Track of the Day: 'Breathe' by Iyes

It's almost exactly a year to the day since I saw Iyes play their first ever London Show, supporting Wave Machines at Village Underground. In this hectic, instant gratification world I guess I'm a bit surprised that they've been allowed to take their time and develop, putting just one or two tracks out between then and now. What they've emerged with is a seductive blend of the XX, Lorde and Four Tet for their new single 'Breathe', which was definitely worth the wait.

Recommended music: 'Divine Ecstasy' by Supreme Cuts

Possibly the most brilliantly creative and inspired dance album you'll hear all year, and one that I predict will pick up more and more fans as the year goes on. The record moves effortlessly from dancefloor fillers to slow jamz and back again, all the while exuding class and style. The duo's Chicago roots show in some of the track but don't make the mistake of thinking that this is restricted to one specific genre of dance music - lots of bases are covered, and each one is done really well.

The choice of guest vocalists for the record is inspired. Channy Leaneagh from Poliça might be the most recognisable on the list, but Mahaut Mondino is a revelation, mixing the overt sexuality of Prince with a more subtle spirituality. His range is vast and his falsetto is immaculate.

Perhaps unusually for a dance album, especially one with a raft of guest vocalists,the record hangs together really well as a whole piece, and is perfectly book-ended by the Introduction and Epilogue, These two tracks, with their spoken vocals and heavily 80s vibes, put you in a perfect frame of mind to first enter the album and then leave it behind, like that moment when you emerge from a club blinking in the chill dawn air as the sun comes up. You can listen to a few of the album tracks below, but please make sure you buy the whole thing, I promise you won't be disappointed.

Track of the Day: 'Maca Lu-Lu' by Yong Yong

I originally wrote about Yong Yong back in April last year, when their first album 'Love' was causing something of a stir (see article here). Since that time the Portuguese due have relocated from Lisbon to Glasgow to make their second record 'Greatest It's'. Due out on Night School Records at the end of January, the new record sees a marked progression in their sound which, if this track is anything to go by, sees them increase both the quality and depth of their sound while retaining a certain other-worldliness. You can pre-order the album here once you've listened to the track below.

New music: 'Fragmenta' by Late

Hailing from Miami, Florida, Late are an electronic duo with a feel for cold rhythms and metronomic beatscapes, who operate in the axis where deep space meets the deep blue sea. Despite their impossible-to-Google band name they could be set for big things if this demo that comes to us courtesy of Fat Cat Records is anything to go by. Have a listen or download the track below.

Surprising cover version of the day - Drenge do Arcade Fire

Either this is a weird case of synchronicity, or there's an international conspiracy afoot to flood the world with Arcade Fire covers. Exactly a month to the day after Tears For Fears posted their cover of 'Ready To Start' (see article here) Drenge have done the same thing, even covering the same song! The duo's version was recorded for Radio 1, and you can here it below. They certainly bring a bit more menace and aggression to the track than the wimpy Canadians do (in case you hadn't guessed, I'm not normally a fan of Arcade Fire, although I might have to revise that opinion now that James Murphy is producing them). See what you make of the track below.

Track of the Day: 'Bitter Rivals' by Sleigh Bells

A welcome return for the Brooklyn duo, with the title track of their next album, which will be out on October 7th. The track's deceptively simple, insanely catchy, and will have you nodding your head within the first 20 seconds. The longer ot went on the louder I turned it up and the better it sounded. It's a hard thing to make a simple record sound this good, but they've definitely hit the mark with this one.

Recommended music: 'Drenge' by Drenge

The debut album from the Loveless brothers has finally arrived, and it's every bit as good as I was hoping for. Given that they're a two-piece drums and guitar outfit comparisons with The White Stripes are inevitable (although these two really are siblings), and the start of opener 'People In Love Make Me Feel Yuck' has more than a passing nod to Jack and Meg's sound. But overall there's more variation on here than you might be expecting - from blues to rock'n'roll, with occasional detours to metal and almost into shoegaze (Let's Pretend), not to mention the Status Quo intro of 'Gun Crazy' there's enough here to suggest Eoin and Rory could have a long career ahead of them as long as they don't go the way of rock's most famous brothers, the Gallaghers. And their cheeky appropriation of the blues classic 'I Just Want To Make Love To You' for break-up song 'I Don't Want To Make Love To You' shows them to be both witty and knowledgeable 

Producer Ross Orton has done a great job, particularly with the drum sound, and the whole thing feels vibrant, fresh and full of youth. The vocals are great too, melodic and rich with the right mixture of energy and insouciance.

I've written about Drenge a couple of times already this year, so check out 'Necromance Is Dead' here and 'Backwaters' here, and listen to 'Face Like A Skull' below. But most of all, buy the album. Buy it now. Yes, right now. Your music collection deserves it.

New music: 'Backwaters' by Drenge

I make no apologies for featuring another track by Drenge on here - for me the Loveless brothers are the most exciting thing happening in British guitar music at the moment. You can keep The Strypes - Drenge have an original and distinctive voice that you need to hear. You can buy the new single 'Backwaters' to day from iTunes.

Track of the Day: 'Necromance Is Dead' by Drenge

Two brothers, two guitars, one drum kit. 102 seconds of vintage rock'n'roll / punkabilly with old school ("My baby") and new skool ("she's taking the piss") lyrics. Two different time signatures. A blistering closing 15 seconds and a lingering sense of pleasure.



Drenge are one of the most exciting bands I've heard for many a year, and if you don't agree you're either deaf or dead (or just a cunt fool). Listen & download above, tour dates below, go see 'em.

Track of the Day: 'Lighthouse (Capsun Remix)' by Iyes

A great mix of a great track from hotly-tipped Brighton band Iyes. Having seen them play at Village Underground a couple of weeks ago I'm confidently predicting big things for them. If you're quick you can grab this remix for free - I think this might actually be the first track of theirs that's become available to download so get on the front foot and download it!

Iyes at Village Underground 26/3/13

Recommended music: 'Half Age EP' by Weval

Fresh out on Dutch label Atomnation is this new EP from mates turned music producers Harm Coolen and Merijn Scholte. Having met in the film industry in 2010, they bonded over a love of electronic music and a desire to create imaginative and atmospheric sounds, resulting in this début EP.

There are hints of the more gentle side of Krautrock as the opening track 'Out Of The Game' begins, before it turns into a more contemporary track, a bit like Darkstar meets Depeche Mode. Track 2 'Detian' is instrumental and has strong hints of the sort of quality electronic music that Dominik Eulberg and Ryan Davis have put out in the last year or 2. Next up is 'The Most', which was undoubtedly separated at birth from Radiohead's 'Everything In Its Right Place', and while it doesn't quite meet Radiohead's heights it's still a really good track that by the end seems to have morphed into something by Caribou.

The brief 'Somewhere' leads into 'Something', a track with treated and chopped vocals which again is reminiscent of Darkstar and also James Blake. 'Rooftop Paradise' is more upbeat; rhythmic and pulsing. Last up is the title track 'Half Age' which feels a but different to the rest of the tracks - there's an analogue warmth to this instrumental as the track rises from hisses and crackles before collapsing back into them at the end.



Overall this is a really promising début release. The pair are currently working on their first full album which is scheduled in for September - I for one can't wait to hear it. In the meantime you can listen to the whole of the current record above.

New music: 'In Your Car' by Big Deal

The first single from Big Deal's forthcoming album 'June Gloom was composed, as you might have guessed, in a car. In this instance the car in question was being driven in the sunshine along the California coastline by Kacey and Alice, which explains perfectly why it's an exemplary slice of West Coast power pop that sounds a bit like Weezer and a lot like a good time. Consequently it's perfect for the balmy Spring weather that's arrive today.

Track of the Day: 'Teradactol' by Big Deal

Big Deal seem to have been drinking at the fountain of Sleigh Bells for their comeback single. Big and bold, with fuzzed up but melodic guitars and still the familiar interplay between the male and female vocals of Kacey and Alice.

Their new album 'June Gloom' is out in the summer on Mute Records, and all signs point to an extremely bright season. You can download 'Teradactol' for free above'

Track of the Day: 'Make It Known' by Foxygen

Los Angeles duo Foxygen are hotly tipped for 2013, and from this offering it's easy to see why. With strong touches of Mick Jagger and maybe a hint of a less gloomy Bad Seeds, this is a 60s-tinged track that will get your toes tapping. I'm not sure if they're the future of rock'n'roll or just a new version of the past - have a listen below and see what you think.

Track of the Day: 'Shore Enough' by Naive Machine

Some summery, squelchy vibes for your weekend courtesy of Dave & Jim aka Naive Machine -  I particularly like the vinyl crackles 2 minutes in. Grab it while it's hot using the link above.

Record Store Day 2012

So I'm back from the annual Record Store Day pilgrimage to Rough Trade East - obviously I go there at other times during the year, but this special day in April is always a 'must-do'. Having arrived at 6.30 there seemed to be less people in the queue than last year, although they soon built up behind us. The shop was more organised than ever before, with the albums & 12"s arranged alphabetically in racks, and a special counter for the 7"s. Having filled up the baskets that Spencer handed to us Pete & I made our way to the back of the store to tally up our purchases, faint at the cost, and then sift out some of the less essential pieces. You can see the evidence of my haul at the top, here's a list of what I got (left to right, back to front):

1. Ty Seagall & White Fence - Hair - white vinyl 12 (ltd. to 180)
2. DJ Food - Amorphous Androgynous remixes - orange marble 12" (ltd. to 1,000)
3. Tinariwen - Tassili remixes - orange vinyl 12" (ltd. to 500)
4. Lanterns on the Lake - Low Tide - white vinyl 12" (ltd. to 500)
5. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds -  white vinyl 12" (ltd. to 1,000)
6. Richard Hawley - Leave Your Body Behind - 10" (ltd. to 750)
7. Big Deal vs S.C.U.M - split 7" - (ltd. to 250)
8. The Wedding Present - 4 Chansons EP - clear vinyl 10"
9. The Civil Wars - Billie Jean / Sour Times 7"
10. Gorillaz - Do Ya Thing - one-sided 10" picture disc (ltd. to 500)
11. Elbow - McGregor - one-sided 7"
12. Dirty Beaches / Xiu Xiu - split 7" (ltd. to 300)
13. Field Music - Actually, Nearly - 
14. The White Stripes - Handsprings / Red Death at 6.14 - black / red swirl vinyl 7"
15. Arctic Monkeys - R U Mine? / Electricity - purple vinyl 7" (ltd. to 1,750)
16. The Black Angels - Watch Out Boy / I'd Rather Be Lonely - orange vinyl 7"
17. David Lynch - Noah's Ark (Moby Remix) - 12" (ltd. to 500)
18. Moby - David Lynch & Photek Remixes - white vinyl 12" (ltd. to 300)
19. Hot Chip - Night and Day (Daphni Mix) - one sided 12" (ltd to 1,000)
20. LCD Soundsystem - Losing My Edge

I do have one complaint, which is that very few (i.e. only 2) of the things I bought this year came with download codes. I know that one of the points about the day is to get people to buy vinyl, but when you've spent 8 or 8 quid on a single, or £20-upwards on an album, it'd be nice to be able to listen to it somewhere other than in the same room as your turntable. Record companies take note and do more of this next year please!

Track of the Day: 'Fucking Around' by Peter and Kerry

An upbeat, quirky pop song with an even quirkier video. I'm pretty sure they played this when I saw them at the Tom Ravenscroft Christmas Party at Corsica Studios last December.

Their first full length album is due out on Tape Club Records later this year - looking forward to it! Also, the band have been added to the XFM Exposure show at the Camden Barfly on May 9th which is being headlined by Milagres, So if you've already got a ticker for that you'll be lucky enough to see them, and if you haven't got one they're still on sale here.

Track of the Day: 'Lo Hi' by Peaking Lights

The first track to reach our ears from the forthcoming second album 'Lucifer' by Peaking Lights. The record is out on 18th June on Weird World Records and if this taster is anything to go buy it'll be a logical progression from their first release. 'Lo Hi' features dub rhythms, flutes, a child's voice and a whole host of other things designed to soothe your mind.

You can pre-order the album here.

Track of the Day: 'Comeback Kid' by Sleigh Bells

Comeback Kid by Sleigh Bells

Sleigh Bells mark their comeback with the aptly-titled 'Comeback Kid'. It takes their trademark sound and sprinkles it with a bit more pop glitter, producing a sound that's a bit more accessible and  which should make them huge stars in 2012. You can buy it from your favourite digital download site now!

The new album 'Reign In Terror' is out on February 20th, and the band are touring Europe in February & March to support it.

Recommended music: 'Late Night Tales' - MGMT

This is the first of the Late Night Tales series that I've bought, but it certainly won't be the last if they're all as good as this. If you don't know about them, each one is curated by a different musical act, who also include a new cover version, and in fact that's what attracted me to this release. MGMT do a cover of 'All We Ever Wanted Was Everything' by Bauhuas, a track that I'd always liked but had long forgotten. It's a really good cover version, but I'm pleased to say that the rest of the album more than lives up to it.

As you might expect from MGMT it's a pretty diverse selection, featuring psychedelia, weirdness and obscurities from a number of different decades, a lot of which I'd never heard before. So you get Suicide rubbing shoulders with The Velvet Underground, Martin Rev mixing it with Spacemen 3, Julian Cope, Durutti Column and loads more. There's quite a few instrumental tracks, nothing too noisy, and overall it's a really interesting and intriguing listen.

As well as the cover version another feature of the albums is that there is always a spoken word story included. On this release it's written and narrated by Paul Morley, but unfortunately it's part 2 of 4, part 1 having been on the previous release by Trentemoller, so I might at least have to get that one to hear the beginning of the tale.

One of the advantages of buying this release on download rather than cd  is that, as well as the continuos mix, you get the full length versions of each of the individual tracks. As such it's pretty good value - a near 80 minute mix plus 19 individual tracks giver you a total of over 2 and a half hours of music.

So download a copy, select the relaxing substance of your choice, turn the lights down low and relax to the story MGMT want to tell you with their Late Night Tales.