National Beat's Carnival Caravan

Natioanl Beat's latest ep, Carnival Caravan featuring Cha Wa, is a five song trip to Brazil via New Orleans. It's a crazy mash up of party atmospheres that lends itself to a upbeat, uptempo, percussion fueled vibe that's filled with energy. This short record is an ethnomusicologists dream of what cross cultural pollination is all about. South American maracatu drumming meshes with New Orleans second line rhythms and funk to fuse a sound that's as celebratory as it is unique.

From the funky vibes of “Casa Diamante – Sew Sew Sew,” complete with fuzzed out guitars to the extremely catchy fun of the NOLA fueled march of, “Liza Jane,” you'll have no idea what continent you're on, what influences are playing off one another and why you can't stop tapping along. National Beat are truly a Carnival Caravan and they're taking their party from the streets of the French Quarter to the carnival's of Brazil and everywhere in between. Carnival Caravan is the sound of diversity and all fun. 

Animal Daydream Create Easy Pleasures

Animal Daydream are a band so in love with west coast pop they seemingly have gotten lost within it. Their recent four song single Easy Pleasures is a ray of sunshiny jangle that's as laid back as a Sunday morning in Santa Barbara. With enough of a Teenage Fanclub/Tyde influence to make you wonder if they're not really lost in Britain as opposed to California, this group gently strums guitars, layers harmonies, and write songs as if the sun was in perpetual sunset mode.

Easy Pleasures is an absolute joy to listen to. It's uncomplicated breezy nature is as warm as the sun and as fresh as the salty beach air. Each of the four songs are melodic masterpieces that are bright even when they're going on about rain. If ever there was a soundtrack to a bonfire on a beach, Easy Pleasures would be it, it's casual and optimistic tone is the perfect way to top off a long day in paradise. This record truly is an easy pleasure.

Grounders Ring In Debut Album

This spring, the Toronto-based Grounders - Andrew Davis (vocals and guitar), Daniel Busheikin (keyboards), Mike Searle (Bass) and Evan Lewis (guitar) - will release their first full-length album, a collection of dense and intricate pop music under the gauzy veil of krautrock and psychedelia.

Over the course of the last two years, Grounders rediscovered their love for classic pop music, an appreciation that had waned over the years as they became obsessed with circumventing the conventional. Just another day in the life of a band. While rediscovering this appreciation, they listened to pop staples like David Bowie and Devo, and revisited old favorites like Velvet Underground, Neu! and the Zombies. When Grounders finally came up for air, they had a new found love for pop and a glut of ideas for a debut LP.

The album came to life in two distinct spaces: Davis's bedroom in Toronto's sleepy High Park neighbourhood; and a spacious two-car garage packed with vintage gear from various pawn shops and second-hand stores across the country.

After recruiting DIANA's Kieran Adams to handle drums, the band headed into the studio with longtime pal Marcel Ramagnano (Born Ruffians, Absolutely Free) to record. Months of tracking, tinkering and layering later, Grounders enlisted the incomparable David Newfeld (Broken Social Scene, Holy Fuck) to give each song the bombastic, fried analog treatment he's become known for.

With the self-titled album on the verge of release (May 12th) the band are set to head out on the highway shortly thereafter...

5/28: Philadelphia, PA @ Milkboy
5/29: Brooklyn, NY @ Palisades
6/11: Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz
6/12: Ottawa, ON @ Café Dekcuf
6/13: Kingston, ON @ Old Fort Henry
6/18 - 6/19: Toronto, ON @ NXNE
6/20: Chicago, IL @ Fizz
6/22: Winnipeg, MB @ The Good Will
6/23: Saskatoon, SK @ Vangelis
6/24: Edmonton, AB @ Wunderbar
6/25 - 6/27: Calgary, AB @ Sled Island

Check out the slightly groovy, "No Ringer."

Le Couleur Adds Color To A Grey Winter

Fueled by the music of Todd Terje and Giorgio Moroder, Montreal's Le Couleur set out to record a 5 track EP that would eventually be dubbed Dolce Désir. The follow up to 2013’s much beloved Voyage Love EP, Dolce Désir sees the band fully embrace the romantic disco visions of yore, while maintaining their forward thinking franco-pop sensibilities.

The video isn't much to look at but the single it represents, "Concerto Rock," is a 80's sensible pseudo-Moroder masterpiece that's as spangly and exotic as Donna Summer lost in Paris. Have a gander at the magnets vs. TV's video below...

One More Top 25 For The Road!

A week later and we're still here!  Hard to believe, I know, but it's true.

And to cap off our first week, we present our last (but certainly not least) Top 25 for 2014!  This one comes to us from Natalie who calls Tampa home now but is originally from Jacksonville.  When she's not going to see all the bands that we DON'T get to see here in Jacksonville she finds the time to compile lists.  Here's her Top 25 for 2014...

25. Lindsey Stirling: Shatter Me


24. MO: No Mythologies to Follow


23. Broken Bells: After the Disco


22. Dum Dum Girls: Too True


21. Phantogram: Voices


20. Brian Eno and Karl Hyde: Someday World


19. Tycho: Awake


18. Swans: To Be Kind


17. Bombay Bicycle Club: So Long, See you Tomorrow


16. St. Vincent: S/T


15. Damon Albarn: Everyday Robots


14. The Roots: ...and then You Shoot your Cousin


13. Jack White: Lazaretto


12. Jenny Lewis: The Voyager


11. Kimbra: The Golden Echo


10. The Pierces: Creation


9. The Kooks: Listen


8. Karen O: Crush Songs


7. Tove Lo: Queen of the Clouds


6. Ok Go: Hungry Ghosts


5. Cold War Kids: Hold My Home


4. Gemma Hayes: Bones + Longing


3. Charli XCX: Sucker


2. Interpol: El Pintor


1. FKA Twigs: LP1

Even More Top Records from 2014!

Three posts in under a week?  Something must be wrong with these people!  It's true though, we're on our third post...that's three more than all of 2013 & 2014 combined!

Anyway, up next is Rachel who comes to us all the way from Pittsburgh, PA.  When not freezing to death up in Pittsburgh she apparently has time to root for the Pens, listen to music and teach and these were her Top 10 records of 2014 in reverse order from 1 - 10.

1. Phantogram-Voices
2. Caribou-Our Love
3. Royskopp-The Inevitable End
4. Ariel Pink- Pom Pom
5. St. Vincent- St Vincent
6. SWANS- To Be Kind
7. New Pornographers-Brill Bruisers
8. Parquet Courts- Sunbathing Animal
9. Damon Albarn- Everyday Robots
10. Klaxons- Love Frequency

She somehow managed to out-British me because I completely forgot about Damon's solo release and the Klaxons.

Coming straight outta the 904 is our next contributor...Cassandra.  I've known Cassandra for a bunch of years and we've bonded over BW3, trivia and wanting to bring back white belts and Spock haircuts.  When not doing this Cassandra listens to a lot of hip hop (and punk) and even finds time to rhyme here and there.  She sent me her Top 10 rather than telling it to me in person...because apparently we live thousands of miles apart.  Anyway, here's her Top 10 which has a few left turns in it...

10. Homeboy Sandman - White Sands
9. clipping - clppng.
8. Milo - Toothpaste Suburb
7. Open Mike Eagle - Dark Comedy
6. Rob Sonic - Alice in the Thunderdome
5. Murder City Devils - The White Ghost Has Blood on Its Hands Again
4. Jean Grae -'5'
3. Run the Jewels - 2.
2. St. Vincent - St Vincent
1. Madlib and Freddie Gibbs - Cocaine Pinata

More Top Records From 2014

Bet you thought we wouldn't have two posts in two days?

See we really are back.  Really.

As promised we're continuing with our Top Records of 2014 while we prepare to start writing about stuff from 2015.

Up next and coming from Austin, Texas comes Susan who writes, "2014 was a crazy year...and my musical tastes were everywhere."

In no particular order...here's her Top 8

Angel Olsen
Album:Burn Your Fire For No Witness
Song: Forgive Forgotten


Tele Novella
Album: Trouble in Paradise
Song: Trouble in Paradise


Les Sins
Album: Michael
Song: Bother Me


Darius
Album: Romance EP
Song: Hot Hands


De Lux
Album: Voyage
Song: Better at Making Time


This ones kind of a guilty pleasure now since i've OD'd hard on it...
Sylvan Esso
Album: Self Titled
Song: Coffee (although Mami was in my head for 5 months straight)


Pure X
Album: Angel
Song: Heaven


Hospitality
Album: Trouble
Song: Last Words
Got stuck in the rain between two freeways waiting for the city bus with this song on repeat. I wish there was a video but this is my favorite song on the album