i hate the sound of guitars

Fugazi Edits is a collection of brief compositions entirely sourced from instrumental samples from Fugazi albums (with permission). I love it almost unreservedly and it’s already one of the albums I’ve played most this year.
It’s clearly not for everybody — I’ve seen some harsh reviews — but it’s definitely for me. Is it for you? [...]

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The backstory (since you probably weren’t paying attention): Hussalonia is basically one dude writing, performing, recording, and releasing willfully eclectic music; he’s been at it for a while and he’s gotten really good at all aspects of it. 2010 started as the “Year of Hussalonia” with a new album/EP every month, including lotsa awesome [...]

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Holy crap, I haven’t written about Mixtapes before? Really!? I have literally listened to this band more than any other artist this year.
Mixtapes live in a weird intersection between well-produced pop-punk and lo-fi indie pop. On the one hand they have a fatter drum sound than I expect from low-budget indies; on the other, [...]

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On the A-side, Lemuria offer two more examples of the smart, catchy, indie rock that’s made Pebble one of my most-played albums of the year so far. I expected their side to be swell, and it delivers. But the revelation here for me is Cheap Girls’ “Pure Hate.” I’m not quite sure what “And I/Keep [...]

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Hard to slot this into a specific genre, it’s not very “rock” (not in the least “rawk”), largely (but not exclusively electronic). It’s the sort of record in which choices of “which instrument voices this part” seem driven more by sonic coloration than by personnel. There’s a lot going on if you pay close attention [...]

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Department of cheap shots: Does this sound more like Joy Division circa Closer, or like New Order circa Movement? Okay, I’ll concede some Chameleons UK in the mix, too. But the album cover sure screams “Factory!”:

vs., for instance:

p.s. It’s not bad. Just shameless. And the album cover tends to make me discount the “these folks [...]

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New Order would decidely have struck me as a useful point of reference for Idle Labor even if the cover art didn’t recall Power, Corruption & Lies. As it is, I’m wondering if they want to get threatening letters from some lawyer. Craft Spells’ flowers are less gloomy, of course, and so is their music. [...]

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When I heard “The Heron and the Fox,” it knocked me out. In that subtly arranged song, lovely finger-picked guitar and an extraordinary vocal performance from Little Scream leader Laurel Sprengelmeyer (delicate to the point of fragiliy, with unusual phrasing) unite to deliver a narrative that’s intriguing but ultimately obscure. It’s probably the strongest composition, [...]

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The Long Tangles have coined a term to encompass the many husband and wife indie pop/rock outfits: matrimony rock. Their take puts wife Courtney Han’s vocals and the keys (piano, specifically, on many tunes) way out front. I find it quite pleasant, if a little unassuming (a lot less thorny than, say, Quasi). Hans’ voice [...]

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If I didn’t know The Naked and Famous were from New Zealand I’d be positive they were Canadian. It’s not that they sound specifically like, say, Arcade Fire or Metric, but they combine modern indie rock, new wave, and just a smidge of disco in simpatico proportions. The Naked and Famous add a goodly quantity [...]

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