Quiet Hollers Unleash Another Tune

quiethollersI’ve really taken a liking to this new Quiet Hollers album, so why not take this opportunity to share another single from the album with you. While some of the songs on their self-titled record adhere more to the crossroads between punk and Americana, this one seems rooted in the warmer tones of the latter. Considering the band’s gotten comparisons to MMJ, it only seems natural that they add a bit of polish to that sound, making it their own. You can grab their s/t LP on October 23rd…and if you’re in Austin they’ll be playing the Blackheart on Sunday night.

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My Jam of the Week: Hang Up by Frozy

frozeThis might be one of my absolute favorite songs this week. Frozy is a tri-country band, working together when they can, and while this song is short, it packs a great deal in under 1.5 minutes. There’s something romantic in the melody and the light-hearted tones of the guitars on this one. It reminds me a great deal of some of the cleaner pop songs that Comet Gain has been crafting for years, only making the tune more endearing…to me at least. The band has a new effort, Lesser Pop, which will be released later this month, courtesy of Oddbox Records

ACL 2015: Noteworthy Weekend Two Changes

ACL 2015 WE1 109Click that big top banner for tips from our experience last weekend.

We now know that Weekend One festival goers won the weather lottery. We dodged the forecasted rain, but it will be hot as hell with record setting temperatures on Sunday and don’t get me started about the ragweed forecast. My face is gonna hurt. I’ll be chasing photos; the true glamour of festival photography is shooting three, running to the next pit and waiting.

I do think this lineup is better than last weekend, especially on Saturday. Why? It comes down to added variety, added ATH approved jams and some rock and or roll.

  • Avers – My first band today did a fun interview with ATH during SxSW. Get silly early with me. Friday, Homeaway @ 11:30
  • Riders Against The Storm – Support the locals for this one. Best fusion band, but… Saturday, Austin Ventures @ 11:45
  • FIDLAR – Cuz, fuck it dog, life’s a risk. Most punk thing at ACL, prolly. Saturday, Miller Lite @ 12:00
  • Sounds Del Mar – More locals, a bit of a mashup group. This video rules. Saturday, BMI @ 4:30
  • Modest Mouse – Yeah, saw them at FFF, they’re back. Saturday, Honda @ 6:20
  • Knifight – Replacing Night Drive, these guys will go dark early. Sunday, Austin Ventures @ 11:45
  • Beat Connection – ATH faves and I want to hear my summer jam cuz it is gonna be summer hot. Sunday, Homeaway @ 12:00
  • Florence + The Machine – Ya know, they are gonna be a good way to walk out on a hot damn day. Sunday, Samsung @ 8:30

ATX Weekend Show Preview

austin_mainACL Festival is still in town, still going down. But, we’re letting B. Gray get the glory for our team with his camera work. Still, despite the attraction there, you’ll find tons of really incredible local shows you need to attend, including some great album releases by some of Austin’s best (in my opinion anyways). Here’s a quick rundown of the highlight, and we hope you consider attending at least one of these show.  Read more

Strong Vibes from British Sea Power

britishseaI’ve had friends who’ve toured and worked with British Sea Power, yet somehow this is the first track that really pulled me in immediately.  I love how the song builds from the get-go, with this really perfect vocal performance creeping in softly; I also like how the strings and horns are restrained until called upon by the band. It’s one of those songs that seems like the orchestration and vibe are pretty near perfect; I just imagine a cleaner, saner version of Flaming Lips or Polyphonic Spree…it’s orchestral pop music done like no few else. Their new effort, Sea of Brass, is being released on October 30th via Golden Chariot Records. You won’t be able to get enough of this track.

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File Under Indiepop: The Keep Left Signs

11393329_10153538320074014_8047800131827082902_oThis week’s been really slow musically, and I can expect with CMJ that next week will be much the same. So, with that, I’ve done some hard core browsing of the net. It gets boring posting the same thing as P4K which is the same thing as Stereogum…it’s an endless cycle of been there done that. Luckily, I stumbled across this great band that I know nothing about, The Keep Left Signs. In fact, there’s little to no information on the group, other than the demo tracks below…and a poster with their name on it that also features FireworksThe Garlands and The Electric Pop Group. Those names and these songs have me convinced. You?

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Grape St. Album Release @ Hotel Vegas Tomorrow Night

Grape St.Really happy for our boys in Grape St.; they’ve moved on from our little label to really bang out their excellent new effort over at Burger Records. Luckily for Austinites, the band’s going to be celebrating their release tomorrow night over at Hotel Vegas. Their shows always get sweaty, and are nothing short of a classic rock n’ roll party, meaning you should schedule it in right now. As for their album, Wallpaper, it’s the best work Curtis has done since Harlem went on Hiatus; it’s gritty when it needs to be and poppy in all the right places. They’ll have CDs on sale for super cheap, with a slight delay in the vinyl, so that’s on its way too. Jam this track, one of my favorite live ones from the band.

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Stove Does a Great Pollard Impression

stoveI know it probably seems like an immediate diss, but I mean it as a compliment…who doesn’t want to have the songwriting kicks of Robert Pollard? It seems like that’s the direction that Stove, the new project from Steve Hartlett from Ovlov, is going with his new music. I’ll say that some of the guitar work has a heavier hand, but the overall power-pop appeal is definitely Pollard-esque. It’ll be interesting to see how much differentiation comes on the debut for the band, Is Stupider; it sees a release on November 11th via Exploding in Sound.

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Did You Hear This Jonathan Bree Tune?

breeI’ve been looking all day for something totally weird and out there, and of course, it’s easy to settle with the likes of Jonathan Bree. He’s got this incredibly operatic voice, living in the world somewhere between Majical Cloudz and Magnetic Fields. The musical accompaniment is fairly simple, just carefully playing on some of Bree’s classical influences such as Tchaikovsky. If you ask me, the entirety of his new record, A Little Night Music, is pretty genius stuff, so you’ll want to catch onto it before he’s a household name for everyone. Enjoy the track below. 

I Dig This Foreign Resort Track

foriegn resortThe Foreign Resort has been on my radar for a bit now, and regrettably, I missed the initial PR about this track last week. Thankfully, the band is announcing a quick US tour (no Austin date, sniffles) kicking off next week in the Boston area to get this song in my earholes. Some tracks form the Danes have been a little synthier, some a little darker, but this is a loving mix of organic, synth and noise into a perfect post-punk new wave sound that is in my wheelhouse. Vocals effectively buried and then up front and emo, I dig it.

The EP The American Dream lands via Moon Sounds Records on October 15th.

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