Remember Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring, the band, not the Beach Boys song? I’m not sure how to interpret band-leader Mark Estall’s message on his site, but they seem to have disbanded, – at least temporarily. But, I’m not sure…  Their entire discography can be found on his website for free download (there are some donate buttons too on his site, so please give something back if you like the music!).

Mark Estall has another very interesting project at the moment. It’s called Hige Club, and it has one purpose, – to recreate an album by Serge Gainsbourg.  I think the text on the website explains it better that I’ll ever manage to do, so I hope you (and the author) will be ok if I just quote it all here. You can hear the music for the entire new album as streams on this page. Here is the info:

”

Philip Ilson of the London Short Film festival / Branchage Festival is a massive Gainsbourg fan. So, when he heard about the new film about Serge, Gainsbourg, due for release at the end of this month, he got quite excited and wanted to celebrate the release of the film, and the music of the man.

Rather than revisiting Gainsbourg’s best-known work Phil wanted to dig up a “lost classic” – Charlotte For Ever, an album written by Serge for his daughter, Charlotte, and released in 1986 when she was just 12. A product of it’s time, Charlotte Forever hasn’t aged well – its 80s production values make it sound very dated.

But Phil is convinced it’s a songwriting masterclass, and wanted someone to re-record the entire album, stripped of the worst of its 80s excesses, and re-imagined to reveal the beautiful songs hidden within. So he came to us, and Hige Club was born to take on the challenge.

”

Read more about the project on his website, where you also can order the album (only 200 copies, so be quick). Hige Club will do two concerts after the release of the album, and then nothing more…

Photo from Sarah fan Stefan Hock

I’m usually not very nostalgic, but when it comes to Sarah Records I definitely am. When I listen to some of the songs, especially from the earliest days of Sarah, I can remember exactly where I was and what I did when I heard the songs for the first time.

My opener to the Sarah-world was the compilation “Shadow Factory”, which I bought after seeing that the song “I’m in love with a girl who doesn’t know I exist” by Another Sunny Day was on it. A friend of mine had added this as a filler track on a c60-tape he had made for me, and I completely fell in love with the song. My fan-period with Sarah was from 88-91, and I don’t have that strong feelings for the records that came after. I have however learnt to love some of the later stuff in the recent years, but it’s still the early days that count the most for me.

I was VERY happy when I saw that a documentary about Sarah Records is in the making! The documentary is made by Lucy Dawkins, an independent filmmaker from Bristol, who among other things has worked on the latest video by The School (and who’s currently working on the band’s next video for “Can’t Understand”). While you continue to read, you can open your Spotify (if you have access) and play this playlist of some of my favourites from Sarah Records.

The documentary will include interviews with the founders of the label, Clare Wadd and Matt Haynes, as well as interviews with former Sarah band members,  archive footage, photographs and lots of music.  Lucy tells us how it all started:

“I approached Clare Wadd and Matt Haynes with my idea for creating a documentary on Sarah late last year. To be honest I did not expect them to be keen to take part as they famously ‘don’t do encores’ and have said in interviews that they are not interested in dwelling on the past. But to my delight they said yes! So I have slowly started to piece together Sarah’s story and have been tracking down anyone I think has something to contribute to the documentary.”

The story continues below this teaser for the movie:

The DIY attitude of Sarah Records has inspired Lucy both in the way the film is being made and how the finished documentary will look. Lucy explains:

“I have been inspired by the ‘spirit of Sarah’ in that this documentary is very DIY – it’s just me making this film and I am relying on the enthusiasm and support of everyone involved to get this documentary off the ground. I have been delighted by everyone’s positive response and am currently co-coordinating interviewees and contributors – as Sarah’s former band members, fans and associates are spread all over the world. My aim with The Story of Sarah Records is to celebrate the music and prove how this little independent label from Bristol communicated to people all over the world and created something very unique and special – unlike any other label I can think of. The fact that even after all this time Sarah has so many dedicated fans is really something to celebrate too.”

From the early stages, Lucy has involved Sarah-fans in the project. She still needs more help from fans of Sarah records, both the ones who were there when it happened, and people who have discovered the label in the later years.

“I need the fans to get involved. Sarah was set up as a label by fans for the fans. I have had a think how the best way to do this is and have come up with this idea: I would like people to records themselves talking about why they love Sarah – it could be a certain song, or as you have said-how the music made you feel, or anything – I’d love for people to get creative. Most people have access to a video camera or webcam these days and being a documentary, the messages ideally need to be visual.”

If you feel inspired and want to show your tribute to the label, you can contact Lucy via her myspace page, via her twitter or by sending an email to sarahrecordsdocumentary AT yahoo.co.uk.

The documentary is planned to be finished by the end of the year.

It’s more than five years since Lali Puna released their third and latest album “Faking The Books”, and on April 1 the band will finally release their fourth studio-album “Our Inventions” on Morr Music. Almost all the members in the band have other bands and projects on the side of Lali Puna, and this is also the main reason for the long break. Markus Acher, one of the two main songwriters in the band, has a very successful career in The Notwist and he has been recording with them for a while now. While Acher has been focused on this, Lali Puna had to wait.

We actually interviewed both Valerie Trebeljahr, the singer and front-woman of Lali Puna, and Markus Acher five years ago, and this is what they said about their side projects and how they manage time schedules for so many different projects within the same band:

- “It’s not easy to have all these bands together and to make schedules. But it’s at the same time nice that there are so many bands and we found our way to deal with that situation. I think Markus’ main project is always the project he works with at that moment,” Valerie explains.
- “It’s difficult sometimes to not make too much with one band and forget the other. But at the moment it’s very equal with the different bands. They all have their special fans and places and times,” says Markus.

Valerie Trebeljahr’s main band is Lali Puna, but she likes to work with other artists too. In 2009, she collaborated with Yellow Magic Orchestra’s Yukihiro Takahashi on his brilliant album “Page By Page”. The song they made together, “Out There”, will also be on the new Lali Puna album in a different version. Valerie has also collaborated with artists like Styrofoam and Alias. As mentioned, Markus Acher is in The Notwist, and he also works with Tied & Tickled Trio and 13 & God. The drummer Christoph Brandtner is connected to Console and Tied & Tickled Trio, and Lali Puna’s newest member Christian Heiss on keyboards is in the sideproject Portmanteau.

Lali Puna will tour in may in Germany and Europe.

Here’s Lali Puna’s version of the classic Human League song “Together in electric dreams”:

Lali Puna – Together in electric dreams

…and here’s a spotify playlist of my favourite Lali Puna/Notwist + side projects songs:

lali puna | notwist | sideprojects

http://www.lalipuna.de

http://www.myspace.com/morrlalipuna

http://www.morrmusic.com

The Explorer’s Club is new and very interesting subscription-based mp3-club made as a collaboration between Eardrums’ favourite LOAF recordings (home of great bands like Dark Captain Light Captain , Seeland, Vincent Oliver and others),  and Arctic Circle, who arranges concerts in London (Efterklang at the Barbican, Notwist at the Union Chapel, etc).

For one year, starting in January, the new club will release new digital singles once a month from 30 artists from all over the world. The singles  will include two or three exclusive mp3s and a digital booklet with a new hand-drawn explorer-themed penguin illustration.

The list of artists that will be involved in this new club is amazing, and could well be our own list of favourite artists! Just have a look here:
Nils Frahm, Sweet Billy Pilgrim, Peter Broderick, Bill Wells, Kama Aina, Johann Johannsson, Hauschka, Montag, David Kitt, Dustin O’Halloran, Minotaur Shock, Smile Down Upon Us, The Sleeping Years, Klima, Ryan Teague , Inch-Time, Vincent Oliver, Ted Barnes, Emily Barker and many more. None of these artists are afraid to explore new musical territories, so the name of the club is a good one!

Another interesting thing is that the project will also include Snowbird, the new project of Bella Union-boss and ex-Cocteau Twin Simon Raymonde and the wonderful Stephanie Dosen, and several collaborations and so far unheard new artists.

When you subscribe to the club, you will also receive several handprinted artworks, a calendar, a tote bag and some other goodies. You can find more info about all of this and how to subscribe on LOAF’s Explorer’s Club page:
http://lorecordings.greedbag.com/buy/explorers-club-subscription-pack/

So, if you need a last-minute Christmas present for a music fan who is not afraid to explore new, interesting and beautiful music, – a subscription to the Explorer’s Club should be a good gift. And if any of my friends or family read this, – I want one!!

Here is a spotify playlist I’ve put together with some of the artists in the club (not all, and none of these songs will be in the club):
Exploring the Explorers (Spotify-link)

It’s the 15th again, and we are back with new music from the MUSIC ALLIANCE PACT (MAP). 24 songs presented by 24 blogs from 24 countries, and it happens on all these blogs every month on the 15th. I am especially happy about our Norwegian artist this time. It’s an exclusive preview from the debut album of the new project The Electones, and their album is so good! Browse down and have a listen! Here are the MAP artists  of March.

As usual we present the countries Alphabetically from A for America to S for Sweden:

AMERICA: I Guess I’m Floating
4 Viernes – Glacial Change Of Pace
Viernes are an electronic rock duo from Florida who’ve managed to capture a thrilling loud/quiet/loud aesthetic akin to Grizzly Bear. Glacial Change Of Pace – a MAP exclusive – brings together hard-hitting psychedelia with gorgeously subdued lulls, and vice-versa, in a seamless display of sonic movements and emotions. Look out for their debut album Sinister Devices in the near future.

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
4 Lola Arias & Ulises Conti – Te Voy A Vencer Por Knock-out
Lola Arias is a writer, stage director, actress and singer. Ulises Conti is a composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist musician. They started working together in 2003, making music for several theater plays. This wonderful pop-rock love song is from their debut album, El Amor Es Un Francotirador, which comprises the original music from a play with the same name that was directed by Lola and Alejo Moguillansky. The translated title of the song here is “I’m going to beat you by knockout”.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
4 Leader Cheetah – Bloodlines
Festival State four-piece Leader Cheetah are the less manic, more soulfully melodic reincarnation of now-defunct Pharaohs. Their music is layered folk-rock twang meets brooding pop – think Neil Young’s moody younger brother in stormy weather. Bloodlines reminds me of Interpol circa the jangling guitar, tonal shift glory days of Turn On The Bright Lights. The vocals of singer Dan Crannitch are mind-addlingly beautiful and dark, especially when met with the surge of harmonies in the chorus. Leader Cheetah’s debut album The Sunspot Letters is out now on Spunk Records.

BRAZIL:Meio Desligado
4 Black Drawing Chalks – Big Deal
Any fan of Turbonegro, Queens Of The Stone Age and others bands who make dirty and fast rock’n’roll will love Black Drawing Chalks. Describing their sound as “music to drink and fuck to”, they come from Goiânia Rock City and have one of the most incredible shows I’ve seen on the Brazilian underground.

CANADA:I(Heart)Music
4 Amos The Transparent – Lemons, aka (BigFishLittlePond)
Ottawa may be Canada’s capital but it hasn’t produced much in the way of great Canadian music. Amos The Transparent are the exception to this rule. Their debut, Everything I’ve Forgotten To Forget, featured contributions from members of Stars and Broken Social Scene, and sounded like those two other bands. Lemons, aka (BigFishLittlePond) is taken from their about-to-be-released follow-up EP and finds the band inhabiting similarly stunning territory.

CHILE: Super 45
4 Vapourboat – Full Trains Of Dead People
Vapourboat is the Scottish project of Chilean-born Nico Carcavilla. His songs are composed entirely in his bedroom, inspired by the genius of Otis Redding. Perhaps it is this influence which makes Carcavilla sing like a man who has lived it all, when he is actually just starting. Being only 14, his songs incorporate instruments such as ukuleles, accordions, guitars and keyboards, and the Neutral Milk Hotel-esque arrangements end up developing into sad, long walks that owe their intensity to Beirut.

DENMARK: All Scandinavian
4 Kellermensch – All Time Low
Their name is inspired by Fjodor Dostojevski’s novel Notes From Underground, they’re heavily influenced by the German expressionist movement Die Brücke and the Esbjerg-based Danes are musically related to both Tom Waits and metal acts like Tool. Their eponymous debut album is stunningly original and a massive contribution to the already vibrant Danish rock and metal scenes.

ENGLAND: The Daily Growl
4 Blacklands – Come Sad Light Of Dawn
This month we return to folkiness, mainly because if I don’t cover Blacklands soon, main man Al Murphy will have moved to New York and his music will no longer be ‘England’ for MAP. It’s lovely sepia-tinged fireside acoustic pickings. Come Sad Light Of Dawn is a gorgeous song, conceived in Berlin, executed in a cottage on a desolate Yorkshire moor. You may be able to tell.

FRANCE: SoundNation
4 Sliimy – Trust Me
Sliimy may be best known for his cover of Britney Spears’ Womanizer but the 20-year-old is a talented artist in his own right, with his high-pitched vocals and pop sensibility reminiscent of Mika.

GERMANY: Blogpartei
4 Five! Fast!! Hits!!! – Keep My Name Out Your Mouth
Five! Fast!! Hits!!! have been an institution in Munich for years. No month without at least one gig, until now. Singer Raffi is moving to London while Amadeus, the true head of the band, will pay attention to his other projects such as Elektrik Kezy Mezy. Their melodic, hectic, eclectic and energetic shows will be missed.

ICELAND: I Love Icelandic Music
4 Ólafur Arnalds – Himininn Er Að Hrynja, En Stjörnurnar Fara þér Vel
Ólafur Arnalds is a talented 21-year-old musician, part of the new generation of classical composers. He hails from the suburban town of Mosfellsbær, just outside Reykjavík. He has toured extensively around Europe and North America with a live string quartet and last summer he supported Sigur Rós on some European shows. The song here – translated as “The sky is falling but the stars look good with your dress” – is on his Variations Of Static EP which shows off his crackling electronics and sounds.

IRELAND: Nialler9
4 David Kitt – Move It On
The opening track from Kittser’s sixth album The Nightsaver displays the same solid thread of songwriting and homemade invention he has always been able to produce regardless of the style inherent within thanks to his distinctive voice and ear for a tune. The album, which was recorded at the top of a winding staircase somewhere along Dublin’s Grand Canal, may turn out to be his best yet.

ITALY: Polaroid
4 Death In Donut Plains – Over And Above
Death In Donut Plains is the solo project of Enrico Boccioletti from Pesaro. He plays evocative electronic music with a wide range of inspirations such as Aphex Twin, Fuck Buttons, M83 and The Radio Dept. He has created some lovely covers of Liars, dEUS and Good Shoes but his latest EP has a lighter and more pop touch, in a sort of Postal Service mood.

MEXICO: Club Fonograma
4 Juan Son – Mermaid Sashimi
Mermaid Sashimi is the first solo album by Mexico’s most prolific contemporary vocalist, Juan Son. After the breakup of his highly celebrated band Porter, he expands his already singular vision with much confidence and complete freedom, delivering what’s arguably Mexico’s best production in a while. He has the sensibility of a story-teller and the thirst of a scientist.

NEW ZEALAND: Counting The Beat
4 The Verlaines – Yangtze Cod And Chips
The Verlaines were one of the bands to define the Dunedin Sound, releasing a number of classic recordings on the iconic Flying Nun Records label between 1981 and 1996. They returned in 2007 with a well-regarded album Pot Boiler and are about to release a new politically-inspired record called Corporate Moronic. Songwriter Graeme Downes has fire in his belly as you can hear on this song about the unlikely subject of a free trade agreement between NZ and China.

NORWAY: Eardrums
4 The Electones – Right Foot From Left
The Electones make beautiful experimental pop almost without creative boundaries and its foundation rests heavily on 60s-inspired folk and jazz. They are musical cousins to artists such as Múm, Psapp Sigur Rós and The Accidental. The Electones’ debut album If You’ll Be Null, I’ll Be Void will be released on Beatservice Records on March 23 and the band will also be a part of Birdsongs, Beesongs – the upcoming, free Eardrums compilation.

PERU: SoTB
4 Resplandor – Solar
Resplandor are probably better known abroad than in Peru. Formed a decade ago by Antonio Zelada and Luis Rodriguez, the band’s shoegaze dream pop sound has seen them play with The House Of Love and The Radio Dept. Their most recent album Pleamar was produced by Robin Guthrie and opener Solar is the best song on it.

PORTUGAL: Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
4 Corsage – Dried Up, River Blues
Corsage are an indie band from Lisbon who brought out their first EP in 2004. The following year they recorded a cover of a Scott Walker song, Angel Of Ashes, for a tribute release to the British musician by Portuguese bands. In 2007, they were featured in the compilation Novo Rock Português (“New Portuguese Rock”) and one of their songs was selected for the soundtrack of a Portuguese soap. Last month they released their new album Finito L’Amore, where you can find this month’s track, Dried Up, River Blues.

ROMANIA: Babylon Noise
4 Grimus – Backseat Driver
Grimus are an indie/alternative band from Cluj. They formed about four years ago and their debut record Panikon was declared Romania’s best album of 2008 by several musical/cultural communities. Although influenced by the likes of Placebo, Muse and Interpol, they manage to create a unique style and sound. On top of that, these guys are great live on stage – you not only get a performance, you’re in for a show.

SCOTLAND: The Pop Cop
4 We Were Promised Jetpacks – Ships With Holes Will Sink
We Were Promised Jetpacks ought to be one of the biggest stars of this year’s SXSW. They mix sweeping, sonic brilliance with a melodic accessibility that has made them Glasgow’s most talked-about band since Frightened Rabbit. Indeed, they have followed in the footsteps of their city chums by signing to FatCat, who will release their debut album These Four Walls in June. Until then, here’s a teaser from it to whet the appetite.

SINGAPORE: I’m Waking Up To…
4 A Vacant Affair – Connecting The Dots
A clean, clinical and almost methodical country like Singapore can only boast the undercurrent of a disenfranchised youth who find different ways of breaking the status quo. A Vacant Affair almost does that, not by being cynically political about the culture here, but by embracing the emotions that come along with it. A post-hardcore band that shares influences with the likes of Underoath and Deftones, they bring it all out in the fantastic debut album closer, Connecting The Dots. AVA steer the listener into a swimming plethora of swirling vocals and guitars as they finally explode into an extended outro that acts as a buffer between you and this crazy, mixed-up world.

SOUTH KOREA: Indieful ROK
4 Pavlov – The Lioness
If you’re looking for some rock’n’roll you should definitely listen to Pavlov. If you’re not, you probably should anyway. Not a big fan of the genre myself, I gave Pavlov a chance after being told to think of them as AC/DC and The Hives with a frontman who looks like Jarvis Cocker with Tourette’s – and it was not something to regret. Everything they’ve recorded has something special to keep you listening and when the last song has finished it’s hard not to play everything all over again.

SPAIN: El Blog De La Nadadora
4 Bedroom – Japanese Girl
Even in Spain there are still lots of people who don’t know the powerful secret that Bedroom hides. Folk, torch-songs and traditional music join together around the presence of Bert, the engine behind Bedroom. His debut album LaCasaDinsLaCasa surprised us last year – now it’s your turn to listen to Japanese Girl and discover why.

SWEDEN: Swedesplease
4 Two White Horses – Good Times Are Gone Forever
Good Times Are Gone Forever by the brother/sister duo Two White Horses may be about growing up and realizing childhood is over, but it’s hard not to think about the song more in the context of our present global meltdown. I love Lovissa’s voice on this track as well as the fuzzy chug-chug guitar.

To download all 24 songs in one file click here.

Last year, I gave you loads of christmas songs every day from 1-24, but since I need to spend my time and energy a little bit different this year, I’ll give you some new ones when they arrive, and not every day. Here are some nice christmas records coming up:

To get you into the mood, I’ll start by presenting a new christmas song that the Norwegian band The Margarets are giving away for free on their website. It’s a wonderful song. Those of you who read Eardrums regularly may have heard of another band called the Margarets, from Sweden, who are far more jangly and noisy than these guys. This is the Norwegian version, and they have been around much longer than the Swedes! The Norwegian The Margarets have released not less than 2 albums this year. Get them on itunes or emusic or somewhere else. The other M’s are really good too…

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The Boy Least Likely To will have their holiday single released on December 15, “The first snowflake”, and they have also announced the release of their second album “The Law of the Playground” on March 3rd. Here is the video for “The First Snowflake”, and there are more Christmas music below:

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Moving on: In the good spirit of Christmas, there is a really nice christmas album that will be released in benefit of Amnesty International today, on December 2. It’s called “I’ll Stay ‘Til After Christmas”, and features songs from Au Revoir Simone, Le Loup, Figurine, Sally Shapiro, Arthur & Yu, My Brightest Diamond, Parenthetical Girls, No Kids, Radar Bros., Au + several others. 15 songs, compiled with a wish to avoid an overly cheery tone, and instead provide a more realistic, somewhat somber feel. According to the press release,” “I’ll Stay ‘Til After Christmas” compiler Daniel Gill chose artists for this album who would paint an audio portrait not of present day Christmas celebrations, but rather hazy memories of childhood Christmas experiences and the often bittersweet emotions that accompany them”.
The result has become a wonderful compilation album with some of my favourite artists, and it’s an album that it’s possible to listen to all year. Here’s Le Loup’s song:

Le Loup – Shenandoah

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Our heroes in The Wedding Present have a christmas single out, called “Holly Jolly Hollywood”. 3 tracks, – the original version, an acoustic version and “White Christmas”. Sounds good!

the wedding present – holly jolly hollywood (acoustic version)

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Cherryade records have provided us with some really good records from bands like The Kabeedies, Ste McCabe and The Lovely Eggs, to name a few, and they have also released some great christmas compilations, all named “A Very Cherry Christmas”. Now “A Very Cherry Christmas Vol 4″ has been released, and the label has a special offer right now where you can get all 4 compilations for 15£. The fourth compilation fetures bands like The Lovely Eggs, The Bobby McGee’s, The Gresham Flyers, Little My, Hotpants Romance, The Seven Inches, Ste Mccabe, Fever Fever and many more. Get it from the Cherryade-site.

Here’s a song from last year’s compilation, from a band I always find enjoyable to listen to, The Lovely Eggs:

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Swedish musician Sofia Talvik has a tradition for Christmas singles, and this year is no exception. 2008′s single is called “A Carol for the Lonely”.
This is her message to the people who downloads her free single:

“This year’s FREE Christmas single is dedicated to all those people who need a helping hand, whether it is the lonely teenager or the homeless man on the street. This single is a free download, but I urge you to use the money you would have spent on it on iTunes to help someone less fortunate. My donation is to Stadsmissionen who helps homeless people in Sweden.”

You can get the song here, and you’ll know what to do!

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I’ll probably give you more posts like this during December, but I’ll end for now with a band called Factory Kids. The duo will release their debut album in 2009, as well as a song on a new compilation from Series two records. Factory Kids have made a calm and slightly psychedelic Christmas song called “Father Christmas Still”.

Factory Kids – Father Christmas Still

I hope you enjoyed these!

Have a calm and peaceful December!

Imagine a website where you can find interesting facts about your favourite indiepop bands, find out what happened to that obscure twee pop-band you loved so much when you were 16, watch videos, listen to music… A website like wikipedia, but just for indiepop, and without all of wikipedias rules about references and so-called “importance”.
Let me introduce the website I’m talking about:
Indiepopedia – International Pop Underground Reference!

Here is what the site itself says:

“Indiepop information on the web is scarce. Most of it is just plain discographies and dull three sentences long biographies. Why not rewrite the history ourselves, as it is? Show that we are a true force without needing to prove to Wikipedia that we exist. Our fanzines are as important as any book out there. We don’t need to be in the Indie Charts to know one of our songs was life defining. This is our culture and we don’t need those ‘popularity’ parameters. We are proud to be unpopular. We are proud of our music and scene. We are proud to give it all away.
Let’s all work together, Popkids of the World Unite!, and let’s make this our reference point for years to come. We can make it happen. This is for all of us. This is our time.
DON’T STOP INDIEPOP”

Like wikipedia, this website is also created by the readers. If you can’t find a story about your favourite indiepop band, then create it! At the moment, the site is in its early beginning, and there’s not much content there now, but you know what to do: start writing! This can be a wonderful resource for lovers of indiepop.

The great initiative for the start of the indiepopedia came from Rogue from Cloudberry records. Great work!

Today I’ll present some bands from my own country, Norway, – all of them favourites of mine: MARIBEL, HARRY’S GYM and SALLY SUICIDE. I will not say much about them, – just let the music speak for itself.

Photo by Veronica Blomquist

I’ll start with Sally Suicide, a shoegazy, 60s-inspired dreampop-orchestra (or something like that) with musical connections to The Lionheart Brothers.

Sally Suicide – Black Pop (from NRK Urört)

We wrote about the band Maribel a year ago here on Eardrums, and we haven’t lost faith in them since then. Definitely shoegaze inspired, – very much in the veins of My Bloody Valentine/Slowdive/Pale Saints/Spacemen3, but a brilliant band on their own without the references too. Their debut-single “Taste the trash” is available via a link at their myspace. Here’s the video:

[youtube l_H4Gvju4Uo]

And now, let’s meet our third Norwegian band today, Harry’s Gym:

Harry’s Gym is the third band I would like to present here today. Also a band we have written about earlier. They are not as noisy as the first two, and maybe a little bit more refined in their style. Details are important, and their melancholic indiepop can make me stop doing whatever I’m doing just to listen. Sometimes very fragile and other times quite hard hitting. Their new album is definitely recommended. I don’t have any songs or videos for you from this band yet, so check out their myspace for music. http://www.myspace.com/harrysgym

Did you enjoy our little trip to Norway?

Another new thing here??? I often feel that I start columns, – keep them up for a few weeks, and then realize that I haven’t got the capacity to keep them updated, – so I just leave them. I hope I will manage to keep this column updated… This is made mainly because my time is limited and the days are too few to tell you about all the good things that my ears experience during one single week.

HERE are some good things that has passed my ears and eyes the last few weeks:

* First some things that excite me right now, and then some album recommendations:

The new single from The Kabeedies is amazing! 3 songs, but two of them are other bands remakes of the original. Really different versions from Bobby McGhee’s and Francis & Louis. Great track and great re-makes. It’s released on Cool for Cats records, and is available from emusic and iTunes + as a 7 ” from here. Highly recommended! You can listen to the song on their myspace.

I haven’t listened enough yet to recommend the album, but what I have heard makes me really excited. I’m talking about Dark Captain Light Captain‘s album “Miracle Kicker”. Some kind of nice mix between folk and electronica, but with more of the first than the last. Sounds really good! It’s not officially released yet, but iTunes has it already, so you can buy it there.

The fact that the feline loving, toy-playing duo PSAPP will release their third album “The Camel’s back” in just a few days makes me a bit excited. Their single The Monster Song is good enough to keep my hopes up. For those of you who don’t know this fine band, it’s them who have made the intro tune to the TV series Grey’s  Anatomy, and they have also made two great albums before this new one. Listen here to “The Monster Song”:
Psapp -the monster song

* RECOMMENDED ALBUMS THIS WEEK:


I’ve bought/received a lot of fabulous albums lately, and the following should be a part of every music lovers’ collection. Not all of these are fresh this week, but they are at least fairly new (and very good):

Colin Clary and the Magogs: Her Life of crime (Colin Clary of The Smittens/Let’s Whisper/My first days of junk ++ makes beautiful indie pop melodies, and this one is irresistable). Available on itunes/emusic).
Listen/download:
Colin Clary and the Magogs – The Shape of this town

Gregory and the hawk – Moenie and Kitchi (This project has recently been signed to FatCat records and their new album is completely wonderful! It’s mostly acoustic and folky, but sometimes it breaks out into more noisy sounds and there are always elements inside the songs that makes you listen extra closely. One of my absolute favourites at the moment! Buy from iTunes/emusic/label).

Anders Persson och Carl Smith – s/t (With lyrics in Swedish, this duo sounds like a Swedish version of Simon and Garfunkel, only a bit darker, maybe. Great songwriting and if you know the language, you’ll love the lyrics. Available from itunes + cdon.com).

Two new albums that we have already mentioned in our blog-posts:
Rockettothesky and My Little Pony. Wonderful albums, both of them.

Norwegian artist Marit Larsen, once a child pop star worldwide in M2M, has made another absolutely brilliant pop album, “The Chase”. This is quite commercial pop, and it sells a lot here in Norway, but at the same time it is so so so different from most of the music that usually tops the charts and plays on the radio. It’s very clever and intelligently composed, lots of details, the songs are stunningly beautiful and my impression of Marit is that she is quite unaffected of the whole popstar thing, and keeps on as the musician she is. My respect is deep for this woman.

The Foster Kids – At Home with the Foo Fighters, – such a brilliant title for their debut album, and such a nice album to debut with! The Foster Kids are one of those bands who are great because they are not perfect, and I adore their friendly attitude and their half-jangly melodies. This is music that makes me happy, makes me smile and makes me feel that good feeling inside. I’m constantly reminded of The Go-Betweens when I hear their songs, and the two have several similarities. The album has several really good songs and an atmosphere that makes me want to hug the people who have made it! Their myspace has links to several places where you can buy the album, and if you want it the easy way, itunes has it.

Susanna – Flowers of Evil (Susanna Wallumrød from Susanna and the magical orchestra has released a new solo album, – beautiful, quiet and dark songs. 12 of 14 are cover versions of well known songs, from Thin Lizzy to Abba, and especially her cover of Abba’s “Lay all your love on me” is tremendous.

Jeremy Warmsley – How we became (This is London-artist Jeremy Warmsley’s second full length, and it’s a good one! Mix great song- and lyricwriting, intellingent and untraditional arrangements, nice pop-feeling, some smoothness, some roughness, a tiny bit electronic sounds + lots of “real” instruments and a very likeable voice, and you’re somewhere near Jeremy Warmsley. Great album I’ve listened a lot to lately. Available in most digital shops + on most good webshops.

Robert Svensson – Young Punks are on the never-never
- This album was released in the beginning of October, and I’ve listened and loved it for almost a month now. This album is as close to perfect as you can get in my book, and Svensson has everything I need in his music. A pop album, definitely, but for me, this album goes deeper than most pop-albums do. It works on the happy pop-tunes and it works just as well on the more melancholic and vulnerable slower songs. When he sings, he seems to take out everything he has inside, and it feels real and honest. A wonderful album, out on Nomethod records. One of the best this year.

What are your favourites? Tell me in a comment!

I haven’t been too active blogging after the compilations were released, and the list of things to do have just grown bigger and bigger. Here are some of the good things that have happened lately. Know of more? Add your good things in the comment area!

First, here are some good songs I’ve been playing a lot lately:

The Legends' Johan Angergård

The Legends – seconds away
- New single from Sweden’s The Legends. At first I had some trouble with the massive noise covering this beautiful little pop-gem, but as you probably understand, I’ve found the treasure inside and love the song now. The single will be released on Labrador on November 5, backed with the song “Over and Over” + probably also a remix by Jimahl. Visit The Legends on Myspace.

The Voluntary Butler Scheme – Together in Electric Dreams
- A great cover of a great song (original by Phil Oakley/Giorgio Moroder from 1985). The song  has also been covered by Lali Puna, but in a very different version than this. Visit The Voluntary Butler Scheme on Myspace.

Jimmy Tamborello/ DNTEL/ James Figurine

James Figurine – Everything Counts (Depeche Mode cover)
Jimmy Tamborello must be one of the kindest guys in pop. At least he seems that way. Or at least he has understood the secret formula of how to make me buy all his music just out of gratitude (well, not only, – he makes great songs too!). Every month, he gives away a free song from one of his projects on his website, – mainly James Figurine or DNTEL. It’s often cover songs, unreleased remixes or unreleased tracks by his aliases. The october song is especially good. It’s a cover of Depeche Mode’s “Everything Counts”. Visit dntelmusic.com

Tvärvägen

Tvärvägen – September
A new Swedish project called Tvärvägen has occupied my ears the last week. I have only heard this song and the few others he has on his myspace, and I love everything I’ve heard so far. Very sensitive and full of feeling and atmosphere. Tvärvägen is Henrik Öhberg’s One-man-Orchestra, and his debut album “Sånger från Tvärvägen” will be released later this autumn by the label Knoppar. Listen and check out the project more at Tvärvägen’s myspace.
Here is the super-fresh video for the song. Enjoy:

…and we have even more for you:

The Lovely Eggs

The Lovely Eggs – I like birds (but I like other animals too)
The news about the release of The Lovely Eggs’ new EP “Have You Ever Heard The Lovely Eggs” made me jump of joy. I love this band, – weird, wonderderful and sometimes ultra-catchy. The Ep is released on Cherryade soon, and you can preorder it from their site now. The EP features 5 tracks, with titles like “I want to fall off my bike today” and “I collect snails”. The song we have here for you, “I like birds (but I like other animals too)”, is not on the EP. Listen to all of the lovely songs and more at their myspace.

The Guild League

The Guild League – incandescent
The Guild League was one of the bands featured on volume3 of our latest Eardrums compilation, and they have a new album out very soon on Matinée Recordings. Yesterday, both Matinée Recordings + The Lost and lonely Recording Co revealed their release-plans, and both have wonderful stuff coming up. Matinée will give us new albums from The Lucksmiths, Would-Be-Goods, Bubblegum Lemonade and The Guild League, and Lost and Lonesome has new releases from The Zebras, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and of course The Lucksmiths coming (The Lucksmiths are on both labels). Really something to look forward to!

…
…and I’ve got lots and lots more that I should have told you about, but I guess that has to wait until tomorrow or the day after that or the day after that or…

Have fun!

The Scottish Bubblegum Lemonade will release the follow-up to the brilliant debut “10 Years Younger EP” on matinée records today, September 1st. The EP is called “Susan’s in the sky”, and like last time it includes four great popsongs with a high focus on melody and some kind of retro feel.

These are very different sounding songs, – from the title track with a great story, and equal parts Beach Boys and Jesus & Mary Chain influences via the beautiful, jangly and harmonic geekly named track “Surfin’ USB” (my favourite) to the darker and even more JAMC inspired “Just like you” and the great cover of Alex Chilton/Big Star’s “Holocaust”.

Bubblegum Lemonade will release his debut album “Doubleplusgood” on matinée recordings soon, and after two very fine EP releases, I am really looking  forward to this one!

Here’s the title track:
Bubblegum Lemonade – Susan’s in the sky

After three years of blogging, I’ve decided to do something new with the blog for a change. I’m making a summer compilation album (maybe two…) with artists I like, – artists that make music in the same “musical neighbourhood” as the ones we write about on Eardrums. Melody will be in focus, and it will be music for the warmer seasons, – a summer album. We’ve set the theme to “music for a picnic, a garden party or a warm summer night”.

The album will be a digital only release, and the only place you can get it will be here on Eardrums. Several artists will share exclusive songs with us, – not published before. Some have been published/released before, but they are either super-fresh or they are so good that they deserve to be re-published…
No money involved, either for you, us or the artists. Free, that is.

I’ve already received several songs, and more are in the making as we speak. The style range from sunshiny pop, fuzzy pop, folky pop, nice and pure pop, electro-ish pop, acoustic pop – and some of you would probably like to add “indie” in front of pop, – please feel free to do so. Some songs are happy and carefree, other are more laidback and thoughtful. A varied album, just as the blog is, I hope.

The album is quite filled up already, but If you want to be a part of this and play in a band, you can send some music over to us and we’ll consider the songs. You can contact us at info@eardrumsmusic.com. Tell us about your music, and add a link to somewhere on the net where I can preview some songs (myspace/website). Since I’ve already invited several artists, I can not promise you a place on the compilation, but I definitely would like to hear your music!

Release will be in the last part of June or in the early days of July.

This is so much fun!

The web is full of things to waste your time with, and here are two timewasters for musiclovers. Both do almost the same thing, – make virtual mixtapes out of the music you love. I want you to make one, and post the link in a comment to this post, or send it to us by email (info@eardrumsmusic.com). We’ll comment on it or maybe give it a special post if we like it a lot. No prizes involved, – just do it for fun!

You can use one of these services:

MIXWIT: Make your tape by using Mixwit’s searchengines or add a url to the song. Make a nice design for the cassette (you may do it easy, using the templates, or make your own design). Then, when it’s finished, send it to us. It’s very easy, and I had no problems finding the songs I wanted, except for some Norwegian ones that I would love to have included (f.i. some songs from Thom Hell’s new album). Mixwit tapes can be sent to friends via email or via any (almost) social services, like facebook or myspace.
In about 20 minutes, I made this Mixwit Mixtape. (or just look below in this post)

MUXTAPE: Or you can use Muxtape.com, a service that is probably easier to use because you can upload songs from your own computer, but more boring to look at (they’ll give you just the mix, not the “tape”). This is the most popular of the two, much helped by a post from the Boing!Boing!-blog. I haven’t made one here yet, so you will probably beat me if you post your tape here in the coming days. Mixes from Muxtape can be added to your blog, your website, facebook, myspace, sent to friends via email or added to your iPhone. Support for last.fm will also come soon.

So, come on: MAKE US A MUXTAPE or A MIXWIT!

Here’s the Eardrums Mixwit mixtape:

I have a fondness for music that isn’t over-produced, – music that isn’t "perfect". I love hearing the noises that exists in the recording room, – the squeak of a chair, some hiss from the cheap recording equipment or the sound of fingers touching guitar strings. In most recordings these sounds are cleaned out of the finished product, or they don’t exist at all because of the  sound-proof studios or the hi-tech equipment.  For me, these sounds add a quality to the music. Call it warmth, friendliness, a human factor, – whatever. Everything is supposed to be so right these days, – in every aspect of the world, even music blogs, – and I’m really enjoying to hear people just playing MUSIC, – having fun while they are recording, and not spending too much time thinking about doing it right. I might be wrong, – maybe this is "the right" among some people, – I don’t know.  For me, it is a refreshment.

Recently, I’ve found lots of these wonderful little recordings, – very lo-fi, very here and now -, on myspace or on last.fm. Many of them are found because of a brilliant podcast called "5…4…3…2…fun!!", – originally a radioshow from a Santa Barbara student radio station, but luckily for me also available as a podcast. I’ve also found some through a nice netlabel called the 001 Collective, which releases several fine artists for free on the net. Here are only a few of the ones I’ve enjoyed lately, and if you like these ones, I might dig up some more. A tribute to all the lo-fi-ness in this hi-fi-world! Let’s go!

WATERCOLOR PAINTINGS

I’ll start with Watercolor Paintings, a project that’s actually led by the people behind 5…4…3…2…fun!!. Rebecca Redman makes nice, acoustic, intimate indiepop songs together with her brother Joshua, and this time it was the music of Watercolour Paintings that led me to the 5…4…3…2…fun!!-podcast. I’m not sure how I found this band, but I guess it was through some recommendation on last.fm. The songs are wonderful, – often played on acoustic guitar, harp, ukulele and various toy instruments. Rebecca has a bunch of songs available for free on her myspace, and I think this is the one I love the most:

Watercolor Paintings – Happyships

SHELBY SIFERS

Shelby Sifers plays wonderful songs in much of the same style as Watercolor Paintings. Her style has been described as "Cutesy" or "Love Core", which in many ways describes her work very well. Her vocals is the main element in her recordings, and she spices it up with acoustic guitar, banjo, keyboard and melodica, always arranged very minimalistic. The lyrics are one of the things that really makes me happy when I listen to Shelby Sifers. They’re  about the small things in life, that  sometimes becomes the big things in somebody’s life.Another nice thing is that she often lets friends and familymembers join in on the songs, like on this cute and lovely song:

Shelby Sifers – Things are Beautiful

…and if you like this, there are a lot of free songs by her on her last.fm page and on her myspace page.

 FRAGILE FAWN

Fragile Fawn is another of these wonderful small bands. They’re from Oak Park, California, and I think they are a duo. I also think their names are Dani and Devon … or Dani and Clarke…, but I’m not 100% sure. Are you? Anyway, – nice music! Cute-Country? UPDATED! The band is definitely a duo, and their names are Devon Clarke Geyer (who goes by Clarke! for his solo stuff) And Dani Fine. Dani lives in Oak Park and Devon has moved to Boston, so the band is currently only working together when he’s home for holidays. Some digital recording software and the internet would have been the sollution for many bands in this situation today, but I guess a digital recorded version of Fragile Fawn would not be the same. I’m all for digital recordings for other bands, but please Dani and Devon, work hard with the songwriting and recordings during the holidays instead! 

Fragile Fawn – Love to love to love

BARE KNEES

Behind the Bare Knees-moniker is Kasper and Kathrin from Gothenburg, Sweden.  The duo write funny lyrics and lo-fi songs about kassettendecks and underwear, and their acoustic popsongs have so far been released on an  EP called "Bare knees bit my daughter!" and an album called "Pump up the lump". Both of these releases are available as free downloads on the band’s website. Bare Knees will soon release another album, – a split album recorded together with  Ray Rumours. The album will feature 7 songs from each band, and it will be released on Cosy Recordings.

Bare Knees – Always on your side

That’s all for today. Maybe more later, if you want me to…

Wet, dirt, and too much rain?

This summers festivals has experienced a lot of bad weather. Glastonbury and Roskilde almost got entirely lost in the mud, and the pictures seen from the festivals alone is enough to frighten the most experienced festival goer.

It was high expectations for the festivalsummer in 2007. Glastonbury was back on track, and there were exciting things happening in Norway as well. Toffen Gunnufsen, a man who created the Quart festival in Norway, decided to leave Quart, and create a new festival in Norway at Hove, Arendal. The vision behind this project was a big festival where the festival goers could camp right next to the concert area, creating a small Roskilde festival in Norway.

The expectations to Hove grew strong when the line-up was announced. Queen of the Stone Age, The Killers, My Chemical Romance where only some of the headliners, and the interest for the festival certainly grew high.

I travelled down with some friends from all around Norway, and our expectations were high as well. Could Hove even be compared to Roskilde?

Our first impression were mixed. We arrived a couple of days before the festival started, and after the tent were raised, we were hungry for food and beer. But as it turned out, the shop was closed for the night, and it was a long way to travel down to the nearest shop, or Arendal city. This would never happen at Roskilde! Hungry and pissed we decided to take a look around, and the evening was saved when we met some friendly neighbours with food and beer.

Then the festival started, and along came the rain. The newspapers were full of pictures of mud, deserted camps and people who were leaving. My mom rang and wondered if I was alrigh, and i was like; “yeah, it’s just a bit of rain!”. Well, the rain continued for some time, and I must admit, it ruined Amy Winehouse and Queens of the Stone Age a bit, but that was just because I was soaked, and not nearly drunk enough. One of my friends had an excellent time!

To sum up my first experience with the Hove festival, I have to say we were lucky. Yes, we had a couple of rainy days, but compared to Glastonbury and Roskilde it was nothing. I suppose I choosed wisely this year. This being said I think I’m going back to Roskilde next year. Not because I didn’t like Hove. Hove was great in lots of ways. It is a smaller festival than Roskilde (ca. 13000 visitors pr. day), and that is good in lots of ways. Shorter lines, much easier to meet people and so on. That being said, Hove was expensive and you could tell it was the festivals first year. The food could have been better, and the organization as well.

Even though, I’m proud of Toffen and his guys for creating Hove. It contributes to make the festival offer in Norway more exciting , and I certainly had some excellent times at Hove 2007!