It wasn't an amazing display of musical prowess on stage. While they sound wonderful together, I've heard more spectacular singing voices, and the guitar playing... well. I make this point only to highlight the specialness of the three women's charisma on stage, and the power of the songs that they manage to create together. From an old German field recording to a Psalm, to original material written about the age-less topic of sexual frustration, Mountain Man give the listener the feeling that they are looking in on some ancient Alan Lomax recording session, or a private rehearsal of sorts. It's almost a feeling of intrusion -- that you're somehow watching something intimate and personal -- a tender moment shared only between these three women, and you and only you, are lucky enough to have stumbled upon these songs and voices in some sort of otherworldly realm. All the sudden, the house music comes on, and the lights go up, and you realize much to your disappointment, that it wasn't a sort of lovely dream, but a real event, at the Mercury Lounge, and you have other shows to go to, and work tomorrow; but for that 40 minutes it was just you and Mountain Man, those timeless harmonies, and a deep feeling of satisfaction.
It feels like we've been waiting forever for new music from Menomena, a group that crashed the indie party with their fantastic album Friend and Foe in early 2007. In a world where new content reigns supreme, a lay-off of three years can often spell doom for a band. It's a testament to their quality that folks are still clamoring for new material after that long a break. Yesterday, we got news of their new LP mines, due July 27th via Barsuk in the US. Their first track is above. In the interest of helping the band capture emails, and out of fear of the infamous 'delete blog' blogger feature - we've embedded their mp3 topspin widget below (ew). Yes, that is the cover art, and as p4k noted: "It's actually a stereogram, a 3D optical illusion (kind of a simple version of those magic eye things)."
quadron "herfra hvor vi står" from Yours Truly on Vimeo.
Sweden's Club 8 is commonly recognized for their personal blend of melancholic, dreamy and irresistibly catchy style of pop [which] has been a forerunner for bands like Camera Obscura, jj, and Kings of Convenience. The People's Record marks the beginning of a new epoch... The result is unique mix of Swedish pop melodies and African rhythms - undoubtedly one of the most unique, captivating and catchiest pop records of the year!
Tallest Man on Earth: "The Wild Hunt"After touring with The Bird and the Bee and Pete Yorn among others, Juliette is preparing for an August 2010 release of her second full-length, accompanied by the same recording partners - Joachim Cooder and Martin Pradler. The new album will also feature a guest appearance by legendary ambient trumpet player Jon Hassel. Keep your ears peeled.
What do we know about Stereo Total? Not much. What do we think of the title track from their newest album, Baby Ouh! out now on Kill Rock Stars? Mixed feelings. Being the suckers that we are for French-speaking music and a good dance beat (See: Yelle), we gave it a shot; plus, Kill Rock Stars very rarely leads us astray. Baby Ouh! is a Frankenstein of a release -- ST recorded over 40 tracks in preparation for this release, while only 17 made the final cut. Currently hanging their hats in Berlin, Germany -- ST are gearing up for a North American summer kicking it off at NYC's Le Poisson Rouge on Aug. 25. This album marks the band's 11th release to-date starting in 1995 with their debut, Oh Ah! 
