BIG NEWS

Yo yo yo

Sorry (to all 8 of you) I haven't posted in so long, but that's all about to change! Well, kinda. I wont be posting here, but on the awesome blog www.ohhcrapp.net !

CHECK THAT SHIT OUT!!!!!!!!!

-Curtis

Jai Paul

Whoa. I don't even know what to say. There isn't anything to say. This guy has one song so far. (He actually has more on his MySpace). And....well, seriously, just listen.

Jai Paul - BTSTU

And check out his sick remix of Icelandic singer Emilíana Torrini's "Jungle Drum":

Emilíana Torrini - Jungle Drum (Jai Paul Remix)

Dream Cop

Dream Cop, aka Tommy Davidson, hails from Blacksburg, Virginia, the same small town that brought us Wild Nothing. Not much music of his exists yet, but he has two releases scheduled to drop sometime in late August. The first song I have up is "Beach City / Carol I Know." This is definitely my favorite of the bunch, and definitely the best "remix" I've heard in a while. It's based around samples from the Beach Boys' "That's Not Me" and "Caroline, No," and creates a dreamy electronic composition that almost reaches the epic beauty of the original two songs. The Beach Boys are my favorite band, so I was skeptical when I heard the concept of the song (especially after that crap Bullion released), but it's executed flawlessly. The rest of the songs are originals, featuring shoegaze-y guitars and synths and Tommy's faint, whisper-like voice that brings to mind early Yo La Tengo. This guy's on to something.

Dream Cop - Beach City / Carol I Know

Dream Cop - Daily Mirage

Dream Cop - Basement Tapes

Dream Cop - Marooned

jj- ceo birthday

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but the wait was worth it if you haven't heard this song yet. This is Swedish pop outfit jj's half-cover of Jeremiah's "Birthday Sex." I say half-cover because the lyrics have (mostly) been changed, and the phrase "birthday sex" is never actually sang. But jj take the goofy hit song and surround it twinkling pianos, swelling strings, and Elin Kastlander's amazing voice (which has never sounded better), showing us new depths to the song none of us would ever have thought existed. This is definitely one of my favorite songs of the year. And speaking of my favorites of the year, be sure to check out jj's new album, jj n° 3.

jj- ceo birthday

Dirty Beaches

Dirty Beaches is Montreal resident (via California/Hawaii/China) Alex Zhang Hungtai. Dirty Beaches recalls Elvis Presley barely coming through late at night in between AM radio stations. Beautiful, haunting, and nostalgic for decades past, this is some really eerie and original music. Check out the new video for his new song, True Blue (I can't get enough of this song right now):

Here's an mp3 of the song, although it's not very good quality:

Dirty Beaches- True Blue

Here's another awesome song:

Dirty Beaches- Black Horses Take 1

And here's an EP he released last year on Night People Records. A lot less rock n roll then the latter two songs, this release is much more sparse, but equally as haunting:

Dirty Beaches- C22

Former Ghosts

Well, here's another dark, gloomy, electronic, post-punk-y supergroup featuring a Xiu Xiu member! Former Ghosts are the brainchild of Freddy Ruppert, formerly the one-man-band This Song is a Mess But So Am I. The band also consists of Xiu Xiu main man Jamie Stewart, Nika Roza of Zola Jesus, and Yasmine Kittles of witch house outfit TEARIST. Like the aforementioned acts, this stuff is dark, dense, and full of emotion.

Former Ghosts- Us and Now

Former Ghosts- Hold On

Former Ghosts- Mother

Former Ghosts- Dreams

Former Ghosts- The Bull And The Ram

Wu Lyf

Here's a Manchester band that no one seems to know too much about. All that's known is that Wu Lyf statnds for "World Unite - Lucifer Youth Foundation." Their website just adds to the mystery. They make a strange brand of soulful lo-fi music that they describe themselves as "heavy pop." They've been compared to two favorites of mine, Spiritualized and Swans, but I'm not sure I'd agree. Maybe if a young Tom Waits was the frontman. I don't really know how to put this sound to words actually- just have a listen yourselves:

Wu Lyf- Heavy Pop

Wu Lyf- Concrete Gold

Wu Lyf- Such a Sad Puppy Dog

Suicide

Suicide are a band from the late 70s who are way more influential to the music that you listen to than you know. They emerged in the punk scene of Manhattan's Lower East Side in the late 70s, and are precursors to the city's famous no wave scene. Unlike typical punk rock of the time, they made all of their music with organs, synths, and drum machines, creating a spare, minimal, and dark sound. Traces of Suicide's sound can be heard in punk, noise, electronic, and industrial music of the 80s, 90s, and today. Their first album is really amazing, so here it is:

Suicide- First Album

No Joy - No Summer

Blissed out, sunny shoegaze from female LA/Montreal duo. Perfect for the summer daze and afternoons.

No Joy - No Summer

Another song is up on nojoy.bandcamp.com

Witch House?

So apparently there's a new, emerging genre called "witch house." What is it exactly? It's hard to say, considering most of the bands in this genre don't even sound that much alike. Think chillwave meets Twin Peaks meets Marble Index-era Nico. Hip hop beats, dark synths, and creepy samples. Also, apparently bands in this genre like names that can't be pronounced, like †‡†, ///▲▲▲\\\, ℑ⊇≥◊≤⊆ℜ, and Gr†LLGR†LL. Despite how bizarre that all is, there's actually some pretty cool music in the "genre."

Is "witch house" a real genre?

Is it the next chillwave?

You decide.

So, here ya go, a witch house playlist (**=my favorite):

Modern Witch- Not the Only One

Modern Witch- Can't Live in a Living Room

Silent Diane- Harmonikai **

Silent Diane- RiverSide **

Silent Diane- Juliet the Painting **

oOoOO- Hearts

oOoOO- seaww

oOoOO- Nosummr4u **

Balam Acab- See Birds

Balam Acab- Heavy Living Things **

///▲▲▲\\\-Spit Shine

Twin Sister

Twin Sister from Long Island, NY make hazy, nostalgic indie pop that's equal parts melancholy and funky. They're fresh off a tour with Xiu Xiu and are hitting the road this summer as well. They have two EPs out, Color Your Life and Vampires with Dreaming Kids. This is the next big thing! Listen!

From Color Your Life:

Twin Sister- Lady Daydream

Twin Sister- All Around and Away We Go

From Vampires and Dreaming Kids:

Twin Sister- Nectarine

Twin Sister- I Want a House

How to Dress Well

How to Dress Well, based in Brooklyn/Cologne, Germany, makes blurry, magical "below-fi" RnB songs with occasional collaborator cokc dokc. Not much else is known about him except that this is some of the weirdest/most interesting/best music I've heard in a long time. He somehow bridges the gap between Mount Eerie and The-Dream. He released 7 EPs last year, all within a couple of months, which can be downloaded for free or purchased over at his blog.

Here's a couple songs spanning his catalogue:

How to Dress Well- Ready for the World

How to Dress Well- Suicide Dream 2

How to Dress Well- My Body

How to Dress Well- Decisions feat. yüksel arslan

Ava Luna- Past the Barbary

These guys could be huge. Like The White Stripes meet Dirty Projectors.

Ava Luna - Past the Barbary

Cold Cave- Life Magazine

An unlikely team of noisician Prurient, an ex-Xiu Xiu member, and the singer of hardcore bands Give Up the Ghost and Some Girls make a synthpop masterpiece. Can't get this thing out of my head.

Cold Cave- Life Magazine

Security guard pulls Kurt's hair, Kurt hits security guard in the face with his guitar, security guard beats on Kurt, Dave Grohl leaps through a drum kit to the rescue.

Animation by Vince Collins

Music by Lewis Motisher.

Kitchens of Distinction- Drive That Fast

Rad dream pop/shoegaze band from the late 80s/early 90s.

1991.