Smilelove is a 5-piece band from Japan who play irresistible indiepop with a wonderful combination of roughness, cuteness and attitude. They haven’t released or recorded anything properly yet, but have a really nice  live-set up on their bandcamp-page. If my info is correct, they are planning some proper recordings. I’m really looking forward to that!

You can listen and download a few live tracks from their bandcamp page:

There’s been a lot of indiepop on Eardrums lately, and it probably says a lot about my listening habits. However, – my musical heart beats for other genres too, and Les Shelleys from Los Angeles represent one of them.

Les Shelleys are a new project from FatCat records‘ Tom Brosseau and his singing partner Angela Correa. I really liked Brosseau’s album “Empty houses are lonely” from a couple of years back, and when I saw that he was working on a new project, I instantly got interested. The new duo Les Shelleys base their arrangements on the acoustic guitar and fine vocal-harmonies. The songs they play are folk traditionals and American standards from the last century.

Their self-titled album will be released on FatCat in November, but you can soon get their single  ‘Green Door’/ ’Rum And Coca-Cola’, which will be out on 13th September. You can order it directly from the FatCat store (both physical and mp3).

Here’s the lovely opening track from their album:

Les Shelleys – The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise

Les Shelleys are also the hosts on FatCat’s latest podcast, where they play soundtracks that have inspired them:

http://www.mixcloud.com/fatcatrecords/fatcat-records-podcast-les-shelleys-podcast/

The Hardy Boys‘ upcoming “Under the Piccadilly Clock EP” has been my dear companion the last days, – I’ve had it with me in my mp3 player everywhere I’ve been, on constant repeat. 3 lovely indiepop songs that have brightened my days.
The EP will be released on Bubblegum Records on September 3.

The Hardy Boys were formed back in 1985, and have been mentioned as “one of the great lost bands of the C86 era” and as “a Glaswegian The Smiths”. I was one of those who discovered the band far too late, in 2010, when I bought the wonderful 14 song retrospective collection “The Hardy Boys Play Songs From The Lenin And McCarthy Songbook”. The Hardy Boys split up in 1990 and reformed recently with one additional member, Kat King, and they sound so good in 2010! These are in fact the first new songs they have released in 20 years. I welcome you back, The Hardy Boys!

The EP starts with a classic upbeat indiepop song, “You’re just what I need right now”,with good lyrics and a great melody. It continues with my favourite, “Trains ran on time”, a really beautiful song which starts slow with the lovely vocals from Kat King,  builds up from verse to verse, and ends as a gorgeous duet between King and the original Hardy Boys vocalist Johnny White. If I had a hat, I would have taken it off in respect for this wonderful performance!
The EP ends with the acoustic “Dear Seamus Heaney”, – a perfect ending on an almost perfect EP. Please don’t let it be 20 years until next release from The Hardy Boys…

You can buy the album from Bubblegum Records webshop, and probably also from good digital shops as well.

Listen to the EP on Soundcloud:
Under The Piccadilly Clock by bubblegumrecords

The duo Elizabeth Sankey and Jeremy Warmsley, Summer Camp, will release an EP (Young EP) and a single (Round The Moon) on Moshi Moshi  in September. The six song EP will be released on Sept. 6 and the single (two songs) on Sept 13.  I’ve been a fan of Jeremy Warmsley’s music for several years, but in Summer Camp, I prefer the songs where Elizabeth Sankey sings. She’s got a lovely voice, and it fits this music perfectly.

All the songs on Summer Camp’s new EP are really good, and the single “Round the moon” is the only song I wouldn’t put on the top on my playlist, – and I guess that says a lot. My favourites are “Why don’t you stay”, “Ghost Train” and “Was it worth it”. The chorus on “Ghost Train” is so incredibly catchy in all its simplicity.
Both the single and the ep can be pre-ordered from Moshi Moshi’s webshop. Highly recommended!

Summer Camp’s album is planned for release in the spring of 2011. The duo will be touring Europe this autumn and winter together with Frankie & The Heartstrings, and next year they plan to tour North America in support of their album-release.

You can download the song “Jake Ryan” from NME here:
Summer Camp – Jake Ryan

Here are some videos for the singles “Round the Moon” and “Ghost Train”:

Young EP – Track Listing

1. Round the Moon
2. Was It Worth It?
3. Veronica Sawyer
4. Why Don’t You Stay?
5. Ghost Train
6. Jake Ryan

The fine WIAIWYA-label has a new free single ready for you, and this time it’s the first single from The Vatican Cellars debut album. The single has two lovely folky indiepop songs on it, where one of them in fact is a cover of a Van Halen-song! The Vatican Cellars’ album “the same crooked worm” will be released on wiaiwya in November.

You can download the single from here:

http://www.wiaiwya.com/

Have a listen to “Bitter Plans”:

Vatican Cellars – Bitter Plans by eardrums