Soundtrack2

Posts Tagged ‘Crystal Stilts’

Future Islands, Elf Power, The Voices, Golden Ages, Pacific UV & more

Photo by Phil Askew, www.luminouslives.com

Soundtrack2 Ep. 67 [ 1:10:54 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

1.   Para Siempre – Adolescence

Starting things off with in the red, urgent yet murky punky pop.

2.   The Catherine Wheel – Let Me Down Again

Black Metallic rocker with just deadly choruses. This one’ll get inside your head.

3.   Future Islands – Walking Through That Door

Just a fantastic song with glorious synth work and a great groove. Never want this to end.

4.   Medicine – Astral Gravy

Brash, glammy rock and roll from 2003′s The Mechanical Forces Of Love.

5.   Tame Impala – Alter Ego

A highlight they dropped at last night’s show at The Phoenix. But then they topped it – by covering Massive Attack‘s Angel! Was also surprised to see they weren’t using drum samples…the drummer was amazing.

6.   Crystal Stilts – Silver Sun

Another one from the Brooklynites’ new record. They’ve struck a nice mod-surf vibe on it.

7.   Lowtide – Underneath Tonight

Shoegaze pop from last year’s You Are My Good Light EP.

8.   Elf Power – Skeleton

One of the more sinister tracks off the Elephant 6 band’s The Winter Is Coming album.

9.   10 Second Dynasty – Endless Drive

Epic 10-minute shoegaze anthem. Anyone have info on this band they can share?

10.  Black Forest Of Opium - Afyonkarahisar Battle Cry

Winner of this week’s award for Most Embarassing Band Name To Have To Say You’re Listening To. Great drone-y tune with some heavy lyrics about crushing down enemies.

11.  The Voices – When The Black Sun Sets

More shoegaze psych off the Cardiff band’s Death Of A Lover’s Song album.

12.  The People’s Temple – Sons Of Stone

Killer drone psych that is a must for fans of Brian Jonestown Massacre or The Black Angels. The vocalist reminds me of someone, but I just can’t my finger on it…[Update: Turns out it was Chris Wilson of the Flamin' Groovies.]

13.  The Morning Clouds – The Wrong Things

New track that channels the classic reverb-heavy ballads of the 60s.

13.  Pacific UV – Float

Free track from April available through their site. Brings Spiritualized to mind.

14.  Ghost Animal – In Your Room (Golden Ages remix)

Churning guitars and insistent synths over heart-on-sleeve vocals. Original’s nice too.

15.  Pale Suns – Here Is

Shimmering waves of noisy beauty.

16.  Sun Glitters – Everything Could Be Fine (The Astroboy remix)

Oscillating intense electronic remix takes us home.

Crystal Stilts, Red House Painters, Lower Dens, Airiel, Brian Jonestown Massacre & more.

Soundtrack2 Audiocast49 [ 1:00:16 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

1.   The Pastels – Truck Train Tractor

Monster indie pop tune that gets kinda silly towards the end. How many times can one sing the word “tractor?” Unless you’re a kids entertainer, of course.

2.   The Wedding Present – Crawl

Great bass riff, great guitar, and Gedge at his finest. WP is kind of like Rush – not musically of course, but their tunes go with many  types of music, yet they’ve always done their own thing.

3.   Airiel – Thinktank

Big hooks over sunny shoegaze.

4.   Pop Will Eat Itself – Like An Angel

Very nice…kind of like The Stranglers crossed with The Teardrop Explodes.

5.   The Turn-Ons – 1/11

Spiralling Seattle shoegaze off Curse.

6.   Sloan – Lemonzinger

Smeared tune from their Sonic Youth phase. They still put their Halifax spin on the sound.

7.   Crystal Stilts – Shake The Shackles

Harpsichord basher. Imagine Ian Curtis fronting the The Yardbirds.

8.   Lower Dens – Completely Golden

Baltimore chillwave that seems a cut above. Check out the very good Twin Hand Movement.

9.   Le Corbeau – L’innocence Revient Encore/Reve D’Ivresse

Site says they’re from Norway, but this creepy dark rock and roll is clearly sung in French. Love the bridge.

10.  Ghost Box Orchestra – The Moon Hangs Low

Drone psychedelic pop. If that makes any sense at all.

11.  Brian Jonestown Massacre – Anemone

Intro to Boardwalk Empire reminded me how fantastic this band is. This song wins the award for “Best Placement of Guitar Runs.” This one’s off the brilliant Their Satannic Majesties Second Request.

12.  Colour – Everything Is Gone

Loud 90′s guitar and singing make me think of Husker Du or REM. “I wanna be here after everything’s gone…”

13.  Red House Painters – Mistress

You can’t get a much more beautiful dream pop ballad than this. Off their second self-titled album, the one with the rollercoaster on it.

14.  The Ills – Vulnerable

Described as “post-rock/shoegaze from Bratislava, Slovakia.” This chill number’s my favourite of the tracks on To Wish Impossible Things. Great guitar – more post-country than post rock!

15.  Woodsman – Insects

Drums and guitar set a dark, reverb-drenched course. Download here.

16.  Active Child – I’m In Your Church At Night (School of Seven Bells remix)

Struggled with this one a bit. Cool electro shoegaze with New Order beats? Download here.

The next time I have people over at my place, I’ll play this song in hopes that someone will ask me who it is, just so I can make up some fantastic lie that it’s me. Wobbling, fuzzy surf guitar recorded for 60 bucks in the back of a greasy autobody shop. They’ll just stare at me in my sweater vest trying to decide whether to punch me for lying or laugh at me for being nowhere cool enough to do something this cool.

Deerhunter, Crystal Stilts, Jason Lytle, Yppah, Bizarre & more

Warning: the latest SD2 mix has absolutely nothing to do with Sun Ra’s classic 1974 song and movie.

Why call it Space Is the Place? Well, the tracks feel like they could soundtrack any number of amazing films involving space.

And yes, I did see the new Star Trek last weekend.

Check out Soundtrack2 Audiocast13 here.

Standard Podcast [ 1:12:12 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

1.   Broken Social Scene Presents Brendan Canning – Hit the Wall

Only discovered this track recently and it hits like a rush of hypnotic sugar.

2.   Deerhunter – Disappearing Ink

New-ish track off the Rainwater Cassette Exchange EP propels us through the atmosphere.

3.   Constantines – Hard Feelings

Been sitting on this one for a bit, but it fits nicely here. A new one of their Kensington Heights record. Nice weird countermelody.

4.   Gospel Gossip – Revolutions In Physics

A bit post-punky but dig the dreamy hopefulness.

5.   800Beloved – The Skeleton Collection

The love song? 80s-style moody pop goodness. MySpace photo definitely not who I pictured.

6.   Family Cat – Pass Away

Actual 80s/90s band delivers a great slice of indie garage pop.

7.   Crystal Stilts – Love Is A Wave

Two minutes and one second couldn’t be better.

8.   Computer Perfection – The Fool Is Hurt

Brilliant, brilliant track that only would make perfect sense in another galaxy. Thank you, Chromewaves.

9.   Yppah - Cannot See Straight

Just cruisin’.

10.  Lansing-Dreiden – An Effect Of The Night

Curious band out of NYC gives a skewed take on a spaced-out melody.

11.  Nova Saints – Sugar Coated

Ride-influenced shoegaze outfit brings us back down to Earth a bit.

12.  Jason Lytle – Yours Truly, The Commuter

Grandaddy, where have you been? Props to Kevin for pointing out Jason’s awesome solo track.

13.  Enright House – Darkwave = MC Squared

Dream pop from beyond the pale. It’s available for free download from their site. I got it from the mighty SXSW torrent.

14.  Magnetic Morning – Cold War Kids

Surveying the lunar landscape? BTW I’m ashamed it took us 13 epidodes to finally play music by the singer/guitarist from Swervedriver and drummer from Interpol.

15.  Fight Bite - Swissex Lover

The spacewalk? Pensive ballad from Texas band.

16.  Bizarre – Pearshell Fairy

Killer epic 90s shoegaze from a band I’ve just gotten into recently. More please!

17.  Satin Gum - No We Are Not Naming Our Kids After Ikea Products

Pittsburgh crew brings some spaced-out yet poppy rock  & roll. Hard to pin down but really, really good. Sat on this for a bit, but thanks MML.

18.  Dosh – If You Want To, You Have To

The action sequence. A fantastic instrumental with a lot going on. Props to Stereogum.

19.  Experimental Aircraft – Seasick

Epilogue. Moody mid-tempo number from Austin crew.