fifties sunday

Pretty psyched for Vivian Girls version of this

Available first week in March as b-side to new single 'My Love Will Follow Me', but pre-release orders being taken now at Rough Trade store. Go get get get it.

the splinters

The Splinters Myspace

These ladies are releasing their first full length in March on Double Negative. They're currently playing shows and are appearing with The Fresh & Onlys and Foreign Born next week on Feb 24 in San Fransisco. Go! (PS. San Fransisco you are ruling my world right now.)

Like loads of other bands currently circulating, theirs is low fi garage with a 60s girl group vibe. But I think they do it a lot better than many of those other bands. They look tight and confident, and I feel like they would jump at the chance to work in a studio and polish their sound a little if offered that opportunity. DIY or die sure, but sometimes a little level readjustment and smoothing out can go a long way. I'm excited to watch where these guys go... SXSW here they come

moon duo

Been listening to this a lot today. The repetitive riff is hypnotic.

Moon Duo 'Stumbling 22nd Street'

Turn up loud, get fucked up, and sway

Moon Duo 'Escape' LP/CD is out today on Woodsist. They're on tour at the moment before playing sxsw. Check out the dates at their Myspace.

sonny days

My San Fransisco love affair continues

Sonny & The Sunsets 'Too Young To Burn'

I bought mp3s of this record last night on a whim after reading that Tim Cohen from The Fresh and Onlys and Kelly Stoltz play in his band. Its been out for a while, released early last year after being recorded in home studios for the most of 2008. Buy the album (mp3s or vinyl) here

Sonny is working on a project for a San Fransisco gallery now. Local artists have been creating covert art for fictional records, and Sonny has been writing music to match each one. The show opens on April 9 - head along if you're in the area.

Also if you're a little lonesome (or its been a while between dances), Hole In The Sky wanderer Fred Cherry is playing on Saturday at Good God

Dance, get loved up

All I need is someone to take me home

The Proper Ornaments 'Home'
(via Vice)

One of the guys from Veronica Falls (I posted their track 'Beachy Head' a while back) is in a new band called The Proper Ornaments. Yesterday I was checking in with Make A Mess (who release Grass Widow who I love) and they had posted news of a Proper Ornaments release on their website. Then today, the Vice blog posted two songs by the duo.

While reminiscent of the smooth melodic pop of the Flying Nun label in the early 80s (think bands like The Clean) their sound also pays homage to the low fi pop of the 90s currently being revived by so many. It's just the early stages, but it does sound promising. Their song 'Home' is very sweet - A short simple pop track with sugary lyrics. Everyone wants someone to take them home and make them smile. Come on baby darling.

morning vibes

Members of Girls and every other San Fransisco hipster you would want to be friends with perform 'Excuses' by The Morning Benders (get their latest double single from Rough Trade store)

Even with a full choir this acoustic rendition sounds more delicate than their Spector wall of sound debut with less echo on Chris Chu's vocals, which I really like.

I spent this past weekend at a beach house and my friends and I listened to The Morning Benders album 'Big Echo' a lot. It rained for most of the three days we were away, and we found it perfect for cooler evenings staring out at the ocean. Greedy Hen wants to move to San Fransisco so she was particularly vibing the record. Hey San Fransisco, can Greedy and I come hang out for a while? I'm really good on a tom tom and she's got sweet dance moves.

get wet

When we go down to the water side, we always have a lot of fun

Can't wait for you to see this one!

Coming soon...

casual dog

My friend Mikey is a very talented man. He is a graphic designer, and a DJ, and hosts a super fun party called Jingle Jangle. Plus, he has excellent taste in tunes.

He was saying that for a while he has been flirting with the idea of hosting a weekly radio show in an attempt to broaden his knowledge of past sounds and to introduce his favourite things to interested music fans. Instead, he has decided to launch a blog where he will host fortnightly themed mix tapes. The first is now online at his new site Casual Radio

Centered around the Blues music of Piedmont on the US East Coast, the mix is a wonderful collection of plucked, melodic, and more obscure blues including three tracks by Blind Boy Fuller (pictured above).

Casual Radio #1 'Blues Came Down'