u n c o o l s h o e s

“Elegant Design” - Pond Pond’s fourth...

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:31:08 -0500

“Elegant Design” - Pond

Pond’s fourth full-length is continuing the bands trend of huge, spacey psych-jams in the vein Tame Impala (fitting because two-thirds of Pond are members of Tame Impala). Pick up Beard, Wives, Denim from Modular on March 6 and stream it on Hype Machine until the end of the week.

Talking Heads - Crosseyed & Painless (Live in Rome 1980) Too...

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 19:09:32 -0500

Talking Heads - Crosseyed & Painless (Live in Rome 1980)

Too great to miss.

(via Matthew Perpetua)

15 of my most anticpated records of 2012

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:22:53 -0500

You may or may not agree: my opinions on music for the year 2011 were not as high as others. Here’s to a better year for music, some of my most anticipated records of 2012:

Leonard Cohen - “Old Ideas” - 1/31

Hospitality - s/t -1/31

Sharon Van Etten - “Tramp” - 2/7

A Place To Bury Strangers - “Onwards to the Wall” - 2/7

Terry Malts - “Killing Time” - 2/21

Memoryhouse - “The Slideshow Effect” - 2/28

The Men - “Open Your Heart” - 3/6

Ceremony - “Zoo” - 3/6

Bowerbirds - “The Clearing” - 3/6

Magnetic Fields - “Love at the Bottom of the Sea” - 3/6

Pond - “Beard Wives Denim” - 3/6

Lower Dens - “Nootropics” - 3/27

MGMT - s/t - TBA

Animal Collective - TBA

Grizzly Bear - TBA

My 15 Favorite Albums of 2011

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:00:06 -0500

As with every year, 2011’s year end list-pocalypse is again an addition to the raging cacophony of music blogs fighting for attention. Tragically, to my list’s discredit I’m really only sure of one album’s place on my list. That album is Crystal Stilts’ In Love With Oblivion; the only album that really blew my mind. This trend is contrary to last year in-which there was a lot to really dig into.

I’ve compiled a small mix of songs from my favorites and it can be heard on Spotify (Bill Callahan is not included in the mix due to none of Drag City’s catalog being available on Spotify).

2011 may have been a bit of a “meh” (not counting #1) year for me - not for you? Leave your favorites in the comments or hit me up on Twitter.

15. Destroyer - Kaputt (Amazon | Spotify)

14. Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde (Amazon | Spotify)

13. Nerves Junior - As Bright As Your Night Light (Amazon | Spotify)

12. SBTRKT - SBTRKT (Amazon | Spotify)

11. Veronica Falls - Veronica Falls (Amazon | Spotify)

10. Bjork - Biophilia (Amazon | Spotify)

9. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues (Amazon | Spotify)

8. Wild Flag - Wild Flag (Amazon | Spotify)

7. The War On Drugs - Slave Ambient (Amazon | Spotify)

6. Bill Callahan - Apocalypse (Amazon | ~~Spotify~~ (Thank Drag City)

5. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake (Amazon | Spotify)

4. IceAge - New Brigade (Amazon | Spotify)

3. Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo (Amazon | Spotify)

2. Atlas Sound - Parallax (Amazon | Spotify)

1. Crystal Stilts - In Love With Oblivion (Amazon | Spotify)

Generic "list" of Bands I've gained familiarity with in 2011

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:21:49 -0500

2010 was a year I was introduced to music. By introduced, I mean drenched or immersed into the internet being a medium to which I could amass a personal database of music, not only because I was so hungry, but because I was prospective into the field of music journalism. Regrettably, I leaped head in onto the blog-o-sphere following every single mp3-tumblr and buzz-blog I could find and started posting whatever mp3-and-an-image-file-with-a-mild-description I could scrounge up. What was I expecting to wring out of that repetition? Retrospectively, I’m unsure what exactly the main reason was yet Twitter followers, blog-hits, and a (possibly naively thought of…) potential career were surely my highest of hopes on the list. I also couldn’t let go of the enduring trajectory of new artists who went to mp3 blogs first, maybe it was just me. Freeing myself from a cycle of constant time investment was a great thing, mostly due to the fact I now find greater joy in realizing the greatness of musical out-put beyond the release date of last week (or last month, or last year). So here’s an intentional non-list list of 9 (in no particular order) bands I’ve been able to verse myself with being free from the mass cacophony of buzzblogs.

Forgive me if it was totally my “duty” to already have been 1 to 1 with these guys’ discography.

The Fall, David Bowie, The Kinks, Neil Young, The Velvet Underground, Wire, Bob Dylan, Young Marble Giants, The Beatles.

"The Metal Box packaging designed by Dennis Morris was innovative and inexpensive, costing little..."

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 17:11:49 -0500

““The Metal Box packaging designed by Dennis Morris was innovative and inexpensive, costing little more to the label than the cost of standard printed sleeves for equivalent 12” releases (although Virgin did ask for a refund of 1/3 of the band’s advance due to the cost). Before the metal tin was finalized, there was discussion of the album being released in a sandpaper package that would effectively ruin the sleeve art of any records shelved next to it.””

- - Wikipedia on Public Image Ltd.’s album Metal Box.

I think this is just genius. Plus, a year later the idea was actually used for The Durutti Column’s The Return of the Durutti Column.

Atlas Sound - Flagstaff The slow-drip of new material coming...

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 10:00:00 -0400

Atlas Sound - Flagstaff

The slow-drip of new material coming pre-record release from Atlas Sound’s (also known as Deerhunter frontman; Bradford Cox) new album, Parallax, has been impressive, being the perfect fuel for hype for fans of the project and newcomers alike. The latest of this content is Flagstaff. A meditated, mental trip through acoustic guitar bindings and calculated swirls of ticks and hisses.

Atlas Sound as a whole is an grand example that music need not volume, nor enormous cacophony to be captivating. Parallax drops November 8, preorder on Amazon.

Black Twig - “Lake Song” My first taste of Black...

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 22:23:00 -0400

Black Twig - “Lake Song”

My first taste of Black Twig comes from their debut album, Paper Trees. Subtle use of guitar-fueled haze surround driving, airy vocals make “Lake Song” sound as if Jason Pierce fronted Sonic Youth. For me, this track yields the capacity to incite positive, emotional retrospection.

Paper Trees drops January 2012 on Soliti Music.

Lower Dens - Deer Knives (purchase the 7” at Discogs) Of...

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 22:34:59 -0400

Lower Dens - Deer Knives (purchase the 7” at Discogs)

Of the numerous qualities I enjoyed in Lower Dens’ 2010 full length release, Twin Hand Movement, the band’s ability to create a guitar-fueled, Jana Hunter-voiced ambiance, really stuck out to me.

Beginning like a tide, slowly waving in and dreamily backsliding out, Deer Knives uses a similar ambiance to what is found in Twin Hand Movement, but one that rises into a vast harmonic crescendo before lapsing back into the surf. This is a song that I could definitely set on repeat and simply drift into.

James Blake - Not Long Now (BBC 1 Radio Rip) Not Long Now is the...

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:45:00 -0400

James Blake - Not Long Now (BBC 1 Radio Rip)

Not Long Now is the second track (be sure to hear the first) that has been exposed from James Blake’s forthcoming EP, Enough Thunder. It’ll be out October 10th via Atlas Records.

Blake is a busy man. After 3 EPs last year, a full-length this year, and a range of 7”s in between; he lives as an example to other artists in how prolific one can be. In Not Long Now, Blake shows less auto-tune (my least favorite part of his s/t), leaving room for his deeply emotive vocal talent to shine through the track’s different movements.

Whatever he seems to croon through the “dub step” signatures and rising synth swells, it sounds along the lines of Blake questioning someone’s opinions of himself. And what feelings he may be struggling with, I feel them fully translated through this track.

Mood Rings - Promise Me Eternity Stepping off of...

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 14:16:23 -0400

Mood Rings - Promise Me Eternity

Stepping off of February’s stellar Sweater Weather Forever EP, Mood Rings form of dreamy shoe-gaze returns with a new track, Promise Me Eternity, courtesy of a forthcoming 7” with Double Phantom.

What I noticed in this band earlier this year, is that Mood Rings had expelled a mystery and moodiness into every track they had fit onto the EP. Promise Me Eternity goes along with my previous assessment. The track begins with a warm guitar into a bass-heavy with a tight surge of pop energy. Following this blissful rush, the 0:44 second mark begins to break where said energy is instead focused on rocking a booming slow-jam with Mood Rings-signature soft, almost ghostly vocals. Promise Me Eternity is an intrinsic treat from a band on an intense ascent in quality.

Saturday Throwback - The Magnetic Fields - My Only Friend (69...

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 12:30:35 -0400

Saturday Throwback - The Magnetic Fields - My Only Friend (69 Love Songs Vol. 2)

The feeling that comes with immediate landing of the subtle pairing of the melancholic piano and heavy-hearted balladry of Stephen Merritt into my ears with My Only Friend is musically welcomed, yet emotionally unwanted. My Only Friend is Stephen Merritt at his most bare, with a booming piano and his dejective baritone swinging out a heartbroken tale of a person of whom he was rife with affection for. This track is a prime example of Merritt’s unparalleled ability to display uncanny amounts of affection within quick song structures.

Dive - Sometime (mp3, via P4K) Reverb can be a technique which...

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 14:44:09 -0400

Dive - Sometime (mp3, via P4K)

Reverb can be a technique which an artist can use to hide imperfections, it also be used to propel an artist to original heights. Dive’s Sometime is an excellent use of reverb where, even though it can be found laced throughout this track’s well-focused instrumentation, adds a tensity and darkness usually foreign to jangle-pop.

Dive is Beach Fossils’ lead guitarist Cole Smith. He plans a 7” including Sometime on October 11th on Captured Tracks.

Vinyl Williams - I’m Watching You Vinyl Williams is the...

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 11:01:00 -0400

Vinyl Williams - I’m Watching You

Vinyl Williams is the audio side of musical/visual artist Lionel Williams. He describes himself as, “Psyched-out rock with glowing layers of krautrock, shoegaze, and ambience” which I would say, is pretty fair. Personally, I wouldn’t deviate far from comparing him to the likes of Unknown Mortal Orchestra and other psych-funk throwback acts.

Vinyl Williams has quite a bit of free music at his Bandcamp; including a brand new full length, all of which I encourage you to check out.

Nerves Junior - “Swimmers Ear” Nerves Junior are...

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 15:21:53 -0400

Nerves Junior - “Swimmers Ear”

Nerves Junior are aiming high with their debut. At nine tracks, around 42 minutes of sonic entrancement and a sound leaning towards the likes of Radiohead’s Kid A, Nerves Junior have created a distinct and aberrant shot towards modern rock.

Swimmers Ear is the second track on Nerves’ As Bright As Your Night Light. Give the record a spin on Soundcloud and follow by purchasing on SonaBLAST Records.

Toro Y Moi - All Alone Chaz Bundwick’s initial burst into...

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:11:55 -0400

Toro Y Moi - All Alone

Chaz Bundwick’s initial burst into the music scene came with Causers Of This a possible player in the movement of “chillwave.” Through that badly nondescript label Bundwick was roped in with a swell of musicians making an esoteric, yet slightly obnoxious breed of throwback material. With his second full-length Underneath The Pine, Chaz found his niche, carving out his space within a splintered and often misunderstood space.

All Alone is a prime example of Bundwick’s continued growth of musical prowess and stellar ability to harken back to the golden retro-electro funk of years past. Find it on his forthcoming Freaking Out EP, which is coming through Carpark on September 13.

Distortion-drenched psychedelic rockers Wooden Shjips will grace...

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 14:08:00 -0400

Distortion-drenched psychedelic rockers Wooden Shjips will grace the U.S. with their 4th LP, West, September 13th. You can stream West at Altered Zones this week (not to distract you from the many other great album streams you should be tuning into).

At one turn through, West seems to have the sour, grudge production along the lines of Crystal Stilts’ latest and a commanding attention draw that is a vocal styling which makes me think Nick Cave or as AZ puts it, “a Johnny Cash running on eight cylinders.” Don’t pass this one up.

Be sure to purchase West on Thrill Jockey when it drops next week.

mp3: Wooden Shjips - “Lazy Bones”

Northernists - The Secret Garden Northernists have a folk sound...

Mon, 05 Sep 2011 11:01:06 -0400

Northernists - The Secret Garden

Northernists have a folk sound that should not be passed over. As a band that could be categorized in a genre commonly given the cold shoulder, Northernists are really pursuing and achieving a unique sound. “The Secret Garden” pulls soft percussive punches and vocals that make me think Mountain Man. A sound that could easily be described as “autumnal.”

Listen to and pay-what-you-want for “The Secret Garden” and its containing EP, Mama and the Loerie, here.

Crystal Stilts - Prometheus At Large (live at KEXP) Still the...

Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:01:06 -0400

Crystal Stilts - Prometheus At Large (live at KEXP)

Still the proud holders of my album of the year (so far), Crystal Stilts have brought their heat to KEXP for a great live session. These guys really have their tunes down and it is simply a joy to watch them run through this undeniably Velvet Underground-esque jam.

Buy their sophomore album In Love With Oblivion from Slumberland.

Caveman - “Easy Water” I was first introduced to...

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 12:32:43 -0400

Caveman - “Easy Water”

I was first introduced to Brooklyn’s psych-folk rockers Caveman through their single that was making the rounds on the net a few months ago; Old Friend. Old Friend carried a huge, buzzing, guitar-generated atmosphere that waves in with an aesthetic I’d definitely compare to the style of The War On Drugs’ latest. With Easy Water we have something a bit less linear and a lot more ethereal. The atmosphere is there and is definitely more of a focus than in Old Friend, with in Easy Water more sounds are heard with volume.

Both tracks are found on Caveman’s debut LP, “Coco Beware” which drops digitally September 13 and physically November 15th on Magic Man! Records.

mp3: Caveman - “Old Friend”