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Paces Lift and Ben Bounce

Paces Lift & Ben Bounce | Quick Trigger | 3hive.com

Paces Lift & Ben Bounce | Quick Trigger | 3hive.com

After a 30 day “one beat from both of us everyday” challenge Seattle’s Paces Lift and St. Louis’ Ben Bounce created the framework for their new collaboration LP, Quick Trigger. Two years of mixing and fine tuning, their masterpiece Quick Trigger was ready for consumption. The result is fourteen lo-fi, psychedelic, beat driven tracks sprinkled with bits of spaghetti western and old vinyl crackle. It’s a solid release which has quickly risen to the top of my albums of the year list.

Quick Trigger is available now on killer looking “ox blood” vinyl with cover art done by none other than Ted Feighan (aka Monster Rally) from Wax Thématique. It’s also streaming and downloadable from Paces Lift’s Bandcamp page. Feast your ears on some of Quick Trigger‘s goodness below. Enjoy!

Paces Lift & Ben Bounce – Clot (Beerline) from Quick Trigger (2014)

Paces Lift & Ben Bounce – Delusions of Farley Granger from Quick Trigger (2014)

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Ex-Pet

Ex-Pet is the solo project of New Yorker Greg Nissan. Greg’s music is a catchy brand of power-pop with sweetly harmonized male/female vocals and just the right amount of trumpet sprinkled in here and there. Check out the perfect-for-summer, sugar-coated, pop gem “Can of Worms” below- it’s sure to rot at least three of your teeth. Put this bad boy on repeat and get your groove on. Ex-Pet’s debut album Green Accent is available now on Bandcamp. Enjoy!

Ex-Pet – Can of Worms from Green Accent (2014)

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Fingers of The Sun

In trying to keep the summer theme going, here is Denver’s Fingers of The Sun. This 6-piece psych pop band led by Suzi Allegra and Nathan Brasil just put out their newest EP simply titled 3 EP, featuring 5 songs of paisley-psych-garage-pop-rock goodness that is sure to brighten anyone’s day. 3 EP is available digitally from Fingers of The Sun’s Bandcamp page and on cassette from Burger records.

Check out super-sunny opener “Tambourines & Toasters” below. It reminds me of the Cowsills’ “The Rain, The Park and Other Things” even though it sounds nothing like it, it must be the vibe. Trust me, you are going to dig it.

Fingers of The Sun – Tambourines & Toasters from 3 EP (2014)

Fingers of The Sun

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Identical Homes

I love this time of year. My kids are out of school, starting tomorrow. We’ve been enjoying our son’s baseball games, chilling out on the porch until dark, a little yard work and some serious (not really that serious) street carving sessions on our skateboards lately. The soundtrack to these recent good times has been the electro-pop beats of Identical Homes’ new LP, A. Hydrophelia.

Identical Homes is the new-ish project of ex Rum Diary member, Daniel McKenzie. He crafts a catchy, chilled-out, yet warm brand of electro-pop that is sure to cause involuntary head bobbing. Check out “Formula” (below) from the B-side, it’s one of my favorite tracks from the album.  A. Hydrophelia is out now and is available to buy/stream, digitally, from Identical Homes’ Bandcamp page. It’s also available on a really cool looking 12″ picture disc LP through the same Bandcamp page. This is a great summer time album, that belongs in your collection.

Thanks to Daniel for sending this my way through the inbox, along with a picture of his cat, Barracuda, and generously sending me one of the sweet picture discs.

Identical Homes – Formula from A. Hydrophelia (2014)

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Curtis Harding

My first introduction to Curtis Harding’s soul stylings was his cover of the Velvet Underground’s “Here She Comes Now”, from Burger Records’ tribute cassette to White Light/White Heat. His take on the VU classic left me wanting for more. That want is over as Harding just released his debut LP, Soul Power, with Burger Records. It’s 12 songs of funk-soul-garage-pop goodness will keep you spinning the album over and over again.

Check out the funk-fueled, toe-tapper “Keep On Shining” (below) his first single from the LP. Soul Power is out now, and available on vinyl (highly recommended) and cassette from Burger Records.

Curtis Harding – Keep On Shining from Soul Power (2014)

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Silver Dapple

If you’re a fan of fuzzy pop music, Montréal’s Silver Dapple is the band for you. Their brand of grimey shoegaze is quite intoxicating. Hear for yourself (below) the title track from their new 4 song EP I Hate My Birthday. It is available to buy digital or on cassette from Silver Dapple’s Bandcamp page. Enjoy.

Silver Dapple – I Hate My Birthday from I Hate My Birthday (2014)

(Pauses) from silver.dapple on Vimeo.

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Yalls

Berkeley-based musician Dan Casey’s (a.k.a. Yalls) debut album, United, is a 44 minute escape from reality, filled with groove-holmes beats and synths straight from outer space. The warbly synths of “Warlords” (below) is just what I’m talking about – combined with a chilled-out beat and hushed vocals, it’s one of my favorite tracks from the LP.

United comes out May 6 on Gold Robot. Do not miss out on this release.

Yalls – Warlords from United (2014)

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Doug Tuttle

Sometimes life and the drama that comes with it can twist you up into a giant mess that seems impossible to unravel. Then, out of the blue, something great will come along and completely change your attitude. That something for me is Doug Tuttle’s recently released, debut, self-titled LP. Tuttle’s use of shimmering, jangly guitars, bits of what sounds to me like organ, crashing cymbals along with his slow as cold molasses vocals combine to make an album of songs that will help you forget your troubles for at least the thirty-seven minutes it takes to get from start to finish. Doug Tuttle’s LP is out now on Trouble In Mind. I highly recommend it.

Doug Tuttle – With Us Soon from S/T (2014)

Doug Tuttle

Trouble In Mind

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Lightning Dust

Lightning Dust is the side project of Black Mountains’ Amber Webber and Josh Wells. They released their third LP Fantasy last year with Jagjaguwar.

Their synth-pop sound is quite the departure from the heavier music of Black Mountain. Opening track “Diamond” (below) utilizes a driving beat, heavy-synth bass lines and Webbers’ incredible vocals over the top of super catchy electronic beeps and bops.

Lightning Dust – Diamond from Fantasy (2013)

Lightning Dust

Jagjaguwar

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Morgan Delt

Shimmery guitars, wacky background noises and reverb for days are just some of the elements that make California native Morgan Delt’s self-titled debut LP a psychedelic masterpiece. Delt cites artists like The Byrds and Love, along with Curtis Boettcher and West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band as influences and he wears those influences proudly on his sleeve throughout his new album.

“Obstacle Eyes” (below) is just a taste of the goodness contained in this release. It’s sunniness is sure to break you out of your winter funk. Morgan’s new album comes out  January 28 on Trouble In Mind Records. Enjoy.

Morgan Delt – Obstacle Eyes from S/T (2014)