fresh squeezed

Bee vs. Moth Acronyms (Aggraveire Music), (Sept. 6th 2010)

A little over ten years ago I went through a musical in my life, one of my many, that included a heavy dose of jazz. It was a far reaching obsession that touched on many different factions of the genre and in even included the sounds of Henry Mancini. The latest album from Austin's Bee vs. Moth reminds a lot of Mancini at times. It has elements of that '50's and '60's swing and pop mixture. Much like a lot of the Breakfast at Tiffany's soundtrack.

However, the band, which began as just as a dou of Philip Morris and Sarah Norris, adds elements of New Orleans jazz, gypsy rock, and several other genres. This fall the band will be writing and performing a new soundtrack for the classic 1928 Buster Keaton movie The Cameraman. They will also be touring the Midwest. Acronyms will be released on September 6th.

We are proud to be a part of a mutli-blog PVT Giveaway contest today. Each blog has been given a specific song from the new PVT album Church With No Magic (Warp Records). The band has created handmade mixtape cassette for each track. The track that we have been given is called "Timeless". You can stream the track below, and see the tracklist of mixtape the band created for us.

PVT appeared on the most recent Orange Alert Podcast, and if you enjoyed that track or like what see on this mixtape be the first to send your name and address to orangealert31@gmail.com to win this mixtape!

Sam Prekop Old Punch Card (Thrill Jockey, Sept. 7th)

It is rare that I am completely shocked but a new album, but the new album from Sam Prekop has done just that. Old Punch Card is Sam's first release since 2005, and it really comes out of nowhere. In fact, Prekop had this to say about the album, "I'd have to say this record is pretty much unlike anything else I've done". Prekop is the leader singer and main songwriter for the band The Sea & Cake, but us also a painter and photographer.

To be honest I would not have listened to the new album from Georgia-based Dead Confederate if J Mascis had not played on the track "Giving It All Away". However, when the album arrive it did have an interesting cover and I decided to give it a try. Sugar will be released on August 24th, the height of summer heat in Chicago, and I don't often find myself craving an album that is so heavy thematically. With tracks like "Run From The Gun", "Father Figure", and "Shocked to Realize" you find yourself being brought down by this album. Even the bands name, Dead Confederate, is just a little weighty for the summer months. Yet, their is something slightly nostalgic about this album. It calls back the Mid-to-early-'90's post grunge sound that you don't often hear anymore.

On August 10th Hippies Are Dead Records will release the debut album from San Francisco's Grand Lake. Blood Sea Dream is a perfect example of what indie rock should sound like. It's pure and straightforward, and the album is packed full of energy and excitement. Led by Port O'Brien founding member Caleb Nichols along with guitarist Jameson Swanagon, Danae Swanagon on keyboards, and John Pomeroy on drums, Grand Lake are clearly a group of friends having fun.

Blood Sea Dream
1. It Takes A Horse To Light A House
2. Louise (I Live In A Fantasy)(mp3)
3. Carpoforo
4. Black Cloud
5. Spark
6. Our Divorce
7. Oedipus Hex (Hwy 1 North)
8. Threnody For FA Mesmer
9. Riderless Horse

"Nothing original is left un-improved to ruin"

It seems like more and more known musicians are willing to step outside the normal structure of music and album to create a unique product these days. A few weeks ago I talked about the new album from Chris Connelly and now details are starting to surface about the latest project from Tim Holland (aka Sole). Over the course of fifteen years he has released 15-plus albums under the monickers of sole, sole & the skyrider band, & mansbestfriend. His radical approach to hip-hop songwriting has earned him countless accolades and a worldwide cult following. However his new project, The Prye, with Denver poet and painter Ravi Zupa goes far beyond anything Sole has done in the past.

When I heard from Chicago's Thrill Jockey that Markus Popp (aka Oval) was returning to music and had some ambitious plans for 2010 I was very excited. I had been missing the inventive sounds and releases of '90's electronic music and musicians like Aphex Twin, Oval, Kit Clayton, and others, and the return of Orbital and the lingering of The Chemical Brothers weren't quenching my thirst.

Oval was originally Markus Popp, Sebastian Oschatz, and Frank Metzger, but by the band's third release in 1995 Popp was on his own. He continued to release quality glitch and experimental music, but hasn't been heard from musically since 2001. Last month, Thrill Jockey released a new single and video from Popp called "Oh". The song was refreshing and inventive, and shows that Oval is back.

Sambassadeur is a Swedish band formed in Gothenburg in 2003. On their latest album, European, they blend light and airy vocals with melodic upbeat indie pop. On the album's latest single, "I Can Try", they even add horns and a drum beat that is undeniable. The video for the single was shot in Jönkoping by Philip Ekström of The Mary Onettes.

Listen to: "I Can Try" (mp3)

European is the band's third album, and it is perhaps their best. This is perfect summer morning wake up music. Sambassadeur is Anna Persson, Daniel Permbo, Joachim Läckberg, and Daniel Tolergård.

Last week, The Record Machine released the latest ep, Holy Spirits, from Ohio's State Bird. It is the band's third release, and it finds them pushing beyond their previous releases into a more focus and energetic project. The five song ep is a tribute of sorts to the summer party.

The video for the second track on the ep, "Wasted Away", is above and was shot entirely in 8mm film. State Bird is a band that clearly likes to have some fun and it comes clearly in their music.

Everything is Terrible! is a video mashing squad from Chicago and they have been taking over the internet and swimming in found video footage for years. This crew digs through '80's and '90's VHS tapes like a DJ digs through vinyl to piece together mini-films with a controlled message or theme. The project started out as a blog project, but they eventually released Everything is Terrible: The Movie.