Good Weather For Airstrikes

Here we are: we’ve finally arrived at the third and final installment in my Hotly Tipped For ‘07 series, albeit a bit belatedly. Below are the third tier of bands, groups that are awesome enough to deserve your attention regardless of whether or not they’ve got any chance of making it big or scoring any chart success. Let’s do this.

Artist: Fear of Flying
Location: London, England

Fear of Flying have me as excited as any new band in the UK right now, and one spin of their remarkable Three’s A Crowd/Forget-Me-Nots 7″, released late last December and, as a result, unceremoniously snubbed from a spot on my Top Tracks of 2006 list (where it would have placed somewhere int he mid-30’s), will show you why. With all the furor and raw, frantic energy of pre-Weekend Bloc Party and monumental choruses to match, “Three’s A Crowd” and “Forget-Me-Nots” fly along at a frenetic pace and don’t let up until the final beat. James has been championing the A-side here since mid-December, and while I really can’t get enough of either track, I’ve got to give the edge to “Forget-Me-Nots”, with all it’s pounding, crashing glory and that massive chorus large enough to topple buildings. Elsewhere, Fear of Flying’s debut single, “Routemaster”, was also released on the vaunted Young & Lost Club imprint and recalls the Futurheads before they, y’know, sucked, what with its herky-jerky guitars and a cappela-esque group vocals. They even borrow a few “Hey! Ho”s from the Ramones for a brilliant pre-chorus before making their real money on another huge chorus that’s curiously anthemic considering they’re, uh, singing about driving buses and stuff (I think). With a sound like this, however, Fear of Flying can sing about whatever the fuck they want and still keep me coming back again and again, and you should be on the lookout for them to do very exciting things in ‘07.

MP3s:
“Forget-Me-Nots” - Fear of Flying ((highly recommended))
“Routemaster” - Fear of Flying

Artist: Sky Larkin
Location: Leeds, England

To be honest, I could easily take the easy way out here and let you know that if you love the Long Blondes, then you’ll probably love Sky Larkin, but that would not only be a bit of a cop out, but it would be doing the band a significant injustice as well. You see, while frontwoman Katie Harkin’s powerful vocals recall the Blondes’ Kate Jackson at her finer moments and first single proper “One of Two” harkens back to the raw, angular guitars of the Long Blondes’ early days, Sky Larkin deserve significant praise in their own right. “One of Two” bounces along with sparring guitar riffs and that hard-hitting “One of two! One OF two!” chorus that’ll get stuck in your head for days on end, helping the single to stand out as a debut worth getting incredible excited about. And while I’d be more than happy to accept more of the same in their future releases, “Keepsakes” shows off another more unique side of the band’s unique sound, as it sees Harkin channeling Karen O over a driving central riff complete with unexpected keyboard bursts and sprightly electronic flourishes, a far cry from the sound established on “One of Two”. Unfortunately, those two tracks are all I really have to go on at this point (though two more solid [if a bit unremarkable] demos are available at their ‘Space), but I’m loving them both to pieces at the moment and can’t wait for exposure to more of their output. If you’re situated across the pond be sure to catch their dates with fellow GWFAS tips Los Campesinos on their current jaunt around the UK on the adorably-titled LoSky CampeLarkinos tour.

MP3s:
“One of Two” - Sky Larkin ((highly recommended))
“Keepsakes” - Sky Larkin

Artist: Pull Tiger Tail
Location: London, England

Bursting onto the scene with an incredible first single, “Animator” (#37 on my Top 50 Tracks of ‘06) on the esteemed Young & Lost Club label last year, Pull Tiger Tail are set to do big things in ‘07 with a newly-signed contract with B-Unique Records. PTT don’t sound terribly unique aside from frontman Marcus Adere’s incredibly strong vocals, yet at the same time their sound can’t really be linked to any exact influences, but there’s hardly time to worry about influences and reference points when a track like “Animator” is relentlessly lodging itself in your brain for you to carry around for weeks on end. The whole thing’s great really, but get to the 50-second mark and you’re staring down one of last year’s most relentlessly addictive choruses and there’s nothing you can do about it. Follow-up download-only single “Mr. 100 Percent” and upcoming single “Let’s Lightning” are both great as well, but it’s the B-side to “Let’s Lightning”, “The Big Sleep”, that is the first time the band has come close to matching the brilliance of “Animator”, and together the two tracks should be enough to get you salivating over the prospect of more material - and maybe even a debut album (no word on that yet) - in 2007.

MP3s:
“Animator” - Pull Tiger Tail ((highly recommended))
“The Big Sleep” (Demo) - Pull Tiger Tail

Artist: Fury of the Headteachers
Location: Sheffield, England

My love for this band is well documented in this space, as their most recent single, “Farewell Comrade”, charted at an incredibly impressive #30 on my Top 50 Tracks of ‘06 list, and my love for them has only grown with my recent acquisition of their debut release, “Fables”. The track opens with a razor-sharp electric guitar riff that zig-zags its way across the face of the song, slicing back-and-forth through the mix like its name was Freddy Krueger. A whirlwind of cacophonous, raucous energy, they’re far and away the best thing fledgling UK imprint Grace Records has to offer to this point, and while I don’t want to get my hopes up too high just yet, they’re upcoming debut LP, You Took A Scythe Home (out April) is sounding mighty promising at this point.

MP3s:
“Farewell Comrade” - Fury of the Headteachers ((highly recommended))
“Fables” - Fury of the Headteachers

Artist: The Whip
Location: Manchester, England

The Whip burst onto scene in 2006 with two bangin’ electronic singles for “Trash” and “Frustration” (the former of which even made it onto the third installment of Kitsune’s esteemed compilation series), and with the pending release of new single “Muzzle No. 1″ they’re set to raise their profile even higher and become one of the preeminent electronic acts in all of Great Britain in 2007. They write molten-hot electronic jams with all the mechanical precision you would expect a band from Manchester to possess and while the New Order comparisons may never go away, The Whip are doing electro-rock better than anyone else in England right now and should have a great year in ‘07.

MP3s:
“Trash” - The Whip ((highly recommended))
“Frustration” - The Whip

Artist: The Black Ghosts
Location: London, England

Remember when I called ex-Simian frontman Simon Lord one of the best and most under appreciated vocalists of our time? Well I really meant that, and fortunately for me and any other like-minded folks out there, he’s back with a new dance act of his own, the Black Ghosts. Unlike Simian, the Black Ghosts forgo electro-soul for straight up electro-rock, though some tracks like “Full Moon” do revert to the stylings of their predecessor. Singles “Face” and “Anyway You Choose To Give” are burners all the way though, as is all of their remix work to date, and their as-yet-untitled debut LP promises to be more of the same. Rejoice.

MP3s:
“Face” - The Black Ghosts
“Anyway You Choose To Give It” - The Black Ghosts
“Muzzle No. 1″ (Black Ghosts Remix) - The Whip

Artist: The Teenagers
Location: London, England/Paris, France

Face it: the Teenager’s are cooler than you will ever be. “Homecoming” is a pretty clear reason why in its own right, but the band have also demonstrated a ridiculous proficiency for remixes in their short time in existence so far as well. Unfortunately, they’ve got very little original material under their belt outside of “Homecoming” so far, so I’ve only really got their remixes to go on at this point, but there’s yet to be a Teenagers production that’s disappointed to this point, which can only mean good things for the band in ‘07.

MP3s:
“Homecoming” - The Teenagers
“Face” (The Teenagers Remix) - The Black Ghosts

Artist: Maps
Location: Northampton, England

Falling somewhere between the atmospheric ambience of Sigur Ros, the cleanly, precise beats and pop sensibility of the Postal Service and the melancholy vocals of electro-pop stalwarts like the Notwist and the Album Leaf, Northampton’s Maps (a.k.a. James Chapman) is one of the UK’s most promising electro-pop acts for the new year. And while I’ve already documented my love for his recent Start Something EP, which compiles the A-and-B-sides of his first two singles plus two new tracks, it’s the news that he’s working with Sigur Ros producer Ken Thomas on his upcoming debut album (out May) that warrants further excitement surrounding Chapman’s rising star. Considering how excellent the tracks on Start Something are already - especially the incredible “Sparks In The Snow” - I can only imagine how they’ll sound once Thomas has had his way with him. As if that wasn’t enough, Maps is also currently working on a remix of Klaxons’ “Gravity’s Rainbow” for release in the near future, which can only be interpreted as awesome news. Consider this your cue to get extremely pumped about Maps in 2007.

MP3s:
“Sparks In The Snow” - Maps ((highly recommended))
“To The Sky” - Maps

Artist: Cut Off Your Hands
Location: Auckland, New Zealand

Formerly known as Shaky Hands, the New Zealand rockers changed their name to Cut Off Your Hands (the former title of their debut EP, which is now to be called Shaky Hands - I know, confusing as shit) after encountering resistance from the Portland, Oregon indie-poppers of the same name when they began the search for distribution in the US. Easily New Zealand’s finest export for 2007, they’re ready to break into international awareness after the considerable success of their debut EP in Australia and their home country, attributable to the immense popularity of hit single “You And I”. Recalling the glory days of classic punk rock, the Hands possess a fast and furious sound that’s bursting with a raw, tangible intensity, and while it’s nothing terribly new or groundbreaking, no one’s done it quite this well in a long time. Feel the fury for yourself below.

MP3s:
“You And I” - Cut Off Your Hands
“Expectations” - Cut Off Your Hands

Artist: Emmy The Great
Location: London, England

Having begun to establish herself in 2006 with a sold out debut single on Drowned In Sound Recordings and her contribution of backing vocals to Jeremy Warmsley’s brilliant debut LP, The Art of Fiction, the folk chanteuse is set to steal hearts all over the UK this year. Her contributions to Fiction will not go unrewarded, however, as Warmsley is currently producing her debut album, due out this year. While “Secret Circus”, her aforementioned debut single, was a bit unremarkable in its demo form, Warmsley’s brilliant-as-usual production takes it to new heights in its final version, and her demos are even better. At the forefront of said demos are “Edward Is Deadward” and “Canopies and Grapes”, the latter of which was described to me as “what it sounds like to be a teenage girl in the UK” when it was presented to me, and it’s absolutely adorable, complete with references to the Magnetic Fields, Friends, Woody Allen and even S Club 7. You can grab all three tracks below, but be warned - you just might fall in love with her.

MP3s:
“Secret Circus” - Emmy The Great
“Canopies and Grapes” (Demo) - Emmy The Great ((highly recommended))
“Edward Is Deadward” (Demo) - Emmy The Great

And thus we’ve reached the conclusion of my 2007 preview… just as we reach the conclusion of February, but yeah - I hope you enjoyed it. Things will get back to normal around here now, with updates [almost] daily and single reviews and artist profiles and show reviews and all that good stuff, just like old times.

We interrupt your regularly-scheduled programming to bring you this bomb-ass update: we hit 1,000,000 hits last Friday, awh yeah. Granted, it’s a bit of an inflated number, considering nearly 200,000 of those hits came in one week after the New York Times mentioned my Top 65 Music Videos of 2005 post last year, but hey - I’m still way pumped. Anyways, below is some obscure, rare and exclusive hotness that I’ve been saving for this very occasion. Commence celebration.

MP3: “Atlantis To Interzone” (Hadouken! Remix) - Klaxons [exclusive]

So yeah, I’ve already posted this one, but the kids in Hadouken! were nice enough to hook me up with it as a GWFAS-only exclusive and thus, here it is again. Sure, it’s been floating around in shitty demo quality for a while now, but this is the final edit, polished, properly mixed and ready to destroy your speakers at 256 kbps. All that aside though, this is some real fire and had I heard the finished version last year it would have easily been among my top remixes of ‘06.

MP3: “Tribulations” (Shallow Version) - LCD Soundsystem [exclusive]

Recorded live for Zane Lowe on BBC Radio 1, the “Shallow Version” of LCD Soundsystem’s best work to date (for my money, at least) removes that massive, churning synth line that defines the original in favor of a thumping bass riff with the electronics reduced to supporting roles. Theoretically, abolishing the essential element of the original track should spell disaster, but it works incredibly, incredibly well here.

MP3: “Golden Skans” (David E. Sugar Remix) - Klaxons

A gentleman as benevolent as he was anonymous sent this to me. It’s fucking wonderful. David E Sugar is a name to watch in ‘07, but more on him later. Just enjoy his glitchy, boom-bip brilliance on this remix and trust me on this one.

MP3: “Luno” (Polysics Remix) -Bloc Party

I’m not gonna call this an exclusive because I know it’s made a limited circulation on the internet (though it never breached the blogosphere as far as I can tell, and trust me, I looked forever before finally attaining it elsewhere), but yeah, NO idea how this was never released. I mean, it’s by no means incredible or anything, but Polysics are a seriously legit band and it’s a pretty great electronic update to an already brilliant track, so I don’t know - you’d think you wouldn’t have to go to the ends of the earth to find it. Fortunately, y’alls don’t have to. Enjoy.

MP3: “Rainbow Man” (K. Christmon’s Slight Tamper) - Busy P [exclusive]

K. Christmon already proved himself to be a great companion for water cooler discussion of the latest and greatest in the European kingdom of electronica, but his presence of mind in speeding up this [Ed] banger to a harder better faster stronger 130 BPM is brilliant. I mean, the original’s solid and all, but this shit kills at its new and improved tempo. Just wait for the 1:40 mark, that’s all I’m sayin’.

MP3: “The Bouncer” (Live In Manchester) - Klaxons

Again, not exactly an exclusive, considering you can cop this on one of the Golden Skans 45’s, but as far as I can tell, you’re not gonna find it in electronic form anywhere outside of the Polydor vaults. Until now that is. But yeah, this live version of “The Bouncer” isn’t anything terribly spectacular, but turn it up real loud and imagine the sheer visceral force of this shit in a live context (y’know, surrounded by sweaty young folks and glowsticks and neon lights) and next thing you know you’re salivating at the thought of your first opportunity to experience it for yourself. I’ll see you at Studio B on April 13th, I’ll be the lanky motherfucker in the striped polo getting all hot and bothered in the middle of the mayhem.

Back to our regular schedule tomorrowish. Hope everyone had as amazing a Friday night as I did. And I guess if your Saturday was great, then that’s okay too.

Holy shit, this is awesome. Air and Phoenix, together, at motherfucking Versailles?! Not to mention support from Alex Gopher (a Kitsune veteran and former bandmate of Air in 80’s French pop group Orange) and Etienne de Crecy (who helped to co-found the Solid label with Gopher) the , which is just the icing on the cake. Seriously though, I’m hoping to be in London at that time so a jaunt across the chunnel isn’t even remotely out of the question, especially if Air, Phoenix and Versailles are sitting at the end of the rainbow.

I guess this was just announced today - anyone got any info on when/how tickets are going on sale and things of that nature?

MP3s:
“Alone In Kyoto” - Air
“Cherry Blossom Girl” (Simian Mobile Disco Remix) - Air
“Everything Is Everything” - Phoenix
“Long Distance Call” (25 Hours A Day Remix) - Phoenix
“Long Distance Call” (Sebastien Tellier Remix) - Phoenix
“Brain Leech” (25 Hours A Day Album Mix) - Alex Gopher

And yeah, an unexpected visit from one Ms. Lizzy Plapinger means Part 3 won’t be up until Saturday. Sorry, deal with it.

UPDATE: Links fixed.

The first installment of my Hotly Tipped For ‘07 feature saw me highlighting the big names of 2007 - the new bands destined to do great things and enjoy mainstream success in the new year - and now we have part two, featuring the bands that are bound to make some serious noise in ‘07, but don’t exactly have chart success in the bag just yet.

Artist: Willy Mason
Location: Martha’s Vineyard, MA

Yeahhh, so I had meant to include Mason in the first installment, but, uh, I forgot, so here we’ve got him bumping the Wombats out of the headlining spot in Part II. Unlike the rest of the artists in this installment, Mason is all but guaranteed chart success in 2007, as his debut album, Where The Humans Eat, produced two Top 40 singles (”Oxygen” and “So Long”) in the UK and his upcoming second LP, titled If The Ocean Gets Rough, is even more impressive than his sterling debut. Mason is a native of Martha’s Vineyard, which is more or less my favorite place in the world and the place I’ve spent my last ten summers, and his sparse and honest lo-fi folk songs perfectly capture the laid-back atmosphere of the island, and it was on a local radio station there that Conor Oberst first heard him and signed him to his upstart Team Love label immediately in early 2004. It was in the UK though, where he caught his big break, signing to Virgin and scoring a Top 25 single with his masterful “Oxygen”, which peaked at #24 and became a veritable anthem among for young Brits in the summer of 2004. Then last year, Radiohead (yeah, Radiohead, as in the world’s most revered band) hand-picked him to open for all of their European tour dates, raising his profile even further. Now he’s back with If The Ocean Gets Rough, out March 5th and preceded by lead single “Save Myself”, which manages to outshine “Oxygen” in the anthemic department and is easily his most accessible offering to date, so much so that I’d be shocked if it didn’t earn Mason his first Top 10 single. The album as a whole is brilliant, delivering more of Mason’s socially-aware folk anthems and proving Mason to be one of our generations most talented young songwriters, and even contains another potential chart-topper in “We Can Be Strong”, which features Mason’s mother on the beautiful harmonizing backing vocals in the chorus. Furthermore, Mason could very well experience mainstream success in the US (gasp), as Astralwerks bought out his contract from Team Love early last year and just might be able to make “Save Myself” a huge hit here if they play their cards right. I mean, if Jack Johnson can top the charts with an album of songs about Curious fucking George, then Mason can surely experience some success of is own with a powerful (yet still universally-accessible) anthem about life in modern society under the Bush administration, right? If there\’s any justice in this world - which, y’know, there probably isn’t - you’ll be hearing Mason’s name a lot more on both sides of the pond this spring.

MP3s:
“Save Myself” - Willy Mason ((highly recommended))
“We Can Be Strong” - Willy Mason
“Oxygen” - Willy Mason ((highly recommended))

Artist: The Wombats
Location: Liverpool, England

The Long Blondes owned the title of the Best Unsigned Band in Britain for most of 2006, but after three successful singles and a brilliant debut album on Rough Trade it’s time to usher in the heirs to the throne: The Wombats. But if there’s one thing you can bet the farm on in 2007, it’s that they won’t be staying unsigned for very long, especially after upcoming single “Backfire @ The Disco” begins to turn every head in Britain at breakneck speeds. The takeover’s already begun, in fact, as the Wombats are set to make history on February 24th when they take the stage at Carling Academy (capacity: 1,200) as the first unsigned band ever to headline at the prestigious venue. But lest I get ahead of myself, here’s a quick primer for those of you who missed my mid-December freak-out over the band. Falling somewhere on the spectrum between the accessible riffs and addictive hooks of We Are Scientists, the harmonizing prowess of the Futureheads (their album’s even got a closing a capella track) and blissful, indie-pop perfection, the Wombats write fun pop songs about cars, weddings, strippers and Sunday night TV, among other things. Most of all though, they do it really fucking well. Recent single “Moving To New York” is a rollicking anthem for the malcontent (read: Derek Davies) and my 10th favorite track of 2006, “Backfire @ The Disco” has some of the best backing vocals (those “ooh-woo-ooh-ooh-ooh”s in the bridge) in the history of recorded music and album track (from the band’s Japan-only mini-LP, Girls Boys & Marsupials), “My First Wedding” chooses the original subject of suffering through your ex-lovers wedding ceremony and just does EVERYTHING right, proving Matthew Murphy’s worth as one of the most promising young songwriters in British rock and validating the Wombats status as the next big thing.

MP3s:
“Backfire @ The Disco” - The Wombats ((highly recommended))
“My First Wedding” - The Wombats ((highly recommended))

Artist: Hadouken!
Location: Leeds, England

A bunch of young British kids who are way cooler than you could ever hope to be have started to generate some serious buzz on the strength of a trio of unofficial remixes for Plan B, Klaxons and Bloc Party, with another one on the way for Forward Russia, and word on the street is that they’ll be announcing the signing of an international deal next week. Sounding like a harder Mike Skinner rapping over the neon-infused beats of the Klaxons, Haqdouken! have already been championed by Skinner himself on Radio 1 and are set to unleash their limited edition debut single, “That Boy, That Girl”, on the masses next to that month, with an incredible video made for £40 already in circulation. It’s a brilliant debut, combining streaking neon synths, crunchy guitars, and a scathing, acidic vocal delivery to create a truly unique sound that vastly outshines the majority of their new rave contemporaries (so yeah, get over to their MySpace like now, where they also have two hot downloads available). And, finally, as if I needed another reason to love this band, they take their name from Ryu’s essential move in the original Street Fighter, which – suffice it to say – is all kinds of bad-ass.
Below are their two best remixes to date, for Bloc Party’s “The Prayer” and Klaxons’ “Atlantis To Interzone”, the latter of which was exclusively given to me by the band in 256 kbps high-quality and was previously only available in shitty demo form. Both are great, but I’ve got to give the edge to the molten-hot Klaxons mix after hearing it in its proper glory. Get ready to be hearing about Hadouken A LOT in the coming months on these here pages.

MP3s:
“Atlantis To Interzone” (Hadouken! Remix) - Klaxons [xxxclusive]
“The Prayer” (Hadouken! Remix) - Bloc Party

Artist: Simian Mobile Disco
Location: London, England

As proof that every cloud has a silver lining, from the ashes of Simian, who tragically broke up in 2005, rose splinter group Simian Mobile Disco, comprised of former Simian ringleaders James Ford and Jas Shaw. That silver lining proved to be worth it’s weight in gold, as SMD’s first single proper, “Hustler”, proved itself to be one of the 2006’s elite electronic singles (and my 40th favorite track of ‘06), a crash course in dancefloor hotness for the uninitiated. With a more dancefloor-oriented, less poppy sound, Simian Mobile Disco have generated serious buzz with “Hustler” and their excellent remix work, and I’m hotly anticipating their 2007 debut LP. What is announced, however, is their recent signing to UK super-indie Wichita Records, who happen to be the home of another band I kind of like called Bloc Party. My favorite track by the SMD has to be “I Believe”, though, as it’s a Simian reunion of sorts, featuring the band’s former frontman, Simon Lord, who just might be one of the best and most under appreciated vocalists of our time. Lord shows off the elasticity of his voice in one of his best vocal performances to date, hitting all the right notes as an immaculate synth line meanders throughout the mix and a massive beat sets the tone for an epic dancefloor monster. Simian Mobile Disco are perhaps best known for their bangin’ remix work, so in addition to those two aforementioned tracks I’ve also thrown in the first two remixes they ever dropped, the former of which you’ll only find here on Good Weather For Airstrikes.

MP3s:
“Hustler” - Simian Mobile Disco
“I’ll Believe” - Simian Mobile Disco
“Never Be Alone” (Simian Mobile Disco Remix) - Simian
“La Breeze” (Simian Mobile Disco Remix) - Simian

Artist: Los Campesinos!
Location: Cardiff, Wales
From Simian Mobile Disco we go to Wichita’s other huge 2007 signing, Los Campesinos. The twee-as-fuck Cardiff collective write incredibly fun indie-pop songs about being young, happy and stupid in Great Britain in 2007, and their four-track Hold On Now Youngster generated a retarded amount of buzz when it surfaced last summer on the strength of the brilliant “You! Me! Dancing!”. The track opens with a minute-and-a-half extended intro reminiscent of old school Explosions In The Sky, luring you in before bursting into a sprightly explosion of twinkly-ass indie pop. Then there’s the whole spoken word part over the final bridge that just seals the deal, since we all know how much I flip my shit for spoken word bits in indie-rock. Their first single proper, however, is “You Throw Parties, We Throw Knives”, out February 26th on Wichita, and it’s every bit as promising as the demo tracks, if not more so. Another incredibly cute track from start to finish, “You Throw Parties” cruises along with perky instrumentation and endearing lyrical gems like “It’s my party and I’ll die if I want to”, with enough twinkles and instrumental flourishes to make even the most hardened cynic crack a smile. Basically, everything about this band is 1000% adorable - you want to hold their hand while they cross the street, buy them ice cream when they’ve been good, and shit, I’ll even carry them inside when they fall asleep, even if I know they’re just pretending for the free ride. And I don’t put up with that shit from just any band.

MP3s:
“You! Me! Dancing!” - Los Campesinos! ((highly recommended))
“You Throw Parties, We Throw Knives” - Los Campesinos!

Artist: Good Shoes
Location: London, England

Good Shoes came on my radar at the exact same time as the Maccabees (see Part I) last spring and I’ve enjoyed watching the bands evolve over that period as their paths diverged. Both are now readying their debut LP’s (Good Shoes’ Think Before You Speak drops March 26th), and while I originally preferred Good Shoes over their Brighton contemporaries, “First Love” gave the Maccabees a huge leg up on the competition and I think they’ve proven themselves to be the more commercial friendly group of the two, a fact validated by their major-label deal with Polydor subsidary Fiction Records. That said, 2007 should still see Good Shoes, who got their start on the vaunted Young & Lost Club label, making a good deal of noise in the British rock scene, and don\’t be surprised if you see them on the charts in no time at all. Below is the band’s most recent single, the excellent “Photos On My Wall”, as well as the demo of the band’s upcoming single, “Never Meant To Hurt You”, due out on Brille Records the same day as the album.

MP3s:
“The Photos On My Wall” - Good Shoes
“Never Meant To Hurt You” (Demo) - Good Shoes

Artist: Snowfight In The City Centre
Location: Manchester, England

The principle core of Snowfight formed in 2005 under the name Lisa Brown (a.k.a. The Lisa Brown), and they were quickly snatched up by up-and-coming Manchester imprint High Voltage Sounds, who put out the double A-side “What’s That Sound”/”Anna” shortly thereafter, though the impressive release went largely unnoticed in the crowded UK indie-rock scene. “What’s That Sound” was a little slice of dance-rock heaven, seemingly plucked straight out of the 1980’s with that ridiculously-80’s “What’s that sound?” refrain, slick production, catchy hooks, and a discotheque-ready vibe. As immediate and accessible as anything that Franz Ferdinand or The Killers have ever put out, the song had me sold a mere twenty seconds in with those four angular guitar jabs that alternate between the right and left channels and the track only got hotter from there, but remained tragically overlooked. The B-side was an acoustic version of this song “Snowfight In The City Centre”, which isn’t really worth mentioning if not for the fact that, after confusing the shit out of new listeners who consistently expected Lisa Brown to be a solo female artist, the band chose to take this song title and take it for their band name. Now they introduce said song as “Lisa Brown” when they play it live, which I think is clever and endearing.

Under the new Snowfight In The City Centre moniker, they unveiled a whole new sound when they released “No Light Left”, my 7th favorite single of 2006, last July. Gone is the overwhelming 80’s vibe and in its place are skyscraping melodies and soaring choruses, a new sound that’s self-described as “the Arcade Fire only more anthemic”, which - audacious as it may seem - seems fairly accurate in my opinion. “No Light Left” serves up a hefty dose of unadulterated indie-pop perfection, seemingly coming out of nowhere to become one of the elite indie-rock singles of 2006. Seriously, I’m not lying when I say this song had the best chorus of last year, hands down. They warm you up with that first “angels and ghosts” chorus before dropping the proverbial bomb on the second chorus, when the song really takes flight and shoots towards the heavens. They’re currently on tour with fellow GWFAS tips Air Traffic, and like their tourmates they’ve also got a definite potential to turn into another Coldplay or Keane, but for now they remain one of the most exciting indie-rock acts in Britain.

MP3s:
“No Light Left” - Snowfight In The City Centre ((highly recommended))
“What’s That Sound” - Lisa Brown

Artist: Findlay Brown
Location: London, England

Findlay Brown is the next great British singer-songwriter and he’s set to take the UK by storm in 2007 with his brand of production-heavy folk songs and an excellent debut album, Separated By The Sea, which hits shelves this week. What separates Fin from the countless singer-songwriters trying to make it big in the UK, however, is the flawless production work by the one and only Simon Lord, the former frontman of now-defunct British electro-soul pioneers Simian. Lord proves he’s more than just a pretty voice here, dressing Brown’s soulful folk songs up in all sorts of production flourishes, giving Separated By The Sea a truly unique sound. Brown’s already well on his way to stardom in the UK, as Mastercard’s big Christmas advert (watch it here) was soundtracked completely by his track, “Come Home”, raising his profile and piquing the interests of many of the hundreds of thousands of people who viewed the ad during it’s November-December airing period last year. And while “Come Home” is great, Separated has plenty more brilliance where that came from. “But You Love Me” is a dark, bluesy romp with a flawlessly-produced chorus and soothing, reverb-drenched vocals, while “Don’t You Know I Love You”, the album’s lead single, is a Beatles-esque folk ballad with a catchy hook and plenty of fingerpickin’ goodness to be had by all. Simon Lord’s production on this album is sure to be some of the best of 2007 regardless of what the rest of the year yields, and we all know the British flip their shit for those American-sounding folk singers (just ask Willy Mason), so odds are we’ll be hearing Findlay’s name A LOT in ‘07.

MP3s:
“But You Love Me” - Findlay Brown ((highly recommended))
“Don’t You Know I Love You” - Findlay Brown

Artist: Kavinsky
Location: Paris, France

Justice would have topped this list if they hadn’t already owned 2006 despite releasing only two singles (er, a proper single and a remix single, rather), so while you should definitely be anticipating their debut LP (out April), we’ll be focusing on another Parisian electro demigod, Kavinsky, in this feature. Generating a good deal of buzz with his debut Teddy Boy EP and the phenomenal “Testarossa Autodrive” (whose video clocked in at #20 on my Top Videos of 2006 list) last year, Kavinsky is set to melt dancefloors around the world in 2007, beginning with the next installment in the Kavinsky saga, the 1986 EP, out February 26th. “The Kavinsky saga?”, you ask? You see, dude straight-up died in a high-speed car accident in 1986, but then came back to life, resurrected as a zombie to avenge his death and drop some ridiculously hot electronica tracks for us along the way. The A-side from that debut EP, “Testarossa Autodrive”, sounds like a 21st century battle between the themes of Night Rider, Miami Vice and Beverly Hills Cop, which is, y’know, ridiculously awesome and shit. 1986 features a remix of the track by the one and only SebastiAn, the illest remixer on the block these days, and another bangin’ new track, “Wayfarer”. Get all three below if you know what’s good for you and look for Kavinsky to carry on the torch for revolutionary French electro-house artists in 2007, side by side with Justice, SebastiAn and the rest of the Ed Banger/Institubes collective.

MP3s:
“Testarossa Autodrive” - Kavinsky ((highly recommended))
“Testarossa Autodrive” (SebastiAn Remix) - Kavinsky
“Wayfarer” - Kavinsky

Artist: GoodBooks
Location: London, England

GoodBooks find themselves consistently tied to an “electronic” tag that’s a bit curious once one actually hears the band’s sound. The members do perform surrounded by a veritable fortress of synthesizers, keyboards and rhythm machines, but their sound remains one firmly rooted in guitar-based pop-rock. There’s also the misnomer that “electronic” means “dance” these days, so GoodBooks’ lack of immediate dancefloor compatibility is sure to throw some off as well. That’s not to say you’ll never hear GoodBooks on the dancefloor, as their electronic leanings and upbeat pop songs have proven to be highly remixable, evidenced by the excellent remixes of “Leni” that fluokids threw up on their site a while back (here and here). “Leni” is their most recent single and has proven to be their most complete-sounding, polished release to date, though I prefer it’s download-only predecessor, “Turn It Back”, but be sure to grab both below. Also, as an added bonus, I’ve thrown in the band’s excellent cover of Mystery Jets’ “You Can’t Fool Me Dennis”, previously only available as an iTunes-exclusive download. As things stand now, GoodBooks find themselves in a tug of war between genres, with accessible vocals and a guitar-pop sensibility fitting of a mainstream hit like the Kooks or Air Traffic clashing with electronic tendencies and an undeniable remixability typically found in a dancier rock act. Time will tell which direction they\’ll ultimately go, but something tells me the band’s pending 2007 debut LP could end up turning a lot of heads and surprising a lot of people who previously wrote them off as nothing more than a run-of-the-mill indie-pop group. Regardless, GoodBooks are a band to watch in ‘07 and it should be fun to watch these guys firmly establish themselves in the UK pop scene this year.

MP3s:
“Leni” - GoodBooks
“Turn It Back” - GoodBooks
“You Can’t Fool Me Dennis” - GoodBooks

And so there you have it, Part II of my Bands To Watch in ‘07 feature, but wait… it’s not over yet. In writing Part II I realized that I still had wayyy too many bands to cover so yes, there will be a Part III. And no, I promise it won’t take another five days for me to get it up here. Check back soon, as it’s sure to be the best of three with plenty of obscure, previously unheard-of hotness to delight your senses. Oh, and a side note: I SAW ARCADE FIRE PERFORM IN A FUCKING CHURCH LAST NIGHT. YESSSSSSS.

Yeah, this would be much more appropriate if it came at the actual dawn of the New Year, rather than a month-and-a-half into it, but this is just how I roll. Anyway, this is the first of two installments in which I will be featuring the hot new bands primed to do big things in 2007. Obviously, some are going to do bigger things than others (see: Klaxons, Mika, The Maccabees, etc.) and due to the late nature of this post, some have already done or have begun to do big things, but either way the following is your complete directory of the bands to watch in ‘07. This is the first of two installments, in which I’ll be highlighting the bands most likely to score big with significant chart success, and the second installment will feature newer artists on the rise and primed to break into the public awareness, but not necessarily ready for radio stardom yet.

And yes, this is the surprise, even though many of you are probably already well-familiar with most of the artists on this list. I didn’t mean to build it up quite so much, but do reserve judgment until the second installment comes tomorrow as it should come chock-full of obscure new artists the likes of which most of you have probably never heard. Thanks and enjoy:

Artist: Klaxons
Location: East London, England

I’d wanted to get this up before Klaxons went ahead and debuted at #2 in the UK and rendered any predictions of their success completely unnecessary, but it was my own inability to finalize that Top Tracks post in time so I can’t complain. Anyway, it’s not exactly a secret at this point, but 2007 will be the year of the Klaxons, whether it’s the band themselves achieving massive, worldwide success (they just inked a deal with Geffen in the US) or the “New Rave” movement they pioneered blowing up to even greater proportions with the help of bands like Hadouken!, Late of the Pier and ShitDisco. Their debut LP, Myths of the Near Future, didn’t turn out to be quite the immaculate LP I’d hoped it would be (which isn’t to say it’s not an incredible record), but the new James Ford-produced versions of the initial singles are hotter than ever, “Golden Skans” is still one of the best tracks of ’07 and “Not Over Yet” is a Top 10 hit just waiting to happen.

MP3s:
“Golden Skans” - Klaxons
“It’s Not Over Yet” - Klaxons

Artist: Lily Allen
Location: LDN

Another obvious pick, as Ms. Allen’s already conquered the UK with ease, but the US remains ripe for the taking. The takeover began two weeks ago with the long-awaited domestic release of her fantastic debut, Alright, Still, two weeks ago on January 30th, and she’s already broken into the Top 20 on the US charts (albeit at #20). There’s not that much more I really need to say about Allen, as her every move has been blogged to death over the past 12 months, but the bonus tracks on the album’s US release are entirely deserving of their own acclaim and fanfare. Lily’s awesome take on 50 Cent’s (CURTISSSSSSS) “Window Shopper” receives a much deserved status upgrade from thunder-stealing B-side to album cut, and Mark Ronson - Allen’s best producer to date, in my opinion - contributes a brassy rework of Allen’s #1 hit, “Smile”. Surprisingly though, of all the excellent cuts on the album it’s the Ronson-produced “Littlest Things” that just might be my favorite of them all, despite the extreme neutrality I felt towards the track my first few times through it. Let’s be honest though, this whole thing is just another excuse for me to post Allen’s cover of the Kaiser Chiefs’ “Oh My God”, a track which - as far as I’m concerned - represents Allen and Ronson at the pinnacle of their respective games.

MP3s:
“Oh My God” - Lily Allen ((highly recommended))
“Nan, You’re A Window Shopper” - Lily Allen
“Littlest Things” - Lily Allen

Artist: Mika
Location: London, England

Listen, I don’t want it to be this way, but there’s no way around it: Mika is going to be massive in 2007 whether you like it or not. He just debuted at #1 on the UK charts after barely edging out Bloc Party’s new masterpiece for the throne, and US chart domination isn’t out of the question either, as MTV is already pushing him extremely hard (for whatever reason I’m not sure). To say his songs are catchy would be an understatement; this shit is like crack with its horrifically sugar-coated melodies and nauseating falsettos. Not sure what the status of Mika’s sexuality is – not that it really matters – but it’s worth noting that Mika’s songs make Elton John and the Scissor Sisters, his two most obvious influences, look like Mr. T and the American Gladiators, but hey, if that’s your thing, that’s your thing. Below is the only track of his I can stand, as well as a remix of his big hit (which is currently chillin’ at the top of the charts in the UK), “Grace Kelly”, by fellow GWFAS tips (see the second installment tomorrow) Pull Tiger Tail.

MP3s:
“Relax, Take It Easy” - Mika
“Grace Kelly” (Pull Tiger Tail Remix) - Mika

Artist: Young Love
Location: New York City

Another one of those major-label-engineered projects we love to hate and hate to love, Young Love (or Dan Keyes to his friends) is the next big thing set to cash in on the Panic! At The Disco fad. His success in 2007 is completely contingent on how sick of this whole dance-emo thing the general public are at this point, but I can’t see a surefire hit like “Discotech” not owning the charts at some point this year. Meet your favorite new guilty pleasure.

MP3: “Discotech” - Young Love

Artist: Maximo Park
Location: Newcastle, England

Maximo Park are pretty much another no-brainer considering the immense success of their 2005 debut, A Certain Trigger, but new single “Our Velocity” is just fucking amazing, and I’d be fairly shocked if they couldn’t ride it to a whole new plateau of success. Also, I’d like to take this opportunity to express my puzzlement at the fact that “Postcard of a Painting”, off their debut, was never released as a single, as it’s easily in my three favorite tracks off of that album. I could very well be all alone on that one though, who knows.

MP3s:
“Our Velocity” - Maximo Park ((highly recommended))
“Postcard of a Painting” - Maximo Park

Artist: The Maccabees
Location: Brighton, England

Though I’ve been tracking them since first stumbling across their head-turning Latchmere EP last spring, it wasn’t until latest single “First Love” was released last October that I realized their true brilliance and abilities. Ever since, I’ve been following their every move and eagerly anticipating their as-yet-untitled debut album, due for release this April. Interestingly enough, there’s nothing terribly groundbreaking about their sound yet they still manage to carve themselves a unique niche in the crowded British indie-rock scene with tight guitar-pop songs marked by searing, serrated guitar riffs, quirky lyrics and fun, sing-a-long hooks. They’ve also proven to be surprisingly remixable, with debut single “X-Ray” yielding not one but two incredible remixes, courtesy of South Central and Filthy Dukes Society. While it doesn’t quite match the brilliance of “First Love”, upcoming single “About Your Dress” only further augmented my love for the band, and I’ve got extremely high hopes for this lot in 2007.

MP3s:
“First Love” - The Maccabees ((highly recommended))
“About Your Dress” - The Maccabees
“X-Ray” (Filthy Dukes Society Remix) - The Maccabees ((highly recommended))
“X-Ray” (South Central Remix) - The Maccabees

Artist: Patrick Wolf
Location: East London, England

Patrick Wolf isn’t exactly a new artist, having already won over legions of fans on the strength of his first two impressive releases, 2003’s Lycanthropy and 2005’s Wind In The Wires, but with a new deal with Polydor-subsidiary Loog Records and an incredible new album, The Magic Position, slated for release later this month, 2007 could see Wolf break into the mainstream in spectacular fashion. While his first two releases carried a dark intimacy and morbidity about them, lead-off single “Accident & Emergency” (which came in at #38 on my Top 50 Tracks of ‘06 list) announced a new, poppier (and more mainstream friendly) Patrick Wolf with its unbridled optimism and sprightly instrumentation to match. The new album’s not all bouncy melodies and upbeat messages however, as is evident on his latest single, “Bluebells”, released on New Year’s Day of this year. The track is a haunting masterpiece, featuring dark piano work that recalls the intimate morbidity of his earlier work and soaring fireworks and explosions comprising a significant portion of the percussion, serving as a harrowing reminder of the dangers of modern society just as the sirens of “Accident & Emergency” did before it. Also breathtaking is album-opener “Overture”, which announces itself with booming drums and a beautiful strings section that underlies the track for the first three minutes before swirling and soaring into the spotlight in the song’s final minutes. Thus, with the strength of a major label behind him and an excellent LP due out this month, 2007 could very well be the year that Patrick Wolf achieves the massive mainstream success he’s always seemed destined for.

MP3s:
“Bluebells” - Patrick Wolf ((highly recommended))
“Overture” - Patrick Wolf

Artist: Air Traffic
Location: Bournemouth, England

Here we have Air Traffic, straight outta Bournemouth and primed to blow up the charts with their irresistibly catchy brand of piano-based indie-rock, the best thing to come out of that genre since Ben Folds and the Five were blowing up the spot back in the mid-90’s. Not only do they appear ready to do some serious damage on the charts across the pond on the strength of their music alone, but they’ve got the support to make it happen, as the quartet inked a deal with EMI last fall before the release of their brilliant Never Even Told Me Her Name EP. The title track off that effort succeeded in eclipsing their debut single, “Just Abuse Me”, an excellent track in its own right, which came backed by B-side “Charlotte”. That B-side has since gone on to bigger and better things however, as it’s set to be released as the band’s next single on March 26th and is available for download below as a Good Weather For Airstrikes exclusive. Sure, they’ve got potential to devolve into the UK’s answer to The Fray (see: “Shooting Star” below for proof), but for the time being they’re doing just about everything right.

MP3s:
“Never Even Told Me Her Name” - Air Traffic ((highly recommended))
“Shooting Star” (Demo) - Air Traffic
“Charlotte” (Single Version) - Air Traffic [exclusive]

Artist: Union of Knives
Location: Glasgow, Scotland

Whereas the artists above are all pretty much locks for mainstream success and further fame and riches (with the possible exception of Mr. Wolf), Union of Knives are a dark horse to reach the upper echelons of the British charts, but lord knows they’ve got the songs to make it happen. Angular guitar riffs drenched in undulating synths and pulsing drum beats create a unique dark electro-rock sound that’s a welcomed refreshment in the UK’s crowded (and played-out) dance punk (er, new rave?) scene. All in all, this adds up to what it might sound like if Sigur Ros and Radiohead got high as shit together and invited the Faint over for drinks and a synthesizer jam session, and then liked the results so much that they went ahead and released an album together. The closest thing we’ll get to that album is Union of Knives ‘2005 debut, the awesomely-titled Violence & Birdsong, and the undeniable highlight is dancefloor burner “Evil Has Never”, which will finally see release as a single next month. With a disco-ready BPM, that addictive “evil has never loved you” refrain, and catchy boy-girl verses courtesy of Jenny Reeves (who also appears on “Opposite Direction”), it seems like the track most immediately ready to roar out the gates and get the indie kids moving, and is likely the band’s ticket to mainstream success. However, an impressive deal with Virgin UK means that major-label-level chart damage is by no means out of the question, and don’t be surprised if U of K become one of the most buzzed-about electronic acts in the UK in the coming months. Oh and hey, it’s also worth mentioning that in a fairly surprising turn of events (considering the band’s rather low profile), “Opposite Direction”, my second favorite track from the group, was recently played on Grey’s Anatomy, which is, uh, interesting I guess.

MP3s:
“Evil Has Never” - Union of Knives ((highly recommended))
“Opposite Direction” - Union of Knives

Artist: WinterKids
Location: Peaslake, England

Odds are WinterKids will be a pretty polarizing group once they break into the public consciousness, what with their twee/indie-pop-meets-punk/emo sound, but you’ve got to admire them and all their self-sufficient, xylophonic glory. As an ambitious group of 18 and 19 year-old kids, the Peaslake collective started an indie club night in their tiny home town that rapidly became popular and immensely successful and eventually afforded them enough capital to pass on offers from countless British major labels looking to make them the UK’s answer to Fall Out Boy and start their own Little House Records imprint. They’re currently one of the UK’s best-kept secrets, but with more and more praise coming in from the British press and an imminent SXSW showcase likely to rocket them into a frenzy of buzz and hype, that likely won’t be the case for long. There’s definite backlash potential here due to the band’s Blink 182-gone-indie pop sound, but with two fantastic singles under their belt and an extremely impressive debut album, Memoirs, on the way in March, you should get ready to hear a lot more about these buzzworthy teenagers. I mean, xylophones, synthesizers, irresistible melodies, sing-a-long choruses, a hot female vocalist… there’s really nothing more I can ask for.

MP3s:
“Tape It” - WinterKids ((highly recommended))
“Two Nights, Two Days” - WinterKids

Artist: Cold War Kids
Location: Long Beach, California

From WinterKids we go to Cold War Kids, a band whose progress I’ve tracked from Day One on this here blog. I’ve covered them extensively in this space before, so there isn’t much more for me to do here than to state my prediction for them to see a significant amount of UK success in 2007 and maybe even break into the American mainstream. With the same label that engineered Gnarls Barkley’s rise to superstardom last year, Downtown Records, behind them and a sound favorably comparing to the raw soul and energy of the White Stripes, anything could happen for Cold War Kids in ‘07.

MP3s:
“We Used To Vacation” - Cold War Kids ((highly recommended))
“Hang Me Up To Dry” - Cold War Kids

Artist: Dead Disco
Location: Leeds, England

As their MySpace headline won’t hesitate to inform you, Dead Disco have been “slaying dancefloors and breaking hearts” since August 2005, and you need only spin their songs a few times and take a glance at the picture above to know they’re not lying in either regard. The dancefloor-slaying and heartbreaking should only continue on a much larger scale in 2007, as the ladies of Dead Disco prepare to force their way into the hearts and minds of the general public with an upcoming debut LP on the horizon and a hotly-anticipated third single due to be announced any day now. Unlike the rest of the bands on this list, however, Dead Disco do not [yet] have the luxury of a major label deal to ride to pop stardom, but with a sound that falls somewhere between the catchy angular riffs of Bloc Party and shamefully-addictive choruses that wouldn’t be out of place in a song by even the poppiest, most mainstream girl group, it can’t be long before you’re seeing Dead Disco’s name in lights every where you turn.

MP3s:
“Automatic” - Dead Disco ((highly recommended))
“The Treatment” - Dead Disco
“The Treatment” (Metronomy Remix) - Dead Disco ((highly recommended))

So there you have it: 12 big reasons to love 2007, assuming you haven’t already been loving 2007 for the past month-and-a-half. Be sure to check back tomorrow for 12 more great bands to watch for in ‘07, but maybe reserve your comments regarding who I overlooked until tomorrow, as I may well get to whatever band you think is the next big thing in my second installment.

WHOA. HOLD UP. STOP. ONE SECOND.

What’s that you say? “Ed Banger Records Volume 2 just dropped? And it’s got a shit ton of new unreleased hotness from the Ed Banger collective?”. More exciting words have not graced these ears since those 11 Bloc Party B-sides surfaced. Here are the two tracks that jump out at me right off the bat, though I have to say I wish one of them was the extremely intriguing “Golden Skans To Interzone” mix by So-Me, but well, it doesn’t really do anything, so yeah, maybe he shouldn’t quit his day job (as Ed Banger’s video artist-on-site) just yet. Anyway, below you’ve got NEW FIRE FROM SEBASTIAN in the form of “Greel”, as well as “Phantom”, the new Justice ish, which has been floating around for a while now but sounds better than ever at a sparkling 320 kbps. “Greel” features more of SebastiAn’s usual techniques (frenzied samples, lots of crazy-ass shit bouncing around the mix, piercing synths, some rapidfire percussion parts, etc.) and a newfound expansiveness borrowed from the Erol Alkan bag of tricks that lends it a supermassive quality not achieved in his previous work. “Phantom” can’t touch “Waters of Nazareth”, but it’s about as bad-ass a track as you’ll find and further validates Justice’s role as trailblazers in the field of electronica, and the new upgraded quality puts the track in a whole new light.

MP3s:
“Greel” - SebastiAn
“Phantom” - Justice

Thou shalt not steal if there is direct victim.
Thou shalt not worship pop idols or follow lost prophets.
Thou shalt not take the names of Johnny Cash, Joe Strummer, Johnny Hartman, Desmond Decker, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix or Syd Barret in vain.
Thou shalt not think that any male over the age of 30 that plays with a child that is not their own is a peadophile… Some people are just nice.
Thou shalt not read NME.
Thall shalt not stop liking a band just because they’ve become popular.
Thou shalt not question Stephen Fry.
Thou shalt not judge a book by it’s cover.
Thou shalt not judge Lethal Weapon by Danny Glover.
Thall shalt not buy Coca-Cola products. Thou shalt not buy Nestle products.
Thou shalt not go into the woods with your boyfriend’s best friend, take drugs and cheat on him.
Thou shalt not fall in love so easily.
Thou shalt not use poetry, art or music to get into girls’ pants. Use it to get into their heads.
Thou shalt not watch Hollyokes.
Thou shalt not attend an open mic and leave before it’s done just because you’ve finished your shitty little poem or song you self-righteous prick.
Thou shalt not return to the same club or bar week in, week out just ’cause you once saw a girl there that you fancied but you’re never gonna fucking talk to.

Thou shalt not put musicians and recording artists on ridiculous pedestals no matter how great they are or were.
The Beatles… Were just a band.
Led Zepplin… Just a band.
The Beach Boys… Just a band.
The Sex Pistols… Just a band.
The Clash… Just a band.
Crass… Just a band.
Minor Threat… Just a band.
The Cure… Just a band.
The Smiths… Just a band.
Nirvana… Just a band.
The Pixies… Just a band.
Oasis… Just a band.
Radiohead… Just a band.
Bloc Party… Just a band. [ed.’s note: this is debatable]
The Arctic Monkeys… Just a band.
The Next Big Thing.. JUST A BAND.

Thou shalt give equal worth to tragedies that occur in non-english speaking countries as to those that occur in english speaking countries.
Thou shalt remember that guns, bitches and bling were never part of the four elements and never will be.
Thou shalt not make repetitive generic music, thou shalt not make repetitive generic music, thou shalt not make repetitive generic music, thou shalt not make repetitive generic music.
Thou shalt not pimp my ride.
Thou shalt not scream if you wanna go faster.
Thou shalt not move to the sound of the wickedness.
Thou shalt not make some noise for Detroit.
When I say “Hey” thou shalt not say “Ho”.
When I say “Hip” thou shalt not say “Hop”.
When I say, he say, she say, we say, make some noise… kill me.
Thou shalt not quote me happy.
Thou shalt not shake it like a polaroid picture.
Thou shalt not wish you girlfriend was a freak like me.
Thou shalt spell the word “Pheonix” P-H-E-O-N-I-X not P-H-O-E-N-I-X, regardless of what the Oxford English Dictionary tells you.
Thou shalt not express your shock at the fact that Sharon got off with Bradley at the club last night by saying “Is it”.
Thou shalt think for yourselves.

And thou shalt always… Thou shalt always kill!

MP3: “Thou Shalt Always Kill” - Le Sac vs. Pip [Link Removed]

If you’d still like to hear the (absolutely fantastic) track, visit Le Sac vs. Pip’s MySpace, and be sure to pick up the single when it drops later this month.
Words to live by people, words to live by. Thanks to Put The Needle On The Record and [grindin] for one of the best tracks of the year.

Last night Girl Talk almost killed me. Whether it was the relentless unce-unce-uncery of a metric ton of hot jams crushing down on me the entire night, the absolutely packed (read: wayyyyy over-sold) crowd at Studio B, or the countless drinks poured in my eyes, hair and face, I nearly died on multiple occasions last night, but fuck if it wasn’t entirely worth it. Hell, I think I may have been responsible for the death of at least three people in my own right via a few inadvertent elbows to the temple, and those are only the ones I know about. But yeah, shit was INSANE, Studio B was absolute hinges (as in “off the”) all night and even the venue’s ridiculously oppressive no re-entry policy (which resulted in the devolution of the men’s bathroom into an opaque cloud of cigarette smoke) couldn’t keep all in attendance from having the absolute time of their lives.

I first saw Girl Talk in DC two months ago, one of my most triumphant concert experiences ever if only for the fact that I managed to get kicked out (not once but) twice and still succeeded in not missing a single minute of Greg Gilles’ fantastic set, and he made my efforts worth it, putting on one of the most fun shows I’ve ever been to. But the difference between his DC gig and his show last night, his first in Brooklyn in over four years, was astronomical. In DC, Gilles basically went crazy in front of his laptop and played a slightly-updated version of Night Ripper in its entirety, with a very small amount of new material sprinkled here and there, but I was left with no complaints and eagerly anticipated his Studio B show expecting to see more of the same and maybe turn some of my less-musically-aware ladyfriends onto an artist they’d never heard. As if to directly chastise me for my clearly-not-high-enough expectations, Girl Talk decided that he would blow me, along with everyone else in attendance, out of the fucking water with a set of what appeared to be comprised of almost entirely new material.

After waiting in line forever in the freezing cold on the ONE FUCKING NIGHT I forgot my scarf and gloves, we were finally admitted, only to have to wait through two interminable, nigh-unbearable noise rock sets (from Hearts of Darknesses and Pterodactyl, if you must know) before Parts & Labor finally took the stage and breathed some life into the party. I’ll admit that I’m not the biggest fan of noise rock, but while the two opening bands seemed to subject the audience to nothing more than aural torture, with Parts & Labor you could tell that they were doing what they do best and they were doing it well, even if it didn’t necessarily cater to my tastes. But then the time was upon us as Girl Talk took to the stage and then, uh, told us to wait three-and-a-half minutes while he “just [went] to the bathroom real quick”. But then the time was upon us, as he returned to the stage and launched into the opening bars of album-opener “Once Again”, the only(?) Night Ripper track to burst forth from his speakers until nearly an hour later when he wrapped up the main set with an immaculate, incredible, life-affirming extended mix of the seminal moment from that album (and perhaps the entire mash-up genre): Gilles’ triumphant Biggie vs Elton John masterwork that occurs two-thirds of the way through “Smash My Head”. Everything else though - almost without exception - was brand new hot fire that, for the most part, blew the fucking doors off of Night Ripper, as impossible as that might be to believe.

First, there was that part where “Carry On My Wayward Son” birthed the synth line from “My Love”, before Rick Ross dropped by to spit a few verses of “Hustlin’” over the Timbaland masterwork and Mylo’s “Mothafucka gonna drop the preshaaaaaa” verse cut through everything to make me the happiest man in the NYC metropolitan area at that moment. Then later, out of nowhere, dude dropped the climactic synth surges of “Digital Love” over Missy Elliot’s “Get Ur Freak On” and brought a roar of approval from the crowd that wasn’t matched for the rest of the night. The Daft Punk hotness didn’t stop there as he brought the verse of “Technologic” into the mix toward the end of the set, and then absolutely destroyed the crowd in the finale of the encore with the synthetic euphoria of “Around The World”. Also making appearances were Talk’s new official remixes of Grizzly Bear’s “Knife” and Peter Bjorn & John’s “Let’s Call It Off”, as well as the unveiling of his long-rumored “Cell Phone’s Dead” remix for Beck, which - if it ever sees official release - is sure to blow some doors off their hinges in a big way. Later, in the final moments of the main set, Gilles threw on “Lithium” over a foor-to-the-flour beat and launched himself into the crowd, narrowly missing my head and smashing head-first into the face of an unfortunately-located Asian girl next to me, which was, y’know, almost as terrifying as it was awesome (she shrugged it off like a champ). After the conclusion of “Smash Your Head” brought the music to a halt for the first time since it began over an hour before, he dangled the prospect of an encore (which we didn’t get in DC) over the audience on the condition that “Everybody better dance like you just got born!”, before a collage of “Bossy”, “Around The World” and a Queen-tastic mix of the percussive beat of “We Will Rock You” and the guitar-hero glory of “We Are The Champions” overwhelmed the room and ended the set every bit as amazingly as it began.

To experience the glory for yourselves hit up the excellent downloads below, where I’ve posted “Smash Your Head”, the essential track off Night Ripper (for the one of you out there who hasn’t heard it), and “Pure Magic”, taken from his recent Bone Hard Zaggin’ 7″, as well as his excellent official remixes of Grizzly Bear’s “Knife” and PB&J’s “Let’s Call It Off”. Enjoy, and be sure to do whatever it takes to make it out to a Girl Talk show if he so much as breaches a 500-mile radius of your location; I can honestly say it’s worth it.

MP3s:
“Smash Your Head” - Girl Talk ((highly recommended))
“Pure Magic” - Girl Talk
“Knife” (Girl Talk Remix) - Grizzly Bear ((highly recommended))
“Let’s Call It Off” (Girl Talk Remix) - Peter Bjorn & John

INTRODUCING… ENCYCLOPEDIA PICTURA
Speaking of Grizzly Bear’s “Knife”, I’ve never been a huge fan of theirs, but their new video for the track is great. Directed by Encyclopedia Pictura, an up-and-coming directing collective that’s sure to do massive things in 2007, the clip is a breathtaking masterpiece of animation and special effects, complete with one of the best closing shots I’ve seen in a music video in a long time.

Video: “Knife” - Grizzly Bear
Director: Encyclopedia Pictura
Watch: [YouTube]
Download: [Quicktime]

The “Knife” clip is only Encyclopedia Pictura’s second music video to date, and their first, for Zion I’s “So Tall”, upholds (and possibly even surpasses) the impressively high standard shown in the Grizzly Bear video. Check it below, it’s just beautiful.

Video: “So Tall” - Zion I
Director: Encyclopedia Pictura
Watch: [YouTube]
Download: [Quicktime]

NEW HOTNESS FROM PHONES & NEW YOUNG PONY CLUB
It’s always a tricky situation when the remix hits the internet before it’s original counterpart, as you can’t really judge the merits of the remix without having heard the original track, and in many cases the remix can only yield so much insight into the intact structure of the original. This is especially the case when a track is as chopped-up and reworked as Phones’ edit of “The Bomb”, the hotly-anticipated upcoming third single from New Young Pony Club. That aside, I’m not sure if I like the new direction Phones has been taking on his remixes in 2007 (see also: “The Prayer” [Phones Full Metal Jackin’ Mix]). Whereas past remixes of his have seen him updating indie rock hits with a danceable beat and bangin’ electronic flourishes, this year has seen him gravitating towards a more electronic, almost-techno sound, with chopped-up vocal samples and pounding electro beats taking the place of his previous signatures. In fact, it seems to be borrowing heavily from the Simian Mobile Disco bag of tricks in both technique and general sound; check out the blogosphere premier below and let me know what you think in the comments.

MP3: “The Bomb” (Phones Edit) - New Young Pony Club

TIMBALAND… FEATURING THE HIVES
Yeah, you heard me right. Timbaland’s readying his upcoming solo album, Timbaland Presents: Shock Value, for release on March 27th, and it features a ridiculously star-studded cast of guests, including Bjork, M.I.A., Elton John, Nelly Furtado and Justin Timberlake (obviously) and even a rumored appearance by Coldplay. Here’s one of the first tracks to surface, featuring Swedish rockers the Hives, who contribute vocals and guitar-work to the track. According to the Hives, “We do not at this time know when it will be out but Timbaland is famous so you will notice when it is time.” Well put. Thanks to [grindin] for the hotness.

MP3: “Throw It On Me” (ft. The Hives) - Timbaland

LET’S TALK ABOUT BLOC PARTY, THANKS
I’ve got a full post on this (as well as my review of A Weekend In The City) on the way, but let’s just take a moment to talk about how fucking amazing Bloc Party is. I know they’re a pretty polarizing group these days (lord knows I still love them though), but you’ve got to respect the fact that they can drop an album as ambitious as A Weekend In The City and release 11 bonus B-sides (essentially, a whole ‘nother album) to accompany it without so much as batting an eye (no announcement, no advance notice, nothing). Every last song as good as (and in select instances, better than) the actual album; impressive as shit. That’s all I’ll say for now, I’ll go into it in further depth later, but I’ll leave you with one track for the taking to whet your appetite.

MP3: “Selfish Son” - Bloc Party

Now, “Selfish Son” is by no means the best of the bunch (it’s somewhere in the middle of the pack, really), but it’s perhaps the most interesting track of them all for me. You see, by far the most polarizing aspect of Weekend is Jacknife Lee’s production work, with nearly every one of the its detractors uniting to cite over-production as the album’s primary downfall. I’ll go into much more depth on this topic in my review of the album, but for now I’ll just be focusing on “Selfish Son”, a track that lives and dies on Lee’s heavy producton. Moreso than any other new song, “Selfish Son” would be absolutely naked and lifeless without Lee’s work behind the boards, and it makes for an interesting track that sounds more electronic than perhaps any other Bloc Party track to date. Plus, it also features Bloc’s twinkliest chorus yet, and you know I’m a sucker for all things twinkly.

That’s all for now though, check back soon for a massive surprise feature and stay tuned for much more Bloc Party coverage in the next two weeks.

Awh shit! It’s the longest post in blogging history!

2006 was a pretty great year. Our readership nearly doubled, I survived my brush with death, safely extricated myself from UVA and listened to some extremely hot jams along the way. So yes, fun times all around. However, 2006 was a bit of a weak year for albums (hence the reason you’ve not seen a Top Albums of 2006 list from me), but I’d consider it a banner year as far as singles are concerned. Most likely a direct result of this is the fact 2006 saw me gravitate towards the singles market and away from albums as a whole, and it was also the year I began ordering import singles from the UK, a practice that has since become a near-addiction and a crippling burden on my wallet. Also a result of this is the fact that there’s a glaring lack of artists on this list who were established before ‘06, as I found myself more often excited by new bands releasing groundbreaking new material than older veterans releasing undeniably great material of their own whose sounds’ I already knew and love. Thus, I can see A LOT of you disagreeing with my picks or just being confounded by the number of artists on this list you haven’t heard before, but it’s my list and I’ll rock it however I want to. Besides, wouldn’t you rather see a list of exciting new bands you’ve rather heard than download the tracks everyone already knows from the Knife, Joanna Newsome, Grizzly Bear and TV on the Radio? I’d hope so.

Below are the cream of the crop; the best songs 2006 had to offer. Most are just individual songs, but in the case of a great single whose excellence was augmented by it’s B-side, I’ve made both the A-and-B-sides available for download (see 4, 6, 8, etc.). However, I realize that means I’m giving away the entire single, so I’m generally only doing this if the single in question has sold out and is no longer available for purchase (denoted beneath the song write-up by “available for purchase here“). Also, big ups to Everett for rising from the dead and helping me out with a bunch of these write-ups and much of the tedious linking; it’s great to know he still, y’know, exists. Write-ups written by Everett are denoted by an “[E]” after the text, whereas write-ups by yours truly can be similarly-identified by a “[D]” after the text.

I really enjoy these year-end Top Tracks lists, as it allows me to heap some much-deserving praise on tracks I may not have gotten around to featuring on the site, and whereas most other blogs’ lists will have few surprises (though they probably won’t make you wait until February of the next year for them…), you’re likely to find a lot here you either missed here before or was never even posted on at all. And so without further adieu, I present to you the fruit of over two months of exhaustive labor - the essential songs of 2006:

MP3: “Cars” - Katzenjammers

Unfortunately, there’s really no way to say “I found this amazing and ridiculously obscure cover of Gary Numan’s ‘Cars’ recorded in 1981 by this funky steel drum band from Tobago” without sounding like the snobbiest indie record store douchebag ever, but, er,… I found this amazing and ridiculously obscure cover of Gary Numan’s “Cars” recorded in 1981 by this funky steel drum band from Tobago. Seriously though, it’s SO good; just wait for those steel drums to hit and you’ll know what I mean. [D]

[from the Cars 7″, available for purchase here]

MP3: “Promiscuous” - Nelly Furtado

Pitchfork claimed that 2006 was the year of the Knife. For real people, however, 2006 was the year of the Timbaland. According to my exhaustive scientific study, there were only 7 minutes throughout 2006 where there was no song produced by or featuring Timbaland on the radio somewhere. Though Justin Timberlake’s “My Love” is seen as his crowning achievement, “Promiscuous” is what got the ball rolling and jump-started Ms. Furtado’s career as a pop star. On the radio, on the dance floor, in the shower (what? who said that?), “Promiscuous” could be heard everywhere this year from the moment it was released, and it deserved every play it got. [E]

[from the Promiscuous CD-Single, available for purchase here]

Bonus MP3: “Promiscuous (Remix ft. Rick ROWSS)” - Nelly Furtado

As if the original wasn’t hot enough already, one Mr. Rick Ross takes Tim’s flawless beat and spits some hot fire over it, before letting Furtado back into the mix to do her thing. I played this at the frattiest of frat parties once. It was well-received. Take that as you will.

MP3: “Insomnia” - Electric President

Score this one in the backhanded compliment category, but Electric President will likely never make a song even approaching the beauty and brilliance of “Insomnia”. Everything in this song is perfect, from Ben Cooper’s gorgeously soft vocals to the lush electronic backdrop he and bandmate Alex Kane set them to. Cooper has stated that the bands goal for their self-titled Morr Music debut, which was released last January, was “to integrate computers into the process as much as possible, but without making it an ‘electronic’ record … a lot of the sounds started as acoustic recordings and were later chopped and sequenced in to something new.” “Insomnia” is a shining example of the realization of this goal and the band’s organically-influenced electronica, and is easily one of the prettiest, most stirring songs of the year. [E]

[from the Electric President LP, available for purchase here]

A) MP3: “9 Crimes” - Damien Rice
B) MP3: “The Rat Within The Grain” - Damien Rice

Damien Rice returned in 2006 and, unlike Derek, I’ve only been through one Damien Rice phase, and it began when I first heard his stunning debut, O, and will likely continue until eternity. “9 Crimes” was the first track to surface off of his latest LP, 9, when it hit the internets prior to its single release last October, and the song is a fairly straightforward piano ballad, though the combination of his voice with the angelic Lisa Hannigan definitely elevates the track above most of your run-of-the-mill piano balladry. The majority of Rice’s debut is stronger than the lead single for 9 - to be fair though, “9 Crimes” is a great song, but as far as I’m concerned the addition of a crescendo with a minute left does little to make a song more interesting. Rice definitely exhibited a penchant for the song-closing crescendo on his debut, but at least he’d mix up the instrumentation for those, adding strings and layering vocals to make it more interesting. On “9 Crimes”, the only change is in volume, which doesn’t go much farther than creating a contrived sense of urgency. It’s important to stress that an average Damien Rice song is better than at least 99% of releases this year, and I realize I hold Rice to an unimaginably high standard, but the reality is that this song is just that: an average Damien Rice track.

The single release is hardly a bust, however, for the inclusion of what is almost definitely Damien Rice’s best B-side ever, “Rat Within The Grain”, which is the only reason this single is even on this list. I have historically been underwhelmed by Rice’s B-sides, and garnered similar feelings for his more upbeat material. “Rat Within The Grain” is an immediate exception to both of those counts. The song features an instantly accessible vocal melody and a simple strummed guitar in the background, and though the technique is in nothing new, Rice takes it to a level not seen since a certain Green Day tune innocently snuck its way in to graduation slideshows around the country. A rare occurrence, in the case of the “9 Crimes” single the B-side definitely outshines the main event, thus justifying the 9 Crimes single’s inclusion on this list despite the unspectacular quality of the A-side. [E]

[from the 9 LP, available for purchase here]

MP3: “Young Shields” - Casiotone For The Painfully Alone

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, the stage name of Owen Ashworth, is
renowned for his heart-on-sleeve lyrics; Ashworth calls them like he
sees them and doesn’t bother himself with much in the way of metaphor.
“Young Shields” is full of matter-of-fact lines like, “got a letter
from Mom and Dad, I swear to God they don’t get me at all”, but he
places those words over such inviting, exciting, hand-clap-ridden
electronica that the novelty fails to wear off after countless spins.
Ashworth takes aim at succinctness and succeeds at crafting a perfect
3-minute gem. [E]

[from the Etiquette LP, available for purchase here]

MP3: “Phantom Limb” - The Shins

Though the general consensus is that The Shins latest album, Wincing The Night Away, failed to match the perfection of their 2003 effort, Chutes Too Narrow, their newest offering did produce a handful of keepers, and “Phantom Limb” is the first and perhaps the strongest of the lot. James Mercer’s vocals have a glossy sheen that was lacking on Chutes Too Narrow, which is a hit-or-miss proposition, especially to diehard fans of the band’s earlier output. On “Phantom Limb”, however, Mercer’s vocals are definitely a positive, as he takes a relatively ordinary background and takes the song from ground level up in to the stratosphere solely on the merits of his vocal melodies. Though the band’s performance as a whole on Wincing The Night Away is in question, Mercer is definitely on top of his game on “Phantom Limb”. [E]

[from the Phantom Limb CD-Single, available for purchase here]

MP3: “Parade” - Heypenny

Perhaps the most joyous five minutes in music this year, “Parade” opens with a slow, brief intro, before erupting into a cacophony of blissful exuberance. Though the instrumentation is unique and the top-notch production sets it apart from other songs of the lo-fi indie-pop genre, singer Ben Elkins appears to channel the whimsical stylings of The Unicorns in the vocals and lyrics here (sample lyric: “I. Like. Chocolate cake./Bring me a few pieces… Make a fist, cram the chocolate in/Yeah, it tastes bloody, but you keep mashing it down”… brilliant). Successfully recreating the excitement and atmosphere of an actual parade in the mood and instrumentation in the song, “Parade” is an unbelievably impressive track for a band so completely unheard of and completely unsigned, on par with then-unknowns Voxtrot releasing an immaculate pop gem like “Start of Something” out of nowhere in 2005. Furthermore, it’s a great testament to the astounding production of Heypenny’s debut album, Use These Spoons, which was produced by Elkins himself and features some of the finest lo-fi production in recent memory, rivaling (and, at times, recalling) Isaac Brock’s recent work for Wolf Parade on Apologies To The Queen Mary. Long story short: if “Parade” and the rest of Use These Spoons are any indication, Heypenny won’t be staying unsigned - or unheard of - for very long at all. [D]

[from the Use These Spoons LP, available for purchase here]

MP3: “My Love” - Justin Timberlake

Any doubts caused by the incredible mediocrity of “SexyBack” got obliterated when “My Love” first hit the internets back in late summer of ‘06 and one thing became resoundingly clear: Timbaland is officially back. Not since “Cry Me A River” (the pinnacle of American radio pop in the last ten years, in my opinion) have we seen Timbaland operate at this level of perfection, as he drops an absolutely immaculate beat over which JT sings the love song anthem of the new millenium, the yin to “Cry Me A River”’s break-up tragedy yang. With vocals, verses and sentiment not far off from those found in Sebastien Tellier’s equally-flawless “La Ritournelle”, “My Love” gives “Maneater” a real run for its money as the essential pop jam of 2006. Justin Timberlake proved just how dominant he could be with last fall’s release of Futuresex/Lovesounds, but more exciting than any of that was Timbaland’s return to the form that made him such a big deal at the beginning of the decade. Yeah, T.I. drops by to spit some verses towards the end of the song, but by that point he’s Mr. Irrelevant; the deal’s already been sealed and Timbaland’s re-established his reign over the pop charts. [D]

[from the My Love CD-Single, available for purchase here]

Bonus MP3: “My Love” - Marit Bergman

MP3: “Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives” - Voxtrot

Every second of this song is better than the second that directly proceeded it. Lead singer Ramesh Srivastva pulls wonderful melodies out of absolutely nowhere and it all sounds beautiful, and his voice is really front and center on this track. “Mothers, Sisters, Daughters and Wives” builds on Voxtrot’s fantastic earlier songs by increasing production value to draw more attention to Srivastva’s vocals, and he shows why he’s the center of attention in the incredibly catchy chorus. If we were playing word association and you said “pop gem”, I would say “Voxtrot”, and this is the strongest track overall they’ve crafted in their brief history. [E]

[from the Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives EP, available here]

MP3: “Harrowdown Hill” - Thom Yorke

One of the standout tracks from Yorke’s first solo (er, Non-Radiohead) album, The Eraser, “Harrowdown Hill” is one of the most lyrically
intriguing songs he’s ever written. The song takes its name from the hill on which the body David Kelly, an employee of the British Ministry of Defense, was found after his apparent suicide. Kelly had inadvertently caused political scandal in the U.K. after discussing weapons of mass destruction in Iraq too candidly with a reporter. Yorke’s lyrics contrast Kelly’s thoughts with the words he spoke to his wife prior