BEST OF AUGUST

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Very Warm

August was another fruitful month, following suit with the rest of the year. Releases from Dan Deacon, Animal Collective, Thee Oh Sees, Yeasayer, Deerhoof, Swans… So many… Good… Releases… Some great singles came about too: Black Moth Super Rainbow, Dum Dum Girls, Grizzly Bear… and MORE. I also discovered some older classics like Velvet Underground and Boards of Canada.

 

1. Guilford Avenue Bridge – Dan Deacon

2. In Heat (Javelin Remix) – HEALTH

3. Die Slow – HEALTH

4. Yet Again – Grizzly Bear

5. The Gift – The Velvet Underground

6. Windshield Smasher – Black Moth Super Rainbow

7. After Light (ft. AlunaGeorge) – Rustie

8. Urchin – Labyrinth Ear

9. No Bones – Yeasayer

10. Lord Knows – Dum Dum Girls

This string of 10 songs concludes my trip to Michigan. The first few there were in preparation for the 12 hour drive there, so I made sure I was fully loaded with sick tunes. Dan Deacon’s “America” really did that for me. Such a pleasure listening to that while I was cruising along the highway. Some of the other songs were just some free downloads made available when I was away.

The next set of songs starts the countdown before college. I returned to my home with roughly two weeks left of my summer, so I had to make it count. I packed it full of wonderful tunes to jam out to to soundtrack my last few carefree days.

11. Running (Disclosure Remix) – Jessie Ware

12. Swimming Pools (Drank) – Kendrick Lamar

13. Genesis (Grimes Bootleg) – Ryan Hemsworth

14. Flood’s New Light – Thee Oh Sees

15. Gangnam Style – PSY

As if to send my last days of summer off with a bang, the Korean pop sensation PSY blessed my ears with his infectious earworm, “Gangnam Style,” and my life has never been the same. It all started off with a silly music video that was posted on Reddit a bunch. I started listening to it more and more and eventually I was wrapped in the craze that soon ballooned to outrageous proportions. ~330,000,000 views on YouTube, international star status, and people doing so many parody videos on YouTube. Needless to say, it helped me start my school year right. I find it interesting, though, that I went from such a radio-friendly club banging thing, to a Boards of Canada song, a very contemplative, classic downtempo electronic song. Interesting. Both great songs. Dayvan Cowboy is definitely greater in the long run, but Gangnam Style is still going strong in my mind.
16. Dayvan Cowboy – Boards of Canada

17. Monkey Riches – Animal Collective

18. Flange Face (ft. Miguel Atwood Ferguson) – The Gaslamp Killer

19. The Trouble With Candyhands – Deerhoof

20. Lunacy – Swans

21. Watch the Corners – Dinosaur Jr.
And there we have it! Hope you enjoyed the list, the September one should be coming out soon!

!!!!!!!

ALSO! I had my 200th post on here a while ago! I’m gonna post something special commemorating it or something, so stay tuned for that too!

 

Posted in Music | Tagged | Leave a comment

Matthew Dear – “Fighting is Futile”

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Very Warm

Hey look at that guy. I feel bad for him. Hope he’s okay.

Matthew Dear, he’s a troubled soul. His music is crazy dark. He’s (was?) part of the Detroit techno scene (go Red Wings) and he’s one of the most respected electronic acts out there right now.

I’ve never been totally into his music. I don’t know why. Well, it’s a bit obtuse, but hey, that’s the point, right? Well, I dunno. I wasn’t totally psyched on his music on the first few listens, and then something inside of me was pushed over, letting the “Matthew Dear-ism” inside of my musical soul. It took some getting used to, but I eventually started really liking the album he put out this year, entitled “Beams,” especially the song “Fighting is Futile.”

The track starts with a choppy, warped vocals sample that makes a distorted, churning beat that evokes some kind of demented mindset, almost like looking into the mind of a sociopath. But a lot more groovy. Dear’s deep, offsetting vocals are then paired with the vocal beat plus a new wave/Talking Heads-like synth pattern that has been added to the beat. The song is crazy busy, tons of sounds flying around in your ears all at once, but everything comes together in the end to make one, teetering, groovy song.

Listen to it below:

If you liked what you’re hearing, be sure to pick up his newest album, “Beams!”

Have a groovy day!

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

New Crystal Castles – “Wrath of God”

Posted on September 26, 2012 by Very Warm

Crystal Castles has a new album coming out, entitled (III) in regards to their last album being called (II) and their first just being “Crystal Castles.” The frontwoman, Alice Glass, has described the album as being extremely bleak and dark, since the album is influenced by of some of the things she and her friends’ have experienced in the past year which has made her “faith in humanity drop lower than she thought possible.”

Isn’t that comforting? I was kind of looking forward to a release that mixed the greatest parts of the first two records together into a dancy yet dark concoction of CRYSTAL CASTLES. But hey, this is the way it’s gonna be. Hope everyone that Glass is talking about is alright. Stream the track below and pick up the new album on November 5th!

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Video: AlunaGeorge – “Your Drums, Your Love”

Posted on September 26, 2012 by Very Warm

YO.

Have you seen this video? If you haven’t, you’re seriously doing something wrong with your life. It’s been out for awhile, dude. But it’s okay! All you have to do is watch this relatively short music video for one of the year’s best pop songs! It’s done by London duo AlunaGeorge, who got discovered BIG late in the game (this year, after releasing a GREAT song last year) and I’m really glad I know they exist now. If not, I would never have had heard this wonderful song or watched this stunning video. The video is directed by Henry Scholfield and it is set in a stark art gallery full of great dancers. It’s honestly a work of art on it’s own. Check it out below:

Also check out AlunaGeorge’s other GREAT material!

Have a great day!

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Album Stream: Taken By Trees – “Other Worlds”

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Very Warm

You can now stream one of my favorite albums of the year, Taken By Tree’s third solo LP, “Other Worlds.” The album was heavily influenced by Victoria Bergsman’s trip to Hawaii, like her previous album which was influenced by her trip to Pakistan. However, unlike many Hawaiian themed albums or projects, this thing isn’t oversaturated with ukelele and touristy, luau type imagery. This harkens scenes of lazing on a secluded beach, palms swaying behind you, the ocean washing up to your toes as you’re sitting in the pleasant midday shade and dreaming the day away. Expect to be caressed into a euphoric dreamland by sweet steel drums, slide guitar, rhythm guitar, tropical percussion and Bergsman’s airy voice.

I listened to this album while I was walking through my college’s campus, which isn’t that beautiful mind you, and I felt like I was on some wonderful retreat where I get free food, board and activities! Oh wait, I already have that in college. Thanks Mom and Dad. Check out this dreamy release below via Youtube playlist!

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wxTJF0yK6w&list=PLx3KAo4YVFObRO5gSqePNsFakOYofVX6J&index=6&feature=plpp_video]

Have a soothing, relaxing, wonderful day!

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Susanne Sundfør – “White Foxes”

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Very Warm

Sundfør hails from Norway and she definitely paints a portrait in this song that represents her home country well: chilling percussion, icy, arpeggiating synths and blustery vocals that could have built a cathedral out of ice and snow, complete with ornate stained glass. It’s a beautiful song. Check it out.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Gaslamp Killer – Impulse (ft. Daedelus)

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Very Warm

I’m gonna try this new thing now where instead of posting a bunch of songs on Facebook, or TONS of songs on here at a time, I’ll just post a song I’m RULLY VIBING TO at the moment. It’ll also be a good archive of the songs I’m listening to at that time.
Woo
That’s it.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Merchandise – “In Nightmare Room”

Posted on September 15, 2012 by Very Warm

WOW!

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything. That’s a shame, isn’t it? Well, college has kinda gotten in the way of that a bit. BUT it hasn’t gotten in the way of my voracious appetite for the best music the world has to offer. This post deals with some of that great music.

This band here is Merchandise, a post-punk/new wave/industrial group from Tampa, Fla. and they released an album this year entitled “Children of Desire,” pictured above, and it’s free (along with a lot of their other material) on their website. How nice of them! The even nicer part? It’s GREAT. One standout among many, “In Nightmare Room” is the song I’m gonna post here because I’ve listened to it SO many times today. It’s like a PERFECT mix of The Smiths, Jesus and Mary Chain and some other industrial influences. The dude’s voice is great and it works amazingly well with all the instrumentation. I really like the lyrics too, which is a surprise in most post-punk kinda deals because you either can’t understand the lyrics or they’re just not that good!

Check it out below and download the album above!

Also if you’re in the Connecticut area they’re playing at Willimantic Records in Willimantic at 3:00pm on Sunday, the 16th. It’s gonna be a GREAT show! I’m gonna be there!

Have a killer day!

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

BEST OF JULY

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Very Warm

At the time of this post being written, July was almost exactly a month passed. I’m now back in college and I’m swamped with all those things that go along with the college experience like buying outrageously priced books, having to walk to classes on the other side of campus in the blazing heat and eating sub-par dining hall food. But hey, college isn’t all bad. I get to hang out with some pretty cool people right now and my radio show is going to start back up soon.

IF YOU DIDN’T KNOW I HAVE A RADIO SHOW, NOW YOU DO!
My show(s) are going to be on Friday, 10pm-11pm and Tuesday 7pm-8pm on 91.7 WHUS or WHUS.org. On the Tuesday show I will be accompanied by my good friend and previous co-host R.C. King, who is great at dishing out some really entertaining commentary on the music we’ll be playing, things I’m going to say and on life itself so you should definitely check the Tuesday show out as well.

On to the month of July! July was really good to us, wasn’t it? SO many fabulous releases from the likes of Twin Shadow, Dirty Projectors, Frank Ocean, Baroness, and Purity Ring. I think the only “older” song featured in this list is “Drip Drip” by Comus, which is a freak-folk band from the 70’s that I discovered on Discogs. Great stuff right there, folks.
Run My Heart – Twin Shadow

Apocalypse Dreams – Tame Impala

Sweet Life – Frank Ocean

Only In My Dreams – Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti

Relentless – Death Evocation

Express Yourself (ft. Nicky Da B) – Diplo

About to Die – Dirty Projectors

Swing on Low – Willis Earl Beal

Just a Touch – AlunaGeorge

Digital Versicolor – Glass Candy

I’m On Fire – Chromatics

Bad Religion – Frank Ocean

Your Love – Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs

Fantasea – Azealia Banks

Amenamy – Purity Ring

Ready for the Floor – Hot Chip

Held – HOLY OTHER

March to the Sea – Baroness

Higher Ground – TNGHT

Never Again – Royal Headache

Between Friends (ft. Earl Sweatshirt & Captain Murphy) – Flying Lotus

Drift Drive – The Antlers

Laura – Bat for Lashes

Ready – Jacques Greene

Elephant – Tame Impala

Mighty Morphin Foreskin – Captain Murphy

Today’s Supernatural – Animal Collective

Slower Summer Mixtape – Ryan Hemsworth

Drip Drip – Comus

Posted in Music | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Radical: Ryan Hemsworth

Posted on August 15, 2012 by Very Warm

I’m really glad my appreciation for hip hop is growing. If it wasn’t progressing like the way it is, I would have missed great albums this past year to now from Killer Mike, Death Grips, El-P, Lushlife, Danny Brown, A$AP Rocky and insanely good mixes from Ryan Hemsworth.

Ryan Hemsworth of Halifax, Nova Scotia, is a beat maker and electronic music producer that seriously knows what he’s doing. I found out about him probably like a lot of other people found him, which was through his “Slowed Summer” mix for Scion, which was featured on Gorilla vs. Bear, one of my most frequented music sites. I was about to pass it up, looking like another hip-hop mix, until I saw the words “Donkey Kong Country.”

Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment