The opening to Bishop Morocco’s “Old Boys” sounds like it’s been left outside to warp in the sun and then played back; then things kick in and it makes perfect sense, not at all misshaped. And the track is a brief, soft-spoken slice of indie pop. It’s got the slight, slow slap of drums and a buoyant guitar line supporting it. It’s space-y and floating and a great introduction to a band I was previously unaware of.
As it turns out, Bishop Morocco is a Toronto based duo, and the outfit just signed on with Arts & Crafts for an EP of the same name as the single. The pair has a previous, self-titled full-length available as well that was released in 2010. Old Boys (the EP) is a six-song affair that will be released on March 13th. No information is available about pre-ordering the EP at this point, so I’m not certain what format(s) it might be sold in. We’ll have to keep our eyes open.
I went back and looked at when we first talked about Vancouver’s Teen Daze here, because it feels like we’ve known about him forever, and we’re just now getting a glimpse of his debut album. The hazy beatsmith was first talked about around here in October of 2010, and we’ve had about 7 or 8 posts on him since then. (The first mention I can find of him on the blogs, however, is in May 2010 on the ever-awesome No Modest Bear.)
All that aside, it’s nice to finally be getting a full-length from the talented producer/remixer. It’s titled All of Us Together, and “Brooklyn Summer” is the first cut from the album, which will be released by Lefse on May 22nd. The track feels like a summer night in the city, with all the energy poured out into the streets. It’s an instrumental cut; no word if there are any vocals on the album, like when he covered Japandroids’ “Wet Hair.”
Lefse has the album available for pre-order on their website, and you can get the LP on wax or CD. The site says it comes with a “surprise bonus,” so if you’re the type that loves good music AND surprises, this should be high on your list of things to purchase. And while you wait for the album to arrive, enjoy “Brooklyn Summer.” I want a Brooklyn Summer Ale to go along with it.
Filmed in Mexico, the video for Feist’s percussion heavy “The Bad In Each Other” features all kinds of love: the love of friends, the love of a significant other, the love of a pet, new love, unrequited, etc. None of it seems particularly bad here, however, and it ends without the worst being brought out in anyone.
Metals, the album this song is culled from, is out now through the folks at Interscope.
Vancouver’s Yukon Blonde has been on our radar for a little while now, although this most recent track of theirs makes me second guess our comparison of the band to another Northwestern band: Fleet Foxes. Gone is the folk-centric feel that the band previously had on display; while the harmonies that the band is so adept at are still on display, the overall folk mindset has been replaced with a much stronger sense of urgency.
“Stairway” is the first track from the band’s upcoming album, Tiger Talk, which is due out on March 20th. This track, however, is also being released as a 7″ single, which is released today through Dine Alone Records. The Stairway 7″ comes with a home recording of the band’s song “Radio” – a previously unreleased track. (I don’t see a studio version on any of their previous releases either.)
In conjunction with the album’s release, the band has an extended tour lined up that stretches from a stint in Europe starting on February 15th before spending six weeks traveling North America after a run of shows at this year’s SxSW.
Despite an undercurrent of praise for her music that’s been developing over the past year or so, I hadn’t listened to Grimes prior to giving “Genesis” a spin. The Montreal artist is set to release her new album – her third, Visions, on March 12th through 4AD, and “Genesis” is the second single from it. (The first track, “Oblivion” was presented to the masses back in October. I missed it too.)
“Genesis” starts out unassumingly enough; it’s a dark, if not ethereal track with a bubbling undercurrent, and then after a minute or so of toying with us, Claire Boucher launches right into something much brighter. With that switch in feeling, “Genesis” opens up, and that same undercurrent that started the song off is surrounded with a much more ebullient feeling that floats us all to the end of the song.
Grimes, in conjunction with the release of Visions, will be heading out on an extensive tour and bringing hyper-pop artist Born Gold along with her. (He’s taking a day to come to Rochester to play our birthday show before hooking back up to finish the tour with her in Montreal.)
001: Joywave - Ridge/Traveling At The Speed Of Light 7"
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Upcoming Western NY Concerts
NOTE: Concerts are in Rochester unless otherwise noted.
1/5: Les Racquet
1/12: Joywave with Old Tapes, Dave & Marissa
1/13: The Dads
1/14: My Brightest Diamond
1/17: Josh Netsky Band with Cuddle Magic
1/18: Tycho (Buffalo)
1/26: Avicii
1/26: A$AP Rocky (Buffalo)
1/28: The Crystal Method (Syracuse)
2/11: Blind Pilot (Ithaca)
2/22: William Fitzsimmons
2/24: Mike Doughty
2/25: Charles Bradley (Buffalo)
2/29: Summer People
3/3: Matthew Good
3/5: Evening Man
3/23: The Men
3/30: tympanogram’s 3rd Birthday with Born Gold, Old Tapes, TBA
4/20: fun.
4/23: Cults (Buffalo)
5/6: Bear In Heaven (Ithaca)
5/7: M83 (Buffalo)
an examination used to test the condition of the middle ear and mobility of the eardrum, and the conduction bones by creating variations of air pressure in the ear canal.
Basically, it sounded like a cool name for a blog intended to be primarily about music. We’d both had other blogs previously, but over beers it was decided that more damage could be done as a joint venture. And here we are.
We share a passion for the undiscovered and under-appreciated, and hope that you’ll be able to find something you love as well.
Disclaimer
The music offered on this blog is for sampling purposes only. If you enjoy something you hear here, please go out and buy the music, see a show, or purchase some merchandise. Posted mp3s are available for a limited period of time only.
If there are any materials featured here that are your intellectual property, and you would prefer them removed, please notify us and we will be happy to oblige.
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About the Author: Dave
I like music. I can't describe how I came to like the music I do, because I don't know how or why, I just do.
Many years ago, Napoleon's brother, my great-great-great-great-great-great Grandfather, came to America. He was asked his name on Ellis Island while being processed as an immigrant. Not understanding English, he was under the impression that he was being asked how he had arrived in the new land. So he turned around and pointed at the sea vessel and said, 'LaBarge.'
About the Author: Andy
I come by my music taste of my own free will. My friends listened to 2Pac, my parents to contemporary Christian and me? Sunny Day Real Estate. I can’t explain it.
“Music, true music, not just rock ’n’ roll, it chooses you. It lives in your car, or alone, listening to your headphones…” - Lester Bangs
![bishop morocco old boys cover [mp3] Bishop Morocco // Old Boys](http://tympanogram.com/files/bishop-morocco-old-boys-cover.jpg "bishop morocco old boys cover")
![Teen Daze Brooklyn Sunburn Single Cover [mp3] Teen Daze // Brooklyn Sunburn](http://tympanogram.com/files/Teen-Daze-Brooklyn-Sunburn-Single-Cover.jpg "Teen Daze Brooklyn Sunburn Single Cover")
![yukon blonde stairway single cover [mp3] Yukon Blonde // Stairway](http://tympanogram.com/files/yukon-blonde-stairway-single-cover.jpg "yukon blonde stairway single cover")
![grimes visions cover [mp3] Grimes // Genesis](http://tympanogram.com/files/grimes-visions-cover.jpg "grimes visions cover")
