Tag Archives: Animal Collective

Best New Bands of 2012 HUMMINGBIRD AWARD #4: Alt-J (∆)

26 Dec
Alt-J deserves the Hummingbird Award

Alt-J deserves the Hummingbird Award

Best New Bands of 2012 HUMMINGBIRD AWARD #4: Alt-J (∆)
This might be a record for us, two bands back-to-back from Leeds. First Hey Sholay now Alt-J, although this civic rivalry may be problematic since most of the Hey Sholay lads are from Sheffield…either way, something is brewing in the water and it’s not ale, it’s a penchant for good quality music that leads the pack in some of the best new bands of 2012. We loved Alt-J back in September and we still love the Awesome Wave LP, hell they won a Mercury Prize…not why we loved them, but rarely does a winner of that prize suck. Read the original Uncorking here.
Alt-J is definitely still riding the hang-over of the 2011 layered electronic, dreamy sonic sounds of Animal Collective and Midlake, but at times we hear the timeless Fletwood Mac beauty shine through. Please listen to “Breezeblocks” and tell us you don’t love these guys.

Vitals:
Founded: 2011
Hometown: Leeds, UK
Members: Gwil, Joe Newman [guitar/vocals], Gus Unger-Hamilton [keyboards] and Thom Green [drums] met at Leeds University in 2007
Sonic Soulmates™: Midlake, Nurses, Animal Collective
Trackables™:
“Breezeblocks” – Amazing single

An Awesome Wave

Follow Hey Sholay:
Alt-J Website
Facebook

Hummingbird Awards – ALL YOUR BEST NEW BANDS FROM 2010, 2011 and 2012:

Hummingbird Awards 2012
#12 Rose Elinor Dougall
#11 Fear of Men
#10 The Weeknd
#9 Nude Beach
#8 Class Actress
#7 Johnathon Boulet
#6 DIIV
#5 Hey Sholay
#4 Alt-J (∆)
Hummingbird Awards 2011
Hummingbird Awards 2010

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Best New Bands of 2012 HUMMINGBIRD AWARD #6: DIIV

20 Dec
Hummingbird #6 DIIV...The Real Estate of 2012

Hummingbird #6 DIIV…The Real Estate of 2012

Best New Bands of 2012 HUMMINGBIRD AWARD #6: DIIV

I hesitated with this one, primarily because this band has the buzz right now. But as we debated here we came to the conclusion that our list would be incomplete without DIIV. These Brooklyn boys lit up our headphones early in the year with their break-out track “Sometime”, we heard it all over the blog-o-sphere, Gorilla v Bear, Pitchfork, even in a Converse campaign. DIIV which was forced to change it’s name from Dive, belong in our top 5 of 2011, they have that beachy spacey sound that dominated the Animal Collective trail. They seem to have perfected it though. Zachary Cole Smith of Beach Fossils, a fan favorite of NBD years ago, has taken this band from experimental to the real thing. The greatest comparison we can make here at NBD is that of our band crush Real Estate and The Ark bands of Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear, etc.

Vitals:
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Members:
Zachary Cole Smith
Andrew Bailey
Devin Ruben Perez
Colby Hewitt of Smith Westerns
Sonic Soulmates™: Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear, Real Estate
Trackables™ from her new LP Oshin
Past Lives”, “How Long Have You Known”, and “Doused” a

Follow DIIV:
Facebook
Twitter

Hummingbird Awards – ALL YOUR BEST NEW BANDS FROM 2010, 2011 and 2012:

Hummingbird Awards 2012
#12 Rose Elinor Dougall
#11 Fear of Men
#10 The Weeknd
#9 Nude Beach
#8 Class Actress
#7 Johnathon Boulet
#6 DIIV
Hummingbird Awards 2011
Hummingbird Awards 2010

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UNCORKED™ – Best New Bands of 2012 (9.14.12) Alt-J (∆)

14 Sep
Alt-J is worth the listen. The Leeds lads would rather you call them ∆

Alt-J is worth the listen. The Leeds lads would rather you call them ∆

UNCORKED™ – Best New Bands of 2012 (9.14.12) Alt-J

Leeds, no football club wants to be caught dead playing at Elland Road. You not only risk the punishing play on the field, but the fan abuse is unrivaled. It’s not surprising that a band like (∆), pronounced Alt-J was birthed under that protective shell. They like the culture of the football fans, is one of a kind. Although, they’re not punishing, just lushing…a new word I just made up. It’s hard to pin them to one sound. Maybe they lean a little to the right with Nurses, Animal Collective, or maybe a little more left and Radioheady, but it’s the upbeat almost danceable nature of the music that gets me and the NBDers jazzed. Yes these lads one the Mercury Prize, so it’s not a surprise that they are on our watch list. And by the way F*(K Pitchfork for that craptastic 4.5 review. I feel good when I lis tento tracks like “Something Good” or “Ms” maybe it’s the bells or the strummy guitars. A track ends and I get the same feeling I used to get before an exciting first date with that lady I fawned over. Alt-J is that band that will make your weekend better.

Vitals:
Founded: 2011
Hometown: Leeds, UK
Members: Gwil, Joe Newman [guitar/vocals], Gus Unger-Hamilton [keyboards] and Thom Green [drums] met at Leeds University in 2007
Sonic Soulmates™: Midlake, Nurses, Animal Collective
Trackables™:
“Breezeblocks” – Amazing single

An Awesome Wave

Follow:
Alt-J Website
Facebook

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Band of the Day (9.17.10) Gamble House

17 Sep You will never forget them

BOD (9.17.10) Gamble House

Grizzly Bear sonic twins, Gamble House, hail from the heart of Silverlake, CA. Yeah it took Ben Becker’s stint at NYU to create this masterpiece, but the move to LA solidified them as true rock stars. They are rockers at heart, with clean guitars, classic vocals that rival Animal Collective, Fleet Foxes and Grizzly Bear. I am fan, because they are classically California and they maintain their own sound. Yeah they have The Pet Sound, but they pull at your heartstring in a way you don’t get from the other PSers. Ben Becker, Keith Karman, Ben Cassorla and Brian Mclaughlin make up the sound of Gamble House. They deserve to be signed and they deserve the accolades. Listen to “Bonny Doon” only because the song is beautiful and I love that part of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It’s up there by Boulder Creek and if you have time see a show at The Brookdale. It’s very memorable. See them on tour with Rogue Wave and get these dudes a label deal, they deserve it!!!

Hear:
“Bonny Doon”

Download –> Gamble House – “Bonny Doon”

“Rising Tides”

Download –> Gamble House – “Rising Tides”

Follow:
MySpace
Facebook
Twitter

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Band of the Day (8.27.10) Taken By Trees

27 Aug

BOD (8.27.10) TAKEN BY TREES

I recognize that she’s famous for covering probably one of the greatest rock songs of all time. I recognize that her latest album came out in September 2009. I also recognize that the music industry is a bitch to crack, so I want to refresh all of our memories as to why Taken By Trees is so special. Taken by Trees is Swede, Victoria Bergsman, the former lead singer for the Concretes. She’s recruited bandmates from as far as Pakistan, she’s worked with fellow Swedes Bjorn Yttling and John Eriksson (of Peter Bjorn and John), and her soft supple voice carries the mandolin, zither, guitars, strings or all of them together. The complicated world sounds are perfected and simplified with Victoria’s perfect vocals. Buy her record, tell her you love her and truly make her YOUR NEW FAVORITE BAND!

Hear:
“Greyest Love of All” – I think this might be a nominee for my favorite song of the year.

“My Boys” Yep that’s right, it’s the fantastic Animal Collective song sounding even better with a Jamaican island influence and Victoria’s perfect voice.

Follow:
MySpace
Facebook
TakenByTrees.com

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Band of the Day (8.20.10) Gauntlet Hair

20 Aug

BOD (8.20.10) Gauntlet Hair

Lafayette, CO is not the original home of South Park, no it’s the official birthplace of your new favorite band Gauntlet Hair. Andy R. and Craig Nice, who began making music together when they were 15, seem to have found a groove and we are so very lucky to be able to hear their success. They have The Pet Sound, but they are so much better than the others who attempt it. They are two guys who make layered guitars sound amazing because they add ummmph. Yeah, they make music with power, not sleeping pills. I think they’ve created a whole new approach to today’s sound. They have more of a New Wave approach then the Animal Collective bunch, which gives them an early U2 Boy sound. At first sound, they really have a sonic similarity to Surfer Blood, but there seems to be more depth and I think you’ll be glad you came to NBD today. I’m so glad I stumbled on these guys, because I think you’ll love em. Give em a whirl down below.

Hear:
“I Was Thinking” – I’ve read a good load of blogs about GH and it’s alarming how many people love this track. I admit it’s pretty darn good.

Follow Gauntlet Hair:
MySpace
FaceBook

Buy the new EP on Vinyl here

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HEAR IT: (7.1.10) MATHEMAGIC – “Breaststroke”

1 Jul

HEAR IT: (7.1.10) MATHEMAGIC – I think it’s a perfect summer track. Made for the beach tent, dawn with your loved one and one blanket as you watch the sun go down. It’s dreamy, spacey and a good good next stage of The Pet Sound…I am coining that term for all bands that use The Beach Boys “Pet Sounds” sound…

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Band of the Day (7.1.10) MATHEMAGIC – Happy Canada Day!

1 Jul Canada Rules the Music World

BOD: (7.1.10) MATHEMAGIC – I love Canada Day…I’ve celebrated it several times in Banff, Vancouver and Calgary. It’s a great time, and it’s a dandy excuse for us to celebrate the fact that today’s best music is coming from the Great White North. Arts & Crafts introduced most of us stars and stripers to the scene with Broken Social Scene, Stars, Zeus, etc. It was Arcade Fire from Montreal that owned 2008, and now it’s Mathemagic who will blow your mind. On April 13th they released their Paper Bag EP and it’s wonderful.

Mathemagic is a collaboration of brothers Evan and Dylan Euteneier from Guelph Ontario. Their sonic similarity most resembles that of The Beach Boys, Animal Collective, Washed Out and even a little Toro y Moi.

Follow them on MySpace only.

Members:
evan euteneier
dylan euteneier
karen jacobs
Hometown:
Guelph/Toronto

Tracks:
“Breastroke”

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