Four Tet Live Session and DJ Mix

Four Tet fans are eagerly awaiting the release of his new album, which is scheduled to drop on January 26th. That album is going to be entitled There Is Love in You. In the meantime, Kieran released a 78 minute mix, over at fourtet.net, which can be found streaming below via Soundcloud.

I also have another track for the fans, which will be the first track off of the new album. This blurb is taken from fourtet.net:

"I recorded a live session for BBC Radio 1 this week at their Maida Vale studios. Huw Stephens played a couple of the tracks on his show yesterday and I did an interview with him. I think you can listen back to it on the Radio 1 website for the next week."


Much Love To The Plastic People (DJ mix December 2009) by Four Tet


Angel Echoes (BBC session) by Four Tet

The Angel Echoes track is brilliant - I seriously cannot wait for There Is Love in You

Here is a tracklist from the new album for you to look over:
1. Angel Echoes
2. Love Cry
3. Circling
4. Pablo’s Heart
5. Sing
6. This Unfolds
7. Reversing
8. Plastic People
9. She Just Likes to Fight

OK Go Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky Review

OK Go - Of the Blue Colour of the Sky
get it @ amazon via the above link

One of chicago's biggest indie rock bands, OK Go, is releasing their latest album entitled Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky this Tuesday, January 12th.

After listening to the album a couple times, I can easily say it's enjoyable overall. I'm not the biggest OK Go fan but there are a couple songs on here that got me hooked. Loyal fans will not be disappointed in this album, that is for sure.

My favorite tracks off the new album are 'This Too Shall Pass' and 'White Knuckles', and I expect those tracks alone to get OK Go much more worldwide recognition.

Here is a track listing:
1. WTF?
2. This Too Shall Pass
3. All Is Not Lost
4. Needing/Getting
5. Skyscrapers
6. White Knuckles
7. I Want You So Bad I Can't Breathe
8. End Love
9. Before The Earth Was Round
10. Last Leaf
11. Back From Kathmandu
12. While You Were Asleep
13. In The Glass


official video for WTF?



OK Go performing White Knuckles live @ the TLA in Philly

I rate OK Go's Of The Blue Colour of the Sky 7.5 spacemen out of a possible 10.

Vampire Weekend Contra Review

order via Amazon - click above!

In January 2008, Vampire Weekend released their self-titled album which was praised as one of the best albums of the year. This earned them several appearances on nearly every late night talk show on television, gaining them more popularity than they ever dreamed of.

Their next album, Contra, is going to be released on this Tuesday (January 12th, 2010). I've had a chance to give this album a listen and I have to say it is definitely a grower. Upon first listen I wasn't too impressed - for the exception of the track 'Giving Up the Gun' which is going to be the hit single, no doubt about it. Overall, this album is very reminiscent of Animal Collective, which can be good or bad depending on your tastes.




Here is a track listing:

1 Horchata
2 White Sky
3 Holiday
4 California English
5 Taxi Cab
6 Run
7 Cousins
8 Giving Up The Gun
9 Diplomat's Son
10 I Think Ur A Contra

I'd give this album 6 skin tight jeans out of 10. After more listens I'll probably rethink my original stance and end up giving the album 7 skin tight jeans out of 10, but whatever.

DOOM Gazzillion Ear EP Review

DOOM's Gazzillion Ear EP was dropped in Thursday, January 7th, 2010.

As fans of DOOM already know, 'Gazzillion Ear' was definitely one of the top tracks off Born Like This, and you can find this original track along with four other remixed versions, and one bonus instrumental beat entitled 'The Green Whore Net' on the new EP.

Here is a track listing:
DOOM - Gazzillion Ear
DOOM - Gazzillion Ear (Thom York remix)
DOOM - Gazzillion Ear (Dr. Who Dat? remix)
DOOM - Gazzillion Ear (Jneiro Jarel Afro Remix Feat. Dave Sitek)
DOOM - The Green Whore Net

Listening to the Thom York remix, it definitely sounds like Thom York got his hands on it... and overall it's a pretty good track but it doesn't really emphasize the lyrics enough - and the non-stop verbal assault 'Gazzillion Ear' offers make it stand out. It is for sure a cool remix though, and I like how the tempo of the lyrics is sped up. See video below!

The Jneiro Jarel Afro Remix Feat. Dave Sitek is really awesome, definitely my favorite remix off the EP. Really sick bass line and a dope beat, yet not drawing away from the lyrics. The EP is worth buying just for this track alone.

Dr. Who Dat? does a nice remix here too. It's nothing to rave about, but it's not bad either, it's super laid back which suits me - i like the horns at the end... overall, a quality track.

The Green Whore Net is a nice super-villain theme song - nice dope beat, wouldn't expect anything less from the man DOOM.

Last.fm - The Ultimate Music Database

As far as I'm concerned, Last.fm is the ultimate music database, period. Let me start off by telling you a bit about the site if you're not already familiar.

Last.fm is powered by the Audioscrobbler system, which is essentially a database that tracks user listening habits and does a multitude of things with statistics. The great thing is that every single song you play from your computer can be potentially "scrobbled" into your Last.fm profile.

What this means is that any music (or even dynamic music e.g. streams) will be tracked in your profile, and you can go back and see every song you've ever listened to on your computer, or even your iPod. Last.fm sorts all of these tracks into a nice readable format, where you can see what your most listened to tracks were for the week, the month, any given day, and so on. See pic for my recently played songs;






Based on your listening habits, last.fm will recommend similar artists and tracks you should check out. This alone has allowed me to discover a ton of new bands with no research at all.

Head on over to LAST.FM and make yourself an account, it is totally free and completely worth it if you want to discover some new music. Also, feel free to leave me a comment as I am slowly approaching my 100,000 play milestone.

Free Internet Radio for Indie Music Fans

I thought I would continue on about some free radio stations you could find me listening to at any given moment of any given day.

I've already discussed a station for the fans of electronic music here, and I'd like to share another free internet radio site with you: somafm

Soma.fm has over 18 unique channels which appeal to many audiences. Here is a list of the stations they have to offer:

Groove Salad
Drone Zone
Lush
Suburbs of Goa
Secret Agent
Sonic Universe
cliqhop idm
Space Station Soma
Illinois Street Lounge


Digitalis
Boot Liquor
Beat Blender
Indie Pop Rocks
PopTron!
Covers
Tag's Trip
Doomed
Mission Control

My personal favorite are in bold print, but honestly every station has something different to offer depending on your mood. They also have a lot of hard to find tracks, and who doesn't love those hidden gems? Overall the selection of music on Soma.fm is superb, and their playlist is huge so the stations never get stale.

Soma is commercial free - if you enjoy listening, be sure to donate a few dollars to make sure it stays that way!

Awesome Electronic Music Radio - Digitally Imported

If you don't know about Digitally Imported, they are a free internet radio station which has been around for a few years now.

Actually, there is much more than just one radio station - there is over 30 different stations to choose from. Here is a list of some of the stations they offer:

Tech House
PsyChill
Chillout Dreams
EuroDance
Club Sounds
Trance
Vocal Trance


Electro House
House
Progressive
Chillout
Ambient
Minimal
DnB
Techno
Hard Core

As you can see by that extensive list of stations, they offer a great variety of electronic music - all free and streaming. Also check out their sister network SKY.fm

Top 10 Indie Songs of the Decade: 2000 to 2009

First off, I hope everyone had a happy new years! I thought it would be fun to post my top favorite songs of the last decade. That's right folks - from 2000 to 2009.

So without any further ado, I present you with my top 10 indie songs of the decade!


10. Pinback – “Penelope“
The band Pinback was formed in 1998 by Zach Smith and Rob Crow. They are part of the San Diego scene and have record eight EPs and 4 full-length studio albums. The track ‘Penelope’ can be found on Blue Screen Life. While Fortress may be their most popular track, ‘Penelope’ is dubbed the greatest song ever written about a goldfish.

9. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Maps“
Releasing gold every three years since 2003, Yeah Yeah Yeahs make the list with their emotionally hooking song ‘Maps’. This track is from their first full-length album Fever to Tell and seven years after its release, I’m still addicted

8. Spoon – “The Way We Get By“
This band has had much commercial success, and ‘The Way We Get By’ is one of the tracks that contributed to Spoon’s overall success. It is a hit single off of their 2003 album Kill The Moonlight and it has since been popularized by the comedy drama film Stranger than Fiction

7. Grizzly bear – “Two Weeks“
Two Weeks literally blew me away when I bought the newest album. Grizzly Bear quickly moved to the top of my list after they released Yellow House in 2006, but they somehow topped themselves this year with Veckatimest

6. Broken Social Scene – “7/4 (Shoreline)“
Broken Social Scene is a Canadian indie rock band noted for having a large lineup that is constantly changing. As a single off of their self-titled 2005 album, 7/4 (Shoreline) has brought the band much success




5. The Killers – “Mr. Brightside“
The Killers have what appears to be the biggest fan base out of any indie rock band of the decade. They have topped national billboards with their debut album Hot Fuss, which features their most listened to single Mr. Brightside

4. Arcade Fire – “Rebellion (Lies) “
Funeral was and still is an amazing album, and probably the best that Arcade Fire has to offer. Similar to Broken Social Scene, Arcade Fire is also a Canadian baroque pop indie rock band and is most recognizable for their track off of Funeral entitled “Rebellion (Lies)”

3. Phoenix - “1901“
French band Phoenix has made a huge breakthrough with their 2009 release Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. Their most recognized song 1901 is one of the catchiest songs of the decade, but it seems they are beginning to get played out more and more every day. Cadillac, anyone? Either way, “1901” is a huge hit and takes the number 3 spot on my list.

2. M.I.A. – “Paper Planes“
This song contains perhaps the best use of a sample from The Clash that I’ve ever heard. Paper Planes got the recognition it truly deserved with the aid of being featured in a trailer for the stoner comedy movie Pineapple Express.

1. MGMT – “Kids“
There have been a lot of awesome bands coming out of Brooklyn this decade, many of which have made it in to my top ten. Well, at the top of that list is Grammy nominated indie group MGMT. Oracular Spectacular has found a permanent home in my CD player, and the single “Kids” has rightfully earned my vote for best song of the decade.

Top 5 Indie Artists of 2009

2009 has officially ended, which makes it a perfect time to take a look back at the year and take a look at what it had to offer in terms of indie music.

Alas, here is my pick for the top 5 indie artists of 2009:

The xx

Passion Pit

Florence + The Machine

Cymbals Eat Guitars

Japandroids

Upcoming Indie Albums of 2010

There is no doubt that this has been a fantastic decade for music, but seeing as how we've just started off the new year it's time to take a look at the hottest upcoming indie albums of 2010.

1. Pinback

Set to release on Temporary Residence Ltd. sometime in 2010. The album name is still TBA.

2. Madvillain

HIGHLY anticipated followup to their 2004 album Madvillainy, the beats from Madlib and the lyrical genius DOOM are going to collaborate for another sick ass album, you can take that to the bank.



3. Minus the Bear

This album is gonna drop in early 2010, so keep your eyes and ears open. This is going to be a killer album, and most likely a contender for album of the year.

4. Four Tet - There Is Love in You

This electronic artist hails from England, and there is no doubt in my mind this album is going to be on par with his previous goldmines.

5. MGMT - Congratulations

One of the hottest bands of the previous decade, MGMT broke through to new heights with Oracular Spectacular. The good news is their next joint is going to drop in 2010.