When I saw Todd’s 2014 post about The Courtneys’ “Mars Attacks” single was trending I realized people are probably looking for our take on their sophomore album II, which dropped a couple weeks ago. So here it is: sun-drenched power pop from Vancouver, BC, that doesn’t let up on the pop culture references, hooks, and fuzzed-out guitars from beginning to end. Also worth noting: singer Jen Twynn Payne is the drummer, too! – a sorta Grant Hart meets Karen Carpenter. Spin the Courtneys and make summer happen early this year.
Hand Habits
Meg Duffy, aka Hand Habits, is known for her work with Mega Bog and as part of the Kevin Morby Band. Now the singer/multi-instrumentalist has ventured into a solo career releasing her self-produced debut, Wildly Idle (Humble Before The Void), with Woodsist Records.
Wildly Idle is an intimate, lo-fi affair. It’s easy to hear that great care was given to its production. Give the standout, slow burner “All The While” (below) a spin, it’s a great taste of Duffy’s skills and one of my favorite songs of the year so far.
Wildly Idle is available February 10 via Woodsist. I highly recommend it.
Hand Habits “All The While” from Wildly Idle (Humble Before The Void) (2017)
PLRLS
Baltimore’s PLRLS (pronounced “PLURALS”) are a zany 5-piece punk-wave band that sound like Devo having a backyard pool party with the B-52s.
Their new album Have You Seen My Fancy Pony is a 30 minute romp of heavy as hell bass lines, hand claps, his and her vocal harmonies, angular guitar blasts and enough keyboard to make you believe you just took the DeLorean back to 1980.
Get a load of the bombastic “Oh What A World” (below) in either downloadable MP3 form or via their new music video (why not partake in both?), it’ll have you pogoing (pogo-ing?) ’til you drop.
Have You Seen My Fancy Pony is out on Friday (Jan 27). You’ll be able get it from their Bandcamp page.
PLRLS’ music deserves to be in your ear holes! Enjoy.
PLRLS – Oh What A World from Have You Seen My Fancy Pony (2017)
ot to, not to
When James Blake first came on the scene, he was exactly what I needed to resolve my schizo relationship with modern R&B: tuneful and earnest with just enough glitch to appeal to my appetite for imperfection. Then he relied too much on his formula, as have numerous followers on, and things became predictable once again.
Along comes Ian Mugerwa – a/k/a ot to, not to – and his debut album of intimate, deconstructed R&B “experiments”, Goshen, on Nicolas Jaar’s Other People label. The compositions take turns evoking dirt-floor blues, avant-garde jazz, even Pablo-era Kanye. The unifying thread is Ian’s vocals which read as personal, hypnotic journal entries, sung/muttered/chanted as he carries us through his coming-of-age years.
This nuanced, eclectic effort could’ve easily veered into self-indulgent territory if it didn’t so clearly yearn to connect. It’s soul music in the most literal sense of the word. In fact, when recommending Goshen to a friend I said, “Listen closely.” It’s the best (and only) way to appreciate this album.
January Mixtape
13 songs of inversion clearing goodness. Enjoy.
1. The Rebel Set – Trails! [hidden volume]
2. Helens – Just Like Pet Sounds [self]
3. RUMTUM – Good Places [self]
4. L’Orange – Rest Like Pollen [self]
5. MF DOOM – Charnuska [high times]
6. Palmas – Sweet Water [lost colony]
7. Emma Russack – My Own Friend [spunk]
8. Cub Country – You Want It All [them are good]
9. BADBADNOTGOOD – In Your Eyes (feat. Charlotte Day Wilson) [innovative leisure]
10. GABI – Distance Makes Me Disappear [self]
11. I Am The Polish Army – David Bowie [self]
12. The Staches – Total Commitment [bongo joe]
13. Uranium Club – Who Made The Man? [fashionable idiots]
Proper Ornaments
We are big fans of Veronica Falls and Ultimate Painting here at 3hive, so when the new Proper Ornaments (another project of James Hoare’s) landed in the inbox I was quite stoked to give it a spin and I really haven’t stopped listening to it since.
Foxhole, their latest release with Slumberland Records, has a lo-fi, groove-pop vibe reminds me a lot of Ultimate Painting – especially when the noodly Velvet Underground style guitar play is in full effect.
Give their chilled-out single “Memories” a spin (below) and head over to Slumberland Records and get your hands on a copy. Enjoy.
[Psst, you can buy Proper Ornaments vinyl in the 3hive Co-op Shop.]
Proper Ornaments – Memories from Foxhole (2017)
Gloria
There is not a lot of info out there about Gloria out of Lyon, France. Their sound is a throwback to the 60’s, reminiscent of groups like The Ronettes and The Shangri-Las. They just released their debut LP, In Excelsis Stereo, via French label Howlin’ Banana Records.
Give the fuzzed-out, jangly “In The Morning” (below) a spin, you’re going to dig it. In Excelsis Stereo is out now and available in multiple formats from Howlin’ Banana.
Gloria – In The Morning from In Excelsis Stereo (2016)
Dogbreth
Here is some killer power-pop from Arizona’s Dogbreth for your Friday. Give “Hoarder House” from their newest LP, Second Home, a spin below.
Second Home is out now through Asian Man Records.
Dogbreth – Hoarder House from Second Home (2016)
Tape Waves
Tape Waves are a two-piece, dream-pop band out of South Carolina. Their addictive brand of warm, hazy, pop songs are perfect to lift your spirits on these cold, rainy, gray (at least where I live) days of fall.
Their solid new LP, Here To Fade, is out now through Bleeding Gold Records. For a taste give “So Fast” (below) a spin. Enjoy.
Tape Waves – So Fast from Here To Fade (2016)
Springtime Carnivore
Greta Morgan’s smokey, powerful voice is as cool as ever as it shines over the top of the lush, psych-pop grooves on her newest Springtime Carnivore LP, Midnight Room. The exuberant single, ‘Raised By Wolves” (below) is an addictive taste of how cool Midnight Room is. Definitely no sophomore slump here.
Midnight Room drops October 7 via Autumn Tone Records. It belongs on everyone’s must own list. Enjoy.
Springtime Carnivore – Raised By Wolves from Midnight Room (2016)