Have you heard? Matthew E. White
Don’t let the plain-jane name fool you. Matthew E. White—who hails from Richmond, VA and is a stand-out champion of the American tradition—packs an exciting aural punch with a distinctly warm, groovy singing voice that steers a seriously eclectic, harmonious menage of funky soul, gospel, rock, and blues sounds. (Dude, there’s strings, horns, a backing...
Have you heard? Hotbreath Tea & the Invisible Branches
From Tree Machine Records comes a warm, surprisingly friendly debut LP called One Hungry Acre, by a one-man-band with an equally engaging (though not so Twitter-friendly) name: Hotbreath Tea & the Invisible Branches. Released this past March, the LP (streaming in full below) contains eight satisfyingly lo-fi, pleasantly heartfelt tracks all written and performed by...
Have you heard? Toy
According to the official press release, TOY is a “Korg Delta led five-piece formed in 2010.” According to our ears and acute sense of ‘it factor’ however, TOY are contenders to be your new favorite band. Comprising UK musicians Tom Dougall (vox/guitars), Dominic O’Dair (guitars), Maxim Barron (bass/vox), Alejandra Diez (synthesizers/modulation) and Charlie Salvidge (drums/vox),...
Have you heard? Dead Leaf Echo
Dead Leaf Echo prove there’s a softer side to NYC with their dreamy, forthcoming split 7-inch, Act of Truth/Slowness. Hitting June 26 via Greenfuse Records, the 7-inch features Sean Eden from Luna and serves as the precursor to their debut LP, Thought & Language, scheduled for release sometime this year. As promising evidence of things to...
Have you heard? Teen
In 2011, Brooklyn’s Teeny Lieberson left Here We Go Magic to join her sisters Katherine and Lizzie and best friend Jane Herships to form Teen. Releasing digital EP, Little Doods (below), they hit the road with Purity Ring, Yellow Ostrich, War on Drugs and My Best Fiend, and now ready their first LP In Limbo...
Have you heard? Bear Driver
Hailing from London England, Bear Driver are a five-piece with an unusual name but their sound is as warm and welcoming as meeting up with an old friend. Delivering immediately likable psych-pop melodies layered with easy vocals; shiny glockenspiels; spritely ukeleles; peppy drum kicks and backward-looping guitars, the band are as happy and feel-good as...
Have you heard? Trailer Trash Tracys
Though their name sounds kind of dirty, the Trailer Trash Tracys emit pure, sweetly-honeyed dream-pop while making pleasingly colorful, ooey-gooey good videos. Having shared stages with the likes of The Vaccines, The Maccabees, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Real Estate, the London quartet – comprising Susanne Aztoria, Jimmy Lee, Dayo James and...
Have you heard? Fanzine
Most often compared to Yuck, Dinosaur Jr and Weezer, Fanzine are a melodic, full-of-feel-goodery outfit that sounds utterly American even though they’re from London. Comprising schoolmates Billy, Jock, Ed and Kit, these guys summon all the best keywords like lo-fi, slacker-pop, fuzzy, and guitar hooks. Sweeet. Find them on Myspace, Bandcamp and Facebook or cut...
Have you heard? Melody’s Echo Chamber
Melody of Paris-based Melody’s Echo Chamber recently recorded and mixed with Kevin Parker (Tame Impala) both in Perth and (adorably) at her grandparents’ beach house in Cavalière, France and Crystallized is the result: a spritely, sincerely warm psych-rock-meets-hypnotic-pop track that pays homage to her heroes, Pram and Spiritualized. Look for Crystallized to be released on...