“Oblivion” by Katie and Allison Crutchfield // Originally by Grimes

I’ve spent many hours of this year listening to the works of Katie Crutchfield (Waxahatchee) and as luck would have it, there seems to be no shortage of her brand of excellence. Here, collaborating with her sister, Allison Crutchfield, she takes “Oblivion” by Grimes and shifts it from an ethereal electro pop number into a jangly, garage rock jam with killer harmonies and a driving beat. The whole spectacular thing is part of Rookie Magazine’s May “Theme Song”, so be sure to check them out for future theme song goodness. 

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6katie crutchfield, allison crutchfield, waxahatchee, swearin', rookie magazine, cover, grimes, dream pop, garage rock,

“Disconnected” by The Reflections // Limerence (Out Now via Bandcamp)

As the days drift closer to full blown summer, I find myself leaning on more autumnal sounds to transport me to my favorite time of year. Recently, I ran across the new album by Los Angeles based dream pop/ new wavers, The Reflections, and the whole album fits the bill for what I’m looking for in autumnal sounds. There’s a pulse throughout the album that feels like a neon bathed, late night stroll through the city. Which city? It doesn’t really matter. It all feels like a dream, racing by in warped colors and hazy memories. The gorgeous, propulsive title track, “Disconnected” is a perfect representation of what awaits on the full length. The track floats on an ethereal choral vocal loop and driving post punk beat that highlight the hypnotic synth lines and soaring guitar blasts - all held tight by the dreamy vocal melody and killer hook. It’s a stunner that plays well in the heat of a summer night, but will sound even better beneath a crisp autumn night sky. Highest recommendation for fans of Film School and The Radio Dept.

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6the reflections, dream pop, dreamwave, shoegaze, new wave, favorite new music, los angeles, riyl:, film school, The Radio Dept, autumn, autumn music,

“The Cedar Room” by Kitteh Fur // Originally by Doves 

I posted this a couple of years ago when I first found it - but I’ve sort of went back to it in recent weeks and therefore, am re-posting. “The Cedar Room” by Doves is one of the best songs of the 00’s, and Kitteh Fur manage to harness the beauty of that original, while stripping it back of it’s soaring power, and shifting it into a dreamy late night lullaby that packs a punch all it’s own. The track is available for a free download at Bandcamp (part of a pretty great collection of covers from other bands). It’s the type of song that can be played on an endless loop as I kill the lights and drift off to sleep, occasionally waking up to a different small fraction of the song before drifting back out. An old favorite. Highly recommended.

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6doves, the cedar room, kitteh fur, shoegaze, dream pop, brit pop, cover, purity ring, cocteau twins,

“Limits of Desire” by Small Black // Limits of Desire (Out Now via Jagjaguwar)

Small Black’s Limits of Desire is one of my most anticipated albums of the year, and over the past few weeks, I have spent a large chunk of time pouring over the album’s contents. Soaking in every soaring synth line and airy vocal hook that the album has to offer, and there are many. The one song that immediately grabbed my attention on first listen and has continued to demand the most replays, is the title track. “Limits of Desire” is a fairly straight forward synth pop venture for the band, but there’s something else at play that really captivates me and it’s the somber, yet uplifting tone of the song. Ethereal waves of airy synths glide over a lovely vocal melody, as a pulsing bass line and drum beat form a heartbeat through the spaced out atmosphere of the track. It’s a stunning beauty and for me at this point in the year, this is my favorite song of 2013 (so far). For me, it’s a perfect pop song. 

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6small+black, brooklyn, synth pop, dreamwave, new wave, chillwave, favorite new music, riyl:, m83, washed out, diiv, small black, medium,

“Flutter” by Oliver Wilde // A Brief Introduction to Unnatural Lightyears (2013)

Here is something special from a young, Bristol based artist, named Oliver Wilde. “Flutter” is a dreamy bit of electronic-textured folk pop that calls to mind Sparklehorse and Doves. The downtempo guitars and hazy, distant vocals play well off of the muted lo-fi electro percussion. The whole thing carries a memorable, hypnotic flow that has me excited to hear more from Oliver Wilde. It’s been a while since I’ve heard someone take on this type of music well, and it looks like I finally have someone to keep an eye on. Highly recommended. 

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6oliver wilde, folk, indie, dream pop, electro, folktronica, downtempo, riyl:, doves, sparklehorse, medium,

“Confidence” by The Dodos // Carrier (Out 8.27.13 via Polyvinyl)

The Dodos are back with the announcement of a new album (Carrier - out in August) and a fresh new taste of the album in the form of “Confidence”, a straight up rocker with a driving beat, steady guitar rhythms, and killer harmonies. It takes a little while but this might be a slightly more aggressive band than you last remember but it’s still very much The Dodos. The instrumentation is confident and explosive, while the vocals are the real star, as is the case with many of the band’s best work with the dual harmonies keeping the pace and helping create the infectious sound that sticks around long after you’ve stopped listening. Highly recommended for fans of Local Natives and Real Estate. 

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6the dodos, indie rock, guitar rock, indie pop, meric long, logan kroeber, riyl:, local natives, real estate, medium,

“Floating Area” by Shelling // Shelling (Out Now via White Paddy Mountain)

Shelling hail from Japan and specialize in ethereal dream pop with electronic flourishes. They recently released their self titled album and it’s an otherworldy beauty that calls to mind the work of The Album Leaf, Múm, and Sigur Ros.”Floating Area” is a track from that album, and also a solid taster for those unfamiliar with the band, but curious about their sound. The track is a textured slice of glitch pop that floats on dreamy ambient atmospheres and lovely, hushed vocals. It’s a dreamy fairy tale lullaby and one that you can easily find yourself getting lost inside of white it plays on repeat as the night drifts away. Highly recommended. 

6shelling, dream pop, shoegaze, glitch pop, japan, riyl:, Múm, sigur ros, the album leaf,

“Everything’s Fine” by MINKS // Tides End (Out 08.06.13 via Captured Tracks)

It’s been a while since we last heard Minks’ brand of dreamy goth pop, but now they’re coming back with a new album and a fresh new sound. “Everything’s Fine” is a new track from the forthcoming “Tides End”, and it sports a reverberating synth line, electro drum beats, and a melodic hook that is immediately infectious - all while textured beats and ethereal hums flesh out the sound, giving it a full, lived in feel. This is the Minks playing for the dance floor, but the sweet, somber tone is enough to remind you that you’re still listening to a band that has a melancholic heartbeat. Highly recommended. 

6minks, dream pop, dreamwave, electro pop, goth pop, synth pop, captured tracks, riyl:, wild nothing, beach fossils, craft spells,

“Universe is Blessed” by Wise Blood // id (Out 6.25.13 via Dovecote)

It’s been a while since we’ve had an official Wise Blood release, so let’s go ahead and bask in the excellence. This is the second single from his forthcoming full length debut, and it’s a special treat. Like all of the best Wise Blood, it’s a warped pop experiment that crosses and flips genres on it’s head. One of the great things about Wise Blood is that his arrangements so often carry an inexplicable sense of a good time. It’s hard to listen and not get lost in the potential party that could be erupting around you when a soundtrack this good is blasting. 

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6wise blood, warp pop, hip hop, experimental, pop, medium, dovecote records,

“Trouble Found Me” by Hop Along // Get Disowned (Out Now via Bandcamp)

Philadelphia’s Hop Along, are a band that has a sound that’s almost hard to put into words these days because they don’t really fall into any niche collection. They play a pretty straight forward alternative/indie rock. Of course to simply label them as such, does nothing to draw to light the killer lyrics and vocals of Frances Quinlan - self-deprecating one second, biting and insightful the next, all while sounding urgent, frustrated, and powerful. It’s nice to hear bands like Hop Along and contemporaries like Waxahatchee bring back a type of music that doesn’t require any semblance of what’s hot on a blog at the moment to really fall in love with the work. It’s just excellent music - clever, dark, beautiful, jangly, ragged, and strong. This trio is definitely one to watch. Stream and buy the album at Bandcamp. 

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6hop along, philadelphia, alternative, indie, rock, frances quinlan, bandcamp, waxahatchee, torres, swearin',

“Summer Days” by Travel Kyoto // Empire of Signs (Out Now via Bandcamp/SingaporeSlingTapes)

Sometimes, the first thing to grab my attention is the artwork and the work of Jesse Treece always has my attention. So, after digging deeper to find out who this musician is with the great taste in art, I find myself lost in a world of psychedelic synths swirling around chilled out lounge beats and sunny melodies that sound futuristic and retro all at once. I’m hooked. It’s been ages since I’ve found music that reminds me of some of those early listens of Stereolab and Broadcast, but the Portland’s Travel Kyoto is just who i’ve been looking for, and there’s plenty of golden sounds of tomorrow to find at their Bandcamp page. Highest recommendation. 

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6travel kyoto, portland, psych pop, post-chillwave, lounge pop, future pop, favorite new music, jesse treece, riyl:, stereolab, broadcast,

“Tell Me” by Soft Metals // Lenses (Out 07.16.13 via Captured Tracks)

Soft Metals have been away for a little while, but luckily they’re back with a new track to signal the release of a new LP that drops in July. “Tell Me” is the first taste of the new material and fans of the first album will be in luck because they haven’t strayed far from their brand of sexy, spaced out, synth pop minimalism. Futuristic, twinkling synths cascade off one another as pulsing and buzzing electronics slide in and out over a robo-beat that plays fast while the dreamy vocals float longingly through the keys and beats. It’s a killer track that has a confident sound unlike most synth pop acts these days. I’m highly excited to hear what else awaits on “Lenses”, when it drops from Captured Tracks in mid-July. 

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6soft metals, captured tracks, synth pop, minimalist, dream pop, dreamwave, favorite new music, medium, riyl:, austra, HEALTH, games,

“Cul-De-Sac” by Connections // Tough City EP (2013)

Connections is a Columbus, Ohio based band that plays fast and loud indie rock and power pop. They recently released their excellent debut, “Private Airplane”, on Anyway Records. That album’s blast of energetic, midwestern guitar rock carries a sense of playfull-ness and urgency that makes it stand outside of the obvious Guided By Voices comparisons. The band has such a knack for crafting infectious melodies that it’s not surprise that each track is barely over two minutes long before it’s on to the next jam with another piece of ear candy on the way. Sure enough, even after “Private Airplane” the band must have had some extra work to lay down, because this gem, “Cul-De-Sac” comes from a record store day release, entitled “Tough City EP” which was released exclusively through Lost Weekend Records, but can be streamed now through Bandcamp. It’s not everyday that you get to hear a track that feels so distinctly like a classic wave of indie rock. Not that the band is trafficking in 90’s nostalgia, like GBV before them, you can hear the garage rock influences of the 60’s and power pop of the 70’s and the americana of the 80’s all boiled down into something that’s fresh and yet familiar. Connections are tapping into something wonderful and they’ve got the talent to make it last. Highly recommended.

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6connections, columbus, ohio, indie rock, power pop, 90's flashbacks, guided by voices, big star, times new viking, favorite new music,

“In Search of the Miraculous” by Mark McGuire // Along the Way (2013 via Inpartment Inc.)

Mark McGuire is an artist that always seems to pop up with something new just when I’ve stopped obsessing over his previous release. His work with Emeralds is amazing work, but his solo work is the stuff that keeps me coming back. Which is probably good, because he’s no longer a member of Emeralds. At any rate, McGuire’s brand of ethereal ambient/drone has developed into something extraordinary these past few years, and this new track, “In Search of the Miraculous” from the forthcoming album, “Along the Way”, is itself, “miraculous”. The track is a shimmering, widescreen slice of psych pop layered with otherwordly vocals and guitars that shift and warp, flowing together in a way that feels like fantasy, but it’s real and you can hit “repeat” as much as you like. It’s really wonderful stuff. Highest recommendation for fans of Emeralds, Motion Sickness of Time Travel, and Skyramps. 

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6mark mcguire, emeralds, psych, drone, ambient, ethereal, guitar, motion sickness of time travel, skyramps, medium, grouper, julianna barwick,