New Music Tuesday 3/10

This week’s New Music Tuesday isn’t as filled with bigger releases like some weeks but there are plenty of albums we are still very excited for, and plenty more worth checking out. Discover something new this week!

Which albums are we most excited to get our hands on this week?

Mountain Party: Love and Money (recommend) via Bear Kids Recordings – We have been listening and really loving Love and Money for a couple of weeks since it was sent to us. There is something refreshing about this album, an album that has it’s own sound, that always keeps it interesting. There is something new to find and love about this album with every listen.

“Love and Money is ultimately an album about family.

The 12 songs that make up Mountain Party’s second full-length album were recorded in the same room where they were written, at home, and in many ways the subject matter and recording environment are inseparable. These songs are folk tunes about lovers, siblings, parents, children, and what families must deal with as individual lives come and go: pain, tension, habits, money, hospitals, funeral homes.

Showcasing a textural sound that highlights the simplicity of folk songs and the lush arrangements and experimentation afforded by the studio, Love and Money is the most fully realized entry in Justin Green’s songwriting career and is a calculated step forward for the Mountain Party project.

Love is of course the one thing we’ve all been told is all we need. But is that really the case? Can love truly keep us together?”

Matthew E. White: Fresh Blood via Domino – Having just caught Matthew E. White at Savannah Stopover with a mix of both old and new songs, we are quite excited for this release.

“At the risk of heresy, Fresh Blood feels as comfortable and fraught as those lines and that song. Simultaneously recognizing the trouble and delight that life can bring, these 10 numbers are guides for times of joy, agony and the middle distance where we most often linger. After only two albums, Matthew E. White feels now like an old friend who has seen what we’ve seen, heard our stories and done his best to make a record that gives them necessary gravity. That way, when we lay awake at night considering our own pain or worry, we’ve got new anthems to keep us company.”

Gengahr: She’s A Witch via Transgressive Records – “Gloriously drenched in fog from the outset, Gengahrs ‘She’s A Witch’ is truly spellbinding. It’s the perfect take of their hazy melodic guitar-pop, and teases at the band’s upcoming and highly anticipated May-scheduled album.

A breakthrough 2014 saw Gengahr establish themselves as one of the most exciting new groups around today with debut single ‘Powder’/’Bathed In Light’ earning support from the likes of Huw Stephens, NME,The Guardian and Blogotheque; whilst both tracks were playlisted at BBC 6Music and XFM, as well as hitting the blog-aggregating Hype Machine charts.

While they bashfully describe their successes to dates as “happy accidents”, there’s clearly something greater at work behind Gengahr’s rise. A timelessness and effortless professionalism that has captured the hearts of all they’ve come into contact with – last year’s signing to indie super-label Transgressive and the upcoming release of their as-yet-untitled debut album in May are just the start. Comparisons to Radiohead are anything but reductive; there is sure to be a similarly twisting and enormous path ahead of this hypnotic North London quartet.”

Yumi Zouma: II – “Yumi Zouma are friends from New Zealand now living between New York and Paris. Their music is stylish, effortless and intuitive. Simple guitar notes sit atop programmed drums to create a subtle backdrop for lush and exploring female vocals. The four tracks on Yumi Zouma’s debut EP are timeless and instantly likable.” via Last.fm

The Bright Light Social Hour: Space Is Still the Place via Frenchkiss Records – “Questions bring art to life. Songs can still ponder socio-political issues, the fragility and isolation of the human condition, and what lies ahead for earth. Moreover, music possesses the potential and gravitas to incite change, while reflecting the world’s faults and follies. The Bright Light Social Hour contemplate a “Future South” on their second full-length album, Space Is Still the Place [Frenchkiss Records]. The Austin artists—Curtis Roush [guitar, vocals, synths], Jack O’Brien [bass, vocals, synths], Joseph Mirasole [drums, synths]—offer a different interpretation of the space around them throughout ten thematically connected songs. They tackle a myriad of issues head on during tracks such as “Ghost Dance” and “Ouroboros,” while “Infinite Cities” contemplates loneliness and “Escape Velocity” subtly hints at a orgiastic ending. The album will pose a few questions, but you may leave with an answer or two as well.”

 

Highlander: Weird Future via Deer Bear Wolf Records – “Atlanta’s Highlander returns with their second EP, Weird Future . Drawing on a wide range of influences—from gooey ‘60s psychedelia to ‘80s New Wave and moody modern synth-pop—Weird Future is a change of direction from the driving pop sensibilities of 2013’s Good Numbers EP, finding the band in a darker, more mature space both sonically and emotionally. This time out, Highlander explores a hazy landscape awash with sparkling synths and persistent guitars where walls of fuzz and melodic vocal feedback trail lo­-fi echoes into deep space.” Stream the album here at PureVolume, buy a copy here.

 

Winter: Supreme Blue Dream via lolipop records – “Supreme Blue Dream” (LP/CASS/CD) seriously amazing, shoe-gazey dream pop perfection from one of the greatest records ever made!!! out now, only on lolipop records!!! ONLY 50 ON BLUE VINYL!!! Get on it: www.lolipoprecords.com”

More worth checking into this week:

Joe Pug: Windfall – “When Pug set up camp in Lexington KY in 2014 to record, he did so with some of the best songs he has ever written.  The agenda was much simpler than previous albums. “The aim on this one was very straightforward.  We wanted to capture the music just the way we play it, with minimal production.  It was a very back to basics approach because ultimately that’s what I love about music, and that’s what I love about making music. I wanted to record these songs the way they were written and put them out in the world.”  The result is a collection of songs that are as close as we’ve gotten to a road map to Pug’s ambitions. He has collected plenty of the requisite Dylan comparisons over his young career but on this record it’s easier to hear the sway of more contemporary influences like Josh Ritter, Ryan Adams and M.Ward.

The theme of resilience plays a central role throughout Windfall.  The weary protagonist in “Veteran Fighter” wills his way further down the highway despite the gloom that seems certain to overtake him.  ”The Measure”, a song inspired in part by Frederic Buechner’s novel Godric, marvels at  ”every inch of anguish, laid out side by side” but ultimately finds that “All we’ve lost is nothing to what we’ve found.”    ”I never really write songs with a specific narrative in mind,” Pug explains. “When you’re sort of pushing through a dark period of your life it’s probably inevitable that some of that is going to find its way onto the page.  But in the same way, by the time we were in the studio the process had become very effortless and joyful. And hopefully you can hear a lot of that on the record as well.” This duality appears perhaps most overtly in the album-closing stunner “If Still It Can’t Be Found”, which features Pat Sansone of Wilco guesting on mellotron.”

Laura Welsh: Soft Control – “Laura Welsh is a singer-songwriter from Staffordshire, UK based in London. Laura debuted in 2010 asLaura and the Tears, then as Hey Laura, before releasing her recordings as Laura Welsh.

Production assistance comes from former Test Icicles member Dev Hynes, AKA Lightspeed Champion, who produced the sparse Unravel. Welsh has also worked beside Rhye’s Robin Hannibal, on Cold Front, released on July 15th through Polydor/Outsiders.

The debut album,’Soft Control, was released on January 19th, 2015 through Outsiders/ Polydor Records. It includes the singles Break The Fall, Undiscovered and Ghosts.

Welsh collaborated with Jonathan Lipsey, Greg Kurstin, Emile Haynie, Babydaddy and Amanda Ghost to write and produce the album, which also includes an duet with John Legend, Hardest Part.” via Last.fm

Royal Tongues: Patterns and Shapes EP – “Royal Tongues is an alternative/pop duo out of Buffalo, NY comprised of Aaron Bonus and Justin Gammella. After writing and producing for other artists and film/tv the pair decided to debut their own project
and launched Royal Tongues in Fall 2014. The duo released their debut single “The Balance” much to the acclaim of several taste-maker blogs and found themselves on the Hype Machine charts in less than 24 hours. Neon Gold calls Royal Tongues a “sync goldmine” and “primed to sear a hole right through alt-radio.” With influences ranging from Smallpools, Passion Pit and Grouplove, this sync-friendly pair have caught the ears of the music industry and fans alike and promise more to come moving forward.”

Porter: This Red Mountain (digging what we are hearing here so far) – “Chris Porter has been a fixture in the Southeastern music scene for over a decade, fronting bands like Some Dark Holler and The Back Row Baptists. Porter now resides in Austin, Texas. Porter’s tunes often tell dark and desperate stories of real american life.”

Aero Flynn: Aero Flynn – “Josh’s new songs coalesced into an incredible album. It is deeply personal and as cold as space on your bare skin. It club-bangs; it psych-jams; it cathedral-shivers. The album sounds like it could have been made by someone from a bleak future age, who grew up on lunar outpost listening to Robert Wyatt and Thom Yorke Earth-tapes. We are huddled around the radio, listening to someone whisper with canned air.”

ANAMAI: Sallows – “It may come as a surprise to those familiar with her band HSY, that Anna Mayberry grew up surrounded by the sounds of traditional English and American music. As Anamai, that influence finally makes itself known; the music she makes is linked to those traditions by a long, silvery thread. Her brand of gnostic folk is like a distorted astral projection of what came before it, linked to but not limited by its roots.

Written in a tiny, frozen studio apartment in Montreal, and recorded with her friend and producer, David Psutka (Egyptrixx, Hiawatha), her debut EP is a stunning introduction to the world of Anamai. The melodies of “Altar Coals” dreamily drift along, exposing a great pop hook at the song’s core. “Black Crow” demonstrates Mayberry’s command of storytelling, featuring a call and response vocal sung along to a sleepy, almost bluesy riff. “Mute Flames” finds Mayberry’s voice layering and dancing over itself, a striking effect that allows her to explore just how minimal her music can be.”

Beans on Toast: The Grand Scheme of Things – “Beans On Toast is a British folk singer from Essex, who rose to out of the UK folk scene in 2005. He is well known for his self-deprecating and honest songwriting, which openly deals with the topics of politics, drugs and love.”

Charlie Cunningham: Breather – “With a style of guitar playing so unique to his genre, you’d almost think Oxford based singer- songwriter Charlie Cunningham has transported you to a small village in the likes of Spain. Cunningham is a fresh talent, proving to be more than just a man with a guitar and a voice; a regularity that we have become all too familiar with. His new and ambitious EP Outside Things combines beautiful, yet honest song-writing with such percussive guitar playing that he truly stands out from the crowd.”

Dick Diver: Melbourne, Florida – “2015 release, the third album from the Australian trio. Dick Diver managed to avoid the sophomore slump with their 2013 album Calendar Days and have perfected a three-peat with Melbourne, Florida, which hums with a strident assurance, buoyed by the benefit of the band’s four talented songwriters whose singular voices sit comfortably beside each other in the albums 12 tracks. If Dick Diver weren’t already leading the pack of new-school Australian pop (as their ranks include members of Total Control, UV Race, Lower Plenty, and Boomgates) then Melbourne, Florida is sure to put them in the pole-position.”

Young Guv: Ripe 4 Luv – “Who’s Young Guv? He’s still underground, but everyone will know him soon. Right now, he only has 1500 followers, so we need to get this kid a checkmark as soon as possible. Here’s the rundown:

He’s a white boy in a backwards snapback with fake Emoji neck tattoos. He’s a ripped bald kid fronting one of the most important and successful hardcore bands in Toronto history. He’s a ghostwriter eating pasta as he pens al dente tunes for the likes of Sum 41, Kelly Clarkson, Taylor Swift, a few Canadian Idols, Snow, a slew of hardcore bands, Maroon 5 and one or two OVO affiliates. He’s a tortured artist turning down Katy Perry’s edits to his tunes because she didn’t like his babies as they were. He’s a child actor playing Ryan Gosling’s sexy little brother. Do I need to go on?

Young Guv is Ben Cook, and he’s putting out an album, Ripe 4 Luv, on one of the greatest labels ever, Slumberland Records. Having been around for a minute, Guv has decided to put together a set of pop tunes that shows off his range as a performer, singer, songwriter, style icon and retweet-worthy pop star. I’ve heard the album, and its ready to head to marketing. We don’t need a billboard for this one, all we need to do is release a single and get it trending worldwide. We’re going to break Nielsen SoundScan. We’re going straight to #1 on iTunes!

Ripe 4 Luv is a beautiful album for beautiful people. Plus, it really shows off his range. There’s only one way to describe this record: Guv sings like Prince into expensive audio-nerd mics over power pop backing tracks that evoke Big Star after they got some nookie but before they became depressed about their failure to appeal to the right audience. If that’s not good enough for you, then it sounds like Cheap Trick produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Or how about Drake’s producer 40 manning the boards for a Hall & Oates session? Any of those will help sell this record to the blogs, just pick one and run with it. ”

And don’t forget Will Butler’s Policy (of Arcade Fire) that we featured last week here which is officially out everywhere now.

What’s on your radar for this #newmusictuesday?

Here is a link to the Spotify playlist with the albums ready for your listening pleasure: