Features

MAP – August 2015

, , No Comment

From the warmer side of this continent are These Guy, who we’ve plucked as the best track out of Aus this month for their unorthodox trop-pop tune ‘Coming Around’.

You can listen to the full list of the best new tracks picked by MAP bloggers below, or grab a zip file of the full 17-track compilation through Dropbox here.

____

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Julieta y Los Espíritus – El Látigo (Modex remix)

Listen to

This is a song from the new project of Julieta Brotsky (aka July Sky). It’s not the original version from the album, but a great remix released a couple of weeks ago by post-punk band Modex. Julieta’s beautiful voice can also be heard on several tracks by indie-pop band Entre Ríos, and in Varias Artistas, the female ensemble put together by singer-songwriter Lucas Marti.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
These Guy – Coming Around

Listen to

Brisbane trio These Guy was originally the solo project of singer and multi-instrumentalist Joe Saxby. Latest track Coming Around combines the lofty vocals and downer lyrics of Saxby’s earlier work. Along with buoyant pop production, the result is a track that’s interesting at every turn. The absence of any kind of rhythm guitar leaves Saxby’s vocals and synth-fiddling to carry the melodic weight of the track. Coming Around is a testament to Saxby’s ear for off-kilter production and hopefully points to a more experimental/avant-pop future for These Guy.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Pequeno Céu – Quatro

Listen to

Post-rock six-piece Pequeno Céu started as a solo project some years ago before releasing their first album as a band in 2014. Pequeno Céu differs from other math/post-rock ensembles because of the Brazilian influences and simplicity of their short instrumental songs, such as Quatro. For fans of BADBADNOTGOOD, Hurtmold and Tortoise.

 

Listen to full list below: (more…)

Read Post →

MAP – July 2015

, , Comment Closed

jay_mantri

Our monthly roundup of the best new tracks from around the world is here again for July, thanks to the Pop Cop and our blog pals from over yonder.
The track we’ve picked for July is a gregarious party tune from Sydney trio, Australia. If you hoard mp3s, then swing a right-click on the song title to download an mp3. Alternatively, you can grab a zip file of the full 16-track compilation through Dropbox here.

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Blito y Los Intermitentes – A Donde Vas

Listen to

Blito y Los Intermitentes released their debut album, Nada, independently this year. Led by singer-songwriter Blito Dojtman, the band’s sound usually starts in acoustic form and then takes different paths through rock, pop and even tango. If you like A Donde Vas, you can download the whole album from Bandcamp.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Australia – Who R U?

Listen to

Contrary to popular belief, winter exists in Australia. Escaping from the cold is easy – we turn to home brewing and gregarious electro-pop. Australia (the band) are striding in the same disco patriotism line of outfits like Total Giovanni and Client Liaison. Cue the energetic side-strut – it’s all anthemic beats and Roxy Music guitar frills in view here. Unless you’re allergic to having a good time, it’s hard not to like this track. The Sydney trio’s debut album, Portraits Of People, Places And Movies, is out in August.

CANADA: Ride The Tempo
Men I Trust – Again (feat. Ghostly Kisses)

Listen to

Montreal electronic collective Men I Trust collaborated with Ghostly Kisses in a beautiful electronic-infused ballad called Again. Local collaborations are huge here in Canada and this one is just so perfect.

CHILE: Super 45
Alejandro Zahler – Waltz Número 7

Listen to

 

Full playlist below…

(more…)

Read Post →

MAP June 2015

, , No Comment

music_alliance_pact_ MAP

MAP – our monthly round-up of new music from around the world returns again, courtesy of some of the fine folk who run the best new music blogs on both sides of the equator. Our June submission, (picked by our Mapcast host Robbie) features some gorgeous electronica from Sydney’s Bicentennial. Get some bilingual action in your white-bread music collection by downloading the 20 track compilation right here.

 

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Ciudadano Toto – Esta Canción

Listen to

Last month Argentina’s independent music scene mourned the sudden death of Adrián Nievas, aka Ciudadano Toto, lead singer of electro-pop group Adicta. An all-time favorite of Zonaindie, Adicta was perhaps one of the most underrated bands of the last decade, so if you never listened to them you deserve to (all their albums are one click away). This month’s MAP song is a home-recorded cover version of Cuban legend Silvio Rodríguez that he used to open his recent solo concerts. Sophomore album Flores, Brillos y Arcoiris was released just a couple of months ago). RIP.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Bicentennial – Sleeper Train

Listen to

Hailing from Marrickville, a suburb in Sydney’s warehouse district, Bicentennial (Jess Cooper) writes and produces dark but delicate soundscapes layered underneath reverberated chant-like vocals. She cites backpacking around the globe as a major inspiration to her music, which is easy to see in this track’s title with any remaining inspiration coming from her white pet parrot Jai-Chai, whom she claims is never far from her shoulder.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Cícero – Isabel (Carta De Um Pai Aflito)

Listen to

This song is from Cícero’s third album, A Praia, released a few months ago. Its lyrics are about a father regretting the loss of his daughter, who left home to experience life. The album has elements of traditional indie-rock and Brazilian popular music, usually referred to as MPB.

 

Listen to the full mix below.

(more…)

Read Post →

MAP – May 2015

, , No Comment

map

Our Australian MAP selection for May comes from Arvo Tanty – the solo project of Michael Dolan who formerly played in perth. Picture heavy, ostentatious synth accordion draped around your cerebrals in stereo sound. It sounds like luxury. IT IS IGOOD.

Some other gems worth noting include jazzy sounds from Brazil’s Otis Trio, and a track released in 2000 by Copenhagen band Speaker Bite Me which is receiving acclaim in Denmark and its first vinyl release in over fifteen years.

You can grab a zip file of the full 19-track compilation through Dropbox here.

 

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
El Gnomo – Suicidas Melodías

Listen to

This new musical project by Martin Reznik (La Filarmonica Cosmica) almost started as a game in 2012, when he recorded several songs on a weekly basis. Some time afterwards, while reviewing the material, Martin realised he had an album in his hands, so he spent the next months polishing the songs and re-recording some instrumental tracks. He also invited musical friends to participate in what became a folk album with a soft psychedelic vibe. Suicidas Melodías is one of these collaborations, in which singer-sonwriter Sofía Viola lends her wonderful voice. You can download the full album from Bandcamp.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Arvo Tanty – White Hum Valley (Hello)

Listen to

Arvo Tanty is an introduction to producer Michael Dolan’s solo material, following his work with electronic outfit Perth. White Hum Valley (Hello) is a grandiose, cinematic Casiotone orchestra track where slow, effacing rhythms pulse and dissolve at surface break. Dolan says the song was inspired by Joni Mitchell, Mort Garson’s Plantasia and his yearning to make a “Nintendo soundtrack of some kind”.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Otis Trio – Montag’s Dream

Listen to

Montag’s Dream, the opening track of Otis Trio’s debut album 74 Club, probably refers to the main character of the novel Fahrenheit 451. The dark jazz they create fits perfectly with the despair related in the book.

 

Listen to full song selections below:

(more…)

Read Post →

MAP April 2015

, , No Comment

map

This month’s Music Alliance Pact features music from 16 countries around the world, including ‘Honey’, an all-family affair from Barwon Heads duo Surf Dad. You can check out more of their material over on Soundcloud.  ‘Honey’ also features in Robbie’s new Australian music podcast, streaming right here.

Click the play button icon to listen to individual songs, right-click on the song title to download an mp3, or grab a zip file of the full 16-track compilation through Dropbox here.

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Los Grillos Del Monte – Jaqueline

Listen to

This supergroup formed by Facundo Flores (Onda Vaga, Nacho & Los Caracoles), Tomi Lebrero (El Puchero Misterioso), Martín Reznik (La Filarmónica Cósmica) and Jano Seitún (Campos Magnéticos, Alvy Singer Big Band) has just released their first record. According to the guys, the album sounds like “a bolero who fathered a cumbia, a chorus which is the cousin of the best zamba, and rock music that won’t leave us even if we try”. MAP exclusive download Jaqueline is our favorite track from the album.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Surf Dad – Honey

Listen to

Surf Dad is the production duo of George and Declan Sands, brothers from Barwon Heads, a small coastal town just south of Melbourne. More than a year after releasing the excellent Unholy EP, the siblings have dropped Honey, a pristine, sensual track featuring horns, bells, woodblock, field recordings from their dad’s backyard and their mum, Natisha, on vocals. George salvaged the vocal recordings from old four-track cassettes that Natisha, an artist herself, compiled in the 1980s. As you might expect from an intimate family collaboration, the boys’ woozy, organic production complements her heady performance perfectly. And Mum’s reaction upon hearing the track? She cried.

CANADA: Ride The Tempo
Dilly Dally – Gender Role

Listen to

Buzz Records is taking Toronto by storm with their incredible roster of artists that include Odonis Odonis, Weaves, Greys, HSY, Anamai and more. Now I bring to you the incredible Dilly Dally, whose “I don’t give a fuck” attitude both on and off stage will have you loving them more and more.

COLOMBIA: El Parlante Amarillo
Balancer – Remain Waves

Listen to

Balancer is a trio formed by Colombians and Puerto Ricans, but based in Brooklyn. Gabriela, Felipe and Francisco have released two EPs and an album called Tipsoo. Their music is striking – it’s a world influenced by indie-rock, psychedelia and electronics. Remain Waves is the first single released from Tipsoo, which takes us through the waves to the shore with a warm, downtempo sound.

(more…)

Read Post →

MAP x MAPCAST: March 2015

, , No Comment

WTH-MapCast-circle-606px

We’re sending a perfectly auto-tuned human to the European Union. This of course, is totally OK because he has a duet with Lupe, a vast knitted beanie collection and a set of really annoying eyebrows. Aside from staking our country’s first claim at the Eurovision trophy we have absolutely no merit to even win – the other choices were quite obvious. Client Liaison performing on a giant rotisserie with flares and a horn section could have been lesser beige that Mr Sebastian himself.

Considerations aside, here’s another round of our monthly world wrap-up: Mapcast. Robbie’s wrap-up of the best new tracks from the Music Alliance Pact – tunes from Denmark, Chile, Canada, Columbia, Ireland and our very own Kučka.

If you’ve got a track you’d like featured as the Australian submission for Mapcast, drop us an email at editors@whothehell.net. Listen to previous Mapcast podcasts at our Soundcloud and check out the full Music Alliance Pact below.

 

Click the play button icon to listen to individual songs, right-click on the song title to download an mp3, or grab a zip file of the full 21-track compilation through Dropbox here.

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Panda Elliot – Guerrero (AlexPatri remix)

Listen to

Panda Elliot is three in one: woman, band and producer. A fresh new face in the music scene, she recently launched her second album Forastera, which shows a more confident Panda Elliot, well established in her own style. After the eclectic single Ligerita, she released Guerrero, a rockin’ feminine song that forces you to move your head. The track is potent and full of energy on its own, so this remix by AlexPatri extends into the realm of fun, uptempo electronic dance.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Kučka – Divinity

Listen to

A continuation of Kučka’s future R&B leanings hinted at in her previous work, Divinity is a lush, surreal affair. Undulating rhythms sync perfectly with the swirling, cough-syrupy synths and Laura Jane Lowther’s vocals, which sound at once sultry and innocent. Think an antipodean Purity Ring.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Passo Torto – Isaurinha

Listen to

Passo Torto is a quartet formed by renowned musicians from Sao Paulo’s contemporary music scene. Isaurinha is taken from their second album, Passo Elétrico, in which they explore guitars and effects on acoustic bass and cavaquinho (sort of a small guitar often associated with samba), with the lack of percussion elements leaving space for harmonic and melodic experiments.

CANADA: Ride The Tempo
Munroe – Bloodlet

Listen to

Fans of Lykke Li may enjoy newcomer Kathleen Munroe, who simply goes by Munroe. She makes chilling folk tunes like this one with a tinge of Americana (though I guess this would be Canadiana?). Production-wise, Bloodlet doesn’t have too much but it’s perfect just the way it is. Her lovely voice is all you need.

 

(more…)

Read Post →

VIRTUAL MIXTAPE: Jonathan Boulet

, , 1 Comment

Virtual-Mixtape_Lucy-Roleff

Bands and artists are expected to borrow their schtick from a variety of sources. Often, the back story is just as interesting as the output itself. We’re kicking off a new series where we ask artists to make a mixtape based on a genre they’re into, but not necessarily associated with. Sometimes harmony, sometimes hardcore Jonathan Boulet gives us some insight into his ‘doom rock’ brain-chasms below. HTML hi-fives to Lucy Roleff (for illustrating our new national emblem above) and Greg Stone from Feral Media for putting this together.

Jonathan Boulet _ Virtual Mixtape

Greg Stone: I first became aware of Jonathan Boulet as the drummer/vocalist in the now defunct Sydney band Parades, an indie pop/rock group who seemed poised to take on the world, albeit for a brief moment. So it came as no surprise when Jono’s solo project stole the spotlight with its irrepressible pop hooks and sing along choruses. A talent that caught the ear of indie powerhouse Modular, who quickly released his self titled debut album.

Fast-forward to 2014 and Boulet’s most recent album Gubba (released via Popfrenzy), finds him indulging heavier rock moments revealing yet another side to his musical oeuvre, a side previously hinted at through his side-project Snakeface. Considering this, it is certainly fitting that his mixtape is on the heavy side of things. A cathartic journey through sludge rock, post punk, hardcore and other distorted sub genres best enjoyed at maximum volume.

_____

1. Sleep – ‘Jerusalem’

Never actually listened to this front to back. We did it the other day while we were on tour driving between Sydney and Brisbane. The heavens opened up as they always do right as you go past Byron Bay. It was getting dark, we were speeding through a typhoon – zero visibility, moments from our imminent doom……with the perfect soundtrack.

‘Stoner’, ‘Doom’, ‘Sludge’ – whatever it’s called, it just doesn’t seem to ever lose its appeal to me. You can get sick of anything, but this is something I come back to most weeks.

YouTube Preview Image

2. Swans – ‘Oxygen’

Michael Gira’s vocals are just straight out funny. I like his sense of humour. I just want a copy of the acapella for this one. Once again, Swans punish their audience with their unrelenting barrage of hits, slides, bends topped off with that undeniable groove.

YouTube Preview Image

3. Destruction Unit – ‘Slow Death Sounds’

When that guitar comes in it just tears through the speakers like a chainsaw hitting a bloated stomach. That kind of reckless sonic annihilation would make many recording engineers queasy. That’s exactly why it’s perfect.

YouTube Preview Image

4. The Men – ‘LADOCH’

I love how this song feels like it’s over but somehow they get a second wind and it’s back on. This band moves on so quickly from album to album but I’m glad they took the time to blow some steam and indulge in some righteous sonic violence before continuing on to safer territory.

YouTube Preview Image

(more…)

Read Post →