[on repeat] PERFECT by Fort Lean

Perfect
High Definition

Fort Lean is out of Brooklyn and channels the maturity and relaxed artistry of The Walkmen and the organic, old-fashioned rock and roll sounds that come with it, but they manage to bring enough jangle and anthemic brit-rock to provide the lift that brings it all together.  Those are ingredients that'll definitely catch my attention.  Their first EP

KELLIES by Tape Deck Mountain

Kellies
It Goes Down

San Diego's Tape Deck Mountain released their Secret Serf EP earlier this year on Lefse.  'Kellies' is a new single that isn't on the EP, but its catchy gritty, hypnotic psych sound deserves notice.  Right now it's only available on a limited cassette release sold on their tour.  You can grab a copy

BLANKET by Bachelorette

Blanket

New Zealand's Bachelorette (aka Annabel Alpers) released a new self-titled LP  May 17 on Drag City Records.  Check out one of the tunes off the record above and grab yourself a copy here.  Also, check out the video below for 'Her Rotating Head' from her 2009 release, My Electric Family.

ONE MORE FISH by The Happy Thoughts

One More Fish

A new release from the debut LP of Hozac Records' upstart The Happy Thoughts.  The song above is 'One More Fish,' and you can stream another tune from the record, 'Sweet Dirty Love,' below.  The sound is raw, it's innocent, and it bodes well for the rest of the album, which can be purchased here.

[on repeat] DANCING WITH A HOLE IN YOUR HEART by The Art Museums

Dancing With A Hole In Your Heart
Phone Calls, Prayers, or The Weather
Sculpture Gardens (previously on CWR)

The Art Museums released one of my favorite LPs from last year, Rough Frame, and they're back with the release of a new three track EP, 'Dancing With A Hole In Your Heart,' June 28 on Slumberland Records (pre-order).  If physical, tangible items aren't your thing you can download the whole

MAKE TIME by Cults

Make Time
Abducted

First off, stream the new Cults' album in its entirety over at NPR.  It sounds like some of the oldies have been tinkered with a bit, but it could just be past my bedtime.

Secondly, another Cults track, 'Make Time', has surfaced, but this one isn't on their debut LP to be released May 31 in

DISTRACTED by Terry Malts

Distracted
In The Waiting Room

This trio is out of San Francisco and they have a new 3-track single, I'm Neurotic, out on Slumberland Records.  For some reason, the trio maintains a low profile and don't play up the fact that all three of them are from another band (Magic Bullets).  They play a speedy style of pop that reminds me of Weekend with the grime and haze cleared away from the

YOU MAKE THE SUN FRY by Ty Segall

You Make The Sun Fry
Imaginary Person (from 2010's Melted)

Ty Segall has gotten plenty of love here during this blog's short life and I can't describe the excitement around the release of a new song, 'You Make The Sun Fry,' from his new LP, Goodbye Bread, out on June 21 (pre-order) on Drag City.  I'm sold on the album cover alone, but he's said that

EGYPTIAN MAGICIAN by Xray Eyeballs

Egyptian Magician
Kam Sing Nights

O.J. San Felipe went back and forth between San Francisco and Brooklyn (difficult choices?) before settling in Brooklyn in 2000 and establishing him in the garage pop party band Golden Triangle.  Xray Eyeballs started as a solo project in the vein of hazy, scuzzy and fuzz loaded lullabies.  A band was eventually recruited (members of Golden Triangle,

NEW DIRECTION by The Black Lips

New Direction
Modern Art

Black Lips have a new Mark Ronson produced album, Arabia Mountain, coming out June 7 on Vice Records (pre-order).  I was a bit skeptical about the collaboration with Ronson at first  since they pretty much come from complete opposite spectrums of the music world seeing that he has worked with artists like Duran Duran, Macy Gray, Robbie

TOKYO by California Wives

Tokyo
Purple

California Wives (4 guys from Chicago) create the easily accessible type of pop music that is surely to catch on if they continue to write tunes like their recent single 'Tokyo.'   It's a dreamy tune that can carry your mood for an entire day if you let it.  The single is a one-off, and they are currently writing for their next release.  You can listen to their other

USED TO BE by The Shivers

Used To Be
Just Didn't Need To Know (from 2009's In The Morning)

The Shivers sixth album, More, was released May 10 via Silence Breaks.  The veteran duo from Queens, NY, have said that this release would be a bit more eclectic than their low-key folk-focused previous efforts, and the first single off More, 'Used to Be', is exactly that.  It's an upbeat, varied

I AM RIGHT, YOU ARE WRONG by The Feeling Of Love

I Am Right, You Are Wrong
Numboy

The self-proclaimed 'Space Garage' outfit from France releases its third LP, Dissolve Me, this month from Kill Shaman Records.  The music is sinister, dark, and pulsing with post-punk vocals, rythmic tribal drums, and driving guitars lost behind a fog of pedal effects.  The repetitive,

OPEN RHYTHMS by Bodies of Water

Open Rhythms
Rise Up, Be Careful
Triplets

L.A.'s Bodies of Water are releasing their third full-length, Twist Again, on June 21 from their own Thousand Tongues label.  Last summer the band previewed 'Rise Up, Be Careful' from the album, which is an absolutely lovely song with Meredith's brooding vocals, a la Astrud Gilberto, backed

HEAR YOU CALL by Guards

Hear You Call
Don't Wake The Dead (previously on CWR)

The interweb has been abuzz the last week over the announcement of a new EP, (errrr, single?) from Guards released today on Kitsune.  Guards is headed by Richie Follin (brother to Madeline Follin of Cults) who released an abundantly pleasant self-titled EP last year (download for free), and is now following it up with the Resolution of One

I NEED SEED by Thee Oh Sees

I Need Seed
I Was Denied

A couple of weeks ago another prolific San Francisco psych-rock outfit (12 LPs, 5 EPs since '03) , Thee Oh Sees released the first single from their forthcoming album Castlemania (pre-order).  The double LP is the most studio-arranged of their many records. It contains 16 songs and comes out on June 14 on In the Red.  The band describes it

ABOUT TODAY by The National

About Today (From Cherry Tree EP)
John's Star (From The National) 
90-Mile Water Wall (From Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers)
Fake Empire (From The White Sessions)

I like to think the primary focus of this blog is to highlight some of the lesser known artists out there that are creating music worth sharing and checking out, but every once in a while you have to set aside the formula for something

ALL TOO HUMAN by Wax Idols

All Too Human
Bat Cave (feat. Hanoi Janes)

Lets keep going with the love for Hozac Records.  Next up is San Francisco's Wax Idols debut single, 'All Too Human' (buy).  The band is the creation of Heather Fedawa (formerly of Bare Wires and Hunx and His Punx, and currently of Blasted Canyons).   'All Too Human' was released by Hozac Records last month in anticipation of the release of the debut

[on repeat] AXE MAN by The Peoples Temple

Axe Man
Sons Of Stone

Easily one of my favorite record labels for the past couple of years, Hozac Records is putting out another garage, psych-rock gem in Lansing, Michigan's The Peoples Temple debut LP, Sons of Stone.  'Axe Man' assaults you in the type of way that keeps you coming back for more, and 'Sons Of Stone' leaves you with a gentle type of psych relic-ness

AF3458 by The Liminanas

AF3458
Je Ne Suis Pas Tres Drogue (previously on CWR)
She's On My Track by Les Bellas (previously on CWR)

I'm not sure why this one has been sitting in my inbox for so long because The Liminanas and their fuzzy 60's garage sound are definitely a favorite around these parts as I've discussed here more than once.  I guess this tune didn't come with news of a new LP release so it inadvertently sat on the backburner for a while, but don't let that give you an

THE KIDS ARE ALL GROWN UP by TV Colours

The Kids Are All Grown Up

Here's an Aussie band, that from what we can tell on their first release, is an amalgamated fury of raucous, sub 2-minute garage bliss.  TV Colours is actually a one man band that is the responsibility of Bobby Kill.  This single came out earlier this year on Dream Damage Records as a split with label mates Assassins 88.  An album is set to come out this year.

[Myspace | Dream Damage]