Twin Sister – Color Your Life

Not too long ago it was announced on the interweb that the band Twin Sister would be touring with Bear in Heaven this summer. It’s really too bad that they’re not going to make it to Philadelphia, because that would kick ass. Unfortunately the closest they’ll be to Philadelphia is when they play in Ohio, and that’s just a bit too far. Oh well. Instead why not just listen to their mesmerizing most recent effort “Color Your Life”, which is due out on May 25th by Infinite Best Recordings?

“Color Your Life” certainly does just as it says. It doesn’t take long for you to realize that either. Right off the bat they’re going for the gold, and if that means we get to listen to more “dream sequence” music like this, then keep it coming! The album starts off on the track “The Other Side of Your Face”, which sort of leaves you on a dreamy, mysterious path right at the beginning of the album. Not long into listening you will notice that the music is drowned in an increasingly atmospheric environment, almost as if you can reach out and grasp the sounds themselves (hence the “dream sequence” comment above). The last minute and a half brings out some entrancing sound effects, and suddenly the song takes a random turn into a land of ridiculously spaced out guitar and an unexpected, almost dancey drum beat. Then it all stops and you’re listening to the next song, “Lady Daydream”, which is probably the most accessible on the album. The twangy guitars that dominate the song do a great job of holding everything together, while the bass guitar does a great job of guiding us through the song. Not only does it act as a guide, but it’s guaranteed to keep your feet tapping along to the beat. Make sure you listen to this one below, you’ll be happy you did.

Next up on the album is “Milk & Honey”. This track starts off slow with the organ until that twangy, metallic sounding lead guitar comes back in to kick off the song. Shortly after the one minute mark the song suddenly takes an unexpected turn in a direction that you probably didn’t see coming at first. The repeating bass line takes charge and pulsates through the rest of the song until it’s suddenly cut short by the intro to the next track, “All Around and Away We Go”. Definitely one of the more accessible songs on the album again right here. Once again, the bass line in this one is sure to keep you moving. Right before the three minute mark everything stops except for some heavenly sound effects, and shortly after the bass line and drums start up again. Now you probably have this unexpected urge to dance, and you’re not really even too sure how it happened. This song sounds like it could have been straight out of the 1980’s.

Next up is the instrumental track “Galaxy Plateau”, but it doesn’t quite serve as an instrumental track – it’s more of a soundscape, or a “dreamscape” if you will. This song sort of came out of nowhere; I wasn’t expecting anything like this, but it’s a hell of an experience. The first minute or so is incredibly creepy, as you can hear a bell ringing far away in the distance. It sounds pretty gruesome, almost as if this were the foreshadowing music to somebody’s death in a movie. This first part really leaves you wondering what direction this song is going to take, but suddenly, right before the two minute mark, it changes directions significantly. You’re greeted by an organ and shimmering, icy sound effects, which almost gives you the feeling that you’re somehow in a wintry atmosphere now. The shimmering sounds you hear remind me of those days when you would trek through the Ice Cavern as adult Link in the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Just listen to the song in this video, you’ll catch my drift. Along with the shimmers you can hear harsh winds, and footsteps trudging through what sounds like snow, with the crunching sound of the snow being mashed up under your feet. It’s almost like you’re in an abandoned snow-town in the dead of winter with nobody else around but the menacing sound of a distant bell calling your name, slowly but surely driving you mad. The way they paint the picture here is bound to leave you speechless, and possibly even begging for more. The last 30 seconds of the song reveals a transition which leads you into the final track of the album, “Phenomenons”. Unlike the previous track, the good vibes really come through on this one. Everything sounds like it’s going to be okay now, almost as if you made it out of that wintry wasteland you were just trapped in. They way the end the album here should leave any listener with high hopes for the next release from Twin Sister. Thanks for reading and check out the mp3’s below.

Lady Daydream –

All Around and Away We Go –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Dream Pop, Experimental, Pop
Color Your Life: Tracklist
1.) The Other Side of Your Face
2.) Lady Daydream
3.) Milk & Honey
4.) All Around and Away We Go
5.) Galaxy Plateau
6.) Phenomenons

Twin Sisters Official Website
Twin Sister on Myspace
Pre-Order “Color Your Life” directly from Infinite Best Recordings

All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors – All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Dream Pop, Experimental, Shoegaze

If there was ever a good time to be a shoegaze band, the 90’s were it. Band’s like My Bloody Valentine, Galaxie 500 and Ride were prominent in those days, along side many other acts. More towards the middle of the decade, a band that never quite reached any sort of mainstream success started to emerge out of the shadows of New Jersey, and they were known as “All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors”. That name is quite a mouthful, too. The band formed originally back in 1993, when member’s Josh Booth and Steve Doherty left their first band “Senepede” to pursue other ideas. This led them to form “All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors”, who remained active until the year 2000.

Their debut LP, the self-titled “All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors” record, was originally released in 1996. This album would mark the beginning of the band, who are sometimes referred to as “L&L” just to keep things simple. The album, originally released with only 8 tracks, was later reissued to include four more songs, which is the copy I am listening to today. The album kicks off with the short but very sweet “Muffin 57”. The song begins with the squeal of the guitar, and shortly after the rest of the band joins in. Around the 20 second mark the lead guitar joins, and it’s pretty much a done-deal after that. That catchy lead guitar hook sticks around for the duration of the song, guiding us through the final moments. Then it turns into that jangly, chicken-scratch of a guitar solo that brings us to the end of the song. Moving on to the longest track from the album, “Saturn Jig” kicks off with that “wahh-wahh” sound that is reminiscent to the parents when they speak in Charlie Brown. Immediately after you’re thrown into a mess of heavy, swirling guitar that’s enough to make your head spin. Then they take a step back and you’re in the middle of that mysterious verse, complete with those “wahh-wahh” sound effects and the intimidating tap of the hi-hat.

During the album you’ll find many mysterious sounds and crazy voices, and it all works wonders for their hazy yet clear sound. Looking back on it, they all tend to have that crisp, refreshing sound. That being the case, it’s no question how they landed on their band name – just think Sprite, with it’s refreshing, crispness. All Natural Lemon and Lime Flavors showcases a fantastically refreshing sound that balances on a fine line between mysterious space rock and in-your-face experimental rock and roll. If you’re still not convinced, do yourself a favor and listen to these couple songs below.

Muffin 57 –

Saturn Jig –

ANL&LF: Tracklist
1.) Muffin 57
2.) Saturn Jig
3.) Salad Forest
4.) All the Time
5.) Jayne Baby
6.) String of Stars
7.) How Come?
8.) Tea with Honey
9.) Nice Soup
10.) Yellow
11.) Blue Balloons
12.) Wondered Why

All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors on Myspace!
A post where you can listen to more songs: Built On a Weak Spot

Pains of Being Pure at Heart/ The Parallelograms 7″

My Rating: 9/10
Genre/ Tags: Dream Pop, Pop, Shoegaze

Considering that 67% of the nation was covered with snow at some point this week (more info. here), I’m going to assume you also had tons and tons of snow to deal with. Along with the massive amounts of snow, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were also plagued with power outages, being snowed in, and having to dig your car out, not to mention crappy cable companies claiming that the internet and cable for “your area” have been “totally knocked out” for days (When we talked to our neighbors from “our area”, their cable and internet worked fine). The first day was excusable, because it’s totally possible that the snow could knock the cable and power out, but as the days go by and nothing changes, that is when people start to get a little fed up. The internet and cable have now been down since Wednesday of last week, and this would be the main reason I have not made any new posts here on the blog. You could thank the wonderful folks over at COMCAST for that. But the funniest part is, my house still doesn’t have access to cable and internet. I’m doing this post elsewhere, but apparently COMCAST is sending out someone to fix the problem “right away”, and by “right away” they meant next Tuesday.

Alright, let’s forget those bastards over at COMCAST for a few minutes and remember the real reason why we all come to this part of the internet: MUSIC!!! Okay, so, today I have a 7″ single for you guys with two different bands. One you may already be familiar with, and they’re known as The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and they split their 7″ with another band known as The Parallelograms. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart hail from (yet again) New York City, while The Parallelograms come from across the Atlantic from a place known as Sheffield in the United Kingdom. This split 7″ came out back in March of 2008 on the Atomic Beat Records label which is based in the UK. The 7″ features three songs; two from The Parallelograms, and one from The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. The two tracks from The Parallelograms are short, almost perfect pop songs in their own right. They’re fast, catchy, they have a female singing, and I’d be lying if I said they didn’t put a smile on my face. Especially the undeniably catchy track “Pop the Bubbles”, which I can’t help but bob my head along with the rhythm. It’s seriously too catchy. The third track is by The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and compared to The Parallelograms songs, The Pains change the flow by adding a male singer and slowing things down a bit, but not too much. If you’re feeling a bit down on the dumps for whatever reason, this little 7″ might be able to change your mood for the better. So please enjoy it. Hopefully I’ll be posting again shortly. In the meantime while I figure out a way to not pay for the cable/internet bill, I think I speak for all of us when I say, “COMCAST, go fuck yourself.”

Split 7″: Tracklist
1.) The Parallelograms – 1, 2, 3, Go!
2.) The Parallelograms – Pop the Bubbles
3.) The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Kurt Cobain’s Cardigan

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart on Myspace
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Official Website
The Parallelograms on Myspace
The Parallelograms Official Website

Wild Nothing – Summer Holiday 7″

This one-man band is led by the 21 year old Virginian, Jack Tatum. This is his first release, and you can pick it up over at Captured Tracks. This 7″ has two songs, “Summer Holiday” on the A side, and “Vultures Like Lovers” on the flip side. These hazy bedroom pop songs are instantly catchy, and at times reminded me of The Cure. You can check out some other songs that aren’t on the record over at the Wild Nothing Myspace. Later next year he will have his debut LP released by Captured Tracks., and hopefully they won’t keep us waiting too long, because it look’s like a promising future. Short post today, check back for more tomorrow. Thanks!

Summer Holiday 7″: Tracklist
1.) Summer Holiday.
2.) Vultures Like Lovers

Wild Nothing on Myspace
Summer Holiday: BUY

Luna – Penthouse

Soooo yesterday I attended the “Punk Rock Flea Market” in Philadelphia and I found this wonderful CD for only $1.00, amongst many other great gems for that price……but this awesome CD comes from the band Luna. The band formed after the breakup of the amazing Galaxie 500 back in 1991. The lead singer and guitarist, Dean Wareham, went on to form Luna in 1991 almost immediately after Galaxie 500 broke up. Over the course of their existence as a band, Luna had released numerous studio albums as well as countless EPs and singles. I have one of those studio albums here for you today, it’s called “Penthouse”. Check it out with the link below.

Penthouse Tracklist:
1. Chinatown – 4:39
2. Sideshow by the Seashore – 3:12
3. Moon Palace – 3:46
4. Double Feature – 4:27
5. 23 Minutes in Brussels – 6:40
6. Lost in Space – 3:44
7. Rhythm King – 3:16
8. Kalamazoo – 6:26
9. Hedgehog – 3:05
10. Freakin’ and Peakin’ – 6:12
11. Bonnie and Clyde – 5:27

Luna: Official Website
Penthouse: BUY