Cool bands/artists you have discovered recently......

I respectfully disagree. It's Soft Bulletin all the way for me!

 

Saying Yoshimi is the best Flaming Lips album is like Saying "Yeah, Exile is okay, but man Goat's Head Soup rocks!".

 

went ahead and ordered that Dntel cd along with Yoshimi and Moon/Antarctica. methinks good music is gonna be the financial death of.......well, me.

 

I heard a TV on the Radio track, um, on the radio yesterday and it was surprisingly good. Very soulful crooning vocals on top of Massive Attack-style crunchy beats.

Fennesz - lovely glitch/IDM/electro-acoustic stuff composed on a Mac Powerbook.

Mono - these guys are from Japan and have been compared to Mogwai. Their show at Mary Jane's last fall was like buried underneath an avalanche of noise.

Pelican - From Chicago. I heard these guys at SXSW waiting in line to get into Emo's and they were f'ing loud and powerful. Again, a cheap comparison would be to Mogwai, Isis, Mastadon, Dead Meadow and all other loud instrumental rock.

The Notwist - saw these guys in Portland last month and they were so good.

Do Make Say Think
Ponys
Jackie-O Motherf_cker
Sunburned Hand of the Man
Charalambides
Four Tet

re: the Silver Jews played a live set here and I missed it? ****. Trains Across the Sea is my favorite Jews song of all time. Berman grew up in Dallas, of all places.

 

thanks, hmm, sounds interesting

 

You guys have to check out the just released albums of:

the BETA BAND: Heroes to Zeros
PHOENIX: Alphabetical

FYI: Phoenix is/was the studio/tour whatever band of the french band called AIR. They are amazing. Their debut "united" is one of my spring feel good records of all time.

 

by the by; for those of you who have been digging neutral milk hotel, check out Olivia Tremor Control. An alter ego that kicks some serious a**

 

Okay, here is an update on the recent CDs I have gotten:

"Give Up" - Postal Service - I LOVED this CD! I feel that the more times I listen to it, it will only get better and better.

"Get Born" - Jet - pretty derivative rock CD with some good songs on it, nothing special.

"Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada" - GYBE - actually an EP but it is GYBE, so of course, it is going to be great.

"The Moon and Antarctica" - Modest Mouse - recognized that the second song is used in some car commercial. Was okay but will have to listen to several more times before I can make a definitive call on it.

"Tortoise" - Tortoise - pretty good post-rock or instrumental CD, nothing along the lines of Sigur Ros or GYBE, but good, nonetheless.

"Transatlanticism" - Death Cab for Cutie - this CD reminds me of Ben Folds (now I know why ima likes DCfC so much) but of course, it has guitar in it. Pretty good listen so far (just got done with "Passenger Seat").

Still have 4 more to listen to including Mogwai's "Young Team" and 2 other post-rock bands including Explosions in the Sky and the Mt Zion Silver whatever their name is band.

 

Young Team was a massive disappointment for me--Sigur 8 nullifies Mogwai's whole catalogue. I've been putting off Explosions for a while; I really should just get it.

 

Damien Rice.

 

ohh man! I just went back through this thread and realized that noone has mentioned Sigur Ros.

For those that like the Kid A sound and taking it to a more ethereal plane, I highly recommend!

 

ive listened with friends to sigur ros. but what is there one or two best albums?

 

I've been groovin on agaetis byrjun (sp?). Tis very mellow and may be too slow for some, but for me it is fantastic.

 

This band aint very new, but the HELLACOPTERS are outstanding.

 

Sigur Ros IS the band!

"Agaetis Byrjun" is my more favored of their 2 albums, but "( )" is good in its own right - just takes a little longer to appreciate than "Agaetis Byrjun".

I only wish that they had more than 2 albums available here.

 

I don't think too many people here like that kind of thing ... lots of delicate palates.

 

jeff.. good call with maroon 5. I heard them on campus back in August and had a feeling they'd get big pretty quickly.. great live performance

 

I started listening to "Good News For People Who Love Bad News" this past week and can't put it down. Definitely gonna pick it up tomorrow, especially when Best Buy is practically giving it away for 7.99.

 

Okay, I am going to list my all-time favorite 4 "Indie" albums that I own. Note - "Agaetis Byrjun" by Sigur Ros is probably an Indie album but I judge it on a different plane, mainly because it is "post-rock".

1 - "Turn on the Bright Lights" - Interpol - I could care less if they are ripping off Joy Division, Talking Heads, Smiths, Echo and the Bunnymen, Psychedelic Furs, etc, this is a band that can play! Unbelievable album that gets better and better after every listen. Best tracks include "Untitled", "Obstacle 1", "Obstacle 2", "Leif Erikson", and of course, "NYC" which has to be one of the greatest songs ever. If you don't have this album, I implore you to run to your nearest music store and buy it IMMEDIATELY

2 - "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" - Wilco - I hear some people calling Wilco the best band out there right now and after listening to this masterpiece, I am inclined to agree. I also hear many call this the "Country" version of "OK Computer" but why use comparisons? This is an album that holds up on its own. You hear something new every time you listen to it. Best tracks include "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart", "Kamera", "War on War", "Heavy Metal Drummer", and "Poor Places". Better than anything out there right now.

3 - "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots" - The Flaming Lips - my God is this a great album! "Fight Test" is one of the best openers I have ever heard and the album continues to get even better as it goes on. "One More Robot/Sympathy 3000-21" and "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Part 1" are great tracks but the best track is "Do You Realize?" , one of the most perfect songs ever written.

4 - "Give Up" - The Postal Service - Ben Gibbard is quickly becoming one of my favorite singers. I love his voice combined with the electronica on this album! This album hit me immediately with its great sound. Best tracks include "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight", "Nothing Better", "Clark Gable", and "This Place Is a Prison". If you loved New Order, Erasure, and the Pet Shop Boys, you will love the Postal Service.

 

Bad lyrics and nothing but downstroked rhythms and lines put me off a bit, but yeah, a good record.

I can't think of anyone I could recommend who's new and similar...the Wrens' Meadowlands is emo-y and has better, more diverse songwriting. Trail of Dead kick ass, but you probably knew that. When all else fails, get some Sleater-Kinney. No band can touch them when it comes to kicking out the jams.

Brilliant record. Unfortunately, the next one (which has been leaked) is mediocre. A huge step down in songwriting quality, and very uninteresting arrangements.

Check out anything by the Decemberists for comparably excellent songwriting.

You are aware the Lips have been forced to pay Cat Stevens for ripping off Father and Son's melody for Fight Test? Wonderful album--the only fully realized work I've heard of theirs (the rest, like Clouds and Transmissions, fall apart by the end).

Check out the Unicorns' Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone? for general silliness (a la the Lips) and mind-blowing song structures (a la not the Lips).

Agreed on the vocals. I haven't been able to get We Will Become Silhouttes out of my head all day. The Shins do a great cover on the Such Great Heights single.

Check out the Notwist's Neon Golden for even better vocals and even better laptop production. I'm also digging this Notwist side project called Ms. John Soda.