Hjaltalin - Sleepdrunk Seasons

Seeing as I’m yet to hear this album in it’s entirely, you probably wouldn’t classify this as a traditional review. Instead, I am inviting you into the process of consideration, as I try to decide whether this is an album worth investing in. The band in question, Hjaltalin, are yet another Icelandic band to emerge with a distinctly strange sound. Like their predecessors, they create music which is immediately engaging and yet ventures beyond the safe confines of standard musical technique. Whatever would we do without Iceland! After scouring the internet, I’ve managed to get a taste for this band and I find myself right on the edge of a decision about whether to buy or not.

Traffic Music – Full credit goes to Triple J for putting me onto this song. After hearing it, I immediately made a mental note to investigate further. There’s certainly an element of Sufjan Stevens’ ‘fluttery’ instrumentation here. The use flutes and subtle percussion creates a nice airy sensation. This then builds into a rather powerful chorus, growing and evolving before returning to the softer sound to finish things off. Quite impressive!

Goodbye July – This song showcases the lead singers vocals, which could easily warrant a comparison with the voice behind Antony and the Johnsons. It too features some quite spectacular instrumentation when you listen carefully enough. Unlike the increasingly prevalent use of ‘sing along strings’ these days, the orchestral sounds here would not seem out of place in a classic Disney movie. But at the same time, I must admit that the jerky string/clarinet part towards the start can get a little annoying after a while.

Clearly this band has plenty of promise and some great songs, but I can’t help but be hesitant of their ability to create an entire album good music that will keep me coming back. I’d love to hear what you think of these two songs and whether you would buy (or have bought) the album. I need someone to tip me over the edge!

A tasty treat for you

Ba da da da da, BA BOW WA!

You heard me.

Custard - Love Measurer

Sydney Smattering

Is smattering even a word? Who cares. Here's some music by a bunch of Sydney bands that have been on my mind lately:

Telephone - Cuthbert & The Night Walkers



I can’t believe I haven’t gotten around to talking about Cuthbert & The Night Walkers yet. They’re so cool! You may be thinking that because they have 5-piece choir, they are somehow a gimmick. It couldn’t be further from the truth. Underneath the choir is an incredibly solid band, with some excellent music. Whenever I watch them, I find my mouth gradually creeping open, either because I’m in awe or just a subconscious desire to sing along. Whatever it is, they must be doing something right.

Like An Arrow - The Red Sun Band



The Red Sun Band are yet another local band that I have ignored for no particular reason. They’ve been around for a while, but I’ve just never bothered to listen to them. Thankfully I put an end to this when I caught their set at The Laneway Festival. On first glance, their music feels like pretty straightforward indie rock, and is easy to get it into because of this. But closer inspection shows something deeper, darker and more enduring to their sound. I’m certainly looking forward to their upcoming releases.

Mad Scientist - Laura Imbruglia



Unlike the rest of the bands in this post, I’m not here fresh from seeing Laura Imbruglia live. In fact I’ve never seen her play, nor have I listened to her all that much. But something about her intrigues me. Her debut is incredibly varied, moving between fast rock, slower ballads and even dabbling in some sort of abstract techno. But whatever territory she’s in, the music is strong and the personality abounding. She is undoubtedly an interesting character.

Familiar Faces - Hypertonic



A year ago, I arrived at Hypertonic’s myspage, thanks to a recommended link on the Red Eye Records website. The page was pretty desolate and the songs didn’t really grab me. A year later, not much has changed. This is such an incredible shame, because after seeing them live, they clearly have potential. Their music is heavily inspired by Sonic Youth and would undoubtedly be welcomed by many. I feel like they need a reality TV show to give them a make over, or (more realistically) a manager to point them in the right direction and start promoting them properly. These guys deserve it.

Your Face Burnt A Whole In My Memory - The Devoted Few



Up until very recently, The Devoted Few were a band I’d never seen live. This was undoubtedly due in part to them not playing that many shows, but also because I failed give their 2004 album, Billboard Noises, anything more than a casual glance. But a month back, when I caught them at Spectrum, this all changed. I can’t remember being so impressed by a live band whose material I didn’t know well. Their songs were great and the performance even better. They are actually sitting on a brand new album, just waiting for a label to pick it up. If the live show is anything to go by, this album is something to look forward to.

Mix #34 (analytical edition)

Love Me Already – Black Kids
Black Kids have a rather interesting sound. The keyboards and guitars are relatively standard, but it is the vocals that set them apart. The leader singer has a weird delivery style that isn’t quite yelling, but is certainly forceful, creating a rather washy sound. At times it works, but elsewhere it can get annoying. This song demonstrates this problem nicely, as well showing some of the underlying melodies that are driving people towards their music.

On and On – The Bell
I’ve been trying rather unsuccessfully to work out who The Bell’s vocalist sounds like. Whenever I find a similarity, such as the deep drone of Interpol, it always fails to apply across the board. Whatever the case, it’s a voice that works well. In fact, everything about this band is done right. Each track has a nicely crafted melody, different from the last, that has you bopping along without realising. But that’s just the problem. It all runs TOO smoothly. It’s like they’ve followed the ‘good music’ book so perfectly that their sound ends up hollow. It seems harsh, or perhaps nonsensical, but it's about the only explanation I can come up with for why I enjoy their music, but walk away feeling unsatisfied...

The Flies Arrive – Cajun Dance Party
Just as The Libertines did before them, Cajun Dance Party are successfully mastering the art of sloppiness. There’s something oddly appealing about music that appears effortless and at times deliberately bad. Slurred vocals, late changes and general disregard for polish is a combination which works surprisingly well; provided it’s done right. Well thankfully, CDP know their stuff. It also doesn’t hurt having some killer keyboard licks to boot.

Tyrants – Black Mountain
If you’re looking for some nicely packaged ‘songs’, you're going to be severely disappointed with Black Mountain’s new album. On their own, each track seems horribly disjointed; this one alone contains five or so different stages with questionable relevance to one other. But you have to realise that they are all parts of a bigger picture. All this lack of accessibility is forgotten when you discover just how epic the end result is. At times you think you’re listening to a hardcore instrumental band, until all of a sudden some vocals kick in and they’ve moved into a compelling new melody.

Playhouses – TV on the Radio
TV On The Radio are one of the few bands around that are truly right out of left field. You won’t find any obvious influences here. Their music is filled with complex, overlapping melodies that build slowly, but travel at exciting paces. And best of all, it’s all driven by team of powerful vocalists, not afraid to dabble in falsetto frequencies. What more could you want?

Mix #34 (anecdotal edition)

Love Me Already – Black Kids
Black Kids are the latest band to be thrust into popularity far too quickly. The usual sequence of events will probably occur, with the serious music community dismissing them as more and more idiots begin liking them. But until then, we can still get some enjoyment out of them. Personally, I'm not blown away, but they seem to be creating some pretty impressive music (including this song), and it’s still early in their career.

On and On – The Bell
For an album to succeed, it needs to do two important things. Firstly, it needs be good. It sounds simple enough, but convincing listeners of this fact is no walk in the park. Secondly, it needs to give you a reason to keep coming back. You may openly admit an album sounds good, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you have a desire to keep listening to it. You need something special that makes you associate the album with an enjoyable experience. Well that’s where I currently sit with Sweden’s The Bell and their album ‘Make Some Quiet’. It’s undoubtedly filled with some great music, I’m just looking for the spark that will keep pulling me back.

The Flies Arrive – Cajun Dance Party
Unless you regularly traverse the blogosphere or indulge in NME’s hyperboles, you probably haven’t heard much of Cajun Dance Party. Well as the year progress, that looks set to change. They are a band out of England, who are turning plenty of heads, despite still being in high school. I’ve previously mentioned their song, The Colourful Life, (which I recommend you track down if you haven’t heard), but I’ve been going through their other demos and finding plenty more promise. It will be very interesting to see how their debut album turns out.

Tyrants – Black Mountain
As I was recommending some music to my friend, Black Mountain came up. I hadn’t had much of a chance to listen to it myself, but I mentioned how it was receiving quite a bit of hype. We put it on to try it out and let’s just say it didn’t a very good job convincing my friend that it was worth listening to. The problem is that Black Mountain simply cannot be enjoyed in short bursts. It feels like some sort of epic cinematic experience that needs plenty of time to mature. The very act of me offering a track to sample is probably doing the album a great injustice, but I can’t very well give the whole thing away. As I’ve given it the time it deserves, the quality is certainly starting to emerge.

Playhouses – TV on the Radio
In my attempt to try and give some sort of indication of where Black Mountain sat on the hype / popularity chain, I tried offering a comparison with TV on the Radio. To which I got blank looks. TV on the Radio! I thought everybody knew who they were. Anyway, just in case anybody else out there is still ignorant, here’s a reminder.

Monday Mix

Maasai Mara – The Ruby Suns
For many of you, your first encounter with New Zealand band, The Ruby Suns, was when far off foreigners, The Shins, chose them as special guests for their tour of Australia. So much for our close relationship with NZ. But now they’re coming for their very own show (this Friday at Spectrum) and I’m getting pretty excited (for various reasons). Their music fits somewhere in the ‘twisted indie-pop’ category, alongside the likes of Animal Collective. Their debut album is excellent and they have another on the way very soon.

No One’s Gonna Love You – Band of Horses
Those who listened to the last Band of Horses album will know just how powerful their music can be. The vocals are undoubtedly the main driving force behind this. I haven’t yet decided whether their latest album is up to the same standards, but if this song is anything to go by, we may have another classic on our hands.

She Says – VHS or Beta
Perhaps their name is supposed to indicate a sound, rooted in the past? Maybe it symbolises a battle in another fiercely competitive industry? Either that or they’re just nerds. Whatever the case, VHS or Beta seem well poised. They’ve put out a high quality album that’s accessible from the get go. I’d be surprised if they didn’t end up reaching the heights of bands like Franz Ferdinand very soon.

California Girls – The Magnetic Fields
For an album that was supposed to sound “more like Jesus and Mary Chain than Jesus and Mary Chain”, it comes off sounding much more like a Magnetic Fields album to me. And that’s a good thing. Stephin Merritt’s brilliant melodies are back, along with the rotating vocalists. It feels like a perfect continuation of 69 Love Songs.

A Violent Yet Flammable World – Au Revoir Simone
The idea of an all female, all keyboard wielding band is sure to delight some and disgust others. I’m personally one of the former. When I first heard of Au Revoir Simone, I immediately thought of Electrelane and I wasn’t far off. They definitely have their own sound (except for one very similar song), but the vibe is very much the same. This is, of course, an excellent thing! Their album, Birds of Music, is very impressive and I struggled to pick just one song. I think this one finds a nice balance between their two extremes of delicate and powerful.

Digital Music: Stores Wrapup

When it comes to buying digital music, there are many important factors you’ll come up against. Here’s an overview of what they are, who fares best and what I’d like to see in the future.