Send-Off | California

S&S is going unplugged for a few days.

And after that time, it'll be plugging in from a new location: Brooklyn.

This, is exciting.

California, I will always love you. Your magic is real. Your spirit is in me.

Have fun. Be safe. Get weird.

(photo)

It's Coming Around

"I'll get it, I'll get it, I'll get it, I'll get it."

On the move today, physically buried in task, mentally buried in thought, I'm still free though with a singular notion to echo:

BAnanas Symphony | It's Coming Around

Yohsuke Araki of Blackhawks added the gazing track above and the Caribbean-tinged "Dumb Teenage Love" to his solo outfit BAnanas Symphony. Grab both at bandcamp.

STEPHANIE

"We're from Seattle, where the clouds at night are big and bright."

This dose of poisonous pop called "Meds" keeps interrupting an otherwise chill breakfast here. It's happened a few times now: song shuffles in, I spit milk, check iTunes, say "oh right, STEPHANIE, digging this."

STEPHANIE | Meds

STEPHANIE | Love For Sale

Stephanie 2010 CS/CD is bratty post-punk gone galaxy surfing. Obtainable at GGNZLA.

Monday Love | Chesapeake

Another shred approved matching of sound and vision. This time from the light, focused force of Evenings, whose North Dorm EP has crept its way into heavy, focused rotation (free at bandcamp). And to extend that flash just a moment longer:

Evenings | Chesapeake

(via//via)

Palm Reader

Another hula-loop destiny from Monster Rally arrived this morning. Like previous instrumentals, these tracks come from some beach lounge in our subconscious, and they're free at bandcamp.

Monster Rally | Steal

It appears there will more to Palm Reader come September, and a cassette to be experienced.

Tuesday Love | In Lieu of Flowers

Shred Wednesday approved visuals gliding with a standout track from one of year's finest releases, Stoned Alone. All smiles.

DOWNHILL EXXXPRESS

"work it work it work it work it work it"

As if he hadn't steamed this year out enough, Detroit's Coyote Clean Up is back with 12 more tracks. Downhill Exxxpress keeps a good thing going, but Chrissy's got the dial maxed here, raising sultry whispers and smooth grooves to hot flash. Here's a lead off:

Coyote Clean Up | Downhill Express

The rest arrives digitally and on purple tapes, July 25th.

`+`

Wise Blood is wild fire, set just a few hours ago, and I'm feeling a need to further feed. The five tracks on `+` are bizarrely cohesive given their ranging samples and general free formage. Self-tagged as 'future music', and why not, with time periods overlapping into fresh warp. Pittsburgh's Christopher Laufman is the name attached, and that's about all we know.

Wise Blood | HERE COMES THE SUN

Wise Blood | B.I.G. E.G.O.

Grab the EP at bandcamp.

(via)

ALPS

"cold static dance in Siberia forest"

Waiting for the wind to return after a blindsiding courtesy of Russia's Motorama. This is a full band with sonic waves in all the right places, calling back to post-punk with a genuine smile. What clean fun.

Motorama | Wind In Her Hair

Alps in its entirety is available for free at their site.

(via)

Nate's Summer Mix 2010 | Volume 2

Nate LC's last compilation hinted that there would be a second dose of shamelessly sunny pop for your playlists, and now here it is. He also lined up both volumes on a continuous mp3 which certainly earns its endless artwork. Nate's been too kind with these mixes over the past year, and it was only a matter of time before he'd give them a home of their own. So grab it all from his tumblr.

Wednesday Love | The Endless Field of Mercury

Powerful track from ANR meets Jamie Harley, the man with an astonishing ability reach our hearts through our eyes.

(via)

Monday Love | The Crown

"there's no such thing as a royal few"

Made with footage from the childhoods of Zachary Tipton and his cousin.

(via//bandcamp)

Lonesome

Consider me slightly floored by the four charming tracks that make up Lonesome. They came over with the humblest of notes from one Allister Izenberg, and do indeed suit a scene like the one above. Lonesome he is, but each spin reveals more hints of sunlight through his bedroom blinds that would have one believe Allister isn't the miserable kind of alone, but rather, the restlessly inventive.

Bird chirps, loon calls, saloon pianos...Lonesome had me intrigued too, so we ended up trading a few e-mails:

DS: Age 19, from Los Angeles, what else should we know about Allister Izenberg?

AI: That's all you really should know about Allister Izenberg :)

DS: I've made some assumptions about how Lonesome was recorded. Fill me in.

AI: The recording process was lonely, dark, with my heater blanket, and sleepytime tea.

DS: Did you have any other records with you? Specifically The White Album? "Little Swan" has this "Don't Pass Me By" / "Honey Pie" thing going on. "Allodoxaphobia" plays with a melody from the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind soundtrack, which results in a unique yet equally moving song.

Allister Izenberg | Little Swan

Allister Izenberg | Allodoxaphobia

AI: There's always some Beatles somewhere, and for "Allodoxaphobia" I was alone one night in my room and I was watching Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and it was so beautiful and I was so touched by Jon Brion's piece I decided to make my own song out of it not thinking anyone would hear it besides my friends.

DS: You're doing some west coast shows with Stereo Total. Excited? Have you toured much?

AI: I am so excited to go on tour and take these pups to the stage. I toured opening for Roger Daltrey (The Who) in my last band which was pretty sweet, we played some amazingly beautiful venues which I wish to revisit one day. The band broke up due to musical differences, we were called Paper Zoo. So stoked to go out though, so stoked.

DS: Very cool man, best of luck. Mind if I .zip up this EP and mediafire it out?

AI: Sure, zip that up.


Allister also mentioned he went to high school and played some shows with Will Wiesenfeld (Baths). Must be something in those water fountains.

COOLRUNNINGS | ROAD TO NOWHERE

COOLRUNNINGS went and covered one of the best songs of all time (and a personal favorite). It's late, I've had a few beers, talked about the 4th dimension, of course this is happening.

COOLRUNNINGS - ROAD TO NOWHERE (TALKING HEADS COVER)

Goodnight.

Friday Send-Off | Hazy House Flow (Rub Your Body Up To Mine)

Damn you're sexy, weekend.

And gosh, has the vimeo experience over at Moduli TV been on a telepathic tear as of late.

The sampled n' warped jam above might be misleading when it comes to the drone world in which Montreal's Hobo Cubes is heavily productive, and I'm just starting to mine through. It's a deep and sometimes disorienting one, so this Hobo Cult Records compilation might be used as a guide (click artwork below).

Also take two from this year's Hypnotic Infinitum:

Hobo Cubes | AXXA
Hobo Cubes | Onde Astrali (w/ Bernardino Femminielli

Have fun. Be safe. Get weird.

Photosynthesis

I still call upon "Photosynthesis" almost daily, even after the play-count upping process of forming a mix. The same can be said for all transportive tracks on NEON CANYON's EP (free here). They never cease to deliver when daydreams are needed.

Our friend ZJ Wong connected visuals nicely (again), off we go.

And take the recent collaboration with Blackbird Blackbird while you're at it:

Blackbird Blackbird & Neon Canyon - We Have to Know

(via)

Baths @ The Troubadour [LA;07/02/10; plus Converse]

(photos by Steph Thompson)

It was pure love last Saturday at the Troubadour, all directed at Will Wiesenfeld, who so graciously had a lot to give back to us. To celebrate the release of Cerulean, Baths performed a magnetic set following friends Daedelus, El Ten Eleven and MatthewDavid. With mastery over his MIDI, pouring his heart into every movement, Will assembled each track piece by piece, which at times became a game in how fast the audience could identify songs. This of course, had Will singing out of a huge smile, eventually declaring, "you guys, this is honestly the best night of my life."

I've never been happier for an artist.

Much more could be said, but my wordy piece on Cerulean just went live today on Converse, so I'll send ya there.

Sultan

Brooklyn's Sultan is an audible exhale lingering in the wind, which makes Summer Sigh too good of a title. The virtual 7" (free at bandcamp) bustles on an unrestrained guitar, extending its three tracks past 25 minutes, fit for those who warm to the sleepier spells of Sun Araw, Ducktails, and the like.

Outside of the wordless Sigh, we can ease into Kayla Cohen's vocals on "There Goes My Girl" – one of the sweetest atmospheres I've been in all year. This is from a compilation by Blackburn Recordings.

Sultan | There Goes My Girl

Also take two from Spring 2010 CDR (m4a), first hums, second gazes:

Sultan | Picture

Sultan | Commanded

(via//via)

RxRy * | * VAEIOUWLS + CONSTANT CONSONANCE MIX

Like all material to date, RxRy decided to transmit his second LP, VAEIOUWLS, directly and generously. Also like previous RxRy work, this album unlocks a truly distinct and spellbinding dimension, where underwater machines interact with prism-faced lifeforms (etc).

"happy independence day

Americans: stay wild.

_Rx"

* | * 2010 * | *

UPDATE: here's track 07, since that one was an error for some:

RxRy | EUIEE (dancer sea floor bed)

And there's more.

"To accompany this "leak"

I want to send out a group of tracks

a "mix"

of songs that served inspirational to me

during this recording process:

CONSTANT_CONSONANCE:

1. kites sail high _ 16

2. 1 mile north _ return to from where we came

3. odd nosdam _ DC bit (boards of canada)

4. burial _ ghost hardware

5. belong _ girl from new york

6. four tet _ skttrbrain (radiohead remix)

7. bullion _ i just wasn't made for these times (beach boys/dilla)

8. telefon tel aviv _ your face reminds me of when we're old

9. teebs _ untitled 3

10. loscil _ cloister

11. boards of canada _ moment of clarity

12. yellow swans _ limited space"

Friday Send-Off | Valley of Abra

Alba Lua took off somewhat quietly into the June sky, and now appear to be bursting streams of soft psychedelia all over July's with their Ballad of Joseph Merrick release. The short and sweet EP is not freely floating, so here's a third of it:

Alba Lua | Valley of Abra

ps // this pretty song from France (recorded in Barcelona) may not be the expected send-off for such a patriotic weekend. We could always do this...

Have fun. Be safe. Get weird.

M M R

I've been silently infatuated all week with the latest avalanche of magic mountain ambiance from MICKEY MICKEY ROURKE. Miller has really outdone himself here, which is something special considering the weight that Festive Bummer carried. From the unexpected ghost tribe greeting of "BIGGIE" to the expiring light of "HOPPER COLEMAN JACKSON", M M R is equal parts thrilling and tragic, able to push as much as it cradles.

MICKEY MICKEY ROURKE | HOPPER COLEMAN JACKSON

He's giving it away in its entirety here. Highly recommended.

Burnt Sienna