Razika Tune In Program 91

Few bands can make you instantly recall your favorite summer. Your first kiss. The first time you snuck out of the house.

In Bergen, Norway, Razika, comprised of four precocious 19-year-old girls, have discovered how to conjure these emotions, channeling a mix of innocence and rebellion, romance and heartbreak, and gift-giving and gun-slinging into their debut album Program 91 (out August 16 on Smalltown Supersound).

Formed in 2005 and named after a code word used by the band to describe a cute guy, Marie Amdam, Maria Råkil, Marie Moe and Embla Karidotter Dahleng have been childhood friends since the age of 6, discovering their parents’ rock records before delving into punk as early teenagers.

The album is a glorious contradiction; an exhilarating mix of ska, Riot Grrl, 60s girl groups, post-punk and upbeat, C86 pop that would make Phil Spector, The Specials and The Raincoats proud.

Download: Nytt Pa Nytt
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Here's to 50 Years of Amnesty International.

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Oh Minnows Isn't Fishy At All

Signed to Young and Lost Club (Noah & The Whale, Exlovers, Golden Silvers), Oh Minnows is the dreamy new project from Chris Steele-Nicholson who is better known as the multi-instrumentalist from cult indie trio Semifinalists. “Semifinalists was a collective effort, and it was great fun,” he says. “You’d get an idea going then someone would step in and take it in a direction you didn’t expect. It was like being in control and having no control at the same time. Oh Minnows is just me having to confront my views on my own.”

Following the break-up of Semifinalists in 2009, Chris began working as Oh Minnows and released 'Might EP' the same year. Since then, a full length album has been his main focus and For Shadows will be out later in the year, the first full length LP to be released solely by Young and Lost Club.

For Shadows is a lush electronic album that's dreamy, hazy, and gorgeous.  In other words, a bit of a departure from the Semifinalists in every sense of the word.  While I most definitely miss his old band, Chris Steele-Nicholson has done a fantastic job putting For Shadows together that's convinced me he'll be alright.

Download: You'll Never Know Us 
Download: Another Volunteer (Entrepreneurs Guilty Pleasures Remix)
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Jaswho Gets Re:Droided

After the release of his Nudroid Musik album back in November 2010, Jaswho was approached by a number of producers interested in remixing tracks from the album. Over the past six months, Jaswho has been in contact with artists from everywhere getting remixes together for his follow up release titled, Re:Droid Musik.

The Re:Droid Musik CD features remixes by Miles Dyson, Santiago/Bushido, Cold Blank, Calvertron, Aniki, Larry Fives, Hollywood Rox, Aaren San, George F, DJ Fame, 40 Thieves, Sunshine Jones, Ben Tom, Soulspin & more. With remixes in a number of different genres ranging from Electro, Dubstep & Tech House, there is sure to be something for everyone. 

Download: Solar Future (Cold Blank Remix)
Download: Alive (Aniki Remix)
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Brilliant Colors Release Album, Hit Road.

Inspired by post-punk fervor, the spiky pop of C86 and early Flying Nun / Creation label output, San Francisco's Brilliant Colors stake out their own spot in the indie music landscape.   They jangle, they sigh, they shuffle, and together they sound as if the Pastels were from California.

Not really produced and not really polished in anyway, Brilliant Colors manage to be, err, brilliant thanks to their shambolic pop sensibility.  Sounding like they may just shatter into a million pieces and only too happy to do so, Brilliant Colors know the joys of fragile pop songs.

Their new album, Again and Again is filled with such delights and sees them moving further into the classic C86 thing.    The album is released on July 19th on Slumberland and the band will head out on the road in June to pre-promote.

Here's the dates... 
06/09 Charlotte, NC The Milestone ~^
06/10 Athens, GA Farm 255 ~
06/11 Nashville, TN Glenn Danzig's house ~
06/12 Columbus, OH Bat Chapters ~
06/13 Ann Arbor, MI Arbor Vitae ~
06/14 Toronto, ON Parts N Labour ~
06/15 Montreal, QC Le Cabigi ~
06/16 Boston, MA Problem House ~
06/17 Brooklyn, NY Glasslands *
06/18 Philadelphia, PA Cha Cha Razzi
~ = w/ The Beets
^ = w/ Eternal Summers
* = w/ Frankie Rose

Download: How Much Younger
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Twiggy Frostbite Returns...Again.

We don´t know exactly when, what or even if it will happen but this is how it goes when you give an artist total freedom. No demands on format, no deadlines. no nothing...

"By The Ocean" is a new track from Twiggy Frostbite featuring members from The Deer Tracks. To be honest, we don´t know if it´s a part of an upcoming album, if it´s a single or maybe a part of a limited 7" vinyl but what we do know is that this song is yet another brick in a dream that started off with the track "Written Within" a couple of weeks ago. A track that Twiggy Frostbite defined like this..."What can we say you about that feeling? The feeling when you wake up and realize that this might all just be a part of that dream you had. You're neither asleep, nor awake, you're somewhere in between. The only thing you can be sure of is that you exist, or can you?"

While you're thinking about that...download away.

Download: By The Ocean
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Early Day Miners...Mine Something New

I'm not sure when it happened...but it did.  At some point, Early Day Miners left the Secretly Canadian mellow atmospheric pop stable, listened to a bit too many Spoon records and changed their name to EDM. Now, signed to Western Vinyl, and sounding nothing like their previous selves, the band are preparing to release their new album, Night People.  I have to admit that while the proposition of their new sound scared me to death...I actually found myself liking it.  I suspect they're hoping you do as well. 

Just as the band's name has been abbreviated, their process of recording and producing has been been stripped down for this album. Unlike the meticulous self-production that defined Early Day Miners' albums, their first effort under the EDM moniker finds the band relinquishing engineering duties. Recorded and mixed by engineer Mike Bridavksy at Russian Recording in just five days, the Night People sessions have yielded the most expressive vocal and instrumental performances of Burton's career.


Download: Stereo / Video
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Tristy Nesh Gets Dark and Insane

The Croatian wonder boy Tristy Nesh is back on Absolut Freak Records, with elektro frau Xenia Beliayeva and together they've come up with a beast of dark tune called, Acting Sane.

Sounding something like a well medicated Siouxsie the tune saunters it's way across the dance floor covered in a cloud of Clove smoke.  It's dark, subdued, and fantastic. 

The single, out now, features a whole host of mixes featuring, John Lord Fonda, (the French sensation from Vitalic's label Citizen Records), Latvian producer(!!) Max Brannslokker, and Nicolas Chenard brings the techno.

Throw in the B-side, "Turkish Bass," and you have a pan-European/Balkan tour de force that covers all it's bases and then some.

Download: Acting Sane
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Letting Up Despite Great Faults

Hailing from Los Angeles, California, Letting Up Despite Great Faults are excited to announce the release of their forthcoming EP Paper Crush, on Old Flame Records out on August 2. Letting Up Despite Great Faults is the sonic diary of founding member, Mike Lee.

Lee's interest in music started at an early age, picking up piano, bass and guitar. After rooming with two DJs in college, Lee started to explore sampling and sequencing beats, taking a cue from DJ Shadow, IDM and dance pioneers like Aphex Twin and Daft Punk.

This of course means that Letting Up Despite Great Faults sounds nothing like any of that.  Somewhere between Ride, Slumberland Records, and fields of heather is where you'll find Paper Crush residing.  The Anglophilia that Letting Up Despite Great Faults suffers from runs rampant here and you can hear it oozing out of every single riff.  This is the sort of record that has summer written all over it and had it come out in 1992 would have been declared single of the year by Melody Maker.

Charmingly brilliant stuff then.

Download: Teenage Tide
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Cassettes Won't Listen...Just Don't Listen

Jason Drake, aka Cassettes Won't Listen, is not a stranger to cease and desists. Back in 2008 CWL was served with a cease and desist from none other than the RIAA for his Guns N Roses / Ludacris mash up titled Ludacris Democracy. The release matched up the yet-to-be-released Chinese Democracy with Ludacris acapellas. Needless to say, GNR nor RIAA liked the idea. The mash up was removed from the Internet, left exclusively to the savviest of Internet searchers.

Fast forward 3 years later, CWL gears up with a brand new album titled KEVINSPACEY, to be released June 21st, only to ruffle the feathers of the award winning actor and be hit with yet another cease and desist. Just another fork in the road for Mr. Drake as he's just announced the album's re-titling, EVINSPACEY. Same great taste, different name.

And somewhere you know the actual Kevin Spacey is listening to this album going..."I have an album named after me, nah nah nah.  Even if it doesn't have a K attached to it." 

Download: Perfect Day
Download: The Echoes
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Andy Petr Is Anything But A Rapper Turned Singer

Prolific beyond his years, Milwaukee native Andy Petr recently signed with Brooklyn-based Mixpak records and will release his debut album Rapper Turned Singer EP on May 10th. Andy's profuse output of intricate chops doesn't stop there. He is also delivering a spate of free EPs which APD004 being the first. The planned trilogy of EPs will feature original material as well as heavy reworkings of some of his favorite rap songs.

Simply put, the kid is good.  He slices, dices, chops and grinds together samples with an ear to the floor while keeping an eye out for the next great sample.  And when he's not doing that he gets lost in his own little world where Brian Eno and Justice live together in electronic harmony.  It all might seem a bit disjointed and strange at times, I mean it's hard for it not to with samples flying around everywhere or new agey synths floating by, but either way the kid writes grooves that are so deep they make the Mariana Trench look shallow.

Download: Rapper Turned Singer
Download: Drinking Milk From His Hands
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Fleet Foxes Return To The Fray

Fleet Foxes highly anticipated sophomore release Helplessness Blues (Sub Pop/Bella Union), is officially available today, May 3rd. The release of the twelve-track album coincides with the band’s first North American tour (which kicked off on Saturday in Vancouver) since August 2009 followed by a string of UK and European dates with more stateside shows to follow in July.

Here are the dates...(through June)

May 03, 2011 Moore Theatre / Seattle, WA

May 05, 2011 Fox Theater / Oakland, CA

May 06, 2011 Spreckels Theatre / San Diego, CA
May 07, 2011 Hollywood Palladium / Hollywood, CA
May 08, 2011 Rialto Theatre / Tucson, AZ
May 10, 2011 Stubb's Waller Creek / Austin, TX
May 11, 2011 Palladium Ballroom / Dallas, TX
May 13, 2011 Ryman Auditorium / Nashville, TN
May 14, 2011 The Tabernacle / Atlanta, GA
May 15, 2011 DAR Constitution Hall / Washington, DC
May 17, 2011 Orpheum Theatre / Boston, MA
May 18, 2011 The United Palace Theatre / New York, NY
May 19, 2011 The United Palace Theatre / New York, NY

May 21, 2011 Tower Theatre / Upper Darby, PA

May 25, 2011 Astra / Berlin, Germany

May 26, 2011 Dachau Summer of Music / Munich, Germany

May 28, 2011 Primavera Sound / Barcelona, Spain

May 30, 2011 Bataclan / Paris, France

May 31, 2011 Hammersmith Apollo / London, UK

June 01, 2011 Hammersmith Apollo / London, UK

June 02, 2011 Hammersmith Apollo / London, UK

June 23, 2011 Civic Hall / Wolverhampton, UK

June 25, 2011 Custom House Square / Belfast, Ireland

June 26, 2011 Live at the Marquee / Cork, Ireland

June 28, 2011 Manchester Apollo / Manchester, UK

June 29, 2011 Corn Exchange / Edinburgh, UK

Download: Grown Ocean
Download: Helplessness Blues

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