You may have heard a bit of chatter about Laura Marling. What you may not have noticed is that for the most time she knocks around with 4 geezers who call themselves Noah and the Whale. Details are particularly sketchy but it seems that the band are at the head of a burgeoning folk scene in London. While a natural reaction might be to scoff, you'd probably better be served listening to this tune and reassessing. ‘2 Bodies 1 Heart’ is a delicate affair, meticulously crafted and adept at pick pocketing your attention. The musicianship may be rather hushed but it is notable and the culmination of brass and distant glockenspiel is very pretty. Folks deserving of your attention. KD

Noah And The Whale - 2 Bodies 1 Heart

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Year: 2008

You can now buy this song on one of our Indiecater compilations here!

New Zealand eh, land of supernatural beauty and extremely friendly people. For a bit they punched above their weight in the music department as well by way of a certain Flying Nun. Not so much recently although the Ruby Suns (they used to be called something else) could have something to say about all that if first impressions of their newbie ‘Sea Lion’ is anything to go by. Funny then that much of what appears from the creative orifices of the Ruby Suns can be traced back to a different continent altogether. Yep, ‘Sea Lion’ could yet become an indie ‘Graceland’ for the noughties. There are plenty of shades on this one though, like the coolly detached grace of ‘There Are Birds’. Imagine Beach House were they to have at least one cup of coffee and you’ll get the gist. Flights of fancy don’t often come as well plumaged as this beaut. KD

The Ruby Suns - There Are Birds

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Year: 2008

I’m not sure I ever got a true velvet soft sound from any of the 100’s of cassettes I bought in the mid to late 80’s. Hiss was king you see and even if you could overlook that reptile type tendency you were forever at the behest of the dreaded chew gods. Thank the lord for slowly turning pencils is all I’ll say. Funny then that whenever I ever played ‘Dream Kitchen’ by Frazier Chorus I forgot about all the annoyances inherent in spooled tape. It may have only reached 57 in the UK charts but in the late eighties ‘Dream Kitchen’ sounded like the future. The Brighton based act were led by Tim Freeman (brother of actor Martin Freeman from the Office) and managed ever so well without ever resorting to a guitar or drums. They were signed to 4AD in what would have seemed a logical partnership but curiously the union was short-lived. KD

Frazier Chorus - Dream Kitchen

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Year: 1989

Dave Scher and Jimi Hey had a long and glorious musical association that fermented for the most part in Beachwood Sparks. They also sparked in the short-lived but abundantly creative All Night Radio. The juice ran out after just 2 years but not before Scher and Hey could make a long player for Sub Pop. ‘Spirit Stereo Frequency’s opener couldn’t have been any more illuminating, it must have been a gas putting ‘Daylight Till Dawn’ together in the band's sitting room cum studio. This is uncluttered pop with a classic bent which means it could have appeared from any one of four decades. Sadly before talk of a sophomore got off the ground a pesky girl got in the way and ruined it all. KD

All Night Radio - Daylight Till Dawn

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Year: 2004

Most of you will probably never heard of Craig McLachlan but I remember the ex-neighbours actor for his 1990 hit ‘Mona’. Flaccid and just perfect for parochial sing-a-along’s it has failed, despite my best efforts, to shift from my consciousness over the years. The very mention of the name Mona strikes up visions of a curly haired, dungarees wearing soap star and his rubbish ditties. Sometimes I think of yoghurt. Thankfully, Captive State have opened up a parallel Mona universe that I can safely frequent. Their new EP ('Elmore Grove') was produced by Lemon Jelly’s Nick Franglen and his hand is felt on tracks like ‘Mona’ which boasts a undeniably dancey edge. It might ride a 1970’s MOR wave but who cares when the surf is this good. Captive State are normally made up of Tom Bootle and Joseph Kennedy but once onstage they expand into a 16 legged groove machine. KD

Captive State - Mona

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Year: 2008

This is a turn up for the books, a band from Newcastle to really treasure. Can’t recall a single band of note coming from there, which is rather surprising given its population’s emotive nature (insight gained purely from watching their football fans). Lanterns on the Lake are a relatively new proposition (they were previously known as Greenspace) but they have already amassed an impressive batch of lush melodic tunes. Led by Hazel Wilde’s free spirited vocals there is something otherworldly about what they offer. There are glimpses of the Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil but ultimately Lanterns on the Lake present a convincing dream pop sound that is uniquely their own. ‘Caught On The Way’ is sumptuous throughout with Wilde’s vocal fragility matched only by the lightly sprayed chiming chords. Heavenly. KD

Lanterns On The Lake - Caught On the Way

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Year: 2008

Don’t worry this isn’t as loud as it first appears and because there are no explosive moments we won’t be casting it off into the post rock category. Johnathon Ford is essentially what drives Unwed Sailor and ‘Little Wars’ from late last year is the bands 4th long player. While they are certainly prone to moments of ambient introspection Unwed Sailor are generally slaves to the melodic hook and elastic bass line axes. ‘Aurora’ is quite short but has a wonderful uneven flow to it, which means that the ugly/beautiful parts get a balanced look in. I can imagine its live incarnation is quite spectacular as the swell intensifies and an already wallowing audience surges forward to the stage. KD

Unwed Sailor - Aurora

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Year: 2007

By my reckoning Adam Baker is no longer a teenager so we can all stop going on about how young he is. One thing that won’t cease however will be headlines screaming how precocious this fella remains. Yep we’ve entered Annuals 2.0 territory and this time is even more illuminating than our first encounter. A new EP ‘Wet Zoo’ is due out on April 1st and ‘Sore’ is the first indication of how it sounds. The 5-song set contains 3 Annuals numbers and 2 from Sunfold (Annuals rearranged). ‘Sore’ is a change of tact for the band, a lowering of the experimental gears into full anthemic indie mode. Don’t worry they haven’t resorted to Coldplayisms, ‘Sore’ may reveal an aching heart but its nose is far from runny. And what a chorus, if you’ve never blushed now is the time to let it all go. KD

Annuals - Sore

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Buy Songs: Preorder & Be He Me
Year: 2008

The initial line-up for Ireland’s self-proclaimed boutique festival has just been announced. The Electric Picnic has been in existence for half a decade now and each year the plaudits get louder and louder. To date I have been convincing myself that I haven’t missed out (although not seeing the Arcade Fire's 2005 appearance in front of a bunch of freckled faces does irk). So it has taken an event of momentous proportions to knock me from my self-imposed festival slumber. The occasion in question is the reconvening of shoegaze gods My Bloody Valentine, the band that brought us one of the albums of the nineties in ‘Loveless’. The danger is that it could all go wrong, what happens if Kevin Shields reappears sans bushy mop with a shiny pole instead? Worse still what if the music that has soundtracked so many great nights since 1992 dies a death in a field in the midlands? Guess we’ll have hope that their direct descendants Sigur Ros can pick up the slack. KD

Sigur Rós - Glosoli

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Year: 2005

This song reminds me why I used to love And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of The Dead dearly. Not so much of late, post ‘Source Tags & Codes’ they appear to me at least to be on a downward creative spiral. That album was a true spectacular, brimmed full of anthemic guitar epics and heroic vocal turns. An undoubted bright spot in the aftermath of ‘Source Tags & Codes’ came in the form of 2003’s ‘The Secret of Elena’s Tomb’ EP which included this rip-roaring chimefest. While it may have lacked the glorious bluster of their classic material it nonetheless underlined how Jason Reece and Conrad Keely are such ardent believers in the power of a good tune. KD

And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead - Crowning Of A Heart

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Year: 2003

Scientists today announced that they have unearthed a prewiki sound recording that goes by the name of ‘Au Clair de la Lune’. With a bitrate of just over that of an almost completely free Radiohead mp3 it has sent audiophiles into spasms of delight as the entrancing ditty dates back to 1860. Early rumours suggesting that the vocals sounded eerily familiar to a precocious teenage Mick Jagger were quashed after a savvy music journalist phoned up Jack White asking for Jagger’s real DOB. Initially it was feared that Michael Jackson (of the Jackson 5) was about to launch a multi-million bid to buy the rights to ‘Clair’ but it seems a last minute intervention by Louis Walsh has saved the day and we are likely to hear Westlife’s imaginative reworking of the priceless audio (with 356 piece orchestral backing) on their comeback tour which is tenuously titled ‘Unrecordable’. Meanwhile soot covered recording (SCR) fans (see picture) are said to be joyous and are believed to be using ‘Clair’ as further proof that the much more popular and newer medium vinyl lacks SCR’s warm sonic capabilities. They surely don't make them like this anymore. KD

Meanwhile over yonder in Sweden....

Japan Air - Claire

More Info: Official & Myspace
Year: 2007

Fret not if you are suffering from Teenage Fanclub withdrawal symptoms, Twin Atlas are here to make you feel all better. Why not head over to their website and pretty soon you’ll be basking in their gloriously sun drenched harmonies (there are a stack of mp3 freebies too). The Twin Atlas is composed of Sean Byrne and Luke Zaleski, a fairly prolific duo with a penchant for softly delivered instruments and vocal melodies as ripe as freshly harvested strawberries. Their tunes go through several stages of evolution but the process always starts and ends in their home studio. Listening to songs like ‘Current Below’ you can’t help but wish that the long summer evenings were already warming our doorsteps. No matter the season though this is guaranteed to heat up the cockles of your heart. KD

The Twin Atlas - Current Below

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Year: 2005

{ review culled from the indiecater archives, album rated 7/10 }

While the instances of stunted creativity abound when an artist decides to go solo, Elliott Smith proved to be a glorious exception to the rule. Coming from the Dandy Warhols neck of the woods (Portland, Oregan) where infectious hooks seem to habitually blossom on the trees it is no surprise that a cursory listen to Figure 8 reveals a smattering of sweet melodies that would have the makers of marmalade clambering to sign him up for their next ad campaign. Elliot Smith started out as twin singer/songwriting (with Neil Gust) in Heatmiser who went on to release 2 reasonable albums in 'Dead Air', 'Cop and Speeder' before Smith decided that going it alone was the way forward. 'Figure 8' was his fifth solo album. At this stage his star was in the ascendancy after the leg up received from having his 'Miss Misery' song included on the soundtrack to 'Good Will Hunting'. It's subsequent nomination for 'Best Original Song' at the Oscars (no, Celine Dion snatched it!) meant that the majors came running. Leaving his indie label Kill Rock to join Dreamworks he was given the financial clout to craft his most textured effort 'XO'.

Like a twinkling star 'Figure 8' initially beams great shafts light in the form of 'Son Of Sam'. The lilting piano strokes, smooth multi-layered vocals and periodic guitar frenzy is enough to have you gasping for more. 'Son Of Sam' is a delightful pick me up, yet Smith often descends into a strange state of melancholy. 'Somebody That I Used To Know' has him pining for a relationship that could've been while against the tide the acoustic guitar forays turn out to be as tuneful as the bees. Things get worse on 'Everything Reminds Me Of Her', a weepy that would probably be a strain for everyone except the recently broken up. The sequel 'Everything Means Nothing To Me' is equally taxing, saved only by the buoyant clamour at the end. But for all this introspection Smith cannily lifts the doom and gloom when required. 'L.A.' is a shimmering pop tune, jaunty and devoid of chorus. Who needs a chorus anyway when the whole thing resembles a maze of sweet vocals. 'Stupidity Tries' goes one step further, raising the ante over its ebullient 4 minutes. Arched like a cat before the kill the brooding vocal builds up to finally reveal the bloodthirsty chords that so illuminate the underlying melody. The song has single marked all over it and could easily have harnessed an audience had the will been there.

Despite the undemanding intensity of Figure 8, Smith doesn't have it all his own way. About half way through you get a certain deja vu feel from the songs. As the pace slows and the mood becomes increasingly anal you can't help but wonder how things could be have been made a lot more interesting had Smith decided to wig out a bit more like on the incomparable 'Wouldn't Mama Be Proud'. Designed to catch you unawares, the deep seethed percussion builds a pressure that finally erupts bringing forth volcanic riffs and mouth watering vocal lava. In the background the quietly chaotic barrage of sliding guitars is enough to burn your ears. When 'Color Bars' shuffles into view you are reminded of a particularly cute Beatles composition. Fingers skirting manically along shiny piano keys and Smith's hushed melodic vocals would appeal to all except those with a stilted musical attitude. 'Happiness' has a dozy roving chord progression while the singers energised vocalising makes a nice departure. The song may outstay its welcome a little towards the end but there are a number of killer ideas just screaming for a listener.

While the pretty patterns woven during the quieter moments are sweet it's only when Smith decides to throw caution to the wind that the album can truly be called delightful. 'Can't Make A Sound' is one such occasion where he opts for the whiskey bottle rather than his usual glass of heated milk. For once the mood is threatening in that 'you can't see it but the ghoul is going to get you' type of way. Like a dry riverbed as the storm clouds burst it bounds into life like you always knew it would. The intensity of the climax is enough to clear the golden cobwebs from your ears (spun from earlier tracks) and have you taking a hacksaw to the prison bars of your ordinary life. By culling one or two Smith by numbers ('Pretty Mary K' and 'In The Lost And Found' being prime examples), this album could have had a much stronger uppercut. While the gentle sparring sometimes delivers a devastating leftfield hook the gap between these intensities is just a little too wide and diminishes what could otherwise have been a spellbinding release. At 52 minutes it is probably just that bit too long. While it is consistently pleasant there just isn't enough variety to ensure you'll be transfixed throughout.

Despite this, 'Figure 8' is undoubtedly a pretty album that veers between the quaint, the beguiling and the slowcore. It should make its home wherever an emotional heart resides. There are tender melodies aplenty and Smith sure had a way with a guitar. Elliott’s tragic suicide 3 years after this album was released adds retrospective resonance to his lyrics and the inevitability that he’d become more famous after his death. KD

Elliott Smith - Wouldn't Mama Be Proud

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Year: 2000

I’d heard that certain members of Blur were enamoured so decided they’d be worth the punt. So off I headed to explore the music of Munich’s Lali Puna, that was several years ago and although their brand of indietronica is instantly enjoyable I found myself drifting away from it pretty quickly. I’ve returned on many occasions but only for short visits, just seems to work best that way. Perhaps it’s just that Lali Puna haven’t yet nailed the classic they have been threatening for years. I do love this though, it could serve as an ideal entry on the soundtrack to the sequel to ‘Run Lola Run’ if it ever gets made. ‘Grin and Bear’ is taken from the bands last album ‘Faking The Books’ which is now 4 years old. Perhaps they are taking their time on their first masterpiece. KD

Lali Puna - Grin and Bear

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Year: 2004

When I first heard ‘I Was Only Dancing’ it moved me to tears. Now I know I am prone to OTT effusiveness on an almost daily basis but this really is a special piece of music. Stars Like Fleas are a Brooklyn based collective that have been around for about a decade but on this form they look set to quietly go about taking on the world with their 3rd album ‘The Ken Burns Effect’. Originally released last year it is set to be given a whole new lease of life by the Hometapes label in early June. Led by Shannon Fields and singer Montgomery Knot Stars Like Fleas could well come from Grizzly Bear country were it to have Pattern Is Movement as it’s capital. So expect lush instrumentation, gliding vocals and sonic gestures to slay any semblance of hate that exists within your being. Song of the year so far. KD

Stars Like Fleas - I Was Only Dancing

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Year: 2008

There is such an epic feel to ‘Lucky Landing’ it’s hard to believe that the Eclectic haven’t been subjected to great tracts of media hyperbole. The Dublin 5 piece may not be exactly prolific (2 EP’s in 3 years) but they should surely have been snapped up by a label looking to bolster its catalogue with ready-made anthems by now. ‘Lucky Landing’ is ravishing, chock full of spiralling chords, tinkling glockenspiel and Kevin O’Brien’s colossal vocals. It might get a little overwrought towards the end but by then you may well be wondering whether you have just wandered into an ‘Ok Computer’ parallel universe. The Eclectic’s ‘Breathe’ EP is out now. KD

The Eclectic - Lucky Landing

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Year: 2007

There is so much currency in a happy song, enough to even tilt exchange rates in your favour if it successfully recalls bands like the incomparable Sunday’s (listen to the light charge of them acoustic guitars). Northern Portrait are a brand new band from Copenhagen and are signed to that treasure chest of jangle pop Matinée Recordings. ‘Crazy’ is the lead song from their debut ‘The Fallen Aristocracy’ EP and if it could be bottled you’d have a fortune-making de facto happy pill on your hands. Because we are living in the real world though it may be better to swing open the doors and give the birds in the trees a 3 minute break from their sweet tweeting. And you know the best thing, behind the sweet sounds lies a disarming description of some not-so-well controlled psychotic behaviour, the most memorable I've heard in fact since South Ambulance discussed the merits of their ex-girlfriend. KD

Northern Portrait - Crazy

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Year: 2008

Believe it or not this is the sound of a Brazilian band, I know this because their myspace says so and they’ve got song titles like ‘Nao Volta Mais’ and ‘Minha Gerao’. Seems that good old indie pop has spread its tentacles far and wide enough to take in the sprawling metropolis that is Sao Paulo. Starfish100 have a list of classic indie influences as long as your arm and it permeates through on this fabulous tune. ‘Untrue’ is so unashamedly inoffensive it could well have become a Stereophonics dirge had it not been for the boys from Brazil’s eye for a killer melody. Who’d have thought that that tired old do-do-do cliché could still be used to devastating effect in a modern day pop song, maybe we've found the Southern Hemisphere's Apples in Stereo. They shoot, they score. KD

Starfish100 - Untrue

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Year: 2008

I was a bit disappointed to hear that Denton 5-piece Oceanographer had broken up. They always struck me as a viable prospect with their airborne melodies and soft instrumentation being the perfect come down after a tough day at the coalface. They were not unlike fellow Texans Explosions In The Sky yet they peppered their instrumental creations with the softest of words. The words in question were uttered by one Jeremy Yocum and he and another ex-Oceanographer Eric Elterman have just gone and formed a new alt-country collective based out of Brooklyn. The good news is that Yocum’s Rounders are pretty good, not a million miles away from his previous endeavour in that they are perfectly hushed. Hard to keep a good man down I suppose. KD

Oceanographer - Cartographer

Jeremy Yocum and the Last Rounders - Song I'll Sing

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Year: 2008

To score one brilliant mp3 promo is a coup, two is the stuff of legend. As legend would have it ‘Hold On’ and ‘Maladies’ arrived in my inbox yesterday morning from the Secretly Canadian label. Both are taken from Windsor For The Derby’s upcoming release ‘How We Lost’ and if they end being a fair representation of the standard of tuneage on offer it is going to be some record. Windsor For The Derby have been knocking around for well over a decade, barely scratching interest except for a plumb spot on the Maria Antoinette soundtrack a couple of years ago. These primer’s point to a more focused direction with their drawn out instrumental passages being replaced by tighter melodies. While I was happy with their previous incarnation these newbies signal Windsor For The Derby's intention to give up their day jobs. KD

Windsor For The Derby - Hold On

Windsor For The Derby - Maladies


More Info: Official & Myspace
Buy Songs: Windsor For The Derby
Year: 2008