Surfer Blood - "Swim"

Normally, I'm not very envious of Floridians. However, now that the temperature in New York has dipped down to nipple-hardening levels, I'm feeling a serious twinge of envy. To add insult to injury, West Palm Beach natives Surfer Blood churn out tunes that make Florida sound like the promised land. None of these guys actually surf, but their music is overwhelmingly informed by lives lived oceanside. Every song on their debut, Astro Coast, is sun-bleached and reeking of saltwater. "Swim" is the sound of these five boys throwing early Modest Mouse, Weezer's Blue Album and the Pixies into a blender and punching the button marked "slay hard." Much has been made of Surfer Blood sounding at times like Weezer, but let me just point that it is the unfuckwithable Weezer of "My Name Is Jonas" and "Surf Wax America". If you're going to play tubro-charged surf-punk, reference points don't get much better than that.

Astro Coast is due 1/19 via Kanine.

Download MP3: "Swim"

PopMatters: Best Singles of 2009

Ok, I know you all love lists as much as I do, so please take the time to check out PopMatters' best singles of 2009 list here. I handled the write-ups on The Flaming Lips' "Convinced of the Hex" and The Japandroids' "Young Hearts Spark Fire".

Sleigh Bells - "Crown On The Ground"

Don't be fooled by the band's name - this ain't Christmas music. In fact, it's rather difficult assigning Sleigh Bells to any particular genre. One thing is for certain: they want you to feel the weight of their bombast. It's the first thing you notice and may be an aesthetic dealbreaker for some, but Sleigh Bells are LOUD. Like, loud in the sense that the distortion levels are pushed into the red. The duo consists of Derek Miller (guitar, programming) and the hellacious Alexis Krauss (vocals). Their music tends to revolve around electronic beats and Krauss' vocals which alternate between sassy come-on's and schoolyard chants. When Miller lays down guitar, he shreds and flails like Jack White on a bender. I recently read someone describing them as sounding like "The Kills produced by The Neptunes," and I couldn't agree more.

Download MP3: "Crown On The Ground"

Jónsi - "Boy Lilikoi"

Ok, I've got something else to add to my list of anticipated albums: Sigur Rós frontman, Jónsi Birgisson, is releasing his debut solo album, Go, next year. Unlike every Sigur Rós album, Go will be sung entirely in English. The album features string arrangements from composer Nico Muhly (Grizzly Bear, Antony & The Johnsons) and was produced by Peter Katis (Interpol, The National, Frightened Rabbit). Mr. Katis had this to say about the album: "It's going to be a largely acoustic guitar record but also with a lot of 'out there' string arrangements...strings, woodwinds, brass, and double bass, actually." The first single, "Boy Lilikoi" is now available for free via Jónsi's very Tolkienesque new website. It is very reminiscent of the first half of Sigur Rós' last album, með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust - bristling with euphoric orchestral bombast, but in double time. The drums work in skittering, martial figures; those woodwinds are fluttering throughout; and did I mention he is singing in English now? It's a tremendous track bursting with joy, and a welcome reminder of why I love this guy so much.

Download MP3: "Boy Lilikoi"

Most Anticipated Albums of 2010

Since new music is slow coming this time of the year, I thought I'd post a list of the albums that I'm most looking forward to next year. Some of the albums do not have titles or concrete release dates yet, but I've posted all the information I've gathered so far.

Arcade Fire - TBA - May (?)

The band recently became active on their twitter and facebook accounts and teased us with this tidbit: "Nevermind the dust, we'll be using it a lot more in the coming months." Another solid piece of intel dropped today via Stereogum: "Marcus Mumford let it slip in an interview with BBC6 that Mumford & Sons producer Markus Dravs has been working with Arcade Fire on the new album for six months now. Dravs engineered Neon Bible and says Butler's new songs are 'better.' Yay." Update: Billboard just posted this news piece which claims a release date of May and a spring tour.

Panda Bear - TBA - summer (?)

The follow-up to Person Pitch is still in the embryonic stage, but Panda Bear just provided an update in a recent interview with Pedestrian.tv. Apparently, the new album will not be sample-heavy like Person Pitch: "The rhythms are really basic and kind of raw and simple and are electronic. It's not live instrumentation, I’ve been playing guitar but I feed it through the same thing that the sequences are on. It’s a very electronic sound and very voice heavy. A simple arrangement of drums, the guitar and singing. Really there are only two or three elements to every song. It’s pretty raw sounding for better for worse." He also noted that "The tone is a lot darker and it sounds sort of dramatic or romantic to me. But I’m in still in the thick of the thing so it’s really tough to be objective at this point."

Yeasayer - Odd Blood - 2/9

The band will be releasing their sophomore album via Secretly Canadian. If you haven't already heard the bitchin' new single "Ambling Alp", you can grab it and watch its trippy video here.

The National - TBD - late spring/early summer (?)

The band has been working on the follow-up to Boxer for the last year, and are mixing the record this month. Guitarist Bryce Dessner recently spoke to Brooklynvegan and had this to say about the album: "There are moments that sound more epic than we've ever gone, not in terms of a Pink Floyd epic but certainly really big and beautiful that's different. It's not as dark and restrained as Boxer. We sat for so many months on the road with that, and this record definitely has some really upbeat stuff."

Joanna Newsom - TBD - ?

In a couple of recent interviews, Ms. Newsom revealed that she had recorded the follow-up to Ys in Tokyo (with Jim O'Rourke producing?) and the record is now "done." No word on what it sounds like/when it's due.

Beach House - Teen Dream - 1/26

Although I'm not technically "anticipating" this album anymore since I already have it, I will say that the band's third album and first for Sub Pop is quite a leap forward for them in terms of quality and the breadth of their sound. If you don't already have the dazzling "Norway", grab it here. I'm pretty damn confident that this record will make my top ten list at the end of 2010.

Miracle Fortress - TBD - summer (?)

The band debuted new material at a show last week and BrooklynVegan had this to say: "Judging from his show, the new album (not due out til mid 2010) will be more influenced by The Bronski Beat than The Beach Boys. Surrounded by keyboards, table lamps and police turret lights (but no other band members), it was a one man dance party with Van Pelt manning his own light show while belting out falsetto electropop/house. There's still a focus on lush arrangements and melody, but this time Miracle Fortress is clearly aimed at the dancefloor."

Moonface - Dreamland EP: Marimba and Shit-Drums - 1/26

Not surprisingly, Spencer Krug (Sunset Rubdown, Wolf Parade, Swan Lake) has created another musical outlet: Moonface. This time, it's a real, true solo project. The Dreamland EP will be released on Jagjaguwar and features compositions written entirely on the marimba. Geek-boner? Check!

Liars - Sisterworld - 3/9

According to early reports, the forthcoming Sisterworld mulls the fertile middle ground between Drum's Not Dead and Liars. The band described the mission statement for the album thusly: “We're interested in the alternate spaces people create in order to maintain identity in a city like LA. Environments where outcasts and loners celebrate a skewered relationship to society.” Can't wait! Check out the album's cryptic website.

LCD Soundsystem - TBD - early spring (?)

LCD head honcho James Murphy was been supplying a constant stream of updates on the band's facebook page for the last month or so, and it looks as though we may have a new album sometime in March. Murphy was been pretty vague as to what the new album will sound like - only saying that it sounds as "different" from Sound of Silver as that album did from their debut.

The Magnetic Fields - Realism - 1/26

Realism is apparently Distortion's polar opposite. The press release for Realism describes it as "a kaleidoscopic approach to the genre of folk." It promises a "wide range of instrumentation and orchestrated arrangements" as well as "no synths, no drum kits, and every instrument unplugged." Since Stephin Merritt mastered just about every music genre on 69 Love Songs, I'm very intrigued to see if he has anything else up his sleeve.

Marissa Nadler - "Dying Breed" (live video)

The always awesome Ray Concepcion shot this haunting video at Marissa Nadler's recent show in Brooklyn. "Dying Breed" is my very favorite song of hers so this is a treat for me.

Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands: Marissa Nadler [Part 2 of 2] from Ray Concepcioñ on Vimeo.

Jeff Buckley & Elizabeth Fraser - "All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun"

I just stumbled across this holy grail of duets: a never-officially-released collaboration between the late Jeff Buckley and Cocteau Twins siren Elizabeth Fraser. It's existence only came to my attention from reading this interview with the reclusive Fraser. From what I can gather, the two of them were quite close in the mid-'90s and recorded this song at that point in time - before the dissolution of the Cocteau Twins and before Fraser lent her ethereal pipes to Massive Attack's "Teardrop". Fraser claims the song was never "finished," though I can't help but feel otherwise. In it's final state, "All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun" is just those two magnificent voices and the glassy strum of Buckley's guitar. It might feel like a demo if their vocals didn't occupy so much space and captivate so wholly. Hearing Buckley and Fraser intertwine is so natural and stunning that you can't help wishing there was more.

Download MP3: "All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun"

Yeasayer - "Ambling Alp" (video)

The video for Odd Blood's first single is an '80s sci-fi freak-out. You may also notice some similarities between this and the Flaming Lips video for "Watching The Planets" (a.k.a it's NSFW).

Frightened Rabbit: Live on BBC6

Frightened Rabbit's third album, The Winter of Mixed Drinks (awesome title, guys!), isn't out until March, but these lovely Glaswegians have already released the first single, "Swim Until You Can't See Land", and were nice enough to record a 3-song session for BBC6 today. They performed "Swim" and two other new songs, "Living With Colour" and "Nothing Like You". Since this is the BBC, the recordings are predictably excellent. The chiming guitars and celestial strings of "Swim Until You Can't See Land" recall the more pop-oriented material of labelmates Sigur Rós. Given that the band has said this single is a good representation of the new album as a whole, I'm quite anxious to hear the rest.

The Swim Until You Can't See Land 7" (includes b-side "Fun Stuff") is available digitally through iTunes.

Download MP3: "Swim Until You Can't See Land"
Download MP3: "Living In Colour"
Download MP3: "Nothing Like You"

Best Coast - "When I'm With You"

The best coast is apparently the west coast. At least, it is according to Bethany Cosentino a.k.a. Best Coast. The impetus for this musical endeavor was explained thusly: "Inspired by Bethany’s longing for Los Angeles while spending her days in NY attending Eugene Lang College, Best Coast sprung forth during her first days back in California." Not that you needed to be told this. Listening to her music, it's pretty easy to guess she hails from the Golden State. Like way too many other bands these days, Ms. Cosentino churns out scuzzy, lo-fi beach-pop. It's a sub-sub-genre that I'm about damn sick of, but "When I'm With You" is just too great to dismiss. It has an instantly timeless quality that can be attributed to some rather simple alchemy: girl-group swoon, honey-sweet vocals, sand-blasted guitars and cliche-but-oh-so-resonant lyrics. In the song's coda, Bethany repeats "I hate sleeping alone" in a reverb-soaked wail that might just give you shivers.

Best Coast 7" is out now on Black Iris.

Download MP3: "When I'm With You"

Beach House - "Norway"

If "Norway" is any indication (hint: it is), Beach House have decided to step out of the ether a bit. As lovely as their first two albums are, they definitely suffer a bit from the feeling that songs are kinda running together. Basically, they needed a greater variation of tempo/melody/etc. at times. On their forthcoming third album, Teen Dream, the hooks are sharper and the rhythms have quickened. Yes, they are still a dream-pop band - just a stronger, livelier one. "Norway" is a 4AD fetishist's wet dream: gossamer waves of synth rolling over galloping drums, shimmering guitar arpeggios and Victoria Legrand doing her damnedest to make us forget how much we miss Elizabeth Fraser.

Teen Dream is out 1/26 on Sub Pop.

Download MP3: "Norway"

The Antlers - "When You Sleep" (My Bloody Valentine cover)

I was a late adopter with The Antlers, but I'll try to make up for that with a little evangelism on their behalf. It's certainly easy when the band's leader, Peter Silberman, possesses a haunting falsetto that recalls Jeff Buckley to a seriously eerie degree. Like the late, great Mr. Buckley, Silberman's vocals can go from whisper to wail - often in the course of one song. On this marvelous cover of My Bloody Valentine's "When You Sleep", his words slip out in little shivers, but somehow avoid feeling overly precious. Meanwhile, the band performs the song like it's on a collective morphine drip. All the instrumentation is smeared into a hazy, enveloping fog, and the end result is a woozy lullaby that befits its title.

Download MP3: "When You Sleep" (My Bloody Valentine cover)

Real Estate - "Black Lake" & "Fake Blues"

Last week, I was lucky enough to catch Real Estate open for Girls with a surprisingly engrossing performance. Most of all, I was impressed with how their live show differed from their recordings. On their self-titled debut, the Jersey quartet sticks to a winning formula of languid, hazy guitar rock that splits the difference between Neil Young's On The Beach and Animal Collective's Feels. Basically, tunes that are perfect for road trips and beach excursions. In concert, they become something more akin to a dream-pop jam band - one seemingly indebted to Dean Wareham (Galaxie 500 and Luna). I wouldn't say that Real Estate live is necessarily better than Real Estate on record, just that there is a noticeable difference. As an avid music consumer and concert-goer, I always appreciate a band that tries to do something different with their live show, and, for a band as young as Real Estate, this can only mean good things.

Real Estate is out 11/17 on Woodsist.

Download MP3: "Black Lake"
Download MP3: "Fake Blues"

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - "Higher Than The Stars"

To cap off their excellent 2009, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart have released the Higher Than The Stars EP which features four brand-spanking-new songs. The EP finds the band going in a decidedly more hi-fi direction and reveals a new influence for them: New Order. For the most part, the band still sounds like "Belle & Sebastian gone fuzzy" (as my friend astutely labeled them), but "Higher Than The Stars" provides a dazzling new synth-wrinkle in their sound.

Higher Than The Stars is out now on Slumberland.

Download MP3: "Higher Than The Stars"

Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Radio City Music Hall (09/23/09)

My review of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' spellbinding show at Radio City Music Hall is up now for your reading pleasure at PopMatters. If you weren't there, here's a little taste of what you missed: