that they could just as easily sit with a bunch of Scandinavian’s on the Labrador label. The melody is there in abundance you see but it’s coated in a haze of vocal distortion, throbbing percussion and interjecting noises from outer space. And you can expect more of the same on the band’s debut ‘Lavalogy’ which should be given a full arty workout at their upcoming show with Belfast’s (and hugger loved) Oppenheimer in deepest Virginia. ‘Resolutions '08’ is a total blast, a Tarantinoesque scene stealer that’ll get under your skin and won’t stop until it has checked into the honeymoon suite of your heart. KD

Hot Lava - Resolutions '08

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Buy Songs: Hot Lava
Year: 2008

The comparisons to Bjork may be inevitable as much for the lush production as Raissa Khan-Panni’s faultlessly dispatched vocals. There is purity a here, Raissa sings without the hint of a struggle, those high notes are pitched as easily as the rest of us hum along to a great chorus. So her vocal talent is not in doubt but the best news of all is that she can pen great tunes too as ‘March Of The Dawn’ so ably proves. It forms one section of a mini LP (8 tracks, full blow album in my eyes) called ‘Tale To Tell (Part One)’ (part two is due early in the new year) and even after 5 plays it already sounds like a classic to me. Should appeal to Morcheeba fans and for that matter everyone else who wasn’t a Morcheeba fan. A luminous new talent from Brighton to light up summer's passing. KD

The Mummers - March Of The Dawn

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Buy Songs: The Mummers
Year: 2008

‘The CD comes with some lovely handmade packaging’ - so goes the call to arms from Newcastle’s finest Lanterns On The Lakes. And you’d have to have a particularly stony heart to turn down the offer given a cursory listen to their heartfelt music. We’ve fallen for them before but their new ‘Starlight’ EP raises the bar considerably. The 6-piece create a lush sound, resplendent with folky voices and warm instrumentation. The effect is shiver inducing, inspiring and at various point downright moving. Whether it’s the sort of soundtrack the folks on the Tyne need right now given the Keegan theatrics is open to question but songs such as ‘If I Have Been Unkind’ remind us why we got into discovering new sounds in the first place. These particular lanterns burn so brightly they may soon be lighting up the night sky KD

Lanterns On The Lake - If I Have Been Unkind

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Buy Songs: Lanterns On The Lake
Year: 2008

You can’t keep a good man down. Despite making 4 brilliant albums with the Floors the Carlow based artist Dave Donohue was not content to sit back and bask in the critical acclaim bestowed on his music. Instead he went beyond his comfort zone and into the arms of Hollywood! Well, sorta, Donohue has supervised the music on 2 well known Irish made films In America and Once. Not only that but he has brought out a series of children’s books and is currently putting the finishing touches to a movie script. But, less about his outside interests and more about the audio so ‘Love Song To My Guru’ should be a nice introduction to the Floors, truly one of Ireland’s lost bands. ‘Superbe’ may have been the album that almost catapulted them to fame but there is so much in their back catalogue that is worthy of inspection. This one is taken from ‘Morphine Watch’, an album that was inspired by a bizarre incident that occurred to Donohue while in hospital surgery (hey Jason Pierce, stop stealing other people's ideas). Thankfully it all ended happily and gloriously languid songs (rather than important intestines) such as ‘Love Song To My Guru’ continue to spill from the Leinster bard. KD

The Floors - Love Song To My Guru

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Buy Songs: The Floors
Year: 2000