New No Age: "C'mon Stimmung"

No Age's new album: An Object is due August 20th on Sub Pop.

Sonny and the Sunsets Move to Polyvinyl

Sonny & The Sunsets – Pretend You Love Me

Last week, Polyvinyl announced they had added the excellent Sonny & The Sunsets to their roster after the band parted ways with their previous label Sub Pop. In addition to the news of their new label home, came the announcement of their new album Longtime Companion (6/26) and a download of the track above, with pre-order. This is the band's best track in awhile. Enjoy.

Happy Valentines Day From Charli XCX

We've already flagged Charli XCX as one of our top artists to watch for 2012, behind her excellent two tracks "Stay Away" and "Nuclear Seasons." Today we get the little V-day nugget "Valentine." Charli is playing The Knitting Factory with the amazing Niki and The Dove on March 10. Both bands will be blowing up in Austin certainly.




ELSEWHERE:


[mp3] Niki and the Dove: "DJ Ease My Mind"

Their excellent EP 'The Drummer' is out now on Sub Pop. BUY

Blitzen Trapper Announce New Album

[mp3] Blitzen Trapper: "Black River Killer"

Press Release:

Sub Pop Records is proud to announce the new album from Blitzen Trapper entitled American Goldwing. Set for a September 13th release, American Goldwing is full of the introspective and striking storytelling that countless critics have fallen in love with. Beginning July 19th in Salt Lake City, Blitzen Trapper will head out on a North American headlining tour and introduce their new material to fans. Tour dates below and many more to be announced shortly.

With subjects ranging from fighting to falling in love, drug running with the good old boys and the final high school dance,American Goldwing is a freewheeling collection that balances the roughness of rock ‘n’ roll with fateful heartfelt loss. “It’s me trying to evoke a true American nostalgia” explains lead singer and songwriter Eric Earley.

He Gets Me High

[mp3] Dum Dum Girls: "He Gets Me High"

While admittedly ages old in the blog world (a month maybe?) we've been enjoying the hell out of this new Dum Dum Girls track "He Gets Me High." While we've never been one for the lo-fi girl group bandwagon, this song is just too good not to share with you all. It's certainly the best thing the Dum Dum Girls have ever written. The tune appears on the new Dum Dum Girls EP of the same name, that also features an extremely well done cover of The Smiths' "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" a bold venture to be sure. Pick it up now via Sub Pop. Thanks to Rollo for the mp3 host.

Bhang Bhang

[mp3] Dum Dum Girls: "Bhang Bhang, I'm a Burnout"

In honor of their doppelgangers (hereby known as the Smart Smart Girls) who crashed our little World Cup bar party yesterday with an impromptu bathroom break, pouty faces and wanna-be Janis Joplin sunglasses, we're posting this video by their far more talented superiors. Definitely our favorite track from their excellent Sub Pop debut I Will Be. See, again, the fidelity of the recording doesn't matter. Just write good songs.

Fruit Bats: 'The Ruminant Band'

[mp3] Fruit Bats: "The Ruminant Band"
[mp3] Fruit Bats: "My Unusual Friend"

It's not always possible to catch everything. The google reader is a tough beast to keep down, and forget about managing our inbox. Luckily, eMusic has a solid little relationship with Sub Pop, and has been running some quality features with the venerable indie on their homepage. This has allowed us to catch up on some missed Sub Pop releases - notably, The Fruit Bats excellent 2009 effort The Ruminant Band. It's a breezy country-pop affair, with lilting melodies and rock-solid songwriting. The Fruit Bats are the vehicle for songwriter Eric Johnson, who doubles as the guitarist in The Shins and Vetiver. While The Ruminant Band doesn't shift any paradigms or break any barriers, it's a quality acquisition, that we're more than happy we made.

'Destroyer of the Void' Cover Art

[mp3] Blitzen Trapper: "Heaven and Earth"

We recently wrote about how psyched we were for the new Blitzen Trapper record Destroyer of the Void (June 8, Sub Pop). Today we get the cover art, and it looks pretty much as westerny and amazing as we could've hoped. It's got CATTLE on it. Damn right.

Happy Birthday: "Girls FM"

[mp3] Happy Birthday: "Girls FM"

Gorilla vs. Bear hit it on the head with their post unveiling the new track from Happy Birthday's self titled debut. Sub Pop is indeed shaping up to have a stellar year in 2010. While having a solid 2009, oh-ten is shaping up to be a year rivaling 2008 which saw amazing debuts from Fleet Foxes and No Age among others. Just in the first half of 2010, Sub Pop is releasing the gorgeous new Beach House album, along with the debut from the Dum Dum Girls (Mar 30), the new Ruby Suns (Mar 2) and the gem of a record from the aforementioned Happy Birthday (March 16). Domination Schedule indeed.

Happy Birthday is the full 70s-pop influenced band from Kyle Thomas of King Tuff.

More Than a Few Things to Get Excited About

After watching two excellent American Masters episodes last night on Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye, we were depressed first off, but knew that we needed to post on the new Sharon Jones record I Learned the Hard Way coming out May 4th on Daptone Records, of course. The press release promises big things, and if it were anyone but Sharon, we wouldn't believe it.

The record drips with warmth and spontaneity rarely found since the golden days of Muscle Shoals and Stax. Sharon's raw power, rhythmic swagger, moaning soulfulness, and melodic command set her firmly alongside Tina Turner, James Brown, Mavis Staples, and Aretha as a fixture in the canon of soul music.

[mp3] Ben Sollee & Daniel Martin Moore: "Something, Somewhere, Sometime"

Vince caught word of Ben Sollee during his Nashville Scene tenure a few years ago. Ben has since made some good decisions, and partnered with Sub Pop's talented Daniel Martin Moore and producer Jim James (yeah that one) to record a stellar new record Dear Companion (Feb 16, Sub Pop). We say "good decisions" as Sollee's solo work showed flashes of Appalachian-style brilliance, but also tended to stray into dangerous Amos Lee territory. Dear Companion focuses on the former songwriting talents, especially as the album is a tribute of sorts to both artists' Kentucky home, and explores the awfulness that is mountaintop removal coal mining. A portion of the proceeds from Dear Companion will benefit Appalachian Voices, "an organization devoted to ending mountaintop removal and finding a better way forward."

Lastly, we have the cover for the new Dum Dum Girls record, which we've been spinning pretty incessantly since it's arrival yesterday afternoon. We caught the new Dum Dum's line-up during CMJ, and take it from us, the Vivian Girls have now become the poor man's Dum Dum Girls. I Will Be comes out March 30th on Sub Pop.

Un-released Nirvana Live mp3

[mp3] Nirvana: "Scoff"

How often does a blogger these days get to post on something new about Nirvana? While this un-released live mp3 for the song "Scoff" is sure to be all over the web today, who are we to not share it with our readers? It's hard not to get caught up in the legend of Nirvana and Cobain when listening to their music, but hearing Nirvana now reminds us of what a visceral raw emotional force this band was. They were real. They were passionate. It's these characteristics that have entered them into the annuals of history, not solely the tragic end to Cobain's life. A great place to start revisiting the band, is where it all began, with their debut Bleach. Sub Pop reissues the album on November 3rd, which comes with a complete live recording of a 1990 gig at Portland's Pine Street Theatre.

Sub Pop Signs Beach House!

[mp3] Beach House: "Master of None"

See, good things happen to good bands. Nothing more to say here other than congrats from Stark! Here are the details from their new label on what we can expect from the new Beach House record.

In July the band took a break from touring to head to upstate New York to record with Chris Coady at Dreamland Studios in Woodstock. They spent a solid month in solitude writing and recording in the church-converted-to-studio compound. What they emerged with is their greatest work to date! Beach House’s third album will be released on Sup Pop (and on Bella Union overseas) in early 2010...WE CAN'T WAIT.

Photo VIA

Now Streaming...

[mp3] Mt. Eerie: "Stones Throw"

Mount Eerie's Wind Poem (out 8/18 on P.W. Elverum & Sun) is now streaming at NPR

No Age's new EP Losing Feeling (out 10/6 digital and 12" on Sub Pop) is streaming now at Sub Pop. Pre-order the vinyl now and get it for the reduced price of $8; after October 6th it jumps to $10 and the MP3s will be $4.

 

Blitzen Trapper: New EP and Tour Dates

Our Furr-y, Blizten Trapper are ready to follow up their successful 2008 with a, hopefully successful 2009; to kick it off, a new EP, Black River Killer EP, which drops via Sub Pop on Aug.24. In true industry fashion, the band will then pack-up and ship- ut on a conglomeration of US tour dates. The EP will only be available at shows, so get off your ass and support the waning music industry. Keep us employed. Track list and tour dates after the f-ing jump.
Black River Killer:

01 Black River Killer
02 Silver Moon
03 Going Down
04 Shoulder Full of You
05 Preacher's Sister's Boy
06 Black Rock
07 Big Black Bird

Blitzen Trapper:

07-09 Sacramento, CA - Harlow's *
07-10 Visalia, CA - Cellar Door *
07-11 Santa Barbara, CA - Velvet Jones *
07-12 Hollywood, CA - Hollywood Bowl ^
07-13 Solana Beach, CA - Belly Up *
07-15 Aspen, CO - Belly Up Aspen
07-16 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater *
07-18 Iowa City, IA - Picador *
07-19 Chicago, IL - Pitchfork Music Festival
07-20 Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theater *
07-21 Fargo, ND - Aquarium (Dempsey’s Upstairs) *
07-23 Bozeman, MT - Filling Station
07-24 Boise, ID - Neurolux @
07-25 Kennewick, WA - Red Room #
07-30 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richard's on Richards
08-01 Mt. Scott, OR - Pickathon 2009
08-02 Mt. Scott, OR - Pickathon 2009
08-11 Helsinki, Finland - Tavastia Club
08-12 Oslo, Norway - Oya Natt Festival $
08-13 Gothenburg, Sweden - Way Out West Festival
08-15 Rees-Haldern, Germany - Haldern Festival
08-16 Utrecht, Netherlands - Ekko
08-17 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso
08-18 Liege, Belgium - L'Escalier
08-19 Antwerpen, Belgium - Bar Mondial
08-20 The Hague, Netherlands - Paard van Troje
08-23 Erfurt, Germany - Highfield Festival
08-25 London, England - Troxy ~
08-27 Dublin, Ireland - Vicar Street ~
08-28 Dublin, Ireland - Vicar Street ~
08-31 Belfast, Northern Ireland - Auntie Annie's
09-02 Corkn Ireland - Cyprus Avenue
09-03 Galway, Ireland - Roisin Dubh
09-06 Stradbally, Ireland - Electric Picnic
09-08 Glasgow, Scotland - O2 Academy +
09-09 Newcastle, England - Academy 2 +
09-11 Manchester, England - Apollo Manchester +
09-12 North Dorset, England - End of the Road Festival
09-13 Cardiff, Wales - Clwb Ifor Bach
09-14 London, England - Barfly
09-15 Luxembourg, Luxembourg - Den Atelier +
09-16 Paris, France - Grand Rex +
10-02 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits

* with Loch Lomond
^ with Jenny Lewis, Ray LaMontagne
@ with the Portland Cello Project
# with the Quiet Ones
$ with Andrew Bird
~ with Wilco
+ with Fleet Foxes

New Tiny Vipers mp3

[mp3] Tiny Vipers: "Dreamer"

Sub Pop's Tiny Vipers return on July 7th with Life on Earth, the sophomore record from Seattle's Jesy Fortino. Her debut record Hands Across the Void got some solid support from critics including larger outlets such as NPR and Pitchfork, but failed to reach the wider audience it deserved. Tiny Vipers are not always for casual listening. The track times tend to extend past your usual 4 minute mark and the lyrics are deep and filled with imagery. Fortino's dark and subtle acoustic based songs transcend a simple "folk" label and create their own genre in and of itself. Her voice is the center piece, holding you captive as it shifts, floats and moves. Check out the lead track "Dreamer" above. Tiny Vipers play New York on June 26th at Le Poisson Rouge. We'll be at Roadside Graves though.

No Age Keeps Busy, New EP and More

[mp3] Holy Fuck: "Lovely Allen" (No Age remix)

L.A. noise-punkers No Age, specifically Randy Randall on guitar and Dean Spunt on vocals/drums, are not for lack of work. Aside from readying to embark on a massive tour with Deerhunter and Dan Deacon (dates T.B.A.), No Age is preparing to release a still-untitled EP on Sub Pop later this fall. Randall and Spunt are ready to record a follow up to last year's highly acclaimed Nouns, which found its way on to many a Best Of 2008 list -- i.e. Paste, Rolling Stone, GVB, Vince's and Matt's. Reporting via P4K. Head there for more on No Age and their myriad of musical and theatrical pursuits. Also check out the Holy Fuck remix Matt posted yesterday above.

Shins Leave Sub-Pop

It seems the rumors are true, the Shins have indeed left Sub Pop. I actually dislike this news. Sub Pop has always been one of the good guys and the money they made off of the Shins helped them fund some great records that may not have seen the light of day otherwise. I'm all for bands making it on their own and jockeying "the system." I've just always considered Sub Pop outside of the real "industry-type" realm, and this just seems like an unnecessary blow to a good label. Of course, I could be wrong, and I'm sure that the Shins have their reasons for this, but I just don't feel like this is "happy" news to report. Via Pitchfork:

Some big news from Sub Pop: The Shins are no longer with the label. One of the world's biggest indie bands has parted ways with one of the world's biggest indie labels. A label rep says the band is working on new music, but they have no idea when it'll be out. It just won't be out on Sub Pop. More info when we get it.
As we reported yesterday, the Shins will tour in May.

Re-Release From Sub Pop's Red Red Meat

Who: Red Red Meat
Album: Bunny Gets Paid
Label: Sub Pop
MP3: "Gauze"
________
I find it a little odd that Sub Pop is giving Bunny Gets Paid the deluxe reissue treatment. Red Red Meat were a great band, but this album is hardly a starting point. I would recommend both its predecessors: 1994's Jimmywine Majestic and 1997's There's a Star Above the Manger Tonight. You need these before being steered toward Bunny Gets Paid.

This is still a good excuse to hype the band, who are a relatively unknown jewel in the Sub Pop catalog. Jimmywine Majestic is a lost classic of wonderful, Stones-influenced, ragged rock 'n' roll. Meanwhile, There's a Star Above the Manger Tonight, is wholly satisfying for it's experimentation and risk taking, offering a glimpse of what was to come when band members went on to form Califone.

Check out this mp3 above and then search out one of the aforementioned records. Sub Pop still gets the money no matter which of these records you buy... Make the right choice.
~Mike Bailey - Stark Contributing Writer

Vetiver -Tight Knit

Release Date: Feb. 17, 2009
Label: Sub Pop
MP3: "Everyday"
Rating: 92
____________

We are only Shortaking one album today; it just happens to be Vetiver's fourth album, Tight Knit. Andy Cabic & Co. teeter on perfection with this release. The album moves fluidly from each softly and masterfully crafted acoustic offering to the next. Certain albums, such as Fleet Foxes' 2008 debut, just feel elementally right; they are devoid of hiccups. They establish a mood and theme from song one, in Tight Knit's case, "Rolling Sea," and produce subtle variations with each tune thereafter. Vetiver have found the formula. Cabic's songwriting is safe, but intrinsic. From the ethereal "Down From Above," to the bouncing freshness of "On The Other Side," the album feels complete. Each song compliments the next in soothing fashion until the album's end. Best of 2009 lists?

Gold Soundz: Sunny Day Real Estate

Contributor Mike Bailey enjoys talking about records from yesteryear -- the 70's, 80's and 90's -- that influenced what's happening today. Thus, Gold Soundz was born. (Props to Pavement for the perfect name.) In this piece, Bailey takes a different seminal indie record every week and examines its significance and impact on the present.

Sunny Day Real Estate: Diary

(Sub Pop, 1994)

There was a time when "Emo" was not such a polluted word. Sure, bands didn't like the label anymore than Nirvana liked to be called grunge, but the terms gave focus to styles of music that also produced very dedicated social followings. Grunge gave us a flock of flannel wearing, unwashed youth, while emo gave us the precious indie rocker with skinny jeans, jagged haircuts and Morrissey crushes. (What, too pointed?)

For more thoughts on Diary and the "Seven" video, follow us after the jump.  

Two albums, released on the same day in 1994, are often cited as the spark that lit emo's flame; Weezer's "Blue" album, and Sunny Day Real Estate's Diary. Two short years after the release of these records we would see the debuts from Jimmy Eat World, The Promise Ring, The Get Up Kids as well as the formation of Vagrant Records - all tent poles for second generation emo (for the sake of argument we'll call Fugazi, Rites of Spring, etc. the first generation). This brand would reach it's commercial peak in the early '00's with albums from Jimmy Eat World and Dashboard Confessional before being reduced to what is left today, mainstream rock acts like Panic At The Disco and Fall Out Boy.

At the time of it's release, Diary seemed like a nice record that generated good underground buzz. The lyrical themes are introspective and faith leaning - singer Jeremy Enigk speaks softly alongside delicate verses before straining over big crescendos and powerful choruses. On repeated listens Diary reveals itself to be a sweeping, unguarded epic influenced by the overflowing complexity of prog-rock as well as the vulnerability of punk. The first three tracks alone are enough to satisfy; "Seven" and "In Circles" feel vital and seem to culminate within "Song About An Angel" as Enigk screams "Sometimes you see right through me…". Redemption feels near even as the characters continue their internal struggle.

And like that the spark was gone. The original line-up of the band released one more, semi-finished, record before bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith would leave to join The Foo Fighters. There would be two more records by various reincarnations of the band, but Sunny Day's influence would far outweigh their remaining output. Diary was their Rushmore and bands like Death Cab For Cutie, Rogue Wave and Bright Eyes have to mark it as a touchstone. It's a great record whose overall impact is often times clouded by it's many imitators, but fear not emo-phobes it has little in common with Pete Wentz and his mascara wearing cohorts.

- Contributing writer Mike Bailey