Instrumentally sparse, lyrically thick head-nodders that — while decidedly unpretentious — exude the confidence of b-boys who know they’ll be around for a while.
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Babbletron
Olympic Hopefuls
If you’re still searching for a summer single, you won’t do much better than “Holiday,” an emphatic anthem with a pinch of despair that is the perfect male answer to the Go Go’s “Vacation.” There are a couple more pop gumballs from these Minneapolis jogging suit aficionados that’ll make you want to rock the Slip’n’Slide until mom makes you go inside and eat your fish sticks and tater tots.
Blockhead
Another Ninja Tune victory: scratchy electronic that sounds like how the movie 28 Days Later felt. This track seems to feature a bit of Strongbad right towards the end as well.
French Kicks
The latest from these fashionably flip young men takes on a new-wave polish that accentuates the hooks and speeds the rhythm section to heel-popping precision. Precious, but in a savagely catchy way.
Noise for Pretend
Sultry bossa nova noir… Mysterious and enchanting, and not just because frontwoman Esperanza Spalding is barely 18 years old.
Salvatore
Is it live or is it Memorex? (Wow, that reference seems really dated…) A band or someone hiding behind a curtain of computers? Either way it’s as if robots recorded My Bloody Valentine music in the Mojave desert. But robots like the Tin Man, who had heart.
Sam Bisbee
Bisbee’s unflinching romanticism and grandiose sampler symphonics beg for a John Hughes soundtrack to call home.
Experimental Dental School
You’re tossing and turning in your sleep. A nightmare. You’re in your bed, in your room. But it’s not your room. It’s a carnival fun-house. A band is playing the most beautiful music ever heard…in a nightmare. The singer sounds like Jello Biafra, but it’s not Jello Biafra. Dreams are like that.
Note: This is the entire album Hideous Dance Attack.
Jolie Holland
Backwater country blues performed with a weathered sophistication that makes it all the more tempting. Think Billie Holiday in overalls.
Guided by Voices
Lord only knows if the Ohio basement legends are still relevant, and only the same lord knows if relevancy is still relevant. Alls I know is that the adventurous stew of riffs, hooks, and twee vocals will cause an involuntary reaction from me as long as my feet can tap and my head can nod. There are a ton of archived MP3s at both Matador and gbv.com, so stick around for a while.