‘Constellations’ is the latest album from Antartica Takes It! and it is released on How Does It Feel To Be Loved?  And as you’d expect from the HDIF stable this is delicate indiepop – that nods at Belle and Sebastian, Motown and Chamber Pop.   It’s also the follow up to 2008′s The Penguin League (also released on HDIF).   Confession time:  I really didn’t get along with that LP and I found it a real mish mash of lo-fi sounds without having anything to draw me in.

So popping ‘Constellations’ on play the other day was done with little expectation.   This should be a rule of thumb for all LPs, I think, because I’ve found myself pleasantly surprised by it.

The LP is a million times better than it’s predecessor – the pop music on show here is clever and clear – the closest sister LP I can think of at the moment is the one I’ve just released by One Happy Island.   Admittedly Antarctica Takes It! pop sound definetely carries more of a 60′s swing to it’s step.   But after only a few plays I am falling more and more for the pop charms on offer here.  Highly recommended.

Links:  My Space | How Does It Feel To Be Loved?

Prize Pets are a four piece from Nottingham.  We won’t hold that against them, either.   Their first single ‘New Weirdos’ has just come out on Sex Is Disgusting.  And I heartily approve.   Lead song – ‘New Weirdos’ is a fantastic song where everything is pushed as loud it can be in the mix.  And what a  fierce mix it is, mashing together distorted rock’n'roll that comes informed by the likes of The Birthday Party and Gallon Drunk with the faintest echoes of mid 80s Butthole Surfers lurking in the back ground like a trippy teenager.

The two B sides are just as good too  with ‘Chocolate Advert’ grinding an incessant Fall-esque riff and ‘Poncho’ is all frantic guitars and frenetic drumming.  Lovely.

I want to hear more of this band.

Links: My Space | Sex Is Disgusting

Dance Magic Dance have put on some fine bands in London over the past 18 months or so.  They have now released their first (I think) compilation cassette.  And what a great noisy thing it is.  This is a lo-fi fuzz fest of guitar goodness that ranges from the sub New York sound of La LA Vasquez to the punk rock racket of the, er The Racket.   Elsewhere are my recent garage rock discoveries Sex Beet and always wonderful French Kissing pop up.   And that’s just side one.  Flip the cassette over and we get the London surf mob One Fathom Down and doomy punkrock sounds of Bo Ningen, to name just two.   Like I said, it’s all awesome stuff, really.   And this little cassette is just £3.  Bargain.

They are having a launch show at The Old Blue Last in London on Saturday 3rd July, too.   I think I might well be there, for that.

Links:  My Space | Twitter | Blog

Kid Canaveral have been away,  for what seems the longest time.   But they’ve not been idly wasting time over the past 12 months the band have been recording their debut LP ‘Shouting At Wildlife’.

It’s a pleasant relief to hear that the band still have the knack of kicking out killer tunes which are instant indie classics (or they should be, if the world would start paying attention).   Their début single ‘Smash Hits’ reappears to remind me of why I first fell for the band.   But this isn’t all dumb pop hooks and dance floor fillers (although they have those by what seems to be the bucket load, too) because elsewhere the band have broadened their sound a little.  The scope on ‘Shouting At Wildlife runs from pop romps to brooding ballads and back to some pop epics.   The Delgados at their prime (early on, then) is a fair comparison.  ‘Shouting At Wildlife’ is set to be one of my LPs of the year.  There are very few current British bands that are getting me this excited.

The band have a single out now, too – ‘You Only Went Out To Get Drunk Last Night’ which can be bought over on bandcamp.   The album hits the shops on 5th July and can be pre-ordered from their website now.

Links:  Bandcamp | My Space | Website | Twitter

Finding it hard getting into the swing of things after a couple months of busy-ness/holidays.   But there are buckets full of wonderful bands that are being stock-piled for this blog.

And jumping to the front of the queue are a new band, to me, Evans The Death.   They’re from Clapham and Chelmsford.   They’ve got big bold songs.   They’ve got their guitars set to jangle and noise.   JANGLE and NOISE.   Did you hear me?  I said JANGLE and NOISE.  This is what gets me going as you may know.  I am also happy to report that the band are not afraid to rock out either.   Their singer, Katherine Whitaker, has a big soaring voice too.   Which helps.  Based on a handful of tunes on My Space I think I am going to like this band.  A lot.

They’ve got two London shows coming up too:

22nd June @ The Macbeth in Shoreditch/Hoxton
9th July @ Baby Honey, The Buffalo Bar, Highbury and Islington.

I think I might just go along to see them.  Why don’t you do the same?

Amelia Fletcher has returned in a big way over the past few years and the latest incarnation of Tender Trap is probably my favourite period of her indiepop career since the heady days of  Talulah Gosh back in the late 80s.   The new video for ‘Do You Want A Boyfriend? ‘ is a lot of fun.  Look, see:

Their new LP, ‘Dansette Dansette’ is coming out on Fortuna Pop on 12th July.  If the LP is of the quality of this song we are in for a treat.

After a nice 3 week break, a long weekend at ATP and then 2 weeks in New York/Boston/New Haven for New York popfest and other assorted pop shows means I have a mountain of stuff to blog about. I came back from the USA with what felt like a suitcase full of CDs/7″‘s and LPs. I aim to post up on the good and great of these over the next week or so. If that wasn’t enough another pack from the ever reliable Hozac Records arrived this morning.

But I’ll start with a video, one of the finds of Popfest for me, was Gold-Bears, from Atlanta, Georgia. I took one video of their show it was their closing song. I’ve got no clue what it’s called but I do know that it is superb. Enjoy!

Trash Kit are probably one of my favourite bands that have emerged over the past few months. They first caught my attention at one of the east London fleapit venues.  And ever since I’ve been looking forward to their debut LP which is released now on Upset The Rhythm.  Indeed they’re holding a release shindig at The Trinity in Dalston this coming Saturday (24th April).

I found the LP the other day on Emusic to download.  Nothing like sneaking a preview before getting my mitts on a physical copy of the LP.   Live you get a trio of  face painted ladies and a bucketful of energy.  And some killer tunes. And luckily all but the face painting has transferred across to their debut record.   The band are obviously influenced by a whole bunch of post punk trailblazers – think The Slits and some of the more awkward rhythmed mid 80s counterparts – maybe even a dash of Adam Ant or Bow Wow Wow with the hypnotic drums.    This tribal near funk punk is anything but dated.  Songs come and go often in short rapid bursts of noise with little obvious pop structure – but it is the incessant rhythms that pull you in from the off and then some writhing guitars take hold and before you know you are hooked.

The LP sounds fresh and exciting and it’s easily going to feature in many year end top lists.  Well, it will in mine, for sure.   And I am sure others will pick up on Trash Kit and their dizzying sound.  I like.

Links: Trash Kit | Upset The Rhythm

Listening to Marc Riley today, he played a song from The European.  As you do when half paying attention to the radio – I didn’t catch it all.  But by the end of the song (In a Very Real Sense Now) I was scrambling onto google to see what more I can find out about the band.  It turns out a New LP (debut?) has just been released on Stolen Recordings.  I couldn’t wait so got the songs from iTunes, with a vinyl order to arrive in due course too.   I haven’t been able to find out much about The European apart from what is written on the Stolen Recordings web page:

THE EUROPEAN is a new solo project from musician, artist and software designer Simon Break (formerly of ICEBREAKER INTERNATIONAL and PIANO MAGIC). Influenced by classic pop, computer music, seventies minimalism and vintage blues and folk, THE EUROPEAN rejects the staple pop subject matter of romance and facile self-actualisation in favour of themes of compromise, frustration, psychosexual angst and cultural confusion.

And who am I to disagree.  Stolen have good taste and this LP is rather wonderful.  Sparse electronic pop with a warm heartbeat.  I’ve only played it once through and it sounds like a lot of things – but no one influence looms large.  If that makes sense.  It’s rather hypnotic and quite wonderful.  You can hear the electronic pop of Kraftwerk (and a host of others that followed in Kraftwerks wake in the early 80s) and classic pop leanings of bands like The Magnetic Fields.   But this doesn’t actually sound like either of those bands – but you can hear their influence below the surface.  That’s not to mention the feeling on the album closer ‘Tearaway’ you are listening to an out-there version of Abba. Like I said,  this is just a wonderful album and it’s sure to be getting a lot of plays around these parts for the foreseeable future.

Links:  The European | Stolen Recordings

In the helter skelter world of indiepop you’ve got to be paying attention or you might just miss something important.  And it seems I wasn’t 100% on the ball.  Why?   Read on:

Last year, one of my favourite records was a 7″ called ‘Blue Genes’ on Slumberland by a band called The Champagne Socialists – I even gave the 7″ a glowing review on this here blog.   So I was little surprised to hear Neverever when doing the weekend dig on My Space as they’re a band I’ve not heard of and they’re playing New York Popfest.   It fast becomes apparent that Neverever are The Champagne Socialists, renamed.   This is exciting news beecause I really want to see this band and now due to the magic of Popfest I will.

As I’ve stated before the band are magic blend of indiepop, classic 50s/60s pop,  TVP’s and that ever so now Brooklyn sound.  I like it and  I want more.   And soon I will get to see whether they are as exhilarating live as they’re recorded songs suggest.

And if you want a sure fire way to hear a whole host of New York Popfest bands their blog has put together a little popfest mix, featuring 17 songs by bands that will be playing the popfest.

Links: New York Popfest | Neverever