everythingwehear

I guess the hardest part of being in indie rock outfit, Little Casino, is figuring out a way to contain the abundance of energy that seems ready to burst through every guitar splashing, pop-infused track that the relative newcomers bring to the table.  After forming in 2010, the Brisbane quintent released a self-titled five song EP and have now released a trio of tunes off an upcoming record, keeping consistent with their sunny, beach inspired melodies, crackling drums, and earnest lyrical explorations.

Best Tracks:

Golden Shadow is swimming in reverberated guitars and swings quickly into sweeping choruses that make the blood rush to your head.

Bow and Arrows has a big Cali surfer guitar hook to open the track but maintains a smooth pace due to lead singer, Ben Forbes’ polished, earnest ruminations.

Parks has a snappier beat, sharper guitars and soaring harmonies which, when put together, translate into an intangible sense of limitless possibilities.

When & Where:

If iPods were waterproof, you’d need to learn to surf so the hooks and colossal guitars crash over you as the perfect wave curls around you.

Golden Shadow

.

Bow and Arrows

.

Parks

.

Check them out here

Or on Facebook

Buy their EP here

Download Golden Shadow, Bow and Arrows, and Parks for free here

Most pop music is a paint by numbers affair, which is why Slipping by The Stationary Stationery caught my attention.  This quirky single by the even quirkier trio (Terrance Lurve, Fozzi, and Moonie Moonie) knows better than to take itself seriously.  The lyrics are playful, the harmonies have a youthful carelessness, and the delivery sometimes seems to be playing catchup to the beat.  With snapping snare drums and twinkling piano keys scattered in the background, Slipping is an infectious track that will catch you off guard but lift you back up.

Check them out and download Slipping for free here

Or check them out on Facebook

Sometimes you discover a band and it makes you feel like you’ve discovered electricity. That’s how I felt when I stumbled upon The Rubens, a four piece rock outfit from Sydney, Australia.  Consisting of three brothers and their childhood friend, The Rubens make gritty rock tracks sporting serious blues melodies layered with scruffy guitars and enough soul to make Aretha swoon.  The quartet’s first single, Lay It Down, garnered serious attention in 2011 and they just released Don’t Ever Want To Be Found, the first single off the debut album which just finished recording in the States.  I searched far and wide and bring you the only tracks I could find.  Let the countdown for the new album begin….now.

Best Tracks:

All of ‘em…

Don’t Ever Want To Be Found

.

Lay It Down

.

My Gun

.

Cowboy Song

When and Where:

When? Any time you wanna feel like a badass.  Where? If you feel like a badass, then where ever you damn well please.

Check them out here

Or on Facebook

Buy Don’t Ever Want To Be Found here

Download Lay It Down and Cowboy Song for free here

Download My Gun for free here

Brooklyn is not so much a borough of NYC but a factory that churns out indie pop gems, none shinier than Field Mouse.  This Brooklyn-based quartet has been trickling out singles since forming in 2010 but recently released the dreamy, reverb-heavy You Guys Are Gonna Wake Up My Mom.  Yes, the title is a bit long, but you’ll come to terms with it once you are warmed by the fuzzy guitars and lead singer, Rachel Browne’s pensive lyrical declarations.  Enjoy.

 
Check them out here

Or on Facebook

Buy the single here

While there is justification in being wary of a rock band which spouts lyrics with a hip-hop delivery, you can put your concerns to bed with I’m Sorry…the EP from emerging Cali-based indie group, The Neighbourhood.  A marriage of rap inspired vocals and rock-based melodies, and maybe an affair with blues and R&B infected choruses for good measure, I’m Sorry…has nothing to apologize for.  Listening to the bass heavy tracks which are groovier than a rock song has any right to be, you get a sense that we’ve only scratched the surface of this multi-genre embracing band’s complexity and promise.

Best Tracks:

Sweater Weather is the song that brought initial attention to The Neighbourhood and is the primary example of lead singer Jesse James Rutherford’s hip-hop influences as he lays out each verse perfectly on and off beat.

Female Robbery starts with some oddly placed screaming but turns into a smooth, subdued track with ominous tones as chants of “We’re gonna die” echo throughout the second half of the song.

Leaving Tonight shows that Rutherford is a legitimate vocalist and that the band can create songs with depth and restraint.

When & Where:

There is a hint of darkness and sense of isolation to this EP which makes you want to stand on top of a building at night and stare over a city, wondering what private (and maybe disturbing) activities are taking place behind the glowing window of each apartment.

Sweater Weather

Female Roberry

Leaving Tonight

Check them here

Or on Facebook

Buy their EP here or download for free (legally) here

Seriously, Mother of Pearl by Silver Swans has to be the sweetest little track I’ve heard in a while.  Even though Mother of Pearl, off of the San Fran-based duo’s 2012 sophomore album, Forever, is a slick, electronic, 80s inspired tune, it’s still unusually endearing and innocent.   Maybe it’s the way Anna Yu hypnotically exhales high school crush lyrics, “And I will lay my eyes on you…” or maybe the way the song never crescendos but remains consistently relaxed with twilight-inspired sounds echoing in the background.  Maybe you should just hear for yourself.  Enjoy.

Check them on Facebook

Buy Mother of Pearl here

Dry the River‘s debut album, Shallow Bed,  is an easy sell.  It’s filled with warm, campfire sing-a-longs that start slow but consistently build towards boisterous, celebratory choruses.  Dry the River released Shallow Bed on April 17, 2012 and has been compared to Fleet Foxes and Mumford & Sons…which is definitely not the worst thing in the world.  Shallow Bed is a rustic record that embraces the band’s indie folk roots and showcases delicate, full harmonies, sweeping violins and subtle country influences.  

Best Tracks:

New Ceremony is the embodiment of the tone of the album.  While starting with an overwhelming sentimentality, just hold tight until the 1:32 mark, trust me.  The intensity of the chorus can’t help but consume you.

Man, No Rest is an emotional powerhouse of a song.  It starts off gently, but is leveled with an overwhelming feeling of love and desperation as lead singer, Peter Liddle, croons with a trembling fragility that makes you think at any point, his voice will shatter under the weight of emotion.

Another highlight of the album is the charming, familiar feeling Bible Belt.  A sad, carefully crafted melody, Bible Belt proves that Dry the River can pull you in with gentle verses as much as it does with its dynamic choruses.

When & Where:

Shallow Bed is versatile in that it can be played at any time, and emotionally, under any condition.  If I didn’t hate the outdoors, I’d play this in the middle of the woods, around a bonfire with a group of friends.  However, the album is just as good with friends in my apartment surrounding a hot, rusty, old radiator.

New Ceremony

No Rest

Bible Belt

Check them out here

Or on Facebook

Buy Shallow Bed here

Once spring is in the air, I can’t control this growing affinity for carefree, feel good music.  Enter Cincinatti natives Crown.  I know very little about indie rock/pop group Crown, except that their EP, Red, comes out on June 12, 2012, and that their first single, I Need You, is a catchy teaser for what’s in store.  I Need You gets its charm from the echoing guitars which have a sticky, tropical feel and lead singer, John Vaughn, who occasionally breaks into disarming falsettos.  Enjoy.

Check them on Facebook

Download I Need You for free here

Seriously, something must be in the water in Australia.  Every time I search for new music, I always find a great band from Down Under.  Add Melbourne’s Bayou to the list.  The shoegaze, indie pop quintet materialized in 2011 and released their self-titled EP on March 1, 2012.  Bayou’s debut EP is made up of four hazy, haunting tracks with soothing female harmonies, restrained drums and subtle yet affecting melodies.

Best Tracks:

Every song on this EP deserves your attention.

Leader of the Pack is an eerie track with the female band members swooning in the background until the song becomes dirty and aggressive once the splashing cymbals and thumping drums take over.

Get Got starts with a lazy bass guitar and transforms into an almost psychedelic track with a sharper, expansive lead guitar and a rhythmic bass drum.

Gentle Man has less of an ominous appeal and more of a bittersweet, yearning vibe than the other tracks on the EP utilizing powerful transitions that lead into and support the chorus.

No Man is an Island is a relaxed love song utilizing soft acoustic guitars and stirring lyrics.  They say that no man is an island, but if you were I’d be the ocean.  When my waves come rolling, you’re in the way.  

When & Where:

This EP is perfect for those all too common times when you are slowly floating down a river with nothing around but marshes, fog, and the unnerving sounds of unidentified animals in the distance.

Check them out on Facebook

Download the EP for free (or for a donation) here

I thought I had uncovered this incredible unknown Norwegian pop singer when I stumbled upon Mr. Little Jeans, a.k.a Monica Birkenes.  My ego was brought down a few notches when I found her on Facebook over 12,000 friends deep, and with good reason.  Birkenes hasn’t released an album yet but has put out a few singles which have been the subject of multiple indie DJ remixes…some of them are actually pretty good.  Birkenes’s music is complex in production and balances darker and lighter melodies with her clean, relaxed singing style.  For your listening pleasure, check out the fun, synth heavy Rescue Song remix and the thicker, more ominous Suburbs.  Enjoy.

Rescue Song (RAC Remix)

Suburbs

Check Mr. Little Jeans on Facebook

Or Myspace

Buy everything she’s got here