Cabins – ‘Catcher In The Rye’ (Demo)

With this song, Sydney’s Cabins have delved into some infectious, psychedelia-inspired pop. The bass-line and lead guitar interlock into a dark groove that drives the song, which is rounded out by a lazy beat, equally lazy vocals and a piano hook. This is promising stuff and the fact that it’s a demo hardly let’s the song down – in fact, I truly hope the album/EP/7″ version (whatever they have planned) retains the loose feeling of the above, although the song displays enough punk sensibility that I shouldn’t second guess these guys just yet.

Also, they’ll be playing support to The Scare on their forthcoming album launch tour. Check the MySpace for details. Should be a good show.

www.myspace.com/cabinsband

Midnight Juggernauts – ‘This New Technology’

The Juggies are back with a rather different sound to what we heard from them last; pychedelic rock. This is the first taster of their 2nd album, expected early 2010. If you wanna hear the rest, you’ll have to attend one of their concerts below:

Midnight Juggernauts: ‘This New Technology’ National Tour

Saturday 31 October, The Capitol, Perth
Thursday 5 November, Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle
Friday 6 November, The Metro Theatre, Sydney
Saturday 7 November, Waves, Wollongong
Friday 13 November, Billboard, Melbourne
Saturday 14 November, Pier Live, Frankston
Friday 20 November, Hi Fi, Brisbane
Saturday 21 November,Trackside, Canberra
Friday 27 November, The Gov, Adelaide

www.myspace.com/midnightjuggernauts

Was just told about these guys today. Holy shit they are great. This song is the boss and their film clip shows that having no budget doesn’t mean you can’t do some fancy stuff.

Yes, that 6/8 time signature, those multi-tracked vocals and harmonies all make them sound like Grizzly Bear/Animal Collective, but that’s hardly a bad thing. I’m officially excited about these guys.

Get on this. Now.

www.myspace.com/ohyedenverbirds

The Peep Tempel – ‘Thank You Machiavelli’

‘Thank You Machiavelli’ is a meaty slice of indie-punk from this duo (which I assume consists of drums and guitars, but this is unconfirmed). Either way, you know those duos that just sort of rock out. DZ comes to mind, but judging from the above photo The Peep Tempel have quite a few years on those lads. This is loud and boisterous with plenty of shouting, cymbals and distortion. With a  decent tune and enough energy it’s hard to completely fuck up this genre, but The Peep Tempel go one further and deliver a playful, vibrant performance of the song.

www.myspace.com/peeptempel

Joysticks – ‘Purple Berries’ (Demo)

I was only just the other day introduced to the joy of Joysticks, but I know Jerry’s been a fan for a while. They’ve sent through their latest demo and it’s another promising sign for the young band. ‘Purple Berries’ is a bit rough and sparse in this form, but the song’s minimalist bass-line and barely-there beat lends itself to such an aesthetic. The sweet backing vox are a fun, but the intentionally sloppy acoustic non-solo is a personal highlight here. It has the right things in the right places and makes for a fun listen.

www.myspace.com/joysticksmusic

Steering By Stars – ‘Closer’

I don’t know much about these guys except that they’re seemingly from Adelaide and have at least one really beautiful track in the vein of recent Decoder Ring. After a frantic opening, ‘Closer’ morphs into a contemplative, piano-led number that doesn’t just hinge its success as a post-rock composition on a predictable, impending crescendo, but actually turns the ‘calm before the storm’ into something of a storm itself.

Apparently they’ll also have an album out by the end before relocating to Iceland (NB: the latter is still unconfirmed, but would definitely add cred).

www.myspace.com/steeringbystars

COMPANY HOUNDS from Papa Vs Pretty on Vimeo.