From Southampton in the UK, Band of Skulls are releasing their second album, and this is the title track from it.

Be sure to listen to Insomnia Radio: UK #101 (coming soon, I promise) to hear more!

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Band of Skulls Links

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Korda Marshall are an exciting new pop/rock act based in North London, with an eclectic mix of unforgettably catchy melodies and infectious beats. The five-piece, formed last year Korat the University of Hertfordshire, are named after the respected music industry executive who has been associated with the likes of The Darkness, Funeral for a Friend and Muse. They are generating an ever increasing fan base and have already performed with the likes of Ellie Goulding, Feeder, and Chase and Status.

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Korda Marshall

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Originating as a trio based in Madison, Wis., Sleeping in the Aviary has evolved into a Minneapolis, Minn., quintet. All the members have roots in southeastern Wisconsin, and have been playing music for a decade and more in a near-countless number of bands and one-off projects.

For You and Me, Ghost the band’s sound takes on the influence of an earlier era but still sounds undeniably like Sleeping in the Aviary.

“The ‘golden oldies’ from the ’50s and ’60s had a major conceptual influence on this particular album,” says Kozel (vocals, guitar). “The simple romantic themes and short and straightforward song structures were elements we attempted to steal from it.” And it wasn’t difficult to focus on themes that dwell on affairs of the heart since the songwriting followed the end of a long-term relationship for Kozel, who says, “It’s the old tried and true ‘break-up album.’”

You and Me, Ghost was recorded in Science of Sound’s studio over five days on a short break during several months of touring in the first half of 2011. For the most part, reversing the very layered and complex production style used for Great Vacation, here the band keeps the arrangements simple, limits superfluous or textural tracks and keeps the reverb to a minimum. Kozel and Sobczak produced the record (with assistance from all), aided by the engineering skills of Ricky Riemer.

[via Science of Sound]

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The promising Swedish Goth Rockers MONUMENT release their debut EP “Teeth & Tails”, which offers traditional gothic rock at its best. Female vocals, dominant guitars, coated into the dark atmosphere of an early 80s Goth Rock release.

The vision of Monument took form in the summer of 2009, initially being a more modest experimental recording endeavor by Henrik and Linda (the songwriters of the band), whose mutual interests in the rather odd spectrum of music brought them together.

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Monument Links

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The Wedding Present will be releasing their much-anticipated eighth studio album, ‘Valentina’, in March. It was recorded in France, California and England during 2011 and mixed by Andrew Scheps [whose past credits include Metallica, Iggy Pop and Johnny Cash].

Valentina comes four years after 2008’s ‘El Rey’ and is performed by David Gedge [singing, guitars & percussion], Graeme Ramsay [guitars, piano, harmonium & co-writer with Gedge of all but one of the songs], Pepe le Moko [bass & backing vocals] and Charles Layton [drums & percussion].

Following an album launch event at the ‘South By Southwest’ music festival in Austin, Texas, the band will be embarking on a tour of North America. This tour will be extra special because, as well as celebrating the release of Valentina, the band will be playing their classic album ‘Seamonsters’ live, in its entirety. Following the North American dates the band will be moving on to Australia, Japan and Continental Europe before bringing the whole event home with an extensive tour of The United Kingdom and Ireland in the autumn.

The Valentina track listing is: You’re Dead / You Jane / Meet Cute / Back A Bit… Stop / Stop Thief! / The Girl From The DDR / Deer Caught In The Headlights / 524 Fidelio / End Credits / Mystery Date

[via Scopitones]

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The Wedding Present
“You Jane” (mp3)
from “You Jane”
(Scopitones)

More On This Album

Midwestern singer-songwriter and noted producer, Will Phalen, continues to blaze haunting Americana trails with his 3^rd full-length release, Holy Ghost / Gold Coast, a collection of solo recordings that finds Phalen in a folksy trance, momentarily stepping outside the framework of his band, The Stereo Addicts, to explore the mellower callings of his muse. The album’s ten songs were written and recorded during Phalen’s first months living in Chicago after moving from Milwaukee. Often composed and committed to tape in the course of an evening, the songs are the product of late nights and quiet places with Phalen at work in his tiny one-room studio apartment while neighbors slumbered next door. (press release)

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Will Phalen

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Erin Passmore has a voice that will drop kick your heart. She is perhaps best known for her work in the Regina indie-rock band Rah Rah, where she’s a multi-instrumentalist, contributing drums, keys, bass and her crowd-rousing vocals. Erin’s voice is not brash, booming, or overdone. It’s honest, warm and real. It’s one of those gifts you’re born with. And you can’t help but take notice when she takes the mic.

The collection of Erin’s demos, beautiful in their own right for their sparseness and jolts of Erin’s personality between takes, took her to Montreal in the summer of 2011 and into the studio under the production of Matt Lederman (Holy Fuck, Patrick Watson, The Besnard Lakes). The songs began to bloom. Friends Lowell Campbell (Wintersleep), Mara Pellerin (Gramercy Riffs) joined in alongside a chain of local Montreal-based talent in Tim D’eon (Wintersleep), Dagan Harding, Mishka Stein (Patrick Watson), Andy King, Jason Sharp, Pat Sayers (Young Galaxy) and Vid Cousins (Amon Tobin) to take the demos from charming ideas to an inspired, complete album she’s called (the) Downtown EP.

Released by: Hidden Pony
Release date: Feb 28, 2012

[Bio Via Planetary PR]

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Brooklyn-based Australian transplants WAZU have released their first self-titled EP on Anti-Language Recordings. Described as “Neon Murder Music for the Dance Floor”, and “synth-heavy, post-apocalyptic pop that tips its hat to dark wave gothic gloom while shimmering with a healthy dose of neon (Ziggy) stardust.”

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WAZU Links

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2 Hearts and Chemicals is a band comprised of musicians Eli Lhymn (based in Los Angeles) and Stephen Biebel (based in New York City).  The band compose, record, and rehearse all music remotely from these two very different cities. Originally hailing from Pennsylvania, the duo met when they were just 13 years old.

That’s what this EP is. 2 Hearts and Chemicals have created something that is bigger than the cacophony of sounds. It’s sweeping and cinematic, a soundtrack for some grandiose scene, if only in the bedroom dreamer’s eyes. (1146 Miles)

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2 Hearts and Chemicals

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Throughout this year Sydney, AUS musician Fronz Arp will be releasing his new songs as they’re written and ready, instead of the traditional album release route. The project name is entitled ‘FRONZ ARP IS A TINY CROOKED ORCHESTRA’, and he aims to release a song every 2 weeks; so basically an ongoing project through the course of this year.

His latest song for 2012, ‘Just Because You Want it All’ has arrived, on the heels of a national tour with Australia cabaret singer Emma Dean – another excellent artist which we first heard about through ERK FM, a main project our our IR Australia host.

Please help support this great new artist via the links below.

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | BANDCAMP | TWITTER