March 2012
[Listen] Dragonette - "Let It Go"
After providing luscious guest vocals for the likes of Don Diablo, Martin Solveig, and Kaskade over the course of the past couple of years, Ontario eletronic band Dragonette has finally stepped out on their own once again. Earlier today the band unveiled their new single, “Let It Go”, which is an absolute electro-pop delight that is sure to make you shrug off any office drama and set...
[Listen] Maps & Atlases - "Fever"
As we eagerly await the return of Maps & Atlases and their new album _Beware & Be Grateful_ to drop on the 17th of April, we get our second taste of what’s to come. Like stealing a cookie from the jar while your parents are in the next room as a child, the track is a delight to the senses and a rush of excitement as it sees the band take a more direct approach in comparison to their...
[Listen] Reptar - "Orifice Origami"
A new track from Reptar has hit the net today and it’s a goodie. I’ve been keeping a close eye on these guys for a while and their debut, _Body Faucet, _is definitely an album I’m eager to wrap my ears around in 2012. Luckily there’s not too long to wait as it’s out in a few months on the 1st of May. However, for you eager beavers, me included, today we can listen...
[Watch] Dirty Ghosts - "Ropes That Way" (Official...
A new video from Dirty Ghosts does this way come. For the track “Ropes That Way” it features Allyson Baker minus a guitar wandering the streets promptly rocking out with just a mic. Walking around with a barrage of passing houses and imagery it’s pretty cool to see a lady minus a guitar. The track features on Dirty Ghosts’ full length, wonderful debut, _Metal Moon. _Watch...
[Watch] Curren$y - "King Kong" Live at SXSW 2012
We’ve seen that Curren doesn’t like to sit and fester in the smell of his own smoke for too long and has been dropping new material on the regular for the past year. Whilst out in Austin for SXSW he grinded hard too, and as Hypetrak point out, if you weren’t lucky enough to be in the streets for SX this year, there’s a video of Spitta performing “King King”...
[Listen] Maximo Park - "The National Health"
These guys take me back to a simpler time, a time when I thought the world was against me and the longest working day I had was 6 hours of school work with an hours dinner break thrown in for good measure. How wrong I was. I’m talking about Maximo Park, who when I was a school kid brought out a soundtrack to my teen years in the shape of their full-length debut,_ A Certain Trigger._ Fast...
[Watch] The Shins - "Clapping Butter" Live on BBC...
At the start of the week, The Shins visited BBC Radio One and Zane Lowe to lay down some track but whilst there offered up an unusual song choice. “Clapping Butter”, a track they recorded as part of a skit for Funny or Die not too long ago. See what you make of their rendition on British Radio up at the top.
The Shins’ new album _Port of Morrow_ is out now via Aural...
[Watch] Regina Spektor - "All The Rowboats"...
Regina Spektor offers up the official visual for “All The Rowboats”, the lead single from her forthcoming LP, _What We Saw From the Cheap Seats._ The video features some cool effects and imagery put together by Adria Petty and stop-motion animator Peter Sluszka. As CoS point out, Adria Petty is the guy behind Beyoncé’s “Countdown” video. See what you make of their...
[Watch] Kasabian - "Days Are Forgotten" Live From...
Kasabian in the UK are a force to be reckoned with. They headline festivals on a yearly basis and tour relentlessly to hoards of adoring fans. I wasn’t sure how much the US fancied them as a live band, or a band full stop to be honest. This video goes some what to show the reaction the band are getting on their current North American tour though. Filmed during the band’s show at New...
[Watch] White Rabbits - "Danny Come Inside" x "Are...
On Wednesday evening White Rabbits paid a visit to the stage of Jimmy Kimmel Live! to put in some performances of tracks from their album _Milk Famous._ We saw them perform “Temporary” earlier in the month on Fallon but on Wednesday they played “Danny Come Inside” and “Are You Free”. See what you make of their live chops at the top courtesy of the wonderful...
[Listen] Indians - "Magic Kids"
Differing from the rather upbeat pop of their Scandinavian contemporaries, Copenhagen-based group Indians have honed a beautifully melancholic dreamscape with their brand new 7” single “Magic Kids.” The song is a jittering journey through a collection of ambient chimes, encapsulating wave synths and despondent vocals that croon saddening words: “There are lights in your...
[Watch] Grimes' KEXP Session
Since the release of _Visions_ Grimes has been just about everywhere and had a barrage of good press following her. Rightly so, and today we can continue to keep her beats and vox on our minds as she’s visited KEXP to lay down a session in which we get to see some of her live energy, albeit a little reserved as she rotates between instruments and pedals. See what you make of her live chops...
[Listen] Cage - "The Void" Feat. Sherry St....
Our good pals over at Prefix just debuted the first single “The Void” from Cage’s upcoming EP _Illuminated: Kill The Architect, _his first release since 2009’s _Depart From Me. _The new EP/Single also reunites Cage with former Smut Peddlers partner/_Movies For The Blind_ producer DJ Mighty Mi since their beef back in the early 2000’s.
“The Void”...
[Download] Pillowfight (Dan The Automator x Emily...
Deltron Event II isn’t the only big project from super producer Dan The Automator this year. Automator has hooked up with singer/songwriter Emily Wells for a new collaborative project called Pillowfight which also features long time Automator collaborator Kid Koala on turntables. According to Wells’ website, the group came together when Kid Koala and Wells met at the Calgary Folk Fest....
[Watch] SBTRKT - "Hold On" (Official Video)
Well this is a nice surprise. Last night UK Producer(s) SBTRKT took to their Facebook page to post a link to their awesome track “Hold On” which features on the self titled album. The video compliments the track well with the protagonist driving in the night searching for something but never quite finding it. Ominous indeed. Peep it after the jump via MTV Hive.
SBTRKT...
[Listen] Chromatics - 'Kill For Love' (Full Album...
Chromatics has taken to Soundcloud to drop the highly anticipated double album _Kill for Love_ which has been long awaited for a lot of people. It appeared on iTunes earlier this week but if you want to give it a little try before you buy stream it in full below. http://skoa.co/1N6zh8
[Watch] Dum Dum Girls - "Coming Down" (Official...
A simplistic video offering today from Dum Dum Girls for their stand out track “Coming Down” from last year’s _Only In Dreams_. Along with the video the girls announced a string of European and North American tour dates to promote their album. Dates can be checked out after the jump but first, peep the video at the top.
_Only in Dreams_ is out now via Sub Pop...
[Listen] Black City Lights - 'Parallels' EP
New Zealand duo Black City Lights, comprising of Calum Robb and Julia Catherine Parr, are simply captivating. Their recently released EP _Parallels _is, from start to finish, a joy to listen to, with title track and album opener “Parallels” immediately creating an alluring atmosphere that is impossible not to get drawn into. Elegant synth work combines with airy vocals in a seamless...
[Watch] Kibbe Guest Hosts Today's Episode of Rock...
Our good friend Sami over at Rock It Out! Blog asked me if I would guest host for an episode of his show this week and I happily accepted. As per his Wednesday ritual, I made sure to share some bands that I thought people should check out this week, which included Sharks, Wazu and Breton. Hope you guys enjoy! http://skoa.co/1N0XG4
[Listen] Teen Daze - "Fantasy"
As Teen Daze is set to embark on a European tour, he has announced the appropriately titled _EU Tour_ EP, which will be sold exclusively on his upcoming tour dates. As a first listen of the EP, the Vancouver musician let loose a track titled “Fantasy,” one of three that will be included on the tour release. Give it a listen below.
After the jump, you can take a look at Teen...
[Watch] Delta Spirit - "California" (Official...
Delta Spirit’s new video for their track “California” perfectly captures the lifestyle of young punks in 1990’s America, with drinking, skateboarding and partying abound. Where the dichotomy comes through, though, is in the conclusion, where the delinquent girl cleans up from a night of debauchery in order to have a nice family breakfast with her parents. It’s a nice...
[Listen] Mike Shinoda (of Linkin Park) & Joe...
Everyone knows how anti-Linkin Park presently due to being a hardcore fan in my teens and just getting aimlessly tired of the lackluster releases they put out in the last few years. So you ask why am I doing yet another post regarding the band? Well, I ran across an email this morning for the upcoming soundtrack for the film _The Raid: Redemption _not knowing it was Linkin Park related as the...
[Listen] Theophilus London feat. Blood Orange -...
Helping us get nice and steamy on a Wednesday morning (depending on where you are, of course) is Theophilus London, who just dropped a brand new track titled “Take It Off (Dim the Lights),” a Pharrell Williams-produced song that fits perfectly into the early ’90s vein of baby making R&B jams. For the track, London once again teams up with Blood Orange, who he worked with...
[Listen] Stalley - "Home To You" Feat. Wale x...
Stalley offers up another cut from his forthcoming release _Savage Journey to the American Dream._ The track features some vocal work from Anthony Flammia in the choruses while Wale lends his lyrical wit to a verse to lay down a few bars. Look out for the full release this Friday via LiveMixtapes and as Hypetrak points out we now have a tracklisting for the release which you can peep after jump....
[Listen] Rusko - "Skankers"
Today we get some new music from Rusko to enjoy via the good people over at Spin. Called “Skankers” it’s been released to celebrate the release of his album _SONGS_ which dropped on Mad Decent/Downtown Recordings this week and hey, what’s not to celebrate. So get you mid-week dance on and party like it’s 3999 ‘cos we’re all young and we can. Happy humpday...
[Watch] Death Grips - "The Fever (Aye Aye)"
While we await the release of their first major label release on Epic next month in the form of The Money Store, we’ve been getting tracks galore. This year we’ve heard “Blackjack”, “Get Got” and “Lost Boys”, today we can add another piece to our collection, “The Fever (Aye Aye)” which comes complete with trippy video accompaniment. Check...
[Listen] Damon Albarn - "The Marvelous Dream"
Damon Albarn is set to release an accompaniment for his _Dr. Dee _opera which debuted in Manchester last year. Today a new studio version of a track called “The Marvelous Dream” has hit the net and comes with a monochrome visual of some fast moving UK traffic. Not the most exciting video but it’s always a good thing to have new material from Damon and it’s not as if...
[Watch] Pulled Apart By Horses - "Wolf Hand"...
Pulled Apart By Horses return with a brand new visual for their new single “Wolf Hand” to follow up the creepy video they offered up for “V.E.N.O.M.”. This video sees the lads returning to the hand held VHS camera style we saw them use last year for their “I Punched A Lion In The Throat” video. As the guys put it “Summer grunge boys larking about USA back...
[Watch] iamamiwhoami - "Play"
Keeping mystery firmly intact iamamiwhoami took to the internet yesterday and posted another video for a track called “Play”. The Swedish singer-songwriter Jonna Lee is apparently releasing a debut later this year but who knows with all the shadow filled secrecy she keeps dropping these tracks and visuals in. For now, enjoy the fur filled video at the top.
For more videos that you...
[Listen] Garbage - "Battle In Me"
After hearing the first taste of some new material in seven years in the shape of “Blood For Poppies” earlier this month, Garbage give fans another taste of what’s to come from their forthcoming album, _Not Your Kind Of People. _This little number is called “Battle In Me” and is set to be the lead single in the UK. You can enjoy the track repeatedly below via Radio...
[Listen] The Flaming Lips and Bon Iver - "Ashes in...
On April 21st, The Flaming Lips will be releasing a compilation comprised of an incredible amount collaborations for Record Store Day titled _The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends_, with a reportedly small number of the vinyls being pressed for the release including the blood of several the contributing artists. One of the artists included on the compilation, although we’re unsure whether or not...
[News] The Flaming Lips To Use Blood From Neon...
As we reported last week, The Flaming Lips are gearing up for some pretty cool releases for this year’s Record Store Day. Today we have learned that the ever-eccentric band is going one step further and doing an exteremly limited pressing of both head scratching and nausea-inducing proportions. NME is reporting that the band revealed that they will be using the blood of some of the...
[News] The Tallest Man on Earth Announces New...
Following up his fantastic 2010 album _The Wild Hunt_, Kristian Matsson, aka The Tallest Man on Earth, has announced his third studio album _There’s No Leaving Now_. An issued press release states that the album will be released on June 12th via Dead Oceans, and will feature ten tracks.
After the jump, you can take a look at the album’s tracklisting, as well as Matsson performing...
[Watch] Nardwuar Interviews Kendrick Lamar and...
Nardwaur the Human Serviette seemed to have had an extremely busy South by Southwest, having interviewed Danny Brown, Action Bronson, and A Rocky. Now, even more of the Vancouver native’s festival interviews have surfaced, this time around with rapper Kendrick Lamar and fellow Vancouverite Grimes. Check out the quirky interviewer working his magic in the video above, with Kendrick Lamar, and...
[Listen] Ty Segall and White Fence - "I Am Not a...
San Francisco Bay area rockers Ty Segall and White Fence are collaborating on a LP titled _Hair_, which is set to drop on April 24th via Drag City. The first listen from the album comes in the form of the organ-driven “I Am Not a Game,” which premiered on Pitchfork earlier today. Give the song a listen below, and both bands are heading out on tour next month, including shows...
[News] The Morning Benders Change Name to Pop ETC
In rather unfortunate news, The Morning Benders have recently taken to Twitter and Facebook to announce that “this will be the last post/tweet from The Morning Benders.” The news, while at first seemingly implying the demise of the band, was met with more welcome news. The band will not be breaking up, but instead changing their name to Pop ETC.
On their former official website, band member...
[Download] Mickey Factz - Mickey MauSe (Mixtape)
Mickey Factz is back with his long awaited mixtape _Mickey MauSe_. The concept tape tells the story of lead character graff writer Mickey Mau5e (a pseudo character created by Mickey Factz) and his upbringing and his struggles with drugs, art, HIV and his rise to fame in the golden era of 1980’s New York City with the likes of Andy Warhol who serves as a mentor, while other artists like...
[Watch] Charli XCX - "Nuclear Seasons" (Live at...
After seeing Charli XCX last month supporting Sleigh Bells I was pretty impressed. An energetic set and a pretty stellar voice compared to what I’d heard on record. Today she shows everyone what they may have missed with a live recording from Dalston Heights of her track “Nuclear Seasons” which she posted up on Twitter yesterday. If you’ve been putting off giving Charli a...
[Listen] Regina Spektor - "Don’t Leave Me (Ne Me...
Last month we heard the first track, “All The Rowboats”, from Regona Spektor’s forthcoming _What We Saw From the Cheap Seats. _Today we can listen to her take on Belgian songwriter Jacques Brel’s “Ne me quitte pas” too which is set to feature on her forthcoming 11 track release. See what you make of it below. If you think it sounds familiar in anyway you’d be...
[Listen] Electric Guest - "Jenny" x Daytrotter...
The end of April/beginning of may is going to be a wonderful time for fans of super producer Brian “Danger Mouse” Burton with the upcoming release of Norah Jones’ _Little Broken Hearts_ on May 1st and the debut album _Mondo_ by Electric Guest dropping April 24th, both produced by Burton. Fans of Danger Mouse’s work, especially his band Broken Bells formed alongside The...
[Listen] Silversun Pickups - "Bloody Mary (Nerve...
A Bloody Mary on a day like today wouldn’t go a miss actually and speaking of, Silversun Pickups’ new album, _Neck Of The Woods_, is due out soon and today you can listen to a track entitled, “Bloody Mary”. See what I did there. The track is pretty ambient with plenty of lovely feedback thrown in for good measure too along with some more electronic dabbles in places....
[Listen] Japandroids - "The House That Heaven...
Well this is most certainly a big kick up the tush for a Tuesday lull. Take a listen to Japandroids lead single from their upcoming sophomore LP, _Celebration Rock_. Titled “The House That Heaven Built” it’s a barrage of big guitars and rampant drums. Think Hold Steady meets Gas Light Anthem with just the right amount of feel good summer vibes to brighten any day. My next few...
[Listen] Arcade Fire - "Horn of Plenty"
Earlier this month, we heard Arcade Fire’s first contribution to the movie adaptation of _The Hunger Games _in the form of “Abraham’s Daughter.” As was mentioned when the first track made its way into our hands, the indie outfit also contributed a solely instrumental song to the movie as well. The song, titled “Horn of Plenty,” an orchestral piece that can be...
[Listen] Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire - "Good Pussy In...
Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire offers up a tastefully named track titled “Good Pussy In Chicago” featuring Goldie Glo. The Brooklyn rapper offers up his take on why Chicago is so damn good over a heavy beat and adds to it his signature word play. Very much worth a few moments of your time. What else are you going to do with the next 3 minutes of your day? Go on, treat yourself via...
[Watch] Simian Mobile Disco - "Cerulean" (Official...
Simian Mobile Disco have released the official video for their track “Cerulean,” and, taking inspiration from classic 8-bit video games such as _Pong_,_ Asteroids_, _Alleyway _and_ Space Invaders_, it is simply captivating. With Jack Featherstone and Will Samuel of ISO Studio at the helm, the video brilliantly matches up reimaginings of these video game classic with the UK duo’s...
[Listen] Blockhead - "Never Forget Your Token"
Although he may not be featured as a producer on Aesop Rock’s upcoming album _Skelethon_, long time Aesop Rock producer Blockhead is back with a new LP of his own titled _Interludes After Midnight_. The follow up from 2010’s instrumental album, _The Music Scene_ is set to be released on April 30th in Europe and May 1st in the US via Ninja Tune Records. Check out the album’s...
Aesop Rock Announces LP #6 'Skelethon" To Release...
Acerizzle aka Aesop Rock (not to be confused with A$AP Rocky) announced today that his 6th solo album _Skeletho_n will be released on July 10th via indie hip hop giant, Rhymesayers. _Skelethon_ marks the first solo LP in five years since Aesop’s last album None Shall Pass was released in 07. The album features guest spots from Ace’s Hail Mary Mallon Co-horts Rob Sonic & DJ Big...
[News] Air France Call It Quits
Swedish pop duo Air France have taken to their Tumblr to announce that the band is no more. Frowny face. The duo comprising of Joel Karlsson and Henrik Markstedt posted an expert titled “We’ll make this brief, because it hurts too much” in which they thank the people that made everything they achieved possible.”During the first year of Air France, somewhere in the middle of the...
[Watch] Tenacious D - "To Be The Best"
With the _Rize of the Fenix_ inevitable, Jack Black and Kyle Gas come back at us with a hilarious video called “To Be The Best” in which we are greeted by a build up showing Gas’ falling from grace and becoming ‘Rage Kage’ while Black gets into a crap tonne of drugs and just wants to be crazily famous. The video features cameos from Dave Grohl and Josh Groban and is a...
[Listen] Best Coast - "The Only Place"
As the days grow longer and the Sun begins to beat down on our skin with more and more regularity we start to ease into the beer gardens, awaiting the arrival of some new Summer tunes to soundtrack our next BBQ or party. Today we get a track that would fit quite nicely into this category and it comes from Best Coast. The track is the title track from the album _The Only Place_ which is set for...