GONE FISHING 'til Aug. 15

Fade And Then Return
The Tide Pulls From The Moon

Hey folks, I'll be out of town and unable to post for the next couple of weeks, but things will return back to normal starting up again on the week of August 15th.  Until then, I'll leave you with a couple of tracks from the latest electronic tinged folk LP from William Fitzsimmons called Gold In The Shadow, and released on Nettwerk Records released on March 22.  Fans of Nick Drake and Iron & Wine will definitely appreciate the whisked vocals,

WHATEVER LEADS ME TO YOU by Geoffrey O'Connor

Whatever Leads Me To You
Now And Then

Some seriously smooth, romanticized 80s pop from the guy that really knows how to do it right...Geoffrey O'Connor...the frontman for the Crayon Fields, which is the band that put out that orchestral pop gem, All The Pleasures Of The World, in 2009.  His previous solo LP was under the moniker of Sly Hats, but his new solo LP, Vanity Is Forever, will carry his own name and from the sounds of the first single, 'Whatever Leads Me To

WISH YOU WERE DEAD by Lip Color

Wish You Were Dead
The Plan

Lip Color have put together some shimmering, summer pop tunes on their self-titled 3-track EP that is available for free download at their Bandcamp.  I couldn't find much information about them other than that they are from San Diego so today you'll just have to settle for the two tracks above and the EP over at their Bandcamp.

[Bandcamp]

AIN'T NO DUMBO by Night Beats

Ain't No Dumbo
Dial 666

Today's tunes are from Seattle's (via Texas) Night Beats.  They put an EP, H-Bomb 7, last year and followed it up with a self-titled full-length that came out on June 28 (buy).  Both releases come from the wonderful Trouble In Mind Records.  Their sound is what you'd expect from Texas origins...it's raw, lean garage loaded with enough blues rock, wailing vocals, and screeching guitars to set them apart from the other psych garage bands out there and

VALUE LINES by Brilliant Colors

Value Lines
Back To The Tricks

Brilliant Colors are a female trio out of San Francisco that plays the kind of sugary, fuzzy, pop that I'm sure you've heard before, but nevertheless, the catchy, dreamy fun of it shouldn't be missed.  Their 2nd LP, Again And Again, was released digitally and on CD July 19 on Slumberland Records (buy).  Mail order copies of the vinyl come in pink/blue swirl to match the candy sweetness of their sound.  If you enjoy these two tracks from the

APATHY by Mikal Cronin

Apathy
I Wear Black (w/ Ty Segall from Reverse Shark Attack)

Mikal Cronin isn't exactly a household name to most, but I think that might be changing.  He released an LP in 2009,  Reverse Shark Attack, with Ty Segall and the two of them have toured endlessly together and have had a number of other

COME ON OVER by Veronica Falls

Come On Over
Found Love In A Graveyard (previously on CWR)

It's been a pretty busy few days as far as song teasers go for upcoming LP releases.  If you've spent any time on other music blogs this week you've undoubtedly seen/heard the two really great tracks put out from M83 and Girls.  Today Veronica Falls also offered up the closing track from their debut LP to be released September 20 on

MIKELAH by Superhumanoids

Mikelah
Persona (previously on CWR)

LA's Superhumanoids are following up last years great 8-track Urgency EP,  and this year's 4-track Parasite Paradise EP with a 7" single from the White Iris label (buy).  Enjoy the swirling synths and pop melody of the new tune along with one from last year's release.  They're playing a free show at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs on July 23, and are part of the lineup at the Pacific Festival: OC in Irvine on August 13 (tickets).

[on repeat] TRUMPETS OF DEATH by Kids On A Crime Spree

Trumpets Of Death
It's In My Blood


The bay area's Kids On A Crime Spree take a page out of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart way of doing things, which means they create some fun, sensible pop that blends elements of early 60's, and 70's glam with a vigorous wall of sound behind it.  Having said that, it isn't going to blow you away or leave you with any sort of life changing moment other than an extremely joyous listening experience

[on repeat] LAZY BONES by Wooden Shjips

Lazy Bones
Home

Dial 666 (by Night Beats)

San Francisco and psychedelia go hand in hand, and SF's Wooden Shjips (prounounced 'shyips') have been perfecting this blend since 2006.  On their latest single, 'Lazy Bones,' the 4-piece puts a bit more kick in their signature fuzzy drone to some wonderful results.  The song features a steady, consistent groove that is backed with some space age keyboards that you can ride like a distorted

[on repeat] FFUNNY FFRENDS by Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Ffunny Ffrends
How Can U Luv Me

Unknown Mortal Orchestra was conceived as a on-man project in New Zealand, but its originator has relocated to Portland.  HE has grown from an anonymous song on Bandcamp to a self-titled debut LP released June 21 on Fat Possum Records and the formation a full band for a tour.  As a whole, this record manages to integrate a pretty diverse group of sounds.  The LP is a journey in genre jumping that takes you from break-beats, to 60s Beatle-esque nostalgic harmonies, to soul, and over

IT'S REAL by Real Estate

It's Real

Out Of Tune

Definitely a favorite around here, Real Estate, just announced news of the release of their second LP.  The record will be titled Days and it will be available Oct. 18 on their new label Domino Records.  Along with the announcement the New Jersey (now Brooklyn) boys offered up a new tune off the

STACY by Sore Eros

Stacy
Giraffe's Kiss

Sore Eros started out as a one man operation, but for his second LP, Know Touching, released in January, he enlisted a friend to collaborate, eventually putting together a full band.  The sound blurs the lines between folk and hazy electronica and the new single, 'Stacy,' is off a mini-album called Just Fuzz released June 28th from Blackburn Records.  The song starts off slowly in a far off place, but quickly goes into its very pleasant melody and vocals before becoming all warbled up

HOME by Top Surprise

Home
Saturn (The Season)

Top Surprise are a noise pop band out of Brazil who released their debut EP, Everything Must Go, on cassette via Pug Records last year.  It's all sold out, but you can still download it for free at the band's Bandcamp.  It was produced by their fellow Brazilian, Le Almeida, who has been featured on here before and whose LP I'm also currently enjoying the hell out of.  Top Surprise plays scuzzy 90's rock the right way and has a new single out (buy) that features two songs from the EP.  Check

NERVE POP by Small Reactions

Nerve Pop
Cult Hero Jonathan Lewin

Check out this Atlanta foursome's new single, 'Nerve Pop,' set to be released on August 7.  It's full of surfy jangle that shows these guys can write a pop tune.  Keep an eye out for the 7" at your local record shop.  Pick up their first single, 'Cult Hero Jonathan Lewin,' for free at their Bandcamp.  If you're looking for a physical copy of 'Cult Hero' you can grab one here. 

[on repeat] THE DOWN by Hypocrite In A Hippy Crypt

The Down

Town Crazies (previously on CWR)

The last time I posted about Hypocrite In A Hippy Crypt I only had the three songs that are available on the band's Bandcamp to work with.  Those tunes alone were enough to catch my interest and that's what I expressed on the post.  Since then, I've been able to to get a hold of a copy of the whole debut LP Tweaker In The Park (buy) and my enjoyment of his songwriting abilities has grown even more.  The rest of the LP follows along in the same simplistic sound

PIZZA PASTA by Night Manager

Pizza Pasta
Blackout Sex

New York's (i.e. Brooklyn) scuzz, surf enthusiasts, Night Manager, released the new 3-song 7" for the single 'Pizza Pasta' yesterday on Fire Talk Records.  Pick up a copy of this one here because it's sure to sell out.  The band is known for being a bit more on the thrashy side, but this single chills it out a bit and definitely brings the Best Coast-y vocals to the forefront, which are the opposite of the

ICE WHARF by Work Drugs

Ice Wharf
Rad Racer

Work Drugs is a soothing group out of Philadelphia that in their words makes "music specifically for dancing, boating, yachting, sexting, and living." The band is made up of Benjamin Louisiana and Thomas Crystal (with the occasionally added gorgeous vocals of Joan Wellfleet. They released a Smooth-P (as opposed to an EP) June 24th on their Bandcamp, which features the track 'Ice Wharf' and some live recordings from a San Francisco show. Be sure to visit their Bandcamp to listen (and buy)