Katie Kim: “The Feast”.

25 Jun 2011 — Tonje Thilesen

Our dearest friend John of the Irish electronic duo Solar Bears sends us a new music recommendation every week or so, which has almost become a tradition ever since I stumbled over their splendid record She Was Coloured In last year, a record that also made one of our Best Of lists back in December. Ireland's Katie Kim, the solo project of  singer-songwriter Katie Sullivan was this week's name-drop, and as the melancholic pop lover I am, I was instantly captivated by Katie Kim's mellow, delicately wistful tunes combined with her husky voice, as if we were caught in a meltdown between Zola Jesus and Braids, with a hint of lesser-known Anana's underwater pop in the middle of it all. We were lucky enough to have a sneak peak at her forthcoming album Cover and Flood, which will supposedly be released on vinyl sometime soon, but a final date of the release is yet to be set. Stream a few more songs off the album here. Katie Kim - The Feast Katie Kim - Heavy Lighting Read more →

Our dearest friend John of the Irish electronic duo Solar Bears sends us a new music recommendation every week or so, which has almost become a tradition ever since I stumbled over their splendid record She Was Coloured In last year, a record that also made one of our Best Of lists back in December. Ireland's Katie Kim, the solo project of  singer-songwriter Katie Sullivan was this week's name-drop, and as the melancholic pop lover I am, I was instantly captivated by Katie Kim's mellow, delicately wistful tunes combined with her husky voice, as if we were caught in a meltdown between Zola Jesus and Braids, with a hint of lesser-known Anana's underwater pop in the middle of it all. We were lucky enough to have a sneak peak at her forthcoming album Cover and Flood, which will supposedly be released on vinyl sometime soon, but a final date of the release is yet to be set. Stream a few more songs off the album here. Katie Kim - The Feast Katie Kim - Heavy Lighting

Seabright: “Sea Samba”.

25 Jun 2011 — Tonje Thilesen

Here's a fine little summer jam for you all which dropped in my Soundcloud inbox yesterday morning. Behind the moniker Seabright is California resident Justin Morales, producing shiny little pop gems without a care in the world. Justin recently released his fourth mini-album over at Bandcamp, containing a fine little collection of summery tunes, spiced with samples by everything from Mariah Carey to Velvet Underground. Fetch it here. Seabright - Sea Samba Read more →

Here's a fine little summer jam for you all which dropped in my Soundcloud inbox yesterday morning. Behind the moniker Seabright is California resident Justin Morales, producing shiny little pop gems without a care in the world. Justin recently released his fourth mini-album over at Bandcamp, containing a fine little collection of summery tunes, spiced with samples by everything from Mariah Carey to Velvet Underground. Fetch it here. Seabright - Sea Samba

Field Dress: “Spiral Arms”.

24 Jun 2011 — Henning Lahmann

Totally psyched-out after listening to this "cloudsurf/krauthop" tune by Austin, Texas outfit Field Dress. This is rather experimental and kinda dark but also strangely catchy in all its noisy lo-fi demeanor, a combination that will always convince the folks over here at the NFOP offices, even on a Friday night when they should be out having some lush times in this big old city. Spiral Arms is the first single off the forthcoming debut full-length Holy Field which will be dropped August 3 "through the usual outlets", which we guess means bandcamp, and probably somewhere else though (so far) there's no label whatsoever. Field Dress - Spiral Arms Read more → Totally psyched-out after listening to this "cloudsurf/krauthop" tune by Austin, Texas outfit Field Dress. This is rather experimental and kinda dark but also strangely catchy in all its noisy lo-fi demeanor, a combination that will always convince the folks over here at the NFOP offices, even on a Friday night when they should be out having some lush times in this big old city. Spiral Arms is the first single off the forthcoming debut full-length Holy Field which will be dropped August 3 "through the usual outlets", which we guess means bandcamp, and probably somewhere else though (so far) there's no label whatsoever. Field Dress - Spiral Arms

Premiere: Cough Cool - “Parting Friends”.

24 Jun 2011 — Henning Lahmann

I've long been an admirer of Dan Svizeny aka Cough Cool's work that so deliciously alternates between ultra-mellow bedtime pop splendor (see here, for example) and more demanding, experimental sound collages that don't care for your average listening behavior, and I love in particular how Dan manages to leave all those different sounds sitting neatly side by side, without opting for the oh-so common contemporary schtick to hide behind a zillion different monikers. Parting Friends in a way belongs to both categories of Dan's ouvre, a laid-back seven and a half-minute drum loop that slowly meanders along some distant and indistinct vocal samples, all mashed into one hazy sonic pattern. The tune is part of Cough Cool's new cassette entitled Clausen, a highly recommended thing that is out right now on Not Not Fun. Cough Cool - Parting Friends Read more → I've long been an admirer of Dan Svizeny aka Cough Cool's work that so deliciously alternates between ultra-mellow bedtime pop splendor (see here, for example) and more demanding, experimental sound collages that don't care for your average listening behavior, and I love in particular how Dan manages to leave all those different sounds sitting neatly side by side, without opting for the oh-so common contemporary schtick to hide behind a zillion different monikers. Parting Friends in a way belongs to both categories of Dan's ouvre, a laid-back seven and a half-minute drum loop that slowly meanders along some distant and indistinct vocal samples, all mashed into one hazy sonic pattern. The tune is part of Cough Cool's new cassette entitled Clausen, a highly recommended thing that is out right now on Not Not Fun. Cough Cool - Parting Friends

Mind Over Mirrors: “I’m Willing to Stagger”.

24 Jun 2011 — Henning Lahmann

More heavy harmonium excursions by Jaime Fennelly's new solo endeavor Mind Over Mirrors. High & Upon is the "companion cassette" to the recently introduced The Voice Rolling LP on Digitalis, out now via Gift Tapes. Preview the twenty-minute burner I'm Willing to Stagger below. Previously: Mind Over Mirrors - You Ain't Reeling Read more → More heavy harmonium excursions by Jaime Fennelly's new solo endeavor Mind Over Mirrors. High & Upon is the "companion cassette" to the recently introduced The Voice Rolling LP on Digitalis, out now via Gift Tapes. Preview the twenty-minute burner I'm Willing to Stagger below. Previously: Mind Over Mirrors - You Ain't Reeling

Dent May: “Fun”.

23 Jun 2011 — Henning Lahmann

Cats Purring figurehead Dent May just announced the release date of his forthcoming 7 inch on Paw Tracks. Fun will be dropped September 13 in a limited edition of 700 - which is actually a shame, cause what are supposed to spin in our car stereos then all summer long? This perfect three minute sunshine jam is all we'd ever expect from a June to August good times tune. A shame, really. Read more → Cats Purring figurehead Dent May just announced the release date of his forthcoming 7 inch on Paw Tracks. Fun will be dropped September 13 in a limited edition of 700 - which is actually a shame, cause what are supposed to spin in our car stereos then all summer long? This perfect three minute sunshine jam is all we'd ever expect from a June to August good times tune. A shame, really.

Video Premiere: MSOTT - “Synastry”.

23 Jun 2011 — Henning Lahmann

Two lovers on a beach, walking along the waterside. Side by side, hand in hand - a romantic scene, obviously, yet still one visually held in rather dark and gloomy colors, and the slow drones and eerie vocals of the piece accompanying the visuals at least could hint at some twisted edges in the picture. What we see here is a audiovisual study about the fundamentals of love: Synastry, we're being told, "is the branch of astrology that studies relationships by comparing natal horoscopes". The song appears on Motion Sickness of Time Travel's new full-length Luminaries & Synastry, out today via Tulsa, Oklahoma imprint Digitalis. Despite a pretty impressive discography (alone and with her husband Grant as Quiet Evenings, who recently dropped their first LP Intrepid Trips via their own label Hooker Vision), Rachel Evans' new album is the official follow-up to her very impressive debut Seeping Through the Veil of the Unconscious, originally put out by Digitalis on tape last year but treated with a vinyl re-release earlier this year. Although Seeping... already was a fabulous effort, Luminaries & Synastry nonetheless marks a big artistic leap ahead for the LaGrange, Georgia-based artist. In general, the songs are notably shorter on the new album, and all in all there is a noticeable step towards more accessibility, the tracks are mostly based on clearer, more firm structures - most decisively on the album's strongest and most beautiful track Day Glow, a song that puts Evans in line with other outstanding female experimental pop artists such as Grimes or Grouper - though this doesn't mean that we're confronted with a straight pop album here whatsoever. To the contrary, the LP is a very distinctly experimental ambient/drone piece, reconfirming Rachel Evans' extraordinary talent in both songwriting and soundscaping, and all in all one of the best albums of the year so far. Luminaries & Synastry is available now directly via Digitalis or (recommended if you're in Europe) via Boomkat. Motion Sickness of Time Travel - Synastry Read more → Two lovers on a beach, walking along the waterside. Side by side, hand in hand - a romantic scene, obviously, yet still one visually held in rather dark and gloomy colors, and the slow drones and eerie vocals of the piece accompanying the visuals at least could hint at some twisted edges in the picture. What we see here is a audiovisual study about the fundamentals of love: Synastry, we're being told, "is the branch of astrology that studies relationships by comparing natal horoscopes". The song appears on Motion Sickness of Time Travel's new full-length Luminaries & Synastry, out today via Tulsa, Oklahoma imprint Digitalis. Despite a pretty impressive discography (alone and with her husband Grant as Quiet Evenings, who recently dropped their first LP Intrepid Trips via their own label Hooker Vision), Rachel Evans' new album is the official follow-up to her very impressive debut Seeping Through the Veil of the Unconscious, originally put out by Digitalis on tape last year but treated with a vinyl re-release earlier this year. Although Seeping... already was a fabulous effort, Luminaries & Synastry nonetheless marks a big artistic leap ahead for the LaGrange, Georgia-based artist. In general, the songs are notably shorter on the new album, and all in all there is a noticeable step towards more accessibility, the tracks are mostly based on clearer, more firm structures - most decisively on the album's strongest and most beautiful track Day Glow, a song that puts Evans in line with other outstanding female experimental pop artists such as Grimes or Grouper - though this doesn't mean that we're confronted with a straight pop album here whatsoever. To the contrary, the LP is a very distinctly experimental ambient/drone piece, reconfirming Rachel Evans' extraordinary talent in both songwriting and soundscaping, and all in all one of the best albums of the year so far. Luminaries & Synastry is available now directly via Digitalis or (recommended if you're in Europe) via Boomkat. Motion Sickness of Time Travel - Synastry