124. BROKEN BELLS

how did i miss this?!? this side project duo has been around for almost a year and i didn't find out about them until today. what an embarrassment. i guess that happens when you never listen to the radio or read pitchfork. oops! broken bells is the project of producer danger mouse and the shin's james mercer. it's exactly what you'd expect from such a combination: greatness. in terms of production, you can expect some similarities to the gorillaz and danger mouse's other projects, but it's all twisted up with an indie + classic rock / oldies feel. the single "the ghost inside," which you can preview or watch the video for below, sounds most eerily familiar to me (listen to that bass and the percussive elements and see if it rings any bells). i'm loving it and you probably will too (if you aren't way ahead of me already).

they just released their debut self-titled lp this past march and you can grab the whole thing right here.

Broken Bells - The Ghost Inside (no download available, stream available from Rock The House)

the video stars christina hendricks (of mad men fame) and includes an appearance by mercer + danger mouse. the video is pretty cool - about a robot's dreams of going to a beautiful resort, and in order to get there, she has to sell off parts of her body. she must be a robot, right? it's a pretty rad video: great effects, directing, cinematography and acting.

Broken Bells - The Ghost Inside on Vimeo

124. BROKEN BELLS

123. CHK CHK CHK RETURNS

after a while without any news of a !!! release, i was starting to get antsy. biting my fingers off sort of thing. boom boom boom / pow pow pow / chk chk chk are always touring all over the world, but their website and myspace hadn't really changed since myth takes came out in 2007. well, prepare for the future...

they're offering a free download of their new track "am/fm" right here and you can preview it below thanks to warp. you can expect a development of their usual sound; a hybrid of post-disco, dance-punk and electronica with the sexiest of vocals (think r&b). from the now 14 year old band, the new single goes back to their routes, but with better production values. makes me think of out hud and !!!'s self-titled lp, but they're definitely shifting their sound. the track is simultaneously environmental and funky; experimental and kick-ass. my little macbook speakers can't do this song any justice, can't wait to play it on my speakers when i get home.

their new lp, "strange weather, isn't it?" is coming out august 24th 2010 (USA). that's pretty soon. very very exciting news. you can already pre-order it right here.

!!! (Chk Chk Chk) - AM/FM (taken from Strange Weather, Isn't It?) by Warp Records (on SoundCloud)

if you aren't a fan already, here's !!! on facebook.

123. CHK CHK CHK RETURNS

122. BREAKBOT

Breakbot - Baby I'm Yours (feat. Irfane) (Vimeo)

So as you may know - we've featured Breakbot a few times here and with good reason! He's another long-haired Frenchman signed to Ed Banger, but his music is smooth... real smooth. To accompany his track, "Baby I'm Yours ft IRFANE", this video was released last week. Made up of about 2000 watercolor painted images, it's a solid bit of eye-candy. Enjoy.

122. BREAKBOT

121. ROCKETS CLUB MONSIEUR

god damn, i fuckin love disco texas. here's another track from rockets: it's got the funk-disco guitar, the smoothest of bass lines and some solid beat mashing. this is a 5-course electronic meal. builds are perfectly spread out, not too far apart and not too long either. "club monsieur" makes you feel like you're getting down with chic in a futuristic discothèque. the song has 16th notes on the hi-hat and are those occasional claps i hear? it's got the slow up on the high-eq to a creative bass line that's almost always present, but shifts around throughout the entirety keeping you thinking. at about 3:00 a synth comes in before the final breakdown. this is a house track that has all the elements you're looking for. this is inspiration.

you can preview AND download the track below. high generosity from portugal.

Club Monsieur by rockets (on SoundCloud)

make sure you pay attention to rockets on facebook.

121. ROCKETS CLUB MONSIEUR

120. NEW SINGLE FROM BAD VEINS + NEW OUTLIERS EP

first off, apologies for being out of it for a week. i went to get a little vaca action.

if you've been following us since early 2010, you'd know that we featured bad veins back in january. it was one of our first non-electronica posts that has since kept us posting indie music. they just released a new ep yesterday, "outliers" which you can grab on itunes right here. in similar fashion as bad vein's debut lp, outliers is creative, experimental and original. it's got orchestra instrumentation, electronic percussion, filtered vocals, melancholy lyrics, overdrive'd guitars, backing choirs, piano that will carry you for days, and muted horns. the song "blanket" sounds like bad veins grabbed some southern americana inspiration (in a good way). what i've liked most about bad veins is musically, not just lyrically, every song tells a story and what they've done with the outliers ep is no different. also, i love the cover graphic design.

they're also offering an additional free download from their self titled lp. the track comes in with some high-eq'd percussion that sounds like something from a 90s casio keyboard, then it jumps into serious rock and roll where the bridge between verses is led by a guitar riff that'll knock your socks off. the chorus has some serious beeping synth over the vocals and eventually, you'll be taken to the breakdown where strings come in, there's a build up, and everything comes back together. just what the doctor ordered this morning. in comparison to the other tracks we've posted from bad veins, it is a bit heavier and more up tempo.

Bad Veins - Falling Tide (Download)

you can buy the full lp (which we've reviewed before) here.

if that isn't enough for you, they're also touring throughout the summer with the dig, kevin devine and thrice.

June 15 2010 @ Phoenix Concert Theatre - Toronto, ON

June 16 2010 @ Le National - Montreal, QC

June 17 2010 @ House of Blues - Boston, MA

June 18 2010 @ Toad’s Place - New Haven, CT

June 19 2010 @ Chameleon Club - Lancaster, PA

June 21 2010 @ Northern Lights - Clifton Park, NY

June 22 2010 @ Crocodile Rock - Allentown, PA

June 23 2010 @ Trocadero Theatre - Philadelphia, PA

June 24 2010 @ The Fillmore - New York, NY

June 25 2010 @ Starland Ballroom - Sayreville, NJ

June 26 2010 @ Recher Theatre - Towson, MD

June 28 2010 @ The NorVa - Norfolk, VA

June 29 2010 @ Cat’s Cradle - Carrboro, NC

June 30 2010 @ The Music Farm - Charleston, SC

July 01 2010 @ House Of Blues - Lake Buena Vista, FL

July 02 2010 @ Revolution - Ft Lauderdale, FL

July 03 2010 @ State Theater - St. Petersburg, FL

July 06 2010 @ Warehouse Live - Houston, TX

July 07 2010 @ Emo’s - Austin, TX

July 08 2010 @ The Palladium Ballroom - Dallas, TX

July 09 2010 @ Cain’s Ballroom - Tulsa, OK

July 10 2010 @ Midland Ballroom - Kansas City, MO

July 11 2010 @ Ogden Theatre - Denver, CO

July 13 2010 @ In The Venue - Salt Lake City, UT

July 15 2010 @ Marquee - Tempe, AZ

July 16 2010 @ House Of Blues - San Diego, CA

July 17 2010 @ Fox Theater - Pomona, CA

July 18 2010 @ House of Blues - Las Vegas, NV

July 20 2010 @ Club Congress - Tucson, AZ (Bad Veins only)

July 21 2010 @ Corazon - Santa Fe, NM (Bad Veins only)

don't forget to become a fan on facebook.

120. NEW SINGLE FROM BAD VEINS + NEW OUTLIERS EP

119. LIFELIKE EP

can you believe it's been since april since we covered lifelike? right now, he's gearing up for the release of his love emulator ep off of the young french label computer science.

this guy is one of the few that never puts out anything that i am disappointed in. his work is always great, always smooth. the bass line makes you want to relax and to party - musically, it's hard to do both. it all comes from r&b and funk. even alan braxe and fred falke's intro (one of the best french house tracks of all time) isn't good to put on as "chill" music. somehow, however, lifelike has managed to become a master at the combo. it's electro french-touch / feel-good at it's best. his work is one of the reasons i wish that i could read french, so i could learn just a little more.

lifelike's music is all over the place, and he has created quite a following by releasing excellent remixes one after the other. starting with that beautiful original track "so electric," i've never looked back. he got us hooked - and now that we have to wait for this ep before we can listen to it on our ipods or whatever, it's killing us, slowly - me, anyway, for sure. as soon as the digital release comes out in the US, it'll be on my credit card (like everything else these days). this guy is a fuckin pro.

all of these songs are gems. perfect for the beginning of summer! my personal fave of the three below is "silicon love." grab the whole ep digitally on june 14th off of the computer science page (linked above). it will also be available on itunes, beatport, etc by mid july. i would definitely buy the ep in its entirity because it'll be packaged with a bonus track called "bright city nights." this is going to be a good one, mark it down on your calendars and become a fan of lifelike on facebook.

LIFELIKE / YOTA /NAMEBRAND Love Emulator (Club Mix) by LIFELIKE (on SoundCloud)

LIFELIKE / YOTA "Silicon Love" by LIFELIKE (on SoundCloud)

LIFELIKE / YOTA / NAMEBRAND Love Emulator (Original Mix) by LIFELIKE (on SoundCloud)

119. LIFELIKE EP

118. SIDWHO?

After last year's "Vote Bowie For President" found it's way into the sets of such disco royalty as Todd Terje, Tim Sweeney and Prins Thomas we've all been waiting to see what Sidwho? would do next. And here it is, Pay For Love EP out on the Australian Future Classic imprint.

The EP has 3 excellent mixes varying from disco funk to classic acid house sounds. The Jamie Paton edit takes us on a 13 minute long white-hot funk odyssey. The group vocals, chorused bass line and squiggly synth lines add up too one hell of a boogie machine. Daddy like.

On the flip the Azari & Ill Remix cleans up some of the rough edges, throws some tight 909 drums in and pumps the bass for an all around crowd pleaser. My personal favorite though is Jamie Paton's Acid Remix. Here all the funky lines from the original get the attention they deserve leading to a slow burning spaced out acid-fest. With such a wide range of sounds lets hope Sidwho? keeps the goods coming.

Check the streams and be sure to pick up the EP on Juno or Beatport!

Sidwho? - Pay For Love by future classic

Be sure to hit up Sidwho? on myspace.

118. SIDWHO?