WolfAtTheDoor's Retro Refusal
 

Only new stuff here, ladies and gents. We can't all dwell on the old classics, shaking our canes whilst proclaiming that music will never be what it once was. Although there is some pap about, half of which might very well end up in this Journal - that all depends upon your musical preferences. Hopefully you shall be introduced to something you like, something you love, or something you downright hate.... let's press on.



Phoenix - Love Like a Sunset (Animal Collective Remix)
A plonking piano loop that manages to not gnaw on your frontal lobe accompanied by haunting, distant vocals reminiscent of Friendly Fires - on a hangover. It's downright sexy.




LCD Soundsystem - Bye Bye Bayou
For those of us waiting with baited breath for Mr Murphy's new output, it is somewhat disappointing that what we are treated to here isn't actually new album material. It is a standalone single, and a rather odd one at that. A departure from his typical electro-loops and forthright vocals, Bye Bye Bayou is a subtle affair that doesn't venture into the greatness we expect from LCD Soundsystem, but is made worthwhile for that funky bassline alone.



Alec Ounsworth - Holy Holy Holy Moses
A major departure from the Indie-Disco leanings of Clap Your Hands And Say Yeah (of which Ounsworth is frontman), this track from upcoming album 'Mo Beauty' suggests that this is more than a side project. With vocals strangely similiar to that of Elvis Perkins, Ounsworth sings of how 'the car got sunk/my Ma got drunk/and my faith got shook'. Possible contender for Indie Christmas anthem 09?



Julian Casablancas - Glass
After being surprised by the quality of his debut solo album, here's a cut from 'Phrazes For The Young'. The penultimate track on the album, it begins with monotonous assorted beeps reminiscent of First Impressions of Earth, but eventually works itself into a crashing crescendo, sleigh bells and all.



Calvin Harris - Flashback
Curveball! Though not a fan of any of his previous output, neither am I a fan of the man himself, I must admit that prior to realising who was responsible for 'Flashback' I was completely and utterly sold. So, in order to stray from my pretentious indie-snob leanings, I am going to give credit where credit is due. Although, it's not as good as London Elektricity's 'Just One Second' (which it is clearly striving to be), it still retains a hedonistic charm that, if released around the summer period as it should have been, it would have gone hand in hand with sunkissed beach bodies and Sex On The Beach.





For those curious;

Nice to see someone putting up new music,quite like the new Soundsystem track.

The Horrors - Whole New Way

Hot on the heels of the overwhelmingly good 'Primary Colours', Whole New Way is another slab of blindingly brilliant psychadelia. Wearing their inspirations on their sleeves once more, it reeks of the introverted 70's gutteral pop Faris Badwan & co are known for favouring. Melodic and bright, yet still brooding enough to not paint them with the overly-familiar sell-out brush.



Perfume Genius - No Problem

Having already attracted a small yet adoring fanbase with his heartfelt and honest tales of, well, everything, Perfume Genius creates gentle and somewhat eerie sounds and accompanies them with typically arthouse videoclips. Though this couplet immediately leads you to assume Perfume is more 'Pretentious' than 'Genius', his music is so vulnerable and timid that it is impossible to believe that this is anything other than a young man baring his soul.



Ou Est Le Swimming Pool - Dance The Way I Feel

Pet Shop Boys done by twatty students - but good. Don't believe me?

Fuck Buttons - Surf Solar

Sometimes it is incredibly difficult to critique music, when the music in question is so mind-bogglingly brilliant that words simply cannot do it justice. All that you need to know is that when 'Surf Solar' reached it's finale, my feet were tapping joyously and I was left breathless - such is the impact of this one 4 minute song that I will undoubtedly be splashing out on the album in the hope that it contains more of this stunning euphoria.




The Antlers - Two

A youtube hit, 'Two' is the perfect contrast to this cold, winter weather. Warm, light-hearted indie-pop that is undoubtedly good for the soul, reminiscent of Casiotone For The Painfully Alone if they wasn't so... well... alone.



Jamie T - Man Not A Monster

Zane Lowe's hottest new record (don't let that put you off), Jamie T once again embraces the ragamuffin within him and delivers this slab of Specials bop.



Them Crooked Vultures - Mind Eraser (No Chaser)

The first sample of new material from supergroup Them Crooked Vultures is everything you'd expect from a band comprised of Josh Homme, Dave Grohl and John Paul Jones. Dirty guitars to make your ears bleed and your pants drop off, it's a crashing crescendo of noise that is just about danceable. If by danceable you mean flailing your arms and spilling your booze.



The Big Pink - Velvet

Though not technically 'new' (it was released a couple of months back) The Big Pink have only recently launched into the public eye with the testosterone fuelled lad-rock that is 'Dominos', so it seems necessary to point out their lesser-known album material that has little chance of enticing the Topman-shirt wearing indie-disco masses. 'Velvet' is what you can imagine The Charlatans would be like if Tim Burgess wasn't so dam friendly.

The Fuck Buttons are amazing. And to think I almost didn't listen to their new album because everybody was comparing them to animal collective who I'm not a huge fan of.

Four Tet - Love Cry

All the best dance tracks can be summed up with one sentence, shouted in a decible-defying manner, by the flourescent pillhead opposing you. This sentence is 'wait for it', and it has never been more applicable than here. The sweet scratches of vinyl eventually making way for an ecstatic tribal stomp, those computer speakers won't do this justice. Take it out into the real world, everyone is waiting.



Egyptian Hip Hop - Rad Pitt

I first heard of these a few months back, but didn't think much of them other than the obviously poorly chosen name. Now this little laid-back gem has snuck up on me. It certainly is a grower, and although it doesn't quite possess the characteristics of an ear-melting debut, it certainly displays a lot of potential.



rymdreglage - 8 bit trip

And now for something completely different, found whilst lazily clicking through the interwebs.

Animal Collective is certainly not a band I'd associate them with...

Miike Snow - Black & Blue

Chances are you've already heard of Miike Snow, and therefore you have already had the pleasure of embracing 'Black & Blue' as the funky little number that it is. However, for those previously uninitiated with the man on everybodys lips (soon to be in a literal sense after the female population catches wind of his smooth-as-a-liquor vocals), here it is in all of its glory. A shining beacon of pop mischief, a soothing drill penetrating your brain - an anthem to make the dancefloor swoon.



The Raincoats - No Looking

As their self-titled debut is due for re-release, it is almost essential that you should be reaqquainted with the post-punk quartet. 'No Looking' combines all the self-consciousness of a pubescent teen (only, y'know, cool) with searing violins and a demonic female yelp of a chorus that leaves you wondering - who the fuck closes an album with this?



Apse - The Whip

As perverse as it is irresistable, this cut from the rather disappointing 'Climb Up' is a pearl trapped in an oyster floating through a sea of inconsistency. When the distorted surfer-vibe flowing through the background eventually drops, all electronic hell breaks loose into a swooping finale that is impossible to resist.

Paolo Nutini - Pencil Full Of Lead

Quickly dropping by to champion Mr Nutini's new release (the third single from the fantastic 'Sunny Side Up'), Pencil Full of Lead is one of the album's many highlights and has that sensationally swingin' vibe to it that makes the 22-year old Scot such a joy too listen to. It will brighten up your day.

I think it's high time a bit of modern life was injected into the forums, rather than the same old stale debates of 70's rocknroll.



Local Natives - Airplanes

If your ears have been tuned to the right station for the past couple of months, then you might have already heard talk of Local Natives. But for the rest of you, the initiation process is only one click away. They have that Annuals gypsy charm to them. My new favourite band, soon to be yours.

Because of my unfaltering belief that you will love them, here is a link to their myspace.



COMANECHI - Rabbit Hole

If you ever wondered what Yeah Yeah Yeah's would've sounded like had they not jumped on the synth bandwagon, then this is your answer. A blistering 2 minutes of unpolished scuzz rock featuring the best frontwoman since that bird from CSS started shagging a Klaxon. A beautiful mess.



Hockey - A Song Away

After seeing them on the Live Circuit and being relatively unimpressed, it is intriguing that label big-wigs EMI have snapped up Hockey and, inexplicably, turned them into something quite fantastic. One of the only examples I can think of where a fresh coat of money actually improves a bands performance, this will not in any way alter your world. But it will make it that bit brighter. Monday morning anthem.

I've actually heard that too, though I haven't the slightest idea why anyone would say that. I suppose they have those shimmering like synth sounds AC uses, other than that the music is not alike at all.

Great blog, I tried to do this but put up a bunch of crappy music and got lazy and gave up :banghead: Good stuff in here, I'll definitely be checking out quite a few of these bands. Thanks :)

Seems we had similar ideas around the same time. Haven't had the opportunity to look through the suggestions as of yet but am keen to see this develop :)

Ian Brown - Just Like You

Though I have never been a big fan of 'King Monkey's solo output, the second single from his most recent LP 'My Way' is the stuff of genius. From the quite hilarious video (burlesque backing dancers going baggy? Superb) to the stirring synth riff cutting through the chorus, 'Just Like You' is Brown flicking the V's at those Roses reunion rumours.



Robbie Williams - You Know Me

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a Robbie fan. I want this to be Christmas Number One.

Bob Dylan - Must Be Santa

Wow.

I was also surprised by the quality of this record. For the most part it's nothing like The Stokes at all, there are of couse odd moments that are slightly reminiscent of their work, specifically FIOE but it's a fine pop/new wave record. I like this track. Out of the Blue has a single written all over it and is probably my favourite, it's just a great pop record.

Anyway, good work. I agree it's good to see mixing it up a little when it comes to the content of their journals.

Guildean Gang - Dennis Bergkamp

Although not 'new' new, I always felt it quite odd/disappointing that the Guildean Gang never made it big. Hell, they didn't even make it into the NME. So, after dipping through my file2HD downloaded myspace tracks of theirs, I found it necessary to enlighten you fellow MBers of this little gem a whole 10 months after it was first released. Features easily the most listenable vocalist in all of jangly indie-dom.



Surfer Blood - Floating Vibes

The latest addition to my 'list of bands that will probably get very big soon', Surfer Blood have that easy-to-like quality about them whilst retaining credibility and, essentially, good musicianship. As stated by the youtube comments/description, they draw comparisons with both Bombay Bicycle Club and Weezer - definitely not a bad thing.



Pyramiddd/Starfucker - Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second

If there's only one music video you're going to trip balls to this Thursday night, let it be this.

Animal Collective - What Would I Want? Sky

As years progress it becomes increasingly difficult to keep up with Animal Collective. Such is the sporadic and ever-evolving nature of their sound that unless you are a devoted fan you are likely to find that the latest addition to their discography, whatever it may be, will swoop over your unaware little head. However, 'What Would I Want? Sky' is so ear-numbingly brilliant that even those with only a passing interest in Animal Collective will undoubtedly be compelled to quickly log on to their iTunes accounts and download what they've been missing out on all this time. It's refreshing to know that some musicians out there simply never run out of ideas. It's just unfortunate that most of these musicians are in Animal Collective.



Two Door Cinema Club - I Can Talk

Never one to champion the unbearable electro-bland of Bloc Party, even I have to admit that Silent Alarm was one of the more 'important' albums of our generation and, unlike everything else they have produced since then, it was actually good. Two Door Cinema Club are picking up where Kele & co left off, and arguably doing a better job at it. 'I Can Talk' is a majestic and arty thump of harsh guitars and geeky bassists.



Beach House - Norway

I first became a fan of Beach House whilst fingering through the MySpace archives a few years ago, hunting for new sounds amongst the generic Strokes clones and tribute bands. The sultry Nico-esque vocals of their demo's captivated me, and have since proved to be a staple fixture in various mixtapes I have sent to girlfriends. It is nice, then, that they have since been picked up and are finding themselves now playing to a broader audience of likeminded people. Norway is a beautifully subtle tune that reminds me why I fell in love with them in the first place.

Apologies for the lengthy hiatus.



Gorillaz - Stylo

After brainwashing the masses with Demon Days' eccentric pop, the Gorillaz are set to return with their third album, the intriguingly titled 'Plastic Beach'. Unsurprisingly Damon Albarn & co. have yet again defied expectations, choosing the frankly baffling 'Stylo' as first single. Featuring a downplayed appearance by Mos Def and disjointed verses belched out by Bobby Womack, all signs point to this not being another Feel Good Inc. It may not be as captivating as their previous work, but it makes Plastic Beach that little bit more seductive.



Plan B - Stay Too Long (Pendulum Remix)

Though a track featuring both dunderheaded Prodigy rip-offs Pendulum and cringeworthy 'yoof' Plan B would usually send any rightminded person running for the hills, this remix of Mr B's already quite good 'Stay Too Long' is actually a blinding piece of club tuneage. Though it is destined to outstay its welcome, for the time being it should be embraced as the surprisingly brilliant collaboration that it is.



Hot Chip - Take It In

It's nice to see Hot Chip making something listenable again. After their mindnumbingly irritating second album, Take It In sees the geeky fivesome returning to the hauntingly anthemic beats of 'The Warning'. Comparable with second album highlight 'Boy From School', it is unlikely that this will ape the dancefloor success of... sigh... Ready For THe Floor... but it will be considered as a successful return to form by anyone who has a pair of functional ears.