I, A Man – ‘The Scenic Route’

Stuff that lands in my inbox can be put into a few squares – hype bands, school bands, post break-up lead vocalists trying to make it solo, femme fatales donning peter pan collars or other feathery nonsense around their necks, DJs (everyone), MIDI chompers (everyone). Then there are bands like these guys, who make familiar things sound almost better than the originals.  But after listening to this track…are these guys Motor Ace or what? Not going to slip away all work of their accord (go over and enjoy the awesome drumming on previous EP Fiften Thirty Three here) but I hope they’ll appreciate the comparison. Perhaps that’s just some melancholy on my part pining for consecutive years from 2002 to 2005, but those were good years for Australian music. Anyway, all that melodic ambience and tangled up rhythm guitar catches me easily – so this track is top notch (by association) for me.

The guys are heading out on the road next month. Be sure to get along to one of their shows below:

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Add this track to the long list of your favourite Australian male/female collabs featuring everybody’s local musical heroes. Overseas charts and the general populace still aren’t bored of naked sulking and Wally painting triangles on everyone after a year, so I hope this will provide a bit more joy.

I was under the impression that the initialled psuedonym thing was reserved for science fiction writers or medical practioners but the former Middle East member is now releasing material under R.L Jones (although I always thought Rohin was a cool name). Since The Middle East disbanded, Jones has been spending time in Townsville and Sydney developing both new and older songs into a record expected early next year.

But back to the tune – Rohin and Adalita are way out from their familar sound here. Rohin’s gentle folk stylings have been replaced with something a little more confident. It’s got that bright, driving Ernest Ellis vibe to it and I’m really enjoying that huge, melodic riff cradling the intro. And even for the comforts of slight distortion, Adalita’s done away with the trademark drawls just for this and sounds unusually – but incredibly, sweet. ‘Feel good’ is a cheap description. But I do get the strange urge to hug someone after hearing this.

R.L Jones is playing this Friday 22nd June at Brisbane’s Old Museum with fellow former Middle East bandmates + Black Water Fever, Pete Cullen, John & Alexander and Dom Miller. Tickets here.

R.L Jones FB

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A sombre, but beautifully shot video from Melbourne’s Love Migrate.

Filmmaker Dylan Wiehan also made Mosman Alder‘s ‘Raisin Heart’ vid, so naturally all those vast expanses of sky and land play a big part in this. Some wonderful shots tracking both sunrise and sunset in the Macedon Ranges, but Wiehahn is definitely a details guy and gets that there’s a lot of brooding to be done here.

The track features on Love Migrate’s debut album released soon.

www.lovemigrate.bandcamp.com

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The world’s greatest mixtape is back. We’ve chosen a track from Seven Year Itch, but there are plenty of other amazing tracks from the other 34 countries worth a listen.

Click the play button icon to hear individual songs, right-click on the song title to download an mp3, or grab a zip file of the whole 35-track compilation over HERE. Happy (global) listening.

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Valle De Muñecas – Dos
Dos is our favorite track from Valle De Muñecas’ third album, La Autopista Corre Del Océano Hasta El Amanecer. This is their best work to date, with 10 songs that leave behind the folk-rock vibe of their 2007 effort, Folk, and return to their original rock and ballad-driven sound. You can listen to and download the whole album for free from Bandcamp.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Seven Year Itch – Ern Champion
This young Melbourne quartet have their obvious musical heroes done right up to the top polo button. Ern Champion takes the popular concept of four white guys making calypso and throws in some restless treble guitars, counter-beat drums and echoed vocals, all in the Surfer Blood/Vampire Weekend vein. Clean, twee surf pop at its best. If you’re in the northern hemisphere, make sure you drop this on your summer playlist.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Os Skrotes – Estupro Dos Cisnes
They look like three surfers from the city of Florianópolis, south Brazil, but when you listen to the sound of Skrotes (a deliberate wordplay on Strokes) you could get a real surprise. Their music goes through influences of progressive rock, 70s funk, dub, jazz, classical music and even punk rock. Estupro Dos Cisnes shows their progressive rock approach and some virtuosity in the use of synths.

CANADA: Quick Before It Melts
PS I Love You – Sentimental Dishes
The thing that sets PS I Love You apart from other guitar-and-drum-based duos is the combination of Paul Saulnier and Benjamin Nelson. There is an instinctive interchange between Saulnier’s fretwork and Nelson’s taut rhythms that doesn’t come from drill and practice. Theirs is a natural partnership that works to serve the song. And they play with such fervency on Sentimental Dishes that I’m overcome with the desire to air-drum every time I hear it.

CHILE: Super 45
La Golden Acapulco – Da La Beleza Dab
Ervalizer, Poli Jah and Dr Leinad make up the trio La Golden Acapulco. Through the use of machines and sound effects, the band have been experimenting with dub and Jamaican music, starting with the sonic expansion of reggae and its processed and remixed forms. Da La Beleza Dab is taken from their album Encuentra Las Joias Del Dub, available for free download here.

COLOMBIA: El Parlante Amarillo
Resina Lala – Mi Salto Mortal
When you hear the sound of Resina Lala there is little option but to move your feet and feel this contagious, addictive music. Their first release is called Influjos Plásticos, a six-track journey through experimentation in a genre they call post-nuclear visual punk. But better than their music is the live show, where lead singer Cristina is quite the performer.

DENMARK: All Scandinavian
Penny Police – As Long As You Watch My Heart
The purchase of an electric autoharp in 2009 was the beginning of what was to become Penny Police – the alias of singer and songwriter Marie Fjeldsted – and a lauded first album titled The Broken, The Beggar, The Thief (released in Denmark earlier this year), from which the excellent As Long As You Watch My Heart is offered here as a MAP exclusive download.

ENGLAND: The Guardian Music Blog
Alt-J – Fitzpleasure
This Cambridge four-piece have just released a debut album called An Awesome Wave that has received an awesome wave of glowing reviews for the band’s superb musicianship, excellent quirky songwriting and generally off-kilter approach to pop. Fitzpleasure – based on a chapter from Hubert Selby Jr’s book Last Exit To Brooklyn, so you already know this is going to be a notch or two above standard indie fare – is a typical example of what they do, in that it’s utterly unclassifiable, seemingly belonging as much to the world of dubstep as it does to folk.

FINLAND: Glue
Big Wave Riders – Waiting In The Wings
There’s no better summer song than this one. Big Wave Riders will deliver their long-awaited debut album at the end of the summer, but before that we can enjoy the refreshing first taste of it. Waiting In The Wings is two-and-a-half minutes of modern-day surf pop.

FRANCE: Yet You’re Fired
sHEPARD electrosoft in public garden – A Tribute
sHEPARD electrosoft in public garden studied classical music and played organ before he decided to break free from classical rules while making his first album, Chroma, to compose electronic tunes. Influenced by the likes of Air, The Chemical Brothers, Björk and Aphex Twin, sHEPARD makes dark, ambient tracks that slowly build up to a peak that makes you eager to hear the sequel, like a movement in a piece of classical music would do. A Tribute is an excerpt from his latest album of the same name, released this month.

GERMANY: Blogpartei
Ursprung – Kalte Eiche
German artists are finding nature again. Lots of bands have started to include organic sounds and noises in their acoustic or electronic music – you may call this ‘new kraut’, pun intended. The newest and perhaps most elaborate piece comes from Ursprung. The self-titled debut of Hendrik Weber, aka Pantha du Prince, and Stephan Abry, a member of Workshop, was released in May via Dial Records.

GREECE: Mouxlaloulouda
Psychedelic Trips To Death – Within My Head
With moments of breathing room and stripped melodies, Psychedelic Trips To Death delve into their psychedelic wall-of-sound identity and explore the conflict between noise and harmony. For all its familiarity and formula, debut single Within My Head sounds great. Here’s hoping they carve their own unique sound out more in the future. Their upcoming release, Malibou, is definitely something to mark on your calendar.

ICELAND: Rjóminn
Múgsefjun – Sendlingur Og Sandlóa
Sendlingur Og Sandlóa is a song about relationships in which one partner spends long periods of time away from home. The lyrics paint a fairytale picture of a sedentary bird (the sendlingur) who’s in love with a migratory bird (the sandlóa) and the cyclic shift of emotions he goes through each year as the couple is reunited and then separated again. This song is from the highly-anticipated sophomore album from Reykjavík-based Múgsefjun.

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After its Brisbane run, Eight Miles High Festival is bringing the convoy of delay pedals to Sydney and Melbourne this weekend.

We’ve got double passes to giveaway to both Syd + Melb shows. To win, email rsvp@whothehell.net with your contact details + show of choice (wig out story optional).

Also, some scuzzy goods from Buried Feather (who’ll be playing both shows) below.

Buried Feather – ‘In The Sun’

www.facebook.com/EightMilesHighFestival

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Here’s an exclusive stream of the latest release from Jimmy Hawk & The Endless Party, ‘Liberty Sunset Blue’. The album sounds like it’s been named after a betting horse, but from the get go of those cruisy hooks on ‘Heavy Feeling’ and the sunny jangle of ‘Meet Me At The Party’ to all the Abbey Road nods on ‘Taking a Ride Downtown’ – you’ll find all this downplayed do-wop becomes quite endearing very quickly.

Catch Jimmy Hawk & The Endless Party launch the LP on June 30th at The Toff with Gosteleradio and Brave Face.

‘Liberty Sunset Blue’ – Recorded in Los Angeles at Lone Palm Studios with Dan Horne (Ben Kweller, Beachwood Sparks, Frausdots) with additional tracks by Nao Anzai (Damo Suzuk) and Jim White.
Mastered by Peter Mew (David Bowie, Syd Barrett, Donovan) at Abbey Road, UK.

Jimmy Hawk & The Endless Party – New Album ‘Liberty Sunset Blue’ by FirstLoveRecords

More on Jimmy Hawk & The Endless Party here.

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