Hailing from Brooklyn comes SPORT OF KINGS. They’re releasing their debut 7″ to the world this February, which includes two new tracks of their unique and brassy blend of classy self-described “indie yacht-rock”. Continue reading “Sport of Kings – Free Jazz 7″”
This new single is the first taste of the brand new album from THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART that’s to come in 2011. Going by the name “Belong”, the Pains are hard at work on their new record, which we should see from Slumberland come Feburary. Continue reading “The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Heart in Your Heartbreak 7″”
Hozac Records has been putting out the good stuff right before the end of the year. This time around they bring two brand new gems from the Atlanta pop pioneers GENTLEMAN JESSE & HIS MEN, and these tracks should be a good hint at what’s to come on their forthcoming LP. Continue reading “Gentleman Jesse & His Men – You’ve Got the Wrong Man 7″”
Coming from the Fishtown area of North Philadelphia, I am more than pleased to present you with OLDERMOST. These guys are one of the newest bands coming from Philly these days, and their first batch of songs here are beyond worthy of some attention. So stick around to see just what they’re all about. Continue reading “Oldermost – Oldermost”
Today we’ve got a fairly new single from THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART. This mint/ sea foam green slab of wax came out over the Summer this past June, and it’s out on a split release from both Slumberland Records and Fortuna Pop! in the UK. Continue reading “The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Say No to Love 7″”
Coming from the Kill Rock Stars imprint we have a delightfully new 7″ from Portland’s own HORSE FEATHERS today. This 7″ was just put out at the beginning of the month, and it’s significance comes along with an interesting story, told best by the people at Kill Rock Stars. Continue reading “Horse Feathers – Drain You 7″”
What’s up people. Now that the weekend’s over it’s time for another new week in music, so let’s start it off with a bang.
This weekend was a cold one (at least where I’m from, anyway), and I spent a greater portion of it driving around my hometown delivering pizza’s from the comfort of my cars stereo. Being the delivery guy always gives me ample time to check out various new musics, but sometimes I get a little sidetracked if something new and special presents itself. In other words, what I meant was I had a good deal of stuff to check out, but only ended up listening to one thing. Was it because of the cold and how absolutely perfect the music complements the weather for this time of year? Was it because of my undying love for John K. Samson and The Weakerthans? Would you have guessed that a band like Jim Bryson & The Weakerthans would even be on this blog? For some reason my guess is “probably not.”
Jim Bryson and The Weakerthans toured together in the Fall of 2007 (for the Weakerthans “Reunion Tour” album), and I’m not sure if that’s when this whole project began to take place, but it sounds like a good starting point, right? Before this album, that was the Weakerthans last studio effort, while Brysons was 2007’s “Where the Bungalows Roam”. With that being said, it’s about time that both of these acts got back in the studio to lay down some new tracks. There’s just one issue – they didn’t record in a studio. They spent this past January in a cabin in the middle of a -40C winter on Falcon Lake in Manitoba, and the results are quite stunning. To see for yourself where I just got all that information, follow this link to the Jim Bryson website and scroll down to his posts from the beginning months of 2010.
I had never really thought to check out Jim Bryson (even after he opened for the Weakerthans in 2007), but I can tell you right now that I’ll be looking into his stuff after hearing this new album. These Canadian musical masterminds are obviously doing something right, and they certainly deserve a little praise for this record here. Coming from a Weakerthans dominated musical diet (and not so much Bryson), I have to say this – it’s like a Weakerthans album with the country-esque twangy guitar and laid-back approach, but with the addition of Bryson the music gains a little more energy at times than a Weakerthans album normally would have (like in tracks “Wild Folk”, “Up All Night”, “Kissing Cousins”, and “Decidedly”). If you’re familiar with the Weakerthans song “Watermark”, pretend they transplanted the raw energy from that song and spread it out around “The Falcon Lake Incident”. The result would be this album we have here.
One of the songs that first comes to mind that has that natural energy is the fourth track “Wild Folk”. A truly glorious song when driving down the highway, leaving all the other cars in your dust behind you. There’s a constantly pulsing vibe you can grasp in this song, as you can feel the pure energy rush through your veins. There’s even a feeling of comfort worked into the song, which just says that “everything’s going to be okay”. Maybe it’s the blissful “ba-ba-ba-ba” chants from Bryson, or just the reassuring lyrics about staying back at home, which seems like the only place worth being in this song. Coming around within the final minute, the song peaks off as they rock a single guitar chord into the end as the song slowly winds down with a mysterious vibe.
Please guys, don’t sleep on this stuff. There’s something worth smiling about around every corner of this heartwarming album, whether it’s the homely feel or just the way it seems to fight off the cold weather. Jim Bryson and the Weakerthans gang put together quite a project here, and I’m more than happy to be sharing it with you guys today. Listen to the songs below, smile, and enjoy.
PS – Why would you ever grow leaves just to watch them fall off again?
Metal Girls –
Fell of the Dock –
Wild Folk –
Decidedly –
My Rating: 8.6/10
Genre/ Tags: Folk Rock, Alt-Country, Indie Rock
The Falcon Lake Incident: Tracklist:
1.) Raised All Wrong
2.) Metal Girls
3.) Fell Off the Dock
4.) Wild Folk
5.) Constellation
6.) Freeways in the Frontyard
7.) Up All Night
8.) Kissing Cousins
9.) Decidedly
10.) Anything and All
Jim Bryson – Official Website
The Weakerthans – Official Website
BUY the album directly from Kelp Records (LP)
or BUY directly from MapleMusic (CD)
In relation – an older Drone post about John K. Samson
Anybody remember when we covered JAILL back in the beginning of September? If not, follow that link in the last sentence so you can fill yourself in. Since that post, I’ve been on the lookout for a copy of their first LP from Burger Records, and I finally got the chance to snag a used copy on eBay a few weeks ago.
I just found the record in my mail yesterday and promptly threw it on the record player. To my surprise, I was absolutely floored. It’s because of this record here that Jaill had the opportunity to release “That’s How We Burn” on Sub Pop, and now it all makes sense. They put down 12 different songs (plus a bonus track) for this record, each combining a completely lethal dose of your favorite elements from pop, punk, garage, and psychedelic, and DAMN does it work well. They even manage to work in their subtle references to pot/ being stoned here and there like they did on the other LP.
I must warn you though prior to listening, because this stuff is highly addicting. Every last track could be looked at as a highlight in its own way, and with all songs going barely past the three-minute mark, there’s no doubt you’ll be putting this thing on repeat for days. Which is exactly why this is the next installment to our new “Still Spinnin” feature! Basically the idea here is to keep you guys up to date with what we like most here at the Drone, whether it just came out yesterday or if it’s been out for thirty years. You should expect to see a more detailed post about this in the near future, so stay tuned.
And that’s where I’m gonna leave you guys for today. Check out this batch of songs from the LP right below and let the infatuation begin. You can still grab a copy of the LP with that link below, but don’t sleep on it for too long. See you guys tomorrow.
There’s No Sky (Oh My My) –
Always Wrong –
No Mindless Love –
Pardono –
We’ve Won –
My Rating: 9/10
Genre/ Tags: Indie Rock, Pop, Psychedelic
There’s No Sky (Oh My My): Tracklist:
1.) There’s No Sky (Oh My My)
2.) Beggar Sincere
3.) Always Wrong
4.) Stuffed
5.) No Mindless Love
6.) The Biggest Nugget of Them All
7.) Pardono
8.) We’ve Won
9.) Suave Losin’ It
10.) All it Was
11.) Out of Your Boots
12.) Love Takes Shots
13.) Snake Shake (Bonus track)
Jaill on Myspace
Jaill – Official Website
BUY the album directly from Insound – Limited to 1000 !
Jaill – That’s How We Burn previously posted on the Drone
BEACH FOSSILS started to make their way onto the scene last year in 2009. First they had a 7″ single called “Daydream”, and then there was the self-titled full length, both of which came from the Captured Tracks label. Now the boys of Beach Fossils are back once again, this time with a new 7″ featuring two never before heard songs. According to the Captured Tracks website, this is where “Phase 2” of the Beach Fossils catalog begins. Everything they’ve done up to this is now a thing of the past, and it seems as if they’re really trying to get that point across.
While we don’t know exactly why they’re going for a bit of a change up, we can always try and figure it out for ourselves. Also stated in the Captured Tracks description of the 7″, they say “Gone is the ‘lo-fi’ and the comparisons that go with it.” While Beach Fossils definitely had some lo-fi qualities on the material before this 7″, there are still plenty more bands out there going above and beyond when it comes to the lo-fi sound. With that being said, I think it’s more appropriate to let those bands keep working at their lo-fi sounds, while Beach Fossils backs away from it. I say this because listening to these new Beach Fossils songs, it’s almost like these guys should have been this way from the beginning – it’s like they didn’t really want to come off as a lo-fi band, it’s just what people ended up thinking.
So this new 7″ was their first chance to really change things up and get people to change their outlooks on the band. If you ask me, they’ve done a hell of a job. Two crystal-clear and equally addicting new tracks fill both sides of this 7″, and if “Face It” doesn’t keep you wondering how exactly these guys go so catchy, I don’t know what will. Punchy (almost funky!) bass lines, deliciously memorable guitar hooks, and an eerie change up about half way through the song…FACE IT, this shit is awesome. And that middle part (right after 1:30 til 1:47ish) seems so necessary and natural that it’s actually haunting. You can check out “Face It” right below – I’d highly recommend you do so – and then head to the Beach Fossils Myspace to hear the B-side “Distance”.
Face It –
My Rating: 7.5/10
Genre/ Tags: Pop, Surf Rock, Indie Rock
Face It 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Face It
2.) Distance
Beach Fossils on Myspace
BUY the 7″ directly from Captured Tracks
Hope everyone’s weekend went well! Unfortunately the Phillies couldn’t help make mine any better than it was, but hey, what’s done is done. Now it’s time to focus on some music, because let’s be serious, it’s everybody’s favorite thing 😉
Today’s music of focus comes all the way from Sydney, Australia, from a band you might already know as CIRCLE PIT. This looks like it’s their first official full length, coming from the local Siltbreeze Records label, which couldn’t be a more fitting home for the album. Besides this new full length, the only other material you can find from the band is either this 7″ right here, or the stuff they have for sale in this Myspace blog post.
So when listening to this stuff, a lot of different thoughts and describing words might come to mind. Some of the more prominent descriptors would be scrappy, trashy, scummy, scratchy…most of which stem from the grainy, sandpaper-like guitars that dominate the entire album. These abrasive guitars drive the songs, being impeccably heavy at times, and freakishly psyched-out at other times.
Their high energy approach also helps add to the madness, and when it’s mixed with their strangely rewarding slacker-esque type vocals, it makes for quite an interesting combination. The raspy, “I don’t give a fuck” tone of voice is definitely part of the sound, and once it’s paired with the boy-girl vocal harmonies, you’ll see how well it all fits together. This is definitely the kind of album that you will like at first listen, but keep at it and you’ll notice that the shit’s grown on you like no other, way more than you ever expected – the excellent guitar work, angsty vocals, and a driven attitude (not to mention an interesting cover art) will certainly keep you coming back for more and more.
Just about every last song on the record could count as a highlight, but the ones that stood out the most for me were Wave Machine, Dead Meat, Infinity (which is strangely different than anything else on the album), Hurricane, Another Trick, Drowning in the Dark, and Beginning and the End. Definitely don’t sleep on this stuff, because I must warn you that you will be sorry if you do. Check out the songs I left ya below, and soon you’ll love Circle Pit. And if that’s not enough for you, I’d recommend listening to Top Surprise – there’s definitely some similarities between the two.
Infinity –
Another Trick –
Drowning in the Dark –
Beginning and the End –
My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Post-Punk, Psychedelic, Indie Rock, Australian
Bruise Constellation: Tracklist:
1.) Wave Machine
2.) Dead Meat
3.) Speed Limits
4.) Infinity
5.) Hurricane
6.) Another Trick
7.) Drowning in the Dark
8.) Shallow Grave
9.) Strange Blue
10.) Beginning and the End
Circle Pit on Myspace !
Follow Circle Pit on Tumblr
BUY the LP directly from Insound
Styrofoam Drone 