MAN LIKE ME

I must admit, when I first heard Man Like Me's new single 'Peculiar' I was bit like ~ meh. However, it only took a few days and a second listen to realise my first impression was nothing but a total mind lapse and brain malfunction. Still not sure how I didn't instantly bust out to those carnival beats and trumpets.
The colourful new video for the track was directed by Anna Lomax (Jiggery Pokery) and Jamie Brown and has the two Camden natives reminiscing about their school days. I was kind of under the impression you had to be over the age of 50 to recite the line, 'never the same in my day', but this clearly isn't the case and I guess I can relate (Nokia 3210 > iPhone 4 etc)



'Peculiar' is out Oct 3rd through Cartoon Records.

B R E T O N

Following up from their critically acclaimed Counter Balance EP which was released back in December, Breton have revealed the first glimpse of their forthcoming debut album, Other People's Problems. 'The Commission' creates an ambience that's smothered in reverb and held together by broken beats, whilst showing us a different side to the UK outfit, with the track taking a slower change of pace to previous endeavours. Under the moniker BretonLABS the band also directed the video which accompanies the track, with help from motion graphics artist, Stuart Sinclair.



Other People's Problems is out February 2012 through Fat Cat Records

W E E K E N D

'Hazel' is a brilliant new slice from Weekend, yeah that's Weekend, not 'The Weeknd' or 'Weekends' just Weekend. Due to appear on the San Fransisco band's forthcoming EP entitled Red, the new record will see a release on September 20 via Slumberland Records.

   Weekend - Hazel by Slumberland Records

E A G U L L S

It's been way too long since I've heard anything from Eagulls, they basically got me all excited with the release of 'Council Flat Blues' earlier in the year and then just left me stranded with a hard-on waiting for more. So, it's not hard to imagine how amped I was to hear some new stuff from the Leeds outfit. 'Possessed' doesn't stray too far from where they left off and stays true to the Eagulls formula with George Mitchell howling over the droning guitars.
I'm definitely going to make it my mission to see these guys live before the year is out

Possessed by eagulls

CITY CALM DOWN

Maybe City Calm Down should temporarily change their name to London Calm Down, just for the next day or two. It's been a while since I last heard from the Melbourne quartet, but it would seem the guys are back with a brand new track. 'Sense of Self' is the first single to be taken from their forthcoming debut album, set for a release in early 2012.

Sense of Self [Single 2011] by City Calm Down

GEOFFREY O'CONNOR

Geoffrey O'Connor is such a fucking uber-nerd, he's got this whole Jarvis Cocker swagger going on, which really works in his favour. The limp wristed Crayon Fields' front-man will be releasing his debut solo album Vanity Is Forever on September 24th and in the lead up he has dropped his new video for 'Whatever leads me to you'. Have a peep and download the track below.




Whatever Leads Me To You from Geoff O'Connor on Vimeo.


Vanity Is Forever is out Sep 24 through Chapter Music.

FAIRCHILD REPUBLIC

Fairchild Republic are an unsigned, self-managed six-piece hailing from the Gold Coast. Drawing influences from acts such as Foals, The Temper Trap and Klaxons, the band self-released their first EP, Ships are for Sailing last year in April. This year the band have taken a different approach to the way they record and release new material, taking it one single at a time. So far, 2011 has seen the release of three singles in the form of 'Villages', 'Waiting for it' and 'If you're in, I'm in'. Having already shared the stage with Parades, Red Riders (RIP), Last Dinosaurs and Children Collide, the band have garnered a reputation as a dynamic live act and they're hoping to build on that with their new material.



FAIRCHILD REPUBLIC - VILLAGES

FAIRCHILD REPUBLIC - IF I'M IN, YOU'RE IN

FAIRCHILD REPUBLIC - WAITING FOR IT

Upcoming Shows for those of you who live in the GC/Brisvegas region:

August 11th
Alhambra Lounge, Brisbane

September 22nd
Unplugged @ The Basement, Gold Coast Arts Centre

G E S A F F E L S T E I N

It would seem Paris has a ghost problem, I'm not too sure how the Parisians combat problems like this, but my advice would probably be to skip the call to Bill Murray and his friends and just let things be. Directed by Les Darons, the new video for 'Viol' is taken from French producer, Gesaffelstein's recently released EP, Conspiracy Pt 2. Shot in black and white, the clip features Parisian fixie crew Ghostriders tearing it up through the streets of their hometown. There is a very dark element throughout the whole video and it's paired perfectly with the track.



Conspiracy Pt 2 is out now through Turbo, you can also check out the making of the clip here

NEW NAVY

Future Classic are killing it at the moment, with Flight Facilities releasing their second single on the label next week and recent signings like New Navy and Scenic now on their roster, you'd have to assume they'd be pretty happy with the way things are going. Now, if for some reason you don't listen to Triple J, then you might not have heard New Navy's debut single 'Zimbabwe' which has been the most played track on the station this month. The single is taken from the Sydney band's debut EP Uluwatu, which will be released worldwide on 10" vinyl on the 12th of September or alternatively you could just grab it from their bandcamp right NOW!

NEW NAVY - ZIMBABWE

G I R L S

‘Vomit’ is the first taste of Girls forthcoming album ‘Father, Son, Holy Ghost’. The San Fransisco band released the track as a free download earlier this week and at an epic 6 minutes, 'Vomit' is one of the more gorgeous tracks that the duo have recorded. With classic song writing that engulfs a tale of love lost, the typical fuzz drenched melodies we've come to know, and the gospel-choir vocals, I think it's safe to say, Girls have given a whole new meaning to the word Vomit.

GIRLS -VOMIT

‘Father, Son, Holy Ghost’ is out in Australia on September 9th through Pod-Inertia

PUSHA T + TYLER, THE CREATOR

'Trouble On My Mind' is taken from Pusha T's solo EP, Fear of God 2: Let Us Pray, which features some high profile guest spots from the likes of Kanye West, 50 Cent, Pharrell and Young Jeezy. The video, directed by Jason Goldwatch, has the Clipse rapper and Tyler cruising round town gettin two wheel action on mobility scooters and smashing bottles on heads. If there's one thing I've learnt after watching the video, it's that you shouldn't invite Pusha, Tyler and their friends around for tea, because they'll bring seniors and then fuck your place up.



Fear of God 2: Let Us Pray is out now on iTunes.

YOUNG EMPIRES

Young Empires - Enter Through the Sun /// Live @ Sound Academy from Robert Aaron Ellingson on Vimeo.

After recently playing two sold out shows in Toronto, Young Empires have put together a live video which features their brand new track, 'Enter through the Sun'. Have a peep.

T E E T H

I recently got this app for my phone where you can listen to any radio station in the world, even pirate radio. So, on my way to work each morning I've been listening to a lot of British radio, namely Nick Grimshaw's show on Radio 1. One track that's been getting a lot of air time and has really grabbed my attention is TEETH's new single 'Care Bear'. The London trio have just revealed the trantastic new video for the track which includes a shitload of wigs and dance routines.



'Care Bear' is set to drop on July 25th with their debut album, Whatever, due for release in September through Moshi Moshi.

THE HORRORS

The Horrors third album 'Skying' drops next week via XL Recordings and it's one release I've been really looking forward to hearing. The album is currently streaming from their website and after one listen I can happily say I'm not disappointed. I'm pretty excited to see how I feel after my third or fifth listen and whether it will sit as one of the albums of 2011. Have a listen below and make your own mind up.

P O L Y D O R

I recently took note of Ghent based producer Thomas Houthave aka Polydor after he featured on Shindu's recently released 'Happy House' EP. His remix of the track was by far the standout favourite for me and just proves that the Belgians are taking over. So, when I checked my inbox recently to find an email from the man himself, you could say I was pretty pleased. Polydor has just dropped his second EP, 'You Better' via Midnight Munchies and features remixes from Jamie Fanatic, Tony Senghore, King DJ and Dubba Jonny. With support coming from the likes of Fatboy Slim, Alex Gopher and Soulwax, you know you're doing something right.

   Polydor - You Better E.P. by Polydor

   Shindu - Happy House (Polydor Remix) by Polydor

GHOSTWOOD Q&A

I fucking love Ghostwood, they're one of Australia's finest current bands. They've been around for a few years, but it hasn't been until now that things are finally coming together for the Sydneysiders. Currently in the midst of their East Coast Stargazer Tour, they will soon step back into the studio to work on their long awaited debut album. Their latest track, 'I Am Overcast' is doing the rounds on Triple J at the moment and is also the title of their upcoming EP, set for release next month.
Here's a Q&A I did with lead guitarist and occasional bongo man, Paddy Harrowsmith:


-S'cracken homeboy! How are you, where are you, what have you been up to this week?

Mr. Woosh, lovely to hear from you. i'm good. taking it easy. living in sydney. Just been rehearsing a bit this week. Heading to the 'gong' tomorrow.

-NOW, if you were a soup, which soup would you be?

I'd be a chicken and corn soup mate.

-You're currently on your east coast 'Stargazer Tour', where you've already played Brisbane, Gold Coast and Newcastle. How's it going so far and when was the last time you did a big tour like this?

Tour has been good so far. it's always fun heading up to Brisbane . Been playing a couple new tracks as well. Last time we did this would have probably been with Lost Valentino's i think????

-When I go on a road trip with my gang, we like to fuck each other over by teabagging one another whilst someome is asleep or doing mystery shits in or on inatimate objects, just to keep things fun. Do you guys get up to any mischief when you're on the road or is it all pretty relaxed and laid back?

No mystery shits, but we do like to pick up strangers who have vaguely heard of us and kidnap them in our van for a few days and take them to boring english towns like Bedford. Oh wait, we did that to you!

-So, once the tour is done I understand you'll be heading back into the studio to work on your debut album. How's it all going, can we expect a release this year or is 2012 looking more likely?

Recording is going well. We're doing it with Jim Mogine who is the guitarist from Midnight Oil. We are recording in his studio in Sydney. He has about 20 old guitars and a wall of amps and other things for us to play with. So it's been pretty fun so far. I would hope that we have it out before the end of the year. So i'm gonna throw it out there and just say expect it before christmas.

-Tell me a little bit about the new track 'I Am Overcast'

'I Am Overcast' is a song we actually wrote a while ago and have re-worked it. We wanted to put something out before we do the album. So we recorded this one with Jim in his studio. It's a bit of a taste of things to come as far as what the album will be about. It's also the title of our new EP coming out next month. It's got a bit of a 'spacey' nirvana vibe to it.

-Chicken Twisties OR Cheese Twisties?

Come on mate, chicken??? Cheese is orignal and the best.

-I can't believe it's July already, but in the time that's past there's been some amazing new artists and albums to emerge in 2011. What are some of your favourite new artists and albums from 2011 so far?

I dunno about new artists really this year. I really love the new TV on the Radio album. and the new Arctic Monkeys album has some good tunes on it. King of Limbs is amazing as well. Die Die Die's new album is real good.

-You'll be playing in Melbourne on Friday night [July 1] at 'Can't Say' (Miss Libertines) and I'm pretty excited, like 'six to midnight' excited. I'll be down to take some snaps for Skeleton Jamboree, so do you think you can sex it up for me, maybe pull a few shapes and create some intense poses for the camera?

Sure thing wooshey. Anything for you.

. . and finally could you please leave us with some final words of Ghostwood wisdom.

Never trust a man wearing a vest and a fedora.

ARCADE FIRE + SCENES FROM THE SUBURBS

Arcade Fire's Grammy Award winning album, The Suburbs has been reissued as a Deluxe Edition and will now feature two new tracks, 'Speaking In Tongues' and 'Culture War'. The reissue will also feature the Spike Jonze-directed 28 minute short film, 'Scenes from the Suburbs' which was inspired by the album and was co-written by Jonze, Win Butler and Will Butler. You can now watch all 28 minutes of it in its entirety over at mubi, enjoy!

ARCADE FIRE ft DAVID BYRNE - SPEAKING IN TONGUES

ARCADE FIRE - CULTURE WAR

[Removed by request]

LUKE MILLION

Luke Million is the synth wizard from The Swiss, he's from Radelaide and he's just made his video debut with his italo jam, 'Arnold'. The video is made up of clips from the days when Arnold Schwarzenegger was mackin' babes without consequences, the days when he could impregnate a girl and not have the lovechild come back and ruin his established reputation. My Dad used to think he was Arnie, he used to strut around with Terminator shades and act all hardcore, he even tried to name my older brother Conan but my Mum put a stop to that unfortunately, so he just named him after himself.
The release comes out on a split 7" picture disc which features the original and 'Sun Splash', due July 11 through FutureClassic.


Luke Million: Arnold [OFFICIAL VIDEO] from Alanedit on Vimeo.

GROSS MAGIC

Gross Magic is a lo-fi grunge enthusiast named Sam McGarrigle. The Brighton based dude is releasing his debut EP, Teen Jamz through The Sounds Of Sweet Nothing on August 8th. The EP will come in the form of a purple 7" which is currently available to pre-order from his Bandcamp and features "Sweetest Touch", a track that pretty much grabs all the best bits of the 90's and mashes them together.
Gross Magic also probably has one of the best sites ever, check it out it's pretty hardcore, remember that dancing baby from Ally Mcbeal?

GROSS MAGIC - SWEETEST TOUCH

S N A K A D A K T A L

SNAKADAKTAL - CHIMERA [Removed by request]

Snakadaktal are a young Melbourne five piece who's aim in life is to have fun and produce music that people can hum to. Currently preparing to release their debut EP in August, the band have just released the video for the lead single, 'Chimera'. Check it out!


"Chimera"-Snakadaktal from Lucy Mckendrick on Vimeo.