Crocodiles Vs. Alligators: Let The Debate Begin

[mp3]

Alligators: "Where Does It Hide?"

Listen, we don't pretend to know the difference between crocodiles and alligators. They look exactly the same, they both dwell in swamps, and they're both ornery because they got all them teeth but no toothbrush. We do, however, know the difference between Crocodiles and Alligators: The former is a No Age-approved duo drenched in fuzz who take cues from Jesus and Mary Chain and have drawn deafening buzz around here lately, and the latter is a Washington-based psychadelic pop band who call The Zombies kindred spirits. One listen to the first minute of "Where Does It Hide?" and you'll be transfixed. The melody here is so immediate that the mid-song transition to Radiohead-esque histrionics is just icing on the cake. 

The band released their debut LP Piggy & Cups late last year on startup Applehouse Records, but we wouldn't be surprised if major indies come calling soon. They've already got one power player in their corner: Piggy was recorded at Death Cab For Cutie drummer Jason McGerr's studio in Seattle. Grab the mp3 above and order the album here. 

Your move, Crocodiles.

New Under Electric Light Video - "This Moment"

Featured:

UNDER ELECTRIC LIGHT "This Moment"

Part of the fun of looking for things to blog about on a Monday morning is discovering something truly awesome amidst a pile of crap. Enter Under Electric Light, a one-man shoegaze project from Montreal. For this week's On The Blog Reel, We're bringing you the video for "This Moment", a dreamy, rhythmic pop song straight from the time when dinosaurs like My Bloody Valentine and The Jesus And Mary Chain roamed the earth. (I guess that would be the Mesozaic era.) The video, directed by Canadian team Alexandre Auger and Jean-Sebastien Caron, is an iPod-commercial-worthy-kind-of-but-not-quite-animated-mind-trip, and it suits the song perfectly.

Under Electric Light, a.k.a Danny Provencher, has got a 4-track CD-R After The Blue available via uber-tiny Quebec label Think About The Future. (So tiny they've only got three friends on Myspace. Do what's right!) Both ventures are definitely on our radar now. Check out the video for "This Moment" after the jump.


This Moment from under electric light on Vimeo.

I Shall Be Released: Glasvegas + mp3s

Glasvegas - "It's My Own" - mp3
Glasvegas - "Stabbed" - mp3
This four-piece from Glasgow fits nicely alongside recent Stark artist to watch, Mercy Arms. With beautiful melodies floating atop a shoegaze wall-of-sound, Glasvegas is able to capture a distinctly UK sound that manages to translate across the Atlantic. We're loving this recent resurgence of the Creation Records sound. If you're not familiar, Creation hosted a slew of classic 1980s indie-rock acts including Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream and My Bloody Valentine. In fact, Creation founder Alan McGee, helped Glasvegas rise in popularity by blogging about the band's MySpace demos.

Their self-titled debut comes out next week in Europe and was recorded in NYC by James Allan & Rich Costey (also worked with Franz Ferdinand, Interpol and Muse). Glasvegas received praise from NME by winning the 2008 NME 'Philip Hall Radar Award' for most promising new band.

They have two NYC shows coming up:
Oct. 1 @ Radio City opening for Echo & the Bunnymen
Oct. 4 @ the Mercury Lounge.
(The Merc show is sold out, and tickets for the Echo show run about $75 a pop. Ouch.)

Check out the video for their single "Geraldine"
Band Website

- Mike Bailey - Stark Contributing Writer

Stark Artist to Watch: Mercy Arms

Mercy Arms' self-titled and self-released debut came out 8/16 worldwide. The Sydney, Australia band has a sound that suggests the early days of Creation records – all noisy, fuzzy and highly melodic. On first listen, I felt like I'd discovered a lost Ride album (love for Andy Bell? Anyone…). The record was produced by fellow Australian Tony Cohen; Tony has produced fellow Aussie's The Birthday Party, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, and the Dirty Three. Mercy Arms have toured in their native land with The Pixies, The Strokes, Cut Copy, and Editors. Not bad company. Definitely a band to keep an eye out for when they come stateside. There's a host of Cut Copy remixes available on iTunes and their entire album is streaming on their myspace.

Check out the video for "Half Right" - it has the look and feel of those early Jesus & Mary Chain videos.

Band website

-Mike Bailey Stark Contributing Writer