V/A - Casual Victim Pile: Austin 2010

Casual Victim Pile is a compilation of the overwhelming amount of music coming out of Austin, TX right now. This CD seems to concentrate on the varying degrees of garage rock, from poppier tunes to lighter punk. You'll recognize many of the bands, but there were a few I wasn't familiar with. Mostly unreleased tracks. There's some bands I can't get into, but it's always interesting to hear city-specific (although there's a few bands out of Denton, TX) compilations like this. Why's it called Casual Victim Pile? It's an anagram for "live music capital"...

- Dan

Download Casual Victim Pile

Woman Year - May Peace Bewitch You

Woman Year is the brainchild of Michael RJ Saalman of California. As guitarist of Afternoon Brother and guest musician both live and on record with Pregnant, his collaborative efforts have shown some of his range. His solo effort, on the other hand, demonstrates a different kind of range. Many of the tracks strip away an element that collectively make up what we perceive to be as "pop" music, and reconstructs it from the bottom up. Whether deconstructed structurally, tonally, vocally, lyrically, or otherwise, this is consistently and shamelessly pop music at its core. This guy proves within the first few tracks that he can do whatever the fuck he wants, and we'll all be listening attentively. The first track sounds uncannily like it belongs on Of Montreal's The Early Four Track Recordings. Cassette limited to 50, grab it at Life's Blood.

- Dan

Download May Peace Bewitch You

Pregnant - Ike Wimin

KDVS Recordings sent us this link for the latest Pregnant LP. A very creative and drugged out trip for yo mindz. Elemental pop music. If you enjoyed his Liquidation on Swans cassette, you'll be getting stoned to this one in no time. He's also got another release coming next month on Life's Blood, and preorders are only $10.

- Dan

Download Ike Wimin

V/A - Nigeria Afrobeat Special: The New Explosive Sound in 1970's Nigeria

The indie rock "world music" trend is in full swing these days, with scarf wearing ivy league fruitcakes like Vampire Weekend churning out albums that sound like a collection of Rusted Root covers. I never really got into afrobeat, and the fact that every band I seem to hate these days cite it as an influence has kept me far away. Thankfully, I stumbled across this comp which has dramatically changed my opinion. It's rare that you'll come across any modern music that incorporates even a fraction of the energy and flat out coolness embodied by these groups. Throw it on at your next party and watch your friends hang from the ceiling and fuck everything that moves.

- Steve

Download Nigeria Afrobeat Special...

Caves Caverns - Communique

Improv psych from this Richmond 4-piece. Swirling fuzz, squealing saxophone, and a theremin cameo ensures this cassette to be an auditory interplanetary medium for your neurons. It's a little more relaxed, but it's a sound that lies somewhere between Raccoo-oo-oon and Comets on Fire. Less than 100 cassettes made. Get one from Sounds From the Pocket.

- Dan

Download Communique

V/A - Rare Youth

Interesting comp highlighting the large variety of tunes out of Providence, RI around 2006. 38 tracks. Over two hours long of "power pop psych noise, abandoned dronescapes, reckless free improvisation, emo power electronics, late night elven dance music, epic psych rock, shredded throat guitar doom, john carpenter-esque synth despair, witty no-fi punkish noise, genuine teenage love songs, total garbage, marching bands, etc. etc. With the attention that Providence has received for being a hub of louder-than-life, experimental music/art, this compilation tries to provide an updated snapshot of the current subterranean goings-on."

- Dan

Download Rare Youth Disc 1

Download Rare Youth Disc 2

Caddywhompus - Remainder

Experimental noise-pop duo from New Orleans. Almost a louder and mathy Animal Collective at times. I thought I was going to have mixed emotions about this band at first listen, but once I hit the 1:41 mark of the fifth track, I was completely sold. There's some really good Battles/Hella-esque "rock the fuck out" moments, and also some very solid free-floating points that will demolish the rest of those pesky brain cells. I would assume that this stuff would translate really well live too. I haven't had too much time to digest it all, but they're currently on tour and I wanted to get this up here as soon as possible in hopes that some of you could catch one of their shows, and if I wasn't in the process of buying a fucking house right now, I'd pick up the $12 LP from Community Records in a heartbeat.

- Dan

Download Remainder

Here's the confirmed West Coast dates (more to be announced soon):

May 14 | Houston, TX | Indie Houston House

May 15 | Fort Worth, TX | 1919 Hemphill

May 17 | Albuquerque, NM | Revlis (Silver Skate Shop)

May 18 | Prescott, AZ | Catalyst Infoshop

May 19 | Los Angeles, CA | Kaos Network

May 20 | Thousand Palms, CA | The Oasis Bar

May 22 | Santa Barbara, CA | Biko Co-Op Garage Performance Space

May 27 | Corvallis, OR | Cloud 9

May 28 | Portland, OR | In Other Words (early show)

June 2 | Boulder, CO | Astroland

June 4 | Austin, TX | Mohawk

June 5 | Houston, TX | Free Press Summer Fest

And the confirmed shows in the East (more to come):

June 19 | Lafayette, LA | Artmosphere

June 23 | Birmingham, AL | Magic City Wholesale

June 24 | Nashville, TN | Little Hamilton

June 25 | Carbondale, IL | The Swamp

June 30 | Madison, WI | Project Lodge

July 1 | Chicago, IL | Ronny's

July 11 | New York, NY | Piano's

July 12 | New York, NY | Bruar Falls

July 19 | DC | Girl Cave

July 23 | Atlanta, GA | Wonder Root

The Super Vacations - Thicker Milk

(LINK TEMPORARILY REMOVED by request of Beggars Group)

Rob of The Super Vacations sent us a link for their new LP, and I'm pretty impressed after one spin through the record. Significantly better than their debut, and there's honestly not a bad track on it. Memorable BJMish riffs, sloppy melodies, and a more concentrated psych vibe. Definitely one of the best full-lengths yet from Shdwply. Coming this June.

- Dan

JULY 2010
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July 21st, 2010
Charlottesville, VA
Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar
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July 22nd, 2010
Washington, D.C.
The Velvet Lounge
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July 23rd, 2010
Brooklyn, NY
Death By Audio
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July 24th, 2010
Baltimore, MD
Whartscape Festival
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July 25th, 2010
Norfolk, VA
37th & Zen
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AUGUST 2010
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August 18th, 2010
Richmond, VA
The Jazz Lounge
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August 19th, 2010
New York, NY
Cake Shop
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August 20th, 2010
Providence, RI
The 201
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August 21st, 2010
Danbury, CT
Larry's
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August 22nd, 2010
Philadelphia, PA
El Bar
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Las Robertas - Cry Out Loud

Now these are some vajays I can get into. Figuratively speaking, of course. All-girl 4-piece. Costa Rican noise-pop with a grittier early 90s Swirlies-ish shoegaze vibe. Hefty drums, vocal hooks, and the expected wall of sound. I've seen them referred to as the "heavier Best Coast", which isn't far off, and I'm assuming it isn't too long until they're all over Pitchfork. Hey I made it through the entire post without the Vivian Girls reference...

- Dan

Download Cry Out Loud (directly from the band, here)

Pixeltank - Missile Commander

Pretty straightforward but well-produced electronic, chiptune, drum and bass. From guess where? Richmond, VA! Some of it reminds me of the more recent Squarepusher material. I've been humming a few of these tracks to myself the last few days while at work, so that usually means a job well done. This is the last Richmond-based band/artist for a little while, I promise.

- Dan

Download Missile Commander

Everybody Yay - Magic Mosaic

Everybody Yay is a Richmond twosome (sometimes threesome) with a pretty terrible band name. Also, they really really love themselves some of the 'ol Animal Collective. Upon further review however, much of this 4 song EP is undeniably catchy and goes for the psych-pop jugular vein with some very stoned and watery rhythms. The Yeasayer-esque vocals in track two drive me fucking crazy, but the other three tracks are quite good and will be instantly loved by many who read this blog. If these dudes play their cards right, you'll be seeing a lot more of them in the future.

- Dan

Download Magic Mosaic

The Specialist - The Mako Album

I really don't care for a majority of hip hop, but a mash-up of Jay Z's The Black Album with the Final Fantasy VII soundtrack? I'll take it. Some really good tracks here. Courtesy of some mysterious Richmond producer that I can't find much info on.

- Dan

Download The Mako Album

Amazing Ghost - Face Job/Body Blow

Amazing Ghost is a local act here in Richmond, VA that's been gaining momentum due to their danceable live shows. Mixing elements of hip hop, synth pop, and dance music, Amazing Ghost has been in high demand for the local dance parties. This is a self-released CDR that we have at the radio station, and I'm not sure if it's just a collection of demos, a full release, or a combination of two EPs, but I'm not the only one anxiously awaiting a legitimate release of some sort. Some of these tracks hit the mark better than others, but if you're into Girl Talk, Plastic Little, or any playful, carefree, and self-aware party music, you'll find some pretty infectious moments here.

- Dan

Download Face Job/Body Blow