<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" > <channel> <title>#carpark – Pop Press International</title> <atom:link href="https://www.poppressinternational.com/tag/carpark/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com</link> <description>Music Blog, Music News, Tracks, Reviews, Live Music, Photos & More</description> <lastBuildDate>Thu, 13 Feb 2014 23:17:53 +0000</lastBuildDate> <language>en-US</language> <sy:updatePeriod> hourly </sy:updatePeriod> <sy:updateFrequency> 1 </sy:updateFrequency> <generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.2</generator> <item> <title>Teen Shares Trailer Video for New LP</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2014/02/13/teen-shares-trailer-video-for-new-lp/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 13 Feb 2014 23:17:53 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[BLOG]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TRACKS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[VIDEOS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[electro pop]]></category> <category><![CDATA[experimental R&B]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TEEN]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tracks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[videos]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=12347</guid> <description><![CDATA[Teen has announced that their new LP, The Way and Color, will be released via Carpark on April 22nd and has accompanied that announcement with an album trailer video featuring a compilation of sounds...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Teen has announced that their new LP, <em>The Way and Color</em>, will be released via Carpark on April 22nd and has accompanied that announcement with an album trailer video featuring a compilation of sounds from the record. The experimental animation for the video was created by artist Jake Fried and works as a backdrop for the band’s experimental R&B and electro pop sounds. Using these samples as a barometer, we feel pretty damn excited about the prospect of this album. The band will be at SXSW this March. Check out the album trailer below.</p> <p><iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/C1thLIXqC7I" height="285" width="460" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0"></iframe></p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Dog Bite Shares New Track “Cold Weather”</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2013/07/18/dog-bite-shares-new-track-cold-weather/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 18 Jul 2013 17:25:09 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[BLOG]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TRACKS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Atlanta]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dog Bite]]></category> <category><![CDATA[indie rock]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Phil Jones]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=9900</guid> <description><![CDATA[Atlanta based indie rock band Dog Bite has announced the release of a new EP. The LA EP will drop on September 17th on Carpark records, and you can hear the first single “Cold...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Atlanta based indie rock band Dog Bite has announced the release of a new EP. The <em>LA EP</em> will drop on September 17th on Carpark records, and you can hear the first single “Cold Weather” now. The song wades cautiously into mellow, dissonant waters before coming together as a echoing pop song with flowing guitars and synths. Hear “Cold Weather” below.</p> <p><iframe src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F101301185" height="166" width="100%" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe></p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>EP Review: TEEN – Carolina</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2013/05/30/ep-review-teen-carolina/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 30 May 2013 16:41:48 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[REVIEWS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#ep]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Carolina]]></category> <category><![CDATA[electro pop]]></category> <category><![CDATA[indie rock]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TEEN]]></category> <category><![CDATA[textured]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=8924</guid> <description><![CDATA[Carolina, the new EP from Brooklyn’s TEEN, features an impressively varied and divergent array of sounds across its five songs. The EP is a follow-up to last year’s well-received and buzzed about full...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><i><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina.jpg"><img decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-8926" alt="teen_carolina" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina-150x150.jpg" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina-120x120.jpg 120w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/teen_carolina.jpg 400w" sizes="(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>Carolina</i>, the new EP from Brooklyn’s TEEN, features an impressively varied and divergent array of sounds across its five songs. The EP is a follow-up to last year’s well-received and buzzed about full length <i>In Limbo</i>.</p> <p>Under the leadership of Kristina “Teeny” Lieberson, the group’s four ladies navigate between crunchy psych grooves, squealing keys, brassy notes, luminous synths, and propulsive percussion—and that’s just on the first track. None of these songs stay in their place for very long, as they constantly shift and morph into new imaginings. Verses and choruses become difficult to pinpoint as the songs move though their own free form understanding of composition. “Cannibal” marks the EP’s midpoint and surfaces as a highlight with bouncing instrumentation and upbeat snares and handclaps.</p> <p>After the ominous and foreboding noise of “Glass Cage,” culminating track “Paradise” closes the short collection of songs and is the leanest arrangement of the five. “Paradise” is constructed around organ, bending guitar notes, and wavering vocals provided by Lieberson. The strongest song on the album, it picks up speed in moments and then falls back to a more streamlined mix before building to swirling guitars and synths floating over choppy organ at the conclusion. Although the track reflects more restraint than others, the arrangement is still teeming with busy flourishes of sound, but TEEN balances them and employs them to the greatest effect here.</p> <p>TEEN has been a buzz band for what feels like forever now, resting comfortably on the precipice of explosion. The rich, textured soundscapes of <i>Carolina</i> will certainly keep them moving toward their inevitable wider audiences and grander goals.</p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>TEEN Releases “Paradise” Ahead of New EP</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2013/04/29/teen-releases-paradise-ahead-of-new-ep/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 29 Apr 2013 17:02:47 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[BLOG]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TRACKS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Carlina]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TEEN]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Tracks]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=8073</guid> <description><![CDATA[Carpark Records will release Carolina, the new EP from indie-pop group TEEN. Ahead of that release, they’ve shared the song “Paradise,” an organ-backed track that features guitar picking and wavering vocals. The mix builds...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Carpark Records will release <em>Carolina</em>, the new EP from indie-pop group TEEN. Ahead of that release, they’ve shared the song “Paradise,” an organ-backed track that features guitar picking and wavering vocals. The mix builds to blurry, swirling proportions, and the hazy noise that occupies the song’s latter half is punctuated by snare taps. Check out “Paradise” below.</p> <p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F88476063" height="166" width="100%" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe></p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Album Review: Beach Fossils – Clash the Truth</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2013/02/22/album-review-beach-fossils-clash-the-truth/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Chris Witte]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Feb 2013 13:53:53 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[REVIEWS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Beach Fossils]]></category> <category><![CDATA[beach pop]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dream Pop]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Punk]]></category> <category><![CDATA[shoegaze]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=6326</guid> <description><![CDATA[Ah, the sophomore album—so many expectations riding on the success of your first album. So many voices clamoring about what your sound should be and where it should go. So many inimical hands...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-6327" alt="Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth-150x150.jpg" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth-120x120.jpg 120w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Beach-Fossils-Clash-The-Truth.jpg 400w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>Ah, the sophomore album—so many expectations riding on the success of your first album. So many voices clamoring about what your sound should be and where it should go. So many inimical hands waiting to tear you apart at the first symptoms of the dreaded ‘slump’. I hate to be a part of this latter camp of course, but I cannot help that prickly feeling like I would have enjoyed Brooklyn band Beach Fossils’ second album more if I had not already heard the first one; however, <i>Clash the Truth</i> still possesses plenty of merits to be found.</p> <p>Formed out of a solo project by Dustin Payseur, Beach Fossils moved out of the bedroom and into the studio for this sophomore effort; the result is the loss of some of that lo-fi charm and a shift from beachy dream-pop towards post-punk surf-rock. The strengths of the album are stocked towards the front. “Clash the Truth,” “Generation Synthetical,” and “Sleep Apnea” are all short, solid excursions through realms of soft-focus indie introspection. Employing bouncing bass grooves and energetic drum lines more typical to surf music, they weave through sweet melancholies, caustic apathies, and fearful angsts all to interesting results. Here the first real difference to their new sound becomes noticeable. Whereas in the debut album the vocals were far-back and wrapped in hollow reverbs, now they are crisp, upfront, and cleanly produced. The old style lent the music a dreamy, beachy quality that let the sounds drift over you with soothing flow. Here though, stripped more bare from effects, the vocals sound with less texture; they are heavier with that slight laze which is typical to punk rock.</p> <p>While the vocals work for the style of the first three tracks, when “Careless” came around I was thrown off. The track opens with an upbeat, sentimentally expansive manner of strummed guitar. But then the heavy, slow vocals intrude, and they just don’t carry enough energy to match the rapid drive and heightened emotion of the song. The outcome is a confused feel, like two adverse styles of music clashing discordantly.</p> <p>“Taking Off Stem” returns to heavy surf grooves with a backing of instrumentals of the Vampire-Weekend variety. “Shallow” does not stray too much further, garnering a bit more of a brighter sound and soothing melodic drift. “Burn You Down” is the most unique of the bunch with its splashy groove and dark lulling vocals, but when “Birthday” opens up you’ll swear you’re hearing the same songs as before. The repetitiveness of the bass grooves and percussive lines undermines the creativity of the latter punk-rock tracks, except for “In Vertigo,” which wanders back towards shoegaze territory.</p> <p>It was with the final track “Crashed Out” that the problem of the album for me became exacerbated. Kicking up a typical punk groove, the song adopted a faster tempo than earlier tracks, yet the beachy vocals remained at the same lyrical pace. The two elements drag at each other. Plenty of bands out there have blended punk and shoegaze, but here they are made to feel like water and oil. The music of the first album meanwhile always had a sense of melodic continuity for me. Still, there’s plenty here that succeeds, and no stalwart Beach Fossils<i> </i>fan should miss it.</p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Album Review: Dog Bite – Velvet Changes</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2013/02/08/album-review-dog-bite-velvet-changes/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:53:31 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[REVIEWS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dog Bite]]></category> <category><![CDATA[hazy pop]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Phil Jones]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Velvet Changes]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Washed Out]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=6001</guid> <description><![CDATA[A former member of Washed Out, Phil Jones has struck out on his own, forming the Atlanta-based band Dog Bite. Jones et al. have a lot going on throughout the 11 songs that...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/dog_bite-velvet_changes.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-6002" title="dog_bite-velvet_changes" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/dog_bite-velvet_changes-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/dog_bite-velvet_changes-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/dog_bite-velvet_changes-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/dog_bite-velvet_changes-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/dog_bite-velvet_changes.jpg 400w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>A former member of Washed Out, Phil Jones has struck out on his own, forming the Atlanta-based band Dog Bite. Jones et al. have a lot going on throughout the 11 songs that comprise their Carpark Records debut album <em>Velvet Changes</em>. That is to say, while “hazy pop” might be a descriptor that sums up the record, the songs shift dramatically between and <em>within</em> themselves, moving between low pulsing synths, jangly strums, echoing guitar notes, organic beats, and skittering electronic drums. The end result is a dreamy, diverse, yet cohesive first effort of quality songs.</p> <p>Lazy but smooth vocal hooks define opener “Forever, Until” as Jones delivers lines like “I wanna go for a walk/ and I wanna spend all day with you.” The unhurried sentiment of the lyrics perfectly mirrors the easy pace of the song, which is one of the most straightforward on the record. Hazy pop with drums at the forefront continues on the second track with Jones’ voice almost vanishing into the background. “No Sharing” changes up the mix significantly, bringing more crisp instrumentation.</p> <p>“Prettiest Pills” was a single for the album and features ominously distorted instrumentation. The song works well, but it doesn’t feel like a single, given other tracks the band could have chosen. A Nirvana-esque bass line opens “You’re Not that Great” before the remainder of the song continues to recall the indie giant that popularized alternative music in the early 90s, even if it is a shiny, lo-fi version of Kurt Cobain’s style. In fact, as a Smashing Pumpkins vibe seeps through in the song’s final minute, you’re starting to feel a whole lot of 90s alternative permeate the songs of <em>Velvet Changes</em>.</p> <p>At 5:05, “Native America” is one of the album’s longest tracks, which usually has me complaining, but as Jones chants, “Let’s not rush/let’s not rush” over steady drums I find myself agreeing—the song emerges as a late album standout. The album ends with a pair of plodding pop songs: instrumental number “The Woods and the Fire,” and off-kilter love song “My Mary,” on which Jones lowly chants, “I need you, Mary, you’re my only survival.”</p> <p>In the end, <em>Velvet Changes</em> doesn’t redefine any genres, but it does prove that Jones is capable of sustaining his songwriting craft over a period of 11 coherent and listenable songs. Let’s hope this is only the beginning from a clearly talented artist.</p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Video: Memory Tapes – “Sheila”</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2013/01/10/video-memory-tapes-sheila/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 10 Jan 2013 22:41:45 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[VIDEOS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memory Tapes]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=5440</guid> <description><![CDATA[In case you haven’t heard, we were very into the new album from Memory Tapes, putting it in our top 20 for the year. Seems like there are some haters out there, but...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In case you haven’t heard, we were very into the new album from Memory Tapes, putting it in our <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="The Best Albums of 2012" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/12/11/the-best-albums-of-2012/">top 20 for the year</a></span>. Seems like there are some haters out there, but it’s not stopping our love for this intricately rendered collection of alternatingly dark and shimmering electronic pop opuses. Above you can watch the video for album track “Sheila.” According to a press release, the band has said, “The theme for our ‘Sheila’ video was ‘fractional suicide.’ What happens if you jump off a building, only to have to do over and over again until you succeed? Share Sheila’s journey as her “friends” help her on the way.”</p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>The Best Albums of 2012</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/12/11/the-best-albums-of-2012/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 11 Dec 2012 13:01:35 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[BLOG]]></category> <category><![CDATA[FEATURES]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#4ad]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#deerhoof]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#domino]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#hospitality]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Beach House]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Best of 2012]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Cat Power]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Deep Time]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dirty Projectors]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Father John Misty]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Frank Ocean]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Grizzly Bear]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Lotus Plaza]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Matador Records]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Melody's Echo Chamber]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memory Tapes]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Merge Records]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mount Eerie]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mountain Goats]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Polyvinyl]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Secretly Canadian]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sub Pop]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sun Airway]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Taken by Trees]]></category> <category><![CDATA[The Babies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[The xx]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Twin Shadow]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Wild Nothing]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Year's Best Albums]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=5186</guid> <description><![CDATA[Welcome to Pop Press International’s list of the best albums of 2012. There are a few things we have to confess to you before you read further. Let’s cut right to the chase....]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Best_of_2012_460.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-5217" title="Best_of_2012_460" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Best_of_2012_460.jpg" alt="" width="460" height="288" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Best_of_2012_460.jpg 460w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Best_of_2012_460-300x187.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Best_of_2012_460-360x225.jpg 360w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 460px) 100vw, 460px" /></a>Welcome to Pop Press International’s list of the best albums of 2012. There are a few things we have to confess to you before you read further. Let’s cut right to the chase. Probably 90% of you reading this already know, but just the same, Pop Press International is basically a one-man-project. So, when I prepared to put together my list of the year’s best albums, I really had no one to answer to. Still, I asked myself: should I attempt to objectively pick “good” albums or simply the albums I personally liked best? Since I believe that objectivity is scarcely more than delusion, I guess my answer was really in the question. Even at our most “objective,” we’re products of our psychological constructs and the environments to which we’ve grown accustomed. That said, I feel this list does a fair job of <em>considering </em>my biases and avoiding them… with the exception of my #1 album, which I hardly suspect I can find anyone to agree with me on. Alas, it was my favorite.</p> <p>You should also know that this is the year we were born. There are some records that came out before we even started writing, and I don’t believe a single record on this list fits that bill. As we approach our first birthday, and as we cross into a new calendar year, I’d like to say that this has been an amazing year filled with new friends and wonderful music. I suspect you’ll be seeing a post soon expressing some thanks to those who have made this blog possible.</p> <p>One more thing in case you don’t make it to the bottom of the list: at the end is an embedded player with one track from each of the listed albums for your listening enjoyment. Without further ado, Pop Press International’s list of the best albums of 2012:</p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-xx-Coexist.jpeg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-2696" title="The-xx-Coexist" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-xx-Coexist-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-xx-Coexist-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-xx-Coexist-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-xx-Coexist-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-xx-Coexist.jpeg 620w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>20. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="New Track: “Chained” – The xx" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/08/10/new-track-chained-the-xx/">The xx – </a><em><a title="New Track: “Chained” – The xx" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/08/10/new-track-chained-the-xx/">Coexist</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>The xx’s sophomore album proves that the group is still in its groove, crafting airy, pulsing, minimalist electronic pop. Though The album didn’t quite explode or blow everyone out of the water as some might have hoped after a long wait between the UK group’s first and second efforts, it certainly delivered everything fans had come to love about the band. “Angels” took minimalist to a whole new level, and the second single, “Chained,” emerged as one of the album’s most memorable tracks. Now the band is faced with the difficult task of maintaining their consistency while evolving as they look to solidify their career. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Lotus_Plaza.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-543" title="Lotus_Plaza" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Lotus_Plaza-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Lotus_Plaza-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Lotus_Plaza-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Lotus_Plaza.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>19. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Lotus Plaza – Spooky Action at a Distance" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/04/album-review-lotus-plaza-spooky-action-at-a-distance/">Lotus Plaza – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Lotus Plaza – Spooky Action at a Distance" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/04/album-review-lotus-plaza-spooky-action-at-a-distance/">Spooky Action at a Distance</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em><em>Spooky Action…</em> is the kind of album that can easily become a summer soundtrack. The expansive “Jet Out of the Tundra” and it’s memorable piano line are like watching a loved one bend down to tie their shoes under a bright blue sky and then run to catch up to you. “Eveningness” is driving, the feeling of being on your way. Then there’s the stunning “Remember Our Days,” an outcry for recall, with Pundt singing over swift guitar riffs, “if I don’t see you again/ I’m glad that you were my friend/ I’ll remember our days.” Doesn’t everyone just know that feeling? <em>Spooky Action at a Distance</em> is the kind of album you want to listen to while falling in love, which isn’t surprising at all considering how easy it is to fall in love with. –<em>KN</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/sun-airway-soft-fall.jpeg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-4028" title="sun-airway-soft-fall" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/sun-airway-soft-fall-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/sun-airway-soft-fall-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/sun-airway-soft-fall-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/sun-airway-soft-fall-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/sun-airway-soft-fall.jpeg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>18. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Sun Airway – “Soft Fall”" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/10/05/album-review-sun-airway-soft-fall/">Sun Airway – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Sun Airway – “Soft Fall”" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/10/05/album-review-sun-airway-soft-fall/">Soft Fall</a></em></span></p> <p><em>Soft Fall</em> is, at surface value, a sharp, atmospheric, and catchy album. Barthmus channels an array of his predecessors, ranging from Coldplay’s Chris Martin to Robert Smith of The Cure. Set aside all of that fuzzy texture and reverb–find that Barthmus never loses his pop sensibilities. As much as <em>Soft Fall</em> seems like a dance album, the sentiments are achingly melancholic. “I don’t want your trouble or your troubled mind,” and, “mostly I just feel lost,” Barthmus sings in “Wild Palms.” “I never hear you on the radio, I know, but I still feel you on my radio, I’m sure,” on “Black Noise.” Barthmus makes it clear this isn’t an album to be taken lightly. He’s right. <em>Soft Fall</em> is a tremendous artistic accomplishment. –<em>KN</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/wild_nothing_nocturne.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3501" title="wild_nothing_nocturne" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/wild_nothing_nocturne-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/wild_nothing_nocturne-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/wild_nothing_nocturne-300x298.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/wild_nothing_nocturne-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/wild_nothing_nocturne.jpg 470w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>17. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Wild Nothing – Nocturne" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/08/30/album-review-wild-nothing-nocturne/">Wild Nothing – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Wild Nothing – Nocturne" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/08/30/album-review-wild-nothing-nocturne/">Nocturne</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>For anyone who doubted it was possible, Tatum’s second album is every bit as good as <em>Gemini</em>, probably better. Tatum’s new-wave brings us kids of the 80s back to memories deeply engrained in our consciousness, but somehow remains entirely present and fresh. I’m entranced to the very last track, “Rheya,” which reminds me of moonlight glinting on a gently undulating lake surface at midnight. When I excitedly relay these descriptions to my girlfriend as I write she shoots me a puzzled look. “I don’t know what that sounds like,” she says. Well, just listen. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/channel_orange.jpeg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-5211" title="channel_orange" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/channel_orange-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/channel_orange-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/channel_orange-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/channel_orange-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/channel_orange.jpeg 585w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>16. Frank Ocean – <em>Channel ORANGE</em></p> <p><em></em>Well, this is one we didn’t write about. I don’t know if the basic inner workings of running a small blog are readily apparent, but most of what we write about falls into two categories: 1) music we are out there actively discovering on our own; 2) small independent artists or their labels who are actively promoting to small outlets such as Pop Press International. As someone like Frank Ocean really falls into neither category, even a great album may not get written about. It didn’t stop us from listening to and loving it. Did you really miss us telling you it was good since you had the other three million magazines to do so? Well, here’s our chance. Ocean’s laid back mixture of R&B, hip-hop, and pop is a powerful statement that sounds like cruising underneath the L.A. lights at night. One of the best records of the year. The 16th best, in fact. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/hospitality_st.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-295" title="hospitality_st" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/hospitality_st-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/hospitality_st-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/hospitality_st-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/hospitality_st-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/hospitality_st.jpg 520w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>15. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Hospitality – Hospitality" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/04/09/hospitality-hospitality/">Hospitality – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Hospitality – Hospitality" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/04/09/hospitality-hospitality/">Hospitality</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>Hospitality’s self-titled debut album employs indie-pop sensibilities, infectious hooks, and dynamic rhythms to achieve a well rounded and convincing first effort. <em>Hospitality</em> has been long anticipated in some regards, since the band formed in 2007 and has only released one EP prior to their 2012 full-length debut. With its arrival, we have been given proof that good things come to those who wait. The best pop records don’t drag on, but rather leave the listener excited at their end. At 10 songs and just over 30 minutes, the band makes their case without belaboring the point and leaves behind plenty to be excited about. If you still want more, you can always put it on repeat, and we suspect you will. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/clear_moon.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-1143" title="clear_moon" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/clear_moon-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/clear_moon-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/clear_moon-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/clear_moon-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/clear_moon.jpg 1000w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>14. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Mount Eerie – Clear Moon" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/22/album-review-mount-eerie-clear-moon/">Mount Eerie – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Mount Eerie – Clear Moon" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/22/album-review-mount-eerie-clear-moon/">Clear Moon</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em><em>Clear Moon</em> represents a difficult place to start for newcomers to the world of Phil Elverum, but its palatability should not inform its greatness. While the album is not as groundbreaking or exciting and fresh as earlier releases by Elverum, this is not its aim. <em>Clear Moon</em> is more deliberate, rich, and focused. It feels like an experienced artist working late in his career, recalling masters such as William Butler Yeats, who in many ways moved past the attentions of his readers, embarking into the unknown with his final work “A Vision.” Elverum, too, has moved beyond listeners from his earlier days, delving deeper than ever into the mystical unknown and doing so with great confidence, providing a pervasive sense of calm completeness with <em>Clear Moon</em>. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/meodys_echo_chamber.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3744" title="melodys_echo_chamber" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/meodys_echo_chamber-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/meodys_echo_chamber-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/meodys_echo_chamber-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/meodys_echo_chamber-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/meodys_echo_chamber.jpg 500w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>13. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Melody’s Echo Chamber – Melody’s Echo Chamber" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/09/24/album-review-melodys-echo-chamber-st/">Melody’s Echo Chamber – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Melody’s Echo Chamber – Melody’s Echo Chamber" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/09/24/album-review-melodys-echo-chamber-st/">Melody’s Echo Chamber</a></em></span></p> <p>However weathered and world-weary lead singer Melody Prochet sounds (“Here I go again,” she trills on “Endless Shore”), it’s clear she hasn’t given up entirely on sweetness. In the stunning album opener “I’ll Follow You,” a dreamy, 60’s pop ballad, she pledges unwavering allegiance to a runaway lover. Album closer “Be Proud Of Your Kids,” a sentiment sweet enough in itself, samples a child speaking in French. In “Bisous Magique” she delivers the sickeningly cute line “fais-moi un bisous magique,” which translates to “give me a magic kiss,” as if she were the sole dweller in a naïve and whimsical world long forgotten by the rest of us. <em>Melody’s Echo Chamber</em> is ambitious, evocative, and hints at the greatness of which Prochet is capable–a triumphant debut album. –<em>KN</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/DeepTime_LP1.jpeg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-2559" title="DeepTime_LP1" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/DeepTime_LP1-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/DeepTime_LP1-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/DeepTime_LP1-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/DeepTime_LP1-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/DeepTime_LP1.jpeg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>12. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Deep Time – Deep Time" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/07/09/album-review-deep-time-deep-time/">Deep Time – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Deep Time – Deep Time" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/07/09/album-review-deep-time-deep-time/">Deep Time</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>Deep Time continues to release their unique brand of offbeat post punk, using melodies that sound familiar and simple and then tweaking them to incorporate choppy interludes and off-kilter harmonies. The difference isn’t only that this time they come approved by Weird War’s Ian Svenonius and the wonderful Hardly Art label, but als that the 9 songs on <em>Deep Time</em> are delivered with a force and focus we always knew the pair had in them. “Burn the old one down,” Moore sings unrepentantly on the shipwreck-themed “Gilligan.” If Deep Time has burned their past to the ground, they have risen triumphantly from the ashes with this record. –<em>KN<em> </em>& –<em>BCP</em></em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/our_house_on_the_hill.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-4910" title="our_house_on_the_hill" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/our_house_on_the_hill-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/our_house_on_the_hill-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/our_house_on_the_hill-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/our_house_on_the_hill-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/our_house_on_the_hill.jpg 400w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>11. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: The Babies – Our House on the Hill" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/11/20/album-review-the-babies-our-house-on-the-hill/">The Babies – </a><em><a title="Album Review: The Babies – Our House on the Hill" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/11/20/album-review-the-babies-our-house-on-the-hill/">Our House on the Hill</a></em></span></p> <p><em>Our House on the Hill</em> feels nostalgically familiar, blending guitar tones from late 90s staples like Pavement and contemporary indie-pop like Best Coast and the New Pornographers, wavering lyrically between superficial silliness and stoic seriousness to create one of our favorite albums of the year. The album embodies the essence of indie-rock, full of emotional depth and raw energy contained within economically efficient lyricism and tight pop songs. It’s an album I loved upon first listen, and that has only grown more true with each subsequent experience. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/other-worlds.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-4037" title="other-worlds" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/other-worlds-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/other-worlds-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/other-worlds-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/other-worlds-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/other-worlds.jpg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>10. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Taken By Trees – Other Worlds" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/10/05/album-review-taken-by-trees-other-worlds/">Taken By Trees – <em>Other Worlds</em></a></span></p> <p><em></em>Before its release, Taken by Trees’ new album<em>Other Worlds</em> was dubbed an “impressionist poem for the Hawaiian Islands.” Rarely does an album so aptly live up to its descriptors, but that is precisely what Victoria Bergsman has created. This musically and lyrically conceptual work of art represents yet another outstanding album from the former Concretes frontwoman. <em>Other Worlds</em>’ cohesive nature and thematic unity present a forward-thinking brilliance that proves simultaneously soothing and addictive. It may well be the finest work we have seen from an already incredibly accomplished musician. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-5058" title="grace-confusion-memory-tapes" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes.jpg 430w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>9. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Memory Tapes – Grace/Confusion" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/12/04/album-review-memory-tapes-graceconfusion/">Memory Tapes – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Memory Tapes – Grace/Confusion" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/12/04/album-review-memory-tapes-graceconfusion/">Grace/Confusion</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>Memory Tapes began as a bedroom pop project in a rural town, inadvertently stumbling into wide critical success with Hawk’s early tracks. However, consistently outstanding music such as this is no accident. Hawk is a genius, expertly wielding the electronic tools of our time to render music that is as unified and sublime as it is disparate and sprawling. Hawk has spoken about this delicate balance between allowing songs to shift dynamically while keeping them cohesive, commenting that it resulted in the title <em>Grace/Confusion.</em> My only confusion lies in how a collection of songs can so gracefully inspire so much pleasure for a listener like me. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grizzly_bear_shields.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-5213" title="grizzly_bear_shields" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grizzly_bear_shields-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grizzly_bear_shields-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grizzly_bear_shields-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grizzly_bear_shields-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grizzly_bear_shields.jpg 591w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>8. Grizzly Bear – <em>Shields</em></p> <p><em></em>Okay, so this is one we didn’t write about, and I have no idea why. We should have. We’re morally remiss and should probably have our license to write about independent music taken away. Good thing they don’t exist. On Grizzly Bear’s fourth studio album, the group sharpens everything they’ve done in the past into daggers of richly-textured, noisy indie-rock interspersed with beautiful acoustics. Opener “Sleeping Ute” provides enough evidence to convince most that this record deserves to be in the top half of any year-end list, but Grizzly Bear goes ahead and gives us nine more anyway. A friend saw one of my status updates that read: “Bryan Parker is listening to Yet Again by Grizzly Bear” and misread it as “Bryan Parker is <em>yet again</em> listening to Grizzly Bear.” That about sums it up. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/breakup_song_deerhoof.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3578" title="breakup_song_deerhoof" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/breakup_song_deerhoof-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/breakup_song_deerhoof-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/breakup_song_deerhoof-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/breakup_song_deerhoof.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>7. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Deerhoof – Breakup Song" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/09/07/album-review-deerhoof-breakup-song/">Deerhoof – <em>Breakup Song</em></a></span></p> <p><em></em>This is one that I just didn’t give enough credit to in the initial review. My take was overwhelmingly positive when it should have been glowing. It helps that one of my favorite tracks of the year comes at the end of the album. From the opening guitar tone of “Fête d’Adieu,” to the simple upbeat chorus to the entrancing refrain where Matsuzaki powerfully commands, “I declare the war over, anymore,” the track earns its place as my favorite on the album. A friend once suggested to me that the best way to combat war wasn’t to protest or engage in the raging and depressing, often fruitless debate; rather, the way to combat war is simply to create art that inspires joy. Either way, Deerhoof has its bases covered because they do both on <em>Breakup Song</em>. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Cat_Power_Sun.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-2053" title="Cat_Power_Sun" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Cat_Power_Sun-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Cat_Power_Sun-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Cat_Power_Sun-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Cat_Power_Sun-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Cat_Power_Sun.jpg 540w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>6. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Cat Power – Sun" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/09/04/album-review-cat-power-sun/">Cat Power – <em>Sun</em></a></span></p> <p><em></em>I have absolutely no qualms about calling Cat Power’s new album exactly what it is: a masterpiece. <em>Sun</em> marks the first album of completely original material in more than half a decade from Cat Power, aka Chan Marshall. Marshall is an artist who wears her influences on her sleeve, which I deeply admire, and her extensive library of recorded covers carries enormous value. However, the vast array of covers left me wondering what original material might be playing out in her mind. Before her covers album <em>Jukebox</em>, we were given <em>The Greatest</em>, an album of original songs which relied heavily on the contributions of session musicians. As incredible as those musicians were/are and as quality as the songs were that emerged, it still felt like Marshall wasn’t tapped into her purest creative energy. <em>Sun</em> possesses an energy unheard since 2003′s <em>You Are Free</em>. When I saw her perform at an Austin City Limits taping in 2006, she had to restart her cover of “House of the Rising Sun” maybe two dozen times, once playing only a single note before abandoning the song. If it takes that kind of introverted, perfectionist persona to create an album like <em>Sun</em>, it’s worth the wait. When she finally delivers, Marshall proves herself as one of today’s most inventive and brilliant songwriters all over again. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Twin-Shadow-Confess.jpeg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-2486" title="Twin-Shadow-Confess" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Twin-Shadow-Confess-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Twin-Shadow-Confess-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Twin-Shadow-Confess-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Twin-Shadow-Confess-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Twin-Shadow-Confess.jpeg 620w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>5. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Twin Shadow – Confess" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/07/09/album-review-twin-shadow-confess/">Twin Shadow – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Twin Shadow – Confess" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/07/09/album-review-twin-shadow-confess/">Confess</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>The world of Twin Shadow seems to have expanded and narrowed simultaneously. Sonically, the album is substantial in ways I never would have expected, but some of the nuance and subtlety that made Twin Shadow so special seems to have been lost. It’s only natural. Nevertheless, <em>Confess</em> is a unique and masterful work, a small treasure to hold in one’s hands or to clasp around the neck and keep close to the heart. It’s the gleam in Lewis’ eye from atop his motorcycle, the one that let’s us know he intends on riding full-speed into the distance. But it’s okay—he’s taking us along for the ride. –<em>KN</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Bloom.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-1090" title="Bloom" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Bloom-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Bloom-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Bloom-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Bloom-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Bloom.jpg 400w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>4. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Beach House – Bloom" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/21/album-review-beach-house-bloom/">Beach House – </a><em><a title="Album Review: Beach House – Bloom" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/21/album-review-beach-house-bloom/">Bloom</a></em></span></p> <p><em></em>With <em>Bloom</em>, Baltimore’s Beach House has achieved the pinnacle of musical accomplishments. However, <em>Bloom</em> is not a divergent breakthrough from previous Beach House albums. Rather, it emerges as the perfect crescendo climax to the developing blueprint that the band has been unfurling for the past eight years, since their inception in 2004. <em>Bloom</em> is the most sonically mature, technically flawless, and ambitious album thus far, taking the fundamental elements on which Beach House has built their career and fine tuning them to perfection. <em>Bloom</em> shouldn’t come as a shock. Beach House has been working toward this for years. Each of their past efforts has garnered spots on top whatever (25, 50, 100) year-end lists. As perfect as Beach House’s new effort is, this honor shouldn’t come as a surprise. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/fear_fun.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-911" title="Fear_Fun" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/fear_fun-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/fear_fun-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/fear_fun-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/fear_fun-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/fear_fun.jpg 396w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>3. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Father John Misty – Fear Fun" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/05/14/album-review-father-john-misty-fear-fun/">Father John Misty – <em>Fear Fun</em></a></span></p> <p><em></em>Arranging these two three album proved difficult. About this one, I can say that I listened to <em>Fear Fun</em> more than any other album this year–a test of practicality which speaks to the record’s greatness as well as its sheer enjoyability. With <em>Fear Fun</em>, Josh Tillman has tapped into sounds and themes universal and classic, though perhaps not to everyone, certainly to the creative geniuses he channels, the greats–Cohen, Dylan, Lennon, Nilsson. More importantly, he manages to invoke these artists while maintaining his own unique voice. Fans of Fleet Foxes may pick up this record and be pleased and entertained, but will undoubtedly underestimate the true depth of the myriad layers ripe for dissection and musical appreciation. The twelve songs on <em>Fear Fun </em>are professed by Tillman to be drug-inspired, written during a stint holed up in Laurel Canyon after a particularly dim chapter of his life. More importantly, the songs draw on vivid and terrifying biblical imagery, span musical styles including folk, country, psychedelia, and glam rock. One of the year’s finest. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Swing_Lo_Magellan.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-996" title="Swing_Lo_Magellan" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Swing_Lo_Magellan-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Swing_Lo_Magellan-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Swing_Lo_Magellan-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Swing_Lo_Magellan-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Swing_Lo_Magellan.jpg 620w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>2. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: Dirty Projectors – Swing Lo Magellan" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/07/31/album-review-dirty-projectors-swing-lo-magellan/">Dirty Projectors – <em>Swing Lo, Magellan</em></a></span></p> <p>With <em>Swing Lo Magellan</em>, Dave Longstreth and Dirty Projectors have created a pitch-perfect, percussive masterpiece that perfectly toes the line between captivating experimentation and traditional pop music. If you do your Projectors homework, it won’t take long to find rampant claims that <em>Swing Lo</em> is the group’s most accessible album yet, expanding the trend that began with <em>Bitte Orca</em>. However, it’s important to say that it’s not as if Longstreth and co. have abandoned their challenging and inventive leanings altogether. Yes, they have created an album that will undoubtedly pull in listeners standing outside the circle, but they have also created an ever-surprising and odd work of art that always engages and offers some new nuance with each listen.<em>Swing Lo Magellan </em>is a sleek, tight experimental pop record that shifts brilliantly from strange string melodies to expansive major key harmonies. It is, without question, one of the best albums of the year. “There is an answer/ I haven’t found it/ But I will keep dancing until I do,” Longstreth sings on “Dance For You.” As it occurs, I’d argue that Dave Longstreth and Dirty Projectors may have found the answer, and it’s <em>Swing Lo Magellan</em>. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/transcendental_youth.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3956" title="transcendental_youth" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/transcendental_youth-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/transcendental_youth-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/transcendental_youth-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/transcendental_youth-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/transcendental_youth.jpg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>1. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="Album Review: The Mountain Goats – Transcendental Youth" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/10/02/album-review-the-mountain-goats-transcendental-youth/">Mountain Goats – <em>Transcendental Youth</em></a></span></p> <p>What did you expect? I proudly claim the Mountain Goats as my favorite band. Sure, I could recognize that this record is absent from most year-end lists across the blogosphere and follow suit, but why? To minimize the subtle musical nuances, endlessly catchy hooks, unadulterated honesty, and brilliant songwriting is to unfairly and willfully exist in a state of denial. On <em>Transcendental Youth</em>, John Darnielle sounds more confident than ever. The album’s production continues the polished trend that began with <em>Tallahassee</em>, strengthened with <em>We Shall All Be Healed</em>, and solidified with <em>The Sunset Tree</em>. A brass section marks the most significant musical addition to Darnielle’s approach, but he doesn’t abuse it.<em>Transcendental Youth</em>, like albums before it, proves to be deeply conceptual—an album about all those dark, beautiful, horrifying, and memorable moments shared by those living on the boundary of society. Darnielle expertly paints visceral images impossible to shake, using only minimal snippets of lines built on quick melodic rhymes and turns of phrase. For a long time, I’ve tried to understand that some folks just can’t get behind the quirky pop of the Mountain Goats or Darnielle’s nasally (though often incredibly accurate) vocals, but records like <em>Transcendental Youth</em> obliterate any excuses. The Mountain Goats are one of independent music’s most important contributors, Darnielle one of its most vital songwriters. –<em>BCP</em></p> <p>Listen to one track from each of the year’s best albums. Tracks arranged in order of album rank. Thanks for reading, friends.</p> <p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://embed.spotify.com/?uri=spotify:user:1242107557:playlist:5CyFRBHSWh3ouSPVsbbJD5" frameborder="0" width="460" height="400"></iframe></p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Album Review: Memory Tapes – Grace/Confusion</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/12/04/album-review-memory-tapes-graceconfusion/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 04 Dec 2012 15:58:42 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[REVIEWS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Album Reviews]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memory Tapes]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Pop Press Picks]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=5057</guid> <description><![CDATA[Memory Tapes, the recording project of Dayve Hawk, releases its third album, Grace/Confusion, today on Carpark Records. Hawk sharpens his skills even further on this album, effortlessly blending and moving between vastly divergent...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-5058" title="grace-confusion-memory-tapes" src="http://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" srcset="https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-150x150.jpg 150w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-300x300.jpg 300w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes-50x50.jpg 50w, https://www.poppressinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/grace-confusion-memory-tapes.jpg 430w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></a>Memory Tapes, the recording project of Dayve Hawk, releases its third album, <em>Grace/Confusion</em>, today on Carpark Records. Hawk sharpens his skills even further on this album, effortlessly blending and moving between vastly divergent soundscapes, textures, moods and rhythms to create an album rich in breadth and depth. <em>Grace/Confusion </em>emerges triumphantly as one of the best albums of the year–a masterful work of art that showcases the best aspects of the music of our time.</p> <p>Opener “Neighborhood Watch” serves as a microcosm of the album’s greatness, as Hawk takes a naturalistic sound sample through simple, wavering electric guitar, and transforms the mix into a slow-dance track with synth strings and Hawk delicately crooning, “‘I’ll watch you sleep.” Dark synth notes thud into the soundscape and a transitional interlude takes the track to a swelling mass of gritty synths. Hawk then transforms the melody and rhythm, reimagining them as a streamlined, clean mix of piercing synth notes. Impressive is Hawk’s ability to employ these kinds of dramatic shifts on each of the album’s six, sprawling tracks without being gimmicky, forced, or repetitive.</p> <p>Each of the album’s tracks offers something memorable and fresh, making writing about its highlights nearly impossible. This difficulty is accentuated in the fact that not only each song produces surprising and addicting nuances, but each new shift does as well. One example: the bouncing guitar line and sweeping echoes of synths in “Thru The Field” that recalls New Order (unsurprisingly) before Hawk introduces a videogame-esque keyboard line and the track fades to the sound of static, synthetic rain. This particular section of the song impresses on a new level. Hawk doesn’t just move <em>between</em> textures and sounds, he merges and layers them. It’s as if two separate yet harmonious songs occur simultaneously, as Hawk carries us deeper into the layers of his songs. Another example lies in the staccato, distorted electric whines halfway through “Safety” laid over synth strings. Eventually, the whines fall away to reveal the barren track beneath, as though Hawk purposely reveals the careful layering to his audience.</p> <p>The album’s longest track, “Sheila,” falls second to last and makes a persuasive case that Hawk sought deliberately to lead listeners to believe that an album this good simply couldn’t get better before shattering everything they believe about the world. “Sheila” begins as a dark dance track rooted in synth flourishes and slow grooves but transcends this a bit before the five minute mark, introducing electric guitars and organic drum sounds. As you might guess, that doesn’t last for long before a high range synth melody dominates the mix. But it’s the simple piano chords and Hawk’s falsetto croon, which serve as the song’s refrain, that proves to be the most immediate and achingly beautiful.</p> <p>Memory Tapes began as a bedroom pop project in a rural town, inadvertently stumbling into wide critical success with Hawk’s early tracks. However, consistently outstanding music such as this is no accident. Hawk is a genius, expertly wielding the electronic tools of our time to render music that is as unified and sublime as it is disparate and sprawling. Hawk has spoken about this delicate balance between allowing songs to shift dynamically while keeping them cohesive, commenting that it resulted in the title <em>Grace/Confusion.</em> My only confusion lies in how a collection of songs can so gracefully inspire so much pleasure for a listener like me.</p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Memory Tapes Share Remix of B-sides and Unreleased Tracks + Errors Remix</title> <link>https://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/11/21/memory-tapes-share-new-remix-of-b-sides-and-unreleased-tracks/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bryan Parker]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 21 Nov 2012 18:34:53 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[BLOG]]></category> <category><![CDATA[TRACKS]]></category> <category><![CDATA[#carpark]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memory Tapes]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.poppressinternational.com/?p=4916</guid> <description><![CDATA[Yesterday, Memory Tapes posted on their blog a nearly 30 minute montage of remixed B-sides, unreleased tracks, and clips from various releases. The cut, simply titled “Displaced mix” can be heard in its...]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Yesterday, Memory Tapes posted on their <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://weirdtapes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">blog</a></span> a nearly 30 minute montage of remixed B-sides, unreleased tracks, and clips from various releases. The cut, simply titled “Displaced mix” can be heard in its entirety below. (EDIT: This track was taken down after Dayve Hawk tweeted that removing it was “not [his] idea.” The next day the “Replaced” mix was put up instead, now linked below.) We’ve had the Memory Tapes’ new full-length <em>Grace/Confusion</em>, out December 4th on Carpark, spinning frequently at Pop Press International and we can’t wait to share our review of the album with you all. For now, we’ll say this: if you haven’t pre-ordered the album, you should. You can also hear two of the six tracks that will appear on the album, previously posted on Pop Press International <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="New Track: “Neighborhood Watch” – Memory Tapes" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/11/15/new-track-neighborhood-watch-memory-tapes/" target="_blank">here</a></span> and <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a title="New Track – “Sheila” – Memory Tapes" href="http://www.poppressinternational.com/2012/10/03/new-track-sheila-memory-tapes/" target="_blank">here</a></span>. In related Memory Tapes news, Dayve Hawk (The Memory Tapes) has remixed the track “White Infinity” by Errors, and that remix can also be streamed below.</p> <p><iframe loading="lazy" src="http://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F68575101&show_artwork=true" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" width="100%" height="166"></iframe></p> <p><iframe loading="lazy" src="http://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F67719050&show_artwork=true" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" width="100%" height="166"></iframe></p> ]]></content:encoded> </item> </channel> </rss>