Video: Death And Vanilla - “Rituals”.

13 Feb 2012 — Tonje Thilesen

Released today at Hands In The Dark and Kalligrammofon, the self-titled debut album of dreamy psych pop duo Death And Vanilla is finally before us, something I've personally been very excited about ever since their amazingly beautiful EP back in 2010. We've also had a listen to the album which has its official release on March 13th (we'll get back to you on that, by the way) and can assure you that it will be worth the wait. Until then, listen to and watch the beautiful visuals for "Rituals" below. Pre-order a copy of the 300 LTD vinyl (12 yellow) here. Read more →

Video Sunday Vol. 16

12 Feb 2012 — NFOP

Video Sunday! Watch some amazing visuals featuring Freddy Ruppert, 120 Days, LHF, The War On Drugs, Cults and Niki & The Dove. Freddy Ruppert - Wait 120 Days - Dahle Disco (by Joakim Faxvaag) LHF - Akashic Visions (by Skely Tor) The War On Drugs - Brothers (directed by Ben and Alex) Cults - You Know What I Mean (directed by Kevin Lin) Niki & The Dove - The Fox (by WINTR) Read more →

Spanish Prisoners: “Downtown Chicagoland”.

10 Feb 2012 — Tonje Thilesen

We are unfortunately a little late on posting about the psych/art rock outfit Spanish Prisoners and their debut album Gold Fools. Released back in October last year, and having gotten a handful of excellent reviews, I'm surprised that it did, for whatever reason, miss our radar. All though I don't so see much of a parallel to Destroyer as stated in this review, Spanish Prisoners' spaced-out, psychedelic art rock in an early 70's outfit sounds a bit like Bear In Heaven gone surfing, even though the song titles includes "Cadillac From Yesterday" or "Lipstick under the Table", which would perhaps fool you to think we're talking about a high class rock'n'roll band. Thankfully we're not. Today, the band releases two alternate versions of "Downtown Chicagoland", the last song from Gold Fools (and also their own favourite, they say), the first one dreamier and with a greater bedroom recorded sound than the other, whilst the second one is based more around the PE1000 vintage synth. Also, if you haven't already, download the album via Bandcamp, and if you want to catch up on their US tour starting off at the end of this month, you may want to have a look at their Kickstarter campaign too. We're at least planning to bounce by their SXSW show for sure. 02/24 Brooklyn, NY- Knitting Factory 03/06 Brooklyn, NY - Death By Audio 03/07 Philadelphia, PA - Kungfu Necktie 03/08 Washington, DC - TBA 03/09 Baltimore, MD - Soft House 03/10 Savannah, GA - Savannah Stopover Festival 03/11 Jacksonville, FL - Burro Bar 03/12 New Orleans, LA - Allways Lounge 03/13 - 03/17 SXSW 03/18 Little Rock, AR - Stickyz 03/19 Conway, AR - Ford Theatre 03/20 Memphis - TBA 03/21 Nashville, TN - the Zombie Shop 03/22 Cincinnati, OH - Mt Carmel Brewing Company 03/23 La Salle, IL - 9th Street Pub 03/24 Chicago, IL - Pancho's 03/25 Columbus, OH - TBA 03/27 Rochester, NY - The Bug Jar 03/28 Northampton, MA - TBA 03/29 Boston, MA - Middle East 03/30 Providence, RI - AS220 03/31 New York, NY - TBA Spanish Prisoners - Downtown Chicagoland (Version 1) Spanish Prisoners - Downtown Chicagoland (PE1000 Version) Spanish Prisoners - Cadillac From Yesterday Read more →

Premiere: Mariee Sioux - “Homeopathic”.

10 Feb 2012 — Tonje Thilesen

Here's another beautiful, upcoming release from the folks at Almost Musique (don't forget to check out the other splendid releases with Shimmering Stars and Hhappiness, by the way), but indeed in a very different direction to their latest obsessions. I could argue the ethereal pop goddess Mariee Sioux from the sunny west coast to be a a little like a brightly young, Californian version of Norway's Ane Brun, all though obviously under a strong influence by American folk, and in difference to Brun, warmer and less reticent in sound. Her second album Gift for the End drops on March 5th via Almost Musique, and can be pre-ordered here. Read more →

Premiere: Gabo Gulbenkian - “Ferdinand Magellan”.

09 Feb 2012 — Henning Lahmann

Individual blogs and websites may err in their judgments sometimes (oh yeah, that has happened to us before), but it's hard to argue with anything that has been blessed with the endorsement of 20 Jazz Funk Greats and the review staff of Boomkat, both such heavyweights when it comes to taste in music that seriously, we wouldn't even dare to disagree. Good thing then that there's also no need for quarreling here, as the new album by the curiously named fellow Gabo Gulbenkian is a terrific work, something so deliberately out of bounds that it left us puzzled and bemused, which really does not occur all that often. Explorers, as Gulbenkian's debut is called, is a work that revolves entirely around, well, explorers, albeit in the widest sense of the term, as it also includes a piece about Baron Münchhausen, for example. However, the track we have here exclusively for you is dedicated to the great Ferdinand Magellan, and thus it appropriately starts with the sound of waves and seagulls, before an intriguing piece of synth music unfolds that explores (!) the hidden realms somewhere between 70s kosmische and contemporary elevator muzak, probably appearing odd at first approach but quickly developing into marvelously captivating five minutes of artistic extravaganza. Brilliant. Explorers is out now on London's excellent Dramatic Records. Buy it here. Gabo Gulbenkian - Ferdinand Magellan Read more →

Ilyas Ahmed: “Skin In Circles”.

09 Feb 2012 — Henning Lahmann

Justifiably deemed "a magical album" by the folks over at Volcanic Tongue, Karachi, Pakistan-born US transplant Ilyas Ahmed's new record With Endless Fire is a stunning effort, a superb drone-infused folk masterpiece that is haunting its way into the subconscious. His first full-length since 2009, when Goner was released via Root Strata, the album was written, performed and recorded direct to analog tape by the artist in Portland, Oregon, a surprising fact in view of the rich, expansive compositions that exploit the full potential of the employed guitars, harmonium, organ, and drums alongside Ahmed's distinct, mellow voice. The seven songs all share the same mildly psychedelic, hypnotic feel that enfolds you while wandering through seemingly endless, quiet landscapes just after nightfall. Magic, indeed. With Endless Fire is out now on Immune Recordings. Ilyas Ahmed - Skin In Circles Read more →

How To Dress Well: “Clowne Towne (Xiu Xiu Cover)”

08 Feb 2012 — Tonje Thilesen

As you might have seen earlier today, FACT premiered this gorgeous cover of Xiu Xiu's "Clowne Towne" by How To Dress Well, which has so kindly been given to the Ad Hoc fundraiser compilation, the beautiful blog collective project which we have taken a part of. Listen to the song below, and seriously, your support means everything. Read more →