The XX are a London quartet that look like they fell out of the early 80s British dark romantic gothic scene led by Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure and Bauhaus. Don’t hold this against them, they aren’t the typical watered down Joy Division NME-praised next big thing. They have their own unique sound, heart-breaking hushed boy/girl vocals layered over ambient Slowdive (Pygmalion-era) guitars and low-end electronics. They still manage create accessible pop music, down-tempo in speed, but catchy after a couple of listens.
The band has signed to Rough Trade in the UK, and are just about to release their debut self-titled disc on August 17th. Check out the video for first single Crystalised below.
The band are playing a handful of shows in NYC this month but have no announced plans for a full North American tour (they are just playing their first headlining shows in London this month).
Amanda Blankhas been kicking it for years in the indie hip hop scene with Spank Rock. She’s the female MC in the band, and spills dirty rhymes over Spank’s ass shaking beats. She’s done a ton of excellent guest appearances on tracks by Santogold, M.I.A, Ghostface Killah and Plastic Little. Amanda is set to release her debut album titled I Love You on Downtown Records on released August 4th. She previewed a bunch of new tracks supporting Santogold, and if they are any indication, the album is going to be great.
Amanda has just been added as support for Yeah Yeah Yeahs short North American tour. Check her out at the dates below:
7/28 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues – Cleveland
7/29 – Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
7/31 – Jersey City, NJ @ All Points West
8/01 – Clifton Park, NY @ Northern Lights
8/04 – Toronto, ON @ Kool Haus
8/05 – Toronto, ON @ Kool Haus
Meet The Drums. Very new, young-looking, cute and insanely catchy. Catchy like you’ll find yourself humming their tunes, attempting to belt them out a capella but because you’ve just heard them, you can’t remember the lyrics. Catchy in a sense that you’ll feel like their songs have exsisted for years, but in reality, they were just recorded. The Drums are heavily influenced by the Factory Records scene (out of England that brought us Joy Divison, New Order etc.) and 50′s surf pop.
The band made their live debut May 17, 2009 at NYC Popfest. Yup, less than two months ago. But apparently they killed it. BrooklynVegan was there and was blown away. Read about their show here. They are set to release an EP on August 4th titled Summertime! I’m not sure if its the same EP that’s floating around the internet right now, but if it is, pre-order it asap here. It’s wicked good. The band has a bunch of dated booked this summer in NYC. Let’s hope the blog love propels them onto a larger tour, bringing to Toronto so we can dance.
Watch them perform Let’s Go Surfing live during NYC Popfest at the Cakeshop below.
Discovery is a auto-tuned side project of both Vampire Weekend and Ra Ra Riot and features Rostam Batmanglij (VP) and Wes Miles (RRR). Their influences listed on their myspace are as follows: subwoofer, pitchshifted handclap, that sixteenth note high hat you’re hearing in da night, highlighter yellow/neon orange. This pretty much sums up their debut album, due out July 7th in North America on XL. Remember when Bon Iver released the Blood Bank EP and the blogs were up in arms about his use of auto-tune? Well their gonna flip their lids with this one.
The album can only be explained as indie hip-pop, it’s heavily influenced by Top 40 hip hop/pop but still maintains its indie rockness via smart lyrics and great vocals. Orange Shirt sounds like it was produced by whoever typically produces Young Jeezy, its full of big bass, clipping hi-hats, grinding synths and a sing-a-long chorus. I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend channels a classic Mariah Carey hook and has a wicked stuttering beat. Swing Tree has an island, dance hall feel, and Carby features vocals by Erza Koenig (of Vampire Weekend) and reminds me of Postal Service. Plus there is a killer cover of the Jackson 5′sI Want You Back.
Discovery’s debut is shaping up to be the party album of the summer. No tour plans on the horizon, but if dates surface, I’ll be sure to post them
