Phondupe – ‘Aviary West’ (mp3)

A great debut number from new electronic outfit Phondupe out of Sydney.

The cut and paste beats in the intro set the pared-back pace for the rest of the tune. There’s a bare-bones aesthetic about this track; everything from the spurts of jazzy piano to the glitchy, ambient fades are used sparingly. I find a lot of vocals from acts in this category a bit weak and underwhelming, or overcompensated by smattering everything in reverb and looping –  so this is refreshing to hear.
The guys are currently working on a series of releases, collaborating with artists from Ireland, Italy and New York.

Nice production vals here, keeping my eye on this duo.

www.facebook.com/phondupe

www.soundcloud.com/phondupe

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The Harpoons – ‘Keep You Around’ (mp3)

These guys! Used to get along to Harpoons shows when I was still back at school. They put out an EP a while back and have been gigging on and off for the last few years, but I nearly forgot about them until this dapper tune was swung my way.  The four piece recently jumped onto the Two Bright Lakes bandwagon (Martin of label buddies Oscar & Martin also plays here). Nick Huggins has been working with the band on their debut record, which is due for release in 2012.

Loving the 60’s philly soul vibe happening here. Bec Rigby’s vox and that bassline makes for a pretty sweet groove. If this is anything to go by, word of the new record is hella good news.

The Harpoons will be playing a few shows with with Dick Diver in Nov, as well as Sugar Mountain Festival in January – see full dates below.

Harpoons FB

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The Rubens – ‘Lay It Down’

Digging this smooth Auerbach style tune in the key of CROON from this Sydney four piece. Some great bluesy drawls and lazy instrumentals going on. I’m picturing this as one of of those tracks the bar dude secretly pours his heart out to when he’s mopping up broken glass at closing time. Considering they’ve only been jamming since Feb, this is pretty decent. The guys haven’t put out a proper release yet, however a few international stations have been vibing on this tune lately so I’d definitely be keeping an eye out here.

The Rubens are playing next Friday (28th Oct) for Mum’s 4th Birthday at World Bar.

Rubens FB

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(mp3)

BKC’s newie is essentially an American Apparel advert with enough turquoise hair and holographic cats to service a Waaves fan’s wet dream. Yeah yeah…the lo-fi garage punk thing is a trending cartoon bleat, but hey, everyone’s a sucker for choppy drumming, three chord riffs and mindless lyrics about chicks in cars, chicks stealing drags, chicks getting haircuts and other important stuff. Whether this is predictable or pubescent joy to your ears, it’s definitely a fun jam. Apple bong.

‘Nothing To Do’ is out Feb 2012.

BKC FB

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‘Bottle’ (mp3)

Local hip hop isn’t something in my scope, but this guy’s solo material is a far pitch away from highlighting the best parts of our already uncouth accent. Back in 2007, Mark Pearl was part of a collab with Pip Norman (TZU) called The Commas. Although he’s lent his raspy vox to a handful of Urthboy and Mantra tracks recently, he sounds much more at home on ‘Bottle’, the first track under the moniker Texture Like Sun.

Pearl’s husky tones are a subtle opener to the track before banjo and whistles get thrown into the arrangement, setting the drift somewhere between Scott Matthews and Andrew Bird. It’s clearly a well thought out tune, and it works. Although I reckon this guy would thrive if he went all Patrick Watson and dabbled in orchestral samplers and perhaps some chamber pop, there’s still a wonderful pastoral quality about his voice that would sound pretty special pared back in a surburban lounge room.

A nice sampler of his record which is due out early next year.

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Selena Gomez society flash-mobbing all over Melb town.
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‘So Pretend’ (mp3)

A coasty slice of indie-pop from Melb 5 piece Buckley Ward. Clean harmonies + chilled percussion; this is a modest track that sounds good without trying too hard. Cruisy vibes and the airy arrangement here makes this a nice prelude to the warmer months. Some ‘jungle’ dabblings at the bridge, but here’s hoping this stays an ‘ugly dancing’/navaho hat free zone in the future.

Catch Buckley Ward this Saturday at Yah Yah’s in Melbourne. The guys are also supporting Big Scary on their upcoming tour. For a full run of dates, see below.

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