Broken Bells is the new alt-rock project of Brian Burton (aka Danger Mouse) and James Mercer of the Shins. By now you’ve probably heard their single ‘The High Road’, taken from their self-titled debut album released in the UK last week (on 08 March).

I am totally digging their sound that recalls the expansiveness of the Eagles, psychedelia of the late ’60s, the great falsettos from ’70s disco, and even ’80s video game blips. The two met at Roskilde Festival in 2004 and discovered they were fans of each other’s work. They worked in secret on new music until September 2009, when they finally revealed their new project.

Here’s a live performance of their groovy ‘The Ghost Inside’ on American telly’s ‘Late Night with Jimmy Fallon’ earlier this month. It even features trippy lighting!

Broken Bells’s self-titled debut album is available now from Columbia Records.

From accounts I’ve heard so far, We Were Promised Jetpacks have been wowing audiences across North America on their latest tour, which just wrapped up on 15 March. And at these shows, singer Adam Thompson has been referring to “our new EP” which is called ‘The Last Place You’ll Look’ and will be released digitally in the UK on 12 April. I’ve seen the Scottish quartet twice now and really love the immediacy of their debut album, ‘These Four Walls’. So I’ve been itching to get my hands on their new material.

‘A Far Cry’, the first song on the new EP, sounds like the Jetpacks’s “going to war” song. Darren Lackie’s drumming on the song should bring everyone to attention. The spare guitars from Thompson, guitarist Michael Palmer and bassist Sean Smith in the lyric-less ‘The Walls are Wearing Thin’ are proof that these Scots are technically dextrous with their instruments. They put in good effort with ‘With the Benefit of Hindsight’; the only problem with the track is that in the joy of putting horns with their usual backing, Thompson’s vocals are muddled and lost in the mix. For me, his powerful vocals are a central source of power in the band’s songs, so it’s the one disappointment I have with this EP.

Two of the songs should be familiar to WWPJ fans: for this EP, ‘Short Bursts’ and ‘This is My House, This is My Home’ have been reworked and give way to amazing results. An uncle of mine once asked me what they sounded like, and at a loss of how to describe their hard-hitting live sound I said, vaguely, “uh…punk? Rock-ish?” But you’d never think of these songs as punk. The re-do of ‘Short Bursts’ is less raw, warmer. And the new version of ‘This is My House…’ is slowed down, with added strings and Thompson’s emotional Scottish brogue coming together to feel like your mother wrapping you in a warm blanket. Lovely. While this EP is a good stop-gap between albums, it’s made me look forward to their sophomore effort and hope that they’ll be able to take the maturity evidenced in this EP and combine it winningly with the ‘These Four Walls’ laddishness.

As alluded to in my Rock ‘n’ Roll Hotel gig review last month, I couldn’t buy this EP at the show because the merchandise table had disappeared from its post before I could get over there. And I’ve found out why I couldn’t find information on the physical release of the new EP: the physical format will only be available at their shows this year, so word to the wise: if you’re like me and prefer physical CDs, be sure to see them live and buy this great EP in person.

7/10

We Were Promised Jetpacks’s new EP, ‘The Last Place You’ll Look’, will be released digitally by Fat Cat Records on 12 April and can be pre-ordered now. The physical format of the EP will be available exclusively at the band’s live shows this year.

Yes, you’re probably fed up of going on and on about Blog Off!? This Saturday night – Theregoesthefear’s first gig night at London’s Roundhouse with Victoria & Jacob, Jazica and Starlings all playing.

We were all geared up for Saturday night. Then a friend mentioned about the lack of between set entertainment, so rather than the classic “pop the ipod on shuffle” trick, we asked a few friends, dug around, called in a few favours and managed to blag the rather fantabulous Ou Est Le Swimming Pool to DJ between sets. Yes, that’s right, the same Ou Est Le Swimming Pool that finished in our top “10 for 2010″ poll last year. The same Ou Est Le Swimming Pool that are supporting La Roux in a few months. Oh yes.

So, if you’re at a loss as to what to do on Saturday night, why not pop down to Camden’s Roundhouse studios to catch some ace live music? doors are at 7:30pm on 20th March 2010 and tickets are on sale now for those of you that like a discount and planning ahead – they’re just £5 now and will be £6 on the door. Or, if you don’t fancy paying, you can win one of two pairs of tickets to the event here.

You can order your tickets now on the Roundhouse’s website, or join the Facebook event.

If you’re a fan of electropop and NOT a fan of JLS, then you’ll love Hot Chip’s hilarious new video for ‘I Feel Better.’ The video takes place at a gig for a boy band that looks an awful lot like JLS, and is pretty straightforward until a man in a white robe floats in and starts shooting lasers from his mouth…don’t ask me to explain, I don’t get it either. I’m not usually a fan of music videos that put sound effects over the song, but it works in this case. Directed by actor/comedian Peter Serafinowicz, it’s as entertaining as it is random. Check it out below:

‘I Feel Better’ is the second single from Hot Chip’s latest album, ‘One Life Stand.’ Check out Mary’s review of the album here.

‘Listener friendly’ may be a cliché way of describing the homegrown songs by Fraser Gregory, folk-pop singer of London band Fraser. But it’s also one that certainly works. As a self-professed ponderer I think a lot of the themes are quite personal. The single, for example, talks about the need to be straight up in relationships, the times when you have to put your cards on the table and be upfront about things, even if it means losing the thing you love.

Gregory admits that a majority of the songs written for his band’s debut album, ‘A Garden At The Top Of The Tree’ are filled with a ’sense of contemplation’ – be it love, life and the universal mysteries that practically any human can relate to.

Perhaps that’s one of the best qualities about this 10-track album, the fact that anyone can understand it and come to love it. Pop fans will indulge its accessibility, indie fans will adore its originality, and folk fans will enjoy its melodies.

Let’s not forgot soul either. There’s plenty of that flowing throughout the album, too. For starters, the band’s first and radio-friendly single, ‘Lay It On The Line’, explores the importance of transparency – regardless of the outcome – when it comes to relationships.

If the electro-elements blended with the catchy melodies, don’t grab at you, then the following track, ‘Laughter’, definitely will. Another standout track, it’s is the type of song that stirs a double take, simply because it’s so good. Sure, that’s a pretty elementary way of describing it, but sometimes there are not enough adjectives to give a song the justice it deserves. Think of a less cheesy James Taylor on vocals, an infectious riff, layered on top of a glorious melody. See, I warned you it would be a lame description.

And just as in life, there are plenty of highs and lows echoing throughout the album, a teeter-tooter of emotion if you will. Songs like ‘Let It Rain’ and the string-laden, Snow Patrol-esque ‘Old Tree’ offer a sincere mellowness that is somber yet likeable.

The smoothness of the album continues with the rockier and edginess of ‘Bouboulina Sunshine’, which if you’re still living in the ‘60s, you may regard it as some obscure bside from the Liverpool Fab Four. Again, the recycled theme of ‘accessible’ is what highlights this track as an album standout.

Overall, Fraser is set to release a polished album that is filled with emotion and creativity that anyone with blood flowing in their veins will understand. Get ready, this band carries the goods to conquer the world.

You’ve probably heard us wittering on about the amazing night of joy and great tunes, Blog Off!? that happens THIS SATURDAY (yes, 20th March 2010). We’ve got Victoria & Jacob, Jazica and Starlings all playing, and a few extra surprises coming too.

And, although they’re going like hot cakes, we’ve held back four tickets (that’s two pairs for two lucky people) to win.

All you have to do is leave your name and email below and we’ll pick two winners at random. We’ll close the competition mid Saturday morning most likely, and we’ll email the winners.

So what are you waiting for? Enter below and we’ll get in touch if you’re a winner!

If you don’t win, doors are at 7:30pm on 20th March 2010 and tickets are on sale now for those of you that like a discount and planning ahead – they’re just £5 now and will be £6 on the door.

You can order your tickets now on the Roundhouse’s website, or join the Facebook event.

I’ll admit it. I had never heard post-rock band Kyte before, but I’ll blame that on location more than anything else. Now that I’ve had the fine opportunity to review their upcoming album, Dead Waves, I’m just as curious to delve into their back catalog and discover even more of their ambiguous beauty. This four-piece band hailing from Leicestershire delivers an addictive dose of lush sounds and atmospheric pop that will leave you craving more.

Needless to say, Dead Waves isn’t the type of album you’d put on before hitting the town for a wild night out, although it certainly will come in handy if you’re feeling delicate the following the morning. Still, the album can also be enjoyed even if you’re not wallowing in post-hangover stooper.

The band have been compared to Sigur Ros and Snow Patrol for their sweeping, broad-ranging sounds and pure melodies, but there also tends to be a major parallel to fellow English band Athlete, especially with “You’re Alone Tonight” and “Designed For Damage”, which leans heavily on electro-pop and melodic bliss.

The twelve-song album may seem like a lengthy amount to the iTunes generation, yet the infectious pop and smooth mellowness ebbs and flows throughout the LP gives an impression you’re surfing upon an ocean with steady waves, rather than dead ones as the album title suggests.
As the album progresses, another striking aspect that the band does so seemingly well is balance earnest lyrics against a rising backdrop of percussion and building guitars. This kind of sober intensity is heard through standout tracks “Like She Said” and “Each Life Critical.”

Kyte is the type of band that can draw the most casual listener in with the first song and make them a mega fan by the end of the album. Or at least that’s what seems to have happened with me anyway. Immediately following the band’s 7 ½ minute closer and album title Dead Waves, I had the strong urge of listening to the album all over again. I have a feeling I’m not the only who will pine for another round of listening.

Kyte’s Dead Waves is released on KIDS on 19th April 2010 on CD and Download.

Singer-Songwriters are everywhere. Everyone has, at somepoint in their life dreamt of being able to pick up a guitar, strum away and pull that girl or guy with an amazing song, or leading thousands of people in a singalong. Very few actually manage to make a career out of it. Even fewer are actually good, all round musicians and entertainers. Tom McRae is one of this rare and dying species, and I caught him last night at Bristol’s O2 Academy.

I’ve caught Tom a few times before, having been enchanted by him on the Hotel Cafe tour around the UK, where he was funny, entertaining and above all had some gut-wrenching songs that I so loved. We’re not talking the usual tales of failed relationships, oh no, we’re talking death, decay and pain of the nth degree. Yet somehow you leave a Tom McRae show feeling optimistic, positive even, despite the mass sing alongs of “It’s the end of the world…” (in old favourite ‘End Of The World News (Dose Me Up)’).

With his dry sense of humour, Tom observed that his (surprisingly excellent) cover of Rihanna’s Umbrella (which he referred to as his “Tombrella”) got bigger cheers than any of his other songs so far, asking the audience to send in ideas for other merchandise (so far they’ve had a McRadio (that only plays bad news), McRaybans (that always give the darker side of life) and the Tombrella (that lets you have the shade even on the sunniest day)).

Acknowledging fully that commercial success has largely eluded him, he takes pimping his merchandise to a whole new level, past shameful and back around to highly amusing, flogging tea towels, posters and CDs like there’s no tomorrow. If Tom ever gives up the music biz there is most likely a job going for him as a comedian – his tales about touring around the UK (“I only remember doing Leeds Girls Grammar School on that tour…”) and comparing releasing singles to being like raising Orang-utans (don’t ask, you probably had to be there to understand) are both hilarious and a great respite from the melancholy of his tracks..

Opening the set with some songs of his new album, The Alphabet of Hurricanes, I will admit I was concerned that, at 40, he’d gone all “rock” on us in a mid life crisis, however you quickly realise that lyrical content is still the same sort of stuff. I personally far prefer his earlier three albums, however the songs from his latest two (“King of Cards” and “Alphabet of Hurricanes”) are by no stretch “go to the bar” / “talk to a mate” / “go to the loo” material – they’re just as valid set additions. I’m a fan of the sadder tales, the melancholy and the woe, but that might just be due to other issues in my life at the moment. Songs like ‘Walking to Hawaii’, ‘Hidden Camera Show’, ‘My Vampire Heart’ and ‘End Of The World News (Dose Me Up)’ never get old, songs that I’ve grown up with and will always treasure.

Opening up was Texan Brian Wright who also plays guitar supporting Tom, and his set was a strong set of guitar tales, which would be ace if only we had a camp fire to sit around and a few less idiots talking through the whole set.

Tom McRae’s tour finishes tonight at London’s Scala, which is sold out, before Tom hits Europe for a few weeks of shows. If you get a chance, make sure you catch the talented Essex troubadour somewhere in the future – trust me, it’ll be one of the best shows of your life, and if it’s not I’ll pay for your ticket. Can’t say fairer than that, eh?

Read our interview with Tom McRae here.

French band Phoenix are on a roll. Earlier this year, their latest album ‘Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix’ won the Grammy for Best Alternative Album, handily beating out albums by David Byrne and Brian Eno, Death Cab for Cutie, Depeche Mode and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. They quickly sold out an April date at D.C.’s Constitution Hall – not bad for a band that played a small club the last time they visited our fair city. And they’ve already announced a handful of summer festival appearances, with more on the way I’m sure.

Check out the band’s recent live performance ‘Lisztomania’ at Los Angeles’s Wiltern from American late night programme ‘Last Call with Carson Daly’.

Cymbals Eat Guitars seem to be spending a lot of time in Britain, having played a series of dates in the UK in February in addition to opening for the Flaming Lips during Wayne Coyne’s band’s London residency last November. But earlier this month they started their first major headlining tour of North America in Philadelphia. The second date of the tour was a sold-out show on 06 March at D.C.’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Hotel. (If you’re interested, I had a brief question and answer session with their newest member, bassist Matt Whipple, the first week of March, and you can read it here.)

The two openers for the night were fellow New York bands – the electro-folky Freelance Whales and the experimental pop band Bear in Heaven. I’ve had the misfortune of missing out on Freelance Whales twice – once, when D.C. traffic wreaked havoc on me and Mary Beth’s plans to arrive early for the Fanfarlo concert early last December at Iota (when FW was supporting the London folk pop band) and twice, they had sold out the smaller Black Cat Backstage floor when I was on the bigger, upstairs floor covering We Are Scientists.

This Saturday night, the Whales played to an appreciative crowd, many of whom knew and sang along to songs on their forthcoming, self-released debut album ‘Weathervanes’. The band is an interesting juxtaposition of traditional folk (banjo, accordion) and new-fangled instruments (synth and keyboard) as well as the unusual (xylophone, watering can used as percussion). Note: I thought they were great and the current hype around them is insane, you’d be remiss not to at least have a listen.

Bear in Heaven was the wild card of the night for me, not knowing anything about the Brooklyn band. I thoroughly enjoyed the combination of voice, guitars, synth, and drums coming together to create some atmospheric masterpieces that at times could be called rock and at times could be called dance. You would not have guessed this looking at the three men on stage displaying various stages of beard and mustache. Fun stuff like ‘Wholehearted Mess’ surprised me with the band’s brand of experimental dance. (Is that even a genre?)

When 23.30 rolled around and it was time for the headliner Cymbals Eat Guitars, I was feeling a little apprehensive. I hadn’t been in such a testosterone-fueled, excitement-filled room since seeing the Hold Steady at the 9:30 last summer. The quartet’s sound is tight, sounding better than ever. They powered through several of the songs like ‘Under a Hazy Sea’ (featuring Joseph D’Agostino’s emotional vocals and jangly guitar) and the jaunty ‘Indiana’ from their Memphis Industries’s debut ‘Why There Are Mountains’ and played some new ones for us as well.

I’m pretty sure they could have sold out the next biggest venue in town, the Black Cat, but my feeling is that the rock of Cymbals Eat Guitars feels right in a sweaty, packed place like the RnR. The band heads to South by Southwest this week and I’m sure they will wow the Austin crowd just like they wowed us here in D.C.

After the cut: more photos!

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