O+S
Label: Saddle CreekGenre: Pop
There's a pretty cool explanation of how O+S came to be over at the Saddle Creek website. The short version: Orenda Fink and Scalpelist (Cedric LeMoyne of Remy Zero) used an old friendship and lots of new and exotic sounds to put together an album rich in texture and atmosphere. Even on the first spin these tracks seem to possess a complex, almost academic structure. Just the opening 30 seconds of "We Do What We Want To" can clue the listener in to the agenda of O+S, with their swirls of sound and ethereal vocals; that is, to put a little artistry into their art.
We Do What We Want To [MP3, 4.2MB, 160kbps]
Permanent Scar [MP3, 4.1MB, 160kbps]
www.saddle-creek.com
www.myspace.com/opluss
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Eric Bachmann
Label: Saddle CreekGenre: Folk
Sometimes a little sincerity really works. Eric Bachmann avoids irony and anything cute on his recently released album To the Races, and it makes me believe he means every word he sings. Excessively sentimental? Who cares? Think Springsteen's Nebraska or The Sunset Tree by the Mountain Goats and you're in the right neighborhood. If you don't buy the record — and you should, if solid and unapologetically sincere songwriting is your thing — at least shell out a buck for the opening track, "Man O' War," which is sadly unavailable for free and legal download.
Carrboro Woman [MP3, 2.4MB, 64kbps]
Lonesome Warrior [MP3, 1.2MB, 64kbps]
www.saddle-creek.com
www.ericbachmann.com
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Desaparecidos
Label: Saddle CreekGenre: Rock
Taken from young Conor Oberst's rockin' thesis on everything wrong with modern-day U.S.A., this is my last attempt to get out the vote. Here's to a brighter future, so Conor can go back to singing about failed relationships with movie stars...
What's New for Fall [MP3, 1.5MB, 56kbps]
The Happiest Place on Earth [MP3, 2.8MB, 128kbps]
Man and Wife, The Former [MP3, 1.5MB, 64kbps]
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Azure Ray
Label: Saddle CreekGenre: Pop
Not just for fans of "Felicity."
If You Fall [MP3, 740k, 32kpbs VBR]
Sea of Doubts [MP3, 2.1MB, 64kbps]
November [MP3, 860k, 32kbps VBR]
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Broken Spindles
Label: Saddle CreekGenre: Electronic
Joel Peterson, aka Broken Spindles, runs the gamut of electronic music; from chilled-out synth symphonies to dark, bass-heavy grooves, he serves up a fitting soundtrack to our post-everything lives.
Inward [MP3, 2.5MB, 128kbps]
This Is an Introduction [MP3, 3.9MB, 190kbps]
Induction [MP3, 596KB, 32kbps]
Move Away [MP3, 5.6MB, 32kbps]
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