Bandprofile

Soda Shop

Posted on October 25, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | 1 Comment

Soda Shop is the new project from Horse Shoes‘ Drew Diver and Maria Usbeck from Selebrities. They will release their debut 7″ on Shelflife Records in January 2011, and wow, it does sound good! The two songs “Farewell” and “When You’re Lonely” both have the classic pop-feeling of the 50s mixed with modern indiepop, lots of love and sweetness. Soda Shop’s music is not full of elements and effects. Only what’s needed is used in their arrangements. Their melodies are always in front, carefully coloured with clever twang-guitars, glockenspiel and packed in reverb, – lots of it.

Their style reminds me a bit of Jeremy Warmsley and Elizabeth Sankey’s Summer Camp project, but the two songs I have heard from Soda Shop is even more “my style”. I’m really looking forward to this release!

That said, I hope Drew Diver and his companion Jacob Graham (The Drums) find time to make some new music as Horse Shoes too. The Drums are good, Soda Shop is good, but my heart is closest to Horse Shoes.

Have a listen to the songs from Soda Shop on Soundcloud:

Follow Drew, Maria and Shelflife on twitter for the latest updates:@drewdiver @Selebrities @shelflife

Young Hunting

Posted on October 22, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | Comments Off

Young Hunting is a band from Los Angeles who recently released their gorgeous 7″ debut single, distributed via K Records. It feautures two lovely, dreamy popsongs with very good vocals. The band is currently working on their first full length release, and we’re looking forward to it.
You can download the two songs for a dollar over at bandcamp, or order the physical version from K records.

Of Mice and Mental Arithmetic

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | Comments Off

The French netlabel BEKO DSL has a new free single out today, with the UK-quartet Of Mice and Mental Arithmetic. 3 really, really (, really) good songs. The band features members from wonderful bands like Lardpony and The Deirdres, and I can’t describe their music better than they do themselves on their myspace page: “the Omama experience provides a melting pot of philosophical chanting, wistful boy/girl vocals, dreamy guitars, crunchy guitars and sci-fi keyboards”. Great stuff!

The quality of BEKO have been a bit up and down in my opinion, but lately everything they have released have been pure gold. Get this and many more free singles here http://www.beko-dsl.com/

Have a listen here:

Of Mice and Mental Arithmetic_ Gobble Die by beko dsl

New song and album news from Casa Murilo

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile, Nordic music, Songs | Comments Off

One of my favourite bands from Norway, Casa Murilo, is just finished recording their debut album with Monzano/The Little Hands Of Asphalt’s Sjur Lyseid as the producer. The album will be released on Spoon Train Audio in January, and I am really looking forward to it. The first single from the album, “Breaking Ranks”, was made available for free today, and it’s even better than I expected (and I expected a lot!). Have a listen:

Casa Murilo – Breaking Ranks (radio edit) (the link takes you to CM’s urört pages)

Azure Blue – New solo-project from the singer of Irene

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | Comments Off

Photo: Jerry Boman, www.musikenligtjerry.se – From a TV performance in 2007

Remember the Swedish band Irene from Labrador Records? The band who defined the sound of summer with lovely songs like “Stardust”, “Little things (that tear us apart)”, “September Skies” or “By your side”? They released two albums on the label in 2006 and 2007, and recorded a third that “due to a series of consequences” never was released. The band is officially resting, but all members are currently active in other projects (like Ljungs, Leopold) so to be honest, I doubt that they will be back as Irene again.

The singer, Tobias Isaksson (who also was a part of another fine Labrador-band, Laurel Music) now has a new solo- project called Azure Blue. In an email he writes “If Laurel Music was the sound of a lost first love and Irene was the impossible dream of an endless summer of love, Azure Blue is the night after the day after. It’s the summary and the reflections of the future at once.”

He still has the good melodies, the lovely sounds and the good feeling, but it’s more reflective and with a melancholic sound. Tobis is currently planning a release with Azure Blue, hopefully early 2011. Here is a Soundcloud-set he has made with some of Azure Blue’s songs:

DEMO 1 by Azure Blue

Irene, from the good old days:

Kiss Kiss Fantastic | Optimist Park

Posted on September 27, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile, Recommended Releases, Songs | Comments Off

I’ve been enjoying the music of Kiss Kiss Fantastic for a while, and now I’m completely in love with the music of Optimist Park. Why do I mention these bands in the same post? Optimist Park is the solo-project of Jeremy from Kiss Kiss Fantastic, so I thought this was a great opportunity to finally write about both these bands on Eardrums.

Kiss Kiss Fantastic are Jeremy and Rachel, who live on separate ends of USA, and who according to their myspace have never met. Still, they manage to make wonderful, dreamy popsongs together. Their music is based on electronics, with lots of reverb and a psychedelic feeling all over it. They are currently working on their as yet untitled album, and I’m really looking forward to it!
Their EP “The Red/Blue Shift EP” is available for free download on their Bandcamp, – a real gem, so go and get it!
My favourite is the lovely “Violet”:

Jeremy also has his own solo-project, Optimist Park, which is a tiny bit more ambient than KKF, but equally great. It’s probably even more “my kind of music”. He has two releases for free download on Bandcamp, “More Is Less” EP from July 2010 and the new “The Werewolf” EP from September 2010. It’s more organic than Kiss Kiss Fantastic, with much use of acoustic guitars and non-electronic instruments. The electronics are still used, and his reverb-box is probably warm after a recording session with Optimist Park!

The reverbed guitars make me think of Cocteau Twins from the Victorialand era, and I sometimes just wait for Elizabeth Fraser’s vocals to appear. Jeremy’s vocals are definitely good enough, and it fits this music perfectly. Great stuff!
Both EPs are given away for free. Get it from here: http://optimistpark.bandcamp.com

Bordeauxxx

Posted on September 20, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | Comments Off

You can say what you want about Myspace, but sometimes it brings me some really nice new bands to write about! This time, that band is called Bordeauxxx, and they come from the London-area. The band were formed in 2009, and have a free EP called “Mother’s ruin” available for you on their Bandcamp pages. I like it a lot!

Long live Herr Nilsson!

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile, Nordic music | Comments Off

Do you remember the little monkey that always followed Pippi Longstocking where ever she went? His name was Herr Nilsson, – mr. Nilsson, and that’s also the name of the band I’m going to present for you today. They’re from Bergen, Norway, and have been around for several years. Their music can probably be described as indiepop with jangly guitars, trumpets (you know I love them), violins, banjos and lots of fun. The banjo/violin elements give their music a tiny touch of americana/country, but not more than you will hear on albums by bands like Wilco, who also is a band they name as an inspiration.

Those of you who read this blog (and similar blogs) frequently, may recognize the name Ragnhild Jordahl in the line-up. You’re right, – it’s the woman behind Soda Fountain Rag. She plays violin and keyboards in Herr Nilsson. The two bands are not THAT far away from each other musically either.

Their first album, “I’m no Elvis” was released in 2005, and since then, they have released the album “Downhill Thrill” and the ep “Tuesday is my birthday”. In april 2010, Herr Nilsson released their third album “Long Live Herr Nilsson”, and it’s an album that makes me want the band to live forever.

The album includes 12 really good popsongs, with good lyrics, good storytelling, and with lots of energy and fun. The trumpets (oh, how I love trumpets in popmusic!) are gorgeous! Their lead vocalist Terje Bringsvor Nilsen is perfect for the job, with his characteristic and expressive vocals. My favourites on the album are “Belly Floor”, with its Spaghetti western-feeling, the rough and jangly “Go Tell Your Mother” (where both the lead- and backing-vocals are ace!), the schizofrenic rhythm-pop-tune “The Fox Eats the Rabbit” which has some lovely style changes during the 3 and a half minute it lasts and, last but not least, the irresistible and warm “Not A Word” – and a bunch of others.

Long live Herr Nilsson, and let’s hope for lots of albums during their long life!

You can buy “Long live Herr Nilsson” in most digital shops (iTunes, emusic etc) or physical from Cd baby (it’s also available digitally from there).

Listen to “Go tell your mother” on Soundcloud:
Herr Nilsson – Tell Your Mother by eardrums

…and here’s “Traffic Jams”:

Come On Gang!

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | 3 Comments

Come On Gang! is a band from Edinburgh, who according to themselves want to make music you can dance to. Their new single is called “Fortune Favours the Brave”, and it was the melody and the vocals that first grabbed my attention, not the rhythms. But, surely, it’s danceable in a jump around kind of way. Their musical manifesto is about energy above all, but this gang have lovely melodies on top of their energetic guitar riffs, pounding drums and driving basslines. I can like that!
Check out their myspace too, where they have more good songs to listen to.

The single will be given away as a free download from their facebook page on the release date 10. September.

Listen to it via Soundcloud:

Come On Gang! – Fortune Favours The Brave by eardrums

Plastic Flowers

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Knut in Bandprofile | 2 Comments

Plastic Flowers is the musical alias of Sean Earl Beard from Tallahassee, Florida. He creates beautiful popsongs at his home, with guitars, electronics, his voice and lots of reverb. His music is very “2010″, and could well have fitted in on labels like Captured Tracks etc, but it also has elements that remind me of older days. The basslines remind me of The Cure, the guitars remind me of The Cocteau Twins, the trebled drum-machine hihats and the almost static beats remind me of New Order or Joy Division, – but the overall sound of Plastic Flowers doesn’t sound like any of these artists. It’s really good popsongs with lovely vocals and melodies.

Plastic Flowers will release a free single on the fine netlabel BEKO DSL in October, but until then, you can enjoy these two songs from the project:

Plastic Flowers – Drive Me Home

Plastic Flowers – She Learn The Best Way