Good Weather For Airstrikes

Dekker is pretty much the man. Founder of the Apocalypso club night at the Old Queen’s Head in Islington, he’s been making a name for himself on the tables around London for a few years (including his regular stint as Miss Odd Kid’s touring DJ) and is about to take it to the next level with some original material of his own. He’s also one of the nicer dudes I’ve ever met, having been kind enough to put on Fresh Prints back before they were world famous and even taking us into his flat for some private tutelage on top of that. I had the pleasure of dancing my balls off to his sets throughout the semester everywhere from the cozy confines of the Old Queen’s Head to Fabric, London’s electro mecca, and now he’s ready to drop some tracks of his own on us with the help of his sound engineer sidekick Johan.

“Brooklyn” has been killing it on London dancefloors for a minute now, and at long last I’m able to drop the freshly-mastered finished version on you. Chopped up vocals, all manner of glitchy bells and whistles and an arpeggiated breakdown and vocal lovingly sampled from Death In Vegas’ “Rocco” all converge to create a dark disco vibe and bring to mind what it might sound like if Burial decided to go all jacking house on us. With “Brooklyn” Dekker & Johan bring to the table intensity and depth generally absent from the flavor-of-the-week electro oversaturating the blogs these days, and with significant A&R interest already swirling around them, you can expect big things from the duo in the months to come (yes, even in the face of the Impending Electro Recession).

MP3: “Brooklyn” - Dekker & Johan [exclusive]

Like MGMT, Boy Crisis make highly danceable electro-pop that’s so brutally hip and “now” that it hurts. Like MGMT, Boy Crisis went to Wesleyan (were they were like bffz or something), currently reside in Brooklyn and are into all sorts of sprightly psychedelia. And like MGMT, it took me the better part of six months to get over my initial dislike for them and, just like MGMT, they’re making me realize how fucking wrong my original judgment of them was. In the same way I wonder how I ever disliked pop behemoths like “Kids” and “Electric Feel”, listening to Boy Crisis’ “Dressed To Digress” now makes me wonder if my ears were even working when they first crossed my radar back in January. I’m now aware that the hype and rampant A&R buzz surrounding them is more than justified, and I hope you’ll feel the same way.

MP3: “Dressed To Digress” - Boy Crisis

Then there’s Amazing Baby, who I still haven’t quite come around on, but then again it’s only been a few weeks since I was tipped off on them and given my track record, I really can’t write them off just yet. Most of the above similarities between Boy Crisis and MGMT apply here, only Amazing Baby didn’t go to Wesleyan, rather they’re principally comprised of the former members of Stylophone and MGMT frontman Andrew VanWyngarden’s supermodel girlfriend. You can expect more of the same in the psychedelic tribal space-pop department though, and as is the case with any band with even the most tenuous link to MGMT these days, they’re getting no shortage of A&R attention of their own. Worth the hype? You decide.

MP3: “Head Dress” - Amazing Baby

Holy shit, it’s Passion Pit. Far and away my most listened to band of 2008, the creators of the best song to grace these ears in fucking forever (that’d be “Sleepyhead”) and the most exciting band to come out of the States in as long as I can remember, Passion Pit are about to fuck shit up for real. The brainchild of frontman/creative force Michael Angelakos, they sound like they’ve taken the best (read: most euphoric) parts of MGMT, Black Kids and The Go! Team, and on the new material they’re currently working on it sounds like Ratatat are very much in danger of being beaten at their own game. We’ve got some seriously exciting news to announce next week regarding the band, but in the meantime take “Sleepyhead” for a spin and don’t forget to pick your jaw up the floor. Yeah, it’s like that.

MP3: “Sleepyhead” - Passion Pit

Give it a week or so and Pitchfork will be shitting themselves.

Back from paradise, back down to business. The Adriatic’s nothing but blue skies and sunshine this time of year, so it’s fitting we get back into the swing of things by talking about Wave Machines, whose debut single “I Go I Go I Go” brings summertime in spades and then some. Released next week by our friends at Chess Club (so you already know it’s a winner), “I Go I Go I Go” is all bouncy guitars, glitchy basslines and catchy-as-fuck vocals, all converging to create what’s more or less the perfect summer single. The track sounds like the best song Architecture In Helsinki never recorded, but lest you think Wave Machines are a one-trick pony, hit their MySpace and take likely follow-up single “Punk Spirit” for a walk, which replaces all the buoyant optimism of “I Go” with a darker, more brooding vibe. Like the Chess Club singles for White Lies and Post War Years before it, this limited-to-500 release might not even survive pre-orders, so act fast and get on this shit.

MP3: “I Go I Go I Go” - Wave Machines

Iglu & Hartly are just a blog hype explosion waiting to happen. In fact, it’s a bit ridiculous how little coverage (read: no coverage) the LA-based quartet has received around the blogs, considering they had all kinds of people buzzing here after SXSW. So much so, that word on the street has it they’ve locked down a ridiculous contract from a major label here (who will remain unnamed for the time being) that’s fully down to sink a shit-ton of money into the band and currently has them in the studio recording with sound engineer Mark Needham of the Killers and Bloc Party fame. All this for a band whose sound has to be described as extremely polarizing at best. That said, they’ve got a hell of a single in “Violent & Young” and a label determined to make superstars out of them, but hey - this is still only a few degrees of separation (or, uh, no degrees of separation) from rap-rock, and hasn’t Linkin Park pretty much ruined that for everyone by now?

Like MGMT going through a Crazytown phase, there’s no doubt Iglu & Hartly have a unique sound, but there’s also no doubt the whole hip-hop element and nasally hipster flow is off-putting as shit upon the first few listens. Plus, they’re so fucking LA it makes me want to vomit all over my party pix, but god damn these kids know how to write a hook, and if the chorus of “Violent & Young” doesn’t make a believer out of you then you need to get your ears checked. One of the best debut singles of the year? I can’t really believe I’m saying this, but yeah, pretty much.

MP3: “Violent & Young” - Iglu & Hartly

It’s hard to write objectively about music your friends make - which is why you’ve not seen any mention of Santa here before - but I’ve been spinning their new EP a lot recently and think it’s time to spread the word to the masses. The five-piece have amassed a significant following in their home state with extensive gigging around the Champain area, and now they’re ready to take things to the next level with the release of their sophomore EP, My Bones.

Led by the two-headed cousinly attack of guitarists Stanton and Mack McConnell, the EP is a lovely little affair full of laid-back summer jams that evoke reminiscences of late afternoons on the beach and the long light of summertime. “Hashish” is all breezy keyboard tones and stories of young love lost but not forgotten, while songs like “Over” and the EP’s lead-off track “The Crumble” showcase the exceptional songwriting ability of the former McConnell (that would be Stan, for those of you keeping score at home). The recordings are tight and polished thanks to fine production from Brian Zieske, and the whole thing is a decidedly professional outing for a band decidedly still a bit wet behind the ears. Here’s “Hashish”, the would-be single off My Bones, in all its summerloving glory. Feedback welcome, y’all, don’t hesitate to share your thoughts in the comments.

MP3: “Hashish” - Santa

Speaking of Brian Zieske, dude’s calling card in the immediate future will most likely become the production work he’s done with Sars Flannery on his forthcoming debut LP, Sale of the Century. There’s been a bit of buzz swirling around the up and coming Chicago singer-songwriter for a minute now (including a rumored offer on the table from Top 40 kingmakers Fueled By Ramen), and while most of his oeuvre isn’t really my cup of tea, “Empty Gun” sounds like a surefire American radio hit to me, even if it’s slightly reminiscent of the kind of thing that could have enjoyed much more success had it come around in the late 90’s. Major label A&R folks take note, this shit is tailor made for the US charts.

MP3: “Empty Gun” - Sars Flannery

Those of you in the Chicago area would do well to hit up the Abbey Pub this Sunday for Santa’s Chicago debut, where they’ll be taking the stage and pushing their wares alongside a bunch of other Chi-Town bands they’re probably significantly better than. I mean, it’s a Sunday night and - let’s be real - you really don’t have anything better to do.

Post War Years live in an abandoned hairdresser/Russian social club (obviously the two go hand in hand) in Leamington Spa, England, a place I’ve never heard of that probably isn’t quite as relaxing as it sounds. Having cruised into the new year on a wave of significant buzz, they’re debut single sees release today on shit-hot London imprint Chess Club, fresh off the release of last months’ mega-hyped White Lies single. “The Black Morning”, as it’s called, bounces along on a repetitious piano riff that borders on experimental ambiance, but quickly establishes itself as decidedly livelier fare on the strength of an animated drumbeat and a chorus of cascading synths and handclaps that goes down as one of the best in recent memory. Produced by fellow Leamington Spa up-and-comers Mysterons, the whole affair is highly reminiscent of Tom Vek’s eclectic sonic tapestries, but B-side “You And Me Both” could straight-up be a lost cut off Vek’s We Have Sound and those eagerly awaiting news of the reclusive multi-instrumentalist’s still-unannounced sophomore album would do well to get all up into this Post War Years’ single in the meantime.

MP3: “The Black Morning” - Post War Years
MP3: “You And Me Both” - Post War Years

In other news, Lykke Li’s debut UK single “I’m Good I’m Gone” hit the DJ circuit this past week with the circulation of the remix EP that will be supporting the single when its out via 679 June 2nd. Highlights include a remarkably decent Black Kids remix, but anyone throwing that up on the blogs is likely just trying to melt the hype machine with a track uniting the two biggest blog superstars of the new year, since it’s Fred Falke’s epic rework that completely steals the show here. Wait for the 4:20 mark when the lows drop out and Falke gets all atmospheric on your ass, before bringing the beat back harder then ever 40 seconds later. This is gold, folks.

MP3: “I’m Good I’m Gone” (Fred Falke Remix) - Lykke Li [link removed]
Finally, here’s another Good Weather exclusive courtesy of the I Was A Cub Scout bros and our friends over at Abeano Music. “Close To Me” is an undoubtedly unfuckwithable classic, but the Cub Scout guys do a pretty great job on this just-finished cover, the result of some found studio time and creative restlessness as they bask in the critical acclaim for their debut album, I Want You To Know That There Is Always Hope. They stay pretty faithful to the original, but that’s hardly a bad thing, and this is a great track to rock in this remarkably glorious springtime whether we’ve been enjoying for the past few weeks.

MP3: “Close To Me” - I Was A Cub Scout [exclusive]

ATP ruled harder than you can even imagine. Full report in the coming days, assuming I can find some time between finals tomorrow and heading down to Brighton for the Great Escape on Thursday.