Hatcham Social's "So So Happy Making"

I thought the peak of tweedom had been reached when I heard "Penelope (Under My Hat)." Then I listened to "So So Happy Making," and my ears bled tulips and I felt compelled to hug everyone I met and call them "sweetness." Fortunately, I was able to counteract that moment of deviance and settle back into my normal mindset by listening to Magazine's "Permafrost" immediately afterwards.

Not that "So So Happy Making" is a bad song. Quite the opposite, in fact. Jangly guitars, sparkling melodies and strategically-used xylophones make this great fun to listen to. Possible twee side-effects are effectively diminished by the single's b-side, "Berlin," a bass-driven song with enough attitude to blacken even the most colorful of flowers.

Hatcham Social are officially hugely important in music's current state of affairs. Expectancy compounds with each release the band offers, and so far their irrepressible pop sensibilities and intelligent lyrics have yet to disappoint. Their b-sides are better than most band's bread and butter songs. Enjoy their steady climb toward a full-length release, there may not be another like it for a long time.

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Purchase the "So So Happy Making" single with "Berlin" b-side from Loog Records.

Watch the video:



www.hatchamsocial.co.uk

www.myspace.com/hatchamsocial

Mystery Jets Woo With "Young Love"

Mystery Jets have released the video of their upcoming single, "Young Love," specifically to coincide with Valentine's Day. The track, featuring guest vocals from folk rocker Laura Marling, is the first official single for the Jets' sophomore album Twenty One, due out this spring (end of April, perhaps?)

"Young Love" will be released on CD/7" on March 5th. Pre-ordering the value bundle will net you all three formats (CD, two different vinyls), plus the gatefold vinyl will be autographed by the band. All for £4. That's a steal, folks. I just got mine, in fact . . .


Tracklistings:

CD - Young Love/Uber Liebe Geld (Flakes Dictaphone Demo)

7" Gatefold - Young Love/Metal Soul

7" Standard - Young Love (Shoes Remix)/Girl Shaped Gun


I'll have a proper review for the single closer to the release date. In the meantime, enjoy the visually-intriguing video:

www.mysteryjets.com

www.myspace.com/mysteryjets

iLiKETRAiNS I do I do I do . . .

"We Go Hunting," the latest single from iLiKETRAiNS' brilliant album Elegies to Lessons Learnt, is the most musically upbeat and pop-ish track from that record. But this, of course, is a bit like saying Linda Kasabian was the happiest and most well-adjusted member of the Manson Family since she only drove the getaway car and didn't really mean to kill anyone. (Side note: She didn't technically kill anyone, just watched.)

Despite a somewhat airier sound than the other tracks, the opening lyric on "We Go Hunting" sets the tone: "I curse the day I ever set foot in this god-forsaken town." And the rest of the song goes on to talk about Samuel Parris, a Puritan minister during the Salem Witch Trials (and morally-incongruent father and uncle to two of the child accusers).

iLiKETRAiNS don't make the mistake Parris did with simplistic, black and white thinking, however. "We Go Hunting" is an empathetic portrayal: a father truly worried about his daughter resorting to the only method he thinks will save her. Conquer the demons before they conquer you.

All of this translates into a taut yet thunderous and haunting song. More than that, however, "We Go Hunting," like so many of iLiKETRAiNS' songs, highlights the tenuous relationship between fear and morality, between authenticity and cardboard selves. Man versus His Own Nature is perhaps the most critical conflict of all, for what could a man hope to accomplish when he himself is mis-aligned? But then it is probably more complex than that . . .

View a timeline and read more about the people and events in iLiKETRAiNS' songs here.

www.myspace.com/iliketrains

www.iliketrains.co.uk

**Edit to post: Silly me, I just now have found out this single release has been pushed back to April 21, to coincide with the band's European tour. Alas. I shall leave this up and repost around that time.

Deerhunter Side Projects (Free Downloads!)

The front-men of Atlantan super-indie bands Deerhunter and the Black Lips have formed a new project together called Ghetto Cross. Bradford Cox (Deerhunter) and Cole Alexander (Black Lips) had talked about collaborating before, and decided to put the idea into production last month.

Ghetto Cross' first release will be the single "Dog Years," on 7" by England's Drug Racer Records. Cox wants to complete recording before Atlas Sound's upcoming tour (more on that below), which begins Feb. 16th. A rough version of "Dog Years" was recorded two weeks ago on Jan. 26th. Listen to it here.

Meanwhile, Bradford Cox's solo project, Atlas Sound, gears up for its debut album's release on February 19th. The album, Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel, features 14 songs which, according to Cox, don't quite fit into Deerhunter's sound. Want to preview that sound for yourself? No need to wait for the album, Cox has posted the Orange Ohms Glow EP on Deerhunter's blog for free downloading.

Recorded just a few days ago from Feb. 2nd - 5th, the EP contains none of the songs From the upcoming album. Stand-out tracks include "Activation" and "Coriander," which Cox says is an "attempt at making a Casino Versus Japan song." While it doesn't sound like Casino Versus Japan, it is an excellent Atlas Sound song. The final song of the album is an interesting take on "Valley of the Saroos," originally by Joe Meek and the Blue Men. Atlas Sound trades in the glassy starkness of the original for a richly warm sound that feels more spaghetti western than it does sci-fi.

www.myspace.com/bradfordcox

http://deerhuntertheband.blogspot.com/

New Single from Blood Red Shoes

A pressing intensity drives "You Bring Me Down," the third single (and the band's first ever CD single) from Blood Red Shoes' forthcoming album. But despite its lyrics, the song does anything but bring you down. Utterly buoyant, the song is considerably less visceral than their last single "I Wish I Was Someone Else," though that song was a bass-soaked savage with hints of mental instability, so comparisons are probably irrelevant.

Still, the things that are similar are inherent to Blood Red Shoes' sound: catchy melodies, crisp and creative rhythms, post-punk guitars, vocals that range from just above a whisper to yells pulled from the gut. The two-piece creates a sound much larger than what you'd expect, and Laura-Mary Carter's lead vocals nimbly toe the edge between vulnerability and aggression in "You Bring Me Down."

The single was originally released in a different version on 7" back in November of 2006. This newer version is, like the band claims, "heavier and louder." And, in an era where bands can form, tour, put out an album and disband in less than a year, "You Bring Me Down" gets a fitting release just before the debut album's release in April.

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"You Bring Me Down" will be released tomorrow in the UK, and Feb. 6th in the US, on CD and also on two different 7" pressings. If you pre-order in time from RecordStore, you can get a limited-edition signed 7".

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New "You Bring Me Down" Video:




www.bloodredshoes.co.uk

www.myspace.com/bloodredshoes

Need to Know: Nelson

No, not the bleach-blonde, heavy metal Brothers Nelson of the early 90s. But the French post-punk quartet Nelson of Now. They put out their debut, Revolving Doors, in 2006, but I heard them for the first time just a few weeks ago.

Nelson channels Gang of Four with their rhythmic intensity, overlapping vocals and lyrical depth. But they add to that electronic embellishes, heavier bass and a denser sound overall. It's comparable to the Norwegian electro post-punk of 120 Days, but Nelson is tighter with more pop and less post-rock -- you won't find any 7 minute songs here.

No news of a sophomore follow-up yet, but the band is touring central Europe as I type, so here's hoping a new album is on the horizon. In the meantime, here's a sample MP3 and video:

Hear and download "The (Over) Song."

"You Can't Stop Thinking About It" vid:



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www.myspace.com/nelsonrock

Charlatans to Release New Album for Free

Brit rock masters The Charlatans will release their new album, You Cross My Path, for free beginning March 3rd. The album will then be available in CD and vinyl formats starting May 19th, on Cooking Vinyl records.

Ever prolific, this is the band's 10th studio album since releasing their epic debut, Some Friendly, back in 1990. Europeans will get first crack at hearing the album live as The Charlies jet from Portugal to Belgium throughout the month of February.

To download the album, simply go to xfm.co.uk on March 3rd. But to get you in the mood, the first single from the album, its namesake, is already available to download. Dig it at The Charlatans website, in the bottom right corner of the home page. Here's the album's full track listing:

1. Oh! Vanity
2. Bad Days
3. Mis-takes
4. The Misbegotten
5. A Day for Letting Go
6. You Cross My Path
7. Missing Beats (of a Generation)
8. My Name is Despair
9. Bird
10. This is the End


Preview lead single "You Cross My Path" right now: