Far From Noise

Photo borrowed from Claudia Kay Photography

 
Apparently I should dedicate this mix to Brooklyn. Eight out of ten songs has something to do with this petri dish for indie music. My apologies for a couple of harsh transitions this week. I just had to put these three songs in the front because I think they are all really good and then I ended up with some things tacked on the end because I wasn’t sure where to put them. That doesn’t make them any less great. Enjoy.

1. None’s Listenin by Japanther
   From: Brooklyn, NY
   Album: Rock N’ Roll Ice Cream 
   This is FUN punk! aka pop-punk. Just a great lo-fi garage band with catchy hooks. Japanther is a two man rock group that has been around since 2001. Rock N’ Roll Ice Cream will be released March 2nd and the entire LP is infectious. Definitely worth picking up.
   
   
2. Bodies by Savoir Adore
   From: Brooklyn, NY
   Album: In The Wooded Forest 
   This track makes me feel bad that I was so out of the music loop last year. In The Wooded Forest is the debut LP from Savoir Adore released last September. It’s distinctly pop with some indie sensibilities that I don’t know how to explain, but I can hear it. Something about how they mix the simple drum and guitar with synth-style keyboards. I can’t help but dance to this.
   
   
3. Ten By Ten by Bluebrain
   From: Washington DC
   Album: Soft Power 
   “But Roger,” you say, “this band is from DC. Not Brooklyn.” What you don’t know is that this brother duo moved from Brooklyn one year before working on these songs. Unfortunately, the move was quickly followed with one of the brothers dealing with temporary paralysis, misdiagnosis, and eventually spinal surgery. Fortunately, he completely recovered and they released their debut album earlier this month. Another song that makes me dance around. I hear heavy New Order influences.
   
   
4. Ambling Alp by Yeasayer
   From: Brooklyn, NY
   Album: Odd Blood 
   Another wonderful electronic sound. I first heard Yeasayer two years ago at Live 105‘s annual BFD concert with Liz and I was very impressed. Odd Blood just came out last month and has been popular with both fans of indie and electronic.
   
   
5. Leave Me Alone (ft. Bjorn Yttling & Angelina Lucero) by Pretty Good Dance Moves
   From: Brooklyn, NY/Chicago, IL
   Album: PGDM 
   How many different ways can I define fun, upbeat electronic. Let’s call it electro-pop this time. I know there have been plenty of bands making this sound for awhile now but it reminds me of Passion Pit even though they haven’t been around for very long. An EP PGDM released last year garnered lots of attention and their full length LP is coming out in early March. This is another duo and that Bjorn Yttling featured on this song is from Peter Bjorn & John.
   
   
6. My Eyes To See by Alcoholic Faith Mission
   From: Copenhagen, Denmark
   Album: Let This Be The Last Night We Care 
   Alright, finally slowing things down a little bit and we are almost out of Brooklyn. Alcoholic Faith Mission is out of Denmark but they recorded this latest LP in Brooklyn which will be released in early March. Still electronic but more of an ambient sound. I’m reminded of Cloud Cult.
   
   
7. Do You Have a Strategy? by Uninhabitable Mansions
   From: Brooklyn, NY
   Album: Nature Is A Taker 
   According to their website, Uninhabitable Mansions is a band AND an art collective. When I heard the vocals on this song I knew they sounded familiar and sure enough this band includes Robbie Guertin and Tyler Sargent from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Annie Hart of Au Revoir Simone. I worry that they sound too similar to Los Campesinos but I’m a sucker for upbeat indie pop.
   
   
8. Paris France by Blair
   From: Brooklyn, NY
   Album: Die Young 
   Oh, clapping-hands-happy-music, how I love thee. Blair maybe living in Brooklyn now but she grew up in New Orleans and started playing publicly in Los Angeles. Die Young is this singer/songwriter’s debut full length release and it came out late last month.
   
   
9. Change of Time by Josh Ritter
   From: Moscow, ID
   Album: So Runs The World Away 
   From folk-pop to just folk. Another singer/songwriter, Josh Ritter discovered while touring that his music sold better in Ireland that it did stateside. This new CD will come out in Ireland first on April 23rd and the rest of the world will get it on May 4th. I don’t think I need to say much about this song. It’s just beautiful.
   
   
10. New York Is Killing Me by Gil Scott-Heron
    From: New York, NY
    Album: I’m New Here 
    Gil Scott-Heron is a poet, activist, and musician known primarily for his influential work in the late 70s and early 80s. In and out of jail on drug charges for the past decade, this is his first release in 13 years. The lyrics are almost unnecessary as his low, gravelly voice tells a story all on its own. Hence the stripped down simplicity of guitar and clapping hands.