Tag Archives: Amen Dunes

Best New Bands of 2011 HUMMINGBIRD AWARD: #1 Other Lives

28 Dec

Jeremy Charles thank you for this perfect photo of our #1 Best New Band of 2011. The Hummingbird Award is well deserved.

Best New Band of 2011
#1 Hummingbird Award – Other Lives

I like what we originally said back in May:
The band is really seven years old, forming under the name Kunek, they created an EP and made Stillwater, OK proudly scream for their hometown heroes. An album a name change and now a new record and Other Lives thrills America with a beautiful record. Think Wolf Parade, sprinkle the bells of Sigur Ros and a tad bit of National brooding without the guttoral leads. It’s a DNA favorite of Southern fried folk. Tamer Animals is a great record and one that I think you’ll be raving about all year. Buy the record here –> on LP

To add to that:
The band is so good, they deserve to be opening for Radiohead. They were the most viewed artist at NewBandDay in 2011, and the album never left our playlist. We’re not from Oklahoma, but I’ve been to Stillwater. I wish we saw them in 2009 when their first unnoticed record hit the streets. Stillwater, is a college town, but seriously something interesting is happening in the middle of the US. Even Radiohead noticed. We do tend to bend our own rules here…Other Lives’ first record was released in 2009, but to little fanfare. The blogs loved it, but it was mildly picked up. It took two records for the band to perfect The Red Dirt sound. Tamer Animals might be considered the water shed moment of the sound. It’s The National’s tear jerking vocals and songwriting, but the sounds are more layered and a little more airy. It doesn’t slip into the dream state, but it’s edges on it. Tabish’s vocals are so alluring, you can’t help but sing along, or hum along and you’re begging for the next track. The album is amazing and it’s worth a listen over and over and over and over…If you’re about to say “Other Lives isn’t a new band.” We say “We don’t care and you’re a lame music snob who needs to find another blog to read.” So take that and enjoy the best new band of 2011.

Read the original post on 5.12.11

Vitals:
Hometown: Stillwater, OK
Members:
Jesse Tabish (piano, guitar, lead vocals)
Josh Onstott (bass, organ, Backing vocals)
Jenny Hsu (cello, piano, Backing Vocals)
Colby Owens (drums)
Jonathon Mooney (piano,violin, guitar)
Sonic Soulmates™: Mercury Rev, The National, Wolf Parade
Trackables™:
“For 12 (Demo)” – The song that made Thom Yorke stop for a listen.

“Tamer Animals”

Follow:
MySpace
Facebook
Official Site
Spotify

WHAT ARE THE HUMMINGBIRDS?
2011 Winners

Hummingbird Award #13: Lana Del Rey
Hummingbird Award #12: WATERS
Hummingbird Award #11: Suuns
Hummingbird Award #10: La Sera
Hummingbird Award #9: Sun Airway
Hummingbird Award #8: White Denim
Hummingbird Award #7: Dirty Beaches
Hummingbird Award #6: Widowspeak
Hummingbird Award #5: Charles Bradley
Hummingbird Award #4: EMA
Hummingbird Award #3: The Vaccines
Hummingbird Award #2: James Vincent McMorrow
Hummingbird Award #1: Other Lives

LISTEN TO ALL 13 HUMMINGBIRDS PLAYLIST HERE
BUY ALL THE HUMMINGBIRD ALBUMS HERE

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Best New Bands of 2011 HUMMINGBIRD AWARD: #2 James Vincent McMorrow

27 Dec

yes he recorded the entire record in this tranquil forest. James Vincent Mcmorrow deserves the accolades and the #2 Hummingbird Award

Best New Band of 2011
#2 Hummingbird Award – James Vincent McMorrow
He’s Irish, his songwriting is heart wrenching and he might be as good as Bon Iver. That’s a bold statement, but it should give you some context as to why James Vincent McMorrow is our 2nd favorite new artist of 2011. I would say he has the talent to rival Cody Chestnutt and James Blake. Buy Early In The Morning

Vitals:
Hometown: Dublin, Ireland
Members: James Vincent McMorrow
Sonic Soulmates: Bon Iver, Perfume Genius, Damon McMahon of Amen Dunes
Must Hear Tracks:
“If I Had a Boat” – McMorrow’s smokey voice sings of freedom from that trapped place in his seaside cottage. Quite possibly my favorite track of the year.

“Like the River” – Winding through the acoustic mind of McMorrow sounds much like that or Ray Lamontagne.

“This Old Dark Machine” – Andrew Bird styled recordings. Love it.

Follow James:
Official Site
Facebook
MySpace
Twitter
Spotify

Original Post: Band of the Day 2.7.11

WHAT ARE THE HUMMINGBIRDS?
2011 Winners
Hummingbird Award #13: Lana Del Rey
Hummingbird Award #12: WATERS
Hummingbird Award #11: Suuns
Hummingbird Award #10: La Sera
Hummingbird Award #9: Sun Airway
Hummingbird Award #8: White Denim
Hummingbird Award #7: Dirty Beaches
Hummingbird Award #6: Widowspeak
Hummingbird Award #5: Charles Bradley
Hummingbird Award #4: EMA
Hummingbird Award #3: The Vaccines

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Band of the Day (2.7.11) James Vincent McMorrow

7 Feb

Best New Singer/Songwriter James Vincent McMorrow does Bon Iver better photo by Julie Ling. julielingphotography.com

Best New Singer/Songwriter James Vincent McMorrow photo by Julie Ling. julielingphotography.com


Band of the Day (2.7.11) James Vincent McMorrow

James Vincent McMorrow took Ireland by storm in 2010. He’s an offspring of the sad trapped indie folkster. Bon Iver was the leader in the physically trapped away from isolation singer songwriters. Bon Iver chose the chilly midwestern plains of Wisconsin. Then Damon McMahon of Amen Dunes trapped himself in a Catskills cabin. Now James Vincent McMorrow’s stunning collection of songs recorded over 5 months in an isolated house by the sea of Ireland. McMorrow wrote, performed and recorded the album by himself. He released it on a limited basis in Ireland in February 2010. Last week Americans were granted access to this perfection of sound. Buy Early In The Morning Now… I promise it will be your favorite record of 2011. Guaranteed!!! The uber DYI thing is great when you have the skills. I’ve heard many a record this year of others attempting this and failing miserably. I actually think James Vincent McMorrow crushed it, and I think he may be the most talented of the bunch. He adds clean acoustic guitars, wailing slide guitars, banjos and the pipes that rival James Blake, Neil Young and Cody Chestnutt. Our nomination for a Hummingbird has already been submitted.

Vitals:
Hometown: Dublin, Ireland
Members: James Vincent McMorrow
Sonic Soulmates: Bon Iver, Perfume Genius, Damon McMahon of Amen Dunes
Must Hear Tracks:
“If I Had a Boat” – McMorrow’s smokey voice sings of freedom from that trapped place in his seaside cottage. Quite possibly my favorite track of the year.

“Like the River” – Winding through the acoustic mind of McMorrow sounds much like that or Ray Lamontagne.

“This Old Dark Machine” – Andrew Bird styled recordings. Love it.

BUY THE RECORD!!!!

Follow James:
Official Site
Facebook
MySpace
Twitter

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Band of the Day (8.6.10) Perfume Genius

6 Aug

BOD: (8.6.10) PERFUME GENIUS

Trembling voices always seem to catch my attention. It’s those solo guys that hole themselves up under some form of depression and write music that is so heartfelt that you can’t help but hope that this is their form of catharsis. The recent success of Bon Iver and Damon McMahon (Amen Dunes) prove that sharing your pain with a simple piano or an acoustic guitar can bring well earned blog and fan appeal. Perfume Genius, Mike Hadreas, is no exception to this rule. He is a Seattle native with a soft, fragile voice backed simply by a piano and lo-fi echoes. His songs stammer in minor chords and reflect on suicide, depression and loss. The amazing thing is that through the gray, you see his ability to spray one ray of sunshine. I don’t expect you to put this on your Summer Fun playlist, but if you want quality mood music, grab your headphones, a bottle of wine and a comfy chair, Hadreas is sure to take you on a roller coaster of emotions.

A few tracks are included below:
“Mr. Peterson” – Track about the loss of a favorite teacher to suicide.

“Learning” – A bad break-up

Watch:
“Lookout, Lookout”

Follow:

Facebook
MySpace

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The Week in Review (7.31.10)

1 Aug

Listen to the Jim Jones RevueHow was your week? Mine was fantastic, I found five new bands that made my day and now I’m hoping they make your week or even your month. One of my favorite bands possibly for year was introduced this week. Enjoy the music.

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Monday (7.26.10) Sisters, Aaron Pfannnebecker on Vocals, Guitars and Matt Conboy on Drums, Keyboards. They stack up the amps and pile drive their sound similar to early Husker Du and Dinosaur Jr. Malkmusesque. Brooklyn is home to Sisters

Sisters – “Highway Scratch”

Tuesday (7.27.10) The Jim Jones Revue This is the band of the month for me. I love them and so will you. It’s the wailing guitar, coupled with the banging piano and Jim’s screaming and wailing at top octane. Blues guitar, slapping piano and classic 60′s soul. I hope you enjoy them as much as me. If someone gave Little Richard some rage you’d have JJR. The boys are from London, but I believe Alabama is where their roots lie.

The Jim Jones Revue – “Hey Hey Hey Hey”

Wednesday (7.28.10) Amen Dunes – This is a timeless piece of music and am thoroughly impressed by Damon McMahon’s ability to make his sound both classic and modern. HEAR “Murder Dull Minds” to really get the best of what Amen Dunes can offer. Damon is from Brooklyn, NY now in Beijing.

Amen Dunes – “Murder Dull Minds”

Thursday (7.29.10) Frankie Rose and The Outs – If you’re a fan of Vivian Girls, Crystal Stilts and the Dum Dum Girls, then you’re a fan of Frankie Rose. Her stick thumping was and is the driving force behind them. Now, she’s stepping off the stool to get behind the mic to help lead The Outs. “Little Brown Haired Girls” is such an amazing track, conjuring up so many great recent female indie led bands.

Frankie Rose & The Outs “Little Brown Haired Girls”

Friday (7.30.10) FUTUREBIRDS – Athens, GA is back and they bring us FUTUREBIRDS. It’s an amazing array of instruments played by talented musicians all coming together for one sole cause…great music. The spacey folk is so good and unique, please please listen to “Johnny Utah” it’s sooooo so nice on this hottt summer day.

FUTUREBIRDS – “Johnny Utah”

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Thanks for listening

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Band of the Day: (7.28.10) AMEN DUNES

28 Jul Damon McMahon crushes your soul softly.

BOD: (7.28.10) AMEN DUNES

Damon McMahon a Brooklyn, NY native, may have followed the lead of Bon Iver, but there’s something special here. Much like Iver, he recorded his first record trapped in a Catskill’s cabin. Though I think trapping yourself in the Wisconsin wilderness in the middle of winter is a bit more rugged, we’re not comparing REI membership cards here. McMahon is another virtuoso, in that his sound belongs on some dusty 60’s vinyl recording. Reference The Zombies classic “The Way I Feel Inside” to give yourself the a frame of reference for his sound. It’s clean but isolating. You can almost hear the surrounding nature of his environment. Following yesterday’s romp and stomp soulful Jim Jones Revue, I find Amen Dunes to be a relaxing come down from that crazy evening. May even be the break-up artist of 2010.

Since DIA, Damon has since moved to Beijing and his isolated sounds have expanded a bit. Murder Dull Minds EP was released yesterday and it’s Asian influences are haunting. It’s scary how deep we’ve been asked to enter into Damon’s pain, but he such a fantastic musician you can’t help but listen on to the next track. HEAR “Diane” to see what I’m describing. I stick to my earlier description that this is a timeless piece of music and am thoroughly impressed by Damon’s ability to make his sound both classic and modern. HEAR “Murder Dull Mind” to really get the best of what Amen Dunes can offer. Beautiful track.

Hear:
Amen Dunes “Murder Dull Mind” This is a great great track.
Amen Dunes “Diane” Haunting sounds from the temple.

Follow Amen Dunes:
MySpace

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