One of the standout tracks from Wild Beasts’ exceptional third album “Smother”.  This is just gorgeous.  Le-Hiboo have been churning out exquisitely-shot videos this year like nobody else, rivaled only by Yours Truly and La Blogotheque.  Watch in full screen.

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Fuck me.  I missed this when Le-Hiboo posted it back in February but at first blush all I was hoping for when the vid stared was a wide angle shot, and hot dayum does it deliver.  Absolutely stunning.  If you haven’t heard The Dø’s (pronounced The Dough, as in Do-Re-Mi) amazing new album “Both Ways Open Jaws” then give your mouses a click here and enjoy.

Connect with The Dø – Facebook | Twitter | Website | Last.fm

Connect with tUnE-yArDs – Facebook | Twitter | MySpace | Last.fm

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Without doubt, the album you’re about to hear below is one of the best of 2011 so far.

I can’t stress enough just how mind-blowing it is.  If you’ve heard Merril Garbus‘ debut album “BiRd-BrAiNs” you’ll know what to expect, but if you haven’t then holy shit are you in for a treat/mind fuck/listening experience like you may never have experienced before.  Known for her unorthodox take on….well…..I’m not sure what it’s a take on.  Experimental-Indie-Freak-Folk-Electronic-Pop?  Out of this world sounds and landscapes and feelings and tastes on a 42 minute album, a medium that three out of those four senses shouldn’t even exist on but somehow do.

The harmonies, the melodies, the song-craft, the use of repeaters, delays, anything with strings or anything that can be hit, it’s all on here.  And just wait for her soul-driven wails towards the end of “Powa”….hot damn the chick can sing.  If you don’t groove the fuck down, shout the fuck up, and move the fuck sideyways at any point during this album then you have no soul and there’s nothing I can do for you. Not a thing.

“w h o k i l l” is out on April 19th via 4AD but for the next week you can hear the entire thing below all thanks to the tireless NPR.

Connect with tUnE-yArDs – Facebook | Twitter | MySpace | Last.fm

You know, I could really live in a world where Merril Garbus was in charge.

Every day would be sunny, there’d be a shit-ton of dancing involved, we could paint our faces as much as we wanted, and at school it’d pretty much go down just how you’re about to see in the video below.

Cue one of those cheesy infomercials where a woman is struggling to open a door in black and white until she discovers this great new invention called a hand, everything goes to colour and she’s all smiley.  THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED TO ME!  I was sitting here, trying to figure out how to turn the damn light on because it was so dark and gloomy (I was weally weally saaad) and all of a sudden, this new video for “Bizness” by tUnE-yArDs started playing and instantly all was well.

I found the light, colour sprung back into my life, about three dozen bluebirds showed up on my doorstep and sang to me, and a tribe of Native Americans were seen fleeing down the street scalping pigeons. Everyone hates pigeons, right?  Yeah I thought so…..I think in order for me to die a happy man, Merril needs to write the soundtrack to my life.

C’mon, Merril, make it happen.

Connect with tUnE-yArDs – Facebook | Twitter | MySpace | Last.fm

(via Pitch4Kay)

Yeeeaaaahhhhya!

Two new songs by the yards of tune in the space of 12 hours?  I’ll have some of that thank you very much.

This afternoon the French site Le-Hiboo posted their footage of Merrill and one of her travelling companions playing new song “Doorstep” on the streets of Paris, and at one point she even did a Half-Jimi (where Jimi pulled the guitar up to his face and played with his teeth, Merrill pulled her guitar up to her face and sang into it).  Then this evening the Zane Lowe stand-in on BBC Radio One Huw Stephens played “Gangsta”, another newbie from her upcoming album “w h o k i l l”.

If you’re not a fan of her music already then chances are this song will not win you over, it turns the “different” up a notch.  Her signature yell and layered repeating-vocals and backing vocals are present, but also making the trip are snippets of conversations (like “For You” from her debut), angry Sax riffs, electrocuted stuttering harmonies, and a dirty driving bass line that all sounds like it was recorded inside an empty beehive.

She seems to be polarising a lot of people with her music and it’s easy to hear why, but she’s definitely pushing the envelope of Experimental-Indie-Folk-Rock….and even certain elements of music itself.  I’m just glad we have her.   Oh…..and never move to her ‘hood, cause danger is crawling out the wood, apparently.

Connect with tUnE-yArDs – Facebook | Twitter | MySpace | Last.fm

tUnE-yArDs – Gangsta by ListenBeforeYouBuy

Recorded for Le-Hiboo, there’s not much more to say about this other than the fact that it’s gorgeous and the song is absolutely wonderful, I cannot wait for this album to come out.

If you haven’t heard anything from the Merrill Garbus-led tUnE yArDs, you can hear the first single from her latest album “Bizness”, or over at @Albums you can listen to her entire debut album “BiRd-BrAiNs” (I recommend that you do both).

Connect with tUnE-yArDs – Facebook | Twitter | MySpace | Last.fm

Mumford & Sons have been a round for a couple of years now, playing gigs in and around London along with buddies of the same scene like Johnny Flynn and Noah And The Whale, but they’ve only just (October 2009) released their debut album “Sigh No More”.  Polarising critics (some saying their music is awful, some (most) saying it’s excellent) they’ve made an album that’s passionate and catchy, melodious and stomping, but most of all enjoyable.

I think I’m on an Indie-Folk kick lately as most of the bands I’m featuring seem to be in that kind of genre, but what the hell, the music’s awesome and that’s all that matters.

Below you can hear “White Blank Page” that they did for WOXY, “After The Storm“, single “The Cave”, as well as a top notch cover of “Cousins” by Vampire Weekend.  Also are performances of “Timshel”, beautifully shot for Le-Hiboo and their official video for “Winter Winds”.

I posted Local Natives’ session with La Blogotheque a couple of weeks ago but today I’m actually going to post some of their other music.  Formerly known as Cavil At Rest whom they released an EP (“Cavil At Rest EP”) and an album (“Orion Way”) under back in 2006 and 2007, they changed their name to Local Natives and set about readying another album.  That album (“Gorilla Manor”) was released in 2009 in the U.K. on Infectious Records and on February 16th 2010 in the U.S. on Frenchkiss Records.  Upon it’s release it garnered the band attention they hadn’t seen the likes of under their previous name, and they truly deserve it.

Three singles have been released from “Gorilla Manor”; “Sun Hands“, “Camera Talk“, and “Airplanes”, all of which are below for you to listen to along with their Daytrotter session and  gorgeous videos of “Wide Eyes” that they did for Le-Hiboo and “Airplanes” that they did for Yours Truly.  I also added their La Blogotheque session I featured a couple of weeks ago too.

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