Kwaping! Music » indie rock

Black Moth Super Rainbow – “Born On A Day The Sun Didn’t Rise”

Kwaping — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 14:09:18 +0000

“Born On A Day The Sun Didn’t Rise” is the new single from Black Moth Super Rainbow‘s new album, Eating Us. It’s a mellow little tune, kind of like hippy trance but with lyrics. The whole album is pretty consistent, so if you like this, you’ll probably like the rest. An interestig detail, this is a five-man band and not just a guy or two with a computer and sequencer. Fans of Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear should like this music.

Check out the full track preview over at Last.fm.

Album Review: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, by Phoenix

Kwaping — Sun, 31 May 2009 03:06:33 +0000

I just recently purchased Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix by Phoenix and I haven’t stopped listening to it since. If you like Lisztomania as much as I do, you’ll love this whole album. It is very coherent, with a few songs being instantly recognizable as siblings to Lisztomania, but at the same time there is a pleasant variety that keeps it from getting monotonous and boring. It’s also really nice background music to listen to while doing other things, such as driving or working. It’s enjoyable, yet easy to tune out when you need to focus on something else.

The first two singles off the album are also the first two songs – the aforementioned Lisztomania and 1901. They kick it off well, setting the tone for the rest of the album. After that comes Fences, another great song that’s worthy of release as a single. In fact, basically every song on this album could find success as a single, in my opinion. Other noteworthy songs are Lasso, Rome, and Countdown. Basically, everything.

The only thing wrong with the album is that it’s very short, at a touch over 36 minutes. I feel that some of the songs could have, and should have, been stretched out and played with a bit. Maybe they’ll consider doing that during their live shows. In any case, given that “too short” is the only negative I could come up with, this is one spectacular album. I have a feeling it will take a very long time for me to get tired of it, if ever.

Even though 2009 is shaping up to be a great year in the indie music scene, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix gets my vote for Album of the Year so far.

Enough of my gushing. Go out and buy it!

Holy Crap! Grizzly Bear’s new album for under $4!

Kwaping — Tue, 26 May 2009 15:47:23 +0000

As you should know by now, I’m a huge Amazon MP3 store fan. Well, that’s for a good reason. Not only do they give away hundreds of free songs (some of them even good), but they also do things like pricing a hot new album (in this case, “Veckatimest” by Grizzly Bear) at $3.99!

This deal probably won’t last for long, so pick it up while you have the chance! That’s an amazing value for an album that’s going to be talked about all year (and then some).

Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band – “Masquerade”

Kwaping — Sat, 23 May 2009 01:54:18 +0000

While I have to admit I didn’t like them right away, Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band has definitely grown on me. I warmed up with their current single, “Who’s Asking“, previewed their new eponymous album, and ended up buying the whole thing. While “Who’s Asking” is definitely a good song, I thought I’d turn you on to a track you might not have heard yet.

“Masquerade” is a great little track. Besides their trademark tempo shifts all over the place (which takes a getting used to), it sounds like “Dead Man’s Party“, but from a parallel universe where Oingo Boingo was a punk band. Being an old fan of Elfman and company, I really like this song. So far, it’s my favorite on the album.

An interesting fact about MSHVB is that their drummer is the 13-year-old younger brother of the lead singer. He’s already amazing – I can’t wait to see what his career turns out like! I’m predicting greatness.

Unfortunately, I can’t find any full-length previews online for this song yet, so you’ll just have to take my word for it for now. Enjoy!

Say Hi – “Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh”

Kwaping — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:35:11 +0000

Today’s Song of the Day is “Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh” by Say Hi. For some reason, the vocals on this song keep reminding me of Chris Isaak – a less whiny and nasaly one, which is a Good Thing.

It opens strongly with a catchy synthesized horn riff, then gets right to the drums and twangy guitar goodness. I dare you to listen without bobbing your head. The only negative part about this track is that it does get a little repetitive, but overall an excellent tune. Look to be hearing this one more as time passes.

Make sure to pick this song up, along with all the others, on the excellent Barsuk Records: 2009 Amazon Digital Sampler while it’s still available! It’s an amazingly good sampler, free or not.

Deerhunter – “Nothing Ever Happened”

Kwaping — Wed, 13 May 2009 12:51:09 +0000

It’s always weird to like something without knowing it. If you would have asked me a year ago if I liked “jam bands”, I would have said no and looked at you like you were crazy. I’m not much into classic rock or psychedelia, which is how I used to think of jam bands (Phish and the Grateful Dead, for example).

Deerhunter changed all that. I heard their songs on XMU and fell in love. Only after I was a fan did I hear that they’re a jam band. Two of their songs are on my list of all-time favorites, and of those two, today’s Song of the Day “Nothing Ever Happened” is the best. It’s close, though. (The other will have its own SotD in the future.)

Enjoy!

Band of Skulls – “I Know What I Am”

Kwaping — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:33:35 +0000

The first thing people usually say when they hear “I Know What I Am” by Band Of Skulls is that they sound a lot like The White Stripes, which isn’t surprising given that they are of similar composition. They have a guitarist and a drummer and a male and a female vocalist. The only extra instrument is a bass, which is played by the female vocalist. I also think they sound like 80′s Camaro rock. If you’re in the mood to bob your head to some good ol’ American guitars and drums, you’ll like this band.

You can preview the full track of “I Know What I Am” over at Last.fm.

If you like this song, you’ll probably like the whole album, Baby Darling Doll Face Honey. It’s all pretty consistent, which sounds bad but I think is a very good quality to have. At the time of this writing, Amazon has it on special for five bucks, so definitely make a point to pick it up asap if you’re interested. If you don’t want the whole album, another good song off of it is “Patterns“. Last.fm also has a full-track preview of this song.