After a 4 year abscence Potrland electro-indie rockers, The Helio Sequence are back with a brand new album, 'Negotiations' out on Subpop Records. I was a huge fan of their 2008 breakout release, Keep Your Eyes Ahead, which featured probably two of my most played tracks of that year, the slow building "Lately" and the dreamy acoustic number "Shed Your Love."
The two piece, Brandon Summers and Benjamin Weikel recently stopped by their local Oregon Public Broadcasting station where they performed a kick ass version of the track, "Hall of Mirrors" off of the new LP.
After a much anticipated wait for many, the debut album from Field Report is finally here. You can grab it now over at Partisan Records or over at Amazon here. In the meantime check out this gorgeous live performance of "Fergus Falls" performed live while at a stop at local NY radio station WFUV.
Can't wait to catch these guys live in the NYC area on Nov. 10th.
Not entirely that well known here in the States yet, Bram Vanparys akaThe Bony King of Nowhere is a gifted singer & songwriter hailing from Ghent, Belgium. While living overseas briefly from '07-'09 I had the chance to get to know the man and his music, and he was as open and sincere as his voice is pure. His first two LP's earned him critical success across Europe and now he's readying his third album, a self titled effort which is said to have been recorded in one long creative night. It comes out in Belgium on Oct. 22nd and it should be available digitally through his website or online retailers.
The first taste off the new LP is the stripped back stunner "Travelling Man" which you can get familiar with below.
Listening to Matthew Ryan's music always gives me a bit of a nostalgic feeling. I can remember vividly being on a road trip with friends back in '97 & hearing his song, "Guilty" on the radio off his debut album 'Mayday.' We were so floored by what we were hearing that we immediately found the nearest Tower Records (remember them?) to pick up the CD, and we went on to play the hell out of that disc on our trip, and we've been lifelong fans of his music ever since. Fast forward 15 years and Ryan is still putting out killer music, using the same timeless formula he always has of great storytelling, great music, and a unique point of view. There's never anything flashy, no bells and whistles, but always just enough new influences and a constant hopeless romanticism to his artistry to wow you. He's a throwback as artists go today, and one that we could use more of.
Ryan just released a brand new single titled, "She's a Sparrow" off his forthcoming album In The Dusk of Everything and it doesn't disappoint. The new album is self released & it comes out October 30th. Find out how to get it here, and be sure to listen & read along below.
She's A Sparrow
I'm leaving here
different then when i came
things can't be
what they were once they've changed
but let's go down to the mercy
let's play all the songs we loved
let's relive all that was beautiful
as if beauty was enough
i can still hear the laughter
over late nights in the flood
of a roar that broke a bright and brilliant heart
is it just too late or can't we even start.. again?
we settled down
time and disappointments took their toll
until we both stopped trying
and the summer turned to snow
now the sky is full of airplanes
no you can't make a wish
but you could throw your arms around me
like you did before all this
I'm sorry that i hurt you
i was lost and turning cruel
but i swear none of that darkness my love
was meant for you
she's a sparrow
and i'm a street
she's a sparrow
and i'm a street
she's a sparrow
and i'm a street
and i'll watch her float away
from me
Fresh off of signing on with Dead Oceans, Nashville based project, Night Beds have released their "Even If We Try/ You Were Afraid" 7" single. It's hauntingly beautiful stuff filled with strings and hush lullaby like vocals. Expect to hear a lot more from this group in the months to come, including the release of their upcoming full length 'Country Sleep.'
Here's a little blurb from the bands website about the forthcoming LP, "So the songs come together over acoustic guitars, over the first
skeletal melodies, and then they grow. Yellen’s voice takes on a pure
kind of thirst when wrapped in the sonic landscapes he devises. It’s
searching. It’s taken several years to map everything out, but after a
hiatus spent driving the deserts and prairies and coastal roads of the
United States, sleeping in a hatchback or on friendly couches – after a
long time spent alone – Night Beds has found a home in Nashville. Soon
it will see the release of Country Sleep, a full-length album in the
spirit of the vagabond, in the winding path to a place of good rest."
More great new music out of Ontario, Canada that makes me want to pick up and move up North of the border. This EP came out back in May but I only recently found it because of an interview that Gavin Gardiner (The Wooden Sky) gave with Mousertime blog, where he mentioned that he was producing a new record from Kalle Mattson. Being that The Wooden Sky are fav's of mine I checked it out and was thoroughly blown away. You can pick it up over at Kalle Mattson's bandcamp page by just naming your price. Don't miss out on "Waterfall" below from the EP, as well as "Come & Gone" off of his 2011 full length.
Sorry I haven't been posting as much as I'd like to lately here on the blog. Life & work has been getting the best of me I guess, but I just wanted to let you guys know that you can also keep up on what I've been listening to via Facebook & Twitter, where I'm probably posting a little more frequently these days.
Thanks as always for checking things out!
