Forget about all the music you’ve ever heard, just clear your head and start from scratch again like an 8 year in the company of Sgt. Peppers for the first time. Now give this Brighton band a listen and bask in their collective genius. Yep, I bandy the G word about here quite a bit and mostly it’s hardly warranted but this time is different. Labelless and happy to live off the scraps that is the donation paypal button Stars and Sons are currently giving their ‘Goat Show’ EP away for free from their myspace. ‘Fights Already Fought’ sprung from nowhere on what seemed like another aimless shuffle and I was immediately hooked by its baggy demeanour. It is elusive, bewildering and downright heavenly through its stringent policy of non-linearity. Further inspection reveals the generous supply of goodies all over the EP like the beautifully turned profanities on ‘4 Stars’. This band makes my heart skip a beat, which at my age can be very dangerous, but it’s worth the risk. Tip them generously so they can further endanger us. KD

Stars and Sons - Fights Already Fought

Stars and Sons - 4 Stars

Watch The Video To In The Ocean

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Buy Songs: Stars And Sons
Year: 2008

This is pretty faultless and given the homemade setting surely announces Little Boots as a serious talent and star in the making. Wiley’s original is a big dirty piece of classic dance and should be making most end of year ‘best of’ lists but what’s the betting on this reworking doing the same in 2009? To get some context check out the youtube vid where this rip comes from and marvel at the ingenuity/simplicity with which ‘Wearing My Rolex’ is realised. Just goes to prove that genuine talent will shine through no matter how lo-fi the working conditions. Little Boots is the side project of Victoria from Dead Disco, the all female trio from Leeds, and her single ‘Meddle’ is out now. KD

Little Boots - Wearing My Rolex

Watch The Video

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Year: 2008

It might only be 2 minutes long but ‘Oxford’ still finds the time to get all messy and confused towards the end. But such noodles aside this is a pleasant distraction that really benefits from louder decibels. The Austin quintet certainly have indie rock down to a fine detail and thankfully they’ve plucked from the best possible influences (Pavement being particularly prevalent). Their self-titled LP of last year picked up plenty of critical kudos and in the grand tradition of 2008 they have decided to give their new EP ‘August Exhaust Pipes’ away for free (witness the curveball that is the title track below). And the good news is that it’s as good as you’d expect it to be, in a most perfect slacker Peel type of way. Yet more evidence that there’s certainly something in the water in Austin, most probably a cover band previously run out of town by an angry slew of sonic innovators. KD

Peel - Oxford

Peel - August Exhaust Pipes

Watch The Video To August Exhaust Pipes

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Buy Songs: Peel
Year: 2006/2008

‘Eight Golden Greats’ is the debut album from the Old Believers pair of Nelson Kempf and Keeley Boyle. It sounds earthy and blessed with the sort of moving parts that just get you in the gut. Because it comes from a remarkably youthful duo from Alaska also helps, that and the fact that it is fashioned in parts in Win Butler’s image. So as you’d expect there is plenty of mood with Nelson Kempf and Keeley Boyle reaching for the sort of nuances you thought had gone out of fashion. In that sense much of the album sounds like it was recovered from a long lost master tape. Must have been recorded in rich stereo though as ‘Granny’s Song’ so amply proves. This is memorable stuff, an unhurried shuffle that is subtlety crafted to soothe your overworked senses. KD

The Old Believers - Granny's Song

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Buy Songs: The Old Believers
Year: 2008

I’m a bit of a sucker for a haunting female vocal (must be my Pale Saints, Cocteau, Sundays upbringing) so it didn’t take very long before I was under the spell of Sleepingdog’s Chantal Acda. I’m hearing very early career Sinead O’Connor (and believe me this is a good thing) in her impassioned delivery. It really is tearful stuff and a lot of the credit must go to Adam Wiltzie’s sparse Eno-esque arrangements which illuminate rather than compete with the chanteuse. The duo’s sophomore ‘Polar Bear’ is out next month and ‘Your Eyes’ is a magnetic appetizer. Acda is from the Netherlands, lives in Belgium and her songwriting is informed by the dramatic topography/legends of Iceland. A very European creation then but something which should become a worldwide phenomenon. KD

Sleepingdog - Your Eyes

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Buy Songs: Sleepingdog (soon) & Sleepingdog (now)
Year: 2008

I wasn't too surprised on hearing this song that it was from a band called My First Days on Junk (you were hardly expecting The Daisy Fields now were you?). The purists may be tempted to scoff aloud and then discard due to its likeness to a chain of bloody Mary Valentine's but that would be to deny themselves a really pretty tune. You should already know that guitars that fuzz have a knee weakening charm and when they're topped by a sweet boy/girl interaction it attains an irresistible quality. ‘Count Me In, I'm Good To Go’ is a classic of its kind and is well matched by its siblings on My First Days On Junk’s sophomore ‘No Order’ (out next week). Nope, the wheel is not being reinvented but this should still set your world in motion all the same. KD

My First Days On Junk - Count Me In, I'm Good To Go

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Buy Songs: My First Day On Junk
Year: 2008

It took me a while to warm to this track from Dublin collective the Jimmy Cake but its intoxicating mix of LCD Soundsystem and Jaga Jazzist finally had its way with me. ‘Jetta’s Palace’ is taken from the band’s current album ‘Spectre & Crown’ which was 5 years in the making. Inspecting the intricate building swell of sound it is easy to appreciate how they must have sweated and fine-tuned the disparate parts. ‘Jetta’s Palace’ is a swarm of instruments led by an irrepressible piano riff, pounding drums and some of the best brass you will hear all year in indiedom. There have been so many members of the Jimmy Cake over the past few years it is quite likely that one of your acquaintances has been involved, maybe it's time you gave them a call to congratulate them on their fine achievement. KD

The Jimmy Cake - Jetta's Palace

Watch The Video To Hungry Ghost

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Buy Songs: The Jimmy Cake
Year: 2008

It’s always risky seeing a band you are fond off perform for the first time. A bad show can sometimes leave a sour taste which taints your opinion from then on. Angel Pier are 2 EP’s in (they are currently working on a 6-track mini LP) and thus far haven’t put a foot wrong. This is a quartet with that spark in the studio that is all too rare and after seeing them last night it would appear that the magic extends to their live incarnation. The Gorey/Ottawa/Dublin lads liberally showcased new material along with the majority of tracks from their ‘Sacrifice’ and ‘Bullet Holes & Broken Sectors’ releases and the quality was consistently good throughout. Angel Pier play with an infectious happiness, they are obviously a tight outfit which means when highlights (of which there are many) such as the crescendo on ‘Sprites’ arrive it’s hard not to be taken in by the joy of it all. Lead man Darragh Nolan holds court brilliantly and his vocals have a powerfully clear delivery. He is ably supported by livewire Lucas Paluch on guitar, Mark Colbert on harmonies/drums and bass player Vinny Redmond. On the wettest night in Dublin since last week Angel Pier reigned supreme. You can catch them in Galway’s Roisin Dubh on Thursday next and at HWCH next month. Photos courtesy of John McRedmond. KD

Download the aceness that is 'Make' for free from the HWCH website.

Watch The Video To Sprites

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Angel Pier
Year: 2008

Now isn’t Secretly Canadian just the cleverest label around. Not content with just bringing Philadelphia’s finest the War on Drugs on board they then proceed to give the bands first EP away for free. But, I see through their devilish plan. Give the initial stash away and pretty soon folks all over the place will become hopelessly addicted. So by the time their full length ‘Wagonwheel Blues’ comes around pasty faced punters up and down the land will be shivering and shaking until the War on Drugs peculiar take on Americana is wholly ingested. Two or three listens reveals why addiction is a natural product of the War on Drugs. I mean ‘Pushing Corn’ just boasts thats slow inexorable grip on your attention. The retro vibes are obvious but it all sounds curiously of their own making. When it comes to this band at least just say yes kids. The War on Drugs are currently touring Europe and will stop off in Crawdaddy on the 17th of this month. KD

The War On Drugs - Pushing Corn

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Buy Songs: The War On Drugs
Year: 2008

An awkward little stomper about to take over the world.

The Robot Ate Me - On Vacation

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Buy Songs: The Robot Ate Me
Year: 2004

All out attack sees the Belgian capital fall in under half an hour.

My Robot Friend - 23 Minutes In Brussels

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Buy Songs: My Robot Friend
Year: 2006

Resistance is futile but swearing at them certainly helps.

Pro Audio - F.U. Robot

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Pro Audio
Year: 2008

KD

I’ve got to admit that even though I am old enough to have been around when they were releasing records I had not heard of the Spinning Jennys until recently. Details are pretty sketchy for most bands who broke up in the early 90’s and even more so for Norfolk ones who only managed a couple of singles. From what I’ve gathered the band appeared on quite a few indie compilations in the early 90’s and released 2 EP’s ‘Spinning Too’ and ‘It’s It It It’. Both ‘Supermarine’ and ‘It’s It It It’ are taken from the latter which was released by the quaintly named Tea Time Records and have aged incredibly well because at their core are the most pristine indie pop compositions imaginable. The busy instrumentation never hides the fact that there is some perfect jangle lurking underneath and the vocals have that perfectly rendered indie boy feyness that almost appears lost amongst the bumper to bumper playing. KD

The Spinning Jennys - Supermarine

The Spinning Jennys - It's It It It

Year: 1991

Earlier in the week I worked myself into a tizzy with the chaotic but wholesome noise that the Gang tend to make. More noise again, this time from L.A.'s Abe Vigoda (the name of an American actor) and I’m glad to say it will be no less commandeering on your ears. It’s the sort of sound you’d expect to hear from a plastic bag flapping in the wind were it to get its shabby handles on some instruments. Namely it is wild and unfettered and prone to nonsensical but praise worthy bouts of abandonment. Forget about choruses, a beginning, middle or end, just take off your clothes (no, not even that Tunick) and breath in that sense of liberation to the sweet audio of ‘Dead City/Waste Wilderness’. This is what it is all about. KD

Abe Vigoda - Dead City/Waste Wilderness

Watch The Video To All Day & Night

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Buy Songs: Abe Vigoda
Year: 2008

It’s a cliché but the best things in life are free. This doesn’t normally extend into the world of quality publishing but Analogue Magazine is about to change all that. This glossy indie read was set free (!) on the streets of Dublin, Limerick, Cork and Galway over the last week and certain copies came complete with a fab CD of 10 tracks from our old friends Storkboy Choons and Colours Move. Analogue is a terrific way to spend an afternoon, in fact its readability makes it stand out from the normally stuffy music press. There are plenty of features and an in-depth review section so if you are in need of some fresh musical guidance Analogue is your man. If you don’t live in Ireland you can download the whole thing in PDF format. The official Analogue Magazine launch is happening this Friday 8th August in Crawdaddy at 10pm. To celebrate Storkboy Choons will be performing a live set, so make sure you only buy long necks as other vessels tend to leak when tunes like ‘Rockfield Symphony’ invade the boombox. KD

Storkboy Choons - Rockfield Symphony

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Storkboy Choons

Flip, I really am in love this time with a noisy set of Brooklyn heads. Well, that’s not strictly true as one of them is from rural Iceland, funny that, perhaps it’s that peculiar mix of beings from the high rise and the low lands that makes the Gang such an addictive prospect. ‘Zero Hits’, the collective’s debut record, was primarily put together in a bedroom and what a crazy mix of dynamics those four walls must have witnessed. ‘Zero Hits’ is awash with beauty, not a conventionally pleasing aesthetic it must be said. There is lots of glare you see, the sort you’d expect from a confused yet inspired covers group who don’t quite know if they are going to settle on the Go! Team or the Pixies. That said the Gang are anything but confused, their music may shudder about in a romantically honed tizzy but the hooks are acutely melodic. I can’t stop listening and the neighbours won’t stop banging on my door and screaming to turn it down. Play ‘Fits and Shadow Fights’ loudly and be prepared to let your mind roam freely and your heart swoon openly. KD

The Gang - Fits and Shadow Fights

More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: The Gang
Year: 2008

This is probably about as straight-laced as this blog is likely to get without ever threatening to derail its indie aesthetics. In a word ‘Chicago’ is a beautiful pop song and one that doesn't diminish with repeated listens. It comes from a bunch of young people from Oklahoma who wrote it about 4 years ago. ‘Chicago’ is making an appearance now as part of the Uglysuit’s self-titled debut album. Much of the credit for its success must go to Israel Hindman’s vocal turn and the cosy feeling that Midlake are also adept at recreating; namely that the best songs didn’t necessarily appear in the sixties but from the decade that followed it. ‘Chicago’ is easy on the ear and blessed with a chorus that has all the hallmarks of a perennial radio favourite. KD

The Uglysuit - Chicago

Watch The Video (sort of)

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Buy Songs: The Uglysuit
Year: 2008

Brazil may have a vast musical heritage but you wouldn’t normally associate its audio produce with the sort of stuff that finds its way on this blog. There are exceptions of course but for the most part we tend to focus on acts from a much more northerly part of America. ‘Glicerina Dreaming’ just shows what we’re missing. I mean doesn’t it just have a laid back charm all of its own with the neatest of twee stylings all rounded off to perfection by Camila Zamith’s elegant vocals. The track is taken from Nancy’s debut album called ‘Chora Matisse!’ which was conceived in a variety of internet rendered ways. The album’s success now means the band can do it the old fashioned way of meeting each other at a predefined time at their local studio in Brasília. Let’s hope they don’t lose their magical unhurried style in the process. KD

Nancy - Glicerina Dreaming

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Buy Songs: Nancy
Year: 2008

Quite how someone from Rollerskate Skinny found themselves involved in an exuberant indie pop act remains a mystery but that’s where you’ll find Stevie M stationed. Not that I’m complaining because the Radio are a breath of fresh air in the generally staid Irish music scene. ‘Go Radio’ could almost be the Go! Team (without the samples) such is its sunny disposition; the formula is deliciously simple and about as infectious as a virulent strain of Ebola. The tune is taken from last year’s ‘Charm Offensive’, which seemed to slip by almost unnoticed which given the dearth of interesting matter emanating from the capital is quite criminal. Things have been very quite for the Radio of late but they are due to appear at Electric Picnic next month, albeit at the rather uninviting time of 12.30 on Sunday afternoon. KD

The Radio - Go Radio

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Buy Songs: The Radio
Year: 2007

If it’s attitude you’re after then you’ve come to the right song. Led by Gemma Banks and her high-rise hair London 5-piece Sister have been getting as much press for their style as their music. Blondie is an obvious reference point and Banks’ bolshie vocal turn is instantly memorable. Bonus points must go to the beautifully rendered music though that creates the sweetest of swirls in the background. I’m always partial to an organ drift and ‘Lovers of Today’ has one that Manzarek himself would have been proud of. This is a neat throwback to the days of punk without the mess that was the uncouth snarl and the buckets of spittle. Sister are currently gigging all over London in support of their debut single ‘Satellite’. KD

Sister - Lovers of Today

Watch The Video To Satellite

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Buy Songs: Sister
Year: 2007

I’ve just spent the last week being blogger of the week over at Breakthu Radio, a top notch internet radio station you should check out. As well as doing a series of guest posts I put a show together of some of my favourite tunes. Thanks to Ike for adding some splendid special effects to make the sound of my voice appear less clumsy. If you are of the persuasion and want to kill an hour here is a link to the show, just remember to fast forward through the talkie waffly bits! KD

The only thing wrong about ‘27’ is that it ends too quickly. I just love the tumbling instrumentation and even though the vocals are fairly monosyllabic they seem particularly apt in this instance. It is a delicious taster from My Secret Alphabet’s new EP (it’s free if you ask them for a copy!). The quartet come from L.A. and by the looks of their still-in-construction webpages they are just getting off the ground. ‘27’ is a broody little number that is both fleet of foot and full of cerebral manoeuvres. It has a grinding momentum that builds to a cascading crescendo and boasts tons of atmosphere. If this were the 80’s I’m sure there’d be a 12-inch remix whereupon ‘27’s curvaceous aura would be given a thorough workout and our thirst for more of the same would be fully sated. Damn De Lorean, never about when you need it. KD

Secret Alphabet - 27

More Info: Official & Myspace
Get Songs For Free: Secret Alphabet
Year: 2008